Terrifying Freedom
Linda Anne Smith, 2015
Mountain Horizon Publications
500 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780994929501
Summary
Truth can be illusive, choices disconcerting; the promise of moral certitude, irresistible.
In the Midwestern offices of Secure Star Insurance, Rebecca, efficient and distant, seeks only to survive another day. Sally, earnest and devout, views the workplace as a fertile mission field.
Into the agency comes a new employee, Gladys, gregarious, unorthodox and twice divorced. When an intuitive HR manager arrives, veneers begin to crack.
Back track four years. Rebecca’s mysterious past is explored in a convent replete with younger members and garnering the support of an increasing number of bishops and conservative Catholics. When an older nun has a heart attack, Rebecca is abruptly sent to a backwater mission in Appalachia.
Distanced from the enclave of the motherhouse and embedded in social realities of the missionary outpost, Rebecca is thrust into uncharted waters.
Author Bio
Linda Smith lives near Calgary, Alberta enjoying the beauty of Rocky Mountains. For 30 years, she was a member of a community of religious sisters. She currently works in an organization that is dedicated to assisting and advocating for traumatized and neglected children and their families. (From the author.)
Visit the author's website.
Follow Linda Anne on Twitter.
Book Reviews
Book reviews can be found at terrifying freedom.com, Amazon, Indigo and Goodreads. What follows are excerpts.
"Terrifying Freedom takes you on a journey that you will not soon forget."
"Quite compelling and revealing."
"Your characters are so real and believable, and their struggles palpable."
"The story takes the reader into the secluded world of women religious who create a counterculture by living the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in community while devoting themselves to educating children. The reader admires the exemplary commitment embodied in a spectrum of characters. Smith's sympathetic depiction of these figures accounts for the poignancy of the shadows that emerge from within the best of people. The narrative illustrates how a benevolent community can become a web in which no one speaks her own mind with the result that everyone is diminished. In a perfect world, freedom is terrifying indeed….
Michael Duggan, St. Mary's University, Calgary
Discussion Questions
1. Rebecca moves through her workday efficient but distant in all her relationships. However, the other characters approach Rebecca quite uniquely. What accounts for this?
2. Rebecca, Sally and Gladys eventually form an unlikely alliance. What holds it together?
3. What is it that heightens Andrew’s intuition regarding Rebecca?
4. Sr. Rebecca Marise wholeheartedly embraces the culture and beliefs of the Sisters of Christ the Redeemer. Why is her initial acceptance unquestioning?
5. By and large, the sisters in Appalachia follow the same traditions as the Motherhouse. So why is Sr. Rebecca Marise challenged by them?
6. Is there a defining moment in Sr. Rebecca Marise’s journey in Appalachia?
7. How do you interpret the ending?
8. What would you consider to be the underlying themes of the novel?
9. Was there any particular character for whom you felt more empathy? More distaste?
10. Is there a quote or scene that holds a special significance for you?
(Questions courtesy of the author.)
The Girl from the Garden
Parnaz Foroutan, 2015
HarperCollins
288 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780062388391
Summary
An extraordinary new writer makes her literary debut with this suspenseful novel of desire, obsession, power and vulnerability, in which a crisis of inheritance leads to the downfall of a wealthy family of Persian Jews in early twentieth-century Iran.
For all his wealth and success, Asher Malacouti—the head of a prosperous Jewish family living in the Iranian town of Kermanshah—cannot have the one thing he desires above all: a male son.
His young wife Rakhel, trapped in an oppressive marriage at a time when a woman’s worth is measured by her fertility, is made desperate by her failure to conceive, and grows jealous and vindictive.
Her despair is compounded by her sister-in-law Khorsheed’s pregnancy and her husband’s growing desire for Kokab, his cousin’s wife. Frustrated by his wife’s inability to bear him an heir, Asher makes a fateful choice that will shatter the household and drive Rakhel to dark extremes to save herself and preserve her status within the family.
Witnessed through the memories of the family’s only surviving daughter, Mahboubeh, now an elderly woman living in Los Angeles, The Girl from the Garden unfolds the complex, tragic history of her family in a long-lost Iran of generations past.
Haunting, suspenseful and inspired by events in the author’s own family, it is an evocative and poignant exploration of sacrifice, betrayal, and the indelible legacy of the families that forge us. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
Parnaz Foroutan was born in Iran and spent her early childhood there. She received PEN USA's Emerging Voices fellowship for this novel, which was inspired by her own family history. She has been named to the Hedgebrook fellowship and residency, and received funding from the Elizabeth George Foundation, among other institutions. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two daughters. (From the publisher.)
Book Reviews
[Ultimately,] The Girl from the Garden is about how telling stories helps us to hold our past in our hands—and about how a flowering yard "teeming with life"’ in far-off Los Angeles can movingly become, for one wandering storyteller, a home.
Seattle Times
Foroutan’s characters grapple, often vainly, for control against larger forces—a God who doesn’t answer prayers, a state that doesn’t recognize their humanity, and people who cannot be made to bend to their needs, no matter how badly they love them.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Parnaz Foroutan’s scorching debut novel, The Girl From the Garden, takes us to Iran, where a couple’s inability to conceive pits a young wife against her tyrannical husband, who will stop at nothing to secure an heir.
W Magazine (online)
A riveting portrait of family strife in a troubled land—and the fallout when a woman’s fertility determines her worth.
People
A lush debut.... Foroutan is a modern-day Scheherazade, weaving her tale through the entire 20th century, from an aging woman in her L.A. garden to the brothers whose determination to spawn heirs tortured the harem she was raised in.
Willamette Week
(Starred review.) Foroutan's richly layered debut explores...a single household in a Jewish enclave in Iran.... The framework of flashbacks within flashbacks...exhilaratingly propels the plot, and Foroutan's sumptuous prose paints a vivid portrait of a rarely explored...setting.
Publishers Weekly
In this debut novel, Mahboubeh Malacouti, an elderly woman living in Los Angeles, recalls the stories surrounding her family in early 1900s Iran.... Though Foroutan is better at writing about the past than the present,...she clearly has a gift for storytelling. —Shirley Quan, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA
Library Journal
(Starred review.) In this stunning first novel, Foroutan draws on her own family history to integrate the lore and traditions of old Iran. Suspenseful and haunting, this riveting story of jealousy, sacrifice, and betrayal and the intimately drawn characters within will not be easily forgotten (One of Booklist’s Top 10 First Novels of 2015).
Booklist
(Starred review.) [A]n elderly woman pieces together the tragedy of her ancestors' Iranian Jewish household, in which the actions of two brothers "who would sacrifice anything for one another" result in sorrow for three wives.... Deftly structured, this novel traces those complications to their core...while lending grace through the delicacy of its observation.... [The] poetic narration overlays the suffering with surprising beauty.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
These questions were written—and generously offered to LitLovers—by Dulce Campins and Anna Garcia of Houston, Texas. Many thanks to both of you!
1. Mahboubeh says that Paradise is a Farsi word that means "an enclosed space, a garden set aside from the surrounding wilderness." What is the relevance of this and of the title of the book in this story?
2. Mahboubeh’s garden in Los Angeles has the same plants that her family’s garden had in Kermanshah. How does the author use this similarity to develop the story? Can you make a connection with your own life?
3. What happened to Rakhel over the years? Was she always bitter? Do you think that her life circumstances were responsible for her behavior? Are any of her actions justified?
4. What does Kokab get from her relationship with Asher? At some point she seems to enjoy being with him. Then, why do you think she left him if that brought shame to her and her family?
5. Mahboubeh’s memories have been affected by the pass of time. Do you feel that your recollections of events that happened long ago have changed too? Why or why not?
6. Being the first born son is very important in the Malacouti’s culture, as it defines the distribution of power of the present generation and the lineage of the next generation. How is this fact presented in the story and how does it affect the destiny of the characters?
7. There are many cultures where for centuries the order of birth and the sex of a newborn have defined the life of each individual. How is that changing in present times? Do you think that some people or cultures don’t want it to change? Why or why not?
8. Why is Rakhel sobbing when Korsheed is grieving for Yousseff on the snow and has to be dragged inside by Zolehkah and Fatimeh? How do you think she’s feeling and why?
9. Why do you think that Mahboubeh is led to believe that "sorrow is a complication of womanhood"? What happened then to Ibrahim?
10. Mahboubeh is an immigrant living immerse in a totally different culture. Why do you think she left her country? How does her bi-culturalism affect the way she looks at her family’s history later on?
(Questions by Dulce Campins and Anna García. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution to Dulcce, Anna, and LitLovers. Thanks.)
The Pearl That Broke It's Shell
Nadia Hashimi, 2014
HarperCollins
480 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780062244765
Summary
Afghan-American Nadia Hashimi's literary debut novel is a searing tale of powerlessness, fate, and the freedom to control one's own fate that combines the cultural flavor and emotional resonance of the works of Khaled Hosseini, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Lisa See.
In Kabul, 2007, with a drug-addicted father and no brothers, Rahima and her sisters can only sporadically attend school, and can rarely leave the house. Their only hope lies in the ancient custom of bacha posh, which allows young Rahima to dress and be treated as a boy until she is of marriageable age. As a son, she can attend school, go to the market, and chaperone her older sisters.
But Rahima is not the first in her family to adopt this unusual custom. A century earlier, her great-great grandmother, Shekiba, left orphaned by an epidemic, saved herself and built a new life the same way.
Crisscrossing in time, The Pearl That Broke Its Shell interweaves the tales of these two women separated by a century who share similar destinies. But what will happen once Rahima is of marriageable age? Will Shekiba always live as a man? And if Rahima cannot adapt to life as a bride, how will she survive? (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1977
• Where—New York and New Jersey, USA
• Education—B.S., Brandeis University; M.D., SUNY Downstate College of Medicine
• Currently—lives in Potomac, Maryland
Nadia Hashimi was born and raised in New York and New Jersey. Both her parents were born in Afghanistan and left in the early 1970s, before the Soviet invasion. Her mother, granddaughter of a notable Afghan poet, traveled to Europe to obtain a Master’s degree in civil engineering and her father came to the United States, where he worked hard to fulfill his American dream and build a new, brighter life for his immediate and extended family. Nadia was fortunate to be surrounded by a large family of aunts, uncles and cousins, keeping the Afghan culture an integral part of their daily lives.
Nadia attended Brandeis University where she obtained degrees in Middle Eastern Studies and Biology. In 2002, she made her first trip to Afghanistan with her parents who had not returned to their homeland since leaving in the 1970s. It was a bittersweet experience for everyone, finding relics of childhood homes and reuniting with loved ones.
Nadia enrolled in medical school in Brooklyn and became active with an Afghan-American community organization that promoted cultural events and awareness, especially in the dark days after 9/11. She graduated from medical school and went on to complete her pediatric training at NYU/Bellevue hospitals in New York City. On completing her training, Nadia moved to Maryland with her husband where she works as a pediatrician. She’s also a part of the “Lady Docs,” a group of local female physicians who exercise, eat and blog together.
With her rigorous medical training completed, Nadia turned to a passion that had gone unexplored. Her upbringing, experiences and love for reading came together in the form of stories based in the country of her parents and grandparents (some even make guest appearances in her tales!). Her debut novel, The Pearl That Broke Its Shell was released in 2014. Her second novel, When The Moon Is Low, followed in 2015 and chronicled the perilous journey of an Afghan family as they fled Taliban-controlled Kabul and fell into the dark world of Europe's undocumented.
She and her husband are the beaming parents of four curious, rock star children, two goldfish and a territorial African Grey parrot. (From the author's website.)
Book Reviews
(Starred review.) Hashimi’s first novel tells the story of two young Afghan women, separated by a century, who disguise themselves as boys in order to survive.... Alternating between Rahima and Shekiba’s stories, Hashimi weaves together two equally engrossing stories in her epic, spellbinding debut. —Kristine Huntley
Booklist
Hashimi succeeds in crafting a novel that incorporates gripping stories of survival with passionate tales of motherhood and inner strength throughout. Filled with tragedy and triumph... .—Shirley Quan, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA
Library Journal
Hashimi's debut novel nimbly alternates between Shekiba's and Rahima's tales, drawing disturbing parallels between two women separated by a century. A lyrical, heartbreaking account of silenced lives.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
1. Rahima says that Khala Shaima’s story about Bibi Shekiba transformed her, and this is indeed a novel about transformation. In what ways, besides dressing as males, do Rahima and Shekiba transform themselves?
2. When we first meet Khala Shaima, we see that men frequently mock or insult her because of her crooked spine, but her nieces and sister don’t seem to pity her. Does Khala Shaima’s disability work to her advantage?
3. Rahima loves being bacha posh for the freedoms it brings: being able to work in the market, play soccer, and go to school. What are the disadvantages of her newfound freedoms and what are the consequences for Rahima and her family?
4. “It is up to you to find a way to make things easier for yourself,” Shekiba’s aunt tells her. How do the different female characters in this novel find ways to make things easier for themselves? What about Rahima’s mother? Bobo Shagul? Abdul Khaliq’s wives? The women of the king’s harem?
5. Rahima says of her sister Parwin: “In some ways, I think she was the bravest of all. She, my meek and timid sister, was the one who acted in the end. She was the one who showed those around her that she’d had enough of their abuse. As Khala Shaima said, everyone needed a way to escape.” Do you agree?
6. Shekiba envies the women of the harem: “At least they belonged to someone. At least they had someone to care for them, to look after them.” Do you think the king’s concubines live an enviable life? Are they better or worse off than women who live outside the palace walls?
7. The word naseeb, or destiny, comes up often in The Pearl That Broke Its Shell, as each woman is repeatedly told that she must accept her fate. When Rahima asks Khala Shaima, “Wouldn’t people say that is blasphemous? To change the naseeb that Allah has for us?” her aunt responds, “. . . you tell me which of those people who say such a thing have spoken with Allah to know what the true naseeb is.” When do Shekiba and Rahima accept their naseeb and when do they rebel against it? Do you believe in the concept of naseeb in your life?
8. What do you make of Shekiba’s and Rahima’s experiences with their husbands’ other wives? Are they helped or harmed by them? Could you adapt to that kind of married life?
9. When Bibi Gulalai opens up to Rahima about her own abusive mother-in-law, Rahima thinks, “In other circumstances, I might have told Bibi Gulalai that I understood, that I could sympathize with her.” Does Bibi Gulalai’s revelation change the way you see her? What inspires or empowers the cruelty of older women like her and Shekiba’s grandmother, Bobo Shahgul?
10. How do Rahima’s years as a bacha posh ultimately help her escape her marriage to Abdul Khaliq?
11. Do you believe that Rahima’s and Shekiba’s stories end happily? What do you think became of them in the years after this book ends?
(Questions issued by the publisher. Our thanks to Dorothy Hughes of the Dirty Dogs Book Club for sending us the informaton for this Reading Guide.)
The Perfect Summer
Luanne Rice, 2003
Bantam Press
464 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780553584042
Summary
Old friendships--and love--make all things new again.
The acclaimed author of Safe Harbor and other bestsellers returns to the seaside, delving into the heart of a once happy family facing troubled waters.
Bay McCabe relishes life’s simple pleasures, her children, her home by the sea. She has never forgotten the values of her Irish granny--the everyday happiness of family, good friends, and hard work. Bay and her husband, Sean, have weathered rough spells and moved on. Now a perfect summer, filled with the scent of beach roses, lies before them.
Charming and ambitious, Sean splits his energy between the town bank, his old fishing boat, and the family he seems to adore—until he leaves his young daughter stranded after school. As troubling memories resurface, a phone call confirms that Sean is missing.
So begins a season that will change everything. As the door to all Bay cherishes seems to close forever, another opens, and an old love steps through. Embraced by enduring friendships, Bay will discover the truth of who she is—what love is—and how life’s deepest mysteries are often those closest to home (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—1955
• Where—New Britain, Connecticut, USA
• Education—N/A
• Awards—(see below)
• Currently—lives in New York City and Old Lyme, Connecticut
Luanne Rice is the New York Times bestselling American author of more than 30 novels that have been translated into 24 languages. She often writes about nature and the sea, and many of her novels deal with love and family.
Born in New Britain, Connecticut, Rice's first published poem appeared in the Hartford Courant when she was eleven, and her first short story was published in American Girl when she was fifteen. Her debut novel, Angels All Over Town, was published in 1985.
Rice is an avid environmentalist and advocate for families affected by domestic violence.
Several of Rice's novels have been adapted for television, including Crazy in Love for TNT, Blue Moon for CBS, Follow the Stars Home and Silver Bells for the Hallmark Hall of Fame, and Beach Girls for a Summer 2005 mini-series on Lifetime.
Rice contributed a monologue to Motherhood Out Loud a play that premiered at Hartford Stage Company and was performed Off-Broadway and at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles.
Honors
In 2002, Connecticut College awarded Rice an honorary degree and invited her to donate her papers to the college's Special Collections Library. She has also received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from St. Joseph College in West Hartford, Conn. In June 2014, she received the 2014 Connecticut Governor’s Arts Award in the Literary Arts category for excellence and lifetime achievement as a literary artist.
Rice divides her time between New York City, Old Lyme, Connecticut, and Southern California. (From Wikipedia. Retrieved 7/12/2016.)
Read an interview with Luanne Rice.
Book Reviews
Heartwarming and assured, Rice's latest novel addresses timeless themes and will linger with readers long after the reading is done.... Rice's ability to evoke the lyricism of the seaside lifestyle without over-sentimentalizing contemporary issues... is just one of the many gifts that make this a perfect summer read.
Publishers Weekly
Rice revisits the small Connecticut town of Hubbard's Point, adding another family to the long list of residents from her previous books.... A loving look at family and the issues that must be faced when a crisis threatens its cohesion. —Patty Engelman
Booklist
Discussion Questions
These questions were created and generously offered to LitLovers by Rena DeBerry of Salem, Virginia. Thank you, Rena!
1. Did the book description meet your expectations?
2. Ms. Rice presents multiple, well developed characters. Which one(s) did you most relate too? Which did you least relate too?
3. Infidelity is a subtle character throughout The Perfect Summer. Bay and Augusta accept their husband’s infidelity, both handling it differently. Dan ignores it. What do you think of their reactions? How would you react?
4. Whether consciously or subconsciously Sean brings Dan and Bay together. Which do you think it was? Do you think this was his way of making amends to Bay for his affairs?
5. At first Augusta tries to be a better person and give Bay a job. On the first day, Augusta takes all her anger of Sean out of Bay. Was Augusta justified to do so? Should a family be held accountable for the illegal actions of one member? How would you have reacted?
6. On the way to the Pumpkin Ball, Tara teases Joe about a Yeats poem, "The Wild Swans of Coole." What are your thoughts on mating for life? Is it possible? Not? Can you find it, lose it, then find it again like Bay and Dan?
7. When did you realize the Boland’s were behind everything? What clues did Ms. Rice give to implicate them?
8. Joe discovers that the banking embezzlement was considered a game, with nothing but greed as a motivation. How (or did) looking at embezzlement as a game help ease the participants conscious? Does it make the crime and criminals seem more or less "evil"?
9. Sean writes Annie a confession letter that she finds in the model boat she made for her father. What symbolism is there in Sean putting the letter in a boat? By writing the note to Annie, he puts a lot of responsibility on a young adult. What do you think of Sean’s character for making Annie so responsible? Was it a copout on Sean’s part? What do you think was his motivation?
10. Bay insists that Charlie and Sean’s spirit helped her save Eliza. Do you believe in guardian angels? Was it possible for Charlie and Sean to help Bay?
11. When the story breaks, media surrounds the McCabe house. At one point they harass and scare Billy, Annie and Peg. Is it fair for the media to "attack" children for an adult crime just to get answers?
12. Tara and Bay. Eliza and Annie. How are the relationships similar? Different? Do you believe that BFF could stand the test of time like Tara and Bay?
13. On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate The Perfect Summer? Would you recommend The Perfect Summer? Why or why not?
(Questions courtesy of Rena DeBerry. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution to Rena and LitLovers. Thanks.)
IRAN (The de'Conte Series, 6)
Nicholas Borelli, 2016
CreateSpace
314 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781523678792
Summary
Niccolo Cervantes de'Conti is an international attorney with global clientele based in New York's prestigious Rockefeller Center.
He represents clients in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia who do business with Iranian companies. The United States government would like an "introduction" to some of his clients’ Iranian counter-parties to effect covert foreign policy.
The U.S. spies know that Iran has cheated on the nuclear arms deal and has a stash of weapons grade uranium and plutonium hidden deep underground in the Iranian desert. Nick de'Conti will join a CIA-led team to effect U.S. covert operations.
Author Bio
• Birth—1951
• Where—New York City, New York, USA
• Education—B.M.E., Pratt Institute; M.B.A., Fordham University
• Currently—Wilton, Connecticut
Nicholas Borelli, a New England based author, has and continues to write the de'Conti series.
The novels currently include Let No Man Be My Albatross, A Convoluted Defense, The Machiavelli Imperative, FATA! The Act of the Vengeance, At Last Reconciled and IRAN. Mr. Borelli is writing two more novels: Dahij and A Special Prosecution.
These works feature the protagonist Niccolo Cervantes de'Conti. Mr. Borelli has conceived and developed a central character based on his knowledge of and first-hand experience with the gritty New York inner city of his youth. Nick de'Conti is an ethnic mixture of Basque and Southern Italian. He has a penchant for independent thought and action, and a passion with which he approaches everything in his life. He is a prominent lawyer, an aristocrat. The arc of his life is developed from the depths of his childhood poverty in East Harlem in the cruel, inner city streets of New York City to his unimagined success—albeit troubled, conflicted and, at times, ethically bereft.
These novels are edgy, raw, graphic and thought-provoking.
Although de'Conti is a former New York City prosecutor and United States Attorney, his hard life as a child in the inner city of East Harlem sometimes causes him to mete out as much street justice as he does the legal kind. He abhors the abuse of women, his own college-age daughter having been murdered at the hands of male predators. He will revert to instincts he developed as an inner city kid, even though he lives in a Fifth-Avenue penthouse on a high floor across from New York's Central Park. (From the author.)
Visit borellibooks.com.
Follow Nicholas on Instagram.
Book Reviews
In Borelli’s latest thriller, a New York lawyer gets caught up in a U.S. operation to neutralize weapons-grade material hidden in Iran.... It’s riveting stuff, though the finale includes a jarring personnel shift. Not the most likable protagonist but watching him confront danger may garner interest in his previous tales.
Kirkus Reviews
[A] page turner.... Didn't want to put it down!
Mary L., Amazon Customer Review
[R]ead this book. It's so plausibly realistic you cannot put it down.
Kindle User, Amazon Customer Review
[F]illed with intrigue.... Fast-paced enjoyable read.
Marsha N, Amazon Customer Review
Discussion Questions
1. The author obviously has technical knowledge of nuclear physics. Does the protagonist’s scientific proposals to President Obama seem plausible?
2. What do you think of Nick de’Conti’s relationship with Laleh Sassani?
3. Nick de’Conti has multiple woman in his life, including his wife Katherine Sheffield and Gabriella Desjardins, his African American beauty. Who do you think he will ultimately settle down with?
4. Nick de’Conti always reverts too his old, childhood friend in Harlem, Victor Armstrong, aka The Pig. Why do you think he relies on him so much?
5. How does this book’s premise compare to what is actually taking place between Iran and the United States on the nuclear front?
6. Do you think this world view given by the author is possible?
7. Do you like President Obama’s demeanor better in real life or the novel?
8. Do Nick de’Conti and President Obama have a good relationship?
9. What do you think of the book’s cover?
10. Would this novel make for a good feature film?
(Questions courtesy of the author.)