Nadine Feldman, Author

celebrating strong female characters and whatever else strikes my fancy

books

Book Review: Migrations

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I’m always buying books, and sometimes they get lost on my Kindle app. Recently I found one I’d bought back in December but hadn’t read. It was well worth the wait, but why not sooner? I have no good answer for that. I’m just glad I finally took the time to read it!

Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy is an extraordinary debut novel about a woman with a passion for birds. Franny Stone is determined to follow the migration of the Arctic tern, a bird that flies from the north pole to the south every year, but which is endangered. She talks her way onto a fishing boat, promising that as she tracks the birds, she will find fish for the crew whose livelihood has been decimated by climate change. NOTE: The story is set sometime in the future, but close enough to present to be uncomfortable.

As the boat heads out to sea looking for fish, Franny’s background is carefully unspooled by the author. We learn about her marriage and her need to be on the run at all times, breaking the heart of her loyal husband who loves her exactly as she is. We learn she is a troubled soul with a startling past. And, at the end, we learn the real reason for her journey, not the one she states early on (which is troubled enough).

As I was reading, I thought I had it all figured out. I was wrong. Well, not totally. I guessed correctly at some of it, but the journey there brought me to an unexpected place.

Migrations is a haunting book that will stay with me for some time. Enjoy!

Thanks for reading! Starting in June, I will be adding a second blog post per week about other topics, and I hope you’ll join me! I invite you to subscribe to my blog.

Also, please consider purchasing one or more of my books. The Factory Girl and the Fey, a historical fantasy, is coming this fall, so stay tuned for more details! For more info on my contemporary women’s fiction, click here.

Book Review: Joyous Lies

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A former commune, now organic farm, is at the center of Joyous Lies by Margaret Ann Spence as a group of aging hippies is forced to confront what’s next in their lives. The catalyst is the arrival of a documentary film crew, approved by the group’s charismatic leader Neil but objected to by his partner Johanna. As filming commences, old hurts and jealousies arise.

Meanwhile, granddaughter Maelle is struggling to finish her Ph.D. thesis about plant communication. Raised on the farm, she has a strong connection to the land. When Neil’s parents (who owned the land) die, and his siblings want to sell the land, many questions are raised. If the land is sold, the pristine environment would be razed for expensive real estate. If it isn’t, how can a group of old hippies, now beset by arthritis and other age-related problems, continue to support themselves?

The commune was not as idyllic as presented, and author Margaret Ann Spence unspools secrets, denials, hypocrisy, and lies. There is a huge chasm between the ideals of the commune, set up by hopeful young draft dodgers, and the harsh reality of survival.

I saw this novel as being, in part, about reflecting on one’s earlier life and choices. Are there regrets? Did we do the right thing? How can we face the big mistakes we made without being utterly destroyed by them? In other words, people are complicated…something young, idealistic Maelle will need to learn.

Thanks for reading! Starting in June, I will be adding a second blog post per week about other topics, and I hope you’ll join me! I invite you to subscribe to my blog.

Also, please consider purchasing one or more of my books. The Factory Girl and the Fey is coming this fall, so stay tuned for more details! It’s a historical fantasy, quite different from my other books. For more info on my contemporary women’s fiction, click here.

Book Review: My Boring Life

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Many of the books I’ve read recently have been well-known and best sellers. This week, I explore the work of emerging author Kerry Chaput and her recent release, My Boring Life.

Set in 1969, the novel centers around Gavenia, a young woman whose first year at Barnard has not gone well, and she’s on the verge of flunking out. She must complete several assignments during the summer to try to earn her place back.

As she returns home to lick her wounds and ponder her future, she faces her brother who has been wounded in Vietnam, a sister who lives at home and spends her days protesting the war, and two parents who are both hilarious and clueless. The family emigrated from Great Britain, with Gavenia being the only child born in the U.S., and there’s a parade of British food and customs, whether Gavenia likes them or not.

Simon, a crush from Gavenia’s younger days, reappears and sparks fly. But will he distract her from her schoolwork?

With humor and heart, My Boring Life explores a turbulent time in history that brought back many memories for me. Chaput uses music, television shows, and other imagery to anchor readers to that time period. Though the tone is light, she does not gloss over the seriousness of the issues she explores, including PTSD, the anger over the war, and Gavenia’s own dilemmas. After all, when someone is coming of age, their problems loom as large to them as any on the national stage.

I found myself wondering what the characters would be like today, decades later. Gavenia would be a few years older than I am, and I wanted to know how she ended up. That’s not a usual response for me.

This is a small press book, and there are a few editorial/proofreading glitches in the book (though I can usually find some in nearly everything I read these days). But the story is wonderful, and I hope we see a lot more of Ms. Chaput’s work.

Book Review: The Henna Artist

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Lakshmi ran away from her abusive husband and used her artistic talents to become a henna artist to wealthy women. Clever and quick-minded, she built a successful business over the years, earning enough money to build a house of her own. Her life is about to be upended, though, with the appearance of a younger sister Radha, who she didn’t know she had, and her estranged husband. In The Henna Artist, author Alka Joshi transports us to 1950s India, where old cultural traditions make life difficult for women.

The Henna Artist has been a hugely successful book that has justifiably earned praise from Reese Witherspoon’s book club, so it doesn’t need the endorsement of a little book blogger like me. However, if I love a book I’m going to recommend it, so here we are.

Lakshmi’s emotional journey is absorbing. After all, how does an already successful businesswoman, making her way in a society that is suspicious of unmarried and childless women, grow? Yet Rahda, as an emotional and precocious teenager, becomes a catalyst for the big changes in Lakshmi’s life.

The details of Indian culture, from food to the societal rules, held my interest. And though the story is set in what for us is an exotic locale, there is much for women to relate to in terms of the challenges we face and how we survive.

There is a level of predictability in the story, and some of the resolution seemed a bit too pat for me. It builds beautifully but seems to wrap up too quickly. Also, there were a number of editorial and proofreading errors that I found disappointing. However, the story of the two sisters is brilliant overall, and it’s a wonderful, enjoyable read.

TRIGGER WARNING (NOTE: CONTAINS SPOILER)

If you have an aversion to abortion, you may not want to read this book.

Please feel free to subscribe to my blog below. I review books on Wednesday and starting in May will have a second post during the week on other topics.

If you enjoyed this review, please consider purchasing one of my books. Details can be found here.

Book Review: The Vanishing Half

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When I was a little girl I announced to my family that the best way to achieve racial harmony and to eliminate bigotry was to have all races intermarry so we would all end up the same color.

This did not go over well.

So decades later, when I started reading The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett, I was astounded to read a story about a town of light-skinned black people who wanted to stay that way. Here was my childhood theory! Naturally, however, the reality turned out to be much more complicated.

The Vanishing Half focuses on a pair of twins, Desiree and Stella. Both witnessed the lynching death of their father (as his light skin did not create the protection hoped for), and this trauma naturally stays with them. They run away together, but Stella soon disappears from Desiree’s life. And Desiree, arguably the wilder one who was most determined to leave their small town of Mallard, Louisiana, returns with a daughter in tow…who happens to be a deep blue-black.

Little by little we see the lives of both sisters play out in ways that are sometimes surprising, even jarring. Stella passes as white and creates a life to escape her past. Desiree makes a live in Mallard. Both must live with the consequences of their choices, and the author handles their divergent paths with both honesty and compassion.

What does color mean? In The Vanishing Half, Desiree’s daughter Jude has to face bullying from black locals because she’s too dark. And let’s not forget that in the Deep South of that time period (the book starts in the 50s), it took very little black blood for someone, such as the twins’ father, to be lynched and murdered by white men.

There’s an LGBTQ element to this novel as well. Some reviewers have complained about this because it seemed like too much to tackle in one story. However, I think the story does a good job of intertwining the issues and struggles of gender and race.

My favorite character was Jude, Desiree’s daughter, who struggles in a community where she is bullied for her dark color but also develops a deep determination that she’ll need for the many challenges in her life. Her key role in the unfolding of this story is, in my opinion, what makes it great.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t point out that The Vanishing Half is also about family, relationships, and how our pasts inform our future choices.

Beautifully written, The Vanishing Half is a must-read for anyone wishing to broaden their understanding of the impact of race and gender, and/or anyone who loves a good family drama

IN OTHER NEWS:

Starting in May (or thereabouts) I will be adding a second blog post per week that will be unrelated to book reviews. As always, I respectfully decline to review books as a favor to authors. I feel too much pressure to give a good review when one isn’t always warranted. Thanks for understanding.

If you enjoyed this content, please consider purchasing one of my books. Details can be found here. Thanks!

Book Review: Great Circle

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In Great Circle:  A Novel, author Maggie Shipstead takes us into the epic life of a female aviator, Marian Graves. Rescued from a sinking ship as an infant with her twin brother, Jamie, Marian grows up in Montana, raised by an uncle who had little interest in the two children. While still a teenager, Marian discovers a passion for planes…and will do anything to learn to fly.

Several decades after Marian disappears on a “great circle” flight to both the north and south pole, actress Hadley Baxter is playing Marian in a movie. Hadley is a successful but disgraced actress who takes the role initially to try to redeem herself in Hollywood. The story weaves back and forth between Marian’s life and Hadley’s.

Two things really stood out to me when reading this novel. First, it’s too easy to misinterpret or minimize the complexity of someone’s life when observing it from the outside. After Marian’s disappearance, writers tried to fill in the blanks, creating myth and misinformation. Hadley has to deal with tabloid culture.

Second, I was struck by how a life can be altered by one small action or shift. If Marian hadn’t been rescued as a newborn, she would never have existed. It was as if every aspect of her life led her to flight, but one less twist or turn would have given her a very different experience.

Shipstead’s command of research and her ability to weave it into a story are astounding. Readers will learn a lot about the history of flight and the role of women that is often under-reported.

Initially I had some trouble getting into the story. There’s a fair amount of set-up that may come across as random. Hang in there. It will all make sense in the end. I also struggled a bit with Marian’s precociousness, but I consider this a minor criticism, as the era of The Great Depression forced people to grow up fast. 

I would highly recommend Great Circle to anyone who loves stories about tenacious women. There’s a lot here about families, friendships, and love here, too.

Great Circle‘s release date is May 4, 2021. NOTE: I received a free copy of this novel via NetGalley in return for an unbiased review.

Thank you for visiting my blog! I hope you’ll subscribe using the button below. I do a book review on Wednesdays (no soliciting, please) and will soon add a second post on other topics. Also, if you like what you read, please consider purchasing one of my books. More information can be found here.