Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan

Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan is such a unique book that you must read it! Set in WW2 Nazi Germany and Nazi-occupied France and in the 1990s in the USA and Poland, this historical fiction novel tells the tale of Sid Griffiths, a jazz bass player. Sid and his fellow players Heironymous (Heiro) Falk, Chip Jones, and Ernst, along with a their friend Delilah, must hide their jazz playing in Germany because Hitler has outlawed it. They eventually flee Germany hoping to find a better life in Paris, France. Unfortunately, Nazis invade Paris a few years later and their lives are in turmoil again. Escaping Paris becomes their only hope of survival, but it proves to be quite difficult. Heiro is captured by the Nazis and sent to a concentration camp.

Flash-forward 60 years and Chip visits Sid, still his best friend, and pleads with him to go to Poland to see a documentary about Heiro, their former band member and friend. Sid reluctantly agrees and during the film, Chip reveals that it is Sid's fault for Heiro's capture. Sid is infuriated and storms away, leaving the audience to wonder if Sid really is responsible or not. The book continues to switch between the two time periods and we learn about their lives, their struggles, their loves, their losses, and their music.

We also learn that Heiro may actually be alive, despite his friends thinking he's been dead for decades. Chip convinces Sid to travel to Poland with him to try to find Heiro. Whether or not Heiro is alive is the mystery of the novel which I will not spoil for you. Along this journey, however, the men reveal more and more about their pasts and secrets are revealed, secrets neither men can hide from any longer.

As a huge fan of WW2 historical fictions, I knew I would enjoy this book. I learned so much and didn't realize how badly jazz musicians were treated. I did know that black Germans - or any black person for that matter - were rounded up by the Nazis and most were killed. But this novel provided a new perspective on this rather delicate and under-represented topic. We tend to focus only on the Jews who were killed, but there were any other races and cultures that were targeted by the disgusting antics of the Nazis.

This book is a very challenging read, however, because of its unique language style. The book is told from Sid's perspective and Sid speaks as did most of his fellow black musicians, with unusual slang, improper grammar, and many errors. Sometimes, as a result, I had to reread paragraphs to grasp what was happening. As an English teacher, it's always difficult to read text that is not correctly written. But this language style is necessary to understand the character and the world in which he lives. This language style helps to make the novel more authentic and immersive.

I can easily see why this novel made it to the Booker Prize finalists. It's educational, humorous, heart-breaking, mysterious, and captivating. You should certainly read it!

Nutshell by Ian McEwan

Wow, what a great read! Nutshell by Ian McEwan is such a unique and captivating story. You MUST read this novel. I've never read a book from the perspective of a fetus. This fetus who is, of course, unnamed throughout the entire book, is doing his best to stop his mother and her lover from murdering his father. So, this book is basically a suspense thriller because we follow this baby as he tries to comprehend why his mother wants his father dead. We hear his mother's and father's voices through him, so we understand their perspectives too.

This book is set in London, England, one of my favourite settings. Some of my favourite mystery novels are set in London. I'm not sure if it's the British authors who are so great or if it's the unique setting on London, with its rain, history, sophisticated language, delicious food, and revered royalty that intrigues me so. I only spent two days in London but I am so interested in this city. I also love the dry British humour and wit that I can so easily relate to.

I won't give away any of the relevant plot details because I can't bare to spoil this book for you at all. You must read it on your own to see just how thrilling it is. Instead, I will give you some of the questions the audience tries to answer with this baby: Why does Trudy, the pregnant mother, and her lover (another secret I will not reveal) want John, the father dead? How do they plan to kill John? Will they succeed in their plan? What happens to them if they succeed or if they don't succeed? How can the baby possibly do anything to stop them? Are Trudy and her lover evil or do they have reason to kill John? Is John evil? If Trudy and John are having a child together, why are they not a couple?

Ian McEwan is such a brilliant writer! He writes so fluidly with more allusions than anyone I've ever read. There are references to literary works, history, mythology, films and television, mathematical concepts, science, journalism, wars, and a thousand other things. The author integrates so many of these references so seemingly and with such ease. I am in awe of his writing! Occassionally, I fancy myself a good writer (though I've never written anything longer than a short novella), but I am nothing compared to McEwan. In fact, even my favourite authors are nothing compared to him. McEwan should be more recognized and applauded. He is a genius! I must read more of his work!

Well, this blog certainly isn't one of my best reviews at all because I am providing so few details. But I just don't want to spoil anything. I want you to read this book and discover its brilliance for yourself. Enjoy! 

Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts

In my Grade 12 University English class, we have a novel study unit and students are permitted to choose from a selection of 10-15 teacher-approved books. Students peruse the books, rank their top three choices and list the peers with whom they'd like to work for this unit. This year, I added Where the Heart Is to the list of books and it was chosen by a group. The trouble is ... I hadn't read it myself! I've been meaning to read it for a while but when I've offered in the past, it's never been chosen by students, so I always put it aside for other books. But last month, in advance of the unit's beginning, I knew I had to read it before the students write essays and complete presentations on it. The other student selections, which include some great books like The Book of Negroes, The Catcher in the Rye, Room, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and The Handmaid's Tale, are books I've read and love so I was in the clear there.

Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts is a fictional piece set in a small town in Oklahoma, USA where Novalee Nation, a self-proclaimed white trash 17 year old, is left literally barefoot and pregnant in a Wal-Mart by her redneck, no-good boyfriend, the deadbeat father of her baby. While traveling to California with Willy Jack to make a good life and live in a house, as Novalee dreams and has never experienced herself, that is not on wheels, she asks Willy to stop because Novalee, 7 months pregnant, desperately has to pee. Willy Jack begrudgingly complies by stopping at a Wal-Mart and he then drives away while she's inside.

Novalee, who is terribly afraid of the number 7, has only $7.77 left when she realizes that Willy Jack has abandoned her. In her desperation and homelessness, Novalee finds some very interesting ways to survive, such as secretly living in the Wal-Mart and eventually giving birth to her daughter there.

Like many small towns, there are some very kind souls, characters who are endearing and loving, who take in Novalee as family and give her a better life. Sister Husband gives Novalee a home and looks after her daughter while Novalee works, Lexi Coop and her children become extended family to Novalee, and Forney Hull opens Novalee's eyes to the world of books, knowledge, and unconditional love. Novalee finds herself at home in this new town and we follow her and her new friends' lives.

I read this book very quickly and not because I had to for my students, but because I wanted to. I had difficulty putting it down many nights and often read well past my standard 10 pm bedtime. So, I obviously highly recommend Where the Heart Is. However, I do need to forewarn you: There are some serious tragedies that occur in this novel. They are some exceedingly violent and horrific scenes too, some involving children. It was so shocking and unexpected that I had difficulty sleeping one night after one particularly gruesome scene. I thought this book would be primarily warm and fuzzy, but it is not. Most of the main characters whom you grow to love so easily experience real traumas.

What makes this book so compelling and "read-able" is that the characters deal with these tragedies in real and authentic ways. While I dislike the scenes and I especially dislike how quickly and unexpectedly they occur with the author writing rather cavalierly about them, I do appreciate that the responses of the characters are true to human nature and humans' unbelievable capacity for resiliency.

I rate this book 4/5 because it's funny, tragic, sweet, sad, compelling, and unique. But, I don't like the way the author presents these tragedies, often at the end of the chapter with few details provided until much later. I also could have done without the narration moving from Novalee to Willy Jack. While I understand the role Willy Jack plays in the novel, I would have preferred that the author didn't devote whole chapters to his miserable life and awful personality. What happens to Willy Jack is really not meaningful to me at all.

The day I started reading this book, I saw its movie on TV. I didn't watch it because I hate watching movies about books before I've read the book. So, I am hoping to watch the film this week or next to compare the novel and film. We'll see if it hols up to the book...

Book image: By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31711120