Orphan Train

One of the sad points in American History is the orphan train that ran from New York across the mid west, depositing children of all ages to unknown adults. In an attempt to get kids off the streets and out of crime (the kids got into trouble in the first place because they were just trying to survive), Children's Aid Society sent about 200,000 children on these trains in an attempt to give them a home, give farmers help on their land, and get the children off the streets. No surprise, many of these children ended up in abusive and enslaved situations.

Orphan Train is the fictional story of one little girl who rode the train. The book goes back forth between present day (which is 2011) and the time period of the train (1920s) and has two different narrators. I will not give much else away since this is a book that's best left untold until you read it. I will give a caveat: this book has some difficult scenes of child abuse. It's very realistic though and as such, is a good reminder of this controversial part of our nations past.

Literary speaking, the book is a very good one. The characters are absolutely endearing. It's a good look on the goodness and evil of human nature. Of how selfish and selfless people can be. And a reminder of how far we've come as a society in how we protect children and what we view as appropriate. And just how far we have yet to go.

The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D.

The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D. was a good book. It is probably best read in person than on audio CD. I listened this on audio over a span of about 4 weeks and each time I was never truly compelled to get back into it. That could be because it was read to me, or it could be the book itself...just not interesting enough. It's just a book about life. It's an honest novel about friends, marriage, and motherhood. Which is usually pretty mundane and very every day...so perhaps that's why the novel is not compelling.

But I did finish and I'm glad I did. It was a good book. I liked the honesty of the women in the book. I enjoyed reading about their lives filled with sacrifice and their desires to find their worth, finding the balance between being a mother and working outside the home.

The book is about Kate, a woman who was left a trunk of Elizabeth's (her friend) journals to read after Elizabeth's sudden death. Kate learns about Elizabeth's life and her depression and struggle in her marriage and motherhood in the journals. What I appreciate is the portrayal that although marriage is sometimes hard, love is a commitment. That life as a mother isn't always Pollyanna and that's okay. And that sometimes you don't really know a person that you think you know.

Even though the book was good, I was happy when it finally ended. It was a good reminder that life can be shorter than you think. "And how you left things just before the final moment, that was how they would remain."

Proof of Heaven

This book was interesting. Not good and not bad. Well, maybe a little bad. Eben Alexander is a neurosurgeon who ends up in a coma due to a rare disease. He was supposed to die. When he miraculously woke up, he was supposed to be brain dead. The fact that he came back to normal brain functionality after being in a coma with bacterial meningitis for 7 days is remarkable. That's probably more proof of heaven than his near death experience (NDE).

This book is supposed to be Dr. Alexanders counter argument to the scientists of the world who think NDEs are bogus and not true. The end of his book gets a little too scientific for laypeople, but I think that's his point, so that's not what bothered me.

I give this a 2 out of 5 stars. And I believe in heaven! The biggest frustration with the book is the same frustration I have with American Christianity as a whole - the lack of an understanding of what REAL Christianity is. Unless you believe in the God of the bible, you're making your own Christianity, which in a word is idolatry. If you pick and choose what parts of the bible you think are true, you are creating your own God.

I'm not saying that NDEs aren't real. I'm not saying that God can't use their often times incorrect theology to bring people to Himself. However, I know that God himself says not all people will go to heaven. The God of the bible says that just because you are a "good person" doesn't mean you get eternal life. There is only one good person - Jesus. And unless you put your faith in Him, there is no heaven for you. So, I get wary of NDEs that communicate that all people are in heaven. You see your loved one in your NDE and they tell you "it's going to be okay". That is a true statement for those people who love and follow Christ, but not if they don't.

I would recommend this book as a research tool if you are wanting to learn more about NDEs. But not if you're just looking for a good book.

The House Girl

Wow, what a great book! The story is great, the writing is great, the narration is great - just about everything is great.

The House Girl has two narrators - Josephine, a slave during the 1800s and Lina Sparrow, a lawyer today. I love when books weave two completely different people's lives together in a unique way and Conklin has beautifully done just that. Like all the good authors who do this narration style well, the reader cares about both stories. One story is not more important or compelling than the other.

The one disappointing thing about the novel was the lack of authentic slave accents. I am continually struck by how many authors don't use true accents. I wrote a little bit about this in my review for The Kitchen House, which did a better job than The House Girl. I know accents make books a little more difficult to read, but the payoff is well worth it. I found the novel less believable without the accents. The voices narrating weren't as distinct and as such, Josephine was not as developed as a character as she could have been.

I love the plot of this book. Lina Sparrow, a junior lawyer, is researching to find a face to represent a slavery reparation case. She works all the time and lives with her widowed artist father. Josephine is a house slave who due to her mistress (also an artist) getting ill, decides to run. Lina is looking for a descendant of Josephine while Josephine is just looking to live.

The House Girl is a great book and I highly recommend it!

The Other Boleyn Girl

I have heard a ton about Philippa Gregory. The first novel of hers I read, The White Queen, left a lot to be desired. Since The Other Boleyn Girl is the book I continue to hear about, I decided to take another chance...and it was worth it. It is very well written. Gregory has written very good transitions between fact and fiction. I learned a lot about the era and about the Boleyn's without even knowing I was learning history. It was a book that was difficult to put down and sad when it ended.

However...the book is very racy, so reader beware. Usually one thinks of Victorian/Tudor England as modest; but in reality, it was anything but. The sexual details in this book are quite bold. Not too much, but close.

The Other Boleyn Girl has redeemed this author for me and while I can't say that I'll definitely read more of her work, I enjoyed this one a lot and maybe once I get through my very long "to read" list, another Philippa Gregory might be just the thing.