NEWS OF THE WORLD by Paulette Jiles

NEWS OF THE WORLD  by Paulette Jiles

This is a wise book. The story of an old man who has lost all his worldly possessions in the Civil War and now reads the newspapers to folks who cannot read or have no access to papers and the 10-year-old returning Kiowa captive girl who has now lost two families in heart wrenching circumstances is also a tale of love, hope and the unbreakable human spirit. Told in spare prose, the story is itself spare, and that moves the reader more than more florid words could.

Doris, one of the supporting characters says of Johanna and other returned captives, “our first creation is a turning of the soul…toward the light. To go through another, tears all the making of the first… to bits…they are forever falling.” (pg.56) Good and evil live in this book. Good wins and we are gladdened.

A lovely book that I can highly recommend.

5 of 5 stars

CAUGHT IN THE REVOLUTION by Helen Rappaport

CAUGHT IN THE REVOLUTION   by Helen Rappaport

The lives of the diplomats , journalists, ordinary citizens and foreign expats who lived through 1917 in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg), Russia as it fell from Tsarist rule to peasant’s revolt to anarchy to Leninism is told in exacting detail by Rappaport. Her clear and compelling writing makes this journey into disaster and terror real and immediate.  She is able to carry the reader into the unease that slowly begins to develop into the “practically bloodless” and often times polite early revolution and that then descends into chaos and horror as beatings, death, starvation and cold blooded murder escalate.

As well written as it is researched, the book is surprisingly easy to read. The many (nearly 100) pages of notes will fascinate those of a more scholarly bent. I just enjoyed the clear writing and minute by minute detail.  This isn’t a book for everyone, but anyone with an interest in Russia or revolution or world history will appreciate this book.

4 of 5 stars

Les Parisiennes by Anne Sebba

LES PARISIENNES  by Anne Sebba

This is a very, very dense scholarly book concerning the women of Paris during WWII.  I ended up reading it as a collection of brief episodes as it was difficult to follow any one person’s activities because of the chronological order of events and the various names used by the women during the course of the war. The “Cast list” was almost useless as women were listed under their family name, or their husband’s name, or their resistance name, etc, but not all of them.

There are many French language phrases and words used throughout the book without translation.

You really need a very good working history of France and WWII to understand the enormity of places and events mentioned in passing, ie, the Hiv d’Vel roundup, Ravensbruck medical experiments, the Comet Line and others.

I would not recommend this book to my book group although I did appreciate the work that went into the writing of the book.

3 of 5 stars

 THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD  by Colson Whitehead

My big problem with this book is: it doesn’t know what it is.  Is it historical fiction? Yes, and no. Is it science fiction? Yes, and no. Is it alternative universe/history? Yes, and no.  I had the uncomfortable feeling all while reading it that I was being played by the author. And that is not a comfortable -- or desirable -- feeling.

THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD tells the story of Cora, a plantation slave, and her desire for freedom.  In this book, the underground railroad is just that – underground.  Many interlocking tunnels with a variety of engines and baggage/passenger cars traverse this railroad. Apparently no one hears or notices these steam engines or the building of the tunnels.  The slavery portion of the story is purely antebellum south and rings true. The rest of the story – not so much. 

The first half of the book found me wondering why I kept reading. The last half, I just wanted to know how Cora fared in this awkward world. I can’t recommend this book.

2 of 5 stars

THE BITTER SIDE OF SWEET by Tara Sullivan

The Bitter Side of Sweet    by Tara Sullivan

This middle school novel tells the story of three children caught in the cacao industry in the Ivory Coast.  Although hard to read because of the brutal treatment of the children, the book tells a worthwhile story. The three children of the story are two boys mislead to believe they would be working only for a season for wages. Instead they were neither paid nor allowed to leave.  They worked under very harsh primitive conditions. The third child was a girl kidnapped and forced to work the cacao fields because  her mother, a journalist, was exposing the slave-like conditions of the workers.  The story of the children’s eventual escape is both heartbreaking and thrilling.

The afterword offers a way to affect the harvesting of the cacao pods and the mistreatment of the children.

Not recommended for tender hearted , younger children.

5 of 5 stars

The Last Days of Night by Graham Moore

THE LAST DAYS OF NIGHT  by Graham Moore

I love this book. I know NOTHING about electricity….but I understand this book. And I am laughing. That is the essence of a great writer: to help me understand difficult concepts and to entertain me while my brain is engaged. This book has it all:  humor in large part, terror at times, mystery, legal shenanigans, hate, love, ethics (or a lack thereof), subterfuge, science that is understandable  and intrigue. Oh yes, and great writing.

The writing is clear, but still offers illumination to the characters that inhabit the book. Those characters are drawn with great detail and great sympathy both for the character and for truth. Although the novel  takes liberties with the time lines, the places of events and even the presence of the various players, nothing is lost either to enjoyment of the book or the science and inventions depicted. The one remaining mystery is Agnes and she shall remain a mystery until you have finished the book and read the after notes

.

I thought the quotes that start each chapter added to the depth of engagement for the modern reader – a great addition to the book. This will be a good for book groups to discuss.  One question to ponder – How much of a villain was Paul, or was he a villain at all?

5 of 5 stars

THE GIRLS by Emma Cline

THE GIRLS  by Emma Cline

What a sad and depressing book! Inspired by the girls who followed Charles Manson and committed vile crimes for him, this book follows a depressed and lonely girl as she falls under the spell of one of the followers of a cult leader in the 1960’s. Although some of the book is written from the perspective of an older Evie, most of it written as present day in the 60’s.  Evie as a teen is depressed and depressing. Evie as a middle aged failure is even more depressing.  Skip this one! Well written but who needs it.

2 of 5 stars