Review - The Season of Second Chances by Diane Meier

The Season of Second Chances by Diane Meier
published 4/10
285 pages

Synopsis from publisher:

Coming-of-age can happen at any age. Joy Harkness had built a university career and a safe life in New York, protected and insulated from the intrusions and involvements of other people. When offered a position at Amherst College, she impulsively leaves the city, and along with generations of material belongings, she packs her equally heavy emotional baggage. A tumbledown Victorian house proves an unlikely choice for a woman whose family heirlooms have been boxed away for years. Nevertheless, this white elephant becomes the home that changes Joy forever. As the restoration begins to take shape, so does her outlook on life, and the choices she makes over paint chips, wallpaper samples, and floorboards are reflected in her connection to the co-workers who become friends and friendships that deepen. A brilliant, quirky, town fixture of a handyman guides the renovation of the house and sparks Joy's interest to encourage his personal and professional growth. Amid the half-wanted attention of the campus's single, middle-aged men, known as the Coyotes,and the legitimate dramas of her close-knit community, Joy learns that the key to the affection of family and friends is being worthy of it, and most important, that second chances are waiting to be discovered within us all.

My thoughts:

I'd read a few reviews of this novel before I started reading it, and so was expecting to enjoy it. What I didn't expect was to enjoy it for many of the OPPOSITE reasons as the other reviews I'd read.

Almost universally, I saw readers enjoy the prose - I couldn't agree more. The writing is smart and funny, and Meier's descriptions of Joy's house as she begins to transform it are so vivid I could literally see the wallpaper and paint. I was transfixed as Meier described the revolutionary curriculum Joy contributed to at Amherst, and wished I could have been a part of something like that when I was in college.

While almost everyone enjoyed the writing, several reviewers didn't especially like Joy herself - they found her abrasive, or snotty, or distant. I really liked her - I found her intellect and sense of humor refreshing, and could relate to many of her personality quirks. (I'm not sure what that says about me!) I also noticed a LOT of love for Teddy the handyman - and in many ways, he was my least favorite character. I found his unreasoning attachment to his mother irritating, and many of the "childlike" traits that were supposed to be endearing seemed to me juvenile and ridiculous. Perhaps what this book taught me is that I'm really just a big snob. *grin*

I was particularly interested in Meier's opinions on feminism, particularly modern feminism, and the way it seems to mean such different things to different people. I appreciated her strong, rich, interesting female characters, and could imagine myself being drawn to them for many of the same reasons Joy was.

I found this to be an excellent debut novel, funny and intelligent, thoughtful and full of heart. This is an example of women's fiction at its best.

Finished: 5/25/10
Source: review copy from publicist
MPAA rating: PG-13 for sexual situations, some drug and alcohol use, and some violence
My rating: 8/10

Review - Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey

Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey
published 2009
341 pages

Synopsis from publisher:

Loup Garron was born and raised in Santa Olivia, an isolated, disenfranchised town next to a US military base inside a DMZ buffer zone between Texas and Mexico. A fugitive Wolf-Man who had a love affair with a local woman, Loup's father was one of a group of men genetically-manipulated and used by the US government as a weapon. The Wolf-Men were engineered to have superhuman strength, speed, sensory capability, stamina, and a total lack of fear, and Loup, named for and sharing her father's wolf-like qualities, is marked as an outsider.

After her mother dies, Loup goes to live among the misfit orphans at the parish church, where they seethe from the injustices visited upon the locals by the soldiers. Eventually, the orphans find an outlet for their frustrations: They form a vigilante group to support Loup Garron who, costumed as their patron saint, Santa Olivia, uses her special abilities to avenge the town.

Aware that she could lose her freedom, and possibly her life, Loup is determined to fight to redress the wrongs her community has suffered. And like the reincarnation of their patron saint, she will bring hope to all of Santa Olivia.

My thoughts:

This book has been on my radar for quite a while - I fell HARD in love with Carey's Kushiel series, but even I could tell that Santa Olivia was not going to be the lush, romantic epic fantasy that I'd come to expect from this author. So, while I knew I wanted to read it, I'd put it on the back burner for a while. Because really, what can be worse than when an author you LOVE writes a book that you....don't. And when I read the description, I thought, "Wolf-Men??? Hmmmm...."

But I saw it at the library, and I felt like I could use a bit of a break from the modern, somewhat bleak lit-fic I had lined up, so I grabbed it. Then it sat languishing in my bag for quite a while, as my reading time became occupied with more important things. And then, last weekend, I was almost out the door before I remembered I didn't have a book in my bag (TRAGEDY!), and it was on top of the pile, so I grabbed it and ran.

Several hours later, I was so engrossed I forgot to eat dinner. And the next morning I woke up early to keep reading. Because once again, I fell HARD in love with this novel.

Santa Olivia is a little bit dystopian sci-fi, a little bit coming-of-age, a little bit romance, a little bit adventure - really, it's such an interesting mix of genres that it winds up feeling a lot like it's very own thing, which isn't in this case bad. It's definitely a departure for Carey, though - her Kushiel series has an elegant, lyrical quality to it that perfectly fits the narrative. Santa Olivia is neither elegant nor lyrical - it is hard, and blunt, and again, it fits the narrative. These characters live hard, bleak lives, and too much elegance in the prose would have seemed out of place.

While the writing itself is good, it is the characters that make this novel. Carey takes such care in creating her characters, and they just come to life in the pages. Each of them is important, and so perfectly placed - I can't imagine the story without a single one of them.

And then there is Loup. She is a heroine I will never forget. She is feisty, and loyal, and completely unafraid. (Literally. She can't feel fear. This can be both a good thing and a bad thing.) This book, more than anything, is Loup's journey - from precocious little girl to fascinating woman. She learns about love, and courage, and about picking her battles. She is strong in all the ways a person can be strong, and yet she is not invincible. She is utterly compelling.

Yep, I loved this book. It's not perfect - some of the backstory could be fleshed out a bit more, and the ending was a bit abrupt. But I think much of that could be resolved in a sequel, which I understand from the author's website is in the works. (Hooray!) But it was one of the most entertaining books I've read this year, and I have a feeling it will be one of my favorites when the year draws to a close.

Finished: 4/3/10
Source: Forest Avenue library
MPAA Rating: R for violence, language, and sexual situations
My rating: 9/10



This book counts toward:


42 Science Fiction Challenge
4/42 complete








Women Unbound Reading Challenge
2/8 complete

The Nonfiction Files

The Nonfiction Files is a weekly journal of my adventures reading my toppling piles of nonfiction books. I won't be posting reviews, but rather my thoughts about what I'm reading, while I'm reading it.


I'm joined in The Nonfiction Files by Jehara. If you would like to play along with us, let me know!


My current read is Nothing To Do But Stay: My Pioneer Mother by Carrie Young.

Synopsis from publisher:

Carrine Gafkjen was, as her daughter remembers, at once the most liberated and unliberated of women. If she had considered the subject at all she would have thought it a waste of time. She firmly believed in destiny; what fate planned for her she dealt with head-on.

In the early 1900s the twenty-five-year-old Gafkjen boarded a train from Minneapolis to claim a homestead for herself on the western North Dakota prairies. She lived alone in her claim shack, barred her door at night against the coyotes, existed on potatoes and salt, and walked five miles to the nearest creek to wash her clothes. A decade later she had, by her own ingenuity, doubled her landholdings and became a secure women of property. Then, at an age when most other women would have been declared spinsters, Carrine Gafkjen married Sever Berg and had six children.

Nothing to Do but Stay tells the story of this uncommon woman with warmth and good humor. It gives testimony to the lasting spirit of our pioneer heritage and, in these uncertain times, to the staying power of family and tradition. This book will appeal to all those with an interest in the settlement of the West, the history of the Great Plains, women's studies, and the perseverance of the early-twentieth-century farmers.

My thoughts:

Normally I read nonfiction books over the course of a few days to a couple of weeks, but I gobbled this small book up in one sitting. Less a linear narrative and more a series of essays about life as a pioneer, this is a quiet testimony to a type of strength we just don't see anymore.

I knew I would like the author's mother from the first sentences - "My pioneer mother was wild for education. She firmly believed that young people given enough schooling and using the brains they were born with could rise above themselves as far as they wanted to go, the sky the limit." She lived that belief, giving each of her 6 children a high school and college education during a time when many had to stop going to school to help support the family.

Carrie's mother was strong - there is really no other way to describe her. She was strong of back, strong of mind, strong of purpose. She moved to North Dakota, bought her land with cash, worked and saved and made herself a prosperous farm - alone. She didn't have a family to support her, or husband to depend on - she made her own decisions, bore the consequences, and became extremely successful. Then, when she decided to have a family, she committed completely to the changes that life brought, and had a loving marriage and raised 6 happy, intelligent and well-adjusted children.

The author has a clean, simple way of telling a story. She doesn't create drama where it doesn't exist, but allows the reader to experience the struggle and joy of life as a homesteader as it happened. One of my favorite examples is this story of her mother's weekly laundry routine:

"My mother spent every Monday from dawn until late afternoon doing the family wash. It was probably no accident that four out of six of her children were born on Tuesday.

If she wasn't having a baby on Tuesday, my mother ironed. She had three flatirons, which she heated on top of her kitchen range and which she lifted with a detachable handle. She changed irons about every ten minutes as they cooled off. When I awakened on Tuesday morning, I could hear my mother ironing. The handle squeaked as it was pushed against the flatiron moving across the ironing board. One Christmas my father bought her an outsized gasoline iron, which was equipped with a small gas tank on the back; it had to be generated like a gas lamp before being lit. My mother loved that iron. It had such a large smooth surface, and she didn't have to heat up the coal range as she did with her old flatirons. But all day the carbon monoxide fumes drifted up in her face, and by the end of the day she had a splitting headache. Still, she refused to give it up; she thought the headaches were worth the time it saved. One Tuesday, however, she was in a hurry, and she didn't generate the iron long enough. It started to puff, and she hurled it out the kitchen door a second before it burst into flames. It couldn't have happened to a nicer piece of equipment."

If I have a quibble about the book, it's that I was expecting a bit MORE about the author's mom - while she is certainly featured, the story is as much about the entire family as it is about one person. I did enjoy the family vignettes, but found Carrie's mother to be the most interesting, and would have loved to read even more about her.

This is a quick read, and I think it would have wide appeal. It would be a good book for someone who doesn't have a lot of time to read - each chapter is basically a complete story, and this would be a volume that could be dipped into if you only have a few minutes to read each day. I think it would also be appropriate for young adult readers. It's not story-driven, but rather glimpses of a lifestyle that has passed us by.

Finished: 1/9/10
Source: my shelves
Rating: 8/10


This book counts toward:



Women Unbound Reading Challenge - book 1/8


















The 4 Month Challenge - book 2/20

Women Unbound Meme

WOMEN UNBOUND Start of Challenge Meme:

1. What does feminism mean to you? Does it have to do with the work sphere? The social sphere? How you dress? How you act?

To me, feminism is about the right of every woman to be treated like a full human being. In too much of the world, women are still viewed as property, to be bartered and used at the pleasure of men. Certainly the pay gap and the glass ceiling are very real issues that need to be addressed, but I don't think we can make headway in any arena until women are finally viewed as equal. (please note - I do not believe that, in this case, equal means the same. I do not believe that men and women are the same. I do believe that they are equal by the dictionary definition "like or alike in quantity, degree, value, etc.; of the same rank, ability, merit, etc.")

2. Do you consider yourself a feminist? Why or why not?

Yes.

"Does feminist mean large unpleasant person who'll shout at you or someone who believes women are human beings. To me it's the latter, so I sign up."
~ Margaret Atwood

"A feminist is a woman who does not allow anyone to think in her place."
~Michelle le Doeuff

3. What do you consider the biggest obstacle women face in the world today? Has that obstacle changed over time, or does it basically remain the same?

Have you read this story about a 15-year-old girl who was gang-raped outside her high school homecoming dance? The one where at least a dozen people watched it happen, and didn't report it? If you haven't, you need to. And then get angry.

This is America, folks. The America where 15-year-old girls can get gang-raped and people think it's a spectator sport. The America where, it seems, women are still viewed as objects to be used and abused at the pleasure of whomever is bigger and stronger and in the general area. If we can't even find a dozen people ethical enough to stop watching the rape and call the police in America, how are we ever going to effect change in the world?

Women Unbound Reading Challenge

Seriously? This is AMAZING!

From the challenge blog:

The challenge runs from November 1, 2009-November 30, 2010, but you may join in the fun whenever you wish! Participants are encouraged to read nonfiction and fiction books related to the rather broad idea of ‘women’s studies.’ The definition according to Merriam-Webster:

the multidisciplinary study of the social status and societal contributions of women and the relationship between power and gender.

For nonfiction, this would include books on feminism, history books focused on women, biographies of women, memoirs (or travelogues) by women, essays by women and cultural books focused on women (body image, motherhood, etc.). The topics I’ve listed aren’t mean to be exhaustive; if you come across a nonfiction book whose subject is female-related, it counts! Of course, if you’re not sure you can always ask about it in a comment. And if you need some ideas for specific books, check out the ‘Reading Lists’ page.

It’s trickier to say what is applicable as fiction. Obviously, any classic fiction written by a feminist is applicable. But where do we go from there? To speak generally, if the book takes a thoughtful look at the place of women in society, it will probably count. At the end of the day, it’s up to you to explain in your review why you chose this for the challenge and its connection to women’s studies. Once again, if you need some specific ideas, check out the ‘Reading Lists’ page.

One quick note about author gender. There isn’t a rule if a book’s written by a woman it counts and if by a man it doesn’t count. I firmly believe that men can be feminists and that not all women are feminists. As long as the book adheres to the definition of women’s studies I’ve shared above, it counts.

Interested in participating? Great! There are three levels you can choose as a reader (you can count books for other challenges as well):

• Philogynist: read at least two books, including at least one nonfiction one.
• Bluestocking: read at least five books, including at least two nonfiction ones.
• Suffragette: read at least eight books, including at least three nonfiction ones.

Of course, I'll be signing up for Suffragette - here is my list of possible choices:

Fiction -

Native Tongue by Suzette Haden Elgin
The Judas Rose by Suzette Haden Elgin
Earthsong by Suzette Haden Elgin
Frost in May by Antonia White
Wild Seed by Octavia Butler
Mind of My Mind by Octavia Butler
Clay's Ark by Octavia Butler
Patternmaster by Octavia Butler
The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood

Nonfiction -

Where the Girls Are by Susan J. Douglas (sociology, mass media)
The Woman who Ran for President by Lois Beachy Underhill (biography)
Mothers of the Disappeared by Jo Fisher (history, biography)
China to Me by Emily Hahn (travel)
Not Counting Women and Children by Megan McKenna (religion)
Six Myths of Our Time by Marina Warner (mythology, cultural criticism)
Nothing To Do But Stay by Carrie Young (biography)
Tales of a Female Nomad by Rita Golden Gelman (travel)
Founding Mothers by Cokie Roberts (history, biography)


Nothing like giving myself a few choices. I found all these by spending about 10 minutes browsing my shelves - as usual, I have lots of choices.

I'm very excited about this one!! If you want to join, visit the challenge blog and sign up!