White Teeth Zadie Smith
I read this for my book group and was the only one who didn't like it, and I mean really didn't like it. I had to force myself to read the book basically. It reminded me of a lesser version of John Kennedy O'Toole's A Confederacy of Dunces. Much was made of how young Smith was when she wrote this book and how amazing that she turned this out. I don't think an older person would have come up with this way of writing; irreverent, hip and constantly poking fun.
The Country Under My Skin: A Memoir of Love and War Gioconda Belli
I read Belli's book of fiction The Inhabited Woman in Spanish a few years ago and loved it. Reading this autobiography made me realize the many parallels between her real life and the fiction she wrote. An upperclass Nicaraguan woman who was part of the Sandinista struggle and ended up in exile, Belli is also a much lauded poet. I have read quite a bit about the different revolutionary movements in Latin America in the 70's and 80's and this book had the same effect on me as the others I've read. Reading about so many young, passionate and idealistic people sacrificing their lives, rightly or wrongly just fills me with a very deep sadness. I can almost see their youthful faces, full of hope of a better world for everyone and imagine the fervor with which they pursued their ideals. So much wasted potential, especially now that it appears their movements resulted in very little lasting change. Belli's reflections on now living in the US, a country that was so destructive to Nicaragua, are interesting, as are her very human portrayals of fellow Sandinistas who gave up their lives fighting for what they believed in.
Temples of Delight Barbara Trapido
I am supposed to read another book by Trapido for book group next month, but it seems to have been lost in the mail. In lieu of that I picked up this book by an author a friend highly recommended. I am happy to say that I concur. I whipped through this wonderful story in two days. The book's protagonist, Alice, is deeply affected by an adolescent friendship with Jem who appears and then disappears in a shroud of mystery. This friendship colors Alice's whole life and the story is as much about her own search for self as her search for her long lost friend. The "romance" that appears at the end of the book didn't completely convince me, but for the most part I loved the book. It also made me realize that I very much need a "mystery" (and I don't read mysteries) or an unknown that will only be revealed in the act of continued reading to really capture me.
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