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Reviews by Elizabeth W. (Newton, MA)

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To the Moon and Timbuktu: A Trek through the Heart of Africa
by Nina Sovich

Lyricism and candor on a journey to Timbuktu (7/7/2013)

In To The Moon and Timbuktu, Nina Sovich writes of two type of journeys: her physical journeys to Africa and her psychological journey through the first years of her marriage as she came to terms with living an "ordinary" life in Paris with her husband.

Ms. Sovich writes …more movingly and well. She creates wonderful pictures of her struggles to get through the countryside, the people she meets, and her feelings as she comes to know them. She also provides enough background and history for her readers to understand the import of what she experiences.

As the author describes her relationship with her mother in her childhood, it seems somewhat distant (although she does pattern herself as a traveler after her mother). On the other hand, her relationships with the African women she comes to know are wonderfully close and warm. They clearly are the high points of her visits to Africa, and, thus, her descriptions of them become the best parts of her book. In her descriptions of the writing of Mary Kingsley and Karen Blixen, she seems to feel a similar closeness to them. Her discussion of their writing led me to decide to go back to re-read Out of Africa and to discover Travels in West Africa for the first time. (The bibliography that the author includes at the end of the book is most helpful for further reading.)

Ms. Sovich's candor about her feelings is both refreshing and startling at times. More than once, I thought her brave to be analyzing her deepest feelings during some of her most vulnerable states while knowing that her husband and other family members would be reading about them.

The book is a combination of travelogue, memoir, and psychological analysis. As Ms. Sovich looks back on her African adventure and sums up how it has prepared her for her life with a child in Paris, she writes about the toughness it created in her, the ability to withstand boredom while dealing with a fussy child, and the ability to live with less, it seems strange to remember that the writer still is in her thirties. I found myself thinking of all the years that lie ahead of her and some of the experiences that she may encounter and wondering whether it it's not too early for some of her philosophizing and whether some of her analysis might not be a little too pat. Nonetheless, I would not give back any of the journey with Ms. Sovich, and I would recommend that others travel in Africa with her, too. (less)

The Edge of the Earth
by Christina Schwarz

Clear your schedule, and prepare for a treat . . . (10/8/2012)

Christina Schwarz's The Edge of the Earth is a wonderful treat. Schwarz's prose is crisp and vivid. She makes the California seashore, the lighthouse where she lives, and all the creatures around them materialize on the pages. The story of Trudy, her husband Oskar, and the …more

The Headmaster's Wager: A Novel
by Vincent Lam

Visit to another land . . . (7/19/2012)

The language of The Headmaster’s Wager is as intoxicating and seductive as the opium and morphine that trap the first father-and-son pair around whom the story centers. The plot is tight and fast-paced enough to make one tempted to read through the pages quickly, but it is …more

Afterwards: A Novel
by Rosamund Lupton

Of two minds . . . (5/3/2012)

Rosamund Lipton's Afterwards is a well-written, riveting novel. The characters are engaging; although the twists and turns of the whodunnit plot are surprising, they are believable. Nonetheless, as much as I enjoyed the fast-paced, readable book, I ended up of two minds …more

Before the Poison
by Peter Robinson

A most enjoyable visit . . . (1/14/2012)

To read Peter Robinson’s Before the Poison is to enjoy a comfortable extended visit with protagonist Chris Lowndes in the English countryside. His voice is as smooth and relaxing as his favorite Armagnac. The details of the house and surrounding town are drawn with such a …more

The Most Dangerous Thing
by Laura Lippman

A many-layered treat . . . (8/16/2011)

My pleasure in reading Laura Lippman's The Most Dangerous Thing grew as the layers of history and competing points of view built up. The story of how five childhood friends became a tightly knit unit that faced both adventures and a final disaster while exploring the woods …more

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