The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel
Publisher: Broadway Books
Paperback Release Date: December 5, 2017
My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
After her mother’s suicide, fifteen year-old Lane Roanoke came to live with her grandparents and fireball cousin, Allegra, on their vast estate in rural Kansas. Lane knew little of her mother’s mysterious family, but she quickly embraced life as one of the rich and beautiful Roanoke girls. But when she discovered the dark truth at the heart of the family, she ran…fast and far away.
Eleven years later, Lane is adrift in Los Angeles when her grandfather calls to tell her Allegra has gone missing. Did she run too? Or something worse? Unable to resist his pleas, Lane returns to help search, and to ease her guilt at having left Allegra behind. Her homecoming may mean a second chance with the boyfriend whose heart she broke that long ago summer. But it also means facing the devastating secret that made her flee, one she may not be strong enough to run from again.
As it weaves between Lane’s first Roanoke summer and her return, The Roanoke Girls shocks and tantalizes, twisting its way through revelation after mesmerizing revelation, exploring the secrets families keep and the fierce and terrible love that both binds them together and rips them apart.
The Roanoke Girls is the story of the Roanoke family, who have lived on a farm in the fictional town of Osage Flats for generations. Lane’s mother Camille, the daughter of patriarch Yates, ran away from the farm when she was just a teenager and never went back. When Lane is sixteen, her mother kills herself and she is sent to live on the family farm with her grandparents, who she’s never met. She forms a fast friendship with her cousin Allegra and learns that she has several relatives known as the Roanoke Girls. None of them live on the farm though because, as Allegra explains, Roanoke Girls, they either run or they die.
Lane herself left the farm after living there for just one summer and stayed away for years. One day, her grandfather, Yates, calls her out of the blue and tells her that Allegra has gone missing. Can she please come home and help find her? Surprisingly, Lane does. Upon arrival, she is immediately confronted with the horrible – and I mean truly horrible – secret that the people who still live on the farm harbor.
Roanoke Girls was my book club’s February selection. We chose it because the author is from Kansas City and we all live in or nearby the City. A lot of us grew up in rural Kansas and could relate to the setting. Some of our members are social workers and have dealt with people involved in the same terrible secret as the people in the book. Some of us thought it was so horrifying that it couldn’t have been based in reality but they told us that unfortunately, it was.
We were split on our opinions of Roanoke Girls. Some of us thought it was well-written and suspenseful. Others of us, myself included, thought that the story had some plot devices that were a little too convenient and that the writing wasn’t very good. Some of the same adjectives and idioms were used over and over. And Lane’s reaction to every little thing was SO DRAMATIC. Almost everything someone said to her rocked her to her core or some such.
The “real” reviews I read, from newspapers and whatnot gave this book mixed reviews. However, most of the reviews on Amazon and from other bloggers were positive. I think there is an audience for Roanoke Girls, it’s just not me.
March 15th, 2018 in
Books |
1 Comment
No One Can Pronounce My Name by Rakesh Satyal
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
In a suburb outside Cleveland, a community of Indian Americans has settled into lives that straddle the divide between Eastern and Western cultures. For some, America is a bewildering and alienating place where coworkers can’t pronounce your name but will eagerly repeat the Sanskrit phrases from their yoga class. Harit, a lonely Indian immigrant in his mid forties, lives with his mother who can no longer function after the death of Harit’s sister, Swati. In a misguided attempt to keep both himself and his mother sane, Harit has taken to dressing up in a sari every night to pass himself off as his sister. Meanwhile, Ranjana, also an Indian immigrant in her mid forties, has just seen her only child, Prashant, off to college. Worried that her husband has begun an affair, she seeks solace by writing paranormal romances in secret. When Harit and Ranjana’s paths cross, they begin a strange yet necessary friendship that brings to light their own passions and fears.
No One Can Pronounce My Name is the story of Indian immigrants Ranjana and Harit. Ranjana’s only son is starting college and she and her husband are trying to adjust to life as empty-nesters. Harit works in a department store and lives with his mother. His sister lived with them until she passed away recently.
Ranjana and Harit both have secrets. Ranjana writes paranormal romance at night after work. Harit dresses up as his dead sister at night because he thinks it’s helping his poor-sighted mother who hasn’t accepted that her daughter has died. It’s hard to imagine how their lives could possibly intersect, but they do. Even though their lives are vastly different, they start a friendship because they both feel like outsiders in the Indian community.
I loved all of the characters in this book. Yes, they all had flaws but Satyal gives them so much depth that I felt empathy for each one of them.
An excerpt of the paranormal romance Ranjana is writing is included as part of the story. It was so good – I wish it was a real book! Maybe Satyal could actually write Ranjana’s book as a companion to No One Can Pronounce My Name like Rainbow Rowell wrote Carry On after everyone loved the excerpts in Fan Girl.
No One Can Pronounce My Name is a great addition to my ever expanding library of books about India and/or Indians. From the other reviews I’ve read, it seems that the author’s portrayal of the Indian immigrant experience is spot-on. Now I’d like to read Rakesh Satyal’s other books. I definitely recommend this one.
March 8th, 2018 in
Books |
1 Comment
Breaking Free: How I Escaped My Father-Warren Jeffs-Polygamy, and the FLDS Cult by Rachel Jeffs
Publisher: Harper
Release Date: November 14, 2017
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
In this searing memoir of survival in the spirit of Stolen Innocence, the daughter of Warren Jeffs, the self-proclaimed Prophet of the FLDS Church, takes you deep inside the secretive polygamist Mormon fundamentalist cult run by her family and how she escaped it.
Born into the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Rachel Jeffs was raised in a strict patriarchal culture defined by subordinate sister wives and men they must obey. No one in this radical splinter sect of the Mormon Church was more powerful or terrifying than its leader Warren Jeffs—Rachel’s father.
Living outside mainstream Mormonism and federal law, Jeffs arranged marriages between under-age girls and middle-aged and elderly members of his congregation. In 2006, he gained international notoriety when the FBI placed him on its Ten Most Wanted List. Though he is serving a life sentence for child sexual assault, Jeffs’ iron grip on the church remains firm, and his edicts to his followers increasingly restrictive and bizarre.
In Breaking Free, Rachel blows the lid off this taciturn community made famous by Jon Krakauer’s bestselling Under the Banner of Heaven to offer a harrowing look at her life with Warren Jeffs, and the years of physical and emotional abuse she suffered. Sexually assaulted, compelled into an arranged polygamous marriage, locked away in “houses of hiding” as punishment for perceived transgressions, and physically separated from her children, Rachel, Jeffs’ first plural daughter by his second of more than fifty wives, eventually found the courage to leave the church in 2015. But Breaking Free is not only her story—Rachel’s experiences illuminate those of her family and the countless others who remain trapped in the strange world she left behind.
A shocking and mesmerizing memoir of faith, abuse, courage, and freedom, Breaking Free is an expose of religious extremism and a beacon of hope for anyone trying to overcome personal obstacles.
A new polygamy book – yay! Breaking Free is a memoir by Rachel Jeffs, the daughter of Warren Jeffs, leader of the FLDS church. The Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints, or FLDS, is a polygamous sect that is basically a cult. Jeffs himself has more than 70 wives. He dictates who women marry and got in trouble with the law for marrying off girls as young as twelve years-old. You may remember when the FLDS’s compound in Texas was raided by law enforcement in April 2008.
Since Jeffs was God’s chosen profit and God spoke through him to tell people how to live their lives, he was followed without question by FLDS members. When Rachel was only eight years-old, her father began sexually abusing her, telling her that he was preparing her for her husband. Even at a young age, she knew it wasn’t right and doubt that her father was the true prophet started to form in her mind.
Luckily, Rachel actually liked the husband Jeffs chose for her. He seemed like a nice guy but frustratingly, he bought into every revelation from God Jeffs espoused hook, line and sinker. Jeffs was eventually arrested and convicted of sexual assault of a child. He continued to release ridiculous edicts from jail, like that husbands and wives couldn’t touch each other, which his followers continued to blindly obey. He also continued to arrange marriages and rearrange families – taking children from one mother and giving them to another. As always, it’s fascinating to me how much people will go along with in the name of religion. For Rachel, the threat of losing her children was the last straw.
I’ve read a few other books about the FLDS and some of the same people come up time and time again in the various books. It’s interesting to see the church and its people through various perspectives. For instance, Rebecca Musser, whose memoir of her time in the FLDS church is called The Witness Wore Red, is mentioned in this book. She was married to Warren’s father, Rulon Jeffs and therefor was one of his mothers even though she was only a few years older than him. That also makes her one of Rachel’s grandmas. I liked hearing Rachel’s view on the testimony that Rebecca gave at Jeffs trial.
Rachel’s story is both fascinating and horrifying at the same time. Breaking Free is a solid addition to the polygamy section of my home library.
Other books about polygamy I’ve read:
Fiction:
The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff
Circle of Wives by Alice LaPlante
Non-Fiction:
Becoming Sister Wives by Kody, Meri, Janelle, Christine, and Robyn Brown
Escape by Carolyn Jessop
Love Times Three by Joe Darger
Triumph by Carolyn Jessop
Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer
February 23rd, 2018 in
Uncategorized |
3 Comments
No Knives in the Kitchens of This City by Khaled Khalifa
Publisher: Hoopoe Fiction
Translator: Leri Price
Translation Edition Release Date: October 15, 2016
My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
In the once beautiful city of Aleppo, one Syrian family descends into tragedy and ruin.
Irrepressible Sawsan flirts with militias, the ruling party, and finally religion, seeking but never finding salvation. She and her siblings and mother are slowly choked in violence and decay, as their lives are plundered by a brutal regime.
Set between the 1960s and 2000s, No Knives in the Kitchens of this City unravels the systems of fear and control under Assad. With eloquence and startling honesty, it speaks of the persecution of a whole society.
No Knives in the Kitchens of this City is a strange book that’s difficult to review. Khaled Khalifa is a Syrian author and the book is translated from the original Arabic. It was my book club’s January selection. It was chosen primarily because we wanted to learn more about Syria, specifically Aleppo because it’s in the news so much. However, it turned out this was not the right book for that. This book follows one family from the 1960s through the 2000s. It’s told in a stream of consciousness from the first person point of view of one of the family members. He relays anecdotes about his family as they occur to him. This means that he jumps around in time, which I found confusing. Knowing more about the timeline of political happenings in Syria probably would have helped me, as they are mentioned in the background and also motivate some of the character’s actions.
There are so many characters in No Knives that I had trouble keeping track of who was what. I actually made a notecard with their names and roles, which helped a lot. I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable. There was a lot of weird sex in this novel and I found myself wondering how the narrator knew the details of his mother, sister and uncle’s sex lives. It was vaguely disturbing.
This book is supposed to be good and was shortlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction in 2014 but I just couldn’t get into it. I might have abandoned it if it wasn’t for my book club. Other members of my book club felt the same way. I wouldn’t recommend it.
February 16th, 2018 in
Books |
1 Comment
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Release Date: February 6, 2018 (That’s today!)
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined. Roy is arrested and sentenced to twelve years for a crime Celestial knows he didn’t commit. Though fiercely independent, Celestial finds herself bereft and unmoored, taking comfort in Andre, her childhood friend, and best man at their wedding. As Roy’s time in prison passes, she is unable to hold on to the love that has been her center. After five years, Roy’s conviction is suddenly overturned, and he returns to Atlanta ready to resume their life together.
This stirring love story is a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three people who are at once bound and separated by forces beyond their control. An American Marriage is a masterpiece of storytelling, an intimate look deep into the souls of people who must reckon with the past while moving forward–with hope and pain–into the future.
Roy and Celestial are a newly married black couple and are still in the blissful honeymoon stage for the most part. Their careers are going well and they’ve recently decided to start a family. However, their lives and marriage are forever changed when Roy is arrested for and subsequently convicted of raping a white woman – a crime he did not commit. He is sentenced to twelve years in prison. Can his marriage to Celestial endure a twelve year separation? Should it be expected to? Celestial tries her best to wait it out, but ultimately decides she cannot stay. Then things get complicated when Roy is released after only serving five years of his sentence.
The author explores not only how Roy is affected by his time in prison but how everyone in his life is affected as well. She brings the unfortunate mass incarceration epidemic we have in this country down to the micro level. Roy was an up and coming business man full of optimism before he was falsely convicted. Then his life was basically destroyed and his cheery optimism and ambition stomped out of him by the system.
Tayari Jones’s prose is beautiful and her characters are richly drawn. The depth of this story is amazing. There is so much to think about and so many questions to ask of oneself while reading. Because of that, I think this book would make an excellent book club selection. I know that it’s still early but I’m certain that An American Marriage will make my best reads of 2018 list.
(I received a complimentary copy of this book for review.)
February 6th, 2018 in
Books |
2 Comments
The Vegetarian by Han Kang
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Publisher: Hogarth
Translator: Deborah Smith
Released in Korea in 2007
English translation released in 2015
Publisher’s Description:
A beautiful, unsettling novel about rebellion and taboo, violence and eroticism, and the twisting metamorphosis of a soul
Before the nightmares began, Yeong-hye and her husband lived an ordinary, controlled life. But the dreams—invasive images of blood and brutality—torture her, driving Yeong-hye to purge her mind and renounce eating meat altogether. It’s a small act of independence, but it interrupts her marriage and sets into motion an increasingly grotesque chain of events at home. As her husband, her brother-in-law and sister each fight to reassert their control, Yeong-hye obsessively defends the choice that’s become sacred to her. Soon their attempts turn desperate, subjecting first her mind, and then her body, to ever more intrusive and perverse violations, sending Yeong-hye spiraling into a dangerous, bizarre estrangement, not only from those closest to her, but also from herself.
Celebrated by critics around the world, The Vegetarian is a darkly allegorical, Kafka-esque tale of power, obsession, and one woman’s struggle to break free from the violence both without and within her.
Yeong-hye has a horrible dream. When she awakens, she finds that meat disgusts her and she can no longer eat it. The Vegetarian is divided into three parts, each offering a different person’s perspective on her decision and its effect on them.
The first part is told by her horrible husband, who cares only about the shame she is bringing upon him and her family with her choice. (Apparently, there are not many vegetarians in South Korea.) The second part is her relationship with her brother-in-law during the time when she is shifting from vegetarianism to not being interested in food at all. The last part is about her and her sister.
I had trouble understanding how Yeong-hye made the leap from the dream to becoming a vegetarian and then also why she grew to dislike food altogether. However, that didn’t impede my appreciation of the story much. I say appreciation rather than enjoyment because it’s hard to say that I enjoyed a book that is about a character who is depressed and hopeless.
The Vegetarian was my book club’s December selection. We found there was a wide range of opinions about the book and much to discuss. Most of us agreed that the book is an allegory…for something. There were varying opinions about what it was. Is it about humanity and its inherent violence? Is it about madness and how much autonomy a supposedly mad person should be granted over her own body? Is it a statement about how women are treated in Korea?
Most of us thought we liked the book but we didn’t love it. I would put myself in that camp. As a side note, this book is translated from Korean and at times the translation was a bit clunky. It would be interesting to read it in the original language and see if I felt the same way about it. Unfortunately, I don’t speak Korean. The author has said that she worked closely with the translator so presumably she approves of the translation.
The Vegetarian won the Man Booker International Prize in 2016 and some people clearly love it. I will say my understanding of it deepened after discussing it with others. I probably wouldn’t have picked up this book on my own but I did like it and I’m glad I read it.
February 1st, 2018 in
Uncategorized |
No Comments
Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose by Joe Biden
Publisher: Audible Studios
Narrator: Joe Biden
Release Date: November 14, 2017
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
A deeply moving memoir about the year that would forever change both a family and a country.
In November 2014, 13 members of the Biden family gathered on Nantucket for Thanksgiving, a tradition they had been celebrating for the past 40 years; it was the one constant in what had become a hectic, scrutinized, and overscheduled life. The Thanksgiving holiday was a much-needed respite, a time to connect, a time to reflect on what the year had brought and what the future might hold. But this year felt different from all those that had come before. Joe and Jill Biden’s eldest son, Beau, had been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor 15 months earlier, and his survival was uncertain. “Promise me, Dad,” Beau had told his father. “Give me your word that no matter what happens, you’re going to be all right.” Joe Biden gave him his word.
Promise Me, Dad chronicles the year that followed, which would be the most momentous and challenging in Joe Biden’s extraordinary life and career. Vice President Biden traveled more than a hundred thousand miles that year, across the world, dealing with crises in Ukraine, Central America, and Iraq. When a call came from New York, or Capitol Hill, or Kyiv, or Baghdad – “Joe, I need your help” – he responded. For 12 months, while Beau fought for and then lost his life, the vice president balanced the twin imperatives of living up to his responsibilities to his country and his responsibilities to his family. And never far away was the insistent and urgent question of whether he should seek the presidency in 2016. The year brought real triumph and accomplishment, and wrenching pain. But even in the worst times, Biden was able to lean on the strength of his long, deep bonds with his family, on his faith, and on his deepening friendship with the man in the Oval Office, Barack Obama.
Writing with poignancy and immediacy, Joe Biden allows listeners to feel the urgency of each moment, to experience the days when he felt unable to move forward as well as the days when he felt like he could not afford to stop. This is a book written not just by the vice president but by a father, grandfather, friend, and husband. Promise Me, Dad is a story of how family and friendships sustain us and how hope, purpose, and action can guide us through the pain of personal loss into the light of a new future.
Note: this Audible Exclusive includes a powerful interview – only available here – between Joe Biden and award-winning journalist, Mike Barnicle. Their discussion contextualizes the memoir’s wide-ranging themes, while also touching upon the presidential election, current events, and what it means to grapple with profound grief.
Promise Me, Dad is Joe Biden’s memoir about his son Beau’s struggle with and ultimately death from glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. Biden also interlaces what is happening with his job as Vice President of the United States during that time period. Most of that work was dealing with foreign policy issues, including Russia and the Ukraine.
Biden’s family is extremely close, which makes their journey with Beau that much more heartbreaking. Beau was beloved and admired by pretty much everyone he came into contact with during his life. The title comes from what Beau said repeatedly to Joe, “Promise me, Dad that you’ll be okay. Promise me, Dad.” Beau was the one dying yet he was more worried about his dad his own well-being. Biden narrates the book himself and you can hear the love and emotion in his voice throughout the book when he talks about Beau.
Biden discusses his dilemma of whether or not to run for president in the 2016 election and why it took him so long to decide not to run. When he talks about his interactions with Vladimir Putin and his other accomplishments, it’s clear that he’s proud of his work as Vice President – as he should be. He says that he had much more responsibility than most of the previous vice presidents. Something about the way he touts his achievements makes me think he may be talking himself up in preparation to run for president in 2020. Do it Joe!
I thought Promise Me, Dad was an excellent combination of both a personal and a political memoir. The Biden family dynamic is inspiring – now I want to do everything I can to make sure my kids stay close to each other and my husband and me as adults. Even though it’s probably clear that I’m a Biden fan, I think people of all political persuasions will enjoy this book, because at its heart, it’s about love and family.
(I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook for review.)
January 31st, 2018 in
Uncategorized |
1 Comment
Lights, Camera, Middle School! by Jennifer L. Holm
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Release Date: July 4, 2017
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
It’s a new kind of book for Babymouse! Fans of Dork Diaries, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and James Patterson’s Middle School books, this is going to be epic. . . .
For Babymouse, middle school is like a monster movie. You can never be sure who’s a friend and who’s an enemy, and the halls are filled with mean-girl zombies. Instead of brains, the zombies hunger for stuff—the perfect wedge sandals or the right shade of sparkly lip gloss—and they expect everyone to be just like them.
But Babymouse doesn’t want to fit in—she wants to stand out! So she joins the film club to write and direct a sweeping cinematic epic. Will making the film of her dreams turn into a nightmare?
I haven’t read the original Babymouse series but from what I understand, they are purely graphic novels and meant for younger kids. This new Babymouse series follows the Diary of a Wimpy Kid format, with a mix of text and graphics. I found some of the drawings hard to understand – the lines were too think so I couldn’t make out all of the details. However, I was still able to follow the story.
Babymouse joins her middle school’s film club because she wants to make a sweeping epic movie. She may be a little too zealous in her role as director. Will her team stick by her even though she is too demanding and bossy at times?
This was a cute little story with a good message but I don’t think it is at the middle school reading level. Even though it’s set in a middle school, I would classify it as a middle grade book for 3rd and 4th graders and recommend it for them.
(I received a complimentary copy of this book for review.)
January 25th, 2018 in
Books |
No Comments
Dream Big Dreams: Photographs from Barack Obama’s Inspiring and Historic Presidency by Pete Souza
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: November 21, 2017
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
From former Chief Official White House Photographer Pete Souza comes a book for young readers that highlights Barack Obama’s historic presidency and the qualities and actions that make him so beloved.
Pete Souza served as Chief Official White House Photographer for President Obama’s full two terms. He was with the President during more crucial moments than anyone else – and he photographed them all, capturing scenes both classified and candid.
Throughout his historic presidency, Obama engaged with young people as often as he could, encouraging them to be their best and do their best and to always “dream big dreams.” In this timeless and timely keepsake volume that features over seventy-five full-color photographs, Souza shows the qualities of President Obama that make him both a great leader and an extraordinary man. With behind-the-scenes anecdotes of some iconic photos alongside photos with his family, colleagues, and other world leaders, Souza tells the story of a president who made history and still made time to engage with even the youngest citizens of the country he served.
By the author of Obama: An Intimate Portrait, the definitive visual biography of Barack Obama’s presidency, Dream Big Dreams was created especially for young readers and not only provides a beautiful portrait of a president but shows the true spirit of the man.
Dream Big Dreams is the children’s version Pete Souza’s book Obama: An Intimate Portrait. It includes some photos that are not in that book. Souza was the official White House photographer for all eight years of Barack Obama’s presidency. In this book, he includes photos of Obama interacting with children and other happy photos. There are a few sad photos, like Obama comforting the parents of the children killed at Sandy Hook. However, these types of photos are meant to show Obama’s compassion and the captions do not go into great detail about the events. I don’t think it will be too much for most kids to handle.
I have loved looking at Souza’s photographs of Obama on Facebook over the years. He is a truly gifted photographer. Check out his Instagram page. He has been posting photos of Barack Obama that relate to events involving our current president. For instance, he posted a photo the other day with a picture of Obama with his hand over his heart and the caption, “Yes, he knew the words.” You know what he was referring to, I’m sure!
Dream Big Dreams is a nice, quality hardback coffee table book. It would make a great gift for any child interested in a photographic history of our 44th president’s compassion, sense humor and accomplishments.
(I received a complimentary copy of this book for review.)
January 23rd, 2018 in
Books |
No Comments
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
Publisher: Audible Studios
Narrator: Sarah Gadon
First published in 1996
Audible.com Release Date: November 2, 2017
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
Soon to be a Netflix Original series, Alias Grace takes listeners into the life of one of the most notorious women of the 19th century.
It’s 1843, and Grace Marks has been convicted for her involvement in the vicious murders of her employer and his housekeeper and mistress. Some believe Grace is innocent; others think her evil or insane. Now serving a life sentence, Grace claims to have no memory of the murders.
An up-and-coming expert in the burgeoning field of mental illness is engaged by a group of reformers and spiritualists who seek a pardon for Grace. He listens to her story while bringing her closer and closer to the day she cannot remember. What will he find in attempting to unlock her memories?
Captivating and disturbing, Alias Grace showcases best-selling, Booker Prize-winning author Margaret Atwood at the peak of her powers.
I was excited to learn that an audio version of Alias Grace was being released as I wanted to reread it before watching the Netflix series that came out in November and is based on the book. I read the book years ago – pre-blog – and barely remembered anything about it.The book is a fictionalized version of the life of Grace Marks. She is infamous in Canada for allegedly assisting in the murders of her employer Thomas Kinnear and his housekeeper and Grace’s supervisor, Nancy Montgomery, in 1843 when she was only sixteen years old. She was sentenced to life and spent part of her sentence in an insane asylum and part in prison.
Atwood invents the character Simon Jordan, a psychiatrist who interviews Grace over several sessions, hoping to find out the truth about her involvement in the murders. He starts with having her tell him about her childhood and work her way up to the time of the murders. Grace has a fantastic memory and is able to tell him the events of her life in great detail. Because of this, we get to know Grace extremely well. And of course, Atwood’s prose is beautifully descriptive.
Even though the book is based on a true story, there is still a surprising twist near the end. I appreciated that Atwood included an author’s note at the end explaining what parts of the story are based on facts and where she got those facts and what was a product of her imagination.
The narrator of this audiobook did a fantastic job. She used a dreamy, mellow voice for Grace that matched what I thought she should sound like and made it a pleasure to listen to. She was also good at a realistic masculine voices – not always the case for female narrators.
Margaret Atwood is one of my favorite authors and she did not disappoint me with Alias Grace. I hope the Netflix series is as good as the book. I’ll keep you posted!
(I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook for review.)
January 17th, 2018 in
Books |
1 Comment
