A Thread of Grace

Since my last post was about The Wedding Officer I thought I would talk about this book, which is another look at World War II Italy. This book focuses on the last years of the war when Germany was no longer Italy's ally and Germans and Allied forces were both at the proverbial gate. The features several Jewish families on the run, as well as the people who helped shelter them and an SS doctor who when separated from his unit must come to terms with the blood on his hands for his role in the concentration camps. Reading this book, I learned the Italy had highest Jewish survival rate in Europe, which the author seems to partly attribute to the Italian suspicion of centralized orders and government as well as the greater integration of Jews into the culture as a whole. The book also shows how fascism grew in response the pressure the war put on Italian society.

Into The Wild

Hello folks. Sorry you didn't hear from me last Sunday; it was the end of a bachelor party weekend and well I was not in much of a literary mood. I shall spare you the details. But don't worry ladies, the celebration was not in my honor.
Today's selection has just been made into a major motion picture so I figure it is somewhat topical. "Into The Wild" is the true story of a young man who decides to ditch society and live alone in the Alaska wilderness. The ending is no big secret, let's say its similar to the end of "Grizzly Man", without the bear attack.
But the story poses big questions. What made Chris McCandless, a 24 year old young man of means and intelligence decide to spurn all human contact and association? Was he searching for something meaningful in his life; an honorable communion with nature? Or was a thrill seeker who got in way way over his head? Anyway, it is a really enjoyable read and I would certainly recommend it. See you next time.

The Intuitionist

I can honestly say, this is the best book about elevator inspectors I've ever read. This debut novel by Colson Whitehead follows Lila Mae Watson, the first African American female elevator inspector, in an unnamed time and place (probably 1950's or 1960's New York). Elevator inspection is very prestigious and Lila Mae takes her job seriously. She comes from the Intuitionist school of thought--she can "feel" what's wrong with the elevator. She's very good at it, too, until an elevator she recently inspected crashes in a total freefall. Lila Mae suspects sabotage and must figure out who did it. Along the way, she uncovers new information about her mentor and founder of the Intuitionists, Fulton. The whole novel is an allegory about race--the cover blurbs compare it to Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man and Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye. I liked the novel a lot, even if it tried to do too much in a couple of places. There's some dark humor and I really enjoyed Whitehead's writing style.

The Wedding Officer

This is another book club pick. Set in World War II era Italy, the book centers around Captain James Gould a British Officer assigned the duty of making sure that British solders did not marry Italian women of "poor reputation", specifically prostitutes. However wartime shortages and extreme poverty ensure that almost all of them have slept with a solider for cash and he approves almost no marriages. He also attempts to crackdown on the black market with little or no success. Then Livia Pertini, a widow from the Italian countryside becomes the cook for Gould and the other officers. Gradually Gould begins to fall in love with her, the food she cooks, and Italy itself and see the world as more than black and white. The story takes a few turns towards the far fetched, but the book was still a worthwhile read.

Books You May Have Missed

I forgot to post yesterday, but here's a bonus post I came across while cleaning out some bookmarks. I love book lists of any kind, and this list has books I've mostly never heard of (the only one I've read is Any Human Heart by William Boyd). I have read many of the contributors, though, and may have to check out some of their selections. Has anyone read Elizabeth Taylor? Those stuck out for me as books I want to try out.

National Book Award nominees announced

Our very own Anstrat has read and reviewed Now We Come to the End but otherwise we seem to have made it through another year without reading any of the best books. Very sad. I guess we have until November 14 to get the rest read. If anyone has read any of the other nominated books, be sure to post about it in the comments.

Doris Lessing wins Nobel for Literature

What does everyone think of this choice? I've recently read The Sweetest Dream and wasn't terribly impressed. I tried to read The Golden Notebook in college and it never grabbed me. Post your thoughts on Ms. Lessing or other Nobel literature choices.