Nevermore: Zero Fail, Lamplighters, Curlew's Cry, Caravan

 

Reported by Garry

 

We started off this week with the unflinching history of the Secret Service. Zero Fail is the New York Times best-selling expose by Carol Leonnig that documents the rise and fall of the Secret Service, from its inception during the Civil War to the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the nation’s Capitol. Hubris, ego, and machismo, as well as administrative negligence were the main failing points that our reader identified as the Achilles heel of the Service. Fascinating and frustrating in equal measures, our reader said that this look at the agency tasked with protecting the members of the highest offices in the nation (and who do so sometimes by sheer dumb luck) is an excellent read and recommends it to anyone wanting a look “behind the curtain” of how our government works.

 

 

The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex is a novel inspired by the true-life disappearance of three lighthouse keepers in the Outer Hebrides in 1900. Re-imagined and set in Cornwall in 1972, the keepers have disappeared from a lighthouse locked from the inside. A table was set for a meal (for two, despite there being three keepers) that was never eaten, all the clocks stopped at 8:45 PM, and the keepers’ log stated that a storm had been raging, even though the weather was clear. Twenty years on, an author visits with the wives of the vanished to try to solve the mystery, exposing and untangling many lies and truths. Our reader found this book to be really interesting and highly recommends it to anyone who likes a mystery along with their historical fiction.

 

Published in 1955, The Curlew’s Cry by Mildred Walker spans three decades in the life of Pamela Lacey and her ranch on the prairies of Montana. Third generation rancher Pamela is a self-sufficient, headstrong woman who has her sights set on a horizon beyond the ranch. Marrying a rich Easterner, she quickly finds out that marriage is not what she hoped it would be. Returning to her home, Pamela takes over her father’s ranch (uncommon in the early part of the last century) and sets about living life on her own terms. Our reader found this to be a fascinating look at life on the prairies during the tumultuous times between 1905 and 1941. This first-person viewpoint provides not only a feminist look at social structures of the time, but a beautifully written examination of the harsh living conditions on the prairies. Our reader really loved this book and states that the true beauty of the book is the descriptions of the land and people of Montana.

 

Caravan by Dorothy Gilman takes us to the Sahara Desert in 1914. Caressa is a beautiful young British woman widowed before the age of 20 with the murder of her anthropologist husband. Taken as a slave by Tuareg tribesmen, she must use her wiles and survival instincts, as well as skills she gained growing up in a travelling carnival, to make her way back to Cairo and then home. Our reader says that this 1995 novel is definitely      worth reading, and that it may well be better than Gilman’s popular Mrs. Pollifax series.

 

Also mentioned:

The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane

Atlas Obscura: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders

Thereby Hangs a Tail by Spencer Quinn

The Baker’s Secret by Stephen P. Kiernan

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon

The Toymakers by Robert Dinsdale

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

Forgotten Pioneer by Harry Golden

Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley

Crooked Hallelujah by Kelli Jo Ford

Wildland by Rebecca Hodge

56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard

Three Words for Goodbye by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb

The Reckoning: Our Nation’s Trauma and Finding a Way to Heal by Mary L. Trump

Ethel Rosenberg: An American Tragedy by Anne Sebba

Nevermore: Empress of the East, Ice Cream Queen, Clinton & Patterson, Love & Tartan, and First Ladies

Reported by Jeanne

The Empress of the East:  How a European Slave Girl Became the Queen of the Ottoman Empire by Leslie Peirce intrigued another Nevermore member.  It’s the true story of Roxelena, a Christian slave girl who was kidnapped and added to the harem of Suleyman the Magnificent.  She soon became his favorite and eventually his wife, an unprecedented move.  Our reader was fascinated to learn about the Ottoman Empire and thought most people would enjoy the book. She recommended it highly.

A fictional queen was next, with The Ice Cream Queen of Orchard Street by Susan Jane Gilman.  Malka, a little Jewish girl from Russia, arrives in the United States in 1913.  Taken in by a family who peddles Italian ices, she learns about the trade and later sets up her own company.  It’s a rags to riches story, but Malka—renamed Lillian—is no Cinderella.  As the book opens, it’s the 1980s and she is on trial for various charges, but the book moves back and forth in time as Lilian tells her story.  The book has been praised for its vivid depiction of life in early twentieth century New York, and our reviewer said she also learned a lot about ice cream.

The President Is Missing by James Patterson and Bill Clinton continued the theme of leaders.  The heavily hyped book’s plot has a U.S. President suspected of colluding with or protecting a Middle Eastern terrorist, something he refuses to confirm or deny. According to our reviewer, this book is about a president so amazing that he could probably leap tall buildings with a single bound.  She was not impressed.

A better reception was accorded A Time of Love and Tartan by Alexander McCall Smith, the latest entry in the 44 Scotland Street series.  The books are set in Edinburgh and follow the lives of the various inhabitants of the street.  The books are warm, amusing, and a go-to read for anyone who wants to relax.  Our reader said she loves all of McCall-Smith’s books.

The First Ladies of the Republic by Jeanne E. Abrams drew praise from a Nevermore member.  The book covers Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, and Dolley Madison, and examines how these women became role models for all the first ladies who came after.  While Abigail emerged as our reviewer’s favorite, she said that Martha came across as warm and gracious; there was too much repetition about Dolley. All the women had children who “didn’t turn out too well,” and caused their mothers grief.