December 08 Reads

Come Ashore and We Will Kill You and Eat You All/Christine Thompson
The History of Love/Nicole Krauss
Chosen by a Horse/Susan Richards
Loving Frank/Nancy Horan


(Click on book title for online review)

Recent Reads

Click on title for online review.

The Banker to the Poor/Muhammad Yunus
The Reluctant Fundamentalist/Mohsin Hamad
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down/Anne Fadiman
The Reluctant Mr. Darwin/ David Quammen
Exiles/Ron Hansen
Crossing to Safety/ Wallace Stegner
The Snake Charmer/Jamie James
Ladies of Liberty/Cokie Roberts
Life Class/Pat Barker
Touching History/Lynn Spencer
Song Yet Sung/McBride
Bridge of Sighs/Russo
The Other/David Guterson
Bonk/Mary Roach
The Book Thief/ M. Zusak
Things Left Unfinished on the Last Day of Creation/Santos
The Double Bind/Chris Bohjalian
Chosen Forever/Susan Richards

Another Holocaust Story, but Different

Oh, man! I hate to put this library book down and here I am writing about it before I have even finished it. It is by Diane Ackerman and called "The Zookeeper's Wife", a war story. It takes place at the Warsaw Zoo during the Nazi occupation. Ackerman doesn't just tell a tale, she embelishes each event, each person, each place, with descriptive information that brings home all the ramifications of the unfolding drama. It is more than a story, it is a discussion of what it means to be alive for every living thing, including the earth. I like the way she weaves the science of many topics into the fabric of the story. There are some elements that make me want to revisit what I had previously known about some scientists, like Konrad Lorenz. I will read more of her writing and I will have to purchase my own copy of this book ... then I can lend it to you, but only if you remember to return it, have a cup of coffee, or glass of wine, and talk about it with me.

http://www.dianeackerman.com/work1.htm - the author's site

A critical review -http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/13/AR2007091301895.html

A Good Summer Read from the Past

My husband borrowed a new paperback from Katie this summer. While reading he kept telling me I would really like it. We read a lot of the same books and like a lot of the same books and like most of the same things that make a good read - style, descriptive language, history, setting. After he had finished the book, it disappeared. We were traveling and the book must have parted ways with us along the road. Luckily, he was able to remember the title and found an original publication at the Bridgton Public Library. We had guests this week and beautiful weather at the beach, but I had to read it late at night and up early in the the morning. He was right - I did really like it. It had great character development, interesting and thought provoking insights into marital relationships and the mysterious magic of friendships and a setting I could relate to. The book "Crossing to Safety" by Wallace Stegner was published in 1987. It is the story of two couples who meet early in their marriages on a college campus in Michigan and summer together in Vermont. Their backgrounds are individually very different, but there is a chemistry that draws them all together and they become in many ways a "chosen family". It is written from the point of view of one of the men, a writer who is fascinated by the development of the friendships and the individuals involved. Here is how he describes the other man at a critical time.

He was a man in a briar patch. So long as he kept still he was comfortable, but every time he moved he found thorns. Or put it the other way around. Busy, he could forget where he was. The minute he paused, he was reminded.

You will find lots to think about while following the lives of these four freinds that you will recognize about your own relationships. I found it so.

Time to Read Again

The days have gotten longer and the weather nicer, so time to read has gotten shorter. Here are a few of my recent reads that competed with the spring flowers and bird activity for my attention.

Here are my top two -
Elephanta Suite/ Paul Theroux
Just 3 chapters in this book each telling the story of a different person or persons who at some point in time stayed in the titled suite in Mumbai. Intriguing stories of each situation contrast our American life with modern Indian life. If you read it, please share your insights and comments. This would be a great book club selection.

Dog Man/Martha Sherrill
Nonfiction account of Morie who rescued the Akita breed in postwar Japan. Here's an example of what I loved about this book: : "No Name was a small fork in a trail that became a path, then a road, then a highway that took Morie to a place he never returned from." (No Name is a dog)

Others you should try- (Click on title for online review)

The Friday Night Knitting Club/Kate Jacobs
Lost in the Forest/Sue Miller
Take Big Bites/Linda Ellerbee
3000 Degrees/Sean Ferguson
Leap of Faith/Queen Noor
The Emperor of Scent /Chandler Burr
The Blue Bear/Lynn Schooler
A Dangerous Beauty/Mark C Ross

In Case You Wondered...

The following post, Tumbling Tumbleweeds, is an experiment. During the month of March several individuals were invited to contribute (anonymously if preferred) to a serial short story. I provided the initial paragraph and succeeding lines and paragraphs and plot lines and twists and turns were added as they arrived from the "co-writers". The various colors in the post reflect contributions by different authors. I think I may have created a monster as the cast and ideas have increased exponentially. Jump in, too, if you are inclined to take or twist an idea in a new (or old) direction. Just click on the comments at the end of the story and make history or herstory.

Tumbling Tumbleweeds (The Evolution of a Short Story)

The morning dishes dropped slowly into the steaming soapy dishwater. Looking up Chris noticed the last rays of sunrise gleam across the peaks of the distant mountains. The urge to switch on the morning talk shows and sink into the recliner was crowded out by a short mental list of daily chores. In Chris' chambray shirt pocket the repeated vibrations of the cellphone insisted on a response to the 5 voice mails and 1 text message. Chris was really contemplating remaining at the old family retreat for several more days before revealing where or why ... he had come here after so long an absence. He had never been this unpredictable before, and he knew the family would be wondering what could have caused such a change in his behaviour. It had been the letter, of course, after all these years of wondering what happened to her so many years ago on Memoli Island... But first, he must respond to the second caller, his daughter Caysea. She'd been having a difficult time lately. Chris couldn't help wondering how his beautiful child who overflowed with promise had sidestepped her potential and slid into such a mundane existence. Suddenly after two years as a producer on the "Oprah" show Caysea had moved from Chicago to Port Aransas, Texas, where she paid the rent as a bartender.
As he started to dial her Number he remembered there was an hour time difference between New England and Texas so he finished the dishes and listening to the morning news he heard of a terrible accident off the coast near Memoli Island. The morning ferry had capsized several lost in the cold Atlantic waters. Would she have have been...one of the missing? But she had always been a survivor. Perhaps this time her luck was running okay. She had so much to live for, and didn't know it. The hundred million bequest she didn't know about yet. And such strange conditions attached to the will--Uncle Jason had been strangely secretive about the...past 2 decades of his life and now his niece Linnea would soon know how she came to inherit this wonderful but challenging gift. Would she be able to choose between the island life she loved and ....finally going back into the world. Uncle Jason's bequest had such weird strings attached, and there was so little time involved before she would have to comply with them. How could she find everyone and get them to Memoli Island within the time limits ... The eight people mentioned in the bequest had migrated from Memoli Island to all parts of the world. Linnea would soon be contacted about the bequest and...Wait a minute Linnea may be among the dead at the ferry accident. If so, it will be even more difficult for Chris to keep the secrets about Caysea.At that instant, Chris was startled by the doorbell. Who would be ringing his doorbell when nobody knew he was here? He left the kitchen and crossed the living room in long strides. Carefully, he peeked our the window beside the porch. Standing there, looking bedraggled, was Linnea. Ok, she is a survivor. She didn't drown.
Chris felt a flood of memories pour into him in that moment, especially memories of the summer on the island when the cousins were eight and inseparable. At eight, Linnea might just have had a bucket in her hand so the two of them could gather blueberries for her Mom's pie. But this morning, she was empty-handed. Chris reached out to a surpised Linnea as she walked toward his relieved embrace.
Linnea had not expected to find anyone at the family retreat. When she had changed into some clean dry sweats and had eaten a quiet meal, she explained to Chris what she needed to do. She appealed to him for help. Although Chris had hoped to escape to a place where he could sort out his personal life, the family retreat now drew him back once again to the past.

Naples Summer Book Club

Every summer as you cross the causeway at the south end of Maine's Long Lake, a large white house adorned with purple blossomed hanging baskets appears on the left side of the road. Here it is in winter. The upper story houses the children's library while the main floor offers adult spaces to read, check email on wifi, read the daily papers. In summer it is a busy place with visitors from all across America (the "away from here"s) mingling with the locals. The basement supports an ongoing book sale and a meeting place for public and library use. It is in the basement that the Naples Summer Book Club meets. This past summer about 20 people, mostly women - well, all women, even though men were welcome - met each month to discuss the latest book selection. The books were provided by the library supported by state services and led by a wonderful moderator also provided by the state. The discussion was lively and thoughtful and reflective of the ages and backgrounds of the group participants. Here are the books from last summer. I recommend them all and if you have read any would love to hear your comments. If you are interested in what they are about, I have linked each to an online review. Hope to hear from you.

Picture above from the Naples Public Library website. Check it out.

The Late George Apley/ John P. Marquand

Plainsong/ Kent Haruf

Mountains beyond Mountains/ Tracy Kidder

All Quiet on the Western Front/ Erich Maria Remarque

My First Library Card

Growing up at my house, books were as natural a household item as furniture. In fact my mother's example of settling in a chair was always accompanied with settling into a book. It was extremely fortunate to be part of a generation that began its early years without television. Books were entertainment of the richest order. My eyes were visually satisfied with the illustrations of children's books that brought to life the prose accompanying them. When I was old enough to have my first library card, I walked along the stacks in the large quiet neighborhood library until I was captivated by the pastel bindings of a small series. Serendipity had brought me to The Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder and illustrated by Garth Williams. No big box book store or television hype, just those pastel bindings and beautiful images. With my first library book checked out and in hand I hurried home to settle in. Nine weeks later after coming to the end of the series, I was hooked on books.

Recent Reads

Suite Francaise/ Irene Nemirovsky

The Shadow Catcher /Marianne Wiggins
March /Geraldine Brooks
The Vision of Emma Blau /Ursula Hegi
Don 't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight /Alexandra Fuller
The Red Parts/Maggie Nelson
Without a Map/Meredith Hall
Fever /Peter Richmond
King Dork / Frank Portman

Items in the list are linked to a review. Just click!