Crossroads
If it is not one thing it is another, as my oh-so-optimistic mother likes to say. So here we have been dealing with continued teething and tantrums, pediatric dental appointments, night-wakings resulting in zombie-like waking states and all the general hoo-haa related to the end of the academic term. We did manage to squeeze in a lovely, sunny and fun trip to visit old and dear friends in Durango and of course I have been escaping into books as often as possible.
Recently I read two books that I wouldn’t have normally chosen and I am glad I did.
At first glance, and mostly because I am not familiar with her previous novels, Meg Wolitzer’s The Ten Year Nap didn’t really appeal to me. I get sick of the whole fabricated “Mommy Wars” thing. But, as I am at a particular critical professional juncture yet again having to decide whether or not to apply for a much coveted and very competitive tenure (full-time) position I had Bookreporter send it to me. You can read my review here but I would like to say how pleasantly surprised I was with this book. It was a lot different than I thought it would be and really, I think, captures both the joy and the tedium of parenthood, especially when you spend the vast majority of time at home with your kids. The children in this book are older than mine so in school all day, giving the moms a chance to reflect on whether or not they should return to work and if so what type of work will make them happy? I love my job (well, most aspects of my job) but do I want to go full-time and miss out on all the time with my girls? What are the trade-offs? Is the money and prestige (or maybe sense of accomplishment) worth seeing less of my kids and having to cram it all into the weekend? My issues are not exactly the ones Wolitzer is concerned with but she does speak beyond her immediate subject and characters in thinking about work and motherhood and feminism (ideal and actual). Plus, it was well written: she has a way of rendering the small details or moments of the way with grace and accuracy. I am keeping my eyes open for used copies of her earlier novels.
I also read The Book Thief. As a writer for a small Jewish newspaper, mostly doing book reviews, I have to be honest and say that I get a little weary of Holocaust related novels and non-fiction. This is something I studied in school and in fact the foundation of my thesis (which actually dealt with identity). Still, not every Holocaust book is good or well-written (although arguably they are all important and worth reading) and I have read a lot of not-so-good ones. So, even though everyone loved this book I had no desire to read it. My aunt lent it to me and it sat on the table for a couple months in the “going-to-read-or-maybe-not” pile. I finally picked it up and was instantly hooked. It is narrated by Death but it is so not cheesy or over the top. Death is the silent witness not only to individual deaths, but individual lives, is a perfect guide through the story of Liesel, a young orphan living with foster parents in a poor suburb of Munich during World War II. Books become an addiction for her representing power and knowledge and love and comfort. It is not a Holocaust book (although it does address that subject) but about one young girl living in the Nazi Era in Germany and how she copes with that, among the many other things put before her. I really don’t even want to tell you too much about this one first of all because it would take more energy than I have right now (see above reference to zombies) and it is just so good you should read it yourself. It is quirky and deadly serious and quite funny and very sad and it has been a while since I have read such a meaty and interesting and compelling book. I didn’t want it to end and then I wanted to speed through it to get through all the emotions I knew it would pull from me by the last page.
