Erin Reads – Page 40 – Notes on Books & Life

Thoughts on “Vaclav and Lena” by Haley Tanner

I received Vaclav and Lena by Haley Tanner through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program. It was published in May of 2011.

About the Book:

Vaclav and Lena are kids growing up in Brooklyn. Vaclav lives with his parents and Lena lives with her aunt, all Russian emigres. Vaclav and Lena have been best friends for years. They attend the same school. They share a dream of performing a magic show together. Lena often comes over to Vaclav’s house, but never the other way around.

Then something happens, and their lives take different courses. What happens to two friends suddenly pushed in different directions? Vaclav and Lena explores one way the story might end.

My Thoughts:

There were things I really liked about Vaclav and Lena and things I did not. I’ll begin with the good.

The cover is absolutely lovely. The chapter titles were cute, and since the chapters were relatively short, there were plenty of titles to enjoy. I loved Vaclav’s mother, Rasia. At times, it seemed the novel was more about her than about the kids. I felt for her as she struggled to give Vaclav the best life possible, to be a cool American mom without neglecting her son. The moments that focused on her were touching. Tanner does seem to “get” kids and teens, and I thought she did a nice job incorporating that into her novel. Though I found the novel lacking (more on that in a moment), the end did redeem the book somewhat. It hit an emotional note and level of understanding I wish had been present throughout.

However, the writing seemed simplistic, juvenile, and detached to me. Nothing was inferred; everything was laid out in plain terms. The narrative style worked when Vaclav and Lena were kids, but it felt wrong for their older selves and for the adults in the story. It seemed like maybe the style was meant to mimic the experience of learning English, but if that were the case, it should have changed as the story progressed, which it did not. Instead, the effect was one of condescension toward the characters, many of whom felt stereotyped and flat. The novel got where it should have gone eventually, but reading it felt like meandering through 250 pages of build-up only to arrive pages before the end at a little pop of a conclusion.

I do think Haley Tanner has talent as an author. I can see glimmers of good shining through the mediocre story. Overall, though, I wasn’t especially impressed with Vaclav and Lena.

Those are my thoughts. Check out Vaclav and Lena by Haley Tanner on Goodreads or LibraryThing, or read other bloggers’ reviews:

Did I miss your review? Please let me know!

Thoughts on “Mr. Chartwell” by Rebecca Hunt

I received Mr. Chartwell by Rebecca Hunt through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program. It was published earlier this year.

About the Book:

Wednesday, July 22, 1964: Winston Churchill awakes to a presence in his room. It’s a familiar presence, one he’s grown accustomed to, but it’s not friendly or welcome. Rather, it is something to be endured.

Meanwhile, Esther Hammerhans waits to meet her potential lodger. But when Mr. Chartwell arrives, he isn’t at all what she’d expected. He is, in fact, beyond even the scope of her imagination. She’s hesitant to take him on, but his exorbitant monetary offer is difficult to turn down. Should she let him stay?

My Thoughts:

The summary above is deliberately vague. I think part of what’s fun about Mr. Chartwell is uncovering its bizarreness along with Esther. If you want to hear more about the plot, there are plenty of reviews out there that will tell you.

I’m going to start with what I didn’t like about the book, which, overall, is rather small and easy to skip. I’ve heard there is a book called When You Catch an Adjective, Kill it. I don’t know what it’s about, beyond the broad topic of grammar, but over and over during the first half of the book, the title phrase popped into mind. Each chapter (and they are short, so there are many) begins with a paragraph or two that describes the scene. It pained me to read them. (And I like adjectives, so if I was annoyed, that’s bad.) I think at one point I counted seven adjectives preceding a noun. I’ll be honest–I started skipping them. I liked the book much better.

The rest of Hunt’s writing is quite lovely. Her dialogue is snappy, her characters lovable. The plot, though completely strange, worked. The novel is relatively short, very easy to read, stripped of what is unnecessary (except for those darned adjectives!). I found it impossible to capture the essence of Mr. Chartwell in a single word. Instead, as I read, I wrote down four: creepy, funny, intriguing, puzzling. And it really was all those things.

SEMI-SPOILER ALERT!

The novel deals, first and foremost, with depression, and as I read, I wished I knew more about it; I know next to nothing. I found myself wondering if the way Hunt portrayed it was accurate. Does it run in families? Is it something that can be turned away from, to a point? I am curious to know more. If Hunt accurately turned depression into a character, I think the book would make for an interesting learning tool.

I have to say, I really enjoyed Black Pat’s dog-like tendencies and how he seemed powerless to resist their urges. Also, Dennis-John cracked me up.

I’d recommend Mr. Chartwell if you’re up for trying something a little off-beat or if you’re looking for a quick read that’s clever and funny, light without being fluffy.

Those are my thoughts. Check out Mr. Chartwell by Rebecca Hunt on Goodreads or LibraryThing, or read a plethora of other bloggers’ reviews!

Reading Buddies Wrap-Up: “Cutting for Stone” by Abraham Verghese

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (cover)

Just a couple quick notes for current and future Reading Buddies:

First, there is now a Goodreads group and an email reminders list for Reading Buddies!

Second, due to a couple of schedule changes on my end, I need to shuffle our July and August schedule a bit. I’ll post in more detail about the changes next Friday. At this point, Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann is still on! Check back in a week for more specifics, as well as some thoughts about what Reading Buddies will look like after August.

Well, this has certainly been a winner of a month for Reading Buddies. The two books we read — Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer and Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese — were two of my favorites so far! Today we’re wrapping up the latter.

Warning: spoilers are fair game from here on in!

I really loved Cutting for Stone. I read the first half slowly, over a couple of weeks, and the last half in one go during the recent readathon.

In the wrap-up for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close I wrote that Oskar, while perhaps not realistic, seemed very real to me. Verghese’s characters struck me as both real and realistic. It’s been a long time since I’ve read a novel whose characters felt so much like people that I forgot I was reading a novel. No one was all good or all bad; no one was flat or static. Each character was so human. My favorite was Ghosh, and I’ll admit I cried when first when I found out he’d been hiding his illness and then again when he died. The other emotional part, for me, was when Marion is lying next to Shiva at the end, and he says that Shiva “had rowed over from the sinking ship and he was telling me to think this way, and it was just Shiva’s kind of logic. One being at birth, rudely separated, we are one again” (p. 640). That line gave me chills.

I had mentioned in the discussion post that I was unsure about Marion narrating his own birth. When poking around online and reading what others had written about Cutting for Stone, I came upon a post by Kim of Bookstore People about a talk she had with Verghese. She writes that Verghese “doesn’t write from an outline, but through experimentation. That’s how he came upon Marion’s voice as the narrator, moving fairly seamlessly into, then out of, and then into again, first person. He worked to combine the intimacy of first person with the omniscient knowledge of third person. His model was the opening scene of The Tin Drum when the grandson tells how his grandmother was impregnated, but how would he have have known?” I think that’s a perfect description of Marion’s voice, which ended up working just fine for me. And I’m curious to read the scene Verghese modeled his opening after! (Speaking of which, did you skim the Acknowledgements? Verghese cites so many inspirations and sources, it’s kind of amazing.)

Like many people who have read Cutting for Stone, I went into the book looking for some deeper meaning in the title. I knew the phrase came from the Hippocratic Oath, where the line reads, “I will not cut for stone, even for patients in whom the disease is manifest; I will leave this operation to be performed by practitioners, specialists in this art,” but I expected some sort of double meaning. About three quarters of the way through, an idea hit me. Marion, ever holding grudges and ready to punish those he loves for what they’ve done to him, is, it seems to me, cutting for stone in his own way, even if “the disease” of guilt, regret, repentance, or whatever is already manifest in that person. I think by the end he learns to approach people differently. I quite liked my theory and have been disappointed to read that the particular phrase was just one that stuck out to Verghese when he took the Hippocratic Oath himself! Did you find any meaning in the title?

When I closed the book, I found myself mulling over Shiva. Did he cause his own death? If he hadn’t slept with Genet, would the entire chain that led to Marion becoming ill have occurred? Or is it somehow Marion’s fault for loving Genet? Or is Genet to blame for asking what she did of Shiva, knowing what she did about Marion? It seemed to me Verghese was playing with these concepts of responsibility for one’s actions and of tracing an event back to its source. I find I am unable to assign blame, but the question keeps returning.

Finally, I couldn’t resist looking up a couple of the songs Marion talks about in Cutting for Stone. I love hearing the music listened to in a book. First, of course, is “Tizita,” both the slow and fast versions by Getachew Kassa mentioned on page 228 in my version. Then comes Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little 16,” which Marion and the Staff Probationer dance to in her room. (I didn’t know any before reading Cutting for Stone, but I like all three!)

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SG5WT-ukzOE

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRk46Hyvt80

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d5qUWR4LTM

Participants’ reviews:

Emma @ Words and Peace

Did I miss yours? Please let me know!

Thoughts on “Hush” by Eishes Chayil

Hush by Eishes Chayil is an ARC I’ve had waiting on my shelves for several months now. I finally got to it during the April Readathon and have finally remembered to post about it!

About the Book:

Hush begins with one friend calling to another. Gittel, now seventeen and the story’s narrator, speaks to her friend Devory, who died when she was ten. The memory has haunted Gittel for the past seven years, and as the novel moves forward, she shares its circumstances only reluctantly and with time. As Gittel tells her story, she moves between the year of Devory’s death and the present.

Gittel and Devory are part of a closed Chassidic Borough Park neighborhood where everyone knows each other and strict rules govern every aspect of life. The community is so rigid that as events unfold, Gittel comes to the painful realization that there is no space for what happened to Devory within it. Hush is Devory’s story as well as Gittel’s struggle to deal with it.

My Thoughts:

Hush is both a fascinating and powerful story. The fascinating aspect, for me, was seeing how Gittel’s Chassidic community functioned: school, jobs, gender roles, match-making, marriage, and even explanations of everyday things to children. For instance, having a husband who did nothing but study the Torah was so highly valued that wives would gladly function as both sole provider and homemaker. And then there was the issue of reputation; secrets were locked up as tightly as possible so that they couldn’t seep out into the community and ruin a daughter’s marriage prospects. Or how a bride and groom didn’t find out what would happen on their wedding night until just before the wedding.

Hush is powerful because of the story it exposes. Gittel is faced with enormous pressure to keep quiet. Speaking out would ruin the reputations of her family and Devory’s, not to mention draw the attention of law enforcement and the outside world to the exclusive community. Gittel is plagued by memories and dreams of her friend, yet the obstacles to doing what seems right appear insurmountable. How do you shed light on a situation an entire community refuses to acknowledge ever occurred?

My favorite character, and the only one outside of the Chassidic community, was Kathy, who lives with her husband upstairs from Gittel’s family. Christian, kind, and a bit mentally unstable, Kathy is irresistible to Gittel and Devory. Against the reader’s (and perhaps Gittel’s own) expectations, Kathy is a friend to the girls and a support to Gittel after Devory is gone. I could never really tell if Kathy knew what was going on, but she was the only warm presence in a novel of cool exteriors.

As I read Hush, I learned that Eishes Chayil is a pen name. In fact, an Eishes Chayil is, I learned, a Woman of Valor, an ideal wife. And in the author’s note, which you can read here, Eishes Chayil explains how Hush is based on her own personal story. The pen name and the personal connection added a deeper layer to Hush and made its impact even more profound.

While Hush is labeled for ages 14 and up, I, as an adult, found it to be a great read. Gittel comes across as childlike, but that’s because (a) for half the book she is a child, and (b) children in her community were so sheltered from the outside world that they couldn’t help but sound ignorant. The passages narrated by the older Gittel, though, are imbued with a strength and wisdom that makes Gittel seem older than she is, in spite of her ignorance. I think Hush would appeal to readers of adult and young adult fiction alike.

Those are my thoughts. Check out Hush by Eishes Chayil on GoodReads or LibraryThing, or read a plethora of other bloggers’ reviews!

Spring into Summer Read-a-Thon: Updates & Minichallenges

Sorry for the double post today! If you’re looking for the Reading Buddies wrap-up for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, just scroll down a bit…it’s the next post in line.

Today at 10am EST I start the Spring into Summer Read-a-Thon! Hosted by Enna Isilee of Squeaky Books, the event lasts for 36 hours and involves, of course lots of reading! I’m participating this year as a mid-semester reward. I just passed the half-way mark in my summer classes, which included turning in a big paper, and I feel I’ve earned a day and a half of immersion in books.

This post is where I’ll keep track of my progress and participate in minichallenges. I’ll update it throughout the event.

And now the ever-important question…what will I be reading?? Well. I have a couple of books I’ve been saving just for this weekend:

When She Woke by Hillary Jordan: I cannot wait to start this new novel from the author of Mudbound. It has been calling to me ever since the kind people at Algonquin sent a copy my way! I’m tingling with anticipation.
Everything Beautiful Began After by Simon van Booy: I requested this one through NetGalley. Van Booy is the author who made me realize I do actually like some short stories. His collection Love Begins in Winter is one of the loveliest things I’ve read. I’m looking forward to seeing what he does with a novel!

I also have a few Reading Buddies books to work on:

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese: We’re wrapping this one up a week from today.
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell: My book group chose this one for July, and a few people were interested in reading along with me!

Then there’s my current audiobook, which is Brooklyn by Colm Toibin. I love audiobooks during readathons because they give you the flexibility to get up and move around while continuing to read.

I know those are all pretty heavy books, but I don’t plan to stay up reading into the wee hours of the morning. I can’t afford to, with class awaiting me next week! But I do plan to spend most of my waking hours reading, and it shall be glorious.

And with that, I’m off to start reading!

Friday:

Update #1: 10am EST

Total Books Read: 0
Total Pages Read: 0
Books Read Since Last Update: 0
Pages Read Since Last Update: 0
Total Time Read: 0

Update #2: 3pm EST

Total Books Read: 0
Total Pages Read: 121
Books Read Since Last Update: Working on Cutting for Stone. Loving it, but it’s not one to hurry through. So…my stats look sad!
Pages Read Since Last Update: 121
Total Time Read: 2:54
Total Time Listened: 0:33

Update #3: 8pm EST

Total Books Read: 1 (well, I’d started it before the readathon, but I just finished it!)
Total Pages Read: 295
Books Read Since Last Update: Cutting for Stone. Fantastic book.
Pages Read Since Last Update: 174
Total Time Read: 7:07
Total Time Listened: 0:33

Update #4: 11pm EST

Total Books Read: 1
Total Pages Read: 414
Books Read Since Last Update: Started When She Woke by Hillary Jordan
Pages Read Since Last Update: 119
Total Time Read: 9:16
Total Time Listened: 0:33

Report #1:

What is the favorite thing you have read today?Cutting for Stone was amazing. When She Woke is shaping up to be really good too, though…I think I picked some winners!
Which mini-challenge was your favorite? I didn’t participate in any of them (too distracted by my books!), but I loved looking at the Wordles. Those are always fun.
What has been your favorite thing about the read-a-thon? I like that it’s a little longer than some of the others. It feels more relaxed to me. As fun as it is to read all night, it’s also nice not to feel guilty going to sleep!
What has been your LEAST favorite thing about the read-a-thon? Hmm, nothing so far!
Are you on track to meet your goals? I didn’t really set any, except to read some configuration of the books I picked out. So, by that standard, yep.
Will you be participating tomorrow? Do you have any new goals? I will be participating, though I’m not sure for how long. I’m going to a used book sale in the morning, and then I’ll probably at least try to finish my current book and maybe start another. Specific goals stress me out, though, so I’m resisting the urge to set them.

And with that, I’m off to bed!

Saturday:

Update #5: 10am EST

Total Books Read: 1
Total Pages Read: 455
Books Read Since Last Update: working on When She Woke by Hillary Jordan (which is SO. GOOD.)
Pages Read Since Last Update: 41
Total Time Read: 10:01
Total Time Listened: 0:33

In other news, I’m off to a used book sale with my husband. Back to reading this afternoon!

Update #6: 3:30pm EST

Total Books Read: 1
Total Pages Read: 565
Books Read Since Last Update: still working on When She Woke by Hillary Jordan (still SO. GOOD.)
Pages Read Since Last Update: 110
Total Time Read: 12:01
Total Time Listened: 0:33

Minichallenge: Name one book you think should be taught in school, grade of your choice.

Answer: Okay, I hate to copy Enna Isilee, but I have to choose The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. It would be a high school book, definitely. I think it’s an amazing book, one that shows the horrors of the Holocaust as well as the perspective of a German family struggling with what was happening around them. It also has a unique narrator, which could make for interesting discussion. I think it’s one of those rare books that could be approached from a few different angles, plus it’s absorbing, unlike some books you end up reading in high school!

Update #7: 8pm EST

Total Books Read: 1, plus finished two I’d already started
Total Pages Read: 615
Books Read Since Last Update: Finished When She Woke by Hillary Jordan (it was AMAZING, now I need to reread The Scarlet Letter) and The Snow Whale by John Minichillo (which I’d started pre-readathon…now I need to read Moby Dick!) and started Feed by M.T. Anderson
Pages Read Since Last Update: 154
Total Time Read: 14:53
Total Time Listened: 0:33

Update #8: 10pm EST (The End!)

Total Books Read: 1, plus finished two I’d already started
Total Pages Read: 656
Books Read Since Last Update: listened to some Brooklyn while cleaning up after dinner, then read more of Feed by M.T. Anderson
Pages Read Since Last Update: 41
Total Time Read: 15:40
Total Time Listened: 0:58

Report #2:

Stats are above!
What is your favorite book you read during the read-a-thon? The only full book I read was When She Woke by Hillary Jordan, which was fantastic. I also finished Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese, which was excellent as well.
Did you participate in any mini-challenges? Which ones? Only one, about a book I’d like to see read in high schools
Which mini-challenge was your favorite? The Wordle, alias, and book title sentences, even though I didn’t do them!
What has been your favorite thing about the read-a-thon? As I said in the last report, I loved that it was a little longer than most readathons. It felt less rushed.
Are you satisfied with how much reading you got done? Did you do more than you expected? Less? About what I’d expected. I’m satisfied. I had some books I’d been wanting to read, and a couple of them weren’t really good readathon material (dense, slow to get through, requiring lots of thought and concentration), but that’s ok.
What did you think of the updates? Too close together? Didn’t like the time limit? I liked the every-two-hours updates, though I didn’t check every two hours. It was nice that, any time I did check in, there was a new post.
If you could change one thing about the read-a-thon, what would it be? Probably the starting time. My schedule now allows it, but in the future it won’t. It’d be easier to have an event start on a Friday evening.
Would you participate in another read-a-thon hosted by Squeaky Books? Why or why not? Yes! I like readathons, and I had fun and got lots done during this one, so I’d participate again (schedule permitting, of course).
Any last comments on the read-a-thon? Thank you, Enna Isilee, for organizing! You did a fantastic job!