Bye Bye 2007

I thought I should start fresh in 2008 since I got so far behind writing about the books I read in 2007. Briefly,

I really enjoyed Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky. This is an unusual addition to the historical fiction genre in that Nemirovsky wrote it as a contemporary novel in 1940 or so before she was carted off to Auschwitz, where she was murdered. She gives us a fascinating glimpse into the lives of a French people from many different social classes and backgrounds. The first novella in this book takes place as the French are fleeing Paris in advance of the German occupation; the second novella deals with collaboration between the occupied and the occupiers in a small farming village. Both stories are filled with interesting and believable (but not always likable) characters.

Jenna Blum gives us a totally different perspective on WWII and the Holocaust in her excellent novel, Those Who Save Us. Switching back and forth between two characters and two time periods, Blum creates an intriguing story of love, abuse, betrayal, and redemption. She confronts head on the moral dilemma of what one will do to survive during a time of unspeakable horrors. The characters are well drawn and complex. And as in real life, everything is not tied up neatly in the end, but leaves the protagonist with many unresolved questions. That’s life.

After I heard Richard Russo talk at the Free Library of Philadelphia about his new novel, Bridge of Sighs (which my friend, Laura, says is boring), I decided to read some of his earlier novels. Straight Man is a funny book with interesting, quirky, small-town characters typical of Russo. Although this book is enjoyable, I never really connected with the characters or cared that much about what happened. Maybe it was just my mood at the time.

I chose The Color of Love by Gene Cheeks after hearing him interviewed on Fresh Air a while back. Cheeks was born in Jim Crow south to a white mother, who divorced Cheeks’ abusive father and went on to fall in love with and marry a black man. This set into motion one tragic event after another, as Gene was taken away from his mother (unfit because she gave birth to a mixed race child) and thrown into the foster care system since neither his father nor his father’s family wanted him. The writing is pretty amateurish, but I appreciated the fact Cheeks, who is not a writer, wanted to tell his story and told it in his own way.

The first book Garrett and I read together (10 years ago) was Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier, so I picked up his latest book, Thirteen Moons, when I saw it on sale at BJs. After glancing at some fairly negative reviews, I shelved the book for awhile, but pulled it out when I couldn’t find anything else to read. I really loved this book. As he did in Cold Mountain, Frazier writes evocatively about the natural world, and he populates his book with lots of interesting characters. The story revolves around a boy who, at age 12, is indentured to his uncle and sent off to run a trading post on the frontier. The boy, Will Cooper, narrates this book from his perspective as an old man. Over the years, he becomes a lawyer and an honorary member of the Cherokee nation, who works with the Chief to preserve a homeland when the Indians are removed to reservations. Oh, and of course he falls in love and spends the rest of his life longing for reconciliation with his Clare. So it has a little bit of everything: beautiful writing, great characters, and romance!! Since I finished it, I have gone back and read some of those reviews, and all I can say is I disagree. I love Frazier’s writing and the story and characters are really compelling.

When I first took a look at The Soul of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman, I remembered him as the arrogant judge on “The Next Iron Chef.” Then when I saw that for one section of the book he tags along with Michael Symon (who won the Iron Chef competition) I was taken aback. How unfair was that?? (despite the fact that I was rooting for Symon to win). Anyway, I really liked this book. I loved getting into the heads of some of the country’s great chefs, and I love reading about food. I still think Ruhlman is sort of arrogant, but he’s a good writer and reporter, and a devoted foodie.