Review-Jerusalem Maiden, Talia Carner

Jerusalem Maiden
by Talia Carner
Harper Collins
June 2011
978-0-06-200437-6
$14.00, 464 pp.

 Review by Wisteria

Strong women heroines who defy the expectations and gender limits that define their culture amaze and often inspire.  If not for women who question their place, seek to achieve more and refuse to accept the status quo, the world would be static and dull. Generic role models provide fine examples and offer direction, but what about those women who question and seek more?

Jerusalem Maiden is a sensitive and poignant novel about Esther Kaminsky, an Ultra-Orthodox woman who lives in Jerusalem. Her lifelong conflict between her expected role and her desire to fulfill her artistic passion is arduous and painful.  Her future is God’s will, a script that leaves no room for improvisation. She is expected to marry, produce sons with the hope that she will deliver the Messiah.  One day, her French teacher notices her sketches have promise. From then on she secretly takes art lessons as her religious dogma wavers. The stage is now set for an enormous fissure of faith that will become a defining struggle for Esther.

Talia Carner’s prose is expressive and flows with ease.  The setting is imaginatively realized with a photographer’s eye.  Esther will be remembered as a tangible heroine with an indomitable presence. Easily, a top pick for 2011.  Highly recommended.


Book provided by Library Thing. (Early Reviewers)

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

TLC Blog Tour-Miss Timmins' School for Girls, Nayana Currimbhoy

MISS TIMMINS' SCHOOL FOR GIRLS

Nayana Currimbhoy

Harper Collins Publisher

9780061997747

$14.99

June 12, 2011

REVIEW BY WISTERIA

Mystery lovers will discover this debut author’s fine skill as a mystery writer edgy and dramatic, but it takes a tenacious reader to find out. This novel had a slow beginning for me that would benefit from some serious edits. There is too much time and emphasis on Charulata’s family life with little relationship to the plot.  The beginning is wordy and requires frequent reference for translations available in a glossary at the back of the book. However, having said that I still recommend Miss Timmins’ School for Girls
because it has a dynamic second half.

Fortunately midway the pace suddenly changes with an uplifting point of view change.  Through Nanadita’s voice the author’s skill morphs into an entirely different style, adding a new spark.  Like the promise of a sunny dawn it has brilliance, color and energy that emerges with the introduction of the “Rule Breakers Club”. 

There are so many seemingly unrelated and insignificant characters as the story begins. It is hard to sort out the many characters within the school, the staff, the students and family. Names, names, names. At times keeping everyone straight is confusing.I found it hard to get to know most of the characters where I could empathize with them. However, Nanadita was my favorite student. At first she challenges Charulata but becomes her advocate as circumstances unravel. 

It is fascinating how the author begins to superimpose a multi-layered map of everyones lives that merges into a complex novel of mystery and suspicion.  “The seemingly unrelated and insignificant characters” make sense. Doubt hovers like a fine fog that settles and won’t budge. Even when the story ends you will never be too sure.  A riddle that will leave the most ardent puzzle solver hanging makes Miss Timmins’ School for Girls a worthwhile read and notable debut.  

Publisher Synopsis and Press

A murder at a British boarding school in the hills of western India launches a young teacher on the journey of a lifetime

In 1974, three weeks before her twenty-first birthday, Charulata Apte arrives at Miss Timmins’ School for Girls in Panchgani. Shy, sheltered, and running from a scandal that disgraced her Brahmin family, Charu finds herself teaching Shakespeare to rich Indian girls in a boarding school still run like an outpost of the British Empire. In this small, foreign universe, Charu is drawn to the charismatic teacher Moira Prince, who introduces her to pot-smoking hippies, rock ‘n’ roll, and freedoms she never knew existed.

Then one monsoon night, a body is found at the bottom of a cliff, and the ordered worlds of school and town are thrown into chaos. When Charu is implicated in the murder—a case three intrepid schoolgirls take it upon themselves to solve—Charu’s real education begins. A love story and a murder mystery, Miss Timmins’ School for Girls is, ultimately, a coming-of-age tale set against the turbulence of the 1970s as it played out in one small corner of India.

About Nayana Currimbhoy

Nayana Currimbhoy was raised in India where she attended an all-girls boarding school in a fairly remote hill station. She moved to the U.S. in the early eighties, and has been a businesswoman and a freelance writer. She has written books, film scripts, and articles about many things, including architecture and design, and a biography of  India Gandhi. Miss Timmins School for Girls is her first novel. Nayana lives in New York City with her husband, an architect, and their teenage daughter.

 

FULL BLOG SCHEDULE

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

A Cautionary Tale About Heart Disease-Wednesday 21, 2011

A Cautionary Tale About Heart Disease

Quandary

I was safe in my car but a bit anxious and in a state of panic. My thoughts were to get home, home was safe. With a forty minute drive ahead of me, my mind vacillated in between reality and denial. I wasn't thinking I had a heart problem, just a little stress from the party. As I approached my home, the burning subsided.  Scenes from the party flashed through my mind and I decided I needed to do some shopping. Yes, shopping always perks me up and so I headed to one of my favorite stores. I felt tired, but the burning was minimal and I kept thinking it would go away. I just needed to get my mind on other things. Keep busy.

So, I lingered and wandered through the store, picking up various year end presents for key people at school who helped me through-out the year.  I was in no rush and I found some totally appropriate and unusual gifts.: a bling calculator, a ceramic box with lid intricate patterns from India, notecards and a teapot. This was my favorite gift for a friend who has never had real tea brewed in a teapot. Can you imagine tea lovers?  There are people who use the microwave to brew tea? I know an absolute travesty to tea?  Yuck, it sends chills down my spine. LOL

Of course, I wasn't done. I had to look at shoes for myself and linens. These were totally non-essential and I was drawn to different items as I drifted down each aisle.  I took a few clothes to the fitting room to try on and that was when I started to worry.  I was annoyed by the return of that burning pain and along with it, I now I felt clammy and dizzy.  At this point, I knew I needed to leave the store, if I could. I thought about leaving the cart full of intended gifts and whispered, "No I really  I needed to get these."   I stepped up to the  the checkout desk and paid for my things. As I look back, this was a bad decision

I rushed to my car and thought, I should go to the hospital. I don't feel well. If this ever happens to you, don't wait. Just go. I on the other hand was still in denial about any heart problem and so my first concern before driving to the hospital was to let my dogs out and feed them dinner.  So I headed home, a 5 minute drive. By the time I got to the driveway I was sick and disoriented, but I managed to grab one bag of purchases and stumbled up my walkway. 

I greeted my dogs at the top of the stairs who were jumping and overjoyed to see me. Of course it could also have been they knew it was time to eat. I walked down a flight of stairs to let them out in their fenced area, a must with greyhounds.  I walked slowly back up the stairs to prepare their dinner and then another trip down the stairs to let them back in. I was totally wiped. I felt drained of energy and the burning started again. I didn't want to move but I had to take them out once they had eaten. I took them downstairs again,  hurried them back inside, walked back upstairs and collapsed in a chair.

A thought to call 911 did cross my mind. However, I recalled the last time I called an ambulance and that time it took them over an hour to find my house. It's not like I live in a forest deep in the woods like those out of the way places you read in fairy tales, but prior to GPS, I guess people could misread signs and get lost. Yet, those resourceful kids better known as Hansel and Gretal knew how to take care of themselves didn't they?

So, I managed to get the dogs back in the house and settled. I grabbed my bag, thinking this is stupid, it is probably just an upset stomach, acid or heartburn. However,  I thought at that moment I had no choice. I could go to bed and sleep. Maybe by morning the pain would be gone. Fortunately, somehow my intuition kicked in and the brain chatter reasoned that I should go to the hospital. 

I arrived at my local hospital and  parked the car.  Of course I still had the foolish sense to be careful to find a spot that would protect my doors from dings. How ridiculous, I thought. 

I entered the ER and went to the desk and told them I have chest pain. They didn't even take any information. They hurried me into a room had me get on a bed and immediately hooked me up to equipment. I felt safe. I felt better just knowing I was in medical hands.  I still felt a little foolish, because I thought, this can't be my heart. All that was running though my mind were the visions from movies and television of people gripping their chests and holding their arms. This was not me. I just had burning in my chest. I never once felt pain in my arm, just a little in my jaw.

It didn't matter though, my decision had been made. I was at the hospital and I felt safe. If they found out it was only indigestion or anxiety, at least I would know.  I was exhaused and wanted to rest.  

(To be continued)

http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/
http://www.strokeassociation.org/STROKEORG/

Heart Attack Poster

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

Sunday Salon-A Cautionary Tale

A  

A Cautionary Tale About Heart Disease

The Party

Last Saturday I attended a family gathering to celebrate the first birthday of my nephew's daughter.  I began to feel a burning in my chest. Not acute, gripping, pain, but a nagging burn that I shrugged off.  I'm writing my recent story, to offer you life-saving wisdom that I have read often enough, but  never expected  in a million years I would have to experience any of these symptoms first hand. I even have a chart on the inside of my medicine cabinet, close at hand but of little concern.

Stress at these functions is the norm for me. You would think family parties would be stress-free. Not so for me, but that's another more private tale. I'm sure you have all experienced the angst of attending some of your own family gatherings. So as I finished the last bite of birthday cake, which by the way was absolutely delicious the burning persisted. I was concerned, but not alarmed and attributed the discomfort to a combination of nerves and too much picnic food.

Does anyone bake  from scratch anymore?  The demise of the home-made cake took place during my generation. First the convenient cake box mix appeared on the supermarket shelves. Thanks to Betty Crocker and Duncan Hines, everyone could now become a baker. Maybe you remember having an ice-cream cake that came from a local store. That was the best of both worlds, cake and ice-cream together.  What could be better?  Perhaps you remember the appearance of the ubiquitous and often silly cakes that donned a photograph sure to embarrass the recipient. Shortly followed by warehouse food sheet cakes that afforded convenience, customization, and for a reasonable cost.  To answer my original question, my sister makes the best cakes from scratch. Her recipes are on index cards,  a book and now frequently off the Internet.  She is a temptress of confection. She uses no cake mix, no canned frosting, just the basic ingredients that she blends together altering in some way with her own spin to make the most delicious desserts. Her cake at this party was one of those, a cake to die for.  No, I probably shouldn't say that under these circumstances, but each forkful was a yummy treasured treat I savored, since more than not I deprive myself of cakes and other sweets.

As the burn persisted, I realized, I was in trouble. I needed to leave. I felt so sick. Somewhat dizzy, but the burn radiating from my chest unsettled me.  This was not a gripping pain, it didn't  shoot down my arm.  There was nothing else bothering me but the burn in my chest. No jaw pain, no numbness.  It was a burn that was centralized in my chest and it would last about five to ten minutes. I thought if I could just get to my car and rest. I quickly said my goodbyes family members, but realized I would not be able to find everyone. Then, as I got to my car to drive the 45 minutes back to my house, the pain stopped. Great, I thought, I'm safe in my car and I can get home to rest. Trust me, the idea of a heart problem never crossed my mind.

To be continued.....

http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/
http://www.strokeassociation.org/STROKEORG/

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

TLC Blog Tour-Island Beneath the Sea, by Isabel Allende

 ISLAND BENEATH THE SEA

by Isabel Allende

Harper Perennial

978-0-06-198825

$14.99 US

480 pp., April 26, 2011, reprint edition

Publisher Synopsis-Harper Perennial

Born a slave on the island of Saint-Domingue—the daughter of an African mother she never knew and a white sailor who brought her into bondage—ZaritÉ, known as TÉtÉ, survives a childhood of brutality and fear, finding solace in the traditional rhythms of African drums and in her exhilarating initiation into the mysteries of voodoo.

When twenty-year-old Toulouse Valmorain arrives on the island in 1770, he discovers that running his father's plantation is neither glamorous nor easy. Marriage also proves problematic when, eight years later, he brings home a bride. But it is his teenaged slave, TÉtÉ, upon whom Valmorain becomes most dependent, as their lives intertwine across four tumultuous decades.

In Island Beneath the Sea, internationally acclaimed author Isabel Allende spins the unforgettable saga of an extraordinary woman determined to find love amid loss and forge her own identity under the cruelest of circumstances.

My Review

Allende is brutally honest in this shocking story of bondage and freedom set on the island of Saint Domingue and New Orleans. Wrapped among the lives of objectified women who possess amazing strength and sharp survival instincts is a tangled complicated web where social and racial heritage is a blur.  Lineage and social standing are paramount for social dominance, yet the unspeakable truth provides an alluring story of high drama.  Laws of equality are understood, established by society from centuries of slavery.  Prejudice deeply ingrained, provides a lifestyle, that imprinted from birth establishes standards and rules handed down over generations. 

 Passionately told this novel has multi-layers that will entice and engage the reader. Allende's vibrant soulful characters both vile and dear are memorable.  Allende has always been one of my     favorite authors and Island Beneath the Sea is a majestic and timeless story that is by far her greatest achievement.-

by Isabel Allende....... 

 http://www.isabelallende.com/

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011]. 

TLC Blog Tour-The Rebellion of Jane Clarke, by Sally Gunning

THE REBELLION OF JANE CLARKE

by Sally Gunning

Harper Paperbacks (Reprint April 26, 2011)

ISBN 9780061782152

304 pages

Historical Fiction

 Book Description from Harper Collins 

"On the eve of the Revolutionary War, a young woman is caught between tradition and independence, family and conscience, loyalty and love, in this spellbinding novel from the author of The Widow's War and Bound

Jane Clarke leads a simple yet rich life in the small village of Satucket on Cape Cod. The vibrant scent of the ocean breeze, the stark beauty of the dunes, the stillness of the millpond are among the daily joys she treasures. Her days are full attending to her father's needs, minding her younger siblings, working with the local midwife. But at twenty-two, Jane knows things will change. Someday, perhaps soon, she will be expected to move out of her father's home and start a household of her own.

Yet some things—including the bitter feud between her father and a fellow miller named Winslow—appear likely to remain the same. When the dispute erupts into a shocking act of violence, Jane's lifelong trust in her father is shaken. Adding to her unease is Phinnie Paine, the young man Jane's father has picked out as son-in-law as well as business partner. When Jane defies her father and refuses to accept Phinnie's marriage proposal, she is sent away to Boston to make her living as she can.

Arriving in this strange, bustling city awash with red coats and rebellious fervor, Jane plunges into new conflicts and carries with her old ones she'd hoped to leave behind. Father against daughter, Clarke against Winslow, loyalist against rebel, command against free will—the battles are complicated when her growing attachment to her frail aunt, her friendship with the bookseller Henry Knox, and the unexpected kindness of the British soldiers pit her against the townspeople who taunt them and her own beloved brother, Nate, a law clerk working for John Adams.

But when Jane witnesses British soldiers killing five colonists on a cold March evening in 1770, an event now dubbed "the Boston Massacre," she must question seeming truths and face one of the most difficult choices of her life, alone except for the two people who continue to stand by her—her grandparents Lyddie and Eben Freeman."~Harper Collins

 

Sally Gunning

www.sallygunning.com

My Review

Anyone who has read The Widow’s War and Bound will be immediately drawn into the story of Jane Clarke.  Gunning once again presents a strong women in a historical fiction setting whose beliefs and actions run contrary to the accepted norms of the time period and culture.  Jane is a recalcitrant daughter, strong willed and unable to submit to the future married life her father has planned for her.  As a consequence she is banished from the comfort and security of her home in Satucket, Cape Cod. Jane travels to Boston to live with her aunt. She is determined to maintain her independence and form a life based on her convictions, at all costs.

Sally Gunning weaves a quick moving story that is entertaining as it meanders among the lives of famous statesmen of the day. Jane Clarke becomes a witness to The Boston Massacre and replays the events over and over to try and lift the clouds of doubt. When Jane is called to testify at the trial of the accused, she is faced with her own trial. The author puts her character to the test as she is faced with a difficult and ethical decision. The Rebellion of Jane Clarke becomes her internal struggle of right and wrong as much as her outward struggle for independence.  Without detailing too much of the story, no spoilers here....what ensues is a highly visible political debate with passionate opinions on either side of the trial bench.

Sally Gunning seeks out interesting snippets of history and puts together a well blended cast to produce an enhanced drama that will engage readers of historical fiction. Her author notes add clarity to the historical events in her book.  The Rebellion of Jane Clarke offers an ethics lesson that is timeless with relevance today.  The author’s image and vision of Jane, an obstreperous heroine is memorable and no doubt modern women will cheer her strong will.     

         

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

Contest Reminder: Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks

Book Giveaway:
Just a reminder that the contest for a copy of Geraldine Brooks new book Caleb's Crossing ends in a few days. Hurry for your chance to read Ms. Brooks latest book....see the trailer below.

Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner] with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

Pox, An American History, by Michael Willrich-Blog Tour

POX, An American History
Michael Willrich
The Penguin Press, March 31, 2011
400pp. HC
978-159420286

Summary from The Penguin Press (Cover Jacket)

The untold story of how America's Progressive-era war on smallpox sparked one of the great civil liberties battles of the twentieth century. 

At the turn of the last century, a powerful smallpox epidemic swept the United States from coast to coast. The age-old disease spread swiftly through an increasingly interconnected American landscape: from southern tobacco plantations to the dense immigrant neighborhoods of northern cities to far-flung villages on the edges of the nascent American empire. In Pox, award-winning historian Michael Willrich offers a gripping chronicle of how the nation's continentwide fight against smallpox launched one of the most important civil liberties struggles of the twentieth century.

At the dawn of the activist Progressive era and during a moment of great optimism about modern medicine, the government responded to the deadly epidemic by calling for universal compulsory vaccination. To enforce the law, public health authorities relied on quarantines, pesthouses, and "virus squads"-corps of doctors and club-wielding police. Though these measures eventually contained the disease, they also sparked a wave of popular resistance among Americans who perceived them as a threat to their health and to their rights.

At the time, anti-vaccinationists were often dismissed as misguided cranks, but Willrich argues that they belonged to a wider legacy of American dissent that attended the rise of an increasingly powerful government. While a well-organized anti-vaccination movement sprang up during these years, many Americans resisted in subtler ways-by concealing sick family members or forging immunization certificates. Pox introduces us to memorable characters on both sides of the debate, from Henning Jacobson, a Swedish Lutheran minister whose battle against vaccination went all the way to the Supreme Court, to C. P. Wertenbaker, a federal surgeon who saw himself as a medical missionary combating a deadly-and preventable-disease.

As Willrich suggests, many of the questions first raised by the Progressive-era antivaccination movement are still with us: How far should the government go to protect us from peril? What happens when the interests of public health collide with religious beliefs and personal conscience? In Pox, Willrich delivers a riveting tale about the clash of modern medicine, civil liberties, and government power at the turn of the last century that resonates powerfully today.-The Penguin Press

My Review

Cover to cover, POX will command your attention with an unyielding grip.  Who would think a history about the smallpox scourge would be so engaging, fascinating in fact?

Yet with his extensive research and well crafted narrative Willrich has accomplished that and more. When you read his book, the smallpox epidemic at the turn of the twentieth century is the focus. However, his look back prior to 1900, and then forward in time provides an important timeline and perspective. It is always interesting as a historian, to view the past with twenty-first century eyes. Fortunately, Willrich provides objectivity when writing of the past while offering opportunities to reflect and make connections to current issues facing our global community.

During the Progressive Era, social reformers were crusaders of change.  Change is not always popular and Willrich points out those wishing to change current practice had their opposition. Vaccination proponents, favoring what was in their view necessary for the common good, argued with the opponents, the antivaccinationists who believed in a person’s individual rights.

POX provides a fluid chronicle of the smallpox virus and the development of the weapon that would ultimately obliterate it’s existence around the world.  The methods state governments implemented to enforce vaccination was not always equitable.  It is alarming to read, although it should not be a surprise that our country’s marginalized population suffered most. It was a common belief that this was a  African Americans, recent immigrants, and the poor were systematically singled out and physically forced to submit to vaccination and/or quarantined within their homes or taken to pesthouses for weeks. Race, income, religion and political difference created a clear line of injustice and inequity.

POX will encourage deep reflection and inspire the curious.  Michael Willrich has written a spectacular historical narrative, an outstanding read. POX has been added to my best picks for 2011.

  

Michael Willrich

"Michael Willrich is the author of City of Courts, which won the John H. Dunning Prize awarded by the American Historical Association for the best book on any aspect of U.S. history, and the William Nelson Cromwell Prize awarded by the American Society for Legal History. Currently an associate professor of history at Brandeis University, he worked for several years as a journalist in Washington, D.C., writing for The Washington Monthly, City Paper, The New Republic, and other magazines."  The Penguin Press, book jacket. 

Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner] with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

TLC Blog Tour-A Fierce Radiance Q & A with Lauren Belfer

I want to first welcome Lauren Belfer as my guest today.  I am really thrilled to be a part of the TLC Blog Tour promoting the paperback release of "A Fierce Radiance."

I read "A Fierce Radiance" (see my review)when it was first published last year.  I also named it one of my top pics for 2010 with high praise.  I was fascinated by the story then and I feel honored to have Lauren Belfer, a talented writer,  as a guest on Bookworm's Dinner today.  There is no doubt in my mind if you are a fan of historical fiction, and history, this book is one for your TBR pile!

As an added bonus, I have one copy of A Fierce Radiance to giveaway to residents in US or Canada. See rules below.  I hope you enjoy this book and enjoy the Ms. Belfer's guest post below. 

The Inspiration for “A Fierce Radiance

Lauren Belfer

The Inspiration for “A Fierce Radiance”

"“A Fierce Radiance,” just out in paperback, centers on the secret development of penicillin during the Second World War. I realize that this description makes the book sound like an espionage techno-thriller, but in fact it’s a family story, and it was inspired by a heartbreaking incident within my own family.
For all the years that I knew her, my elderly aunt kept on her bureau a photograph of her brother taken during the 1920s, when he was ten or eleven years old. In the picture, he’s a tow-headed boy sitting with his dad in a rowboat on a creek, both of them laughing.
This was the last photo my aunt had of her brother, because he died from a fast-moving infection on July 4th of his eleventh year. His doctors could do nothing to save his life. Antibiotics didn’t exist.
Decades later, my aunt still talked about her brother. She still mourned him. She told me that the light seemed to go out of her mother’s eyes after he died, and she grew up in a home filled with sadness.
When I shared this tragic story with friends, they often told me that they’d had similar experiences in their own families--grandparents, aunts, uncles, parents, siblings, who died far too young because antibiotics didn’t exist. I was struck by the change that antibiotics had brought to all our lives. A few generations ago, antibiotics didn’t exist, but nowadays, we take these medications for granted, so much so that scientists worry that overuse has led to widespread resistance. Within a few decades, scientists fear, antibiotics will no longer work.
Caught between these two eras – before antibiotics, and possibly after – I felt compelled to write a novel about the moment in time when these life-saving medications were first developed. I wanted to explore how these medications changed our expectations about our children and our families, about life itself.
And so I created a fictional family through which to tell this deeply personal story: Claire Shipley, a single mother as well as a photographer for Life Magazine; her daughter, Emily, who died at age three from a blood infection contracted from a scratch on the knee; Claire’s son, Charlie, age eight, vulnerable to the everyday, sometimes fatal illnesses of childhood; her father, long estranged from her, an astute businessman who quickly foresees the profits to be made from penicillin and similar drugs and James Stanton, a physician-researcher, who falls in love with Claire.
Around this nucleus, I conjured up a wide cast of characters to help me portray America at war, as well as the science and business of antibiotics. But I never let myself lose track of the personal story – the heartbreaking family story – which was my inspiration from the beginning."~Lauren Belfer

Book Giveaway Rules:

Contest ends April 23, 2011 and is open to US and Canadian residents.

To be entered in this giveaway you must:

1. Leave a comment about today's guest post, or comments about the book if you have read it. 

2. Be a follower of Bookworm's Dinner

3. Leave your encrypted email address with your comment.

Additional chances if you.....

4. Tweet about this giveaway....add another chance.

5. Facebook post or Blog post...add another chance.

Thank you to TLC Tours and the publisher for offering this book giveaway!


© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011]. 

Review-The Dressmaker of Khair Khana

THE DRESSMAKER OF KHAIR KHANA

Five Sisters, One Remarkable Family, and the Woman Who Risked Everything to Keep Them Safe
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon

Harper Collins
March, 15,  2011,
$24.98, 288pp
978-0061732379.

Synopsis from Harper Collins

"The life Kamila Sidiqi had known changed overnight when the Taliban seized control of the city of Kabul. After receiving a teaching degree during the civil war—a rare achievement for any Afghan woman—Kamila was subsequently banned from school and confined to her home. When her father and brother were forced to flee the city, Kamila became the sole breadwinner for her five siblings. Armed only with grit and determination, she picked up a needle and thread and created a thriving business of her own.

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana tells the incredible true story of this unlikely entrepreneur who mobilized her community under the Taliban. Former ABC News reporter Gayle Tzemach Lemmon spent years on the ground reporting Kamila's story, and the result is an unusually intimate and unsanitized look at the daily lives of women in Afghanistan. These women are not victims; they are the glue that holds families together; they are the backbone and the heart of their nation.

Afghanistan's future remains uncertain as debates over withdrawal timelines dominate the news. The Dressmaker of Khair Khana moves beyond the headlines to transport you to an Afghanistan you have never seen before. This is a story of war, but it is also a story of sisterhood and resilience in the face of despair. Kamila Sidiqi's journey will inspire you, but it will also change the way you think about one of the most important political and humanitarian issues of our time."

Article first published as Book Review: The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon on Blogcritics.

My Review

THE DRESSMAKER OF KHAIR KHANA is one of those books you pick up to read and never forget. An emotional event, and a reading experience about a dynamic woman of courage who without which there would be no story. In 1996, Kamila Sidiqi received her certificate of studies from Sayed Jamaluddin Teaching Institute in Kabul, Afganistan. Her immediate plans to become a teacher abruptly terminated when the Taliban infiltrated her city, Khair Khana shortly thereafter.

Suddenly, her world would operate within the confines of three life changing edicts announced by the Taliban.

“Women will stay at home. Women are not permitted to work. Women must wear the chadri in public.” (Lemmon, p16)

Gayle Tzemach Lemmon went to Afghanistan to find a story, a story of hope not destruction and evil. Without a doubt, there are countless stories about destruction and evil, the devastation from years of war that the Afghans have endured, the heinous punishment inflicted under Taliban rule.  Lemmon has dug deeper to find the stories of women, women with strength and courage to continue life with determination and unstoppable drive despite the blanket of terror that covers their daily life. The Dressmaker of Khair Khana is the story of one amazing woman, Kamila Sidiqi.

When Kamila’s parents are forced to evacuate to northern Afghanistan, she is left to take care of her brothers and sisters. She has no source of income and no ability to work outside her home. Walking outside presents a constant state of peril at the risk of encountering the lurking Taliban.  A male escort must accompany her at all times. The fear from tortuous reprisals and possible imprisonment are real.

Kamila is confined inside her home with her siblings and they pass the time reading, often the same book again and again. When anxiety and boredom arise along with worries for the future,  Kamila brainstorms ways to make money. She has an innate sense for business and she develops a plan to sew dresses.  She thinks like an entrepreneur, a businesswoman who only sees possibilities, the glass always half full.  She would obliterate her competition were she to compete on the television show “The Apprentice.” She has an unselfish and generous spirit, a tireless leader who wants to engage other women in her adventure. What is most uncanny is that Kamila had no clue how to sew, but had confidence in her own ability to learn.  She accepted her first order having never sewed a dress before. Some would say that her move was foolish, others might say she has the actions of an optimist.  Her methods and business acumen make reading this astonishing story remarkable. Lemmon captivates readers with wonder as she relates how one woman refuses to be a victim and in doing so becomes the teacher she wanted to be by influencing women everywhere. Lemmon’s book is unforgettable. Readers will be grateful that she has introduced us to Kamila Sidiqi, a fascinating woman who is making a difference.

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

My Guest Today is Elizabeth Chadwick-To Defy a King Blog Tour

MARCH  BLOG TOUR -
SOURCEBOOKS LANDMARK
I always look forward to guest author posts who agree to visit my blog.  However, today, I can't wait to share a conversation with one of my favorite  writers, a diva in the historical fiction realm, Elizabeth Chadwick.  A while ago I read and reviewed For the King's Favor.  Ms. Chadwick continues her rousting story in her new release, To Defy a King.(review)

Elizabeth Chadwick Guest Post

Many thanks for inviting me to guest on your blog.  I thought I would talk a bit about the locations mentioned in To Defy A King that Mahelt Marshal would have known as a child.  Many of these have disappeared, or are ruins but they places where they stood are still there, even sometimes as only echoes.

Places mentioned in To Defy A King

The Manor of Caversham, Berkshire
The novel opens here.  Mahelt’s father, William Marshal had a fine manor and chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary at Caversham, close to the Thames and just across the river from Reading Abbey and within easy striking distance of London. In the 13th century, the manor was in Oxfordshire.  Mahelt would have spent time here on and off throughout her childhood as it was a place of which her father was very fond.   The manor is no longer there but there is a Victorian stately home and grounds, now called Caversham Park.

Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire.
This was a Marshal manor where Mahelt’s father would have spent many years of his boyhood and was still an important place to William the grown man.  It stood close to river Kennet but was not particularly strategic. Again, Mahelt would have visited this place with her family as a child.  There are some obscure mounds at Hamstead that may be the remains of motte and bailey fortifications, but are more likely to be much earlier than this, possibly Neolithic.

Chepstow Castle.
Also known as Striguil which derives from a Welsh word meaning ‘River Bend’ this is a castle on the Welsh Marches set on high cliffs above the River Wye.  It was originally built by the Norman warlord William FitzOsbern as part of a chain of castle to protect Gloucester from the Welsh and also to dominate the Welsh.  The castle doors still exist from William Marshal’s time and Mahelt would have looked upon them every day when she was staying there.  The castle was actually part of her mother’s inheritance from the de Clare family.
http://www.castlewales.com/chepstow.html



Framlingham Castle
Framlingham Castle in Suffolk was the caput or main castle of the Bigod family into which Mahelt married. It had been built by her husband Hugh’s great grandfather, then razed to the ground when the grandfather rebelled.  Hugh’s father, Roger, had worked all of his life to have the family restored to favour and had gained permission to rebuild the castle on a grand scale with thirteen great towers and fine new livng quarters for the family.  The old hall, which was one of the few parts of the castle to be left standing, was retained as further living quarters, and had a chapel attached.  Mahelt was to live at Framlingham for a great deal of her marriage to Hugh.
http://www.castlewales.com/chepstow.html" http://www.castlewales.com/chepstow.html


Thetford Priory
Thetford Priory was the burial place of the Bigod Earls of Norfolk.  They had a house here too and were occasionally in residence.  The priory consists of just a few ruins now, and the site of the Bigod house has made way for other housing, but in its heyday, the Priory of Our Lady of Thetford was a great Cluniac monastery.
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/thetford-priory/

Settrington
Settrington, a beautiful village in  East Yorkshire was the main Manor of the Bigod family’s secondary holdings in the North of England.  Later in her life, a widowed Mahelt would give Settrington to her younger son Ralph.  At one time the family had a manor house here, but it has gone.  However, Settrington House stands beside the site of the old manor.  In the novel, Mahelt and Hugh spend their honeymoon here.  I don’t know if they did in real life, but it is thoroughly feasible that they did.  Hugh had been given Settrington by his father when he was 17 years old and it had that feeling of personal possession to him.
http://freespace.virgin.net/owston.tj/sett.htm

Ipswich
The Bigods had a strong, vested interest in the grain port of Ipswich.  They had their own quay in the town and it was with their help that Ipswich was granted a charter by King John in 1200.  http://users.trytel.com/~tristan/towns/ipswich1.html


Friday Street, London.
The Bigod family had a house and a jetty on Friday Street in the city of London.  This has long, long gone,  but Mahelt would probably have known the property and stayed there – as she does for several scenes in the novel.

Salisbury
The Salisbury that Mahelt would have known is now called Old Sarum and stands two miles north of the new town of Salisbury which was founded in 1219 by the then bishop, Richard Poore after several disputes with the secular rulers of  the existing town.
However, in Mahelt Marshal’s day, the original Salisbury was still a busy place with a cathedral and a royal palace.  It was the home of her brother in law William Longespée, earl of Salisbury, and his wife Ela who was related to her. It had also been the childhood home of her grandmother, Sybilla FitzWalter.  In addition, Old Sarum had also housed Eleanor of Aquitaine during her long years of imprisonment.  It’s a ruin now, but open to visitors, courtesy of English Heritage.  The cathedral at the new Salisbury to the south, holds the tomb of William Longespée.
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Sarum

Bradenstoke Priory
Bradenstoke Priory housed the tombs of Mahelt’s paternal grandparents, John FitzGilbert Marshal and Sybilla, daughter of Walter of Salisbury.  Mahelt would probably have visited the priory to pay her respects to the tombs of her ancestors.  Today there are a few scant remains lying on private property close to an RAF base.  Parts of Bradenstoke were boxed up and shipped to the United States by William Randolph Hearst and have since been lost, although it is rumoured that Bradenstoke’s great tithe barn is still around somewhere in the USA, all crated up.    http://www.burtonbradstock.org.uk/History/Bradenstoke%20Priory_files/Bradenstoke%20Priory.htm


Other places Mahelt Marshal would have known that do not feature in To Defy A King.

In Normandy the castles of Longueville and Orbec.

In Wales  the castles of Goodrich, Usk, and Pembroke.
 http://www.castlewales.com/goodrich.html
 http://www.castlewales.com/usk.html
http://www.castlewales.com/pembroke.html


Tintern Abbey, Mahelt’s eventual resting place.
 http://www.castlewales.com/tintern.html

In Ireland, the fortress of Kilkenny, home of her grandmother, the Princess Aoife of Leinster.
http://www.kilkennycastle.ie/en/TouroftheCastle/

In her second marriage, the main castles she would have known were:
Castle Acre
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/castle-acre-castle-and-bailey-gate/

Conisborough Castle
http://www.conisbroughcastle.org.uk/Downloads/EH%20information%20for%20teachers.pdf


Thank you again Elizabeth for this fabulous post with the history of the castles and the website links. I'm sure the readers will be delighted.

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2010].

© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].

Review: To Defy a King, by Elizabeth Chadwick

TO DEFY A KING
by Elizabeth Chadwick
Sourcebooks Landmark
March 2011
$14.99, 544 pages
978-1-4022-50879-7

Synopsis from Sourcebooks

The adored and spirited daughter of England’s greatest knight, Mahelt Marshal lives a privileged life. But when her beloved father falls foul of the volatile and dangerous King John, her world is shattered. The king takes her brothers hostage and Mahelt’s planned marriage to Hugh Bigod, son of the Earl of Norfolk, takes place sooner than she expected. Mahelt and Hugh come to care for each other deeply, but Hugh’s strict father clashes with the rebellious Mahelt. When more harsh demands from King John threaten to tear the couple’s lives apart, Mahelt finds herself facing her worst fears alone, not knowing if she—or her marriage—will survive.

A brilliant story of a vibrant woman in a tyrant’s world, To Defy a King is another impeccably researched masterpiece from a beloved author. ~Sourcebooks

✎ My Review ✎

Elizabeth Chadwick continues to astound me with her imaginative, insightful writing, with scrupulous detail.  To Defy the King is a continuation of the story and the characters who were introduced in For the King’s Favor,  one of my favorite book choices for 2010. 

To Defy a King was equally affecting.  Favorite characters of mine reappear in this new novel, albeit with less spunk and energy.  Roger Bigod and Ida become background and less foreground, as each exhibits an aging temperament appearing now decidedly different. Roger Bigod is now somewhere in his 60’s and as his character has become set in his ways, he appears as an opinionated curmudgeon. Now a new generation of sons and daughters emerges in a fresh plot and large cast of diverse characters.

Mahelt arrives with tumultuous energy.  Roger Bigod's quickly discovers that his soon to be daughter in law this is a recalcitrant and feisty female who is not afraid to stand up to him. She could care less what others think or what gossip surrounds her deeds.  Bigod believes she needs to be watched, yet his plan to engage her with his wife’s sewing activities are short lived.  Mahelt abhors sewing, a favorite pastime of his wife Ida.  With an urgent need to harness or at least keep Melhelt stay out of trouble,  Bigod outlines alternative household duties that seem to satisfy Mahelt, for the short term.  The marriage of Mahelt Marshall to  Hugh Bigod will serve as an alliance between their two families. With Roger Marshall in the King’s favor, it is the perfect match.  However, Hugh and Mahelt come to adore one another and the small spark that begins as an ember of spousal duty turns to wanton passion. As King John continues to reign with eccentricity and brutality,  Hugh, is honor bound to serve his King.  Conflict develops when his fealty to the King and fealty to Mahelt and his children collide.

This book will bring page turning anxiety and lost sleep as you want to get to the finish, only to discover you didn’t want it to end. You just might miss the people who for a while became your world and the emotional emptiness is disconsolate.   I adored Mahelt, she is enchanting, alluring, intelligent and impressive, a rare personality of extreme power who will endure in print because her image was shaped by an exceptional storyteller.  When you read one of Elizabeth Chadwick’s books, you are cocooned in a wondrous historical fiction assignation.

See the exciting trailer and tune in to my blog tomorrow for Elizabeth Chadwick's guest appearance.  Elizabeth Chadwick Website.



Thanks to Sourcebooks for providing a review copy of this book. As always, reviews on my blog represent my honest unbiased opinion.


© [Wisteria Leigh] and [Bookworm's Dinner], [2008-2011].