The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

I am a huge fan of historical fiction. It's fascinating to me to read how an author takes the bare bones of historical fact and enriches this with an array of emotions and characterization. This was no less true while I read The Red Tent.
The story centers around the life of Old Testament Dinah, Jacob's only daughter. There is much historical and cultural background given which is wildly captivating, particularly when it comes to the description of "characters" we are familiar with (Jacob, Leah, Rachel, the twelve sons). The title refers to the place where women would sequester themselves during their monthly cycle, and because Dinah is the only daughter in this large family, she is welcomed early on into this place revered by women and is doted on by her mother(s). Her early years and the influence of these women in her life are powerful forces in shaping the woman she, herself, becomes. Dinah's story in the Bible is limited to a verse or two, but Anita Diamant has woven a rich tale from this that is, without a doubt, a page-turner.
BOTTOM LINE: If you are able to accept the artistic liberties Ms. Diamant takes with this tale (particularly in areas of bestiality and idol worship) then you will NOT be able to put this book down!

The Color of Water by James McBride

James McBride's autobiography/memoir is the type of story that is made all the more riveting by the fact that it is true. Countless times during my reading I stopped and shook my head in wonderment at what he and his mother endured throughout their lives.
McBride has crafted a book that tells not only his story but that of his mother which only makes sense as our stories are irrevocably intertwined with our children's. He tells these life tales by alternating chapters between the first-person accounts of his mother, raised by a second-rate Jewish rabbi and his neglected, abused wife in the 1930s/40s, and his own accounts, of being raised multi-racial in the all-black housing projects of Red Hook, Brooklyn by his white mother. James's telling of his mother's story, which he did not know until an adult, seems to be a way of cementing his own identity, with which he struggles continuously as he is growing up. His mother's strength in her own identity (truly found once she accepted Jesus Christ), love for her husbands (both James's father, who passes away before his birth, and his stepfather), and passion for her children and their future defy all the odds of segregation and racism so rampant in the 50s and 60s as she is raising her own children, fathered by black men. What Ruth McBride Jordan endured during her life is by turns horrific and inspiring. The woman she becomes because of it is triumphant, as evidenced in the success of her 12 children.
Bottom line: An eye-opening, unbelievable tale of redemptive love and how it can change, create, and define despite what the past seems to dictate. A story of identity lost and found. WELL worth the read.

Rebecca Caudill

If you're looking for some great reading for the 4th - 8th grader in your life (or if you are into literature for this age group yourself) I HIGHLY recommend books that have been nominated for the Rebecca Caudill award . (You can read more about this award here.) Back in my teaching days, our school did a fantastic job of promoting these books and jump-starting a LOT of reading in our upper elementary/middle school. I have just begun reading through the list of the 2010 nominees and will keep updating my progress in the margin over yonder. There is a wide variety of great literature included in these picks and, for an adult, they are a pretty quick read.

The Time-Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Although I first became aware that this book existed several years ago, I wasn't really interested in reading it until I started to see previews in July for the film, at which point I was totally intrigued. It is a long novel, so prepare yourself for that, but I found it difficult to put down.
The novel centers on the love story of Clare and Henry who have known each other all of, well, Clare's life. Henry was born with a genetic condition that causes him to time travel. Often without much warning he will disappear, landing somewhere in the past or future and always without his clothes. Now that's embarrassing. It is a lonely and frustrating condition, and the only person who really can understand him is...him. (He'll often run into himself on these excursions.) On one of these trips as an adult, he meets the future love of his life, Clare - a six-year-old at the time. Don't get too weirded out - it's not like he puts the moves on her or anything. From here we are told the story of their life, bouncing back and forth between each of their points of view.
Almost immediately I was completely captivated by Henry and Clare and found myself rooting for them and their relationship despite the obstacles they face, both the bizarre and very relatable. I will say that several times I was pretty baffled by the chronology (or lack thereof). I find that any book or movie that messes with the time-space continuum loses me at least once along the way. Some sort of flow chart or time table probably would have helped me out.
BOTTOM LINE: If you're in the market for a unique love story, with a side of some suspense, I believe you will not be disappointed.
P.S. I have yet to see the movie. If anyone has seen it, what did you think?

The Ten-Year Nap by Meg Wolitzer

I am a member of two book clubs, if that tells you anything about my obsession with reading and being around others who love it as much as I do, and my longest-running group has this book as its most recent pick. One thing I love about this group is how we've been through so many stages of life together: working women (most of us teachers), then new moms, and now "veteran" moms (if there really is such a thing - I know I ALWAYS feel like a novice) whose oldest children are venturing into school. It's been a blessing to share common experiences with these women, receive their counsel, and escape together into some literature in the midst of our busy lives.

The Ten-Year Nap centers somewhat around the stage of life we're currently in which, for pretty much all of us, is home with our young children. Set in New York City, this novel has as its primary characters four women in the midst, or rather, the tail end, of their "ten-year-nap" from the working world. The story vacillates back and forth between their present and past, following primarily one current year. Initially I felt a little despondant for these women. They spend a great deal of time contemplating the life that was versus the life that is and also reluctantly give some thought and discussion to what's to come. They don't exude an overwhelmed joy at the privilege of raising their children. Many of them seem lost and disheartened by the fact that life didn't exactly bring them where they expected it would. Each of them has a different "status", if you will, among the stay-at-home moms: those who don't need to work but go on interviews for kicks now that the kids are older, those who should be working but just don't realize it yet, those who are afraid in a sense to follow their true heart's dream. Each of them also comes from a different "status" in the former working world: having left careers they loved, careers they felt indifferent about, and some feeling as lost as to what they "should be doing" with their lives as they often feel currently in motherhood.

As I continued reading I found that rather than pity these women I could actually relate to them (which made me pity myself a little actually). I certainly don't always exude a lot of joy about the blessing of being home with my kids, now that I stop to think about it. I know what it's like to feel unsure that your career path was the right one and also find myself experiencing some trepidation in regard to the future of that path.

BOTTOM LINE: You moms out there will probably find your wheels turning about your own life as you read about the lives of these women. It's a good kick-start to think about past choices, current choices, future choices, and just about what it means to be "Mom". It also underscored for me the importance of my Christian faith and what a comfort it is not to be out there "on my own" but to have my guiding Savior and the love of close Christian friends to walk through life with.

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

Olive is, in turn, the protagonist and antagonist of this collection of vignettes centering on the residents and visitors of a small, coastal Maine town. While each chapter is essentially a story in and of itself with new characters being the focal point of each, Olive is woven througout the plot as a both a significant and secondary element. She touches the people she comes into contact with, whether for good or ill (mostly ill, it would seem) and is fleshed out in the book through Strout's depictions of these encounters. The primary theme of the book seems to be the marching on of time and how this affects Olive's view of herself and others, and I was left with a lingering challenge to "seize the day", as it were and not squander the time or people I've been given.
While it was a well-written book, I was left feeling cheated that there is essentially no real closure especially concerning the changing characters in each chapter. We are introduced to them, given a snapshot of their life, and left hanging on the path their circumstances then take. However, this seems to be the clever way in which the author has chosen to focus on Olive without really focusing on her.
Bottom line: While not a book I would say I COULD NOT put down (the fact that each chapter is basically a new story lends itself to this really) it was definitely one that made me think about humanity, personalities, attitudes, and decisions, and how one can never really know what is going on behind the scenes to affect these things.

The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom

Horrified, amazed, inspired, ashamed - all emotions that I experienced while reading this book. I grew up in the Dutch culture (albeit, the western Michigan version) and know that stoicism in regard to many aspects of one's life (faith included) is more often than not the norm. And so it was with surprise and delight that I read again and again of Corrie and her family's very real, rock-solid faith in the Lord. Even more than that, to read of this faith that carried them through unspeakable horrors while in Nazi prison/concentration camps where they found themselves after aiding Jewish friends. I found myself unable to put this book down as, in awe, I read about the miraculous answers to prayer that God constantly put into motion and the ways in which he tangibly revealed himself to this family and those whose lives they touched. I was inspired by the selfless acts of Corrie, her sister, and their father even in the darkest moments of humanity. And I was ashamed to think how I allow the piddly problems I have to so easily color my mood and affect my attitude. I have NEVER experienced true suffering, is one thing I realized by the end of this book. The second realization was, God truly meets us in the midst of the dark night of the soul, but I want to meet him even now, in the daylight.
This story not only entertains (if I may loosely use that term in reference to the book's subject matter and the fact that is the true account of a life) but will also encourage.
Bottom line: a MUST READ

Ramble, ramble

I've been tossing around the idea for awhile now of keeping a more detailed record of books I've read, and how they have touched me (or touched my gag reflex, as the case may be). I first proclaim that I do not consider myself, in any way, shape or form, a literary expert. For one thing, there is an embarrassingly long list of classics I haven't read (how I escaped high school without reading The Great Gatsby I will never know). But I LOVE reading, am passionate about books, and have a terrible memory, so it would be great to have some sort of proof/reminder of what I've been doing with so much of my time. Because reading IS how I fill any and all spare time I have (as well as, too often, time that I should be devoting to other things). And so, I end my arbitrary ramblings here and get right to the point: books, books, and more books. If anyone should end up reading these hopefully-sensical reviews, feel free to leave your own comments regarding any shared literature we've read as well as suggestions for future reads.
Happy reading!