Jean Rhys’ Wide Sargasso Sea December 27, 2009

Borrowing from Arukiyomi . . . I read this by my PC mostly.

* 1001 Books Book

Rhys, J., Raiskin, J. L., & Brontë, C. (1999). Wide Sargasso Sea. New York: W.W. Norton. 9780393960129

I reviewed Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre after reading it in 2008. Spotting Wide Sargasso Sea on the infamous 1001 Books list, I skimmed the info in my book and mentally added it to my TBR list. Recently, I watched the Masterpiece Theatre version and thought of Rhys’ prequel. After some debate with my coworkers about what sort of monster the first Mrs. Rochester should be, I picked up the Norton Critical Edition of Wide Sargasso Sea.

Rhys takes up the cause of the madwoman in the attic – (Bertha) Antoinette Cosway Mason. Part I is told by the young  Antoinette, a beautiful white Creole heiress in Jamaica (circa 1834).  She’s troubled from the start – burdened with a derainged widowed mother, no father in early years, and the issue of a line of slaveholders.  In free Jamaica, Antoinette is neither Jamaican nor British. It doesn’t help that other kids call her a “white cockroach.” Things don’t improve much for Antoinette until her mother remarries Mr. Mason. While not fond of her stepfather, Mr. Mason offers order in a crazy world.

Part II is told by the unnamed husband (Mr. Rochester) of Antoinette. He wonders what he has done, marrying a stranger.  Apparently, he came down with a fever after arriving in Jamaica. Nonetheless, the husband has gained much in this union. He and Antoinette arrive at their honeymoon house. Eventually, the ice breaks (so to speak) between the two and things go well. Then, the husband receives a letter which changes everything.

Part III is voiced by Bertha as she’s now called. She talks from the attic of Thornfield Hall.

Rhys is no Charlotte Brontë. Part of me wants to cry “blasphemy!” Then again, these are two fictional works. I did find Antoinette sympathetic but I felt manipulated. I can feel sorry for a girl in an unstable house. In fact, I felt bad for Bertha in Jane Eyre.

I didn’t care for the reworking of the time setting, either. Here, Rhys tried to make the events coincide with the Jamaican abolition. I think she could’ve had some sort of Jamaican antebellum cries within her work. She didn’t need to have it set later.

Nor was I fond of the “male oppression” themes. Yes, things were that bad for women then. However, where was Antoinette’s mother when she needed her? She was taken care of by her stepfather. I felt like I was being hit over the head with this. Of course, this is likened to Britain’s treatment of Jamaica.

Perhaps another turnoff was that the book was rife with footnotes and explanations of what I was to read and then explanations of what I had just read. In this case, the notes hindered rather than helped.

I say Two Out of Five Pearls

Places: Jamaica, Dominica, Martinique, England

Word Bank: (definitions thanks to book cited above)

1. calabash: a large dried gourd of the local calabash tree; they were used as bowls.
2. Creole: in this context, those of English or European descent born in the Caribbean.
3. frangipani tree: also called plumieria, a small tree native to the West indies with flowers that smell very sweet, especially at night.
4. Maroon: in Jamaica, this term referred to the runaway slaves and their descendants who escaped to the mountains  and lived free in small communities.
5. Patois: A French word also used in English to refer to any dialect that develops out of contact between the language of a colonizing people (i.e., English) and that of a colonized people (i.e., Native Americans).
6. salt fish:  salted, dried cod imported from Canada as standard food for slaves and wages for apprentices. The colloquial connotations of the term “salt fish” include low-class stutus and low quality of character, as well as a poor diet.
7. sargassum: a free-floating mass of seaweed. It is found in the Sargasso Sea, an oval-shaped area of the North Atlantic Sea, bordered by the Gulf Stream and encompassing the Bermuda Islands.

For more on Jean Rhys’ Wide Sargasso Sea, check out these links:

• The Empire Strikes Back: Jane Eyre
• Time Magazine’s list of All-Time 100 Novels
• From Antoniette to Bertha: the process of ‘colonising’ within the marriage in Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea

Anna Godbersen’s The Luxe Series December 12, 2009

The first of the series (Elizabeth Holland)

The Second of the Series (Penelope Hayes)

The third of the series (Diana Holland)

(Pictures of Splendor to come – I promise!)

Godbersen, A. (2007). The luxe. New York, NY: HarperCollins. 9780061345661

Godbersen, A. (2008). Rumors: A Luxe novel. New York: HarperCollins. 9780061345692

Godbersen, A. (2009). Envy: A Luxe novel. New York: Harpercollins. 9780061345722

Godbersen, A. (2010). Splendor: A Luxe novel. New York: HarperCollins. 978006162319.

The staff book club turned me onto The Luxe series. Being touted as a nineteenth century Gossip Girl, this series has been very popular. Although I haven’t read any of the Gossip Girl books, I have seen episodes of the show here and there. Ultimately, I was sold of the amazing dresses on the book covers.

The series begins in 1899 Manhattan. The old Dutch families attend the funeral of one of their own – the exquisite Elizabeth Holland. In third person, the narrator introduces us to big players of the series – the dearly departed Elizabeth Holland, her gorgeous best friend – Penelope Hayes, her handsome fiance Henry Schoonmaker, and her romantically lovely little sister , Diana Holland.

The first chapter takes us back a month or so to Elizabeth’s return from Paris. The Hollands have lost their patriarch and the family could be in ruins. That’s why Mrs. Holland desperately needs her elder daughter to marry the wealthy son of William Schoonmaker, Henry. Henry just happens to be the paramour of Elizabeth’s frenemy Penelope Hayes. The worst part is Elizabeth couldn’t care less about Henry; she longs for another. Matters aren’t helped when Henry falls for the younger Holland, Diana. To top all of it off, both Hollands better watch their backs around their spiteful maid Lina Broud.

The Luxe Series is a quartet and I’ve only revealed some from the first book. I enjoyed the first book. The descriptions of the conspicious consumption and the elaborate gowns were stellar. Godbersen’s understanding of kids playing grownups was superb. She even provides us context with ample clippings from “society pages” and quotations on etiquette of the day.

However, I wasn’t pleased with the culmination. I didn’t like the obvious subscription to Murphy’s Law, either. If I were to have this to do over again, I’m not sure I’d do it.

The series overall gets Two and a half out of Five Pearls.

Word bank: pending

Places: Manhattan, New York, Paris, California, Yukon, The Philippines, Cuba

For more on The Luxe Series, please check out the following links:

• Gimme More Books!: Review: The Luxe Series
• The Luxe Series Book Cover| Uncover
• Philadelphia Women’s Fiction Examiner – Review: The Luxe Series
• The Luxe Series | Harris County Public Library
• Sellers Library Teens - Book Review: The Luxe Series
• The Luxe – The Official Site
• Harper Teens – The Luxe Books by Anna Godbersen

Janice Y.K. Lee’s The Piano Teacher November 29, 2009

Lee, J. Y. K. (2008). The piano teacher: A novel. New York: Viking Penguin. 978-0-00-728638-6

I noticed The Piano Teacher numerous times while flipping through Publisher’s Weekly while at work. However, I didn’t have enough interest in it until I saw the book on Amazon’s “People who bought this also bought. . .” for another book I recently read (see Marie Arana’s Lima Nights) . Sure enough, this book was on the shelf at the library where I work.

Lee tells at least two stories. Initially, she begins with young English wife Claire Pendleton in 1952. She and her husband, Martin, come to Hong Kong due to his job. With nothing else better to do, Claire seeks employment as a piano teacher. When she’s hired by the wealthy Chen family to teach their daughter Locket to play piano, Claire becomes infatuated with the Hong Kong expatriate scene as well as developing kleptomania. Through all of this, she becomes the paramour of Will Truesdale, an English expatriate with numerous skeletons in the closet.

The other story Lee tells begins in 1941 Hong Kong with the dashing newcomer Will Truesdale and his tempestuous affair with Trudy Liang, an exquisite daughter of a wealthy Chinese man and a Portuguese beauty. Will sinks into Trudy’s glib  lifestyle – parties, dinners with her efeet cousin Dominick, parties with her cousin Melody Chen, going to the beach, etc. When there are nervous rumblings on the eve of World War II, Trudy appears ambivalent and Will plays along until Japan invades.

Lee alternates between these two story lines, ultimately showing us how the past transgressions color Claire’s present. Characters face all sorts of trials and decisions, costing them all in the end.

I found Lee’s writing quite colorful and even transcendent. I especially wanted to climb into my time machine and check out pre-World War II Hong Kong.  While I didn’t like most of the characters, I found them very human and multidimensional.

I also liked how Lee confronts issues of race, class, and gender. Through Trudy, she presents us with the reality of being “not Asian”, “not Caucasian,” but simply both. Her wealthy Chinese father’s status opens doors for his daughter. I was impressed also by Claire’s awakening to this as well. Here we have 2008 values quelled in a novel about 1940s-1950s Hong Kong.

Still, I didn’t like the construction of the story much. I felt as though I was bounced around in the beginning, stuck in the middle, and rolled around like a pingpong ball in the end.  I do recall that this is Lee’s first novel and I’m sure she’ll overcome this in future novels.

As a grammar geek, I must comment on my chagrin upon reading Trudy utter the non-word “anyways.”

Two out of Five Pearls

Places: Hong Kong, Macau, China, Japan, The United Kingdom, India

Word Bank: ablution, Amah, anodyne, avuncular, collusive, consular, gendarmerie, guipure, inculcated, lissome, OBE, qipao, prescient, sotto voce, Tai Tais, venal,

For more on Janice Y.K. Lee’s The Piano Teacher:

• The New York Times
• Roman Review – YouTube
• YouTube – The Piano Teacher: Janice Y.K. Lee

Marie Arana’s Lima Nights November 18, 2009

Arana, M. (2009). Lima nights: A novel. New York: Dial Press. 978-0-385-34258-2

I happened to read part of a short book review in O Magazine on Lima Nights. My interest piqued by what I read and the author’s name (similar to that of a friend) led to seeking out the book at my local library branch. Fortunately, I found the book on the new fiction shelf.

Carlos Bluhm, an upper-class man of German descent, lives in Lima, Peru in 1986. By all outward appearances, Bluhm leads a charmed life. He’s married to the refined Sophie, also German, and has two sons. He and his best friends have a strong bond. Life seems goods. When visiting a tango bar in a bad part of town, he meets the young, indigenous Maria Fernandez. This sixteen year old chola turns Bluhm’s world upside down. Bluhm and Maria fall into an illicit affair which alters both their realities. Alternating between the views of Bluhm and Maria in 1986 and 2006, the reader sees how their lives unravel and knit together.

The unsatisfactory plot finds salvation in Arana’s style. Her clinical, psychological understanding of the characters as well as her clearly detailed scenes transform the pages into film. Also, Arana’s straightforward way of describing character prejudices between Caucasian and Pre-Columbian races transcends. Ultimately, she tells a story of doing the right thing. The complexity of Bluhm and Maria, in particular, amaze. These characters are multifaceted and breathing! Bluhm is described by a friend as the most lacking in racism. Yet, Bluhm knows otherwise. He knows better than to pursue a relationship with Maria but goes forth. When the time comes to take responsibility, he actually does.

However, this plot made me unhappy. Why? I saw a lot of wounded souls in this book and very little happiness. While only around 250 pages, this was no light read. I’m willing to give Arana another chance but this was not my favorite book.

3 out of 5 Pearls

Word Bank: bandoneón, butifarras, ceviche, chifa, Chola,  fraulein, habitués, hacienda, hosta lilies, jitney,  mestiza, Mutti, Peugeot, Pilsener, pisco, Riesling, Schätze, schnapps, Shining Path, spaetzle, telenovela, Teuton, vidente

Music:

• Bach’s “Erbarme Dich”
• Bandoneón-Tango “Mano a Mano” by Julio Sosa

Places: Lima, Peru; Germany; Switzerland; Amazon Rainforest

Other links regarding Marie Arana’s Lima Nights :

NYTimes Book Review
Good Reads
Reading Group Guides
The Girl from Lima

bandoneón

butifarras

ceviche

chifa

chola

Creole

Erbarme Dich

fraulein

habitués

hacienda

hosta lilies

Huacachina

jitney

Malecón

mestiza

Mutti

Peugeot

pilsner

pisco

Riesling

Schätze

schnapps

Shining Path

spaetzle

telenovela

Teuton

vidente

Flag Counter November 15, 2009

2009 National Book Award Finalists Announced October 16, 2009

http://www.nationalbook.org/nba2009.html

Stephen King’s The Dead Zone September 30, 2009

Read on the couch while watching TV

King, S. (1979). The dead zone. New York: Viking Press. 9780670260775

While reading Stephen King’s memoir On Writing, I realized The Dead Zone he wrote was the same one that inspired the recent TV show starring Anthony Michael Hall. I requested one of the two copies in the system and soon read the book from cover to cover.

Nice guy John Smith is left comatose in October, 1970 by a severe car accident. He comes out of a five year coma with many dead zones in his brain but an uncanny ability to see past and present just by touching a person. When he shakes the hand of a rising politician, he sees doom. What is John Smith to do?

King follows Johnny Smith and a number of other characters through this crazy ride of a story. Previously, I’d read Carrie

and The Green Mile by King. I definitely preferred The Dead Zone to Carrie. Not only was it a riveting story, The Dead Zone also was a capsule which predated me. I found the views on Vietnam, Watergate, and 1970s politics fascinating.

King created clear portraits of his characters. His depictions of bad guys such as Greg Stillson were frightening! Still, Johnny was an authentic hero.

I saw a few episodes of the series which was “based on characters” from the novel. I liked it, too, but wished they hadn’t messed so much with Johnny’s parents, Herb and Vera Smith. C’est la vie!

Three and a Half Out of Five Pearls

Places: Maine, New Hampshire, the United States

Word Bank:

1. Psychic
2. Psychometry

For more on Stephen King’s The Dead Zone, check out the following links:

• Review of Stephen King’s The Dead Zone
• Powell’s Books – The Dead Zone by Stephen King
• LifeIsAPatchworkQuilt.com >> Stephen King’s “The Dead Zone”
• StephenKing.com – Dead Zone, The

Katherine Howe’s The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane August 7, 2009

Howe, K. (2009). The physick book of Deliverance Dane: A novel. New York: Voice/Hyperion. 9781401340902

After hearing about the book being touted as the Summer 2009 must read, I added my name to the waiting list for The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane. When I checked it out from the library, it only took me a few days to read.

Howe gives us at least two different threads to follow. One storyline pertains to Harvard doctoral candidate Connie Goodwin who lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1991. Connie is an American colonial history student who needs to work on her dissertation. Thanks to her free-spirited mother, Connie finds herself preparing her late grandmother’s home for sale. In the process, Connie finds an old family Bible. Within it, Connie uncovers an old key with a scrap of paper which says “Deliverance Dane.”

Then there’s the story of Deliverance Dane, a woman living in Salem Village, Massachusetts during the late 1600s.  Deliverance becomes embroiled in the Salem witch trials in an unprecedented way.

I could not stop reading. Howe told a good story as well giving us great visualizations. Connie was definitely a visual person; seeing history tomes in the library of her mind’s eye. She also imagined homes in the 1600s!

Another profound element was the blending of near puritanical Christianity with witchcraft. I never considered the combination.

Okay, this gets Five out of Five pearls. I can’t wait for Howe’s next book.

Places: Massachusetts – Salem, Boston, Cambridge, Marblehead

Word Bank: academia, alchemy, bastion, belladonna,  Brahmin, chortle, desultory, epithet, mandrake, physick, simulacrum, tetragrammaton,

(links to words pending)

For more on Katherine Howe’s The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, check out the following links:

• Every Woman’s Voice
• Good Morning America
• Marjorie Kehe’s Book Review on The Christian Science Monitor

Sarah Dessen’s Along for the Ride July 19, 2009

Dessen, S. (2009). Along for the ride: A novel. New York, N.Y.: Viking.   9780670011940

A few years ago, I picked up Sarah Dessen’s That Summer after watching How to Deal at the library. Rapidly, I made my way through bibliography. Then, I found myself requesting her books as soon as the library bought them. I caught Dessen fever, so to speak. So, I maintained the habit with her latest work Along for the Ride.

Dessen writes again about the fictitious North Carolina college town Lakeview and brings back Colby. This time we meet the old, ever so mature daughter, Auden Penelope West. She’s the insomniac daughter of a brilliant academic, Dr. Victoria West,  and a great writer, Robert West. At the last minute, Auden decides to go stay with her father, stepmother – Heidi, and new baby sister, Thisbe the summer before college. During this summer, Auden relives the time of her parents’ divorce and strives to do something she’s never before done – be a teenager. She makes friends, takes chances, and learns some of the lessons she missed in school.

I’m definitely a Dessen fan and I was so happy to have something of hers to read. I enjoy the slice of life situations and sympathetic characters as well as the down-to-earth way Dessen tells stories. Also, I anticipate all of the Easter eggs throws my way. While I wouldn’t rate this as my all time favorite Dessen book, I feel a I took more from it than I do easy reads. I picked up bits about BMX competitions, academia, and more knowledge of poet W.H. Auden.

This was not my favorite Dessen book; that would be Keeping the Moon. Nonetheless, this ride was a blast and I know full well my name will be on the waiting list for whatever she writes next. . .

Three and a Half out of Five Pearls

Places: Lakeview, North Carolina; Colby, North Carolina; University

Word Bank: academia,  BMX games, insomnia, missive,

For more on Sarah Dessen’s Along for the Ride, check out the following link:

• Along for the | Sarah Dessen
• Sarah Dessen’s ‘Along for the Ride’ is our Must Read this week. . .
• Em’s Bookshelf: Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen Book Review
• Sarah Dessen: Along for the Ride – YouTube

Jun 24 2009 04:59 PM ET

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Sarah Dessen’s ‘Along for the Ride’ is our Must Read this week — what’s on your Must List?

Jodi Picoult’s My Sister’s Keeper July 12, 2009

Picoult, J. (2004). My Sister’s Keeper. Prince Frederick, MD: Recorded Books.

I actually read My Sister’s Keeper a couple of years ago. When I was shopping, the name and the book cover caught my eye. I read the back cover and found myself immediately requesting this book through the library. Recently, I saw that the movie was to come out and I checked out the audiobook.

The main story is that of thirteen year old Anna Fitzgerald.  The Fitzgeralds has Anna to save the life of her leukemia-ridden sister, Kate. Through the years, Anna gave Kate platelets, bone marrow, and stem cells. Anna draws the line at donating a kidney. With the help of attorney Campbell Alexander, Anna sues her family for the right to her own body.  Throughout the book, the reader glimpses the points of view of the various characters. This includes Anna, Kate, their parents – Sara and Brian, brother Jesse, Campbell, and guardian ad litem Julia. The reader sees the thoughts of these characters and their motivations.

When reading the book, I found I could barely tolerate Sara Fitzgerald – a mother so involved in the survival of her beloved Kate. She neglects her other children and, to some extent, her husband. When listening to the book, I realized she had a one track mind and was quite ruthless. In the parts of the book where she narrates, it becomes clear she’s stuck in the past. The second time through, I nearly pitied her.

My heart went out to Brian Fitzgerald, the firefighter trying to keep together his family. He cared about his kids and could see things in a more lucid way than Sara. I did not envy him his plight.

If nothing else, My Sister’s Keeper brings about many questions. What would you do to save your child? When do you cross the line? Should a sibling feel obligated to donate so? Is one child’s survival above that of your other children?

While well-written, I was angry at the end of the book. In fact, I was mad throughout my reading of the book. At least, I was not comatose. I have yet to see the movie and I thought Cameron Diaz was too sweet and likable to play Sara Fitzgerald. Also, it looks as though it’s more about Kate than Anna. Not cool!

All in all, three out of five pearls.

Places: Providence, Rhode Island

For more on My Sister’s Keeper:

AllReaders.Com Reviews