Small Great Things

Jodi Picoult has adopted as her preferred style the moral dilemma format for her novels. She has tackled many issues from abortion to organ donations.  Picoult clearly sees American racism as a compelling social issue in her novel Small Great Things. She opens this piece acknowledging her position as "white and class privileged." The author realizes she may not be up to the challenges of this issue.  She begins the book by painstakingly revealing her rigorous research both with women of color and skinheads. Despite the many roadblocks, Picoult chooses to make a brave attempt to start a conversation about the very real, very pervasive racism in American society. The story centers around the trial of a black delivery nurse, Ruth, who is accused of deliberately causing the death of the infant son of a white supremist couple who have demanded Ruth never touch their baby while in the hospital nursery.  The courtroom scenes and the introduction of interesting, relatable characters carries this story and makes it compelling.  Unfortunately, by the end of the trial, Picoult's storyline jumps to extremes in order to satisfy her audience or so it seems.   Perhaps the author has tackled too much in her social awareness campaign.  Readers will easily see themes of segregation, the challenges of black ambition, the welfare system and of course, race and the justice system.  There are just too many unlikely plot leaps for this story to remain totally believable.  The novel is flawed but as most of Picoult's work, it opens great discussions.  The author's good intentions must be given credit and surely accomplished most of what she intended.  In a social climate as divided as ours tends to be, any conversation is a good thing.  Maybe good talk is as much as we can hope for.  Let the discussion begin.

Anything is Possible by Elizabeth Strout

Elizabeth Strout has mastered a unique writing form only seen minimally in modern fiction.  In her book Anything is Possible she writes nine linked tales about people in a small town in Illinois.  Nine lives that are entwined by life experiences that reveal misery, heartache, pain and loss.  Nine lives that are broken by miserable marriage, war trauma, and childhood abuse.  Strout laces into each expose a piece from that story's central character's past---a soldier who suffers from PSTD renews a friendship with a former classmate; the retired school janitor tries to help a reclusive, lonely man that he happens upon and recognizes as that sad, lonely boy from his school.  These are small lives that seem of little consequence.  The writer shares the stories unemotionally and unsympathetically.  She often depicts the glaring flaw in many of her characters of continually look for and usually finding someone they can feel superior to no matter how bad their own situation might be.  Juxtaposed to this depressing truth is her quiet reassurance that there is always hope.  Strout shows us people who succeed, people who are kind and helpful and who overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.  The author never tries to hide the fact that this is indeed a sad, hard world.  But like Steinbeck, Strout tells the story of people who, even though trapped by circumstances out of their control, find a way to survive.  This author writes honestly and succinctly but manages to convey deep and meaningful stories  Her characters are real people that we as readers recognize and connect to and maybe even see ourselves in.  Strout's books reveal real life and hopefully will open real discussions that can help all of us see that "anything is possible."

America's First Daughter by Stephanie Dray

When you think about what we were taught in elementary school about our country's history, it is easy to see that the facts were "bent" in many cases.  Columbus was not first to America.  The native people did not peacefully give up their land and go to reservations, and slavery was not isolated to the southern states.  Likewise, a most troubling fact is that many of our founding fathers were no pillars of strength and virtue.  So why was our history so distorted in the retelling?  Stephanie Dray in her book America's First Daughter gives a compelling explanation.  In her interpretation, Thomas Jefferson, the father of our Declaration of Independence, was saved the disgrace of his many failings by his devoted, protective daughter, Patsy.  After her mother died when she was only 10 years old, Patsy became the constant companion of her father.  In Dray's telling of the years that Jefferson was both statesman and president his daughter protected his reputation and cleared the path for history by destroying and covering up many of the truths that historians have since uncovered.  Jefferson owned slaves, even though he professed to want freedom for all.  Jefferson's mistress and slave, Sally Hemings, bore him many children but he never acknowledged any of them.  As it later played out during the Civil War, Jefferson's strong adherence to a state's rights philosophy became the core around which the southern states built their fight against the federalist of the North.  Patsy Jefferson, in this historical fiction account and in her determination to protect her father's image, changed what we in later generations learned and believed about this man of history.  The protests we see today over statues and landmarks highlights the problems with this controlled version of history that we were taught.  Much can be learned from an unvarnished retelling of the lives of those we revere.  We should not devalue the work of our country's forefathers, but we cannot ignore the truth of their lives either.  America's First Daughter is a compelling story that forces a deeper contemplation of our country's beginning and those men who were instrumental in its conception.

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

Louise de Bettignies is not a name that was familial to me nor was the network of female espionage agents she controlled during WWI in Lille, France and Belgium.  The Alice Network as this group was called, supplied British intelligence with valuable information on the German operations in northern France with such speed and accuracy it make a huge impression on the British and the Germans (who worked tirelessly to catch the spies and arrest them.)  Kate Quinn interwove this historical figure with other real life heroes and her fictional characters to create a fascinating and informative novel called The Alice Network.  Quinn's story centers around three people who have been damaged both physically and mentally by war.  Their journey to find answers and revenge is filled with suspense and clandestine adventures.  The bond that the three form is heartwarming and draws readers to these characters willing them to succeed and to find peace and happiness. This is a great read for those who love historical fiction and for those who love stories that tug at your heart.

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

   How many times over your lifetime have you thought about what it will take to make you happy or maybe you have thought "if I had (fill in the blanks) it would make my life complete."  Generally this "thing" is not free.  It always seems to take money to get to happiness.  The life of the "haves" always seems better than the "have not's."  So, the question is what are you willing to do, what are you willing to trade, what part of your soul are you willing to give up in order to acquire this key to happiness?  Amor Towles' first novel, Rules of Civility, artfully examines the choices made by people representing all the many variations of the social spectrum.  The main character, Kate, tells of the year 1938 that in essence changed her life as well as the many people she knew and loved.  The story beautifully describes the glamour and glitter of this prewar time in America.  It dramatically reveals the sometimes unintentional results that our choices in life can have.  Towles uses his characters to show us that consequences of chasing after all the "I wants" of life.  The illusive "happiness" that these people sought after revealed the desperate depths that they like all people were willing to go to grab the golden ring.  Towles "Gatzbyesque" tale brilliantly illustrates the pain that we foist on ourselves and others when we fall into the world's trap where happiness equals money.  In the end Kate says she knows that "right choices" are the means by which we "crystalize losses."  Unfortunately, she missed the bigger message that Towles reveals.  All the chasing, all the wanting, is exhausting.  The only true contentment we will find comes when we choose to live in and enjoy the present.  This was a beautifully written, thought provoking story.  As a first novel, Rules of Civility is truly amazing.

Red Notice by Bill Browder

    Bill Browder has written a fascinating, personal book telling of his experience working as hedge fund financial operator during the wild and wooly aftermath of the fall of the USSR.  In his autobiography, Red Notice, Browder shines a bright light on the politically corrupt oligarchs who raced in to establish themselves as the powerful rulers of the re-established country of Russia.  These greedy and ruthless men were not interested in sharing their "golden cow" with anyone.  However, Browder understood the financial boon that was available and was able to rise to the top of this financial world by crafty schemes of his own.  Unfortunately, he eventually realized he was on the top of the hit list of the most powerful oligarch of all, Vladimir Putin.  After nearly being thrown into jail in Russia, Browder instead had his visa revoked and was removed from Russia, his company and his loyal employees.  With quick actions he was able to withdraw or remove his financial assets and his employees before they were detained by the authorities or at least he thought so.  Again unfortunately, the corrupt system was "bigger and badder" than he realized.  After falsely accusing Browder of tax evasion, Putin and his lackeys filed a suit trying to force Browder to return millions of dollars to Russia.  Having been forced out of the country, Browder was only able to fight this clearly illegal action by using the services of his lawyer Sergi Magnitsky.  Tragically, this legal battle led to the arrest of Magnitsky and eventually to his torture and death while in the custody of Putin's regime.  At this point in Browder's memoir his focus changed.  He became a crusader for human rights and a fighter of rulers like Putin whose government is nothing more than a kleptocracy--a rule by thieves.
    Considering the constant and repeated claims of Russian collusion and interference in our political affairs, this book was eye opening and clearly revealed the corruption and depravity in the Russian government.  Browder was doggedly determined to force judgment on the people who killed his friend. Because of this determination, his story is a powerful example of the importance for all of us to stand up for what is right.  But in order to do that we must be informed which is just what Red Notice was intended to do.  It may read like a Grisham thriller, but with its factual content, it enlightens all of us.  Browder gave us an engrossing look at the "real world" and in the process he educates us about one of the most dangerous men on the planet, Vladimir Putin.

Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain

    "Someone should do something" is a common refrain in a world where conflict, terrorism, discrimination and economic hardships prevail.  Whether the "someone" is the government, the police, parents, politicians or teachers the "something" that they should do is not quite certain.  Clearly, finding a solution is age old problem.  Jonathan Swift satirically suggested in his essay "A Modest Proposal" that the children of the poor should be eaten to solve the crisis of famine in Ireland in the early 18th century.  Obviously, this proposal was extreme but it highlighted the impotence of people to really solve huge issues.  So what should we do?  Throughout history there have been attempts to do something to control social issues but usually these programs have had horrific results.  Diane Chamberlain in her book, Necessary Lies, exposed a real life scenario that was in effect for many decades.  A law was written to lesson the burden of caring for institutionalized patients by allowing for their sterilization.  In North Carolina this strategy was expanded to allow social workers to petition to have welfare recipients who were deemed "imbeciles" or those with medical problems such as epilepsy to be sterilized in order to reduce the burgeoning roles of individuals and families who lived on government assistance.  This solution was called "eugenics."  From 1929 to 1977 the Eugenics Board of North Carolina systematically sterilized people who "qualified" according to the social workers who petitioned for this procedure. The argument was made that the state had the right to eliminate further drags on the welfare system by permanently taking away people's ability to procreate.  Chamberlain told her story through the experience of families who were under the power of the welfare workers who handled their cases.  Through the sad story of Ivy, her sister Mary Ella, her grandmother Nonnie and her nephew Baby William along with their interactions with their "employer" Mr. Gardner, we are shown the power that the Eugenics Boards had over people's lives.  Choices were made for clients, decisions that had lifetime implications were taken out of their control and often times these people were not even told the truth about what was happening to them. An example of this was seen in Mary Ella who was told she was having her appendix out when in fact she had her tubes tied.  It was a "frightful thing" Ivy tells us to know someone has power over your whole life. 
    So perhaps Swift's proposal was not so farfetched.  Perhaps the social stratum will always find ways to keep power and control in the hands of those who believe they are more qualified to decide  The problem however is that there will always be people who question, who sees the flaws in any manmade solution.  Perhaps in the end we will resign ourselves to the reality that there is no one universal answer, no complete fix.  Sometimes we will be left with the knowledge that "even though we may have done the right thing we can still feel sick with doubt."  Chamberlain captured the reader's desire to find answers but left us with the clear understanding that no one solution fits every situation.  This was a fiction book based on factual evidence taken from cases in North Carolina.  The author reveals this tragic time in the history of NC and leaves you wondering how the people in charge could possible believe that "eating the babies" was a good idea.

Idaho by Emily Ruskovich

I have always been a fan of mysteries.  Strange as it may sound, I especially like murder mysteries where I can insinuate myself into the role of detective in order to solve the case.  That being said, the murder mystery, Idaho by Emily Ruskovich, was not a book that lent itself to this pursuit.  Ruskovich wrote this novel as an omniscient narrator who jumped from character to character in a stream of consciousness prose style that was mesmerizing in its ability to pull the reader in without really giving any answers away.  The storyline is built around three characters:  Ann the primary storyteller; Wade her husband who suffers from dementia and Jenny, Wade's first wife who murdered their daughter, May.  Throughout the novel Ann's love for Wade never wavors even though she is plagued by his inability to or reticence to tell her what happened on that fateful day on the mountain when May was killed and June, his older daughter, disappeared.  We as readers are dragged along looking for clues, extrapolating information from the tiniest of references, trying desperately to figure out what happened.  Did Jenny know that Wade had fallen in love with Ann causing her to snap?  Did her long periods of isolation on the mountain drive her slowly insane?  Was Wade culpable in anyway?  Ruskovich's writing was intentionally vague and yet we are drawn to these characters and their sad stories.  I cannot say I enjoyed this book, but I was impressed with the writing and involved in the story from the beginning.  This is not your typical mystery, but it is a mystery you will think about and talk about long after you finish reading.  That is a credit to the author.  I look forward to other books by her.

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

We have all heard the expression "if life gives you lemons, make lemonade" but Amor Towles takes this idea to the maximum in his novel A Gentleman in Moscow.  The story centers around Count Alexander Rostov a privileged, aristocrat in 1922 Moscow during the Bolshevik revolution.  Unable to establish a crime worthy of the death sentence (as was the case with many of the aristocrats of this era), the tribunal court sentenced the count to house arrest for life in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin.  The count who had never worked a day in his life and who had never really thought of anyone or anything except his pleasures, was suddenly faced with endless days of nothing.  The novel cleverly, humorously reveals the life that the count creates during the 30 years that he lives in the Metropol.  He found a real life with real people who worked in the hotel and who became his "family."  This family circle includes the irrepressible young Nina who shows the count that the whole world is inside the hotel if you just know where to look.  This young girl and later her daughter help the count gain a deeper connection to life and to what it means to love and protect and to have a real purpose in life.  If you read and enjoyed The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, you will love this gentleman.  He is charming and so is this book.

Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff

    Love and marriage are tried and true plot lines for writers.  Telling a story about two people who meet, fall in love, marry and then weather the storms of their lives generates a tale that is often a blending of truths from the two people involved.  Lauren Groff in her novel, Fates and Furies, takes a much different approach to telling about the love and marriage of Lancelot (Lotto) and Mathilde.  This story is told through two entirely separate sections.  Lotto's story of love and life with Mathilde is found in the "fates" half of the book.  Lotto, the charming, handsome, wealthy young man who glides through life with ease is madly in love with his wife and lives in supremely blissful ignorance of any real problem.  Chance and "magic" take care of most of Lotto's success and he floats along, happy and content.  The second section, "furies," is a counterbalance to Lotto.  In this section Mathilde reveals many truths that Lotto never knew or never acknowledged about his wife and their life together.  Mathilde is much darker, much more filled with needs for revenge and retribution toward most of the people in her life except for Lotto.  These two damaged souls found each other and lived happily together in a kind of crazy dance on a ledge.  Lotto did not realize the danger he was so close to and Mathilde kept the demons at bay for Lotto's sake.  This is not a typical "marriage" story but perhaps that was Groff's plan, She says through Mathilde, "she was so tired of the old ways of telling stories, all those worn narrative plots...she needed something messier...something like a bomb going off."  This is not a feel good, pat yourself on the back, happy marriage book.  It is a beautifully written, thought provoking work that leaves readers with more questions than answers.  Kind of like real life.