Book Recommendation: Time is a River

Time is a River

Mary Alice Monroe

Fiction

Pocket, $7.99 (paperback), 512p, ISBN: 978-1439141779

Gallery, $15.00 (trade paperback), 400p, ISBN: 978-1416546641

Also available digitally for Kindle and Nook

The road to recovery for Mia Landan, a cancer survivor, is beautifully told by Mary Alice Monroe in the backdrop of the North Carolina mountains. During Mia’s cancer therapy she is introduced to fly fishing as a means of helping in the recovery process. Her husband, unable to cope with the inevitable changes that occur with chemotherapy and the results of surgery, files for divorce.

In her attempt to heal and recover not only from her cancer and bodily disfigurement, but also from the abandonment of her husband, she turns to Bella Carson, who runs the Fly Fishing for Recovery program. Bella provides Mia the opportunity to stay in her mountain retreat as a means of getting away from the raw memories of her Charleston, South Carolina life.

The rustic lodging accommodations hold clues to the mystery, intrigue, awakening spirit and recovery of what was thought to have been lost forever. Throughout her journey in the idyllic setting of the mountains, she grows to understand the magical allure of fly fishing. The book could have easily been prefaced by the pen of George Mendoza in his poem Secret Places of Trout Fishermen:

When I wade into a steam fishing for a trout, I feel as though I am entering another part of my soul. As I watch the early lights flower in the shadows, I know that I have come to the stream seeking more, much more, than the catching of trout.

Mia’s search for her soul uncovers a mystery of times past, and in her pursuit, finds more, much more. This beautifully written book is easy to read and contains many passages that you will no doubt want to dog-ear for those times when you need to seek what is truly important in life.

~Lewis

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P.S. from Laurie: Earlier this spring I began to recommend books for Lewis, and knew he'd love this one. In an email to me after reading it, he thanked me for suggesting a book he would "not soon forget," adding that it touched him emotionally as a result of the author's writing, which "flowed like a stream." He added that the fly fishing premise would captivate those like him who "partake in that quest for inner peace," and he found himself "taken back to moments I will never forget as she so eloquently painted the idyllic setting of the stream coursing thru the seasonal forest."

Immediately upon receiving Lewis' email, I suggested to him other, even more spectacular Mary Alice Monroe books, who lovers of Southern Fiction are sure to enjoy. They are, in order of terrifitude (the first two sit on my all-time keeper shelf while the third is on a par with Time is a River):

Sweetgrass Stand-alone

The Beach House #1 in duo

Swimming Lessons #2 in duo

Book Recommendation: When We Danced on Water

When We Danced on Water

Evan Fallenberg

Fiction

Harper Perennial, $14.99, 256p, ISBN: 978-0062033321

Also available digitally for Kindle and Nook

From the publisher: At eighty-five, Teo is ready to retire from the bombast and romance of life as one of the world’s most influential choreographers. But when he meets Vivi, a fortyish waitress at a Tel Aviv café, the fires of his youth flare back to life—his passion for a woman’s touch, his long-buried anguish at his wartime experiences, and his complex engagement with dance. Vivi’s life will change, too, as the warmth of Teo’s affection counterbalances her harrowing time as an Israeli soldier in an illicit relationship. For both, their investment in art, and indeed in life itself, will reawaken as the ghosts of their suppressed pasts—from Warsaw to Copenhagen, Berlin to Tel Aviv—cry out for forgiveness and healing.

With lustrous prose capturing the grit and fury of history and the breathtaking power of passion, When We Danced on Water is a compelling novel of intimacy and identity, art and ambition, and how love can truly transcend tragedy.

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Evan Fallenberg's When We Danced on Water is my favorite book so far in 2011, and the best work of fiction I've read in nearly a year. As a professional critic, I read a great deal, and as a result it's rare that I love a book. I love this one, and it's a good fit for a family of Jews because both protagonists live in Israel. That's not the reason for my strong recommendation, though, which instead derives from Fallenberg's elegant prose and precise writing. That precision allows him to write with great fluidity, and to create out of a character-driven story a emotionally gripping narrative. I've already written about the book on my personal blog, and rather than trying to paraphrase myself, let me simply share an excerpt:

The book features an 85-year-old choreographer, so indulge my using that as a metaphor for Fallenberg's writing. Just as a choreographer can capture the fluidity and emotionality of a piece of music and dance, so does this author. Just as a dance features moments of different tempos and varies in boldness and strength, so does Fallenberg write with a pin-point focus, creating a similar fluidity and elegance.

In a couple of scenes his lead character explains how he sees and feels music in his head. While a beautiful concept, it did not fit my experience of music. I wanted needed to understand it better because it was conveyed with such beauty. As music is so integral to his being, I read those passages aloud to my husband, who seemed surprised when I asked if he understood what Fallenberg's character was trying to explain. "Of course," he said matter-of-factly, as though everybody experienced music in that way.

From the publisher's description one might assume that the book focuses on a May-December romance. It doesn't. Fallenberg's story is rich in history and art, pulling readers into the emotionality of obsession, tragedy, and—eventually—hope. When We Danced on Water offers an intelligent, evocative, and altogether beautiful reading experience. I hope you'll sit down with it, then share your thoughts and feelings with other family members.

~Laurie

Welcome!

Welcome to the Joseph Benjamin family blog. The look, feel, and purpose of this blog is quite fluid. My hope is that as additional family members join me in authoring and perhaps administering it, the blog will fulfill multiple needs.

My name is Laurie Gold. If I've not yet friended you on Facebook or didn't meet you at the family get-together last month in Rhode Island, I am married to Harold Gold, who is one of Emily Gold's four sons with Sammy Gold. Emily's father was Jacob Gold, the eldest son of Joseph Benjamin and his second wife Emma.

I am a writer and critic, and for more than a dozen years I've reviewed fiction and genre fiction for Publishers Weekly magazine. In addition, I've blogged for years and until the end of 2008, published an influential book website that now continues on without me. Until recently I also worked as a part-time bookseller at a local Barnes & Noble, where I discovered my "savant-like" skill in matching books to readers. If any of you would like for me to recommend specific books just for you, . I've already successfully recommended a few books to my brother-in-law Lewis; I hope to convince him to write up one he particularly liked for this blog.

In addition to my PW gig, earlier this year I began to write for a blog hosted by Macmillan publishers (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Henry Holt, St Martin's Press, Tor, Forge). It's a genre-driven blog with a pop culture sensibility. Unless you read romance or urban fantasy (that's vampires and werewolves and whatnot to the uninitiated) and have a tolerance for "smexy," you probably wouldn't enjoy Heroes & Heartbreakers.

I hope to put my skill set to good use in administering this blog. Please feel free to participate in whatever way may work for you. Check out the lay-out and see if there are any widgets you'd like added. To kick things off, I've started a blogroll with a link to my personal blog (it's called Toe in the Water); please help me grow the blogroll by sending me links to your own blogs and websites.

Tomorrow I'll be writing about a brand new book that I cannot recommend strongly enough. See you then.

~Laurie