Seventh Meeting: The Book Thief

The impossible happened. Not every single person at book club absolutely loved The Book Thief. The audacity! I know, I know-- this is what makes a book club great. There are a variety of points of view and opinions and you get challenged to read books that you would not normally choose or appreciate. And all of that crap. But I was so unbelievable moved and touched by this wonderful book (see my gushing review, 2 posts ago) that I was literally shocked that all members of Eat, Drink, and Be Literary did not agree.

This is not to say that people hated the book or anything. Of the seven participants present, one loved it (yours truly), three liked it, one only finished half, and two disliked it. This breakdown is fairly typical  of the meetings, but I am still surprised.

The meeting was good, though I will admit I was defensive about the novel. I feel like it is such a gem that I could barely tolerate negativity. We spent a long time talking about the role of death as the narrator, and how the book would be different from a different point of view. We also compared this novel to others revolved around the Holocaust or WWII, and who the intended audience of the book really was. It is being marketed as a book for young adults, but the club generally agreed that it was more for "real" adults... whatever that means.

Despite not hearing rave reviews when we went around the circle, I am still confident and comfortable in saying that this book will forever touch my heart, and is very safely one of my favorite novels ever.

One thing we all agreed on was the food. We decided to have a Jewish themed meal. Challah, noodle kugel, this delicious carrot onion dish (not sure the name) and apple latkes (my contribution) were all a big hit.

Shanghai Girls

Several months ago, my friend Emily had to cancel her book club meeting because she just didn't have time (she is a graduate student as well, so this is completely understandable). She had selected Shanghai Girls by Lisa See as her book, and because I'm overzealous in my purchasing (and I have Amazon Prime so I can buy with one-click and it seems "free"), I ordered the book immediately, and has been lying on my bedside table ever since. I finally picked it up a few weeks ago (took a hiatus to devour The Book Thief, but returned to it last week). The book was a lot better, and a lot more interesting than I thought.

I've read another of Lisa See's books (Snow Flower and the Secret Fan), and while I remember enjoying it, I don't remember a thing about it other than it taking place in China. Even though I knew I liked the book, I anticipated not liking Shanghai Girls. The title and the cover (yes, I judged a book by its cover... what are you going to do about it) led me to believe that the story was going to be a fluffy record of the adventures of two sisters. Instead, what I found was an incredible story of survival, self-discovery, and growth. While I don't typically find myself relating to traditional Chinese women, I feel that the hopes and fears and horrible struggles of the narrator Pearl, and her sister May were universally understandable. I felt their pains, and I craved for freedom and happiness along with them.


Without spoiling any of the plot, I would also like to say that this book also offered an incredibly interesting perspective of both Shanghai, and Los Angeles in generations past. Both cities were characters themselves in the novel, dealing with their own struggles between good and evil, fortune and despair.

I am wishing that this book club meeting was not canceled, because I would really love to hear the point of view of the other Eat, Drink, and Be Literary members. After scanning the list of books that we have read, I realize that though we have read a few books from the point of view of female characters, we have only read one other book by a female author. Lisa See reminded me in this novel how different a women's voice is when written by a woman. I look forward to selecting a book written by a strong female author next time it is my turn to choose-- I feel like this is a point of view that our club is lacking.

The Book Thief

Typically, I wait until after a book club meeting to write about the books, but I typically I do not devour a 550 page novel in four days either. Even though our meeting is nearly a month away, I just had to write something about The Book Thief by Markus Zusak now, while it is still fresh.

This book was... I'm at a loss for words... wonderful. My heart sang and my heart wept-- sometimes simultaneously-- while reading. Though the heroine, Liesel Meminger, and I had little in common other than a love for books and words and knowledge, I feel as though she is part of me. I am mourning the end of this incredible story, and I know that the memory of it will stay with me for a long time.

Growing up, I loved historical fiction books, especially about young and vibrant women growing up in Nazi Germany. Though this novel fits that bill precisely, it is unlike any WWII or Holocaust story I've ever encountered. Zusak's portrayal of this well-known era and people was inspired. The characters were beautifully tortured-- each complex and so real I feel that I know them, or in some cases that I am them. 
The story was narrated by Death, which one might expect to be sinister or hokey, but Zusak made a familiar and likable figure even out of a feared entity.

This book shows the power of and freedom in words-- both in an era when books were burned and knowledge was warped and now when information is at one's fingertips and is taken for granted. It is an inspiration and a masterpiece!