I won this book from Goodreads a while ago, and finally got around to reading it. I have to say, it was a different book. At first, I was irritated. JI won this book from Goodreads a while ago, and finally got around to reading it. I have to say, it was a different book. At first, I was irritated. Joyce wrote some beautiful prose, which I really enjoyed, and the storyline was weird, kind of unbelievable, but very interesting. But, the characters seemed more caricatures than real. But, then again, I got to know them better and enjoy them!
Miss Benson is in her 40's, never married, not very attractive, and loathes her teaching job. She is accustomed to people either ignoring her or making fun of her. We learn a bit about her background, such as this info about her father: "...he opened a book called Incredible Creatures. It looked important, like the Bible or an encyclopedia, and there was a general smell of old things, but that could well have been him." From her father, she became obsessed about beetles, and after a humiliating experience at her job, she decides to go to New Caledonia to locate the Golden Beetle. She then places an ad in the paper to find a French-speaking assistant., and ends up with Enid Pretty. "Her doctor said an expedition to the other side of the world might kill her, while her bank manager warned she didn't have enough funds. Also, she was a lady. 'Thank you,' said Margery. It was possibly the nicest thing anyone had said to her in years."
Margery learns: "You night travel to the other side of the word, but in the end it made no difference: whatever devastating unhappiness was inside you would come, too."
Margery and Enid are quite unlike, but end up growing to trust and appreciate each other. Along the way, they have quite a bit of excitement: a hallucinating, ill former POW is obsessed with being Margery's assistant, a lady from the British consulate in New Caledonia suspects the women of spying, Enid is pregnant.......
I am surprised that I enjoyed Margery's progression from rigidity and fear to a more fully confident capable woman. A few scenes toward the end surprised me - it definitely wasn't a "happily ever after" story, but the actual ending I loved.
some more good quotes: "She was a sweet person, but her intelligence she saved for special occasions." "Time changed shape, inelegantlyand without Margery's permission." "It was so much easier to have difficult conversations with Enid when she wasn't there." "Margery loved the vastness of the forest. The aristocracy of the trees seemed to link with something inside her, and she had the strangest sense that, even though she was on the other side of the world. she was in a place she'd known all her life." "It occurred to her that where she was now was not the ending she'd written in her mind." "She had traveled to the other side of the world but the distance she'd covered inside herself was immeasurable."
So - many things to love about this book...what a nice surprise!...more
I received this book from Goodreads quite a while ago, and kept putting off reading it because I had so many library books on hold. But - I finally goI received this book from Goodreads quite a while ago, and kept putting off reading it because I had so many library books on hold. But - I finally got around to it, and what a great read!
I think Walter is such a great writer. He does a lot of research, and uses both real and fictional characters, and is able to portray a time in history in such great detail.
This book takes place mostly in the early 1900's in Spokane, Washington. The two main characters, brothers Gig and Rye, are fictional. Gig is involved the IWW (when he isn't drinking) and Rye is just 16 when the story begins. Life in the west is hard, and Walter describes it in detail. There seems to be even more of a class divide in those times, and law enforcement is definitely the take. Overcrowded jails are the norm, women are merely objects to be used in the mining towns. Except - Elizabeth Gurley Flynn. She was a real person - an outspoken supporter of unions, later to become president of the communist party. Sometimes it's hard to figure out who's bad and who's good, and who's capable of changing, who's simply acting a part out of necessity. The novel War and Peace plays a big role in the story, too - how it supports, comforts, explains life, especially to Rye.
There were some great quotes, too: "It was too much. All of it, too much, and Rye cried at the too-muchness of it."
"Ethics? Did Rye have those? He'd slept and shat in people's yards and stolen their food, he had been drunk and sacrilegious and disparaging, Was the peak of tramp ethics seeing a dead girl on a train car and not going through her pockets?"
"Give money to a monkey and he'll fill his cage with bananas. Give the same money to a dim American and he'll build a show library every time."
"Rye stared at the wrinkled bill. A stray thought: If I spend this, I will no longer have it. This was the crazy thing about wealth: You only had it if you didn't use it, but if you didn't use it, there was no value in having it..."
I really did enjoy this story. Parts were depressing, but it sure opened my eyes to a historical period I hadn't read much about. ...more
It sure is funny how sometimes you end up reading a "wave" of books. A few years ago, I ended up reading a lot of books about Paris. Then, it seemed aIt sure is funny how sometimes you end up reading a "wave" of books. A few years ago, I ended up reading a lot of books about Paris. Then, it seemed as if Lindbergh was appearing in a lot of the books I read. Now, this is my second book in a row dealing with the apocalypse/rapture. Very interesting. I definitely preferred Station Eleven - a much more detailed, involved, adult story, whereas this was a young adult book. But - this was also surprisingly good. Vivian Apple is a 17-year-old whose parents have just gone through the Rapture. She comes home one day, and finds two holes in the ceiling in their bedroom, through which they apparently went to heaven! What an interesting beginning to a story! The Church of America, led by Pastor Frick, is the religion that has been predicting this rapture for some time now. He wrote the Book of Frick - an alternate sort of Bible that is really quite scary and repressive, but because three thousand people were raptured, more and more citizens are believing in this religion. Also, there have been many terrorist activities and weather abnormalities that have made people believers. It gets to the point where it's Believers vs. non-Believers. and Vivian Apple is a definite non-Believer, as is her friend Harp. Many atrocities are committed in the name of religion.
I thought the characters were very interesting, but more so, the situations were well thought out. Yes, there is a love interest, because this is a young adult book, but Peter was a good character too. Vivian and her friends decide to head to California to get to the headquarters and see if they can find any more information. meanwhile, most people are expecting a second rapture to come, and then the end of the world.
I didn't find the book depressing - it was an adventure novel. The author did a good job showing the foolishness/danger of categorizing people as part of a particular group rather than as individuals. I also enjoyed Vivian's growth as a character that wasn't just a meek nobody but had to learn to think for herself. Meekness CAN BE powerful, but not if it means just going along with the crowd and not standing up for what's right. I had absolutely no idea how the story would end, and I have to say, Coyle did an excellent job with the ending. It was definitely a satisfying read!...more
What a difficult review to write....... this is a book I probably never would have picked up on my own, but since I won it on Goodreads, I was definitWhat a difficult review to write....... this is a book I probably never would have picked up on my own, but since I won it on Goodreads, I was definitely going to read it. The story deals with a secret organization called The Faith - a group of whom commit a mass suicide on New Year's Eve. The main character is The Judge, Dominique Carpentier, who is investigating the case. Much of the mystery surrounds The Composer. At first, it was a little off-putting, referring to the characters as such, but I got used to it. I thought the author writes beautifully. she is able to describe scenes with an artist's eye. there is not fast-paced action, but the story is so fascinating and captivating that it impels you to move forward. The story was provocative, in that it forces the reader (me, at least) to think about cult vs. sect vs. religion vs. charisma. Sometimes the dialogue was in French or German, and although you could get the gist of it, it was very different from the standard English novel. Here were some good thoughts to ponder: No one is worthless just because they believe something different from me. Do I have the right to condemn anyone? Everything already is both before us and within us. "The truth cannot be spoken clearly and with conviction, and remain unheard." I also appreciated the fact that the Judge corrected the Composer's belief that Christian Science is a sect. She assumed he was confusing it with Scientology, and suggested he read Science & Health! At first, because it was slow moving, I was thinking it would probably be a 2-3 star novel, but as I got into it, I thought - wow - this will be 5 stars. My only disappointment was the ending. It wasn't bad, but too abrupt for my thinking. ...more
What an interesting book! After reading the first 50 pages or so, I couldn't decide if I was going to like this book, or even if I wanted to finish itWhat an interesting book! After reading the first 50 pages or so, I couldn't decide if I was going to like this book, or even if I wanted to finish it. I had not read Leah Stewart's other books, and had won this on Goodreads. My first complaint was that I just didn't like the main characters. Sarah, the narrator, seemed kind of whiny. But - I am really glad I persevered in reading the book! the more I read, the more I liked Stewart's writing. And I was actually interested in how the story turned out. Anyway - the "plot" involves Sarah and Nathan, a young couple with two young children. Nathan is an author who has just written a book titled "Infidelity" - and he confesses to Sarah that part of it is true - he was unfaithful to her about a year ago. The rest of the 300+ pages is essentially Sarah trying to come to grips with this revelation. She DOES do a lot of whining, and feeling sorry for herself, and behaving irresponsibly. But the more I read, the more I believe that many of her thoughts were probably universal. It is interesting to imagine ourselves as either Nathan or Sarah - and comparing our current lives with what we were, or how we imagined ourselves in younger days. Can we ever go back to our old self? Or is our old self really part of us now? I really think this would be a good book to discuss in a book group. ...more
This was a great book to win from Goodreads. I probably would not have bought it on my own, but I am actually glad I read it. It is a fictionalized acThis was a great book to win from Goodreads. I probably would not have bought it on my own, but I am actually glad I read it. It is a fictionalized account of Louisa May Alcott's love affair that possibly inspired the character of Laurie in Little Women. the author did a lot of research, and wrote with great detail about life in the mid 1800's. she does paint a good picture. I also appreciated learning more about Bronson Alcott, Louisa's father. What a life of poverty they endured, due in large part to the fact that Bronson was more interested in debating and thinking about the meaning of life and transcendentalism instead of working. anyway - my big complaint about the story, though, is that Louisa is way too wishy-washy about her feelings for Joseph. It seemed like every other page had her swooning or dreaming about him, and then getting angry when he paid attention to her. I found Joseph (a fictional character) more likeable than Louisa. But, overall, it was a quick read and portrayed a time in history that was fascinating. A great quote: "Life was moving on and she approached each day the way she would cope with a rotting front tooth and no dentist nearby. One learned to smile with her lips closed."...more
This was such a surprising book. I was expecting kind of an espionage story with lots of action. What I got was a slow-moving, thoughtful story that pThis was such a surprising book. I was expecting kind of an espionage story with lots of action. What I got was a slow-moving, thoughtful story that provided me with a lot to think about. I like both types of books, but since I wasn't expecting that out of this book, it was a nice treat! I won this book from Goodreads, and what a great prize it was - I might not have chosen it otherwise.
The story is about a little girl and her brother, whose mother dies in a car crash. Because that takes place in the early 60's, much has been in the news about spies and double agents, etc. Peter, the brother, begins to suspect that perhaps their mother didn't really die, but was a spy. A few coincidences occur to support that possibility. Because that seed of doubt was planted (and doubt is power, as the author says), the desire to solve the "mystery" of her death continues to haunt the children into their adult years.
I thought the author painted wonderful pictures with words, and got me examining some things in my own life. The narrator of the story was the girl - I can't even think of her name - and action moves back and forth from the past to the present. Haven't we all just done "stuff" to take time, like the girl in the story who plays piano scales, builds card houses, and polishes silver in order to keep from thinking about reality?
Harding's story deals with the desire of most people to want to make sense of their past, to attach a logical reason for why things happen. Life is complicated, though, as the narrator finds out, and things aren't always what they appear. and if things aren't what they appear - it isn't necessarily bad. Sometimes it turns out to be a method of survival to reinvent yourself. And, as Harding sums it up: "This is what the whole world is doing: clearing, forgetting, reconstructing."
I thoroughly enjoyed the story - it was a fairly quick read, but carefully written. My only complaint - and perhaps this will be taken care of by the editor - is the failure to use the subjunctive. I don't know why it bothers me so much, but when a thoughtful book has "If I was" instead of "If I were", it grates on me! and there were at least 3 instances of that in the book. But - if that's the worst thing about it - so be it!...more
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