The Butterfly Collector

Title:  The Butterfly Collector

Author:  Tea Cooper

Publication Information:  Harper Muse. 2023. 400 pages.

ISBN:  1400245176 / 978-1400245178

Rating:   ★★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "My office, if you please, Miss Binks."

Favorite Quote:  "Never can tell what fate will decide."

The Butterfly Collector is and is not about butterflies - monarchs in particular. The book is a moving historical mystery that tells its story in two timelines - late 1800s in Morpeth, Australia and the 1920s in Sydney, Australia.

In the 1800s, there is Theodora, who would spend her time chasing butterflies rather than social connections and potential husbands.

In the 1920s, there is Verity, a reporter who has lost her job to the men returning from war but who then receives an intriguing gift of a dress and an invitation to a masquerade ball. The proposition offered at the ball leads Verity to Morpeth and what transpired there decades earlier.

The book picks up on two completely different and completely unconnected facets of Australian history. The first history is that of the arrival of the monarchs in Australia in the 1870s. It has never been determined exactly how that happened - larvae on board a ship, an adult that happened to land on an incoming vessel, a long flight by the monarch itself, or some human intervention.

The second history is an unsavory one of baby farming. An infant was placed in the care of someone because of the needs of the parents. Some parents could not care for the baby at all; some needed care allowing them to work and provide for their family. The history goes that some of these children were then "adopted" out by these caretakers for monetary gain. as per the author's note, "Sadly, it was a lucrative and flourishing business in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, general in the larger cities."

The fictional story flows back and forth seamlessly between the two time periods once I sort through all the characters and who belongs in which timeline. While I originally chose the book because of the title and cover about butterflies, I invest in both the histories told and the stories woven around the history. 

The element of mystery adds to the story. Why is Verity chosen for this task? Where does the dress come from? What exactly is the Treadwell Foundation? How does Theodora's story connect to Verity's?

The setting and the descriptions of the landscape, the river, and the homes add to the story as well, making it a very visual story. This, perhaps, even more than the story itself, will stick with me.

This is the first book I have read by Tea Cooper. I look forward to reading more.

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Let Us Descend

Title:  Let Us Descend

Author:  Jesmyn Ward

Publication Information:  Scribner. 2023. 320 pages.

ISBN:  198210449X / 978-1982104498

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Rating:   ★★★

Opening Sentence:  "The first weapon I ever held was my mother's hand."

Favorite Quote:  "I am the weapon."

I have loved Jesmyn Ward's fiction and nonfiction work ever since I was introduced to it through a book club reading Men We Reaped. She was born in California, raised in Mississippi, and now is a professor of creative writing at Tulane. She is the winner of the National Book Award in Fiction and of the MacArthur "Genius" Fellowship. Her books tell compelling, emotional stories. In fiction and nonfiction, Jesmyn Ward contributes to an important conversation and a history that must be remembered.

Several of Jesmyn Ward's prior books tell the story and history of Mississippi - of slavery, of poverty, of racial inequity, of social justice. This book takes that story from the Carolinas to the New Orleans slave market to a plantation in the heart of Louisiana.

This is the story of Annis, who is born to a white slaveholder father and an enslaved Black mother. She is sold to destinations unknown. This book is her perilous and tragic journey.

Yet, this is also the story of endurance and of generations of women who have survived and whose strength descends through the generations. Annis has the memories - the ones she has experienced and those which are passed down through stories and have become equally real. As Annis is ripped from her mother and sold, these memories appears as actual beings that Annis can see and communicate with. It becomes a physical manifestation of her grief and the love that has been mercilessly torn from her. Annis's experiences and her memories of multiple ancestors also emphasize the reminder that this trauma descends down from generation to generation, all the way to the current times.

The repeated lesson of this book is self-reliance, resilience, and the focus on fighting for yourself:

• "In this world, you your own weapon."
• "I am the weapon."
• "Every day I woke, I spared myself."
• "Fight for it all."
• "You your own weapon... Remember."

Annis's manifestations of those memories and the strength they give her bring an element of spiritual / magical realism to this book. The writing itself gives these elements of the book a poetic quality. At times, that makes the book a challenge to follow and stay immersed in. For me, this lessens the intensity of the book as compared to the Jesmyn Ward's other books. Nevertheless, it tells an important story, and I will likely still always read what she writes next.

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The Black Angels

Title:  The Black Angels: The Untold Story of the Nurses Who Helped Cure Tuberculosis

Author:  Maria Smilios

Publication Information:  G.P. Putnam's Sons. 2023. 448 pages.

ISBN:  0593544927 / 978-0593544921

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "Every morning Virginia Allen wakes and feels the weight of the hours moving."

Favorite Quote:  "They did it because it was their job, because they had committed themselves to saving lives, at the risk of their own. But also because they were Black women, subjects of the Jim Crow labor laws that offered them few options."

In 1951, the cure for tuberculosis was tested successfully at Sea View Hospital in Staten Island. This book is the history of the nurses involved in that endeavor and in the care of the tuberculosis patients at the hospital. From the author's notes: "All the accounts and scenes in the book - including quotes, thoughts, and reactions - are used on oral reports, which have been corroborated by a wealth of material: newspapers, journals, letters, memoirs, marriage and death certificates, draft cards, medical records, autopsy books, nurses' logs and medicine books, hospital publications, yearbooks, previous interviews, and any other material the librarians could dig up."

The "black" angels is a reference to race. Most, if not all, the nurses were black. The why of that has its history in the Jim Crow South. Tuberculosis is a highly contagious disease. Patients were often isolated in dedicated sanitarium hospitals. Caring for these patients brought with the daily risk of exposure and illness. As such, many who had the choice left the jobs to care for these patients, creating a severe nursing shortage. The hospitals turned to the South, advertising jobs that included room, board, training, a nursing license, and a small salary as compensation take on this risky job.

Many young women of color saw this as an escape from the Jim Crow South and as an opportunity to create a better life. This book recounts the history of these women and the world altering research that their work and dedication made possible.

The book is not just about the hospital and the medical advances. It also tells of the life of the women as they faced the challenges of their jobs and the challenges of continued discrimination and hostility even in Staten Island. Ultimately, it is the inspiring lesson of their strength and endurance.

The term "black angels" was supposedly coined by the hospital patients for they saw the color of the skin and they saw the care that these "angels" brought to them.

Virginia Allen, age 93, is the last alive of the black angels. The author conducted extensive interviews with Dr. Allen and learned of others from her to write this book. "Soon, a rich and vibrant history began to unfold, one that placed the nurses at the center of the TB story and set them against a backdrop of larger themes: Jim Crow, the Great Migration, systemic and institutional racism, front-line labor in a public health emergency, disease and the science of vaccines, and the desire to live a free and meaningful life - the impetus for so many of the nurses and the heartbeat of their narrative." An inspiring history.

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The Women

Title:  The Women

Author:  Kristin Hannah

Publication Information:  St. Martin's Press. 2024. 480 pages.

ISBN:  1250178630 / 978-1250178633

Rating:   ★★★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "The walled and gated McGrath estate was a world onto itself, protected and private."

Favorite Quote:  "We were the last believers, my generation. We trusted what our parents taught us about myth of equality and justice and honor. I wonder if any generation will ever believe again. People will say it was the war that shattered our lives and laid bare the beautiful lie we'd been taught. And they'd be right. And wrong. There was so much more. It's hard to see clearly when the world is angry and divided and you're being lied to."

I love Kristin Hannah's writing for the focus it brings on strong female characters set in a historical context. Many of her books center around World War II. The Four Winds brought us to the depression era. The Great Alone travelled to Alaska. This book brings us to the Vietnam War.

Vietnam. The very word conjures up images of our nation's history, of those who made the ultimate sacrifice, of those who came home only to find that home had changed, of those who still to this day may receive the honor and services they need as veterans of United States Armed Forces.

Until this book, however, I  have not seen much of the history of or read any stories of the women who served in Vietnam. According to a note in the book, "According to the Vietnam Women's Memories Foundation statement, approximately 10,000 American military women were stations in Vietnam during the war." However, the history and even the veteran services now do not highlight the women.

This book tells the story of the women through Frankie McGrath's eyes. She volunteers for the Army Nurse Corp. The book follows Frankie through the events that lead her to volunteer, the tours of duty she serves, her return, and the challenges of her life after the war as a veteran.  As with other Kristin Hannah books, the one covers a lot of ground, incorporating a multitude of challenges and issued faced by these women - as women, as soldiers, as survivors, and as veterans.

Through Frankie's eyes, we travel the same path:

• "War looked one way for those who saw it from a safe distance. Close up, the view was different."
• "You survived a day at a time, however, you could."
• "Some things don't bear the weight of words."
• "And there it was: remembrance mattered She knew that now; there was no looking away from ware or from the past, no soldiering on through pain.. It started here. Now By speaking  up, standing in the sunlight, coming together, demanding honesty and truth. Taking pride. The women had a story to tell, even if the world wasn't ready to hear it, and their story began with three simple words. We were there."

The book is emotional as you might expect. Frankie's voice resonates through the entire story. I find myself looking up the history that authenticates the story told. This book is not a conversation about the right or the wrong of the Vietnam War. It is rather the story of those who served when called upon by their county. "I'm starting to wonder about it myself. But can't they support the warriors and hate the war. Our men are dying every day in service of their country. Doesn't that matter anymore." Frankie is a memorable character telling a memorable story.

To all the warriors... Thank you for your service.

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All the Water in The World

Title:  All the Water in The World

Author:  Eiren Caffall

Publication Information:  St. Martin's Press. 2025. 304 pages.

ISBN:  1250353521 / 978-1250353528

Rating:   ★★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "The Monster in the Water: This is the hypercane, the biggest king of hurricane there could be."

Favorite Quote:  "If there was light here, there could be light in other places. If there was power in me, I could spread it. I could let that power glow and make myself a beacon."

There is The World As It Was and The World As It Is. There are memories of what was, and there are the challenges and reality of what is. Nonie and her family are survivors. She, her sister, and her father have survived the storms that drowned New York City and perhaps much of the rest of the world. Nonie has the unique ability to "feel" water. She can sense storms.

They live in the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) along with a few others who survived - a family created. The AMNH provides a refuge from the elements, a safe space from the Lost scavenging the city, and a way to try and preserve the treasures of the museum. Per the book description and the author's note, the setting of the museum and the work of Nonie's parents as researchers and curators is an homage to real individuals in Iraq and Leningrad who worked to save historical treasures in times of war and upheaval. If I had not read that note, I don't know that I would make that connection. This book is definitely not historical fiction, but this note did send me in search of that history.

The plot of the book is straight forward. A storm like no other - a hypercane - has arrived. In scientific research, a "hypercane" is a theoretical, extreme tropical storm with enormous destructive power that could form if ocean temperatures get to 50°C (122°F). This is a storm that Nonie does not feel. It just arrives. The storm forces Nonie and her family to flee the AMNH. The goal is to travel up the Hudson River to their mother's childhood home - a farm that may or may not still exist. It is unclear why they feel that the farm survived the storms and provides a safe space, but they do. A dreamed Utopia, perhaps? The dream of safety and peace that every refugee has, perhaps?

The book then tells the story of this precarious journey. As the book description states, "They encounter communities that have adapted in very different and sometimes frightening ways to the new reality." This is a book of survival and, in some sense, adventure. As expected, there are helpers along the way and those who would harm. In each encounter is a microcosm of society - communities organized and run in different ways, individuals who follow along with the leaders and those who would follow the voice of their conscience and of humanity.

Flashbacks bring in the past - the people, the places, and the things lost. These memories help to flesh out the main characters and create a greater intensity to the emotions of the book. A post-apocalyptic book of danger and survival can sometimes provide the perfect escape from reality! All the Water in the World is such a book. It helps that I can visualize and put myself in the physical setting of the book. At some point, I think this book would make a good movie. The ending is perhaps too neat a package, but what an adventure getting there.

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Good Dirt

Title:  Good Dirt

Author:  Charmaine Wilkerson

Publication Information:  Ballantine Books. 2025. 368 pages.

ISBN:  0593358368 / 978-0593358368

Rating:   ★★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "'Shhh,' her bother says."

Favorite Quote:  "What had they done? This was the question that hung in the air above every black family that had ever run into misfortune. And not only. It was a subtext understood by so many women, of any color, who had ever been harmed. It was the question that few dared to ask out loud but many had in mind, with regard to families that struggled to pay the bills. It was the question asked by those who wishes to avoid acknowledging that responsibility might lie elsewhere. What did you do?"

From Connecticut to the South to Africa to Europe and around again, this book tells a circular story centered around one family, one family heirloom, and one act of violence that forever altered them.

At the center of the story is Ebony "Ebby" Freeman. The two defining moments of her life... At age ten, she sees her older brother murdered in a home invasion. At twenty something, she is left standing waiting at the alter as her groom does not show. After being jilted with no explanation, she runs away to France to a friend. Ebby's story is about coming to terms with her past and forging a path forward. "This was the true miracle of life, he thought. Not so much to be born as to bear up under what comes your way. To find a way forward. To embrace what was good."

Surrounding Ebby are her loving parents. The Freemans are the only Black family in an otherwise completely white enclave of Connecticut. They are successful in their careers and affluent. They cherish their children. Because of their son's brutal death, they are even more protective of Ebby.

Anchoring this family is their history, particularly as it is embodied in Old Mo. Old Mo is a stoneware jar that has been in the family for generations. The book intersperses Ebby's story with the stories of those generations and their trials through being ripped from their home to the enslavement of generations to the eventual treacherous journey to freedom. The clay of the jar gives the book its title. "Her dad's mom would like the soil around here. Good dirt, she would say. There is a town, not far away, that is famous for its clay."

The jar is all the more special for its secrets - words engraved in the clay as reading and writing was forbidden for slaves. However, the maker of the jar knew. "... Words also had the power to hold memory." And "Words have power. So does the absence of words. Sometimes, when people choose not to speak, their silence can block out the sun."

This book, like Charmaine Wilkerson's debut Black Cake, covers a lot of ground. Through all the characters and their individual stories, the book delves into this nation's history:

• "Most of the trouble in this world boils down to one person not recognizing the worth of another."
• "Things are always changing ... It's true, some of the worst things keep repeating themselves, but things do change. And as citizens, we can do our part to keep things moving in the right direction."
• "History, too often, has been told from only certain perspectives. This is not good enough. History is a collective phenomenon. It can only be told through a chorus of voices. And that chorus must make room for new voices over time."

Yet, the story winds back again and again to Ebby and her parents, grounding that history through the lives of this family. Another wonderful story by the author.

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Isola

Title:  Isola

Author:  Allegra Goodman

Publication Information:  The Dial Press. 2025. 368 pages.

ISBN:  0593730089 / 978-0593730089

Rating:   ★★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "I still dream of birds."

Favorite Quote:  "I am done living fearfully."

Historically, Marguerite de La Rocque's date and place of birth are not known. Her date and place of death are not known. However, the story of her life is remembered and has been retold in different ways since the 1500s when she lived to today. This book brings her story to life and does what I loved about historical fiction. It tells a great story, one that has me turning pages. It paints a well-defined character that has me invested in the story. It introduces me to a history I would never otherwise have come across.

The history goes that Marguerite was an heiress who was orphaned early in life. She lived on her estate with a governess and servants. The estate was managed by a relative, Jean-François de La Rocque de Roberval. Historians do not agree on the exact relationship - uncle, brother, cousin. This book depicts a cousin. This part of the story depicts the lack of control a woman - any woman regardless of wealth or class - had over her own life at that time. Marguerite is an heiress and yet her wealth is controlled entirely by a male relative, who does not have her best interests at heart. She has servants aplenty, but their actions are controlled by the one who controls their pay, even if he does it with Marguerite's inheritance. He is the one in charge.

At his insistence and under his control, Marguerite accompanies Roberval as he travels to the New World to take on a governing position. On the voyage, Marguerite beings a love story with Roberval's assistant. Displeased, Roberval punishes her by dropping them off to survive on a deserted island in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. That is the reference for the book's title. "I leaned over the table to see jagged coasts and islands dimpled all around the waves. Each was called ISOLA." Some say it was the phantom island knowns as the Isle of Demons. Some say their ghosts can still be seen there. Had I not known the historical basis for this book, I would say such an action was far-fetched. The story is all the more compelling for being based in history.

The story continues with survival on the island and life after. The story of life after seems somewhat anticlimactic after the buildup of her childhood and the intensity of the time on the island. It completes the story historically and emphasizes the story of survival but lacks the emotion of the rest of the story.

Overall, the book tells a compelling story of this young woman's fight for survival and of her evolution from a pampered child to a strong survivor. I feel for the young, orphaned child and cheer for the woman who faces her dire circumstances and survives.

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Amazing Grace Adams

Title:  Amazing Grace Adams

Author:  Fran Littlewood

Publication Information:  Henry Holt and Co. 2023. 272 pages.

ISBN:  1250857015 / 978-1250857019

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Rating:   ★★★

Opening Sentence:  "Grace is hot."

Favorite Quote:  "She speaks five languages yet she could not find the vocabulary to articulate her heartsickness, to negotiate their grief."

Middle age? Perimenopause? Teenage child? Midlife crisis? Comfortable but uncertain marriage? Lost career? Lost dreams? Is it any one of these things or is it all of these things that cause Grace Adams to unravel and go over the edge?

This book is the story of Grace Adam's very bad, horrible day. However, it is also the story of Grace Adam's life - her decisions, her choices, and her circumstances - that lead her to this existential crisis and breakdown.

The concept is perhaps a relatable and understandable one. The idea of a family situation leading to the loss of a job is unfortunately a realistic one. The idea of a middle aged person - particularly a woman - wondering how life ended up here is one heard often in real life.

The telling of the story is, however, a challenge. The "present" day story is of Grace trying to get a birthday cake to her estranged teenage daughter in an effort to reconcile with her. Grace'e mental trajectory travels from present day to many other times in her life - when she starts her career, when she meets her husband, at points in her marriage, and a few days before the present. It follows her thought process as to how she is where she is. Unfortunately, this makes the story confusing at times and makes it difficult to invest in the emotion of the moment. Because the book starts in the present and goes back, it is also hard to invest in the emotions of the past as you know how it all turns out. I do wish the story had not been circular.

In her present, Grace makes a lot of questionable choices. The language of the book - particularly the frequent cursing - does not help. I want to root for Grace, but, somehow, as relatable as her story is, Grace does not develop into a character I cheer for. The story goes in too many different directions and pulls in too many themes for me to settle in with one.

The books ends up about where I expect it will. Unfortunately, that means there is not necessarily the payoff of a lesson or of closure after wading through a couple of hundred pages of Grace's crisis. Rather than a touching story or a humorous story as the description indicates, this ends up being somewhat sad and depressing. 

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Mrs. Porter Calling

Title:  Mrs. Porter Calling

Author:  AJ Pearce

Publication Information:  Scribner. 2023. 320 pages.

ISBN:  1668007711 / 978-1668007716

Rating:   ★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "Margaret and I had been tap-dancing in the garden for nearly twenty minutes, and I was beginning to feel the strain."

Favorite Quote:  "We can only do our best .. and leave it at work when we go home."

Mrs. Porter Calling is the third book in the series, The Emmy Lake Chronicles. The series chronicles the story of a young woman - one who wants to be a journalist and a war correspondent - in World War II London. The books find a balance of the grim story of war and of the feel good story of a group of friends who are like family and the joy and comfort they find in each other even in dark time.

Dear Mrs. Bird brings Emmy, with her dreams of being a journalist, to a job at a magazine as a typist for a women's advice column. Emmy manages to find a way to put her own spin on her job. Yours Cheerfully takes an even more serious tone as it explores the role of women in the wartime effort and the gender discrimination and expectations they face. it explores the challenges they face and the resilience of these women to create change.

This book brings the story back to that of the magazine at which Emmy works. The magazine is changing ownership, and with that comes change. Journalistic integrity and the whole premise of the magazine and its audience is at risk.

Emmy and her friends are in a race against time to save the magazine and its mission. "You can have all the fancy vision in the world, but it's the readers who matter. Muck them about and there won't be a Woman's Friend."

Although each of these books can stand alone, reading the series as a series provides necessary background and shows the progression of the characters. Without having read the first two books, I am not sure I would have "gotten" all the characters or relationships.

Of the three books, this one is the least about the wartime London setting. In fact, I feel that the book could have been set anywhere in time and place. This book is about business world and about the people passionate about an institution trying to save it from those who seek change for the sake of change and who would destroy something special in the process. Given the 1940s London setting, this book and the conflict also becomes about the British class structure.

Given the tone and tenor of all three books, I suspect going in how the book will end. It delivers that sweet story, but I would have appreciated something unexpected and unpredictable.

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The Titanic Survivors Books Club

Title:  The Titanic Survivors Books Club

Author:  Timothy Schaffert

Publication Information:  Doubleday. 2024. 320 pages.

ISBN:  0385549156 / 978-0385549158

Rating:   ★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGally free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "I spotted my name, again and again, on the lists of the dead."

Favorite Quote:  "You can let it all go, everything in your past, and it won't hurt a soul. You're not saving anyone by punishing yourself."

I am intrigued by the premise of the book. Survivors of a disaster such as the Titanic group together. I expect the book to be about the disaster, about survival, and about the repercussions - the multitude of emotions that would assuredly accompany such trauma. The Girl Who Came Home by Hazel Gaynor is such a story. Based on archival documents, it tells more of a story of survival and its aftermath.

Of course, I am always intrigued by a book about a book club - The Accidental Book Club by Jennifer Scott, The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe, and The Rejected Writers' Book Club by Suzanne Kerman. I look forward to seeing perhaps what the book club reads, why, and what they discuss.

The premise of this book starts off even stronger. One of the main characters Yorick keeps seeing his name on the list of those lost at sea. I cannot imagine seeing your name on a list such as that. The start establishes interest in the character, and I look forward to discovering how the book builds upon the premise.

Unfortunately, for me, the book does not follow through on any of the premises I pick up the book for. Are the survivors truly survivors? The story explains that most, if not all, are those who were to be on the ship but were not indeed on the voyage. Does that make them survivors? In a way, yes. By mistake, accident, or choice, they managed to not be on board. However, because they were not on board, the book does not build upon the ramifications that would have.

The "book" part of book also seems incidental to the story being told in this book. A secret society book club sounds intriguing. This book, however, ends up focused on three individuals within the larger book club and the dynamic between the three.

The story does not become about Yorick's dealing with the fact that his name is on the list of those lost.

In actuality, the book becomes about a triangle that develops between these three individuals - Yorick, Zinnia, and Haze. It becomes about romantic feelings, love reciprocated and unrequited love. This plot path is unexpected and unfortunately not a welcome one for me. It also makes this book a very slow read, as it is character driven not really plot driven.

The book is completely not what I expect based on the descriptions, and I walk away, disappointed.

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The Disappearance of Astrid Bricard

Title:  The Disappearance of Astrid Bricard

Author:  Natasha Lester

Publication Information:  Forever. 2024. 464 pages.

ISBN:  1538706954 / 978-1538706954

Rating:   ★★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "In the same way that the Electric Circus nightclub in Manhattan is all about sensual overwhelm, so too is the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles, Hawk thinks as he strides in the gallery beside four other men."

Favorite Quote:  "Loving someone and making them feel loved are two different things. It's easy to just love, but it takes effort to make another person believe in that love."

Three women: Mizza, Astrid, and Blythe. Three time periods: 1917, 1970, and the present. Three places - Paris, New York, and the French countryside. Three stories but one theme that is clearly explained in the author's note:

• "Find a famous woman - and find a stream of falsehoods and cruelties in her wake."
• "How and why are women constantly reshaped by the media into something they aren't? And why can women only be the inspiration in the creative process, rather than the creator? Those questions drove the writing of this book."
• "I don't think anyone has to look too far to think of a woman who's been remolded by the media, by gossip, and by spite into something less than she actually was. It's been happening for centuries, and it happens still. I hope historical novelists in one hundred years time aren't still writing notes like this."

Women, the role of women, the standards applied to women in a patriarchy, and the pressures on women have been and continue to be a universal conversation.

This book presents these themes through the intertwined stories of these three generations. Research shows that Mizza was an actual, historical figure, but the other two are fiction. Mizza Bricard is said to have been the Christian Dior's muse! The book sets the story in the high pressure and high stakes arena of couture fashion, which is art but also business.

To some extent, Astrid and Blythe's stories are about breaking away from the past and creating a name for themselves. For Blythe, it is also about the childhood trauma of her mother's disappearance and abandonment. Given the time in history, Mizza's story is also one of war, survival, and resistance. To a greater extent, the central theme is about a woman surviving and thriving in a male-dominated industry. 

Given the three timelines, it takes a while to settle into the story and keep straight which characters belong in which timelines especially as the older characters carry forward into the subsequent generation. However, the three main characters are each unique and each the anchor to their own story. 

The lifestyle of the rich is not relatable, and I can certainly do without the scenes of sexual encounters. I find the insight into the fashion industry really interesting, and, as a woman, the three main characters and their struggles are relatable, making this a memorable read.

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The Lotus Shoes

Title:  The Lotus Shoes

Author:  Jane Yang

Publication Information:  Park Row. 2025. 368 pages.

ISBN:  0778310671 / 978-0778310679

Rating:   ★★★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley and a publisher's blog tour free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "I sat shivering on a low stool in our farmhouse kitchen."

Favorite Quote:  "We cannot let them win ... They own our bodies but they will never have our souls. Those are ours, always."

***** BLOG TOUR *****

Review

From Shanxi in 19th century China, this book brings the story of slavery, child labor, the limited options for women, the even more limited options for the poor, and foot binding. As a very young child, Little Flower is sold into slavery. She is to be muizai. The word itself means "little sister". However, the reality is far from that meaning. A muizai is taken into a rich household to be a personal assistant for a child of that family. The arrangement is to last their entire lives although some may be liberated by being allowed to marry at a certain age. In certain households, it was looked upon as a form of charity for the muizai would provided a better life than the one she comes from. However, that was not often the reality. As the book description states, "A muizai is a mistress’s shadow. You are there to do her bidding…"

Little Flower is brought into a household to be the muizai for Linjing. The book follows these two children as they grow up and into their adult lives. Through their eyes and through this household, we see the culture and customs of 19th century China and particularly of the role of women.

Little Flower is sold to provide a better life for her brother. She has bound feet, which was an expression of her mother's love as it may have offered her a chance at a better marriage and a better life. She has also been taught and is talented at embroidery, which is deemed an art of the rich. This too is in effort to lead her too a better life. In the Fong's household, she is at times cared for but has no freedom and no self-determination. Her hopes - her bound feet, the promise of a possible marriage, and her embroidery - are gradually taken away. "Yet experience had taught me that promises from the genteel class were not to be relied upon if my safety clashed with their self-interest." Yet, she perseveres through every turn. "To live as well as I could within the confines of slavery would be my best revenge."

Linjing is the daughter of the first wife. She is a favorite of her father's. However, she is a girl. Her mother sets expectations of perfection, and Linjing suffers in comparison to Little Flower. Unfortunately, that kind of love leads Linjing to retaliate against the one person in her control - Little Flower. "You ... are lowborn. I'm a lady. These facts are as solid as the ground we stand on." This leads to disastrous outcomes many times in their lives.

"But we lived in a hierarchy that favored men. Women, be it peasant or lady, first wife or mentor wives, were pitches against each other, fighting among themselves for scraps of power and security." Through the women surrounding these girls, the book brings in the role of women through so many different facets:

• Little Flower's mother makes the decision to sell her because she sees no other option.
• Linjing's mother is the first wife of the Fong household. However, her inability to produce a male heir and the decisions she makes in that quest determine the direction of her life.
• An aunt choose a celibate life to escape a marriage.
• A matriarch dispenses cruelty in every direction.
• A second wife who delivers a son finds her position elevated.
• A missionary attempts to help but demonstrates a lack of understanding of the culture and an inability understanding first and then attempt to change.

The book is tragic, and, at times, graphic in its descriptions of slavery and torture (reader beware!). Both the girls - Little Flower and Linjing - are compelling characters, and I find myself reading furiously to see how things turn out for them.

That being said, I am not sure how I feel about the ending. Given the entire book and the time and place, I am not sure that what happens in this book would actually have happened. It's hard to discuss without a spoiler! While the rest of the book is emotional and compelling, the ending seems abrupt and not entirely believable. It undermines the rest of the book, but nevertheless, a powerful debut novel. I look forward to seeing what Jane Yang writes next.

About the Book

A muizai is a mistress’s shadow. You are there to do her bidding…

19th Century China. Tightly bound feet, or "golden lilies," are the mark of an honorable woman. When Little Flower is sold as a maidservant to Linjing, a daughter of the prominent Fong family, she clings to the hope that her golden lilies will someday lead her out of a life of slavery.

Not only does Little Flower have bound feet—uncommon for a muizai—but she is gifted at embroidery, a skill associated with women of fortune. Resentful of her talents, Linjing does everything in her power to prevent Little Flower from escaping. But when scandal strikes the Fongs, both women are cast out to the Celibate Sisterhood, where Little Flower’s talents catch the eye of a nobleman, threatening not only her improved status, but her life—the Sisterhood punishes disobedience with death. And if Linjing finds out, will she sabotage Little Flower to reclaim her power, or will she protect her?

Richly atmospheric and profoundly moving, The Lotus Shoes is an empowering tale of two women from opposite sides of society, and their extraordinary journey of sisterhood, betrayal, love and triumph.

About the Author

Jane Yang was born in the Chinese enclave of Saigon and raised in Australia where she grew up on a diet of superstition and family stories from Old China. Despite establishing a scientific career, first as a pharmacist and later in clinical research, she is still sometimes torn between modern, rational thinking and the pull of old beliefs in tales that have been passed down the family. Jane’s family tales are an inspiration for her writing. She writes stories about women in pre-Communist China, exploring power and class struggles, and sometimes with a dash of suspense, spirits and hauntings.

Excerpt

Excerpt from The Lotus Shoes by Jane Yang. Copyright © 2025 by Jane Yang. Published by Park Row Books.

One
Little Flower

I sat shivering on a low stool in our farmhouse kitchen. The frosty air stung my cheeks and chilled my hands and feet until they hurt. To warm up, I rubbed my arms and legs. Though it never snowed in southern China, this winter in the sixth year of Emperor Guangxu’s reign felt brutally cold. Normally, I would still be curled beneath our patched quilt, but my aa noeng had woken me at first light.

“We are going on an adventure today,” she announced, turning to me with a basin of boiling water. For the first time in months, her thin, pale face broke into a smile. But it wasn’t a proper sparkling smile, like the ones she used to shower on me before my aa de died. This smile looked stiff, and her eyes remained dull.

“I’m taking you to Canton City,” she continued. “Farmer Tang will give us a ride on his cart.” She poured cold water into the basin. I squealed, clapping with delight. I had never been to Canton City, but I had heard all about it from traveling storytellers. Peddlers prowled the streets, selling sugared plums, sweet buns and roasted chestnuts. My belly grumbled at the thought of them, reminding me that I had not eaten since yesterday’s bowl of watery congee. The storytellers also boasted of traveling acrobats, men who swallowed live snakes, and puppet shows.

“Is Little Brother coming too?” I asked.

“He is too young,” she said. “I’ve sent him to our neighbor for the day. This is a mother-and-daughter trip.”

“Why are we going?” “Little girls should not ask questions,” she chided. “Good girls keep quiet, follow rules and obey grown-ups.” Her tone was mild, but her face sagged with misery, frightening me into silence.

She knelt in front of me, cradling my golden lilies in her palms. “Do you remember why I started binding your feet when you were only four?” she asked.

“Because…because…” I shook my head. With a heavy sigh she explained, “Other six-year-old girls in our village wouldn’t start foot-binding until now. Some farming families might even wait until their daughter is seven or eight, if they’re desperate for an extra worker around the house. But that is risky. Do you know why?”

I shook my head again. “The bones might already be too stiff to be shaped. I love you so much that I bound your feet two years ago, as though you’re a little lady, to make sure you get perfect golden lilies so you can be like Consort Yao Niang. Do you remember her story?”

“I do!” Eager to impress her, I merrily recited the bedtime tale she had often told me. “Once upon a time, before the Manchu invaded and when China was cut up into lots of little kingdoms, like a patchwork quilt, there lived an emperor called Li Yu. He loved to see new things. One day he asked his many, many wives to surprise him with a new dance. Everyone tried but no one was good enough except Yao Niang. She wrapped her feet into crescents and danced on her toes!”

“What else?” she quizzed.

I frowned.

She prompted, “The emperor was so impressed that he promoted her to Royal Imperial Consort—”

“Oh!” With a bounce I finished her sentence, “So no other wife could boss Yao Niang around except the empress. All the ladies of the court copied her and soon rich girls across the country started to do the same. Now all re-respectable girls have bound feet. And the most loving mothers make sure their daughters have perfect four-inch golden lilies.”

I expected the rest of my speedy answer would earn praise, especially since I had only stumbled on two characters, but Aa Noeng’s lips trembled. I reached out to hug her, but she shook her head as she straightened her back and smoothed her faded tunic-blouse, ou.

“Even the poorest boy might hope to pass the imperial exams and become a mandarin if he is clever and studious,” she said, “but a girl’s only chance for a better life is through her golden lilies. This is my priceless gift to you. No matter what happens, I want you always to remember how much I love you. You’re my precious pearl. Do you understand?”

“I love you this much too!” I swung my arms behind my back until my palms touched. But she didn’t return my smile.

“Why is it important to have perfect four-inch golden lilies?” she asked.

“To get a good marriage,” I chirped. “Matchmakers and mothers-in-law like tiny feet. Golden lilies are proof of a girl’s goodness.”

“Yes,” she agreed. “Only girls with immense endurance and discipline can get perfect golden lilies. This is what mothersin-law from nice families want for their sons.” She squeezed my hands and asked, “Do you want to marry into a nice family when you grow up?”

“Yes.”

“How do you get four-inch golden lilies?” she asked.

“I must sit very still when you clean my feet and change my bandages.”

“What else?”

“I mustn’t complain when you tighten the bindings.”

“That’s true,” she replied slowly. “But…” After a long pause she said, “You are a big girl now. It’s time you learned to take care of your golden lilies yourself.”

“I’m still little!” I protested, alarmed by her grave tone.

“Watch carefully,” she instructed. She unraveled the binding and eased my left foot into the basin of warm water. She massaged away the dead skin on the sole and between my toes. Next she trimmed my toenails and wrapped my foot in a towel before sprinkling alum onto it.

“Be sure to use a generous amount of alum,” she said. “It wards off sweat and itch.”

She wound a length of clean, dark blue cotton around and around my foot. The pressure increased with each layer until my foot throbbed and my eyes ached with unshed tears. I had to use all my willpower not to groan. She continued to wrap the bindings, much more tightly than usual. I tried to pull my foot away. She gripped it harder. “Stay still,” she ordered.

“Aa Noeng,” I cried. “It hurts too much.”

“Hush,” she said. “One day these golden lilies will bring you a good marriage. You will wear silk and live in a house with tiled floors. Best of all, you will never go hungry again.”

My whimpering faded as she continued to talk about the tasty food that would fill my belly when I become a bride in a wellto-do family. Finally, she eased my foot into my best pair of indigo cotton shoes. She pushed the basin toward me.

“Now you must do the same for your right foot,” she said. 

Buy Links

HarperCollins: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-lotus-shoes-jane-yang?variant=42182206455842
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lotus-Shoes-Novel-Jane-Yang/dp/0778310671
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-lotus-shoes-jane-yang/1145107408?ean=9780778310679
Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-lotus-shoes-original-jane-yang/21335528?ean=9780778310679 

Social Links

Author Linktree: https://linktr.ee/janeyangauthor
Twitter (X): https://x.com/JaneYangWriting
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janeyangwriting/

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The Keeper of Hidden Books

Title:  The Keeper of Hidden Books

Author:  Madeline Martin

Publication Information:  Hanover Square Press. 2023. 416 pages.

ISBN:  1335005773 / 978-1335005779

Rating:   ★★★

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "Sofia Nowak sat back on her calves in the warm summer grass while her friend Janina clumsily wound a bandage around her head."

Favorite Quote:  "The world also needs to remember to never take for granted what has been gifted to us through the sacrifice of others: the right to an education and learning, the power and luxury of freedom, and the beauty to appreciate the routine of simple, everyday life."

Much has been written about the World Wars and books - individual and group efforts to preserve and protect books and the comfort and solace books provided to people in dire circumstances. Madeline Martin herself has written about the topic before. This story brings the history of World War II and books and those who found comfort in and sought to preserve books in Warsaw, Poland.

The history, the love of books, and the idea of a strong female protagonist all made me choose to read this book.

The point in history is the onset of the Nazi occupation of Warsaw and the creation of the ghettos to segregate communities. This is not an aspect of World War II history I have read much about. I would have loved to see this side of the story explored more. There is a hint, but it is not pursued. "The entire time I was reading it, I couldn't help but imagine having my own time machine... But I wouldn't go as far into the future as the Time Traveller, not would I go as far back. I would have gone just a few months. Maybe even a year, to see if the world could be altered with one small change."

The love of books - reading and writing them - rings through as you might expect. "Books are the perfect conduit to convey a message to the world. It could be an idea that blossoms into a way of life. It could be a new theory for mankind to explore. It could be a journey of life that few have trod. When you have something to tell, it will simply burst from you and you won't be able to stop it."

The main characters are two young women. Zofia and Janina two school girls who are best friends. Janina is Jewish; Zofia is not. It has never mattered before, but, to much of the world, now it does. They find themselves united in their love of books and libraries. They find themselves on opposite sides of the ghetto borders. Their "Anti-Hitler Book Club" progresses into a courageous effort to protect friends and books.

Because so many books have been written about this history, including books by the author, the book leads to an automatic comparison. This one unfortunately suffers by comparison. I find myself thinking again and again that I have already read this story. I have not, but this one does not stand out and stand apart from the others. This story in and of itself is not memorable, which is a shame because the history needs to be remembered.

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The Bookbinder

Title:  The Bookbinder

Author:  Pip Williams

Publication Information:  Ballantine Books. 2023. 448 pages.

ISBN:  0593600444 / 978-0593600443

Book Source:  I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.

Opening Sentence:  "Scraps."

Favorite Quote:  "The words used to describe us define our value to society and determine our capacity to contribute. They also ... tell others how to feel about us, how to judge us."

As with Pip Williams prior book The Dictionary of Lost Words, I  choose to read this one because - well, books and the art of book binding! The title itself draws me in. The description draws me in further. Two sisters living on a houseboat. A young woman told that she may only bind books not read them. Two siblings - one special needs and one not - somewhat alone in the world. A college and education that is across the street but that may very well be a different world. A coming war. Refugees. A small community. And lots and lots of books!

This story resonates on so many levels.

Peggy and Maude are sisters. Maude has some special needs, and Peggy finds herself in the role of caretaker. However, what does that mean especially as they both become adults? What is Maude capable of? What is she allowed to be capable of? Is Maude's caretaking preventing Peggy from her own dreams or is it a crutch for Peggy to not push past her comfort zone?

Peggy is told that education is not for the likes of her; her role is to bind books not read them. Yet, she reads them. Any binding or folios deemed imperfect end up in her personal library. Against the rules but what harm does it do anyone. She dreams of the college across the street but never envisions that the dream has the possibility of reality.

Peggy and Maude have helpers along the way. Friends and mentors. Many of them are strong women who serve as examples of what is possible in their individual spheres and the gift of paying that forward as help to Peggy and Maude.

The war brings refugees to town which starts many heated conversations, both for and against. It is sad that these conversations are the same ones taking place in different contexts even today.

And, of course, the love of books. I love books that are love letters to the world of books and that speak what I feel about books. "When we bound these books, I thought, they were identical. But I realized they couldn't stay that way. As soon as someone cracks the spine, a book develops a character all its own. What impresses or concerns one reader is never the same as what impresses or concerns all others. So, each book, once read, I realized, will have told a slightly different story." So very true. Each one of us brings our wholes selves to every book that we read. As our perspectives differ, so does our individual read of any book. No two readers ever read exactly the same book.

This story, on all its levels, resonates with me as did The Dictionary of Lost Words. I look forward to seeing what Pip Williams writes next.

Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.