In Homer's Odyssey, there exists a country of Lotus Eaters. The inhabitants of this land live on the flowering lotus blossom, that tastes like honey and whose effects are so narcotic that all those ingesting the plant never want to leave and return home.
I can't think of a more perfect title for this intoxicating, powerful novel about a group of photographers in Vietnam. The lotus blossom in this case being the allure of war - the thrill of danger, the desire to make a difference, the urgency of love found there. It is an addiction that some will never break free.
Synopsis: The story starts off in total chaos, confusion, panic, gunfire - the fall of Saigon, 1975. Helen and Linh, two photographers for Time, are fighting to evacuate the city. Linh has been wounded and they must find medical help or he will die. Once Linh has been ushered to safety, Helen disappears back into the city. She must be the one to capture these historic events, no matter the risk. The narcotic is still in her blood.
Twelve years earlier, Helen arrived a naive young woman, determined to photograph a war that took her brother's life. Over the years, she transforms from a terrified, bumbling child to a hardened, celebrated war correspondent, earning awards and magazine covers for photos taken that could have cost her life. Her success has not been easy. Women were considered a burden by not only the troops she embedded, but other male photographers.
We come along for this nail-biting ride, where we experience the beauty of the Vietnam countryside, the senseless and violent death of the soldier that just shared his rations with you 10 minutes prior, the camaraderie and competition between the journalists, and the dichotomy of falling in love amongst the ruins of a war-torn country.
My thoughts: I thought I'd read it all when it came to this war. For the Vietnam reading challenge alone, I've witnessed the war from the ground, from the air, from the survivors who became foreigners in their own homeland. In fact, this book sat at my bedside for most of the year (I won it from Carrie), because I really didn't think it was going to show me anything new. I've been humbled. This book rendered me gobsmacked.
Without seeming crowded or forced, the story embraces the war in its totality. It isn't just about the brutality, the confusion of our mission, the addiction to adrenaline, the heat, the smells, the bugs, the drug culture, or the aftermath, individually. It's all in there, so expertly constructed that you truly feel that you are living it, hiding in bunkers, watching executions and eating canned peaches.
And speaking of expertly constructed, this may be Soli's debut novel, but she is one talented lady. Her prose is beautiful and rich, her characters complicated and fully-realized. You finish the book feeling full - satiated with words and images - and in awe of her skill.
The general focus of the novel, of course, is the role of the war journalist. If you've ever seen the movie "The Killing Fields", you just might experience moments of dejavu, in the best possible way. Is it immoral to chase after and record such tragedy?
The journalists were in a questionable fraternity while out in the field, squabbling and arguing among themselves, each sensing the unease of the situation. No getting around the ghoulishness of pouncing on tragedy with hungry eyes, snatching it away, glorying in its taking even among the most sympathetic. "I got an incredible shot of a dead soldier/woman/child. A real tearjerker." Afterward, film exposed, they sat on the returning plane with a kind of postcoital shame, turning away from one another.
Beneath that exterior, however, is a love story. One that, because of the daily brushes with death, becomes vital, spiritual and hungry. For those of you who roll their eyes at anything involving affairs of the heart, please know that I am among the ranks of the jaded and skeptical. This was an entirely different ball game; more raw and physiological, like breathing, than mushy and predictable.
So here in the homestretch of 2010, I've discovered one of the year's best. This one is not to be missed. I'd like to thank TLC Book Tours for the opportunity to be a part of spreading the word.
Giveaway: The publisher has kindly offered a copy of this book to one lucky winner (US and Canada only). Simply leave an expression of interest in your comment with your e-mail before December 27th.
5 out of 5 stars
Happy Sunday happy friends! How are we feeling these days? Personally, at this moment, the stress level is much lower than it has been the last few weeks. Since I talked to you last, I have survived what I think was the last round of manic Christmas cheer...one outside Christmas pageant (at freezing temps!) and three Christmas parties. The kids are out of school now, and I can focus on my family and our upcoming Christmas feasts! I always make a traditional Polish meal on Christmas Eve (pierogies and kielbasa baby!), and have got plans for a filet roast and a spiral ham for Christmas day. Mmmmm....I'm hungry.
Yesterday was an exciting day for me, as the Best & Worst issue of Entertainment Weekly arrived in my mailbox! This is a big highlight in my year. It was satisfying to see that a few of my favorite books were a few of their favorites too (The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, One Day and Room for example). I added a few more books to my "need list". Even more interesting, however, are their worst books of the year. The Fall of Giants by Ken Follett, Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert and Angelina by Andrew Morton? Won't be reading those books anytime soon, thanks.
Some exciting news on the book club front. I convinced the girls in the Books, Babes and Bordeaux group to read The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli, because I loved it so much (review coming tomorrow!). As it turns out, Ms. Soli is going to call into our book club meeting in January to discuss the book with us. How totally cool is that?
I experienced a strange amount of productivity this week with my books. Go figure. I finished The Island by Elin Hilderbrand on audio (eh) and started Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo (a murder mystery set in Amish country, author recommended by Caite). I'm pretty close to knocking that one out...a nice long walk would do it. Then, I'm back to Assassination Vacation, which I had intended to listen to before my iPod went crazy. Yee haw!
In my print world, I finished up Lucky by Alice Sebold then headed for some graphic novel fun. If you are in a reading funk, graphic novels are a great way to get you out of it. Quick reads, visually and intellectually stimulating, and you are back on track. I read all three installments of the Color Trilogy, written by Kim Dong Hwa, a Korean author...The Color of Earth, The Color of Water, and The Color of Heaven. Wonderful stuff. Then I read American Widow, a GN about a woman who lost her husband in 9/11. I also read a short story called The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, that was recommended by the lovely Nymeth. Extremely creepy, deliciously fun with an unreliable narrator! Now I am reading Drew Brees' autobiography called Coming Back Stronger, and it is almost impossible to put down. God love than man. I got a signed copy of his book when I was in Indiana last summer, and I want to donate it to our Adult Literacy League auction this spring, but I had to read it first!
I wish you all a wonderful holiday with your families. Will any of you be taking part in the Day-After-Christmas chaos? My mom and I usually do. You just can't pass up half price wrapping paper and lights and bows and stuff. Hope Santa brings you everything you dreamed of (books, iPads, e-readers?). Merry Christmas!
Over the past year or so, I've been acquainting myself with the gentle, lyrical beauty of Beth Kephart's YA books. All the while, however, my blogging friends have been nudging me to read this novel, Nothing But Ghosts, claiming it to be their favorite. On a recent library free-for-all, I threw caution to the wind and impulsively grabbed it, mile-high TBR or not.
Synopsis: Sixteen year-old Katie has been aware of the presence of her mother's ghost ever since her tragic death six months ago. She recognizes her in a familiar scent, in the flowers in the garden, in a bird pecking at her window. But rambling around in her big old house with her father over the summer was not going to help her through the grieving process, so Katie gets a gardening job at a stately mansion in town. With the help of two handsome brothers and a beautiful and hip librarian, she becomes absorbed in solving the mystery of the mansion's owner who hasn't been seen in decades. In the process, she also finds love and a develops a closer relationship with her father.
My thoughts: I do believe my blogging friends were right. Even though I have thoroughly enjoyed my past Beth Kephart reads, this one was perfect. The characters are rich and colorful, from Katie's aching heart, to the librarian with secrets of her own, to the hyper little neighbor boy who just wants a friend. There is so much emotion roiling under the surface. So much growing up going on. And there is a mystery, one that helps Katie face a motherless life. All in a book that took a couple of hours to read.
Beth Kephart has such a magical touch with young women. She captures innocence perched at the edge of adulthood; there is a mature edge that can only come from a trauma experienced at a precarious age. But her work is never overdone...no melodrama, no rude language, just subtle emotion that your mind will touch back on again and again, and a story that you can hand over to your tween or teenage daughter with confidence.
Mission: Read more Beth Kephart.
4.5 out of 5 stars
Visiting Paris has been on my bucket list forever. Something about all that wonderful wine, pate and cheese just pushes my buttons. So take that fact, and add to it my new found love for graphic novels, throw in what seemed like two billion rave reviews for this book, and we have ourselves a must-read.
Synopsis: To celebrate Lucy's 22nd birthday and her mother's 50th, they rent a flat in Paris for nearly five weeks, and work their way through the city's museums, food and culture. Lucy, an aspiring artist, documents the experience through this visual travel journal, and makes friends with her mother and herself along the way.
My thoughts: Some graphic novels blow you away with jarring visuals or literary prose. This is not one of them. This novel is just simply charming. You are provided a glimpse of the curiosities of Paris through the eyes of a young woman, which is decidedly different (not necessarily in a bad way) from the perspective of someone who has been around the block. It is naive, sweet and a little shallow. It is the perspective of someone who misses her boyfriend back home, who is stressed about find a job and building a career, who slips into a malaise when her feet don't fit French shoes, and who is obsessive about art and French milk.
As a travel journal, it is not all-encompassing, but provides a fun overview of some landmarks and museums. And of course, there is the food!
Lucy also included a few photos that she took in Paris as well. Not all the pictures were value-added, but I enjoyed the ones of her and her mother. Hanging over the edge of the Eiffel Tower to take a good picture or kissing Oscar Wilde's grave just would not be the same if illustrated.
So if you are looking for a quick stroll through the streets of Paris with an engaging but slightly self-absorbed young artist, look no further. It is a nice, two or three hour escape!
3 out of 5 stars
Happiness is a snuggle buddy. For more Wordless Wednesdays, click here.
Cane River was the December selection for Books, Babes and Bordeaux. One of our members really had her heart set on reading it (and it was an Oprah pick awhile back), but I had no idea what it was about. After some checking around, I was intrigued with the book solely based on the author's bio. Lalita Tademy progressed through her life as an extremely bright, gifted student and ultimately graduated from UCLA with an MBA. She worked her way through Silicon Valley, and came out at the top by securing a job as a VP for Sun Microsystems. Talk about shattering the glass ceiling! She left it all behind, however, in 1995 to pursue her need for information about her family history. The outcome was this book, which is based on her geneology, with a bit of poetic license to bring the characters to life. Isn't that compelling?
Synopsis: Starting in the early 1800's and ending with the early 1900's, Tademy takes us through four generations of women living in the Cane River area in Louisiana (ending with Tademy's great great-grandmother Emily). Epic in scope, we are companions to these women as they work as slaves to their French Creole masters, bearing their children and thus "bleaching" the bloodlines and skin color. The women lose husbands and children to illnesses, are sold off and separated to make ends meet, but they still remain steadfast in their commitment to family and to stay close, often walking for miles to attend Sunday dinner together. With each new generation, the women begin to work the system, gaining land from their wealthy masters in order to provide for their offspring.
Their journey is to take a stroll through the history books. Slavery, epidemics of yellow fever and cholera, the Civil War, the end of slavery, and the struggle for equality. Not only does it give the reader an excellent perspective of American history during this period - one that is not always told - but is obviously a labor of love for the author.
My thoughts: It is not hard to see why Oprah supported this book. It has all the ingredients she looks for...an epic tale, a history lesson of blacks in America, and some really strong women. It isn't like this was all new to me - after all, I did read Roots! But a few things popped out at me and stuck in my craw.
I found it horrifying that consistently and repeatedly the white masters would fix their gaze upon a young slave girl (often under the age of 14) and force himself upon her. She never had a chance! She would have umpteen of his kids until he tired of her and moved on to someone new. It gave me pleasure to see Tademy's ancestors get some land and money for their efforts.
I also never considered the predicament of the light-skinned African-American. Not only were they banished from the white community, but from the black community as well. Two of Tademy's great great-grandmother Emily's daughters never married because they were acceptable to neither black or white suitors.
Tademy's character development of her ancestors was superb. These ladies
ranged from being sun-weathered and meek, to ballsy and strong-willed, to cultured and sharp. The author brought these women to life.
All this being said, while I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it didn't blow my mind. I can't really put my finger on what was missing. Perhaps the scope was too broad to be encapsulated into 12 discs? Was it the writing? Whatever it is, it is subtle. And I would still recommend this book as a worthwhile read.
A few words about the audio production: I'd never heard of the narrator, Robin Miles, but she is a master at accents. She tackled French, French Creole, Southern, and a few others with ease and flourish. It appears she has quite the resume, and I will make sure I look out for her in the future.
There is a sizable cast of characters in this book, and I thought it only fair to mention that in the audio format, it can be initially confusing to sort them all out. Because the characters are distinctive, you can figure it out pretty quickly, so if you decide to listen to the audio version of this book, a little patience will pay off.
Thoughts from Books, Babes and Bordeaux: We didn't have a strong turnout for this meeting...only four of us, and one did not read the book. (FYI, the non-reader had been rendered disgusted with all things literature after finishing Franzen's Freedom and hating it). Two of the four of us liked the book, and felt frustration with the plight of these amazing women, but didn't love the book. The fourth has read the book three times in the last month, and thought it was the best thing she'd read in a long time. After discussing the strength of the female characters, and their disadvantage against the predatory white men in their life, we really ran out of things to talk about. Perhaps this was the subtle ingredient missing from the novel.
4 out of 5 stars
Good morning friends! I come to you from a unseasonably cold Florida, and it doesn't seem to be thinking about leaving any time soon. Although I'd like to complain, it is better than going into the holidays with 80 degree weather. I'll bundle up and like it!
This past week was beyond insane with busyness. Two book clubs, one to discuss "The Book Thief" and the other to discuss "Cane River". I snuck in a few mornings of walking and almost froze my nose off. I had my first meeting with the Adult Literacy League, planning for our big fund-raising event next spring. A thrilling meeting with my son's teachers to discuss how he can live up to his potential (!?). Our Barnes & Noble book fair, which KICKED ALL KINDS OF BUTT. Thanks to anyone who supported our effort! Visiting a friend in the hospital, and a nice variety of errands.
In the middle of all the running around like a nut, my iPod pooped out on me. I got a mysterious message when syncing (to pull in Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation!!) and everything on my iPod disappeared. Major freak out, day was ruined. I did finally get it back in working order, but in the meantime I had to borrow my mom's Walkman (yes they actually still do exist) to listen to the one audiobook I had on hand - "The Island" by Elin Hildenbrand.
Before the crisis, I did manage to finish the audio of "Ape House" by Sara Gruen, and I was really disappointed. I really don't know what she was thinking with that plot, but I just had to shake my head. If it hadn't been a book club read, I would have DNF'd it. I've also been working on Alice Sebold's "Lucky" in print to finish off a reading challenge. This is a biography of the author, and now I better understand how she could have written The Lovely Bones. That poor woman.
I am attempting to write my "Best Of" lists, to be published that last week of December. I am struggling to crank out all those posts, plus try to catch up on my reviews. And I'm also failing to keep up with all of the blogs. I really am sorry. I am trying but this time of year is getting the best of me. I've not abandoned you, I've just checked out for a little while, all alone in my little happy place!
So on Friday, in the mail, surprise surprise! I got a package from my secret santa in the Book Blogger Swap! I put it under the tree, but on Saturday morning I decided I couldn't wait and opened it. Here is what I received:
Half Broke Horses by Jeanette Walls, Matched by Ally Condie, and a bag of Ghiradelli chocolate! Yay! All received from Michelle of See Michelle Read! I'd never visited Michelle's blog, but now I have. It is exciting to find a new friend. Thank you Michelle!
So more busyness next week. Doctor's appointments, hair appointments, Christmas pageant, Christmas party for my golfing group, BUT the last week of school for the kids before a two week vacation. Then maybe perhaps I can get my act together. Ha!
I hope you all have a relaxing cozy Sunday. What are you all up to? I am hoping to wrap up the rest of my Xmas shopping, and maybe sneak in a little time for reading!
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