About the Book:

Though he may not speak of them, the memories still dwell inside Jacob Jankowski’s ninety-something-year-old mind. Memories of himself as a young man, tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. Memories of a world filled with freaks and clowns, with wonder and pain and anger and passion; a world with its own narrow, irrational rules, its own way of life, and its own way of death. The world of the circus: to Jacob it was both salvation and a living hell.

Jacob was there because his luck had run out – orphaned and penniless, he had no direction until he landed on this locomotive ‘ship of fools’. It was the early part of the Great Depression, and everyone in this third-rate circus was lucky to have any job at all. Marlena, the star of the equestrian act, was there because she fell in love with the wrong man, a handsome circus boss with a wide mean streak. And Rosie the elephant was there because she was the great gray hope, the new act that was going to be the salvation of the circus; the only problem was, Rosie didn’t have an act – in fact, she couldn’t even follow instructions. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and ultimately, it was their only hope for survival.

Book Review:  ★★★★★★

My sister-in-law called me today, and asked if I thought she would like this particular book.  As an animal lover, I was quick to tell her that I was certain of it.  This book is beautifully written, and it captivates the reader from the very beginning.  This is a book that I put off reading for months, even though everyone I knew kept telling me I simply had to read it.  I finally broke down, and took it on the family vacation — after all the twelve hour drive to California is the perfect time to get in reading.  (And no — I wasn’t driving at the time.)

This story, set during The Great Depression, is beautiful in both its descriptions and the over all feel of the time period.  This was a time of great frustration, with an overwhelming sense of hopelessness, and an even greater desire to escape from the horrors of the everyday world.  It was these feelings that add so dramatically to the setting of this book.  And yet the third rate circus of this story provides another interesting look into human nature, and the need for human acceptance and belonging.   Jacob finds himself among a group of circus freaks, and those that are both bizarre, and even more isolated from the world than he is.  Through the effective presentation of this book, we as readers come to know what it truly feels like to not fit in, except among the disavowed.  This setting adds a great deal of emotional structure to the book, and makes it easy for the reader to get wrapped up in an excellent story.

The real strength of this book, however, is in the development of the relationships, and the comparisons of the different types of love that exist in the world.  There are several different relationships explored in this book.  That of Jacob and Marlena; Jacob and Rosie; and even the familial type relationships of the various members of the circus.  All of these relationships represent a different type of interaction, each of them significant.  The book helps us to realize that the bonds that we each have to others are more than important — they are imperative.  These relationships are not exclusive to just people.  Animals can share these bonds with us, and they give us much in emotional support.  Added to that is the similarity between the love we share for our fellow men, and the love we have for the animals that enliven our world, and we come to appreciate that we each have a need for love and emotional bonding that are necessary for our mental health.   Gruen presents this theme very powerfully, and each of the characters adds a great deal to the presentation of these interactions.

But the best part of this book is the interaction between the Rosie and Jacob.  The beauty that exists when we learn to include animals in our lives, while at the same time striving to understand them on their terms adds a great deal of dimension to each of us.  They have the capacity to bring us love, joy, and companionship — no matter how unusual they may appear.  And they have the ability to make emotional connections with people beyond our capacity to understand.  Gruen has done an excellent job of presenting this aspect of interactions between people and animals — especially elephants.  But on a deeper level the character of Rosie reminds us that animals are not accidental creations on this earth, but rather active participants of life that have the ability to add depth and dimension.

Tags: Animals, Depression, Elephants, Friendship, Historical Fiction, Love, Pets, The Great Depression

Category: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance, Uncategorized

About the Book:

Disfigured by the blow of an abusive husband, and suffering her entire life with severe social anxiety disorder, the widow Mary McAllister spends almost sixty years secluded in a white marble mansion overlooking the town of Mill River, Vermont.

Her links to the outside world are few: the mail, the media, an elderly priest with a guilty habit of pilfering spoons, and a bedroom window with a view of the town below.

Most longtime residents of Mill River consider the marble house and its occupant peculiar, though insignificant, fixtures. An arsonist, a covetous nurse, and the endearing village idiot are among the few who have ever seen Mary.

Newcomers to Mill River — a police officer and his daughter and a new fourth grade teacher — are also curious about the reclusive old woman. But only Father Michael O’Brien knows Mary and the secret she keeps — one that, once revealed, will change all of their lives forever.

Book Review:  ★★★★★★

This is a book that I have vacillated over buying for a while now.  The cover looked interesting, as did the title — but when I read the description, I just couldn’t make up my mind.  I finally took the plunge since I am between semesters, and I wanted something to read that wasn’t assigned reading.  I have to say that even though assigned reading isn’t always something I would voluntarily pick up and read — they are almost always well written and have volatile topics to reflect on.  Unfortunately, I can’t say the same thing here.

Both the story line and characters were predictable in the extreme in this book, and I found myself wondering if it was going to go any where.  I was particularly intrigued with Mary, and felt like there could have been a lot of insightful back story developed through her.  But in the end I felt like she remained illusive, unknown, and unknowable — even to the reader.  Ultimately I felt like most of the characters all had odd quirks and strange personality issues — as well as physical challenges to over come.  But somehow, over all the author just seemed to stay with a sappy drama with little in depth development.

This is a story that I would have expected more suited to a Lifetime chickflick presentation.  And it certainly qualifies in my category of chick-lit.  However, if you are looking for a read that has little mental engagement, and a great deal of over-emotional drama — this one would qualify.  It is the perfect beach read — and would be a good option for the approaching summer months, in the lighter read category.

Tags: Darcie Chan, Family, Friendship, Grief, Loss, Love, Memory, Mystery, Romance, The Mill River Recluse

Category: Fiction, Mystery, Romance

About the Book:

For seven-year-old Raami, the shattering end of childhood begins with the footsteps of her father returning home in the early dawn hours bringing details of the civil war that has overwhelmed the streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital. Soon the family’s world of carefully guarded royal privilege is swept up in the chaos of revolution and forced exodus.     Over the next four years, as she endures the deaths of family members, starvation, and brutal forced labor, Raami clings to the only remaining vestige of childhood—the mythical legends and poems told to her by her father. In a climate of systematic violence where memory is sickness and justification for execution, Raami fights for her improbable survival. Displaying the author’s extraordinary gift for language, In the Shadow of the Banyan is testament to the transcendent power of narrative and a brilliantly wrought tale of human resilience.

Book Review:  ★★★★★★

Some stories are fun to read, simply because they are escapist in nature.  Some are fun to read because the characters become friends and enemies, without the reader ever realizing it.  And sometimes we find a book fun to read because it deals with a topic we are interested in.  But in the case of some stories — because of the harrowing and deeply personal nature of the story — the only way it can be told is in novel form.  That is the nature of this book — and that feeling of deeply harrowing personal experience resonates throughout this amazing story.

The haunting voice of the the seven year old Raami leaves the reader feeling raw and deeply troubled.  Not so much for the inhumanity that men are capable of inflicting on others around them — but of the cold indifference of men to others who may not share their opinions and ideologies.  And when combined with the seven year old perception of a child, struggling to understand the unfathomable the book becomes a powerful testament to the dangerous nature of extremism, and the brutality of ideologies on mankind.

With every page the reader’s heart breaks with bewildered sorrow at the incomprehensible purpose behind the dangerous regime of the Khmer Rouge.  As the story develops the beauty of the Cambodian culture resonates, particularly when it struggles to survive the oppressive blanket of  communism that brutally and indiscriminately destroys the people of the Cambodian cities.  This book looks closely at the violence perpetuated in the name of belief.  It also looks at the devastation left in the wake of this kind of troubling absolutist thinking, not only within families, but also in a nation as a whole.  But in the end it is also the story of the painful loss of a child’s family, innocence, and faith in mankind.  And yet — even when everything else has been stripped away, the will to survive sustains an individual through the most devastating of events, even when the body wants desperately to quit.

At the end of it all, Ratner’s story always maintains a deeply personal feel, and the reader is always aware that there is more than creative license behind this book.  Overall the book tells a story of the author’s painful struggle to survive in the wake of a devastating genocide, which received little recognition in the public eye.  The reader feels the reality of Ratner’s emotion, even while they try to convince themselves that it is only fiction — but knowing from beginning to end that this book has its roots in history — and a troubling history at that.

If for no other reason than to expose the horrifying crimes of a corrupt revolutionary regime, this book is a must read.  But beyond that the painful picture of the family, and the intense relationships between the characters haunt the reader.  Their strengths and weaknesses, in all the good and bad is presented not as a commentary on men in general — but as a tribute to those who became victims to this atrocity.  This is a book that whether you love it or you hate it — it is impossible to put it down.

Tags: Cambodia, Family, Friendship, Genocide, Government, Grief, Historical Fiction, Khmer Rouge, Loss, Love, Memory, Morality, Murder, Suffering, Survivor

Category: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Philosophy, Politics