Mathis, Ayana "The Twelve Tribes of Hattie"

Mathis, Ayana "The Twelve Tribes of Hattie" - 2013

Another book I picked up and then found it was also an Oprah selection.

I liked the writing, very interesting stories, the life of the children is described in a compelling way.

However, I would have liked to hear more about the different characters. The whole book is more like a collection of short stories and most of the characters are never heard of again after their chapter ends.

None of the characters were very likeable. But, in their defence, they all had a hard life, were born into one where they had no chance to improve it and knew that, as well. I don't know how we would react if a life like that was given to us. But, even if they were not very likeable, their stories are heartbreaking and I think they might have become nicer, better people, had they been given a chance.

All in all, not my favourite book but a good read.

From the back cover: "Fifteen years old and blazing with the hope of a better life, Hattie Shepherd fled the horror of the American South on a dawn train bound for Philadelphia.
Hattie’s is a tale of strength, of resilience and heartbreak that spans six decades. Her American dream is shattered time and again: a husband who lies and cheats and nine children raised in a cramped little house that was only ever supposed to be temporary.
She keeps the children alive with sheer will and not an ounce of the affection they crave. She knows they don’t think her a kind woman — but how could they understand that all the love she had was used up in feeding them and clothing them.
How do you prepare your children for a world you know is cruel?
The lives of this unforgettable family form a searing portrait of twentieth century America. From the revivalist tents of Alabama to Vietnam, to the black middle-class enclave in the heart of the city, to a filthy bar in the ghetto, The Twelve Tribes of Hattie is an extraordinary, distinctive novel about the guilt, sacrifice, responsibility and heartbreak that are an intrinsic part of ferocious love."

Skibsrud, Johanna "The Sentimentalists"

Skibsrud, Johanna "The Sentimentalists" - 2010

A story of a father who wants to forget the Vietnam war and is slowly losing all his memories to Alzheimer's. A story of a daughter who would like to learn more about her father and his life. A story of a father and a daughter trying to find a way together at a late stage of their lives.

An interesting perspective, yet, quite a normal story, I think. How many children wonder about the ghosts that haunt their fathers who went to war? I know I did/do. Most of them don't want to talk about it, no matter which side they were on, whether they wanted to go or not, they just want the one thing they cannot have: forgetting. And anything that happened in the war, affects the whole family and friends forever. Because the guy who returns is not the boy who left.

Johanna Skibsrud describes this very well. And even though the daughter never finds out what really happened, she does manage to get a little closer to him in the end.

A very interesting story, simply told, yet with a lot of "texture".

See more comments on my ThrowbackThursday post in 2024.

From the back cover:

"Haunted by the vivid horrors of the Vietnam War, exhausted from years spent battling his memories, Napoleon Haskell leaves his North Dakota trailer and moves to Canada.

He retreats to a small Ontario town where Henry, the father of his fallen Vietnam comrade, has a home on the shore of a man-made lake. Under the water is the wreckage of what was once the town -- and the home where Henry was raised.

When Napoleon's daughter arrives, fleeing troubles of her own, she finds her father in the dark twilight of his life, and rapidly slipping into senility. With love and insatiable curiosity, she devotes herself to learning the truth about his life; and through the fog, Napoleon's past begins to emerge.

Lyrical and riveting, The Sentimentalists is a story of what lies beneath the surface of everyday life, and of the commanding power of the past. Johanna Skibsrud's first novel marks the debut of a powerful new voice in Canadian fiction. "

Sawyer, Anh Vu "Song of Saigon"

Sawyer, Anh Vu "Song of Saigon: One Woman's Journey to Freedom" - 2003

A highly interesting book. One of our members knew the author who was coming to visit this part of Europe, so we read the book and had a remarkable evening with a personality that you don't find that often.

Born in Vietnam, Anh Vu fled Saigon in 1975 with her family. She was a young medical student and had to start a new life in the United States. Her dramatic story of both her different lives can be an inspiration to us all. But the author doesn't just tell about the difficult sides, she is an active Christian and feels truly blessed.

A very touching story.

We discussed this in our international book club with the author in April 2004.

From the back cover:

"In riveting detail, Anh Vu Sawyer recounts a childhood hanging in the balance as the chaos of the Vietrnam War threatens to tear her family apart. From the nightly rocket attacks that left her family trembling in fear to her father's lost glory as one of Ho Chi Minh's cadre to her harrowing exodus to freedom from the rooftop of the American Embassy, this is an inspiring memoir of unshakeable faith and survival that comes full circle when she returns to Vietnam nearly 25 years later on a very personal humanitarian mission."

See more comments on my ThrowbackThursday post in 2023.