Free: A Child and a Country at the End of History
by Lea Ypi
"We're so sorry, Uncle Enver" (11/20/2021)
A good book takes you out of the familiar and into an unknown world. This book did that for me. All I knew about Albania is that the comedian Jim Belushi came from there. Reading Lea Ypi's biography changed that. Her story is about a life bisected by the collapse of one system and an introduction to another which was anything but idyllic. In addition to being an illuminating memoir, it was also engagingly funny. Having lived through two opposing political ideologies and coming out as a world renowned political theorist makes me want to read more about her current perspectives.
The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and James Baldwin Shaped a Nation
by Anna Malaika Tubbs
Behind every great man is a mother! (12/5/2020)
Anna Tubbs not only highlights but celebrates the unique contributions of Berdis Baldwin, Alberta King, and Louise Little in making their sons so influential and powerful in shaping American society. This book is unique in its perspective of seeing how important these three women were in nurturing and developing these pivotal black figures. The level of detail in defining how these mothers not only coped in such a violent and racist society but managed to mother their sons into prominence underscores the amount of scholarly depth the author brings to this book. My only critique was that at times, I felt I was being lectured to instead of allowing me to form my own opinions. Overall, I applaud the author for the prodigious amount of work she did to uncover the personal stories of these three strong, courageous, and truly inspirational women!
The Shadow King: A Novel
by Maaza Mengiste
Me and my Shadow (9/1/2020)
I found this book to be very intense, absorbing, and provocative in its subject matter. I was definitely transported to another time, pre WW2, and a wholly different culture. While it took the author, Maaza Mengiste, a lot of time to set up the plot, the book gained much needed momentum after the first 100 or so pages. I’m glad I was patient as the author was brilliant in her depiction of the major characters. All 5 of the characters had many levels of introspection and complexity....shape shifting in terms of their moral goodness and its opposite. There was a mashup of unexpected relationships between them that kept me as a reader somewhat unbalanced but definitely involved. Each character had a light and shadow side as the narrative evolved. Her writing was brilliant! I highly recommend this book if you enjoy historical and provocative books.
The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz
by Erik Larson
Words Do Matter! (1/22/2020)
Eric Larson is not capable of writing anything less than a gripping account of historical events as he has already demonstrated in his past books. This one is no exception. I found myself emptying the dishwasher and thinking, I can't wait to get back to WW2!
Larson manages to bring such detail into his account of the pivotal role of Winston Churchill in the very beginnings of the war effort. It was his stunning oratory that convinced a nation that Hitler had to be challenged. In today's culture of poorly worded presidential tweets, it was refreshing to see how much blood, sweat, and tears went into his communications and speeches which ultimately changed the course of history and buoyed up the British people in their darkest hour. In no small part, Churchill's gift of wordplay altered history.
I highly recommend this fascinating book for its abundance of primary source material and titillating personal stories which totally absorbed me.
Yale Needs Women: How the First Group of Girls Rewrote the Rules of an Ivy League Giant
by Anne Gardiner Perkins
The Fight is Not Over! (7/15/2019)
Anne Perkins has written a scholarly narrative of Yale before and after women were admitted in 1969. Basically, their acceptance was a default position. No one really wanted them including the President, Kingman Brewster, and board members...all male, of course! Due to declining enrollment and Yale men needing " a prized piece of chattel", the establishment acquiesced. What a warm welcome these 575 women received!!
Although this is a well researched book with over 70 pages of footnotes, the author managed to expand what could have been a narrowly engaging story into an engrossing one that follows the personal narratives of five women. Socially isolated, unwelcome, used as spokesmen for their entire gender in class, they were truly PIONEERS. These were women with true grit who blazed a trail for themselves and those that followed.
It makes one realize the empowerment of women has a long trajectory with gains slow in the making. I am glad that such a fine writer and indefatigable researchers as Anne Perkins took on the job of telling their story!
Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End
by Atul Gawande
Warning: Aging-Approach with Caution! (9/18/2017)
This book adds greatly to the conversation of aging, death, and quality of life issues. It goes further than most by flipping the discussion on its head by not defining a "good death" but rather the a "good life". One should always strive to define for themselves what they want to do-- not allowing the medical establishment to try to prolong life as long as it can. Autonomy, dignity, and personal choice can only be decided by the individual. Sometimes families lovingly get in the way of the dying.
My only criticism is that Dr Gawande's sharing of many anecdotal stories became somewhat redundant. His account of his fathers' death, however, was very moving! The book needed tighter editing in my opinion. Overall, I highly recommend. His list of source material is extensive and provides further investigation for those interested.
The Heart's Invisible Furies: A Novel
by John Boyne
Paths that cross will cross again (6/25/2017)
This book is a trajectory of one man's life spanning around 70 years. Cyril, born out of wedlock, in 1945, is an unwilling victim of a repressive and horribly judgmental Irish society. His teenage mother was booted out of her small community in the middle of a church service, penniless and alone.
Their journeys are told in seven year intervals--a wonderful way of organizing this unique narrative.
There are numerous themes at play here: obsession vs. love; bigotry vs. openness; and cultural influences vs individual integrity.
Instead of being heavy handed in dealing with such lofty themes, John Boyne employs a steady undercurrent of humor that is disarming in its subtlety-- but often laugh aloud funny!
The thread of the mother/son connection knits together the story as it weaves in and out of the narrative. As a reader, I was constantly driven forward wondering whether Cyril would ever be united with his birth mother. And happily as Patti Smith sang "paths that cross will cross again".
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