People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
May. 9th, 2008 11:04 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snugglekittyThis interesting new release by Pulitzer prize winner Brooks starts with the miraculous reappearance of an antique illuminated haggadah, saved from a bombing in Sarajevo, which will be restored by the main character, an Australian conservationist. In between chapters focused on her work and her personal life, the book follows the people who have interacted with the haggadah in the past, from the people who hid it during World War Two to the original creator of the illuminations.
"We hugged awkwardly, the way you do in a workplace, not quite knowing whether to air kiss once or twice, getting it wrong, banging skulls, and wishing you'd just shaken hands." p 141
"Generally, these kinds of essays are dry as Lake Eyre.. I wanted this one to be different. I wanted to give a sense of the people of the book, the different hands that had made it, used it, protected it. I wanted it to be a gripping narrative, even suspenseful.. I tried to give a sense of the Convivencia, of poetry parties on summer nights in beautiful formal gardens, of Arabic-speaking Jews mixing freely with Muslim and Christian neighbors." p 265
I really liked the descriptions of the book itself, and the restoration of the book, and Hanna's personal life - everything that happened in the modern era. I also liked that the story is based on the real-life discovery of the Sarajevo Haggadah. The more historical chapters I found less moving. They were all very bleak, which is understandable considering the subject matter, but I also didn't find their characters sympathetic. I found the book hard to put down, but ultimately a bit unsatisfying. Three stars.
"We hugged awkwardly, the way you do in a workplace, not quite knowing whether to air kiss once or twice, getting it wrong, banging skulls, and wishing you'd just shaken hands." p 141
"Generally, these kinds of essays are dry as Lake Eyre.. I wanted this one to be different. I wanted to give a sense of the people of the book, the different hands that had made it, used it, protected it. I wanted it to be a gripping narrative, even suspenseful.. I tried to give a sense of the Convivencia, of poetry parties on summer nights in beautiful formal gardens, of Arabic-speaking Jews mixing freely with Muslim and Christian neighbors." p 265
I really liked the descriptions of the book itself, and the restoration of the book, and Hanna's personal life - everything that happened in the modern era. I also liked that the story is based on the real-life discovery of the Sarajevo Haggadah. The more historical chapters I found less moving. They were all very bleak, which is understandable considering the subject matter, but I also didn't find their characters sympathetic. I found the book hard to put down, but ultimately a bit unsatisfying. Three stars.
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Date: 2008-05-09 05:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-05-09 08:40 pm (UTC)Pretty much exactly how I felt about Brooks' other novel, A Year of Wonders! With the caveat that I absolutely hated the ending of that book.