The Princesses of Iowa

The Princesses of Iowa

By M. Molly Backes (464 pages)

Published by Candlewick

Bookish rating: 4

Backes is a brand-spankin’ new author on the young adult literary scene, and she has come in strong with her debut novel, The Princesses of Iowa.

Our first-person narrator, Paige, is the popular Midwestern girl, entering her senior year and about to close in on the OMG event of the fall, HOMECOMING ROYALTY COURT. However, during the prior summer, alcohol and driving mix, resulting in an accident that could’ve killed her and all her friends—but didn’t. This bullet-dodging event launches the story, sparking Paige’s sudden introspection.

Tension builds between Paige and her BFFs and hunky hunk jock boyfriend for various reasons supremely important to teens, but Paige begins to sense that having her whole damn life peak at homecoming might not be the best long-term plan, nor does it give her much joy. As she starts to come of age, so to speak, she begins a creative writing class with a grad student from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop (described in another book review), makes friends with peeps who have actual substance, and finds that she has a bit of a knack for writing.

Overall, what carries this novel through (and it’s a long one—464 pages, to be exact) is the quality of writing. Backes practices what she preaches in the fictional creative writing class, and her writing is lively, fresh, and witty, and she’s not above dropping quite a few f-bombs. When appropriate, her well-timed descriptions of the Iowa landscape or autumn or a parking lot are nicely executed and wonderfully descriptive, NOT overwritten, NOT flowery, and NOT forced (as often happens in YA lit).

Backes’s fictional high school world is also incredibly believable, the dialogue is spot on, and the parents appropriately flawed.

I found it so refreshing to read a well-written YA novel deliberately lacking a dark edge, vapid gimmick, or supernatural element. The novel was playful and fun while still full of big, substantive themes. I genuinely enjoyed reading the book, and I highly recommend it. I’ve become a Backes fan, and I hope her novel is read widely enough for her publisher to beg her to write another one—because I wanna read it.

State of Wonder

State of Wonder
By Ann Patchett (384 pages)
Published by Harper Perennial
Bookish rating: 4

Have I mentioned that one of my favorite reading combinations is escapism + non-stupidity? Well, it is, and State of Wonder serves up a delightfully non-stupid, escapist read--I mean, we get to go into the freaking Amazon!--in an intelligent, well-written novel.

Marina, a doctor now working for a pharmaceutical company, must go to the Amazon to get information about a co-worker who croaked under somewhat mysterious circumnstances. There, she must deal with her former mentor, who is working on a miracle drug for the company. There are anacondas, bugs, heat, foilage, and a surprising dose of made-up-yet-weirdly-believable science.

Marina's mentor, Dr. Swenson, is the strongest and most interesting character. She's super flawed, in a really fascinating way. We also meet a little deaf native boy who is extremely compelling---he probably generated the most conversation in our book club.

Patchett evokes the intimidating thickness of the Amazon, its hiding creatures, buzzing bugs, and the sense that the jungle itself is vibrating and alive. I had the joy of reading the last several chapters of this novel in a very hot, humid house after losing power during our "land hurricane," so I felt particularly immersed in the moist jungle world Patchett created.

If you're looking for a an old-fashioned good read that takes you to another world, along with good writing, State of Wonder should do the trick. Recommended.

The Gospel of Ruth

The Gospel of Ruth: Loving God Enough to Break the Rules

By Carolyn Custis James (224 pages)

Published by Zondervan

Bookish rating: 4

I must admit that I have a soft spot for Carolyn Custis James. She calls herself an “evangelical thinker,” which of course brings to mind images of Joel Olsteen and his too-many-teeth smile—at least until you get to the “thinker” part of phrase. At that point, the phrase sounds like an oxymoron.

But James is a thinker. And I heart her. Why? Because, like me, she is in that in-between spot between conservative Christianity’s steadfast nature and liberal Christianity’s let’s-love-everybody common sense. She has devoted her career to promoting greater leadership of women within the church and she is oh so skeptical of the whole wives-submit-to-your-husbands bit. (Disclosure: I’m a member of a “liberal” Protestant denomination, but not until after a lot of mental tug-of-war in which I came to believe that the traditional views on—and treatment of— women, gays, lesbians, and dinosaurs [evolution] were too black-and-white or, um, wrong.)

Although I suspect our opinions on many issues differ (or hey, maybe they don’t), James has done very, very good things for women.

In The Gospel of Ruth, James does an old-fashioned exegesis of the story of Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi, of the Old Testament. (I love the book of Ruth—in fact, our wedding ceremony centered on this text.) Instead of presenting the story of Ruth and her so-called rescuer, Boaz, as sentimental or romantic, James details the ancient Hebrew laws and customs, the historical context, and the entirely disenfranchised status of widows—especially those who have lost their children (read: sons) or are barren. In doing so, James shows how ballsy Ruth is—and what a rule breaker she is.

Ruth breaks all sorts of rules and customs aimed at keeping her down—or even protecting her—because she is a woman.

I won’t detail all of James’s theological points, but James herself makes a ballsy move by seriously challenging the wisdom of dissuading present-day women from making noise in their churches or becoming leaders. And yes, much to my delight, she (albeit very politely) deliberately and thoughtfully refuses to buy into the myth of wifely submission.

Friends, this is the first time I’ve ever read such words from an evangelical, or in a book published by Zondervan.

I hope that I’ve just been reading the wrong books.

James also does great favors for women by openly discussing miscarriage and infertility, or what the Old Testament would charmingly call “barrenness.” In the church, particularly more conservative ones, pregnancy, children, and raising children are highly lauded. Honestly, pregnancy loss might actually be dealt with BETTER in such churches, as the loss is never minimized. Everyone is very aware that a BABY has been lost, and that it is a great loss.

But infertility? No one talks about that. In today’s culture, even church culture, it’s devastating and isolating. In Ruth’s culture? During a famine? Your lack of status or sons to care for you could literally mean your death.

James, who struggled greatly to conceive, zeroes in on this aspect of Ruth’s story. She gives voice to the woman struggling to have a baby. It’s a powerful segment of the book.

James writes to a broad audience. Her book isn’t intended for PhD candidates seeking to get confused by big words or the nature of God. Though well researched and reasoned, The Gospel of Ruth is aimed at the lay reader. As such, the tone of her writing can be almost annoyingly polite. Or something. Personally, I like more edge, more voice to the tone of writing, even in the more scholarly stuff, and James’s writing voice is a bit on the bland side for me.

That said, there’s a lot of good stuff in The Gospel of Ruth, no matter where you land on the Christianity conservative-to-liberal scale. Recommended.