CALEB'S CROSSING by Geraldine Brooks, 2011.

Beautifully written and carefully researched, Brooks has penned an eloquent story concerning the little known Caleb Cheeshahteaumauk, a Waupanaug Indian from Martha's Vineyard, and the first Native American to graduate from Harvard College. Told from the point of view of the spirited Bethia Mayfield, daughter of a Calvinist missionary preacher, life on Martha's Vineyard during the seventeenth century was often harsh and hard, even though the island itself held wonderful natural beauty. Bethia meets Caleb, the son of a chieftain, unexpectedly one day when they are both children, and because of the strictness of the times, continue meeting in secret as they become young adults. Bethia learns much from Caleb about the wonders of the island, and Caleb, offered the opportunity of tutoring with Reverend Mayfield along with Mayfield's son Makepeace and another native boy, Joel, sees a chance to become a missionary to his people through education. This opportunity, as well as the minister's mission work, disturbs the island's medicine men, and a struggle over the old and new ways ensues in which Caleb becomes the prize...Caleb eventually finds himself at Harvard, studying Latin and Greek alongside scions of colonial leaders, and Bethia, who longs for an education herself, is summoned to go to Cambridge along with her brother and support his efforts at Harvard. As Caleb undergoes the struggle of trying to find his place in this new arena, Bethia tries desperately to find her own destiny in a rigid society in which few women have a voice. Brooks writes wonderfully well, providing excellent period details of the two cultures, using language of the time period, and keeps her storylines seamlessly interwoven. My only complaint is that because so little facts are known about Caleb and Brooks chooses to have Bethia tell the story, I never felt truly involved with Caleb or that I knew him as a person. Perhaps if Caleb had been the narrator it would have been more meaningful. Even so, overall, I found this a thoughtful, interesting, and provocative story of one Native American's hope of living peacefully with the colonists and his own people through education and faith in God.

NIGHT SEASON by Chelsea Cain, 2011.

Another pulse-pounding, page-turning thriller featuring Det. Archie Sheridan and reporter Susan Ward. This time around, the Willamette River is flooding Portland and several drowning victims have been found. Yeah, well, what's unusual about these flood victims that they were poisoned and died before they were put into the river. So another serial killer is stalking people in the city, and first Archie's detective colleague Henry becomes a target, and then Susan unwittingly places herself in the killer's path. Thrown into the mix is the discovery of a missing boy, kidnapped several years earlier and who seems to have a connection to the killer, and a skeleton is unearthed that is sixty years old, dating to an earlier catastrophic flood that wiped out an entire town. So many questions: what kind of poison is being used? Why was Henry targeted? Who is the boy that keeps slipping away from custody? What do the tiny keys that are found on each victim mean? And most of all, who is committing these murders and why? Cain keeps the suspense high, weaves her several storylines together admirably and really kept this reader interested. I didn't even miss the fact that Beauty Killer Gretchen Lowell from the previous books is only mentioned in this novel. If you're a fan of crime thrillers, Cain's books (this one is the fourth in the series) are really fast paced and suspenseful. I find them highly entertaining and great reads in between other types of books.

Took my wife to see the new film version of "Jane Eyre" for Mother's Day. Although she enjoyed it immensely, something about it bothered me, but I can't quite figure out what. Maybe it was the leads, they just didn't seem to click. The actress playing the adult Jane was very good, but didn't think much of the actor playing Rochester. The film was quite beautifully filmed, the scenes of the moors were stunning, the sets and costumes were well done, the script was intelligently adapted. Judi Dench was wonderful as Mrs. Fairfax (although the role was definitely beefed up for Dench), and Jamie Bell was quite good as St. John Rivers. There were, of course, things left out that were in other filmed versions of the book, but hey, you can't leave everything in or the length would be ridiculous. I'd say that although I think my favorite version is still the Susannah York/George C. Scott one with Joan Fontaine/Orson Welles a close second, this one is worth viewing. Overall, this is a fine film adaptation of an enduring classic novel.

THE OTHER QUEEN by Philippa Gregory, 2008.

Boring and dull and totally disappointing. How any author could make Mary Queen of Scots so boring is beyond me. Gregory sets this novel during the years 1568-1572, when Mary has fled Scotland into England and becomes Elizabeth I's guest under the charge of George Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, and his formidable countess, Bess of Hardwick, who are still newlyweds. Pleased to be chosen for such an honor, they soon realize that no sooner is Mary established at Tutbury than plots and intrigues begin swirling around her. Broken promises, threats of rebellion in the North and a Spanish invasion, attempted rescues, secrets and codes and spies at every turn quickly become part of the household's daily life. Shallow characterizations, monotonous dialogue, and far too much repetition by having three narrators go over the same events make this a sluggish and unsatisfying story. Too much focus on Mary's beauty and Shrewsbury's weakness and Bess' penny-pinching--none of the characters were sympathetic. It became tedious to keep reading how the Shrewburys were bankrupting themselves by supporting this other queen and her court and they were getting no reimbursement from Elizabeth. Historical details abound, Gregory is good with description, but the pace is just too slow and the whole thing just so uninvolving. If I had not been recuperating from a recent illness, homebound, with plenty of time to read, I would have dropped this one after about fifty pages and moved on. I can't recommend it.

GRAVE GOODS by Ariana Franklin, 2009.

This novel is Adelia Aguilar's third (and last, as the author has died) outing. Set in England in 1176, Adelia, who is traveling with her companions Mansur and Gyltha and her daughter Allie in the cavalcade of Emma of Wolvercote, who is out to claim her infant son's inheritance. She is called to come to Glastonbury Abbey by King Henry II, to investigate two skeletons (a man's and a woman's) that have been discovered in the grounds of the recently burned abbey. It is thought by the locals that the skeletons are those of the fabled Arthur and Guinevere, but Henry wants proof, in the hopes that it will help him put down a Welsh rebellion. As the king's "mistress of the art of death", Adelia is to examine the bones and provide the proof Henry needs. Investigating the abbey fire is Rowley, the Bishop of St. Albans, the father of Adelia's daughter, who Adelia still has strong feelings for, even though she denies them at every turn. Complicating matters even further are: monks with various secrets; an innkeeper and his strange wife; hidden caves and tunnels; a secret colony of lepers; the seemingly complete disappearance of Emma and her entire party after arriving at Wolvercote Manor, and the fact that there is a dangerous and violent evil lurking in the woods around Glastonbury... Franklin does an excellent job of creating suspense amid everyday life, the historical details are accurate, her characters are involving, the story is always compelling, and she manages to infuse enough humor to relieve the tension at the right times. Her portrayal of Henry II is intriguing and genuine, and the novel on the whole is entertaining and well done. Highly recommended, whether you have read the first two in the series or not.

I went to see "Water for Elephants" the other day, and I have to say, it was really an enjoyable film. Based on the wonderfully readable book by Sara Gruen, it is elegantly filmed, with great period costumes and sets, a faithful-to-the-book script, and certainly well cast: Hal Holbrook playing Jacob as an old man, Robert Pattinson as the young Jacob, Reese Witherspoon as Marlena, and Christoph Waltz as August. The main story involves Jacob, a 1931 Cornell veterinary student, who at the end of his senior year undergoes a family tragedy that changes his entire outlook on life. He boards a circus train and manages to talk his way into a job. Honest and hardworking, he hates seeing the ringmaster's cruel treatment of the animals and does his best to avert such incidents; plus when he meets Marlena, the circus performer who is married to August, the ringmaster, he is totally smitten. Eventually, the two recognize what exists between them, but work to keep it under wraps. The alternately charming and dangerously violent August, trying desperately to keep his circus together and profitable, continues to throw workers off the train ("redlighting") without paying them, and buys Rosie, a performing elephant from a failed circus, determined she will be his moneymaker. Jacob is assigned to be Rosie's trainer and caregiver, and Marlena is to create a new act around Rosie.Training is difficult, and the act is begun too soon; Rosie bolts in the circus tent, which leads to a brutal and humiliating punishment by August, with consolation given by Jacob and Marlena. Later, it is Jacob who discovers that the elephant recognizes commands if they are given in Polish and gets the elephant on track to be a star. Rosie, smart and feisty, shows off her various stunts and tricks and becomes a huge hit and moneymaker for August. As the circus flourishes, the relationship between Marlena and Jacob grows cautiously...until the day August discovers their relationship and wreaks terrible and tragic vengeance on all concerned, leading to a thrilling climax wherein it falls to the grateful Rosie to save everyone involved... This is a gorgeous movie, beautiful, dramatic, and at times heart-wrenching in its emotion, a portrait of another time filled with hardships and hopes and dreams, with well crafted characters and a good solid story and performances. Even if you have not read the book, this engrossing film is definitely worth watching.

THE SULTAN'S HAREM by Colin Falconer, 2006.
This had been on my list quite a while, and I'm glad I got around to it at last.

Spanning the years from 1522 to 1561, the age of Suleyman the Magnificent, and set mainly in the ancient city of Constantinople (Stamboul), Falconer quickly introduces most of his large cast during the early chapters. The Sultan is all-powerful in this world of the Ottomans, called Lord of the Lords of this World, Possessor of Men's Necks, Allah's Deputy, etc. He holds the power of life and death over all his subjects, no questions asked. At the heart of the sultan's palace, though, is the Harem, a vast domain of women of various types and nationalities, beautiful and pampered and sheltered from the world and who always await the sultan's pleasure. Guarded by eunuchs, the Harem may not be entered by any man but the sultan himself. The women, some of whom are his wives, some concubines, some slaves, all live together under this roof and all compete for the sultan's notice. Falconer's story concerns three of Suleyman's women: Gulbehar, the mother of his heir; Julia Gonzaga, the daughter of an Italian lord who is kidnapped while on a journey from Venice to Cyprus to meet her husband; and Hurrem, a young Tartar from the Russian steppes who is sold into slavery and winds up in the Harem. These three characters form the main threads of the story as their lives intertwine along with Suleyman's and several other characters: Ibrahim, Suleyman's most trusted friend and adviser and right hand man who is cruelly betrayed in one of Hurrem's plots; Abbas, the eunuch who loves Julia and is destroyed by that love but first is able to redeem himself by saving her; Ludovici, who loves Julia but can never truly possess her heart, and Mustapha, Suleyman's eldest and dearest son and heir, who is forced to pay the ultimate penalty through no fault of his own. The main force of the novel is Hurrem, the manipulative and vicious Russian beauty who endlessly plots and schemes her way into Suleyman's bed at all costs, and once there, continuously hatches intrigues to remove anyone standing in the way of what she most desires: REVENGE. Falconer's narrative races along filled with fascinating historical details, lush descriptions, horrendous violence and cruelty, family strife, love and hate, forbidden desire and obsession, huge battle scenes, mistaken identity, missed opportunities, and eventual triumph. I found this a hugely entertaining and involving novel, and I enjoyed learning about the Ottomans and this time in their history. I thought Hurrem an especially interesting heroine of sorts: even though over the course of the novel the reader may come to despise her (as I did) for her wicked nastiness, Falconer's excellent characterization of her enables you to understand her motivations and almost admire her perseverance, utter determination, and courage in such a situation as she found herself. On the other hand, Suleyman, whom Falconer shows as a very dominating, powerful potentate, changes over time into a somewhat pitiable figure, one that the reader has sympathy for, but at the same time realizes that so much of his misery was caused by his own stubborn refusal to recognize people for what they truly are. A very worthwhile read, I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in stories of palace intrigue or an interest in historicals set during Ottoman Empire.

Finished reading on 4/23/11:
THE CONFESSIONS OF CATHERINE DE MEDICI by C. W. Gortner, 2010.
Intriguingly written, well researched, and beautifully realized portrait of one of history's most hated queens. Gortner's Catherine springs to life from these pages, beginning with a violent and uncertain childhood in Florence, Italy, as one of the last of the powerful Medici family. Married off to the French king Francois I's son Henri as a teenager, she is kept relatively in the background for years, looking on and observing the machinations and intrigues of the powerful figures of the dazzling and decadent French court. She is humiliated by her husband's mistress, Diane de Poitiers, but is able to hold her own through her own willpower and her gift as a seer. As queen, she sponsors the famous and enigmatic Nostradamus, whose prophecies give her much trouble and lead to horrendous conclusions in lives of all whom she holds dear. When she is widowed at forty, with young children to care for and a kingdom wracked by religious strife, class struggles and poverty, she manages to take control and drive for peace, even though the course she steers is dangerous and unpopular. Ultimately, Catherine must make terrible decisions and sacrifices in order to save the throne of France for posterity. Gortner does a wonderful job of portraying Catherine as a passionate, conflicted woman, torn between her love for her family and what is best for France. He provides a somewhat different view on Catherine's interest in prophecy and poisons, as well as her relationship with Gaspard Coligny, the Huguenot leader. His descriptions of the fabulous Court of France, with all its luminous notables, gorgeous palaces, plots, intrigues and scandals is brilliantly done, with lots of spice and bite, enjoyable writing all around. He shows more of Catherine's education at court, her relationships with other members of the royal family, her relationship with Francois' mistress Anne de Heilly, and her tangled and often dysfunctional relations with her children. I found this novel enlightening and fascinating because Gortner chose to portray Catherine as a more mult-layered character, rather than simply as the wicked and desperate horror she has generally been shown as, and provides examples trhoughout as to how that reputation began and endured. Gortner's novel and Jeanne Kalogridis' novel The Devil's Queen, have similarities, but Gortner's is probably the more sympathetic of the two and the better written. A very worthwhile piece of historical fiction about an infamous woman.

Finished reading on 4/15/11:

MARGARET MITCHELL'S "GONE WITH THE WIND": A BESTSELLER'S ODYSSEY FROM ATLANTA TO HOLLYWOOD by Ellen F. Brown and John Wiley, Jr., 2011.

A wonderfully written, informative, and entertaining look at the phenomenon of the most popular American novel in history. This is a "biography" of the book itself, from its conception to the present time. The authors used various and numerous sources, including archives and interviews, in their research, and have done an excellent job of distilling so much available information into a very readable narrative, providing not only necessary factual information, but intriguing stories as well. In the course of 18 chapters, they write of how Mitchell started writing the novel, its discovery by Lois Cole of Macmillan, the problems of getting the manuscript ready for publication, the unwanted celebrity that followed for the author, the issues with overseas copyrights, legal hassles, the crazy business and pressures of filming the movie, and how the book turned into an entity in itself, becoming a trust handled by attorneys. They tackle well known rumors and mysteries and issues concerning the book and actually provide answers to some of the most frequently asked questions and clearing up some misconceptions.The volume is illustrated with great photographs, some from Wiley's own enormous personal collection of GWTW material. An enjoyable read and a handy reference, this is well worth adding to your shelf next to your copy of "Gone with the Wind."