An Escape to Treasure

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
New York : Signet Classics, [2008]
xviii, 204 p. : map ; 18 cm.

I probably wouldn't have read Treasure Island if I hadn't heard it referred to in a New Yorker poetry podcast featuring the poetry editor, Paul Muldoon, and poet, Tom Sleigh, discussing a poem by Seamus Heaney that references Treasure Island.  How's that for a convoluted beginning?  It wasn't just the discussion, but it was Muldoon's mentioning that he absolutely loves Treasure Island, and reads it frequently.  That caught my attention, and so I brought it home with me to read over the summer.

So was it worth reading?  Definitely.  The novel moves along at a quick pace with skilled plotting and has wonderful characters, too.  The admirable young protagonist, Jim Hawkins, the devilish Israel Hands, and the wily and dangerous Long John Silver are unforgettable. 

The novel creates the template for pirate fiction, and does it with dash.  This is a fun novel that I would definitely recommend to students.

His Last Battle

Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant by Ulysses S. Grant
New York : Barnes & Noble, 2003.
xxx, 820 p. : ill., maps ; 21 cm.

I've been wanting to read this memoir ever since I saw a quote of Mark Twain's praising it as one of the finest pieces of American writing.

The back story of this book (which is told in the introduction of this volume) is also pretty amazing.  Retired from the military and from being President, Grant had lost all his money and so set about writing the book to raise money for his family.  About the same time he began writing he was stricken with throat cancer and so began his race against death to finish his work.  Like his campaigns in the Civil War, he was successful - dying three days after finalizing his manuscript, and making his widow and survivors wealthy with the royalties from his book which ended up being a huge bestseller.

But how is the book? I would agree that it is very well written, and reveals Grant's subtle, but sharp intellect.  It is also very interesting to see Grant carefully praising and criticizing some of the generals of both sides.  He also has a well argued discussion of why the war was so difficult for the North to win.  The only downside for me was that much of the book is taken up with detail after detail of tactics and troop movements.  The maps are not very clear or helpful.  But aside from these issues, I'm glad I read it and it made me curious to learn more about Grant's presidency - which is not covered at all in the book (and is considered to be one the most corrupt in US history).

Probably one of the most compelling aspects of Grant's life, is that he really was a "nobody," from a modest background and with no early signs of being successful as a leader or tactician.  His memoir can serve as a testament to the potentials that are often hidden within individuals - especially those who have not had great successes in their past.  In this vein, Ta-Nehisi Coates gives a spirited endorsement of Grant's Memoirs - especially noting the unfounded suggestions that it was written by Mark Twain.

A great historical read, but probably best for students with a keen interest in the Civil War.

Battle Cry Is Great History

Battle Cry of Freedom: the Civil War Era by James M. McPherson
Oxford [U.K.] ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2003, c1988.
xix, 909 p. : ill., maps, music ; 24 cm.

If you are looking for a one volume history of the Civil War instead of reading five or six separate Civil War histories, then you can't go wrong with McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom.  It's a masterful handling of the war that ripped the US apart for four extremely bloody years.  Given the quality and clarity of the narrative, I'm not surprised that the book was a huge bestseller and won the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for History.

McPherson begins his book with the US-Mexican War and builds a sound case for considering enslavement (and the unyielding defense of slavery's expansion and power) as the ultimate cause and fight of the war.  McPherson also gives great attention to the cultural and political movements involved before, during and immediately after the Civil War.

It's not a short book (about 900 pages), but it is well written and illustrated with interesting photos and a number of very clear maps.

I read this book this summer as a prelude to reading the Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant.  It was a really helpful preparation for Grant's long work.  I would highly recommend it.

Reasons to Read Not to Watch

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
New York : Razorbill, c2007.
288 p. ; 22 cm.   

As you can see, Thirteen Reasons Why was published back in 2007, so why am I getting around to reading it ten years later?  In one word: Netflix.  Back in March, Netflix launched a thirteen episode series based on the novel, and the series has proven hugely popular and controversial - more so than the book.

So I ended up both watching the series and reading the book.  I was an interesting experience.  It really makes you think about what works in reading - and conversely what doesn't work when filmed. The book is not perfect, but it is strong and it's brevity saves it from becoming voyeuristic, lurid and exploitative - which I believe the Netflix version unfortunately is (in addition to being irresponsible and just plain icky).

But what about the book?  I liked the book well enough.  The book is clearly a work of fiction - and as such functions more like a mystery, tragedy and psychological ordeal instead of a supposedly accurate depiction of bullying and suicide.  Also it's brevity allows it to move along and not drag out scenes for dramatic effect.

I'm guessing many, many more people are going to watch the series.  I just hope that especially young people will watch it with supportive friends and adults.  Despite its shortcomings, the series does invite discussion of extremely important topics such as bullying, date rate, sexism, and of course, suicide.  The popularity of the series has also led to an increased demand for the book, and so I'm glad I had a chance to read it.

Transformative

If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo
New York : Flatiron Books, 2016.
280 p. ; 22 cm.

I'm glad I read Russo's book about a transgender teen girl who has moved to live with her father and attend a new high school after bullying and brutal assault at her previous hometown and school.

I think what I loved most is that the book manages to be basically a sweet tale of friendship and romance - while threading that narrow ground of avoiding being either a tale of brutality and violence or a naive upbeat "everything will be okay" fable.  As the review from Kirkus notes, it is "a sweet, believable romance that stokes the fires of hope without devolving into saccharine perfection or horrific tragedy."

It's a great book for trans teens, adults and cisgender folks like me! 

I also really liked that the author, a trans woman, has an afterword, especially meant for cis readers, where she explains ways in which her story reflects only one version of reality (and a creatively fictionalize one at that), and should not be taken as plain truth guide to what life is like for trans teens.  She also includes several hotline resources for readers who may be contemplating suicide.

Gut Feeling

I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong
New York, NY : Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2016.
355 p. : col. ill. ; 24 cm.

I've been telling people about this book since I started reading it a couple weeks ago. It's a great read, introducing the lay reader (i.e me!) to a very broad, complex and contemporary field of scientific research - the microbiome.  As Yong neatly lays out, the study of microorganisms really begins with Leeuwenhoek in the 1660s.  Unfortunately, the study of microbes in the 19th and 20th century focused almost exclusively on the disease-causing pathogens - leading to the overuse of antibiotics and the obsession with trying to shield people from all microbes, instead of just bad effects of some.

What makes Yong's book so fascinating is how he gets the reader to rethink not only the us vs. them attitude toward microbes, but the entire notion that there is an us and a them when it comes to living in a world of microbes.  He convincingly shows that almost all living creatures are the sum of the complex and intricate relationships between ourselves and the trillions of microbes that live within and without us and affect us for good and ill.  Given that each of us contains trillions of microbes and could not function without them, it starts to dawn on the reader that not only does one contain multitudes, but perhaps one IS those multitudes.

The other achievement of Yong is to navigate both cover and convey the wide ranges of research and investigation into the microbiome - from the microbes that make deep sea life possible near hydrothermal vents, to attempts at reintroducing microbes into hospitals and public spaces with the goal of having healthy microbiomes instead of sterile environments.

Like Planet of Viruses, the book I read earlier this school year, this is a science book I'll be recommending.

Which Way?

Looking Backward, 2000-1887 by Edward Bellamy
New York : Signet Classics, [2009]
xvii, 236 p. ; 18 cm.

I'm glad I finally got around to reading this 19th century Utopian novel. Looking Backward is really a wonderful artifact of 19th century Utopian hopes and philosophy.

I have to say that reading it now, was in some ways depressing - not because it naively overlooks the dangers of totalitarianism - as this old 1988 NYT review claims, but because of how little progress has been made toward eliminating the savage greed, violence, mercilessness and competition that undergird the market economy that Bellamy was critiquing and under which we still live in the 21st century.

The novel's weakest points are it's narrative dullness and drab characters.  In many ways the literary and narrative quality of the novel takes a back seat to the economic and humanistic philosophy of the novel. The plot is really a device to serve up Bellamy's Utopian thinking, but as Eliot Fintushel exclaims in the afterword, what a lovely Utopia it is that Bellamy has dreamed up.  It's hard not to enjoy shimmering dream that we get in Looking Backward.