[SGK]≡ PDF Gratis We Hope for Better Things Bartels 9780800734916 Books

We Hope for Better Things Bartels 9780800734916 Books

Download As PDF : We Hope for Better Things Bartels 9780800734916 Books

We Hope for Better Things Bartels 9780800734916 Books

I waited a few days between finishing "We Hope for Better Things" and writing this review, because I had to think of the best way to express my feelings about this book (hint: I still can't quite put it into words, but I'll try).

Normally, my usual reading fare is either light, romantic, escapist books (so I can, you know, escape our crazy world for a bit), or non-fiction--usually American history. So while I'm an enthusiastic reader, it's rare that I'll read a book that burrows down into my heart as deeply as this one did. That's why, rather than reading it at one sitting, I parceled it out so: a) I could digest what I'd just read, and b) my heart could recover a little before I moved on.

The three main characters are so painstakingly drawn that they're more human than a lot of humans I know. Elizabeth, Nora, and Mary are good women who, like all of us, can be self-centered and clueless and sometimes even unlikable--and that's what makes them so memorable, and what made me love all three of them as I turned that last page. And the men these women loved/love--Tyrese, George, and most especially, William--are the best of men, caught up in a world that refuses to acknowledge them as human (in two instances, most notably) or to allow them to live and love as freely as every human being deserves. No, they weren't perfect, but that's what made them so special and, in two stories--I have hopes for the third man, even in a world growing uglier and more racist by the day--so heartbreaking.

Ms. Bartels has so skillfully woven together the three stories and the three eras that I sometimes felt disappointed as I left one era--only to instantly be happy I was back into the other eras. This is a book I'll encourage my friends to buy, and one that I'll happily loan out to those who can't afford to buy it, so they can experience it for themselves. This is a brilliant debut, and I can't wait to read her next book, the first part of which is excerpted at the end. Congratulations, Erin Bartels, you did good!


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We Hope for Better Things Bartels 9780800734916 Books Reviews

This is not a political book. It is a fiction novel that does a wonderful job of not being offensive while covering a very sensitive subject. All the characters came to life. All three women in three generations, who fell in love. The book beckons the question, is it still forbidden? This love?
Over Christmas this novel was recommended to me by a fellow writer who knows Erin Bartels. I ordered a copy and launched into it. At first I found the format a bit confusing as it moves in time between the three periods and the three major characters all linked together by the farmhouse in the country near Flint. However, I was soon hooked on the Civil War tale and its heroine, Mary. She is a fascinating character and admirable in so many ways as she struggles alone to run the farm after her husband goes off to war. Nora, the 1960s character was harder to like, but the more I read of her courage in marrying a black man against the wishes of everyone who knew her, and appreciating the way Erin Bartels draws us through Nora into the struggles of race relations in the Flint and Chicago areas at that time, the more I came to admire Nora also and to empathize with her. I still find Elizabeth, the contemporary character, less interesting, but she is essential as the link through whom we gradually tease out the mystery of the camera and photos, the lines of beds in the attic and the locked trunk. A fascinating mixture of romance, mystery and history and an amazing first novel. I look forward to enjoying many more of Erin's novels.
Erin Bartels has taken on quite a task to show us 150 years of racism through the intertwined stories of three white women and their complex family history. Books with multiple timelines are always a challenge because the reader will inevitably be drawn to one of the protagonists more than the others. (for me, it was Mary). Here, the implication is that the present-day heroine is the primary one, since her story is told in the first person; yet I found the other two (told in the third person) to be much more compelling. It was also a bit confusing since Nora, who seemed to be the true center and heart of the book, appears in two of the three narratives, though at different ages. That said, the book held my interest and I found myself eager to return to it each evening, which is the real test!
The stories of three white women, each finding herself in love with a black man, was an interesting way to frame the issue of racism. Mary's love is impossible and doomed, and their child is lost. Nora's love is possible but doomed as well, and their child is lost too. The outcome of Elizabeth's love is still unknown. The three black men are saints, the three white women more complicated and torn—but okay, literature needs more heroic men of color. I did miss, however, mention of other aspects of racism—e.g., its effect on black women—although obviously no single novel can cover everything. However, there seemed to be an odd omission of context in the present-day story. Story 1 had he Civil War, Story 2 had the Detroit riots—no mention in Story 3 of our first black president, and the hope (as well as the racism) that evoked? A missed opportunity.
The setup was slow for me, and the story really didn't hook me for a while, so I'd advise readers to keep going, as the book gets better and better as you go. Bartels kind of sneaks the religious stuff in, especially toward the end, but doesn't overdo it. Overall, a commendable book and quite an accomplishment for a debut novel. I was glad I read it.
I waited a few days between finishing "We Hope for Better Things" and writing this review, because I had to think of the best way to express my feelings about this book (hint I still can't quite put it into words, but I'll try).

Normally, my usual reading fare is either light, romantic, escapist books (so I can, you know, escape our crazy world for a bit), or non-fiction--usually American history. So while I'm an enthusiastic reader, it's rare that I'll read a book that burrows down into my heart as deeply as this one did. That's why, rather than reading it at one sitting, I parceled it out so a) I could digest what I'd just read, and b) my heart could recover a little before I moved on.

The three main characters are so painstakingly drawn that they're more human than a lot of humans I know. Elizabeth, Nora, and Mary are good women who, like all of us, can be self-centered and clueless and sometimes even unlikable--and that's what makes them so memorable, and what made me love all three of them as I turned that last page. And the men these women loved/love--Tyrese, George, and most especially, William--are the best of men, caught up in a world that refuses to acknowledge them as human (in two instances, most notably) or to allow them to live and love as freely as every human being deserves. No, they weren't perfect, but that's what made them so special and, in two stories--I have hopes for the third man, even in a world growing uglier and more racist by the day--so heartbreaking.

Ms. Bartels has so skillfully woven together the three stories and the three eras that I sometimes felt disappointed as I left one era--only to instantly be happy I was back into the other eras. This is a book I'll encourage my friends to buy, and one that I'll happily loan out to those who can't afford to buy it, so they can experience it for themselves. This is a brilliant debut, and I can't wait to read her next book, the first part of which is excerpted at the end. Congratulations, Erin Bartels, you did good!