Man Booker Prize 2015

Fall is the season of literary contests.  Bring it on!!!

      Man Booker        Giller       Canada Reads

The longlist for the Man Booker prize has been announced.

The shortlist will be announced on September 15.

The winner will be announced on October 13 in Guildhall, London and broadcast by the BBC.

Here is the "Man Booker Dozen":

Bill Clegg (US) - Did You Ever Have a Family            

Anne Enright (Ireland) - The Green Road 

Marlon James (Jamaica) - A Brief History of Seven Killings

Laila Lalami (US) - The Moor's Account 

Tom McCarthy (UK) - Satin Island 

Chigozie Obioma (Nigeria) - The Fishermen 

Andrew O’Hagan (UK) - The Illuminations 

Marilynne Robinson (US) - Lila            

Anuradha Roy (India) - Sleeping on Jupiter 

Sunjeev Sahota (UK) - The Year of the Runaways 

Anna Smaill (New Zealand) - The Chimes 

Anne Tyler (US) - A Spool of Blue Thread 

Hanya Yanagihara (US) - A Little Life 

There are no Canadians on the list this year.  But in the past we have had winners:

  Alice Munro in 2009,  Margaret Atwood in 2000,  and Michael Ondaatje in 1992.

Authors on the shortlist win 2,500 pounds.

The winner receives 50,000 pounds.

Rene Denfeld: "The Enchanted"

Rene Denfeld

   This mother of three young children, lives in Portland, Oregon. She is a death penalty investigator who works with prisoners facing execution.  She had only written non-fiction, but wanted to write a novel that would capture the truth of prisons.  She certainly accomplished that.
   Actually, I was 'enchanted' by the cover of this book.  I am totally fascinated by covers and on a recent trip to Indigo, this book jumped out at me.  Also, it was labelled "Indigo Spotlight: an outstanding new read".   I knew it was a book about prison life, but two things surprised me.  The writing is spectacular!  I was carried away by the lyrical quality of her writing.  That was definitely 'enchanting'.  The second surprise was the brutal honesty about prison life.  So the juxtaposition of that beauty on the horrific facts, made it a rare novel. 
  The story is told by one of the prisoners, but 'the lady' is a main character.  She is not named but has the same job as the author.
"The lady hasn't lost it yet- the sound of freedom.  When she laughs, you can hear the wind in the trees and the splash of water hitting pavement.  You can sense the gentle caress of rain on your face and how laughter sounds in the open air, all the things those of us in this dungeon can never feel."
   Beautiful writing: "The library became my sanctuary.  I loved the ways the precious stories took shape but always had room to be read again.  After a time it seemed that the world inside the books became my world".
  "My soul left me when I was six.  It flew away past a flapping curtain over a window.  I ran after it, but it never came back.  It left me alone on wet stinking mattresses.  It left me alone in the choking dark.  It took my tongue, my heart, and my mind."

I think I can compare it to "All Quiet on the Western Front". An honest look at the grim realities of life.

"The Headmaster's Wife" by Thomas Christopher Greene

   This book reminded me of "The Life of Pi".  There are two stories. Which one do you believe?
   The novel is in three sections.  The first section told about a headmaster who is found naked in the park.  He tells police about his obsession with a young female student, "Betsy".  Shades of "Lolita". Creepy!
   In the second section, "Betsy" is his wife and it tells of their life together.  Quite a different story.
   The "Amazon" review had this to say:
"Luminous and atmospheric, bringing to life the tight-knit enclave of a quintessential New England boarding school, the novel is part mystery, part love story and an exploration of the ties of place and family.  Beautifully written and compulsively readable, The Headmaster's Wife stands as a moving elegy to the power of love as an antidote to grief".

  I would love to be able to write like that, but honestly, I think I read a different book!  I did not see a 'love story' so I don't understand the 'elegy to the power of love'.
  The novel does deal with grief, but love?
Actually, sex, yes.
  And that creeped me out, because the author said that he got the ideas for this book while he was spending hours at the bedside of a sick baby that did not survive.
  Also, he was a headmaster.
  I have read that this is a 'literary thriller' or a 'psychological novel'.
  Many people loved this book.  I thought it was about madness and despair coming from grief, and I could have done without the 'lasciviousness'.  

Anita Shreve

I was introduced to Anita Shreve when Oprah chose her novel "The Pilot's Wife" for her book club back in 2001.

"The Pilot's Wife" was a fine novel.  I read it in a day.  Simple story, simple sentences about infidelity and the question, "Do you ever really know anyone?"

I followed that novel with "The Last Time They Met".  Didn't really enjoy it much.  The theme is reuniting with a lost love.

"Where or When" is another book about reuniting with a lost love and infidelity.  Not really satisfying.

And now "Light on Snow".  I read the first three books in 2001 and was given this book recently in a pile of give-aways.  Figured that I would try it out.  Knew it would be a quick read.  Was reminded that her books are not really satisfying to me. This book had the possibility of being better.  A man who had lost his wife and baby daughter in a car accident is thrown into contact with a woman whose boyfriend put their newborn baby out to die in the snow.  Yes, rather far-fetched but the contact could have been healing for the dad.  Well, I guess it was, but the characters were so weak.  And the writing left much to be desired.

Quick reads, quick blog!

Happy Reading!

Michael Crummey

Michael Crummy is a 'good old Newfoundland boy'.  He knows the countryside intimately.
Isn't this a great picture of him?
My biggest problem with Michael's books is the photography on the cover.  So I was happy to find a good picture of Michael. 

This is the cover of his new book "Sweetland".  Yuck!  But let's ignore that because the novel has much to say.
"Sweetland" is not only the name of the character, but also the name of the small island off the southern coast of Newfoundland.

   Moses Sweetland, the protagonist, is symbolic of all those who have left Newfoundland, often travelling to Ontario to find work.  But they always felt the pull to return and Moses finally did return.
He was a cod fisherman until the moratium ended that, then a lighthouse keeper until lighthouses were automated.
   Now, Moses is almost 70, and the government is trying to relocate the residents of this remote island.  They will pay them to move so that the government  will no longer have to provide essential services.
   However, the program only takes effect if everyone in the community agrees and Moses is the hold-out.  Threats are not working because Moses is so connected to the land.  Quote:  "It was as if he'd long ago been measured and made to the island's exact specifications."
  I thought this novel had great meaning. I read this:
"Moses is, in many ways, the personification of traditional Newfoundland, clinging to life in the face of unstoppable, constant change."

  There are interesting characters, little plot, but marvellous description of the land.  It seems to be a love story to Newfoundland.

Toni Morrison- "God Help the Child"

Toni Morrison is "the great American novelist", as the cover of Time magazine declares.  She is much loved and has received many awards, including the Pulitzer prize, Nobel Prize, and Presidential Medal of Freedom.
She has been an English professor as well as an author.
She can certainly write.  Her characters are very beautifully detailed.

This novel is very short and easy to read.
Bride is a dark-skinned girl whose light-skinned mother was cruel to her because of her skin colour. In order to get attention from her mother, Bride lied about sexual abuse as a child.
The theme of the book seems to be that childhood trauma shapes and changes people.  
Do we still need reminders of this?
Do we still need reminders of skin colour?
I don't have a great history with Toni's books.  I read "Paradise" twice, then saw the movie, but still didn't  understand what she was saying.
"Song of Solomon" was easier to understand.  A coming-of-age story with much inner turmoil, violence and confusion.
I think it is the constant violence- especially sexual, that I find unnerving.  I would like to read about a black family without the violence and sexual exploitation. But that is the Pollyanna coming out in me.
My friend, Terri, enjoyed this book more than I did.  She thought it was 'terrific' as many other readers did also.

"The Homesman" by Glendon Swarthout

   This book was recommended to me and sat on my 'reading pile' for awhile.  I picked it up twice and read a few pages, but then was pulled away by other books.
  Finally, I picked it up for the third time, and I was hooked!
  It is a dismal tale of the Old West and it took me three tries to adapt to 'the dismal'.
  The challenges of the long winters, amidst extreme poverty, cause some women to 'go mad'.  The travelling minister finds a way to deal with this situation.  In the spring, he searches for someone to escourt them back east.
  Mary Bee Cuddy was the character that attracted me and hooked me into the novel.  She had been a school teacher, who bought a homestead and set up on her own. A willful, strong, interesting woman.
  It is Mary Bee Cuddy who volunteers to escourt these ladies on this journey that lasted for weeks.  Mary was kind, thoughtful and loving to the pioneer women.  She had saved a reprobate, Briggs, from hanging and coerced him into accompanying this band of travellers.  This made for great adventures with an ice storm, sickness, Indians, and breakdown of the wagon.
   However, the author ruined the whole story with a twist that took all the light out of the story and returned the reader to 'dismal, depressing'.  From there, the story went quickly downhill.
  I am always disturbed when a book that has such promise, throws it away.

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Review from Amazon:  "Utilizing a classic western plot of a journey across rough land under perilous conditions, a mismatched pair of protagonists who'll remind many readers of those in "The African Queen", the author tells a sturdy if by now familiar tale.  Unfortunately, once the novel goes wrong, which it does with a bizarre, alienating plot twist about three-quarters of the way through, it never recovers."
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The book received 4.3 out of 5 stars on Amazon and many people loved it.  But I agree with this response:
"I was so disappointed about this book.  It starts focusing on a strong woman and shifts suddenly to focusing on the no-account man, while the woman goes crazy.  Why is this book popular?"

This author has written 16 Western novels- many have been made into movies.  He wrote "The Shootist" (John Wayne's last movie).  This book was made into a movie ( with Hilary Swank and Tommy Lee Jones) that also got a good review, and I read that the movie was very close to the book.
The book won the Western Writers of America's Spur Award as well as the Western Heritage Wrangler Award.  Who is on the panel of those awards?  Do they not care that 'good' lost?  And the drunken, fowl-mouthed, claim-jumper, killer,ended up dancing on a ferry as he shot at those on shore?  And, the last reminder of the kind-hearted woman (a headboard for her grave) slipped into the water unnoticed. 

In the republished book, the authors's son writes about the research that his father did for the book. 
 But it doesn't take research to know that people who invest their time in reading a book need and deserve a little light or hope at the end!

Little Free Library

While I was travelling, I discovered these free libraries in Duluth, Minnesota.
I certainly take books with me when I travel but they are library books, so I can't donate them.  
Because I am so active in book clubs, I  spend a lot of time reading the books for the book clubs and don't have as much time to read other books.  So this isn't very helpful for me, but I really love the idea and the structure of these little houses.

       
       Take a book
      Leave a book
       Love a book

Go Set A Watchman

Harper Lee

   I am not showing the cover of this book because I am sad that it was published.  Harper Lee never wanted publicity for herself and said that she would never publish another novel.   

   Even though she won the Pulitzer Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and other honorary degrees, she declined to speak publicly.

   Here is a quote from Harper Lee :" I was hoping for a quick and merciful death at the hands of the reviewers but, at the same time, I sort of hoped someone would like it enough to give me encouragement.  Public encouragement.  I hoped for a little, as I said, but I got rather a whole lot, and in some ways this was just about as frightening as the quick, merciful death I'd expected".

   Well, now she is getting a ton of publicity that I imagine she would hate!

   She wrote one book that she wanted to stand alone.  And it should have continued standing alone.  It was a masterpiece and the recent publication seems to have defamed it.  I am sad for Harper Lee.

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   So it is apparent that I was not ready to enjoy this book, but needed to see what the hype was about.

   I attempted to read it to my husband on a recent road trip around Lake Superior.

  One thing is clear- it is not a good readaloud!  Another thing is clear- I hated it!

   There were several times that whole paragraphs were given to sentence fragments.

  On other occasions, I stopped and said, "What is that about?"

  I will admit that, as Jean Louise was reminiscing about her childhood,I enjoyed a few of the anecdotes.

But the character of Jean Louise is arrogant, obnoxious, sanctimonious, cranky and completely unlikeable.
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The circumstances around this book are suspicious.  Harper Lee has had a stroke, and is partially blind and deaf, wheelchair-bound, living in an assisted living facility.  
Her sister, who was her agent, died last year.
I think it is wrong to publish this book!

"Mambo in Chinatown" by Jean Kwok

   When I enjoy a novel, I often search out other books by that author.  And I think that I expect the experience to be repeated.  Alas, it is not!
   It seems to me that first novels are often the best.  Perhaps the ideas for the novel have been percolating for years when that book finally gets written.  But then does the publisher give advances and deadlines?  Maybe the author only has the 'makings' of one good book- like Harper Lee ( I am reading that new controversial book next!)
   Because I loved "Girl in Translation",  I wanted to read Jean Kwok's new book.  There were some themes that were  similar to the first book, but I did not enjoy this book as much.
   Once again, it was about a family that had immigrated to the U.S. from China.  This time, the mother had died and the father was raising two daughters. Charlie, 22, had a lucky break when she got a job in a dance studio.  It was discovered that she had talent for dancing and she became  a dancing teacher and also entered a competition.  Most of the book described in detail the techniques of ballroom dancing.  It became tedious and lacking in plot.
  I still appreciated the conflict that Chinese immigrants feel, when they are in a new culture.  The older generation wants to continue Eastern traditions, but their children want to adapt to the American ways.  Because the younger sister, Lisa, 11, had severe physical problems, this book also includes a lot of Eastern medicine that was quite unusual.   Western medicine was feared and impossibly expensive.
  In some ways it was a Cinderella story.
  Not great, but still enjoyable.

"Girl in Translation" by Jean Kwok

   Wow!  I loved this book!  A great summer read!
   Kimberley Chang and her mother immigrated from Hong Kong to Brooklyn and lived in a very run-down building with no heat, but lots of bugs and rats.   Kim worked hard to learn the language but her mother was never able to conquer it.
   Kim tried to keep up her school work while helping her mother complete her quota of work in the garment factory.  What a struggle!
   Quote: "There's a Chinese saying that the fates are winds that blow through our lives from every angle, urging us along the paths of time.  Those who are strong-willed may fight the storm and possibly choose their own road, while the weak must go where they are blown."
   Well, Kim certainly was not going to be blown by the winds of fate.  She fought the storm, but found herself in a big dilemma as a teenager.  She was in love with a 'factory boy' whose ambition was to raise a family in Chinatown.  Kim had been accepted to Yale University and had a great vision for her life.  And, there was a socially- acceptable young man just waiting for Kim to marry him.  Who will she choose?
   Close to the end of the novel, you are left with her dilemma.  I actually was anxious about finishing the book.  I didn't know what she would choose.  The last 10 pages pick up her life 12 years later, and there is a surprise- and a lot of emotion!
   I had a little concern over the language.  The author interspersed bits of the Brooklyn accent, trying to show how difficult it was for Kim to not only learn English, but to also understand the Brooklyn accent. A little awkward.  But..
Great characters!  Great plot!  Great setting!  Great cover!  Loved it!
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Jean Kwok is the author and I discovered that much of the story is autobiographical.  She immigrated at 5 and experienced the poor housing and the horrible conditions of the garment factory.
She became a teacher and an author, living now in the Netherlands.
She has written another book: "Mambo in Chinatown".

Family Camping

Nana and Papa with 10 grandchildren

   We have just returned from our annual family pow-wow.  It is the eighteenth year, and we are posed here with our grandchildren.  Some of them were not born when we began this yearly endeavour.
   Whenever I see the grandchildren, they want to tell me about what they are reading- or do I force that on them???

Matthew

Matthew, 13, is the youngest and is always reading.  He has finished one of the two books that are required summer reading- "The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck.  This is one of my favourite books, and I was so excited to discuss it with him.  Alas, it was not to his taste.  Perhaps the age difference?  You think?  He loved "The Hunger Games".

David

David is 20, and has always been interested in philosophy.  Last year, he was reading Carl Sagan.  This year he is reading "Meditations" by Marcus Aurelius (180 A.D.)  This quote is suitable for our family gathering: "Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart".

Keshia is reading "Revealed".  It is the 11th and final book in the House of Night series, written by a mother and daughter: P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast.
It is a very popular vampire series and Keshia has loved following the series.  She enjoys relaxing with these books when she comes home from her office job.

Ellen is 16 and always has her reading list available for the next school year.  Going into grade 12, the compulsory book is "Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity" written by 2 journalists, with stories of the developing world and developing the potential of all women.  Well, Ellen has lots of potential and will find that book interesting.
She is considering Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers" for the optional book.  

Hunter has just finished his first year of engineering at the University of British Columbia.  He belongs to an engineering design team working on electric cars.
He is fascinated with the biography of the founder of Tesla Motors- Elon Musk. Hunter is passionate about what he is reading, but, alas, I barely understood anything he said.  His interests in green technology and space travel surpass my understanding, but I love his passion.

Erika has also finished her first year of university, but has the travel bug.  She will be spending 3 weeks in Denmark this summer.  She has read about Hans Christian Andersen and brushed up on his fairy tales.  Now she is reading general information about the country. 

And then there is Alden.  He enjoys reading, but is constantly writing.  He has a great imagination and a passion for writing. He is presently working on a dystopian novel. He sends me installments and asks for my opinion.  He is going into grade twelve and has been writing for at least five years.  He wants to complete a novel this summer.

The other young 'uns were busy playing soccer- no time to talk about books.

author-Jeff Shaara

    My husband, John, has a great interest in the Civil War and he has discovered the world of "Jeff Shaara". 

    John had read all the books that he could find in the library.  Then, last week, he discovered that a new book had just been published.    So you can imagine his surprise when, early one morning, a parcel arrived for him from Jeff Shaara.  It contained the last four books about the Civil War- including the recently published copy!  And they were autographed and inscribed!

  If you believe in re-incarnation, you might believe that John was there and witnessed (or planned?) the whole war.  He knows each leader by name and has read many books on this subject.  We have also visited many of the sites.
   Although John had already read three of the four books in the package, he will no doubt be reading them many more times.  And that is why the large print will probably be needed.

These wonderful books are taking up residence right beside John's all-time favourite author, Tolkien.  You will notice that one of the Tolkien books is missing.  John has loaned it to a grandson.

The books were a 55th anniversary present.

"The Casual Vacancy" by J.K. Rowling

   This is the first choice of book for a new book club starting in a branch of our library system.  I am anxious to support the new group and I was interested in what Rowling is writing for adults.  So I jumped into this long book.

   The Casual Vacancy takes place in Pagford, England, where a parish councilman Barry Fairbrother dies of an aneurysm, leaving an opening on the council, at a  time when the council is trying to get rid of "The Fields", a neighbourhood of undesirables. The whole town is involved in great controversy about filling Barry's place on the council.
   After I finished reading this book, I read many reviews online to see what other readers thought.  It seems that there is a great variety of opinions.  Here is one:  "This book is a spot-on, scathing evisceration of smalltown politics, social goings-on, and society in general."
   There are many people who loved this book and thought it was great literature, but I was not one of them.  As the heading on my blog says, I always have an opinion and it isn't always the popular opinion.  So these were the problems that I had with the book.

1.) There were too many characters.  And not one of those characters was likeable. I enjoy a variety of characters- the good and the bad, but there was not one person whose motives were good.  And the language, oh, the language!
2.) The topics of this book are domestic violence, rape, drug use, mental illness, infidelity, teenage sex.  Not only were the teenagers out of control, but nearly all the parents were self-centered, abusive and cruel.
3.) There were long sections that were in parenthesis- sometimes a few pages. At times, this happened in the middle of a conversation and it was confusing.
4.) The main plot, to fill a vacancy on the council, seemed very boring.
5.) This novel seems to be the antithesis of the Harry Potter series. It paints a world without magic, without a hero, without hope.
  I am aware that this type of book depresses me- complete dysfunction! There are books like this that focus on teenagers, such as "Catcher in the Rye".  But this book I would compare to "The Slap", because there are many adults in this book who hate everyone and live to irritate them.  It is one l-o-n-g Jerry Springer show!

And soon I will attend the book club and try to open my mind to what others saw in the novel.
    

Amnesty International Book Club

   I attended the first meeting of the Amnesty International Book club.  I was not sure what to expect, but I was familiar with the first book selection. "Indian Horse" may be the best book that I have ever read.  It is not the book that I enjoyed the most, because there is great pain in the novel, but the writing is superb!

What is Amnesty International?

Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 7 million people in over 150 countries and territories who campaign to end abuses of human rights.
"We campaign for a world where human rights are enjoyed by all".

Amnesty International choses the books and provides a discussion guide.  Then there is a suggested action that targets the type of situation that the book addresses.

Author Nino Ricci introduces the Amnesty International Book Club  here.   Check the video.

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How did I feel about the book club?
I am delighted to see a variety of book clubs.
This book club is led by an employee of the library and she is an excellent leader!
I find the subjects of these books to be very emotional and I won't be able to join every meeting. For instance, the next meeting is about 'torture'.  I will skip that book and that meeting.  But I have a list of the books they are planning to read and I will join them when I feel it will not be overwhelmingly emotional.
Thank you "Ideas Unlimited" for the variety of book clubs!

Book Clubs

  Book clubs are my delight!   Since my retirement, I have been involved in three or four book clubs a month. I have felt strongly that every branch of the library should sponsor at least one book club.
  Until 2 years ago, there were none in our library system.  I had spoken to everyone who would listen from the C.E.O. of the library to regular employees.  Perhaps that finally had an affect, perhaps it was the new C.E.O., perhaps it was the new focus of "Ideas Unlimited", but there are now 6 book clubs.  And the library is showing its creativity in the variety of styles for those groups.

Preston Library book club

  Two years ago, we started this book club to run in a traditional way.  Each month we all read the same book and discuss all aspects of the book using the questions posed by the leader.  It is a great group that attracts new people.  Another branch of the library system is planning its first meeting in July, with the book "The Casual Vacancy" by J.K. Rowlings.  I expect it will follow the same method and I will be at the first meeting to cheer them on!

  Two years ago, the main branch started an un-book club.  This group rotates among local restaurants and pubs where they discuss books in general as well as films or any other topic of interest.  This group is doing well and attracting younger people.

  Two more book clubs are in the planning stage- one on a food theme and the other will be B.Y.O.B.-

that's right- bring your own baby!  I love this idea and hope that it will attract many young mothers who can share their love of reading without worrying about a babysitter.
   The 6th book club has already started and I have attended the first meeting.  I will write about it in my next blog.
   Happy reading!

Public libraries

What is the role of public libraries in 2015?

That is the question!

   It is very apparent that our local public library system has redefined its role in the community.  The role of public libraries in the past was very clear- to encourage the love of reading and provide resources for research.

Andrew Carnegie

Melville Dewey

   When I think of the early days of libraries, I think of Andrew Carnegie and Melville Dewey.

   Carnegie (1835-1919) was an avid reader, who made his money in steel.  At 65, he sold his businesses and became a philanthropist.  He supported many interests but he is remembered for donating 5 million dollars to the New York Public Library.  His money has opened more that 2,800 libraries.
   Dewey (1851-1931) was a librarian who was immensely influential in organizing libraries, by establishing the Dewey Decimal System.  This system of organizing books has really opened up the field of research and made it so easy to narrow in on your area of interest and find the information you need. 

   Well, times have changed!  We have e-readers, and Google.  What more do we need in order to read and research?  So the libraries are changing their focus.  In fact, our library has changed its name.  It is now "Ideas Unlimited". 
   This month, there is gardening, knitting, gaming, rock band instruments, and a painting competition, to name a few activities.  There certainly are 'ideas unlimited'.  And there have been very creative ways to attract the youth.  The building seems to be taking on the role of a community centre.  Sometimes it seems to be a free internet cafe- or just a place to hang out. 
   The library has purchased another large building downtown, where I am told, the focus will be on technology.  The 'big thing' will be 3D printers.

  Will reading and learning still take place in "Ideas Unlimited"?  Well, the face of learning has changed.  It has certainly expanded. Those of us who remember the influences of Carnegie and Dewey would still like to see a focus on reading and learning.
   For this reason, for the past ten years, I have been promoting the idea of a book club in every branch of the library.  Three years ago, I was delighted to be involved in starting a book club at my local branch.  And this year, I am ecstatic to see that there are now five book clubs in our library system.  
  "Ideas Unlimited" has certainly attempted to keep up with the times.  Let's not forget the focus of the past and keep the emphasis on reading and learning!

       I am interested in other thoughts on the role of the public library in 2015.

book to movie

   "Far From the Madding Crowd" is my favourite classic novel.  I have read it several times.  I love the language, I love the plot and I love the setting!
I did not love the movie.
  When you have read the book, you have a very clear picture of the characters. And that was one of my problems.  Right at the beginning, I said, "That is not Gabriel Oak!"   Gabriel Oak is one of my favourite fictional characters and this actor did not seem right for the part.  Nor did I like the casting for Bathsheba.
  But my greatest disappointment was the photography. I was looking forward to beautiful sweeping vistas of the English countryside, and there were a few.  But much of the movie was dark, with way too many closeups- the side of a face, the hands.  Even though I knew the story, I was often wondering what was happening.  There was little dialogue- lots of emoting.
  A big disappointment.
  I discovered that "Far From the Madding Crowd" had been made into a movie in 1967 with Julie Christie, Peter Finch, Alan Bates, and Terence Stamp.  It was a longer movie- 3 hours.  I think I would like Julie Christie playing the role of Bathsheba.
  The basis of the story is that Bathsheba Everdene, a very willful woman, inherits a farm and is romantically pursued by three very different men.  Tragically, she falls for the one who is arrogant, showy and conniving.
  Gabriel Oak, the patient, virtuous man, doesn't allow her to fall into his waiting arms, when her life falls apart.  He is the man that she really had desired- a man who would stand up to her.  And that he does. Such a great love story.  But not a good movie.

"Mercy Train"

   "Mercy Train" was originally written under the title "Mothers and Daughters".  It is another book that sheds light on the orphan trains.
  There are three generations of women, three storylines.  I was most interested in the story of the grandmother because she experienced the orphan train.
   The distribution of the orphans shocked me.  At one stop, the orphans were taken to the opera house:  "When the curtains swept apart, all Violet could see were eyes shining back at her, reflecting the electric lights of the windowless opera house.  The floor had been cleared of chairs, and curious sightseers and potential applicants milled about, gawking at the children, waving, smiling.  Some of the little ones waved back.  Violet didn't know what to do with her hands or where to look, if she should seek out a friendly face or if she should wait to be noticed."
  Violet was not chosen at that stop and, at the next stop, she got into trouble.  The children stood in the centre of the room, while viewers circled around them.  Violet was approached by a man who asked her to open her mouth.  He said that he wanted to make sure that she wasn't 'sickly', because he had a farm to run.  She ignored him and, when he put his finger in her mouth, she clamped down on it with her teeth.  She didn't get picked up at that stop either.

   There was also some description of the children living on the streets of New York and a mention of the poor house, or almshouse, where parents were put, but their children could not go with them.  So not all children living on the streets were 'orphans'.
 These stories are fiction but certainly there are many heart-breaking true stories.

  The title "Mothers and Daughters" does seem suitable for the book because there are some interesting thoughts on motherhood:
"Motherhood was its own universe with its own nonlinear time line, its own indefinable pain and reward."
"She wondered if on some level all mothers were ciphers to their children.  She wondered if having children was a way to try and understand one's own mother, to bridge the unknowability."
  My favourite quote was from Samantha, the granddaughter in this story, when she gave birth to her first child: "Samantha felt in her euphoria, that she had stepped into the continuous stream of history and humanity from which she hadn't even known she'd been excluded".

  Although I enjoyed some of the language in this book and was, once again, fascinated by the orphan train story, I wasn't thrilled with the book as a whole.  The chapters alternated the three stories and the title of each chapter told who you were reading about.  However, within each chapter, the author moved around in time from one paragraph to another.  It was difficult to put together each story because it was told in bits and pieces.

I think I am finished with orphan stories for now.  On to something different...