The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan

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Violet, raised by her American single mom, the owner of an upscale courtesan house in Shanghai, is used to getting her way.  As she spies on everyone in the house, including her own mother, she learns that her mother manages to get her way, as well.  She watches as her mother navigates the business world, bringing Chinese and foreign businessmen together in order to create opportunities for these men.  In doing so, she also brings them into her business.  Life is good for Violet, until the day she learns of the existence of her father (who is Chinese, much to her shock) and a long-lost brother whom her mother feels she must go to America to see.  In a twist of circumstance brought about by a devious suitor, Violet and her mother are separated and Violet’s life is set upon a trajectory of hardship, of love, and of heartbreak.

The story is beautiful and tragic and heart-wrenching.  We follow Violet as well as her mother, Lucia, through their lives which are complicated and also made beautiful by love.  The issue of Chinese and American cultures clashing comes out frequently and creates a lot of the conflict in the story.  The other characters in the book are also quite beautiful and add greatly to the depth of this saga.

My only criticism of this book is the editing – I feel that parts of the story were drawn out almost to the point of boredom.  Violet is compelled to take a long journey that lasts a couple of weeks.  It is a very difficult journey, that is clear.  But the number of pages used to describe every obstacle – almost each stone that was in their way – was truly onerous to plod through.  There were a number of parts like this that could have/should have been abbreviated somewhat.

That said, it is still quite a stirring tale of ultimately 3 generations of very strong women who overcome their adverse circumstance, almost against all odds.  Although the reader must wade through excessive detail, it is ultimately a very inspiring and up-lifting.

Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

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Where to begin on this sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird?  I guess, to begin with, it is a typical sequel, which is to say that it is not nearly as great as the original.  Few books can be, though.  On the other hand, it is a fascinating and horrifying commentary on the White, Southern perspective on segregation/integration and the resentment toward the Supreme Court’s decisions’ overriding of states’ decision-making.

Jean Louise, or Scout, as she was called in her youth, is visiting her home town for a 2-week vacation from her new home in New York City.  She is returning to her father, now riddled with arthritis, her aunt who has not lost her prudishness, and her dear friend, Henry, who is hankering to marry her.  She believes she will slip back into the familiar rhythm of her home, until she finds a repulsive pamphlet advertising a meeting in support of maintaining segregation.  Hiding in the back of the courtroom where the meeting was held, she is stunned to see her father and boyfriend sitting in the front row.  As her world is rocked, she is forced to reconcile her idea of who her father is with who her really is.

The themes in this story are all too relevant today.  Race is front and center in the news everyday and it appears we have made only baby steps in progress toward justice and equality.  Even in this story, where Scout is supposedly arguing to defend Blacks in the South, she still espouses such prejudice and the belief, for example, that Blacks could never be in positions of authority.  There is the assumption that there are inequalities that are inherent rather that imposed and I think this is really what underlies prejudice.

I would say this is an articulate piece of historical fiction – but unfortunately it is neither strictly historical nor fiction.

 

A Well-Tempered Heart by Jan-Phillip Sendker

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Yet another must-read by Jan-Phillip Sendker!  This sequel to the Art of Hearing Heartbeats is just as beautiful as the first – an accomplishment in its own right…

Julia, whose life has been in a lonely downward spiral, has begun to hear a voice.  It is the voice of a woman who is asking who she really is.  Julia, a savvy lawyer in NYC, is terrified that she’s losing her mind.  In her quest for peace from this voice, she encounters a monk who encourages her to return to the home of her deceased father and of her half-brother in Burma, where she might find the source of this voice.  As she begins to discover the story of the voice, she also learns a great deal about herself and what is really important to her.

The writing in this book achieves a level somewhere between poetry and philosophy.  There is more silence than sharp dialogue and it works so well in the context of the story.  What is said is often deeply wise  — so much so, that it needs to be read more than once to be fully appreciated.  And the story itself, while tragic and full of horror, is also incredibly beautiful and inspiring.

Most interesting to me, though, was the sharp contrast between the fast-paced luxury of NYC and the peaceful poverty of Burma.  Julia’s brother, U Ba, has a love of life and an appreciation for what little he has.  Here in NYC, we have so much and generally want more still.  There is a lot to be learned from the simple love, acceptance, and appreciation espoused by the wise characters in this book.

Must read!

 

The 100 Year Old Man Who Jumped Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson

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This delightful story is a sort of Swedish Forrest Gump for world history.  Allan Karlsson, on the morning of his 100th birthday, decides that he needs to take back control of his life and leave the Old Folks Home – via the window.  Little does he know that he’d be starting out on a madcap adventure.  But then again, madcap adventures are not exactly new to Allan, as we learn in the flashbacks that tell of his amusingly political, apolitical life.

I loved this book!  The writing is so understated and subtle that it makes the crazy events in the story that much more outrageous and entertaining.  I could not help laughing out loud at some of the dialogue – it is brilliant.  And the way in which the tale winds around historical events is playful and so imaginative.

I haven’t recommended a “must-read” in a long time – but here’s a most definite!  You are bound to love this one.

The Wheel of Fortune by Susan Howatch

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It was Shakespeare who wrote, “The sins of the father are to be laid upon the children” in The Merchant of Venice – and this book is a very long but very eloquent illustration of this idea. It is the saga of an outwardly successful, but inwardly, exceedingly dysfunctional family who live on a fairytale estate called Oxmoon, in Wales.  The story begins when Ginevra, raised with her cousins at Oxmoon, returns home after the death of her husband, much to the anxious anticipation of Robert, who has been in love with her since their youth.  Their reunion brings to light some of the family history but also propels the family forward into years of struggle that center around who will be master of the esteemed estate.

The writing in this story is beautiful.  There is an intricate weaving of drama and psychological tension which hold onto the reader’s attention throughout the 1171 pages.  It is a comment on the British gentleman’s insistence on the “stiff upper lip” and its hypocrisy.  It is also a historical walk through the early 20th century, with its wars and economic struggles that plagued Europe.

There is a lot to this book – but it also requires a lot of time and attention.  In my opinion, it was definitely worth it!

The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin

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Joanna has just moved out to the suburbs and is looking to meet new friends.  She notices that while the men in town have a club of their own (that does not allow women to be members), the women do not – and worse, are not even bothered by this.  As she digs deeper into the history of the town, she sees that at one point, there was a women’s club and the women in town actually were once interested in things beyond caring for their homes and their families.  Something was up and she and her one friend, Bobbie, would get to the bottom of it.  But hopefully they’d do it in time…

Yes, I was probably one of the only women who grew up in the 60’s and 70’s who never either read this book or saw the movie before – so I was curious.  Little did I know how utterly creepy this book would be!  The idea that men would turn women into automatons that would only do housework and child rearing was both disturbing and outrageous, and quite a statement for its time.  The theme of squelching those who stood up for the rights of women was probably fairly radical for the very early 70’s, when this first came out.

Funny, though, because it seems that while this futuristic/farcical novel was written so long ago, and much has changed, much is still the same.  In so many countries around the world, women are still treated as Stepford wives.  In fact, right here in the good ol’ USA, our likely Republican nominee for president is married to one.  (Her hobbies are “pilates and reading magazines,” according to the New Yorker.)

As to the writing of the book, it is suspenseful and eerie, but I did feel like there was a gaping hole at the end, where there should have been more explanation about what happened to the women and how the transformation was accomplished.  I felt there was almost too much left to the imagination.

But if you haven’t read it, it’s a quick read that does get you thinking…  which is what books are supposed to do!

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

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It is fascinating how two books can be about a similar topic – suicide, actually – and be so very different in tone and quality.  This book, as compared with my last book (The Story of Ove), was quite the disappointment.  While the last one told the story with such tenderness and subtlety, this one was was harsh and heartless.  And even when the main character in the first was so gruff and quiet, he demonstrated such sweetness and caring for others that I felt I loved him nonetheless.  On the other hand, because this main character, Esther, was so disconnected and mean to anyone around her,  I felt as if I didn’t care at all what happened to her.

It may be that Esther’s experience of depression and suicidality was more realistic.  She describes feeling as if caught in a “bell jar” and not able to interact with the world in a normal way.  She does not seem to like anyone or really form any real bond with anyone.  Her relationship with even her own mother is threadbare and superficial.  She seems to feel no love.

Unfortunately, even if it is more realistic, it is not at all engaging for the reader.  Perhaps if I’d learned why she felt no love for her mother, I might have felt sympathy toward her.  Perhaps if there were some humor, some warmth, or some show of kindness in her at all, I might have liked her enough to care.  But she keeps the reader at arm’s length and does not let you in at all – and so the story falls quite flat.

I am hoping her poetry was better than her prose…

Only Time Will Tell by Jeffrey Archer

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Harry Clifton begins his life as the son of a poor widow, having to lick the bowl of his uncle’s oatmeal just to have a taste of breakfast.  Thought to be destined to work on the docks, as his uncle does, he avoids school as much as he can.  Fortunately, he discovers a mentor in Old Jack, who is thought to be crazy but who is actually very wise and kind.  It is Old Jack who actually instructs Harry and prepares him for the entrance exams to the prep school he ultimately becomes eligible for and this opens doors that Harry never knew could exist.  As Harry enters this world, he also eventually learns more about his own beginnings, including how his own father actually died and how complicated his beginnings actually were.

While this book was a fun read, it was not at all realistic.  Characters were too good or too bad.  They had connections that were beyond what might be coincidence.  And the plot twists and turns, while suspenseful and amusing, were not ones that were likely to ever have occurred.  I guess, though, that’s why they call it fiction?

The most frustrating part of this book, though, is the crazy, cliffhanger ending that is not an ending.  I hadn’t expected that I HAD to read the next book – and because of that, I’m not sure I will!  So beware -this is more of a commitment than you might think!

 

 

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

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Maisie Dobbs is a detective who is just beginning her own practice in post-WW I London. Her first case, a seemingly simple case of a jealous husband who is trying to figure out where his wife is going everyday while he’s at work, leads her to an investigation of much higher import.  As she becomes more and more entrenched in her investigation, she also comes to terms with her own very traumatic past, her having overcome a humble beginning and her very difficult personal experience of the war.

What begins as an entertaining, almost innocent, story broadens very gradually into a very stark commentary on war and its horrible effects on those who survive it.  With a subtle pen, Winspear writes a narrative of war that leaves the reader to draw the gorier details in the imagination.  What does come through with stark clarity, however, is that whether or not survivors of war return with outer scars, there are almost always inner scars that some can work through and some cannot.

This book is engaging, romantic, suspenseful and beautifully written – I very highly recommend it!

The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman

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Rachel is a headstrong, fiercely independent young, Jewish woman living with her family on the island of St. Thomas in the early 1800’s.  Unfortunately, when her father’s business falters, it appears that the only solution is to marry Rachel off to an older man (with 3 young children), so that the two businesses can merge and hopefully prosper.  Rachel is devastated, as this certainly will delay the realization of her dream, which is to one day sail off to live in Paris.  Her best friend, and housemaid, Jestine, tries to convince her to resist, but she too is powerless in resisting the cultural pressures of her time and status as a woman.  The two of them experience many heartbreaks and successes together as the saga of their lives moves forward.  The one success that Rachel achieves, although this is one that causes her great pain as well, is that she ultimately becomes the mother of Camille Pissarro, the painter.

The writing of the tale is as lyrical as Pissarro’s paintings themselves.  The author paints both St. Thomas and Paris with words, filling in the hues, the aromas, the sensations of each world. There is also a great amount of magic and fantasy, as Rachel’s faith mixes with that of the native culture of St. Thomas, and conjures up many fictional, imaginative stories that Rachel records for herself and for her children.  And although there are a few paragraphs in which the author sort of meanders onto sidetracks, it is a story that keeps one glued because the characters are ones you don’t ever want to leave.

I admire Alice Hoffman for telling the story from Pissarro’s mother’s perspective.  It is not just a fictionized biography, but it is truly a story of a strong woman in a time when women weren’t allowed to be strong.  She shows how difficult the times were and how women’s powerlessness was analogous to that of the slaves at the time.   Neither could own property, could determine who they would marry, or truly had control over decisions that were made for them by the men in their lives.   This further deepened the emotional strength of the story.

Oh, how I’d love to go back to the Musee D’Orsay now!