reading 2024
this other eden by paul harding
review www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/07/this-other-eden-by-...
' ... The story sometimes feels peripheral to the characters’ sublime powers of attention, their propensity to be at home in the natural world ... '
i loved this book: the story gripped me, the characters affected me deeply, their lives on the island were hard but the community bond was ever present, the natural world of the island understood so well by the islanders drew me in, the shameful treatment by outsiders with calipers in hand who didn't take the time to understand the islanders and the lives they led was grotesque, the detail of esther honey's life and that of her grandson ethan honey's life was beautifully written with compassion but finally left me deeply sad, as did that of dear bridget ...
The story: This Other Eden is a powerful, lyrical story set on an island off Maine, home to a community of freed slaves and other castaways. It begins with a hurricane, but worse is to come as we reach the 20th Century and the state government decides forcibly to evict the island's inhabitants. That decision to "cleanse" Apple Island, bigotry masquerading as eugenic pseudo-science, is based on shockingly real historical events. This book is full of wonderful characters. Esther Honey recites from Hamlet and is raising three gifted grandchildren. Ethan Honey is a talented young artist who, because he can pass as white, is sent to the mainland in an effort to save him from the fate of the rest. But calamity is everywhere.
Paul Harding's This Other Eden is based on historical events when the State of Maine evicted a racially integrated community from Malaga Island in 1912
Malaga Island: An Overview of its Cultural and Natural History
www.mcht.org/story/malaga-island-history/
display fabric a charity shop find
if you have any book recommendations a discussion page www.flickr.com/groups/a_personal_viewpoint/discuss/721577...has been posted by tong www.flickr.com/photos/tongkm/
In ABCs and 123s: E is for Eden
reading 2024
this other eden by paul harding
review www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/07/this-other-eden-by-...
' ... The story sometimes feels peripheral to the characters’ sublime powers of attention, their propensity to be at home in the natural world ... '
i loved this book: the story gripped me, the characters affected me deeply, their lives on the island were hard but the community bond was ever present, the natural world of the island understood so well by the islanders drew me in, the shameful treatment by outsiders with calipers in hand who didn't take the time to understand the islanders and the lives they led was grotesque, the detail of esther honey's life and that of her grandson ethan honey's life was beautifully written with compassion but finally left me deeply sad, as did that of dear bridget ...
The story: This Other Eden is a powerful, lyrical story set on an island off Maine, home to a community of freed slaves and other castaways. It begins with a hurricane, but worse is to come as we reach the 20th Century and the state government decides forcibly to evict the island's inhabitants. That decision to "cleanse" Apple Island, bigotry masquerading as eugenic pseudo-science, is based on shockingly real historical events. This book is full of wonderful characters. Esther Honey recites from Hamlet and is raising three gifted grandchildren. Ethan Honey is a talented young artist who, because he can pass as white, is sent to the mainland in an effort to save him from the fate of the rest. But calamity is everywhere.
Paul Harding's This Other Eden is based on historical events when the State of Maine evicted a racially integrated community from Malaga Island in 1912
Malaga Island: An Overview of its Cultural and Natural History
www.mcht.org/story/malaga-island-history/
display fabric a charity shop find
if you have any book recommendations a discussion page www.flickr.com/groups/a_personal_viewpoint/discuss/721577...has been posted by tong www.flickr.com/photos/tongkm/
In ABCs and 123s: E is for Eden