The Cure
by Sonia Levitin

A teen novel about cultural diversity, specifically anti-Semitism. A boy in the distant future, when everyone wears alike masks and chants "harmony is happiness," finds he loves music -- which is against the rules. The elders have to "cure" him by sending him to the past - Strasbourg in 1348 when & where anti-Semitism is rampant, and the Jews are being blamed for the Black Plague.

Like Snow Falling on Cedars, the racism in this book is always blatant: never the subtle & more devious (not to say realistic) sort. As a result, the book comes off preachy to an adult reader -- would teens be able to detect subtlety or do they need in-your-face depictions? I assume they are smarter than many authors give them credit for.

Unfortunately, the author is best at depicting the future world. The past world seems a bit lacking in authenticity (does that mean I think her future world is more authentic?); yet the bulk of the story is set in the past. Overall, however, a fairly interesting if not engrossing read that preaches that ethnic diversity is more difficult, but that society and its individuals would ulitmately be happier.

Snow Falling on Cedars
by David Guterson.

Winner of two mid-size awards, this very popular book is ultimately disappointing. In comparison to pulp mysteries it scores with better writing, but fails with plot. In comparison to "literature" in pales all around. The characters are flat with one or two defining inner conflicts, the plot is only vaguely interesting. What keeps this book going is its descriptions of small-town/small-island life. Although these depictions fall into ready stereotypes, Guterson at least gives a coherent rationale for their existence.

The writing is clear and easy to read. The plot revolves around a Japanese man wrongly accused of murder. Ten years after WWII, internment, Pearl Harbor, etc., tensions still run deep on this small island in the Pacific Northwest. The real guts of the story is supposedly a love affair between a white boy and Japanese girl before the war, but it is really quite uninvolving. I wish the Japanese guy had killed the other guy, just for some kind of interesting plot twist!

The Book of Sorrows
by Walter Wangerin, Jr.

The title nails it - this is a sad book. A sequel to the brilliant "Book of the Dun Cow", this book again displays the author's great writing technique in an allegorical tale of animals fighting Evil. In the "Dun Cow", the climax was a great war, and the "Sorrows" deals with the psychological aftermaths of the war, especially on Chauntecleer the rooster-pastor.

Beautifully written, though lacking much character development except a few (common to sequels, I suppose, though in this case, the main character continues to be a dynamic one). The main themes are the survivors' guilt, and loss of active faith: both of which are experienced by Chauntecleer who eventually must die for his sins.