The Trouble with Dual Narration

I’ll keep the intro today pretty short and sweet. My first book is a fiction read that screams to be part of a book club because of its mystery and drama but ultimately struggles because of its narration. My second book will appeal to history lovers and helps to reshape some common misconceptions. 

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters (many spoilers ahead)

Have you ever read a book where the narration style ruined the suspense for you? For example, the last book in the Divergent trilogy diverged (haha get it?) from the previous two by having dual point-of-views. This was a clear sign that something bad was going to happen to the primary narrator, and (surprise, surprise insert spoiler warning here), unsurprisingly, she dies at the end of the story. 

Similarly, The Berry Pickers’s entire premise is based on the suspense of a missing child. Four-year-old Ruthie was picking berries with her family when, all of a sudden, she vanishes. Has she died? Was she kidnapped? Did she wander away into the woods? In her brother Joe's narration, he and the rest of her family spend most of their lives wondering about and grieving for her. However, the author makes it painfully obvious that the child is alive and unknowingly adopted by her kidnapper. The alternate narrator is Norma, who tells the reader about her nightmares and strange memories as well as the peculiarly secretive nature of her parents. She feels like she doesn’t quite belong or look like her parents, and she is always wondering why there are no photographs of her as a baby. As a reader, you have no suspense about Ruthie’s fate. In far too quick of a reveal (which takes far too long for the narrator to realize), we know that Norma and Ruthie are one and the same. This left me wondering what the point of the story would be. Surely, there must be tension and internal (and perhaps external) conflict as Norma (Ruthie) finds and reunites with her long lost family. Well, you would be wrong. As an adult, Norma discovers that her family is Indigenous, still alive, and still waiting for their long lost daughter. She finds them and rather quickly and easily makes herself part of the family. The moment that the whole story has been leading up to feels like too hasty of a resolution, and I felt unsatisfied and restless.

Looking to the two primary characters, I had little investment in either. Now, it is normal for me to feel greater investment in one narrator over the other in dual narration, but I felt pretty apathetic about both. Joe, Ruthie’s brother, was difficult to root for. Yes, Joe has faced trauma, death, and loss at a young age, but I feel as though Peters was following the buzzy formula of piling hardship upon hardship on her characters until they break. After severing his relationship with his wife and family because of his violent actions and addiction, he drifts in self-imposed isolation until he finally decides to return home. There, he narrates from his deathbed the events of his life. Similarly, Norma is a bland character who had a lot of potential but fell flat for me. 

There are powerful moments, sections of beautiful prose, and the feelings of loss are profound, but this wasn’t the novel for me. 

Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife: The Extraordinary Lives of Medieval Women by Hetta Howes

When I was in college, my two primary lenses for analyzing literature were Biblical allusions and the roles and power of women (or lack thereof). I am fascinated by history, and if I could go back in time, I would have taken more classes focused on it. If we want to understand literature, art, human behavior, and society, we have to look backwards to understand what and who have come before us. I have never stopped being a student, and through historical fiction, biographies, memoirs, and history books, I’ve delighted in learning more and more.

 Hetta Howes looks way back, but she argues that the women of medieval Europe would not be alien to us today. They travelled, wrote, ran businesses, and had strong groups of feminine support. We get a rare opportunity to hear their voices in their own words, and it’s an engaging way to hear about triumphs, obstacles, and everyday occurrences for religious and lay women in England. I did not have very much background knowledge going into this book, and Howes does not expect you to have much. In fact, she is happy to debunk common misconceptions and to create dynamic portraits of women whose stories rarely get more than a passing mention in our history books (if they even get that). 

This is a solid middle of the road read for me. It kept my interest fairly well, I found myself learning something new, and the storytelling and research were well-crafted. 

Watching: Tom has never seen Downton Abbey before, and because it’s one of my all-time favorite shows (okay, just counting seasons 1-3), I’m so excited that he’s been watching it with me. We’re currently halfway through the 3rd season, and I still get emotional and excited about the romance, the tension, and the costumes. I just saw the announcement that there’s a final movie coming out in the fall, and I’m having feelings. Would I have preferred a final season instead…yes. Do I feel like the movies don’t quite live up to the seasons…yes. Am I happy to have more Downton content…absolutely. 

Doing: I booked a staycation for me and Tom at the Dusit Thani Resort during the last weekend of my Spring Break. The resort is only 20 minutes from our home, and I can actually see it from my work. It’s one of our favorite places to go for a date night, so staying there for two nights was like one long date! The Tabu Tiki Bar is right on the beach with some pretty entertaining people watching, some magical chipotle mayo for their french fries, a solid selection of cocktails, and a chicken satay with peanut sauce that I get genuine cravings for. It’s also the only walk-up oceanfront tiki bar on Guam!  Beach House Grill, the pool bar at the Dusit Beach Resort right next door, has fish tacos and Chamorro BBQ I would gladly go back for again, and their lava flow drink is in the top beach drinks I’ve had on Guam. Both Dusit Thani and Dusit Beach have beautiful pools with stunning beach views and beach access, and guests are welcome to utilize both hotels’ amenities. I binge-read on my Kindle, spent a lot of time at the pool, went kayaking, and got plenty of sun. I’m planning on doing a longer Guam travel post to share more details and pictures!

Wearing: I made sea glass earrings at a workshop led by Idle Speed at Carabao Brewing. The craft literally consisted of applying glue to an earring and adding a piece of sea glass, but now I can sound cool and say I made my own jewelry. Seeing as I’m not the most artsy and craftsy gal, it was probably for the best that my first art workshop was that straight forward. 

Listening: The DJ feature on Spotify has been (and I apologize for the cliche term) such a game changer. I normally listen to the same songs ad nauseam, and I like to have background noise while I’m working, cooking, and driving. While silence should be my friend, I would say we’re better acquaintances at this point. The Spotify DJ learns what songs and styles of music I like and gives me an unending playlist of songs and artists that are familiar and new to me. When Tom hands me the aux cord and gives me control of the music, I like that I can just press a button and have the app make the decisions for me. 

Buying: I have missed physical copies of books, and I’m excited by my recent purchases! I preordered Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green, and it arrived just in time for a Spring Break binge read. I loved I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon, so I picked up The Frozen River, and I’ll be starting that this week. My preordered copy of Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez is estimated to arrive in two weeks, but I’m optimistic it’ll follow the pattern of my last preorder and ship in just a week instead. After some heavy books and a lot of nonfiction, I’m excited to curl up with a fluffy romance book by an author I’m familiar with and loving more and more recently.

Exercising: I’m trying out a Tahitian Fit class this weekend that’s included in my gym membership as well as a yoga class. I’m watching Disney food vloggers while I’m on the treadmill, and it’s giving me some serious travel longings and nostalgia. If anyone has recommendations on arm and core workout videos to follow along with that are beginning friendly, I’d appreciate them.