 |
| Blog photo: Ruben and his brother Enzo pose for a photograph in front of the Mac Mac Falls. Their father Patrick added the snap to a family blog he was compiling |
Dear Bookclub,
Discussing Ann Napolitano's "Dear Edward" exposed our vulnerabilities towards difficult subjects while testing our empathy for fellow humanity. Being doomed to read about a doomed flight is challenge enough. Coupling that with the development of random characters on the flight, to whom you may not relate, or even despise, intensified the likability of the read. Some could not find redemption in this imagining but others were able to break through the discomfort to regard the importance of the wider waves created by the tragedy in shaping Edward's healing. Napolitano's inspiration and creation were remarkable to me; her possession of the journey Edward needed adeptly drove the story.
As stated in the 'Acknowledgements', Napolitano based Edward upon a real boy who was the sole survivor of a plane crash: Ruben van Assouw, nine years old at the time. Returning from Johannesburg, the plane crashed in Tripoli, killing everyone else aboard including Ruben's eleven year old brother and parents. Please read about other parallels:
Warning: graphic, short video of wreckage and Ruben directly after surgery
Basing the flight's failure upon the true failure of another flight, Air France 447, Napolitano wove the facts into the novel. Also in her 'Acknowledgements' the author gave credit to Jeff Wise's article in Popular Mechanics, "What Really Happened Aboard Air France 447." I could not access the article without subscribing to the magazine, but here is more about that flight and Jeff Wise:
 |
| Jeff Wise |
Finally, circling around back to Edward's healing and growth.
"What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult to each other?" - George Eliot
... a quote to begin part 2 of the book. As galling as most of the requests of Edward's letters felt, what a dynamic and powerful vehicle they turned out to be.
 |
| our small but mighty group of attendees |
Sue's suggestions for an upcoming read:
"A Spark of Light" Jodi Picoult
"The Vanishing Half" Bret Bennett *chosen
"Giver of Stars" Jojo Moyes
Up next:
Enjoy your summer reading!
LK
No comments:
Post a Comment