"Bearpond Books

A debut novel that captures Iowa farm life, but especially the lives of Iowa farm women. This is the story of two very different personalities who are bound by the loneliness of place. Mary and Enidina’s perspectives, struggles and values are elegantly told through the use of alternating chapters detailing their lives.

Enedina’s chapters are written to her grandson of the future, wanting to capture their life for him. He is a grandson she never meets and her story reveals why. Mary’s chapters tell of a life of secrets and self-delusion. The inner life of each is delicately and intimately displayed.

The first novel by Allende in four years tells the story of Tete, a mulatto slave in Haiti, and follows her life starting in the late 1700’s. Spanning decades, beginning in Sainte-Domingue(soon to be Haiti after the slave rebellion) and moving to New Orleans, Allende creates a strong woman soothed by African drums and versed in voodoo yet able to hold her own in the Creole life of New Orleans. My one disappointment with the book was that the sexual scenes–rape by her owner and a deep sensual intimacy with her lover –were overwritten. They seemed more like “bodice ripper” prose than what I would have expected from Allende. The rest of the prose lives up to Allende’s high standard for storytelling. This glimpse of Haiti-a country much in the news today- allows you to understand some reasons for its current poverty.

When American born and raised Jasmine fails out of college she reluctantly returns to the home of her Iranian father and American mother. She is immediately confronted with her father’s (and surprisingly her mother’s) determination to plan a “hastegar”, an arranged marriage, for her. Jasmine doesn’t take this scheme seriously until her suitors start appearing for dinner.

Funny, sarcastic yet intrigued about this situation, Jasmine goes through the motions of these arranged meetings, always rejecting or being rejected by the men. Then she meets the one man who keeps coming back.

The more intense story, always in the background, is her search to discover the life of her evasive father, and her continued longing to be close to him. Eslami also manages to weave the richness of Iranian culture into the novel.

When a rep tells us they loved the book we usually believe it, with reservation, and hold off on praise until we’ve read it. This is one galley that both Claire and I read, discussed, and really liked. Luckily we didn’t have to fight over the galley because 2 were left at the store for us and we read them simultaneously. I almost called her from out of state to say ok, where are you in the book–it was that good…

Await Your Reply starts gruesomely with a father telling his adult son to hold on, he is not going to bleed to death –even though his severed hand is sitting on the seat beside him as they drive to the hospital. Now, I am not a fan of violent books or movies and with this start to the book I wondered if I really did want to continue reading. I’m very glad that I did.

Chapters move between the five main characters, each time pulling you deeper into the evolving stories of each. Sometimes you even begin to think you know where the book is leading. I won’t say anything more, be prepared for not knowing.

Dan Chaon was nominated for a National Book Award for a previous book. His novels include Among the Missing and You and Me.

Eilis Lacey is a young woman living in Ireland in the 1950’s with her mother and her flamboyant sister, Rose. Though Rose is doing well, prospects for Eilis are slim in an Irish economy that is suffering post World War 2. When an offer is made for sponsorship in America by an Irish priest living in Brooklyn, she is torn, but decides she must go.

The descriptions of life in a 1950’s Irish-Catholic community in Brooklyn are rich, and Eilis seems to begin living the American Dream in spite of her loneliness. Under-employed in a department store, she goes to night school to better herself and eventually falls in love. When devastating news arrives from Ireland, she books passage “home” for a month’s stay. The life decisions she makes in Ireland let you realize just how young and naive she continues to be.

This is a simple story and reminds me of the books of author Molly Gloss (Hearts of Horses, Wild Life)–not elegant, not particularly literary, but sweet stories that keep you reading and thinking. The descriptions of the Atlantic crossing by ship made me realize just how recent is the easy return to a home country. Today’s immigrants are expected to return home for frequent visits when even 60 years ago families were generally left behind for good.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The setting is Mississippi in the 60’s where young, newly married white women have black maids to do their housework and raise their children. The story of their lives is told through the eyes of the women who work for them. This novel is both heartbreaking and hopeful as the wise and fearful “help” slowly gain the courage to speak the truth of their lives: learning to know their place from their mothers’ fears and admonitions, raising children they love and must leave, always being wary of the kindness of whites. A telling story of a time when questioning the status quo could and did result in torture and death.