Celebrity in Death

Lieutenant Eve Dallas finds herself once more dealing with the media spotlight surrounding the now infamous Icove Case when a Hollywood production is in New York filming the movie of friend and reporter Nadine Furst’s bestselling novel of the case covered back in Origin in Death.  When a dinner party at the producer’s house turns into a murder investigation of one of the lead actors, Dallas finds herself looking for a killer amongst some of Hollywood’s elite, and digging up as much juicy scandal as the victim had done, pre-death.

 

The latest installment in the In Death series is a pretty decent read, with brief nods back to a previous book in the series thanks to the ever surfacing Icove case.  There is also emotional fallout to be dealt with following the previous book’s journey to Dallas Texas and Eve’s past, so the relationship between Roarke and Eve continues to slowly evolve.  I enjoy reading these books, but miss a lot of the emotional angst of earlier novels in the series when Dallas was still learning the truth behind the nightmares that haunted her.  Personally, I’d like to see more challenges thrown at Roarke and Eve’s relationship…they’re getting a little too “staid married couple” for my reading tastes. Mostly, I’d love to watch them deal with the challenges of starting a family, considering their respective backgrounds (for those who are not faithful readers of the series, Eve battles with childhood sexual abuse at the hands of her father, and abandonment by a drug-addicted mother, while Roarke had a physically abusive father to overcome.  Together, the duo continually debate the nature verse nurture argument which for me makes this a stand-out series to read).

 

Unfortunately, author Nora Roberts aka J.D. Robb has stated in previous interviews that a child would spark the end of the series for how can Eve be Eve, the intrepid cop, wading through murder and mayhem daily with a baby at home.  Too bad Ms. Roberts doesn’t rethink her stance and move a little further into the 21^st century with her views on family and the working woman.  But that’s just my two cents….

 

Till next time, happy reading!

L

 

“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life:  it goes on.”

            ~ Robert Frost

L Reads a Classic: The Mayor of Casterbridge

One day an out of work hay-trusser imbibes in too much rum-laced furmity and auctions his wife and daughter off to the highest bidder.  This was, apparently, a fairly commonplace practice in the Victorian era.  When a sailor takes him up on the offer, Michael Henchard takes his five pounds, says good riddance to the wife and kid, and promptly passes out in his furmity.

 

The next day, when the reality of his deeds sets in, Henchard is filled with remorse and vows he won’t touch another drop of liquor for as many years as he’s been living.  He then attempts to find his wife and daughter only to discover they’ve already set sail for America.

 

Twenty years pass and Henchard is now the mayor of Casterbridge and true to his vow, has remained sober, raising his stature in the town from a lowly working man to owning a business and employing many of the townsfolk.  Not having much head for business, he has however succeeded more on luck than skill.  Into his new life appear his long-lost wife and daughter and Henchard sees an opportunity to fix past wrongs.

 

It is interesting that the book’s subtitle is “The Life and Death of a Man of Character”, for what is told is the tragic tale of Michael Henchard who rises from poverty to wealth and loses all again, due mostly to weaknesses in his character.  Having found his wife again, and made all right by re-marrying her, and approaching the end of his vow of sobriety, Henchard takes up drinking and once more finds that every decision he makes leads to tragic consequences, until this man who has raised himself out of poverty into circumstances of wealth, once more finds himself thrust down into a life of misery and want.

 

Hardy’s novel is a decent commentary on the ills of addiction, as well as the place of women in society.  There are also plenty of plot twists to make for an interesting story, and despite the depressing nature of the book (nothing much goes right for Henchard and just when you think things can’t get any worse, they do), still the book ends on a positive note for his hard-done-by daughter, giving readers a sense of hope for the future, which I quite like.  Though it is well known that all of Hardy’s books tend to be very dark and depressing, after enjoying reading The Mayer of Casterbridge, he is definitely an author I would pick up again.

 

Till next time, happy reading!

L J

 

 

“A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.”

~ Steve Martin

Indigo Lakeshore Book Club Reads: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

For the past seven months I have been studying Victorian Literature and gnashing my teeth at the representations of women in the novels, poems and essays written in that period.  My inner feminist has howled in response to learning about women’s roles in society during this era, and so it was interesting to pick up Lisa See’s book and discover a similar yet more distasteful world of female oppression that was taking place on another continent at the same time Dickens, the Brontes and Gaskell were writing their novels about the working classes and roles of middle class women in Britain.

 

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is set up as a memoir told by Lily who has lived to a great old age, but can only now put down her story in writing because those involved have all died.  She begins her tale when she is five years old, and learning the different roles in her household (Father, all revered.  Elder Brother, most cherished of children because he is first born and a boy.  Mother, subservient to both Father and Elder Brother.  Second Brother, the youngest of the family, but a boy, so still very important.  And then there is Elder Sister, Lily, and Beautiful Moon, the daughter of Aunt and Uncle who live on the charity of Lily’s father who was Elder Brother in his own family).  The Chinese family unit is unique.  The patriarch or father of the family must shelter and feed all male siblings, their wives and children until the daughters marry and move out.  The eldest son inherits this responsibility on his father’s deathbed, his wife’s duty being to look after her mother-in-law until such time as that woman dies and she can finally raise her status to head woman of the inner household.

 

As she grows up, Lily must learn her place in society.  She will be married out, hopefully to a good man, whom she will obey until he dies.  She must produce sons, daughters being worthless for they are just married out of the home.  It is her sons’ wives who will look after her in her old age, just as she will take care of her own mother-in-law upon marriage. 

 

And then there is the practice of foot binding.  (I link to a very good article on Wikipedia here, but warn it contains graphic images not for the faint of heart).  All upper and middle class women had their feet bound as young children, usually around age 6, while the bones were still weak and easily breakable, as this communicated their status to prospective husbands.  The goal was to have a “golden lily”, a foot that measured only 3 inches.  A horrific, disfiguring practice, foot binding was finally outlawed in the early 1900s, though it still occurred in remote villages well into the middle of last century.  It was a way to oppress women, for they were restricted to the home, being unable to walk long distances on their weakened and small feet. 

 

Women were not only physically confined to the house, but mentally as well.  They were not allowed to partake in the outer “male” realm of the marketplace, or to attend the same lessons as boys did, and their writing was restricted to that of nu shu, a form of “female” writing that was a simplified version of Chinese script and contained far fewer characters than that used by men in their writing.

 

Lisa See’s book is an incredibly well written peek into the sheltered world of women in a rural, agricultural province in 19^th Century China.  I found it fascinating to learn more about the culture of China and the practices of foot binding and women’s writing, all set against the background of the deep female friendship between Lily and the Snow Flower of the title.  At this time in China, young girls of a marriageable age would gather into small groups of women called “sworn sisters.”  These women helped each other prepare for the upcoming weddings by quilting and sewing, and later provided companionship before and after the children were born and raised.  In Lily and Snow Flower’s case, they formed a laotong, a soul sister bond whereby they forsook the friendship of other women and created a bond that was stronger than the marriage between husband and wife.  This friendship between Lily and Snow Flower is the heart of the book, and there are some surprising twists that are revealed about each woman during the course of the novel but I won’t give it away with spoilers.

 

What my fellow book clubbers had to say:

 

We all to a group (except the one person who hadn’t read the book but still joined us for the discussion) loved this book.  Those who have read Lisa See before highly recommended her novel Shanghai Girls, which I now can’t wait to read, and praised it as being better than this novel, though they still very much enjoyed this month’s pick.

 

We also were all completely horrified by the descriptions of foot binding, and the reality that this was a common practice for women in China for several centuries. 

 

The opportunity to learn about another culture which See’s book gives us was appreciated by all, but as we considered the relationship between mother and daughter, and the mother’s role in binding her daughter’s feet, I personally found it hard to relate to what these women went through in the name of status and culture.  Of course it was pointed out that we still do incredibly silly things today for the sake of attaining an impossible ideal of beauty, namely Botox injections, plastic surgery, ridiculous diets, etc.  But today at least we have a choice.  For the women of Lily’s generation, options for women were limited to remaining unbound and becoming servants, or having poorly bound feet and becoming “little daughters in law” who were sold to other families, remained unmarried, and were basically used for the pleasure of the men of the house, or enduring foot binding in the hopes of raising your station by marring into a prominent, wealthy family.  From the perspective of the 21^st century where I have been lucky to have unlimited options for my own future, I can only say, how really terribly sad.

 

Lisa See’s Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is a highly recommended read!

 

Till next time, happy reading.

L

 

 

 

Windsor Book Club Reads: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

“Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers”

 

It’s 1946 and a letter from the Channel Islands finds its way to a weary war correspondent in London.  Juliet Ashton is embarking on a brief book tour of her collection of newspaper columns written during the recent war when she receives a letter from Dawsey Adams, a resident of Guernsey who chanced upon her discarded copy of The Selected Letters of Elia by Charles Lamb.  Dawsey writes to say how reading Lamb helped get him through the German occupation of Guernsey and mentions the literary society he’d been involved with.  From there the sparks of friendship and more are ignited as Juliet begins a correspondence with members of the Society.

 

Each member has their own special story to tell, and their own unique connection to literature.  Farmers who never picked up anything but the seed catalogue suddenly find solace in the words of Shakespeare while women pass their evenings with the Brontes.  Book choices may be limited, but each member of the society finds something to help them escape the dreary reality of the Occupation. 

 

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a book for book lovers, and it is one of my all-time favourite reads.  Inspired by my recent re-reading of this book, I chanced upon a copy of Lamb’s essays while wondering through Juniper Books one weekend, and couldn’t resist purchasing it.  I’ll look forward to reading it and connecting back to Dawsey and his thoughts on Lamb’s work.  Mary Ann Shafer and Annie Barrows’ writing is so vivid, with each character having his or her own distinct voice, they simply come to life and I imagine that if I were to travel back in time, I could visit Guernsey and meet these people myself, they’re portrayed so realistically.

 

What my fellow book clubbers had to say:

 

Reviews were mixed at this month’s book club meeting.  One other, like myself, absolutely loved the book.  A few didn’t care for it at all, while the majority were on the fence, not particularly caring for the book at first, by as they continued to read, found that the book improved so that they were able to give it a tepid “like”.  I try to think back to the first time I read the GLPPPS and what my thoughts were on it initially, but all I am able to recollect is that upon closing the back cover I knew this was a book I loved, simply for its portrayal of community and fellow book lovers.

 

The book’s epistolary form turned off some of our members at first, but the fact that the authors managed to write such individual characters with distinct voices and portray them in each letter as well as affectively advance the story through letter format, was found to be very impressive and kudos to the writing team were duly given.  Many members of the group enjoyed learning about Guernsey and the German Occupation of the island, having not known these facts previously.  Much that is written about WWII focuses on major countries and cities like France, London, or the concentration camps, so it was interesting to read and learn about another aspect of that war.

 

Overall, the story was found to be enjoyable for most, with characters many of us could relate to or root for, and though not everyone would recommend this book to others, I am wholeheartedly jumping up and down shouting “read it, read it, oh do read it for it’s a delightful little book and well worth the afternoon of gentle reading”, a very apt description coined by one of our members.

 

Till next time, happy reading!

L

L Returns to the TBR Bookcase: Sh*t My Dad Says

Laugh out loud funny!!

 

Justin Halpern, at the age of twenty-eight, finds himself moving back in with mom and dad.  His incredibly outspoken and profane father proceeds to offer up some gems of wisdom which Justin starts posting on his Twitter account, probably in an attempt to stay sane.  Before long, his dad’s gems have gone viral and Justin is fielding calls from book publishers and TV producers which results in his first book, Sh*t My Dad Says.

 

Filled with family anecdotes on the major stages of a young man’s life from childhood on, and peppered with his father’s unique philosophy on life, Sh*t My Dad Says is laugh out loud hilarity.  From Little League games to getting caught with his first porn flick and onward to his first heartbreak and moving away from home, the love of father for son is highly evident, if showcased in an oftentimes irreverent manner. 

 

A delightful little book that will give you an hour or two of bust out loud belly laughter, while also imparting some cheeky advice and simple home truths in a straightforward, no bullshit kind of way.  Sh*t My Dad Says is well worth the read.

 

Till next time, happy reading.

L J

 

L Reads a Classic: She, by H. Rider Haggard

Oh what great fun this little book is!

 

Back when I was a kid, my next-oldest brother and I were given an old black and white T.V. from an uncle who’d scrounged it from an apartment building fire.  Despite it still smelling somewhat smoky, we were very grateful for the gift.  It meant that we could have a T.V. in our bedrooms, at least some of the time, since we both held a 50% interest in it.  Oh the joy of having a T.V. to myself, when I had custody of it!  Even if it was black & white!  It meant that I got to choose what show to watch, not have to fight with several brothers and my parents, many of whom wanted to watch hockey (blech!).  Majority ruled in my house.  It also didn’t help that I often wanted to watch some girly show that no one else liked lol. 

 

So I fondly remember those nights of T.V. viewing up in my bedroom, while my brothers watched the hockey game downstairs in the living room.  Usually I’d end up with some black & white movie on TVO so it didn’t matter that I didn’t have a colour T.V. set.  One movie I watched and greatly enjoyed was the adventure movie King Solomon’s Mines from 1950 starring Stewart Granger and Deborah Kerr.  Later, in the 1980s, Richard Chamberlain took his turn as Allan Quatermain, starring in King Soloman’s Mines and it’s follow up Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold, both great cult classics.  Little did I know at the time that both movies were based on novels written in the 1880s by a man named H. Rider Haggard until I picked up She, which is on my Victorian Literature course reading list.  As soon as I caught the connection, though, I greatly looked forward to reading the novel.  And it didn’t disappoint!

 

L. Horace Holly and his ward Leo Vincey travel to darkest Africa in search of the lost city of Kor in order to avenge the murder of Leo’s ancestor, Kallikrates.  Despite being eaten alive by mosquitoes and watching lions being killed by crocodiles, the two finally meet up with the Amahagger tribe, who, following orders given by She (or She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed), take them to their village.  The Amahaggers are a matriarchal society, where the women rule, or so the men let them think.  They are governed by She, a supposedly immortal white woman who has lived for over 2000 years and who rules by intimidation and fear.  Anyone who disobeys She is instantly put to death.  The Amahaggers fear her implicitly.  She, whose real name is Ayesha, has been waiting these 2000 years for the return of her lover, Kallikrates, a man she killed because he would not leave his wife for her.  Leo, it turns out, is Kallikrates reincarnated, and She vows they will marry and he will be given the secret to infinite life.

 

Amid lush descriptions of the African landscape and the Amahagger peoples and customs, including their practice of “hot-potting” (they kill strangers by placing a boiling hot pot on their heads and then eat them) is a story that raises many questions about the Empire and the role of women in society.  Haggard was a fervent imperialist supporter, yet he presents a picture of an Empire that is not always desirable.  Also, women were re-defining their roles in society at the end of the nineteenth century, and so Haggard creates in the character of She a warning to these women that change and progression of women’s rights is not always a good thing.  The misogyny alone, expressed in the character of Holly, is enough to make my inner feminist cringe.  But She is a fascinating character, one I’m still wrapping my head around.  She represents the Empire, both its good and bad characteristics, as well as serving as a warning to young women, and yet, She is so much more.  Ultimately, who or what is She?  Literary critics are still answering that question.

 

H. Rider Haggard’s She, is more than just an adventure story, and it’s a darn good read too.  I leave you with a film clip from a fun cult classic:

 

Ursula Andress in She (1965)

 

 

Till next time, happy reading!

L :)

 

PS Lily liked the book too lol

“I do things like get in a taxi and say, “The library, and step on it.”

~ David Foster Wallace

 

L Reads a Classic and Tries (and Probably Fails) Not to Make the Review Sound Like an English Lit Lecture

The Mill on the Floss is George Elliot’s second book and reportedly her most autobiographical.  Elliot, who was born Mary Ann Evans in 1819, used the male pseudonym George Elliot in order to be taken more seriously as a writer.  Her first novel, Adam Bede, won critical acclaim until the critics found out it was written by a woman.  In the nineteenth century, women were not supposed to be intellectual beings, after all, and widely read Elliot, who spoke and read several languages, and populated her texts with scientific debate, was a conundrum for the critics and reading public.

 

Along with her novels, George Elliot may be most famous for openly living with a married man.  Having met George Henry Lewes in 1851, the pair chose to live together, and called each other husband and wife, despite being unable to marry due to the fact that Lewes could not divorce his wife.  Elliot’s decision caused quite the rift between her and her family, and resulted in her brother choosing not to speak to her until many years later when Elliot finally lawfully married John Cross in 1880.

 

Getting back to The Mill on the Floss, which I mentioned was purported to be very autobiographical, it is a story about a brother and sister, Tom and Maggie Tulliver, and the trials and tribulations of their lives from childhood to adulthood.  Maggie is an incredibly smart, well-read young girl who doesn’t quite fit into her society, a society that expects girls to dress prettily, learn to sew and keep house, and be proper young ladies.  Her older brother Tom also struggles with his place in society.  His father wishes him to receive a gentleman’s education but Tom is not interested in book learning and would rather build animal traps.  Both children, however, have little choice but to be molded into their required place in society, despite how against their nature that place is.  When Maggie, as an adolescent, begins an innocent, but forbidden friendship with the son of her father’s nemesis, Tom chastises her for it, and forces her to end the dalliance.  But it is not until later, when Maggie spends a night away from town with their cousin’s fiancé, does Tom cut all ties with her, refusing to listen to the truth or acknowledge Maggie as his sister, for she has disgraced the family irreparably.  Shades of Elliot’s life story, no?

 

The novel is a superb example of high realism, in that the characters and their lives are fully realized and simply jump of the page, easily coming to life for the reader.  Elliot also intersperses the story with interesting commentary on the nature of man, evolution and various other debates engaging Victorian minds of the day:  class issues, scientific advances and discoveries, the woman question, etc.  Because of this, it is not an easy read.  Most people either love or hate Elliot’s books.  I, unfortunately, had to read it in a very short period of time as it is required reading in my Victorian Literature course, and so I am of two minds about the book.  I think, had I really taken the time to immerse myself in the novel, I would have enjoyed it far more than I did.  I generally read from a feminist critical perspective, and Maggie’s tragic story of being forced to choose between duty to her family and duty to herself and never feeling like she could be happy in life is one that truly resonates.

 

If you’re looking for a meaty piece of fiction to sink your teeth into, definitely give this one a shot.  I’ll be looking forward to the summer when I can give it a more slow and thorough going over in order to tease out all the delightful subtleties.  That’s just the English Lit geek I am!

 

Till next time, happy reading!

L J

 

“There are perhaps no days of our childhood we lived so fully as those we spent with a favourite book”

~ Marcel Proust