Blood and Ice Review

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(More customer reviews)From the bare synopsis, I thought this might be something like "The Da Vinci Code" in the South Pole. I quickly realized that was not the case. It's a little more like the way Clive Cussler uses a historical incident to launch each thriller, except that here, the historical incident is less frenetically paced, and occupies more of the book than the opening teaser.
The historical part of the book is more or less the love story between the dashing Lt. Sinclair Copley and nurse Eleanor Ames during the Crimean War. Oddly, however, the book opens with the two of them being chained up and thrown off a boat to drown in icy waters. It's later chapters that tell the story of how they got together.
The modern part of the story is about a photojournalist's trip to a research station at the South Pole, where he makes an . . . interesting discovery. The atmosphere is not unlike that in John Carpenter's "The Thing," minus of course the gory special effects.
It's really hard to say more without spoiling the plot of the book, so I won't. What I will say is that the plot twists are both predictable yet subtle, if that makes sense. In other words, the careful (or prolific) reader will have figured out what's going on before the reveal, but it's still satisfying all the same.

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La's Orchestra Saves the World: A Novel Review

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(More customer reviews)Alexander McCall Smith has built a following based on his serial novels -- the Mma Ramotswe mysteries set in Botswana as well as the two series of more general fiction set in his home town of Edinburgh. In those, each chapter is essentially a self-contained story, each of which builds on the events in previous chapters and creates a narrative arc leading toward the book's conclusion. In "La's Orchestra Saves the World", the author has taken a much more conventional structure, although his main character, La herself, is anything but a traditional heroine, although in her own way she is just as quirky as any Botswanan sleuth or 40-something Edinburgh bluestock philosopher.
La, the eponymous heroine, after a series of events, is living in the English countryside, somewhat rootless and aimless, when World War 2 breaks out. Her need -- never strongly felt -- to seek a place for herself gives way to a quest to make herself useful. She cares for a local farmer's hens, creates a garden -- and, to her own astonishment, creates a ramshackle kind of orchestra made up in part of the airmen from a local RAF base.
This is not a war novel in any sense; the conflict itself is distant from the day to day lives of La and her neighbors, even as they must cope with everything from the deaths of those they know to the vicissitudes of rationing. The style, plot and character development are as old-fashioned in feeling as La's proper name -- Lavender. But there is a hint of mystery and even tension when La comes on the scene. A Polish airman -- or is he? -- he plays the flute in La's orchestra, and helps out on the farm. But not everyone is as drawn to Felix as is La, and even she realizes there are some unanswered questions about his background...
Ultimately all is revealed, but this is not a conventional love story, either. While this book will probably appeal to those who enjoy reading the musings of Isabel Dalhousie in Alexander McCall Smith's Sunday Philosophy Club series, fans of the Ladies No. 1 Detective Club stories will find it much less vibrant and forceful, either in tone or characterization. The plot meanders gently to what some may find a disappointing conclusion, albeit one that makes sense of what has gone before.
It's an oddly passive story, albeit one that deals in a quiet way with all the major themes of life: love, war and a quest for identity and purpose. Those with the patience to keep reading will find much that is rewarding in a gentle kind of way, particularly in La's quest to create sense of meaning from what often seems to her to be a life that too detached.

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The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale Review

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(More customer reviews)The title of this review consists of words I don't use too often. But this is a masterpiece that deserved its Pulitzer Prize and then some. What makes Spiegelman's work so moving is the juxtaposition of a supposedly lighthearted form, the comic strip, with the greatest evil and suffering in human history, the Holocaust. Spiegelman's parents miraculously survived the concentration camps, being among very few survivors, getting by on luck and (in the case of Spiegelman's father) a lot of resourcefulness. This is their story, from the point of view of the father, who lost nearly all of his relatives. With the Jews as mice and the Nazis as cats, this work pulls no punches in describing the true horrors of the Holocaust, and Spiegelman's minimalist artwork makes the images all the more disturbing. You don't get this kind of emotion, terror, and brutal honesty in standard written accounts of the period. But underneath the direct suffering of the Holocaust, the true theme of this book is the lasting effects on the Spiegelman family, including the father's lasting agony and the mental illness shared by both Spiegelman's mother and himself, who hadn't even been born yet. The strained relationship between father and son are the true heart of this tremendous work. I haven't been this blown away by a work of literature in a very long time, if ever.

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A son struggles to come to terms with the horrific story of his parents and their experiences during the Holocaust and in postwar America, in an omnibus edition of Spiegelman's two-part, Pulitzer Prize-winning best-seller. 25,000 first printing.

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Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a powerful work. The tale of a young man's painful relationship with his father is elegantly interwoven with the father's recollection of life as a Jew in Nazi-occupied Poland. Spiegelman's skill and honesty make this a raw, gut-wrenching read, though the tale is somehow ultimately uplifting.
I first read this book as a teenager, and would highly recommend it to people of any age. Over the years, I have re-read it frequently and shared it with friends of all ages. All have taken much from Spiegelman's tale.
A few notes must be made in response to the 10/26/97 comment posted below by a reviewer from Ontario, Canada. It is quite clear that this reviewer did not, in fact, read the book. (S)he mistakenly attacks Spiegelman for portraying the Poles as rats, and wonders if he would be offended if a book were written portraying Jews as rats. Anyone who took the time to read Maus (or merely to examine it's cover!) would know that it is, in fact, the Jewish people who are portrayed as mice/rats, whereas the Poles are portrayed not as vermin, but rather as pigs.
In fact, far from a "vicious" attack against Poles, there are many acts of kindness by Polish people portrayed in the book. Certainly there is unkindness as well, but how can the reviewer forget that this is a factual account of Vladek Spiegelman's life, told from his perspective. If unkind acts by Polish people are a part of that life, then they should be in the book.
Finally, the reviewer in question inelegantly raises a point of some merit, though it is one that is only tangentially related to Spiegelman's work. The Polish people did, in fact, suffer horribly at the hands of both Nazis and Soviets alike. Their death toll in the concentration camps numbered in the millions, and should never be forgotten or omitted when discussing the Holocaust. This book, however, is about Vladek Spiegelman, and so surely it cannot be assailed for its focus on events from his perspective.
Spiegelman's fidelity to his father's! story is to be admired, not attacked. And certainly not by a reviewer who could not be bothered to read the book.

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The Forest Lover Review

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(More customer reviews)After being immersed in delicious piles of children's & YA books I changed course long enough to read "The Forest Lover." 1st, because long ago I was intrigued by Emily Carr's art; 2nd, our lifetimes overlapped; 3rd, the author's "Girl in Hyacinth Blue" is near the top of my *Vermeer List*; and 4th, for the joy of reading about a woman with great talents who overcame many obstacles including three inflexible, stuffily 'religious' sisters.
In the *Author's Afterword* Vreeland says her story is a look at Carr's 'courageous and extraordinary life'(p.329). My favorite quotation by the artist is when she exclaimed late in life: "DON'T PICKLE ME AWAY AS A DONE" (p.331). Even after two heart attacks and a stroke Emily Carr was pushing herself around on a makeshift wheeled crate in order to keep painting. She died in 1945 at age 74.
Her paintings reflected her spirit as well as the spirit of the forests and native people she grew to love. She was intrepid; the paintings astonishing. She was 'gutsy' and her art could be disturbing. They sometimes mirrored her melancholy; hers was a lonely life. I see echoes of Barbara Kingsolver's "Poisonwood Bible" in Vreeland's commentary on the miserable treatment natives were handed out by bureaucrats and 'men of God'. The torments they caused!
Susan Vreeland was writing this book for 17 years. She said "In paint and words, Emily Carr casts a tall shadow, one which has accompanied me in western forests" - this from her experience kayacking into the north country to search for remnants of the totem poles Carr had sacrificed so much to capture on canvas.
Some reviewers have carped about Vreeland introducing fictional characters and relationships in her story. 1st, let's remember this IS FICTION; 2nd, writers often do this to entice a wider audience. If this book serves to introduce hundreds more readers to Emily Carr and the wrongs she fought against, then I say "Amen" - "so be it"; 3rd, the author, in trying to portray the artist's spirit felt she could take 'certain liberties' because Emily, herself, altered facts and chronology in her own writings. And why shouldn't someone as passionate about her painting as Carr also have passionate relationships? One Amazon reviewer has gone a step beyond objecting to fictional love scenes; he/she ridicules the actions and language used as though anyone can say what is a "proper" way of writing about love!
Vreeland describes (Part II) Carr's experiences in France in a most engaging way. It was the time of Monet and Van Gogh although Carr did not meet these men. The author captures vividly the critical eye of Parisians and the manner in which Carr's art evolved. Carr's was a truly amazing achievement, as a Canadian and a woman, to have a painting shown in the prestigious Salon d'Automne. She returned to British Columbia with a new confidence in her technique.
Late in life Emily Carr was gratified to receive acclaim: "Hers is the greatest contribution of all time to historic art of the Pacific slopes. Miss Carr is essentially of the Canadian West *not by reason of her subject matter alone but by her approach to it*"(from the Ottawa "Citizen"). I find her paintings to be spirit-filled and/or spiritual (according to your individual interpretation); her colors bold and lush. When you come to the end of this book - a glorious adventure for the reader - remember it as a fictionalized account told with love and admiration for someone who lived 'before her time' and captured the true essence of her surroundings.
REVIEWER mcHAIKU remains in awe of the subject and heartily applauds the author.

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The Constant Princess (Boleyn) Review

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(More customer reviews)Since Katherine of Aragon is vastly underrepresented in fiction about Henry VIII (people tend to focus of Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard) it's nice to see a book just from her point of view.
This is the story of Katherine of Aragon, born to parents constantly on crusade against the moors (Muslims, Jews and other none Christians) in Spain, with a comparatively feminist mother for the time period. From the age of three she was betrothed to Henry Tudor's eldest son, Arthur. She was married, after great haggling by the royal parents, to Arthur when she was 16 and he was 15. There was a language gap, she spoke Spanish and French and Latin, and he spoke English, French and Welsh. But they got along. In this book the story of Katherine's first marriage is highly romantic and very sweetly written. This book is her life story, with a major gap between Princess Mary's (Later Queen Bloody Mary) birth and the time of the separation of Katherine from Henry so Anne Boleyn could be queen, told in third person and quite a lot of first person seeming journal entry type sections also from Katherine's view point (those parts can be quite boring.) This is a good book written about a largely ignored time period in the time of one of Henry's greatest queens and truest loves.
That said, I have some major issues with this book.
Philippa Gregory is a good writer, there's no question about that. But she made some very large historical presumptions in writing this book that I have problems with. I could understand if the book was supposed to be purely from a fictional standpoint, or had an author's note saying that pretty much all serious historians believe that Katherine and Arthur Tudor's marriage was never consummated, but this book doesn't ever say that. So, while this book is well written and a great story it's important for people to remember that it is fiction, and the facts in real life were quite different from what was represented in this book. No historian I can think of belives that Katherine and Arthur's marriage was consumated.
Henry's portrayal as hugely selfish I found a little offensive, considering that his goal in life of a male heir wasn't strange at all for the time period (he was the king and the last of his direct line) and wasn't brought up a total brat, he was royal yes, but that does not equel spoiled brat. Quite the opposit if you know your history. His parents were very careful royals (royal by right of conquest remember) with great people skills (they had to be charismatic to rule) who loved each other (probably) and loved order. He just wouldn't have been allowed to run wild in his childhood like he is shown to do in this book. Also the way Henry VII lusted after Katherine was odd, since there is absolutely no evidence that he ever cheated on his wife, or had a sexual relationship before he met her or after she died (the man was a prude and that is a fact.) Henry VII probably really did love his wife Elizabeth and while he did offer the princess of Spain his hand, it was mostly because he was a money lover who lusted after her dowry, not her.
Katherine has some very forward thinking tolerance ideas in this book, which are kind of strange and completly inaccurate considering her background and major Catholic belief system. In this book she seeks medical advice from a moor which is something that the real Katherine never EVER would have done. Her early life poisoned her gainst Islamic people and Jews to a total extent. That also makes it extremly unlikely that her people and family took on moorish customs while living in the captured moorish palace in Granada. Katherine was Catholic, and this was Catholic before Matrin Luther. If you were Catholic then even thinking about the moorish way of life with some tolerence was a sin. Also, the way Katherine lied in this book about the consumation of her first marriage would have-to the real Katherine-been a major sin, and thus not even a thing to contemplate.
If you want more, and very well researched info, about Katherine's early life check out The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir, which includes a very long section on Katherine's life before she married Henry and quite a lot about the consummation issue with Arthur. It is an extendedly researched book by THE expert in the feild and concludes that the marriage was never consumated. This conclusion is based partly on the fact that Katherine was pregnant almost all the time she was married to Henry and clearly fertile. So, if the marriage with Arthur was really consumated (and if it was more than once as in this book) she probably would have gotton pregnant. No baby, probably no sex.
Also, just because I'm a hopeless romantic I like to imagine that until he met Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII really did love Katherine of Aragon, and she him. So while this book does have some of that, I would have liked to see that love story further developed. And if you're a romantic like me check out The Autobiography of Henry VIII : With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers by Margaret George, which has a very sweet Henry/Katherine early relationship.
So, while I have some major historical issues with this book, it is another good book by Philippa Gregory. Four stars for the story and the writing, but just remember, she's a novelist, not a historian, and this is not a true work of history, or even an accurate work of historical fiction.


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The Endless Steppe: Growing Up in Siberia Review

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(More customer reviews)Esther's wonderfully sincere and illustrative writing will hold even an adult's attention from cover to cover. I have read it over and over again for the last 22 years. As a child in 1979 at age 11, I found myself in my family's frozen garden pretending to be Esther herself, wandering through Siberia in search of frozen potatoes. When I would take a bath, after playing in the snow and getting chilled, I would revel in the marvelous heat of the water and imagine I had just been given a rare cake of soap. When thirsty, I would make myself wait for a drink of cool water from the tap until my throat was parched, so that the first drip of water on my tongue would be heavenly. I would then suck the water into my cheeks as Esther did and swallow very slowly, trying to make it last. My younger sister and I would walk into my dad's livestock truck and pretend we were on a cattle car headed for the Steppe, and we would make a makeshift hut under a log fort we had near the barnyard. Esther's life story filled my thoughts, my days and my head for years following, and reminded me to always care for others and not to take my life in rural United States for granted. Esther wrote in a way that made me feel as if I had somehow managed to form a personal friendship with her.
In 1995, I was able to speak with Esther on the phone, and I have never forgotten that wonderful conversation. Talking with her (she still has a very noticable accent) was as if the book itself came to life, because I realized I was actually visiting with the woman who was the couragous child in the book. Esther's writing encouraged me to be thankful, to be grateful, to be kind, and to never give up. I majored in journalism in college, and though I have never had such an extreme happening in my lifetime, I hope to eventually put down in words something that will touch other's lives as Esther Hautzig touched mine.

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