Evolution Even a Caveman Could Understand

The Rough Guide to Evolution by Mark Pallen
London ; New York : Rough Guides, 2009.
vi, 346 p. : ill., maps ; 20 cm. 

This is a wonderful book - interesting, comprehensive, thoroughly researched, and engaging.  It serves as a great introduction to Charles Darwin, to the principles of evolution, and to the many ways in which Darwin's groundbreaking work has shaped modern intellectual and cultural life.

Frankly, the most refreshing thing about this book is that it demolishes the spurious and intellectually bankrupt tenets of creationism and creationism's reemergence under the guise of "Intelligent Design." Pallen meticulously reviews the veritable ocean of scientific evidence supporting evolution - showing clearly that that those who deny evolution have as much scientific standing as someone who believes the sun circles the earth. The book also does an admirable job of detailing how the majority of religious thinkers and leaders accept the factual nature of evolution and do not see it as a threat to theism. Sadly, the book points out that it is in the United States that anti-evolution ignorance has developed it's deepest roots.

The book succeeds in explaining in clear language the current understandings of evolutionary theory, but the explanations are not always simple or easy to follow.  I found myself having to read and reread sections on cladistics and genetics.

The book is really enjoyable in that it is broken into sections that can be read solely for their content, e.g. Human Origins.  I would recommend this book to any student curious about Darwin, evolution, human origins, and creationism - or to any student researching these topics.

A Hard Look at Blue Eye

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
New York : Vintage International, 2007, c1970
xiii, 205 p. ; 21 cm. 

The first thing to say about this novel, by Nobel Prize winning author, Toni Morrison, is that it is an amazing first novel. It richly conveys the texture of the lives of three African American girls in a town in Ohio in the 1940s - focusing on one especially pitiful girl, Pecola, who is treated by all as "ugly" and is obsessed with wanting blue eyes.

It is a gritty novel of childhood cruelties, bonds of sisterhood, the dynamics of race, class and sexism.  Poverty, incest, domestic violence, alcoholism, pedophilia and prostitution all come under scrutiny in Morrison's tale.

For me the most vexing aspect of the novel revolves around a male character who rapes his daughter.  The author ventures to enter into the mind of the perpetrator and - frankly - ends up creating a false and "artistic" artifact out of this act of sexual violence.  I say this with some trepidation, realizing that all artists take risks in trying to enter into scenarios and personalities that are radically distinct from their own. Often such risks produce stunning works of art.  However, my assessment is that Morrison grossly misses the mark on this one, and ends up with a rather fanciful, empathetic, and even sympathetic portrayal of the rapist. 

Considered as part of the body of work of Morrison, Bluest Eye, is definitely worth reading and, as I said is a powerful and very readable book.  I just think it deserves a hard look at it's shortcomings.  As I told a friend, my feeling after reading the book [regarding the character who commits the incest/rape] was, "She doesn't know what she's talking about.  She doesn't have any business going there...."

Light Read, but a Good Read

If I Was Your Girl by Ni-Ni Simone
New York : Kensington Pub. Corp., 2008
viii, 261 p. ; 22 cm.

Ni-Ni Simone is an extremely popular author at our library, and so I finally got around to reading one of her novels to see what makes her books spend so much time off the shelves and in the hands of readers.

After reading If I Were Your Girl, I understand the appeal of her books.  Simone is great with dialogue and conveying the attitude of her characters.  She's also skilled at moving the plot along, while creating a rich array of interesting characters.  One of the things I really enjoyed about Simone is that she is able to explore the mistakes and shortcomings of her characters without being preachy, but is also able to show them developing and succeeding in ways that are interesting and not always predictable.

I especially liked how Simone is able to make a really creepy "player" like Quamir - the main character's first boyfriend - believable to the point where the reader almost believes his lies and lines. With convincing dialogue and scenes we are able to sympathize with Toi, the main character as she struggles to figure out which characters actually care about her, and which characters are simply out to use her.

Finally, the plot is really satisfying in that Toi's maturation and development during the novel is reasonable and not miraculous - and the life she creates as a young teen mother is redemptive, but still not easy.

I am truly grateful that there are authors like Simone who are writing for the teens, especially young women, who want the realism and grittiness of urban fiction and novels with "drama" - but is able to do it with meaningful characters and dialogue, instead of simply peppering her narrative with graphic sex and obscene language.

Stranger Stranger

The Stranger by Albert Camus
New York : Vintage International, 1989, c1988.
vii, 123 p. ; 21 cm.

This novel by Nobel prize winning author, Albert Camus, has been on my "to read" list for a long time.  I read his novel, The Plague, as a freshman in college and was profoundly moved by it.  For the past couple of years, whenever I was shelving books, I'd see our four slim copies of The Stranger and think, "OK, I'm going to check that out and read it."  That time finally came last week.

I'm glad I read Camus' novel, but I can't say I enjoyed it.  In fact, I found the novel to be unsettling. If the title is meant to emphasize the alienation of the main character, Meursault, as a stranger both to himself and those in his life, then he is even more of a stranger to me.

Meursault - a main character nearly devoid of any tender feelings - is indeed a character who is hard to empathize with.  I could understand his apathy, and his general feelings of not being connected to the fellowship of other humans - whether in his role as a lover, son, neighbor or friend.  But, his readiness to participate in an acquaintance's plot to beat and humiliate his girlfriend, his utter lack of emotional connection to his own lover, his unquestioning acceptance of anti-Arab racism, and the ease with which he murders a nameless "Arab" make him a rather repulsive and unsympathetic character. 

Despite the grave shortcomings of the main character, it is hard not to feel that Camus wants the reader identify with Meursault. The novel is completely from his point of view and the only system that sits in judgement of him - the French/Algerian criminal justice system - is not one that is portrayed sympathetically.  However, even as ridiculous as the proceedings against Meursault are, I found myself thinking, "Yeah, you may have felt powerless and overwhelmed by existence and the heat of the sun, but you MURDERED another human being in cold blood."

I'd be curious to discuss this novel with fans of Camus and of existentialism in general. "How would you judge Meursault?" I'd like to know.  To arrive at a verdict, you'll have to pick this novel up and read it yourself. 

Like a Supermax on Steroids

Lockdown by Alexander Gordon Smith
New York : Farrar Straus and Giroux, 2009.
273 p. ; 22 cm. 

Given the use of  brutal, personality-shattering Supermax prisons in the US, the nightmarish glimpse inside US detention prisons in Iraq, the bloated rates of incarceration in the US, and the growing evidence of wrongful convictions - Lockdown is a timely and compelling novel - albeit, from an author in the UK and not the US. 

The story centers around a young teen, Alex, who has been pursing a life of crime - mainly home burglaries - until he is framed for a murder and sentenced to the notorious underground penitentiary, Furnace, where all the inmates are boys and young men serving sentences of life without parole.  The horrors of Furnace are many - murder, giant guards with superhuman strength, mutant dogs, and the sinister Wheezers, who come occasionally in the dead of night to drag away prisoners to a fate apparently worse than death.  Alex is determined to achieve the impossible - survive AND escape from Furnace - and so the action of the novel.

I would have been happy if the novel did not include the science fiction creations of mutant dogs and black-suited giants for guards, and instead relied on good, old human cruelty and malevolence for it's horror.  Nevertheless, it is a compelling read that excels in creating an atmosphere of dread, deprivation and impending violence.  Another strength of the novel is it is exceedingly readable.  The plot hooks you in and takes you for a ride - though a bleak and disturbing one at that. I can say that several young men who read this novel from our library, really liked it.  In fact, part of why I finally read the novel was because a patron returned the book a few weeks ago, and before leaving, said, "Mr. Murrey, you HAVE to read this book!" He was right.

Sit Back, Read, and Unwind

Unwind by Neal Shusterman
New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2009, c2007.
335 p. ; 22 cm.

I really love the premise of this book: in a future United States - after a war between abortion rights and anti-abortion rights forces - children between the ages of 13 and 18 can be signed over by their parents or guardians to be "unwound": all of their body parts and tissues are harvested and donated to those who "need" them.  Reminds me a little bit of the premise of the a great novel, The Unit, where older people deemed "expendable" are sent and harvested for tissue and organs until it kills them. In the world of  Unwind, the law doesn't view it as "killing" since the person is never officially dead, but hurriedly/medically disassembled until they loose consciousness - and are no longer a living individual, but an assortment of distributed "living" parts.  Needless to say those signed over to be unwound find little comfort in the niceties of legal jargon.

And so - as you might imagine - the novel is a thriller, following a several teens who are set to be unwound, but manage to escape and go on the run. There are several interesting subplots that all come together in a dramatic conclusion.  The end of the novel is set up so that a sequel is possible, and Shusterman has answered the call with a follow-up novel, UnWholly, billed as the second in a trilogy.

There is a lot to recommend this book.  It definitely gets one thinking about what defines "life" and the legal implications of new medical advances along with the ethical implications of the individual versus society. Metaphorically, there is a lot to think about regarding the relationship of parents to teens and society to teens and the ways that they are viewed and treated.  There is also material for thought and discussion regarding the ethical complexities of violence used to oppose violent and unjust systems.  In all these ways, the book would be a great classroom text - a great springboard for discussions.

My main complaint with the novel is that at times the plot is overwrought with melodramatic characters and action - for example, the character of Roland, an evil teen in the unwind underground whose sociopathic behaviors feel like a stock "bad guy" character, and not very believable.  In spite of my problems with some of the characters and scenes, I'd definitely recommend this book as a substantive/thoughtful read for someone who likes thrillers and/or dystopian futuristic novels.

Gone Fishing

Cod: a Biography of the Fish That Changed the World by Mark Kurlansky
New York : Penguin Books, 1998, c1997.
viii, 294 p. : ill., maps ; 19 cm.

Our library owns several books by Mark Kurlansky, and the last one I read by him was Salt: a World History - which was a great read. The great talent of Kurlansky is to chose a subject that at first glance might seem rather mundane (if not downright boring) and to reveal how it is a topic of great historical and cultural significance.  While he's doing this he spices (salts!) his narrative with fascinating facts, anecdotes, and asides. I recall finding Salt so fascinating for how humans around the world have developed cultural tastes for extremely fermented (some might say rotten) foods - such as the Roman favorite - garum - a sauce made from fish scraps and remains fermented for months in salt.

Cod doesn't disappoint either.  Whether Kurlansky is making the connections of how the colonial/early American New England economy was powered by the trade of plentiful/low-grade cod to the Caribbean (to feed the slaves being worked in the hellish sugar cane plantations) or explaining the connections between overfished cod stocks and international law of sea treaties, he manages to do it in a concise, interesting and clear way.

I would definitely recommend Cod (the book) to a student interested in US history, environmental studies, wildlife studies, or off-beat, non-fiction reads.