5 comments about The Queen's Fool: A Novel.

1. This is the story of a young girl, Hannah Green, from a Jewish family that hides their identity to escape persecution while secretly holding on to their faith and nationhood.
   Hannah and her father have come from Spain, where Hannah's mother was burned as one of the thousands of innocent victims of the Spanish Inquisition.
   Hannah has the gift of a seer. She is dressed as a boy in order to protect her, and soon comes to the attention of Lord Robert Dudley, who recruits her to the court of Queen Mary I of England as a 'fool'', but whose real task is as a spy. In the meantime Hannah is betrothed to Daniel, from an old Jewish family.
   She soon comes to love the Queen, which is a puzzle, as it was Bloody Mary who brought the Spanish Inquisition to England. The author's rewrite of history by her over-sympathetic portrayal of Queen Mary and her unflattering portrayal of Queen Elizabeth does not sit well with me.
   How can one sympathetically portray the Queen who burned thousands in order to force Roman Catholicism back onto England. And how can Hannah have been so devoted to the ruler who brought the brutal inquisition to England, after Hannah's mother was butchered by these same 16th century terrorists of Mary's ilk.
   It was Elizabeth who freed England from Mary's terror and was one of England's greatest rulers ever. Elizabeth presided over a golden age of peace, prosperity and culture.
   It will not do to present Elizabeth as a scheming harlot. The author go's out of her way to explore the depth of Mary's character but does not do the same for Elizabeth.
   The author was also insufficiently sympathetic to Elizabeth, involving her seduction and exploitation by Thomas Seymour, when she was fourteen.
   
   Hannah comes across as intriguing, attractive, like-able and interesting. The element of the crypto-Jews or 'marannos' is of great interest to me.
   The book is a real page turner and fabulously written, despite the flaws I have highlighted.



2. Excellent purchase. Book arrived promptly and in excellent condition. Pleasure doing business with seller. Thank you!



3. This is a really good book. Drags a bit in the middle but had a great ending and cant wait to read the next one!



4. The best thing about this book was the way that she was able to treat both Elizabeth I and Mary Tudor as sympathetic and likeable characters, even as they are volleying for the throne. It was an interesting read, with some rather unbelievable aspects, including the character of the narrator and her relationship with her husband.



5. In The Queen's Fool, Philippa Gregory continues the story of Henry VIII's legacy in this book centered around the difficult reign of his eldest daughter Mary. While reading the previous 3 books is not a necessity, it will help the reader to understand the motivations and complicated relationships of the lead characters.

5 comments about When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: A Memoir of Africa.

1. It opened my heart and eyes to the dire evolving situation in Zimbabwe. The book is beautifully written with passages of passionate beauty for his former homeland. The disclosure of the family secret and haunting parallel to the holocaust are gripping and frightening. Yet, the little stories of personal kindness and heroism helped me make it through the heart wrenching tragedy.



2. WOW! These memoirs, expertly crafted by Peter Godwin, leave the reader still haunted by its horrors, from hospital experiences to burial. The parents leave one Holocaust only to find themselves reentering another! This is a remarkable insight into Mugabe's rule and its after-affects. The Godwins are a fascinating family, each so accomplished and each so loving and patriotic to Zimbabwe. A MUST READ!!!! I LOVED IT AND HAVE RECOMMENDED THIS TO ALL MY FRIENDS WHO IN TURN HAVE LOVED IT!



3. The Power of One: A Novel If you've read The Power of One, you'll have a good background for Peter Godwin's novel. This grim, factual-ish, totally absorbing work is a must-read for all who see Africa as the land of sunshine, safaris, exotic flora and fauna, and Ipi Tombi. It deals with post-war (1998-2006) Zimbabwe in an engaging, intimate, heart-wrenching fashion. It is not a political treatise. It is a stunning showcase of how "Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely." The story begins and ends with Peter Godwin's father's death in 2006. The parts in between should be taught in every Pol. Sci class. The writing is excellent, and very accessible; the accounts horrific and frustrating.



4. This is a fast reading book - I couldn't put it down. With Zimbabwe showing up in the headlines almost daily (contested elections, violence against the opposition party), I thought this would be a good book to read. While the story is personal, Godwin as a journalist conveys a lot of information about Zimbabwe's more recent history, politics, and movement/violence against the white farmers. The personal side to Godwin's story is also compelling as he writes of discovering his father's Jewish past and his father's unknown past late in his father's life.



5. While traveling on an overland safari, I ran out of books to read. (Although I brought plenty, as an English teacher, I was devouring them as we drove through the African countryside.) Fortunately, one of the French girls in the back of the truck had just finished a book and was willing to lend it to me. She said that Mukiwa was captivating and that I wouldn't be able to put it down, and she was right. Having already visited Zimbabwe several times, I was fascinated to learn more about the white experience there, especially since I had recently read Catherine Buckle's African Tears, which also describes the current land invasions. Because many tourists don't delve deeper into Zimbabwe than a quick jaunt to Victoria Falls, Godwin's memoir is an important read. Godwin describes the reality of living in a country as tumultuous as it is beautiful. The reader can't help but gain a love of the country himself and come to understand why Godwin would risk his life in returning. Fortunately, I was able to experience a glimpse of the beauty of the country myself while visiting some of their game parks. It was on one of these drives in Hwange that I first fell in love with Africa and can understand why Godwin's parents would risk their lives by choosing to remain. I enjoyed the book so much that I purchased the sequel When a Crocodile Eats the Sun at the Johannesburg Airport. I follow the news in Africa online every day--especially the news of Zimbabwe and South Africa, and cannot express how much I value the insight that Godwin provides in both of these books. I also developed a fondness and empathy for his family as they endure the turbulent times that face Zimbabwe. Despite the many problems that face the continent, I am looking forward to my eighth trip. I have been discussing Godwin's book with my honors students and told them that I plan to read his other three--Wild at Heart, The Three of Us, and Rhodesians Never Die--before I leave.

5 comments about The Chosen.

1. "The Chosen", by Chaim Potok, is a narrative about two Jewish boys, Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders, who are from different Jewish sects. The novel is all about their friendship and about them growing up together and the troubles they face due to their different religious interpretation. The boys are raised in different styles Reuven is raised in a regular manner, while Danny's father raises him in silence. Silence is a recurring, mysterious theme of the novel and the way they are raised greatly affects what they become in life. Silence is Danny's father Reb's way of raising Danny so that he will become a good rabbi by learning the ability to figure things out independently. Unfortunately, silence also separates Reuven and Danny when Reuven's father stresses the need to form a Jewish state. He supports "Zionism" while Danny's father does not and this causes Reb to forcibly separate the two boys.
   
   In the novel Potok uses silence as a literary device that gives the text depth and mystery. The style of Potok's writing is sometimes very mysterious and, for me at least, confusing. The steady moving story shows the ways friendship can mature and change through different uncontrollable factors. It also gives insight into the different beliefs about raising children. I would recommend this book for someone who is prepared to think on a deeper level about the things of life, about differences, and about what can unite us.



2. 
   The Chosen is a capturing story of two boys as they grow and mature throughout their friendship and into adulthood. Reuven Malter is a secular Jew while Danny Saunders is a Hasid. The two are naturally opposed by their religion and unleash their anger toward each other in what is no ordinary baseball game. When Reuven is hit in the eye by a powerful ball hit by Danny, Reuven is rushed to the emergency room. It is while Reuven is recovering from the accident in the hospital that he and Danny official meet and begin their interwoven journey.
   Danny and Reuven soon realize that they are opposites from one another. Reuven wishes to become a rabbi after graduating from college, while his father hopes for him to become a mathematician. Contrastingly, Danny dreams of being a psychologist even though he is the rightful heir to becoming a Hasidic rabbi. They are also raised by fathers who have contrasting methods of bringing up their sons. Still, it is through these family difficulties, the devastating tolls of the Holocaust, conflicting religion, and Danny's own secret from his father, that create the powerful and unique bond between the two boys. Join them as they teach each other lessons they could not have learned anywhere else and grow into the young adults they strived to be.



3. in reading "The Chosen" i was very pleased with the book. The plot was very touching as we saw the boys (Danny and Reuven) grow from the grounds of a baseball field to the advanced college campus. Their friendship was very strong and was normally able to overcome most obstacles...except for the silence that Danny and Reb Saunders had between them. Mr. Malter brought Rueven up in talking, so Rueven began to hate the silence simply because he couldn't understand it. i believe that that applies to much of life. If we don't understand something completely, we tend to write it off as bad, hard, or tend to hate it. i would highly recommend this book for anyone looking for a good book for any occasion.



4. The chronological lives of Danny Saunders (Hasidic) and Dave Melter (Orthodox) as they graduate high school and then college in Brooklyn. We meet the boys' passionate families, watch their ardent study of Talmud, and perceive the clash between their beliefs and expectations as their steadfast friendship supports them through the late teen years. A peephole into the state of world affairs around 1945 that helps to explain the history of the conflict between Israel and Palestine today.



5. I really liked the historical aspect of the book. Though a work of fiction, it helped me to understand many ideas among the Jewish followers. A little too slow at times for my tastes (particularly the Talmud discussions). A certain amount was necessary to comprehend the background and situation but it went a bit overboard for me.
   
   Overall I thought this was worth the time invested in reading it and I feel like a gained new insight into the Jewish faith and relationships in general.

5 comments about Away: A Novel.

1. I received this book as a gift and knew nothing about it. It wasn't really what I expected but I was drawn in by the story and couldn't put it down. This book isn't always easy to read and it's not a warm and fuzzy story. Definitely on the dark side. There is a lot of sex but it isn't romantic at all. Lillian strikes me as a person who has been so traumatized by the loss of her family in Russia that she is practically dead inside. She doesn't seem to have the energy to care about herself. Then she finds out that her daughter may still be alive and she finds her reason to live. The middle part of the book was my least favorite because it was somewhat over the top. I could have used a touch more realism there. I thought the ending was great. I liked that it wasn't the expected ending but it made sense to me. I lent this to the person who gave it to me as a gift and she had almost the same reaction to it that I did. Very different story that at times is unsettling but kept my interest until the very end.



2. Full disclosure: I'm a huge Amy Bloom fan. That said, I read reviews of this book in hardcover and didn't buy it, as I'm not typically a fan of historical fiction. I should have known better, given the author's genius with human issues and the language.
   
   While traveling this week, I saw the paperback version of Away in an airport bookstore and bought it on a whim. I finished it 48 hours later after having my nose in it at every free moment of my business trip. The last paragraph brought me to tears.
   
   There are those on this website who see Lillian as unbelievable and flat. I couldn't disagree more. While her adventures are wild and varied, and she shows little emotion regardless of what befalls her, I find that people who have been traumatized do exhibit a flatness and lack of emotion that I'm sure Bloom understands (comprehends, appreciates, fathoms). Sorry, couldn't resist...that is just one of the techniques in this story that I enjoyed.
   
   As a parent, I completely understood Lillian's obsession with finding her daughter, even if her cousin's tale of Sophie's fate might have been self-serving and untrue. Lillian saw that and still clung to the hope that Sophie might be alive.
   
   Ultimately, after all she had endured, her love for John Bishop allowed her emotions to thaw and their marriage and the consequent children she bore let her accept the loss of Sophie, whether or not Sophie was still alive somewhere. I see this as akin to a child given up for adoption and never located. People learn to adapt over time, though like all grief, they carry it with them forever, and unexpected events trip it, e.g. losing John in the crowd momentarily in San Francisco years later.
   
   Finally, I appreciated (admired, esteemed, derived pleasure from) Bloom's historical detail, whether or not it was all completely factual.
   
   I recommend this bookly highly and eagerly await Amy Bloom's next tale.



3. I really liked this book at first. The writing was ethereal and fluid, pulling me in and carrying me through Lillian's story. I liked her character, and the characters around her in the first part of the book, where she is a broken hearted immigrant in NYC. Then she finds out that her daughter, whom she thought was dead, may still be alive in Russia. She takes a trek across the United States, heading for the Bering Straight with hopes of crossing to Siberia. Other reviewers have complained that its a ridiculous premise, but I didn't think so. I felt her pain for her daughter and believed she would be determined enough to make the trip.
   
   But after she leaves NY, the book falls apart. She meets all of these characters, and the book is filled with graphic and gratuitous sex scenes that seem unnecessary as part of that narrative that had drawn me in. And in the end, this plucky determined character that I couldn't wait to get back to read about every day ends up going in a different direction than the one I got sucked into. Perhaps Bloom is trying to tell us that it's the journey that matters, but as a reader the climax of the novel left me feeling unsatisfied.



4. I've read all of Bloom's books: they have all been excellent, whether novels, short stories, or nonfiction. As soon as I saw her new book in the store I snatched it right up, even in hardcover. Alas, even Mighty Casey once struck out. The narrative here wandered with no apparent sense of direction, taking time off in the middle for an irrelevant and distracting "lesbians in prison" diversion.
   
   Here are haunting portraits of the people the heroine leaves behind in New York, and lines that are worth the trudge to find. But I'm used to Bloom having a transcendent and unconventional vision to convey, and I didn't catch one here.
   
   Read Even a Blind Man or Come to Me, and Bloom will knock you for a loop. I'll never forget Love Is Not a Pie. She seems to be taking a detour here, maybe trying out new dance steps. I miss the Amy Bloom I met through her other books, and will hope to come across her again.



5. This is a quest novel with a difference. Like Brecht, Amy Bloom has provided a constructivist montage which captures a time and an experience in memorial fashion.
   
   Lillian Leyb has survived the worst of horrors in Europe--the loss of her entire family, murdered in a pogrom by people they formerly considered neighbors. In the space of minutes, the 22-year-old Lillian becomes an orphan, a widow and the mother of a dead child. In response to a letter from a cousin she's never met Lillian sells what little there is left of her homestead and sails for New York in 1924 "...wearing a dead woman's coat, holding a dead man's leather bag" in search of Opportunity.
   
   She soon discovers all is not sweetness and light. Like emigrants then (and now) she soon discovers going from one place to another does not necessarily make life perfect. The tenements are crowded. There are rats and noise and dirt. There is fierce competition for jobs. There is a new language to learn. There is prejudice. There is never enough money for all that is required in the new life.
   
   Lillian's father had told her smart is good, pretty is useful but lucky is better than both. He also told her "You make your own luck." She believes that. She also believes in Opportunity. She outsmarts another girl to win a seamstress job. She woos a handsome actor who installs her in an apartment as his mistress only to learn he is gay and it is his father whose mistress she will be. Still, life is better and she accepts the arrangement.
   
   Then a newly arrived relative informs Lillian her daughter is not dead but was rescued and taken to Siberia by another family.
   
   Shaken, Lillian begins another quest to retrieve her daughter, crossing the country, going up to the Yukon, buying a boat and attempting to sail across the Bering Strait. Some have found this segment unrealistic. But I don't think so. Wouldn't most mothers go to any lengths to reunite with a lost child?
   
   In addition to Lillian, who is a memorable, admirable character in her own right, there are a host of other wonderful characters in this novel. The Bursteins, father and son; Yaakov Shimmelman, whose friendship with Lillian restores purpose to his life for a time; the prostitute, Gumdrop, and her pimp, Snooky Salt; Chinky Chang, the grifter who also believes in Opportunity, among others.
   
   This is a gritty, funny and poignant book and well worth the read.

5 comments about The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay.

1. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay was an instant popular and critical success when it came out in 2000 being nominated for a raft of awards. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2001 and Hollywood has been sniffing around it ever since. Michael Chabon the author wrote the only known screenplay, which struggled to reduce a 635-page book to a 2-hour film. At one point, the cast was Toby Maguire (Peter in Spiderman) to play Sam Clay, Natalie Portman (V for Vendetta) to play Rosa Saks and Jude Law to play Joe Kavalier.
   
   The difficulties for the film is what makes the book a joy as it starts in 1938 as Superman bursts on the scene and ends in 1954 as the Kefauver Senate hearings delivers the death blow to a declining comic book industry. A central theme is the roles of the Jews in the comic book industry: it explored the mythology of comic hero and its impact Joe and Sam own struggles and personal journeys form the stories of the Escapist which in turn shape their lives. Sam struggling to come to terms with being Gay and Joe trying to rescue his family stuck in an increasingly bleak Nazi run Prague. It also explores the historical rip off the artists and writers of the period. Superman's creators did not come into the real money until the blockbuster Superman movies and a court case prised the money out of Hollywood's coffers. Historical characters from the period from the comic industry and the movie, art and political world some in and out of the story. The Escapist also draws on Joe Kavalier's training and experience of magic and Houdini type tricks and the impact this has on his life.
   
   The writing is a tour deforce so that you hear, touch and smell the period. Each character has their own voice and even minor characters when they enter the story in a few paragraphs you have their back-story and motives seamlessly woven in so they become real characters. The point of view moves from character to character and no easy option or resolution is allowed as the story builds to the magic trick ending. Scenes are comic one minute and bitterly tragic the next as you join in the roller coaster of their lives. Yes I am going say it...if you only have the chance to read one book this year make it this one, you wont be disappointed.



2. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is the story of Sammy Clay and Joe Kavalier, cousins, Jews, reaching their young manhood during WWII. It ends in 1954 in a suburb of New York.
   
   Sammy and Joe invent a comic book hero, The Escapist, based on their early childhood experiences. They grow up, fall in love, have disappointments... I want to tell the WHOLE STORY here, but there's so much to it that I couldn't do it justice. You just have to want to read a book about Jewish boys, New York in the 40s and 50s, Czechoslovakia, WWII, comic books, suburbs, the Navy, The Empire State Building, and love.
   
   This book is rich. It's rich in the storyline and in the language and sentence structure. Michael Chabon is generous with detail and subplots and lets you enjoy his characters as he develops their lives. I really liked Sammy and Joe and Rosa and Tommy.
   
   Joe is the most complicated of the characters and if I actually stand back and review his actions I'm still puzzled at some of the things he did in response to the crises of his life. It's a pleasant sort of puzzlement and doesn't detract from my loving this book.
   
   It is a very long book - 635 pages in trade paperback - and there were a few slow parts for me, but once I got to about page 250 or so, it took off. In looking back, I see how everything Chabon wrote in the early parts that were less interesting to me contributed to the book as a whole.



3. Now THIS is truly an exemplary work of art. This book works on a very high plane on so many different levels. One can certainly read and enjoy this book for the plot, which moves along at a brisk, entertaining pace. At the same time, the characters are so well developed, so realistic, so believable and so fascinating. Given the quasi-historical backdrop of the novel, some historical persons, such as Salvador Dali, Orson Wells, and Alfred Smith, are interwoven into the story in a meaningful way, giving us a window into time and place. Along the same line, Chabon gives what I understand to be a relatively accurate account of the development of the American art of comic books, both pre and post-World War II. Apparently, comics books not only reflected the times, but helped shape them. For me, the icing on the cake was the wonderful symbolic interplay between the characters of the novels, the characters of the comic books they created, elements of judaic folklore (particularly, the "golem," being a clay "protector"==the ancient equivalent to a superhero (while a main character's surname was Sam Clay), and the repeated use of themes, most significantly, "escape," to tie these elements together. These themes were so cleverly interwoven into the story, I suspect a second reading would uncover many missed the first time around.
   
   In creating my Amazon reviews, I am generally a tough critic. Typically, I am only willing to bestow 5 stars on those very special, very deserving, very rare books--my own personal best of the best of the best. For me, this book fits into that category, deserving of all of the plaudits it has received. One of the best books I have read in a long time, a compelling store, written in the timeless manner of truly fine literature--a true tour de force.
   
   Enjoy.
   
   Kenny



4. The Amazing Adventures is not just one of the best books you are likely to read in a while, it is one of the most beautiful.
   
   Beginning in Prague before moving, through various unexpected locations, to New York, the novel tracks the lives of a Czechoslovak refugee and his American cousin, both adolescents at the start of the story, in the first years of WWII. The young men are obsessed with action comics in what is the genre's golden age, and they become their own characters on the brimming, coloured pages they create. But the war, and the protagonists' family past, keep interfering.
   
   This is a coming of age story, and at the same time it is about the healing power of art or - if that sounds trite - about redemption through dreams and imagination. It is both interesting and, to borrow from the comics' own hero, a major piece of escape artistry. It is fast paced and engrossing; I found myself wishing it wouldn't end as I neared the last few pages. But the reasons why this novel is so powerful must distil down to two: the characters are at once human and irresistibly likeable, and the book, without verging into the fantastic, creates, around comics, a world of its own, lush, vivid, pungently attractive. And Chabon's style is stunning. There is pleasure in re-reading some of his turns of phrase and at the same time it is clear and direct. It is also packed with entertaining details that show the massive research which must have gone into the work. The early chapters contain minor historical errors, seemingly intentional. See if you can spot them!



5. First off, this novel never gets boring, which is quite an achievement for something so long. Chabon does an impressive job of telling the tale of two cousins with different backgrounds. Yet while the story and delivery are first-rate, there isn't exactly a literary message per se beyond keys, locks and imprisonment, be this last of the physical, social, mental or emotional sort. Sure, you could go back and write a book report about that sort of symbolism, but you don't really come away from the novel the same way you might with "Catcher in the Rye," "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter," "Elmer Gantry" or "The Great Gatsby," but then those have weathered the test of time and "Kavalier and Clay" might suffer from being a work of contemporary fiction in that regard. What author who writes today really attains that kind of status in the here and now? Irving, Updike and Cormac McCarthy . . . maybe.

5 comments about Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl.

1. It's very unfortunate that some people in our country remain uneducated and uncompassionate about the facts behind the premeditated murder that occurred during Adolph Hitler's reign. There is also a great lack of proper spelling, grammar and punctuation amongst the one and two star reviewers in the Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl reviews. All of these facts are reasons to be concerned for the future of our youth and their education in english and world history. The great tragedy of all is that there is still doubt that the Holocaust really happened and was very horrible, there is still doubt that six million people were really murdered and doubt that the diary of Anne Frank was really authored by one of these murder victims. Hopefully we as individuals can speak for those 6,000,000 innocent murder victims, without forgetting the casualties of World War II and the millions of troops who gave the full measure of devotion and make a difference by speaking up when we hear someone deny or misinterpret the facts.



2. Anne Frank was an aspiring writer, a young lady, and Jewish girl who was in hiding in the attic in Amsterdam, Netherlands during the horrors of World War II. Anne's personal diary resurrects the actual horrors of the war and the holocaust which claimed her life as well as her mother, sister, and other residents in the attic. Life was hard enough as a Jewish girl in Hitler's time, it was practically impossible to survive much less thrive. This diary explains how Anne coped with daily horrors and daily living situation being unable to speak above a whisper rather than not be heard. Her legacy is her diary and it humanizes the inhuman experiences that harmed so many innocent people regardless of religion, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation. Anne writes candidly about her struggles with a sense of optimism. We can only imagine how she survived and thrived in the attic despite her circumstances. You never get the sense that she blamed the world or others for her situation. She has this sense of optimism and hope all through out despite her fate as she died in Bergen-Belsen right before liberation. I wonder if she had lived that the world would never get to know this fascinating young girl as she transformed into a young lady of so much promise and hope. She gives us all hope that life is not always doomed but it's how you look at it.



3. I was in a training course sitting and drawing roses in my note book, the instructor - out of the blue -decided to choose the one girl with no attention to stand in the middle of the class room and tell a story that will grab everycody's attention. he wanted to see if we can actually make the right choice. I was really surprised and nervous. i stood there and talked about the one story that grabed my attention lately specialy with the fact that i just came from Amsteredam. I talked about Anne and her story, her diary and the amazing sense of words and expressions she had. I talked to them about my passion towards her days and her hidden Annexe she hide in for almost 2 years. everybody listened and were totally into the story and me . The book is amazing, its a different kind of diary and different type of memoir. Its really an amazing story for an amazing young story teller.



4. I am probably being redundant when I say this, but this was a profound book. This was a rare look into the life of a Jew living in hiding during Nazi occupation that shaped the worlds understanding of this dreadful persecution. Anne begins as a spoiled and restless child, but her time in hiding definitely changes her. She becomes more precocious and reflective, sharing her insightful thoughts with her diary. She comments on her parents, her living conditions, her learning pursuits, politics and the war, her desire to be loved, among many other things. Of course, there is great conflict in the "Secret Annex" with eight people living in such close quarters for over two years, but it reveals the fragility of human nature when confronted with such tension. Anne's descriptions allow the reader to easily imagine their plight and her writing matures throughout. Anne's diary is a timeless and necessary piece of literature. The tragedy of her death is nothing compared to her devotion to humanity.



5. Sometimes you wonder to what purpose a person releases the details of a love ones life after death. This is just such a case. I will admit, I did not read the book as instructed in school, or many of the books forced upon us. As an adult, I went back and read many of them to see what I had missed (like the Red Badge of Courage, Uncle Toms Cabine, Tom Sawyer, etc.). This book from the hype would seem to be a literary masterpiece, rather, what it turns out to be is a rudementarry, and purposely selected piece of a little girls journal. If the purpose of the book was to delve into the mind of a teenage girl of the 1940's who does not get on well with her family or others, and seem a bit spoiled, it is a glowing success. The problem here is that it is meant to showcase a little girl in hiding from the Nazi's during WWII. To this it fails in that it merely touches on those issues (other than the ad nauseum complaints that Anne Frank makes about her inconveniences). I also get the feeling that this was severly edited to make the father look better than he was (in that he released the book), while making everyone else the villan. I guess this book is timeless in that most teenagers today have the same rants and raves. If you are reading it looking for historical perspective of a Jewish teen in hiding, you will not get much more than the backdrop which leaks through every now and again, since all the rest could truly be the rants of a teen of any generation. I know this review will be unpopular since this book is considered a modern day classic from our generation, I just feel there are numerous books that are far better at demostrating the attrocities, and difficulties of living through World War II, and going into hiding as a Jew during that time period. I was dissapointed.

5 comments about Those Who Save Us.

1. A truly great read and an amazing story. This is one of those books that I have to pass on anybody who likes to read and I know they will love it.



2. I bought this book on a whim so I could have enough to qualify for free shipping with another book order. I am glad I did. I was moved by the story of a German woman and her daughter and their struggle to survive during the war, living in a bakery situated near Buchenwald. I liked how the author wove the tale of their past with their present day life in America, and that it was told from the German perspective. I think this story was meant to convey the idea that one of the main characters, Anna, was not an enabler of Nazi war crimes, nor was she unsympathetic to the plight of the Jewish (as she did all she could to help them), but her main concern was her daughter's survival, and was willing to do anything to ensure it, even though she had to live with the guilt of it later in her life. It was a guilt was so overwhelming that she refused to speak about it after the war. I found it interesting that the author called her silence an inviolable right, even though her daughter had a similar right to know the truth. It took me about halfway through the book to realize what the title meant, but some may realize sooner. There is one incredulous moment near the end of the book, where the other main character Trudie *spoiler alert* comes to find out about her true lineage. It just seemed too convenient, but aside from that I thoroughly loved this book and would read it again as well as recommend it to anyone who is interested in reading about WWII or the Holocaust. There are several extremely sad accounts of atrocities committed by Nazis that sounded like they could have been inspired by true events. This is definitely a page turner IMO.



3. "Those Who Save Us" is another in a line of historical fiction that provides American readers the opportunity to feel morally superior to the Germans defeated in the Second World War. In this instance, the observation is about German women and their relations with Nazi officers and the Jewish race.
   
   Jenna Blum beautifully writes about a German woman, who hides and is impregnanted by a Jewish physician. The story is split between this woman caught in Wiemar throughout the war, and the daughter who resulted from her Jewish physician and her modern existence. Needless to say, the physician is found and sent to a nearby concentration camp. Eventually, the German mother prostitutes herself to a high-ranking SS officer for the benefit of her daughter.
   
   For the remainder of the war, she continues in her role. After the war, she moves to America as a war bride and proceeds to punish herself, her American husband, and her daughter for all that she had done. In the meanwhile, her daughter struggles to find an appropriate sense of self due to her mother's vaunted culpability. As an historian, she attempts this by interviewing Germans about their war experiences. In the end, we are informed that the average German took advantage of their Jewish neighbors, acted as prostitutes for the German army, and disowned any moral culpability by means of puerile self-denial.
   
   While I might disagree with the overarching anti-Germanic tone of this novel, I will add that it was generally well-crafted. For the sake of classroom discussion, it might find itself read against the backdrop of a reasonable historiography of what the life of an average German was really like during the war.



4. Those who save Us caught me right from the start. World War II fascinates me- esp. the Holocaust and the Nazi regime. This book tells the story of Anna, a young woman who becomes a Nazi officer's mistress to save her daughter. This book made me cry- it made me so angry when people judged her! The novel doesn't have qoutetation marks, which at first set me off, but after reading the book I think it didn't need them. Without qoutetation marks, the story takes on a quaint, sepia feel. Jenna Blum did a wonderful job and I hope she writes something new soon!



5. Those Who Save Us was gripping and page turning. I could not put it down. I love novels that jump between two seperate people telling stories that are intertwined and that is exactly what this book is.

5 comments about Certain Girls: A Novel.

1. Can the heroine of Good in Bed, Cannie Shapiro, screw up her happily ever after life, where she is married to the handsome doctor Peter Krushelevansky and is the mother of a her daughter Joy? Especially since Joy is now a teenager and Shapiro's perfect husband wants to expand their perfect family?



2. I think readers need to remember that this book is set many years after Good In Bed was written so, essentially, you're being introduced to a character who, while she may bear a resemblance to her younger self, is a changed person. I think that is actually one of the most fascinating things about this book, to have watched a character become engulfed so fully in their domestic role as a mother and wife, even despite the success of her career as a novelist. It is this character shift that held my interest throughout this book, an at times disappointing but also sympathetic feeling of understanding, knowing that all of us grow up and lose bits of ourselves as we take on other roles in life.
   
   That being said, I did think the storyline didn't manage to follow any real path until the very end. This book at times almost felt like an exercise in trying to write descriptive passages with humor, one after another, and didn't quite gel together into a cohesive story. This makes the ending all the more jarring, and not necessarily in a good way. I suppose maybe that was for effect, but I didn't think it worked all that well, especially given the more genial tone of the pages that came before it.
   
   Overall, a pretty good read but not one of Jennifer Weiner's finest efforts. However, as a revisit to an old, beloved character, it was certainly enjoyable.



3. I really loved this book, because Good in Bed left me wanting more of a story. While Certain Girls is different... I still loved how Weiner treated the story.



4. I enjoyed this book. I have read several of the criticisms from others, about how Cannie obsessed over her weight, and how she obsessed over her daughter, but as women, don't we all obsess over different things? (A wise person once told me 'As a parent we spend 50% of our time making decisions, and the other 50% of the time second guessing them') Ms. Wiener wrote a wonderful book, and Cannie has grown up. She has a different set of issues now, especially with her daughter. As for the surprise towards the end, I wasn't expecting it, but as we all know, tragedy often strikes when we least expect it. I think that Cannie handled it like a real person would have handled it. I would love to see another book with Cannie and the next chapter of her life.



5. This book was great. I loved that it was written in the first person with chapters alternating between the mother's perspective and the daughter's perspective. I love books written in this style, but it was particularly enjoyable with the mother/daughter dynamic. Any mother would love this book. I highly recommend it - and every other book written by the talented Ms. Weiner!

5 comments about People of the Book: A Novel.

1. No spoiler here...I loved the book!
   
   I think it is a book to be read twice. It is like a "nested doll"; each segment is built on the one that follows. But, it goes backwards.
   
   The story begins with Hanna who is hired to preserve the Sarajevo Haggaadah. She discovers a few clues as to its provenance...a hair, a bit of salt, a stain, missing clips and an insect wing.
   
   Each "clue" takes us further back into the history of the Haggadah. And, when it does, takes us back into another time where you understand how that little bit of something is part of the history of this Haggadah.
   
   In real life, there is a Sarajevo Haggadah; this is what it's provenance might have been.



2. simply wonderful. Beautifully written, brilliantly researched and compelling.
   
   Geraldine Brooks gets better with every novel. I highly recommend this.



3. When do we consider loss in our own lives? What cost and what effect does loss have on our everyday existence? Is it traumatic only when a loved one passes or is there more of a sense of collective loss when looking at centuries of war, loss of life or needless destruction of towns and cities? How do we measure that loss compared to a loss of love or even when a beloved object goes missing? In reading Geraldine Brooks' novel, one comes away with a personal reflection of what loss means.
   
   PEOPLE OF THE BOOK integrates all of the various and very dissimilar kinds of loss by telling the story of a journey of a beautiful rare meticulously engraved Haggadah.
   
   Pulitzer prize winner Geraldine Brooks does a terrific job with this story. She was able to weave the true story of this missing prayer book into a well written historical fiction novel.
   
   Hanna Heath is our protagonist who is an Australian book conservator summoned to investigate the authenticity of this newly surfaced gem of a prayer book which had been saved from a Bosnian museum by a librarian.
   
   Hanna makes a series of discoveries while examining the find as any ancient book conservator would. She uncovers an insect wing, a thin strand of white hair, a stain that appears to be blood or wine, and some evidence that the prayer book had been near or around salt water. The investigation takes us back in time through centuries to the 1480's in Seville.
   
   Brooks so competantly weaves a tale with intimate details and she introduces us to all of the PEOPLE who touched or were changed by this BOOK. The true story of the Haggadah is a beautiful and intimate study of the basic goodness of mankind through difficult and ominous events and Brooks is successful in capturing that quality in her literary art.
   
   PROS:
   
   Hanna's investigation leads us and her into the depths of intrigue, deception, and suspense. The journey of the book itself helps Hanna find out more about herself as well as truths she never knew existed. Fantastic weaving together of truth and fiction.
   
   CONS:
   
   Only one for me: the last chapter. It was just a little too pat and a bit incredulous. The main reason for this wonderful book not being a perfect five.
   
   Recommended: B
   
   People of the Book: A Novel
   
   
   Bentley/2008



4. This story is so well written. The diverse people involved in the books history and the mysteries of what eventually became of them spark the imagination. I wanted to know more, but really there was no need, it was obvious in most cases. The author was perfect at changing writing styles and placing me in the mini-worlds of these tragic figures. On finishing the book I immediately went on line and looked at pictures of the actual illuminations. It was both intellectually stimulating and a very good read. I look forward to enjoying more from this author.



5. Disappointing even for a fluff novel. The Wikipedia article on the Sarajevo Haggadah is a more interesting read. Historical fiction needs either a quality retelling of history or a quality story to get by, and this book offers neither. There's precious little known of the Sarajevo Haggadah's existence, so Brooks imagines a series of events throughout its existence interwoven with a bit of modern-day drama. But she apparently went for the Dan Brown approach by inventing physical details of the book itself, throwing off the balance between history and fiction. The pattern of revealing a detail and immediately following it with a chapter set in the past is too contrived and trite even for mindless beach reading. It's certainly interesting to wonder about this book's journey through the years, but Brooks' imagined history offers little to recommend it.

5 comments about Night (Oprah's Book Club).

1. A must read so we will not forget that the civilized world swore we would not allow this to happen again. To our shame our country turned a blind eye to Rwanda and Darfur because we have forgotten.
   
   This book is a quick read, but has a long lasting impact.



2. I liked this book but its sad. I got this book because I like history and wanted to know more about what happened in WWII.



3. This novel to me portrays the absolute depravity and madness that humanity can fall into. The beginning superbly portrays the false hope that many people had that this situation would just blow over until it was too late despite the warnings from many people that it was just beginning. The language is so heart-rending and drips with rhetoric and deep meaning that sears the soul. The authors portrayal of his loss of faith and soul is so beautiful and yet so devastating in it's simple clarity that I felt I was there with him losing my mind. The deaths of those around him and the way he explains it makes me feel like their deaths weren't in vain and are left unsullied by his beautiful words. There is only one thing I would wish for this novel and that would be for it to be longer...I was left wanting to hear more about what happened.



4. Man's inhumanity to man from one who survived it.
   
   As Mr. Wiesel notes in the introduction of his book, words can not--do not--describe what it was like--must have been like--to endure man's inhumanity to man. We in this day and time can't imagine, can't begin to fathom, what Mr. Wiesel's words try to describe.
   
   The Holocaust, combined with the Russian Army's treatment of German women and with Japanese treatment of the Chinese surely must mark one of the darkest, most despicable times of man upon the earth.
   
   Where, in deed, was God?
   
   Yet, because we are still here--the Director did not come on stage and stop the play to use C.S. Lewis' imagery--there is still hope. God has not yet given up on man, but sometimes we wonder--at times like Mr. Wiesel describes--why He hasn't. He must see something, some possibility in man that we don't always see ourselves--and sometimes try very hard to hide and overcome.
   
   Mr. Wiesel's Nobel Prize acceptance, coming as it does, at the end of the book, is one of the most powerful statements ever made about man's responsibility--about our individual responsibility--to stand up for those who need our help and support.
   
   Abraham Lincoln may have said it best in his Gettysburg Address, "...That these dead have not died in vain...."
   
   Mr. Wiesel's work speaks powerfully toward that end.



5. I've never read such a short book with such a huge impact. When I read this as part of a college class, we learned that it was originally some 600 pages long. Then the author decided to cut it down to the absolute bare bones - and it worked brilliantly.
   
   Too much writing could cushion the devastation - getting bogged down in details could allow a reader to become jaded. However, such stark minimalism forces a reader to think about what is being said. And significantly, Wiesel doesn't describe every horror. He leads us to the brink, and lets the reader imagine the next step. Rather like watching a horror movie and seeing a character walk into the dark without seeing what happens to them. Just as many Jewish families had to do during this time, when loved ones were taken away never to return. The intentionally large gaps between some of the paragraphs faithfully evoke the silence the author needs to convey so a reader must contemplate what has passed.
   
   Much like "The Color Purple" evoked the reality of blacks in that time with the deceptively simple diary of one young black woman, "Night" reveals the tangible horror the Jews faced around WWII from the eyes of a Jewish boy. I have seen the film version of The Color Purple, and also Schindler's List. Both are strong films, but they lack the power of this simple narrative. The best book I have ever read about the tragedy of the Holocaust.