The Son by Philipp Meyer Review Book Review

The Son has been on my reading list for a while, it took a back seat while I was under a time crunch to finish  Brick Lane before our trip to London in November and The Orphan Master's Son for book club (which we just recently discussed... finally!).  I picked this one up just before the holidays and finished just after, with some concentrated time around New Year's to polish it off.  This happened to be the first book I finished in 2014 (perhaps the only at this point... ).

Synopsis: click here for Amazon's synopsis.

The Son is indeed a family saga spanning many generations.  I read this on my kindle and as a result, missed the schematic of the family tree in the beginning.  This left me to piece together the family tree in my own head, which turned out to be fun.  It took somewhere between 20 - 30% to piece it together.  There was only one relationship I misunderstood, which would have brought greater clarity had I known while I was reading, but I enjoyed rethinking through the course of events after learning the true relationship.

In the beginning, the story lines I thought I would be least interested in, turned out to be some of the more interesting ones in the end.  While it took almost 20% of the book to pick up, once it did, it kept going.  The chapters are structured such that they move backwards and forwards in time depending on the character of focus of the chapter.  At times this could be difficult to keep up with, especially in the beginning when I was a bit impatient and kept asking myself, well what the heck does Jeannie have to do with Eli, where do these darn characters connect. Once the connections were established it became more interesting to read character development one chapter at at time in this disjointed sort of manner.

Unfortunately I took too long to write this review and I'm having trouble recalling much more about this book.  While I enjoyed it and was able to finish it, it's not the great American novel its been touted as by other reviewers.  It's a good book and a good read if you're looking for something new, but not a must read.  I wouldn't bump anything off your reading list for this one.

Happy Reading!

The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

Synopsis (partially from Amazon)

… an extraordinary new novel, set in both India and America, that expands the scope and range of one of our most dazzling storytellers: a tale of two brothers bound by tragedy, a fiercely brilliant woman haunted by her past, a country torn by revolution, and a love that lasts long past death.

Born just fifteen months apart, Subhash and Udayan Mitra are inseparable brothers, one often mistaken for the other in the Calcutta neighborhood where they grow up.  But they are also opposites, with gravely different futures ahead. It is the 1960s, and Udayan—charismatic and impulsive—finds himself drawn to the Naxalite movement, a rebellion waged to eradicate inequity and poverty; he will give everything, risk all, for what he believes. Subhash, the dutiful son, does not share his brother’s political passion; he leaves home to pursue a life of scientific research in a quiet, coastal corner of America.

But when Subhash learns what happened to his brother in the lowland outside their family’s home, he goes back to India, hoping to pick up the pieces of a shattered family, and to heal the wounds Udayan left behind—including those seared in the heart of his brother’s wife.

My Review:

Through multiple reviews, I cautiously added this to my reading list suppressing my desire to order the book, knowing that I should wait for a while to pick it up at an affordable price.  Much to my surprise, I was elated when I received this book as part of birthday gift from my dear husband.  He sneakily picked it up during our weekend away in Paris with my father in law, and hid it from me throughout the entire trip.  Love it!

I have nothing but a rave review and praise for this book, I finished it in just one week! Jhumpa Lahiri is the author of my favorite book, The Namesake.  Maybe a cliché for the daughter of two Indian immigrants, but who cares… I relate to it so well, it’s a close mirror image to how I feel, how my own life has progressed.  The Lowlands is not the same, of course, but it’s so beautifully written, I found myself reflecting on passages, saving pages of a couple of these passages that evoked meaning for me, well after I was through the chapter. I did also find myself thinking about my parents on a couple of different occasions.  Sometimes I thought about what my own parents experienced between the 60-70s when they were growing up in India… what were those times like?  In other instances, I began to understand the complexity of what it means to let a child experience mistakes, regrets or grief and how difficult that might be.  I don’t have children, so maybe it’s in my head, but I appreciated the perspective Lahiri gave me. 

My only minor complaint about the novel was the huge swaths of time that were missing between various chapters.  The novel continues fluidly each time, and you most certainly do not need to know the events in between to love the book, but on occasion I found myself wishing that the picture was more fruitfully colored.  Perhaps a purely selfish desire… just because I loved the book so much.  I’m not sure you can really call this a complaint, but that’s it. 

The Lowland is a must-read Lahiri novel.  If you haven’t read Lahiri before, I highly recommend her as an author and especially recommend The Lowland. Lahiri has received much well-deserved praise for this novel and many book awards, all a credit to her enchanting writing abilities.  

Brick Lane by Monica Ali Book Review

Synopsis from Amazon:

Still in her teenage years, Nazneen finds herself in an arranged marriage with a disappointed man who is twenty years older. Away from the mud and heat of her Bangladeshi village, home is now a cramped flat in a high-rise block in London's East End. Nazneen knows not a word of English, and is forced to depend on her husband. But unlike him she is practical and wise, and befriends a fellow Asian girl Razia, who helps her understand the strange ways of her adopted new British home.

Nazneen keeps in touch with her sister Hasina back in the village. But the rebellious Hasina has kicked against cultural tradition and run off in a 'love marriage' with the man of her dreams. When he suddenly turns violent, she is forced into the degrading job of garment girl in a cloth factory.

Confined in her flat by tradition and family duty, Nazneen also sews furiously for a living, shut away with her buttons and linings - until the radical Karim steps unexpectedly into her life. On a background of racial conflict and tension, they embark on a love affair that forces Nazneen finally to take control of her fate.

My Review:

I chose this book as a precursor to our London Trip over the Thanksgiving holidays.  I found it on a list somewhere on the internet (could not reproduce that link if I tried, perhaps part of the issue :P), but do not feel it was well suited for a first time London trip, mostly focused on the main city sights.  In fact, we did venture through Brick Lane one evening (as part of a Jack the Ripper tour) and were haggled by the bouncers, pushing us and offering discounts to eat in their restaurant.  Word of advice, don’t venture to Brick Lane in London without a restaurant recommendation, perhaps try something that doesn't have bouncers, go for the authentic experience … if there is one!

Back to the book and leaving behind the initial purpose for reading the book…. I still really struggled with this book.  It took a good 75% of the book to have any action; it wasn't until the very end I was compelled to keep reading to learn Nazneen’s choice.  There are large sections in the book that are letters written by Nazneen’s sister, Hasina in broken English.  As I reported previously, it was difficult to make my way through these passages.  At first it’s a nice touch, drawing you into the situation more, but after two letters or so of struggling to understand the real meaning, it’s insufferable.  Within the first extended section of Hasina’s letters, my progress through the book really slowed down.   

The book did have some highlights.  The style of writing Ali uses to describe the love relationship between Nazneen and Karim was unexpectedly beautiful.  The build up to their ‘union’ (so PC!), and the release of their hidden emotions (ugh, I’m terrible!) was poetically written without being cheeky (ha!) or slimy (it was an affair after all!).  I also really appreciated Ali’s development of Nazneen’s first daughter, Shahana, who reminded me of me. I was such a brat to my parents as a child and I wholly admit I had the ‘first child of immigrant parents’ syndrome (perhaps sometimes I still do :)), but I related to this young girl.  I wanted to hug her and tell her that while it sucks, it gets better and that she always had a confidant in me.  I’d like to think I would have sheltered her, protected her from making a regrettable choice.  On the other hand, who are we if we don’t learn from our mistakes and regrets? AH, life…

So, in all … well, shouldn't be a surprise, but I don’t recommend this book whether you are heading to London for the first time or are looking for a new book to read. It’s too slow and heavy for a light-hearted beach-read as well.  

Do you read books before going on vacation to prepare?  This is a relatively recent thing for me and so far I haven't chosen wisely.  How do you pick a book for an upcoming trip?  

The Favored Daughter by Fawzia Koofi Book Review

The Favored Daughter: One Woman's Fight to Lead Afghanistan into the Future by Fawzia Koofi

Read: September 2013
Source: Book Club Selection for October 2013, recommended by a member
Medium: iPhone and Kindle

The Favored Daughter is a true story and memoir of an Afghani woman, Fawzia Koofi, to surpass cultural expectations and become the first female Speaker of Parliament in Afghanistan (now running for President).

Format thoughts:  Each ‘chapter’ opens with a letter to Mrs. Koofi’s daughters followed by a chapter of real life events that embody a life lesson she often gives in each letter.  I didn't mind this format in the beginning, but towards the end, these letters no longer appeared to be genuine to me... I felt as if they were written for the book, rather than used retrospectively as if they were originally written for her daughters alone.  I’m not sure what the exact story is behind these letters, but this was my impression.  Regardless, these letters allowed Mrs. Koofi to set the scene for each dramatic event in her life that has played a role in the person she is today.  These letters, of course, lend a hand in explaining Mrs. Koofi visions for the future of Afghanistan.  Towards the end, I began to dislike the format.  There was quite a bit of repetition not only in the letters, but also in her desires to change Afghanistan.  The book became preachy in the last chapter, and in my opinion, it could have been wiped from the book. 

I found this book to be educational and inspiring and I recommend you spend the time to read this book. I found myself in disbelief that someone could live and survive in such circumstances.  Prior to reading this book, I had no appreciation for Afghanistan’s history, the multitude of wars and the lack of stability in the country for so many years.  If you gain nothing else from this book besides an understanding of the political history of Afghanistan beginning from the cold war, through 9-11 up to today, I think it’s completely worth the time.  At a minimum, Mrs. Koofi has shed light on the tumultuous history of Afghanistan, which provides a basic understanding of why change can be so difficult to achieve. 

I finished this book in a matter of a couple of weeks, and while I found some of the text lacking depth and a few open ended stories, I can’t say it influenced the draw to continue reading.  I was especially drawn in by Mrs. Koofi’s explanation of the clan-like family culture that seems integral to the way of life in Afghanistan.  It’s probably not something one can fully appreciate unless its inherent to your lifestyle, but it was eye-opening to learn of the strong bond of the Afghani family, whether immediate, by marriage, or otherwise!  This was immensely clear when Mrs. Koofi chose to run for Speaker of Parliament and had to rely on her extended family for support.   

This book was the October selection, but unfortunately I did not find any published questions for the meeting.  So, if you choose this book for your club, take some time to write some questions/discussion points (or take notes as your reading… if you do that!). 

Wild by Cheryl Strayed Book Review

Here's another book club read that we discussed for in July.  I've been working on this review for a while, just never was complete enough to post it.

Image from amazon.com

Wild by Cheryl Strayed is about a woman's journey to find herself after a series of poor choices and the tragic death of her mother on the Pacific Coast Trail (from Southern California to Oregon). Find a more detailed review here.

Cheryl starts her journey as an inexperienced hiker, making novice mistakes, but forced by her self-imposed circumstances and surroundings, learns how to be an avid and and agile hiker.   To her surprise (and mine as well), she doesn't dwell on the life events she thought she would when she set out on this hike (her mother's death, her divorce, her drug abuse), but rather focuses on how to accomplish the tasks of the next day.  As hiking becomes more natural for her and she is reassured by her fellow PCT hikers, she finally begins to ponder life, her decisions in life, and its unfairness.

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone.  Yes, this is a 'find yourself', true-life story and the author takes a literal and figurative journey in life, one where Cheryl Strand hopes to weed through and reflect on her recent past of poor decisions and emotional roller coasters.  The actuality of hiking the (PCT) trail that most avid hikers train for, without any preparation (including how to prepare her pack) is in itself the life experience that lends to the emotional and personal reflection Cheryl Strand hoped for when she set out on the journey.

There are portions of the book I found very moving and emotional for me.  It's difficult to put into words why these portions were so moving except that they were stories in which the reader finds Cheryl resolving the unsettled emotions of her wayward life before beginning this hike. I couldn't stop myself from checking out who Cheryl Strand is today and where life has led her.  Of course, as one may expect she is happy, writing (as she wanted to), and re-married with children.  I recently heard a podcast on NPR where she indicated that through the book she has found her sister (daughter of her father and another woman), someone she knew existed, but was never sure if she would ever be in contact with, I imagine the changes in her life as a result of writing this book are worthy of their own telling!

The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende

image taken from amazon.com

Phew, what a book!

The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende follows three generations of intertwined families centered around Esteban Trueba, his family, his fortune, and his demise.  The book is narrated partially by Trueba, but mostly by his granddaughter, Alba who recounts her family history beginning from her great grandmother's, Clara, childhood.  The novel also intertwines the political upheaval of Chile (as many of Isabel Allende's books do) which plays a critical role in the lives of the Trueba family.

I have read many of Ms. Allende's books prior to this including, Daughter of Fortune and Portrait in Sepia.  This book caught my eye after watching the movie (with actresses Meryl Streep and Winona Ryder released in 1993) on Netflix.  I've enjoyed Ms. Allende's books, but since the story lines are similar and the writing style is consistent, I would recommend reading them between other books.

Isabel Allende's novels are complex, dark, usually about love and loss of love, almost always include a political event, and usually span generations of one family.  I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with Ms. Allende's writing.  On the one hand, her text includes a richness that is emphasized with her choice of words and the manner and meaning she uses them in, but as a result I often find myself needing to read with a dictionary (maybe that suggests I'm lacking in vocabulary more than anything!).  Isabel Allende's novels are generally long (relatively speaking) as they transgress through multiple generations which allows the reader to become completely engulfed in the story line.

The House of Spirits is spiritual, but also real. Clara's (Alba's great grandmother) clairvoyance and ability to see the future sets the tone of the novel lifting it from reality to the unknown.  Eventually as Clara's importance to the story line fades and she herself ages, reality becomes more predominant, but the sense of spirituality remains in the novel as it eventually creeps it's way into Esteban Trueba (Clara's stubborn, head-strong husband) way of thinking.

The beauty with which Ms. Allende tells the stories of various intertwined lovers is also remarkable.  As soon as the lovers passion begins to soak in to your mind, a life event, tragedy, or social circumstance throws a bend in their pathway and it takes another turn, one unexpected or one you may not like.  The commonality of this experience is also striking, but I have to wonder if it's always so dramatic in real life?

Overall, I loved this novel and I would pick up another novel by Isabel Allende in a heart beat.  This book is completely different from the movie, but as a result one is not necessarily better than the other.  They simply are stories loosely similar based around the same set of events and ideas.   This novel is not a fast read, it does take some time to make your way through, but it's worth the time!

Book Review - The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

I started writing this review a long time ago and didn't take the time to finish the review until just recently.  I'm still not sure if I will continue with book club reviews, but since this review was mostly complete, I decided to post it.
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Image from amazon.com

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls was the June 2013 book club choice we reviewed and it was a good discussion that was facilitated with questions I found online. I’m not sure if I’ll continue to review book club books and/or if I will write the reviews before or afterwards.  It could be an interesting comparison to write my review before and see what I think of it after the discussion with the club.  Food for thought for now, but for the time being an FYI for this blog.

SPOILER ALERT - Note, there is some discussion of some of the stories in this review that you may want to experience raw, hence I am labeling this a spoiler alert!

Synopsis - click here 

This book was heartbreaking, but the entire time I was rooting for Jeanette Walls.  Curiosity got the best of me and within the first story (a 3 year old cooking hot-dogs and setting her polyester dress on fire), I looked up Jeanette Walls and the creation of this book and quickly learned that Jeanette Walls was a successful journalist and now writes full time.  Despite this information, I found these stories unbelievably difficult to imagine, heartbreaking to read, but yet very brave for writing them and telling the world her story. 

Ms. Walls opens with a story of watching her mother and father sorting through trash bins in New York City from afar (I believe it was a taxi cab), ashamed of what she is observing.  Ms. Walls opens the novel with this story, but it’s not the shock value alone that gets you.  The story also serves to intrigue the reader to understand why her parents choose a lifestyle of homelessness and most importantly, why Ms. Walls appears to be living in drastically better circumstances than her own parents.  This stark contrast sucked me into this novel, that’s for sure.

Throughout the memoir, there are many difficult stories.  Eating out of the trash at school and dumpsters, a mother hiding and stealing food from her children, dire living conditions including no running water or electricity, coaxing your own mother to go to work so there’s enough money for the family, and so on.  But despite the desperate-ness of these stories, Jeanette Walls shows deep love and admiration (especially in her younger years) for her parents, especially her father.  The relationship Ms. Walls has with her father, being his favorite child, is the hardest thing to wrap your head around.  How can Ms. Walls love her father so much, but not have her most basic needs provided for?  Is it because she doesn't know any better, this is the hand life has dealt? After thinking and discussing with my book club, I think that Jeanette Walls’ father intended to be a good father, but he didn't have the knowledge.  Mr. Walls' upbringing was arguably worse than the one he provided for his own family.   

Another interesting point of discussion at book club was Jeanette's mother, Mary and whether she fulfilled her role as a mother.  We debated quite a bit in the group if she could be called a mother, some were on the fence while others were positive she had not fulfilled her duties as a mother.  I landed on the fence.  On one hand, her children's basic needs were clearly not taken care of and she let her children (especially Jeanette Walls) be in the middle of her messy relationship with her husband, Rex.  On the other hand, she was the one who was able to provide when Rex was drinking and gambling, albeit the children themselves had to convince her to go to work!  Mary also had a heavy hand in their love for reading (their father did too) and art, and I believe her children's success was heavily influenced by this environment she encouraged and provided.

I highly recommend reading this book, it's well written and it's such an interesting story that while I can't relate to it directly, provides another perspective on how life may be lived. I also think this is a great selection for a book club as there are so many topics and stories to discuss and the interpretation of them is bound to be different from person to person, thus generating interesting discussion and a fun book club event!

The Silver Lining's Playbook by Matthew Quick Book Review

I'm starting something new, book reviews! I'm not sure how this will work out or if I will be able to keep up with it, but I'd like to give it a try.  Bear with me as it may be painful to watch/read from afar.  You will probably see changes, hopefully improving in content, but probably format as well as I begin to familiarize myself with various styles of writing book reviews.  By the way, if you have done this before and have any thoughts or suggestions, I would love your input. Drop me a comment and I'll find a way to get into contact with you.
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Pre-movie book cover
(Image taken from barnesandnoble.com)

Movie-Cover
(Image taken from goodreads.com)

The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick is about the story of Pat Peoples journey after his release from a mental health facility and his quest to be reunited with his estranged wife, Nikki. 

This book is written from the perspective of a healing man, one who acknowledges he has had past issues with anger and kindness (lack thereof, to be clear), but also doesn't remember past events.  The writing style, while it may be an accurate representation of how someone in this situation may think, is overly simplistic (which makes the book a very easy read) and therefore childish.  I know that is harsh and I would like to clarify that it doesn't mean the book is a bad read, but it does make it a little more difficult to appreciate for the perspective it tries to convey (that of a person healing in a non-physical, but mental way).  On the other hand, maybe it's more realistic.... I don't know!

This book digs deep into how Pat Peoples must find a way to cope with his anger and be a person other people can enjoy being around.  Pat's sole reason for dealing with these issues is to be reunited with his wife and finally end, 'apart time.'  Everything Pat does centers around this one goal, his extreme exercise, his continuous and very conscious need to be kind towards others, his classic literature reading, his odd and complicated relationship with Tiffany (his best-friend's wife's sister, who also has her own set of issues to work through)... all to end 'apart time.'  In the mean time, his family and friends and us, the reader, see Pat transform.

The lesson of this story, which you are introduced to early in this book (so don't worry, this is not a give away!), is that there is a silver lining in everything.  The subtly of this lesson is in how Pat Peoples processes his perception of the silver lining as he becomes more aware of his past events and his present surroundings.  In the end, I did appreciate the book for providing perspective on mental health complexities in an approachable manner, despite the writing style.  It clearly establishes the origination of Pat's anger back to his father, which sustains the test of time through his mother's inability to fight (interesting word in this scenario, but by this I mean to be firm in her desires for her husband to be a different person) back.  Pat Peoples learns to accept himself, for everything he is ... which although is a bit of a cliche ending I appreciate since it chooses not to ignore the fragile state of his mind (that is to say, it's not magically fixed after release, his ability to acclimate to society takes work, every single day).

I do recommend you read this book, but let it be for pleasure.  Take the writing style with a grain of salt and appreciate the style for how it contributes to the mental state of Pat Peoples. If you decide to read it, I would like to hear your thoughts on how the author's writing style contributes or does not contribute to conveying the state of mind of someone dealing with their mental health.