In the Shadow of the Banyan

In the Shadow of the Banyan by Vaddey Ratner is an incredible novel based on true events in Cambodia at the time when the Khmer Rouge came to power in the late 70's.  Ratner lived through this with her mother when she was a little girl, the rest of her family was killed and only she and her mother got out alive. She went back as an adult and researched this story for many years.

What makes it a truly incredible book is her art of storytelling, her love of language. This is a beautifully written book that tells of one of the most horrible times of our human history. A heart wrenching story of hope and survival, although at times painful to read, I highly recommend this novel.

The Legacy of Eden

The Legacy of Eden by Nelle Davy is a family saga about an Iowa farm named Aurelia and generations of the family that lived and died there. At the head of the family is Lavinia Hawthorn, the matriarch who helped build the farm up and then destroyed all those who cared about it.

After the last family member on the farm dies, three estranged sisters who grew up there are called back to tie up loose ends. This brings all the ghosts to life, and Davy has a way of dishing out only a little information at a time to keep the reader hooked until the end.  A dark and haunting tale.

Mercury in Retrograde

I was looking for something to read that was less intense than my usual fair, Mercury in Retrograde by Paula Froelich fit the bill. A slightly silly, inconsequential, at times funny novel about three women in their late 20's/early 30's living in NYC whose lives have all taken a turn for the worst, They end up living in the same building, doing yoga together and becoming best friends.

A good book for a day at the beach. Fans of Sex and the City will enjoy. Mildly entertaining, mostly forgettable.

The Girl Who Fell From the Sky

The Girl Who Fell From the Sky by Heidi W. Durrow is a novel about a biracial young girl who survives a family tragedy.

Beautifully written, yet heartbreaking; this novel takes on issues of race, addiction, family, identity and ultimately survival.

Although some of the characters could have been more fully developed, it is still a powerful book.

Lamp Black, Wolf Grey

Lamp Black, Wolf Grey by Paula Brackston is a novel set in Wales both past and present day. Laura, an artist moves from London to the Welsh countryside with her husband Dan, hoping to find a quiet place to paint and finally conceive a child. What she doesn't imagine is that the veil between worlds is thin here, for those who have the eyes to see, and before long she encounters none other than Merlin himself.

Brackston had me hooked from the beginning, this is a marvelous book to disappear into, I was transported to another time and place. However, I felt the novel took an unnecessary disturbing turn and devolved into a far less magical novel than it could have been by the end. Disappointing.

Hold on to Your Kids

Hold on to Your Kids, Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers by Gorden Neufeld, Ph.D. and Gabor Mate M.D. is a parenting book I think all parents should read. Updated to include a section on raising kids in a digital world, this is a profound rethinking of how we are raising our kids.

Rather than looking to their peers for direction, values, and identity, children should be looking toward their parents and the adults in their life for guidance. This is something we have lost in our culture and this book shows how important it is for us to collect our children, nurture them and be their compass point.

A highly recommended read.

On the Occasion of My Last Afternoon

On the Occasion of My Last Afternoon is a beautiful novel by Kaye Gibbons. It tells the story of Emma Garnet, looking back on her life of Southern privilege, growing up on a plantation with an over beaing and cruel father, a loving mother and the slaves that raised her. Later, she escapes her father when she marries a doctor and works by his side tending to wounded soldiers throughout the Civil War.

It is reminiscent of Marilynne Robinson's wonderful novel Gilead, where a congregational preacher writes a letter to his young son at the end of his life. In both books the voice of the main character is so true, honest and moving, you feel as if you are sitting on the porch talking story with an old friend.

A vivid and powerful novel, a recommended read.

The Grace Keepers

The Grace Keepers is the debut novel by Kirsty Logan, a young Scottish author. This is truly an otherworldy novel that transports the reader to the misty islands of Scotland where the world is divided between "landlockers" those who live on the mainland, and "damplings" those who live on boats on the sea.

It tells the story of Callanish, a young woman who lives a lonely existence tending to burials in the sea, and North, a young woman who lives with her bear as part of a floating circus.The novel is filled with Scottish myths and folklore. A beautifully written, magical, melancholy tale that leaves the reader breathless.

The Lowland

Jhumpa Lahiri is one of my favorite writers and The Lowland doesn't disappoint. It is the story of two brothers, very close in age, yet very different, growing up in Calcutta in the 60's. Their paths diverge as one joins a revolutionary movement in India, and the other moves to Rhode Island to study oceanography.

This is a compelling family saga, steeped in history and spanning decades and continents; Lahiri at the height of her abilities. A recommended read.