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review 2020-04-09 14:10
How the West was won, but not as we know it.
How Much of These Hills is Gold - Wei Zhang

Thanks to Virago and to NetGalley for providing me an ARC copy of this novel, which I freely chose to review.

My father was a fan of Westerns, and although as a child I was tired of always having to watch old Westerns (as a young man, my father used to read the Spanish equivalent of the Western dime novels as well), I must confess that that world, its mythology, and its true history, captivate me as well. And never more so than when the stories chronicle the people who hardly ever make it into the history books (although there has been a move towards redressing that in recent years). So this novel had all the elements to intrigue me, and it is a debut novel as well. And one I won’t forget in a hurry.

This new author has been compared to Cormac McCarthy (but I’ve only read one of his novels, so I don’t feel I can comment), and her choice of characters reminded me of recent books I’ve read and reviewed by Sebastian Barry. I know it is common place to write that you’re surprised a novel has been written by a debut writer, or it is their first novel, but it is the case here, and it’s clear that the author has a talent for writing (and I don’t doubt she has worked very hard at it as well).

The novel, set around the time of the Gold Rush, is divided into four parts, covering a period of around a decade in the life of Lucy (and her sister/brother Sam). The first three parts tell the story of how they got to the situation we find them in at the beginning of the novel, in reverse chronological order (sort of). The fourth part moves forward and we see what happened to Lucy afterwards, and we meet Sam again, albeit briefly. We meet the two sisters when they lose their father (they had lost their mother a few years earlier), see them struggle to try to bury him in the appropriate way (their mother had come from China and had taught them plenty of stories and traditions that they try to follow and live by), and eventually split up. The second part chronicles the events that had happened before, providing a background story of the family and also explaining how they lost their mother. Part three is hauntingly beautiful, and rather than the third person narration from Lucy’s point of view (that grows more insightful and elaborate as the novel advances) we get a narration from Ba, her father’s point of view. It’s not clear if this is his ghost telling the story or some memory that lives on, but it is addressed to Lucy, and it explains things that she does not know, some tragic and terrific, and some beautiful and lyrical. In part four we catch up with the siblings, years later, and learn what happened next. This is historical fiction gold, a revisionist story/history of the West, and a look at some of the forgotten figures and peoples in history.

Many themes are touched upon on this novel. I’ve mentioned history, but this is history from the point of view of outsiders, who although born in the country will never be accepted, and people will always look at them as if they were an exotic plant or animal (the tiger is a symbol hovering over much of the novel), either heaping abuse at them, exploiting them for entertainment or enjoyment, or trying to turn them into object of curio and study. Race and gender are at the forefront of the novel but remain somewhat ungraspable and ambiguous (is Sam a boy in a girl’s body, or a girl whose father’s wish for a son she internalised to the point where she no longer has a will of her own, or something entirely different?). Ultimately, there are myths, lies, pretences, stories we tell others and ourselves, gold prospecting, mining, the building of the railroads, migration, different models of womanhood, of culture, of family… It’s a novel about identity and how we build ours, and how others also cast upon us their own labels and prejudices. It’s a novel about survival and about much more.

Lucy, Sam, and their parents are unforgettable characters. If Lucy is the girly-girl, studious, and prim and proper, and Sam is the tomboy/boy, always following his father, they all play specific roles in their family, and when the family breaks, it’s difficult to keep going. The young sibling is far less naïve and weak than Lucy thinks, and they are both the children of their parents in more ways than they realise. It’s impossible not to feel for these orphans and their terrible circumstances, and the author does a great job of making us share in and understand why they are how they are. The story is at times breathtakingly beautiful and at others horrifyingly ugly, true to life. Although perhaps the style of the writing and the narration might not suit all tastes, I think most readers will connect at an emotional level with the characters, empathise and suffer with them.

The writing style changes throughout the novel, growing with the main character, and becoming more articulate and less impressionistic. The beginning of the novel reminded me of Sebastian Barry’s recent book A Thousand Moons, which also has a young girl as the protagonist, and there is a strong focus on description, not only of the physical world, but also of the emotions and the feelings the character experiences as she is confronted with her personal tragedy. For all her fascination with books and the intelligence that’s supposed to be her strong point, she can be naïve at times, and places too much trust in appearances. Later in the novel she is more insightful and the writing also reflects her progressive enlightenment and what it truly means. I’ve talked about the third part of the book, which is the jewel of the crown for me, but I truly enjoyed it all, although, as usual, I’d recommend prospective readers to check a sample first.

A couple of examples from the book (although I must remind you that I read an ARC copy, so there might be changes in the final version of the book):

And Lucy is reminded that what makes Ma most beautiful is the contradiction of her. Rough voice over smooth skin. Smile stretched over sadness —this queer ache that makes Ma’s eyes look miles and miles away. Brimming with an ocean’s worth of wet.’

A land stripped of its gold, its rivers, its buffalo, its Indians, its tigers, its jackals, its birds and its green and its living. To move through this land and believe Ba’s tales is to see each hill as a burial mound with its own crown of bones. Who could believe that and survive? Who could believe that and keep from looking, as Ba and Sam do, always toward the past? Letting it drag behind them. Letting it make them into fools.’

The ending might not satisfy readers who prefer everything to be tied up and a clear conclusion, but for me, I couldn’t think of a more fitting ending. I won’t go into details and leave readers to decide.

In sum, this is a book that has a distinct style of writing, tells a fascinating story, full of myths, tales, imagination, and also some truly awful realities of a historical period that has often been written about and represented in films and popular culture, but the official depiction glosses over many of the events and ignores a lot of the people that were there as well, just because their race, gender, lifestyle choices, or a combination of those, does not fit into the traditional history books. Its characters are unforgettable, and I recommend it to readers who enjoy a different perspective on historical events and who don’t mind taking up a narrative whose style might be challenging at times but it’s ultimately rewarding. A great novel.

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review 2020-03-30 02:58
Book Review: The Mysterious Music Box by Alba Arango
The Mysterious Music Box - Alba Arango

The mysterious Music box is a well-hidden game of lost and find. Though it not all easy to find the music box. There seems to be a reason for two other people trying to find this music box that belongs to a friend from school.

Though why would someone want to break in and take a music box that has nothing in it. There seem to be quite a bit of people wanting Rosa music box. Could there be something inside the box that can solve a mystery of some treasures that came from world war II Germany?

There seem to be two other people that are trying to find this music box. What could be so special about it? If you enjoy riddles and puzzles, then this book and series are for you. If you are looking for a good series or book for your children of middle-grade schoolers this is it. These books are good for them and they will learn a little bit as they read.

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review 2018-12-23 02:48
Review: The Shape-Shifter's Wife
The Shape-Shifter's Wife - Carolyn Radmanovich,Leslie Ann Clark,Mary Higgins Clark

Every wonder if you could travel back in time? But it feels so real that do you not know. A young woman some how travel back to the California gold rush Era. Once she does, she does not know why or the reason. She seem to take her time to adjust to the time period.

She meets a young man. She finds out that she need help a family get out of the family curse. To do this they need her. She learns about Indians culture and traditions. In the process she starts to fall in love with this young man.

She deals with this while her sister is still away. When she returns to her era, she does not know if she really was with a man named Reynard. She meets an Indian medicine man and go on a trip with her soul and life. 

Will she end up going back to her husband? How did she travel back to her world and still be pregnant with a child? What Shape-Shifter animal does she become? What ever happens to Joseph? Will she fulfill the reason of the family curse?

This is a great book for those that enjoy history. If you are into historical fiction or California gold rush this is the book for you. Are you into time travel. This one is filled with it. The author does a beautifully good job with telling the story though Angelica's and her sister.

Source: nrcbooks.blogspot.com/2018/12/review-shape-shifters-wife.html
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review 2018-04-28 00:00
Gold Rush
Gold Rush - Jennifer Comeaux This is a book about a girls quest to win the gold medal, seemed like she was 19 but then it seemed like she was 12, and her love affair with figure skating.


There was also a boy, some kissing, and sweet stuff that will make your teeth ache. He was perfect, as perfect as her three skates in the Olympics, natch.

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review 2018-04-26 11:26
The author knows her sport!
Gold Rush - Jennifer Comeaux

If you want to read a book with a figure skating theme where the author actually KNOWS all about the sport, then give Gold Rush a go. This book is about a skater in her late teens going for gold at the 2014 Winter Olympics, and Jennifer Comeaux knows pretty much everything about the sport, making it all seem so authentic.

 

Even though the characters are university-aged, this is a tame little contemporary romance with a very sweet hero, and reads a little more like young adult fiction.

 

The author has other ice skating books available, and I will definitely be checking them out.

Source: nataliaheaney.wordpress.com/2018/02/21/gold-rush-by-jennifer-comeaux
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