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All Things Move: Learning to Look in the Sistine Chapel by Jeannie Marshall | Book Review

July 26, 2023 / Monique

If you love poetry, philosophy, art history, and personal memoir then this book is for you. It’s a quiet, gentle reflection on what it means to engage with art, why art has the capacity to enchant and haunt us through centuries, and where Renaissance religious art can find relevance in today’s busy, modern world.

I had the pleasure of listening to a conversation between Jeannie Marshall and The Tyee’s culture editor Dorothy Woodend on May 4, 2023 at Upstart & Crow. Jeannie struck me as a gentle yet powerful writer. Full of curiosity but also caution.

Jeannie lives in Rome and for a long time avoided visiting the Sistine Chapel, and yet Michelangelo’s famed ceiling was something her grandmother in Canada wished to see, it’s a place 5 million people a year visit. Her first visit, after the death of her mother, was as frustrating as she imagined. The ceiling is busy, the place is busy, it’s overwhelming. But something kept drawing her back time and again.

This book is really a masterful unfolding of layers of art history, the impact of religious wars and intolerance, and the power the Catholic church had over her family. All Things Move is a remarkable personal journey but also a wonderfully thoughtful, philosophical look at the role of art in our lives.

I find my thoughts returning to Jeannie’s musings and meditations on what it means to create a work of art that transcends time, and what it means to view and engage in that art.

Her publisher Biblioasis has crafted a fine book. It’s glossy pages show off different images of Michelangelo’s frescoes, along with gritty street photos of Rome taken by fellow Canadian and author Douglas Anthony Cooper.

I’d say this is a book about learning to look, taking time to relish small details in order to—over time—see the full picture.

At the same time I was reading Jeannie Marshall, I kept coming across references to John Berger’s Ways of Seeing, I was listening to David Whyte in conversation with Krista Tippet in a episode of On Being, and thinking about the human experience and how short it really is.

So I was primed for a book on loss, celebration, language, art, philosophy, undertaking intellectual pursuits for the pleasure of it, joy, inner life and cultural constructs for how we should live or what should act as the moral compass. I’m not done with this book. Thank you Jeannie Marshall.

Published by Biblioasis.

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

July 15, 2023 / Monique

Berry Pickers is a heartbreaking novel about a young 4-year-old Mi’kmaw girl who is stolen from her family by a heart-broken woman. It’s July 1962 and little Ruthie is sitting on a rock while her family picks blueberries at a farm in Maine. The woman who takes her raises her as Norma. It’s an emotionally fraught childhood that doesn’t quite make sense until Norma learns the truth.

This novel is a great debut by Amanda Peters. It’s raw, emotional, riveting and full of trauma on all sides. What makes someone think they can take another woman’s baby? What makes someone carry on the lie? What grief does the family go through?

I enjoyed the East Coast pacing of these families’ lives and celebrated the resolution at the end. Totally worth the read.

This is a story about knowing who you are and not abandoning hope and love.

Published by HarperCollins Canada.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid | Book Review

July 11, 2023 / Monique

I love Taylor Jenkins Reid novels. They are the best summer fun. In this case the protagonist is also named Monique so that’s extra fun.

Monique is a journalist struggling to make a name for herself when suddenly the famous, and reclusive, Evelyn Hugo requests her time for an interview. How can this be? Why would Oscar-winning Evelyn Hugo even know her name? Could it be that she was wow’d by the one piece of amazing journalism Monique produced on assisted dying? That would be a stretch. But this is the interview of a lifetime. And despite the reluctance of Monique’s boss to give this cover story and the scoop to a little-known writer, she can’t refuse. Evelyn wants Monique or nothing. The story is massive.

The drama of Hollywood in the 50s, straight through to the 80s, is on full display. Evelyn is drama. She jumps from one husband to the next. She’s a bit of Liz Taylor meets Ava Gardiner. And the big question Monique seeks to answer is “who was the love of her life.”

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is published by Simon & Schuster. They have many of her other titles too.

If you liked Malibu Rising or Daisy Jones and the Six then you’ll like this novel too. It has a bio-pic vibe and great Tinseltown glam.

Trespasses by Louise Kennedy

June 28, 2023 / Monique

Set in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, this is the story of Cushla, an elementary school teacher/barmaid/Catholic who falls in love with an older, married man/barrister/Protestant. There are many things wrong with their relationship and, given the political climate, their affair can be fatal. Cushla could lose her job, her family’s reputation could suffer along with their pub, she could be shot just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or nobody will notice the affair because they are busying questioning the extra attention she’s paying to a Catholic pupil whose father has been brutally attacked, in which case she could lose her job, her family’s reputation could suffer along with their pub, she could be shot just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Life in this small town outside of Belfast in the 70s is full of precarious tensions.

Trespasses is a heartbreaking story about living in a time when it matters who you are, not what you do. Cushlas class of 7 year olds start the day with recapping The News. They know an awful lot about bombs and checkpoints, unemployment, and beatings.

This is a novel that made me feel very melancholic. Although it’s backdrop is bleak, there are some lovely moments throughout.

Published by Penguin Random House Canada

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff | Book Review

June 17, 2023 / Monique

The Thursday Night Murder Club and No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency would meet their match with The Bandit Queens. Where the former titles involve affable do-gooders with the common sense needed to solve their community’s problems, here we have gossipy housewives who watch too many crime dramas and are keen to off their husbands. That said, these women are charming.

Five years ago, Geeta’s good-for-nothing drunk of a husband ran off. The village believes she killed him, and the rumour persists, to the point where Geeta is ostracized from friends and others in the small community. She’s a member of a micro-loan club and when one of the members doesn’t show up with her weekly repayment, it’s left to Geeta—widowed and childless—to foot the bill so the whole loan group doesn’t go under. Instead of that endearing her amongst the women, one of whom is her former best friend, Geeta finds herself being blackmailed by the woman she help.

Turns out that Geeta’s reputation for getting rid of a n’er-do-well husband has the attention of the other wives who would also like to be widows. Geeta has some tricky cards to play, and she does not have a good poker face.

Parini Shroff’s debut novel is a wonderfully funny, a macabre, look at life in an Indian village. There’s witty women, sneaky husbands, minor criminals, unwitting accomplices, terrible dark crimes, caste hierarchies, sexism, and all manor of distractions and disruptions in this small village. This is one hell of a debut.

Published by Penguin Random House Canada

Watch the Barnes & Noble BookClub YouTube channel: Parini Shroff discusses The Bandit Queens

Dickens and Prince: A Particular Kind of Genius by Nick Hornby | Book Review

June 7, 2023 / Monique

April 21, 2023 marked seven years since Prince’s death and June 7 would have been his 65th birthday. Oh, Prince. Talk about Great Expectations.

Nick Hornby has crafted a wonderful extended essay that looks at two prolific geniuses. I listened to the audiobook hoping for some musical accompaniment, alas no. Thankfully the narrator provides all the quirks and liveliness of Hornby’s turns of phrase. An enjoyable listen.

Hornby draws connections between the two artists. He delves into their trying childhoods, their business acumen, and the excessive amount of content they both created (before age 25 and after).

Give it a listen: https://www.audible.ca/pd/Dickens-and-Prince-Audiobook/B09V1ZYXR7

The Widow, The Priest and The Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island by Amy Chavez

May 16, 2023 / Monique

My friend DaveO gifted me this amazing book about an island that is near to where he lives in Japan. In celebration of Asian Heritage month, I have been eagerly reading about septuagenarian and octogenarians (even nonagenarians) on the tiny island of Shiraishi (population 500 — and dwindling) .

Shiraishi Island is in the Inland Sea of Japan and part of Okayama Prefecture. Author Amy Chavez moved there in 1997 and is charmed by the seclusion and way that the aging population is holding on to its traditions and ways of life. The books offers vignettes of the island’s many charming characters, who each share with Amy their stories of growing up on Shiraishi, the island’s culture, their fishing practices and sacred rituals.

I love being introduced to different people in each chapter. Memorable stories include that of Eiko, the elderly woman whose house Amy rents, Hiro, one of the last two octopus hunters on the island, the four Chinese brides who come to Shiraishi to marry, and Mimiko who runs a little beach shack.

The stories are interspersed with Amy’s observations from her window looking out on the port, her participation in island rituals, and her American perspective as an outsider looking to fit into the community.

Give it a read: Published by Tuttle.

Available in fine bookstores (and Amazon)

Check out Amy Chavez’s website for photos of Shiraishi.

The Price of Salt, or Carol by Patricia Highsmith | Book Review

May 6, 2023 / Monique

Patricia Highsmith is the author of more than 20 books, including well-known classics. Her first novel Strangers on a Train (1950) became a major commercial success and was filmed by Alfred Hitchcock. Her most popular literary creation was Tom Ripley, the dapper sociopath who debuted in her 1955 novel, The Talented Mr. Ripley. There were four other Ripley novels, and a film. Yet she decided to publish The Price of Salt (or Carol) in1952 under a pseudonym. The novel tells the story of a young woman Therese Belivet, who serves a glamorous older woman (Carol Aird) in a department store at Christmas. That casual encounter sparks in a romance between the two women, and a Thelma and Louise style cross-country road trip. They are chased by a private detective hired by Carol’s husband, but their crime is exploring a romance that is not accepted socially at the time.

Many publishers turned down this incredible book because it was about a lesbian relationship. The 50s in America were not open days for homosexuals. Most American novels at the time depicted gay or lesbian relationships as deviations and the characters met untimely ends. But Highsmith found a publisher, and the book found a loving audience.

I’d say this novel is about discovering a strength you didn’t know you had.

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner | Book Review

March 31, 2023 / Monique

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner is an absolutely stunning memoir. The cover is 100% perfect because this is the story of how Michelle and her mother connect through Korea cuisine, the way food acts as a bridge, how Michelle’s Korean and American cultures get tangled together, and the importance of sharing of a meal.

Michelle Zauner, more familiar to music fans as Japanese Breakfast, has been published in The New Yorker, Harper’s, Bazaar, and Glamour. This memoir definitely has a New Yorker vibe with the 20 chapters working almost as standalone chapters.

At a basic level, Crying in H Mart is the story of 20-something Michelle losing her mom to cancer. But the story is rich with food imagery and how Michelle’s Korean mom loves her to no end. I think most readers will recognize Michelle’s struggles to grow up, and to escape the critical eye of her mother, only to find herself as an adult desperately wanting to catch her mother’s eye. The memoir is about forging your own path, while still being true to your roots. It’s a full sensory experience.

The Lady’s Guide to Death and Deception by Katherine Cowley | Book Review

March 12, 2023 / Monique

My venn diagram of reading is spy novel meets literature. So I’m glad that ages ago at a marketing conference Scott Cowley mentioned his wife Katherine Cowley was writing Jane Austen spinoffs. I have read and loved all 3 books in the series (review #1, review #2).

In Jane Austen novels, Mary is the underestimated, often overlooked character, which makes her the perfect inspiration. In Katherine Cowley’s series, Mary Bennet is living a secret life as a spy for Britain.

The Lady’s Guide to Death and Deception is set in Brussels. Napoleon Bonaparte has escaped from the Isle of Elba, and England with the Allied forces are preparing for war. Mary’s spy work has her in multiple disguises, befriending strangers, kissing men (oh the impropriety, it’s 1815), and learning the French waltz. It’s a fun and witty historical novel, influenced by Austen.

So Misguided