Wild: From Lost to Found by Cheryl Strayed

Cheryl Strayed in her biography, Wild: From Lost to Found, travels a 1000 mile trail along the Pacific coast looking for the meaning of life.  Most people at one time of another have wondered and worried about what this all means.  Especially at time of trials and tribulations people find they want more than anything to feel that what they know as their life is worth something or that the life of a loved one was not lived in vain.  We find out early on that Cheryl's life has spiraled down to the bottom of a very rough barrel.  Her mother's death at the young age of 43 has sent her spinning out of control.  She has left her loving husband, attached herself to many strange and dangerous men and alienated herself from her family.  It is at her lowest point that she makes the decision to walk the Pacific Crest Trail a 1000 mile trek through multiple states on the west coast.  This decision was made with little forethought and even less preparation.  One day into this quest, Cheryl sees that she is not up to this journey, but she doggedly refuses to quit.  Amazingly, Cheryl manages to complete her journey.  Along the way she finds peace of a sort.  She also finds that she is much more capable than she ever imagined and people are far more worthy than she ever gave them credit for being.  At the end of the trail, Cheryl realized that in the end it was just life--like all lives, "mysterious and irrevocable and sacred."  She realized that life was "wild."  She realized that all that was necessary was to put one foot in front of the other.  Just walk on and let it be.

Songs of Willow Frost by Jamie Ford

The plight of the Chinese Americans in depression era Seattle is the background for Jamie Ford's second novel, Songs of Willow Frost.  Once again Ford has made the central characters of his story two "second class" citizens.  William Eng is a Chinese boy left orphaned at the age of five by his single mother who he knows did not want to abandon him.  Willow Frost, or Liu Song, is the troubled mother who is powerless to keep her son.   She is a victim of both a US governmental system that believes only fathers have rights where children are concerned and the Chinese culture where a man could rape and entrap a woman because the male gender was totally powerful over females. Ford slowly reveals the sad story of Willow and her son.  Through perserverance the two eventually find each other, but there is little doubt their lives will not be easy in the aftermath of all they have been through.  The historic background of this novel shows a dark time in our culture too.  Ford obviously cares deeply for the Chinese Americans of the early 20th century, but his story also enlightens readers to the lives of other less fortunates like Native Americans, physically handicapped and poor people in general.  Readers will sympathize with all the characters and their longing for a home and a family to love.  This novel will affect anyone who reads it.  Hopefully, we will gain more empathy for those less fortunate in the end.

Calling Me Home by Julie Kibler

Julie Kibler employed a tried and true story builder in her novel, Calling Me Home.  "Forbidden Love" is a constant in literature, but in this case, Kibler added a twist.  The love story took place in 1939 but the story line is contemporary.  The main character, Isabelle, is a 96 year old woman who tells us over time about how she fell in love when she was 17 years old with a black man in her southern home town.  The love of her life,Robert, married Isa secretly but their joy was short-lived.  They were torn apart both literally and figuratively by Isabelle's family.  The southern hatred of their black citizens was difficult to understand, but the resulting carnage was understandable.  Secrets, fears, prejudices and mistrust worked to tear the families apart. The interesting twist that Kibler employed was in juxtaposing Isabelle's story in flashback style between chapters set in the current time.  Near the beginning of the story we are introduced to Dorrie, Miss Isabelle's hairdresser, but we quickly see she is so much more than that.  Little by little we see that Dorrie is more like a daughter to this older woman and because of this connection she is the one to help Isabelle find closure with her long lost love, Robert.  This is a story that forced self reflection.  It is impossible to read the novel without feeling the injustice of prejudice.  Kibler explained that she had learned that her own grandmother had had a romance with a black man many years ago.  The implications were clear when she heard her grandmother's story.  Love was not enough.  Society would not allow such a romance and it was just too impossible for two people to stand against the status quo.  Kibler created her narrative, perhaps, so that we have the opportunity to learn and to change.

The Whip by Karen Kondazian

Anyone who has heard the expression "I am woman; hear me roar" has to admit that the 20th century part of this chapter of history is not really the whole story.  We of the 20th/21st centuries know that women have been fighting for equality in the work arena, in political situations and in relationships for a long, long time.  We have only to look back in history to see the underpinnings of these cultural problem.  Women have for all time, it seems, been fighting for freedom and recognition.  We have luckily always had historical figures, who have been immortalized and regaled, to study as forerunners of the liberation movement.  One fascinating era that produced many memorable women who we all heard about was the "Wild West."  Annie Oakley and Calamity Jane are two of the more colorful women who made a name for themselves in a predominately male environment.  They thrived where many failed.  In the book, The Whip, Kondazian uncovers a story based on historical fact about Charlotte Parkhurst the first woman to drive a stagecoach during the California Gold Rush era and the first woman to ever vote in national elections in the United States.  Kondazian embellished and added to the true story of  Charlotte "Charlie" Parkhurst with a details about her life as an orphan, raised in the cold reality of the 18th century charity home.  Characters were added to the life of this woman that were amalgams of real people who could have played a part in the life of Charlie.  The tragedies of her life were true however to those that many women faced during this era.  The important difference was that Charlie chose to heed the advice of her one true parental figure, Jonas, who said, "Life's going to ... upset your wagon, not just once but many times.  And you got to choose (what are you going to do)..."  Charlie chose to make a life of her own.  She chose to be true to her own nature and not cower to the norms of society.  It was not an easy life she chose to be sure, but she was free and independent and able to make a difference in the lives around her without betraying her true self.  This was a really interesting story and knowing that it is based on a factual character only added to the impact.  The Whip is a wonderful historical fiction novel and this lead character deserves some of the adulation that is bestowed on the more famous Wild West women. History teaches us much and this story is a piece of history we can all learn from and use as a lesson of survival and growth.

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

Can you keep a secret?  Can you leave a box or package unopened even if you have to wait for a long, long time?  Most of us will admit that we are not good a keeping a secret especially if the secret has something to do with us.  We want to know what it is that another person has said or has done even if we think that the "something" may be painful or embarrassing or likely to cause an issue.  We just cannot stand the not knowing. This curiosity in humans is nothing new. From ancient mythology comes the story of Pandora and her forbidden box and it remains today the most common reference used for the dilemma a person faces when deciding to follow an instruction or satisfy their curiosity.  Today the phrase "to open Pandora's box" means to perform an action that may seem small or innocent, but that turns out to have severely detrimental and far-reaching consequences.  Liane Moriarty incorporates the idea of Pandora's box in her novel The Husband's Secret.  In this mystery book, a long lost letter is found.  Clear instructions are written on the envelop stating that the letter should not be read until after the death of the writer and husband, John Paul.  Unfortunately,  afflicted as all humans are with an overriding sense of curiosity, his wife Cecilia reads the letter.  The results were tragic and life altering indeed. The really intriguing part of this couple's misery is that their  tragedy is intertwined with many other people.  As the story unfolds, we are able to see how each of the characters in the story connects to the others in ways they and we as the reader never imagined.  But more interestingly each of the people demonstrates at least one tragic flaw from Pandora's box.  We see envy, jealousy, greed, anger, vengeance, and pride to name just a few.  All of the flaws lead to actions that are indeed severely detrimental with far reaching consequences.  Moriarty has written a fascinating book with a plausible moral dilemma that left us with much to discuss.  This is an excellent book for a book club or just one to discuss with friends because who among us does not have secrets to keep or expose.  This novel has been described as a page-turner and I would have to agree.  Enjoy!

We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler

Karen Joy Fowler used a true account of a psychological study done at Indiana University as the broad base for her novel We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves.  Her research uncovered the work of Winston and Luella Kellogg and their studies of language and communication.  The novel could have been a simple straightforward tale of the dysfunctional Cooke family; it could have been a story about a psychologist whose children were observed by both their father and his graduate students for a period of 5 years. But Fowler chose to tell the story by starting in the middle reliving the trauma through the character, Rosemary. As the story begins, the reader finds that Rosemary has long suffered from the loss of her "sister" Fern when they were 5 years old.  Rosemary's whole life has been affected by the loss of her sister and her inability to get anyone in her family to explain how it happened.  The story is unraveled for the reader little by little with the introduction of characters who push Rosemary to remember exactly what happened to Fern when they were little.  "Rosemary’s voice is achingly memorable, and Fowler’s intelligent discourse on science vs. compassion reshapes the traditional family novel into something more universally relevant." (Miami Herald) The author chose to write a sometimes heartbreaking novel, but the beauty of her writing style and her exquisite expressions; her use of words and phrases that were "perfect" for the storyline really made this an unforgetable story.  In the end we are forced to face the reality that we are not perfect "human beings."

Labor Day by Joyce Maynard

If you are in the mood for a love story along the lines of Bridges of Madison County then this is a good book for you.  The narrator of the story is a 13 year old boy who lives alone with his mother since the divorce of his parents.  Henry is a loving, self sacrificing boy who is more than forgiving of his mother's eccentricities.  They live far removed from everyone in their town; they rarely leave their house; they have long rambling talks over their TV dinners that are entirely too embarrassing as far as Henry is concerned.  From the beginning the reader knows something is terribly wrong with Henry's mother, Adele, but we only find bits a pieces of information along the way to help us understand her fear of anyone or anything outside of her house.  Henry and Adele's lives change completely though because of a chance encounter at the market.  Henry meets Frank while looking at the magazine racks and without really thinking, agrees to let Frank come home with him.  Frank, we learn early on, is an escaped convict thought to be dangerous and willing to harm anyone who gets in his way.  Thus begins the weekend that changes all their lives.  Maynard tells her story with a sense of mystery and a compassion that pulls you in even when you are questioning the plausibility of the plot line.  The characters are believable and so human that you feel you might know them.  Each character has such a strong need for love and understanding. In the end, love wins out which is the way we usually want our love stories to end. As Frank says, "when you follow the instincts of love---a person is likely to respond favorably.....(even) people so damaged by life in the world that there might seem no hope for them, only there may be.  It is a good reminder for all of us.  Love can conquer many things.

The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin

     What is a hero?  What characteristics do you see in your heroes?  Most would agree a hero is brave, confident, dependable and selfless.  For most Americans Charles Lindbergh would be considered high on the list of national heroes who embody these traits.  In the novel, The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin (a Ben Davis graduate) we found that Lindbergh was not all that he was thought to be.  This historical fiction novel painted a much different picture of this man than the golden boy, Lucky Lindy, we have read about in our history books.  Told through the voice of his wife, Anne Marrow Lindbergh, we saw that this famous man was indeed brave and determined and driven to claim his place in history as the greatest aviator of all time.  But we also learned he was demanding and controlling and detached from his family and his wife to a maddening degree. The book was a heart rending account of his wife Anne's search for identity and contentment in the face of Lindgergh's relentless need for a subservient "crew" that would forever be at his beck and call, following his orders without question.  In the end, Anne did find her voice and her own happiness. She was "Mom, wife and pilot."  She came to understand that a woman's life was always "changing and accomodating...to finally emerge victorious and strong."  This novel was fact based but the author did take liberties to reinforce the storyline.  Overall, the narrative was strong and led us to want to know more about these real people and as the author said, "to leave the read wanting more is the best thing historical fiction can do."