Book Review -- Little Heathens

Book:  Little Heathens:  (Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression) by Mildred Armstrong Kalish

My rating:  2 out of 5 stars

Book source:  Library copy

Mildred Armstrong Kalish shares her memories of growing up with an extended family on a farm in Iowa during the Great Depression. As one would expect, they depend on each other through good times and bad and make the best of any situation.

I was particularly fond of the stories of her ancestors – those great pioneers that settled “Yankee Grove” and her memories of crawling up on her great grandfather’s lap and hearing stories of their early life.

However, the remainder of the book was a drudgery for me. Reading in staccato narration about polishing silver with baking soda and saving the tail-end of thread did not hold my interest whatsoever. It was also a book that had I been a family member, I would have treasured it immensely, but since I am not, I couldn’t connect at all to her recollections.

This has been a very popular book, and I’m really disappointed that I didn’t enjoy it more, because generally I’m drawn to stories of courage, endurance, and thrift.

Other bloggers have written favorable reviews -- please check out Melissa’s at One Librarian’s Book Reviews.

For a brief audio clip form the memoir, please see below:

Book Review -- True Grit




 True Grit by Charles Portis (Arkansas author)

  My rating: 5 of 5 stars

  Book source:  Library copy

  Sensitive reader:  mild descriptions of gun shot wounds, gun fighting and SNAKES!

  Challenge: Support Your Local Authors perpetual challenge

Mattie Ross, a 14 year old dynamo, is out to exact vengeance on one Tom Chaney, a former work hand for her family. Tom has killed her father, and whether she has help or not, she is determined to bring Tom back to Forth Smith and Judge “Hanging” Parker for justice.

Mattie is able to secure for $100 the assistance of a one-eyed Marshall, Rooster Cogburn. Thus they begin their quest into Indian Territory for the renegade Chaney.

Mattie Ross has become my new favorite adolescent heroine – she’s Scout Finch, but rides a horse and carries a revolver. She shoots, squirms, saves herself from snakes and survives to tell her tale.

The other characters are equally as colorful: Rooster is a former felon, turned law-man with a proclivity to drink. Even though I didn’t see the original movie, John Wayne’s image was superimposed on my brain throughout the novel and it was a PERFECT image. The two also meet up with LeBoeuf, a Texas Ranger who is also on the trail of the menacing Chaney. A somewhat bumbling figure, LeBoeuf adds enough variety to their trifecta to make it interesting.

The prose in this book is stark and sharp – and surprisingly funny! I read it in the car on our way to Tulsa, and through ALL the major towns mentioned in the story: Dardanelle, Fort Smith, Fort Gibson Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), and I laughed out loud at many of the passages. Mattie when describing her opinion of men said, “Men will live like Billy goats if they are let alone.” True Mattie, so very true.

I couldn’t help comparing this book to Lonesome Dove since I read them so closely to each other. Honestly, I could see where McMurtry could have been “influenced” by Charles Portis’ work. In fact, I was expecting Gus and Call to meet up with Rooster, Mattie and LeBoeuf at any of the many outposts where they stopped. But I was amazed at what Portis was able to accomplish in a sparse 200+ pages compared to what McMurtry was able to drag on for 900 pages.

In short, I loved this book.

And Mr. Portis lives a few blocks from my house – you think if I go camp out on his porch he would sign a book for me?!

I'm off to see the movie tonight (had to read the book BEFORE the movie). I hope it meets expectations!

Here is the movie trailer:

Book Review -- Zoo Story


Book:  Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives by Thomas French

My rating:  3.5 out of 5 stars ««« ½

Book source:  Public library

For the sensitive reader:  OK


For someone who isn’t much of an animal lover, I have quite an affinity for animal/zoo-genre books. Some of my favorites:

The Zookeeper’s Wife
Life of Pi
Babylon's Ark: The Incredible Wartime Rescue of the Baghdad Zoo
The Lady and the Panda

My latest venture into the world of wild animals is Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives, by Thomas French. Mr. French follows the daily grind of zookeepers, management, patrons, and primarily the animals, at Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo.

We are introduced to Herman, an alpha Chimp, who was the first Lowry Park inhabitant; Enshalla, a Sumatran tiger whose beauty and ferocity is both feared and prized; and 4 African elephants that Lowry Park has had directly shipped to Florida from a reserve in Swaziland. Overseeing this menagerie is Lex Salisbury, the executive director, who is trying to marry three converging efforts: Conservation, increased animal population and a non-profit status.

There was nothing particularly extraordinary about this book. It did a nice job of exploring the day to day activities that zookeepers face when caring for a collection of animals. It also intimately tells the stories of how many of these keepers develop a direct love for those animals that are in their care. Particularly poignant are the stories of Herman and Enshalla.

The least liked part of the book was the political drama set forth by Lex Salisbury’s actions. A powerful animal advocate, Lex’s day to day administration of the Zoo leads to disaster, for both animal and human alike.

Ultimately, this book gives an objective look at the life of zoos. We as humans are decimating many animals’ natural habitat, making zoos necessary. Zoos are also leading the way to rehabilitating certain species for their release back into the “wild.” In the end I suppose, we all wish zoos weren’t necessary, but if current conditions continue, they may be the last place we see many of the earth’s current species.

From the publisher:

Book Review -- Lonesome Dove




 

Book:  Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

My rating:  4.5 out of 5 stars

Book source:  Personal copy

Summary from the publisher:  A love story and an epic of the frontier, Lonesome Dove is the grandest novel ever written about the last, defiant wilderness of America. Richly authentic, beautifully written, Lonesome Dove is a book to make readers laugh, weep, dream and remember.

It’s almost impossible to review a book I’ve spent 9 weeks analyzing, exploring, and dissecting every scene, character and locale.

So, I will keep it brief: I loved it! It took me nearly 300 pages (all of Part 1) to find my grove with this book. The Hat Creek gang spent more hours getting out of Texas than they did at any other location. I lost patience with all of them. Plus, the ongoing talk of “sporting” women (code name for whores) was burdensome and tiring. Without our ongoing read along – I would have easily given up on this book. But once Part II began with the introduction of an entirely new set of characters, the whole novel exploded with energy, humor, drama, and tragedy.

McMurtry’s characters were some of the most memorable I’ve read in a long time. I will go to my grave with a crush on Gus McCrae. In addition to his “human” characters – McMurtry is brilliant in making the horses (Hell Bitch, in particular), pigs and cattle as integral to the story as the cowboys and Indians.

The only reason I didn’t rate this book a 5 star was, not only did I find it arduous in the beginning, but I thought the ending was rushed. The cowboys took nearly 800 pages to make their cross-country trek, but when one of them had to return, it only took 100 pages. A little too expedited and neatly tied up for me.

But it was a grand, wonderful novel, full of amazing dialogue, distinctively written characters, and a scope beyond anything I’ve ever read before.

Up next: The miniseries!! I have it on hold at the library – can’t wait for it to arrive.

Check out the trailer – just the few scenes that are represented seem true to the novel.

November Book Group -- Loving Frank by Nancy Horan





Loving Frank by Nancy Horan

Personal rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Book source: Personal copy

Book Challenge:  Women Unbound (8 of 8)

November is the last month of the year for our book club meeting – we take December off for the holidays and regroup in January. We usually have a “feast” where we splurge on our post discussion treats – but I was forgetful this week and forgot to take the butter out to soften for my chocolate cranberry bars, so I had to bake “pre made” cookies instead. They were awful. Luckily the other members took it more seriously and we had a lovely spread of salads, cakes and confections.

Our final book of 2010 was Loving Frank by Nancy Horan, a fictional account of the relationship between Mamah Borthwick Cheney and legendary architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. After Mamah and her husband Ed commission FLW to design and build their home, Mamah and FLW begin a lurid affair that scandalizes their Chicago neighborhood community. Mamah ultimately leaves her husband and children and travels with FLW to Europe for a period of nearly two years. When they return, FLW builds a hideaway for them in Wisconsin – Taliesin – where they retreat from the vengeful eyes of the press and their respective families, but at Taliesin, they do not live happily ever after.

This was an emotionally conflicting book. On one hand you have a woman who seems completely content with her role as mother and wife. She is highly educated and is able to express her thoughts and intellect with others via her social clubs…which seemed appropriate for the turn of the century. On the other hand, you have a woman who has completely abandoned her family, absconded with her lover to Europe and continues an internal debate with herself throughout the entire novel as to whether or not she has done the right thing.

I wanted to cheer Mamah for her “independent – feminist spirit” – but the whole time my gut kept telling me how wrong it was for her to leave the way she did, and to forsake her children altogether. I certainly have bad days, and think I would like to take a long break from motherhood (cabin for a week with lots of books and food) but to leave her kids for TWO YEARS when they are but 3 and 7 – was abhorrent to me! As Lucy from Life is a spasm who flow said in her review, “is a selfish act ever the BEST act?”

In spite of all the inconsistent feelings I had towards her – I really did enjoy this book. I thought it did a great job at giving life to a relationship that has been lost to history. I loved learning about FLW’s early years as an architect. It seemed that Ms. Horan’s research was thorough and well done. And for a book group discussion, it provided LOTS of interesting discussion topics. The majority of those who were there, thought Mamah was selfish and unredeemable. But we also had harsh words for FLW who left his wife and 6 children in the process and couldn’t seem to manage his business life very well.

This was a fun book to research – I obtained from the library some of the massive picture books that contain the works of FLW. It was great to look at the places described – the Cheney home (which is now a B&B), FLW’s studio and Taliesin – while engaged in our discussion.

Ultimately, Loving Frank is a great book group discussion about a couple who made choices that had long term, disastrous, domino affects on themselves and nearly everyone around them.

For a great perspective from the author, check out this related video:



Our book club reading choices for 2011 are as follows:

January: True Grit by Charles Portis
February: Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
March: Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
April: Here on Earth by Alice Hoffman
May: The Heretic’s Daughter by Kathleen Kent (previously read)
June: The Moonflower Vine by Jetta Carlson (previously read)
July: Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
August: The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls (previously read)
September: The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
October: The Zookeepers Wife by Diane Ackerman (previously read)
November: The Help by Kathryn Stockett (previously read)

Book Review -- Traveling with Pomegranates



 Traveling with Pomegranates: A Mother-Daughter Story by Sue Monk Kidd


My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Book source:  Public library

Sue Monk Taylor, bestselling author of The Secret Lives of Bees, and her daughter, Ann Kidd Taylor prove in their joint memoir, Traveling with Pomegranates, that the eternal question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” never fades away, even at the ages of twentysomething and fiftysomething.

We follow this pair, in alternating journal-like entries, as they travel to sacred sites in Greece and France. They take us to convents, antiquities, ruins, relics, and their home in South Carolina. We learn of their intimate thoughts on faith, life and future. They even give us a crash, refresher course in Greek mythology, intimately reliving the story of Demeter and Persephone, and using it as a metaphor throughout their journey.

For those who have read The Secret Lives of Bees, this book really is a work study for that novel. Sue devotes much of her narrative to how she became entranced with the icon of The Black Madonna, and how that theme was woven into her book. She also shares her struggles with aging and embracing the “older woman” that she has become, and where does life go from here.

Ann’s journey is much different: a recent college graduate with dreams of going to graduate school to study Greek history, she is demoralized when her admission is rejected. Where does her life go from here? She begins her quest, with the help of the goddess Athena, the Virgin Mary and Joan of Arc, to find out that out.

I delighted in this book. It was a pleasure to read about their relationship and their travels (although, I wondered if things had been so peaceful between the two of them when Ann was a teenager!). In much the same way Eat Pray Love was a road to personal discovery, so is Traveling with Pomegranates. And as polarizing as that book was, I could see where if you didn’t like it, you might not enjoy this either. I, however, enjoyed both immensely. I think I would have loved this book even more if it had been illustrated. They visit so many historical places, it would have been nice to have an immediate visual associated with the passages.

This is a beautiful mother-daughter story – one told with emotion and tenderness. As a mother of a daughter, I can only think of how much I want my relationship with my daughter to mirror theirs.

For an amazing insight into their relationship and their work on this book, please check out the video from the Library of Congress' 2009 National Book Festival:

View all my reviews

October Book Club -- Book Review: The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans

The Sunflower: A Novel by Richard Paul Evans

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Book Source: Public library

Summary: In the wake of personal tragedy, two people meet on a humanitarian mission in Peru. Christine is a shy, unadventurous woman whose fiancee broke off the engagement only a week before the wedding, and Paul is a former emergency room doctor whose glamorous lifestyle, stellar reputation, and beautiful fiancée are cruelly snatched from him one fateful, snowy Christmas Eve. Deep in the Amazon jungle, against a backdrop of poverty and heartbreak, they must confront their deepest fears and, together, learn to trust and love again.

This was a simple book. Nothing particularly overwhelming or underwhelming. His novellas (because I have a hard time categorizing them as novels), are thin on substance -- he has enough material to hold your attention for one afternoon, but not for any extended period of time. His characters are likable, but not very three dimensional. And some of the plot twists seem contrived. One problem I had with this particular story was his use of food. The characters are in the jungle, mountains and cities of Peru, but they seem to be eating very American food – pizza, spaghetti, garlic bread. I want to trust the writer and believe that the Peruvians really eat these things – but it was a stretch for me. Additionally, the reader is lead to believe that part of this story is true -- but at the end, I still wasn't convinced.

This is the second Richard Paul Evans’ book that I have read, and I don’t think I need to read another.

This was also our October book club choice. I think for the most part, the group agreed with my assessment. I know some actually appreciated the brevity of this book, because it was a quick read! The discussion was OK – since the substance of this book was thin – it was hard for us to really delve into the characters, plot, story – but we managed to make it interesting, nonetheless.

Aside from the discussion, we were able to plan our book club selections for next year, something that is a departure from our normal routine. Since our local library has added nearly 100 book club kits to their collection, they’ve asked the participating book clubs to reserve them in advance. So we are trying to follow suit. Here are our choices, in no particular order, since that is determined by the library book club director and their availability:

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Gap Creek by Robert Morgan

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

Here on Earth by Alice Hoffman

The Heretic’s Daughter by Kathleen Kent

The Moonflower Vine by Jetta Carlson

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian

The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion

The Zookeepers Wife by Diane Ackerman

For November, we are reading Loving Frank by Nancy Horan.

Has anyone read this?

View all my reviews

Book Review -- The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B.

The Many Lives & Secret Sorrows of Josephine B. by Sandra Gulland


My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Josephine Bonaparte began life as Rose Tascher, who was raised on the French colonial islands. We follow her life thru an arranged marriage to a cousin, several voyages back and forth from France to Martinique, the birth of her children, her fight for the revolution, her imprisonment and nearly her beheading. After her release, she creates a life among the politically powerful to whom she provides underground information. She is then introduced to Napoleon, a strange Corsican, with lofty dreams and aspirations.

In the first of a series of three historical biographies, Sandra Gulland brings to life this often forgotten woman of history, outside of her role as Napoleon’s wife. I knew NOTHING of Josephine’s background or her struggles before meeting and marrying Napoleon. The first person narrative is fresh and enlightened. Her descriptions of sea voyages, Royalist France, prison conditions and post revolutionary France are impressive. It’s hard to discern what is fact and what is fiction, but if her research is as impressive as her writing, I would think there was very little was left to embellish to create her story.

My only complaint, unlike the title, this is a biography of Rose, not Josephine. Knowing very little about the book (or series) I was expecting the story of Josephine and Napoleon. That comprises at the very least, the last half dozen pages or so of the book – and the subsequent two novels. As much as I enjoyed learning about Rose, my intent in reading this was to learn about Josephine, the Empress.

Also, because of my schedule, I had put this book down in the middle of it for about 10 days – and when I picked it back up, I had a hard time remembering ALL the characters and their relationship to Rose – Desiree, Marie, Lucie, and every revolutionary figure in her circle. I don’t think it really detracted from the story, but it was confusing for me nonetheless.

This is a beautiful story of a triumphant woman who fulfills her destiny.

For a pictorial collage on Josephine, view the attached video:

Book source:  personal copy

This was one of my original selections for the Women Unbound reading challenge.

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Book Review -- Wildflower: An Extraordinary Life and Untimely Death in Africa

Wildflower by Mark Seal

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Joan Root was in love: With her husband, her native Africa, the animals that surrounded her and her home. She built a life filming those things with her husband, award winning documentary film director, Alan Root. But after Alan left her for another woman, she had to rediscover who she was and what in life was worth fighting for. She found that in her home – her 80 acres and small farm on the banks of Lake Naivasha in Kenya. When industrial hot houses that “farmed” roses started flourishing on the banks of the lake, and poachers started invading her land to capture the wildlife and fish, Joan found a cause – that of rescuing the lake and rehabilitating those causing the most harm. What she didn’t realize was by championing this effort, she was setting in motion a chain of events that would ultimately lead to her brutal death.

Author Mark Seal has taken the life of a quiet, devoted woman, who wanted nothing more than to live a life with Alan and her animals, and written a beautiful tribute. He was given access to her many letters and diaries – and it was as if Joan herself was speaking to us.

We learn of the extraordinary talents she had organizing the many safaris, hot air balloon trips, and expeditions, they took to film the amazing documentaries that she and Alan made together. How she put herself in harm’s way to get exactly the right film shot and scene. She spent endless hours on location and in conditions most people wouldn’t tolerate. We also learn of the tremendous heartbreak she endured – and never really recovered from – when the love of her life left her for another woman. She was always looking to the skies – waiting for Alan to return, via helicopter, to the home they shared on Lake Naivasha.

Finally we learn of the tragic outcome – the home invasions, the threats made against her and her property, when she singularly took it upon herself to save the greatest thing of all – her land.

This was an amazing story, about an unassuming, but powerful woman, whose life tragically ended.

Book source: Public library

Although not one of my original selections, this book qualifies for my Women Unbound reading challenge.

For more about the destruction of Lake Naivasha, please view the video below:



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September Book Club and Book Review -- The Sweet By and By

The Sweet By and By by Todd Johnson

My rating: 1 out of 5 stars

After a month off due to book group falling on the first night before school, it was great to be back with the gang. We were small in number but not small on opinion.

This month we read Todd Johnson’s The Sweet By and By a southern tale about a pair of nursing home friends, their caregiver, hairdresser, and a variety of family members.

Life in a nursing home is a painful existence – craziness and neglect abound, but Bernice and Margaret forge a friendship that helps them endure their situation with dignity. With the help of their nurse, Lorraine, and their hairdresser, Rhonda, this unlikely quartet forms a bond that goes beyond age and skin color.

I had a really hard time finding a groove with this book. The author’s language was awkward and clunky and his sense of timing way off. Even though I have issues with The Help, Ms. Stockett’s portrayal of Southern dialect was pitch perfect – where Ms. Johnson’s writing made the characters sound stupid instead of endearing.

This was also a book without much of a story – nothing to really link one episode with another other than the relationships between these women. There was nothing to drive this story home or to keep me reading. In fact, when I was stuck in the airport last week (a perfect opportunity to get significant pages read), I chose to walk the concourse instead.

Additionally, there was one scene where Rhonda, the hairdresser, was talking to a client. As they discussed hair color Rhonda states, “Great, let’s get started by getting you washed.” NEVER in 20 years of hair color, has a stylist EVER washed my hair BEFORE she colored it!! Did this author not consult a hairdresser about the hair color procedure? From that point on, I didn’t trust him as a story teller. And since he didn’t tell a story, I don’t think I missed much.

The Sweet By and By was more like a late picked southern peach, dried up and shriveled, after being left out in the sun too long.

Book source: personal copy

For more about this book, the author share's his personal insight and those from other readers:


For October, our selection is:
The Sunflower by Richard Paul Evans

Book Review -- Still Alice

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Alice Howland knows something is wrong when she is standing in the middle of Harvard Commons and doesn't know how to get home. As a psychology professor at Harvard, her intellect is revered, her research prized and her speaking skills sought after. But after a series of incidents -- a missing Blackberry, disorientation in familiar settings, not recognizing an individual she met just 30 minutes earlier - she seeks medical advice, only to be diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s disease.

Lisa Genova's Still Alice reads much like a crime novel -- the anticipation and angst one feels when you know something bad is going to happen -- but in this case -- the "bad" isn't someone, but something -- and even though you already know the outcome -- it is with a feeling of dread and anxiety as you wait for the finale.

The author's background -- she is a neuroscientist by training -- lends amazing authenticity to the story -- as if it were autobiographical. And the story she creates around Alice -- her husband John, her kids -- Tom, Anne and Lydia -- are equally well done. You intimately felt Alice’s digression with each page – and the torment it wrecked on her family – especially her husband John. But as devastating as this illness is, Alice never loses her dignity, nor do those around her lose their love for her.

This was an amazing novel – and one of my favorites to read this year.

For more from the author, please check out the related video:

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Book Review -- Summer at Tiffany

Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Marjorie Jacobsen and her best friend Marty (Martha) set out from the University of Iowa in the summer of 1945 to embrace life in the Big Apple – New York City. Convinced that getting a job at any one of the many department stores was effortless, they were surprised to learn that securing employment for the summer was much more difficult than they imagined. Surprisingly, they were lucky enough to find jobs as “pages” for Tiffany & Co – where they sported beautiful aqua silk jersey “uniforms” and helped the sales staff on the various floors. During their summer they encountered celebrities, millionaires, gangsters and the celebration on Times Square when President Truman announced that the Japanese had surrendered, thus ending WWII. It was, as Marjorie details, the best summer of her life.

This was a quaint tale – full of nostalgic reminiscing from days gone by. Marjorie and Marty manage to live on $20 a week, eat lunch for 15 cents, meet midshipman, and attend all the “in” clubs and bars in NYC at the time.

While this was a charming memoir, it read more to me like something a Grandmother would write to her grandchildren – not to a major reading audience. I would have enjoyed it more if I had read it in one sitting (an entirely manageable goal), because there wasn’t anything in the book that kept me wanting to continue the story. Each time I put it down, I had a hard time finding a reason to pick it up again.

But one thing I appreciated about the book was how the author makes one reflect on those “special times” in one’s life – and made me think, what was the best summer of my life?

Do you have a “best summer” experience?

Book source: Public library

In her own words, Marjorie Jacobsen Hart’s thoughts on Summer at Tiffany:

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Book Review -- One Day

One Day by David Nicholls

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Dex and Em. Em and Dex. So seems to be their world in One Day by David Nicholls.

Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley meet at University on July 15th – and for the next 19 years (and chapters) we are given a snap shot of their relationship and the evolution of their lives on the same date. There were many times during this reading that I thought I was enduring 50 years of their relationship. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

This novel has already been optioned as a movie starting Anne Hathaway and a British actor, Jim Sturgess…so the buzz for this book as been lofty. I had high expectations of clever romantic comedy and romance; sexual banter and wit; a happy ending. Bullocks! And I don’t even know what that means?!

From the first page I realized I was behind the 8 ball because this is ultimately a British book. With British humor (or humour) and British slang. None of which I understand. Words like knackers and shagger and summat. Oh, and the aforementioned Bullocks. I needed either Hugh Grant or Austin Powers to translate for me. If there was any rhythm or repartee – it was lost on me, because I didn’t understand the context. So shoot me.

Also, the characters – Em and Dex or Dex and Em – whichever you prefer – were just not the least bit appealing.

Dex is ultimately a drunk. He spends the majority of the book wallowing in his own filth and vomit. At one point, he is taking care of his 7 month old daughter in a drunken stupor and his actions, in any other “REAL” situation, would have gotten him arrested. All the while the author was trying to make it FUNNY. Not so much. And his treatment of Emma is not very endearing either. Why she would want to spend one minute with this oaf is beyond me.

Emma is only slightly better. She at least is sober – but we endure her dead end job at a terrible Tex-Mex restaurant in London (Tex Mex in London? Really?); a long term, but loveless, relationship with Ian, and a fling with a school headmaster, which is icky. Eventually though, Emma gets her act together and develops her love of writing, which leads to a book deal. Things are looking up for Emma—and then Dex reappears.

I was hoping for the best at the end – hoping that I would like that these two found each other and, really, deserved each other. But it doesn't happen. Or at least how I wanted it. Boo.

If you are an Anglophile with a deep love of all things British, then you would probably enjoy this novel. It just wasn’t for me.

Mari of Bookworm with a View also reviewed One Day.

Book source: personal copy

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Book Review -- Every Last One

Every Last One by Anna Quindlen

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Mary Beth and Glen Latham have the typical middle class life – he a successful optometrist, she a landscape designer; 3 children: 17 yr old Ruby, who is a brilliant writer and on the cusp of college and 14 yr old fraternal twins, Max and Alex –wildly opposite and in constant conflict. Life’s trials seem overwhelming – Ruby is ready to dump an clingy boyfriend, but the family is reluctant to let him go because he has become a family friend; the discord between the boys seems to grow exponentially the more Alex succeeds on the soccer field, throwing Max into deeper depression and jealousy. Then IT happens – the unimaginable that makes all the other difficulties seem like Christmas presents.

Anna Quindlen’s novel, Every Last One, is the proverbial family drama – life has its predictable ups and downs and then WHAM something completely unexpected rocks your world.

Her writing is brilliant and emotional. I was even caught teary eyed through several of the chapters.

I loved the relationships she created within this family – all very authentic and grounded. The Lathams are a family you would like as neighbors and friends. And their children would be ones you would welcome into your home and glad that they had become friends to your own children. She created beautiful family traditions – a Halloween party that was visited by all, family sledding at the first major snowfall. All of this lends itself to the horrible “punch in the gut” you get later.

However, the arc of this novel was fairly predictable – I knew nothing of this novel going into it – but soon after starting it I thought, “Oh, something big is going to happen, I’m just not sure what.” And sure enough – it does. Not quite how I predicted, but fairly close. Following “IT”, the downward arc is equally predictable, but in a satisfying way.

Every Last One is a novel full of heart ache and tragedy. But it also is a story of love and survival.

Book source: public library

To hear more from the author about her book, check out the related video -- I think she does a good job of describing the book without offering "spoilers!"

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Book Review -- A Thousand Sisters

A Thousand Sisters: My Journey into the Worst Place on Earth to Be a Woman by Lisa Shannon


My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Lisa Shannon actually does more than the feigned attempt most of us give to a crisis, “oh, how I wish we could help!” is often the refrain. After watching an episode devoted to the crisis in the Congo on Oprah (leave it to Oprah!), Lisa is determined to make a difference in the lives of women who have been tortured, beaten, raped, mutilated, by the hands of invaders as well and their own countrymen. She runs marathons, she raises money, and she travels to the Congo in hopes that she alone can make a life better. And for the most part she does - -she brings gifts, she brings light, and I think she brings hope. She doesn’t bring peace or the end to their suffering – but nothing buy a higher power could possibly attain that result.

A Thousand Sisters is an emotional, upsetting, and grueling personal account of Lisa’s attempt to make change. She spends 5 weeks in the Congo befriending and listening to the horror stories of women, who have survived. Her storytelling is wrought with pain and suffering. But whether or not she accomplishes anything is of little consequence, because at least, ladies, she tried.

I thought this was an amazing story. However, I wasn’t sure if this story was for Lisa or if this story was for the women of Congo. I suppose any memoir, by nature, is self centered, so I can’t necessarily fault the author on that basis. But many times her narrative sure seemed to slide toward the, “Wow – look at what I am doing to save the World!” attitude, which was distasteful. Also, I will never get used to what author Bernice McFadden calls writing from “white privilege” this notion of white people writing as advocates for blackness. Even though she is referring to fiction, I had this overriding feeling of “white-man going in to save the savages” with this book. I’m sure that wasn’t the author’s intent and it was my own hang up, but it tripped me up on occasion. Also, there was a typo – my biggest pet peeve ever – she used STATIONARY when referring to writing paper instead of STATIONERY. Ugh! I wish I could remember the page, but trust me, it’s there.

This was absolutely a worthy account to bring focus on the tragedy of the Congo – but for a book, Left to Tell is infinitely better in telling a survivor’s story from the point of view of the survivor (and directly related to the Congo, by telling the story of the Rwandan genocide).

Here is a brief video about Lisa Shannon and her Run for Congo Women project:

Although not one of my original selections, A Thousand Sisters qualifies for my Women Unbound Challenge.

Book source: public library

Book Review -- The Cellist of Sarajevo

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A cellist; an act of defiance and of hope; three lives devastated by war and their ability to survive at all costs.

On May 27, 1992 a mortar shell struck a market during the Siege of Sarajevo, killing 22 people, injuring many others, who were simply waiting in line for a loaf of bread.

As a sign of humanity and resistance, Vedran Smailović, a renowned Sarajevan cellist, played Albinoni’s Adagio in G Minor for 22 days in the same bombed-out market square, to honor each of his fellow citizens.

In author Steven Galloway’s fictional account of the cellist and the siege, humanity is brought to the basic level of survival. Told through the eyes of 3 citizens – Arrow, a sniper; Dragan, a baker and Kenan, a father – the daily necessities of food, water and endurance are told in a bleak but astounding narrative.

Simply walking in the streets of Sarajevo was life threatening. Snipers sat in the hillsides taking aim at their targets as if they were ducks in a carnival attraction. What separated those who made it across bridges or streets to the safety of a nearby building was nothing more than luck or chance.

This novel was brilliant and poetic. The pallor of war settled on me while I was reading this book. I had to look at the window on occasion to make sure mortar shells weren’t dropping in my driveway.

I only wish there had been a map of the city – the topography of Sarajevo – mountains, hills, valley, rivers – was as much a character of this novel as were the actual humans – that it would have been nice to have something in the front of the book to refer to while reading. But that is a minor complaint.

I read this in one afternoon.  It was haunting.  Enough said.

For more from the author check out this related video:



Book source: Public library

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Book Review -- Backseat Saints

Backseat Saints by Joshilyn Jackson

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

 

Rose Mae Lolley has been abandoned, physically beaten and left for dead. Now, trying to save her soul and herself, she blasts out of her father in law’s gun shop prior to what would have been the final thrashing by her husband, Thom, to embark on a journey to reconnect with her past that includes ghosts from her hometown of Fruiton, Alabama and her alcoholic father. Her destination: her mother, who left Rose Mae at the age of 8. Along for the ride – Rose Mae’s dog, “fat Gretel” and a host of Catholic Saints who vividly take up residence in the back seat.

From the time you turn the first page of this book, you are immediately on board some kind of black-comedy, dysfunctional, NASCAR ride! As Rose Mae attempts to kill her husband, the author writes this brilliant, Abbott & Costello-worthy scene that has Rose rolling in bushes, while trying to take aim at her husband's head – and instead of shooting him, hits something far more valuable. I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry or try to help her out.

The pace of the book is break-neck – there wasn’t a moment to catch my breath between Rose Mae’s beatings, her hospital stays, her “getaway” and her destination. My heart raced to the point I think I must have broken out in a sweat during some of the final scenes in this book.

The author has a vibrant, modern, quirky narrative style that just sucked me in from the first metaphor. To the point that I wondered, “why haven’t I read anything by her before?”

My only complaint about this book is the author often talked about “how long” Rose Mae had been away from her home town and how stuck in time her childhood home remained. In my mind, the story portrayed Rose Mae as much older than her barely 30 years – and her hometown a relic of the ‘50s not the ‘80s. Also, two characters from Rose Mae’s past are interwoven through Ro’s journey to safety, which I just didn’t quite get. Granted, Rose Mae is featured in one of the author’s previous books, “gods in Alabama” so it could be that not having read that, I was missing something, but their inclusion, seemed awkward.

But honestly, I loved this book! And the ending – wow – if there had been someone in my house listening to me, they would have heard an audible gasp when I got to that point. It was perfectly satisfying in every way.

For the sensitive reader: Graphic sex, domestic abuse and language.

Book source: Public library

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Book Review -- Tallgrass

Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas

My rating:  2 of 5 stars

Rennie’s home town of Ellis, Colorado is changed overnight when the government decides to build and internment camp for Japanese-Americans evacuees after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Determined to do what is right, in spite of what many of their fellow neighbors believe, Rennie and her family employee several of the boys to help work their beet crop and a young woman to help with chores around the house. After a neighbor is found murdered, many of the local residents are convinced that the perpetrator is an evacuee – but with little or no proof. With tension running high in town and families being torn apart by war, Rennie often wonders if life in Ellis will ever be the same.

Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas started out like the perfect coming of age tale – Rennie (at 13) had a clear, true voice of an adolescent stuck between childhood and adulthood. Her perspective on the internment camp and the refugees was innocent but with the knowledge that, things could get worse, especially if local boys started dying while fighting the Japanese overseas, including her brother.

This book never got off the ground for me. What seemed like an interesting premise – never developed. The author, in her foreword, admits that as a non-Japanese, it would have been presumptuous of her to write from the Japanese point of view (take that Kathryn Stockett!). But honestly, that’s the story I would have preferred to read. It would have been far more interesting to read about what went on in the internment camp then what happened on the farm. Also, there were several story lines; it was as if the author couldn’t decide what type of novel to write: historical fiction, murder mystery, quilting-genre fiction, or coming of age novel.

And with the exception of Rennie and her Dad, nearly all the characters and their dialogue were flat. I never felt one single emotion that that author was trying to evoke from the page. In one scene, the Strouds learn the fate of their son, Buddy. In what should have been a gut wrenching reaction from the reader, just died on the page.

Also, and this is silly and minor – but Rennie’s older sister’s name is: Marthalice. Now – how did you read that? If you were like me, for the first dozen pages I read it: Martha Lice – and I thought – who on earth would use a name like that for a character? Because we’ve had lice in our family and they are evil! It didn’t occur to me until later that her name was: Martha Alice. Doh?! But it bugged me throughout the book.

So, this didn’t do anything for me. I still have Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet on my bookshelf as a contribution to Japanese Internment Camp historical fiction – I hope it is more successful.

Book source: borrowed from a friend

July Book Group and Book Review -- Nine Parts of Desire

Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women by Geraldine Brooks

Rating:  2 out of 5 stars

I've read nearly all of Geraldine Brooks' books -- and for the most part -- have loved them all.  This one just didn't do anything for me.

The consensus amongst our book group members was mixed as well -- the majority of them didn't finish the book -- or -- skipped various chapters and moved on to others.  I read all but the last two chapters, because I felt like the author just continually repeated herself through out the book.  From the discussion we had tonight, I don't think I missed anything substantial.

Ms. Brooks experience in the Middle East is legendary.  She spent many years covering the first Gulf War as a reporter for the Wall Street Journal.  I don't doubt her expertise. My biggest complaint about this book was from the opening page, then author seemed to have an agenda against the Islamic faith.  That she was out to prove that all Islamic women should abandon their religious garments, and in many ways, "burn their burqas" (much like burning your bra) in order to become feminists.  Granted, in the forward from the publisher it reads, "Brooks' acute analysis of the world's fastest growing religion deftly illustrates how Islam's holiest texts have been misused to justify repression of women, and how male pride and power have warped the original message of a once liberating faith." But I was hoping for more balance in her writing and less "axe grinding."  Also, as a Mormon, who is often reading about my religion from a non-members perspective, I kept wondering, "How much of this is correct?"  Because when reporters or writers are writing about my faith, inevitably, they always have something wrong. 

Another issue I had, and this isn't the fault of the author, but the book seemed dated.  This was published in 1994, long before 9/11, and our wars with Afghanistan and Iraq.  Islam has become far more militant since these events, with the rise of the Taliban and Al Qaeda -- and her stories and analysis didn't measure up to current events.

None of our book group members know anyone personally that is a Muslim.  It would have been nice if we could have had a a guest speaker at our book group -- a Muslim woman who could explain where Ms. Brooks was on track, and where she wasn't.  Unfortunately, we had to decipher those things on our own.

But as is ALWAYS the case, the discussion was lively and I came away having learned so much from the book and my fellow groupies. 

This book was one of my original selections for the Women Unbound Challenge.

Our next book club selection is:  Same Kind of Different as Me : A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together by Ron Hall and Denver Moore

 Book source:  Personal copy

Guest Book Review -- Percy Jackson and the Olypmpians: The Titan's Curse (#3)

The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Guest Review by Daisy Dad

When I started the third installment of Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Titan’s Curse – I really didn’t want to like it. I read and reviewed the first two and you may remember that I was hung up over the similarities to the Harry Potter series. The characters, the situations, even the games that they play (I still enjoyed the Quidditch matches of HP over Capture the Flag and/or Chariot Races of PJ). But then I was talking to another father about the two series and he is a HUGH Percy fan and said that Harry was “just o.k”. JUST O.K.???? I almost fell over. I bit my tongue and allowed him to explain. He felt that while the Potter books were extremely entertaining, he really appreciated the teaching of Greek Mythology in a new, interesting and original way. I mentioned in my first review of The Lightning Thief that I wanted to go back and read D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths or maybe Homer’s The Odyssey, but have I? I’m not going to answer that, but I will let you know that I did finish The Titan’s Curse reading it differently.

Did I like it? Yes. Was it great? No. Unfortunately, I think Mr. Riordan missed a couple of opportunities to make his work stand above the critics (like me) that his books are subtle knock-offs of another series that “will not be named”. The best example of this is when the di Angelo siblings are introduced as the newest half-bloods in the story. An opportunity to explore these character’s feelings as they learn of their new identities as a daughter and son of a god was lost. I thought it would be interesting to see a different perspective than that of Percy’s, but that was not to be so. This installment is also basically the same as the first – a journey across the United States to save the world from the return of the Titan Kronos.

But the true craft that I have finally appreciated is the way Riordan weaves Greek myth into a modern day adventure. The Lightning Thief was the myth of Odysseus, The Sea of Monsters was the myth of Jason & the Argonauts, and now The Titan’s Curse is the myth of Hercules. And not a glossing over of those myths – a full telling with many of the side stories and details of the mythology that I would doubt would be learned in any elementary school or junior high. I lost myself in the adventure and spent less time making comparisons. I am a sucker for young love and the author does a nice job with the awkwardness of it, and I look forward to see how it develops further in the next two books. Knowing his audience, I also appreciated how death and the loss of a loved one were handled in this book.

I may have to read something else now and let some anticipation build for The Battle of the Labyrinth. What new Greek myths will I learn next?