Aaaand, I'm back

It occurred that I haven't written in ages, and you probably all wondered what happened. Well, nothing. I just didn't blog anything. Not that I haven't been reading, I have just been reading a lot of Wodehouse and Pratchett, so there isn't anything really to blog about. But, I did just finally finish a series that is not by either of those authors, and that posed some interesting questions, so I actually have something to post about.

I recently finished the Montmoray series by Michelle Cooper. This is a really interesting series for me, because I can't give it a blanket recommendation. I would recommend it, but I'd have to give a caveat first. Primarily because this book deals with various issues of sexuality, and I'd want anyone I recommended it to to know that. And since it is written for a teen audience, I'd want to make sure that there was an adult apprised and ready to address the issues with them. Fiction is great, but I think there needs to be some real world context in some cases.

Anyway, what I did like about this series was that it gave a unique look at what WWII was like for those living in Europe, particularly England. There is a really great feel for the climate in Europe leading up to the War. I really liked the historical aspect of the novels, (although I was a little bit disappointed that there wasn't more detail about the historical authenticity in the author's note at the end).

And now for the issues. Not all of these were bad. For example, questions about puberty and the birds and the bees. I must admit, I do wonder sometimes how that knowledge was passed on in times when it was a more taboo topic, and that is one of the things that comes up in the book and was addressed quite tactfully. The author also has a character that is gay, and while it's not the main theme of the book, it was a running sub theme, you could say. Now, I have mixed feelings about throwing sexual orientation into historical-based plots, because so often, people try to reflect modern attitudes. In this case, the author did a good job of reflecting attitudes of the time--it was not socially acceptable, although people knew it happened, and it was kind of hushed up. And I think that the author did a good job of not interjecting her opinion on the matter, but just showing what the attitudes of the time were.

The author did the same thing with topics like couples living together and having affairs. Now, part of me says, "seriously, how prominent was all this? I mean it happened, but the odds of one family, one person, encountering all of these issues?" And then I say, "Well, how prominent was it? People didn't talk about it, so maybe it was as common. Maybe it wasn't. I don't know." But I think in this case, I think the author was just trying to show the culture of the time--in terms of the war, women's rights, politics, marriage, and these issues. So it works.

The one part I didn't like was the main character had a one night stand with someone (even weirder, it was her half cousin who also had a relationship with her brother, and it was all just weird). It was just a disappointment, because it seemed kind of out of character for her. That is the one thing that would really hold me back from giving it a blanket recommendation. Because it throws that "romance novel" scene in there. So, I'd want to be sure I knew who I was recommending it to, and how they would be affected/how they would react to that. Which, doesn't happen til the third book, but once you've read the first two, you have to know how the war ends for the characters (since we obviously know how the war ended for the world generally).

Anyway, the series did present me with some interesting things to think about. Currently I'm reading Birdology, so look forward to a bit on that. More about birds than you thought you wanted to know. (Still can't say I get the appeal of chickens).