Don't Be Afraid Gringo: A Honduran Woman Speaks from the Heart: The Story of Elvia Alvarado

#307
Title: Don't Be Afraid Gringo: A Honduran Woman Speaks from the Heart: The Story of Elvia Alvarado
Author: Elvia Alvarado
Translator/Editor: Medea Benjamin
Year: 1987
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Country: Honduras
199 pages

A useful and educative first-person story of land reform struggles in Honduras, narrated by a campesina activist. Her story reveals the social justice aspect of Catholicism and serves as a balance to some of the world's narratives of church activities that disenfranchise poor communities. Alvarado's plain, matter of fact account stands in contrast to the government's response he group's actions inspire, which is often violent and repressive. An excellent illustration of how the battle against "communism" is often a battle against community.

The Thin Place

#306
Title: The Thin Place
Author: Kathryn Davis
Year: 2007
Publisher: Back Bay Books
275 pages

I really enjoyed this well-written, darkly humorous and literary novel. I mean "humorous" in the tragic way, not that it is funny, though there are many moments of wit. It is humorous in its brief, matter of fact summations of events both horrific and merely sad, in its choices of focus, in its language, and in its sentiments. It includes both shaggy dog stories and stories told by shaggy dogs. Some reviewers have called it Christian allegory, which is certainly there (in a raw, messy, non-sanitized way), but it is at its center an animist tale of love, loss, and beauty. Some passages remind me of Annie Dillard's ecstatic nature writing, not in tone or structure but in their dizzying and sudden revelations of worlds that constellate with the world that appeared to be the focus of the narrative. Thus, the discourse shifts from the thoughts of a girl to a narration describing rocks, or to the voice of a beaver, or the telling of a character's secret. These secrets, hopes, and vulnerabilities not just of people but of animals and landscapes, are the true "thin places" of this novel, points of congruence and divergence not just between humans but all of the world's constituents.

My only complaint about the book is not about the book, but the cover. The cover image is misleading and creates an inaccurate expectation about the book's genre. Take out the man in the funny hat, change the baby for a cat, and the wedding dress for something semi-formal from the LL Bean catalogue for a much better depiction of the novel.

How to See Yourself As You Really Are

#305
Title: How to See Yourself As You Really Are
Author: Dalai Lama XIV
Translator: Jeffrey Hopkins
Year: 2006/2007
Publisher: Atria
Country: Tibet
288 pages

Well. There's got to be a Buddhist joke in the fact that I read this in February but forgot to write a review.

I admire the 14th Dalai Lama's skill at explaining complex concepts by starting with simple, observable phenomena that build to more abstract and seemingly inevitable principles. This book is denser than many of his writings. However, I found his analysis and explanations both clear and clarifying, and appreciated the demonstration of the more rigorous, empirically-grounded expression of Buddhist thought. I now have a better understanding of several concepts that I previously could describe but not explore, notably dependent-arising and its relationship to emptiness.

I would recommend others if the reader is looking for a basic volume on Buddhist philosophy or meditation instructions.

The Hostage

#304
Title: The Hostage
Author: Zayd Muteeʻ Dammaj
Translators: May Jayyusi & Christopher Tingley
Year: 1984/1994
Publisher: Interlink
Country: Yemen
166 pages

A simply told but eloquent coming of age story of a boy kept as a hostage in order to ensure his family's political cooperation. The strategy of imprisoning, forcibly employing, or marrying the adversary's children is reasonably common in the world. Often told from the perspective of the hostage, this genre usually include a critique of the captors' corruption, and Dammaj's account, with its pious boy narrator and decadent ruling class, is no exception. The tale takes place not from the beginning of his captivity, but from his entry into servitude in the governor's palace to his escape. It is framed by his friendship with a helpful and sophisticated duwaydar (boy-servant) who, perhaps as symbolic punishment for his participation in the immorality of the household, dies of tuberculosis.

I appreciated Dammaj's use of language, which is a testament to the skill of the translators, and the glimpse of both the political machinations of a now-defunct culture and of the details of daily life in the Yemen of that era.

Peter and the Starcatchers (Peter and the Starcatchers, Book 1)

#303
Title: Peter and the Starcatchers (Peter and the Starcatchers, Book 1)
Authors: Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson
Publisher: Disney Editions
Year: 2004
463 pages

This Peter Pan prequel/back story should be enjoyable, but I found it a slow, unengaging read. I was abstractly interested in the plot and the illustrations are lovely. It's much better written than, say Inkspell or the Charlie Bone books. It may be how interchangeable and indistinct most of the characters were, especially given that so many were demographically similar--problematic captains with dumb but loyal sidekicks who are both called "idjit," and several boys who can be told apart only because the fat one whines. There were some statements of feelings, but I never felt emotional immediacy or identification with the characters. The plot seemed overly complex for the readers' target age. All that said, however, it was an interesting enough start that I'll probably read the next one.

Mugglenet.com's Harry Potter Should Have Died: Controversial Views from the #1 Fan Site

#302
Title: Mugglenet.com's Harry Potter Should Have Died: Controversial Views from the #1 Fan Site
Authors: Emerson Spartz & Ben Schoen with Jeanne Kimsey
Publisher: Ulysses Press
Year: 2009
205 pages

It's an interesting idea--debate topics related to the Harry Potter books and films. The reality, however, doesn't live up to the potential of this adequate but ultimately superficial book. Questions of the form "Which is better/worse/more courageous, X or Y?" ultimately polarize rather than lead to a more nuanced exploration of the Potterverse. The "verdicts" rendered are brief and read more as further pronouncements of opinion rather than a weighing of the evidence mustered by the proponents of the opposing perspectives.

Perhaps in an attempt to sound contemporary., or perhaps because the authors are young, much of the text has an annoying attempting-to-sound-cool tone. In addition, there are problems with felicity of expression (such as awkward or ungrammatical sentences and the use of homophones). Some of the factual information is incorrect (for example, Neville's birthday is not June 30 as reported, but July 30).

The most enjoyable way to read the book would be to pose these questions to young (or not-so-young) readers for discussion, including points of comparison as well as contrast. This conversation ultimately may be more satisfying than a passive reading, and will make the book more useful as a conversation starter.

James Tiptree, Jr.: The Double Life of Alice B. Sheldon

#301
Title: James Tiptree, Jr.: The Double Life of Alice B. Sheldon
Author: Julie Phillips
Publisher: Picador
Year: 2006
559 pages

A fascinating biography of Alice Sheldon, better known as award-winning science fiction author James Tiptree, Jr. Phillips gives us a great deal of detail but the narrative does not bog down; though most people picking up the book know that Tiptree's identity was eventually revealed, and of her life's distressing ending, I doubt most people knew that she went to Africa as a child, or that she was a talented artist who illustrated two of her mother's books and had an illustration published in The New Yorker. Phillips provides copious life details, tracing Sheldon's moves, careers, and relationships over time. Sheldon's correspondence with Harlan Ellison, Barry Malzberg, Ursula K. Le Guin, Joanna Russ, and others is a great delight to read. Phillips has chosen her excerpts judiciously.

Most interesting is Sheldon's psychological state, which seems rarely to have been good. I would have liked to know even more about this; at points this compelling information is presented in a flat, superficial way. This may reflect the fact that many of Phillips' informants are still living and may not have shared some information or given consent to publish. It is quite evident that Sheldon's use of a male pseudonym goes beyond convenience or privacy and has greater symbolic resonance in the context of her many issues and concerns related to sexual identity and gender.

Phillips occasionally speculates about Sheldon's psyche. As a psychologist, I can't diagnose from afar. However, I can wonder about a person's life narrative. Based on what Phillips has provided, I don't think the diagnosis of cyclothymia (given by a therapist at some point in Sheldon's life) is a sufficient description of her psychological and interpersonal difficulties. I'm also not sure whether it could be accurately diagnosed given her amphetamine abuse. Sheldon was quite terrified at a number of times during her family's African sojourns. Her mother was flirtatious and at at least one point made a sexual overture to her then-adolescent daughter (reminiscent of Anne Sexton's daughter's description of Anne's behavior toward her).  Sheldon is severely depressed and often suicidal, anxious, self-doubting, reckless, conflicted about sexuality, and drawn to abusing substances. Though expressing discontent with it, she manages to spend much of her life in a sexless marriage. Her behavior and emotions often edge into the Borderline Personality Disorder spectrum. For these reasons, I wonder if something sexually traumatic happened to her as a child, either in Africa or within her family of origin. My non-diagnostic speculation is Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. This is a better fit than cyclothymia and would, if true, contribute to a more coherent understanding of Sheldon's pervasive discomfort and unhappiness.