If You Want to Make God Laugh: A Novel by Bianca Marais

If You Want to Make God Laugh: A Novel.  Bianca Marais. Penguin Publishing Group.  July 2019; pb, 448 pp.; ISBN #: 9780735219311.

It’s the late 1900s.  Nelson Mandela is about to become the first African President of South Africa, but apartheid is still very much rampant in the minds of white Afrikaan citizens.  Splinter rebel groups have fought for freedom for years; now some of those groups are out to wipe out all blacks.  In this time of new freedom and old prejudices, three women wind up living together.  Zodwa is a young pregnant woman whose failures have given her mother tremendous grief.  Her brother was part of the Inkatha Freedom Group and is considered dead but his body, living or dead, has never been found.  Now Zodwa will never achieve her dreams of being educated and free.

Two sisters, Ruth and Delilah, are seeking to fashion a life of agreement but past memories in both white women haunt the present.  Ruth was a stripper and prostitute who has been married and divorced three times.  Delilah was a convert to the Catholic faith and fell in love with a priest who later abuses her.  She has a son who becomes a priest and later dies under the dominance of his father.  Delilah would do anything to see her son and discover the truth about their separation.  Meanwhile Zodwa gives birth but her mother gives away the child.  By coincidence, she finds him and agrees to work for his foster parents, Ruth and Delilah.  All three live together with their funny bantering, highly sarcastic bickering and a sense of need that brings redemption to all of their lives.

If You Want to Make God Laugh is an uplifting, solid story that is crafted well and includes a huge segment of African history that has not been well-known up to now, the period of reconciliation led by Bishop Desmond Tutu, and the plague of HIV disease that led to an AIDS crisis.  Change is a process, not a miraculous moment or miracle.  Yet many miracles happen in this tale revealing tremendous violence, sexuality, romance, Church abuse, forgiveness and growth into a new life.  You will never forget this amazing story.  Bianca Marais is a writer to watch and relish with this novel and hopefully with what will follow! Congratulations on this story of relentless love and transformation!

The Favorite Daughter: A Novel by Patti Callahan Henry

The Favorite Daughter: A Novel. Patti Callahan Henry. Penguin Publishing Group.  June 2019. pb, 368 pp.; ISBN: 9780399583131.

Lena (Colleen) Donohue proceeded to walk to her wedding and instead accidentally walked in on an act of betrayal that ultimately changed her life forever.  She loved her hometown of Watersend, South Carolina but fled to New York on that traumatic day.  One can leave to New York and begin a successful life as a journalist but can one forget one’s true “home” and return without having to deal with her immense pain and inability to forgive?  Can one learn to trust again and perhaps even learn to love without waiting for another disaster to follow?

When Lena’s brother Shane begs her to come home to help with their Dad, who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.  Of course, she returns but does everything she can to avoid her sister Hallie.  That’s not really possible but they realize concern for their father must take top priority. 

So they decide to throw a 60^th birthday for their father and to create a memory book that spans Virginia, Ireland and South Carolina, so that he can remember and refer to it frequently before his memory declines completely.  In the process of doing this, the family discover secrets very close to Lena’s heartache and how their parents coped with their sense of betrayal and forgiveness.

Eventually Hallie will have that conversation she’s always wanted to have before Lena ran away to New York but not until many terse, sniping words pass back and forth between the two formerly very close sisters.  Yes, home is more than just a place.  It’s a location where all the ups and downs as well as the acts and words that destroy and bind happen, albeit a wee bit contrived. The personalities are spunky and tender in just the right spots.  It will trigger the reader to contemplate what one considers to be one’s own precious memories!

The Favorite Daughter is a good read, a story brimming with passion, love, hate, forgiveness and renewal.  It’s also a lovely story of a beautiful part of the country which is described in all its lush greenery, marshland and seaside.  A very nice summer read!

The Editor by Steven Rowley

The Editor. Steven Rowley. G. P. Putnam Sons.  April 2019; hb and eBook, 320 pp.; ISBN: 9780525537960 and ASIN: B07FC2J8ZW

Francis is an insecure stereotypical new writer who has written and just sold his first novel.  He has been assigned an editor at Doubleday, the publishing firm that just bought his novel.  What he does with that editor will determine whether his novel is published or lays dormant.  What follows is an oh so normal but poignant story, a gift in James’s life. 

Imagine the surprise when James meets Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis or “Mrs. Onassis” as she invites him to call her.  Down-to-earth, practical and inspiring, she leads James to rewrite the end of his novel which both know is incomplete.  This involves James having to explore the depths of his relationship with his mother and father.  The family is known for skirting around important issues, replacing truth with sarcasm and edgy humor.

While this is occurring, Mrs. Onassis invites James to her summer home where they explore the title Ithaca, its meaning and the journey that is yet to be finished.  They share meals, drinks and funny moments.  Jacquie treasures her privacy and never goes beyond snippets about her past, all of which are poignant reminders of what she has endured.  The reader picks up her implications that she just wanted to be normal and not a continuous fixture of American fascination.  However, since that is a fantasy, she does what she can to maintain a regular life as an editor (of fourteen years).  Her fascination and admiration for his novel lies in the recognition “as familiar truth, but also as wisdom you’re hearing voiced in a new and articulate way.” 

Francis’s lover, Daniel, seems oddly less supportive of Francis’ efforts but does the best he can.  Mark, an assistant of Mrs. Onassis, is helpful but also one step short of coming onto Francis.  Who is Francis?  A man aching to be seen in truth by his family and lover.

There are poignant secrets that gradually are revealed which dramatically change the writer’s life with his mother and help him to recognize and admire her truth as a person.  It’s described as an erupting volcano, a healing end to his finally finished story.

The ending of this novel, in which readers fall in love with James, his family and Jacquie, is so sad as he honors the marvelous journey he has made with the loving support of his friend and editor. 

Remarkable, powerful, endearing historical fiction that readers will remember forever!  Lovely, simple yet profound writing that makes this reviewer want to read more from this skilled writer! Highly recommended!