Never Home: A Fitting Title

Neverhome by Laird Hunt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Death was the underclothing we all wore."

I wonder if soldiers everywhere have this feeling tugging at their souls? War, and stories of war, never seem to go away.

Neverhome is a civil war story, told from the perspective of a woman soldier, who goes by the name of Ash Thompson. Ash left her husband home to take care of the farm, saying she was the better shot, and therefore the more logical one to fight.

I want to say, that as a woman, there is no sense in that to me. However, that is clearly not the case of the 700 or so women who fought in the civil war, and the women that fight in the military today.

Ash is very pragmatic about her duties, and about what has to be done to win the war. She's clever about hiding her femininity, and poignant in her thoughts about the husband she left behind.

As in all wars, there are sights and sounds never to be forgotten. The memories seem to weave their way into the bones of the survivors, and how they live normal lives after serving their countries is something that is beyond my capability of understanding.

How is it that civil war stories, which seem to be the war stories I read, are also strangely beautiful in language and thought? I found this to be true for this story as well, and when reviewers say a story has fiercely gorgeous prose, who can resist picking it up? Perhaps it is true, as a character in the story states

"You say something one way instead of the other often enough and maybe the thing quits crawling into your bed with you and stroking its claws at your cheek."

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Speak or Stay Silent

The Plum Tree by Ellen Marie Wiseman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"For seventeen-year old Christine Bolz,the war began with a surprise invitation to the Bauerman's holiday party."

This isn't as much a story of love, as of grit. Webster defines grit as mental toughness and courage, traits that Christine exhibits throughout the book. Yes, she loves too, deeply loves, but courage and grit are necessary to survival.

Do you ever wonder, what you would have done had you lived in war torn Germany during the holocaust? Would you have hidden a Jew in your attic? Would you have spoken against the injustice being done to your Jewish neighbors? What about your disabled neighbor, or the gypsy? Would you have said, this is wrong? Would you have stayed silent to protect your family?

Although I would like to think I would have the courage to speak out, I think I would have stayed silent. Why? to stay under the radar. Because, there is always the fear, if you speak out, your family would be harmed, perhaps even killed.

The story of Christine and Isaac will will make you ponder these questions.

We are so quick to judge other people's actions, but fear, whether out of intimidation or the desire to protect, can make us respond in unjust ways.

For me, I am not only pondering those questions for Holocaust times, but for these times. As ISIS is intimidating and killing to expand their power and territories, where will people get the courage to resist?

In a recent news story, a villager who had welcomed ISIS into their village, did so because he thought they would improve things. Evil came disguised as Hope.

Christine is aware, throughout the story, that how she chooses to react will affect not just her, but her family. Sometimes, her sense of justness, or rightness, has her acting impulsively, and there are consequences. Sometimes, as she ponders a situation, she agonizes over the thought that she may put her family in danger. Sometimes, she lies, in order to survive.

There are many stories about the holocaust, and many of them are very good. I can't really say I enjoyed this story, because it seemed full of truth to me, and truth is very hard. People were treated cruelly. People did things they would never  normally do to survive. I felt this book was written in a way that made that very clear, and that is what made this story valuable to me.


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Nuclear Poetry?

Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands by Chris Bohjalian
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is not a feel good book, but you will learn a lot about nuclear waste and meltdowns, and you may feel a renewed interest to visit Emily Dickenson's poetry. One of the more interesting facts was that you can sing her poem's to the Gilligan's Island tune.

This story kept me wondering where it was going. I like that in a book--I don't want to be able to anticipate the plot, and the author did a good job keeping that wondering factor alive.

The main character, Emily is writing the story, and although you can easily follow the story line, she does jump around in time. Emily is smart, but, like many teens, makes some bad choices. She is a survivor, and pragmatic about her situation. I don't think I can say that Emily is hopeful about her situation, but she is a survivor all the same.

I really enjoyed how the author wove the Dickenson poems throughout the novel, and the thoughts that the main character Emily had about them. I am intrigued to learn more about Emily Dickenson's life, and to revisit her poetry.

For me, the best books are those that have a compelling story, but still teach us something,or compel us to learn more. This story accomplished those traits for me.



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