This book was not what I expected. I mostly don’t like magical realism and have avoided Gabriel Garcia Marquez and have struggled when reading Haruki Murakami, both of whom are known for their magical realism. It is a bit strange, since I like fantasy books a lot and science fiction as well, but the combination of reality and magic seems to be a sticking point for me.
What drew me into Gold Diggers, however, was the powerful story of second generation Asian immigrants to the US, shouldering the huge expectations of their families. These young people, who have been acculturated with the American values of self fulfillment and self determination, are expected to fulfill their parents dreams thus justifying the costly sacrifices their parents made. Sathian has captured the dissonance of the younger generation so well- the need for self fulfillment and at the same time struggling to honor their parents expectations.
Neil Narayan has grown up in a Asian American enclave in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia, Most of the neighbors on their street are Asian. Everyone knows everyone and the competition and gossip mill keeps everyone posted on what child is excelling in school and who is having trouble getting into an Ivy League college. The pressure to succeed is enormous, and Neil is not handling the pressure very well. His parents want him to be a doctor or a lawyer but he is not sure hat he wants to be ” successful” in that way. Mostly, instead of working on debate or studying for the SAT, he wants to hang out with his friend Anita who lives across the street.
Neil knows that Anita is also struggling with her own pressures to succeed. She has entered the Teen Miss Asia contest and has been doing charitable work to enhance her academic resume to get into an Ivy League school. But Neil soon discovers that she and her mother have found something else to help Anita achieve her ambitions. An alchemic potion using gold stolen from others that “harvests” their ambition and makes it your own. Convinced that this will help him as well, Neil persuades Anita and her mother to let him drink this gold cocktail, too. But magic and alchemy have unforeseen costs and when a tragic event occurs its repercussions split their community apart.
Years later, Anita and Neil meet again. Neil is still trying to find his own path, while Anita is taking time to reevaluate her life. This time will the power of the gold cocktail fulfill their dreams or bring them answers that they need in order to be set free?
Insightful and intelligent, Sathian captures the struggles of Neil and Anita as well as their parents who are trying their best to raise them. Sometimes bitterly funny and at times profoundly sad and moving, this book provides a look behind the myth of Asian-American success and show us what it takes to make it in America.
Brenda’s Rating: ***** (5 Out of 5 Stars)
Recommend this book to: Sharon, Marian, Lauren, Keith and Ken.
Book Study Worthy? Yes
Read in e-library format.
I have been slowly reading this fascinating and provocative book and am looking forward to having some solid chunks of time to finish it! So far it has been so interesting and thought provoking, I know I will be thinking about it for a long time!
I really enjoy Hoffman’s writing, but this is one I had not read before. She has a a new book in this series that is scheduled for release soon, so I thought I would start at the beginning.
Speaking of magic, Gold Diggers is a book that looks interesting. It contains magical realism, which isn’t always something I can get it not but it looks like it will be worth a try.
This is probably a book I should avoid reading on vacation since it is about something that happens to a family on vacation, but it sounded exciting so I will try it and see. Always fun to try something a bit unexpected!
Set in an alternate reality of Seoul, this is a story of an assassin who discovers that the seemingly random jobs he has been assigned are part of a larger scheme set up by three unlikely women- a convenience store clerk, her wheelchair bound sister and a cross eyed librarian. Very intriguing!
I have been saving this for when I have time to savor it. Her writing is just so beautiful you need to let it roll over you! Really looking forward to finding out what happens to Jack!
I read the first book in this series and it was a great read-romantic, funny, uplifting and lots of personal drama with the characters. A fun read and I hope the rest of the series is too!
I have several of these I need to read! Such great books to read on vacation. Must have good cup of espresso coffee and a croissant from the bakery to really get into them completely, luckily there is a great coffee shop right on the way to the beach!
Post-war Istanbul is a seething hot bed of rumors and spies and as the power struggle between the Soviets, Europe and the US heats up in this ancient city where east meets west. Leon Bauer, a US expat and businessman, was periodically asked to help the Allied war effort by doing some routine undercover jobs by a contact in the US embassy. Since the war ended, however, the requests for his help had diminished and he thought that part of his life was over. That is until his contact suddenly asks him to do one more job-a routine pick up of someone being smuggled into Istanbul.
When the flight attendant announces that their plane is in trouble and they need to prepare for a crash landing, Dawn, starts thinking about her life. Not the life she currently has with her husband Brian and her daughter or her work as a death doula, but instead about the path she didn’t get to pursue- a life as an archeologist studying Egyptian death rituals and her first love, Wyatt Armstrong, a colleague she met in Egypt.
In 1940 England, everyone needed to do their part for the war effort. For three young women this meant working at Bletchley Park, trying to break the German codes. For Osla, a beauty and a debutante, it meant being valued for something other than her looks and status. For Mab, it was a way to escape from the stultifying poverty she had been born into and for Beth it was a way to break free from her overbearing mother and live life on her own terms. But the work at Bletchley Park was exhausting, both physically and mentally, and the secrets they carried tore the three friends apart.
Tony Webster lives a very ordinary life. He is that quintessential Englishman, who lives life with very little emotion. Divorced, but still amicable with his ex and daughter, and recently retired, Tony expects to live out his days in comfort and with very little introspection or drama. But then he receives a letter from a lawyer announcing that he has received a legacy from an old school friend, forcing him to confront his past and re-evaluate his memories.
These novels by Elena Ferrante have been described as “ferocious”, “explosive,” as if they are describing some kind of action/thriller series, but instead Ferrante tells the story of two girls growing up in post WWII Naples whose friendship becomes more and more complicated as their life choices, the political climate and their own sense of themselves develops and changes over time. Beginning with 
Edie Burkhill, never knew much about her mother’s past, until her mother received an unexpected letter. The letter is from Milderhurst Castle where Meredith, Edie’s mother, was billeted as a child during WWII. It is also the home of Raymond Blythe, the author of The True History of the Mud Man, one of Edie’s favorite childhood books and one of the reasons she went into publishing.
High in the French Alps there is a luxurious cabin, accessible only be cable car, which can be rented for corporate retreats. Complete with its own chef and housekeeper, cozy fires and breathtaking views of the mountains, it is ideal for corporate financial Power Point presentations, long term visioning and strategizing as well as personal bonding on the ski slopes. This was exactly what the top executives and shareholders of Snoop, a tech start-up based in London were hoping for, until one of them mentions the pending corporate buy-out and tensions that were simmering in the background become visible and volatile and loyalties are stretched and tested. Meanwhile, a storm which has dumped even more wet snow on the mountains, triggers a devastating avalanche, cutting off the cabin from all access to the outside world. But even more disturbing is that the members of the group are dwindling…one by one.
Odile Souchet has finally managed to land her dream job; a position with the American Library in Paris! Her parents are not happy about this at all, especially her father, who as a ranking police officer has been bringing home young men from work to meet her, hoping that she will give up on her dreams and get married. But Odile is ambitious, and has dreams beyond what a woman living in 1939 Paris could actually hope to achieve.
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