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snugglekittyI saw a novel of The Silent Empire while I was in Porter Square Books last week, and that inspired me to pick the first book up from the library. That was The Dreamer by Steven Harper.
It was good but not outstanding. Some of the details that the plot hinged on seemed a bit too convenient. Some of the plot twists seemed a bit too obvious. I'm not going to give them away, though, since it was a good book and I doubt many people have read it - I had never even heard of it before I saw it. Some of the things that I liked about it- the good characters mostly belong to a non-celibate monastic order, the book draws strongly from the shamanic tradition (especially that of the Outback), and there are positive queer characters.
I will say that I was surprised by one aspect of the ending, which made me want to read the rest of the series to see where Harper goes with it. Three stars.
Yes, this is how long it took me to read the book I had picked out for Black History Month, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines.
I liked this book a lot. I had remembered, faintly, having watched the movie for a class at least ten years ago, and I enjoyed it then. I ended up reading this book in part because it looked shorter and less intimidating than The Autobiography of Malcolm X. After some encouragement from![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
catskillz, though, I'm going to try that one again.
This book was written mostly in dialect, which I found a little challenging. What I liked about it were that the various stories within it mostly stood alone. They were very believable, and possibly best of all, they showed a lot of the internal conflicts people experience living under racism. One about an abortive affair between a white plantation affair and a "mulatto" schoolteacher was especially touching. The parts about religion and marriage were also very interesting and touching. Four stars.
It was good but not outstanding. Some of the details that the plot hinged on seemed a bit too convenient. Some of the plot twists seemed a bit too obvious. I'm not going to give them away, though, since it was a good book and I doubt many people have read it - I had never even heard of it before I saw it. Some of the things that I liked about it- the good characters mostly belong to a non-celibate monastic order, the book draws strongly from the shamanic tradition (especially that of the Outback), and there are positive queer characters.
I will say that I was surprised by one aspect of the ending, which made me want to read the rest of the series to see where Harper goes with it. Three stars.
Yes, this is how long it took me to read the book I had picked out for Black History Month, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines.
I liked this book a lot. I had remembered, faintly, having watched the movie for a class at least ten years ago, and I enjoyed it then. I ended up reading this book in part because it looked shorter and less intimidating than The Autobiography of Malcolm X. After some encouragement from
catskillz, though, I'm going to try that one again.This book was written mostly in dialect, which I found a little challenging. What I liked about it were that the various stories within it mostly stood alone. They were very believable, and possibly best of all, they showed a lot of the internal conflicts people experience living under racism. One about an abortive affair between a white plantation affair and a "mulatto" schoolteacher was especially touching. The parts about religion and marriage were also very interesting and touching. Four stars.
