Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress (A Memoir of Going Home) by Rhoda Janzen is one of the most hilarious memoirs I've ever read. I'll admit that I didn't know much about the Mennonites before reading this book, and often got them confused with the Amish. Janzen will clarify any and all misconceptions you might have by the end of the book.

After being in a terrible car accident the same week her husband of 15 years leaves her for a guy named Bob, Janzen, broke, broken in body and broken hearted decides to return home, after two decades away, to her Mennonite community to heal.

What she discovers there about herself, her family and her community is indeed healing and laugh out loud funny (although sure to offend some in the Mennonite community.) I am glad she decided to write about it and share her experience with us. It's been quite a while since I've had such a good laugh while reading a book.

The Map of Love

The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif, is a sweeping novel set in Egypt at the turn of the 20th century during British occupation, with a parallel story set 100 years later at the turn of the millenium.

In the modern story, we meet Isabel, an American journalist who has fallen in love with an older Egyptian man, and travelled to Egypt where she becomes close friends with his sister. In a box of Isabel's great grandmother's personal belongings she finds a diary which tells of her life in Egypt after her husband died and she left England, fell in love with a Egyptian nationalist, and married him. Isabel discovers that she is cousins with the man she has fallen in love with, and an intriguing story of love and politics unfolds.

The novel spans centuries and continents and I was fully engrossed in the story the whole time. Soueif does a wonderful job evoking Egypt under British occupation, and showing how although much has changed in the past century, some things haven't changed at all. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel.

The Dogs of Babel

The Dogs of Babel is a strange and interesting book by Carolyn Parkhurst. It is the story of Paul, a man whose wife has died, and the only witness is their dog Lorelei. In his grief, he decides to try to teach Lorelei to talk, so he can uncover the truth about his wife's death.

The novel was strangely compelling until it took a turn towards the gruesome. Reading Parkhurst's comments at the end of the book, she says she hopes nobody was disturbed by the animal abuse scenes in the book. I wish I could tell her personally how incredibly disturbed I was, and how it ruined an otherwise original and engaging novel.

I do not recommend this book to anyone who loves animals. It will leave you with horrifying images that are hard to get rid of.

A Wedding in December

A Wedding in December is the first of Anita Shreve's many books that I have read. It tells of school friends reuniting for a weekend in the Berkshires for a wedding. It is the wedding of their friends who were high school sweethearts and are now together again after 27 years.

The story brings to mind the movie The Big Chill. Although in the book, they are not gathered for a funeral, there is the long ago death of their most charismatic friend Stephen, who is on everyone's mind.

Shreve explores the territory of roads not taken, regrets, longing, and secrets uncovered as these friends get to know each other again after so many years apart. It is set in post 9/11 America and this is very much on everyone's mind as well. I didn't find the book remarkable, but I enjoyed it.

The Midwife of Venice

The Midwife of Venice by Roberta Rich takes the reader deep into the sights and smells of 16th century Venice. I'm not entirely sure that is a good thing, as it was so real I could almost smell all the filth brought to life in these pages.

Through much research, Rich has created a highly imaginative story of a Jewish midwife, who breaks the law by delivering a Christian baby and has to flee for her life, while escaping the plague and trying to reunite with her husband who has been sold into slavery. Although it sounds like a grim tale, it is really a love story.

I loved the main character Hannah, a talented and dedicated midwife who very well may have existed. Rich does a wonderful job exploring the complex lives of women of this time. If you like historical fiction as I do, then you will find this book a worthwhile read.

The Ruins of Us

The Ruins of Us is a debut novel by Keija Parssinen.  It tells the story of Rosalie, an American woman living in Saudi Arabia with her wealthy Saudi husband for almost three decades. When he decides to take a second wife, which is his right by law, their family slowly begins to fall apart.

Having been raised in Saudi Arabia by American parents, Parssinen tells her tale with an inside view, yet always that of a foreigner, no matter how long she lived there. This is a fascinating novel about the clash of cultures, religion, intolerance, women's rights, family, and ultimately love.

Highly recommended.