Euphoria by Lily King

When people hear the name of Margaret Mead,I don't think they necessarily think of the torrid, sexuality of her work and how big a splash it made because of it. It did make that splash though and this novel draws loosely on the 1933 expedition that Mead went on with her then husband and the man that would become her third husband. She then blended those facts into a story of her own creations. I really enjoyed reading this novel in major part because it was a well researched nod to Mead, a woman that the author clearly admired for the work that she engaged in. The love triangle that ensues and the ego competition add layers upon layers to an already lovely story. The tension is palpable from the get go when Nell Stone, the protagonist and author of a book that caused a splash is leaving an aggressive tribe with her Aussie husband (Fen) who is already jealous of Nell. The tribe that they are leaving lobs items at them as they leave, one of which Nell believes is a stillborn baby. Nell's glasses are broken - impliedly at the hand of her husband - as is her ankle. Both are dirty, malnourished and malarial as well as being down in the dumps emotionally and mentally. They encounter Andrew Bankson, an English anthropologist, who they eventually hook up with even though he is down in the dumps too. Bankson has lost both of his brothers and is considered to be a failure by his mother.

The way that King writes about the people, makes it almost as if you're in the bush with them. You can feel the thickness of the air and smell the dankness of unwashed bodies. You can feel the tension that is created when Bankson falls hard for both Nell's body and her sharp mind. I as the reader got uncanny access to the minds of Bankson and Nell Stone through journal entries that Nell writes as well as the narration by Bankson. The introspection is perhaps unparalleled than many other novels. It was a magnificent work that should be read by all.

Wonder by RJ Palacio

Wow, I've nearly let this blog die and I'm so sorry for that. I'm restarting. I promise not to let it go so long again. And I'm starting with a book that I've heard so much about and have really wanted to read it.

I've heard so much about Wonder. August (aka Augie) Pullman was born with a congenital facial deformity call Treacher-Collins Syndrome. As a result of this congenital deformity, Augie has been home schooled. The deformity has led to Augie having a number of operations and hospitalizations. However, at 10, his parents have decided that he should be enrolled in a somewhat prestigious prep school in New York City. Aside from his face, which is extremely distinct, Auggie is a normal kid, albeit a smart and perceptive one. His mental capacity is above average. This book examines his struggles to overcome his deformity, go to school and challenge people's perceptions about a person's outward appearance.

Even though this book is classified as young adult, realistic fiction, its story and message will appeal to teachers, parents and other adults as well as its target audience. It is an engaging read and wholesome as well - you won't find any sort of foul language (although there is a bit of bullying in it). Interestingly, the book is told from the perspective of eight different characters, including August and his sister and a few classmates. Each is able to provide their own unique perspective on August and their experiences with him, in their own unique voice (which is quite an amazing talent to have as a writer). There are many themes in this book ranging from empathy and courage to bullying and compassion. It demonstrates the impact that mainstreaming a child with August's deformity can have on all members of a community and a family. It's a book about doing the right thing and acting gracefully under pressure. This book contains great material for kids - it presents many topics for parents to discuss with their children - acceptance and bravery and how the easiest thing isn't always the right thing to do. It is also full of material for book groups. Definitely a must read for everyone out there.

Book 6 - Fall of Giants by Ken Follett

This is the first book in the Century Trilogy and begins in 1911 - right before World War I breaks out. When we start, the Crowned heads of Europe still exist; however after the war, only the British monarchy has survived. There are five families that the reader follows, from all economic classes - both rich and poor. There is a Welsh coal miner and his suffragist daughter, the local Earl that is their nemesis, two orphaned Russian brothers (one who is a scoundrel and the other a working class hero), star crossed lovers (one English, the other German), and an American diplomat.

What I loved about this novel, and all Follett's novels really, is that he's able to utilize an amazing story to create a civics lesson - we learn about World War I and the Russian Revolution at the same time that we follow the stories of an amazingly interesting group of people. He is meticulous in creating the world and the politics of his characters in the hopes of teaching us a bit about the time period. Follett's grasp of the historical record is masterful - a lot of research went into composing this Big Book (and big it is at around 1000 pages, give or take - but worth every single bit). Loved this novel and highly recommend it.

Book 5- Hitler's Furies by Wendy Lowrer

During World War 2, the best employment opportunities for German women wasn't in the Gestapo or the Red Cross - it was actually in the German occupied lands to the East and in Russia. Those territories needed thousands of teachers and nurses and secretaries among other occupations. Wives often accompanied their husbands to the Eastern countries as well. This sort of migration allowed women to see other countries, get ahead in their professional careers and escape the drudgeries of everyday life in Germany, which was economically depressed before the war. These women also became accessories to genocide.

In this book, Wendy Lowrer follows the stories of 13 seemingly ordinary women who ended up working in the East, whether by choice or because they were assigned there by their superiors. The first chapter essentially set the scene: it explained the role of women in Germany briskly and efficiently and in language that the average reader would √understand. We then are introduced to the women: a nurse that engages willingly in a euthanasia class, the idealistic teacher, a farmer's daughter, an educated woman that can't practice law because of the laws in her country, the small town swindler, the 19 year old beauty that wants to avoid working in a factory and several ambitious secretaries. When we meet these women, it's 1941 and the final solution is in it's early stages with Jews being herded into ghettos. German officials are beginning executions and the menfolk are coming home after their days at work in need of food, alcohol and comfort. While the women generally don't have direct contact with the killing, they know it exists and they remain at their posts providing all sorts of support for the men that do the killing.

I really enjoyed how Lowrer made her history book accessible to everyone - you don't need to be a history scholar to be able to get into and understand this book. I also really enjoyed and appreciated how she set the political, social and economic scene - it gives the reader a context in which to understand how this all is happening. There were some questions that I had that weren't answered as well as I wanted them to be. How representative were the women that she picked? Did she just pick them because they happened to leave a plethora of primary sources from which to draw from? How did she pick these women? She doesn't address the women that are in more direct power - the women that were guards in the camps, other SS officers. I really wanted her to delve more deeply into the lives of the women in the camps.

Book 4 - The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

This is Meg Wolitzer's ninth novel. I haven;t read any of her previous novels,but I can say that I will go back and look for them now. The story begins at an arts camp in upstate NY in the mid seventies. Six of the teenage campers are drawn to each other because they all consider themselves to be "interesting." Jules is the character that is the protagonist - the story seems to be told mostly from her perspective anyways - and she's seemingly the odd one out, not having come from an artsy background. Her best friend is Ash, her crush is Ash's brother Goodman and Ethan and Jonah are there for the ride. Cathy is Goodman's love interest. Ethan is the one that has the most breakout success as an animator in his adult life. As the group matures into adulthood, they, with the exception of Ethan, are forced to adjust their expectations of what their life was going to be to what their life actually has become.

Woliter's prose is warm and astute - there seems to be nothing that she misses when she expertly dissects sexuality, expectations and many other aspects of the lives of this group. While self-reinvention is nothing new in American literature - it seems to come with the turf considering how our country came to be - Wolitzer brings a fresh perspective and a new way of examining it in this novel. The characters are allowed and even encouraged to see happiness not necessarily as getting everything that they want but as being happy with what they actually have. This definition of success and happiness doesn't necessarily require overachievement. I loved this novel.

Book 3 - Carthage by Joyce Carol Oates

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It absolutely surprises me that Joyce Carol Oates has been publishing since 1964 and that this book was the first that I had ever written by her because it is apparent that she is a careful, adept and fluent writer. This book is set in Carthage, a very real town in upstate NY, nearly as far North as you can get without entering into Canada. It is a small town, so the shock that runs throughout the town and the Mayfield family when their somewhat dysfunctional 19 year old daughter Cressida disappears in the Adirondack Mountains is a living and palpable feeling. As the community gathers and begins the search for her, evidence against a disabled Iraq war veteran named Brett Kincaid (who ironically was engaged to be married to Cressida's older sister) seems to mount.

During the course of the novel, we are treated to alternating perspectives, one of which includes the flashbacks to the atrocities that Kincaid witnessed while he was in the service. His memories are often jumbled with the violence that occurs in Carthage and intrudes on everything in his new, quiet life in Carthage. The plot often takes bizarre and unexpected turns, just enough so that the reader is kept on the edge of the seat as much by those turns as by Oates' magnificent prose. There were times that I felt that it was hard to empathize with some of the characters and the choices that they made; however this didn't detract from the message that the novel was sending: that the damage that war wrought is complex and tears at every fiber of the fabric of our society. It impacts everything from the individual to the family unit to the criminal justice system. Loved this book. It's something that should be added to your library immediately.

Allegiant and Insurgent by Veronica Roth

I read these novels back to back. It seemed fitting to do it this way so that I didn't forget anything in between the two books, particularly since Divergent is a cliffhanger. I can't give you a complete review of these books at this time without spoilers, but I will try my best.

Allegiant is the final installment in the series and is told from alternating viewpoints: both Tobias and Tris give their own accounts. I found this to be a really good difference and divergence (no pun intended) from Roth's previous two novels because, while I enjoyed living in Tris' head, I also was very curious about Tobias and his experience. Frankly, there is also so much you can take of the sort of angst that Tris has and I really enjoyed the widening of the experiences that Tobias' experiences give. It also really shows the differences between how one person, Tris, views actions of Tobias and how he views his own actions (and which are often completely different). This was generally a really great ending to a strong and respectable YA, dystopian series.

Insurgent was the second novel in the series. For me, it cemented Tris' roll as both an action hero and as a loyal and multifaceted friend and teammate. She was very strong and three dimensional as a character but also realistic in the sense that she was a character that could be someone you would know in real life. I really enjoyed this book because it also ramps up the romance between Tris and Tobias and begins to highlight the struggles they must face. Loved the cliffhanger at the end.