Recent Reads

There are a few perks to being in a foreign country, sans internet and telephone. One of the best is the time it affords one to read, read and read some more. Over the last two weeks (in addition to spending numerous hours on the bus exploring the City), I have managed to cross off 5 books on my To-Read list.

Yvette loaned me Without Reservations by Alice Steinbach just before we left the US. I figured that nothing could be more apropos for a long flight than a travel log. Alas, a certain wiggly (albeit, very cute) boy kept me from getting any reading done on the 20 hour flight. And, since the first 10 days after arriving in Singapore were hectic as Josh, Caleb and I raced all over the city to find basic items like sheets and milk, I put aside the thought of getting any reading done. Life demanded my attention; the book would have to wait.

On one of our many excursions during that first week, Josh and I located the only decent-sized bookstore on the island, Borders on Orchard Road. He perused the computer section whilst (I have decided to adopt this whimsical, British version of "while" since that is what the Singaporeans use) I admired their beautiful display of award-winning literature. Josh bought a textbook on teaching HTML, I bought The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, the first novel written in English by an Afghan. Since we have friends who will be moving their family to Afghanistan the end of this month, I was drawn to the book.

Now I had two books calling my name and no time to read either. Pure torture!

Thankfully, life quickly settled into a routine. Josh started new teacher orientation, Caleb started napping and I started reading.

I decided to start with the first book first and then move on to my most recent purchase. The only other travel log author I'd read was Bill Bryson, whose hilarious take on England in Notes from a Small Island had me in stitches, so I wasn't sure what to expect from this more serious-looking book about one woman's travels through Europe. What I found surprised me. Ms. Steinbach, so full of memories, insight and humor, was an excellent travel companion. I loved her vivid imagery and frequent allusions to literature and art. And, I loved the places she wrote about: Paris, Rome, Oxford. By the end of the book, I wasn't ready to be done with my vicarious travels, so I did two things. . . started reading about Afghanistan and planned another trek across Singapore to see if I could find Steinbach's second book, Educating Alice. By the time we made it to Borders a day later, I had already devoured (the only appropriate word for how I read this book) The Kite Runner and had expanded my shopping list to include Hosseini's second book, A Thousand Splendid Suns, as well.

The Kite Runner, Hosseini's first book, was gripping. He is an amazing storyteller. Actually, more than a storyteller. . . his historical and political documentation of Afghanistan's past 35 year turmoil was fascinating. I appreciated the skill with which Hosseini wove fact and fiction together to create a heart-wrenching story about two Afghan boys who, although fictional, were surrounded by concrete information about Afghan culture, Afghan politics, and Islam. Although I would highly recommend The Kite Runner for both it's literary merit and it's insight into Afghanistan, you should be aware that Hosseini deals with some very disturbing material. I felt that he handled it very tactfully, however war and the human heart are evil, and to read about evil is disturbing. There is simply no getting around it.

While I would highly recommend Hosseini's first book, I wasn't as sold on his second. Perhaps it was because I read it right on the heels of his first, or perhaps it was because it just wasn't as good. I think that a large part of my detached feeling toward this book was the shift in perspective. In The Kite Runner the story is told in first person, making the character come to life. In A Thousand Splendid Suns, Hosseini used the third person, with shifts of focus between two central characters. I didn't care for the style.

Where Hosseini's second book disappointed, Steinbach's book made up for it. I loved her first book. I absolutely adored her second. By the end of her second book, I was literally laughing out loud. Not because she is a comedian but because her commentary on the places she visits is so true! And because her commentary on herself is so honest! Read it and you'll find out what I mean. I am quite certain that nearly all of the people who read this blog would enjoy her wit and forthright style. Actually, as I have been reading this book, a certain dear friend of mine (Christianne!) kept coming to mind. Even if the rest of you ignore this recommendation, I do hope that my curly-haired friend in Florida will stop by the library to get a copy of each of her books.

In addition to the aforementioned, I also finished Bringing Up Boys by Dr. Dobson, but I think I've already said way too much in this post. Since a large part of this blog is devoted to Christian Mothering, I think I'll spare you a detailed review of this book and simply say this: The book was good.