The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera

Posted on by marjorieseidenfeld

 

unbearable lightness

This is the whimsical, weird, and sometimes wieldy love story of Tomas and Tereza, set mostly in Prague during the Russian invasion.  They meet while Tomas is visiting the small town where Tereza is working at a small inn, when she serves him his dinner.  After a bit of flirting, and circumstances that Tereza interprets as prescient, Tereza appears with her large suitcase at Tomas’s door and so they begin their lives together.

What is sometimes the charm of this story and sometimes the bane of the story is the perpetual tangent.  Most authors will backtrack to fill in context and background about the characters, and we see that here as well.  Occasionally, Kundera manages to create a lyrical lightness when he does this in this story.  Alternatively, while many authors will thread in an occasional plot line that seems disconnected but then ties in later unexpectedly, this book is plagued with so many tangents that do not tie in anywhere.  I feel as though this makes the book unnecessarily harder to read.

I will say that each of the characters is unique and colorfully drawn.  In choosing a third person narrator, Kundera provides almost a side door entrance into the minds of each of the characters and lets us know what each is thinking in his own, idiosyncratic way.  One fascinating character is Sabina, who is Tomas’s mistress.  She is an artist, very independent, and has her own lovers.  Through her, Kundera waxes very philosophical on what is light and what is heavy in life.   Through her we also see some of the consequences of the Communist regime changes, and she is the one character who manages to be free in her life choices and be free of the Communists ultimately.

I think this is another of those books I would have liked to read in an English class, during which I might’ve digested more of the symbolism with others who were smarter than I and who were more familiar with the historical context than I.  I might’ve benefitted from that and appreciated the book more.  As it was, I did enjoy some of the writing, the creativity, and philosophical musings of the author, even while I found it occasionally onerous and hard to get through.

 

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

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the sympathizer

This is yet another one of those extraordinarily-well-written, even Pulitzer-Prize-winning books that I did not enjoy reading at all.  The writing is clever, with wit and imagery and drama; but sadly, the main character, who narrates the story, is remarkably unlikeable.  He gleans a bit of sympathy as he begins his story about his violent exodus from Vietnam to the U.S. at the end of the war, and as he recounts stories from his youth, having been bullied because of his being of mixed race.  But, at least for me, that is where my sympathy for him ends.  As he continues to recount his prior experience in the U.S. as a student there and as he continues to track his workings as a double agent for North Vietnam during his experience in California in the 1970’s, it feels at least to me, like a story with a great deal of pain with little to be gained for it – for both the main character and the reader.

I was hoping to learn a little more about the backstory of Vietnam – and there was some of that here.  There was some sympathy for the idealism of the Communist North Vietnamese and the disillusionment of the South Vietnamese who felt used and then abandoned by the US.  The most powerful part of the story, for me, was when the protagonist is hired to be a guide to a director about a movie about the Vietnam war.  He is miserable, because he is unable to convince the director to give more than minimal, stereotypical, awful roles to the Vietnamese actors in the movie, when he was hoping to bring some real humanity to their roles.  This theme is recurrent throughout the story – that is, prejudice against Asians – and our main character is treated with even more disdain than most, because he is not even pure bred Asian.

Again, the writing in the book is absolutely impressive and I can understand the Pulitzer Prize.  But what is missing here is heart, and that is what I look for in a book as well.  Academically fancy without empathy does not carry me with you!

 

Journey to Munich by Jacqueline Winspear

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journey to munich

In this installment of the adventures of Maisey Dobbs, psychologist and detective, we find Maisey back in London in 1938, still reeling from the loss of her husband but trying to get back into her life.  Feeling like she needs to do something to help someone else – and possibly that she has nothing to lose – she accepts an assignment to go undercover as the daughter of a British businessman held prisoner by the Germans and now being released to her only.  To complicate her mission, she is also asked to bring back from Germany the one young woman Maisie holds most responsible for her husband’s death.  How will she accomplish both of these feats, especially under the careful watch of the Nazi government?

This book series is part detective novel/part historical fiction, with lots of human sensibility to warm up the mix.  Especially in this book, the kindness and forgiveness that Maisie shows, whether toward the man she is asked to bring home or toward the young woman who she is asked to find, shines so particularly bright compared to the darkness of the Nazi regime.  It is interesting that the timing of the story is actually just prior to the German invasion of Austria – really at the beginning of everything – but still she describes the feeling of foreboding, the pall of darkness that pervades the otherwise lively city.  The hope that Maisie clings to is in stark contrast to the evil that is lurking, that has been set into motion.

This is really not a “Holocaust” book per se, and while it is set in the time and place of the Holocaust it does not take the same emotional toll as those books do.  So if you’re planning your reading based on this, don’t worry that you’ll be taken through the same emotional rigors of that.  There is suspense and sadness, but not to the same extent as you would with other books from this period.

I do recommend this book heartily!  Happy reading!

 

 

THE WHITE QUEEN BY PHILIPPA GREGORY

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white queen

Elizabeth, a stunning beauty, attracts the eye of the rising King Edward and sparks both romance and controversy.  For while Edward wages war for his kingdom, Elizabeth mounts her battles at home in order to keep her family together and financially stable.  Allegiances seem to collide like balls on a pool table as brothers turn on each other and cousins desert their family ties.  As distrust and jealousies rise, so does the danger, but Elizabeth perseveres and when pushed too far, she utilizes the magical powers that her ancestors have passed on to her in order to save who she can save and avenge those who she cannot.

I have loved many of Gregory’s books – they are historical fiction books about the kingdom of England and have taught me much about how hard-won each kingdom has been.  This book I found both beautiful and confusing; beautiful in the characters, who valued love and honor and loyalty to family, but confusing in that everyone had the same name!  So many Henry’s and Georges and Edwards that it was hard to keep track of who was who.  This of course not the fault of the author, but the fault of the royalty that the author was depicting – but confusing nonetheless.

It is still striking to me how unique democracy is and how we are fortunate to have routinely peaceful transition of power.  There is not a bloody war every time a new ruler comes to power.  And although I am horrified and mortified by our current administration – and I do doubt that our last election was won by honest means and not because of covert dealings and technological hacking by foreign powers – we do have to respect the power of the vote by the people of our country.

If you are a fan of Philippa Gregory – this book is for you!

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

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rules-of-civility

Little did Katey know that when she and her best friend, Evey, went out to ring in the new year of 1938 that she’d  be ringing in a new relationship that would introduce her to the moneyed Upper East Side social scene of New York City.  Meeting people with names like Tinker and Bitsy, Katey gets drawn into this scene, even as she continues to work her own way up the business ladder, using her wiles and wit.  But while Katey does hold onto her scruples – or her own rules of civility , if you will – she does become tangled in a web of love triangles that both highlight and transcend social class status.

There is so much to be said about this book.  Most importantly, the writing just downright beautiful.  This prose by Towles often verges on the poetic.  The phrasing and the images that are drawn with words are so vivid that I was forced to read some passages multiple times, just to really appreciate them fully.  The author has a true gift that he is generously sharing with us here.

The characters are also so gracefully drawn.  From their subtle tics to their happy or hapless (depending on the character) wit, you cannot help feeling compassion for each and every one of them.  And each and every one of them is neither all good or all bad – much like the real world.  And Katey is the kind, vulnerable, and yet steady heroine we all aspire to being.

What I appreciate most about this book is the underlying current of friction between money and honor.   As Katey mixes more with those of the upper class, she sees some who feel they should earn the money they have and others who feel they just deserve it.  And in this era of Trump and the Republican Party’s shameful and frightening abuse of both money and power, the statement of honor and kindness triumphing over greed in this story is particularly poignant.

A lyrical and delightful book – highly recommend!

 

The Baker’s Daughter by Sarah McCoy

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bakers-daugher

This is the tender story of 2 women – Reba, a journalist living in El Paso, assigned to interview a German baker for a Christmas story, and Elsie, the baker during her youth in Germany in 1944.  As Reba is battling her ghosts, trying to sort out her own difficult childhood with an alcoholic father, we learn also of Elsie’s trauma of coming of age in Hitler’s failing war and the bravery she demonstrates silently at that time.  As the two characters get to know each other, they develop a friendship that goes beyond friendship and Elsie and and her daughter Jane become Reba’s second family.

I like the unfolding of the story, as it ping pongs back and forth between the two time periods.  This technique is not uncommon, but it never fails to elevate the suspense.  The tension in the story reaches a crescendo, and then – bam! – switch to the other time period.  A sure-fire way to keep the reader turning those pages.

And as many World War II stories as I’ve read – and there have been many, even just in this blog alone! – I still learn new things.  The new and ugly detail that I had not learned of before was about the Lebensborn Program.  This program was Himmler’s attempt at genetic programming.  There were houses set up in Germany to essentially breed the idealized, blond-haired, blue-eyed Aryans.  Women were kept in these houses for chosen men – married or not – to come and “mate” with them.  The attraction was that the children were given privileges others didn’t have – food, education, other benefits.  However, when babies were born to these women with undesirable characteristics, these babies were done away with, in whatever fashion was easiest.  Evidently, there were other programs tied to this, where children (often Polish) were kidnapped to be dedicated and trained to serve the Third Reich, if they had these characteristics as well.

Evidently, when you think you’ve learned about all the cruelty that could exist, there is still more to discover.

I would not count this book among the “MUST READ’S,” however.  I think that the writing in some spots is excellent and in some spots is quite ordinary.  Somehow, the parts that describe Elsie are tender, rich, and colorful – as Elsie’s character is.  The parts that describe Reba, though, feel flat.  It may be that we don’t have as deep a window into her character as we do to Elsie’s.

I do recommend this, though, as it is still an interesting read, with suspense and feeling and important historical context.

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly

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lilac-book-jacket

Wow.  I just finished this book and I’m still breathless…

Caroline is a young debutante who has given up her acting career to volunteer to help French families who have just come to resettle in NYC in the late 1930’s. Herta is an ambitious physician, one of the few women doctors, in fact, in Germany in 1939.  And Kasia is a teenager who, in 1939 decides she will join her crush, Pietrik, and deliver packages for the Polish underground, after the invasion of the Germans.  As you might expect, these very different women’s lives eventually intersect as the tragedies of the second World War drive them together.

What is most staggering is that this story is based on the lives of real people and real events.  Both Caroline and Herta were real women, individuals who exemplified the best and the worst that women could be.  And Ravensbruck, the Nazi concentration camp for women, was frighteningly real as well.  What fills in the connections between the two women is historical fiction based on years of research by the author to create a story that also illustrates the best and the worst that people can be.

The writing is excellent.  The way the plot is drawn, circling among the 3 major characters, is great not only in terms of fortifying the opposing narratives, but also in building up and then releasing tension as well.  When parts become almost too painful to read, the story switches back to a lighter mood to give the reader a much deserved break.  (What I always feel guilty about is that what I find too hard to read about – millions of people – literally, millions! – actually lived.)

What was most horrifying – and I hate to bring this up, but I feel compelled – is that sentences in this book that described Hitler were frighteningly identical to those describing our new president of the United Staes.  The ego, the destruction of anyone who disagreed with him, and the paranoia with which he reigned – it was all too familiar.  That is terrifying. But all the more reason to read books like this one:  ones that remind us how far people can really go.  It reminds us not to be complacent, because people in Germany thought that it could never happen there either.

This is a MUST READ, by any measure!

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

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gentleman-in-moscow

We meet Count Alexander Rustov in June of 1922, as he is pronounced guilty of having written a poem that was felt to incite potential action against the Kremlin.  He is sentenced to house arrest, but as it happens, his “house” is the Metropol Hotel, one of Moscow’s finest international hotels.  As he is resettled into a much smaller room than the one to which he’s grown accustomed, he adjusts his life and his expectations to the confines of his restricted quarters.  When he very soon meets a young girl of 9 years named Nina, his life changes dramatically and he learns that life can lead you in very unexpected directions even when you cannot leave the very confines of your home.

The writing in this book is absolutely gorgeous.  While the story is related with the lofty verbiage to which a count of Rustov’s caliber and sophistication is accustomed, Amor Towles blends wit and warmth  with such mastery that the result has the reader smiling throughout the many pages of this book.  Here is an example of the imagery that is used so brilliantly:

“Like the wheeling of the stars…  That is how time passes when one is left waiting unaccountably.  The minutes relentless.  And the seconds?  Why, not only does every last one of them demand its moment in the stage, it insists upon making a soliloquy full of weighty pauses and artful hesitations and then leaps into an encore at the slightest hint of applause.” (P 353)

In addition, each of the characters adds much color to the palate of this book.  As Alexander insinuates himself into the inner workings of the hotel, he befriends staff and guests alike, and the reader has the pleasure of their company as well.  The setting inside the hotel also gives the reader an appreciation of the interplay between Russian international relations and the insular attitude of communism.

I don’t often categorize books as “Must Reads” because I feel this should be kept exclusive, but I’m doing it here.  A Gentleman in Moscow is absolutely a “MUST READ!”

A Certain Age by Beatriz Williams

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OK, I’ll admit I’m a little obsessed with the writing of Beatriz Williams at the moment.  But it’s justified!  In this novel, she has managed, once again, to create characters that I’d love to go out and have a drink with.

This story, which takes place in New York just as the world is reeling from the effects of the first World War, weaves together the lives of Sophie, a reclusive innocent who secretly tinkers with “machines”, Octavian, a WWI air force veteran/hero, and Theresa, a middle aged NYC socialite.  As their lives become entangled, we gradually learn why Sophie’s life has been so sheltered by her father and how complications of love can bring out both evil and good.

Williams’ use of different voices enables her to truly uncover the personalities of her colorful and complex characters.  We hear from Theresa in first person – and her aggressive but coy and sardonic humor shines through.  On the other hand, we learn about Sophie in third person, but this is fitting as she actually knows little about herself, having been sheltered by her father and trying to break out.  And with each change of perspective comes a different tint in language and feeling.

What is also amusing is that all of Williams’ books either centrally or peripherally involve the Schuyler family of Manhattan, her fabricated, very large and very intriguing  family of characters.  In this book we get to know Julie Schuyler, who is rich and confident and worldly, but also admittedly dependent on her family for her fun – a woman typical of her wealthy 1920’s era.  She is a side character here, but serves as the vehicle that brings Sophie into the limelight of the story.

I can’t wait to read my next Beatriz Williams book!

Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams

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Another absolute winner by this gifted writer!

Pepper Schuyler certainly has her reasons for selling the 1936 Special Roadster Mercedes Benz she’s been working on restoring, but she can’t imagine why the mysterious Annabelle Dommerich was so intent on buying it, and for such a small fortune.  To learn why, the author takes us back and forth between the relative “present” (1966) and the past (1935-) in the telling of the story.  We learn that Annabelle has had to navigate a passionate love for a Jewish German man at the start of the Nazi uprising.  Her complicated history has lead her inextricably back to this car and to Pepper, with whom she will share more in common than Pepper would have ever predicted.

 

Beatriz Williams has a way of creating characters whom you just want to invite over for a drink and conversation.  Her female characters are smart and sharp-witted and yet hopeful and strong.  In addition, she crafts her plots with twists and turns and actually keeps the suspense maintained throughout the pages.  This is a book that you can’t stop but yet don’t want to finish reading, because you just want to stay in the world of these real-life, endearing characters.

Highly recommend this and can’t wait to read other books by her!  (This is my 3rd by her,  I believe.)