The Forgotten Legion by Ben Kane - 544 pgs

Romulus and Fabiola are twins who were born into Roman slavery. They are unexpectedly sold one day by their malicious owner when they are just fifteen: Romulus to a school for practicing gladiators and Fabiola to a high-priced brothel, where she will meet a rich and powerful man who holds the keys to her future. Tarquinius is an Etruscan seer and warrior. Fleeing from his life as a slave and farmhand, he arrives in Rome seeking retribution for the death of his mentor, Olenus, who has taught Tarquinius everything he knows. Soon Tarquinius will find that all his gifts are put to the test in his desire to seek revenge and eventually return to his homeland. Brennus is a powerful Gaulish warrior who has just been sold as a slave to the gladiator school after having watched his village and clan be destroyed by the invading Roman army. He will become one of the most formidable gladiators in Rome and will lead a very different life then the one he had been expecting. In this spellbinding story of war, violence and politics, these four people will meet and join forces to fight both for and against Rome, and to change the course of their shared destinies.

Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres. I find that I learn so much through reading it, and to me, it is a lot more accessible and interesting than straight history. I have read about a lot of differing areas and peoples but it is only now that I am starting to really delve into reading about ancient Rome. This book is only my second foray into the time period and place, and while I did have some minor quibbles with the book, overall I think the story was executed very well.

This book deals with its characters rather superficially, and instead of really being a character driven book, it is more plot driven. In the first few chapters, the players and their plights are introduced but I got the feeling that this was only setting the stage for the scenes to come. While I do enjoy both character and plot driven novels, I would have been really pleased to see a little more of an in-depth analysis of the four main characters. As it was, the book alternated chapters from each of the four vantage points and gave a startling picture of what it meant to live as a member of the lowest rungs of Roman society.

Towards the middle third of the book, the plot shifts and most of the action revolves around extensive battle scenes. This continues throughout most of the rest of the story. The author manages to be both informative and intricate in these scenes, while also making them relevant to the main narrative. Though I thought the battle scenes were done with a skillful hand, I am not sure that they would work for all readers. I think that those readers who enjoy a deep and detailed rendering of history would find these sections very fulfilling, but those who aren't particularly interested in the minutiae of war might find these sections a little long winded and drawn out.

One of the things I liked best about this book was the way the characters' stories complimented and augmented each other. Throughout the story, there were some great moments of cohesiveness between the characters and their plights that made each section bridge together wonderfully. When the three male leads got together, becoming confidantes and doing battle together, there became a great symbiosis between them that I felt had been building up for a long time. It was really good to see it finally borne out. I also thought that the writing was very clean and unencumbered and that the author was able to impart his story with a great forthrightness and skill. The natural feel of the writing really won me over and impressed me.

Another thing that bears mentioning in this review is that at times this book could be very bloody and brutal. Though this might tend to turn some people away from reading it, I think that it gave the book an accurate and authentic feel, and was eye opening at the same time. To portray Rome during this time period without the brutality and blood lust would, I feel, have been false and would have been sugar-coating history. Having read a little bit about this time period and its particulars, this was not totally new to me, but for those who haven't been exposed to this culture and time, there might be some shock and apprehension. I don't think that the author glorified the use of violence or its consequences; rather, I think he was struggling to make the book as authentic and as relevant as he could.

This is the first book in a series of three, and I am planning on continuing on with it. The crispness of the writing and the very developed quality of the plot were refreshing to me, and I am interested in finding out what lies in store for the four very different people who inhabit this book. While I don't think this book is for everyone, those with a hunger for knowledge about the Roman empire, particularly about those at the bottom of society in that time, will greatly enjoy it. There is a lot to keep a reader entertained inside these pages, and those readers who might enjoy an abundant and comprehensive account of Roman war and its participants would do very well to pick up this book. An interesting glimpse into Ancient Roman society.

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I read and reviewed this book as part of a TLC Book Tour. I encourage you to stop by these other sites to continue following the tour:

Wednesday, February 10th:	Bibliofreak
Thursday, February 11th:	Luxury Reading
Tuesday, February 16th:	My Two Blessings
Thursday, February 18th:	Rundpinne
Tuesday, March 2nd:	It’s All About Books

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.

The Summer We Fell Apart by Robin Antalek - 384 pgs

In this revealing family saga, the four very different siblings of the Haas family must come to terms with their approaching adulthood and with each other. Amy, the youngest, is constantly searching for normalcy in her life after a childhood that was anything but normal. George, the sensitive one, is looking for the love and acceptance he never got as a child. Kate, the oldest, is on a quest to drive the past out of her mind with hard-won success and business acumen. And Finn, the most damaged of the four, is slowly drinking himself to death in an effort to escape the past. Growing up as children in the house of absent and cold show business parents, the four siblings had no one to rely on but each other. But time has scattered each of them in different directions and given them different lives. Now the fast approaching death of their father will bring them all together again, towards the reconciliation and unity that has evaded them for most of their adult lives. Hopeful, yet at times painful, The Summer We Fell Apart is moving look at an emotionally complex brood of people who never give up struggling for harmony amongst themselves.

Sometimes it's really hard to put my feelings about a book into words. This could happen for many reasons, but in this case I think the reason for it is because my feelings on this book never really reached the surface; they stayed at gut level and worked deeper and deeper from there. That's not a complaint about the book in any way, it's just that for me, the feelings in this book were at times very uncomfortable on a deep level. I would liken it to the feeling you have when you get a splinter in your finger. You know it's there, it's painful for sure, but it's not a gory wound that is up at the surface of the skin, it is buried and tender to the touch. That's much how I felt about this book. There weren't too many major dramas and messy confrontations sprinkled throughout the pages, but what remained was tender and raw in a way that wrenched my stomach.

The book was a powerful read and one that made me really empathize with the characters. I think that it hit home so much for me because I grew up in a house with absent and emotionally uninvolved parents and I felt that the hurts that these siblings incurred were some of the same hurts that I had felt myself at one time or another. It was uncomfortable to see them all struggling to get attention from a mother who didn't know how to give it and it touched something deep in me to see them reacting to a father who was emotionally unavailable in the extreme. All the more complex emotions and themes of family life were there for me and I think that the author did a great job in making these characters real and believable. At times their reactions prompted a panic in me, for I was much too familiar with how they were feeling and those long forgotten feelings of the past were not always pleasant to revisit. This, I think, was a brilliant feat for the author to have managed; to have so masterfully created your characters that they scream with life and relevance right off the page and into your reader's psyche.

The relationship between the siblings felt both unique and authentic to me as well. Each of the four had complex reactions and feelings for each other. Oftentimes those emotions conflicted with each other, which is something that I felt was truly representative of the relationships between siblings. I found the troubled relationship between Kate and Finn to be very compelling for me to read. Kate, the ultimate fixer, was unable to fix Finn no matter how hard she tried, while Finn struggled between his loyalty to his sister and his loyalty to the bottle, creating havoc in both of their lives. At the polar opposite was the relationship between Amy and George, a relationship filled with mutual respect and affectionate ribbing. I think that the author did an amazing job of creating complex and multifaceted relationships between her characters, not just the characters themselves, and sprinkling those relationships with astute and penetrating emotion and dialogue as well.

The last section of the book looked at life through the eyes of the children's mother. This was different, because previously, the book had been divided into sections focusing on one of each of the four siblings. I found that the section dealing with the siblings' mother, Marilyn, was a little more hopeful. Maybe it was because she voiced thoughts of remorse and acted as though she wished to rebuild the relationships she had missed with her children. Maybe it was because I finally got a peek into the mind of a character who up until that point had been shrouded in silence and mystery. Whatever the reason, this last chapter seemed to give me a hopeful attitude towards the the future for these characters, which is something I had not been expecting but was pleased to see.

This book had a wonderful directness of emotion and the ability to face some of the unpleasantness of family life, and I think those who enjoy long and involving family sagas would appreciate this book. If you are a reader who delights in character studies, you might also like this book, as there is much to feast on in that respect. I think that for me, although the book hit unfailingly close to home, I took great satisfaction in the story and its eventual and well-deserved conclusion. A very emotionally complex read, and well worth your time.

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A warm and sincere thanks to TLC Book Tours for providing me this book to read and review for my tour stop. I encourage you to continue following the tour by stopping to visit these sites:

Tuesday, February 9th:	Lit and Life
Thursday, February 11th:	BookNAround

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About the Author: After making a career out of changing careers, from PR to tending bar, and from waitressing to managing a modern dance company, Robin Antalek eventually gave in to the voices in her head and began writing fiction. She studied at The New York State Writer’s Institute at the State University of New York at Albany, and has published in many literary journals: Sun Dog: The Southeast Review, Literary Mama, among others, and has twice been a finalist in Glimmer Train’s Family Matters contests as well as a finalist for The Tobias Wolf Award for Short Fiction. You can also find her nonfiction essays monthly on the web at The Nervous Breakdown.

The Summer We Fell Apart is her first novel. She lives in a very needy Victorian house in Saratoga Springs, New York, with her husband, two daughters, and three dogs.

Visit Robin Antalek’s website.

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.

Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran - 448 pgs

After the death of their parents Cleopatra and Marc Antony, their three surviving children, Selene, Alexander and Ptolemy are captured and taken to Rome by their parents' greatest rival, Octavian Caesar. Despite their parentage, the three are not executed but instead are paraded throughout Rome as a testimony to the triumph of Caesar, and later taken to be raised among his family. As they mature in Rome amongst their enemies, they must learn how to live and operate in a society far more brutal and dangerous than their homeland of Egypt, and must learn the importance of keeping vigilant and silent in the house of Caesar. Woven with delicious intricacy and wonderful detail, Cleopatra's Daughter not only tells the story of these remarkable children but also expounds on ancient Rome and the notorious and unforgettable people who lived there.

I had heard such great things about this book in the book blogging community and even saw that a few people mentioned it as their best read of 2009. I have to say,that after reading it, I agree that this is one hell of a book! I liked pretty much everything about it and thought that Moran did a spectacular job of creating a version of ancient Rome that really enthralled and excited.

First off, I thought that her characters were finely tuned and easy to empathize with. The book is told from the viewpoint of Selene, Queen Cleopatra's only daughter. I liked Selene's voice and found her courage and bravery to be really beguiling. I can't imagine I would ever be able to be as brave as she was under those circumstances. It seemed that no matter what situation she was placed in, she had a heart full of contrary intentions, which is probably one of the things that kept her alive! I thought that Alexander was a little to compliant with Caesar at times and was too easily led into disaster, but ultimately I believed in his voice and felt that he was another character written with distinction. The supporting cast of characters were both original and unique and I felt that they were not given short shrift in the narrative either, which made for a more all-encompassing and detailed reading experience that I relished.

I was surprised to find out just how brutal life in ancient Rome actually was. I am not the type of person who thrives on cruelty but I thought it was fascinating to read just how little an individual's life was valued during those times. Women seemed to be looked on as items to be traded for opportunity, and even if a woman was already married, her father or brothers could annul her marriage and place her with a more advantageous man in the blink of an eye. Gladiators were viciously murdered after a tournament, no matter if they won or lost, and the common people faced daily brutalities and injustices at the hands of Caesar and his men. I thought these facts were cleverly peppered into the fictional aspects of the story and really gave the book an authentic and feasible feel. I am torn as to how to explain how I felt at these bits. I think that although my mouth was hanging open and my eyes agog at what I was reading, I was intensely interested and caught up in these details and their execution.

I also felt that the plot was pretty wonderful as well. The story never felt stale or flat and there were many surprises in the story line. I think that the romantic elements of the plot were juggled pretty well amongst the intrigue and historical sections, with no one single aspect of the plot overtaking the other in any obvious way. The overall story flowed together very well and I thought that there was just the right amount of combustion in the plot lines to keep everything moving along at a great clip. I think my favorite aspect of the plot was the one having to do with the secret outlaw who was opposing Caesar's rule throughout Rome, and I was really surprised to discover how that eventually turned out!

I think that lovers of historical fiction would be greatly pleased by this book but I don't think that they are the only ones who would love it. I think it has appeal for those who enjoy character studies as well as those looking for something that will grab and hold your attention like a dog with a bone. I really enjoyed this read and am happy that my book club and I will be discussing it at our next meeting. I think that this is a perfect book for book clubs, and I am sure that the discussion engendered by this one will be fantastic! A great read, recommended!

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.

The Body Scoop for Girls: A Straight-Talk Guide to a Healthy, Beautiful You by Jennifer Ashton, M.D., OB-GYN - 304 pgs

In this practical and frank new book, Dr. Jennifer Ashton, a prominent OB/GYN, offers adolescent and teenage girls a bevy of information surrounding all areas of their physical, emotional and sexual development. Written with openness and a very candid and no-nonsense style, Dr. Ashton tackles many of the burning questions that your teenage daughter would never dare to ask you herself. Not only does she discuss the basics of sexual health and development, she also brings up the realities and hazards of body piercing, the fundamental facts on eating disorders and a section on managing moods and mood disorders. Sharing her advice and real life examples, Dr. Ashton respectfully offers her guidance and discernment with a perceptive and sensitive style that will win over even the most reluctant teenage reader.

Getting my teenage daughter to talk about the intimate details of her life can be a frustrating experience for me. She is by nature a shy and quiet person, and although I try to come across as non-judgmental and considerate as I can, I am often left frustrated by my perceived lack of success. I am not sure if this a common experience with others who have girls of this age, and I often wonder if I am alone in my struggle. I always wanted to make sure that when my daughter reached this age, I would be able to provide better support and understanding than my own mother did. Her answer to everything that had to do with sex and development was silence. I learned most of my facts through friends and at school during those crazily uncomfortable human growth and development classes. Needless to say, I was often very misinformed about most things. I wish I had had a book like this back then, but I am also really glad that I have the opportunity to share this one with my daughter now.

This is not really the type of book you read cover to cover. It is more the type of book to be used as a resource and go-to when you have a nagging question that just can't wait for a doctor's visit or a talk with mom. It covers a wealth of subjects and does so in a very detailed yet clear style. Often chapters end with colored boxes containing the more pertinent facts of the material just read. It also contains several sections where some of the myths of puberty and sexuality are debunked and tips on when to call a doctor. I was really surprised to find out how comprehensive this book actually was. There were some things in there that I had never even dreamed would be included, like how to respond to and what can cause a genital injury and some of the scary things that can happen if a piercing does not go as expected. I really liked the way the book was structured and the way that every topic got a full rundown, and thought that the style of the book would appeal to the younger crowd.

I also liked the way that Dr. Ashton relates to her readers throughout the book. She is very respectful and relevant without resorting to the coyness and cuteness that many books like this one seem to suffer from. The effect of this is that she comes off as very disarming and knowledgeable while not being boring and repetitive. She doesn't try to talk like an overgrown teenager but she manages to speak the language of teenagers very well. Dr. Ashton's candor was one of the best things about the book. The book isn't on a mission to be cool and hip, but it ultimately manages to do so without really trying.

I think this book is definitely a must have for those of you who have a teenage girl in your life. Even if your teenager is very communicative about things of this nature, there are enough questions and answers between these pages to keep them busily flipping through the book and discovering more and more about their ever-changing bodies. I think this book is a wonderful resource. In today's society, ignorance about one's sexual and developmental health are things that could have long lasting and devastating effects. I applaud Dr. Ashton's willingness to write this book that will help young girls discover the secrets of their bodies, and I highly recommend it.

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I read this book as part of a TLC Book Tour. Please visit these other sites for the continuation of this tour:

• Friday, January 29th: A Novel Menagerie

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.

The Believers by Zoë Heller - 352 pgs -- Giveaway!

As radical political activist and lawyer Joel Litvinoff lies in a coma after a major stroke, his unusual family threatens to begin it's own breakdown. Joel's wife Audrey, always razor-tongued and opinionated, must not only deal with Joel's absence from her life but also come to terms with the nasty secret that her husband has been hiding from her for years. Meanwhile, Joel and Audrey's adopted son Lenny, a wastrel and drug addict, is working his usual game of manipulation and subterfuge on the rest of the family, seemingly unconcerned that his father lies incapacitated and dying. Daughter Rosa, once a socialist and activist like her parents, has decided to begin studies as an Orthodox Jew, much to the chagrin and disappointment of her antitheist mother who takes her conversion as a personal affront. Rounding out the bunch is daughter Karla, an obese and unhappy woman who is struggling not only to find fulfillment, but also to become pregnant at the behest of her uncaring and oblivious husband. As days turn to weeks with no news or improvement from Joel, situations begin to heat to a rapid boil, and each member of the family comes to their own moral precipice and must decide whether to let go and jump off, or to hang on to the things that are pulling them apart. Both comically astute and morally penetrating, The Believers is Heller at her skillful and avant-garde best.

A few years back, I had the unexpected pleasure of picking up my first book written by Zoë Heller. The book was What Was She Thinking?: Notes on a Scandal, and even with my relative inexperience at writing reviews at that time, I knew this author was someone to take seriously. When the opportunity came for me to read and review this book as part of a TLC Book Tour, I jumped at the chance. The book certainly didn't disappoint, and not only did I find it really hard to tear myself away from the pages of the story, I read the book in two sittings.

First of all, I felt that in her creation of the Litvinoffs, Heller does an amazing job of capturing the idiosyncrasies of a modern family in turmoil. Each character was like the point on a star, twinkling away in disorder and confusion. Although most of the characters had a somewhat repulsive outlook on life, they were the kind of characters you love to hate and whose antics you ingest feverishly in order to see just how bizarre and recalcitrant they will become. Each character was remarkably detailed and original, and for a work of fiction, these people were crazily realistic creatures. I think Audrey fascinated me the most. She was so scathing and fierce about everyone and everything that she came in contact with. I cringed in embarrassment and discomfort whenever she opened her mouth, but Heller had a way of making her so intriguing and interesting that you couldn't help but be completely absorbed by the woman. Audrey was a true original and although I was mostly scandalized by her behavior, I was unendingly entertained by her. Although I chose to focus mainly on the qualities of Audrey, I was truly impressed by all of the characters in this book. I didn't really like most of them but I felt that there was enough character dissection and detail in their creation to be able to understand what made them tick and why they acted as they did. I also liked the fact that Heller doesn't spend a lot of time worrying over the acceptability of her characters' beliefs and morals. There are no apologies here; these characters are who they are with no holes barred and no reservations.

I thought there was a huge amount of social commentary and irony here. One of the greatest ironies in the story was the fact that although the characters (mainly Audrey) constantly spouted socialist rhetoric and worked from that mindset, in their personal worlds people were far from equal and the common man in society was somewhat peevishly denigrated. It seemed as though they aspired to much loftier ideals than they could ever attain. This came up repeatedly throughout the story in their complaints about female doctors, their opinions on the hopeless futures of children of minorities and their unhappiness with their subjugated Latin housekeepers. They would walk through the story believing that they were on the side of the working man, the minority and society, but in reality their idealism was stripped away by their everyday experiences and actions. This book was simply a satirical masterpiece and I marveled at the way Heller created such meaningful social commentary in a tale full of miscreants.

I also thought that the research Heller did for this book was interesting. In the subplot involving Rosa, the reader is given a deep and extensive look into the tenants and rituals of Orthodox Judaism. I am very green to this subject but I felt that Heller did a wonderful job of explaining and highlighting these concepts for me. The book also also had some hysterically funny moments. The humor in this book was much like the characters: scathing and searing. I found myself snorting with amusement at these people and their absurdities and idealism. I think Heller has an incredible gift in the executions of her characters, and although I have never really found any of her characters to be likable, I do find them all engrossingly cruel and wickedly amusing.

If you are the type of reader who doesn't necessarily have to like the characters in a book in order to be fascinated with them, then this is definitely a book you need to read. Those who enjoy works of great satire and irony will find much to amuse themselves here as well. After completing this book, I must conclude that Heller is a writer at the top of her form. I am a huge fan of her work and can't wait to see what she offers her readers next. A highly original and entertaining read, highly recommended.

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Harper Collins has generously offered one paperback copy of this wonderful book to my readers. If you would like a chance to win, please leave a comment at the end of this post with a valid e-mail address where I can contact you if you win. You must leave a valid e-mail address to be entered in this giveaway. A winner will be drawn at random on February 10th. Good luck to all entrants!

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A hearty thanks to TLC Book Tours for providing this book for me to read and review. I encourage you to visit these other sites to continue following the tour:

Wednesday, January 27, 2010	Steph and Tony Investigate!
Thursday, January 28, 2010	Life in the Thumb
Tuesday, February 2, 2010	Write for a Reader
Wednesday, February 10, 2010	A Reader’s Respite
Thursday, February 11, 2010	The Brain Lair
Monday, February 15, 2010	Book Club Classics!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010	lit*chick
Wednesday, February 17, 2010	Sasha and the Silverfish
Thursday, February 18, 2010	Nonsuch Book

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About the author: Zoë Heller is the author of Everything You Know and What Was She Thinking?: Notes on a Scandal, which was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize and made into an acclaimed film starring Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench. Heller lives in New York.

Samson's Walls by Jud Nirenberg

In this fictional recreation of the biblical Samson story, a young woman is visited by an angel who announces that she will soon bear a special child to be raised as a Nazarite among her people. Growing up as a Nazarite, Samson must never pollute his body with wine or grapes, must not defile his spirit by being in close proximity to the dead, and must show his obedience to God through study and prayer. All of these guidelines that the boy must follow make finding real friendship and companionship with others a very difficult task for him, and when he decides to take a wife, he hopes that things will begin to change. Unfortunately, the family of the bride insults Samson in a way that he can't tolerate, spurring him to abandon his wife and take to the road in hopes of revenge. Thus begins the true tale of the life of Samson; warrior, scholar, and man of God. As Samson moves among the desert cities, he amasses followers and land, becoming a formidable leader of men. Both brutal and misunderstood, Samson longs to find someone to share his life with and discovers Delilah, a woman who will change the course of his destiny. Written with soberness and pragmatism, Samson's Walls gives a fresh voice to the tale of the man who had the strength of a hundred warriors and the lonely and angry heart of a nomad.

I must admit that the only thing I knew about Samson going into this book was the G-rated Sunday School stories of my youth. That is why I was so surprised and pleased to get a chance to pour over this retelling of Samson's story. First off, I think that Samson's character was really amped up in some great ways. I didn't have any trouble seeing why he was so distant and felt so superior to those around him. It was made very clear throughout the beginning sections of the book that Samson's every movement had been segregated from those of others and that he was never one to mix with those in the crowd. In addition, the fact that the relationship between him and his father was distant and stilted and the fact that he received more responsiveness from the Nazarite priests all came together in a really believable way and stressed the point that Samson was alienated and had a huge chip on his shoulder. I think creating the character in this way was a clever way for the author to make Samson multi-layered and to outfit him perfectly for the things he later attempts in the tale.

I also thought that the politics of the story were very well integrated into the narrative. There is a whole subplot running through the book dealing with the friction between the Hebrews and the Philistines that I thought was very well done. Since I am not really that well versed in Scripture, it was really very enlightening to me to discover that these two factions lived peacefully among each other but had skirmishes regularly and that each side wished to subjugate the other. When Samson comes along to fight for his people, the Hebrews begin to get a leg up on the battle that they could never dominate. This section of the story was very well developed and candid, and I really enjoyed the added intensity that it gave to the plot of the book. Had this not been the case, the book would have probably seemed very thin and underdeveloped.

The one thing that I had trouble with was Samson's eventual naiveté regarding Deliah's schemes. I couldn't believe that a man so cunning and strong could be so weak and trusting when it came to her deception. Of course, this was not the fault of the author. This is the actual meat and bones of the story as it appears in the Bible, so to change that aspect of things would have ruined the author's credibility in the area of fictional augmentation. In fact, Nirenberg does a wonderful job in his efforts to explain Samson's behavior, making his character mentally dance and twirl to the crazy ramblings of lust and hope that he feels for Delilah, despite the things she has already done. It just made me so mad that he couldn't see what was going on, and some of the time I was reading, I was screaming aloud to Samson not to be so stupid as to trust her again. But as a side note, I felt very appreciative to have become so invested in Samson and his story after having been so unmoved by my past few reads. I was grateful to the author for giving me such meat to sink my teeth into, and for creating a hero of such complex moral structure.

I think this is a book that would have wide appeal to many different types of reader. There is something here for almost everyone, from history to romance to battle scenes and action. Even though I knew the basics going in, I felt that this story was told with great novelty and skill and I had no trouble investing myself in it at all. I felt that this book had the perfect mix of modern storytelling mixed with a historical flavor that not only felt accurate, but believable as well. I enjoyed this read and think that both its unimposing length and accessibility would make the perfect drop-in read between heavier works.

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.

The Bone People by Keri Hulme

In this mysterious and multifaceted work of fiction, Kerewin Holmes, recluse and failed painter, unexpectedly discovers a young boy hiding in the stone fortress that she calls home. Discovering that the child is mute, Kerewin fosters him for the day hoping to contact his parents and deliver him home safely. When the boy's father comes to collect him, she learns the strange truth of the boy's history. The boy, known as Simon Gillaley, was found washed up on shore and severely wounded next to other mysterious dead bodies after a shipwreck and taken home by a Maori man named Joe. Initially Simon was adopted into Joe's family and raised by him and his wife Hana, but in more recent times both Hana and Joe's infant son took ill and never recovered. Now the two are struggling alone together, painfully coexisting in a brutal dance of savagery and love. As Kerewin begins to develop a relationship with both the Gillaleys, she discovers secrets about Joe and Simon's life that will painfully alter all of their futures, and after one tragic night, things change between the three forever. Forced apart, the three must fend for themselves against grave illness, disillusionment and heartbreak, and must find a way to reunite themselves from the fractures that society has placed against them. Both elegant and brutal, The Bone People is a great literary achievement that was awarded the Booker Prize for fiction.

This review is going to go a little differently than any other I have posted before. A few months back, my very good blogging friend Aarti, from the awesome blog Booklust, invited me to read this book with her and write a joint review. I jumped at the chance to be able to discuss this book with such an articulate reader and blogger. Both of us were a little intimidated by the reports that this was going to be a difficult read and we figured that along with being able to share the book's complexities with each other, we would provide e-mail commentaries to each other for each section of the book. The experience went very well and enabled both of us to heighten our understanding of this difficult yet powerful book. In attempting to put together a review, we decided to each draft three questions that we had formed while reading the book and to share our answers on both of our blogs. Here are the questions that I posed, both to Aarti and myself, for my half of the review. I encourage you to hop on over to Booklust to see Aarti's very thought-provoking questions and our shared answers of the same.

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1) What do you think was the underlying message of the book?

Aarti - Oh gosh! I actually started laughing seeing this question because I have no idea! I don't even know what the title means. I think it is doubly difficult to decode the book because I don't think it was as hopeful at the end as it was made out to be. I do think the story is about forgiveness and redemption. All three characters start out very isolated and then come together. Then they draw apart again due to misunderstanding, realize how much they need each other, and come together once more. It is a simple story when put that way, but I suppose all stories can boil down eventually to a few sentences. This book, to me, is really about how much we all come to rely on friends and relationships to enrich our lives and make us better people. And that it's important to not only forgive other people's faults but to forgive your own.

I think it also hits a lot on culture clashes. It was interesting to me the melding of western thought and Maori thought, and how the two worked together and worked against each other. I am not sure if I fully understand the message of that aspect of the book, but it's there! All three characters came from different Maori-European backgrounds but somehow made a family.

Zibilee - In my opinion, I think the book sends a great message about isolation, not only spiritual and physical but cultural as well. What it says to me is that although isolation can sometimes be a preferred state, there is a necessity for inclusion with a group for wholeness to be reached. I think it played out several times in the story, from Joe's loss of his wife, leaving him isolated in the care of Simon, to Simon's isolation from everyone in his muteness, to Kerewin's isolation from the rest of the world around her. In fact, I think that isolation was just one of the many themes running through the story, but I agree with you that the story is also about forgiveness and redemption as well. I think there were several messages in this book and that each reader will see something different in the main message of the story, which is one of the things I think is so great about it. The interpretation of the entire book can be really fluid and there are many things going on at once, and many different ways in which to read this story.

2) Which character stood out to you the most, and why?

Aarti - Simon. He's such a fascinating character. He's this young boy who can't talk but manages to communicate so much with the people around him. He takes such delight in small things, like music and food and family, but he also gets so angry and frustrated at times. There was such a capacity for kindness and empathy in him. So many scenes of him taking on other people's hurt, or showing kindness and laughter, or sharing in music, made me want to cry. He was so well-written and such a force in the novel. I liked the scenes with him far more than any of those without him.

Zibilee - I liked Simon a lot as well and felt a tremendous tenderness for him, but I felt the most affinity for Kerewin. There was a stark juxtaposition in my feelings for her that it intrigued me. On the one hand, she was very different from me and all her instincts and behaviors were so alien, but underneath all the pride and bravado, I felt that I could identify with her personality in some ways. She was hard and careworn but had a motherly instinct that she couldn't deny, and for all her independence, she needed Simon and Joe just as much as they needed her. I fought my feelings for her for a long time because some of the things she said and did were less than admirable, but in the end I thought that she was the glue that held everything together and she was far, far stronger than I ever thought. Her ability to forgive was somewhat less affecting than Simon's was, but I found it miraculous none the less. My answer to this question surprises me because I pretty much hated Kerewin for most of the first half of the book. I hated her mannerisms and coyness and her complete lack of self control. All I can figure is that she ended up growing on me, or I ended up understanding her a lot better than I thought I did. Whatever the case may be, I was really surprised to find I felt this way.

3) It's obvious that this book contained a lot of symbolism. Did you feel that the symbolism in the story was easy to spot and decipher, or was that an element of the story that was more confusing than the other aspects of the story?

Aarti - I am one of those people who don't really see symbolism until it hits her over the head, or unless she's told what to watch for. In this book, I knew to watch for symbolism of the three main characters being the Holy Family of Christianity, so I was able to spot that fairly easily. I am not nearly as familiar with Maori history and imagery as I am with the Holy Family, so if symbolism existed for that, I sadly missed most of it. I think there were a lot of symbols regarding communication, and the different ways people have of communicating and understanding (or misunderstanding) each other. I also feel that some of the side characters in the story were symbols of kindness, forgiveness, etc., but I didn't really focus on those. I think the symbolism is there if you wish to see it, and that it adds a lot of depth to the story. I don't think this is the sort of book you read "for the story," so to speak, but more to understand its underlying message. So, with that, I don't think the symbolism is confusing (since I think it's a main aspect of really "getting" the story), but I also don't think it's easy to find. I'm really, really glad I read and discussed this book with you as we went along because it really helped me to sort out my thoughts and reflect on certain aspects and scenes more than I would have if I didn't have someone to talk about them with. It made it so much easier to pick this book up and read, and I think this is a book that is made for discussing.

Zibilee - I am also not great at finding the hidden symbolism in the things I read, but in this case I felt that there was just so much symbolism running throughout the story that it was hard not to pick up on some of it. I had no clue as to the symbolism of the Holy Family until Aarti pointed it out and then it seemed pretty clear to me! Ah, well, I did find some of the minor symbolism on my own. For example, I found the symbolism of the semi-precious stones that Kerewin collects were imbued in the text with some of the qualities that Kerewin possesses in her character. I also think I found symbolism in the knife that Simon stole from Kerewin. To me it embodied the strength that Kerewin had and that Simon wished to have, which is why he attempted stealing it from her. These are only small things, and I agree with you, Aarti, that there were a lot of symbols of communication, kindness and forgiveness. I wasn't expert at picking everything out of the story, which only means that I might need to read it again with an eye to the symbolism. I wouldn't exactly call all the symbolism confusing, but it was a bit difficult to spot if you didn't know what you were looking for.

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I really am glad that I was able to tackle this read with Aarti because there was a depth to the story that I think I would have missed had I not had her to share it with, and there were definitely some things that I had missed in my reading that she was able to point out to me. It was a wonderful experience to be able to share this with her, and by extension, all of you. Thanks so much for reading our thoughts on all this and if you haven't gotten the picture by now, I think this book is a must read for anyone looking for something with intense emotion. It is a story that I don't think you will ever forget.

Don't forget to head on over to Booklust for part two of our joint review!

The Lady Queen: The Notorious Reign of Joanna I, Queen of Naples, Jerusalem, and Sicily by Nancy Goldstone - 384 pgs

Destined from birth for greatness, Joanna I begins her early life with her younger sister Maria as an orphan raised in the opulent court of her grandfather, Robert the Wise. When her grandfather dies in her early teens, Joanna is crowned queen of Naples and begins a reign fraught with treachery and difficulty. Not only does Joanna deal with the political upheavals that were so common during the middle ages, she must also contend with the meddling papacy, financial disasters and challenges to the legitimacy of her reign by the King of Hungary. To make matters worse, Joanna is wed to Andrew of Hungary, a union that is strained and unpopular with her subjects from the very start. When Andrew is viciously murdered, Joanna's reign takes a a frightening trajectory into the realm of revenge and savagery. But as the Queen fights for her life and her kingdom, she maintains an attitude of nobility and graciousness showing the world that she is truly fit to lead her nation and leaving a lasting legacy for future generations.

I am not usually a reader of history or historical biography, so when I received this book I was a little concerned that it wouldn't be engaging enough to hold my attention. As I cracked the spine on the book and sat down to read, I found that it did take a little bit of time to orient myself into the medieval world that the author was documenting and for the first few chapters I struggled a bit. I think this was due to the fact that there was a huge section of exposition on the history of the area that was necessary to set the stage for the main story to be told. As I waded in further, I found that the tale of Joanna's reign was not only very engrossing, but exciting to read about and ponder over. I think that Goldstone has an incredible gift for bringing history to life and a way of telling her tale that absorbs the reader and places them squarely into the grist of the drama. The writing was not showy or flashy but it managed to capture me and keep me involved until the very last page.

I marveled at the strength of Joanna, for it seemed that her reign was plagued with every sort of trial that could possibly come along. During her time as Queen, not only was there the regular pressure of running the kingdom but also challenges to her sovereignty coming from every side and faction. It was incredible to me that she was able to withstand so much disaster and never even think of abdicating her throne. It was also amazing to me how many threats came from her immediate family. Some of the most grievous situations came from her sister Maria, but other relatives didn't bat an eye at creating dangerous situations for her or committing treason as well. It is said in many instances in the book that Joanna had the demeanor and staunchness that the ruler of a nation needs, and that her tenacity to hold on to her kingdom, and even add to it, was extremely impressive, not only for her time, but for ours as well.

On of the things that surprised me about this time in history was how many schemes and machinations were going on within the realm. It seemed that most of the troubles started over attempts to increase domains and kingdoms, or the possibility of generating revenue. It was almost comic the way people switched alliances at that time. One minute they were the Queen's trusted advisors and the next moment they had switched sides and were attempting to overthrow her. These schemes were most obvious from courtiers and family members, but I was flabbergasted to see that many of the Popes played this game as well. It was almost as if everyone was operating for themselves and their fortunes alone and that loyalty was a foreign concept to them. It must have been devastating for Joanna to have everyone turn on her at one time or another, and I can imagine it made it very hard for her to truly trust anyone.

There were some really exceptional qualities about Joanna's rule that are worth mentioning in this review. First of all, during Joanna's tenure as Queen, there were more women matriculated to become doctors in her kingdom than in any other place during that period of time. It is not clear if this was because there was just more opportunity for the schooling of women or if this situation existed because there was a female in power during this time, but I find the fact amazing. Also amazing was the fact that not only did Joanna hold onto her kingdom, but she was able to increase the size of her domain through several military campaigns during her reign. This is doubly impressive when you consider that she had to rely on those whose loyalties were suspect to accomplish this goal. She also managed to keep in her subjects' good graces throughout her reign and made sure that all of them received aid and alms as long as she was in power.

Reading about Joanna was very enlightening for me and I found that I was very invested in this particular woman's story. I think that there were two factors that made this so. The first was the quality of the writing. The clarity and crisp style of the narrative was definitely something that made the book exceptionally entertaining to me, and the second was the story itself. There was simply too much going on to be bored by this tale. Although it was sometimes work to keep the players in the drama straight, there was so much intrigue and scandal scattered throughout the book as to make it a very rollicking read. I think that this would be a great read for those who like historical biography. I also think that this book would have wide appeal to those who are interested in this time and place in history and it would be a great read to cut your teeth on if you are not usually a reader of this genre. A highly entertaining read. Recommended.

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.

Company of Liars by Karen Maitland - 480 pgs

As the plague races across the English countryside during the summer of 1348, a company of nine unlikely travelers come together in a desperate hope to outrun it. Each carries a devastating secret that they are hiding from the others and one will bring about a swift and terrible retribution upon those who are keeping things hidden. The group includes Camelot, an itinerant peddler of holy relics who quickly becomes the leader of the company; a minstrel and his young, hot-headed apprentice; and a strange disfigured man on the run from the law. As they journey from one devastated village to the next looking for refuge, they each discover that their companions are not what they seem and they must band together, despite their reluctance, to escape the strange predator that is shadowing them and slowly decimating their group. Filled with haunting drama and unforgettable characters, Company of Liars is a dark work of fear, retribution and secrecy.

I just don't know what it is about the past few months. It seems I just can't pick a really good read for myself and it's been quite frustrating. I am doubly aggrieved that this book was so disappointing because I had been so excited to read it and had saved it for myself to savor during a reading slump. Needless to say, it didn't pull me out of my slump at all. This book had great potential and a truly terrific sounding plot, but somehow things really fell short for me. I don't know whether this is because I had some unrealistic expectations for it or because it was just such a messy book. First of all, I felt that the pacing of the book was just glacial. There was too much space between action scenes and that space was not utilized in a creative way at all. There was a lot of useless meandering of the plot and character descriptions and it gave the book a very unwieldy quality that I found intensely boring. In fact, it took me forever to get through the book because my attention wandered so much, and once I put it down, I was hard pressed to find a reason to pick it up again.

As I have said in other reviews, books that deal with the plague have instant appeal to me. I guess you could say that the plague is one of my specialties. I was very disappointed that this book was ostensibly about the plague but failed to deliver what I had hoped for. It seemed that the plague was only included in the story as a plot device. It was the impetus for the story, but not the story itself, which I only discovered about halfway through the book. Normally this wouldn't bother me so much, but I felt like I had been a bit snowed into expecting something that was not fully delivered to me. In fact, the plague took up such little page space that it was easy to forget it was there at all. It felt like the author pulled the plague card out of her pocket whenever the story became too heavy handed, as a way of reminding the reader just what the purpose of the travelers' journey was. I think that if the author had focused a bit more on this element of the story the book would have been more appealing to me.

On the other hand, I did feel like the book had some great character portrayals and that each character was fully realized and three dimensional. The problem that I had was that despite this, I didn't really feel like I could connect with any of them, and that made it harder for me to get invested in their plights. Don't get me wrong, I did like some of them, but there was just such a strangeness to them and they were just too secretive to get a real handle on. I think that might have been an intentional construct by the author, but whatever the reason, it left a bad taste in my mouth and frustrated me. The characters were creatively crafted and were very unique, but the author didn't use that to her advantage. Instead she dulled them and softened their impact by making them so hard to connect with.

Another problem that I had with the book was that the writing felt very raw. There were points where there was just too much exposition and the back story was introduced in a very clunky andunsmooth way. I am aware that this is the author's first book, but there is a reason that editors exist, and in my opinion, the editing was lax. I didn't like the wandering and unfocused quality of the writing and I felt that much of the book lacked direction. The writing felt labored and slow and it gave the appearance that the author was really struggling with her story.

In all fairness, I don't think I can recommend this book to anyone. It was much too dark to fully enjoy and the myriad problems I had with it prevent me from giving it a thumbs up in any way. I am hoping that I can soon find a book that not only whets my appetite but fully delivers on its potential. In the meantime, if anyone knows of a book that surely won't disappoint, I am all ears!

The Cost of Dreams by Gary Stelzer - 296 pgs

After a treacherous border crossing from Mexico with her younger siblings, Flora Enriquez starts a new life in Texas and slowly begins to realize the American dream. Soon Flora is living life as a mother, wife and teacher, but fate has other plans for her. These unexpected plans arrive in the form of Roy, Flora's violent, drug dealing brother-in-law, who comes to chase her down with a gun after she destroys a stash of drugs he has hidden in her home. After shooting her and leaving her for dead in the Texas desert, Flora is whisked away by a group of well meaning refugees to begin a grueling trek across the country that will test her in ways she never expected possible. This harrowing debut novel witnesses Flora's extreme struggle, first for her survival, then to rebuild her shattered life and family.

Though the premise of this book really intrigued and excited me, I ultimately ended up feeling a little disappointed by it. At times I felt that the practicalities of the story were not very realistic or believable and I really had a hard time engaging with the characters. First off, I felt that the sections that took place after Flora's accident didn't seem at all plausible. After being shot at close range in the neck, I had a hard time believing that she was able to survive the incredible trek across country in the back of a rail car before receiving medical treatment. Even someone who is not well versed in medicine, like me, knows that the first few hours after a spinal injury are critical to a patient, and that I felt that the author, who is also a doctor, should have known this as well. I just didn't believe that Flora would have survived these events, much less eventually make a full recovery.

Another thing that bothered me about this book was the fact that the characters' personalities were not finely delineated at all. I never felt that they were real people with distinct personalities. It felt too much like they were artificial constructs, characters made for the sole purpose of acting out the events in the story. They seemed very cardboard and stiff, and even in their dialogue they had no spark or life. As I was reading through the narrative, I kept wishing that the author would do something to make his characters more memorable and human but that never came to pass. There was a huge dearth of individuality in these people that made it really hard for me to care about them, which ultimately kept me from connecting with their story.

The writing style was also something that I took exception to. The story felt very forced and rushed and there wasn't a natural cadence to the narrative. It was more like a set of events that kept relentlessly moving forward, one event after the next, with no pause for meaning or insight. Though I did find the nuts and bolts of the story to be very engaging and interesting, I felt that the intended impact of the story suffered a bit in the execution. There was a lot going on plot-wise and some of the plot elements were honed perfectly, but those points were not left to percolate or absorb gravity. Instead they were smashed between other high-impact plot points, which gave the book an overwhelming feel of haste.

Though I had some problems with this book stylistically, I felt that there were some really exciting aspects of the story. One of the things I particularly liked was that it didn't rely too heavily on coincidence. Most of the plot felt very natural, and despite the reactions I had to the circumstances surrounding Flora's injury, I felt that her recovery and the emotions she had surrounding it were very genuine and heartfelt. I also thought that the book had a lot of suspenseful moments, which gave the story and writing a stirring quality that I had not been expecting. As a matter of fact, I think that this book would probably make a great read for those who enjoy the suspense genre and are looking for something a bit atypical. It was definitely a very thought-provoking read.

Readers may want to visit the author's website.

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.