Friday, January 22, 2021

Beginning ~ with a blue book

"If he is the boy in the blue book, where to start?  He can't expect to recognize her after four decades, and he certainly doesn't expect her to recognize him.  The last time they saw each other he would have been no more than six."
Varina ~ by Charles Frazier, 2018, fiction
Her marriage prospects limited, teenage Varina Howell agrees to wed the much-older widower Jefferson Davis, with whom she expects the secure life of a Mississippi landowner.  Davis instead pursues a career in politics and is eventually appointed president of the Confederacy, placing Varina at the white-hot center of one of the darkest moments in American history — culpable regardless of her intentions.  With the Confederacy falling, her marriage in tatters, and the country divided, Varina and her children escape Richmond and travel south on their own, now fugitives who have "bounties on their heads, an entire nation in pursuit."  Intimate in its detailed observations of one woman’s tragic life and epic in its scope and power, Varina is a novel of an American war and its aftermath.  Ultimately, the book is a portrait of a woman who comes to realize that complicity carries consequences.
"Complicity carries consequences."  Hmmm, sounds like that could be a headline for 2021.  I've had this book nearly three years, but I didn't get far into reading it before setting it aside.  For some reason, it called to me this week, so I pulled it off the shelf to read next.

I wrote about this book in 2018 and even included that day's link to Book Beginnings; however, I apparently never got around to posting my link and nobody — absolutely nobody — commented.  How could they, if I didn't link up?  So here I am, trying once again to post about it and actually read it.


Gilion at Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays.  Click here for today's Mister Linky.

7 comments:

Lauren Stoolfire said...

That does sound like a present day headline.

Elza Reads said...

Well, hopefully this time around everyone will comment! I've never heard of this one, but it sure did draw my attention. Quickly hopping over to Goodreads.

Have a good weekend Bonnie!

Elza Reads

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz said...

Actions have consequences, no matter what motivation sparked the action. Curious to see what you think of this book. Will it sit with you better after the lapse of time?

Gilion at Rose City Reader said...

Glad to hear I'm not the only one who drafts and then forgets to post! This sounds excellent. Happy reading!

Bonnie Jacobs said...

Gilion, I went to YOUR blog to get the link to include for my readers and did post it on my blog. But then I forgot to go back to YOUR blog to leave my link for everybody to come here and read it. I'll be 81 in April and have noticed more and more things slip my mind. I'm pretty sure that I'm more forgetful than you are. Not a contest I want to "win," though. Thanks for stopping by.

Anne@HeadFullofBooks said...

Is this book based on facts? I bet it is fascinating. My book this week is titled Kent State

Literary Feline said...

This isn't one I have heard of before, but it sounds interesting. I hope this time around the novel works better for you and you enjoy it! Have a great weekend, Bonnie.