52 Books in 52 Weeks: Book 30

Little Bee, by Chris Cleave, is a look at humanity, a tug-of-war between sacrifice and selfishness. It is a commentary on refugees seeking asylum because their worlds are being destroyed by greed. 

Told in alternating first person accounts, the book tells the story of a Nigerian refugee {Little Bee} and a British woman {Sarah} whose lives cross on a beach in Nigeria and then again in England. Little Bee escapes the brutality of her country, only to be put in asylum in Britain. When she is finally released, she seeks out a couple {who saved her life in Nigeria} and discovers that all humans are faced with decisions about whether to help themselves or to help others. In the end, she is deported. You will have to read the story for yourself to learn the ending and decide whether or not you like the book...

I enjoyed the narratives, especially that of Little Bee's. My perception of Sarah is that she is an exaggeration of the selfishness that exists in the western world. The story was intriguing, but parts of it were far fetched {thus a good work of fiction}. 

I think the overall message is good, but I felt that the ending was less than hopeful.

Excerpts from the book:

In your country, if you are not scared enough already, you can go watch a horror film. Afterward you can go out of the cinema into the night and for a little while there is horror in everything... for one hour you are haunted, and you do not trust anybody, and then the feeling fades away. Horror in your country is something you take a dose of to remind yourself that you are not suffering from it. – Little Bee

Still shaking, in the pew, I understood that it isn't the dead we cry for. We cry for ourselves, and I didn't deserve my own pity. – Sarah

Tea is the taste of my land; it is bitter and warm, strong and sharp with memory. It tastes of longing. It tastes of the distance between where you are and where you are from. – Little Bee

Serious times. Once they have rolled in, they hang on you like low cumulus... You travel here and you travel there, trying to get out from under the cloud, and nothing works, and then one day you realize you've been carrying the weather around with you. – Sarah

"Ten percent. That's all I'm giving her. One finger in ten. Ten pounds in every hundred. Ten percent is hardly a wholehearted commitment." – Sarah

"Reevaluate that. Ten percent is the cost of doing business. Ten percent buys you a stable world to get on with your life in. Here, safe in the West – that's the way to think of it. If everyone gave ten percent, we wouldn't need to give asylum." – Lawrence

What is an adventure? That depends on where you are starting from. Little girls in your country, they hide in the gap between the washing machine and the refrigerator and they make believe they are in the jungle, with green snakes and monkeys all around them. Me and my sister, we used to hide in a gap in the jungle, with green snakes and monkeys all around us, and make believe that we had a washing machine and a refrigerator. You live in a world of machines and you dream of things with beating hearts. We dream of machines, because we see where the beating hearts have left us. – Little Bee

Wild Goose Chase

Today I went on a bit of a wild goose chase on the search for the book, Little Bee. It really should not have been that big of a deal, but being new to Chattanooga, I am bound to experience some moments of wandering.

To start with, I checked the local library {online} to see if they had the book I was searching for. They did, but all copies were checked out AND since it is a current best seller, there is a long wait for the book. In addition, I do not have my Tennessee driver's license yet, so I cannot yet procure a library card. This is a sad situation for me {especially since I am behind on reading my 52 books in 52 weeks}.

Next I opted to search for local bookstores in the Chattanooga area. Among the bookstores that came up were Rock Point Books and All Books. Both were located downtown. I checked the Rock Point Books web site and it had Little Bee listed online. I tried to call to verify that the book was in stock, but could not get through. 

With further research, I found that All Books specialized in used and rare books, so I decided to start with Rock Point {I figured if they didn't have my book, it wouldn't cost me a lot of extra time and my back up plan would be to find Hamilton Place Mall, where I assumed there would be a Barnes & Noble or some other big bookstore}.

So I wrote down directions to Rock Point Books and made my way downtown. I didn't have the GPS on hand, so I was relying on my general knowledge of the area, in addition to the directions. I had no problem finding the bookstore. But it turned out to be fairly disappointing. There were shelves that were empty and very few current books on hand. Though there were quite a few books by local writers, there almost none of the "Indie" books that their web site seemed to infer that they had in stock.

via

Disappointed, I decided to walk around to see what else was in the area. This led me to All Books. I had not intended to go here, but since I had read about it online, my curiosity won me over and I walked in. It was like walking into another world. The musty smell of old books assaulted me as I entered the haphazardly laid out shop. A little old woman greeted me rather roughly. I asked her if there was method to the madness. She pointed me to two signs. It was such a mess that I almost turned back. But then I asked her more directly if she had CS Lewis on hand. She did and pointed me to the correct shelf. Had I not had an author in mind, there is NO WAY I would have found anything in this crazy shop. I know that my dad would love perusing this shop and I have no doubt he would find some amazing old books. As for me, it was a little much and I left without spending too much time.

Not having had any luck, I decided to see if I could find my way to Hamilton Place Mall. I was pretty sure it was off of I-75 North and I thought that I could get close enough to find it {especially since most malls are sit in close proximity to interstates}. Sure enough, I-75 led me to an exit for Hamilton Place Blvd. I figured this would lead me to the mall, and it did. I drove around the outside of the mall until I found the Barnes & Noble {it is nice that mall layouts are predictable}. I perused the store, found more books to add to my "to read" list and then purchased my book. While at the register, I asked where Target was. Who needs GPS when you can ask people where stores are located?

I made it home in one piece. It is about 15 minutes from my exit to the mall exit. Not too terrible of a drive. And now I have my book in hand. So I would count this day a success.

the good. the bad. the random. (On My Own in Charlotte, June 2010)

The Good.
We had a house showing last week {the first one in 1.5 months}.
The Bad.
They have not come back for a second showing.
The Random. 
Thanks to a storm back in March, we are getting our roof and siding replaced. Friday we get to look at samples and decide on colors. I am so excited.

The Good.
My sister and her husband and daughter are moving to Nashville this weekend - that means they will be CLOSER to me :)
The Bad.
My Brother-in-Law needs to find a job. So does my brother for that matter. Both in counseling. Both looking in the Nashville area.
The Random. 
My Sister-in-Law quit her job as a school counselor and moved to Boston this past Friday to fulfill her dreams.

The Good.
Daniel said I should fulfill my dream of having being a guide for an outdoor company by becoming a white water rafting guide on the Ocoee River.
The Bad. 
I think it is a requirement that you smoke pot to become a river rat. Plus I am still in Charlotte and summer will be over before we know it...
The Random.
I am the 158th person to request the book, Little Bee, from the public library in Charlotte. How ridiculous is that. It had better be a good book.

The Good.
My parents are heading to Canada next week {after they help move my sister's family to Nashville}. We will be driving up for the week of July 4th. I can't wait. I think it has been over 4 years since we have gone up for a visit :(
The Bad.
My grandpa finally received his pathology report. Cancer has indeed spread to his lymph nodes. He will be starting a weekly round of chemo soon. It is to last 6 months. I am glad we are going to Canada, I hope that we are able to have a good visit with him even though he will be experiencing chemo.
The Random.
I went to Ru Sans for sushi tonight with a friend. I tried their Gone With The Wind - it was superb. It was nice to have some girl time and the opportunity to eat sushi {especially since Daniel refuses}. He will give in to PF Changs, but is not crazy about Asian food. ESPECIALLY sushi. Once when we had an unexpected layover in Japan for a day, he ate ICE CREAM the entire time!