Books Set in Australia and Asia; China

The Song of the Jade Lily, by Kirsty Manning (2019)

This historical novel jumps back and forth between the present (2016) and the late 1930s’ through the end of World War II.  In the present, Alexandra Laird has a high-powered job with a financial company in London and has sought a transfer to Shanghai.  The transfer request was for three reasons: to escape part escape from a bad break-up; to be closer to her grandparents who live in Australia; and to learn about her birth mother who had been born in Shanghai.  Alexandra’s parents were killed when she was very young had had been raised by her grandparents, Romy and Wilhem Cohen.  Alexandra’s mother was ostensibly adopted and was of Chinese ancestry.  She is curious about her mother’s origins, but her grandparents have been very secretive about her past.

In flashbacks, we meet Alexandra’s grandmother, Romy.  Twelve-year-old Romy and her parents, who were Jews, fled Vienna shortly after Kristallnacht and made their way to Shanghai.  China was one of the few countries in the 1930 that was accepting Jewish immigrants.  They were not, apparently, practicing Jews in China, but their religious affiliation was not a problem in China.

In Shanghai, Romy met Li Ho, a beautiful young girl who is Romy’s age and the two become fast friends.  Li Ho’s father was a doctor in Eastern medicine, which intrigued Romy.  She picked up some herbal treatment methods, which she employed throughout her life.

Initially, Shanghai was safe.  In the 1930s it was a major international city.  Late in World War II, however, Shanghai fell under Japanese control and the city became very dangerous.  There are parallels between the brutish treatment of the Nazi’s towards the Jews and the Japanese soldiers’ treatment of the Chinese.  Li’s parents were active in the resistance, which lead to a tragic result.  Li and her brother then had to take whatever steps necessary to survive.

The description so Shanghai bring the city to life with its sight and smells.  Unfortunately, the characters are lacking and are not fully developed.  Alexandra too quickly falls into a new relationship that doesn’t quite fit as described in the novel.

The novel was a very quick read, although it could have used a better editor.  There were several places where the author repeated herself.  The twist at the end, however, made the book a worthwhile read.

Read:  May 25, 2020

3 Stars

Books Set in Africa and Europe; Egypt and France

Zarafa: A Giraffe’s True Story, from Deep in Africa to the Heart of Paris, by Michael Allin (1998)

This is the delightful story of how, in 1826, a baby giraffe was captured in the Sudan and transported to Paris as a gift from Muhammad Ali, Ottoman viceroy to Egypt, to Charles X, King of France.  In the process, the reader is treated to a brief glimpse of the world as exploration in Egypt was opening up, compliments of Napoleon.

Napoleon exposed Egypt to Europe.  For centuries, the artifacts of ancient Egypt had been buried to the world.  After Napoleon’s army landed in Egypt, Europeans began looting its tombs for profit.  Europe was intrigued.  Muhammad Ali, a brutal ruler to his own people, wanted to forge a link to Europe, so arranged to have a baby giraffe captured and transported to France as a gift to the post-Revolution King of France.

Allin explained how it was possible to trap the young giraffe, probably no more that 2 months old at its capture, and have it sent down the Nile River, across the Mediterranean, and finally the long walk from Marseille to Paris.  The young giraffe had not yet been weaned, it could be separated from its mother, while it was still tame.  Because it hadn’t been weaned, several cows travelled with it to provide it with 25 gallons of milk per day.  Details of the trip from its initial capture until it reached Cairo are sketchy, however, detailed records existed on the trip from Cairo to Paris.  Two and a half years after its capture, it entered Paris, where it lived for the next 19 years.

Modern Europeans had never seen such an exotic animal before, so during its trek through France, hordes of people flocked to see the creature.  The reader learns that the ancient Romans had imported exotic animals for gladiator fights, but that had long been forgotten.

This is a fun book that describes not only a bit about the lives of giraffes, but also a slice of political life in France at the beginning of the 1800s.

Read:  May 23, 2020

4 Stars

Books Set in Europe: England

Queen of Shadows: A Novel of Isabella, Wife of Edward II, by Edith Felber (2006)

This historical novel is as much the story of Isabella, Queen consort of England and wife of Edward II, King of England as it is her lady-in-waiting, Gwenith de Percy.  Gwenith was a young Welsh woman who landed herself a position on the English Court bent on revenge for the actions of Isabella’s father-in-law, Edward I.  Edward I had conquered the Wales and stripped the nobility of its lands.  He the process, he named his son the first English Prince of Wales.

Isabella, the French princess and daughter of Philip IV, King of France, arrived in England at age 12 to marry then Edward, Prince of Wales.  She soon learned that her husband had a string of male lovers.  Despite this, they have 4 children together.

When Edward became King Edward II, he proved to be a weak king.  This allowed the the young and ambitious Hugh Despenser to dig his claws into Edward.  Hugh became Edward’s lover, but with the idea of becoming ruler of the country.  Isabella recognized that Hugh’s interest in Edward was not on altruistic grounds.  She despised him.

Meanwhile, Gwenith became friendly with the Welsh baron Owain de Rhys.  He first initiated a friendship with her in hopes that she would be able to convince Isabella to spare fellow Welshman Roger Mortimer his life.  Mortimer had been in prison awaiting his execution at the hands of Edward, or more likely Hugh Despenser.  Gwenith convinced the Queen to visit Mortimer in prison.

Mortimer and the Queen became lovers and she was able plan his escape from the Tower of London.  Soon Isabella and Mortimer were plotting to overthrow Edward.

While reading this novel, I did a lot of fact-checking and most of the events depicted in the novel corresponded to actual historical events.

I enjoyed this book.  It is a fast read, and interesting because it tells the story of King Edward from Isabella’s point of view.

Read:  May 14, 2020

4 Stars

Books Set in North America: United States: South Dakota

Black Hills, by Dan Simmons (2010)

Black Hills is both the location in South Dakota that is home to the presidents carved into Mt. Rushmore, and the English translation of name the Lakota protagonist of this novel.  The novel spans from the Battle of Little Big Horn through the carving of the faces on Mt. Rushmore.

The novel begins when young Paha Sapa (Black Hills) who is counting coup (touching the enemy) touches General George Custer at his moment of death on the battlefield.  From that point on, Custer’s spirit enters the body of the young boy.  Paha Sapa later realizes that he has the “gift” of forward-visions when he makes skin contact with others.  This gift terrifies him and he avoids touching people to avoid seeing his visions of their future.

The novel travels back in time from the Battle of Little Big Horn to the description of how the faces became to be carved into the side of the Black Hills.  The Native American tribes are not in favor of the monument on the Black Hills, known in Lakota as the Six Grandfathers, which is a sacred place.  Paha Sapa, who in 1936 is known as Billy Slow Horse, has a running joke with Gutzman Borglum about dynamiting the faces off the side of the mountain.  Borglum laughs, but Paha Sapa is only half-joking.

During Paha Sapa’s life, he marries and has a son, who we learn, was a soldier in World War I.  We know early on that his son never returned, but it isn’t until the end that we learn that he didn’t die in battle, but rather, of the Spanish Flu.  I say this because I read this book while under Covid-19 quarantine.

A large portion of the book is devoted to the creation of the Presidential monument.  I learned a lot about the Battle and the monument.

The book was interesting, but its constant jumping around from time period was distracting.  For this reason, I gave it only 3.5 stars.

Read:  April 24, 2020

3.5 Stars

Books Set in Europe: Germany: Bavaria

The Play of Death, by Oliver Pölzsch (2016)

In 1633, the Black Plague raged through Europe.  In the village of Oberammergau, 80 villagers died.  The people of the village vowed to put on a Passion play (the story of the crucifixion of Jesus) every 10 years if they would be spared.  The play was first performed in 1634.  This is the backdrop of this 6^th novel in the Hangman’s Daughter series.  We are once again acquainted with Magdalena Fronweiser and her family, which consists of her husband, Simon, her 2 sons, her father, Jakob Kuisl, the hangman, and her sister, Barbara.

The novel takes place in 1670.  The village of Oberammergau is preparing for their next performance, however, it is 4 years early for the 10-year anniversary mark.  This causes some of the superstitious villagers concern.  When actors in some of the key roles are found murdered, concern among the villagers heightens.

The first death was that of the actor playing the role of Jesus.  He was found murdered on a cross just as Simon Fronwieser, the medicus of Schongau, is in the village to bring his young son to boarding school of Simon’s friend and teacher, Georg Kaiser.  The village doctor has recently died, so Simon is naturally asked investigate the murder.  Meanwhile, Johann Lechner, Schongau’s secretary and town leader brings Jakob Kuisl, to Oberammergau because the village’s executioner has also recently died.  He, too, gets caught up in the investigation of the eerie murders.

While Lechner is out of Schnogau is out of town, other members of the town’s council decide to take advantage of his absence to oust him.  When Barbara Kuisl is accused of witchcraft she is thrown in the town’s dungeon and is awaiting torture.  With Lechner out of town, Barbara has no advocate.  Magdalena sneaks out of town to go to Oberammargau to seek Lechner’s assistance.  Along the way, however, she is abducted.

In the meantime, the people of Oberammergau are protesting the immigrant workers from Italy.  They are scorned and their children keep going missing.  Is there a connection between the murders of the actors in the Passion play and the missing immigrant children?

This book has multiple plot twists as it unravels the murders of the Passion play and the abduction of Magdalena.

As with the other books in this series, this book is based on historical facts, which is what I find must interesting.  I enjoyed this book as a light and easy read.

Read:  April 15, 2020

4 Stars

The Hangman’s Daughter; Book I / Read: June 1, 2013

The Dark Monk; Book II / Read: October 6, 2013

The Beggar King; Book III / Read: March 9, 2014

The Poisoned Pilgrim; Book IV / Read: December 28, 2017

The Werewolf of Bamberg; Book V / Read: July 21, 2019

The Play of Death; Book VI / Read: April 15, 2020

Books Set in North America: United States

The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History, by John M. Barry (2004)

After Hurricane Katrina, I read Rising Tide, by John M. Barry.  It is about the great Mississippi River flood of 1927.  I was struck by how in the intervening 70 years between the 1927 flood and the 2005 hurricane, how very little had changed.  Now that we are in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, I picked up John M. Barry’s The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History.  Again, I was stuck how little has changed in the past 100 years.  Although there have been significant medical advances, politically, things are much the same.  The government was slow to act and withheld critical information.

The book begins with an overview of the state of medical science at the end of the 1800s.  American medical schools basically accepted anyone and lagged far behind the quality of medical education offered in Europe.  When Johns Hopkins died, he bequeathed a $7M trust to fund a university and hospital.  The Board created to make Johns Hopkins bequest a reality, they build a university that would rival the best schools in Europe, and required rigorous admission standards and classroom work.  The medical course would include classes in chemistry, anatomy through autopsies, and laboratory courses.  These requirements were unheard of in existing American medical schools.

William Welch, the first dean of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, recruited faculty, many who were European-trained physicians.  Soon students began flocking to the school.  Shortly thereafter, the Rockefeller Foundation for Medical Research was created for the purpose of focusing on medical research.  By the time the 1918 influenza pandemic began, other medical research schools throughout the country had been created and were in operation.  Thus, by the time of the pandemic, the medical community was at least prepared to understand the chaos of the disease.

In 1918, World War I was raging in Europe.  The countries then at war suppressed news of the illness.  Spain, which was not then involved in the war, did, however, report cases of the influenza, thus the influenza became known as the Spanish Flu.  Although the exact origin of the influenza is not definitively known, the most likely theory is that it originated in the United States.  In early 1918, in Haskell County, Kansas, the local physician began seeing a few young men with the disease.  Had the country not been at war, the disease might have simply died out.  Camp Funston, a part of the army base of Ft. Riley, was near Haskell County, and young men from Haskell were sent to the Camp, where tight quarters provided the perfect breeding ground for viral spread.  As these young recruits were sent around to other bases in the United States and Europe, the virus quickly mutated and spread.

The book describes how the leading scientists at the now excellent medical facilities in the United States began the search for the causative agent of the disease.  The leading contender was a bacterial agent.  Richard Pfeiffer had isolated a new bacterium, which was named Bacillus influenzae.  This bacterium was found in many, but not all, victims of the disease.  Vaccines were created against this bacterium but did not provide protection against the disease.  Time was lost before the causative agent was determined to be a virus.

Meanwhile, President Woodrow Wilson did little to assist in the fight against the disease.  Rupert Blue, the Surgeon General of the United States, also took little action.  In fact, according to Barry, he actually blocked relevant medical research and rejected requests for financial support.  Interestingly, after the War, while Wilson was negotiating peace treaties with Europe, he came down with influenza.  After he recovered, it was noted that his mind was never the same.  Barry goes into great detail about how doctors and medical scientist noted that the disease seemed to cause neurological effects on the brain of many patients who recovered from the illness.

Barry concludes the book with a chilling warning that a new pandemic is inevitable in the future.  He warned that, as of the publication of the book (2004), that the United States was unprepared for such a pandemic.  The future is here now.

Read:  April 9, 2020

4.5 Stars

Rising Tide, by John M. Barry.  Read September 6, 2006

Books Set in Europe: Paris, France

The Paris Architect, by Charles Belfoure (2013)

Lucien Bernard is a young up-and coming architect living in Paris in the 1940s with his wife, and he has a mistress on the side.  He hopes for the next big commission that will bring him money and fame.  Germany has occupied France, and architectural jobs are dwindling.  He has an appointment with Auguste Manet, a wealthy industrialist, whom he hopes will bring him a lucrative commission.

Manet seeks to have Bernard devised a hiding place in one of his properties to hide one of his Jewish friends.  At first, Bernard dismisses the idea, but Manet teases him with a lucrative job designing a factory.  Although Bernard knows that the factory will be making armaments for the Germany, he accepts the challenge to devise a hiding space so he can use his creative talents on the factory building.

Bernard devises a hiding place in a non-structural column in one of Manet’s apartments.  He knows that if the Germans find the spot, and learns that he created the space, he will be killed.  The hiding place is a success.  The Germans ransack the apartment, but fail to find the hiding spot.  Soon, Manet asks Bernard to devise another hiding spot.  Bernard agrees, but says this will be the last time.  “Of course,” agrees Manet.  … Until the next time Manet must hide a Jew from the Germans.

While working on the factory, Bernard meets Herzog, a Germany officer who also has an interest in architecture.  They for a sort of friendship, which makes Bernard realize that he is in collaboration with the Germans.  Still, he continues to devise hiding places for Manet, knowing that his interaction with the Germans can come to an abrupt end should they discover his secret works.

I enjoyed this novel, however, I found the constant stereotypes of Jews to be disturbing.  

Read:

March 27, 2020

4 Stars