Historical Fiction Friday: Mare's War

In the spotlight this Friday is Mare's War. I went to a conference and found out about this book by the presenter. I thought it sounded really cool.

Here is a summary:
15-year-old Octavia and 17-year-old Tali make the transformation from complaining, self-absorbed teens to observant, supportive family members. As the miles pass from California across the southern states, the girls become intrigued with memories of Mere's harsh childhood of domestic work and her struggle to protect herself and younger sister from their widowed mother's lecherous boyfriend. Mere's account of her war years is full of historical detail and lively personal anecdotes about the training, treatment, duties, and social life in her African-American regiment of the Women's Army Corps both on assignment in the U.S. and in the European Theater during 1944 and 1945.

A time for war...a time for peace....

There has been some controversy over Sunrise over Fallujah. Some say that this book is glorifying the war in Iraq and that there should be a book about the Iraqi view of the war. Okay, that’s fair. Maybe someone should write such a book, but they haven’t (as far as I know) and this book is about a young American man shipped overseas. As for glorifying the war, Mr. Meyers does none of that. Readers get a gritty realistic portrayal of war.

Robin aka “Birdy” as everyone calls him has been shipped overseas where confusion reigns supreme. Who are his enemies? What are they all doing there? How can they tell the enemy from a friend? As Jonesy one of the characters said, “Okay, let me straighten this mess out. If somebody who looks like an A-rab shoots you, the first thing you do is to pull out your Rules of Engagement card and see what the rules are for the day. Because it could be a Rodeney King day and we just all trying to get along and then you don’t shoot him.”

Mr. Myers gives the reader a realistic portrayal of this confusing war. Sprinkled throughout the book there is also humor, which lightens the mood. For instance Birdy said “Captain Miller, who curses better than anyone I had ever heard, said something wonderful about the lieutenant’s parents that I wish I had had the time to write down even though I don’t really believe that a human being could be conceived by sand crabs under a flack rock.

Sunrise over Fallujah is an excellent novel and I believed it approached the subject matter with dignity. The cast of characters are great and the reader is quickly drawn into this novel wondering what will happen next.

For students looking for a good war novel, and for those who want to see what life is like for our soldiers overseas I recommend this book.

What is your path in life?

Vidya isn't a typical Indian woman because she dreams about going to college. The thought consumes her and she can think of nothing else. She likes to read and enjoys school, and unlike other girls around her she doesn't want to get married.

Everything is going well for her, until the day her father is brutally beaten by an English soldier. With her father unable to work she must move into her grandfather's house, which is occupied by an interesting cast of characters, including some cruel family members. Vidya's life is miserable. The only solace she finds is going upstairs to the library where she reads for hours. However, going into the library is entering the men's quarters and it is forbidden. No woman is allowed in the library.

While in the library Vidya meets a young man named Raman. He's unlike the others in the household because he treats her like an equal and encourages her to read. As time goes on Vidya begins to develop feelings for Raman but she doesn't know if she is willing to give up college for a man. Vidya must choose her path in life, marry like a proper Indian woman should, or be an outcast and go to college.

This book was differend compared to so many that I have read; because this novel takes place in India during World War II. Ms. Venkatraman does an excellent job of immersing the reader in Indian culture. She explains the foods, festivals and different customs. The caste system is explored in this book as well as the gender roles.

The only drawback to this book is there was no glossary. The author uses so many Indian words, which is wonderful, but I think the addition of a glossary would have helped students.

Overall, I enjoyed this story and I think it would be an excellent book for a social studies teacher to use.

For teens who like to read about history, politics and other cultures this is the book for them.