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Book Club Day: The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philipp Sendker

February 1, 2012 Leave a Comment

Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philip Sendker

From Left to Write book club members took an armchair trip to Burma (now known as Myanmar) thanks to Jan-Philipp Sendker’s novel,  The Art of Hearing Heartbeats.  Against the wishes of her mother, Julia drops everything and travels to Burma to look for her missing father, a prominent lawyer.

She discovers more than she bargains for on her journey, just as our book club members did when they read  The Art of Hearing Heartbeats.

Has reading all those stories given you wanderlust? Pull up a chair and read a beautiful love story between a blind boy and club-footed girl-all while traveling to Asia. Grab your copy of The Art of Hearing Heartbeats (Other Press). Follow the Jan-Philipp Sendker’s site for some beautiful photos of Burma and its people.
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Book Review: It’s A Waverly Life

January 27, 2012 Leave a Comment
It's a Waverly Life by Maria Murnane

 

It's a Waverly Life by Maria Murnane

During the luncheon at the Massachusetts Conference for Women, I had the pleasure of sitting next to Maria Murnane. After the usual introductions, I learned that Maria recently released It’s a Waverly Life (Amazon Encore). After listening to Maria describe her books, I had to read it.

The second in a series, It’s a Waverly Life is about, of course, Waverly. Waverly is still recovering from a back break-up. Her fiance’ dumped her weeks before their wedding, which I assume is documented in the first book, Perfect on Paper: The (Mis)Adventures of Waverly Bryson.  In the second book, Waverly has started a new career as a love advice columnist and even has a new man in her life. Still traumatized by her break-up, she pulls away from her new beau when she should be opening up to him. How can a heartbroken Waverly write a love advice column when her relationships are rocky?

First of all, though It’s a Waverly Life is the second book about Waverly, I didn’t feel like I missed anything because I didn’t the first book. At first Waverly got on my nerves. She seemed a bit neurotic and, well, whiny. The scenes with Waverly and her best friends, Andie and McKenna, sold me. I enjoyed their camaraderie and their loyalty to each other. They had fun together. As Waverly, with the help of her friends, chased after her new beau, I rooted for her.

Fun is a great word for this book. The past couple of weeks was full of deadlines for me, and diving into It’s a Waverly Life was a great escape for me. I needed a world where I didn’t have to worry about my responsibilities, but rather those of someone else. Waverly’s life seemed a bit more fun and exciting that my current happenings.

The story line is fairly predictable, but that’s not what the book is about. When the heroine chases after her love, you want  her to catch him. It’s her journey that makes the story enjoyable.

To read the first chapter from the book, visit Maria’s website.

I received a copy of the book for review. Thanks Amazon Encore!  This post contains affiliate links.

Filed Under: Novels, Reviews, Thien-Kim Tagged With: , ,

Book Review: The Night Circus

January 25, 2012 Leave a Comment
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Every now and then a book comes out (ok, perhaps a bit more frequently than that) that I absolutely cannot wait to read.  Erin Morgenstern’s debut novel The Night Circus is one such book.  I patiently waited for my library to get a copy, came thisclose to buying it as soon as I got my Nook Color (because it just wasn’t coming to my library as fast as I wanted), and almost stole it off of my brother’s nightstand during a holiday visit.  I kept waiting, though, and finally the wait paid off.  I read the book from cover to cover in a day, and then made my husband sit down and do the same thing.

Below is a brief synopsis of the book, from Chris Schluep of Amazon.com (written when the book received the honor of being on the Amazon Best Books of the Month for September 2011):

Erin Morgenstern’s dark, enchanting debut takes us to the black and white tents of Le Cirque des Reves, a circus that arrives without warning, simply appearing when yesterday it was not there. Young Celia and Marco have been cast into a rivalry at The Night Circus, one arranged long ago by powers they do not fully understand. Over time, their lives become more intricately enmeshed in a dance of love, joy, deceit, heartbreak, and magic. Author Morgenstern knows her world inside and out, and she guides the reader with a confident hand. The setting and tone are never less than mesmerizing. The characters are well-realized and memorable. But it is the Night Circus itself that might be the most memorable of all.

Morgenstern’s novel is visually mesmerizing; the book’s mood is resolutely dream-like.  I can’t think of another book that compares to this one.  It is written as a series of vignettes in various times and places that connect events surrounding the circus.  Each piece of the puzzle reveals a bit more about the characters and the game.  Fans of the cancelled HBO series Carnivale, and Christopher Nolan’s movies Inception and The Prestige will absolutely love this book.

The world created within the pages of this novel is absolutely engrossing.  I find myself thinking about it all the time, almost two weeks after I finished it.  I asked my husband if he did as well – to my delight he feels the same way.  I always love it when he loves a book I recommend!

Returning this book to the library actually made me sad – I didn’t want to give it back.  I want it to be a part of my collection so I can return to the circus whenever I choose.  I’m pretty sure I’ll be getting this one for my Nook Color in the next few weeks; I don’t know how long I can go without it!

Filed Under: Novels, Taylor Tagged With: ,

February Book Club: The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philip Sendker

January 23, 2012 Leave a Comment
Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philip Sendker

Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philip Sendker

We’re excited to announce our book club selection for February. Jan-Philip Sendker’s The Art of Hearing Heartbeats is a beautifully written story about a girl in search of her father, but discovers much more.

Grab your favorite chair, as Sendker’s novel will take you to the exotic country of Myanmar (formerly known as Burma):

 A poignant and inspirational love story set in Burma, The Art of Hearing Heartbeats spans the decades between the 1950s and the present. When a successful New York lawyer suddenly disappears without a trace, neither his wife nor his daughter Julia has any idea where he might be…until they find a love letter he wrote many years ago, to a Burmese woman they have never heard of. Intent on solving the mystery and coming to terms with her father’s past, Julia decides to travel to the village where the woman lived. There she uncovers a tale of unimaginable hardship, resilience, and passion that will reaffirm the reader’s belief in the power of love to move mountains.

Join us on February 1st as From Left to Write book club members discuss The Art of Hearing Heartbeats (The Other Press). The book will be released January 31. You’ll want to go ahead and pre-order your copy today. It’s that good!

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The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta (Review)

January 13, 2012 Leave a Comment

The Leftovers by Tom PerrottaI first heard about The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta from Gayle’s review on Everyday I Write the Book. While Gayle is a fan of Perrotta’s novels, he’s new to me. I was drawn into the  premise of the book.

In a Rapture-like event, people around the world just vanished into thin air. No one knows where they went or how they disappeared. Instead of dwelling on the disappearance, Perrotta focuses on the people who were left behind.  The people who are left after the Sudden Departure try to cope with the disappearance of their friends, family, and neighbors. Laurie cannot deal with her normal life, so joins a cult-like organization. Her husband, who wants to help everyone move on, becomes mayor in hopes of helping the town recover. Their son quits college to follow a prophet while their once straight A-student teenage daughter struggles in school.

The most compelling character for me is Nora, who went into the kitchen to grab something and returned to the dinner to find her husband and children gone. Her grief is still palpable but she tries to move on. She even attempts to date. I think the reason I’m drawn to Nora is that we’re both mothers of young children.

Perrotta weaves his characters beautifully.  He delved into their strengths, their flaws, their dreams (or lack of)–even the characters  wanted to hate. I couldn’t hate them. I worried about them. I wanted them to happy. I don’t normally feel that way after most books. He gives us insight on how we may react in time of tragedy and grief.

The Leftovers may be my first book by Tom Perrotta, but it certainly won’t be my last.

I borrowed my copy from the library. This post contains affiliate links.

Filed Under: Novels, Reviews, Thien-Kim, Uncategorized

The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka (Review)

January 9, 2012 3 Comments

The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka

Over winter break I finished Julie Otsuka’s  The Buddha in the Attic. I don’t read a lot of contemporary Asian-American novels because I get tired of the Asian-American coming of age story. I picked up this book because it was historical fiction. Based on the experience of Japanese women who immigrated to the United States, Otsuka recounts their story from traveling on boat across the Pacific, to meeting their husbands for the first time, to working in the fields or white folks’ homes to their internment during World War II.

As much as I enjoyed the women’s lives that Otsuka portrayed, I was frustrated by her format. There was no specific narrator or point of view. Many of the chapters are written in a collective voice, as if one person was channeling all of these Japanese women. I wanted to know the specific lives of a just a few women, maybe one who became a migrant farmers with her husband, or the one who became a maid for some rich white folks or even those who settled in the Japanese district of what I assume was San Francisco.

About halfway through, I got used to the collective voice and the collective experiences. I could feel the women’s fear as Otsuka described the changing attitude during WWII towards the Japanese immigrants and their first generation Japanese-American children. As the families attempted to become model citizens as to not draw attention to themselves, it reminded me of my parents’ admonishment to not cause any trouble in school.

The chapter that surprised me most was what happened after the Japanese families were sent away. The town actually missed the families. They realized how much they relied on the Japanese. But soon, like anything, they forgot the Japanese families even lived in their town as other minorities stepped into their vacant jobs and positions.

I think that  The Buddha in the Attic is an important read for all Americans, not just us Asian ones. When I was in high school, our United States history textbook made no mention of the Japanese “relocation” during World War II. Even today, some people still believe it was justified.

 

Filed Under: eBooks, Novels, Reviews, Thien-Kim Tagged With: , , ,

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