The Family Man

Happy Memorial Day! In my eyes, it is now officially summer and that calls for lighter fare in reading, which is why "The Family Man" by Elinor Lipman was the perfect book to start that trend for me. It is a cute and at times humorous family novel that I thoroughly enjoyed despite at times its lack of depth.

One of the reasons I like "chick lit" is that it never tries to be something that it isn't. When I pick up a book in this genre, I know exactly what I'm going to get and based on this criteria, "The Family Man" delivers. Although this is the only book of Lipman's I've read, I've also seen the movie "Then She Found Me" based on one of her more popular books. I didn't really enjoy the film version but after reading "The Family Man," there's no doubt in my mind that its book counterpart is most likely the better of the two.

The story follows Henry Archer, a divorced gay man who has lost touch with not only his ex-wife but also his once beloved step-daughter Thalia, who he lost in a complicated custody battle almost twenty years ago. Due to a series of spectacular circumstances though, Henry finds himself not only back in Thalia's life but also letting her live with him in his large Upper West Side townhouse. What ensues is a hilarious story of a lonely man and the salvation of sorts that he finds when he allows himself to love someone again.

This was a fun and fast read for me, something that I enjoy every once in a while especially after forcing myself to plow through more weighty novels. If you're looking for a light summer read, this is the book for you.

Freedom: A Novel

I just finished "Freedom: A Novel" by Jonathan Franzen and what a roller coaster ride of a book it was! For once, I am not quite sure where to begin, but I will try.

I will start by saying that this book is by no means perfect as some endorsements may have you believe (ahem, Oprah Winfrey). There are long-winded paragraphs fraught with highly politicized talk that give a very distinct air of preachiness. Considering that the novel weighs in at a hefty 562 pages, it could have done without that.

The real strength of the novel lies in its character development. Despite these people being really messed up (and I mean really messed up), you can't put this book down. There's something you see in the characters that grabs hold of you and won't let you go. Yes, these people have huge problems and they're selfish, heartless, you name it. But there is still a humanity in them. And for that reason, you as the reader hope against hope that somehow it will all work out.

I'm not even going to try to summarize "Freedom" (if you want that, here is a NY Times article worth looking over). But I will say that the reason I kept reading was purely to see what happened to the two main characters, Walter and Patty Berglund, who after a series of spectacularly horrible events end up separating. Without giving away anything, I'd like to share a line describing Walter and Patty's relationship that struck me: "...they were not just the worst thing that ever happened to each other, they were also the best thing."

Do you think that the worst thing for you can also be the best thing? In Walter and Patty's case, you'll just have to read the book to find out.

Finding Calcutta: What Mother Teresa Taught me About Meaningful Work and Service

Eli and I recently went to a Veritas Forum at Carnegie Mellon given by Dr. Mary Poplin titled "Radical Marxist, Radical Womanist, Radical Love: What Mother Teresa Taught Me About Social Justice." Intriguing to say the least.

After hearing Poplin speak, I decided I had to get her book to learn more about her journey from being a feminist/pantheist/secular humanist to becoming a devout Christian working with Mother Teresa in Calcutta. "Finding Calcutta" is a wonderful book in both the spiritual and academic senses. Poplin brought her experience as a professor to her writing and the result is a book that is well-researched but also profoundly relatable.

 The book is divided into small chapters, each giving a little glimpse into life as a Missionary of Charity in Calcutta. In one of the earlier chapters titled "Whatever You Did for the Least of These, You Did for Me," Poplin talks about how blown away she was by the sisters' approach to those they served:
 
     I began to think how differently I would work if I truly saw each person I met as a hungry, hurting Christ. What if every time someone came to me with a problem, I responded as though Christ himself had approached me? What if I saw everyone all day long as in need of a touch from God, and what if I were yielded enough that God could actually use me to give his touch? (40)

This book truly convicted me. The work that Mother Teresa did and that the Missionaries of Charity continue to do is just astounding. They not only serve the poor, but they also live like the poor. They have given up everything worldly this earth has to offer in order to live the way Christ would have them.

Now, if you're like me, about this point (if you're honest) you're going, "OK, I could never live up to that." There's still hope for us though! Mother Teresa is known for saying, "Find your own Calcutta. Don't search for God in far-off lands. He is close to you, he is with you." For Poplin, that meant going back to her teaching position at Claremont Graduate University with a fresh perspective on Christianity and the way it should be presented in the university setting.

I especially liked one of the closing paragraphs of "Finding Calcutta" and I'm going to leave you with that:

     Mother Teresa answered her call to love the most unlovable of people. There is no reason to romanticize the poor just because we make the mistake of romanticizing the rich. The people the Missionaries serve are difficult, just as you and I are difficult, yet their needs are more desperate. The divine love of God working through her drew us; her ability to love when there was no natural reason for it attracted us to Jesus (160).

Wolf Hall

I recently finished "Wolf Hall," the Man Booker Prize winner by Hilary Mantel focusing on Thomas Cromwell's rise under Henry VIII's reign. The book gave an interesting perspective from a man who has mainly been construed in history as power-hungry and incredibly manipulative.

Despite Mantel taking some liberties in her novel in order to gain readers' sympathy for Cromwell (such as making his blacksmith father a cruel and abusive man), I found her account through Cromwell's eyes very compelling. It was unheard of in those days for a man of his social class to rise up to become an earl and close counselor to the King of England. He had his hand in Henry's separation from Catherine of Aragon as well as his remarriage to Anne Boleyn, laying the groundwork for the king to become the head of the church as well as state.

Another aspect of the book I enjoyed was Mantel's writing style. It is very unique if a little hard to get used to at times. She continually uses the pronoun "he" without explaining which "he" she is referring to. Most of the time, Cromwell is speaking since he's the protagonist, but it can be confusing keeping track when Cromwell is conversing with other men.

If you're interested in reading a far better account of this book, here is a New Yorker article about "Wolf Hall" that I found quite good.

On to another topic, I just began watching the first season of "The Tudors" and am excited to now feel like I know somewhat of the characters in the show. It sort of throws me off how attractive everyone is (especially Henry himself, who in reality was good-looking but definitely no Jonathan Rhys Meyers). But I will press onward, at least until Cromwell makes an appearance.

Charlotte Bronte vs. Jane Austen

I am now reading "The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Bronte," a fiction by Syrie James written through the eyes of Charlotte Bronte as she and her sisters are embarking on their literary careers. A good part of the book also focuses on her romance (or lack of, so far) with Arthur Bell Nichols, the man she eventually married.

The part of the book I want to focus on now though is the appendix, which might seem strange but I have good reason for doing so. It includes several letters of Charlotte's which the author used to aid her research. The one that caught my eye was a letter Charlotte wrote about her opinion of Jane Austen's "Emma." Personally, I think it's amazing and would like to share some of it with you:

     "...what sees keenly, speaks aptly, moves flexibly, it suits her [Austen] to study, but what throbs fast and full, though hidden, what the blood rushes through... this Miss Austen ignores... if this is heresy- I cannot help it."

Earlier in the letter, Charlotte also says that "the Passions are perfectly unknown" to Austen and that "even to the Feelings she vouchsafes no more than an occasional graceful but distant recognition."

To clarify, I love Jane Austen and greatly admire her works. But I have to admit that I enjoy watching movies based on her novels more than actually reading them. Why? Because I can emotionally connect with the characters the way they are portrayed in the films better than I can on the page. Reading Austen, I can't feel Darcy's love for Elizabeth emanating from his entire being the way I can when Colin Firth's eyes burn a hole through my screen.

Despite the dramatic and far-fetched love story in Bronte's "Jane Eyre" (how many governesses actually married their employers in those days?), I can't put the book down. Jane and Mr. Rochester's quiet love for each other and desperation when they realize that they can't be together are so palpable that it brings tears to my eyes. That is the passion and feeling that are missing in Austen's work.

Comments?

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson is one of the most compelling novels I've read. Now, I have to say that I am not usually one to jump on the bandwagon of international best-sellers. Not that I think best-sellers are bad, but sometimes I'm just too much of a book snob to resign myself to reading what everyone else is reading, too. But "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" deserves the widespread accolade it has been receiving. The plot moves at the perfect pace, the characters are well-developed (especially Lisbeth Salander) and the novel thrills while also bringing up gritty yet socially pertinent issues.

Since most of you have probably already read the book or had the plot explained to you dozens of times by enthusiastic friends (such as myself), I won't go into a full plot description. Instead, I am curious what you think about the book or movie if you saw the recent Swedish film version of the novel. After watching the movie with Eli, we talked for hours about justice, a theme brought up particularly in one scene. As disturbing as this scene was, it depicted a harsh reality that I had never really stopped to think about. It was sombering and horrifying at the same time.

What are your thoughts?

36 Arguments for the Existence of God

Yes, I am finally writing another review, and I'm really coming back with a bang this time! I recently finished "36 Arguments for the Existence of God" by Rebecca Goldstein and was that an interesting read or what.

First, to give a little background of the author-- Rebecca Goldstein got her Ph.D. in philosophy from Princeton University and is married to Steven Pinker, the well-known experimental psychologist/cognitive scientist/author of popular science. If you'd like to watch a video of Pinker interviewing his wife on her book, Amazon has it posted here under "Check Out Related Media." 

Now, to talk about the book itself-- "36 Arguments" is a work of fiction, not a non-fictional work trying to argue for or against the existence of God as the title may suggest. Goldstein's atheistic beliefs and Jewish upbringing clearly influenced the themes in the novel. "36 Arguments" contains many satirical elements referring to religion, science, and how people wrestle within these arenas. Since this is the sort of book I'm more interested in sharing my opinion about than summarizing the plot for, here is a snippet from the book's jacket just to give you an idea of what it's all about:

"At the center: Cass Seltzer, a professor of psychology whose book, The Varieties of Religious Illusion, has become a surprise best seller. He’s been dubbed 'the atheist with a soul,' and his sudden celebrity has upended his life. He wins over the stunning Lucinda Mandelbaum–'the goddess of game theory'–and loses himself in a spiritually expansive infatuation. A former girlfriend appears: an anthropologist who invites him to join in her quest for immortality through biochemistry. But he is haunted by reminders of the two people who ignited his passion to understand religion: his teacher Jonas Elijah Klapper, a renowned literary scholar with a suspicious obsession with messianism, and an angelic six-year-old mathematical genius, heir to the leadership of an exotic Hasidic sect. The rush of events in a single dramatic week plays out Cass’s conviction that the religious impulse spills out into life at large."

I felt empty after finishing "36 Arguments." It was well-written and had wonderfully developed characters, but the content was disappointing to me. The middle of the book lagged and there was a major inconsistency with the main character towards the end (who just forgets they're going to debate a Nobel Laureate at Harvard?!).

Even though I am not an atheist, I was intrigued to read a book from the perspective of a fictional character called "the atheist with a soul." Cass is a somewhat relatable guy to read about, but I didn't find him as likable as he may portrayed to be. To me, he came off as a man still searching for the answers in the wrong places (case in point: his infatuation with the self-obsessed Lucinda). And when towards the end of the book he debates someone on the existence of God, he uses an argument against Christianity that really irks me. From my perspective, it portrayed his own selfishness in a whole new light. 

But I would love to hear what you think! This book invites reflection and spurs discussion on realms central to human existence. Read the book and it's appendix, and you'll see why.