The Ethical Assassin by David Liss (2006)
I have generally liked David Liss's writings. I first read The Coffee Trader, when it was first published in 2003, and was absolutely hooked on Liss's historical fiction. The Coffee Trader described the rise of the modern commodities market in 17th Century Amsterdam. With The Ethical Assassin, however, Liss has moved to another genre. If I had read this book first, I would never have touched another book by Liss.
The Ethical Assassin tried to be both a crime novel and a treatise on animal rights. The story takes place in southern Florida in the mid-1980s. Young Lemuel Altick has taken a job as a door-to-door encyclopedia saiesman to earn tuition money for college. His assigned sales territory is a poor trailer park that is adjacent to a malodorous pig farm. Lemuel is about to close on a sale, in fact the check has been written, when his customer and her apparent husband are shot to death.
The hitman or "ethical assassin" informs Lemuel that his name is Melford Kean. He tells Lemuel that he will help him elude the police, but then begins to leave evidence that could frame Lemuel. More bodies begin to pile up and Lemuel finds himself linked to Kean's actions.
Kean is also concerned about the animal research that is being conducted at the research lab just beyond the pig farm. Kean begins talking about his vegan beliefs to Lemuel, which includes ethical treatment of animals. He believes strongly about animal rights, but has no apparent moral compunctions about murdering a human or two.
The author is a vegan, thus the subject matter on animal lives is close to his heart. I am not sure, however, that the direction of this novel is the proper forum for espousing his views. I hope David Liss goes back to writing historical fiction in which he informs the reader of the development of the economic institutions we are familiar with today.
Read: December 28, 2010
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Friday, December 24, 2010
Books Set in Europe: Germany
Every Man Dies Alone, by Hans Fallada (1947; English Translation 2009)
If you read only one book this year, that book should be Every Man Dies Alone, by Hans Fallada. It was originally published in Germany in 1947, but was recently translated and published in English. Every Man Dies Alone is the best book I have read in a long, long time.
The novel was based on a true story of a couple who quietly, but tragically tried to object to Hitler’s regime. The setting is Berlin in early 1941. Otto and Anna Quangel were a quiet middle-aged couple who lived a solitary live. Anna was a housewife and Otto was a furniture factory foreman. Their son and only child was sent off to fight. When the Quangels learn that their son, also named Otto, was killed, they decide to devise a campaign to protest the war, even though they know if they are caught, it will cost them their lives.
The Quangels lived in an apartment building, but they keep to themselves. Other residents of their building include an elderly Jewish woman, a judge who is sympathetic to the Jews, and a low-class Nazi family. The judge does what he can to protect the elderly Jewish woman, although she finds her confinement in his apartment too restrictive. The Nazi family continually enters her apartment to steal her meager belongings. The descriptions of the Quangels neighbors helps to set the scene of the Berlin environment during this period of the war.
Until the death of his son, Otto was non-political. He was not a member of the Nazi Party, which limited his job opportunities, however, he was satisfied being foreman at the factory. As the war deteriorated for the Germans, the factory switched from making furniture to coffins.
After his son’s death, Otto got the idea of writing postcards with containing anti-Nazi sentiments and leaving them around town. When Anna learns of his plan, she initially protests, but then decides to join him in his quiet protest. Each week, Otto and Anna begin dropping their postcards throughout the city. In their quiet way, Otto and Anna are fighting back. Their first card simply read: Mother! The Führer has murdered my son. Mother! The Führer will murder your sons too, he will not stop till he has brought sorrow to every home in the world!
Unknown to Otto and Anna, however, when the postcards are found, they are immediately reported to the Gestapo. Finders of the postcards realize that holding such inflammatory statements places them at risk.
Inspector Escherich is charged with finding the writer of the postcards. In his methodical way he traces where the postcards are located and develops a profile of the writer. Escherich knows that if he fails to find the postcard writer, his own life is in peril, as his boss is a violent Nazi officer who enjoys harming and humiliating.
The real-life Otto and Anna Quangle were Otto and his wife Elsie Hampel. After Elise’s brother was killed in the war, she and her husband began their own postcard campaign. They continued dropping their postcards for two years before they were caught and sentenced to death. Like Otto and Anna, the bulk of their cards were immediately turned over to the Gestapo.
The author, Hans Fallada is an interesting individual in his own right. He apparently wrote Every Man Dies Alone in 24 days after being given a copy of the Hampel’s Gestapo files. Hans Fallada was the pen name for Rudolf Ditzen, a psychologically damaged German writer. As a young man, Fallada and a friend had entered into a suicide pact, whereby each was to fight a duel. The friend was killed, but Fallada was merely injured. The case was quite sensational, hence, when he began to write, he was encouraged to write under a pseudonym.
Every Man Dies Alone is a great testimony to the righteous Germans who protested Hitler’s Germany. The English translation captures the mode of Berlin during this tragic period of German history.
Read: December 24, 2010
If you read only one book this year, that book should be Every Man Dies Alone, by Hans Fallada. It was originally published in Germany in 1947, but was recently translated and published in English. Every Man Dies Alone is the best book I have read in a long, long time.
The novel was based on a true story of a couple who quietly, but tragically tried to object to Hitler’s regime. The setting is Berlin in early 1941. Otto and Anna Quangel were a quiet middle-aged couple who lived a solitary live. Anna was a housewife and Otto was a furniture factory foreman. Their son and only child was sent off to fight. When the Quangels learn that their son, also named Otto, was killed, they decide to devise a campaign to protest the war, even though they know if they are caught, it will cost them their lives.
The Quangels lived in an apartment building, but they keep to themselves. Other residents of their building include an elderly Jewish woman, a judge who is sympathetic to the Jews, and a low-class Nazi family. The judge does what he can to protect the elderly Jewish woman, although she finds her confinement in his apartment too restrictive. The Nazi family continually enters her apartment to steal her meager belongings. The descriptions of the Quangels neighbors helps to set the scene of the Berlin environment during this period of the war.
Until the death of his son, Otto was non-political. He was not a member of the Nazi Party, which limited his job opportunities, however, he was satisfied being foreman at the factory. As the war deteriorated for the Germans, the factory switched from making furniture to coffins.
After his son’s death, Otto got the idea of writing postcards with containing anti-Nazi sentiments and leaving them around town. When Anna learns of his plan, she initially protests, but then decides to join him in his quiet protest. Each week, Otto and Anna begin dropping their postcards throughout the city. In their quiet way, Otto and Anna are fighting back. Their first card simply read: Mother! The Führer has murdered my son. Mother! The Führer will murder your sons too, he will not stop till he has brought sorrow to every home in the world!
Unknown to Otto and Anna, however, when the postcards are found, they are immediately reported to the Gestapo. Finders of the postcards realize that holding such inflammatory statements places them at risk.
Inspector Escherich is charged with finding the writer of the postcards. In his methodical way he traces where the postcards are located and develops a profile of the writer. Escherich knows that if he fails to find the postcard writer, his own life is in peril, as his boss is a violent Nazi officer who enjoys harming and humiliating.
The real-life Otto and Anna Quangle were Otto and his wife Elsie Hampel. After Elise’s brother was killed in the war, she and her husband began their own postcard campaign. They continued dropping their postcards for two years before they were caught and sentenced to death. Like Otto and Anna, the bulk of their cards were immediately turned over to the Gestapo.
The author, Hans Fallada is an interesting individual in his own right. He apparently wrote Every Man Dies Alone in 24 days after being given a copy of the Hampel’s Gestapo files. Hans Fallada was the pen name for Rudolf Ditzen, a psychologically damaged German writer. As a young man, Fallada and a friend had entered into a suicide pact, whereby each was to fight a duel. The friend was killed, but Fallada was merely injured. The case was quite sensational, hence, when he began to write, he was encouraged to write under a pseudonym.
Every Man Dies Alone is a great testimony to the righteous Germans who protested Hitler’s Germany. The English translation captures the mode of Berlin during this tragic period of German history.
Read: December 24, 2010
Books Set In the United States: Louisiana
The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc, by Loraine Depres (2001)
I read this book in August 2010, but somehow its review didn't make it to the list on time.
The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc reinforces southern stereotypes. The story begins in the mid-1950s in the fictitious town of Gentry, Louisiana. Sissy LeBlanc is a bored housewife and mother of three children. Her husband, whom she married straight out of high school, is emotionally and sexually distant. The family is struggling to survive.
Suddenly one summer’s day, Sissy’s high school boyfriend, Parker Davidson, appears back in town. For the past 14 years, Davidson has been traveling about the world. He apparently made a fortune only to have it taken from him by a dishonest business partner. He returns to Gentry with no money and takes a job as a lineman for the company. Soon Sissy and Parker are an item again. Although her husband, PeeWee is a cockhold, her young children are aware of the budding relationship between their mother and the handsome stranger, who is gratuitously Jewish, so that the townsfolks can call him anti-Semitic names. (Some of which were new terms to me.)
Sissy lives in the shadow of her older brother’s death who died in 1941, at a time when Sissy was a young teenager and very vulnerable. Her brother’s death was followed by her mother’s illness and subsequence death. The emotional upheaval lead Sissy into the arms of Bourrée LeBlanc, the evil and cruel man who would become her father-in-law. Although Sissy is initially infatuated with Bourrée, after he uses her, he tosses her away. Then one night, he rapes her. She when she becomes pregnant and turns to Bourrée, he brings her a woman for a back-alley abortion. Realizing that this could kill her, she runs away and convinces PeeWee, Bourrée’s son to marry her. He believes that he is the father of Sissy’s oldest son.
Meanwhile, the powerful white men in town are secretly carrying on with their black mistresses. The illegitimate daughter of Sissy’s uncle and his black mistress is a young woman who looks just like Sissy. When Parker Davidson can’t have Sissy, he sleeps with the next best thing ~ Sissy’s black cousin.
Things finally come to a head when PeeWee realizes that his wife has not been faithful. Oh yes, and since this is a southern town, there is the obligatory gun. Someone is going to be killed.
The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc is the first in a trilogy by Loraine Despres. I think I’ll skip the other two books in the series.
Read: August 21, 2010
I read this book in August 2010, but somehow its review didn't make it to the list on time.
The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc reinforces southern stereotypes. The story begins in the mid-1950s in the fictitious town of Gentry, Louisiana. Sissy LeBlanc is a bored housewife and mother of three children. Her husband, whom she married straight out of high school, is emotionally and sexually distant. The family is struggling to survive.
Suddenly one summer’s day, Sissy’s high school boyfriend, Parker Davidson, appears back in town. For the past 14 years, Davidson has been traveling about the world. He apparently made a fortune only to have it taken from him by a dishonest business partner. He returns to Gentry with no money and takes a job as a lineman for the company. Soon Sissy and Parker are an item again. Although her husband, PeeWee is a cockhold, her young children are aware of the budding relationship between their mother and the handsome stranger, who is gratuitously Jewish, so that the townsfolks can call him anti-Semitic names. (Some of which were new terms to me.)
Sissy lives in the shadow of her older brother’s death who died in 1941, at a time when Sissy was a young teenager and very vulnerable. Her brother’s death was followed by her mother’s illness and subsequence death. The emotional upheaval lead Sissy into the arms of Bourrée LeBlanc, the evil and cruel man who would become her father-in-law. Although Sissy is initially infatuated with Bourrée, after he uses her, he tosses her away. Then one night, he rapes her. She when she becomes pregnant and turns to Bourrée, he brings her a woman for a back-alley abortion. Realizing that this could kill her, she runs away and convinces PeeWee, Bourrée’s son to marry her. He believes that he is the father of Sissy’s oldest son.
Meanwhile, the powerful white men in town are secretly carrying on with their black mistresses. The illegitimate daughter of Sissy’s uncle and his black mistress is a young woman who looks just like Sissy. When Parker Davidson can’t have Sissy, he sleeps with the next best thing ~ Sissy’s black cousin.
Things finally come to a head when PeeWee realizes that his wife has not been faithful. Oh yes, and since this is a southern town, there is the obligatory gun. Someone is going to be killed.
The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc is the first in a trilogy by Loraine Despres. I think I’ll skip the other two books in the series.
Read: August 21, 2010
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Books Set in England: Victorian London
A Dangerous Fortune, by Ken Follett (1993)
A Dangerous Fortune was the first book that I read on an e-reader. I don’t believe, however, the medium used to read this book influenced my feeling of the book. I was disappointed in this Follett novel. I found it too much of a formula book ~ the villain with no conscious, who takes what he wants without regard for others, the wealthy family with its poor relatives, and the humiliation of those with less.
The novel begins at a wealthy private English academy by the mysterious drowning of Peter Middleton in a quarry near the school. Edward Pilaster and Mickey Miranda, a South American, who are two years older than Peter know more about his death than they let on. The death sets the backdrop of the rest of the novel.
The Pilasters are a wealthy banking dynasty. Hugh’s father was the black sheep of the family, who went off on his own. When his business went bankrupt, he killed himself, leaving his family as the poor relations of the Pilaster family. Hugh, however, is a talented banker in his own right. He goes to work for the family business, but is given no favors for being a family member. Edward, however, is a different story. He has no head for business, but is ultimately made a senior partner.
Edward’s mother, Augusta, is very social conscious and schemes have her husband become a Lord. She is sexually attracted to Mickey Miranda, although she doesn’t act on her impulses. Mickey has led her to believe that Edward is responsible for Peter’s drowning, although the official story is that Edward tried to save Peter.
Follett spent a considerable focus on the romantic relationships of the major characters. There is the obligatory anti-Semitism with a rival banker who is Jewish. Augusta schemes to see that he is denied a place in parliament due to his religious background. In addition, Follett spends a considerable amount of time spent on sexual relationships between the major characters and the women of the brothel. The major characters are in loveless marriages so frequent the brothels. Edward, it seems is a closet homosexual, who is only able to have relations when Mickey is present.
A Dangerous Fortune does not hold a candle to Follett’s sagas, Pillars of the Earth, or The World Without End.
Read: December 7, 2010
A Dangerous Fortune was the first book that I read on an e-reader. I don’t believe, however, the medium used to read this book influenced my feeling of the book. I was disappointed in this Follett novel. I found it too much of a formula book ~ the villain with no conscious, who takes what he wants without regard for others, the wealthy family with its poor relatives, and the humiliation of those with less.
The novel begins at a wealthy private English academy by the mysterious drowning of Peter Middleton in a quarry near the school. Edward Pilaster and Mickey Miranda, a South American, who are two years older than Peter know more about his death than they let on. The death sets the backdrop of the rest of the novel.
The Pilasters are a wealthy banking dynasty. Hugh’s father was the black sheep of the family, who went off on his own. When his business went bankrupt, he killed himself, leaving his family as the poor relations of the Pilaster family. Hugh, however, is a talented banker in his own right. He goes to work for the family business, but is given no favors for being a family member. Edward, however, is a different story. He has no head for business, but is ultimately made a senior partner.
Edward’s mother, Augusta, is very social conscious and schemes have her husband become a Lord. She is sexually attracted to Mickey Miranda, although she doesn’t act on her impulses. Mickey has led her to believe that Edward is responsible for Peter’s drowning, although the official story is that Edward tried to save Peter.
Follett spent a considerable focus on the romantic relationships of the major characters. There is the obligatory anti-Semitism with a rival banker who is Jewish. Augusta schemes to see that he is denied a place in parliament due to his religious background. In addition, Follett spends a considerable amount of time spent on sexual relationships between the major characters and the women of the brothel. The major characters are in loveless marriages so frequent the brothels. Edward, it seems is a closet homosexual, who is only able to have relations when Mickey is present.
A Dangerous Fortune does not hold a candle to Follett’s sagas, Pillars of the Earth, or The World Without End.
Read: December 7, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Books Set in Europe: 18th Century England
The Elephant Keeper, by Christopher Nicholson (2009)
The Elephant Keeper is narrated by Tom Page, a young man who was hired to mind the horses for a wealthy landowner in England in the late 1700s. When his master purchases two Indian elephants, Tom is put in charge of these large, exotic beasts. The elephants had been transported to England, crated in large boxes and arrived near death. Tom learns to tend these animals with love. Tom devotes his entire life to "his" elephants, forgoing the love of a woman who might have been a good companion for him.
Tom gives the elephants names ~ Timothy and Jenny. No one in England knows anything about elephants, and Tom, who is barely literate, is asked to write a history of elephants, thus the book is Tom’s “history” of his elephants.
Early on, Tom observes that Timothy periodically has hormonal episodes that render him very dangerous and uncontrollable. Eventually, the elephants are sold separately. Tom stays with Jenny and moves to another wealthy landowner, Lord Bidborough. Tom and Jenny live happily on Lord Bidborough’s estate. Tom learns that elephants are very intelligent and teaches Jenny lots of tricks.
Lord Bidborough son and heir, however, is malicious. He mistreats people, especially woman, and the elephants. After the son rapes one of the lower-class young women, following an outing in which he demanded that Tom and Jenny provide the transportation, he (the heir) turns up dead. Jenny does not forget those who mistreat her.
After the death of Lord Bidborough, Tom and Jenny find themselves in a traveling circus. Tom’s narrative is not only about the life of an elephant, but also a portrait of life in England in the 18th Century. It shows a cross-section of life among the gentry as well as those struggling to make a living.
The Elephant Keeper starts out slowly. It took a while for me to concentrate on the story, but about a third of the way, this book just opened up and was a real gift. The Elephant Keeper is an amazing first novel by Christopher Nicholson.
Read: November 8, 2010
The Elephant Keeper is narrated by Tom Page, a young man who was hired to mind the horses for a wealthy landowner in England in the late 1700s. When his master purchases two Indian elephants, Tom is put in charge of these large, exotic beasts. The elephants had been transported to England, crated in large boxes and arrived near death. Tom learns to tend these animals with love. Tom devotes his entire life to "his" elephants, forgoing the love of a woman who might have been a good companion for him.
Tom gives the elephants names ~ Timothy and Jenny. No one in England knows anything about elephants, and Tom, who is barely literate, is asked to write a history of elephants, thus the book is Tom’s “history” of his elephants.
Early on, Tom observes that Timothy periodically has hormonal episodes that render him very dangerous and uncontrollable. Eventually, the elephants are sold separately. Tom stays with Jenny and moves to another wealthy landowner, Lord Bidborough. Tom and Jenny live happily on Lord Bidborough’s estate. Tom learns that elephants are very intelligent and teaches Jenny lots of tricks.
Lord Bidborough son and heir, however, is malicious. He mistreats people, especially woman, and the elephants. After the son rapes one of the lower-class young women, following an outing in which he demanded that Tom and Jenny provide the transportation, he (the heir) turns up dead. Jenny does not forget those who mistreat her.
After the death of Lord Bidborough, Tom and Jenny find themselves in a traveling circus. Tom’s narrative is not only about the life of an elephant, but also a portrait of life in England in the 18th Century. It shows a cross-section of life among the gentry as well as those struggling to make a living.
The Elephant Keeper starts out slowly. It took a while for me to concentrate on the story, but about a third of the way, this book just opened up and was a real gift. The Elephant Keeper is an amazing first novel by Christopher Nicholson.
Read: November 8, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Books Set in the United States
The Sabbath World: Glimpses of a Different Order of Time by Judith Shulevitz (2010).
The Sabbath is not just a holy day of rest. It is also a concept of a less pressured and purer world.
Judith Shulevitz describes her own reckoning with the Sabbath by exploring the concepts of the Jewish and Christian sabbaths. How the sabbath is celebrated changes throughout time. It's origins come from Torah, Talmud and Christian Gospels. Various religious doctrines have imposed harsh penalties on those who fail to rest on the Sabbath, yet other views perceive the Sabbath as being made for man's reflection on life.
This book is an interesting meditation of the meaning of a day of rest. It is somewhat scholarly and not an easy read.
Read: October 2010.
The Sabbath is not just a holy day of rest. It is also a concept of a less pressured and purer world.
Judith Shulevitz describes her own reckoning with the Sabbath by exploring the concepts of the Jewish and Christian sabbaths. How the sabbath is celebrated changes throughout time. It's origins come from Torah, Talmud and Christian Gospels. Various religious doctrines have imposed harsh penalties on those who fail to rest on the Sabbath, yet other views perceive the Sabbath as being made for man's reflection on life.
This book is an interesting meditation of the meaning of a day of rest. It is somewhat scholarly and not an easy read.
Read: October 2010.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Books Set in Europe: Germany and Poland
Skeletons at the Feast, by Chris Bohjalian (2008)
Skeletons at the Feast is the first book by Chris Bohjalian that I have ever read. I was quite taken by this book and the author’s writing style. This novel takes place at the end of World War II and describes the flight of the Germans from Prussia as the Russian army invades. The author gained access to the diary of a neighbor’s grandmother who had experienced first-hand the flight as the Russian army marched through Poland.
The novel tells the story from three perspectives ~ a wealthy German family living in Prussia traveling with a Scottish POW caught behind enemy lines; Cecile, a Jewish woman in a concentration camp; and a renegade Jew who essentially wills himself to survive the war.
The Emmerich’s, the German, tried to ignore and downplay the horrific events of the war. Living on the family estate are Mutti, the mother, Rolf, the father, their 18-year old twins, Anna and Helmut, and 10-year old Theo. Their oldest son is already off fighting for the Reich.
Mutti convinces herself that the German cause will prevail. She has hung a portrait of the fuehrer in her parlor, but apparently doesn’t fully understand or appreciate what the fuerher stands for. Rolf, however, has a better understanding of what is going on. He convinces his wife that they must flee to Germany before the Russian army reaches their country estate. He and Anna tell Mutti that they have buried the family silverware and will retrieve it when they return. In fact, however, in the middle of January 1945, the ground is too frozen solid. Both Anna and her father know that returning to the family home is not a reality.
The family gathers what belongings it can and sets off. Traveling with the Emmerich's, although hidden under the food supplies in their wagon, is Callum Finella, the Scottish paratrooper and prisoner of war who had been assisting on the family farm. Their motive for taking Callum, however, it not altogether altruistic. The father hopes that by having the POW with them, Callum will buy them safety from the Allied army. Unbeknownst to the rest of the family, Anna and Callum have become lovers. Soon, however, the father and Helmut decide to turn around to fight the Russian army. Mutti, Anna Theo continue on alone towards Germany.
A second perspective of the events is Cecile, a French Jewish prisoner in a concentration/work camp. In the final months of the War, the Germans attempted to erase signs of the concentration and work camps. Cecile was in a group of women who were marched from such a camp. Cecile came from a privileged family who attributed her survival to her hiking boots.
The novel also follows Uri Singer. He and his family had been rounded up and forced into a rail car for transport to Auschwitz. Uri managed to escape and, after killing a Nazi soldier, passes as a German. Knowing that his family has likely been killed, Uri does everything possible to survive to tell their tale. He becomes a chameleon, changing names and identities with alarming frequency. He takes the uniforms and names of various German soldiers who he kills when they cross his path. Uri is obsessed with his sister, from whom he was separated from when they were forced into the rail car. He ultimately ends up joining the Emmerichs’ on their trek. Although he doesn’t reveal his true identity, he begins go find comfort with this German family.
Skeletons at the Feast explores questions not often seen in Holocaust novels. Did civilians really know what was going on in Germany? How much did they know, and how could they not take action? The author describes this chaotic period of World War II in a way I had not seen before. The characters are fully developed and react in ways very human ways when faced with such agonizing moral choices encountered during wartime.
Read: October 3, 2010.
Skeletons at the Feast is the first book by Chris Bohjalian that I have ever read. I was quite taken by this book and the author’s writing style. This novel takes place at the end of World War II and describes the flight of the Germans from Prussia as the Russian army invades. The author gained access to the diary of a neighbor’s grandmother who had experienced first-hand the flight as the Russian army marched through Poland.
The novel tells the story from three perspectives ~ a wealthy German family living in Prussia traveling with a Scottish POW caught behind enemy lines; Cecile, a Jewish woman in a concentration camp; and a renegade Jew who essentially wills himself to survive the war.
The Emmerich’s, the German, tried to ignore and downplay the horrific events of the war. Living on the family estate are Mutti, the mother, Rolf, the father, their 18-year old twins, Anna and Helmut, and 10-year old Theo. Their oldest son is already off fighting for the Reich.
Mutti convinces herself that the German cause will prevail. She has hung a portrait of the fuehrer in her parlor, but apparently doesn’t fully understand or appreciate what the fuerher stands for. Rolf, however, has a better understanding of what is going on. He convinces his wife that they must flee to Germany before the Russian army reaches their country estate. He and Anna tell Mutti that they have buried the family silverware and will retrieve it when they return. In fact, however, in the middle of January 1945, the ground is too frozen solid. Both Anna and her father know that returning to the family home is not a reality.
The family gathers what belongings it can and sets off. Traveling with the Emmerich's, although hidden under the food supplies in their wagon, is Callum Finella, the Scottish paratrooper and prisoner of war who had been assisting on the family farm. Their motive for taking Callum, however, it not altogether altruistic. The father hopes that by having the POW with them, Callum will buy them safety from the Allied army. Unbeknownst to the rest of the family, Anna and Callum have become lovers. Soon, however, the father and Helmut decide to turn around to fight the Russian army. Mutti, Anna Theo continue on alone towards Germany.
A second perspective of the events is Cecile, a French Jewish prisoner in a concentration/work camp. In the final months of the War, the Germans attempted to erase signs of the concentration and work camps. Cecile was in a group of women who were marched from such a camp. Cecile came from a privileged family who attributed her survival to her hiking boots.
The novel also follows Uri Singer. He and his family had been rounded up and forced into a rail car for transport to Auschwitz. Uri managed to escape and, after killing a Nazi soldier, passes as a German. Knowing that his family has likely been killed, Uri does everything possible to survive to tell their tale. He becomes a chameleon, changing names and identities with alarming frequency. He takes the uniforms and names of various German soldiers who he kills when they cross his path. Uri is obsessed with his sister, from whom he was separated from when they were forced into the rail car. He ultimately ends up joining the Emmerichs’ on their trek. Although he doesn’t reveal his true identity, he begins go find comfort with this German family.
Skeletons at the Feast explores questions not often seen in Holocaust novels. Did civilians really know what was going on in Germany? How much did they know, and how could they not take action? The author describes this chaotic period of World War II in a way I had not seen before. The characters are fully developed and react in ways very human ways when faced with such agonizing moral choices encountered during wartime.
Read: October 3, 2010.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Books Set in Israel
Terror: How Israel Has Coped and What America Can Learn, by Leonard A. Cole (2006)
I had the opportunity to meet the author, Leonard Cole in 2007, just at this book was about to be released. Cole is an expert in bioterrorism and terror medicine. In this book, he describes how terrorist attacks against Israel have affected the Israelis and how the Israelis have build in mechanisms to deal with the constant terror attacks against their country.
No country has experienced more terrorist attacks then Israel. As a result, Israel has developed innovative methods to respond to such attacks and threats of attacks. It is well known that the best trauma medicine in the world is being developed in Israeli hospitals.
Although there was a method to his madness, the author's narrative was not in chronological order, which made reading somewhat disorienting. Each chapter of the book discusses the effects of terror on different groups of people or events. There is a chapter on bus attacks, for instance, as well as families of terror attacks, and how doctors and nurses cope with treating terror victims. Israeli's, Cole notes, are in "survival" mode.
Still, Israel has, through necessity, developed well defined and structured protocol for dealing with disasters, whether from terrorist or through acts of nature. In contrast, the United States is totally unprepared to deal with a major disaster as evidenced by the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Cole concludes that the Israeli experience with preparedness can offer valuable lessons to the United States.
I was struck while watching a recent episode of CSI, that, although in theory and on the television, Americans can coherently deal with disasters, in real life, there is no such methodology.
In writing this book, Cole also interviewed Palestinians, including those imprisoned handlers of suicide bombings. These people felt no remorse for their actions in killing innocent victims of their terror acts. Peace cannot come until all recognize and value each other.
Read: September 26, 2010.
I had the opportunity to meet the author, Leonard Cole in 2007, just at this book was about to be released. Cole is an expert in bioterrorism and terror medicine. In this book, he describes how terrorist attacks against Israel have affected the Israelis and how the Israelis have build in mechanisms to deal with the constant terror attacks against their country.
No country has experienced more terrorist attacks then Israel. As a result, Israel has developed innovative methods to respond to such attacks and threats of attacks. It is well known that the best trauma medicine in the world is being developed in Israeli hospitals.
Although there was a method to his madness, the author's narrative was not in chronological order, which made reading somewhat disorienting. Each chapter of the book discusses the effects of terror on different groups of people or events. There is a chapter on bus attacks, for instance, as well as families of terror attacks, and how doctors and nurses cope with treating terror victims. Israeli's, Cole notes, are in "survival" mode.
Still, Israel has, through necessity, developed well defined and structured protocol for dealing with disasters, whether from terrorist or through acts of nature. In contrast, the United States is totally unprepared to deal with a major disaster as evidenced by the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Cole concludes that the Israeli experience with preparedness can offer valuable lessons to the United States.
I was struck while watching a recent episode of CSI, that, although in theory and on the television, Americans can coherently deal with disasters, in real life, there is no such methodology.
In writing this book, Cole also interviewed Palestinians, including those imprisoned handlers of suicide bombings. These people felt no remorse for their actions in killing innocent victims of their terror acts. Peace cannot come until all recognize and value each other.
Read: September 26, 2010.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Books Set in the United States: Texas
Same Kind of Different as Me, by Ron Hall and Denver Moore (2006)
The Same Kind of Different as Me is the tale of two men ~ one a wealthy art collector and the other born a virtual slave in northern Louisiana. Their lives intersected in a most unusual way and changed both for the better.
Denver was born in the mid-1930s on a plantation in Red River Parish, Louisiana. Although slavery had been abolished, virtual slavery continued to thrive on the cotton plantations of the south. Denver and his family, (as well as other families working on the plantation) were kept down by The Man. Denver never attended school and never leaned to read. From the time he was a young boy, he worked in the field picking cotton.
One day when he was in his late 20s, he hopped a board a freight train and began live as a homeless drifter. He learned to survive on the streets and was often in violent altercations. In 1966, he was back in Louisiana and was sentenced to 10 years in Angola Prison. Angola has a reputation as being a very violent prison in Louisiana, and when Denver was there, it was particularly notorious.
After his release, he was still without means and ultimately found himself homeless in Ft. Worth, Texas. Enter Ron Hall.
Ron Hall was born into a lower-middle class family. After college and a stint as a banker, he discovered a talent as an art dealer. He soon “quit his day job” and embarked on a career as an art dealer ~ a decision that made him an international known and wealthy man.
Although not particularly religious, one evening he and his wife, Deborah, attended a “prayer meeting” filled with evangelists. Soon Deborah feels the call from God to work with the homeless. Ron initially joined her more to humor her than out of his own conviction. Deborah begins working at the Union Gospel Mission in downtown Ft. Worth serving food to the homeless.
Denver goes to the shelter for food, but he has no interest in making friends. Indeed, he is reluctant to speak to “Miss Debbie”, because the only other time he spoke to a white woman, he was nearly killed. Slowly, however, Deborah brings Denver out of his hard street-earned shell. Deborah has a vision that a homeless man will change the city. That man is the homeless, illiterate Denver.
Eventually Ron and Denver strike up a friendship. When Ron and Deborah’s daughter moves to Denver, Colorado, Ron asks Denver to transport her worldly goods to her new home. Denver is intrigued to have the opportunity to visit the city that bears his name. Although Ron gives Denver precise instructions on how to drive in his $40K vehicle, Denver still cannot read and has only recently gotten his driver’s license. Ron also gives Denver a fair amount of cash to cover expenses on the trip. After Denver embarks on his voyage, Ron begins to worry that Denver will simply drive off with the cash and goods.
For Denver, however, he is thrilled with the enormous trust that Ron has placed in him to take this trip. He takes his responsibility very seriously. After delivering the goods, he promptly returns to Ft. Worth and returns most of he money he was given for the trip back to Ron.
Things are going well for Denver, Ron and Deborah. One day, however, Denver tells Ron to watch out because something bad is about to happen to Deborah. Soon Deborah discovers that she has cancer. Although for the next year and a half, she is subjected to surgeries and chemotherapies, in the end, she loses her battle. She survives much longer than her doctors predict ~ in part, perhaps, because her family prays for her to continue to stay with them. Again, Denver, in his wisdom, tells Ron that they need to let her go to her heavenly home.
This reminded me of the story in Talmud about the death of Rabbi Judah ha Nasi. Rabbi Judah ha Nasi was very old and ill. The rabbis and his students were praying for him day and night as he lay on his death bed. His maid, however, knowing that his prayers were continuing to keep him alive while he was in agony and it was now his time of death, went up to the top of the roof and dropped a jar of water on them. This action stopped the praying for a moment ~ just enough time to allow the Angel of Death to come and let Judah ha Nasi die in peace.
This was the lesson that Denver brought to Ron. After Deborah’s death, Ron and Denver’s friendship was cemented. Today Denver is an artist in his own right and Ron sells some of his paintings.
Although there is a Christian motif in this book, it is not preachy. It is an inspirational and beautiful story of how people can positively influence others by their actions. Denver, despite his violent background, was essentially a good man. His actions speak to all of us.
Truly an amazing story. Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.
Read: September 17, 2010
The Same Kind of Different as Me is the tale of two men ~ one a wealthy art collector and the other born a virtual slave in northern Louisiana. Their lives intersected in a most unusual way and changed both for the better.
Denver was born in the mid-1930s on a plantation in Red River Parish, Louisiana. Although slavery had been abolished, virtual slavery continued to thrive on the cotton plantations of the south. Denver and his family, (as well as other families working on the plantation) were kept down by The Man. Denver never attended school and never leaned to read. From the time he was a young boy, he worked in the field picking cotton.
One day when he was in his late 20s, he hopped a board a freight train and began live as a homeless drifter. He learned to survive on the streets and was often in violent altercations. In 1966, he was back in Louisiana and was sentenced to 10 years in Angola Prison. Angola has a reputation as being a very violent prison in Louisiana, and when Denver was there, it was particularly notorious.
After his release, he was still without means and ultimately found himself homeless in Ft. Worth, Texas. Enter Ron Hall.
Ron Hall was born into a lower-middle class family. After college and a stint as a banker, he discovered a talent as an art dealer. He soon “quit his day job” and embarked on a career as an art dealer ~ a decision that made him an international known and wealthy man.
Although not particularly religious, one evening he and his wife, Deborah, attended a “prayer meeting” filled with evangelists. Soon Deborah feels the call from God to work with the homeless. Ron initially joined her more to humor her than out of his own conviction. Deborah begins working at the Union Gospel Mission in downtown Ft. Worth serving food to the homeless.
Denver goes to the shelter for food, but he has no interest in making friends. Indeed, he is reluctant to speak to “Miss Debbie”, because the only other time he spoke to a white woman, he was nearly killed. Slowly, however, Deborah brings Denver out of his hard street-earned shell. Deborah has a vision that a homeless man will change the city. That man is the homeless, illiterate Denver.
Eventually Ron and Denver strike up a friendship. When Ron and Deborah’s daughter moves to Denver, Colorado, Ron asks Denver to transport her worldly goods to her new home. Denver is intrigued to have the opportunity to visit the city that bears his name. Although Ron gives Denver precise instructions on how to drive in his $40K vehicle, Denver still cannot read and has only recently gotten his driver’s license. Ron also gives Denver a fair amount of cash to cover expenses on the trip. After Denver embarks on his voyage, Ron begins to worry that Denver will simply drive off with the cash and goods.
For Denver, however, he is thrilled with the enormous trust that Ron has placed in him to take this trip. He takes his responsibility very seriously. After delivering the goods, he promptly returns to Ft. Worth and returns most of he money he was given for the trip back to Ron.
Things are going well for Denver, Ron and Deborah. One day, however, Denver tells Ron to watch out because something bad is about to happen to Deborah. Soon Deborah discovers that she has cancer. Although for the next year and a half, she is subjected to surgeries and chemotherapies, in the end, she loses her battle. She survives much longer than her doctors predict ~ in part, perhaps, because her family prays for her to continue to stay with them. Again, Denver, in his wisdom, tells Ron that they need to let her go to her heavenly home.
This reminded me of the story in Talmud about the death of Rabbi Judah ha Nasi. Rabbi Judah ha Nasi was very old and ill. The rabbis and his students were praying for him day and night as he lay on his death bed. His maid, however, knowing that his prayers were continuing to keep him alive while he was in agony and it was now his time of death, went up to the top of the roof and dropped a jar of water on them. This action stopped the praying for a moment ~ just enough time to allow the Angel of Death to come and let Judah ha Nasi die in peace.
This was the lesson that Denver brought to Ron. After Deborah’s death, Ron and Denver’s friendship was cemented. Today Denver is an artist in his own right and Ron sells some of his paintings.
Although there is a Christian motif in this book, it is not preachy. It is an inspirational and beautiful story of how people can positively influence others by their actions. Denver, despite his violent background, was essentially a good man. His actions speak to all of us.
Truly an amazing story. Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.
Read: September 17, 2010
Monday, September 13, 2010
Books Set in Medieval Europe: Rome
Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross (1999)
Was there a female Pope in the mid-800s? Donna Woolfolk Cross assumes so in her historical novel, Pope Joan.
Historical evidence is scarce to support either the existence or non-existence of a female Pope. If she existed, she would have ruled as Pope John VII. Cross’s research revealed that there exists an ancient copy of a document entitled Liber pontificalis which purports to provide a biography of the lives of the early popes. Although it references the existence of Pope “Joan”, it was apparently added many years after the original text was composed. The current position of the Catholic Church denies her existence.
At any rate, Pope Joan is a tale of medieval life in Europe and the restrictions placed on the average person, especially the women. At this period of time (9th Century), it was not uncommon for the clergy to take wives, although the practice was frown upon and hinder one’s elevation in Church hierarchy.
Since there is virtually know recorded history of Joan, the author creates a life for her, beginning with her birth in 814. Joan is the daughter of a cleric and his Viking wife. Her mother, Gudrun, was captured during a raid and forced to marry the cleric who felt it his duty to “convert” her from her heathen ways. Despite this, Gudrun would often tell Joan stories of her Norse gods ~ stories that would result in a beating from her husband.
Joan had two brothers; Matthew who was intelligent and headed for a life in the Church, and John who was clearly not a scholar and longed to become a warrior. Matthew secretly taught Joan how to read. Since her father despised Joan, when he learned that she could read, he beat her nearly to death. She bore the scars on her back for the rest of her life.
This didn’t deter Joan from her pursuit of knowledge. She was determined not to fall into the same life that was destined to her beloved mother. A nearby clergyman learned of Joan’s desires and offered to tutor her. When duty called him to another location, he gave her a book and promised to find another teacher for her. Joan and her brother, John, are sent off to a school far from home. (Matthew had died from an illness and their father decided that John would take his place in the church.)
The school provided Joan relief from her brutal father, but was ridiculed by her classmates. She is taken under the wing of Gerold, an older married man, with children Joan’s age. Gerold was in a loveless marriage and the two form a fast friendship. While Gerold is away, Vikings come and destroy the village and school. Joan is one of the few survivors. Seeing her brother, John, lying dead, she decides to become her brother and join a monastery.
She lives quietly in the monastery as a man for many years. She becomes knowledgeable in medicine. Ultimately, she finds herself in Rome and is serving in the Vatican. Her knowledge and compassion is well known and after the death of Pope Leo, she is surprisingly elected Pope.
Before becoming Pope, however, Gerold appears in Rome. He recognizes Joan and the two pickup their friendship. He tries to convince Joan to discard her disguise and become his wife. She refuses, knowing that she could not begin living as a woman with all the societal restrictions placed women.
Spoiler Alert: After Joan becomes Pope, there is a tragic flood throughout the city. Joan and Gerold find themselves alone in a distant part of the city. They cannot contain their passion. Again, Gerold tries to convince Joan to run away with him, saying that since everyone thinks the Pope has died in the flood, no one would be the wiser. Joan, however, has a strong sense of duty and cannot leave the Papacy. As luck would have it, after their one sexual encounter, Joan becomes pregnant. She considers her options, but decides to go ahead with the birth. Legends surrounding Pope Joan have her dying in childbirth in the Via Sacra. Cross stays true to legend.
Pope Joan was in interesting book, but not one I would read again.
Read: September 13, 2010
Was there a female Pope in the mid-800s? Donna Woolfolk Cross assumes so in her historical novel, Pope Joan.
Historical evidence is scarce to support either the existence or non-existence of a female Pope. If she existed, she would have ruled as Pope John VII. Cross’s research revealed that there exists an ancient copy of a document entitled Liber pontificalis which purports to provide a biography of the lives of the early popes. Although it references the existence of Pope “Joan”, it was apparently added many years after the original text was composed. The current position of the Catholic Church denies her existence.
At any rate, Pope Joan is a tale of medieval life in Europe and the restrictions placed on the average person, especially the women. At this period of time (9th Century), it was not uncommon for the clergy to take wives, although the practice was frown upon and hinder one’s elevation in Church hierarchy.
Since there is virtually know recorded history of Joan, the author creates a life for her, beginning with her birth in 814. Joan is the daughter of a cleric and his Viking wife. Her mother, Gudrun, was captured during a raid and forced to marry the cleric who felt it his duty to “convert” her from her heathen ways. Despite this, Gudrun would often tell Joan stories of her Norse gods ~ stories that would result in a beating from her husband.
Joan had two brothers; Matthew who was intelligent and headed for a life in the Church, and John who was clearly not a scholar and longed to become a warrior. Matthew secretly taught Joan how to read. Since her father despised Joan, when he learned that she could read, he beat her nearly to death. She bore the scars on her back for the rest of her life.
This didn’t deter Joan from her pursuit of knowledge. She was determined not to fall into the same life that was destined to her beloved mother. A nearby clergyman learned of Joan’s desires and offered to tutor her. When duty called him to another location, he gave her a book and promised to find another teacher for her. Joan and her brother, John, are sent off to a school far from home. (Matthew had died from an illness and their father decided that John would take his place in the church.)
The school provided Joan relief from her brutal father, but was ridiculed by her classmates. She is taken under the wing of Gerold, an older married man, with children Joan’s age. Gerold was in a loveless marriage and the two form a fast friendship. While Gerold is away, Vikings come and destroy the village and school. Joan is one of the few survivors. Seeing her brother, John, lying dead, she decides to become her brother and join a monastery.
She lives quietly in the monastery as a man for many years. She becomes knowledgeable in medicine. Ultimately, she finds herself in Rome and is serving in the Vatican. Her knowledge and compassion is well known and after the death of Pope Leo, she is surprisingly elected Pope.
Before becoming Pope, however, Gerold appears in Rome. He recognizes Joan and the two pickup their friendship. He tries to convince Joan to discard her disguise and become his wife. She refuses, knowing that she could not begin living as a woman with all the societal restrictions placed women.
Spoiler Alert: After Joan becomes Pope, there is a tragic flood throughout the city. Joan and Gerold find themselves alone in a distant part of the city. They cannot contain their passion. Again, Gerold tries to convince Joan to run away with him, saying that since everyone thinks the Pope has died in the flood, no one would be the wiser. Joan, however, has a strong sense of duty and cannot leave the Papacy. As luck would have it, after their one sexual encounter, Joan becomes pregnant. She considers her options, but decides to go ahead with the birth. Legends surrounding Pope Joan have her dying in childbirth in the Via Sacra. Cross stays true to legend.
Pope Joan was in interesting book, but not one I would read again.
Read: September 13, 2010
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Books Set in the United States: Wisconsin
The Dive from Clausen Pier by Ann Packer
The Dive from Clausen’s Pier is about relationships ~ how they change and how they change us.
Carrie Bell is a young college graduate who has been dating her boyfriend, Mike, for since she was 15. They recently became engaged, but Carrie is having second thoughts ~ none that she has been able to articulate, though. She just has a nagging feeling that she needs more in her life than settling down in Wisconsin with her childhood sweetheart.
At their annual Memorial Day picnic, Carrie, Mike and their friends head out to their favorite lakeside spot for a day of fun. Carrie is considering how to break it to Mike that she wants out of their pending nuptials. Mike, knowing something is up and in an attempt to catch Carrie’s attention, dives into the water, but things go terribly wrong. He breaks his neck and suffers terrible head injuries.
For weeks Mike remains in a coma. Playing the part of the good girlfriend, Carrie spends hours at the hospital with him, but feels guilt. Her friends all expect her to stand by the injured Mike. His family refuses to believe that he will not recover.
Finally, Mike comes out of his coma, only to acknowledge his own limitations as a quadriplegic. He still faces numerous surgeries and months of rehab. He cannot join his friends on evenings out. Carrie is no longer interested in the party life she enjoyed with her friends prior to Mike’s accident.
One night, however, her friends convince her to join them. She meets Kilroy, an eccentric single male who is visiting from New York City. Something about him catches her interest.
Finally, the pressures of Mike’s illness prove too much for Carrie to bear. She packs her car, complete with her sewing machine (she sews to relax) and heads to NYC, where she crashes with another high school friend, Simon. Simon is gay and feels comfortable being open about his sexuality in New York, where it wouldn’t have been possible in Wisconsin.
Carrie seeks out Kilroy and begins an affair with him. Then she begins to learn about him. He has no permanent job and hangs out in a bar playing pool. Kilroy is 40 years old and is still seeking himself. Carrie learns that he has a troubled relationship with his parents, who are very well-to-do (hence, are underwriting Kilroy’s lifestyle.) Kilroy is unable to make a commitment and is alternating loving and cold to Carrie. He has his own tragedies, as we ultimately learn, that render him unable to move forward with his life.
Carrie enrolls in design school and is destine to succeed, when she receives a call from her best friend, Jamie, back in Wisconsin. Jamie’s message, although very cryptic, is a plea for help. Furthermore, Jamie refers to Carrie as someone who would dump her boyfriend after he breaks his neck. Carrie, whose relationship with Jamie had been altered by Mike’s accident, doesn’t immediately provide Jamie with the answer Jamie was seeking.
After some soul searching, Carrie decides to return to Wisconsin. Carrie is still conflicted and struggling between her needs and those needs of others.
Although most of us aren’t faced with the dilemmas Carrie is confronted with, all of us struggle with relationships as we all grow and change. I was especially drawn to the change in relationship between Carrie and her friend, Jamie. The Dive from Clausen’s Park reminds us that as relationships change, we must take them for the gift they are and know when to let go.
Read: August 29, 2010
The Dive from Clausen’s Pier is about relationships ~ how they change and how they change us.
Carrie Bell is a young college graduate who has been dating her boyfriend, Mike, for since she was 15. They recently became engaged, but Carrie is having second thoughts ~ none that she has been able to articulate, though. She just has a nagging feeling that she needs more in her life than settling down in Wisconsin with her childhood sweetheart.
At their annual Memorial Day picnic, Carrie, Mike and their friends head out to their favorite lakeside spot for a day of fun. Carrie is considering how to break it to Mike that she wants out of their pending nuptials. Mike, knowing something is up and in an attempt to catch Carrie’s attention, dives into the water, but things go terribly wrong. He breaks his neck and suffers terrible head injuries.
For weeks Mike remains in a coma. Playing the part of the good girlfriend, Carrie spends hours at the hospital with him, but feels guilt. Her friends all expect her to stand by the injured Mike. His family refuses to believe that he will not recover.
Finally, Mike comes out of his coma, only to acknowledge his own limitations as a quadriplegic. He still faces numerous surgeries and months of rehab. He cannot join his friends on evenings out. Carrie is no longer interested in the party life she enjoyed with her friends prior to Mike’s accident.
One night, however, her friends convince her to join them. She meets Kilroy, an eccentric single male who is visiting from New York City. Something about him catches her interest.
Finally, the pressures of Mike’s illness prove too much for Carrie to bear. She packs her car, complete with her sewing machine (she sews to relax) and heads to NYC, where she crashes with another high school friend, Simon. Simon is gay and feels comfortable being open about his sexuality in New York, where it wouldn’t have been possible in Wisconsin.
Carrie seeks out Kilroy and begins an affair with him. Then she begins to learn about him. He has no permanent job and hangs out in a bar playing pool. Kilroy is 40 years old and is still seeking himself. Carrie learns that he has a troubled relationship with his parents, who are very well-to-do (hence, are underwriting Kilroy’s lifestyle.) Kilroy is unable to make a commitment and is alternating loving and cold to Carrie. He has his own tragedies, as we ultimately learn, that render him unable to move forward with his life.
Carrie enrolls in design school and is destine to succeed, when she receives a call from her best friend, Jamie, back in Wisconsin. Jamie’s message, although very cryptic, is a plea for help. Furthermore, Jamie refers to Carrie as someone who would dump her boyfriend after he breaks his neck. Carrie, whose relationship with Jamie had been altered by Mike’s accident, doesn’t immediately provide Jamie with the answer Jamie was seeking.
After some soul searching, Carrie decides to return to Wisconsin. Carrie is still conflicted and struggling between her needs and those needs of others.
Although most of us aren’t faced with the dilemmas Carrie is confronted with, all of us struggle with relationships as we all grow and change. I was especially drawn to the change in relationship between Carrie and her friend, Jamie. The Dive from Clausen’s Park reminds us that as relationships change, we must take them for the gift they are and know when to let go.
Read: August 29, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Books Set in Spain
The Last Jew, by Noah Gordon (2000).
The Last Jew follows the life of Yonah Toledano during the Spanish Inquisition. The Inquisition was initially designed to ferret out conversos, those Jews who converted but were “backsliding” towards their former religion. The Church viewed conversos as suspect, however. In time, however, the Church extended its reach and began targeting all Jews.
Yonah was the second son of a silversmith and only survivor in his family following the Inquisitions raid in his familial home town of Toledo. He manages to escape and “passes” as a Christian by assuming the name Ramon Callico. He recites his Hebrew prayers in secret to retain his ties to his beliefs. At the same time, however, he knows that at anytime he can be turned in to the Inquisitors.
At times Yonah/Ramon is just one step ahead of the Inquistors. At other times, he is able to find a sympathetic family who may or may not have discerned his true identity. Along the way, he reinvents himself ~ he is takes a job as a shepherd, travels with gypsies, recalls his training as a silversmith and crafts armor, and finally apprentices with a physian.
The book started off well, but the plot began to weaken. After a while, I grew bored with the exploits of Yonah. The author researched the period, and details the market for (fraudulent) sacred relics as well as medieval medicines.
Read: August 13, 2010
The Last Jew follows the life of Yonah Toledano during the Spanish Inquisition. The Inquisition was initially designed to ferret out conversos, those Jews who converted but were “backsliding” towards their former religion. The Church viewed conversos as suspect, however. In time, however, the Church extended its reach and began targeting all Jews.
Yonah was the second son of a silversmith and only survivor in his family following the Inquisitions raid in his familial home town of Toledo. He manages to escape and “passes” as a Christian by assuming the name Ramon Callico. He recites his Hebrew prayers in secret to retain his ties to his beliefs. At the same time, however, he knows that at anytime he can be turned in to the Inquisitors.
At times Yonah/Ramon is just one step ahead of the Inquistors. At other times, he is able to find a sympathetic family who may or may not have discerned his true identity. Along the way, he reinvents himself ~ he is takes a job as a shepherd, travels with gypsies, recalls his training as a silversmith and crafts armor, and finally apprentices with a physian.
The book started off well, but the plot began to weaken. After a while, I grew bored with the exploits of Yonah. The author researched the period, and details the market for (fraudulent) sacred relics as well as medieval medicines.
Read: August 13, 2010
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Books Set in India
The Girl From Foreign, by Sadia Shepard (2008)
The Girl from Foreign is both a memoir and a loving tribute to the author’s maternal grandmother. Sadia Shepard grew up in Chestnut Hill, a posh suburb outside of Boston, where she lived with her American father, Pakistani-born mother and Indian-born grandmother. Her father was Christian and her mother was Muslim. When Shepard was a teenager, she discovered that her grandmother was born Rachel Jacobs into a Jewish family in India’s Bene Israel community. When her grandmother secretly married her father’s business partner at age 17, she agreed to raise any children from the marriage as Muslims. She also changed her name to Rahat. She also may or may not have converted herself.
Shepard promises her grandmother that she will seek out her Indian heritage. Her trek begins a few years following her grandmother’s death. When Shepard is awarded a Fullbright scholarship, she makes good her promise. This book is a part of that search.
As Rachel Jacobs, the author’s grandmother lived in the Bene Israel community of India. The Bene Israel are believed to be descendants from a ship-wrecked group of Jews who washed up on Indian shores sometime before 166 BCE. There are still a few remnants of the Bene Israel in India today, although many have now immigrated to Israel.
Upon her marriage, Rachel became the third wife of a Muslim business man. She was believed to be the wife he married for love, the first two marriages were business arrangements. Rachel’s children, including the author’s mother, were raised Muslim in an environment of tolerance.
The author embraces her varied religious heritage, but is on a journey to determine where she fits. While in India, she connects with the Jewish community and attends Shabbat services as well as other Jewish festival services. Clearly, she feels comfortable in this setting. She also befriends a young Hindi man who often accompanies her on her travels to the small Jewish enclaves in India.
In her later life, Rachel began to look back into her faith and wanted to be buried as a Jew. Although her family buried her in a traditional Muslim manner, on the anniversary of her death, she was remembered in a traditionally Jewish service.
Shepard also recounts how, as a child, she and her family would make trips to Pakistan to visit relatives. When she returns as an adult, after September 11, 2001, she finds her Pakistani relatives to have moved to a more militant brand of Islam. She also learns how her grandfather’s other wives and families have decimated her estate.
The Girl from Foreign is a beautifully written book. It is a lesson in understanding cultures that are making headlines in today’s news stories.
Read: August 8, 2010
The Girl from Foreign is both a memoir and a loving tribute to the author’s maternal grandmother. Sadia Shepard grew up in Chestnut Hill, a posh suburb outside of Boston, where she lived with her American father, Pakistani-born mother and Indian-born grandmother. Her father was Christian and her mother was Muslim. When Shepard was a teenager, she discovered that her grandmother was born Rachel Jacobs into a Jewish family in India’s Bene Israel community. When her grandmother secretly married her father’s business partner at age 17, she agreed to raise any children from the marriage as Muslims. She also changed her name to Rahat. She also may or may not have converted herself.
Shepard promises her grandmother that she will seek out her Indian heritage. Her trek begins a few years following her grandmother’s death. When Shepard is awarded a Fullbright scholarship, she makes good her promise. This book is a part of that search.
As Rachel Jacobs, the author’s grandmother lived in the Bene Israel community of India. The Bene Israel are believed to be descendants from a ship-wrecked group of Jews who washed up on Indian shores sometime before 166 BCE. There are still a few remnants of the Bene Israel in India today, although many have now immigrated to Israel.
Upon her marriage, Rachel became the third wife of a Muslim business man. She was believed to be the wife he married for love, the first two marriages were business arrangements. Rachel’s children, including the author’s mother, were raised Muslim in an environment of tolerance.
The author embraces her varied religious heritage, but is on a journey to determine where she fits. While in India, she connects with the Jewish community and attends Shabbat services as well as other Jewish festival services. Clearly, she feels comfortable in this setting. She also befriends a young Hindi man who often accompanies her on her travels to the small Jewish enclaves in India.
In her later life, Rachel began to look back into her faith and wanted to be buried as a Jew. Although her family buried her in a traditional Muslim manner, on the anniversary of her death, she was remembered in a traditionally Jewish service.
Shepard also recounts how, as a child, she and her family would make trips to Pakistan to visit relatives. When she returns as an adult, after September 11, 2001, she finds her Pakistani relatives to have moved to a more militant brand of Islam. She also learns how her grandfather’s other wives and families have decimated her estate.
The Girl from Foreign is a beautifully written book. It is a lesson in understanding cultures that are making headlines in today’s news stories.
Read: August 8, 2010
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Books Set in the United States: Seattle
The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein (2008)
The Art of Racing in the Rain is a beautiful little book as told from a dog’s point of view. Enzo is a Labrador-terrier mix who was adopted as a young pup by Denny. The novel begins near the end of Enzo’s life. Although he cannot speak, he strives to let his Denny know that it is time to let him go. Enzo has a strong feeling that he will become human in his next life, something that he looks forward to.
Denny works in an auto shop with dreams of becoming a famous race-car driver. Enzo truly lives a dog’s life, whose only disappointment is that he has no thumbs. If only he had thumbs, he thinks, what wonderful things he could accomplish!
Enzo’s goes through life changes as Denny’s life changes. Denny falls in love with Eve and marries and begins a family. Eve worries how Enzo will treat their young daughter, Zoe. She should have had no fears, however, as both dog and child become good pals.
Denny has a habit of leaving the TV on so that Enzo can be occupied during the day. Enzo learns about life through the wonderful world of television. Between the television, and Denny’s monologs, Enzo gains insight into the human condition. He learns about life through race-car driving. Life, like race-care driving requires techniques to navigate all the obstacles that are thrown at one.
Enzo knows long before the rest of the family that Eve has a dreadful illness. After Eve dies following her battle with brain cancer, her parents fight Denny for custody of Zoe. Eve’s father dislikes Denny and feels Eve married beneath her class. When a young relative accuses Denny of rape, Enzo becomes his main strength, as he struggles to regain his reputation.
The title of the book comes from Denny’s talent for racing on wet pavement. It is also an metaphor for live itself. The Art of Racing in the Rain is a quick read, to anyone with a pet is an unforgettable story.
Read: August 1, 2010
The Art of Racing in the Rain is a beautiful little book as told from a dog’s point of view. Enzo is a Labrador-terrier mix who was adopted as a young pup by Denny. The novel begins near the end of Enzo’s life. Although he cannot speak, he strives to let his Denny know that it is time to let him go. Enzo has a strong feeling that he will become human in his next life, something that he looks forward to.
Denny works in an auto shop with dreams of becoming a famous race-car driver. Enzo truly lives a dog’s life, whose only disappointment is that he has no thumbs. If only he had thumbs, he thinks, what wonderful things he could accomplish!
Enzo’s goes through life changes as Denny’s life changes. Denny falls in love with Eve and marries and begins a family. Eve worries how Enzo will treat their young daughter, Zoe. She should have had no fears, however, as both dog and child become good pals.
Denny has a habit of leaving the TV on so that Enzo can be occupied during the day. Enzo learns about life through the wonderful world of television. Between the television, and Denny’s monologs, Enzo gains insight into the human condition. He learns about life through race-car driving. Life, like race-care driving requires techniques to navigate all the obstacles that are thrown at one.
Enzo knows long before the rest of the family that Eve has a dreadful illness. After Eve dies following her battle with brain cancer, her parents fight Denny for custody of Zoe. Eve’s father dislikes Denny and feels Eve married beneath her class. When a young relative accuses Denny of rape, Enzo becomes his main strength, as he struggles to regain his reputation.
The title of the book comes from Denny’s talent for racing on wet pavement. It is also an metaphor for live itself. The Art of Racing in the Rain is a quick read, to anyone with a pet is an unforgettable story.
Read: August 1, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Books Set in the United States: Washington, D.C.
The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court, by Jeffrey Toobin (2008)
Who knew that a book about the Supreme Court Justices could be such a page turner? Jeffrey Toobin has created a fascinate book about the William Rehnquits Court.
Toobin first describes a brief history of the Earl Warren and Warren Burger Courts and the beginning of the civil rights movement in the United States. During this period on American history, the federal government played an expansive role in forming the country. With the election of Ronald Reagan, conservative ideas began to the move to restrict the reach of the federal reach.
In writing this book, Toobin interviewed some of the Supreme Court Justices (although he never names which ones provided him with the inside scoop), and many of their clerks over the years. The result is a remarkable insight into the inner workings of the Court, along with the petty scrabbles and grudges the Justices harbor.
The Justices in the Rehnquist Court served together for 9 years (from 1994 through 2004), which is the longest period without a change in the history of the nine-justice Court. In addition to Chief Justice William Rehnquist, the other Justices were Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Anthony Kennedy, Sandra Day O’Connor, Antonin Scalia, John Paul Stevens, David Souter, and Clarence Thomas.
Toobin describes how some of the advances made in the previous Court are being eroded. He provides careful detail of how such cases and issues as abortion civil rights, affirmative action and the separation of church and state are discussed and changed. Toobin describes how the individual philosophies and prejudices come into play in drafting the Court’s decisions.
The book is terribly revealing and anyone who thinks that the Court’s decisions are made altruistically will be in for a shock. The reader learns such tidbits as how Clarence Thomas selects his law clerks, and how David Souter was devastated following the Bush v. Gore, so much so that he nearly resigned from the Court. The reason given for his remaining on the Court was due to his reluctance to forgo his full retirement if he left early. Toobin take a look into the philosophy and background of each Justice in turn.
The Nine also contains a fascinating account of the nomination process of John Roberts and Samuel Alito, who replaced William Rehnquist and Sandra Day O’Connor, respectively.
The book makes for interesting reading. Although many landmark cases are discussed, the reader does not need to have a legal background to realize the impact the Court has on American life. The Nine should be a “must read” for all Americans.
Read: July 29, 2010
Who knew that a book about the Supreme Court Justices could be such a page turner? Jeffrey Toobin has created a fascinate book about the William Rehnquits Court.
Toobin first describes a brief history of the Earl Warren and Warren Burger Courts and the beginning of the civil rights movement in the United States. During this period on American history, the federal government played an expansive role in forming the country. With the election of Ronald Reagan, conservative ideas began to the move to restrict the reach of the federal reach.
In writing this book, Toobin interviewed some of the Supreme Court Justices (although he never names which ones provided him with the inside scoop), and many of their clerks over the years. The result is a remarkable insight into the inner workings of the Court, along with the petty scrabbles and grudges the Justices harbor.
The Justices in the Rehnquist Court served together for 9 years (from 1994 through 2004), which is the longest period without a change in the history of the nine-justice Court. In addition to Chief Justice William Rehnquist, the other Justices were Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Anthony Kennedy, Sandra Day O’Connor, Antonin Scalia, John Paul Stevens, David Souter, and Clarence Thomas.
Toobin describes how some of the advances made in the previous Court are being eroded. He provides careful detail of how such cases and issues as abortion civil rights, affirmative action and the separation of church and state are discussed and changed. Toobin describes how the individual philosophies and prejudices come into play in drafting the Court’s decisions.
The book is terribly revealing and anyone who thinks that the Court’s decisions are made altruistically will be in for a shock. The reader learns such tidbits as how Clarence Thomas selects his law clerks, and how David Souter was devastated following the Bush v. Gore, so much so that he nearly resigned from the Court. The reason given for his remaining on the Court was due to his reluctance to forgo his full retirement if he left early. Toobin take a look into the philosophy and background of each Justice in turn.
The Nine also contains a fascinating account of the nomination process of John Roberts and Samuel Alito, who replaced William Rehnquist and Sandra Day O’Connor, respectively.
The book makes for interesting reading. Although many landmark cases are discussed, the reader does not need to have a legal background to realize the impact the Court has on American life. The Nine should be a “must read” for all Americans.
Read: July 29, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Books Set in Europe: France
Sarah's Key, by Tatiana deRosnay (2007).
Sarah’s Key is two stories in one. One thread of the novel depicts the treatment of Jews by the French during the Holocaust; the other depicts the destruction of a marriage between an American woman and her French husband.
Sarah Starzynski was a 10-year old Jewish girl when the French police arrested her and her family during the Velodrome d’Hiver (known as Vel d’Hiv) on July 16, and 17, 1942. In 2002, middle aged Julia Jarmond is writing a story to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Vel d’Hiv.
Each chapter is very short and, for the most part, switches between Sarah’s story and that of Julia. Sarah is know as the “girl” for most of her story. Not giving people names was a way to depersonalize an individual. That was certainly how the Nazi’s treated the Jews.
When the French police knocked on her family’s door, Sarah’s younger brother crawled into his favorite hiding place, the cupboard, and Sarah locked him in with a promise that she would come for him soon. Little did she realize that she will not be able to return. Instead, she and her parents were brought to the Vel d’Hiv, where they were imprisoned with thousands of other Jews before being transported to concentration camps.
Sarah and another young girl named Rachel were able to escape. The ultimately came to the home of an elderly couple, Jules and Genevieve Dufaure, who took them in and cared for them. (Rachel became ill and died.) Sarah insisted on returning to Paris to find her brother. Against their better judgment, the couple brought her to her former home, which was now occupied by a French family. When Sarah opened the cupboard, all that remained was her brother’s corpse. The Dufaure’s took in Sarah and raised her as their grandchild.
Sixty years later, Julia and her husband move into the apartment that once belonged to his grandmother. As Julia begins her research on the Vel d’Hiv, she comes to realize that the apartment her husband’s family had moved into in July 1942, was one that had recently belonged to a deported Jewish family that had been a target of the Vel d’Hiv.
She persists in her inquiry about the source of her family’s apartment, but her husband is very blasé about the matter. Finally, her father-in-law confesses that he remembered the day when Sarah came an opened the cupboard to find her dead brother. It is a secret that his family had kept for years.
This is the turning point of the novel and we no longer see Sarah’s story from her perspective. The novel turns to Julia and her quest to find Sarah.
Julia becomes obsessed with finding Sarah. She was able to track her down through the Dufaure’s grandsons. As a young woman, Sarah left France and immigrated to the United States. Julia is able to find her family, but learns that Sarah had died many years earlier. Julia tells the Dufaure’s relatives that their ancestors were Righteous Gentiles for their protection and care of young Sarah.
The story’s flaw is when Julia finds herself pregnant at age 45. She thinks her husband will be thrilled with this news, but instead insists that she either abort the fetus or he will leave her. Julia is suddenly confronted how the French perceive Americans. This thread of the story seems to focus on stereotypes that detract from the main theme of active participation by some of the French to the plight of the Jews during the Holocaust.
Sarah’s Key is a beautiful story. It ties a young Jewish girl who lived through the horrors of the Holocaust and a middle-aged gentile researching this horrific past together.
Read: July 27, 2010
Sarah’s Key is two stories in one. One thread of the novel depicts the treatment of Jews by the French during the Holocaust; the other depicts the destruction of a marriage between an American woman and her French husband.
Sarah Starzynski was a 10-year old Jewish girl when the French police arrested her and her family during the Velodrome d’Hiver (known as Vel d’Hiv) on July 16, and 17, 1942. In 2002, middle aged Julia Jarmond is writing a story to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Vel d’Hiv.
Each chapter is very short and, for the most part, switches between Sarah’s story and that of Julia. Sarah is know as the “girl” for most of her story. Not giving people names was a way to depersonalize an individual. That was certainly how the Nazi’s treated the Jews.
When the French police knocked on her family’s door, Sarah’s younger brother crawled into his favorite hiding place, the cupboard, and Sarah locked him in with a promise that she would come for him soon. Little did she realize that she will not be able to return. Instead, she and her parents were brought to the Vel d’Hiv, where they were imprisoned with thousands of other Jews before being transported to concentration camps.
Sarah and another young girl named Rachel were able to escape. The ultimately came to the home of an elderly couple, Jules and Genevieve Dufaure, who took them in and cared for them. (Rachel became ill and died.) Sarah insisted on returning to Paris to find her brother. Against their better judgment, the couple brought her to her former home, which was now occupied by a French family. When Sarah opened the cupboard, all that remained was her brother’s corpse. The Dufaure’s took in Sarah and raised her as their grandchild.
Sixty years later, Julia and her husband move into the apartment that once belonged to his grandmother. As Julia begins her research on the Vel d’Hiv, she comes to realize that the apartment her husband’s family had moved into in July 1942, was one that had recently belonged to a deported Jewish family that had been a target of the Vel d’Hiv.
She persists in her inquiry about the source of her family’s apartment, but her husband is very blasé about the matter. Finally, her father-in-law confesses that he remembered the day when Sarah came an opened the cupboard to find her dead brother. It is a secret that his family had kept for years.
This is the turning point of the novel and we no longer see Sarah’s story from her perspective. The novel turns to Julia and her quest to find Sarah.
Julia becomes obsessed with finding Sarah. She was able to track her down through the Dufaure’s grandsons. As a young woman, Sarah left France and immigrated to the United States. Julia is able to find her family, but learns that Sarah had died many years earlier. Julia tells the Dufaure’s relatives that their ancestors were Righteous Gentiles for their protection and care of young Sarah.
The story’s flaw is when Julia finds herself pregnant at age 45. She thinks her husband will be thrilled with this news, but instead insists that she either abort the fetus or he will leave her. Julia is suddenly confronted how the French perceive Americans. This thread of the story seems to focus on stereotypes that detract from the main theme of active participation by some of the French to the plight of the Jews during the Holocaust.
Sarah’s Key is a beautiful story. It ties a young Jewish girl who lived through the horrors of the Holocaust and a middle-aged gentile researching this horrific past together.
Read: July 27, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Books Set in Europe: Sweden
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson (2008)
I have very mixed feelings about this book. It has been on the best seller list and gotten rave reviews, but that doesn’t make it good literature. Larsson creates a very bleak picture of life in Sweden. The dominant theme is abuse of women by men. Interestingly, in Sweden, the book was entitled Men Who Hate Women.
The prologue of the novel begins with a mystery. An elderly industrialist (whom we later learn is Henrik Vanger) receives a framed pressed flower on his birthday, just as he has received for his birthday for the past 40 years. The recipient is unknown. The flower is a gentle reminder of the gifts his beloved grand-niece, Harriet, had given him before her disappearance and supposed murder in 1966.
The book next shifts to journalist and magazine publisher Mikael Blomkvist. He had just been found guilty of libel. Disgraced, Blomkvist ostensibly removes himself from his magazine and is offered a job by Vanger. Vanger wants Blomkvist to investigate Harriet’s disappearance. The cover story that Blomkvist, however, is a history of the Vanger family. Harriet had disappeared from an island, so Vanger believes there is a limited number of suspects. Indeed, Vanger believes that a family member is responsible for Harriet’s murder.
Blomkvist takes the job because of the carrot Vanger dangles. He promises to deliver the executive who was the target of Blomkvist’s libel suit.
Finally, we meet Lisbeth Salander, the title character ~ Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. She is an anti-social young woman with a photographic memory who freelances for a security company. She has amazing computer skills, many of which are illegal, which aid her in her security work. We get brief glimpses of her family life ~ her 48-year old mother is in a nursing home. Lisbeth visits her often, but the mother often confuses Lisbeth with her sister. Lisbeth has no close network of friends, and because she has had bad encounters with the police, she doesn’t seek legal assistance after she was brutally raped by her guardian.
Lisbeth had been initially hired to delve into Blomkvist’s past. Suddenly, the investigation was called off. Later, Blomkvist needs assistance in his Vanger investigation, so Lisbeth is called to assist him discover Harriet’s disappearance.
In a convoluted plot, Harriet’s murder seems to be connected to a number of murders that took place throughout Sweden in the 1950s and 1960s. As family members are interviewed, events lead Blomkvist to believe that maybe there is a copy-cat killer.
This is where the plot begins to unravel. A series of unlikely events occur, and, as if the book were the prelude to a movie script, there is a climatic scene where Blomkvist and the villain come to blows. Fear not, the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo comes to Blomkvist’s rescue.
The resolution to the mystery is horrifying and one that came totally from left field. It didn’t fit with the initial portion of the book.
Larsson depicts how cruelly and sadistly the men treat women they encounter. Many women are tortured and raped. Blomkvist, however, isn’t cruel, physically, but has a lot of casual sex with nearly every women he meets. Even though he is more than twice her age, Blomkvist engages in a sexual relationship with Lisbeth, even after he knows how fragile she is emptionally. On wonders what scars his attitude toward such casual sex leaves on both Blomkvist and his women.
Once the Vanger mystery has been solved, Larsson turns to Blomkvist’s revenge on the executive who bested him in the libel suit. At this point in the novel, the plot totally falls flat. The reader doesn’t really care about the outcome. Lisbeth has virtually disappeared.
Although the book kept my attention, in the end, I found it lacking and unsatisfactory.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is the first book in a trilogy by Larsson. After reading this novel, I am not ready to run out and read the rest in this series.
Read: July 27, 2010
I have very mixed feelings about this book. It has been on the best seller list and gotten rave reviews, but that doesn’t make it good literature. Larsson creates a very bleak picture of life in Sweden. The dominant theme is abuse of women by men. Interestingly, in Sweden, the book was entitled Men Who Hate Women.
The prologue of the novel begins with a mystery. An elderly industrialist (whom we later learn is Henrik Vanger) receives a framed pressed flower on his birthday, just as he has received for his birthday for the past 40 years. The recipient is unknown. The flower is a gentle reminder of the gifts his beloved grand-niece, Harriet, had given him before her disappearance and supposed murder in 1966.
The book next shifts to journalist and magazine publisher Mikael Blomkvist. He had just been found guilty of libel. Disgraced, Blomkvist ostensibly removes himself from his magazine and is offered a job by Vanger. Vanger wants Blomkvist to investigate Harriet’s disappearance. The cover story that Blomkvist, however, is a history of the Vanger family. Harriet had disappeared from an island, so Vanger believes there is a limited number of suspects. Indeed, Vanger believes that a family member is responsible for Harriet’s murder.
Blomkvist takes the job because of the carrot Vanger dangles. He promises to deliver the executive who was the target of Blomkvist’s libel suit.
Finally, we meet Lisbeth Salander, the title character ~ Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. She is an anti-social young woman with a photographic memory who freelances for a security company. She has amazing computer skills, many of which are illegal, which aid her in her security work. We get brief glimpses of her family life ~ her 48-year old mother is in a nursing home. Lisbeth visits her often, but the mother often confuses Lisbeth with her sister. Lisbeth has no close network of friends, and because she has had bad encounters with the police, she doesn’t seek legal assistance after she was brutally raped by her guardian.
Lisbeth had been initially hired to delve into Blomkvist’s past. Suddenly, the investigation was called off. Later, Blomkvist needs assistance in his Vanger investigation, so Lisbeth is called to assist him discover Harriet’s disappearance.
In a convoluted plot, Harriet’s murder seems to be connected to a number of murders that took place throughout Sweden in the 1950s and 1960s. As family members are interviewed, events lead Blomkvist to believe that maybe there is a copy-cat killer.
This is where the plot begins to unravel. A series of unlikely events occur, and, as if the book were the prelude to a movie script, there is a climatic scene where Blomkvist and the villain come to blows. Fear not, the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo comes to Blomkvist’s rescue.
The resolution to the mystery is horrifying and one that came totally from left field. It didn’t fit with the initial portion of the book.
Larsson depicts how cruelly and sadistly the men treat women they encounter. Many women are tortured and raped. Blomkvist, however, isn’t cruel, physically, but has a lot of casual sex with nearly every women he meets. Even though he is more than twice her age, Blomkvist engages in a sexual relationship with Lisbeth, even after he knows how fragile she is emptionally. On wonders what scars his attitude toward such casual sex leaves on both Blomkvist and his women.
Once the Vanger mystery has been solved, Larsson turns to Blomkvist’s revenge on the executive who bested him in the libel suit. At this point in the novel, the plot totally falls flat. The reader doesn’t really care about the outcome. Lisbeth has virtually disappeared.
Although the book kept my attention, in the end, I found it lacking and unsatisfactory.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is the first book in a trilogy by Larsson. After reading this novel, I am not ready to run out and read the rest in this series.
Read: July 27, 2010
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Books Set in Ottoman Turkey: Constaninople
Tears of Pearl by Tasha Alexander (2009)
I picked up Tears of Pearl at my local library because I was intrigued by the cover, which showed a skyline of Istanbul and the Hagia Sophia. I didn’t realized when I picked up the book that it is actually the third in a mystery series about Lady Emily Ashton. The fictitious Lady Emily was an adventurous young women living in the late 1800s, who, when she travels, finds herself involved in mysteries. The author makes references to things that happened in the previous three novels, which is a bit distracting.
In Tears of Pearl, Emily and Colin take the Orient Express to Constantinople (as it was called in 1892) for their honeymoon trip. Colin was a close friend of Emily’s first husband, who apparently died under mysterious circumstances in the previous novel in the series. There are hints that Colin may have been involved in the death of the first husband, but they lead no where.
While on the train, they meet Sir Richard, an elderly British diplomat stationed in Constantinople. He had been married to a local woman and tells Emily and Colin the tragic tale of how his wife murdered and his young daughter was abducted over 20 years ago. He had tattooed his daughter’s neck, as was the custom of his late wife’s community. Later, after an event at the Topkapi Palace, one of the women in the sultan’s harem is found murdered.
As luck would have it, the dead woman has a tattoo on her neck and is the long lost daughter of Sir Richard. Since only women (and the court eunuchs) are allowed in the harem, Emily takes charge and is permitted to question the women in the harem. Emily and her husband enter into a contest to see which of them will be able to find the murderer. In the course of their adventure, a few more bodies turn up. Other events seem point to Sir Richard as the villain.
The author provides many details of the harem as it existed near the end of the Ottoman Empire. It was clearly well researched and the author compares and contrasts freedoms and restrictions of British society women and the women of the harem.
Tears of Pearl is an adult version of the Nancy Drew mystery stories that I read as a pre-teen. It is a light-hearted novel without a great deal of suspense. Although I enjoyed the book, I have no interest in reading the previous books in the series.
Read: July 24, 2009
I picked up Tears of Pearl at my local library because I was intrigued by the cover, which showed a skyline of Istanbul and the Hagia Sophia. I didn’t realized when I picked up the book that it is actually the third in a mystery series about Lady Emily Ashton. The fictitious Lady Emily was an adventurous young women living in the late 1800s, who, when she travels, finds herself involved in mysteries. The author makes references to things that happened in the previous three novels, which is a bit distracting.
In Tears of Pearl, Emily and Colin take the Orient Express to Constantinople (as it was called in 1892) for their honeymoon trip. Colin was a close friend of Emily’s first husband, who apparently died under mysterious circumstances in the previous novel in the series. There are hints that Colin may have been involved in the death of the first husband, but they lead no where.
While on the train, they meet Sir Richard, an elderly British diplomat stationed in Constantinople. He had been married to a local woman and tells Emily and Colin the tragic tale of how his wife murdered and his young daughter was abducted over 20 years ago. He had tattooed his daughter’s neck, as was the custom of his late wife’s community. Later, after an event at the Topkapi Palace, one of the women in the sultan’s harem is found murdered.
As luck would have it, the dead woman has a tattoo on her neck and is the long lost daughter of Sir Richard. Since only women (and the court eunuchs) are allowed in the harem, Emily takes charge and is permitted to question the women in the harem. Emily and her husband enter into a contest to see which of them will be able to find the murderer. In the course of their adventure, a few more bodies turn up. Other events seem point to Sir Richard as the villain.
The author provides many details of the harem as it existed near the end of the Ottoman Empire. It was clearly well researched and the author compares and contrasts freedoms and restrictions of British society women and the women of the harem.
Tears of Pearl is an adult version of the Nancy Drew mystery stories that I read as a pre-teen. It is a light-hearted novel without a great deal of suspense. Although I enjoyed the book, I have no interest in reading the previous books in the series.
Read: July 24, 2009
Monday, July 19, 2010
Books Set in Europe: England
The Monster in the Box, by Ruth Rendell (2009)
I find Ruth Randell’s writings to be either very, very good, or not so good. This mystery novel was not so good.
The Monster in the Box is in her Inspector Wexford series. (Maybe I am just not a fan of this Inspector.). Early in his career, Inspector Wexford was investigating the murder of a woman who’s husband was ultimately convicted of the crime. At the time of the investigation, Wexford recalled seeing a man on the street wearing a scarf to cover his birthmark. Wexford was convinced the man had something to do with the murder, but being a novice police officer, he kept his thoughts to himself.
Fast forward to the twilight of Wexford’s career, while investigating another murder, he once again runs into the mysterious Eric Targo. Now, however, he has had his birthmark removed, but he still lingers around murder scenes. Until now, Wexford has had nothing to link Targo to numerous unsolved murders around the country.
Wexford’s partner is Mike Burden, whose young wife, Jenny, contacted Hannah Goldsmith, a police officer the department’s liaison officer for various immigrant groups. Jenny, who is a teacher, is concerned that 16-year old Tamima Rahman is being denied a higher education because of her Moslem, Pakistani family’s customs. She is concerned that Tamima will not be able to continue seeing her boyfriend and that Tamima’s family will either force her into an arranged marriage, or will kill her. (Rendell quaintly refers to the Rahman family as “Asian.” Perhaps that is a British thing.) The author seems to use this family to explore Moslem-British prejudices.
Rendell goes off on tangents that are unrelated to the main theme of the book. Wexford thinks back on an old fiancée, how he broke off the engagement, was best man at a near-stranger’s wedding, and the nearly career-killing encounter with a woman who tried to frame him for rape. I found these side stories distracting to the mystery, which already had too many tangents
Finally, about half-way through the book, a crime is committed. Wexford’s gardener his murdered and Targo is the main suspect. As Wexford begins to gather evidence, Targo has gone missing. Finally, Wexford has a reason to delve into Targo’s past. He seeks out Targo’s former wives to build his case. Ultimately, Rendell ties both Targo’s story with Tamima’s.
I was left unsatisfied by the ending. What was it that made Targo the man that he was? Was Tamima’s life really in danger and was she forced into the path she chose? I didn’t care enough about the characters to ponder these questions.
Read: July 19, 2010
I find Ruth Randell’s writings to be either very, very good, or not so good. This mystery novel was not so good.
The Monster in the Box is in her Inspector Wexford series. (Maybe I am just not a fan of this Inspector.). Early in his career, Inspector Wexford was investigating the murder of a woman who’s husband was ultimately convicted of the crime. At the time of the investigation, Wexford recalled seeing a man on the street wearing a scarf to cover his birthmark. Wexford was convinced the man had something to do with the murder, but being a novice police officer, he kept his thoughts to himself.
Fast forward to the twilight of Wexford’s career, while investigating another murder, he once again runs into the mysterious Eric Targo. Now, however, he has had his birthmark removed, but he still lingers around murder scenes. Until now, Wexford has had nothing to link Targo to numerous unsolved murders around the country.
Wexford’s partner is Mike Burden, whose young wife, Jenny, contacted Hannah Goldsmith, a police officer the department’s liaison officer for various immigrant groups. Jenny, who is a teacher, is concerned that 16-year old Tamima Rahman is being denied a higher education because of her Moslem, Pakistani family’s customs. She is concerned that Tamima will not be able to continue seeing her boyfriend and that Tamima’s family will either force her into an arranged marriage, or will kill her. (Rendell quaintly refers to the Rahman family as “Asian.” Perhaps that is a British thing.) The author seems to use this family to explore Moslem-British prejudices.
Rendell goes off on tangents that are unrelated to the main theme of the book. Wexford thinks back on an old fiancée, how he broke off the engagement, was best man at a near-stranger’s wedding, and the nearly career-killing encounter with a woman who tried to frame him for rape. I found these side stories distracting to the mystery, which already had too many tangents
Finally, about half-way through the book, a crime is committed. Wexford’s gardener his murdered and Targo is the main suspect. As Wexford begins to gather evidence, Targo has gone missing. Finally, Wexford has a reason to delve into Targo’s past. He seeks out Targo’s former wives to build his case. Ultimately, Rendell ties both Targo’s story with Tamima’s.
I was left unsatisfied by the ending. What was it that made Targo the man that he was? Was Tamima’s life really in danger and was she forced into the path she chose? I didn’t care enough about the characters to ponder these questions.
Read: July 19, 2010
Friday, July 9, 2010
Books Set in Asia: Malaysia
The Rice Mother by Rani Manicka (2002)
It has been a long time since I have read a book that I could really get involved in. The Rice Mother was one such book and what a treat!
The novel follows the family and generations of Lakshmi. Each chapter is written in the voice of a different family member, so get a picture of the family through the different eyes, and experience the same event through the experiences of various characters. Maniacka had done this to perfection.
Lakshmi was born in 1916. At age 14, young Lakshmi, the matriarch of the novel, is married off to an ostensibly wealthy widow. She leaves her mother and homeland of Ceylon for Malaysia. Once she arrives in her new country, she realizes that she was duped into marrying a man without the great wealth she had been led to believe. He is a lowly clerk with no aspirations to improve his station in life. Within a few short years, she finds herself the mother of six children. Her first borns are the twins, Lakshmnan and his sister, Mohini. They are soon followed by Sevenese, Anna, Jeyan and Lalita. Lakshmi devotes her life to building a better life for her children.
Mohini is beautiful, and Lakshmi pins all her hopes on her beautiful daughter. During World War II, the Japanese invade Malaysia. Overnight, girls are dressed as boys to keep them from being raped by the Japanese soldiers. Lakshmi hides Mohini in a secret room under their house because she fears that Mohini's beauty cannot be hidden in boy's clothing. For three years, Mohini is kept hidden from view. Then, when the end of the war is in sight, Mohini is accidently exposed when the Japanese soldiers storm the house. She was taken away by the soldiers and never seen again. Although her fate was never known, the family knew that she was likely brutally raped and murdered.
Mohini's disappearance and death cast a pall over the family for generations. Lakshmnan feels responsible for his twin sister's death. His relationship with his mother, Lakshmi, is also soured after Mohini's death. Lakshmnan becomes a compulsive gambler. He marries a cruel, bitter woman, who gives him three children. His wife, Rani, pits her children against each other. Their middle child, Dimple marries the mysterious and wealthy Luke. Rani sees a meal ticket. Lakshmnan, however, realizes that Dimple is in for bad fortune.
Dimple begins to take an interest in her family's history and begins recording the stories as told by each family member. She encourages her grandmother, her aunts and uncles to share their memories on cassette tapes. Her life with Luke begins to erode, after she learns that he has a mistress. He introduces her to opium. Her daughter, Nisha, was a very young girl when her mother died. Luke then created an entirely new life for her, erasing her memories of her mother's family.
Only after Luke dies, does Nisha come in contact with her mother's family again. Before he died, Luke gave Nisha the key to the cassettes that Dimple had so carefully preserved. The tapes help Nisha come to terms with the sorrowful legacy of her family, and her past. Learning of her family's experiences and histories enables her to come to terms with her own fears and depression.
The Rice Mother is the debut novel of Rani Manicka. I eagerly await her next offerings.
Read: July 9, 2010
It has been a long time since I have read a book that I could really get involved in. The Rice Mother was one such book and what a treat!
The novel follows the family and generations of Lakshmi. Each chapter is written in the voice of a different family member, so get a picture of the family through the different eyes, and experience the same event through the experiences of various characters. Maniacka had done this to perfection.
Lakshmi was born in 1916. At age 14, young Lakshmi, the matriarch of the novel, is married off to an ostensibly wealthy widow. She leaves her mother and homeland of Ceylon for Malaysia. Once she arrives in her new country, she realizes that she was duped into marrying a man without the great wealth she had been led to believe. He is a lowly clerk with no aspirations to improve his station in life. Within a few short years, she finds herself the mother of six children. Her first borns are the twins, Lakshmnan and his sister, Mohini. They are soon followed by Sevenese, Anna, Jeyan and Lalita. Lakshmi devotes her life to building a better life for her children.
Mohini is beautiful, and Lakshmi pins all her hopes on her beautiful daughter. During World War II, the Japanese invade Malaysia. Overnight, girls are dressed as boys to keep them from being raped by the Japanese soldiers. Lakshmi hides Mohini in a secret room under their house because she fears that Mohini's beauty cannot be hidden in boy's clothing. For three years, Mohini is kept hidden from view. Then, when the end of the war is in sight, Mohini is accidently exposed when the Japanese soldiers storm the house. She was taken away by the soldiers and never seen again. Although her fate was never known, the family knew that she was likely brutally raped and murdered.
Mohini's disappearance and death cast a pall over the family for generations. Lakshmnan feels responsible for his twin sister's death. His relationship with his mother, Lakshmi, is also soured after Mohini's death. Lakshmnan becomes a compulsive gambler. He marries a cruel, bitter woman, who gives him three children. His wife, Rani, pits her children against each other. Their middle child, Dimple marries the mysterious and wealthy Luke. Rani sees a meal ticket. Lakshmnan, however, realizes that Dimple is in for bad fortune.
Dimple begins to take an interest in her family's history and begins recording the stories as told by each family member. She encourages her grandmother, her aunts and uncles to share their memories on cassette tapes. Her life with Luke begins to erode, after she learns that he has a mistress. He introduces her to opium. Her daughter, Nisha, was a very young girl when her mother died. Luke then created an entirely new life for her, erasing her memories of her mother's family.
Only after Luke dies, does Nisha come in contact with her mother's family again. Before he died, Luke gave Nisha the key to the cassettes that Dimple had so carefully preserved. The tapes help Nisha come to terms with the sorrowful legacy of her family, and her past. Learning of her family's experiences and histories enables her to come to terms with her own fears and depression.
The Rice Mother is the debut novel of Rani Manicka. I eagerly await her next offerings.
Read: July 9, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Books Set in Europe: London
A Spectacle of Corruption by David Liss
I generally enjoy historical fiction, and have previously enjoyed the historical novels of David Liss. I especially enjoyed The Coffee Trader. This book, however, not so much. I found it hard to care about Benjamin Weaver as he struggled to solve why someone wanted him dead.
A Spectacle of Corruption is the sequel to A Conspiracy of Paper which first introduced the reader to Benjamin Weaver. A Spectacle of Corruption centers around the exploits of Benjamin Weaver at the time of the British parliamentary elections of 1722. Although Weaver, as a Jew, was ineligible to participate in the elections, he found himself caught up in the process after being framed for the murder of Walter Yate, a dockworker. The 1722 British elections held intrigue for a number of reasons, not the least of which the Jacobites, who were attempting to restore the throne to the Catholic James the Pretender, threatened the security of King George I, England's first Hanoverian monarch.
Liss vividly describes life in 18th-century London. Benjamin Weaver is a “thieftaker,” which was apparently somewhat equivalent to today’s bounty hunters. He walks a fine line in a world hostile to anyone who is at all "foreign", and as a Jew, he is perceived as an outsider.
After his trial, in which he is found guilty of murdering Walter Yate, and as he is being hauled off to prison, a mysterious blonde woman hands Weaver a lockpick and file. Within hours, he has escaped from prison and is now a fugitive in London. Now he must prove his innocence to save his life.
Weaver enlists the aid of his friend Elias, who helps him masquerade as a wealthy tobacco merchant from Jamaica ready to become involved in British politics. The novel purports to be a mystery as Weaver must figure out why he was singled out for the murder of Yate.
I found the novel not so much a mystery as a snapshot of life in London in the early 1700s. Liss captures the sights, sounds and smells of London ~ a city crowded with poverty, coffee houses, and the juxtaposition of wealthy with their own set of impoverished morals. The book is well researched and provides an interesting slice of daily life experienced 300 years ago. Politically, however, not so much has changed.
Read: May 28, 2010
I generally enjoy historical fiction, and have previously enjoyed the historical novels of David Liss. I especially enjoyed The Coffee Trader. This book, however, not so much. I found it hard to care about Benjamin Weaver as he struggled to solve why someone wanted him dead.
A Spectacle of Corruption is the sequel to A Conspiracy of Paper which first introduced the reader to Benjamin Weaver. A Spectacle of Corruption centers around the exploits of Benjamin Weaver at the time of the British parliamentary elections of 1722. Although Weaver, as a Jew, was ineligible to participate in the elections, he found himself caught up in the process after being framed for the murder of Walter Yate, a dockworker. The 1722 British elections held intrigue for a number of reasons, not the least of which the Jacobites, who were attempting to restore the throne to the Catholic James the Pretender, threatened the security of King George I, England's first Hanoverian monarch.
Liss vividly describes life in 18th-century London. Benjamin Weaver is a “thieftaker,” which was apparently somewhat equivalent to today’s bounty hunters. He walks a fine line in a world hostile to anyone who is at all "foreign", and as a Jew, he is perceived as an outsider.
After his trial, in which he is found guilty of murdering Walter Yate, and as he is being hauled off to prison, a mysterious blonde woman hands Weaver a lockpick and file. Within hours, he has escaped from prison and is now a fugitive in London. Now he must prove his innocence to save his life.
Weaver enlists the aid of his friend Elias, who helps him masquerade as a wealthy tobacco merchant from Jamaica ready to become involved in British politics. The novel purports to be a mystery as Weaver must figure out why he was singled out for the murder of Yate.
I found the novel not so much a mystery as a snapshot of life in London in the early 1700s. Liss captures the sights, sounds and smells of London ~ a city crowded with poverty, coffee houses, and the juxtaposition of wealthy with their own set of impoverished morals. The book is well researched and provides an interesting slice of daily life experienced 300 years ago. Politically, however, not so much has changed.
Read: May 28, 2010
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Books Set in Europe: Medieval Italy
Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant (2009)
Sarah Dunant has written two other books that take place during the Italian Renaissance ~ The Birth of Venus and In the Company of the Courtesan. I couldn’t put either of those books down. Unfortunately, Sacred Hearts doesn’t live up to the same standard.
Sacred Hearts is set in a Benedictine convent in 16th Century Ferrara, Italy. The novel portrays the very stark life of the nuns confined within the walls of the convent. Many of the nuns living in the convent entered for purely secular or practical reasons. It was not uncommon for large aristocratic families to send their younger daughters to lead a convent live. Families often could not afford a dowry for more than one daughter, and it was too expensive to keep the young, single women at home. Convents provided a convenient career for these young women, whether it was a life they would chose or not.
The novel focuses on two nuns, Suora Zuana, the middle-aged dispensary nun, and Sarafina, the teenaged novice, who pined for her music-teacher lover. Serafina was forced into the convent when she rejected the wealthy suitor selected by her family in favor of the love of her own chosing. Thus, separated from the secular world and her lover, Serafina spends her first few days screaming and crying in her cell until Suora Zuana take her under her wing.
Suora Zuana was herself once an unwilling novice. She understands what Serafina is going through in her transition from the secular world into the religious life. Serafina, however, devises a way to communicate with her lover and plots an escape.
Dunant describes the daily life of the convent. All actions are focused on the good of the convent, thus the women have given up all freedoms and devote their entire loves to the total obedience of the Abbess. Even speaking during the Great Silence is cause for atonement.
Serafina is rebellious. Although she had a great deal of musical talent in the secular world, she refuses to sing once she has entered the convent. Suora Zuana allows here to help out in the infirmary, where she learns about herbs and potions. Will this new knowledge help her to escape her fate?
While the book provided an interesting glimpse of convent life in the 1500s, and while it is clear that a great deal of research went in to building the foundation of this novel, I found the premise of the novel unsatisfying. Sarah Dunant is a wonderful writer, but this book doesn’t live up to the expectations of her previous writings.
Read: May 30, 2010
Sarah Dunant has written two other books that take place during the Italian Renaissance ~ The Birth of Venus and In the Company of the Courtesan. I couldn’t put either of those books down. Unfortunately, Sacred Hearts doesn’t live up to the same standard.
Sacred Hearts is set in a Benedictine convent in 16th Century Ferrara, Italy. The novel portrays the very stark life of the nuns confined within the walls of the convent. Many of the nuns living in the convent entered for purely secular or practical reasons. It was not uncommon for large aristocratic families to send their younger daughters to lead a convent live. Families often could not afford a dowry for more than one daughter, and it was too expensive to keep the young, single women at home. Convents provided a convenient career for these young women, whether it was a life they would chose or not.
The novel focuses on two nuns, Suora Zuana, the middle-aged dispensary nun, and Sarafina, the teenaged novice, who pined for her music-teacher lover. Serafina was forced into the convent when she rejected the wealthy suitor selected by her family in favor of the love of her own chosing. Thus, separated from the secular world and her lover, Serafina spends her first few days screaming and crying in her cell until Suora Zuana take her under her wing.
Suora Zuana was herself once an unwilling novice. She understands what Serafina is going through in her transition from the secular world into the religious life. Serafina, however, devises a way to communicate with her lover and plots an escape.
Dunant describes the daily life of the convent. All actions are focused on the good of the convent, thus the women have given up all freedoms and devote their entire loves to the total obedience of the Abbess. Even speaking during the Great Silence is cause for atonement.
Serafina is rebellious. Although she had a great deal of musical talent in the secular world, she refuses to sing once she has entered the convent. Suora Zuana allows here to help out in the infirmary, where she learns about herbs and potions. Will this new knowledge help her to escape her fate?
While the book provided an interesting glimpse of convent life in the 1500s, and while it is clear that a great deal of research went in to building the foundation of this novel, I found the premise of the novel unsatisfying. Sarah Dunant is a wonderful writer, but this book doesn’t live up to the expectations of her previous writings.
Read: May 30, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Books Set in Africa: Kenya
Nowhere in Africa by Stefanie Zweig (1996, English Translation 2004)
Nowhere in Africa is an autobiographical novel about a Jewish family who left the Nazi regime in 1938 for a Africa. Walter Redlich left first, thinking he could earn money to send for his family. Instead, he found himself on a rural farm, far from the city. His letters to his wife counsel her on what to bring when she and her young daughter set off to join him.
In Germany, Walter had been a respected lawyer. In colonial Kenya, he is the overseer of a farm, working without pay. His wife was a spoiled and pampered woman, who, instead of bring an icebox per her husband's instructions, packs an evening gown and good china. While the new environment is extremely hard on the parents, young Regina finds herself in a wonderland. She quickly makes friends with Owour, the farm's cook, and learns Swahili. Soon, she has lost her grasp of the German language, although her parents struggle with the English of the British who are ruling the country and the Swahili of the indigenous people.
Jews fleeing Nazi Germany found refuge all over the world. Until I read this book, however, I was not aware that Kenya was a safe haven. The ruling British, however, were not always sure how to handle the Jewish refugees. Once Britain entered the war, all Jewish men were rounded up and placed in internment camps. Women and children were gathered and housed in posh hotels in Nairobi. The British did not have any understanding of Jewish customs, and insisted on feeding the women and children lavish meals of shellfish and non-kosher meats prepared by the best cooks in the city. The British could not understand why the food remained untouched. The author's description is told with humor.
Although the English translation/style is a bit difficult to read at times, Nowhere in Africa is a fascinating story that give a difference glimpse of life during the Holocaust.
After the war, Walter was desperate to return to Germany. The author's second autobiographical novel, Somewhere in Germany, continues the family's story after returning to their homeland.
Read: May 26, 2010
Nowhere in Africa is an autobiographical novel about a Jewish family who left the Nazi regime in 1938 for a Africa. Walter Redlich left first, thinking he could earn money to send for his family. Instead, he found himself on a rural farm, far from the city. His letters to his wife counsel her on what to bring when she and her young daughter set off to join him.
In Germany, Walter had been a respected lawyer. In colonial Kenya, he is the overseer of a farm, working without pay. His wife was a spoiled and pampered woman, who, instead of bring an icebox per her husband's instructions, packs an evening gown and good china. While the new environment is extremely hard on the parents, young Regina finds herself in a wonderland. She quickly makes friends with Owour, the farm's cook, and learns Swahili. Soon, she has lost her grasp of the German language, although her parents struggle with the English of the British who are ruling the country and the Swahili of the indigenous people.
Jews fleeing Nazi Germany found refuge all over the world. Until I read this book, however, I was not aware that Kenya was a safe haven. The ruling British, however, were not always sure how to handle the Jewish refugees. Once Britain entered the war, all Jewish men were rounded up and placed in internment camps. Women and children were gathered and housed in posh hotels in Nairobi. The British did not have any understanding of Jewish customs, and insisted on feeding the women and children lavish meals of shellfish and non-kosher meats prepared by the best cooks in the city. The British could not understand why the food remained untouched. The author's description is told with humor.
Although the English translation/style is a bit difficult to read at times, Nowhere in Africa is a fascinating story that give a difference glimpse of life during the Holocaust.
After the war, Walter was desperate to return to Germany. The author's second autobiographical novel, Somewhere in Germany, continues the family's story after returning to their homeland.
Read: May 26, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Books Set in the United States: Alabama
All Over but the Shoutin', by Rick Bragg (1997)
All Over But the Shoutin’ is ostensibly about the author’s mother, but it is really a love song to her.
Margaret Bundrum fell hard for the handsome young Charles Bragg and ran off and married him. His experience as a soldier in Korea, however, left him a broken and tortured man. By the time Rick Bragg was born, his father was well on his way to being a mean-spirited and hard-core alcoholic. Mercifully, Bragg spares us the abuse his mother endured from her absent husband. It is clear that this abuse affected the author all throughout his adult life. It has also colored his ability to form long-term relationships with women (although in his 40s, he found the love of his life, married and became a step-father to her son.)
Margaret Bragg struggled to protect her three sons from her husband’s abuse. When the author was about six years old, his father left the family permanently. Still, he remained a huge presence throughout the household. Charles spent what ever money he had on himself, leaving his wife and children with nothing. Margaret was forced to rely in the charity of family to raise her sons. She worked in the cotton fields to earn a few dollars to clothe and feed her young family. She often went without food so that her sons could eat.
Born in the back woods of Alabama, Rick seemed destine for a life echoing that of his father. On impulse, he signed up for a journalism class at a nearby college. Although he could only afford to take one class at a time, this made him a “collage man” and opened the door to a new life. He was offered a job as a sports writer for a local paper. Although the pay wasn’t much, he found his passion. This lead to jobs at other small, local papers through out the south, before landing a plum position at the New York Times.
Bragg had to write this book to save himself. He uses this book to explain to himself and his mother how her sacrifice saved him from becoming his father. Bragg never really knew his father. His brief time with the family was not pleasant. Charles Bragg died when the author was 16. Shortly before his father’s death, Bragg visited him. Bragg acknowledges that, although he felt no grief when his father died, is was grateful for allowing this visit to bring some closure so he doesn’t hate his father. (Bragg has subsequently come to terms with his father in a later book entitled Prince of Frogtown.)
As a reporter, Bragg found himself in some hairy situations, such as the Miami riots and the Haitian revolution. He couldn’t tell his mother about these situations, however, because he didn’t want to worry her. She had enough to worry about with her youngest son, Mark. Mark was the wild son who found himself on the wrong side of the law.
Bragg is incredibly proud of his mother, and rightfully so. When he won a Pulitzer Prize, he wanted his mother to attend the award event. She was apprehensive about going because she didn’t want to be seen before all “rich folks.” Fortunately, she overcame her fears and was able to take her first plane trip and enjoy the spotlight with her son.
Bragg’s proudest moment was when he was able to purchase for his mother a house of her own.
Interestingly, Bragg earns his keep through writing, yet I found that in this book, he used many grammatical phrases that are pure South. My favorite line in this book was: “Sometimes in this world, you don’t get the whole dog. Now and then, you have to settle for the tail.” Rick Bragg didn’t settle for the tail.
Read: May 15, 2010
All Over But the Shoutin’ is ostensibly about the author’s mother, but it is really a love song to her.
Margaret Bundrum fell hard for the handsome young Charles Bragg and ran off and married him. His experience as a soldier in Korea, however, left him a broken and tortured man. By the time Rick Bragg was born, his father was well on his way to being a mean-spirited and hard-core alcoholic. Mercifully, Bragg spares us the abuse his mother endured from her absent husband. It is clear that this abuse affected the author all throughout his adult life. It has also colored his ability to form long-term relationships with women (although in his 40s, he found the love of his life, married and became a step-father to her son.)
Margaret Bragg struggled to protect her three sons from her husband’s abuse. When the author was about six years old, his father left the family permanently. Still, he remained a huge presence throughout the household. Charles spent what ever money he had on himself, leaving his wife and children with nothing. Margaret was forced to rely in the charity of family to raise her sons. She worked in the cotton fields to earn a few dollars to clothe and feed her young family. She often went without food so that her sons could eat.
Born in the back woods of Alabama, Rick seemed destine for a life echoing that of his father. On impulse, he signed up for a journalism class at a nearby college. Although he could only afford to take one class at a time, this made him a “collage man” and opened the door to a new life. He was offered a job as a sports writer for a local paper. Although the pay wasn’t much, he found his passion. This lead to jobs at other small, local papers through out the south, before landing a plum position at the New York Times.
Bragg had to write this book to save himself. He uses this book to explain to himself and his mother how her sacrifice saved him from becoming his father. Bragg never really knew his father. His brief time with the family was not pleasant. Charles Bragg died when the author was 16. Shortly before his father’s death, Bragg visited him. Bragg acknowledges that, although he felt no grief when his father died, is was grateful for allowing this visit to bring some closure so he doesn’t hate his father. (Bragg has subsequently come to terms with his father in a later book entitled Prince of Frogtown.)
As a reporter, Bragg found himself in some hairy situations, such as the Miami riots and the Haitian revolution. He couldn’t tell his mother about these situations, however, because he didn’t want to worry her. She had enough to worry about with her youngest son, Mark. Mark was the wild son who found himself on the wrong side of the law.
Bragg is incredibly proud of his mother, and rightfully so. When he won a Pulitzer Prize, he wanted his mother to attend the award event. She was apprehensive about going because she didn’t want to be seen before all “rich folks.” Fortunately, she overcame her fears and was able to take her first plane trip and enjoy the spotlight with her son.
Bragg’s proudest moment was when he was able to purchase for his mother a house of her own.
Interestingly, Bragg earns his keep through writing, yet I found that in this book, he used many grammatical phrases that are pure South. My favorite line in this book was: “Sometimes in this world, you don’t get the whole dog. Now and then, you have to settle for the tail.” Rick Bragg didn’t settle for the tail.
Read: May 15, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
Books Set in the United States and Britain
An Unlikely Spy by Daniel Silva (1995)
Daniel Silva is known for his spy and espionage series of books in which Gabriel Allon is the hero. The Unlikely Spy, however, is not a part of this series. The Unlikely Spy is Silva’s first novel, and what a tale he tells.
This story focuses on the secrecy surrounding the events that lead up to the Allies’ landing on Normandy on D-Day. The British have an elaborate false network of intelligence using Double Cross to leak to the Germans. The information must be plausible, but not too readily available so that it is believable. Some of the information, therefore, is real, and some is completely false.
Germany has a special V-chain of spies living in Britain to be activated when the need should arise. Among the deeply hidden spies is Anna Steiner, known now as Catherine Blake. She has been quietly living in London for the past 6 years, taking the identities of others who she either killed or who had died as infants.
After Hitler ordered infiltration of MI5, Britain’s intelligence, Catherine is called to duty. She is a beautiful loner who was recruited and manipulated by Vogel, a German Abwehr officer who has fallen in love with her. (Why are all female spies beautiful?)
British Intelligence, for its part, has recruited Alfred Vicary, a middle-aged bachelor who still pines for Helen, the love of his life, who dropped him when her father threatened to cut off her inheritance. Vicary had his knee shattered in World War II. He has been working as a university professor when he was tapped into service by the MI5. His background, therefore, makes him an unlikely spy. He finds that he enjoys much of the work and is quite suited for his new-found profession.
Silva skillfully reveals bits and pieces of the puzzle, switching between the actions of the British and the Germans, leaving the reader to wonder just who can be trusted.
Clearly, a lot of careful research went into writing this book. The story is based on actual events surrounding the D-Day invasion. Even though we all know that the Allies’ plans to invade were successful, Silva carefully describes how the plans were could have been thwarted.
A quick, but exciting read.
Read: April 30, 2010
Daniel Silva is known for his spy and espionage series of books in which Gabriel Allon is the hero. The Unlikely Spy, however, is not a part of this series. The Unlikely Spy is Silva’s first novel, and what a tale he tells.
This story focuses on the secrecy surrounding the events that lead up to the Allies’ landing on Normandy on D-Day. The British have an elaborate false network of intelligence using Double Cross to leak to the Germans. The information must be plausible, but not too readily available so that it is believable. Some of the information, therefore, is real, and some is completely false.
Germany has a special V-chain of spies living in Britain to be activated when the need should arise. Among the deeply hidden spies is Anna Steiner, known now as Catherine Blake. She has been quietly living in London for the past 6 years, taking the identities of others who she either killed or who had died as infants.
After Hitler ordered infiltration of MI5, Britain’s intelligence, Catherine is called to duty. She is a beautiful loner who was recruited and manipulated by Vogel, a German Abwehr officer who has fallen in love with her. (Why are all female spies beautiful?)
British Intelligence, for its part, has recruited Alfred Vicary, a middle-aged bachelor who still pines for Helen, the love of his life, who dropped him when her father threatened to cut off her inheritance. Vicary had his knee shattered in World War II. He has been working as a university professor when he was tapped into service by the MI5. His background, therefore, makes him an unlikely spy. He finds that he enjoys much of the work and is quite suited for his new-found profession.
Silva skillfully reveals bits and pieces of the puzzle, switching between the actions of the British and the Germans, leaving the reader to wonder just who can be trusted.
Clearly, a lot of careful research went into writing this book. The story is based on actual events surrounding the D-Day invasion. Even though we all know that the Allies’ plans to invade were successful, Silva carefully describes how the plans were could have been thwarted.
A quick, but exciting read.
Read: April 30, 2010
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Books Set in the United States and Italy
The Broker by John Grisham (2005)
John Grisham is known for his legal thrillers. With The Broker, he decided to try his luck with a political thriller. He should stick with what he knows best.
The story begins when the outgoing president makes some last minute pardons, thus Joel Backman is sprung from a federal pen. He had been imprisoned for trying to broker a billion-dollar deal over some software that could control a secret spy satellite system. The rationale, as explained in the book, was somewhat fuzzy.
The aging CIA agent arranges for Backman to be released from prison and sets the scene for him to be assassinated by someone else ~ the Chinese, Saudis, the Israelis, the Russians ~ it wouldn’t matter, just so long as the deed was accomplished. Again, why?
Backman, who had been a powerful attorney on the Washington scene, does not have the background to be a spy, so how does he know how to go about all this business, specially since his had been in prison for the past six years. Furthermore, his new life as a spy trying to stay alive, requires him to use sophisticated computers and telephones ~ something that he had his secretaries deal with in his pre-prison life.
After his release from prison, he is given a new name and ostensibly a new life in Italy. The CIA sits back to wait his assassination. He quickly realizes that he must trust no one, not even his handler. He has a beautiful Italian tutor, who has a dying husband. But of course, how convenient.
The book is a fast-paced read, but is a bit like eating too much cotton candy. At the end, I was left unsatisfied.
Read: April 26, 2010
John Grisham is known for his legal thrillers. With The Broker, he decided to try his luck with a political thriller. He should stick with what he knows best.
The story begins when the outgoing president makes some last minute pardons, thus Joel Backman is sprung from a federal pen. He had been imprisoned for trying to broker a billion-dollar deal over some software that could control a secret spy satellite system. The rationale, as explained in the book, was somewhat fuzzy.
The aging CIA agent arranges for Backman to be released from prison and sets the scene for him to be assassinated by someone else ~ the Chinese, Saudis, the Israelis, the Russians ~ it wouldn’t matter, just so long as the deed was accomplished. Again, why?
Backman, who had been a powerful attorney on the Washington scene, does not have the background to be a spy, so how does he know how to go about all this business, specially since his had been in prison for the past six years. Furthermore, his new life as a spy trying to stay alive, requires him to use sophisticated computers and telephones ~ something that he had his secretaries deal with in his pre-prison life.
After his release from prison, he is given a new name and ostensibly a new life in Italy. The CIA sits back to wait his assassination. He quickly realizes that he must trust no one, not even his handler. He has a beautiful Italian tutor, who has a dying husband. But of course, how convenient.
The book is a fast-paced read, but is a bit like eating too much cotton candy. At the end, I was left unsatisfied.
Read: April 26, 2010
Monday, April 19, 2010
Books Set in the United States and Kenya
Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama (1995)
Dreams from My Father was published long before Barack Obama began his run to become President of the United States. I don’t generally read books by political figures; however, a friend lent me this book. It sat on my shelf for some months before I decided to pick it up and give it a go.
The book tells us very little of his early life. Although he has said publically that his mother was in influence in his life, she is virtually absent in this book. He was born in Hawaii, but lived in Indonesia as a young boy, before being shipped off to Hawaii again to live with his grandparents. The picture he paints of his maternal grandparents is not the one he spoke of during his presidential campaign. The focus of this book, of course, is his search for his father’s side of his history.
As a school boy in Hawaii, Obama encountered few other black classmates and he began to feel the “differentness” of being black. He attended college on the mainland and while a student, turned to books by such writers as Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright. He struggles with his racial identity, where he is unable to fit in with the white students, yet must prove himself to the black students.
Following college, Obama decided to become a community organizer. He was hired by a white Jew, with whom he seemed to have a tenuous working relationship. He went into a rough project community to try to arouse interest in getting its residents involved in making improvements. He was frequently frustrated by the lack of apparent involvement by the residents, but he persevered. In the course of this work, he is told to become a member of a church, any church, in order to gain credibility. That began his relationship with the Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Obama describes the first sermon he hears the Reverend Wright give. That sermon was entitled “The Audacity of Hope.” From the description, it appears to have been much the same rhetoric that was discussed during the President’s campaign.
Change was the theme of his presidential campaign. Change was also a theme of his early working career. He tried to effectuate change as he worked in the projects of Chicago as a community organizer. His efforts are truly admirable and consistent. Still, while working there, he feels like an outsider ~ a young man looking for his place in the world.
The main theme of Dreams from My Father, is, as the title suggests, Obama’s quest to learn about his absent father. Obama met his father only once, long when he was about 10 years old. His memory created a fantasy, and ideal man, so that 11 years later, when Obama was 21 and learned that his father was dead, he had no sense of loss.
Finally, Obama decides to travel to Kenya to meet his father’s complicated, tangled and extended family. His father had been married several times and had several children. At least two of his wives, including Barack Obama’s mother, were white Americans. All the children, except Barack, lived and grew up in Kenya.
Obama discusses the issues of race and class, as it is played out in Kenya and America. He also analyzes race in terms of human psychology that manifests itself in the prejudices towards one another.
President Obama is a very articulate speaker. He is also a good writer. He is good with words. This book conveys his quest to find his place in the world, first by finding his past through his missing parent(s) and then by helping change the plight of those less fortunate than him. Perhaps it was his sense of loneliness and need to fit in that lead him on his path to the White House.
Read: April 19, 2010
Dreams from My Father was published long before Barack Obama began his run to become President of the United States. I don’t generally read books by political figures; however, a friend lent me this book. It sat on my shelf for some months before I decided to pick it up and give it a go.
The book tells us very little of his early life. Although he has said publically that his mother was in influence in his life, she is virtually absent in this book. He was born in Hawaii, but lived in Indonesia as a young boy, before being shipped off to Hawaii again to live with his grandparents. The picture he paints of his maternal grandparents is not the one he spoke of during his presidential campaign. The focus of this book, of course, is his search for his father’s side of his history.
As a school boy in Hawaii, Obama encountered few other black classmates and he began to feel the “differentness” of being black. He attended college on the mainland and while a student, turned to books by such writers as Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright. He struggles with his racial identity, where he is unable to fit in with the white students, yet must prove himself to the black students.
Following college, Obama decided to become a community organizer. He was hired by a white Jew, with whom he seemed to have a tenuous working relationship. He went into a rough project community to try to arouse interest in getting its residents involved in making improvements. He was frequently frustrated by the lack of apparent involvement by the residents, but he persevered. In the course of this work, he is told to become a member of a church, any church, in order to gain credibility. That began his relationship with the Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Obama describes the first sermon he hears the Reverend Wright give. That sermon was entitled “The Audacity of Hope.” From the description, it appears to have been much the same rhetoric that was discussed during the President’s campaign.
Change was the theme of his presidential campaign. Change was also a theme of his early working career. He tried to effectuate change as he worked in the projects of Chicago as a community organizer. His efforts are truly admirable and consistent. Still, while working there, he feels like an outsider ~ a young man looking for his place in the world.
The main theme of Dreams from My Father, is, as the title suggests, Obama’s quest to learn about his absent father. Obama met his father only once, long when he was about 10 years old. His memory created a fantasy, and ideal man, so that 11 years later, when Obama was 21 and learned that his father was dead, he had no sense of loss.
Finally, Obama decides to travel to Kenya to meet his father’s complicated, tangled and extended family. His father had been married several times and had several children. At least two of his wives, including Barack Obama’s mother, were white Americans. All the children, except Barack, lived and grew up in Kenya.
Obama discusses the issues of race and class, as it is played out in Kenya and America. He also analyzes race in terms of human psychology that manifests itself in the prejudices towards one another.
President Obama is a very articulate speaker. He is also a good writer. He is good with words. This book conveys his quest to find his place in the world, first by finding his past through his missing parent(s) and then by helping change the plight of those less fortunate than him. Perhaps it was his sense of loneliness and need to fit in that lead him on his path to the White House.
Read: April 19, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Books Set In The United States: New Orleans
Nine Lives by Dan Baum (2009)
Nine Lives, as the title implies, follows the lives of nine New Orleanians who lived through Hurricane Katrina. The Katrina episode, however, does not begin until the end of the book. Instead, Nine Lives attempts to explain the attraction and pull the city of New Orleans has on its residents and why the people of New Orleans are so adamant about remaining in the city after the flooding following the levee breaches in 2005.
The book’s title is also a pun on the phrase “Nine Lives.” The individuals highlighted in the book have suffered tragedy after tragedy, and yet still survive. Hurricane Katrina is another major setback, yet they persevere.
Dan Baum met with, and interviewed, the nine individuals extensively for days on end. He also interviewed others who, either knew the Nine lives spotlighted, or who could provide background information about their segment of society in New Orleans. The Nine highlighted in the book did not necessarily know each other, although some of their lives did intersect.
The nine lives of the book represent a good cross-section of the New Orleans residents. The individuals include residents of the Lower Ninth Ward, politicos, a self-made man who rose to become King of Rex, a transsexual, a police office, and are both black and white. Having lived through Katrina and its recovery attempt (which 5 years later is still ongoing), I understand the characters. I wonder, though, how this book translates to the “other America” ~ those who are not so intimately involved in the Katrina experience.
New Orleans reveled in its “bad boy” reputation as a corrupt and crime-ridden city. It was an open secret that the police department of the city was on the take, and that the schools were some of the worst in the country. New Orleans didn’t try to retain business, and when the oil bubble in the 1980s burst and many of the oil companies pulled up stakes, many of the old and monied residents, found themselves barely hanging on. They kept up appearances, however, to keep their social status. Music and Mardi Gras define New Olreans. New Orleans without Mardi Gras is unimaginable. Mardi Gras and music must go on despite any other tragedy.
The book begins with the teenaged Reginald Lewis in 1965 in the aftermath of Hurricane Betsy. That storm caused considerable damage to the Lower Ninth Ward, but the residents of that neighborhood rebuilt their community and remained. Over the next 40 years, that neighborhood slowly became more violent and isolated from other parts of the city. Lewis becomes a streetcar track repairman for years. It is tough, physical work, but he works himself up through the ranks as far as he can as a black man living in the city that fought integration. In the early 1990s, Lewis was instrumental in starting a second-line club of musicians to march in their neighborhood Mardi Gras parades. This lead to his collecting a wide assortment of elaborate Mardi Gras costumes, which became so vast, that he eventually established a Museum of Dance and Feathers.
Joyce Montana is the wife of the Tootie Montana. For years, Black men costumed themselves as Mardi Gras Indians during the Mardi Gras festivals. As Indians, they used to fight and brawl until Tootie Montana came along. Tootie was famous for sewing elaborate beaded and feathered suits. He would spend a year and much money in designing and creating costumes for the festivities. Tootie died two months before Katrina hit. His wife was left to struggle on her own.
Billy Grace is a self-made man who came from a humble background, but married into an old family who owned the famous “Rex House.” The year before Katrina, Grace was captain of the prestigious Rex krewe. When the storm hit, Grace was out of town on business, but his in-laws remained in their Garden District mansion. The house was on high ground, so survived the storm, only to be burned to the ground in the post-Katrina era.
As a young gynecologist, Frank Minyard was a wild man. Although he had married well, he was a womanizer. His wife overlooked this for the status of being a doctor’s wife. Minyard’s epiphany in the 1960s following a depressive crisis pushed him into establishing a methadone program in the city’s jails. His interaction with Black’s horrified his wife, who left him. This ultimately lead him to running for Parish Coroner, a job that he held for the next 40 years. It was Minyard’s office that was responsible for identifying bodies and signing death certificates for the victims of Katrina. He objected to using the word “drowning” or “natural causes” on the death certificates for people who had actually died from heat exhaustion, dehydration, stress, neglect and “political” causes.
Belinda Carr and Wilbert Rawlings are both residents of the Lower Ninth Ward. Both want better lives for themselves and their families. Both are caught in the circumstances of their surroundings. Belinda becomes a teenaged mother, but still dreams of going to college. Wilbert finds himself as a band leader at some of the roughest publics schools, attempting to change the lives of students who are forced to raise themselves amidst non-existent parents. Both have difficulty staying in relationships.
Tim Bruneau is a young idealistic police officer, who was severely injured while chasing a teenage perp. In the hours after Katrina, before the levees broke, he comes across the body of a young black woman. Unable to comprehend why the morgue hasn’t arrived, he tells his superior that he will transport the body to the morgue himself. He wraps the body and places it in back of his car, which he takes to the morgue at University Hospital. The doctor there informs him that he will not accept the body because it is the city’s “trash.” Bruneau drives around with the body in the backseat of his vehicle until he is told to “undo what he did”, and he is forced to drop off the body back to the street.
John/JoAnn Guidos is the transsexual who, after attempting to live as a man, finally realizes that he is really a woman in a man’s body. He also realizes that he can experience his dream only in New Orleans. He opens Kajun’s, a neighborhood bar shortly before Katrina. During the storm, it becomes a haven for those who chose to stay in the city.
Anthony Wells was the most troublesome character. His story is told in first person. He was in and out of jail and, in the post-Katrina evacuation was forcibly transported to Knoxville, Tennessee. He believes that the people of Tennessee “owe” him.
Katrina is still with the citizens of New Orleans. Baum describes why New Orleans is essential to the people living their and why they remain. It is well written and the reader becomes connected with the nine who chose to share their experience to the rest of the country.
Read: April 10, 2010
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Books Set in Lithuania and Israel
Sea of Lights by Yael Remen (2009)
Sea of Lights is the account of the author's father, Avraham Binder, who was a book binder and artist. He was born in Vilna, Lithuania in 1906 and died in 2001 in Israel. The book is billed as a work of fiction. During his lifetime period, Binder survived pogroms, the Holocaust and the creation of the Land of Israel. Unfortunately, this book could have used a good editor. It is over 600 pages long and seems to record every detail of Avraham Binder's life. I felt like it was recorded in real time.
When I got my copy of the book, I was excited about reading a saga about a Jewish family spanning the century. After reading the first few chapters, I thought that perhaps the book was originally written in Hebrew, and this was simply a poor translation. Then I realized that the author, although born in Israel, had actually been living in the United States for years. Sea of Lights is a self-published book. There are numerous typographical errors, including the inexplicitly misspelling of a charactor's name. There were also too many extraneous details that seemed to have no place in this book.
That said, Sea of Lights follows the life of Avraham Binder from his birth to his death, seemingly recording every minute detail and memory. His father was a book binder in Lithuania and he was expected to follow into the business, which, as a good son, he did. In his spare time, he and dreams of being a painter to his life. He left Hebrew school to enroll in art school, which was run by the Germans before the start of World War II.
He becomes involved in the Zionist movement and as a young man immigrates to Eretz Yisrael, which is under the British Mandate. He enrolls in the prestigious Bezalel art school in Jerusalem, but artistic differences force him out. He moves to Tel Aviv where he opens a bookbinding business, while continuing with his painting.
World War II breaks out and some of his family members join him in Tel Aviv. His younger sister, Tzila Binder, is a painter in her own right. She meets and falls in love with the married Israeli poet, Natan Alterman. They have a long-term relationship, which is wife is apparently aware of and does not actively disapprove.
Avraham was madly in love with the beautiful Rachel, however, she marries his close friend. This devastates him. He begins a relationship with his landlady, who is considerably older than him. When she becomes possessive and jealous, he leaves her. She later commits suicide. Avraham eventually meets and marries Sara. His wife and mother do not get along. The author's depiction of Sara is not kind. She seems like a selfish woman.
The author seems to want to provide, in addition to her father's story, the history of modern Israel. Unfortunately, this does not work well. Events are described without a clear connection to the characters. It is too bad, because there is probably a very interesting story about Avraham Binder.
Read: April 3, 2010
Sea of Lights is the account of the author's father, Avraham Binder, who was a book binder and artist. He was born in Vilna, Lithuania in 1906 and died in 2001 in Israel. The book is billed as a work of fiction. During his lifetime period, Binder survived pogroms, the Holocaust and the creation of the Land of Israel. Unfortunately, this book could have used a good editor. It is over 600 pages long and seems to record every detail of Avraham Binder's life. I felt like it was recorded in real time.
When I got my copy of the book, I was excited about reading a saga about a Jewish family spanning the century. After reading the first few chapters, I thought that perhaps the book was originally written in Hebrew, and this was simply a poor translation. Then I realized that the author, although born in Israel, had actually been living in the United States for years. Sea of Lights is a self-published book. There are numerous typographical errors, including the inexplicitly misspelling of a charactor's name. There were also too many extraneous details that seemed to have no place in this book.
That said, Sea of Lights follows the life of Avraham Binder from his birth to his death, seemingly recording every minute detail and memory. His father was a book binder in Lithuania and he was expected to follow into the business, which, as a good son, he did. In his spare time, he and dreams of being a painter to his life. He left Hebrew school to enroll in art school, which was run by the Germans before the start of World War II.
He becomes involved in the Zionist movement and as a young man immigrates to Eretz Yisrael, which is under the British Mandate. He enrolls in the prestigious Bezalel art school in Jerusalem, but artistic differences force him out. He moves to Tel Aviv where he opens a bookbinding business, while continuing with his painting.
World War II breaks out and some of his family members join him in Tel Aviv. His younger sister, Tzila Binder, is a painter in her own right. She meets and falls in love with the married Israeli poet, Natan Alterman. They have a long-term relationship, which is wife is apparently aware of and does not actively disapprove.
Avraham was madly in love with the beautiful Rachel, however, she marries his close friend. This devastates him. He begins a relationship with his landlady, who is considerably older than him. When she becomes possessive and jealous, he leaves her. She later commits suicide. Avraham eventually meets and marries Sara. His wife and mother do not get along. The author's depiction of Sara is not kind. She seems like a selfish woman.
The author seems to want to provide, in addition to her father's story, the history of modern Israel. Unfortunately, this does not work well. Events are described without a clear connection to the characters. It is too bad, because there is probably a very interesting story about Avraham Binder.
Read: April 3, 2010
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Books Set in South America: Chile
The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende (1982 / English translation 1985)
The House of the Spirits is a family saga, following the lives of three women ~ Clara del Valle Trueba, Blanca Trueba, and Alba Trueba ~ and their life with the patriarch of the family, Estaban Trueba. It is also a political novel depicting life in an unnamed South American country during the 20th Century. The country, however, is thinly disguised as Chile.
The novel begins around the year 1900 when Clara and her older sister, Rosa, are young girls living in the capital city. Clara has magical powers and has the ability to call spirits and move objects without touching them.
Rosa is engaged to the handsome, but cruel and difficult Estaban Trueba. After her accidental death by poison, Estaban retreats to the abandoned family estate, Tres María. He rebuilds the farm, which becomes very profitable and he becomes quite wealthy. He has a very short temper and is unpleasant to his peasants. He also has a habit of grabbing young peasant girls and raping them. His first such conquest was the young Pancha García. He tired of her when she became pregnant and dumped her back to her family. Her son was given the name Estaban García, although he was never formally recognized by Estaban Trueba. His son, he also names Estaban García.
Several years after Rosa’s death, Clara suddenly announces that she will marry Estaban. Estaban comes into the city, sees Clara and they marry. Estaban takes Clara to Tres María, where she gives birth to her daughter, Blanca. Clara later gives birth to twin sons, Jamie and Nicholás.
Blanca grow up on the remote family farm and forms a close friendship with Pedro Tercero García, son of Estaban’s foreman and nephew of Pancha. When they are teenagers, they become lovers, secretly sneaking out of the house at night to meet by the river. Blanca finds herself pregnant and Estaban forces her into a marriage with Count Jean de Satigny. The Count becomes Blanca and Pedro Tercero García’s daughter, Alba, putative father.
The Count is not interested in Blanca sexually, so at first she is fine with the arrangement, which she knows is a financial one arranged by her father. When she learns of his deviant sexual perversions, however, she calls it quits and returns to her mother in the city.
Around the time of Blanca's marriage, Estaban had beaten Clara and knocked out some of her teeth. After this, she never speaks with him again, although they continue to occupy the same house in the city until her death on her granddaughter, Alba's seventh birthday.
Estaban begins to take an interest in politics. He becomes a Senator. Politically, however, the country is changing. Estaban is in the Conservative and has a strong hatred for the Marxist and Communist parties that are growing in influence. He is shocked when his son, Jamie becomes a doctor for the poor, and his granddaughter, Alba falls in with a Marxist lover. He believes, however, that his position in politics can save the family.
The story line began to drag once the political situation became the dominant theme of the novel.
Isabel Allende is Chilean, although she was born in Lima, Peru in 1942. Her uncle was Chilean President Salvador Allende, who was killed in a coup in 1973, similar to the one described in the novel. He was the first Marxist leader of Chile. The dictator, General Augusto Pinochet, backed by the CIA, seized power, beginning a reign of terror that lasted nearly two decades.
In real life, Allende’s grandfather was a strong personality with a violent temper, much the way Estaban Trueba was depicted. Thus, although The House of the Spirits is Allende’s first novel, much of the story line was drawn from her family life and the politics surrounding her in her homeland.
Read: March 31, 2010
The House of the Spirits is a family saga, following the lives of three women ~ Clara del Valle Trueba, Blanca Trueba, and Alba Trueba ~ and their life with the patriarch of the family, Estaban Trueba. It is also a political novel depicting life in an unnamed South American country during the 20th Century. The country, however, is thinly disguised as Chile.
The novel begins around the year 1900 when Clara and her older sister, Rosa, are young girls living in the capital city. Clara has magical powers and has the ability to call spirits and move objects without touching them.
Rosa is engaged to the handsome, but cruel and difficult Estaban Trueba. After her accidental death by poison, Estaban retreats to the abandoned family estate, Tres María. He rebuilds the farm, which becomes very profitable and he becomes quite wealthy. He has a very short temper and is unpleasant to his peasants. He also has a habit of grabbing young peasant girls and raping them. His first such conquest was the young Pancha García. He tired of her when she became pregnant and dumped her back to her family. Her son was given the name Estaban García, although he was never formally recognized by Estaban Trueba. His son, he also names Estaban García.
Several years after Rosa’s death, Clara suddenly announces that she will marry Estaban. Estaban comes into the city, sees Clara and they marry. Estaban takes Clara to Tres María, where she gives birth to her daughter, Blanca. Clara later gives birth to twin sons, Jamie and Nicholás.
Blanca grow up on the remote family farm and forms a close friendship with Pedro Tercero García, son of Estaban’s foreman and nephew of Pancha. When they are teenagers, they become lovers, secretly sneaking out of the house at night to meet by the river. Blanca finds herself pregnant and Estaban forces her into a marriage with Count Jean de Satigny. The Count becomes Blanca and Pedro Tercero García’s daughter, Alba, putative father.
The Count is not interested in Blanca sexually, so at first she is fine with the arrangement, which she knows is a financial one arranged by her father. When she learns of his deviant sexual perversions, however, she calls it quits and returns to her mother in the city.
Around the time of Blanca's marriage, Estaban had beaten Clara and knocked out some of her teeth. After this, she never speaks with him again, although they continue to occupy the same house in the city until her death on her granddaughter, Alba's seventh birthday.
Estaban begins to take an interest in politics. He becomes a Senator. Politically, however, the country is changing. Estaban is in the Conservative and has a strong hatred for the Marxist and Communist parties that are growing in influence. He is shocked when his son, Jamie becomes a doctor for the poor, and his granddaughter, Alba falls in with a Marxist lover. He believes, however, that his position in politics can save the family.
The story line began to drag once the political situation became the dominant theme of the novel.
Isabel Allende is Chilean, although she was born in Lima, Peru in 1942. Her uncle was Chilean President Salvador Allende, who was killed in a coup in 1973, similar to the one described in the novel. He was the first Marxist leader of Chile. The dictator, General Augusto Pinochet, backed by the CIA, seized power, beginning a reign of terror that lasted nearly two decades.
In real life, Allende’s grandfather was a strong personality with a violent temper, much the way Estaban Trueba was depicted. Thus, although The House of the Spirits is Allende’s first novel, much of the story line was drawn from her family life and the politics surrounding her in her homeland.
Read: March 31, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
Books Set in China and the United States: Shanghai and Los Angeles
Shanghai Girls by Lisa See
Pearl and her younger sister, May, are the Shanghai Girls of this novel by Lisa See. When the story opens, it is 1937, and the young girls are “beautiful girls” who live a privileged life in Shanghai. As “beautiful girls” they pose for painters whose portraits of them appear on calendars. Shanghai during this time is known as the “Paris of Asia”, and the young girls are learning of life in the Western world.
While Pearl and May are living their life as spoiled young girls, their father is losing the family fortune. To pay off his gambling debts, he sells his daughters into arranged marriages. The daughters are ostensibly married to wealthy American brothers of Chinese descent. After spending one night together, the husbands return to America with orders for the wives to follow them soon. The girls, howver, have no intention of being bound to their new lives as wives of strangers. They had dreams of marrying for love.
Soon, however, Japan bombs Shanghai. Their father deserts the family leaving the sisters and their mother are left to their own devices. Mama, who was forced into an arranged marriage at age 14, was also of the generation to have had her feet bound. Mama, however, has incredible strength. The sisters and their mother leave the bombed out Shanghai and head for Hong Kong. They hire a rickshaw puller to carry their mother and a few belongings.
On their trek, they find themselves spending nights with peasants who share their meager food and bedding. Although the girls look down on their hosts, they accept what is offered. One night they find a hut deserted by the peasants, who have left just ahead of the Japanese enemy. During the night, Japanese soldiers find the hut, kill their rickshaw puller and brutally rape Mama and Pearl. Mama is killed during this act of violence and Pearl is nearly killed.
Ultimately, the sisters find their way to the United States. The author describes life for immigrants on Angel Island, just outside of San Francisco, as the sisters await for clearance to enter the United States. During this period of time, the United States had quotas on Chinese immigration. Pearl and May are essentially prisoners on Angel Island for months before being allowed to join their husbands.
Read: March 14, 2009
Pearl and her younger sister, May, are the Shanghai Girls of this novel by Lisa See. When the story opens, it is 1937, and the young girls are “beautiful girls” who live a privileged life in Shanghai. As “beautiful girls” they pose for painters whose portraits of them appear on calendars. Shanghai during this time is known as the “Paris of Asia”, and the young girls are learning of life in the Western world.
While Pearl and May are living their life as spoiled young girls, their father is losing the family fortune. To pay off his gambling debts, he sells his daughters into arranged marriages. The daughters are ostensibly married to wealthy American brothers of Chinese descent. After spending one night together, the husbands return to America with orders for the wives to follow them soon. The girls, howver, have no intention of being bound to their new lives as wives of strangers. They had dreams of marrying for love.
Soon, however, Japan bombs Shanghai. Their father deserts the family leaving the sisters and their mother are left to their own devices. Mama, who was forced into an arranged marriage at age 14, was also of the generation to have had her feet bound. Mama, however, has incredible strength. The sisters and their mother leave the bombed out Shanghai and head for Hong Kong. They hire a rickshaw puller to carry their mother and a few belongings.
On their trek, they find themselves spending nights with peasants who share their meager food and bedding. Although the girls look down on their hosts, they accept what is offered. One night they find a hut deserted by the peasants, who have left just ahead of the Japanese enemy. During the night, Japanese soldiers find the hut, kill their rickshaw puller and brutally rape Mama and Pearl. Mama is killed during this act of violence and Pearl is nearly killed.
Ultimately, the sisters find their way to the United States. The author describes life for immigrants on Angel Island, just outside of San Francisco, as the sisters await for clearance to enter the United States. During this period of time, the United States had quotas on Chinese immigration. Pearl and May are essentially prisoners on Angel Island for months before being allowed to join their husbands.
Read: March 14, 2009
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Books Set in the United States: New York City
A Seat at the Table by Joshua Halberstam (2009)
A Seat at the Table is very reminiscent of Chaim Potok’s book, The Chosen. Haberstam’s novel is a “coming of age” story that takes place in the 1970s. Elisha, a young Jewish man, is caught between his religious world and the wider expanse of the secular world.
Elisha comes from a close-knit Chassid family in Brooklyn. He also bears the burden of being a descent of a Chassidic rabbinical dynasty and is conflicted as to whether or not he should become a rabbi in his community.
The Chassidic community depicted in the novel is insular, where every member is responsible for each other. Elisha’s father is a leader in the community and a Holocaust survivor.
Although Elisha is expected to remain in community, he begins to explore the city beyond confines of neighborhood. His first act of rebellion occurs when he cuts off his earlocks and faces his father’s displeasure.
He attends a secular college, where he tentatively makes the friendship of Katrina, a non-Jew. As their friendship develops, he begins to fall in love with her. This creates an internal conflict for Elisha as he must choose between the world he grew up in and entering the secular world to encompass life with her.
Additionally, Elisha must confront his conflict with his family. His father is clearly not pleased with Elisha’s decision to venture out into the world beyond the Chassid community.
Finally, Elisha decides to explore a live in the bigger world. Elisha splits with his family and avoids the community. He never, however, abandons his religion. He is very firmly rooted in the teachings and study of Talmud. His universe, however, has expanded to include secular studies as well.
Finally, his relationship with Katrina helps him to overcome the feelings of estrangement with his father and family. She decides to make an unannounced, uninvited visit to his family during the Passover Seder, much to Elisha’s discomfort. His father, however, welcomes her to the table. The father acknowledges the importance of Katrina in his son’s live, even though he disapproves of the relationship. He never blames Katrina for Elisha’s decision to leave the community. He (the father) has his own conflicts as he watches his son grow and make decisions that go against his values.
When Elisha returns home, his father assures him that whatever his life choices, he will always have a “seat at the table” of his family and will be embraced by the community.
Interspersed throughout the novel are Chassid tales and fables of the masters.
A Seat at the Table is a very beautiful and well-written story.
Read: March 12, 2009
A Seat at the Table is very reminiscent of Chaim Potok’s book, The Chosen. Haberstam’s novel is a “coming of age” story that takes place in the 1970s. Elisha, a young Jewish man, is caught between his religious world and the wider expanse of the secular world.
Elisha comes from a close-knit Chassid family in Brooklyn. He also bears the burden of being a descent of a Chassidic rabbinical dynasty and is conflicted as to whether or not he should become a rabbi in his community.
The Chassidic community depicted in the novel is insular, where every member is responsible for each other. Elisha’s father is a leader in the community and a Holocaust survivor.
Although Elisha is expected to remain in community, he begins to explore the city beyond confines of neighborhood. His first act of rebellion occurs when he cuts off his earlocks and faces his father’s displeasure.
He attends a secular college, where he tentatively makes the friendship of Katrina, a non-Jew. As their friendship develops, he begins to fall in love with her. This creates an internal conflict for Elisha as he must choose between the world he grew up in and entering the secular world to encompass life with her.
Additionally, Elisha must confront his conflict with his family. His father is clearly not pleased with Elisha’s decision to venture out into the world beyond the Chassid community.
Finally, Elisha decides to explore a live in the bigger world. Elisha splits with his family and avoids the community. He never, however, abandons his religion. He is very firmly rooted in the teachings and study of Talmud. His universe, however, has expanded to include secular studies as well.
Finally, his relationship with Katrina helps him to overcome the feelings of estrangement with his father and family. She decides to make an unannounced, uninvited visit to his family during the Passover Seder, much to Elisha’s discomfort. His father, however, welcomes her to the table. The father acknowledges the importance of Katrina in his son’s live, even though he disapproves of the relationship. He never blames Katrina for Elisha’s decision to leave the community. He (the father) has his own conflicts as he watches his son grow and make decisions that go against his values.
When Elisha returns home, his father assures him that whatever his life choices, he will always have a “seat at the table” of his family and will be embraced by the community.
Interspersed throughout the novel are Chassid tales and fables of the masters.
A Seat at the Table is a very beautiful and well-written story.
Read: March 12, 2009
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