So Misguided

Birnam Wood is a psychological thriller from the New Zealand writer Eleanor Catton, Booker Prize-winning author of The Luminaries. Birnam Wood is a leftist, guerrilla gardening collective fronted by charismatic Mira and run by under-appreciated Shelley. On the surface, the group makes decisions by committee and runs in a flat hierarchy. But really the group leader is Mira, who is much admired by the group, along with her sidekick Shelley, who actually does all the admin, paperwork, social media accounts, and finances. Shelley is looking to get out. But a few unfortunate incidents collide and scupper her plans.

First, there is a landslide on New Zealand’s South Island that has cut off the town of Thorndike, leaving a sizeable piece of land abandoned. It’s owned by newly knighted Sir Owen Darvish and his wife Lady Jill, which is how, through news reports, Mira discovers her opportunity to guerrilla plant huge gardens on the abandoned property. The group is not involved in her decision.

Second, on a reconnaissance mission to the property Mira meets American billionaire Robert Lemoine, who is in the process of buying the property (sale not yet complete). Lemoine is devious and is secretly mining in the national park adjacent to the property. He doesn’t divulge this to Mira but instead presents her with the opportunity to be his investment project. Lemoine is offering Birnam Wood 10K to see what they can do with the, as of yet unsanctioned, garden. It seems legit to Mira, who is secretly hoping that the funding will appease Shelley and keep her on board, but who is also afraid the group will vote against the proposal given that they are essentially against capitalists.

Third, Tony Gallo arrives on the scene. Tony is Mira’s long-lost love. They hooked up on his last night in town before he ventured off to make his name as a journalist in South America. Tony has returned to New Zealand, not a hero, but still has his activist sensibilities intact. Tony arrives at the hui (the meeting) where, unbeknownst to him, Mira is going to introduce the Thorndike project. Everything goes off script. Tony insults another member of Birnam Wood, he’s an arse in his monologue about politics and gender and is on his heels when Mira arrives late to the meeting, is surprised to see him, and blurts out the announcement. Tony then rallies ardently against the project, and subsequently finds himself kicked out of the group.

That puts into motion a tragic series of events as Mira, Shelley and the group go up to Thorndike and get embroiled in murder, environmental destruction, and the covert operations of the enigmatic billionaire.

There is a lot of drama in this novel, especially in the third part. And nobody wins in the end. Birnam Wood is about greed, avarice, pride, lust, envy — maybe it’s all seven sins! Mira, Shelley, Tony and Robert all demonstrate actions that are based on pride. Robert is certainly a greedy liar whose desire for wealth colours all his actions. He’s the most gluttonous of the lot, not necessarily for food and drink but for stuffing his pockets. Mira and Tony lust after each other. Mira and Shelley lust after Robert. There’s certainly selfish and resentful feelings of envy felt by Mira, Shelley, and Tony. Anger and wrath are felt by Mira, Shelley, Tony, Robert, Owen and Jill. But sloth–hard to fit this into the story. There is some apathy on Mira’s part–take the money, take the lazy route out. Tony definitely fails to use his talents. The book copy describes Birnam Wood as Shakespearean in its drama, and Austenian in its wit. So maybe there’s more to the Macbeth reference than I initially thought.

Anyway, I found the New Zealand references to personality and culture really interesting and the novel as a whole was disturbing. A perfect thriller.

The Wedding People is about growing up and learning to let your internal motivations and desires drive you vs. letting external drivers take ahold of your life.

It begins with Phoebe walking into a Victorian inn in Rhode Island, intent on committing suicide that night. She has the gown on her body and no luggage. The plan is a delicious room service meal, a nice bath and then to take her cat’s medication and overdose. Weirdly, Phoebe walks into a wedding.

The hotel is fully booked out for the wedding, but for some reason her reservation for the penthouse suite was honoured. Phoebe meets Lilah the Bride, is hugged and feted, given a gift bag and checked into her room. But when Phoebe and Lilah find themselves alone in the elevator together, the truth of the situation comes out, and the Bride turns into Bridezilla as she discovers Phoebe’s plan. “You cannot do this to me! It’s MY wedding.”

The rest of the novel is a hilarious back and forth between determined Phoebe and hysterical Lilah. Phoebe, once determined to commit suicide, finds that she’s actually quite determined to live her life. She resorts to being upfront about her feelings, needs, and desires. It’s refreshing! Her honesty forges a bond between herself and the bride. Lilah doesn’t feel like anyone is being honest with her. The bridesmaids let her walk about with food in her teeth. Her future groom is maybe not the best choice for her. She’s angry at her mother.

This novel has all the terrible (and funny in retrospect) things “wedding people” do as guests and members of the wedding party: The terrible, embarrassing speeches, the rude behaviour of future in-laws, and the catty quips from guests about the costs, the location, the choice of decor. But it’s also an absurdly funny and devastatingly sad look at how some people find their way to the alter, into a job, or onto a path that isn’t right for them. No spoilers: but there is a happily ever after.

Originally published in 1984, The House on Mango Street is about 12-year-old Esperanza Cordero, a Latina growing up in a Hispanic quarter of Chicago. This modern classic is told in a series of vignettes that can be read together as a novel or as individual short stories. The stories are heartbreaking but also joyous as Esperanza grows up and realizes the inequalities between men and women, the poverty and powerlessness that some in her neighbourhood feel, the sense of cultural identity, pride and shame, and the hope and disappointment of the American dream.

My main takeaway was the question of how our families, neighbourhoods, and communities shape us, especially the place we call home. And the push and pull we feel growing up—”one day I will pack my bags of books and paper. One day I will say goodbye to Mango. One day I will go away.”

I knew then I had to have a house. A real house. One I could point to. But this isn’t it. The house on Mango Street isn’t it. For the time being, Mama says. Temporary, says Papa. But I know how those things go.

In 2024, Sandra Cisneros celebrated the 40th anniversary of the novel.

There are many little magical moments in this book. The language is playful and feels like stream-of-consciousness writing from the 12 year old’s perspective. It’s definitely charming and I can see why it’s become a sought out book for American literature studies.

A Bookseller in Madrid is the story of the rise of Fascism in Spain the 1930s from the perspective of a German woman, Barbara Spiel, who dreams of opening a bookstore in Madrid.

On the one hand, this is obviously a well-researched book. The political and historical aspects of the story are based on well-documented tensions across Europe. On the other hand, the personal story is intriguing yet boring. The promise is there! Barbara meets a handsome young man in a Berlin bookstore during a raid. He stands up to the officers and later helps Barbara and the Jewish bookseller re-stack the shelves. The young man is a Socialist politician from Madrid, named Juan Delgado. Barbara moves to Madrid, hoping to escape Hilter’s influence in Germany, marries Juan, opens her bookstore, and discovers Spain is not immune. The Spanish Civil War breaks out, Barbara is asked to spy, she’s harassed by radicals from both sides of the political fence, is at risk daily, and, with war brewing across Europe, needs to escape her home yet again.

Sounds exciting right? But the writing is “this happened, then this happened, then this …” The story is framed with a first and last chapter set in present day. An editor in New York finds an aged and discarded manuscript in a dumpster and rushes to publish the ensuing work. This framing of the novel is unnecessary. There’s no mention of this setup throughout the story so it was a jolt at the end to read the last chapter, set in present day, and go “oh right, I forgot about that.”

The book is widely applauded for its historical accuracy and I’d echo those accolades. But this was not my favourite historical novel. I will give this author another try with The Librarian of Saint-Malo.