What do you know about Margaret Mead? Here's what I knew before I read this book. She was an anthropologist who was born in the early 1900's. Here's what I know now. Just about the same thing. But I did enjoy the book!
Once again, I struggle with historical fiction. According to the book jacket, Euphoria is "Inspired by events in the life of revolutionary anthropologist Margaret Mead..." which means maybe some of the story is true or maybe the author created the whole thing! The main character even has a different name. (Would that be for legal reasons?) As I read it, I decided to just read it as fiction, and when I switched to that mindset, I really enjoyed the book. The story follows three anthropologists in the 1930's in New Guinea; Nell, Fen (her husband), and Bankson. Their relationship with the tribes they visit and their relationships with each other are complex and very interesting. It's a subject that few novels are written about so it's a great topic to discover. I recommend this one and will bring it to you, BT. -June
Saturday, May 28, 2016
H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald
It seems that we've had quite a few popular authors passing through my town lately, and in April, Helen MacDonald gave a talk at our local Audubon center. Since my book club was preparing to discuss her book, we went together as a group. I had not read the book at this point, but I enjoyed her personality and her enthusiasm for her story. But I do wonder if I hadn't seen her, if I might have liked the book more?
H is for Hawk is a memoir written in the year following Ms. MacDonald's father's death. To get through her grief, she decided to buy a hawk which is evidently legal in England. Her father taught her about falconry and birding, and she felt the training and structure would help her out of her depressed state. The writing is beautiful; the author is also a poet. Whole paragraphs are devoted to describing a tree or the look in the hawk's eyes. But I was troubled as I read it. I don't believe hawks should be pets. So that was my biggest problem with the book. But I also had a hard time visualizing this devastated young woman when the woman I had seen was bubbly and almost giddy with excitement. It just didn't fit and made the story less believable for me.
I kind of gave up after I was halfway into it and skimmed the rest. I took the book to a British lady who is a huge birder and I'll see what she thinks. -June
H is for Hawk is a memoir written in the year following Ms. MacDonald's father's death. To get through her grief, she decided to buy a hawk which is evidently legal in England. Her father taught her about falconry and birding, and she felt the training and structure would help her out of her depressed state. The writing is beautiful; the author is also a poet. Whole paragraphs are devoted to describing a tree or the look in the hawk's eyes. But I was troubled as I read it. I don't believe hawks should be pets. So that was my biggest problem with the book. But I also had a hard time visualizing this devastated young woman when the woman I had seen was bubbly and almost giddy with excitement. It just didn't fit and made the story less believable for me.
I kind of gave up after I was halfway into it and skimmed the rest. I took the book to a British lady who is a huge birder and I'll see what she thinks. -June
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