The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

I read this book back in 2015, but for some reason I never wrote a blog post on it. So, I decided to read it again since my son was reading it for school. John Green's teenage characters are always so creative and intelligent and quirky. Hazel and Augustus are no exceptions to this. They are talented with their communication skills. They are thoughtful and honest and funny. I actually chuckled out loud a few times while reading. I also teared up a few times.

Hazel and Augustus (Gus) meet in a teenage cancer group that is held at a church every Wednesday. Augustus had previously had one of his leg's amputated due to cancer and Hazel carries oxygen with her at all times so that she can breathe. Gus is in remission and Hazel's cancer is terminal, so she knows she will die young. Their best friend is Isaac, who has lost one eye to cancer and finds out that he is also losing his other eye, which will leave him blind. These three friends love each other and support each other through some terrible things that no one should ever have to go through, especially children.

Hazel is enamored of a book called, "An Imperial Affliction". She has read it many, many times. She gives a copy to Gus to read as well. Her parents read it too. I think this is their way of trying to connect with Hazel, since she keeps people at arm's distance because she is worried about how her pending death will affect them all. The book ends mid-sentence, so there is no conclusion about any of the characters. Hazel likens this to what will happen to herself (she will die mid-sentence, so to speak) and she will never know what happens to the people she loves. But Hazel is also obsessed with finding out what happens to the characters in the book. She has written the author, Peter Van Houten, a few times. Peter Van Houten has become a recluse however, living in Amsterdam. After Gus reads the book, he manages to make contact with Peter. They eventually meet him, but are deeply disappointed (and disgusted) by him.

Like I said earlier, this book is funny and it's sad. But mainly, these teenagers demonstrate incredible courage as they fight cancer and loss.

Wendy's Rating: *****

I'm Still Here, Black Dignity In A World Made For Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown

I was eager to read this book, simply because I wanted to have a better understanding of the "Black Lives Matter" movement. I have always been leary of this idea, not because black lives don't matter, but in my mind, all lives matter. I really wanted to understand the deeper meaning behind this phrase.  Early on in the book, I was indeed enlightened about the consequence of desegregation. For the first time ever, I realized how desegregation, instead of empowering black people, actually took away their heritage, their culture, their language, their religion. By desegregating, black people were folded into the white world. They were "allowed" in white stores, white churches, white schools. But in doing so, they lost their own "blackness". Black people were incorporated into the white world, therefore losing their blackness. This was an "aha" moment for me. I also have a better understanding of the Black Lives Matter phrase. It's not about black lives being more important than any other lives, but rather stating the fact that black lives matter equally to white lives, or brown lives, or any other lives. So, I was feeling pretty positive about what I was learning.

But then I hit Chapter 7, called "Nice White People". My feelings about this book did an about-face. At one point I didn't even think I could finish it! I actually forced myself to read the rest because I was hoping that the author was proving a point, which would be unveiled at the end of the book. Well, that didn't happen. It became quite apparent that no matter what a white person says, doesn't say, does or doesn't do, it's WRONG in the eyes of a black person. If a white person acknowledges someone's blackness in the room, that's bad. If a white person ignores the fact that a black person is in the room, that is bad. If a white person shares a story at a seminar about racial prejudice about how sorry they are about a prejudice they now realize they had, that is bad. Austin Channing Brown writes, "I don't have much use for white guilt anymore. I used to interpret white guilt as an early sign of a change in heart, a glimpse that a movie, program, or speaker had broken through and was producing a changed mind. While that may or may not be true, for those on the receiving end, white guilt is like having tar dry all over your hands and heart. It takes so much work to peel off the layers, rub away the stickiness, get rid of the smell. Unsolicited confessions inspired by a sense of guilt are often poured over Black bodies in search of their own relief." Seriously?? Apparently there is absolutely nothing that a white person can do that will not inspire disgust. She describes the white person's "need for confession" as a "self-indulgent desire". Then she goes on and on, generalizing about white people. "White people desperately want to believe that only the lonely, isolated "whites only" club members are racist." Or "...I suspect that white people really don't want to believe that we (people of color) know them, too." Or "White people are notorious for trying to turn race conversations into debates." She uses the word, "whiteness" over and over again, like it's a swear word. Disgusting. Racist. Inexcusable. "Whiteness twiddles its thumbs with feigned innocence and shallow apologies." White people don't like being generalized about any more than black people do!

Then she talks about her cousin, Dalin, who was several years older than her but someone she looked up to when she was a young child. I won't explain the entire story, but Dalin demonstrates at a young age that when someone ticks him off, he needs to find a gun. He ends up selling drugs to fund his desire for a rap career because "studio time required a lot of money." Then she writes, "It was a bad time to start that kind of career". Why? Because President Clinton had signed an act that called for mandatory minimums for multiple drug offenses, so they had started cracking down on non-violent crime. So, Dalin got arrested "a lot" and when he received his "third strike" he was sent away to prison for ten years. And apparently, we (meaning white people) are at fault for this as well. This just makes me angry! I totally understand that systemic racism exists in our society. 100% agree. I completely understand that black men are pulled over in their cars simply because they are black. 100% I think it is horrible. What I don't understand is the lack of accountability for unlawful, illegal actions. Dalin ends up dying in prison, but not the way you might think. He gets stuck by lightning. Austin is "angry" about Dalin not getting a second chance; about his daughter being left without a father. Why wasn't she angry that he made some terrible decisions about how to make extra money to fund his career?? Why couldn't he get a legal JOB like other people do when they need money. Honestly. It was just too much. 

So, what started out as a desire for opening my mind about racism in America in 2021, ended up with me being ticked off. And for all her talk about black people "losing the way they talk and write" to "whiteness", why did she write this book like a "white person" would instead of using the dialect of her black culture?? I have to stop. If she wanted to provoke a strong reaction from white people, well this white person is provoked.

Wendy's Rating: ***

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes

Jojo Moyes is one of my favorite authors. This book was completely different than the other books that I have read by her. First of all, it was set in the Depression era America. Alice is a British woman who marries an American to escape her life in Britain, which she finds unbearable thanks to her mother. Alice marries a American from Kentucky, Bennett Van Cleve, whose family owns and runs the local mines. So the biggest mystery of the entire book for me is, what's up with Bennett?? Alice falls in love with Bennett in England, and he seems to be in love with her as well. So they marry and she moves to Kentucky with him and his father, who is a number one jerk. They actually live with Mr. Van Cleve, who is as overbearing as Alice's mother in England. Anyway, they never have sex! Ever. Alice doesn't even know what it means to have sex with a man - and Bennett doesn't seem inclined to show her. Why? Is he gay? Is he impotent? I kept waiting for the answer. Alice tries to talk to him a few different times, but he never explains. She sees him being happy when hanging out with his old classmate, Peggy, but he had every chance to marry her before meeting Alice in England. But he doesn't. He marries Alice - and then doesn't seem to want anything to do with her. It was very odd.

As much as I love books, I wasn't thinking that a book about women delivering books to rural families in Kentucky would be all that interesting. But it was. I loved how this small (and brave) group of women, referred to as the Packhorse Librarians of Kentucky, bonded with each other. I love how the rural families, many of which where "rough around the edges", to put it mildly, accepted these women and their books. I love how the children learned to read - and how their parents encouraged them to learn. These were moonshining and mining families. They would as soon as shoot a stranger on their property as invite them into their home. This job (and it WAS a job because these women actually got paid to do this) was not for the weak of heart. It was dangerous job at times, not only because of some of the people they encountered, but the weather too. 

Of course with knowledge, comes conflict. Those in power over the town, like Mr. Van Cleve, tried to shut down the library a variety of different ways, saying that the books were causing insurrection (my word, not his, but that's what he meant). He called the books "immoral" and held town meetings at the local church and in front of the courthouse speaking his mind. Meanwhile, Bennett just listened. He rarely defended Alice or anyone else against his father. He came across as a handsome, well-dressed weenie.  Alice certainly deserved someone better than him! Things get really bad when the leader of the Librarians, Margery; is arrested for murdering a hillbilly drunkard on her route. The only really decent thing that Bennett does in the entire book is suggest to Alice a way to prove Margery may be innocent.

The book is interesting, heartbreaking, heartwarming and even funny at times. I enjoyed it very much.

Wendy's Rating: ****

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

This book has pretty solid positive reviews. Readers seem to love it. I did not. I found it indulgent. I found Evelyn Hugo self-indulgent. Maybe it's because I had just read The Last Train to London, which was heartbreaking because it was set in Nazi-controlled Europe. Maybe it was because I had to listen to it (audio book) instead of read it because the waiting list is so long at the library - and I knew it wouldn't be the kind of book I would want to buy. Maybe it's because I simply find old and new Hollywood "too much". Actually, I think many "stars" today do a lot more for the underprivileged than those icons of "old Hollywood", but they are still overly privileged and over paid and overly indulgent for the most part. (Yes, there are certainly some exceptions to that.)

I realize that the book addressed some serious topics: biracial racism; domestic abuse; the lack of equality between men and women in pay and power; lack of acceptance for homosexual relationships. So why did Evelyn Hugo's problems come across as "first world problems"? Maybe because she did anything and everything to get to the top. She tried to get other actresses fired who she saw as a threat; she married for clout; she slept around; she was snotty and rude and obnoxious; she married to cover up her true feelings for another woman; she slept with men to manipulate them; she even covered up a fatal accident! It was 400 pages of Evelyn Hugo manipulating people. Do I think she actually loved some people? Yes. She loved her best friend, Harry; her daughter, Connor; and the love of her life, Cecily. Other than that, she loved herself. She actually chose herself over the people she loved many, many times.

The important issues mentioned above, that are still relevant in 2021, were overshadowed by the way it was presented. How can you take the issues seriously if you don't respect the person vocalizing them? If I don't respect the person on the "soap box", than I can't invest myself in the issue. Evelyn lied and cheated and committed a crime! These actions - her actions - detracted from the message she "preached" throughout the book and actually detracted from these very real issues in our world. I honestly can't believe that so many people love this book! Maybe, just maybe, it was the woman on the audio version, who sounded so smug throughout, that didn't allow me to feel sympathy for Evelyn (because I certainly didn't!). Or maybe it was just the writing. I will never know because I will never read this book in print.

Wendy's Rating: ***

The Last Train to London by Meg Waite Clayton

This novel (historical fiction) broke my heart! The very beginning was confusing to me. Even though I read the book jacket and knew basically what the book was going to be about, it just jumps right into the story and it took me a few chapters to get into the swing of it. Plus, it's set in Amsterdam and Vienna, Austria and so even though it's written in English, it's still a European event and the language used represents that.

In 1933, a Dutchwoman from Amsterdam, Geertruida Wijsmuller-Meijer ("Tante Truss") started rescuing children who were at risk (basically Jewish children) from Germany. She started by rescuing a couple/three children at a time, traveling into Germany and sneaking the children out across the border back into Amsterdam. Once they were in Amsterdam, they were considered "safe" and then transported again to various countries willing to take them. The book actually starts in December 1936. Tante Truus continues to "polish" her skills at dealing with the border control between countries as she brings children across the border. The challenges and risk increases as Hitler becomes more powerful of course. Truus and her husband, an incredibly kind and supportive husband (Joop), have been pregnant and miscarried a few times already. They both desperately want children. Unfortunately, Truus has been unable to carry a child to term. So she dedicates her life to saving other people's children.

In Vienna, we get to meet a young playwright, Stephen, who is from a wealthy Jewish family and the girl Stephen likes, Zofie-Helene, whose mother edits an anti-Nazi newspaper. Even though they are only teenagers, Stephen is a talented writer and Zofie-Helene is a brilliant mathematician. They each have one younger sibling. Stephen's brother, Walter, is 5 years old and Zofie-Helene's sister, Johanna, is 3 years old. With the Nazis taking over Austria, Stephen's family is forced to surrender their home and valuables to the Nazis. At first they are allowed to stay in the attic of their own home (thanks to their non-Jewish family member), but eventually Stephen's father is taken and killed, Stephen goes into hiding and Stephen's dying mother (cancer) and brother are forced into the Jewish ghetto to live. Zofie-Helene's family doesn't fair much better even though they are Christian. Zofie-Helene's mother is arrested and her grandfather becomes the primary caregiver for Zofie-Helene & Johanna. (Her father had been previously killed.)

In 1938, Truus is asked to go to Germany, talk to the "up and coming" Nazi leader, Adolf Eichmann, and ask him to release Jewish children from Germany (to London). This is the start of the "Kindertransport" which eventually saves 10,000 children, three quarters of them being Jewish. Adolf Eichmann agrees to release EXACTLY 600 children, not one more and not one less, the following Sabbath. Despite the fact that participating in this venture on the Sabbath is against Jewish law, many more than 600 try to send their children (between the ages of 4-17) on the transport out of Germany. In this story, Zofie-Helene and Stephen's brother, Walter are accepted as part of the 600. Joanna is too young and Stephen ends up being #610. When one of the 600 gets diagnosed with the measles before the Sabbath, Truus decides to take a chance on Stephen being able to "bluff" his way in, in place of the ill child.

The story moves quickly between what Truus is doing and what's happening with Stephen and Zofie-Helene. It's a page turner. The only time I put it down is when I needed a break from the horror of it all. I have never understood how people can treat others so horribly. It's heartbreaking. As a mother, I can't even imagine sending my child off to a different country by themselves. A country that speaks a different language and practices a different religion. These parents loved their children so much that they sent them away to the unknown rather than keep them in their Nazi-occupied countries. That's how awful the Nazi's were. Most of these children never saw their parents again. Thinking about what these families suffered through makes me want to sob out loud. (I actually did cry.)

The other significant feeling I experience whenever I read a book about the Holocaust is "awe" when it comes to all the brave people who did everything in their power to save the Jewish people from the Nazis - at blatant risk to themselves and their own families. It astounds me how incredibly selfless some people are. I love my own children so much I don't know if I could have ever been that brave, knowing that my actions might lead to the death of my own children/family. It's truly incredible. Geertruida Wijsmuller-Meijer was inspiring - along with all the other brave souls of that time.

This is a must read book, in my opinion. It certainly puts my life in perspective.

Wendy's Rating: *****

The Sun Sister by Lucinda Riley

I am getting sad thinking about this series ending. The Sun Sister is the 6th book in this series of 7. Book 7 is expected to be published in Spring 2021. So now I wait..... This was the longest book so far (at 637 pages), but I again read it pretty quickly due to my interest level, which made it hard to put down. The 6th sister is named Electra. She is a black super model, with significant drug and alcohol addictions, who lives in New York (Manhattan). It was hard to read about her alcohol and drug use. It's amazing what the body can endure day after day. She also slept around a lot. She seemed to have a difficult time just spending time with herself. She was extremely self-involved and self-centered (and not in a good way). She pretty much treated people like crap. She hadn't even read her letter from Pa Salt, or looked at the coordinates of her birthplace, or opened the envelope that held the translation of the "words of wisdom" that had been left for her by Pa Salt. Her addictions were her undoing (finally!) and she goes to rehab and starts the long process of turning her life around. She only becomes interested in her history after her birth grandmother contacts her and asks to meet.

Her ancestry story was really interesting because it was set in Kenya before World War II affected Africa (1939). This story centered around a white woman named Cecily Huntley-Morgan, a young woman from a wealthy New York family. As Electra's beautiful black grandmother shares Electra's history of origin with her, Electra kept wondering where she and her mother fit into the story. So did I! Cecily ends up in Kenya because she is invited to visit her socialite godmother, Kiki, who is Cecily's mother's best friend. She was also adventurous, promiscuous, unreliable and a really bad role model! She was a huge part of the Happy Valley set in Kenya. Cecily decides to visit Kiki to get away from her ex-fiancé who breaks off their engagement shortly before their wedding to marry someone else. Cecily ends up marrying an older British man who owns a cattle farm in Kenya (which is a long story so I won't get into the details here). 

Although each sister in this series ends up being a better person by the end of their individual stories, their origin stories often have sad parts and this story was no exception. I realize that reality involves a lot of turmoil and sadness at times, but I am always sad when a main character dies too young! Not only did the book involve the effects of World War II and addiction, but also extreme prejudice against black people, both in Kenya and New York. Cecily and her husband, Bill, also had a difficult time expressing their true feelings with each other, which makes for a sad story involving their marriage as well. 

This was the first book that I really started thinking that Pa Salt might actually be dead. The way he was talked about in this book by various people, including Ma, made it seem like he really did die. But there are obviously many secrets that we are waiting to have explained in Book 7, so you never know! When Georg Hoffman visits Atlantis suddenly at the very end of the book with "news", I thought it would be about Pa Salt. But no. He announces that he has finally found the 7th sister, who has been "missing" since the beginning. "Missing", meaning "never found".

It's going to be a difficult wait for Book 7!

Wendy's Rating: *****