This is a great read, but I wouldn't make my friends read it. Top marks for being really Canadian, well written, and full of gripping characters. There are many and I found them all interesting.
The story takes place in northern Ontario in 1867, some where between Sault Ste. Marie and Moose Factory. The main character is Mrs. Ross, whose son is suspected of a murder. He disappears into the snow, and she follows him. Various people follow and search for various other people throughout the story. It takes place in winter and I can't believe they didn't all freeze to death in skirts and shawls. The foreground history is of the Hudson's Bay Company, its competitors, its employees, and its native and metis traders and voyageurs, potentially very interesting, but I am not sure how true. An interesting fact stated in the book is that all the fur bearing animals had vanished, trapped and sold by the company.
The story, the vernacular speech, and the social rules don't feel authentic. I was always conscious of the writer, making up a story, and not getting the feel of the times.
A small book, loaded with insights. I also thought the movie was really excellent, portraying well the reality of a young girl dating a con artist, while everyone looked on in tacit approval or silence. Having been there a few times myself (I am a slow learner), I found the book and movie rang true.
Barber is a lovely writer, but a bit of a BS'er. She has the style of Jilly Cooper, witty and breezy.
Really interesting little book, well written.
Very funny book. It's more too. Janzen offers insight into the psyche of a woman raised as a Mennonite but not living as one. For instance, why she stayed in an abusive marriage for 15 years. The heroine is her mother, a very wise woman. A lot like Loris' mother maybe.
My fascination with German is really a fascination with Low German or Plattdeutsch and its history. The book made me even more determined to really learn German to be able to understand the passages in German and all the variations thereof
What I didn't like:
- cover, font, and layout are old fashioned and offputting.
- I needed a primer on linguistics to understand a lot of the book.
What I liked:
- Waterman is very informative and there were numerous fascinating facts and discussions.
German has the ability to express the inexpressible, to deal with abstractions, which marks the genious of the language.
The development of compound complex sentences in the 15th century is fascinating, with comparisons of texts.
Lubeck was the centre of development of legal codes and statutes and copied by many other cities.
Yiddish dialect spoken in the US is from Central and Eastern Europe.
German syntax regarding verbs was imitated from Latin.
Financial and banking words were adopted from Italian.
Luther used a dialect that was more like Low German. His writing and translations are unsurpassed, as shown by comparisons of Bible versions.
In the 15th C. there was a custom of name calling among factions of opposing religionists, e.g. Hurenjaeger.
It was common from 1600 on, for North Germans to speak Plattdeutsch, but read High German (like the Mennonites) and thus they often spoke High German very well and Northern Germany has the reputation for purer pronunciation.
Another lovely read by McCall Smith -- 5th the Bertie (44 Scotland) series. So clever. Not enough Bertie though. But all characters interesting, and lots happens. Very heartwarming even if all the players have flaws.
The thing with McCall Smith is that he makes you want to move to Edinburgh, which is pretty amazing.
My body was pounded by this book. Read in a morning, it's astounding in all aspects.
Nothing to do with religion, but rather the disillusionment of a highly successful Pakistani immigrant to the US just before 9/11, and the changes in his life in the aftermath. Fundamentalism refers to the financial fundamentals under which Changez works in a US valuation company.
He falls in love with a beautiful rich American woman. The book is horribly allegorical, quite painful in it's impact.
Hamid's writing is a masterpiece, every word perfect.
