Murder in the Desert

When Bec and Jen and I decided to come up with a series of books the Ethereal Readers book club would read instead of voting separately for each book, we wanted to offer a variety. This past year we've read a nonfiction, an historical fiction, a classic, and a Christmas book. We also decided to offer a mystery, since we (really meaning Bec and me) love mysteries. Thus, Damage Control, by J.A. Jance.

Damage Control is the 13th book in a series of 16 books featuring Cochise County Sheriff Joanna Brady as the protagonist. I had never read a book by Ms. Jance. I looked forward to reading this book as this particular series takes place in real-life Cochise County in southern Arizona, specifically in the town of Brisbee. While I’m much more familiar with the area around Phoenix, it still was fun to understand and relate to the climate and topographical issues faced by this fictional sheriff.

Damage Control takes place during the monsoon season, when the rains come as deluges and flooding prevails because of the clay earth. I’ve never actually been here during monsoon season, but I have seen the results of heavy rains, and I could fully understand what the citizens of Cochise County faced.

I thought the storyline was great, though I must admit the fact that the scene that transpired in the prologue wasn’t addressed until almost the end of the book was somewhat disconcerting. In fact, I had completely forgotten about it until it came up again at the end of the book when we learn that the person killed was the boyfriend of the murdered developmentally disabled girl. Whaaaaaaat????

But other than that, I enjoyed the story. Having read about a billion mysteries in my life, I was knew from the get-go that the elderly couple didn’t commit suicide – or at least only did so as a result of some bad action by someone else. The fact that Sheriff Brady figures out what happened when there was somewhere around 40 pages left in the book made me wonder if she was wrong and it was going to be someone else. I began suspecting one of the daughters. I was glad to be wrong.

Simply put, however, what I liked best about the book was Sheriff Brady herself. I found her to be a realistic portrayal of a working mother who was lucky enough to have a stay-at-home husband/baby-dad. I didn’t find her to be particularly Supermom. She was often tired and crabby. She fought with her own mom. (I assume if I read earlier accounts of her life, I will find out what exactly caused the dissention between Brady and her mother.)

The scene depicting the funeral of the murdered sheriff’s deputy was very moving. There must really be very little that is sadder than a funeral for a first-responder.

I’m kind of surprised that this series has never been made into a television movie. It seems perfect.

I think that I’m going to start reading this series from the first book, Desert Heat. I love to watch characters develop throughout a long series of books.

What did you all think? Did you have the murder figured out before Sheriff Brady? Who would star in my made-for-television movie?

A Christmas Carol

This initial post is from Bec, who, as an English teacher extraordinaire, taught this book a million times. She wears her heart on her sleeve with this one!

Kris asked if I would like to write our initial post because she knows how much I love this book and how many times I taught it. I could write volumes about it, but I promise I won’t!

A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas is its full title. Dickens wrote it at a time when he was struggling financially. It was immediately popular, although his publisher didn’t think it would be and, consequently, refused to publish it. So Dickens put up the money himself. Good call! Readers of all social classes loved it, and some well-known people were significantly affected by it. An American industrialist was moved to close his factory for Christmas day (which was not a common practice either in the US or England); Robert Louis Stevenson vowed to help the unfortunate by giving of himself as well as his money. Historian Thomas Carlyle “sent out for a turkey and asked two friends to dine.” And, the Queen of Norway sent toys to children in London hospitals in the name of Tiny Tim. Seriously. His novel had that impact on his readers.

But, on to my thoughts. One of the aspects I love about the novel is its length. It is short and tightly woven, a book one can read in a few hours. Dickens establishes his theme, and it is apparent from beginning to end. Scrooge was a good businessman, and that was ok. But, his old partner Marley, his first spirit visitor, sets the moral of the story early on: “Mankind was my business…The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business.” Marley tells Scrooge that you can be a businessman without cutting yourself off from all personal connection. And, throughout the novel, Scrooge is shown the results of his isolationist attitude.

I also love the way Dickens portrays each of the three spirits. Christmas Past’s appearance is constantly changing, the way our memories of past events can be colored by later experiences. Christmas Present is big and bold, just as our “present” should be for us. And Christmas Yet to Come is dark and scary. He doesn’t speak or show his face, because the future is unknown. I always enjoyed teaching Dickens because he wasn’t too tricky with his symbolism…he wanted his reader to get it!

Finally, I like that Dickens doesn’t keep the reader hanging as to whether Scrooge is open to transformation. As early as Scrooge’s visit to his past, he feels remorse that he didn’t give a little something to a caroler. By the time the last of the spirits arrives, Scrooge is anxious to get on with it, because he knows time is short. And, when he wakes up on Christmas morning, he doesn’t overthink. He immediately dresses and begins changing his life…and others’.

So….my questions are these: Did you enjoy reading the book? Had you read it or had it been read to you at some earlier point? Which of the spirits resonated the most with you? Having read it, would you be more likely to read something else by Dickens? Or less!?

Prairie Girl

I was born in Nebraska, and lived there until I was 21 years old. It’s always annoyed me to hear Coloradans complain about how ugly the drive on I-80 is through Nebraska. I’ve always thought two things: first, yeah, and I-76 in Colorado is so darn beautiful (picture my eyes rolling); and second, you are driving along an interstate highway which is almost never pretty.

I grew up in a medium-sized town of 10,000 people in the middle of Nebraska farmland. While I didn’t live on a farm, it is hard to not have farming be part of your life if you live in Nebraska, whether you live in Omaha or Wilber, NE. You hear farm reports on TV and radio, there are farm implement stores everywhere, if you drive on a blue highway, you are liable to get stuck behind a tractor, and weather reports are the main topic of conversation (“will it rain,” “will it ever stop raining,” “think it will stay dry long enough to get the corn in?”

Willa Cather’s Nebraska is beautiful. Her lyrical descriptions made me think about the loveliness of rolling fields of corn and wheat, and how pretty the trees are alongside the Platte River, which runs through most of the state.

For example: “July came on with that breathless, brilliant heat which makes the plains of Kansas and Nebraska the best corn country in the world. It seemed as if we could hear the corn growing in the night; under the stars one caught a faint crackling in the dewy, heavy-odoured cornfields where the feathered stalks stood so juicy and green.”

Or, “There were none of the signs of spring for which I used to watch in Virginia, …. There was only spring itself; the throb of it, the light restlessness, the vital essence of it everywhere: in the sky, in the swift clouds, in the pale sunshine, and in the warm, high wind – rising suddenly, sinking suddenly, impulsive and playful like a big puppy that pawed you and then lay down to be petted. If I had been tossed down blindfold on that red prairie, I should have known that it was spring.”

Wow.

Cather’s characters were alive and interesting. How could you help but not love Jim, so innocent and naive, and his grandmother and grandfather, so wise and so loving. Wouldn’t you want to be part of the evening gatherings at the Harling’s home, where they sang and played games? All of these folks were honest, down-to-earth Nebraska farmers, maybe not worldly, but good and kind.

And then there was, of course, Antonia. I don’t think there is a character in any other book that I love more than Antonia. I loved her as a child, having to take on so much responsibility because her parents really didn’t or wouldn’t. I loved her as a hard-working farm girl after her father died. I even continued to love her as she spread her wings a bit after coming to work in town. Who wouldn’t have wanted to dance a bit after such a difficult life?

But I think I liked her best in the last book, Cuzak’s Boys. She had so clearly found peace in her world, which would probably drive us insane. She had molded all of those children into wonderful people. And she loved her simple husband and her difficult and simple life. And throughout all of those years, she had loved Jim Burden in a way that wasn’t jealous or resentful. And furthermore, he loved her back. What a fine and beautiful friendship.

A couple of things made me sad. I was sad that it seems that Jim never married. I didn’t really get the impression from Cather that he didn’t marry because he was pining for Antonia. I think he was just so intent on his intellectual life that he didn’t find a life companion. Perhaps he was happy that way, but he so loved being around family that I couldn’t help but feel sad for him.

The other thing that made me sad was when Jim and his grandparents moved to town, and Otto and Jake didn’t go with them. Jim tells us, “Months afterward we got a card from Otto, saying that Jake had been down with mountain fever, but now they were both working in the Yankee Girl Mine, and were doing well. I wrote to them at that address, but my letter was returned to me, ‘Unclaimed.’ After that we never heard from them.”

One other thing: Cather tells us that Mr. Harling was a grain merchant and cattle-buyer. She says, “He controlled a line of grain elevators in the little towns along the railroad to the west of us, and was away from home a great deal.” I’m sure my sisters will agree that she could be talking about the stretch of Highway 30 between Grand Island and Columbus.

I can't help myself. I give it a 10 out of 10.

Dressed Up

Just about the time that I’m thinking I’m a mess, I read about Mrs. Lincoln, and recognize that next to her, I’m Dr. Phil. Wow. That woman was one hot mess. Undoubtedly today she would be treated with antidepressants and/or medication for bipolar disorder. I recognize that she did have a lot awful things happen to her in her lifetime. I can’t imagine losing one child, much less three and a husband.

I enjoyed Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker very much. I’m glad that I saw the movie Lincoln before reading this book, because it gave me some context. Actually, however, the book made me understand some things about the movie as well. If you saw the movie, you will recall that Elizabeth Keckley was with Mrs. Lincoln most of the time. I remember wondering why this black woman appeared to be Mrs. Lincoln’s BFF. Now I understand it a bit better.

This wasn’t primarily the story of Mary Todd Lincoln, however. This was the story of Elizabeth Keckley, a strong, intelligent, talented woman who happened to be a former slave. It was interesting to me to see the Civil War though her eyes. It was also interesting to see how the slaves and former slaves looked at Abraham Lincoln. He was, not surprisingly, their rescuer and hero.

As usual when I read a historical novel, I had Wikipedia at my ready. While the book clearly has Keckley writing her memoirs at least in part to set the world straight about Mary Todd Lincoln, that might not necessarily be true. It is true, however, that the Lincolns never forgave Keckley for writing the memoir. And I must admit, I was somewhat uncomfortable knowing that she wrote what she did. It does seem to me that someone in a place of trust like a companion or ladies maid has an obligation to not write a tell-all at the end of it all.

How did you feel about her writing this memoir?

Chiaverini’s book gave me a fairly clear perspective about the life of a slave. I can’t imagine how it felt to be someone’s property, and to be at your master’s beck and call in every way. Keckley didn’t seem to hold a lot of bitterness, and loved her resulting son very much.

I guess I hadn’t realized that free blacks weren’t allowed in the military until the war was nearly over. Don’t know why that surprised me, but it did.

How do you feel about Mary Todd Lincoln? Did you find her to be completely narcissistic, completely kooky, or a combination of many things? Did you like Elizabeth Keckley?

I would rate this book a 7 out of 10.

Nellie v. Elizabeth: the race is on

In this day and age where it would take a couple of days at the most to make it around the world, depending largely on airplane connections, the story of these two remarkable women's round-the world journeys in 70-some days was really an eye-opener for me. I had never heard of either Nellie Bly or Elizabeth Bislad, nor had a heard of their journey, so it was with great interest that I followed them around the world in opposite directions. I learned a lot. Having a background in journalism, I knew something about the role that newspapers played i the lives of the people of the United States during the 1800s, especially in the larger cities. That's why there were so many more newspapers then than now. But it still was somewhat astoishing that the New York World could generate the 3excitement that they did with this race. For example the guess-how-many-days contest! I loved that you had these two women, both who grew up in somewhat lower- to- middle class backgrounds, making history in the way they did. I loved that their race engaged people throughout the country, which was much larger (figuratively speaking) then than now. I enjoyed reading about their love of writing and the English language. I was thrilled at Nellie’s reporting background, particularly the story she wrote about life in insane asylums back in those days. How exciting to be able to report that kind of news and make that kind of a difference. Some of the most remarkable things I learned or was reminded of: -The role that trains played in the growth of America. Prior to train travel, it would have been inconceivable to make a trip around the world that quickly. You couldn’t have gotten across country in much less time. -How damned much of the world was part of the British Empire! Holy moley! They all bowed to the king. -Class differences, particularly as they related to ship travel. Wow, if you were in steerage (which my grandparents were), you were truly a second-class citizen. While your wealthier co-passengers were dining on lobster, you were eating gruel. -The whole Asian culture. It was interesting to learn about rickshaws and some of the foods they ate. And how about that whole torture stuff? Grisly business. I’m interested to know if you were rooting for either of the women throughout the book. I was. I couldn’t help but root for Elizabeth. I think it’s because I was mad at Nellie for forgoing her role as a journalist while participating in the race. She should have brought the problem of the people in steerage to the world. But I did like the fact that the newspaper vowed to not “cheat” and to let things play out as they would (even though they sort of did at the end). And I loved the fact that Nellie made the journey carrying only a little bag. I’m interested to know what you learned reading this book, and how it impacted you.

What Should I Read?

In addition to the books that we read as a group, we undoubtedly occasionally pick up a book that we think is worth recommending to our fellow readers. By way of a comment, let us know if you are reading (or have read) a book that you think is worth our consideration. We won't discuss this book, but it is a good chance to become acquainted with different books.

Poor Anne.....

I read The Kingmaker’s Daughter  with my Nook in one hand and my Ipad in my other so that I could have a quick and direct line to Wikipedia. I have never spent so much time looking up the history of people to see if what I was reading was true.

I found The Kingmaker’s Daughter” to be a compelling and very readable book about a relatively unknown character in British history. We have all heard of Richard III, if only from the Shakespeare play, but little is apparently actually known about Anne and her sister Isabel. Because of this, it must have been fun for author Philippa Gregory to fill in the blanks.

I think that Gregory portrayed Anne as a young and impressionable girl who was starved for love and willing to do whatever her father told her to do because she thought it would be best for her country, and because she so wanted him to love her. I never felt as though she had a strong desire to be queen to fulfill her own ambitions, but only to do what was best for her country.

Poor Anne had very little going for her in the way of relationships. In her ever changing world, she was uncertain who to trust and who to fear. And frankly, throughout the book, I wasn’t always certain who was the good guy and who was the bad guy as it seemed to keep changing.

So, then I would again reach for my Ipad and try to find what historians said, and frankly, it seems as though Gregory took a lot of liberty in how she portrayed everyone. I don’t think this is a bad thing at all. As a fiction writer, Gregory undoubtedly went for drama and excitement. I just had to keep reminding myself that what I was reading was not necessarily the truth.

Poor Anne had what seems to be a totally one-sided relationship with her father, a terribly confusing relationship with her sister, and virtually no relationship with her mother (who I found to be despicable).  History supports the idea that her father was an ambitious man who would do anything he could to be in power.

I never quite knew how to feel about Isabel. She too was a pawn in her father’s ambitious plans, and the scene in which she gives birth to the baby at sea is horrifying. She seemed to be the only one (at least prior to marrying Richard) who gave a hoot about Anne, though it often seemed to only be when it was in her best interest. I wonder how the book would have read had Isabel been the narrator. I don’t think she had the same feeling for her father as did Anne. I think Isabel was much more realistic.

By the way, history tells us that Edward the King was actually a very good ruler overall. And while Elizabeth is presented as a fairly vile witch-like character, history doesn’t necessarily support that portrayal. But the number of children is accurate. My, didn’t she just seem to crank them out?

I found Richard to be a very interesting character. In this book, he is portrayed as a decent man who loved Anne. Other portrayals are obviously different (e.g. Shakespeare’s Richard III). I kept waiting for him to become evil. Even his relationship with the princess was presented (at least by Richard to Anne) as necessary in order to save England. Well, Anne bought it anyway. I am interested to know how the rest of you felt about Richard, and whether you bought his love for her (at least in this novel).

It was sad that Anne couldn’t have more children.

I really liked this book. I read all of Gregory’s stories about Henry VIII and all of his wives, and then got a bit burnt out. But I think I want to read the Cousins series. Apparently Gregory deals at least a little bit with the mysterious boys in the tower in the next novel. In my journal, I gave this book an 8.

What did you all think?

New Attitude

Ethereal Reader Book Club began in October 2009 from an idea hatched by my sister Jen and me. We are both voracious readers, were dissatisfied with our existing book clubs, and needed an outlet to talk about books we read.

We started out as a small group that consisted mainly of my sisters, with some other family members thrown in. Over time, we have added a few new members. The idea always was that participation was voluntary and there was no pressure. If a member wanted to participate fully by voting on books, reading the chosen book, and posting comments about the book, then that was awesome. However, if a member only wanted to read some of the books, and maybe didn’t want to participate at all via comments, or only wanted to find out the names of some new and interesting books, or only wanted to participate some of the time, that was all okay.

In the beginning, we had a pretty good discussion about books. We would comment back and forth, at least to a certain degree, which is what my sister and I had envisioned. Over time, however, participation changed. Fewer people read the books, and fewer still participated. And the discussion became more like book reports.

And we all remember what it felt like in high school when you had to write a book report. So it’s no wonder that participation dwindled.

As we talked to members to see why they couldn’t or wouldn’t participate, we found out that some people felt they just didn’t have time to read a book in the time we allotted. Others felt that the books we chose were too dark and they didn’t want to waste valuable reading time with a dark book. Still others just hated the part about commenting.

So, being very open-minded (but also stubborn enough to not throw in the towel) , we decided to go back to the drawing board and see if we could shake things up a bit. After all, there is still a core group of about five that participate fully, and we would like to continue to talk books with them (and add to that group if possible).

Action plan:

We have come up with a list of six books that we are going to read over the next 12 months. The list, which admittedly was compiled by a small group, consists of a variety of books:  a nonfiction, a couple of novels, a mystery, a couple of classics. Yes, taking away the voting part makes this a dictatorship/book club, but we were getting fewer and fewer voters, and last time my sisters and I chose the book as no one else voted. Our thought is that this way participants can look ahead and decide which of the books interests them. Since one of the chief complaints was that members didn’t have enough time to read as they were busy with family activities, work, etc., we feel knowing the books and the dates 12 months in advance will allow everyone time to read the books they actually want to read.

Knowing the books ahead of time will also allow us to tell our friends who may want to participate in the discussion for just a certain book. I really believe the more people that participate in Ethereal Reader, the better the discussion.

And, as for discussion, we would really like to encourage a return to not just commenting, but reacting to others’ comments. In fact, after the initial review, don’t feel like you need to write a dissertation about the book (unless you feel so inclined). Our plan was always that participants would react to the initial review, adding thoughts of their own. We would like to make this as interactive as is possible in this format.

Here is the list of books, along with the dates of reading and discussion:

The Kingmaker’s Daughter, by Philippa Gregory

                Read from April 1 through May 25; discussion May 25 through June 1

Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s History-Making Race Around the World, by Matthew Goodman

                Read from June 2 to July 27; discussion July 27 to August 3

Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker, by Jennifer Chiaverini

                Read from August 4 to September 28; discussion September 28 to October 5

My Antonia, by Willa Cather

                Read from October 6 through November 16 (shorter reading time because it is a shorter book); discussion November 16 to November 23

A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens

                Read from November 24 through December 28, discussion December 28 to January 4

Damage Control, by J.A. Jance

                Read from January 5 through February 22; discussion February 23 to March 1

I will send a reminder email as we start each book. I will be interested in hearing how you all feel about knowing the books in advance. And, as usual, if you have any ideas on how to make our discussions better, or anything else, let me know. Also, if you have any trouble making your comments, let me know that as well and we can coach you. Worse case scenario, I can post your comment for you.

One last thought, some time ago Margaret had suggested that we have a section where we talk about other books we are reading/have read. I, being a technology simpleton, don’t know how to do that as part of the blog, other than putting it in the comment section. I will continue to work on figuring that out. In the meantime, please let all of us know when you are excited about a book. 

Book Review (or why the guests were uninvited...

Wow. I’m not even sure what to say about this book. I vascillated between hating it and being extremely amused by it. I can’t say I ever loved it.

I generally am very clear on how I feel about the characters in a book. Sometimes I am disgruntled to find that I don’t like a character that I think the author wants me to like. Except for Emerald, and perhaps Patience and Ernest, and of course Smudge, I heartily disliked the characters most of the time, but liked them on and off. But my suspicion is that this is exactly what the author wants me to feel.

Though the social mores of the main characters were disturbing (i.e. ignoring the train survivors in lieu of preparing for the party), I could understand (if not forgive) because of my love of Downton Abbey. The classes were the classes in post-Victoria n England, and these characters could not be any different, even though they were actually quite penniless.

I found the author’s writing style quite charming and quirky. The plot was bizarre, but funny – almost like a play. In fact, I could see making this into a play. The story of Smudge and the pony was hilarious. In fact, the intermingling of everything that was happening as the night ensued was really funny, and I could have actually whole-heartedly loved this book if it hadn’t been for the whole ghost thing that seemed to come out of nowhere and then be dismissed fairly off-handedly.

Charles was utterly despicable, but apparently quite charming and charismatic. I was initially morally affronted during the parlor game in which guests were to name something unique about one of the others, and I began squirming when it seemed to turn mean. How could they do this, I wondered. All of the sudden, a memory came crawling into my mind – something not even my two sisters know about and will be horrified to read.

When I was in junior high school, I went to the birthday party of one of my school friends, whose mother had a hair salon in their basement. Not surprisingly, BOYS crashed the party. Nothing good comes of an unsupervised gathering of junior high girls and boys. At some point, the boys decided it would be hilarious to write something on one of the girls’ foreheads using nail polish. Yours truly was the one selected. Now, most assuredly, some little voice in my head told me this was not a good idea; nevertheless, in an unending pursuit of popularity, I agreed to it. I was blindfolded, and one of the boys proceeded to use nail polish to write on my forehead. Upon removing the blindfold, I discovered the boy had hilariously written F*** on my face. Now whether nail polish remover was unavailable or we just didn’t think about it, the way we removed the polish was by using a brillo pad to scrape off the top layer of my skin, leaving a bright red mark across the top of my face.

The reason this memory came back is that it reminded me just how easily human nature allows us to do something that is profoundly wrong just to be accepted by others. That is what I saw happening during that parlor game. The guests all knew it was wrong, and yet they kept playing and, in fact, became quite mean. Interesting.

Once it was disclosed that Charles was a ghost, I realized that the others were ghosts as well, so the ending didn’t really come as a surprise.

I would definitely NOT recommend this book to others, though, as I said, I found the author’s writing to be quite funny, and the story to be really clever at times. Still, it says a lot that the best thing I can say about this book is that it was blessedly short.

Happy 2013

As a result of some serious family events that took place at the end of 2012, Ethereal Reader sort of fell by the wayside. I had hoped that we could do as we did last year and read and report on a Christmas novel (or two) of your choice. Didn't happen.

But 2013 is a new year, and a new start for Ethereal Reader. Here are your three choices for our next book discussion:

The Uninvited Guests, by Sadie Jones
Fallen Skies, by Philippa Gregory
The Shell Seekers, by Rosamund Pilcher

You have until this Monday, January 14, to vote by emailing me at kzmclain@comcast.net.

I Spy

Sorry that I'm late in posting this review. I sort of lost track of time.

I recently read Winter of the World, a very long and detailed account of World War II written as a novel by Ken Follett. It was an extremely good book, but quite dark and detailed in its examination of this yucky war.

But because of my recent reading of this novel, I was somewhat apprehensive about reading Mr. Churchill’s Secretary, though I was intrigued by its description, and the fact that it was the first in a series. My apprehension was proven unnecessary.

Mr. Churchill’s Secretary isn’t a comedy; however, it is a novel about one of the more interesting facets of the war, and told through fairly light-hearted characters. I had read and heard before about the fact that spies abounded during WWII, and in fact there were posters posted during this period reminding people that any Tom, Dick, or Harriet could be a spy. But this was sort of an easier demonstration of this phenomenon.

Jen texted me one night and said, “I like this book. There are spies EVERYWHERE.” And so it was. I found myself trying to figure out who was the spy and who wasn’t. I was convinced throughout that John was going to end up being the spy, and was relieved when that wasn’t so. I also suspected Chuck and the twins. Must say I never suspected Paige.

I thought this book definitely had first-bookitis. Some of the plot themes were kind of predictable. For example, the three friends – Paige, Sarah, and Maggie – were blonde, brunette, and redhead – kind of like a Barbie Doll collection. Still, I gave Macneal the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps she was going for cheesy, sort of like a Dashiell Hammett mystery. She even featured martinis prominently in the book. And I loved all of her descriptions of clothes and hairstyles. It gave me a strong sense of time and place.

But, I found it confusing that Maggie got her job as Churchill’s secretary because Mrs. Tinsley got sick. Then, Mrs. Tinsley never came back?????? She was mentioned at the end of the book, but why didn’t she get her job back as his secretary?

I liked the presentation of Maggie as an independent-thinking woman who was ahead of the game when it came to women’s liberation.

  

It was somewhat unbelieveable to me that Maggie’s family and friends kept the fact that her father was alive a secret for so long. Why? Reality suspension I guess.

I also really liked the use of real characters mixed with fictional characters. I of course liked Churchill, but I also enjoyed the references to some of our most highly-respected people and their acceptance of Nazism, at least initially (e.g., Joe Kennedy). It’s interesting to note that there are two sides to most stories. While there is nothing good to say about the Nazis as they played out, it is interesting to be reminded about the economic conditions that made Hitler even remotely make sense to anyone.

Finally, I think it gave a good perspective about what war looks like from different perspectives. The Irish characters were only concerned about Ireland, and so they supported the Nazis as a way of getting to the British, for example. War stinks, but everyone has a different perspective about it. Still, I can’t imagine living the way people had to during the war, never knowing when the bombs were going to drop.

A good read overall.

Fall Book Selections

I am offering three book choices for our Fall (pre-Christmas) book:

In Need of a Good Wife, by Kelly O'Connor McNees
Violets of March, by Sarah Jio
Mr. Churchill's Secretary, by Susan Elia MacNeal

Email your vote to kzmclain@comcast.net by Friday, November 3.

Family Love ala Brothers K

The next time I read a 600-some page book, it better have been written by Tolstoy.

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t hate long books. In fact, there is something wholly satisfying about sitting down with a good epic novel that has a lot of pages.  I enjoyed reading, for example, Fall of Giants, by Ken Follett.

Understand also that I didn’t hate this book. In fact, at times I totally loved this book. I just don’t think it needed to be 689 pages long. I started out absolutely enchanted; I ended up skimming some of the last chapters (or whatever you would call them) and being totally and entirely annoyed at all of the characters at some time or another.

Well, I don’t think that’s exactly true. I loved the father all the way through the book. I loved his devotion to his children, and his willingness to take on his rather difficult wife at times if he felt that they were being treated unfairly by her.

The first part of the book, as I said before, enthralled me. I loved the entire scene where the narrator and Papa are watching the game. I really enjoyed the sort of stream of consciousness from the narrator, who is fairly young at this point. Through his thought process, you learn about the characters. I thought that was a clever way for the author to help us to learn about the family. And the language was so dead on. The author NAILED the way a 10- or 12-year-old speaks. For example, take this excerpt when he is talking about how much he dislikes Roger Maris because of his boring style of play: I usually like watching home runs, but there is something about Roger Maris that makes even his homers boring ……Everett says he’s from Mars, which is why he’s named Maris, so maybe it’s a racial thing. Whatever it is, it worries me a little, because one of the things Jesus used to say was to love everybody the same whether they’re geeks, Yanks, Wops, Micks, Meredith Starrs or what have you, and when I look at Roger Maris I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to pull it off. I loved those lines because it displays the way a kid’s mind works, particularly a kid’s confusion about Christianity, so accurately.

I liked the succinct way that the author would get a point across – e.g. “yak butter” (remember that Mama was the first one to talk about yak butter when she was convinced she had experienced another life as a Tibetan) became synonymous with odd things that make total sense once you look at it.  Likewise, the disabled girl (Vera) who talked with a strong lisp because of a cleft palate, became the poster child for doing the right thing even if you felt uncomfortable doing it.

Surprisingly, I enjoyed all of the baseball scenes, and I’m not even a baseball fan. But I do love to see people (real or fictitious) who just love what they do, and I think that baseball often replicates life. Ups, downs, ins and outs.

Real life families are not like the families we saw on television in the 1960s. Instead, we often experience a variety of feelings about our family members at different times. The brothers and sisters in this book were extremely different from one another, and could be annoying or wonderful, depending on the situation. But they were all loyal to one another, no matter what. Oddly, even Mama was loyal, though she was often distracted by her unrelenting alliance to her religion.

The story of Irwin was very sad. There were a number of sad situations in this book, but that was, to me, the saddest. Yet, his story ended in a positive way. In fact, the book ended positively (except, of course, for the death of Papa). And again, I thought the ending was realistic. Not perfect results for everyone, just as in real life, but general happiness and love, which is what I think this book was all about.

Still, I think it could have been done in fewer pages!

End of the Summer Book Choices

The following book ideas are from Andrea Dunne, who posts comments as "Anonymous."

Paris in Love: A Memoir, by Eloisa James
Brothers K, by David James Duncan
Clara and Mr. Tiffany, by Susan Vreeland
City of Thieves, by David Benioff
Good Omens, by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

A couple of these books, most notably Brothers K, are particularly long. If a lengthy book is chosen, the length of time to read will be increased. So don't let length deter you from making the choice.

Please email your choice to kzmclain@comcast.net by Tuesday, July 31.

Thanks Andrea for your great choices.

The Doc is In...

Doc, by Mary Doria Russell, got my vote for this month’s book choice.  But, once I began to read it, I thought I might have made a mistake.  After about 20 pages, I checked to make sure it was fiction, because it was reading like a not-very-engaging biography.  I was afraid I wouldn’t finish it in time.  It’s never a good sign when I check to see how many pages I have left in a book!

But, I ended up enjoying it quite a bit. First of all, some little things made it readable.  I thought the chapter names were clever, although I don’t know what most of them mean in card-playing lingo, so if they were supposed to convey something, that didn’t work for me.  But, I always like it when authors name their chapters.  I also liked that she listed the characters at the beginning, and especially that she identified the few characters who weren’t real.  I love historical fiction, but I do like to know which characters and events are made up.

Mostly, I liked the rather unusual way she portrayed all these infamous characters.  Wyatt’s bad teeth had a profound effect on his personality, and I loved that Doc took care of that problem for him.  It’s such a mundane and ordinary dilemma for the larger-than-life characters.  In fact, I liked Doc the best when he was being a dentist.  He seemed committed to his profession as a way of helping people, not making money.  In fact, as Kate often pointed out, his dental work didn’t come close to making a living for them.  It made me feel sad for him that his health forced him to live in a place where he wasn’t likely to be able to practice the profession he loved.  Toward the end, his health was so frail that he couldn’t have practiced the profession in any case.

And Kate…quite an unlikeable character for me.  She had some issues for sure.  She was a different and unpleasant person when she was drunk, which was a lot of the time.  I had no problem with her being a prostitute; women in those days truly didn’t have many options.  But, she was nasty to Doc and just about everyone else.  On the other hand, she was there for Doc in his darkest hours, so I have to give her credit for that.

One thing that disappointed me was that Russell never showed the reader the shoot-out at the OK Corral.  I guess I was supposed to remember what happened there, but I don’t.  Since she referred to it throughout the novel, I assumed we’d experience it, and I wish she had put it in.  Now I feel like I have to do a little research and find out what happened.

Finally, I have to talk about the author’s digressions, two of which stood out to me.  At one point, she said that had James not talked Kate into going back to Doc, then everything would have turned out differently.  Doc would have married Belle, they would have been happy with many children, and even Belle’s parents would have fallen back in love because they were grandparents.  Wow!   That seems a bit extreme.

But, I loved the section where she described Fr. Alexander’s experience with the Indians, when he was taking the place of the beloved Fr. Paul.  Fr. Alex realizes that he’s sort of like Titus was to St. Paul—always second best because the man he was replacing was so loved and respected.  Once he found his peace with that, he was a better missionary to the Indians.  Random, but I liked it.

What did you like about the book?  Did any characters or events surprise you?  What do you think of Mary Russell as a story-teller? 

Howdy Pardners

The group selected Doc, A Novel, by Mary Doria Russell as our book choice. Discussion will begin July 15. Enjoy your early summer.

First Summer Reading Choices

Our book selections for our first book of the summer are provided by Jen. Your choices are:


Doc, by Mary Doria Russell


Bones that Float: A Story of Adopting Cambodia, by Kari Grady Grossman

A Dog's Purpose, by W. Bruce Cameron

Oxygen, A Novel, by Carol Cassella


Please send your vote to me at kzmclain@comcast.net by Sunday, June 3.

"I Want To Be a Surgeon"

This initial review of My Name is Mary Sutter is from Bec:

My Name is Mary Sutter was not my first choice of the books suggested, but I did think it sounded interesting and I looked forward to reading it. I’m glad it was chosen, because I really enjoyed it.

One reason I didn’t pick it was that I’ve read quite a few books set during the Civil War. That period in American history isn’t one I’m especially interested in, and I wasn’t sure whether I would find it easy to engage in the story. But, this was a different perspective of that war, in several ways.

For one thing, I liked that much of it took place right where I live, in Northern Virginia and Washington. Manassas, Fairfax Court House, Centerville, etc., are all places I’ve visited or driven past many times, and, of course I’m familiar with many of the spots mentioned in D.C. I’m always fascinated with what a small and un-lovely place Washington was at that time. So, the setting helped me get interested, because I learned a lot about what was going on in the city. I had no idea, for example, that many of the government buildings and hotels were turned into medical facilities.

I also enjoyed the focus on medicine and especially on the fact that the protagonist was a woman trying to establish herself in the medical field. I wasn’t surprised at the brutal descriptions of the wounds and sicknesses caused by the war. I was surprised that there were doctors and other medical people trying to do research to find out how some of the problems could be lessened.

In other words, I liked the book because it wasn’t what I expected from a “Civil War Novel.”

Mary Sutter was a good character. I could identify with her frustration at being shut out from a profession that she knew she would love and could excel in. Her persistence was almost comical, but it’s probably the only way she could have broken into that good old boys’ club. It was nice, but probably not realistic, that some of the doctors accepted her pretty quickly. On the other hand, considering the conditions, perhaps their desperation would have helped Mary break down the barriers. I found the depiction of Dorothea Dix very surprising! She’s always painted as someone quite saintly, but she certainly had some character defects in this book.

The character that bothered me the most was Mary’s mother. So many times in the book she didn’t give Mary the support she needed. Her attitude was that Mary was very strong, so she could take care of herself. Mary was strong, but everyone needs support, and Mary didn’t always get it from her mother. When Mary failed to save Jenny, she felt a lot of guilt. The fact that her mother not only didn’t help her get over it, but actually made Mary feel even guiltier was, for me, unforgiveable.

Finally, I liked the book because it was so well written. I read it quickly, and, in fact, had trouble putting it down. It wasn’t a page-turner in the usual sense, but I cared a lot about Mary and always wanted to find out how her life would turn out. And, can I just say that I like the happy ending! Good for you, Mary!

I would recommend this book to just about anyone. The female protagonist, the setting, and the medical plot thread all set it apart from most other books written about the Civil War period.

My question to everyone is this: What, if anything, surprised you?

Back to the Civil War

Votes are in, and we selected My Name is Mary Sutter: A Novel, by Robin Oliveira. Discussion will begin Friday, May 11.

Back to Book Club

Ethereal Reader has taken a brief respite, but it is back! It appears only a couple of members read the last book, so it is with great hope that more will participate in this month's selection and subsequent discussion. If you can think of ways to liven us up, please let ER know.

Thanks to Andrea, here are our book choices for April/May:

The Devil in the White City, by Erik Larsen
What Alice Forgot, by Liane Moriarty
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safra Foer
My Name is Mary Sutter, by Robin Oliveira

Please email your vote to kzmclain@comcast.net by Tuesday, April 3.