The Girl from Junchow by Kate Furnivall

The Girl from Junchow is the sequel to The Russian Concubine. The plot of this novel has been woven into Stalinist Russia and the way the author portrays the time period is incredible. The book continues the struggles of Lydia, a teenage Russian refugee brought up in 1920's China, as she returns to Russia in search of her imprisoned father. She is accompanied by her half-brother Alexei and friend Liev. Her Chinese lover from the first book becomes a much more believable character in this book. There are also numerous secondary characters which Furnivall develops well. All in all a great historical fiction.

Highwire Moon by Susan Straight

This book had me from the moment I opened it. It is the story of a young Mexican-Indian girl, Serafina who in California illegally. Due to her inability to speak Spanish or English, (she speaks an Indian dialect) she is violently separated from her beloved three year old daughter, Elvia. The story picks up, 15 years later with Elvia, pregnant, and desperate to find her mother. She thinks her mother left her because she didn't want her anymore. At the same time Serafina is trying to find the daughter she has never stopped thinking about.

Susan Straight writes so compellingly that we are willing to look at things we would normally never want to see. I cannot recommend this book highly enough, although I know it is a bit bleak for some readers. I would encourage even them to read it because of the hope and love that permeates this book.

The descriptions of migrant camps and border crossings make you feel as though you are there. I have no idea how the author got some of the details she put into the book.

The book is set in South Riverside County. Readers from this area will recognize many landscape markers, and the Indian tribes names.

I knew instinctively how this book would end. I was right and wrong at the same time. You will be to, no matter how you think it will end.

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

Aaaahh...Book Club. What a wonderful evening! We had, for the first time in a long time, every member present...oops, except our newest member Meredith but we have only met her once. You all know what I mean! The theme for Something Wicked... was Carnival. We had warm pretzels with mustard, spicy-candied pecans, apples with caramel dip, hot dogs and french fries, pinwheel pasta salad, green salad with fruit, roasted corn on the cob, Lynchburg Lemonades and Peanut Butter/Chocolate Fudge. Everything was delicious, of course!
The Book? It was well-liked by everyone, some more than others. There were a few of us who found it hard to get into but enjoyed it anyway. I personally loved this story. I thought it was creepy and scary but poetic and beatifully written at the same time. We all agreed that it would have been a better choice for October but...cest la vie. As always, we all had a wonderful time! As Bethany put it,"this is home."

Ophelia by Lisa Klein

As a college professor, Lisa Klein the author of Ophelia had taught Shakespeare's Hamlet countless times. She always thought that one of the minor characters, Ophelia, was shortchanged by Shakespeare on her character development. With her novel Ophelia she has told a new version of Hamlet with a smart, eloquent, brave heroine at its center. She gives the story a new twist and new insight into a possible turn of events.
I loved this story! It was very well-written, in an old, poetic style but more understandable than the original Shakespeare. It wasn't a suprise twist, I could tell where the author was going with the story but I still enjoyed every page. This is no child's story, I would recommend this book for 9th grade through adult.

Olive's Ocean by Kevin Henkes

Many of us know and love Kevin Henkes as the hilarious author/illustrator of Childrens Picture Books likeLilly's Purple Plastic Purse, Owen, Julius: the Baby of the World, etc. With Olive's Ocean Henkes ventures into tween fiction and does a good job. The main character in this book is Martha, a girl whose life and perspective changes after Olive, a classmate of Marthas, dies in a tragic accident. Although Martha and Olive were never really friends, Martha can't seem to stop thinking about her over summer vacation. While Martha spends time with her grandmother and her friends at the ocean she learns a great deal about life, love and friendship. With Olive's Ocean,Henkes has managed to capture the essence of a tweens girl's mind. I liked this book. It wasn't earth shattering or life changing but it was a good read. I think any 6th through 8th grade girl might enjoy this story.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

Re-read this one because the movie is coming out the 15th of this month and I wanted to remember what happened to compare. So far the Harry Potter movies have closely matched the books. Rowling's writing just got better and better with each book. It was just as entertaining and fast paced the second time around. If you haven't read the series, I recommend it. It gets especially good at Book #4.

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

I heard about this book years ago when it was first published. I read "A Handmaids Tale" and "Alias Grace" by the same author and enjoyed them. The Blind Assassin won many awards including the Booker Prize. I made a point to get it from the library a while ago. Between my own writing, and reading I was doing for research, or book club I had to renew it twice. I am so happy I finally got around to reading it. It was so thick and lush. It is described as novel within a novel, but it is even more complex than that. It spans three distinct time periods, and the novel within the novel has various sci-fi stories told within it. Atwood has a sort of vagueness to her writing. She does not spell anything out, and yet everything is quite clear. I was very caught up in the stories, all of them. I always have the feeling of wanting more, whenever I read Atwood, and yet I always feel satisfied. Like a meal that is so unusual and delicious you wish it would never end, but you are not unpleasantly full when you are finished. If I had a complaint, it would be the two-dimensionality of the villains, a brother and sister. They are completely without redemption, and a little like stock characters. Some of the other characters are so well-developed that these two really stand out. It is a small complaint. The book was mesmerizing.

The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry

For those of us who are familiar with Lois Lowry from The Giver, this book was a kick in the pants. It is total satire that both makes fun of and pays homage to good, old-fashioned stories like Pollyana, Anne of Green Gables and James and the Giant Peach. It is full of needlessly big words like "nefarious" and "ignominious" with a glossary in the back. I think the author is poking fun at the blythe use of big, twenty-five cent words in childrens literature. There is also a short synopsis of the novels she refers to in the back of the book so we can understand what is so funny even if we haven't read the stories. In the novel, the Willoughby children decide that they should be orphans because all "worthy and winsome" children are orphans. They concoct a plan to become orphans, at the same time the parents have decided to rid themselves of their children and both diabolical plans are set in motion. The parents are villainous, the children are parodies of characters in other books, there is a benefactor, and abandoned baby and a no-nonsense but loving nanny - a la Mary Poppins. It is pretty hilarious. Without the nostalgia of the good, old-fashioned stories I am not sure younger readers would really get the joke. However, I do think it would still be entertaining in a Series of Unfortunate Events kind-of-way. I started the book thinking it was aimed at 4th-6th graders but after I read it I think it would fit more with 6th-Adult. I loved it, who knew Lois Lowry was so versatile?!?

Behind the Bedroom Wall by Laura E. Williams

From the back cover:

"It is 1942. Korinna, a thirteen-year-old girl in Germany, is an active member of the local Jungmadel, a Nazi youth group, along with many of her friends. She believes that Hitler is helping Germany by dealing with what he calls the "Jewish problem", a campaign she witnesses as her Jewish neighbors are attacked and taken from their homes.

When Korinna discovers that her parents - who are secretly members of an underground resistance group - are sheltering a family of Jewish refugees behind her bedroom wall, she is shocked. As she comes to know the family, her sympathies begin to turn, and when someone tips off the Gestapo, Korinna's loyalties are put to the test. She must decide what she really believes and whom she really trusts."

Sometimes it is difficult to read children's literature as an adult because of what I know. In this case it was especially hard because of the other books I have read about Nazi Germany (Night by Elie Weisel or Diary of Anne Frank) and of course, what I have learned about Auschwitz and other concentration camps in history. I thought the book was well-written with just enough awful information to be shocking (in a good, teaching-sort-of-way) to an adolescent. These young people in Germany were having fun. At the youth group they baked cookies, played games and sang patriotic songs... all while being brain-washed into believing that the Jews (and the infirm, the handicapped or the elderly) were the reason that Germany was in a Depression and if these could be "taken care of" the country would be great again. They were encouraged to harass the other Jewish children and report anyone who was being un-patriotic.

I always read stories like this with a sense of awe for the people who choose to do the right thing, in this case, Korinna's parents helping the Jewish family to escape the "work camps". I wonder if I would be strong enough to risk my life and my family to do what is right. This book addresses those issues but from the standpoint of a teenage girl. It was definitely worth reading. I would be interested to know what a thirteen-year-old might think of this book. I'll have to see if Nick will read it too.

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

This book is perfect for 6,7,8th grade girls. It is about an orphaned girl from Barbados who comes to a Puritan community to live with relatives. While she is there, she befriends an old Quaker woman, known as the "Witch of Blackbird Pond". When her friendship is discovered, Kit is faced with suspicion, fear and anger and is even accused of witchcraft herself. This book is historical but it has enough suspense and light romance that it would be interesting to an adolescent girl. So far the Newbery Award Winners have lived up to their award status.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

I cannot believe I never read this book as a child! What a great story! I am definitely keeping this one in my arsenal of Read-Alouds for the Library. It is a well-written, fun, not too scary good vs. evil story with a great ending. What more could you ask for in a children's' book? This summer is going to be great!

What Are You Reading This Summer?

Bethany asked this question at Book Club on Tuesday night. I just finished reading Warriors: Into the Wild, a youth fantasy adventure novel. That is what I will be reading this summer - various childrens' novels that either my kids have asked me to read because they enjoyed the book or because I have it in the library at school and I am curious. My summer will be filled with fun in the sun and childrens literature, with the exception of what I am reading for Book Club of course!

What was your favorite book as a child? Mine was a book called Ghosts I Have Been by Richard Peck. I have it in the library at school perhaps I should check it out for the summer for the nostagia...

What are you reading this summer?

Madame Bovary Book Club Night

French Onion Soup, Stuffed Savory Cornish Game Hens, Brie with Lemon Thyme Honey Sauce, Baked Brie with Flaky Crust, Spanish Style Artichoke Dip, Trifle with Angel Food Cake, Whipped Cream and Brandied Strawberry Sauce and of course, French wine...Book Club is always a feast of good food and good company. Not everyone was able to finish this classic novel but it is an age-old tale of bored, unhappy wife turns to selfish, handsome player for entertainment while ho-hum, cuckold husband is clueless. It just happens that in 1857, it was a fairly new concept to put on paper.

I started to struggle through this book about a third of the way through because I didn't like or care about any of the characters but I am happy I stuck with it. Definitely a worthwhile read, if only because it is a classic and Flaubert was really sailing into uncharted literary territory for the time but also because he uses some beautiful language. For example, when describing the act of reading he says,"Your head is empty,the hours slip away. From your chair you wander through the countries of your mind, and your thoughts, threading themselves into the fiction, play about with the details or rush along the track of the plot. You melt into the characters; it seems as if your own heart is beating under their skin." *sigh* Just beautiful.

When I read the commentary after I finished the novel, I learned that I had missed much of the sexual/erotic imagery. Phallic candlesticks and cigars permeated the novel. Big, pink conch shells dressed the mantel, while large, decorative balls hung from the curtain rod. I took the descriptions of surroundings at face value, forgetting that this was the erotic novel of the time.

I really enjoyed Book Club this month! I mean I enjoy it every month but with life being so crazy this year, I haven't been able to put the energy into Book Club that I usually do. I was so happy I was finally able to contribute something yummy that I hadn't purchased moments before the meeting, I had time to dress up a la sophisticated Madame and my brain was actually engaged...I had a lovely time! Now that school is ending and I should really have to time, I can't wait for our summer meetings! Please remember to bring ideas next month for July, August, September - our themes will be Africa, Chick Lit and Banned Book.

The Midwife by Jennifer Worth

"Why did I ever start this?" Jennifer Worth asks herself in her memoir 'The Midwife'. "Only an idiot would choose to be a midwife. " This first sentence in the book made me smile. Nice to know I'm not the only one who has thought that. Worth shares her incredible career as a midwife during the 1950s in the London Docklands. The Docklands were poverty stricken, dirty, and recently bombed during World War II. People lived in condemned buildings among rats, grime, and violence. Worth worked out of a Nunnery, providing prenatal care, delivering babies in their homes, and checking up on the moms and babies afterward. It was a busy life with highly unpredictable hours.
Some may be turned off by the subject, fearing gore, blood, and other unpleasant things often associated with birth. But this is one book you don't want to judge by its cover. The Midwife is, more than anything, the story of an amazing woman in 1950s London and the people she met. I recommend this book to anyone interested in history, motivating stories, or who just wants a good read. (Consider reading the appendix first to help with the Cockney dialect.)

The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy

Everybody knows the story of Hansel and Gretel, the two children abandoned in the woods by their father and evil stepmother, who then discover the witch's hut. In this moving book by Murphy the story is changed but, the main pieces are still there: the stepmother, the bread crumbs, and the 'witch'. This is WWII during the occupation of Poland and two children are left in the forest by a desperate father and stepmother who are trying to flee the Nazis. The children are told they must forget their names because their real names will reveal their Jewishness and are renamed 'Hansel' and 'Gretel'. The parents hope someone will take them in and think they are Christian. The first person they find in the forest is Magda, the village 'witch'. She takes them in and protects them in her small hut that is heated by an enormous old bakers oven. This is a gut wrenching story of the Holocaust. The voices of Jews who hid in the forests, of men and women who participated in resistance movements, and of Polish civilians.
Hearing those voices was chilling. And this author does a remarkable job at giving them all voices.

The Reading Group by Elizabeth Noble

This book was a best seller in the UK and I almost didn't pick it up, thought it would be too 'chic-lit' and foo-foo and I didn't want to waste my time. But then I opened the book and saw the list of books this fictional book club read and saw that they have three of the books we've read this past year, Rebecca, Heartburn & Atonement. This was a great palate cleanser between Irving and Flaubert and not that mindless. The book follows the five members of the reading group from different backgrounds and age groups, they bond closely while coping with such matters as a philandering husband, a mother with dementia, a pregnant but unmarried daughter, an infertility crisis, a wedding and a funeral. It took a little bit to get all the characters separate in my mind, the five group members with their husbands & kids, but once I did I enjoyed this book.

With summer coming up, this would be a great beach read or even a possible suggestion for our 'chic-lit' book selection. Either way, I'll bring this to our next meeting so it can start to make it's way through the BC Underground.

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

Our Book Club meeting for A Prayer for Owen Meany wasn't as in-depth of a discussion as it could have been but in all fairness this was a book that needed more than one month to read. It certainly was not a book that could be easily skimmed and with all the busyness in all of our lives it was no suprise that not everyone could finish the book in time. Everyone said that they enjoyed it though and wanted to finish it in the coming months.

We all agreed that John Irving managed to write a Christian novel that’s not the least bit inspirational. At no point in the novel does the author suggest that the reader adopt Christianity, however, this is a very religious book in the sense that God plays a large role—and the main character himself is a Christ figure. I loved the way this novel was written, it is truly a novel that waits until the very end to wrap up it's plot. I love a book that makes you turn the page. This book covered some huge issues: religion, war, politics, friendship, sacrifice, duty...you name it, it was probably covered. I think we all agreed that this book was a worthwhile read, in fact, a recommended read.

And, of course, the food and company were wonderful. Our Book Club is the nicest blend of personalities, worldviews and cooks. It is always a delicious suprise to see what everyone has brought to share. The theme for the night was "small foods a la Owen Meany" chosen by Bethany. See what I mean?

Thanks ladies! I am looking forward to many, many more shared books and recipes.

Charming Billy by Alice McDermott

Many years ago I read a book by Alice McDermott called Child of my Heart. It was a sweet ethereal meandering book. Charming Billy won a National Book Award, and that piqued my interest. It too was a meandering slow book. It was not written chronologically, but rather, gave a bit of information, went back in time, forward in time, and then came back to the bit of information, adding a little, and then back and forth again. The story was about an Irish New Yorker. The story starts at his wake, his death being a result of alcoholism. The friends and family at his wake blame his life-long drinking problem on lost love, but as we travel back to look at his life, we find nothing is that easily explained away. I enjoyed this book, but felt no compulsion to get back to reading it. If I were  not stuck on a plane for 3 1/2 hours, I may not have finished it. I didn't particularly care about the characters, not even the lead, supposedly lovable lush at the center. I find alcoholism selfish and not at all charming. The same writing style with a different story would have been more enjoyable. 

This book was thrown around our last meeting as a potential Sci-Fi pick. I'm glad it didn't make the final cut only because it doesn't really delve into the sci-fi aspect of the story. The main character is Kathy H. (you never know last names, just first initials) who as a child lived at Hailsham, an isolated private school in the English countryside where the students were sheltered from the outside world. The students are brought up to believe that they're special and that their well-being was crucial not only for themselves but for the society they would eventually enter. The students are told to focus on art, drawing, painting, poetry and their best works are taken from the school my a mysterious character only known as Madame. They are told their art work will to into The Gallery. We are introduced to Kathy H. as an adult and her job as a 'carer' to donors at various recovery centers. We eventually learn that the students at Hailsham are clones whose sole purpose in life is to donate and then 'complete.' The book focuses more on the relationships Kathy has with two of her classmates from Hailsham than the sci-fi part, who are they clones of, who is their 'possible'? But since the focus of the book is on the interpersonal relationships of these students/clones it does make you think, does a clone have a soul and a life completely separate and different from the original person they were cloned?

I did like this book and would read it again in the future only because I think it may be one of those books where you'll get more from it the second time you read it through.

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian

From the back cover: "On an icy winter night in an isolated house in rural Vermont, a seasoned midwife named Sibyl Danforth takes desperate measures to save a baby's life. She performs an emergency cesarean section on a mother she believes has died of a stroke. But what if Sibyl's patient wasn't dead - and Sibyl inadvertently killed her?"

When I began reading this book I was sure the author was pro-midwife but once I finished it I was not so sure. I can only filter this story through my own personal beliefs about midwives and childbirth. My mom is a certified nurse midwife who works in a hospital. I delivered two of my babies in a hospital with a midwife in attendance (I would have delivered all four that way but it just didn't work out). I considered a home birth but felt more comfortable in a hospital where 1) equipment was within arms reach to help if something went wrong and 2) I didn't have to deal with the mess in my house. However, I had friends who delivered babies at home with lay midwives and had incredible birth experiences too. In the end, I believe that a mother should deliver wherever and with whomever she feels most comfortable. In any case, we are talking about life, and life is messy - there is never a guarantee that everything will be okay. I hate that our society has become so litigious that there must always be someone to blame and made to pay if life gets messy. I thought this book was ultimately a warning against trusting anyone who isn't a medical doctor who went to school for years. I guess all I am saying is that everyone, including the most highly trained surgeons, makes mistakes. Anyway, it was a good book, definitely thought provoking and a little disturbing to me.