I found this book while scanning the shelves at the local library and saw on the back jacket that author Elizabeth Stroud gave her recommendation. That was good enough for me to try it. What a great find! I loved this book and I would highly recommend it - a fantastic little read for a book group. 335 pages. This was published in 2003.A young woman still learning the ways of her own heart,gets herself indicted on federal drug charges even though she really was an innocent bystander. The story focuses on the relationship between this young woman and her emotionally distant mother as well as the American judicial system and some of its broken parts. There is so much in between but just read the book. I had to hold back tears at the end. While we pride ourselves on the justice system in America, it doesn't mean that it is perfect and it certainly doesn't mean that there is justice for everyone. This book tells a little of the story about the 'war on drugs' in America and how the justice system operates and the underhanded tactics employed by a so-called 'just'ice system. The author of this book graduated from Harvard Law School, was a criminal defense attorney for the Federal Public Defender's office in L.A. so I am going to assume she knows a few things - and because I read her bio and know that she pulled on her own experience. A great and heart-wrenching story - both about the deep meaning and responsibilities of parenting and also about the justice system.
You can tell in the reading this is one of Waldman's early novels but I liked it none the less. I find it interesting to read an author's early work to see how they hone their craft. It had a slow beginning, a bit unpolished in spots, but it fleshed out. Author Ms. Waldman, is a Harvard trained attorney and worked in LA in the Prosecutor's office so her portrayal of the legal system and its many flaws is quite well done. The characters are not likable but the strains of the central mother/daughter relationship are well-captured. The books takes place in the Bay Area,it serves as the perfect backdrop, to this drama about a young woman whose missteps land her in a bind only her mother can help fish her out of, a mother she has had a strained relationship from the very beginnings as a young single mother. Elaine, the mother, is an emotionally crippled pharmacist, and her live-in love interest, Arthur the accountant is also a bit of a rigid cold fish. The daughter, Olivia, is a passionate woman who is growing up fast when thrown into a bad situation and caught up in just the wrong place as the wrong time. You can see how a situation can spin out of control in a hurry and how unjust the mandatory minimum sentence laws are. Waldman is a good writer here and only gets better with time.
While not the most amazing book I've ever read by a long shot, I was pleasantly stunned by how good and informative this was. The story seems like it SHOULD be far-fetched, but I believed [nearly] every bit of it, and it's a story that doesn't seem to be frequently told. At least - not convincingly or engagingly.Mostly it's an eye-opening insight on the American legal system in terms of drug trafficking, immigration, and the nuts and bolts of what happens to whom, when. Pretty much the disbelief and surreality of being thrust into a situation you never, ever thought could ever happen to you. One of my favorite moments is when all this crazy legal stuff is happening to this girl, and although she's this superliberal college girl, she fights off the impulse to wave her hand in front of the police and say "Look! You have the wrong person! See? I'm white!"
—Lacy
I enjoyed this book very much. I learned much about the legal system and federal mandatory minimum sentences among other things. The characters were well developed, but ones I did not like very much. Not that one has to always like or understand the characters, they are what they are. Being introduced to, "The Saddest Poem" ( p. 308) by Pablo Neruda was an extra bonus.My favorite quote comes from a scene when the young mother character and her small child are to say good bye at the end of her prison visit on Mother's Day. "Olivia scooped the baby into her arms and buried her face in her neck, inhaling deeply. Elaine looked around the room and saw the mothers all doing the same thing. They were all smelling their children, breathing their aromas, memorizing their particular and unique fragrance." p. 359The author honored us with a wonderful and well attended visit to the Hayward Library. She was a very entertaining and humorous speaker. Looking forward to her next release.
—Robin
i liked that it was set in berkeley, in elmwood, no less, my old stomping grounds. i liked the message about the absurdity and injustice of federal sentencing laws. i liked pretty much everything about it the first time i read it--but liked it less the second time, when i re-read it for a book club. probably the second time i was focusing less on the suspense of the story and more on the characters and their relationships (primarily the mother-daughter one), which upon closer inspection was sort of unbelievable and a bit overly dramatic, for my taste. i know the events were inherently dramatic, but still.anyway, a good read for a berkeleyan or a lawyer or someone interested in mother-daughter relationships.
—Tara
