Nevermore Fiction Picks: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald, Saving Fish From Drowning, Spider Woman’s Daughter

Fiction topics sometimes seem to go in cycles, with more than one book at a time taking on some event or personality.  Sometimes there’s a simple explanation, as with the 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination bringing out so many books, but others are a bit more obscure.  This year sees not one but two novels about Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of F. Scott.  The first is Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler, which has been described as a fictional autobiography.  Zelda is a teenage Southern belle when she meets the dashing young officer Scott Fitzgerald at a dance.  They came from two very different worlds, but Zelda believed love would conquer all and headed north to become half of a golden couple amid the glitter of the Jazz Age.  Reviewers have been particularly taken with the way Fowler brings that era to life, with flappers, famous folk such as Ernest Hemingway, and glamorous locations in Paris, New York, and the Riviera. Like Plath and Hughes, people tend to divide up in camps favoring one partner over the other (and blaming one or the other!) The second book featuring a fictional Zelda just came out in October:  Guests on Earth by Lee Smith.  This one is set in the mental hospital in North Carolina where the young  Evalina has been sent to live after her mother’s death, a convenient way to get rid of her.  She finds a home among the staff and patients, including Zelda Fitzgerald.

    Our reviewer found Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan to be very different from her other books and not just because it’s narrated by a ghost.  Bibi Chen doesn’t let her untimely death get in the way of going on the art and culture tour she had arranged so she joins them in spirit form.  The tour crosses over into Myanmar when they’re taken deep into the jungle by a group of natives.  Culture clashes and confusion abound. Our reviewer thought that the portrayal of Burma was very interesting, and noted that Tan had strong political views that came through in this book.  Others noted the dark humor of the novel.

Finally, fans of Tony Hillerman can look forward to reading Spider Woman’s Daughter by his daughter Anne Hillerman.  Officer Bernadette Manualito, wife of Jim Chee, sees Joe Leaphorn shot and critically wounded.  Even though she’s on administrative leave, Bernie sets out to honor her promise to Leaphorn to find his assailant. The book is true to the originals, though Anne’s tone is a bit different than her father’s. Both have an obvious love and empathy for the region and its people.  The mystery itself is competently done, even though there’s a lot of explaining at the end.