Someone please tell me why I am drawn to these stories? WWII, Resistance, Spies, Children being hidden and saved, many more lost. Grandparents on theiSomeone please tell me why I am drawn to these stories? WWII, Resistance, Spies, Children being hidden and saved, many more lost. Grandparents on their deathbeds finally revealing their stories to a child affected looking for their pasts? This is heartbreaking every single time. And the more these are read, five more land on my TBR. Why is this? I have read every single one of Ron Balson's books. I admire him for telling the stories. The heroes, the lives lost and saved. The heartbreak and the hope.
While I don't really know why I am so drawn to this, I do know that it is timely. With mere hours before our American Election Day takes place (under 50), we have all been watching the slow quiet insidious replay of Nazi Germany. Anyone who wondered how this could have happened back then, is seeing it in front of our very eyes. Many of us wonder, how does one man who represents hate and racism of all kinds, somehow get popularized as a hero saving America? We have so many leaders from his administration warning us, and yet people are falling for it. How can this be even something that would and could happen in 2024? And the next holocaust would be queer/trans. That's a promise.
But you know what? I remain incredibly confident. I know we are battling for the soul of America, a time where we are defining who we are. But I still believe in us. I believe in people's ability to see right from wrong. I believe in democracy and the two party system, and I look forward to decent republicans rebuilding their party into something that can resemble pride and values again. I believe that love always wins over hate. I am confident, because we know this trope. We live this trope. Harry Potter always wins over Voldemort. The Avengers come back. You guys know I don't like books that do not move or transform that end in desolation. We read because even out of devastation, there is hope and there is love. I just think America is going to choose love, choose moving forward, and then fight like hell for it. We are not going back. I do not believe polls that say this is tight. I am choosing to believe in our humanity.
So yes this book was hard and painful to read. But we read history so as to see its dangers and not repeat it. I am not frightened. I am hopeful. Congratulations Ron on your ninth book. Thank you for continuing to tell these stories, and to highlight the people who do everything in their power to fight for what is right. We all can make a difference. We simply have to stand for love, and stand together we will. ...more
Who would ever think to call a world war two book charming? But this one goes straight to the heart. Those who have described it as a love letter or lWho would ever think to call a world war two book charming? But this one goes straight to the heart. Those who have described it as a love letter or love song to readers and books, they are right on the spot. The experience of books as having the chance to offer hope, and be a light to others in the darkness. To inspire and muster courage. To connect, and to find a way to continue to live and give. Our Grace is the most unlikely and yet extraordinary of heroines. She lives from the heart. As promised, the book grew on me and "got" me straight through the heart. ...more
How I loved and savored this beautiful book! This one was special. The last lines were so beautifully written, I went back and re-read them quite a feHow I loved and savored this beautiful book! This one was special. The last lines were so beautifully written, I went back and re-read them quite a few times. The world of Whisperwood and the River of Stars is going to stay with me for a long while, as does the idea of how a story lives on and defines us, gives us hope, binds us, and brings us back to one another. The story of the sisters and the unimaginable loss was difficult. But there was a beauty to it as well. This is one to savor, and enjoy. ...more
This was absolutely beautifully written, but incredibly painful and heart wrenching. A story that needed to be told, but I went through the pangs. TheThis was absolutely beautifully written, but incredibly painful and heart wrenching. A story that needed to be told, but I went through the pangs. There is an uplifting ending, but scars remain forever. ...more
I found this little epistolary novella really uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable. I feel like I can see its importance, and yet I did not actually "enjI found this little epistolary novella really uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable. I feel like I can see its importance, and yet I did not actually "enjoy" it. It was brutally difficult. Sad and frightening on so many levels. Also interesting reading the foreward and the notes that preceded the book, that this was actually prescient. That gives me chills. Because if the author thought this up at the time, then the consciousness was already emerging and one can see that people of the time had choices to make in the moment - in real time. And failed to make the right ones. The articulation of the political reasoning reflects arguments we hear today, that continue to dehumanize and excuse power, greed, and selfishness, in the name of politics or religion. And this is not history, it is happening all over again in front of our eyes.
I say it again, love always wins. Love always wins. Love Always Wins....more
This book is an example of how audio can change the entire experience for the better. I know I would not have appreciated this book in the same way ifThis book is an example of how audio can change the entire experience for the better. I know I would not have appreciated this book in the same way if I read it in print. For one, I am not in love with young protagonists, YA always feels a little superficial. For two, I have read an awful lot of WWII resistance works, so the next better be good. Its a high bar for me. But.... the voices of the audio brought it to life. For the young girl, the voice and the affectation was perfect! And for Adelyn, she did her story in a french accent reading her diary and her experience with an entire french feel. This audio experience completely made the story come alive. There was such emotion in the delivery and it was compelling and believable. I knew without question that in print this would have been a flat three. But in audio, it was more like a 3.8. I really got into both storylines. There were some very compelling hard parts and I thought the author treated the challenging dark subjects with sensitivity and depth. ...more
Before even describing what I actually thought about this book, I have to tell you what its not. This novel is deceiving in its opening premise. It isBefore even describing what I actually thought about this book, I have to tell you what its not. This novel is deceiving in its opening premise. It is not what you would think from its description or first chapters. I have to tell you up front, that it leads you to believe one thing, and one spends the rest of the novel reminding themselves that it wasn't what you thought it was going to be. That was confusing.
The book is named The House at Mermaid Cove, and I expected to be reading something about Mermaids. So in the opening pages, the central character washes up from the sea, and describes that the sea is where she came from. And that she holds a secret and has to be careful about her past. Also her legs don't work. She is washed up in a chemise netting with a tagged number. With a lack of clarity of her name. The back of the book will tell you she has a secret about her past, that she has to trust him with. Given all that, wouldn't you assume we are talking about a Mermaid? I mean its in the title! In the first line she tells you the sea is where she came from. So guess what? She is not a mermaid. The house gets its name from a story, about a love tryst in the past, but that's about it. There is nothing to do with a mermaid whatsoever. In the beginning pages, we are hearing her story, and it takes a bit to get adjusted. She's not a mermaid, but she is hiding her past.
Once I figured out what the book was actually about, I liked it. It had some different or interesting aspects to it. I thought they treated her actual story quite well. It was different because I hadn't seen a storyline like that. I found our heroine interesting and true.
I did listen to the audio of this. Her Irish accent bothered me some. It wasn't the easiest listen, and I admit I sped it up quite a bit, just to get through it. I also did wonder if I had read it, if I would have liked it more or less. Honestly, I couldn't tell. Let's go with 3.5...more
A lot of people are raving about this book. They think its well written and beautiful. It has easily risen to the top of everyone's want to read list.A lot of people are raving about this book. They think its well written and beautiful. It has easily risen to the top of everyone's want to read list. I like Susan Meissner and I agree. I have read many of her books and I absolutely fell in love with the Nature of Fragile Things. My problem is that I am too soft and I feel too deeply. While I read an awful lot of WWII, the concept of Eugenics and asylums in particular, well it wasn't a pleasant read. Did I weep my eyes out at the end? Absolutely! But would I recommend it to anyone else to read? Not quite. Depends on your mood and your interests. Not for me. I am too vulnerable. 3.5, and a brava for the author to take on a tough subject and to do it so well.
Tried to create a shelf for synesthesia. This is my fifth or sixth book where that gift has a role. I always find that fascinating and beautiful. But in this case devastating. ...more
I have read all of Ron Balson's canon of works, so I was looking forward to this one. I liked it, although perhaps not so much as the others. I did heI have read all of Ron Balson's canon of works, so I was looking forward to this one. I liked it, although perhaps not so much as the others. I did hear some harsh reviews of it when I was at about 15%, but I am giving it a solid three. Some detracting voices felt it was too heavy on the science and that it was all highly improbably. I feel that when we are talking about regular people, even soldiers outsmarting the Nazi's in 1943, well its all highly improbable anyway. You kind of have to enter these spy novels with a complete suspension of disbelief. If I took apart every single book I had read in this manner, I wouldn't enjoy the experience of reading.
I liked it. I liked the couple. I didn't mind the science. They were fiesty and ethical and humane and daring. I liked the people the met along the way and I thought the book well displayed some of the difficult choices folks had to consider both in the moment and over time. Some of it was pure and plain luck and pluck. Which I think actually did save a lot of people. I am thinking of the non-fiction book We Were The Lucky Ones, and what kind of crazy luck and pluck had to occur for this family to survive in its entirety and reunite. I have to believe there's a little bit of hand of God in there. Which never really explains why some people aren't afforded the same luck or protection. I can't explain that dilemma of preferential discrimination - no one can. I think that is where Faith comes in.
This is my first book of 2023. I read likely about 75% historical fiction or over. For my first book, not too bad. Next up is Carrie Soto is Back. Happy New Year Everyone....more
I really enjoyed this audio quickie. It was clever, beautiful, and mind-bending. There was a loveliness to it. Was a great hour and 22 minutes that keI really enjoyed this audio quickie. It was clever, beautiful, and mind-bending. There was a loveliness to it. Was a great hour and 22 minutes that kept me company on a drive today. ...more
Never Forget. That is the theme song, the motto that has us reviewing and re-telling each and every one of these stories from WWII, from the HolocaustNever Forget. That is the theme song, the motto that has us reviewing and re-telling each and every one of these stories from WWII, from the Holocaust, from the murdered Jews and others, to the Resistance, to the Forests, to the Righteous Gentiles. One wonders about why there is such a proliferation of books from this time, and Never Forget is a piece of that. Another piece is asking the question. How could this have happened? Why did people let it happen? We are in early days, but many of us are asking the question about our America. How can this be happening here? The religious fundamentalism, the corruption, the greed, the hatred, the lying, the power, the war on woke? What makes it possible for people to turn a blind eye?
This book, the White Rose Network, tells the story of University Students and others in Germany, who gave their freedom and their lives to fight what was happening. Righteous Gentiles who saw no difference between themselves and the Jews and others that were being harmed. Who gave their lives so that their children and their comrades could live in peace. This is the story of Sophia Scholl, who was stronger than anyone could have imagined today. She literally gave her life to be a part of the change that we temporarily enjoy.
Contrasted against Sophia, is her interrogator Herr Morr, for whom has gotten caught up in the war machine, but does not necessarily condone it all. He is a father, and Sophie reminds him of his own daughter, and in every conversation, about his culpability, and that it is not too late for him to make the right choices. The book is about her, but also about him. How he wrestles with his own choices, as contrasted with hers. The White Network is changing hearts and minds, and we are everywhere, and we will win. The question is, Herr Moss - where will you be?
What I think is fascinating about the proliferation of WWII books, is that each has to find a new angle. That is the angle of this one. The conviction of the youth contrasted with the conflicted and personally perceived helplessness of the Reich. What some of the officers, guards, officials had to do to look the other way, to save even a life. But what we see from this novel and others, is that indeed the Resistance worked. Love and Goodness won out. Not in every occasion, but eventually. And we have to believe in that power again and again. Not without our losses of course, but in my world, conscience always wins. Just look to Marvel Universe, to Harry Potter. There is great sacrifice, but even the most horrific times, consciousness moves forward. And their names should live in memory, siblings Hans and Sophie Scholl. ...more
You know I really loved this take. One would think I would be sick of Coco Chanel by now, but her story and character are fascinating, and it was suchYou know I really loved this take. One would think I would be sick of Coco Chanel by now, but her story and character are fascinating, and it was such a unique time in history told through such an interesting lens of fashion and politics.
In this take, Lily Sutter is a fictional character who lands in Paris after her husband's death, to visit with her brother, who is embroiled in an affair with one of the mistresses of Hans Von Dinklage "Spatz", the german lover of Coco Chanel. Got that? She lands squarely between the last collection of the fashion rivalry taking place between Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel, both who warm to her. The war is heating up. All kinds of alliances are being tested. Even fashinistas are forced to take a stand, as well as try to stay safe and help loved ones. Its complicated and our heroine relates to and feels compassion for both women, as well as Ania, the woman her brother loves. A german aristocratic woman, who happens to be Jewish, who cannot leave her child behind. The book was a great take. I enjoyed it.
So the big question is this. If I weren't taking a deep dive on Coco Chanel this year, her being my remarkable person of the year, would I be recommending this book to others as something that stands on its own? I think yes. If you like that kind of thing. The last thing I would say which was moving and really interesting, is the author, and main character Lily's experience of color (despite her grief) and how colors are used and what they represent, socially, politically, emotionally. She uses not just color, but shape and style, to elucidate the differences between the two women. I do believe that is also supposed to represent the growing sides of the ideology surrounding the brewing war, as well as life itself. I thought that was really well done, and kept me engaged and thinking. I thought it was rather good writing in that regard. ...more
The Sunflower was a pick from the Jewish Book Club for September, just in time for the holiday of Yom Kippur which discusses forgiveness. The tag lineThe Sunflower was a pick from the Jewish Book Club for September, just in time for the holiday of Yom Kippur which discusses forgiveness. The tag line of the title is "On the Limits and Possibilities of Forgiveness." I saw that when I ordered and picked up the book. But I did not see anything else, until I went to begin to read it. There is a banner across the cover of the book, which poses a moral question. Right there on the cover. The question is this: You are a prisoner in a concentration camp. A dying Nazi soldier asks for your forgiveness. What would you do?
So of course, any thinking person is going to try to solve this conundrum on first impression, even before starting the book. But then one sees, that there is the story - this actually happened to author Simon Wiesenthal, who eventually became a Nazi Hunter and lawyer who put the Nazi's on trial during Nuremberg. But then the next 177 pages, is a symposium's worth of 55 responders and responses. Including the Dalai Lama, Robert Coles (Harvard's author of the Spirituality of Children), a Nazi officer, and countless others. About 1/3 of the responders are Jewish, including Telushkin, both Heschels; Abraham and Suzannah, Harold Kushner (author of Why Bad things happen to Good People), and Roger Kamnetz, (the Jew and the Lotus). A Cardinal is asked to respond, as well as Dennis Praeger. It's a fascinating Symposium, and lots of emerging points of view on whether forgiveness should be given.
My first reaction did not mirror anyones around me. I said, like absolutely every single responder then and now reacted, we cannot possibly know or imagine what those circumstances must have been like, and who knows how living with that level of loss and degradation would change a response. But that my answer would be that ideally one should try to get to forgiveness. I think of this from a trauma model. That when the unforgivable happens, one shouldn't rush to forgive, but that healing and transformation only lets go for the harmed, when forgiveness and some iota of compassion comes into play. Only then does healing begin. And with our currently divisive world? Of course I am angry and frightened. But anger and grudge does not help us build the bridges we need to move forward. Only love and vision does that. I was reminded of my father on Yom Kippur, the year after Bernie Madoff wiped us all out, and 27 other people that were my fathers friends, family, clients, etc. My father whom stands for ethics, character, and integrity. We were doing Taschlich, throwing bread into the water with forgiveness and prayers. Should we forgive Madoff? That made such an impression on me that I will never forget. For who my father is. Recently, I met someone else who has kids our age, whose father in law also lost in this way with Bernie Madoff. He says his father in law never got over it. Was never the same. Mine, lives every day trying to make it a good one. That tells and shows me a lot. My friend tells me a story of her father doing what he perceives to be the "right thing" against his own benefit. She asks me if she should forgive, as her father has done. This is the question Yom Kippur asks. Not just for our thoughtful forgiveness, but what it means to forgive, and is it possible. With 32 years of working in trauma, I would say the human spirit is not only capable of it, it is the step that leads to healing. Not full forgiveness, but a something of sorts. The ability to ask the question perhaps.
Simon does not forgive. But he stays and hears the entire confessional. He does not withdraw. His presence to hear the story was a comfort of sorts, and perhaps that in itself offered healing to them both. And then he slowly walked out without looking back, and then the question stayed with him for the rest of his life. Every single one of the 55 responders, felt that was the exact right thing to do. All but one (Andre Stein) commended him for not deliberately not destroying the SS officers' image in his mother's eyes, when he visited her. He did not pain her by correcting her narration of who her son was. Most people felt that was the right thing to do, to protect her innocence. Andre Stein, who lost 62 relatives to the Holocaust felt that bystanders who proclaim their children to be "nice boys who wouldn't hurt a fly" to be unknowing collaborators who need to stand for justice, even of their own. The SS officer who offered his thoughts also felt forgiveness should not have been given, and that it weighs heavy and should, beyond the legal consequence and ramifications. But also praised the sidestepping of confronting the officer's mother with the truth.
Friends of ours suggested that a true confessional must be meant, and backed up by action. It cannot just be some words. There has to be a level of recompense. I am reminded of when Derek Black (KKK intended heir to the throne) left Stormfront and the White Supremacy movement, his girlfriend said - it is not enough to leave. You must do recompense, and become an activist on the other side. You cannot abdicate your responsibility to atone for the sins you were not aware were sins. He wrote a public letter to the Southern Poverty Law Center, and has been an activist for change ever since. The book itself (Rising Out of Hatred) is an example of that. Some of the responders spoke to that. What does absolution without recompense or collateral action mean? Is remorse authentic, and how would one know?
I had the thought while reading it, about how interesting it was that the Christian Religious leaders all immediately went to forgiveness, while the Jews did not. And the Buddhists spoke towards and opportunity for transformation - which was the angle I had been heading in. Something about not carrying anger for one's own health and lightness and strength as a choice. One of the Christian speakers said, "Hey, forgiveness is kind of our thing! We are all about that. That's what we do." And they each did it so respectfully of Simon's experience and the treatment of a complicated issue. I had thought about when beginning the book, about Oprah's seven part series on Belief, which highlit about 25 different cultures, and how in more than one, one could see mothers of murdered children reading Bible with the murderers. Hey, if that gives them both peace, even if the child cannot come back to life, that is something. But not something I would likely be able or inclined to do. Its a very Christian tenet. I also thought about the book Something Beautiful Happened, when a mother who lost her (non-Jewish father and son) at a needless JCC shootout, how she started an organization against religious terror of all kinds. This helped her make meaning, and bring religions together to fight against senseless violence. The idea of all of that makes sense to me. That was in line with my take.
But every one of the responders, allied with Simon's dreadful cruel experience, and gave credence to how incapable any of us are of facing these terms and making thoughtful projections of what we would do. Everyone I spoke with about the topic, and about 50 of the responders felt such atrocities could never be forgiven. And should never be. I don't disagree, I just wonder what the holding on looks like.
In any case, this was an incredibly important and worthy book to read, even without its close connection to the recent High Holiday of Yom Kippur. I am extremely grateful that the Jewish Book Club on Goodreads directed me to read it, and that I could be able to be part of the experience of thinking and feeling this question. I invite you - what do you think?...more
This book was extremely well, written, but painful. I do love the WWII books, but that doesn't make them any easier toThis book is a favorite of JoyD.
This book was extremely well, written, but painful. I do love the WWII books, but that doesn't make them any easier to read. The pain and suffering and fear and extremely dangerous conditions were impossible to bear. But what makes it possible, is the incredible righteous gentiles, who risk everything to save those they do not know, simply because it is right. Yuri, Alla. Beautiful souls, who risk it all, because that is what it takes to be human, and to love, when the word goes dark.
And it is that kind of light - the light of the woke, those who care for humanity, that will save us now. ...more
This was a slow climb to four. For much of the first half, I was looking at a solid regular three. Yet another dual timeline, grandchild seeking answeThis was a slow climb to four. For much of the first half, I was looking at a solid regular three. Yet another dual timeline, grandchild seeking answers about the war from a secretive grandparent who never told the story of their escapades and sometimes heroism. The grandmother in this variation is an assistant to Coco Chanel, and the back cover of the book will describe that she, Adele, risked everything for the resistance, while Chanel was a Nazi Collaborator. But the truth is, the book really takes off when Adele finds herself and falls in love and becomes an unwitting hero for the compassionate side of the war. The love story wrapped me up and had me entranced. I saw myself steadily pacing for the four star league, simply because of Adele and Theo. They and their love affair and heroism made the book.
Some of you may know, that Coco Chanel is my remarkable person of the year. So this is maybe the 6th or seventh book I have read with her as a central character if not the main one, and I am well accquainted with her history. So its not quite clear in any of these books. Was she a collaborator? Was she a willing one? Was she simultaneouly spying for the other side as well? Given her history, she would have done anything to stay out of poverty. In some of these tales, she appears to help people in her atelier, and act for the resistance. In every account, she ends up continuing to worl with the Jewish partners who basically stole her company right out from under her. But her beef with them was never that they were Jewish, more that she just wanted more rights to her company returned. She never appeared to want them to be in trouble for ethnicity, and in fact, she fought for them and oddly enough remained friends with them. She was arrested and interrogated, but ultimately released, What did they know? She had a friendship with Winston Churchill, and was a lover of the Duke of Westminster. In Madrid, she met (above board for all to see) with the British ambassador along with the Germans, and the Spanish at the Germans request. It is well documented that This particular trip and other excursions, were all for the intent of getting her sick nephew released from interment as a POW. She would have done anything in the world for her one relative. It is (perhaps fictionally) suggested in the Queen of Paris, the first, the best, and my favorite of my year of Coco Chanel, that perhaps Andre was not her nephew, but the secret love child of her and Boy Capel, her first and likely only true love, to which nothing else compared. Might she have even joined up with Von Dinklage for the sole purpose of saving her nephew, with the added bonus of also being able to help the resistance? Who knows? None of these accounts were really sure what side she was really on. And maybe she did have feelings for her German soldier, who oddly enough was also never charged with the Nazi collaboration (and should have been). This last fictional account of Adele tells us in the afterword that Coco and Von Dinklage lived out their days together for the rest of their lives, first in Switzerland, than back in Paris. How could this be? Is it possible that he too, willingly tried to help Jews and the Resistance as well? None of these books charge her one way or another, which I find fascinating. Now that I think about it, it completely reminds me of the 3-4 books I read in succession about Mata Hari! Not clear what side she was on either!
That said, Coco has been an interesting character to follow, and naturally, quite a lot of WWII themed books that emerge. She is enigmatic, a true self-survivor, her heart barely known even to those closest to her. I like to believe she was playing both sides. Thats what intuitively makes sense to me. She kept her heart and her secrets close. I actually do not believe she was as cold as she is portrayed. I merely think she had to be, to survive, endure, and protect. ...more
I just loved this little gem. It somehow sang all the right notes for me. I found it quietly entrancing. I love it when the theme of magic is so subtlI just loved this little gem. It somehow sang all the right notes for me. I found it quietly entrancing. I love it when the theme of magic is so subtle, and done extremely well. That it's just sort of quietly sewn into the hem of the story as an underlying wisp or echo.
What a character Soline is. To know her is to fall more deeply in love with her as a character. She is strong but vulnerable. Completely impossible, and yet could do the impossible. You feel for her deeply and root for her. Rory is also a spitfire. Feels like she might be a mess and yet totally competent all at once. They each have a penchant for storytelling and artistry, and find kindred spirits in one another. The women shine in this book. Camilla, Thia, all of them. Its a story of hopes and dreams and trauma, leading back to how one comes to again believe in possibility. I thought it was beautifully done, and Barbara Davis is a new favorite author of mine to explore....more
A standard 3. I have had this book for a long time and it has been one of the oldest books in my TBR. Since I was on vacation, I took 8 owned books alA standard 3. I have had this book for a long time and it has been one of the oldest books in my TBR. Since I was on vacation, I took 8 owned books along, and this was my fifth.
I think the book was kind of meh. I read a lot of this genre, dual timeline, in the present, a great granddaughter has to retrieve an item from the past which reveals secrets from a hidden past during the war. Doesn't it already sound like a 1000 books you have already read? There is a love story in both timelines. This one passed the time, but compared to the greats, it didn't come close....more
I really enjoyed this. Woman on Fire refers to a painting that was lost/stolen in the World War Two. Lots of intertwining stories from the past followI really enjoyed this. Woman on Fire refers to a painting that was lost/stolen in the World War Two. Lots of intertwining stories from the past follow a connection to this painting that meet in the present. Margeaux is one scary dudette. She was a chilling character. Naturally, there is a love story, and the thrill of the ride. I thought the book was well done and engaging.
The author has a very interesting personal history. She was editor of the Jerusalem Post for a very long time. I was impressed even reading the acknowledgements in the back of the book, just how many prominent authors she is close to. She is right in the thick of many of my favorites. I also appreciated that she gave a shout out to the Good Book Fairy. It actually made me feel included in high company, that she is so ensconsed in a such a literary world. I am actually interested in her other novel. ...more
You guys know I read a lot of WWII. Spies and resistance and what not. So in my eyes, anything new on the market, or new to me, has to be very good, oYou guys know I read a lot of WWII. Spies and resistance and what not. So in my eyes, anything new on the market, or new to me, has to be very good, or explore something very different. Or else it won't stand up.
But this one, which I enjoyed very much, was different for a reason you wouldn't expect. It was no Alice Network, or Diamond Eye. But it was fun because it was so very quirky. You guys know I hate to give synopses, but the example writes itself. A woman who is not an insightful or reflective person by nature, is feeling lost, and so she suddenly and impulsively rides a bus during the war, to go visit her estranged daughter. Causing some level of brash and impossible behavior, wherever she lands. But the trip changes her, when she is exposed to all kinds of experiences and internal feelings. But in the midst of all this, she gets caught up in an inadvertent spy ring, in grave danger. Imagine she is the kind of lady who escapes danger either by clocking some would be terrorist with a handbag, or just going straight up to him or her and telling them they should be ashamed. Its reads a little in my mind like a late night Carol Burnett skit. I have never read a world war two book, where I was chuckling so much. But the espionage and war piece of the book, bumbling detectives, and she somehow wrangles a hapless partner in crime, well that is just the backdrop. What the book is about, is how someone, more than one person, who lived on the edge of life, finally learns to live, to love, to feel, to act, to be connected. To think about what is important and what matters. She is known to us thoughout the whole book as Mrs. Brightwaite, or something like that. We do not learn her name, or that of her hapless compatriot Mr. Norris, until perhaps the last pages. One imagines they do not even have them. They are just caricatures.
I think critics of this book, and there are many, dislike it because the characters aren't flushed out or depthful. But that is quite the point. Because the book is about the journey. About slowly growing and gaining depth through love. About slowly connecting, quickly acting, and learning how to do and be what is right and what matters. The journey is the story, and our characters take a long time to figure themselves out. Meanwhile, we have bumbling detectives and spies in the background. A whole lot of danger, a whole lot of new adventure/life, and a whole lot of love.
I happen to have adored the Chilbury Women's Choir, and that was an unforgettable 5 star read for me. I am very much looking forward to the Wedding Dress Sewing Circle, and there is a fourth book of hers, called the Kitchen Front. Which made it onto the list somewhere. However, a quick search will reveal another Jennifer Ryan author, who it seems is not this one. The other one seems to be a rancher cowboy romance artist, and its clear they are not one and the same. Our girl, is a WWII junkie like me, who writes about women who begin kind of thoughtless in the countryside of England, and through the experiences of war and life, learn to grow, love, and become. The Spies of Shilling Lane is just that....more
As many of you know by now, Coco Chanel is my remarkable person of the year. I am enjoying all these different "takes" on her, and am curious about hoAs many of you know by now, Coco Chanel is my remarkable person of the year. I am enjoying all these different "takes" on her, and am curious about how the authors are managing the question of her Nazi Involvement and potential collaboration. Clearly she had a four year relationship with a Nazi, even if her true love was her earliest with Boy Capel. Was she using him to keep afloat? To help free her imprisoned nephew? To spy for the Resistance? It was clear she had ties to the resistance as well as ties to the German occupiers. Was it for the business? To be able to stay at the beloved Ritz? This book brought up the question, what is collaboration, if one were just trying to survive. Were bystanders also responsible? Interesting that while she was questioned, she was released and never bothered again. Will we ever know what truly happened?
Either way, Coco Chanel has somethings to teach us about Reslience. Long before the war, she was helpless and abandoned. She vowed never to be in poverty and without power ever again. But did her rise from lowly standards affect how she saw others and their plights? Clearly she had Jewish friends, and really even cared for the Jewish partner who tried to steal her company out from underneath her. Was she blind to what was happening? A good actress to save her life? I supposed we will never know. But.... as I read on, I will absolutely keep you posted....more
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