Weight of a Woman by Judith Jackson-Pomeroy; Substantial Characters Counter Light Development

 

Weight of a Woman by Judith Jackson-Pomeroy; Substantial Characters Counter Heavy Length 

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews 

Spoilers: There is an old trick or piece of advice with storytelling. It’s “Tell people what you are going to tell them. Tell them. Then tell them what you already told them.” It works well when you are writing short works like a review, a political column, even a short story or a novella. It doesn’t work so well when you are trying to write a longer work like a novel. That’s the biggest problem with Judith Jackson-Pomeroy’s novel Weight of a Woman, a romance with fascinating leads but not enough to do that changes them.

Sara Wolfe is a Women’s Studies college professor and outspoken Feminist. She is a popular teacher and bonds with her students. She is in a long term but open relationship with Tom, another professor and has close friends in Jane, director of the Women’s Resource Center and Marco, an award winning poet. Even though she is well respected at this university, she has her sights set on a Wellesley fellowship. However, her seemingly perfect life hides some disturbing secrets. While attending a concert with her friends, Sara becomes enamored with Seth, a rock singer who is also one of her students. As if a romance with a student wasn’t controversial enough, Seth also has secrets of his own that could jeopardize his career and his relationship with Sara. 

The sad part is Weight of a Woman is actually very good, particularly in terms of characterization. The core romance is between two people who are seriously damaged and are in desperate need of psychiatric care. The type of romance that could strengthen or tear them apart and this book suggests that this s in danger of doing both. 

Sara projects an image of great confidence, wisdom, and integrity who courageously shares her convictions and stands by them. But that image disguises the troubled broken soul underneath. Her relationship with Tom is very toxic and emotionally abusive as Tom condescends her with his misogynistic and homophobic views and chips away at her Feminist views as a means of control. 

She is riddled with insecurities and anxiety that manifests itself as severe Anorexia. She starves herself and degrades her own appearance. In social situations, where she has to be seen eating, she chews her food, but doesn’t swallow. Instead, she empties it out into a napkin.

Sara is also a sexual assault survivor which has given her massive PTSD and trust issues. She can’t trust the men that she’s involved with and often has a hard time trusting herself. She stands as a paragon of Feminist values because they represent the type of woman that she wants to be, not the woman that she actually is.

 Even though Seth expresses his views through his songs and is just as committed to his beliefs as Sara is to hers, he has problems of his own. His music career is at a crossroads and he is torn between staying true to his artistic integrity and signing with a major label to get more money and exposure but selling out. 

Similar to Sara, Seth also has self-destructive tendencies. He has a history of cutting and is addicted to various drugs. Like Sara, he also projects an air of charisma and creative defiance, but his addictions reveal his vulnerabilities. He can't hide the needle marks on his arms or scars on his body just like Sara can't hide her dangerously thin weight.

Sara and Seth are memorable characters, either alone or together. This book is a brilliant character study of this pair.The conflicts are interesting because they expose their frailties and leave them at their most naked, honest, and defenseless. Unfortunately, Sara and Seth are hampered by constant repetition and little changes in their development. 

There are only so many times where we can hear the characters argue about the same things over and over. Marco and Jane arrange various interventions for Sara so often that they are practically scheduled. Sara and Seth confront one another about their addictions but these confrontations appear to have little bearing since they still fall into them. Yes, that happens often in real life where people often don't seek help or have the same issues and this book brilliantly explores that. But at the same time, it also stands as a red flag for why Sara and Seth might not be good for each other. 

Their disagreements about the trajectory towards Seth’s recording career, particularly his selling out, are almost hypocritical on Sara’s part since she too desires to ascend to a higher position with more money. Also they are divided by different views on sexuality which is a huge wedge between them that becomes more prominent the more they argue about it.

The book could benefit from a tighter narrative structure with more character self reflection and evolution. While individually, Seth and Sara are intriguing and could be a compatible happy couple, they could just as easily break up. They already have plenty of emotional baggage and different views on how they see their future. Because of having the same arguments and discussions, they can’t seem to reconcile them. A late complication suggests happiness, but it could just as easily lead to more strife and trouble. 

Because of the little change in character, Pomeroy does them a huge disservice. She gives plenty of good reasons why they need to work on themselves and get some serious psychiatric and emotional help separated or at least as friends. But she doesn’t give us enough good reasons why we should be rooting for them to stay together. 

The Last Invention The Day Death Died by Diane Lilli; Echoes of Resilience: Stories to Inspire by Nabraj Lama; Cooee Baby by Charles Moberly

 The Last Invention The Day Death Died by Diane Lilli; Echoes of Resilience: Stories to Inspire by Nabraj Lama; Cooee Baby by Charles Moberly 

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews 

The Last Invention: The Day Death Died by Diane Lilli 

This is a short review. The full review is on LitPick.

The Last Invention is a sharp and brilliant commentary on the overabundance of technology and the potential sentience of AI. It is also an insightful and compelling character study about two sisters dealing with grief and loss while exploring their different experiences with and views on the AI. 

In the near future, MetaX Tech Guru Clive presents the first sentient AI that creates a virtual world that is as close to the real one as possible. For now, Clive needs some human guinea pigs to test and enter into the AI. One of the testers is Amanda Carducci. Amanda's son, Dylan has died and she suffers from intense grief. She quickly signs up if it means reuniting with Dylan in the AI world and shutting out the real one. Amanda's activist sister, Emily, however is outside the system trying to uncover the ulterior motives and potential harm that this new technology will bring. One sister embraces the virtual world while the other tries to save her and bring her back to the real one.

It definitely is a Science Fiction dystopian novel that says just as much about our times as it does about the near future. Clive is clearly meant to be a composite of Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, and especially Elon Musk, tech CEOs with a lot of money, a lot of intelligence, and a lot of ego. 

The Last Invention gives us two sisters who represent the different sides of the AI vs. Real debate. Emily represents the real world. Emily worries about the docile addicted shell that her sister is turning into and the physical torture that her body is going through. She sees that this isn't just happening to Amanda. It's happening all over. She's on the outside choosing to live a life of reality and wants to free her sister from her passive accepting prison.

Amanda represents the AI and is understandable within her grief. Who wouldn't want a do over and have a deceased loved one back, even if they aren't a completely real one? Who wouldn't want to live a better life of one's choosing? It may not be a full life but it is one that provides soothing comfort and an escape.

 It's this fascinating dichotomy in which different perspectives are given equal time that make this book memorable. It asks difficult questions about when AI hits will you submit to it or fight against it?

Echoes of Resilience: Stories to Inspire by Nabraj Lama 

Nabraj Lama’s book Echoes of Resilience: Stories to Inspire, is an inspirational book filled with stories to encourage Readers to work hard, prepare, be innovative, help others, and use their gifts wisely to achieve not only outward success but personal happiness.

Each story follows the same pattern: One page gives us the moral or main lesson. The next page features a short five paragraph story about someone faced with some sort of conflict, how they dealt with that problem by displaying or not displaying certain virtues and then what the results were.

One example is “Learning from the past is the beginning; applying it to shape the future is the goal.” Lama then penned a story about a wise man who was known for his sage advice and recall of the village’s history. He was challenged by a local boy about why he didn't use his wisdom to help fix current problems concerning the village now. 

The wise man changed his outlook and became more proactive towards current issues. The lesson is while it's great to study and learn about the past and research information, it's more important to use that vast knowledge to address the world around you.

Many of the stories are about people who struggled with their scholastic or career pursuits. One called “Challenge your past and prepare for your future.” A junior drafter was upset about his stagnating career. A life coach advised him to improve on what he did yesterday. The drafter focused on enhancing his daily work, improving his skills, and becoming more organized. 

Eventually, the drafter improved his position and received accolades from his employers and peers. The takeaway is there is always room for improvement and one must be humble enough to recognize those spots and work towards fixing them.

Some of these stories are similar to fairy tales because they feature two characters, one who follows a good path and the other who doesn't with the former being successful and the latter being met with misfortune. 

One such story has the lesson of “Build your identity on your own aspirations, not on societal expectations.” One of a pair of brothers embraced the conventional path forced on him by his community and family. The other was often misunderstood and seen as rebellious. He had a unique vision and his own aspirations. 

The conventional son lived a solid life but always chose the safe path, never standing out. The iconoclastic son studied in a specialized field and explored innovative ways, enhancing his unique interests. His dedication led to success not just within his community but within the nation. While convention has its merits, sometimes one has to take risks and do something different to make their mark.

Sometimes the stories don't have a happy ending. They aren't depressing in that the experience that the protagonist faced was a learning one and they can use that lesson to make better decisions in the future. But they are faced with disappointments and setbacks all the same. 

One story begins with “Avoid dwelling on trivialities to the extent that you lose sight of what's truly important.” It tells of an art master at a prestigious institution who was noted as a great instructor who inspired students to embrace their creativity. Overtime, he became absorbed in the inconsequential details of the school like itemizing expenses, managing staff behaviors, and handling administrative tasks, things that he could have delegated to others. 

Because of this, the instructor's teaching suffered and the quality of his instruction diminished. The board, noticing the decline in his teaching and classroom size, relieved him of his duties. The message is not to absorb oneself with mundane tasks that take away from the main one. Trust others to do them and keep focused.

In a true example of “experience being its own teacher,” Lama himself has a story of his own in a chapter called “Ordinary efforts do not yield extraordinary results.” Lama explained how he worked on his manuscript for years. He edited and rejected his book and received nothing but rejection. Undaunted, he sought advice from other authors, colleagues, peers, writer's guides, and Readers. He took their advice and made his writing clear and precise. 

Lama wrote articles on the Internet and received different perspectives that gave him a sharper focus on his work. Within two months, Lama's book had greatly improved with collective wisdom and a refined purpose. The publishers recognized the effort and the book was accepted. This story reminds us to never be afraid to reach out and ask for advice, even refine our approach and voice, to truly make a lasting impact and success.

Echoes of Resilience is a lovely and compassionate book that reminds us that everyone has a story in which they struggled. They may have succeeded and they might not have. But they always learned something.

Cooee Baby by Charles Moberly 

Cooee Baby by Charles Moberly is an intriguing captivating book about a protagonist who thinks that she knows everything until she is put into a situation where she realizes that she knows absolutely nothing.

Awhina Fernandez, who sometimes goes by the name Athena, is a woman of great intelligence, plenty to say, and a large ego. She does not get along with her indifferent father and her intrusive mother, the latter of whom she calls, “The T-Rex.” She's a Cambridge student who majors in astrophysics. After graduation and before she begins her PhD studies, Awhina goes with her mother on a cruise around Indonesia and is cast asea during a diving mishap in the Straits of Sundabang. She finds herself stranded in West Papua and is caught in between two warring tribes, the Walukek and Suamu. She has to find the inner strength and resilience to survive in a world where her intelligence and education don't mean anything. 

Cooee Baby has an interesting premise with a protagonist who is not always likeable. Awhina is the worst kind of academic who is fixated, insufferable, and extremely arrogant. 

While a student, she brags about her arguments with her professors where she insists that she's right and everyone else is an idiot. She has self-deprecating moments concerning her name which is often mispronounced and her appearance which some think of as Polynesian and makes her stand out. She sets herself higher than everyone around her so she has few friends and lovers. She insults everyone around her in a way that is not self-aware but is instead ingratiating.

 Granted, Awhina is diagnosed with Asperger's and she marks the symptoms point by point but it doesn't help make her beyond a character sketch of those symptoms without giving her depth beyond them. At times, this Reader wanted her to shut up.

Awhina comes into her own when she is stranded in West Papua. There are comic scenes where since she doesn't speak the language, she uses cultural references and a variety of movements like the haka to communicate with the tribes. She displays some creativity and survival instincts to think on her feet. She bonds with many of the people on the island such as a visiting anthropologist and a female villager, the latter of whom almost becomes a love interest.

Awhina also becomes aware that her actions have consequences. She plays the part of a mythological figure from their legends and gets off on their worship and obedience to her every word. She is told that this is a dangerous move because they might respect her when things are great but will turn against her when things go wrong. She pays no heed to that warning until it happens and she is put into danger. It becomes a huge blow to an ego that needed to get a little bruised before she learned something. It is through this experience that she becomes a better, more enlightened person who learns through failure as much as success.

The ending somewhat drags as Awhina deals with the instant fame that her story brings. At times, she falls back to some of her earlier character flaws but she also acts as a bridge between the person that she was to the person that she becomes.

New Book Alert: blue:season by Chris Lombardi; Disturbing But Meaningful Look Into Mental Illness and Academic Obsession

 

New Book Alert: blue:season by Chris Lombardi; Disturbing But Meaningful Look Into Mental Illness and Academic Obsession

By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: Chris Lombardi's novel blue:season is a disturbing book because many academic geniuses who also have mental illnesses might understand, even relate to this book. They may recognize the point when their research becomes an obsession and takes over their life. They feel at one with their pursuit of that specific knowledge and have a hard time separating their life from their work. In this particular case, that obsession has terrifying results.

Molly O'Donnell comes from a very intellectual family. Her father was fascinated with James Joyce. So much so that he named his children after various Joycean characters: Molly, Emma, Anna, Leopold, Stephen. Unfortunately, he died of an aneurysm sending his widow to dissolve into an alcoholic daze. 

Molly, who was very close to her late father, deeply feels his loss. She decides to do her postgraduate thesis on Joyce and Finnegan's Wake. However, she becomes fascinated with the story of Lucia Joyce, James' daughter who trained as a dancer, had various unhappy relationships, suffered a mental breakdown, and spent forty years of her life in and out of mental institutions before she died in 1982. Her research into Lucia's life is so compelling that Molly begins to think of her, even seeing her. She has trouble separating herself from Lucia to the point that she ends up in a psychiatric hospital convinced that she is Joyce's daughter.

blue:season captures the voice of someone who is very brilliant, but clearly going through psychological turmoil. Lombardi handles the intelligence and fragility of such a character rather well. Molly's first person narration is full of literary references, quotes from songs and plays, and a stream of conscious thoughts where she rambles on and on, sometimes repeating herself. The writing style can be a difficult chore to read but it helps to characterize her thought process. 

Of course this style is meant to echo the work of other writers like Virginia Woolf, Sylvia Plath, and Joyce himself who often wrote about troubled characters and had psychological and emotional illnesses themselves. These writers and Lombardi were very interested in the human psyche and how the mind flickers about from one subject to another, how thoughts can be both vivid and confusing. 

Molly's story alternates with that of her siblings and friends that want to discover why Molly turned out the way she did. Why would a brilliant vibrant woman suddenly require hospitalization? What happened to her to cause this? The discovery is somewhat pat and easy to guess especially since the narrative drops obvious clues beforehand. It also answers some questions about why Molly was so driven by the story of James and Lucia Joyce and how they echoed into her own life and led her down this unfortunate path.

blue:season offers a perspective of the ways in which genius and madness often coincide revealing a mind that is capable of deep thoughts but is wrapped around a tormented soul.