The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

I wish I had read this book sooner!  It wasn’t really what I expected…it was so much more.

The story begins as a mystery.  We do not know the significance of the crosses on the hill and we discover a dead man in a boat with a crying baby.  The immediate response is to take action, which is what Tom and Isabel do.  What starts to take flight in the beginning is the two different reactions by the two main characters of the book.  Tom is the rule follower and is quick to make decisions and to take action in the “right” direction.  However, Isabel is in a state of depression and desperation which makes her decision making more skewed and in the “wrong” direction.

But if you view it from Isabel’s perspective, is it an “answer from God” in response to the miscarriages?  Or is it a coincidence?  Do you view it as an act of faith or as a lucky coincidence?  Isabel is clearly in a state of despair and will do anything and justify anything in order to satisfy he need to be a mother.  She clearly manipulates her husbands need to please her and his guilt for having taken her to Janus, as well as his guilt of not being able to save her from the miscarriages.  His guilt is his weakness.  Her despair is hers.

But at the root of these two people is their undying love.  They reiterate their vows throughout the story “from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part.”  This book was so heartbreaking because you felt so badly for Isabel and Tom’s loss but on the other side, you feel for Hannah and the losses she has.  However, one person could be happy again through the same vehicle that would deny Isabel and Tom their happiness.

This story hit on all aspects of love and its durability and undying hope for happiness.  It was heartbreaking as a reader to feel the angst of loss with all of these characters.  I felt happy for Isabel and Tom for finding the answer to their lost babies and I felt terrible that Hannah was taking away their daughter.  It was a strange emotion to have.  It was an unexpected side to take.

This was a beautifully told story with a landscape to match.  All that Janus embodies with its beauty, isolation, tragedy and pleasantries, is the perfect background for the ebbs and flows of this emotional story.

How far would you go for your true love?  Would you lie, cheat and steal?

Whose side did you take in this story?

Were you angry with Tom for letting Isabel convince him to keep the baby?  Or were you angry at Isabel for being manipulative and knowing Tom would do anything for her?

Did you feel that Tome betrayed Isabel with the letters to Hannah?  Should he have done more or less?

Did you think that Isabel would choose Lucy or Tom in the end?  Were you surprised by her choice?

What did you think of the ending?

What role do you think Janus played in the story?  Would the same situation have been able to happen if they had been on land the entire time?

Lies That Chelsea Handler Told Me by Chelsea’s Family, Friends and Other Victims

So after reading two other Chelsea Handler books (Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea and My Horizontal Life), I fell in love with this sarcastic and crazy, funny blond with attitude.  I thought this book might give some insight as to why she is so funny and why people are drawn to her.  After reading this, I am wondering why any of these people continue to be her friend!

I was so turned off by this book that I only got ¾ of the way through it and gave up.  I never found the redeeming person that they swear she is.  I never found the ridiculously funny lady I met in the other books!  I know that this is supposed to be a bit of a roast but I still didn’t find any humor in the situations they discussed.  And, I was seriously wondering why I even picked up this book.  I’m beginning to feel like a bit of a “bad book picker” with this one.

Maybe I wasn’t in the mood for a comedy…even after all the tragedies we’ve been reading lately.  I just was not feeling the humor in this book.  I always liked Chelsea Handler and this book made her seem like a total jerk!  I’m going to pretend I didn’t read this and continue my love for her.

What did you think about this?

How did it rate in comparison with other CH books you’ve read?

What were the redeeming qualities of the book and main subject?

What did you hate/dislike about this book and its many stories?

How did you feel about CH before reading this book?  How do you feel about her now?

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Well worth the wait!  I have been salivating over this book for months as it sat in my queue of Upcoming Books.  From the moment I read the first sentence, I was captivated.  It was hard to put down and it only took me two days to read!

A good suspense novel is always my Kryptonite.  This book had so much suspense built up from the beginning.  Just the description of the pile of clothing next to the train tracks was intriguing.  But, the most intriguing was Rachel’s people watching from the train and the fact that she has made up an imaginary world about the people she sees every day.  I think about all of the times I watch people in public places and make up stories about them.  It’s such a day-dreamy thing to do and can be innocent but this book takes it to another level.

Usually when I read a book for book club, I mark pages that have great quotes.  This book took me until well past the middle of the book to start making notes.  And with good reason, I didn’t know I was waiting for Tom to be discovered.  There are three quotes that, to me, make this book and send chills up my spine.

The first quote by Tom is simple: “I’m a good liar (page 237).”  He actually says it a few times throughout the book but this recollection by Rachel of him saying this over and over again is chilling.  Little did we know that everything about him is a lie and that Rachel’s life is all based on his lies.  All of her memories and her current life is based on the lies he fed her and basically drove her to being an alcoholic.

This leads to Tom’s second chilling quote: “You were blind drunk, Rachel (page 257).”  By “blind drunk”, he must mean that she blacked out and had no recollection of her actions while inebriated.  But what he doesn’t say is that her recollections have been fed to her by him and they are all based on a lie.  I think that this is how he got her out of his life by making her feel guilty for being abusive and being a terrible wife (all based on a lie).

The pivotal quote and the beginning of Tom’s demise has to be “I loved you both, I really did, but you can both be incredibly weak (page 293).”  Everyone knows what happens when a man disrespects us like this…yup, death!  I think as soon as he insulted Anna, he sealed his fate.  Anna was not going to be clumped into a group with Rachel and seen as a weak person.  Anna knew she had been duped and she would not stand to be manipulated by Tom, or anyone else for that matter.  Her ally became Rachel but only as a means to an end.

I do have to admit that it wasn’t as good as Gone Girl for suspense and details but very read-worthy and got my head racing nonetheless.

Here are some questions to my readers:

Who was your first guess on who killed Megan?  The husband?  Rachel?

When did you figure out it was Tom or were you surprised until the end?

What did you think of the characters in this book?  Are they all tragic?  Are they all flawed?  How?

Do you people-watch and do you create “lives” for strangers?

Did you like this book?  Was it what you anticipated?

What was your opinion of Rachel?  Did you sympathize with her or dislike her?  Did your opinion change?

What did you think of the ending?  Was it warranted or would you have chosen a different outcome?

I was so excited about starting this book that I totally forgot to let you know what I was reading in September!  I am reading The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins!

I have been looking forward to this amazing book for so long and its finally made it to my nightstand!  I will admit that I have already started it and, if you loved Gone Girl, this is along those suspenseful lines.

So intense and so intriguing…I hope you’ll read it with me!  Hope your Labor Day plans include a good book!

The Aviator’s Wife by Melanie Benjamin

This book, as explained in the Author’s Note, is based on Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s diaries and letters with little variation or fiction added.  With that being said, I had so many feelings about Anne throughout the book, throughout all of her life events and choices.  What I loved about all of these strong feelings towards her, was that I realized what a “real” person she was.  I also had to learn to understand that the era in which she lived, expectations for women were so different and she defied most things that were expected of her.  For all the times I felt that she was weak, she came back with a stronger moment.  “Charles was asked…about the technical difficulties of the challenging flight.  I was asked…how I intended to set up housekeeping in a plane (Page 160).”  How would I feel if I had done the exact same work and was being asked domestic questions versus professional ones?  I am such an outspoken person that I’m not sure that I would be able to hold back and not do a little boasting since no one else was doing it for me.  Anne had every right to demand her own attention but due to the decade, the role of women and her self-worth, I think she missed her opportunity to be greater than Amelia Earhart!

I am tempted to say that because of the era in which she lived, Anne was always flanked by the double standard of being a woman versus being a man.  I am so angry that people of that time couldn’t realize how heroic she was being.  She was putting her life in danger too.  We fail to understand how primitive flying was in the 20s and 30s.  Her contribution to aviation was just as important and just as astounding.  But just like society, even Anne was guilty of demeaning her accomplishments. “An eager young wife who had been shaped, just like every other eager young wife of my generation, by her husband, but I was a wife who had wanted to be shaped, had willingly put herself in his hands and demanded he make her over in his superior image (Page 283).”  She wasn’t looking for her limelight, she was content to live in his shadow.

One of the constant images in this book is that of the Paparazzi.  Charles Lindbergh is barraged by photographers everywhere he goes and once he marries Anne, she becomes part of the circus as well.  But the biggest tragedy from this enormous celebrity, is the death of their son.  The book does take a majority of its pages to describe the crime and its result, and with good purpose.  It is the pivotal moment in her life, as well as in their marriage.  It is a confluence of several of their life choices: fame, celebrity, being untouchable, the Depression, and nomadic lifestyle.  With the fame, everyone wants a piece of them and you can see that by the intensity of photographers following their every move, with the map to their new home and looking for pictures of their first child.  Neither Charles nor Anne wanted to be famous but their hero status makes them “famous” and sought after public figures.  They suspect that the kidnapping of their child is based on two factors: 1. The Depression has made people take extreme measures for money and 2. Rich celebrities are prime targets for a ransom.  Plus, they are really the only celebrities of their time.  This imagery of no peace or privacy does give me a greater sense of empathy for the celebrities of our time.

On many occasions in this book, I found myself wondering if Charles and Anne ever truly loved one another.  Even in their courtship and engagement, there was little affection.  At their wedding Anne notes: “Two hearts, in such sympathy – there was no need for words, sentimental, silly, romantic…We were too special for that.  For ordinary words, spoken by ordinary couples (Page 87).”  It’s as if they were above it all…love and the earth.  I guess that being extraordinary means you don’t need everything else but I think they truly missed out on their lives because of their choice in spouses.

Another theme in this story is of betrayal.  Anne says that “Betrayal is more enormous than forgiveness (Page 90).”  The many betrayals that occur in this book are beyond enormous.  Anne betrays Charles when she asks the Colonel to go against Charles in the kidnapping investigation.  The Colonel even states that it would be difficult to go against your spouse and she simply says, “This is my child we’re talking about.  It was very easy (Page 208).”  He betrays her with infidelity, and she does as well.  They betray their marriage because they do not care for it or nurture it.

The theme of manipulation is prevalent as well.  “Colonel, you are in an enviable position.  You have no political standing, yet you are a world figure (Page 251).”  This is the manipulation of Charles by the Nazis that gives them the credibility as a powerful nation.  “I don’t mean to sound vulgar…But-so far no one has dared attack you…the baby’s bereaved mother, and so above reproach.  Which is why you are in the perfect position, really (Page 288).”  This is the manipulation of Anne by Charles to encourage the idea of treason of her country alongside him.

But, the greatest of themes in this book is that of self-discovery.  Anne’s self-discovery takes a lifetime but it does happen gradually.  She states that: “I wished I could claim my achievements with the pride of accomplishment, but I simply couldn’t (page 239-240).”  Over time and with the separation from Charles’ iron fist, Anne begins to realize the enormous importance of her own accomplishments.  Mostly, it becomes real to her as her children begin to uncover Anne’s history and undertakings.  Her daughter Reeve says “You were pretty brave then, I bet (Page338),” after discovering Anne’s pilots license.  Anne is forced to reflect upon herself and define herself.  “I was Mom. I was Wife.  I was Tragedy.  I was Pilot (Page 340).”

After reading this book and learning how much of it is based in reality, I can honestly say that my opinion of Charles Lindbergh has been changed.  I always considered him a true hero and a true explorer but I did not know anything about his personal life other than the fact that his son was kidnapped.  I can also honestly say that I knew absolutely nothing about Anne Morrow Lindbergh before reading this book and I am impressed, disappointed, proud, sad, happy…all the feels!  This was a truly great story about a resilient woman who was just as brave and heroic as any man of her day…including her husband!

What was your opinion of Charles Lindbergh prior to reading this book?  And after?

Why do you think the Lindbergh’s decided not to tell their living children about Charles Jr.?

During the kidnapping, Anne says: “Privilege, I was not ashamed to admit at that moment, had its perks (page 55).”  Should she have used it more or was this the extent of her privilege as a woman?

Did the paparazzi in this book make you more sympathetic to the hounding that famous people get in the press presently?

What did you think Charles meant when he said: “No irregularities…Our children will be pure (Page 135)”?

Were the Lindbergh’s Nazi supporters?  How do you view their actions at the start of WWII?

One of my favorite lines is “I was Mom. I was Wife.  I was Tragedy.  I was Pilot (Page 340).”  How many “personas” are we that we forget to list?  Anne downgraded her own importance, do you?

What was your opinion of Anne Morrow Lindbergh prior to reading this book?  How did you feel about Anne at the end of the book?  Did her indiscretions make her less likeable?

What did you think when you learned that Charles had other families/children in Germany?

Did you like this Historical fiction novel?  Why or why not?