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World Made by Hand

Apparently my new canning skills (such as they are) may come in handy in the future, and not just in case of the zombie apocalypse. The general breakdown of society appears to be a prevalent theme in my reading these days. I finished the Hunger Games trilogy in mid-2011 and now I just finished the excellent World Made by Hand, by James Howard Kunstler.

I was surprised by how much I loved this book. Kunstler is in some ways a no-nonsense, straight forward writer, spending little time delving into the character's thoughts, preferring to let the action take center stage. But he can also write lyrically and movingly about place, love and loss. The combination of both styles was a little jarring to me at first, but starts to make more sense as you continue to read.

The premise is that the world as we currently know it has basically ended, through mostly unexplained but hinted at actions like war, disease etc., sparked by dependence on oil. The book takes place in the near future, and starts (I'm guessing) about 10 years after the main apocalyptic events have happened. The people who have survived have learned to pick up the pieces and make new lives for themselves. This new life looks very much like life was in the 1800s.

The suburbs are history--anyone who is surviving is living either a very small town, rural farming life, or a rougher, more hardscrabble and lawless life in what is left of the cities. There is certainly nothing left of a central government, news organizations, etc., and it appears that is the same throughout the world, although no one really knows what is happening anywhere.

I found much of this book completely fascinating. It was such a realistic, very possible portrayal of what life could really be like. Kunstler walks a fine line between welcoming a return to the past without sugarcoating it, and imparting a sense of dread and loss without having it overwhelm the story. He pays attention to the details of what life could be like. There is a certain amount of time spent showing how in some ways people are better off. They work together, they spend time socializing, they know how to do things, there are lots of pleasures to be taken in the simple things, etc. But the realities of life are not ignored either. They have few modern medical supplies, violence and lawlessness are rampant, they lead a subsistence, agrarian lifestyle that is completely dependent on their skills, hard work and uncontrollable events like weather.

It's like life in the 1800s, but in many ways much harder, because the characters know what they used to have. And because it is so soon after the disasters, everyone is still in a basic survival mode. There is very little trade between communities, although within a community it is the only way to survive. Life has become small and contained within a five mile boundary. Few people have horses and any trade that happens occurs along waterways. There are no organized schools or trades, and the younger generation know only hard work and apprenticeships.

There is so much to this book that I can't do it justice. The plot is compelling and surprising and will keep you turning the pages. The characters are well drawn and vivid. There is a tension throughout the book between hopelessness and despair for a life that may never come back, and optimism and guarded hope for a new future. There are even some mystical and supernatural elements woven throughout the story that hint at a very interesting sequel. I highly recommend this book. Besides being quite enjoyable, it made me think, and I'm still thinking about it a week later.

How two is different from one

Will did not watch tv until he was two years old, and then it was limited to half an hour of Curious George a day. His first movie in the theater was when he was almost four; it was Toy Story 3.

Emma has probably been aware of the tv since birth (although it is not on very much at our house), and it was always tuned to something too old for her, like Sponge Bob. She rarely paid attention, but has recently been demanding to watch "her" show, usually Dora. We took her to her first movie on New Year's Day--Will's pick--the excruciating Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked. It would never have occurred to me to take Will to a movie at this age (she's two and five months) and it certainly wouldn't have been that movie. She of course loved it.

We did everything for Will when he was two and a half. We dressed him, brushed his teeth, put on his shoes, zipped his coat, etc. Emma has been doing all of these things extremely competently for months.

Despite being a great runner and in general pretty great athlete, Will could not figure out how to pedal a tricycle until he was three and a half. Emma figured it out in an afternoon about 3 months ago, right after she turned two.

I could go on and on with examples like this. I was really worried when I had a second child that I would not have the time or energy to spend with them like I had with Will. How was the kid ever going to learn anything? I had no idea how important the sibling relationship would be. Emma has learned so much from watching Will.  A lot of it is basic copying, and a lot of it is competition. She loves him wholeheartedly and blindingly, and she wants to do everything that he does. So she watches him and sees that he can do things that she can't, and then she figures out how to do them. It is really amazing to watch. I have no doubt that she will learn to read at a much younger age then he will (he's so close right now).

They are two peas in a pod and I am very grateful. Although they both have good friends, I think they are their favorite playmates and companions. They have totally different personalities and temperaments (Will: agreeable, easygoing and sweet--Emma: mercurial, bossy and the life of the party), but seem to get along famously. We moved them into the same bedroom in August and it has cured their sleeping issues. I asked Will the other day if he still liked sharing a room with Emma and he told me that he loved it and never wanted to be alone. She gets out of her bed at some point every night and curls up right next to him to sleep.

I love the dynamic of our little family. So it was somewhat of a shock to find out that I was pregnant again. It may be hard to believe that two people in their late 30s and early 40s can have an unexpected pregnancy after 15 years together, but I am here to tell you that it can happen. I found out for sure on my birthday in September, and it has taken me pretty much until now to process it.

I am due in mid-May. While I still spend a fair amount of time worrying about how adding another child will affect our family and our children, I am less worried about it than I was before Emma was born. I'm sure it will work out in ways that I can't even imagine now. The kids are excited and we are getting there. How it will affect our finances and my new job prospects is an entirely different post and a real reason to worry. But for now, I am secure in the knowledge that this baby will have two wonderful siblings to learn from and play with  and love, and that is something precious.

2011

I forgot how to login to Typepad, people. That is clearly a sign that I have failed at blogging this year, if the fact that my last entry is August 25th isn't enough. However, my one and only goal for 2012 is to write on a consistent basis. I wish I could say daily, but that isn't going to happen. Let's try twice a week. I have a feeling that I am going to have a lot to say next year, as there are some major events expected to happen...you'll just have to keep reading to find out what! Let's end 2011 on a high note by actually posting something. Here are my responses to Linda from All and Sundry's annual year end quiz.

1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?

This is not a good start. I can't think of ANYTHING! I really need to push myself more, obviously. Oh wait, I thought of something. I formed an LLC in order to do some consulting, and I got a contract this summer. That was pretty cool. I did it because my hours were cut at work and we needed more money. I don't see it as a long term solution or something that I want to expand to more than a few contracts per year, but it was a great fix to an immediate problem and something to put on my resume.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

Hmmm...I made one New Year's resolution for 2011 and it was blown on January 1, 2011. Not a good start. That's what you get for making resolutions that you have no control over, i.e. health. My resolution was for our family to be healthier in 2011 than we were in 2010. N. and I started the year with a terrible stomach flu. This year my resolution is to write here, and other places, consistently. Should be something I can control a little bit more!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

 No.

4. Did anyone close to you die?

 Thankfully, no.

5. What countries did you visit?

 None! I only left the state once and it was for a business trip so that doesn't really count. Lame.

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?

 Financial stability. 2011 was a TERRIBLE year for us in terms of money. My hours were cut by 1/3 in February and we have been struggling ever since. We've spent our savings, I took on extra work, and now we are using up our credit. We can't sell our house and we've cut everything out of our budget that we can. N. switched his schedule to 4 10-hour days so we have one less day to pay for of child care. We can go about 2 more months like this before we have to borrow money from my parents, which is our very last resort. I have two new job prospects that will hopefully be solidified by the end of January. Fingers crossed!

7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

 I'm only going to remember the good dates here. First of all, the summer of 2011 was awesome for us. The kids are at fun ages for outdoor activities and we played outside constantly. Also, at the end of the summer we moved the kids into one room and all of their sleeping problems stopped! They love sleeping in the same room and for the first time in over 2 years N. and I have regularly been sleeping through the night.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

 Holding it together. This year was SUPER challenging in every way and we got through it. Health issues, major financial issues, job stress, and parenting challenges all made for lots of stress.

9. What was your biggest failure?

 Hard to pick, unfortunately. I would say I had a lot of problems figuring out how to happily parent my daughter. We are in a better place now, but 2011 was difficult.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Besides a particularly virulent stomach flu, we just had our usual lingering colds/asthma/pinkeye/pneumonia issues. Not nearly as bad as 2010. 

11. What was the best thing you bought?

 We bought so little this year you would think something would stand out. But no.

12. Where did most of your money go?

 Debt. Horrible, horrible, mortgage, child care costs, two car payments, student loans, home equity loan, credit cards...nothing left after that.

13. What did you get really excited about?

 Starting a new job! Hasn't happened yet, but it will soon.

14. What song will always remind you of 2011?

 Anything by Adele.

15. Compared to this time last year, are you:

– happier or sadder?  Maybe happier, but more worried.
– thinner or fatter?  Much fatter.
– richer or poorer? MUCH poorer.

16. What do you wish you’d done more of?

 Spent more fun time with my husband. Without my kids.

17. What do you wish you’d done less of?

 Worry about things. Watch tv.

18. How did you spend Christmas?

 With my family. It was wonderful!

19. What was your favorite TV program?

 Parks and Rec and Project Runway.

20. What were your favorite books of the year?

 So many! I read lots of Barbara Pym, Sarah Waters, Lev Grossman...I don't think I have a favorite, but it was a great year for books.

21. What was your favorite music from this year?

 I'm way too out of the music scene to comment.

22. What were your favorite films of the year?

 Oh my goodness, we watched so many movies that sucked this year. But I did like Bridesmaids and Crazy, Stupid Love. I am super psyched to see the new Sherlock Holmes.

23. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

 I turned 37. We went to my parent's house for brunch and I got the new Design*Sponge book.

24. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

 Money. So sad to say, but when you don't have enough it is all you can think about.

25. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?

Ha! Covering up the fat parts.

26. What kept you sane?

 The internet. Watching the Real Housewives of anywhere to feel better about my life.

27. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.

 You can have a lot of family fun without money. Pretty much everything we did all year was free or extremely cheap and we had a blast.

In Case of the Zombie Apocalypse...

Man. This summer has been CRAZY. Last summer we felt like we spent all of our time doing household projects and gardening, and we also had a one year old who hated being in the car, so basically we spent the whole three months in our city. We left it like twice. In response, I resolved to make this the summer of FUN and EXCITEMENT and holy crap are we exhausted. It's feast or famine around here.

In addition to going fun places and seeing lots and lots of friends and all of the usual summer staples like swimming, sprinklers, beaches, barbecues and bike riding (basically what we do every weekend), I have also made this the summer of preserving food. Why? Because I don't have enough to do, obviously.

It started innocently enough with free sour cherries from our neighbor's tree (see my last post). I made some jelly from them and now I am obsessed. I have made three different kinds of dill pickles since then, a peach butter, and I have canned tomatoes. I have more tomato projects lined up for this weekend, and I think I'm going to try to can a peach chutney. Don't even get me started on my plans for the pears which will be ripe in a few weeks.

I love to cook and do homemakey stuff, so in some ways this is just a natural extension of that. However, I definitely see a little bit of anxiety twisted up in this project too. Things are unstable at both my job and my husband's job, the politics in our city and state are extremely tense right now, and it kind of seems a little bit like the we are headed toward a worse recession/depression. I am usually a positive, cheerful, look on the bright side type of person, but even I have to admit that things are a little shaky. Clearly the zombie apocalypse is right around the corner. How will I protect my family? Pickles. And jam. Any bottled water stored in the basement? Nope. I never said this was practical. But for some reason it does make me feel a little bit better.

You know what does NOT make me feel better? Having read the following three books. I recommend all of them, but maybe not all at once. It's better to space your depressing reading out and intersperse it with something light, or funny, or maybe even happy. I don't know how I happened to read all three in a row, but it could have something to do with my mood this month...

Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart

I'm sure you've all read a review of this already, so I'm not going to recap it. I resisted reading it because it seemed kind of flashy and gimmicky. And it is, but also wonderful, and sad and sweet and scary. It's just too believable. I absolutely can see technology going to where it goes in this novel, and not that far off in the future. The romance was also believable and most believable of all was the political landscape. I don't want to live in that world. But it's a fascinating and thought provoking book (and a page turner), so ignore this weird and too personal mini review and check it out.

Deus Ex Machina by Andrew Foster Altschul

Hmmm...I'm not sure if I really recommend this one. It was an interesting (if creepy) read, but ultimately left me unhappy. It's about a reality television show, much like Survivor, told from the point of view of the producer. It's been a successful run for the show, but now the format has been much copied and is getting a little stale. The producer is facing pressure from everyone in his life to up the ante. Exactly how he would do that is never really spelled out, especially considering what happens on the show is already very Hunger Games-esque.

So the point of the novel is pretty much contemptuous condemnation of reality tv and voyeurism and becoming a celebrity for no good reason. It's a very dark and sad view of humanity, and more than a little elitist, in my opinion. No one, not the producer, his staff, the contestants, or the audience is spared the scorn of the author. It's hard to read a book without anyone to root for or connect with, you know?

I think that's the main difference between why I didn't really like this book and why I loved Shteyngart's book. They both deal with this dystopian new world and have a pessimistic view of what humans have done and will probably do, but Shteyngart doesn't believe that all is lost.

The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris

Tim and Jane are a long married, wealthy couple with a teenage daughter. Tim is a successful attorney and Jane a real estate agent. Tim however, has a strange problem. Twice in their married life he has had bouts of an "illness" which manifests itself in Tim's compulsion to walk. He walks and walks until he falls into an exhausted sleep, and manages to contact Jane so she can bring him home. He literally cannot stop walking when he starts, and he seems to have very little control over where he goes. These episodes both lasted months, and during the time he was "sick" the whole family is turned upside down trying to care for him and find him, and they worry about him constantly.

The book starts with the return of the illness and with a feeling of dread which never lets up, despite some genuinely funny and happy scenes. At first I was mostly invested in the mystery; what is going on with Tim (it isn't spelled out for quite a while), what is going to happen, what kind of book is this going to be, etc. But then I got quite involved in the characters. This book is a vivid portrayal of a loving marriage, tested to the ultimate degree because of one partner's illness. Tim is adamant that the illness is physical and not mental--his body has betrayed him and his mind can no longer control his physical self. The reader is not so sure.

The writing is lovely; spare and powerful. Tim leaves the family and walks across America during his third bout of the illness, and it is here that the story turns from a mystery into something almost biblical. Tim is living completely on the fringes of society (by his choice), and struggling minute by minute with a heartbreaking split of mind vs body. He believes in God, he doesn't believe in God. He wants his mind to win, he wants his body to win. He tries to surrender in every way, but never fully can. Throughout it all, over years and years, Tim and Jane (and their daughter) continue to make contact and never stop loving each other.

This was a powerful and deeply moving book. Ok, I am kind of an easy crier, so keep that in mind, but I SOBBED through the last few chapters. I could hardly breathe because I was crying so hard. It was such an amazing portrayal of how something like mental illness, or drug abuse, or alcoholism can destroy a life and a family. Really beautiful, but really, really sad.

So there you have it. Having a great summer? Read some of these books to bring you down! Don't say I didn't warn you.

What have you been up to?

Oh, nothing. Just making a little jelly. And the best pie ever. I would have taken a picture of that because I was pretty proud that it turned out, but we inhaled it too quickly. Just spending some time picking sour cherries from my neighbor's tree. You know, your basic domesticity stalling tactics when you have a few major deadlines and you don't particularly want to deal with them. Fruit doesn't wait, people! When it's ripe, you have to do something delicious with it.

What should I be doing (at this very second, in fact)? Finishing up a major contract at work, and planning and packing for our vacation, which takes place in less than a week. Instead I have been canning, cleaning, painting our basement stairs, reading, and now blogging.  I'm halfway through Jennifer Weiner's Little Earthquakes. Like all of her books, I alternately love and hate it, but I keep on reading. She would be so much better if she would just let us, the kind readers, figure out the motivations of her characters, instead of beating us over the head with it from the first page on. Mommy issues! Fat issues! Every single character is defined from the beginning in no uncertain terms, and then predictably, has to figure out how to make peace with herself.

Why do I read them? I think Weiner has an engaging style, they are often funny, and she nails so many details of what it's like to be a woman. Also, this one is all about pregnancy, and giving birth and babies, and I could read that stuff all day. Sometimes she writes a real gem, like In Her Shoes, which I loved. I don't know if this one will be up to that standard, but it is perfectly distracting and exactly what I need right now. Have you read anything by her? What do you think?

July so far...

I am experiencing a reading meltdown. I don't know what my problem is, but I can't seem to finish a book. I have been reading the same three or four books for the last month, and I don't seem to get anywhere. I even had to return one to the library, gasp, unfinished!

It could have something to do with these two munchkins. Here they are watching the "fireworks show" my dad put on for us at the end of my parent's driveway on the 4th of July. It was about the sweetest thing ever. Maybe seven minutes of tiny dancing fountains and sparkly waterfalls, each one eliciting oohs and aaahs and applause. We are going to blow their little minds when we finally take them to see real, up in the sky fireworks.

They loved every minute of staying at Grandma and Grandpa's house. We live only about 45 minutes away from my parents, so we see them often. Which is great, but also because of that proximity, we rarely stay overnight. And I have discovered there is nothing my kids like more than sleeping there. And why not? There are bowls of M&Ms everywhere, my parents organized a treasure hunt that ended in digging up an actual pirate's chest filled with pennies and more M&Ms, AND we went to their town's carnival, which was fairly horrifying for a parent, but nirvana for a four year old boy. Success all around.

I have also been doing things like picking sour cherries from my neighbor's cherry tree and making pies and jelly. Free=awesome, pitting cherries for hours on end=time taken away from reading books. You know what else takes time away from reading books? Doing ridiculous things like baking a 4th of July cake that looks like a flag when you cut into it. 

I stole the idea for the cake and the banner from Glorious Treats. It was fairly simple to make, but it took quite a bit of time. And yes, it was impressive when I cut into it, so that was cool, but you know what? Who really wants to eat cake on the 4th of July? Not me. I want strawberry shortcake. Or ice cream.

Here's the picture of what the slices looked like. The cream cheese frosting was quite delicious though (recipe also at the link). So, maybe being all crafty and homemakery and parenty has fried my brain a little bit. I'm not sure what it is, but books I would normally be loving have seemed a little flat to me, and I've had a hard time finishing quite a few that I've started.

But whatever--it's summer, right? Maybe I've just been reading the wrong books...hmmmm. I'll have to think about that one. Anyway, here's the very quick rundown on what I've been reading, or not reading over the past month.

Affinity by Sarah Waters

This is clearly my summer of Sarah Waters. Affinity is the third book I've read by her, and I loved it. It is a fascinating story about two Victorian women, a wealthy spinster named Margaret and an imprisoned Spiritualist named Selina. They strike up an unlikely relationship when Margaret starts to visit Milbank Prison as a "Lady Visitor." I loved the detailed descriptions of prison life, and the juxtaposition of it with Margaret's life with her wealthy family, which was almost as much as a prison in many ways. Waters does a fabulous job showing just how small and prescibed and constricted life was for women in that social sphere at that time. Unlike the other books I've read by her, this one is quite gloomy and very sad. Yet still utterly engrossing and a page turner. Highly recommended.

One was a Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming

Meh. I love this series of mysteries about Claire Fergusson, an Episcopalian priest and Russ Van Alstyne, the police chief of small Miller's Kill, NY. But this one kind of bored me. The mystery was a little boring and what could have been fascinating, the theme of veterans from the Iraq war adjusting back to civilian life, was just...surprisingly boring. Everyone had a problem adjusting; everyone fixed it by the end without many hiccups along the way. Except for the one who was murdered, but even that was BORING! A surprising entry in this series. The rest of her books have kept me on the edge of my seat, and the level of violence in them often is disturbing. I don't particularly like mysteries where the heroine is constantly in physical danger (I'm looking at you, Sara Paretsky), so that should have been a relief to me in this book, but it still should have been exciting and it wasn't.

The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell

If you like Sarah Vowell, you will like this book. If you don't, this is not the one to win you over. I happen to like her a lot, so this was a treat for me. It's about the Puritans. Did I hook you? No? I'm not sure how to entice you if that didn't do it. Because it really is about the Puritans. And Christianity. And how Americans get so many things wrong about both these people and how America was started. There are many long quoted passages from their sermons and speeches, and a lot of analysis of how these famous words have been twisted over time by politicians and religious leaders to mean something very different from their original intent. Vowell wrote this during the Abu Ghraib scandal, and contemporary politics ties into the story line surprisingly well.

The Wilder Life by Wendy McClure

This was great. I read it in about two days and enjoyed every minute. If you loved the Little House on the Prairie series (the books, people, not the tv show), than this is the book for you. The author rereads the books as an adult, shortly after her mother has died, and becomes obsessed with the real story behind them. Perhaps a little too obsessed, but I guess that is what makes a good story. She, like a surprisingly large amount of other people, falls into the rabbit hole that is Everything Laura Ingalls Wilder. She visits all of the sites mentioned in the books. She learns how to churn butter. She makes vanity cakes! She reads everything written by Laura, and by Rose, her daughter. It is all very interesting and it made me want to know more about Laura. Because while this book touches on all of the Ingalls/Wilder/Lane stories and lives, it is really about Wendy McClure and what she was searching for. If you loved the books as much as I did (I'm going to start reading them to my son this year! Can't wait!), then this is a worthy addition to your library.

A Covert Affair by Jennet Conant

Well, this is embarrassing. I really liked this book...all 46 pages that I read of it. I don't know what happened. They topic is interesting (Julia and Paul Child's life as OSS agents in WWII), then tone engaging, the research very well done...I just didn't have it in me this summer. I would read three or four pages and then pick up a different book. Or go to sleep. So, you guys read it and tell me that I have to try again in the fall, ok?

I have started a few others that I am determined to get through, but that's for another post. Happy reading everyone! Any suggestions to get me out of my slump are appreciated--no nonfiction for awhile though.

 

 

Review: Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters

We have been busy, busy, busy over here. Lots of running through sprinklers and visiting zoos and attending baseball games, not to mention swimming lessons, cookouts and neighborhood festivals. Summer is definitely here. And while all of that has been wonderful, being so active and outdoorsy is really cutting into my reading time. I'm ready to fall asleep around 9 p.m., which is just sad. However, if you are looking for books that will keep you awake, turning the pages long past the time when your brain was still functioning, look no further than something by Sarah Waters.

I read Fingersmith a couple of weeks ago (which I think is her third or fourth book), and this week I read Tipping the Velvet. I'm going to be honest here people, this book is straight up about sex. Love, lust, longing, and very graphic lesbian sex. There are other themes; classism and women's rights predominantly, but this book is absolutely about first love and desire. I didn't know anything about Sarah Waters before I read either book--I had just seen Fingersmith mentioned more than once on other book blogs as a great read. So I was unprepared for Tipping the Velvet. This is perhaps not the book you want to read on your lunch break at work, sitting near curious coworkers.

Tipping the Velvet is set in the 1880s and 1890s in England. Nancy Astley, an 18-year old living at home with her parents and siblings, works at her parent's seaside restaurant as an oyster girl in Whitstable. She and her sister Alice love nothing more than taking the train to Canterbury on a Saturday night to watch the shows at the music hall. There she falls in love with one of the performers, a "masher" named Kitty Butler. Kitty sings and dances in drag, which was apparently the height of fashion and daring at the time. Nancy and Kitty strike up a friendship, and Nancy leaves her family for London, to follow Kitty and help her in her stage career as her dresser.

The time Kitty and Nancy, or Nan, as she becomes known, spend together in London was my favorite part of the book. Waters does a wonderful job describing the music hall scene in the 1880s. I love books about Victorian England and this one ranks among the best for me, in terms of making you really feel like you are there. And, it has the bonus of describing a life that was completely unknown to me--the gender bending, lesbian, music hall artist.

Nan and Kitty live happily for a time, fall in love, perform together on stage, and become fairly rich. But then of course bad things happen and they are torn apart. This begins the series of hard times for Nancy, which last for much of the rest of the book. I'm not going to go into detail about this second half of the book, other than to say that I found it fairly unbelievable (although I bet Waters has done her research and the events are based on things that really happened), and not as interesting as the first half of the book. Although there are some pretty hot sex scenes, I'm not going to lie.

Overall, I liked this book quite a bit. It's definitely a page turner, and was full of fascinating period detail, interesting characters, and did I mention lots of sex? I much preferred Fingersmith, but I'm glad that I read this one too. Next up in my Sarah Waters summer is Affinity. I'll let you know what I think!

Review: I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman

Sadly, I don't think that I'm going to do justice to the book with this review. I am sitting on my screen porch, drinking a fairly large glass of wine, after a very long day involving at least one headache. However, this is my free time away from the kids and I am determined to be productive for at least part of it. So, in case this devolves into gobbledy gook let me say at the outset...this is a very good book. I liked it a lot and I think you will too.

The plot is intriguing. Eliza Benedict is a 38 year old happily married stay at home mom, living in the D.C. suburbs. She and her family have just moved back to the US after an extended stay in London. One day she recieves a letter from an inmate on death row, and we learn that she was kidnapped at age 15 and held against her will for almost 40 days by a young man named Walter Bowman. He was a serial killer, and she was the only one of his victims who survived. Walter wants to talk to her before he is put to death.

The chapters alternate between the present day and the summer when Eliza was 15. Some are told from her point of view, some from Walter's and some from the mother of one of the other victims. All of the characters are fully realized and together present a fascinating picture of what happened. I thought Lippman did an amazing job with Walter. He was the perfect mixture of narcissism, innocence and evil; I think she created the first realistic version of a serial killer that I've ever read. He came off of the page like a living, breathing person--someone anyone would know. That person who is just a little bit off, he almost fits in, but not quite. He wasn't pure evil, like a character in a Stieg Larsson novel, but someone you actually felt a little sorry for, and in some way, understood and empathized with, even though they were doing something reprehensible.

The character of Eliza was more difficult in some ways for me. She is (admittedly to even herself) passive, quiet and doesn't want to cause trouble. She is basically the anti-Tess Monaghan--the heroine of Lippman's long standing detective series. But I grew to love her, and I think Lippman did a wonderful job making her believable from a teenager to an adult. She was a passive, quiet kid--that's what enabled her to survive her ordeal. It makes sense that she would hold on to those aspects of herself into adulthood. I particularly loved the portrayal of Eliza's relationship with her two children. The characters of both kids were spot-on and how they interacted with each other and their parents was great.

This was a convincing and fast paced read. I have liked Lippman's Tess Monaghan series for a long time but I've been afraid to read her stand alone novels because I didn't think they would be as good (see Martha Grimes). But I shouldn't have worried. I thought this was actually much better than her detective series. Everything about it was more mature, and better crafted. I think she is becoming a better writer with every book.

Monday Musing...Can't Put it Down

This week's Monday Musing from www.shouldbereading.wordpress.com asks, "What's the last thing you stayed up half the night reading because you couldn't put it down?"

This is a very timely question for me, as I pretty much stayed up half the night last night reading Fingersmith by Sarah Waters.  What a compelling read (I finished it at 1:30 a.m.)! How compelling, you may ask? Well, I have two young children who often are awake by 6 a.m., so I am almost always asleep before 10:30 p.m. But I could not put it down. I am paying for it right now (2 cups of coffee and a large latte later) but I think it was worth it. Victorian England, pickpockets, orphans, insane asylums, class issues, and a lesbian love affair. Good stuff!

A Conversation I Didn't Really Want to Have...

Will:     Hey mom, look! A bird on the ground! Why isn't it moving?

Me:        Well, it's dead, honey.

Will:       Forever?

Emma:    Bird!!!

Me:          Aaaaccck! Don't touch it!

Will:        Forever, mom? Forever?

Me:          Yep, forever. Ok, let's get in the car.

...........................

10 seconds later

Will:    Mom? Remember that dead bird?

Me:      Gritting teeth.  Yes I do.

Will:    Who killed it?

Me:      Well, probably a cat.

Will:    Did the cat scratch it too much? Or sit on it?

Emma:  Kitty? Meow! Meow! Meow!

Me:     Well, maybe. Or maybe the cat bit it really hard.

Will:     Or maybe the cat stole the bird's heart beat?

Me:    .......

Will:    Or maybe the bird is actually sleeping and when we come back he'll wake up?

Me:    Mayyyyybe...but I think that he is dead.

Will:   Why isn't he in heaven? 

Me:     Anybody want a snack? Or maybe we could listen to some music? How was your day, Emma?

Emma:    Good! Emma Good! Hi Mama!

Will:       Why isn't the bird in heaven, mom?

Me:        CRAP. Well, the bird's body is still here, but his soul is in heaven.

Disclaimer: We are not religious and have taught the kids precisely nothing about heaven.

Will:    What's a soul?

Me:       CRAP. Well, a soul is the part of you that thinks and feels and it kind of is like a ghost. That part of you goes to heaven and your body stays here.

Will:    ......

Me:        Who wants to sing Wheels on the Bus?

Emma:    Emma sing! Emma sing!

Will:     What is the bird's soul doing in heaven, mom? What is going to happen to the bird's body? Are the bugs going to eat it? Will a cat eat it? Will the bones go under the dirt like the dinosaurs? Can a cat eat the bird's wings? Do worms eat dead birds? Who will eat the beak? Does the bird's soul miss having his body?

Emma:    The babies on the bus go wah, wah, wah!

Me:    You know what Will, I think we should get some books about this. It is a very complicated subject and I don't know if I can answer all of your questions.

Will:     Ok, mom. Sounds good. Why did that cat kill the bird?

Emma:    Kitty? Meow! Meow! Meow!

Me:        Head down on steering wheel, never so happy to be home in my life.

******************************

So...I need some good recommendations on books about death for kids. Will is almost 5, and VERY curious about the subject. I think I need books more on the line of science-y explanations as opposed to people feeling sad about death. I don't know if such books exist. Help!