Review: Gone: A Girl, A Violin, A Life Unstrung (by Min Kym)

My Rating:  4 stars

Over the years, I’ve read my fair share of memoirs written by people ranging from celebrities to business people to complete strangers whom I had never heard of until the moment I read their memoir.  A lot of people I know don’t like to read memoirs because there are too many out there that are written in an overly-pretentious manner or, worse yet, may come across as genuine when in reality they are not.  Even though I share these same concerns when it comes to memoirs, I still read them because occasionally, there may be a gem in there that I would have regretted passing up on reading.  Min Kym’s Gone: A Girl, A Violin, A Life Unstrung – a heartfelt memoir about a violin prodigy who loses the precious instrument that defined her entire life – is definitely one of those gems.

Before I go into my thoughts on the book, let me just say that from a writing perspective, there were issues – lots of them.  In addition to the many grammatical and sentence structure errors, the writing was a bit all over the place at times, which was distracting and broke the flow of the story at certain points.  Normally, I would give a book with such flaws a low rating, but I didn’t this time because of several reasons, the main one being that the version I read was an “uncorrected proof” copy so I already expected that there would be errors.  For me, I’m generally okay with overlooking these types of errors as long as everything is fixed before the final published version goes into print.  The other reason of course is the fact that this book is a memoir, a personal story written by someone who does not write for a living, so I tend to be a bit more lenient with what I am willing to tolerate where the writing is concerned.  For those who may have lower tolerance in this area, I would suggest reading the final published version (and hope that the editors caught the errors and fixed them).  The third -- and most important – reason is explained in detail below….

Surprisingly, this memoir affected me on a personal level like no other memoir that I’ve read up to this point has done.  Perhaps it is because I share some cultural similarities with the author Min Kym (more on that in a minute), plus a few aspects of her personality as well as some of the experiences she went through parallel my own in certain areas. [For the record – no, I am not a child prodigy and I do not play any instruments, nor am I musically inclined (I love listening to music but can’t sing to save my life, lol).  To be honest, many of the music-related references in the book were completely lost on me and I didn’t try for even a minute to keep any of it straight because I knew I couldn’t.]  Kym is a Korean woman who grew up in England while I am a Chinese woman who grew up in the U.S. – we may be from different countries, but there is the shared cultural identity of being raised by “traditional” Asian families in the Western world and the struggles this brings about.  I was absolutely able to relate to many of the “issues” she brought up about culture and family and how different – ridiculous even -- the way of thinking may seem to those who may not have been brought up with those influences in their lives.  Many of the struggles Kym talked about are things I’ve experienced as well – for example:  the sense of being bound by cultural obligations to do/not do or say/not say certain things, putting your best face forward and not letting the “weakness” of our true feelings show, constantly saying yes and letting others manipulate and take advantage against your better judgment, living the life others want you to live rather than the life you want to live, going along and putting everyone else’s needs before your own because it is instilled in you to obey and not to question...etc.  A lot of this really hit home for me and in a way, it was reassuring to hear someone going through similar struggles not being afraid to articulate exactly how she felt.

One of the things I appreciated most about Kym’s story was the honest and genuine way in which she laid everything out in the open – the good, the bad, and the ugly.  Never once did she deliberately try to paint herself in a good light – instead, she showed us her true human self, showed us her flaws, her stubborn personality, her raw emotions.  It was almost as though she did not care whether people would judge her for being foolish, irrational, naïve, etc. – she just needed to tell her story, to pour her heart out, get what had been suppressed for so long out of her system….and let the chips fall where they may.  This was a unique aspect of Kym’s memoir that we don’t often see in other memoirs, which I found refreshing and for this reason alone is already worth reading.

I would absolutely recommend this book, though as I said earlier, read the final published version rather than any uncorrected proof or advance galley versions.  I don’t say this often but this was one book where I regret reading an ARC over an actual published copy because I feel like I could have done more justice to the book in my review if I had done so.

Received advance reader’s copy from Crown Publishing via Penguin First-to-Read program and NetGalley.

Review: MacArthur's Spies: The Solider, the Singer, and the Spymaster Who Defied the Japanese in World War II (by Peter Eisner)

My rating:  4 stars

Nonfiction books are usually hit and miss for me, with the likelihood of me going down the DNF route a lot greater than with fiction, which is why I generally choose my non-fiction reads very carefully.  Fortunately, MacArthur’s Spies proved to be a worthy read and is a book I would definitely recommend to anyone interested in World War II history.

As this was essentially a “history” book, I didn’t expect it to be as well-written as it was.  The editing was top notch and despite reading an advance galley copy of the book, I found very little to complain about in this area.  While I agree with some reviewers who felt that certain parts of the book came across sounding like newspaper reports, this really didn’t bother me too much given that enough of the book was written like “fiction” that everything balanced out in the end, at least for me.  Of course, having read up on the author Peter Eisner’s extensive background in journalism after finishing this book, I am not surprised that the writing and editing were as good as they were.  It was also obvious that Eisner had done extensive and meticulous research, as the amount of detail he gave was indicative of the exhaustive efforts he put into reviewing National Archive records and extracting factual evidence that others may have ignored or considered not important.  I definitely appreciated getting a different perspective of the war, from a country that is not often mentioned in most mainstream WWII historical and literary works.  Before reading this book, I had no clue about the importance of the Philippines as a strategic, coveted base for both the Axis and Allied countries during the war.  The book also brought to light many of the atrocities suffered by Filipinos (both civilian and military) as well as American and other foreign prisoners of war during the 3 year Japanese occupation.  The horrific atrocities described in the book were hard to read and more than a few times I was floored by the staggering number of people who had died in those 3 years, whether from torture, starvation, or for merely being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Despite how difficult some of these details were to read through, I feel it is necessary for us to read and understand and remember the devastating effects that war has, regardless of which country.

One of the things that made this book stand out from other “history” books about the war was the story revolving around espionage and the three figures described in the title who were the main focus of the book:  John Boone, the American soldier who set up guerilla operations in the jungle and prepared them to fight against the Japanese; Chick Parsons, the American businessman and U.S. Navy intelligence officer who eventually became MacArthur’s spymaster, bringing together the guerilla and underground network to support Allied war effort in the Philippines; and Claire Philips, a little-known American singer living in the Philippines who becomes a key figure in the underground guerilla network, gathering intelligence for the Americans while trying to help the countless prisoners of war suffering various atrocities at the hands of the Japanese occupation troops.  Despite the title, this book at its core is actually more focused on Claire and the author’s attempt to bring her true story to light (I highly recommend reading the Preface to the book where Eisner explains the basis of his research in great detail and also the reason why he chose to make Claire the focus of the book).  There are not a whole lot of books out there that focus on the contributions of women to the war effort, so I especially appreciated this aspect of the book.  Claire Philips was indeed an interesting woman and despite her questionable background and ethics as well as extremely messy relationships, there is no doubt in my mind that she should be remembered as a heroine who willingly put her life on the line for the Allied war effort (as should all the other people mentioned in the book who were also part of the underground network providing food and medicine to POWs and defying the Japanese at any opportunity they could). 

This is a highly recommended read that gives not only a detailed account of the war effort in the Philippines, but also a fascinating story about the intricacies of espionage involving ordinary people.  It is also a tale of courage and heroism in the face of untold suffering and horrific war atrocities.  I learned a lot from reading this book, but more importantly, I have a newfound appreciation and gratitude for all of those men and women who put their lives on the line to serve our country, whether on the front lines via military service or behind-the-scenes contributions such as ordinary citizens providing needed support to prisoners of war or other efforts.  Definitely a good book that deserves to be read!

Received ARC from Viking Press via Penguin First-to-Read program.

Review: The Handmaid's Tale (by Margaret Atwood)

 My Rating:  4 stars

Up until this book got chosen as a ‘book of the month’ for one of my book clubs, I was pretty sure that I was one of the few people left on this planet who hadn’t yet read this award-winning classic by master storyteller Margaret Atwood. Personally, I really had no interest reading this book, as it’s not a genre I like, plus I already knew from everything I had heard about the book that it wouldn’t be an enjoyable read for me. However, I still decided to give it a try, as I knew I would never read this book otherwise so might as well do it now. While I’m glad I finally read this book and I completely understand why it shot back up to such great popularity in recent months given our country’s current political climate, I have to say that this book did not affect me on as personal a level as it might have for others. What I mean by this is that whatever opinions I had on politics, religion, feminism, marriage, etc. did not change after reading this book. I guess the best way to put it is that, knowing what I did about the book prior to reading it, I approached this book from as neutral a standpoint as possible – basically, as purely the work of fiction that it was.

I definitely agree with those who have said that this book is disturbing and unsettling but at the same time thought-provoking and cleverly written. Even though I didn’t enjoy reading this book one bit, I do respect its literary merit, which is why I gave it an absolutely well-deserved 4 star rating. While it didn’t change my opinion or perspective on anything, this book did make me think and wonder beyond what I normally would with most books. Also, Atwood’s stunningly detailed descriptions of everything made it impossible not to feel as though we (as the readers) were physically there with Offred, witnessing and experiencing what she did. Not everyone is able to pull off this type of vivid description style without making it feel unnatural and laborious – Atwood is definitely at a different level when it comes to this style of writing, which is why I’m not surprised that she pulled it off so well with this book.

Since I feel like there is nothing I can really say about this book that others haven’t already said (and better than I have I should add), I am going to make this review short so as not to waste people’s time reading it. The only other comment I would like to make is that I actually listened to the audio version of this book (mostly because I got the Audible download for free with my Kindle Unlimited version) and while I felt that Claire Danes did an excellent job narrating the story, the audio version just didn’t really work for me. Nothing to do with this particular audio version per se, it’s just that I’ve never been a fan of audio books in general and despite this one being well done and near perfect on audio, the whole ‘start and stop’ process, especially at places in the story that were mid-sentence or mid-paragraph, made the reading experience too tedious for me. In hindsight, it would have been better for me to actually “read” the book rather than listen to the audio – I think I might have gotten more out of the experience if I had.

Review: The Marsh King's Daughter (by Karen Dionne)

My Rating:  4 stars

This book was nothing like I thought it would be.   The summary led me to believe that this would be one of those gripping, edge-of-your-seat thrillers that will leave your heart racing and "chill you to the bone."  Hmm, well….not quite (ok, technically not even close!).   To be honest, there really wasn't a whole lot of suspense, the ending was predictable and expected, and there were barely any twists and turns to warrant placement in the thriller/suspense category -- so from a genre perspective, this book was severely overhyped.  However, from the perspective of "general work of contemporary fiction,"  this book is exceptionally well-written and definitely deserves a read. 

If I had to describe this book, I would say that it is a thoughtfully written coming-of-age story about a girl born into captivity to a teenage kidnap victim and her captor, a man known as the Marsh King.  The story begins 15 years after Helena and her mother were rescued from the isolated marshlands where they lived for many years.  Now married with 2 daughters of her own, Helena has worked hard to bury her past and escape from the shadow of what happened to her mother – she changed her name, her hair color, her appearance and was careful about not drawing attention to herself.  Her husband Stephen doesn't know a thing about her past and so together, they are able to live a happy, ordinary life in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.  That is, until Helena hears on the news that her father – the notorious Marsh King – has escaped from prison and instinctively, she knows that her family is in danger.  As her newly rebuilt life starts to crumble around her, Helena embarks on a "cat and mouse chase" to hunt down her father and put him back in prison before he gets the chance to harm her family.  It is here that the narrative starts to switch back and forth in time as Helena recounts her story of how life was like growing up in the marsh.  At the same time, Helena struggles to come to terms with her feelings for a father who deliberately raised her to be in his likeness, his "Little Shadow" – the adoration she had for her father during their years in the marsh, when she was completely ignorant of what had happened to her mother, versus the hatred and resentment afterwards when the reality of her father as a cold-blooded kidnapper, rapist, and murderer sinks in.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read, though not necessarily an easy one due to the premise of the story revolving around a kidnapping and forced captivity.  Some parts of the book frustrated me, especially when it came to the actions and attitudes of some of the characters and also the graphic depictions of violence as well as cruelty to animals (though thank goodness there wasn't a whole lot of the latter in the book – just a few scenes that were largely glossed over).  For the most part though, the story was well-told, with Helena's first person narrative powerful in giving us a unique perspective on a hideous crime and its lasting impact on her life as well as the lives of those she loves.  Another unique aspect of this story is the thoroughness with which the author incorporates details that explain why certain characters acted the way they did, answering common "questions" that undoubtedly would arise in our (the readers') minds as the story evolved – for example, why didn't Helena's mother leave when given the chance, why did Helena continue to heed her father's wishes a few times even after finding out what kind of person he was?  Some of these "answers" were subtle and some were directly explained, but either way, in the end, everything made sense and I didn't come away with a feeling of being unsatisfied with how the story progressed. 

For those who may be wondering about the significance of the title – yes, the author does incorporate parts of Hans Christian Andersen's classic The Marsh King's Daughter into the story, with alternating chapters that start off with excerpts from the fairytale.  The author also cleverly weaves parts of the fairytale into Helena's story itself, with some parts converging and paralleling each other at certain points.  Now, I can't say whether this story is actually a modern re-telling of the fairytale or not, since I've never read Andersen's version of The Marsh King's Daughter (and in fact didn't even know there was such a story until I read this book).  But I did like the way the fairytale, plus a few other mythical as well as historical elements, were incorporated into the story.

This is a recommended read – one that I think most will find engaging and absorbing, though die-hard thriller/suspense fans may find disappointing in its lack of true suspense elements.  I would say approach this book without the expectation of "roller-coaster ride" type twists and turns and instead look at it more as a fictionalized account of a potentially true crime story and you should be fine.

Received advance reader's copy from G.P. Putnam's Sons via Penguin First-to-Read program

My Reading Goal – April Recap

My reading plan for April was quite ambitious, as my goal was to read 8 books – mostly ARCs and galleys that I had received as well as book club reads I was hoping to complete.  In the end, I was able to finish 5 books in April, which didn't quite meet the goal, but considering one of the books was 500+ pages and was a book I had started back in March that I finally finished, I'm pretty satisfied with the results.

As far as reading quality goes, I had 1 book that I rated 5 stars (Sonja Yoerg's All the Best People), 1 book rated 4 stars (Phillip Lewis' The Barrowfields), 1 book at 3.5 stars (Jill Santopolo's The Light We Lost), 1 book at 3 stars (Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Traveler's Wife), and 1 book rated 2.5 stars (Amanda Prowse's The Idea of You).   I actually did not notice the range of the ratings across the spectrum until now and looking back at prior months, April was by far the most varied (from a ratings and reading quality perspective). 

Given the above, I feel that March was a better month in comparisons to April in terms of reading quality.  In March, I had also ended up reading 5 books, but 4 of those books were 4 star reads (starting with M.L. Stedman's The Light Between Oceans, James William Brown's My Last Lament, Hannah Tinti's The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley, and Jennifer Ryan's The Chilbury Ladies' Choir).  Only 1 book was a 3 star read (Polly Walshe's Theresa Smith at the Court of Heaven).

So far, I have not had any 1 star reads or DNFs, which I am grateful for.  Majority of the books I have read since January have been 3 stars or above, so I am happy with that. 

I am still sorting out my reading plan for May so will probably wait until the end of the week to post that up.  However, one thing I know already is that my reading plan for May is just as ambitious as April, maybe even a little more so.