Surprising. Delightful! Both more and less serious than I had thought. (If I were really clever I would write a review employing all the tools I'v leaSurprising. Delightful! Both more and less serious than I had thought. (If I were really clever I would write a review employing all the tools I'v learned, but I will leave that for another. ...more
Truth be told: I got confused. I think it was an effort to make the characters have some depth to them, but ...It just wasn't her best.Truth be told: I got confused. I think it was an effort to make the characters have some depth to them, but ...It just wasn't her best....more
Each in this series is better than the last one! I think the lady is having fun. I know I am, reading them. There are unique scenes. There are fun sceEach in this series is better than the last one! I think the lady is having fun. I know I am, reading them. There are unique scenes. There are fun scenes - in the midst of suffering. I am carrying away a sense of the history between WWI and II and how we are all in denial when it comes to our roles. We are responsible. But in the middle of this: love is budding out. ...more
Fr.Boyle has something to say - and he says it in multiple ways, but always interspersed with something which lightens the pain. It's his 4th book andFr.Boyle has something to say - and he says it in multiple ways, but always interspersed with something which lightens the pain. It's his 4th book and we are talking about what it means to be cherished and how do we do that? I am grateful聽...more
I enjoyed this mystery on many levels - the history! the setting! the main character and her (silly) friend. The reflections on being handicapped. NotI enjoyed this mystery on many levels - the history! the setting! the main character and her (silly) friend. The reflections on being handicapped. Not overdone but thoughtful. ...more
Oh, I really enjoyed reading Danny's autobiography. His voice is clear, his point of view funny and warm and thoughtful. It's one thing to share time Oh, I really enjoyed reading Danny's autobiography. His voice is clear, his point of view funny and warm and thoughtful. It's one thing to share time with someone - and another to read that person's reflection on their own life. While I relished his story of his mother published a few years ago (My mother can beat up your father), her presence was even more alive in his story. Memoir: a gift to one's friends and family but also a gift to ourselves, a deepening of awareness. The core idea: page 204 - deepening our life lessons. ...more
Honestly? 50% of this text was beyond me, especially the poetry of others. But when I finished this book last night, I got out of bed and danced in thHonestly? 50% of this text was beyond me, especially the poetry of others. But when I finished this book last night, I got out of bed and danced in the dark, down the hall and out to the windows. I danced for this new sense of joy and the snow outside felt the same way. I think. Or don't think.
Here are pages I loved. pg. 39 pg. 179 : one can make an idolatry of doubt pg. 182 : religions are poems pg. 227 pg. 233 pg. 238 pg.264 - to share: Suffering and Joy : how are they the same?
1. They are never abstract
2. They are inevitable. (No life is without some experience of joy.
3. They cannot be willed nor forced.
4. There can be something sacred in them. pg.267...more
Just delightful and full of the gritty details of Singapore just post WWII. I recognize some of the details which leads me to trust the whole. There'sJust delightful and full of the gritty details of Singapore just post WWII. I recognize some of the details which leads me to trust the whole. There's the racism and the loss of war - painful - but Ms.Yu weaves hope through the fabric. The rhythm of her English is awkward sometimes and I find myself wishing the editor had set the type so that we could clearly identify different speakers. I've heard that the earlier books in this series are more carefully edited so I'm off to read them! ...more
A complex tapestry, opening up different worlds of experience for me. Iranian, gay, music, poetry, failure to launch and what this moment holds. NiccoA complex tapestry, opening up different worlds of experience for me. Iranian, gay, music, poetry, failure to launch and what this moment holds. Nicco gave me this book for Christmas. Thank you. ...more
Thoughtful. Honest. This should be unbearable to read but somehow the child narrating from his own ten year old point of view calls out for compassionThoughtful. Honest. This should be unbearable to read but somehow the child narrating from his own ten year old point of view calls out for compassion and hope. There are heroes and villains but the child is waking up to complexity. He doesn't blame. There are flash moments when he realizes that he's been lied to but his own capacity for forgiveness shames me. I woke up again this morning thinking that I can imagine this child forgiving me. Precious scene: the rancher pulling the thorns out of a woman's face with tweezers, lit by headlights, water dripping from the hose.
It's rare that a book work so many themes as carefully as does this one. And it's readable. I'm part of two different book clubs reading this exploratIt's rare that a book work so many themes as carefully as does this one. And it's readable. I'm part of two different book clubs reading this exploration of our history from an indigenous point of view and the ground has shifted significantly for me in the discussions it has generated. ...more
A little schmalzy, aiming to please, but nonetheless I enjoyed it until the wrap up. Was this all about magic then? No. It鈥檚 about love, perhaps or itA little schmalzy, aiming to please, but nonetheless I enjoyed it until the wrap up. Was this all about magic then? No. It鈥檚 about love, perhaps or it wants to be about love. Doesn鈥檛 quite make it real....more