Where'd You Go Bernadette

I read this book in two days: it was that fun. Snarky, funny, sad, bittersweet - this book is all of that and more.  Bernadette is a wife and mother living in Seattle. She is not happy on any level. She is married to a tech wiz who works at Microsoft, her daughter is a near perfect student, and she is a mess. She was once a well respected architect. She has promised her daughter, Bee, that they will go anywhere she wants if she gets perfect grades. Bee does and wants to go on a cruise to Antarctica. Bernadette doesn't "do" people.  Anti-social boarding on pathological, she is truly afraid of having to deal with other people and a cruise would require her to interact with other people.

She wants to be disengaged from humans so  much she hires an assistant in India to deal with everything.  Bills, dinner reservations, planning and booking the trip, everything. Her husband, Elgie, is so immersed in his career he isn't really paying attention. After a series of increasingly bizarre acts, he finally starts to pay attention. He stages an intervention, during which Bernadette disappears. No one can locate her and it appears she actually went on the cruise to Antarctica and disappeared from the ship.

This story is told with different narrators; Bernadette, her daughter, the psychiatrist, Elgie. But the story line isn't disrupted. Plus the snarky comments add to this book. Semple skewers: Microsoft, Seattle,  private schools, social climbers, evnviormentalists among others. I think ending is wholly implausible, but I still really liked this book. A light easy read there are some laugh out loud moments. There are also some heartbreaking ones. I recommend this book.

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All Over Creation

All Over Creation (2003), written by Ruth Ozeki, is especially timely given the May 13th Supreme Court ruling protecting the patent on genetically modified soybeans. The case involves a 75-year-old Indiana farmer, Vernon Bowman, who harvested crops from seeds that Monsanto created and patented. These seeds were modified to resist the weedkiller, Roundup. As Justice Kagan wrote in the unanimous ruling: "Bowman was not a passive observer of his soybeans' multiplication; or put another way, the seeds he purchased (miraculous though they might be in other respects) did not spontaneously create eight successive soybean crops.)" (Washington Post, May 13, 2013)

While the ruling will encourage and protect innovation in developing new technologies, such as genes that identify disease, it none-the-less supports huge companies, such as Monsanto, who increasingly control agriculture. To quote Andrew Kimbrell, executive director of the Center for Food Safety: "The court chose to protect Monsanto over farmers. The court's ruling is contrary to logic and to agronomics because it improperly attributes seeds' reproduction to farmers rather than nature." Article Link

All Over Creation fictionalizes this issue in a fast-moving and engaging novel. Cynaco Corporation is a Monsanto-like company that is aggressively marketing a pesticide-resistant potato to Idaho farmers. Lloyd and Momoko Fuller, now in their later years, have thus far refused to buy this product.

Both Lloyd and Momoko are very ill. Lloyd has had a series of heart attacks and is now battling cancer.  Momoko suffers from dementia, though she is physically well. Her days are spent cultivating the unique collection of seeds she has created throughout her long marriage.

The plot centers on the homecoming of their estranged daughter, Yumi. Yumi was a wild child who, at age 14, had an affair with her high school teacher.  She got pregnant, had a back alley abortion and ran away.  Now, 25 years later, she reluctantly returns to the farm to make see her dying father and amends. Her childhood best friend, Cassie, along with husband Will, have bought her parent's farm and are caring for her parents. They are also testing the NuLife Potatoes from Cynaco, believing they have less pesticide than the conventionally grown brand.

The plot becomes more involved when Eliot, the teacher with whom Yumi had her affair, returns as the PR representative for Cynaco. He has changed very little from the needy, self-involved man he was. Adding to this mix is an activist group called The Seeds. Proponents of  peaceful yet guerrilla tactics against large agribusinesses, they roam the country in their RV. They have seen Momoko's seed catalog and have heard of Lloyd.  He becomes a kind of rebbi to them and they put down some temporary roots on Lloyd's farm.

All Over Creation contains sympathetic, three-dimensional characters. Ozeki brings to light the many issues facing contemporary farming. Above all, she illuminates the complexities of family dynamics, questioning whether forgiveness is truly possible. As Josh Emmons concludes:

(Ozeki's skill at weaving together) dual narratives of family reunion and corporate malfeasance is extraordinary. The Fullers' drama is as real and organic as the method of farming promoted by the book's itinerant activists, and the ways in which the personal becomes political and vice versa are thrilling to watch. (San Francisco Chronicle, Sunday, March 16, 2003)

Ruth Ozeki has once again written a book that is hard to put down.

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The Black Count

The Black Count by Tom Reiss, is the biography of Alexandre Dumas. Not the author Alexandre Dumas, but his father, General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas. The son of an interracial couple, Dumas had the fortune to grow up in Paris and the French sugar colony of Saint-Dominque at a time when racial prejudice was unheard of.

Dumas was born in 1762 in Saint-Dominque (now Haiti). His father was a French noble man who had renounced his family and run away, his mother was a black slave. Alexandre's father eventually reconciled with his family, sold off his other children and took Alexandre back to France. His father, Alexandre Antoine Davy was now the Marquis de la Pailleterie. After receiving the education of a French nobleman, Alexandre renounced his father, took his mother's name of Dumas and enlisted in the French army as a dragoon.

Dumas was a superb soldier. Tall for his time, dark skinned, intelligent, and extremely gifted athletically, Dumas rose to the rank of General. His military career is filled with escapades and exploits that his son (the novelist Alexandre Dumas) used in his novels. The three duels in one day in the Three Musketeers? True.  Betrayed and held captive on a deserted island for years as told in the Count of Monte Cristo? Also true.

This book was very interesting. General Dumas was an amazing person. He had the luck to live in a time when he could be successful and his race was not an issue. He married a white noblewoman and he had a son who was a writer who preserved the General's exploits for history. The book however was very heavy on French history - really heavy on French history. Which is fine for me as I don't know much about it. However, I do recommend this book. Dumas is a fascinating character who lived in very interesting times.

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Bitter in the Mouth

Bitter in the Mouth, a semi-autobiographical novel, is about a Vietnamese girl (Linda) who grows up in a small North Carolina town. Linda is the only minority child in all-white classrooms. Making life even harder for her is the neurological condition she suffers from--synesthesia. Words evoke tastes for sufferers of this genetic anomaly. "Incomings," as Linda calls the speech she hears, can be upsetting because too many senses are stimulated at once. Linda feels acutely different from others--especially her white parents--and her feelings of isolation and loneliness are acute. The only relative she truly bonds with is her uncle, Baby Harper. Linda senses he is a kindred spirit from the moment she sets eyes on him.

A quality that distinguishes Truong's books is her descriptive language as well as her use of food--literally and figuratively. In this passage, Linda is telling us about synesthesia.

My first memory was a taste. For most of my life I have carried this fact with me not as a mystery, which it still is, but as a secret...There was something bitter in the mouth, and there was the word that triggered it...It was bitter in the way that greens...were often bitter. Or in the way that simmering resentment was bitter. (P. 15)

In an interview for Lamda Literary (posted 26.Aug, 2010 by Jihii Jolly), we come to understand that the author and her main character share past experiences and past hurts. As Truong writes:

I set Bitter in the Mouth in Boiling Springs, NC, the small town where my family first lived in the U.S. because I wanted to revisit those first three years that have defined me in so many ways. I like to say that I am a Southern girl, twice over: south Vietnam and the American South.  It's only the former that defines me in people's eyes. But Boiling Springs is where I learned how to speak English. Boiling Springs was where I became--in a blink of an eye--not just a little girl but a Chink, a Jap, and a Gook (all the names my classmates called me). Boiling Springs was where I learned that I was physically different, ugly, and a target. So yes, I wanted to revisit this small town that I have carried with me with so much anger, and I wanted to make it mine. I wanted to tell my version of its story.

And tell it she does. Truong creates a moving coming of age story with a happy ending. This is a good book for readers who enjoyed The Book of Salt, as well as for those who are fans of multicultural literature.  Although the author does digress into historical narrative that seems unrelated to the plot, this is none-the-less a well-crafted story with eccentric, three-dimensional characters.

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The Racketeer, by John Grisham

According to the dictionary, a racketeer is “one who obtains money illegally, as by fraud, extortion, etc.” In John Grisham’s latest legal thriller, the main character, lawyer Malcolm Bannister, was unaware the work he was doing at his law firm was dirty work, work that qualified him as a racketeer. Perhaps a more accurate title for the book would have been “The Unwitting Racketeer," but that's not nearly as catchy as Grisham's signature proper nouners ("The Client," "The Firm," and even "The Bleachers").

Even though he was unaware of any wrong-doing, Bannister was sentenced to 10 years at a federal prison camp where he is “the only black guy serving time for a white-collar crime. Some distinction.” Eight months into his sentence, his wife Dionne asked him for a divorce, and now his young son Bo is being taught baseball by Dionne’s new husband. Things indeed are bad for Bannister, who has lost his family and his friends, has been disbarred, and has no chance of an early release.

But then Bannister’s bad luck turns good because the Honorable Raymond Fawcett’s luck has turned awful. Dead awful. The 66-year-old married federal judge and his young secretary have been found murdered in the remote lakeside cabin Fawcett liked to frequent on weekends. There’s been no forced entry, no sign of struggle, no muss nor fuss save an empty metal safe and two bodies with bullets in their brains. The FBI is stumped by the crime, but Bannister knows who did it, why they did it, and what was in the safe. Or so he claims. That’s his get-out-of-jail card. He’ll trade the information for a new life on the outside, complete with witness protection, plastic surgery, and the six-figure reward money.

But in the bestselling, page-turning Grisham tradition, there is more to Bannister's agenda than just an early release, a new face, and a fat bank account. That agenda spins out of control, but the book is as fun (though not as much as “The Litigator”) as it is unrealistic. The verdict? A not totally guilty pleasure.

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Two Graves

The last book in the Helen trilogy from Preston and Child begins where the last book leaves off. The title comes from a Confucius quote: "Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves." This quote underscores the theme of the book.

Pendergast's wife Helen, long thought to be dead is actually alive. She is currently hiding from the Nazis who have been holding her captive as part of a horrific biological experiment started during the Second World War. She is scheduled to meet Pendergast in Central Park in the middle of New York City. Pendergast believes the open area will be safe. He is wrong and there is an ambush waiting.

Helen's brother is killed, Pendergast is wounded and Helen is recaptured. Pendergast is once again on the hunt. Meanwhile, Pendergasts friend, D'Agosta is investigating some bizarre murders. The suspect leaves clues - his fingerprints, some of his skin and he allows the hotel cameras where he commits the murders to photograph him both before and after he commits the crimes. But he is seemingly impossible to capture. Pendergast's investigation into Helen's disappearance leads him to some startling news about his relationship with Helen. This news will effect the way both investigations proceed.

Preston and Child write a great book. Thrillers to be sure but the story lines and the characters are very interesting. Just  what kind of human is Pendergast really? And this book reveals some of Constance's background as well.  Some characters from the previous books make a reappearance in this one. I love these books and read them as soon as I can get my hands on them. I am looking forward to the next Pendergast adventure.

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Requiem

Requiem, by Frances Itani, is a beautifully-written novel that pays homage to the Japanese-Canadian internment during World War II. During that time, 21,000 Canadian citizens of Japanese descent were imprisoned in internment camps. The same fate befell American citizens in our country.

Set against this backdrop, Itani focuses on the plight of one family--that of the young and artistic son, Bin--to explore the injustice a government inflicted on a minority. Like other members of the Japanese Canadian fishing community on Vancouver Island, the Okuma family was forced to abandon their home and boat, taking only the belongings they could carry. They were moved inland from the "Protected Zone" of the coast into the cold and mountainous region 100 miles west of their home. There they were given makeshift housing without plumbing, electricity, or adequate food supplies.

The book weaves from present-day (1997) to the years 1942 and those immediately following the war. The narrator is an adult Bin looking back on his childhood--a childhood marred not only by the internment and later ostracism in public schools, but by a devastating action taken by his birth father.  In a custom practiced by Japanese of earlier generations, Bin's father gave him away to an educated man who had no sons, and hence, had no way of carrying on his family name. This man, Okuma-san, encourages Bin to embrace his artistic talents. But no amount of kindness removes the sting of abandonment.

Now, fifty years later, Bin has yet to make sense of his father's actions. The sudden death of Bin's wife propels him on a journey to visit the 84 year old father and the internment camp that figure so prominently in Bin's life.

Okuma-san once told Bin that rage has the power to consume (p. 282). Ultimately, Requiem is a redemptive novel about the power of forgiveness and the discovery that truth can heal as well as enlighten.

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