The Pilot's Wife

Another book that would have made a better short story. This book describes in detail the experience of a airline pilot's wife when she hears her husband's plane had gone down over the Atlantic. As she deals with her grief, she also tries to clear her husband's name when reports show that it may have been suicide. What she finds, however, is that he was leading a double life.

The emotions are written well. I hope that the author never experienced such a loss, but I cannot imagine her writing these characers without having done so. The detail of the mindset and reactions of the wife, her daughter and her grandmother are so vivid, you really get sucked in.

The book is an extremely quick read and I would reccomend it to those who are looking for a mystery/love story/gratifying read. I wasn't overly thrilled, but didn't hate it.

Pigs in Heaven

For those of you who like Barbara Kingsolver, I would reccomend this book. A sequel toTthe Bean Trees, the book follows the story of Taylor and Turtle. After being handed an abused and quiet child in a parking lot, Taylor adopts the Cherokee girl and delves into motherhood. The story picks up at the Hoover Dam a few years later. The bond between them has grown incredibly strong and it is easy to sense the love the two have through the writing. An adventure at the dam lands them a spot on Oprah, where the story of how Turtle came into Taylor's life is broadcast. Unfortunatly for the pair, a Cherokee lawyer sees this and realizes that the adoption is not legal. In order for a Cherokee child to be adopted by someone who is not part of the tribe, there has to be a vote and a hearing on the reservation regarding the best interest for the child. The laywer immediatly seeks Taylor out and confronts her about taking this child away from her people and not giving her the cultural knowledge to which she is entitled.

The author does an excellent job of showing both sides sympathetically. The reader, who has grown to love Taylor and Turtle, both seperatly and as a couple, do not want them split up. But at the same time, it was unfortunate circumstances that brought them together when Turtle should have legally been with her own people. Taylor flees with Turle and quickly encounters heartbreaking poverty, and her mother Alice goes to the reservation to see what she can do. What happens next is quintessential Kingsolver.

The buildup was long and grueling, and the book ends rather abruptly. I would have liked more closure - to see what happened to Turtle after the consul made its choice on her fate and what she thought of the whole thing down the line.

The writing was fantastic, as usual. BK writes her characters extremely well. They three main characters, Taylor, Turle and Alice, all provide the eyes with which you see all the people they meet in this adventure, but the author still allows you to form your own opinions. It is more of a character novel than anything, spinning around a social issue that many deal with today. For those who are not familiar with the native american background, this book would be a real eye opener. The history is there, but the mentality of the Cherokee, the way they live and the importance of family and preserving thier culture is conveyed wonderfully. I would reccomend this book on that aspect of the content alone.