Looking Back - The Law of Similars

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals. 

The Law of Similars by Chris Bohjalian

Fiction

2000 Vintage (first published in 1998)

Read in January 2000

Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

From the number one bestselling author of Midwives comes this riveting medical thriller about a lawyer, a homeopath, and a tragic death. When one of homeopath Carissa Lake's patients falls into an allergy-induced coma, possibly due to her prescribed remedy, Leland Fowler's office starts investigating the case. But Leland is also one of Carissa's patients, and he is beginning to realize that he has fallen in love with her. As love and legal obligations collide, Leland comes face-to-face with an ethical dilemma of enormous proportions. Graceful, intelligent, and suspenseful, The Law of Similars is a powerful examination of the links between hope and hubris, love and deception.

My Original Thoughts (2000):

Good book! Much like Midwives in that it was thought-provoking and a page-turner, although the characters were somewhat flat.

My Current Thoughts:

I've read several other books by Bohjalian (Midwives, Trans-Sister Radio, Skeletons at the Feast, and The Guest Room), but there are still quite a few in his backlist that I haven't gotten around to. I'd like to see the film of his latest novel (The Flight Attendant), but I think I'll wait until I've had a chance to read the book first. 

Looking Back - Midwives

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian
Fiction
1998 Vintage (first published in 1997)
Finished in November 1998
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good!)

Publisher's Blurb:

The time is 1981, and Sibyl Danforth has been a dedicated midwife in the rural community of Reddington, Vermont, for fifteen years. But one treacherous winter night, in a house isolated by icy roads and failed telephone lines, Sibyl takes desperate measures to save a baby's life. She performs an emergency Caesarean section on its mother, who appears to have died in labor. But what if—as Sibyl's assistant later charges—the patient wasn't already dead, and it was Sibyl who inadvertently killed her?

As recounted by Sibyl's precocious fourteen-year-old daughter, Connie, the ensuing trial bears the earmarks of a witch hunt except for the fact that all its participants are acting from the highest motives—and the defendant increasingly appears to be guilty. As Sibyl Danforth faces the antagonism of the law, the hostility of traditional doctors, and the accusations of her own conscience, Midwives engages, moves, and transfixes us as only the very best novels ever do.


My Original Notes (1998):

Very good novel. Brought back memories of my labor/delivery with my daughter. Good courtroom drama with enough suspense that I didn't guess the verdict until the very end.

My Current Thoughts:

This was the first book I read by Bohjalian and I really enjoyed it. It was probably an online book group selection and while I no longer own a copy, I'm somewhat interested in reading it a second time.

The Guest Room

The Guest Room by Chris Bohjalian
Fiction
2016 Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Read by Mozhan Marno and Grace Experience
Finished on April 25, 2016
Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

From the New York Times bestselling author of Midwives and The Sandcastle Girls comes the spellbinding tale of a party gone horribly wrong: two men lie dead in a suburban living room, two women are on the run from police, and a marriage is ripping apart at the seams.

When Kristin Chapman agrees to let her husband, Richard, host his brother's bachelor party, she expects a certain amount of debauchery. She brings their young daughter to Manhattan for the evening, leaving her Westchester home to the men and their hired entertainment. What she does not expect is this: bacchanalian drunkenness, her husband sharing a dangerously intimate moment in the guest room, and two women stabbing and killing their Russian bodyguards before driving off into the night.

In the aftermath, Kristin and Richard's life rapidly spirals into nightmare. The police throw them out of their home, now a crime scene, Richard's investment banking firm puts him on indefinite leave, and Kristin is unsure if she can forgive her husband for the moment he shared with a dark-haired girl in the guest room. But the dark-haired girl, Alexandra, faces a much graver danger. In one breathless, violent night, she is free, running to escape the police who will arrest her and the gangsters who will kill her in a heartbeat. A captivating, chilling story about shame and scandal, The Guest Room is a riveting novel from one of our greatest storytellers.

Chris Bohjalian's is one of those hit-or-miss authors, at least for me. I tend to enjoy his contemporary works better than his historical fiction and I'm happy to report that this one lived up to my expectations and didn't disappoint. In some ways, it reminded me of Jodi Picoult's novels, which almost always focuses on a current social issue. This particular novel deals with sex trafficking, which at times was pretty disturbing (and the language is not for those easily offended). I thought the plot was somewhat predictable, although the ending was not at all what I was expecting, so maybe not as predictable as I thought! 

Final Thoughts:

This is the first book I've read by Bohjalian in several years and I'm glad I didn't give up on him after a couple of disappointing reads. The Guest Room is a very compelling page turner and would make for a great book club selection. There's a lot to discuss in this one! Recommend with a cautionary note about the language.

Skeletons at the Feast

Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian
Historical Fiction
2008 Shaye Areheart Books
Finished 3/7/10
Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)





Publisher's Blurb:

In January 1945, in the waning months of World War II, a small group of people begin the longest journey of their lives: an attempt to cross the remnants of the Third Reich, from the Russian front to the Rhine if necessary, to reach the British and American lines.

Among the group is eighteen-year-old Anna Emmerich, the daughter of Prussian aristocrats. There is her lover, Callum Finella, a twenty-year-old Scottish prisoner of war who was brought from the stalag to her family's farm as forced labor. And there is a twenty-six-year-old Wehrmacht corporal, who the pair know as Manfred—who is, in reality, Uri Singer, a Jew from Germany who managed to escape a train bound for Auschwitz.

As they work their way west, they encounter a countryside ravaged by war. Their flight will test both Anna's and Callum's love, as well as their friendship with Manfred—assuming any of them even survive.

Perhaps not since The English Patient has a novel so deftly captured both the power and poignancy of romance and the terror and tragedy of war. Skillfully portraying the flesh and blood of history, Chris Bohjalian has crafted a rich tapestry that puts a face on one of the twentieth century's greatest tragedies—while creating, perhaps, a masterpiece that will haunt readers for generations.

I seem to be on a World War II kick these days. I was helping a co-worker put together a list of World War II books for an upcoming event at the store and I now have dozens of titles to add to my wish list. I could easily spend a year reading nothing but books set during this time period, but I think that would be a bit too depressing. As it is, I chose a couple of lighter books to read once I finished Skeletons at the Feast.

Skeletons at the Feast is not a light, entertaining read. It's one of the more gritty WWII novels I've read and on several occasions I found myself cringing. We're all aware of the atrocities of this particular war, but to read the details of the incredible cruelty inflicted upon those in the camps and death marches made me stop and wonder if I really wanted to continue reading. But I did. And I'm not sorry, as the book is a refreshing account of a well-documented time in our history.

I was impressed with this novel and found myself wondering why I haven't read more of Bohjalian's books. It's been quite a few years since I read Midwives, The Law of Similars, and Trans-Sister Radio, and I enjoyed each of these enough to think I'd discovered a new favorite author. But I still have several of his works (Water Witches, The Buffalo Soldier, Before You Know Kindness, and The Double Bind) on my shelves or TBR list. And just last month, Secrets of Eden (his 12th novel) was released. Am I the only one who forgets to read an author they enjoy?! If it hadn't been for book club, I may not have stumbled on this gem for who knows how long!

My book club meets in a couple of days and I'm anxious to hear the other members' reactions to this dramatic story. The novel is a little slow-going at the beginning, but once the narrative returns to the earlier days of the war, when the characters come to know one another, the pacing picks up and I found it difficult to set the book aside. But I wouldn't be surprised if some of the group members decided to skip this month's selection due to the disturbing nature of the story.

Bohjalian was inspired to write Skeletons at the Feast after reading the diary of a friend's East Prussian grandmother, which spanned the years between 1920 and 1945. In addition to the diary, Bohjalian's research included several books that are already on my TBR list. One in particular, All But My Life by Gerda Weissmann Klein, continues to call to me. Like Elie Wiesel's Night, I'm sure it will be a heartbreaking read. And yet, I'm still drawn to it and others of this time period. I find I learn a little bit more each time I read a book about World War II.

Final thoughts: I originally gave this book a higher rating (4/5), but while discussing it with my husband, I decided to drop the rating down a notch. The following are my quibbles:

Bohjalian's excessive usage of em dashes was distracting, particularly in the opening chapters. The fact that they're typographically disruptive is one thing, but more importantly, it seemed to indicate a jarringly parenthetical series of thoughts that might have flowed better had they been woven more naturally into the main sentence.

I found it difficult to care about any of the characters and feel they could have been fleshed-out more.

The second portion of the epilogue felt like an after-thought or a means of tying up a loose end. (I can't go into detail without revealing a spoiler.)

The "love affair" between Anna and Callum didn't ring true and the sexually explicit details seemed gratuitous and unnecessary.