Death on the Island

Finished July 12

Death on the Island by Lynne Marie Taylor

This historical mystery is set in Malta in the fall of 1880, a time when Malta was controlled by the British. The main character in this series, of which this is the second book, is Scottish Detective Inspector McQueen. He is in Malta to set up a detective division in the local police and train local officers in this aspect of police services. Recently a steamship travelling from India to Britain stopped here and one of the stewards was found to have cholera. The first class passengers were put into quarantine, on a small island near Valetta dedicated for this purpose called Manoel Island. When a dead man is found floating in the harbour, with a fatal knife wound, he is soon identified as Buchanan, one of the passengers who should have been in quarantine. McQueen and the police doctor go into quarantine to question the other passengers and because they were both exposed to the body. Buchanan was accompanying a Sikh prince who was raised in England back to England after he was refused entry to India. The prince is an obvious suspect here since he was unhappy with the circumstances. 

Marie Talti is the daughter of the owner of one of the two local papers, a weekly, and she works as both a journalist and editor, actively assisting her father. With limited resources, McQueen asks her to investigate the passengers and their backgrounds for him, and she agrees, hoping this will offer her paper an edge. 

This novel deals with difficult historical events, racial and ethnic prejudice, sexual predation, and gender roles. So there's a lot of interesting plot and characters, and I learned some history I wasn't aware of. 

I picked it up to meet a couple of reading challenges and am glad I did. 

Chronicle of a Last Summer

Finished February 20

Chronicle of a Last Summer: a Novel of Egypt by Yasmine El Rashidi

This novel is a gem. Although the title refers to a single summer, the novel is written about three summers. The first is in 1984, after the assassination of Sadat with Mubarak newly elected. The female narrator is six years old, and she spends her life going to English school, interacting with her extended family, particularly her older cousin Dido, watching the three television channels available and trying to figure out her world. Her father has gone away, but no one says where he's gone and when he will return. She makes up stories in her head about his absence, but misses him. Her mother is distracted and often has telephone conversations that seem emotional. One of her Baba's close friends, a man she refers to as 'Uncle' visits regularly and talks politics. 

The house by the Nile that she lives in is a family home, with her family living on the second floor. Her grandmother and aunt lived on the first floor until her grandmother died, and then her aunt, born with Down's Syndrome, moved up with them. Her aunt died not long ago as well. 

The second summer is in 1988 and she is in university, studying to be a filmmaker and Dido keeps trying to convince her to make political films, but she isn't interested. We see her taking the bus to university, visiting the gallery there, and borrowing equipment to make films. One time her class visited a prison, and she thinks of that experience. There are sit-ins after a recent attack downtown where sixty-two people were killed. 

The third summer is in 2014. She is now a writer and thinking back on her experiences. She has packed up most of her grandmother's belongings and moved down to the first floor, her own space. One of her finds was small paintings her grandmother had done and she has hung them all together. There is more political upheaval, and attacks on Copts and their churches have been happening. She and Dido have become more distant with each other as he became more active politically. Her father has returned and she tries to create a new relationship with him after his long absence. 

We see what has changed over time and what has remained the same. She has grown up and made decisions about her life that are hers alone. She is observant and curious, and that has shaped her life. 

A lovely read, and I got a feel for her inner life.

Command Performance

Finished July 23

Command Performance by Jean Echenoz, translated by Mark Polizzotti

This novel is quite different from anything else I've read. It's ironic and reads like a send-up of mystery suspense with a central character who is not very bright and rather inept, but doesn't realize his own limitations. It also has a literary style of writing in many respects, and that comes through in this translation from the French. 

The main character is Gerard Fulmard, a man who used to be a flight attendant, but something (we aren't told what) happened that made him lose his job. Now unemployed, he decides to try his hand a being a private detective, and gets hired by an obscure political party that is in the midst of infighting about their future direction and choice of leadership. 

The book opens with a piece of a satellite landing on the grocery store in Gerard's neighbourhood, followed by a kidnapping related to the political party previously mentioned. As Gerard is drawn in to the dynamics, it is unclear whether he is to be an information source or a fall guy. 

With cliché phrases flung in to add to the style, this book surprises and entertains. 

Echenoz is one of France's most respected contemporary writers, and is known for his plot twists and distinctive voice. Definitely a great read. 

Girl, Forgotten

Finished July 5

Girl, Forgotten by Karin Slaughter

The beginning of this book has a day from the early 1980s, where a young woman, Emily Vaughn, is planning to go to her high school prom. She hasn't been to high school in months, and no one wants her there. The reason for that is her pregnancy. Here we see Emily encounter several young men, classmates as well as a teacher, and defy her parents' wishes to head to the school. She gets there, but never gets back home. 

This novel follows U.S. Marshall Andrea Oliver from her graduation day as a marshall through her first assignment. Andrea grew up in the witness protection program, although she wasn't aware of that until recently. Her biological father is a man who is in jail partly due to her mother's testimony. He was also one of the men suspected in Emily Vaughn death. 

When, on her graduation day, Andrea is offered the job of protecting a judge in Delaware who has been receiving death threats, she finds that the judge Esther Vaughn is Emily's mother, and there is a hidden agenda to her posting. Someone wants her to find Emily's killer, and they think it is Andrea's father. 

As Andrea gets her bearings in the small town, getting to know her partner, an experienced marshall with a quirky sense of humour names, Leonard (Catfish) Bible, as well as the locals, she finds there is more going on than she expected. 

As she learns how Bible thinks, she also learns that many people from Emily's life have secrets, and most of them are still in town. 

This is a book that has a lot going on, and some of the plotlines are eye-opening. Andrea has training, but she is learning her job as she goes, and sometimes, she makes a mistake. A book that will keep you guessing until the end. 

Unprintable

Finished June 2

Unprintable by Julie Kaewert

This is the third book in A Booklover's Mystery series, but the first that I've read. Set around the small publishing house of Plumtree Press, the publisher Alex Plumtree is well-connected and carrying on the family business after the relatively recent deaths of his parents. He is also looking forward to his upcoming wedding, while his fiancee is on a photo shoot in Switzerland. 

The time is just before Britain joined the European Union, and there are political arguments going on around that with some less than truthful messaging as well. 

Alex's connections mean that the Prime Minister was an acquaintance of his father's and so when he gets called in by one of the Ministers to meet with him and the Prime Minister, it is unexpected, but it isn't totally unlikely. 

They ask him to do them a favour and publish a controversial novel, while not making it known that it's a favour to them. After some hesitation, he agrees to do both a trade version and a collector's edition. The collector's edition will be done with a local specialty printer, a woman he's worked with before, and will be done on a short timeline to come out before the upcoming general election.

As soon as word gets out about the publishing deal, things begin to get dicey. Alex is slapped with a lawsuit, phones and offices are bugged, some of his own staff are decidedly unhappy with him, proof copies go missing, and threats are made against both him and his local printer. When things escalate to murder and property damage, Alex finds himself in far more of a difficult situation than he ever anticipated, and begins to wonder who is behind all the threats and violence. 

The book is fast-moving with lots of action, and some interesting characters. I particularly liked the female printer and would have liked to see more of her. This is in the genre of cosy mystery with the amateur detective of Plumtree, and a bit more violence that a cosy often has. 

Standing in the Shadows

Finished May 31

Standing in the Shadows by Peter Robinson

This is the 28th book in the series featuring Inspector Banks. Set in Yorkshire, this series always brings in some of the author's own interests, like music. 

This one starts at an archeological dig when a woman hoping for Roman artifacts finds bones much closer to the surface than she expected to find anything. The dig is located in a farmer's field that has been requisitioned by the government for a new highway access and amenity location. 

As Banks works with experts to identify the few traces located with the bones, and figure out a time period to look at, he finds himself and his team finding a link to a retired police officer, and an earlier crime. 

There is also a secondary timeline that begins in late 1980 when university student Nick Hartley is part of an investigation into a female university student who was found murdered. Nick is looking for answers himself and is confused and disappointed when his efforts seem to be dismissed by the police. As he moves forward into life after his studies, he finds his questioning nature helpful in his new career as a journalist. 

As the characters from the two timelines intersect, we see how the earlier crime was treated and how the later one resolves many questions. 

The music is one way that Banks relaxes, and here he has inherited a collection of old albums that he has to make room for and that the book mentions some of. 

I always enjoy seeing the various recurring police officers as well, and several show up here. 

Given that Robinson died in October 2022, I'm not sure whether we'll see any more of this series, which is a shame. He was a fantastic storyteller. 

The Brothers York

Finished March 5 

The Brothers York: A Royal Tragedy by Thomas Penn

This history book covers the years 1461 to 1485 and looks at the British monarchy during this time, specifically the House of York. The book has a helpful family tree so that you can see where the royalty at this time fell within the larger royal lineage in Britain. 

As the book opens Henry VI is king, the last of the Plantagenets, but he is a weak king, addled in mind, and with only one child, a son that came later in life. 

Throughout this time, and beyond, questions are raised about whether the children in the official marriage of the king are actually his, and this is definitely one of the things that was raised with Henry VI. Henry's cousin Richard was not making a claim for the throne at first, but was attempting to rule in his stead due to his mental instability. It was Richard, who was Duke of York, whose three sons are the subject of this book. His oldest son became Edward IV, and his second son Edmund was killed when he was, before most of the action takes place. The third son, George, Duke of Clarence was never king although he had ambitions, and the last son became Richard III. 

All three of the brothers taking lead roles here, Edward, George, and Richard are strong-willed, ambitious men, but they had different ways of going about their public and private lives. 

This book is heavily researched, and goes into the details of their relationships with each other, with other European rulers of the time, and of the upper classes within England, who played decisive roles in the determination of who had control at any time. Coming late to a battle, or not showing up at all despite promises made, had impacts that were far-reaching.

It was also interesting to see how each handled the finances of both the nation and their personal household, and what their relationship was to Parliament. Although they didn't rule during this time, the women in the royal family also have decisive roles, whether it was bearing heirs or holding court while the king was absent. The women's reputation also impacted the reputation of the king for good and for bad. 

I enjoyed getting to know this part of history better than I had and seeing the ways that politics has changed so little over the centuries. 

Machiavelli

Finished April 20
Machiavelli: The Art of Teaching People What to Fear by Patrick Boucheron, translated by Willard Wood

This is a close look at Machiavelli's life and writings. It's split into six sections covering different periods of his life, with each section having five chapters.
The introduction starts with a quote from Trump, one that could have been written by Machiavelli. It was a statement made in March 2016 "Real power is -- I don't even want to use the word -- fear." It definitely relates to both men. It speaks to the fact that we really don't know how to feel and think about Machiavelli. This book stays in that uncomfortable zone of thought. It is a deep analysis of the man and his writing, some drawn from a series of talks on French public radio about using Machiavelli to sharpen our understanding of our own times. It shows how people can be so worried about a pending threat that they don't realize that it has already happened.
Youth - this section begins by setting the context for Machiavelli's life, a time period of great upheaval. Those times we are drawn to reading him are also times like these, which should alert us to that in our time. It also talks about how his name became associated with the practice of violence and tyranny, one that he didn't actually profess, but that his worst opponents assigned to him. One of the works he drew on here was a diary kept by Machiavelli's father, showing that the house owned thirty books (an extravagance at that time) and valued education. One of the books was Lucretius, and Machiavelli read it and transcribed it, a very humanist book
A Time for Action - This section talks about the influence of Savonarola's rise and fall, Machiavelli's first government role, first secretary to the second chancery. He created a team of young men that would stay with him for nearly fifteen years. It also marked the beginning of his travels away from Florence to observe what happened elsewhere, and allow him to compare. It also had him writing: dispatches, reports, and diplomatic letters, forming a base for his later work. It is said that this time and place in history invented diplomacy, so it was a valuable experience. It also brings us to the beginning of his exile when the Medicis were reinstalled as rulers and he was implicated in a conspiracy.
After Disaster - His first writings from exile are covered here, where he spent time conversing with the men of his community and his evenings reading. The Prince is looked at, with his intentions to "write something useful for discerning minds," and his determination to look at the truth of the way government worked. He wasn't describing good government, but more the government that he had observed and these are principalities, not republics, an important distinction. He talks here about self-preservation, what a ruler needs to know how to do to stay in control. He ends this famous work by calling on patriotism to deliver Italy from barbarians, the French, but also this is a cry to be noticed, to be brought out of exile.
Politics of Writing - The Prince gained some attention, but the Pope warned the Medicis against him, so he turned to theatre successfully. In the plays, he used the same themes as his previous work, but added humour and variability to them. This section also talks more about his personal life, his marriage and family and draws from personal letters written to his wife and his friends. His work also ventured beyond the diplomatic language of the time to include idiom and street language.
Republic of Disagreements - This section ventures into his orations, beginning with those on the Roman republic. They can be seen as a counterbalance to the Prince in that he acknowledges the role of the voice of the people. He notes that although the general populace is ignorant, it is capable of truth, and they don't want to be dominated. One of the points he makes is that which damages the public spirit "to make a law and not observe it, particularly when it is not observed by the person who devised it." This section also looks at his work Art of War, and the role of military force and his arguments against the dependence on mercenaries. It also reveals his idea of peace as violence in abeyance, useful for its vagueness of threat. Here, this book also tackles the common line "the end justifies the means" as being associated with Machiavelli. He never wrote such a line, and it doesn't fit with his philosophy. For him "The end will always occur too late to justify the means of an action. To govern is to act blindly within the indeterminacy of the times."
Never Too Late - The final section of the book begins with the death of Lorenzo de' Medici at the age of twenty-seven, and the ascendency of his cousin Giulio, who provided more opportunity for Machiavelli, beginning with  a commission to write a history of Florence. When Giulio became Pope Clement VII, Machiavelli had more opportunities, including diplomatic missions and travel. This takes us to the capture of Rome in May 1527 and the topple of the Medici reign, but now that the republic was restored, Machiavelli's services were not wanted, and he died soon after. But the body of work he created survived and was interpreted in various ways by various parties. Boucheron points out the Machiavelli often comes up when a storm is threatening. His quarrel "is rekindled every time a Caesar subjects Europe anew to servitude and war." We may not have reached that point, but the truth of Machiavelli's words are worth considering.

The Blue Demon

Finished February 3
The Blue Demon by David Hewson

This is the eighth book in the Nic Costa series, and I've enjoyed all the ones I've read. Set in Rome, Nic is called in as part of a team to deal with the a murder and threats related to a G8 meeting held in the heart of the city. The team is called in by the president, exercising a right he has seldom used in defiance of the prime minister, who planned the high level meeting of leaders.
As the book begins, an Italian politician has been kidnapped and his driver murdered. The clues in the case lead back to a dissident terrorist group that was active decades earlier, but could that really be the case. As the intrigue builds, and the various police and security groups push for their own forces to take control, more and more is revealed. There is lots of conspiracy here, and greed, and arrogance. And Nic finds that he learns more about his own father and the role he played in politics when Nic was young.
As usual in Hewson's books, there is a lot going on, in politics, in art and archaeology, and in the struggle for power. The Blue Demon of the title is an ancient being from an earlier time's legends, but one very real to one man who believes he has a mission to fulfill.

What She Saw

Finished December 21
What She Saw by Gerard Stembridge

This psychological thriller has you unsure of who or what to believe. Lana Gibson is an American who lives in Dublin due to her husband's job. She has traveled on a whim to Paris to see an Edward Hopper exhibit. But she may have underlying motives that become clear more gradually.
She stays at an upscale hotel, The Hotel Chevalier on the Right Bank, and is intrigued by a suite with its own private elevator. When her curiosity gets the better of her, and she gains access to the suite, she sees something that she shouldn't have and the story really gets going.
Lana has a previous history in Paris that she is both drawn to and regrets. She is also an unreliable narrator as she is bipolar and doesn't always take her medicines when she should. As the events resulting from her curiosity overtake her, she must make choices based on the moment.
Lana is a smart woman, but she doesn't always pay enough attention to what's happening when she focuses too much on something, and that gets her into real trouble. This was a fast-moving novel that kept me on my toes right to the end.
I liked the plot lines involving politics, and how they reflect some real life trends.

Just Like Family

Finished July 1
Just Like Family by Kate Hilton

This novel has flashbacks to earlier times in the life of the main character Avery Graham. In the now of July 2017, Avery is working as the chief of staff to the mayor of Toronto, Peter Gaines, a man she's known since she was twelve, and he first visited his father's cottage.
The cottages on an unnamed Ontario lake are a big part of the story. Avery's family had one for her, her older brother Ethan, and her parents. Her friend Tara had one with her parents, and her friend Jenny had one with her mom Greta, and her stepfather Don. Peter is the son of Don who moves to Toronto from California to go to law school and be closer to his father.
As we step back into Avery's past, we see the closeness of the three girls: Avery, Tara, and Jenny, and begin to understand what has both kept them friends, and created some distance between them.
We see how a tragedy at the cottage deeply affected Avery, sending her on a long journey to find herself, if she ever stops running from her past.
In the present, Avery lives with her long-time boyfriend Matt, who also has an extremely hectic worklife. The two have a good relationship, but they don't see each as often as they'd like.
Avery really throws herself into her work, and a project for the waterfront that has been a long time in the making is finally being realized. When issues arrive to hold up the project, Avery tries to deal with them, but one of her contacts warns her that rumor of a scandal around the mayor is starting. While Avery is in the middle of this, Matt proposes, and Avery is scared to move forward, despite her love for him. We gradually learn, through learning her past, why she fears commitment.
Avery is like many women, extremely competent, smart, and respected, yet with a lack of confidence at her core. The situation she is in will provide a wake-up call that she desperately needs.

Saving Capitalism

Finished December 3
Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few by Robert B. Reich

This book looks at the myths of capitalism and the facts of capitalism, showing how those in power misrepresent government's role and how the current trend is not sustainable nor good for anyone in the long run. The author gives a brief introduction and then the book is separated into three parts.
The first part talks about the "Free Market", and has nine chapters. The first chapter gives the prevailing view (widely portrayed) of the free market. The second chapter introduces the five building blocks of capitalism: property, monopoly, contract, bankruptcy, and enforcement. These five things are elements the government determines the nature of. It is the way the government determines these elements that defines how the market operates. Free market is a misnomer, as it is determined by how the government determines these elements. The third chapter looks are the nature of freedom and power.
The fourth chapter discusses property, the fifth monopoly, the sixth contracts, the seventh bankruptcy, and the eighth enforcement. The ninth chapter summarizes the market mechanism as a whole.
The second part looks at work and the myths that surround it, and consists of six chapters. The first looks at the myth of meritocracy, the idea that we earn what we deserve. The second looks at the underlying, not always visible mechanisms that determine CEO pay. The third does the same for Wall Street pay. The fourth looks at how the bargaining power of the middle class has been in decline for decades. The fifth looks at the rising numbers of working poor, those people that work hard, yet can never earn enough to survive without assistance. The sixth looks at the rising numbers of non-working rich, those who don't work yet still have much more than they need to survive and how the rules have changed gradually to create this growth.
The third part looks at the nature and need for countervailing power, and consists of nine chapters. The first is a summary of where we stand now. The second looks at how the current market mechanisms are a threat to capitalism. The third looks at how countervailing power has declined over the years. The fourth gives a number of ways to restore countervailing power to the market. The fifth discusses the issues of pre-distributions upwards and how to end that. The sixth discusses ways to redefine the corporation. The seventh discusses ways to deal with the ways that technology has replaced jobs. The eighth discusses the role of the citizen in the market. The ninth looks at new rules for the capitalistic market that will make it for the many and not the few.
Reich explains everything very well, uses lots of real world examples, and gives real solutions to the current problems. I highly recommend this book.

Weapons of Mass Diplomacy

Finished April 1
Weapons of Mass Diplomacy written by Abel Lanzac, illustrated by Christophe Blain, translated by Edward Gauvin

This graphic novel follows a man who works for the French Foreign Ministry. as the speechwriter for the minister. The time is 2002 and Arthur Vlaminck is at first awed by the Minister, Alexandre Taillard de Vorms. Vorms quotes classical writers and poets, but Vlaminck soon discovers that Vorms is a combination of energy, ego, intuition, and rhetoric. The hours are long, the stress is high, and Vlaminck grows more and more distant from his fiance as he has less time for a personal life. The clash between the French and the Americans is a big part of this story.
This is a satire, with elements of political bluster, ancient Greek philosophy, and Middle East unrest.
As a backroom glimpse to the world of international politics, this is a well-written insightful novel. The drawing is well-done, feeding the action of the novel in the way it depicts the action and using elements of physicality to emphasize the nationality of the characters.
Enjoyable, if not my usual choice of subject matter.

Occidentalism

Finished September 30
Occidentalism: The West in the Eyes of Its Enemies by Iam Buruma and Avishai Margalit

This book's purpose is not to demonize the enemies of the west or assist in the "war on terrorism", but to understand what drives Occidentalism, and to show that the suicide bombers of today have their roots in history that includes the west itself. Understanding doesn't provide excuses, but just additional knowledge in dealing with those who demonize the west.
The book looks at occidentalism from a variety of viewpoints. One is the idea of war against the west, one is the idea of the city as an occidental evil that with an urban reality destroys the local culture. Another looks at the idea of the hero versus the merchant, where the pursuit of economic wellbeing works against the true way things should be. Yet another looks at the philosophy of the mental model of the west as seen by its enemies and how they interpret the west's intent. We then get to religion and the various ways the west is seen as idolatrous, including the way that women are treated. The last is the seeds that bring revolution, looking at various examples and showing how some current situations mirror these historical ones, and theorizing what that means for the world going forward.
Well-researched and insightful, this analysis goes back more than two centuries to trace the roots of anti-Western ideas and sentiments, and places modern terrorists within this historical continuum.

The Boy in the Snow

Finished March 23
The Boy in the Snow by M.J. McGrath

This novel is part of a series featuring Edie Kiglatuk. Here Edie finds herself down in Alaska from her home in Ellesmere Island helping her ex-husband Sammy in his bid to race the Iditarod. Sergeant Derek Palliser is the other member of Sammy's support team. Edie is out for a walk when she sees a spirit bear and follows it, losing her way. When she gets back on track, she finds a small baby dead in a spirit house, but it is unclear who placed him there.
Edie's search for the truth and for justice for the small boy lead her to political corruption, the dark underworld of human trafficking, and immense danger for herself and her friends.Edie does things she's never done before, like driving a truck, and uses her wayfinding and tracking skills to learn more about the young women in danger here.
The Iditarod is the background and the reason for Edie being in Alaska, and while never the focus for action, characters revolve around it, whether they are directly involved, or not.
There is also a focus on the fear of the "other", here a splinter group of Russian Orthodox believers that, because others don't understand their beliefs and they live apart from the community, are vilified and blamed for behaviours and actions they have no relation to.
The quest by some in this novel for power is one of both sheer determination and complex planning, as they try to stay ahead of events and have backups for anything going wrong.
Edie's own differences and reactions are something they didn't plan for, and she becomes the unravelling.
A very different environment with unique characters.

The Lucky Child

Finished February 21
The Lucky Child by Marianne Apostolides
This was a short quick, but satisfying read. Apostolides was drawn to her family's history and began to do research on it, particularly the period during the war when her father was a boy. This fictional account draws on that history and the immediacy of it is very well done. Set in Thessalonika and mountain villages nearby, this tells the story of Agamemnon, an officer in the army, a veterinarian who was in charge of the army's animals. He also served his community as a veterinarian, and was a strong royalist. This tells the story from the wars early years, through 1943 and deals with not only the Nazi occupation of Greece and the effect that had on this community, but also the communist EAM/ELAS groups that later led to civil war in Greece. We see the story from a variety of points of view, Agamemnon, his wife Mary, his young son Taki, his older daughter Loukia and see how the point of view changes the story. We see their interactions with the neighbours and the dangers they face. This is an interesting vignette of this short period in time. Apostolides also includes information on her real family history in an epilogue that adds context to the tale.

Two Billion Trees and Counting

Finished January 7
Two Billion Trees and Counting: the legacy of Edmund Zavitz by John Bacher
I learned a lot from this book about the state of trees, forests, and the environment in Ontario. I had no idea of the wastelands in the province at the beginning of the 20th century and the fight to convince those in power (government and corporations) that it benefited everyone in the long run to have well-managed forests. So many of the arguments made by Zavitz and his fellow forestry advocates echo those around global warming and other environmental concerns (tar sands anyone?) today.
I guess there will allow be those who see the short term profit and not the long term sustainability which leads to greater profits in the end, not to mention better living conditions for all.
A book every politician and voter should read to avoid making the mistakes of the past over again.
This book follows the life and career for Edmund Zavitz (1875-1968) and his influence on the environment, specifically reforestation, in Ontario. We see the progress and mistakes, the political manoeuvrings and the passion, the shortsightedness of some and the long term effects. This is an important book for Canadian environmental history.

Pearl

Finished March 19
Pearl by Mary Gordon
This novel had been on my to-read list for some time, and I finally got around to it. The story is told by a narrator external to the story, yet who occasionally refers to their own existence, a very different outlook.
Pearl is an American studying the Irish language in Dublin. Maria is her mother. Joseph is Maria's best friend, a man who has played the role of substitute father in Pearl's life.
The story is told from the viewpoint of all three characters, yet still externally to them. Pearl has become involved with a political group in Ireland and has been tutoring a dyslexic teen, when things go horribly wrong. Pearl decides that she must use her life to become a witness to the tragedies and, after starving herself, handcuffs herself to the flagpole at the American embassy. As Maria and Joseph travel to Dublin, and try to figure out how to help Pearl, we see the backgrounds of all three characters and what has brought them to this point in their lives. We also see their struggles to find the path forward.
I found this novel very interesting. It raised some relevant philosophical questions and looked at roles and relationships.

In-depth Fiction

Finished May 31
The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt
This is a long book (over 600 pages) and it took me quite a while to get "into" it. The book follows a large number of characters, beginning with Olive Wellwood, an author of fairytales, and her family, and continuing on with relations, friends (both English and German), and the children resulting from all of these people. The book begins in 1895 and ends with the end of World War One. While there is a strong focus on the children of the different families and their development and interaction, we also see how this development affects the adults.
There is a lot of information around fairy tales, both German and English and their history and their popularity during this time period that I found very interesting. Another theme that came out related to the fairy tales was puppetry, particularly that of German puppet traditions.
Pottery was another strong theme that arose here with two characters being gifted in this area. There were also other writers and producers of plays that had lesser roles in the book.
With all these creative characters, a strong them for me was the genius of the artist, both physical and mental. The temperment of the artist to engross themselves in their work at the expense of those around them and the public success they valued less than their own feelings of accomplishment.
Another strong theme here was one of politics. There was a lot going on politically during this time period, including the Fabians, women's suffrage, labour union actions, anarchists, and socialism. We get glimpses into all of these within this novel and see how politics can fill the needs of some individuals.
While the events of World War One are only a small section of this novel, I felt that they were done very well, and I liked how the ending brought some interesting outcomes for the characters.
As I said, it took a while to enjoy this novel and get drawn in, but by the end I was thoroughly enjoying it and I learned so much besides.
After reading I noted a great interview with the author by one of the Dewey Divas: http://deweydivas.blogspot.com/2009/05/interview-with-s-byatt-on-her-new-novel.html
I really found this interesting after reading the novel.

Western Canadian Fiction

Finished October 29
Crown Shyness by Curtis Gillespie
A unique take on the politics of Canada in novel form, the book takes a political magazine journalist as its central character. Paul Munk is liberal-minded and socially conscious. He is writing an article for the magazine he works for on a man trying for leadership of a right-leaning party. Daniel Code is a former pastor and an advocate of the religious right, with views that Paul finds himself constantly surprised by.
Paul's older brother, Rick, has just got out of jail after serving a second time. While in jail, Rick was corresponding with Tammy over a long period of time and the two plan to live together now that he is out.
Paul wants to be there for Rick should he need any help, but Rick doesn't always want the help Paul tries to offer. As the two brothers adjust to each other and the rest of their family, we see rifts in both the family and the wider political community.
This is an interesting tale with a lot of angles to it, taking us from Calgary to the backwoods of Montana.
I also found some of the Calgary scenes interesting on the personal level, as Paul's family lives in the northwest of the city in the area of Nose Hill Park, an area that I lived in as a child.