Three Weeks in December: Summary and book reviews of Three Weeks in December by Audrey Schulman, plus links to an excerpt from Three Weeks in December and a biography of Audrey Schulman.

In 1899 Jeremy, a young engineer, leaves a small town in Maine to oversee the construction of a railroad across East Africa. In charge of hundreds of Indian laborers, he soon finds himself the reluctant hunter of two lions that are killing his men in almost nightly attacks on their camp. Plagued by fear, wracked with malaria and alienated by a secret he can tell no one, he takes increasing solace in the company of the African who helps him hunt. In 2000 Max, an American ethnobotonist, travels to Rwanda in search of an obscure vine that could become a lifesaving pharmaceutical. Stationed in the mountains, she closely shadows a family of gorillas, the last of their group to survive the encroachment of local poachers. Max bears a striking gift for understanding the ape's non-verbal communication, but their precarious solidarity is threatened as a violent rebel group from the nearby Congo draws close. Told in alternating perspectives that interweave the two characters and their fates, Audrey Schulman's newest novel deftly confronts the struggle between progress and preservation, idiosyncrasy and acceptance. Evoking both Barbara Kingsolver and Andrea Barrett, this enthralling fiction, wise and generous, explores some of the crucial social and cultural challenges that, over the years, have come to shape our world. The engaging story and memorable characters make this fine novel an ideal book club selection. Paperback original

BookBrowse

With 22 out of 25 members rating it 4 or 5 stars, Three Weeks in December is a clear winner with BookBrowse readers. A great choice for book clubs, this novel will certainly inspire lively discussions. Here's what they have to say:

This is a book to savor. Read it slowly because the words transform into poetic images of Africa. Schulman weaves back and forth between the stories of two emotionally challenged people: Jeremy, who is struggling with being gay in the nineteenth century and Max, who is coping with Asperger's. It is a beautiful, beautiful book - one that you'll finish and immediately want to read again. Look for clues as to what makes these two seemingly disparate stories connected - the truth will surprise you (Mary R). Each character is challenged by what sets them apart from society... Add life threatening events to each of their stories, and you have a compelling and moving novel, a story that you can't help thinking about days after finishing it (Christine P).  (Reviewed by BookBrowse First Impression Reviewers).

Full Review (1050 words).

Media Reviews

Dennis Haritou, ThreeGuysOneBook.com This is a moving story, told with great sympathy for the empirical facts, which doesn't stop us as readers from getting our guts kicked out by Audrey Schulman's great voice.   Publishers Weekly Sympathetic to her two loners while accepting their faults, Schulman (A House Named Brazil) nudges her characters into their fears in order to measure their reactions, but her greatest asset is her cultural sensitivity.   Kirkus Reviews Advocacy fiction - a little preachy and obvious but also genuinely passionate about both the cause of African wildlife and the sensory experience of Africa, which Schulman brings to tactile life.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated of 5 by Lisa R. (Salem, OR)
Deep and thought provoking.
I was captivated by the way the author presented the part of the character with Asperger's. It gave an insiders look at how they are treated and how they feel the world. The book was beautifully descriptive, and kept my interest all the way...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Peggy H. (North East, PA)
Two Stories that Don't Connect
Each of the two stories describes a character who is isolated from society for some reason. Each travels to Africa and connects to the continent. Each story by itself is compelling, but I kept expecting for the two to connect or intertwine at the...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Molinda C. (suffolk, VA)
Read this book
I am a developmental pediatrician and so was drawn to this book because one of the main characters has Asperger's syndrome. The author did a great job getting inside that character's head and helped us to understand the point of view of an Aspie....   Read More

Rated of 5 by Jeanine L. (Wasilla, AK)
Three Weeks in December - Couldn't Put It Down
When first reading the description of this book I was a little leery. However, it took very little time and I was completely wrapped up in it. I hardly put it down. My husband, who doesn't often read fiction, read it too and has high praise for...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Mary R. (San Jose, CA)
A Book To Savor
This is a book to savor. Read it slowly because the words transform themselves into poetic images of Africa. Schulman weaves back and forth between the stories of two emotionally challenged people: Jeremy, who is struggling with being gay in the...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Kimberly H. (Stamford, CT)
A good read.....
At first, this book struck me as- oh no- a biracial Aspergers scientist in the jungle with gorillas? And the other story about a repressed gay man in the jungle in the late 1800's. I thought it was all too much. This turns out to be a well written...   Read More

...21 More Reader Reviews

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• Nature & Environmental Themes