Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

This is a book that has been on my reading list for a while. Lots of people, readers I respect, have recommended it. It's the story of a woman who was born in Somalia, (and also lived Africa and Saudi Arabia). As a child and young woman, she lived the harsh, cruel life of a Muslim woman, with no rights and no chance for love or true happiness. She had to live through female circumcision, beatings from her mother and grandmother only to finally escape an arranged marriage to a cousin by escaping to Holland. She was able to graduate from college and ultimately become a member of Parliament, championing the causes of Muslim women who had emigrated to Holland with their families.

While living in Europe and seeing how 'westernern' women were able to dress as they pleased, go out alone during the day, shop and hold jobs, Ayaan questioned her religion. How was it that these countries, where people were able to live free, were so peaceful and her own, where violence was not only accepted but the law, there was never peace, only death and unrest?

Ultimately she turned her back on Islam, but not without being demonized by not only her own people, but by some Dutch folks as well. "Many Dutch people have told me in all earnestness that nothing in Islamic culture incites abuse of women, that this is just a terrible misunderstanding. Men all over the world beat their women... In reality these Westerners are the ones who misunderstand Islam. The Quran mandates these punishments. It gives a legitimate basis for abuse, so that the perpetrators feel no shame and are not hounded by their conscience or their community." Women were treated that way by their husbands and fathers, because their religion told them that was they way they should be treated. And women were told that they needed to go through this during their lifetime so that when they were in Heaven they would have everything they ever wanted. Ayaan wasn't willing to wait for death to find her own peace.

She fought for the rights of women, even producing a film with a Dutch filmmaker that lead to his brutal stabbing (the murderer stabbed him through the heart, leaving a note on the knife for Ayaan, a warning to stop her crusading).

Her life and writing are an inspiration and an incredible education into this religion and way of life. It's not a flattering picture of life as a Muslim, she still receives death threats but as she writes at the end: "How many girls born in Digfeer Hospital in Mogadishu in November 1969 are even alive today? And how many have a real voice?" She is their voice and a brave and brilliant one indeed.

I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak

I loved this book. Publisher’s Weekly, quoted on the back cover, said, “Don’t start this compulsively readable book without enough time to read it straight through to the final page.” I was so excited to be traveling this weekend; knowing that I could read for at least two hours on a plane in order to finish. It’s the first time I didn’t feel the teensiest bit annoyed when they made us sit on the ground before takeoff.

This book was written in 2005, before his wildly popular novel The Book Thief. Comparing the two, this is like a light-hearted romp. Ed Kennedy is an underage cab driver stuck in an ambitionless existence, when he inadvertently stops a bank robbery. Cast as an uneasy hero, Ed’s life changes when he receives the first ace in the mail, and he becomes the messenger. Ed has been chosen to care.

I really don’t want to say anything more about the plot, because the details truly make the story, and I couldn’t do them justice. While the setting is never spelled out, the action takes place in Australia; which makes for a few differences in expressions, etc. that you get used to as you read.

What I loved about the book was this — it was uplifting, but not at all the sappy book you would expect that sentiment from. Ed’s scruffy band of friends and his outrageously smelly dog offer a new perspective on what we are capable of, given the right circumstances. As the story progresses, the once incompetent Ed displays a level of compassion and understanding that is almost unbelievable. But we suspend our disbelief and read on, because we want to hope that someone would care for us in the same way.

For such a great book, the ending was disappointing. I still loved the book, but I really wanted to ask someone else if they felt the same way. My sister-in-law agreed, and my brother will let me know when he finishes (we were both, unknown to each other, reading the same book when we got together this weekend.) Booklist gave it a starred review, and noted, “As for the ending, however, Zusak is too clever by half. He offers too few nuts-and-bolts details before wrapping things up with an unexpected, somewhat unsatisfying recasting of the narrative. Happily, that doesn't diminish the life-affirming intricacies that come before.” So, I guess I wasn’t the only one. Read it anyway, and pass it on; we could all use a little extra hope.

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

I have been trying to catch up on all those books I skimmed or skipped over from my high school summer reading lists. It’s not that I didn’t read then, I just didn’t like being told what to read. Unless of course it was something cool, something that maybe my mother would not have suggested; then I could tell her, “I have to read it for school!”

So Anna Karenina slipped by the wayside. When I saw that I could download the audio book from the library, I asked my friend (who listens with me at work) if she wanted to hear it. Of course, who would say no to a classic? So, after what seemed like a hundred hours later, we finally reached the (anticlimactic) conclusion. Actually, we thought the dramatic conclusion was about an hour and a half before the end, but that’s the thing about audio books — while you don’t know the page numbers, you do have an exact measure of time. 90 minutes to wrap it up after the action ended.

Can you tell I was disappointed? Maybe reading, as opposed to listening, would have been a better experience. Russian critics dismissed this book when it came out, calling it a “trifling romance of high life”, and I can’t say I disagree. So many times, we were talking back to Anna, saying, “oh, get over yourself!” Then again, Dostoevsky and Nabokov both called it flawless, so maybe I missed something. I also think that men have gotten better at writing women over the years. There were so many times when Anna’s or Kitty’s thoughts or actions were so unnatural that they were obviously written by a man. This made me empathize with the men in the novel more than the women. This was probably intentional, i.e , women are evil and only after our money, titles, land, etc.

I won’t embarrass myself by attempting to summarize what does amount to a sweeping narrative, including many characters inspired by actual people of the time. I was happy to listen to someone else pronounce all of those Russian names so well; I know that if I had read it they never would have sounded so aristocratic in my head. I’m not sorry I read it, I’m just glad it’s over.

Caught by Harlan Coben

Had to read Harlan's new book, if only to make sure my character doesn't pop up again! Alas, no chance my 'British intelligence agent with raven hair and big shoulders' is in this tale of suburban New Jersey, where the bright lights of a Dateline-like TV show that catches pedophiles unaware begins this story. Wendy, the reporter for the show, has been given information leading her to a local man who may be abusing children. After she traps him in the kitchen of a strange house with tv cameras, he runs away, seemingly a guilty man. The story twists and turns as Wendy becomes doubtful of his guilt. Was he set up? Was she? Harlan's small NJ town is no doubt Ridgewood, with all of our local issues and flavor. Parents who not only let their teens have parties at their houses but buy the alcohol, justifying it by saying they would be drinking somewhere else anyway, crazy sports parents and lovely downtowns.

Harlan's books are always always page turners, very difficult to put down, with dialogue that is both funny and real. It's a good read, if only to see how he sees our town and how the reader sees and perhaps judges our lives.

Just Let Me Lie Down By Kristen van Ogtrop and Lift by Kelly Corrigan

I bought these books as a Mother’s Day present to myself. Having two daughters close in age, I could relate to the many tales that Kelly Corrigan shares. Having two good friends with all boys, I could also relate to Kristen van Ogtrop, who is the only female in her house too.

As a working mom, I appreciated the format of these books – Corrigan’s, a letter I could read in chapters or devour in one sitting; and van Ogtrop’s, which is set-up in bite-size pieces that I could put down and return to later. Just Let Me Lie Down (subtitled Necessary Terms for the Half-Insane Working Mom), has an interesting structure, set up as a lexicon for the working mom. As described by the author, it is “an alphabetically arranged dictionary of terms, observations, lists, complaints, questions, musings and the occasional diatribe about the little joys and major nonsense that define life for me, and untold women like me, on a daily basis." The term “working mom” refers to women working in and out of the home; because face it, we are all working, some days just to get out of bed and get them off to school. Her anecdotes do what I had hoped from the title – confirm that I am not crazy, and, if I am, I’m not alone. Some of the stories are hysterical, some had me just nodding my head in agreement, and some had me smug thinking that maybe my kids weren’t as bad as hers (ok, not often, but at least once). This is not high art, or literary fiction, this is just a fun read that you will give to your girlfriend the next time she needs a good, “it’ll all work out" present. The only criticism I would have is that the author frequently refers to other parts of the book in parentheses, as in (see blah, blah, blah, pg 38), which I found annoying and a wee bit egotistical, sort of like quoting yourself. Kristen van Ogtrop is the editor of Real Simple magazine, which is especially interesting because, when she talks about her job, we know exactly what she means. Her essay “Attila the Honey I’m Home” appeared in the New York Times bestseller The Bitch in the House. She also, of course, writes a blog on the Real Simple website.

I don’t have anything new to add about the Kelly Corrigan book Lift. I’m starting to think I am just a ridiculous fan, since everything she writes, no matter how mundane, seems to make me smile or cry. This one made me want to write a letter to my own daughters, but I’m going to wait on that until the impulse to plagiarize her wears off.

Lark & Termite by Jayne Anne Phillips

I know that this book was already reviewed, but it was a book I really wanted to read, and honestly, I need the credit. I have not been keeping up very well with my book a week, partly because I am also reading A Tale of Two Cities on Daily Lit, and listening to Anna Karenina at the office — finally catching up on my high school summer reading lists.

This book was a challenge at first. Like so many other books I’ve read lately the narrator shifts for each section or chapter. This technique can keep the story moving in an even flow; or it can add confusion, if the narrator returns to discuss an event the previous narrator covered. This seemed to happen a lot, and, to add to that, the narrators switched between the present and the past sometimes unexpectedly. Corporal Robert Leavitt’s story takes place in Korea in 1950, while the story of his son and family is told across the same span of calendar days nine years later in West Virginia. It sounds a little confusing, and it is, but not as confusing (chronology-wise) as The Time Traveler’s Wife.

In 1950, Corporal Robert Leavitt meets Lola, and, in the midst of their heated affair, she becomes pregnant. They marry, and he heads off to war. He is heading up a bedraggled battalion when he is shot by his own troops. His narration, which chronicles his final days, is moving, and filled with magic and even hope.

By 1959, Lola is just a strong memory in her sister Nonie’s house. Nonie has been left with two reminders of Lola, her children Lark and Termite. Lark is seventeen, but has taken on the responsibility of secretarial school so that she can provide her brother Termite with a permanent home. Termite cannot walk or talk, and can barely see. But his acute senses and unnerving ability to understand his circumstances make for the most moving and beautiful writing in the book. It was interesting to me that Lark and Nonie’s narration were both first person, while Corporal Leavitt and Termite’s stories are told in the third person. I guess the remove was intentional, but it may also explain why it took longer to warm up to their characters.

There are some truly magical moments in this book. Once I got into the story, I put it down if only to make it last a little longer. I could go on about the many parallels among the character’s lives and their very unique stories, but I won’t. Just read it, and if you stick with it until you get the hang of the telling, you won’t regret it.

A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore

This is one of those books that I feel like I've seen in the sidelines. I've glanced at it on bookshelves, I vaguely remember reading about it and have seen it mentioned on a few 'best of..' book lists, but I know NO one who has read it yet.

It is the story of Tassie Keltjin, a midwestern farm girl in her first year of college just after 9/11 happened. She's never been to a big city or eaten Chinese food but life at her small liberal arts college is a freeing experience.

She takes a job as a nanny for a middle aged childless couple waiting to adopt. They bring home Mary Emma, a bi-racial child, whom Tassie instantly bonds with. The story of this disfunctional couple's life (and former life) is Tassie's entry into a world of deceit, lies and heartbreaking truths.

For Moore, the story is in the hearts of her characters. Quoting the Times (mostly flattering) review: And most memorably, .., mapping their fears and disappointments, their hidden yearnings and their more evanescent efforts to hold on to their dreams in the face of unfurling misfortune.


The terrible and tragic secret revealed about 3/4 of the way through will stay with me for a long time to come... This one is another good read, but not an easy one to be sure.

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

When I read a book I don't normally want to have to work too hard trying to figure out what decade the story is taking place in, what age the characters are and how they got there. This one has been recommended by loads of people and it's looong at 528 pages. It's the story of Henry, a time traveler who meets his future wife, Clare, when she was 5 and he was 36 (although in 'real time' they are only 8 years apart). From there he pops (literally) in and out of her life at different points, she's 15 and he's 43 or she's 22 and he's 30... once I got used to the year and age changes it became a touching love story of two people meant to be together but often torn apart. Short review but after resisting reading this book I recommend it.