The Invention of Wings and Stone Mattress

Wow congrats to Viet Thanh Nguyen for winning this year’s Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for his debut novel “The Sympathizer” about an undercover communist operative during the Vietnam War and its aftermath. Judy over at the blog Keep the Wisdom reviewed it recently and raved it was the best novel she had read so far in 2016, and from her heavy stream of good reads, that’s saying something! I can’t wait to snatch it up in the near future. I also plan to get a hold of William Finnegan’s memoir “Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life,” which won the Pulitzer Prize in the Biography category. This book made a great gift for my surfer brother this past Christmas, and now I need to travel vicariously through its waves too.

Meanwhile I am planning on attending this year’s BookExpo America, which takes place in Chicago in a few weeks. So if you’re there, let’s meet up and say hello. I would love to meet other bloggers I follow and put faces to your blogs. I have not been to the Expo before, but Chicago is a manageable destination from here, so I thought I’d give it a swirl. I noticed that among others, author Jane Hamilton will be there with her latest novel “The Excellent Lombards,” which I talked about a couple weeks ago. So that works out! We will see what many other books and authors I discover there.

Last week I finished Sue Monk Kidd’s 2014 bestselling novel “The Invention of Wings” and the audiobook of Margaret Atwood’s 2014 book of nine tales “Stone Mattress.” Both were excellent so I can’t complain too much about dawdling, though I have — during this span of exceptional spring weather — which has been perfect for outdoor activities. “The Invention Wings” is a novel I read for my book club, which plans to discuss it tonight. I thought it was a great read and a tough look at slavery. It surprised me a bit because I wasn’t overly taken by Sue Monk Kidd’s first novel “The Secret Life of Bees,” which came off a bit saccharine to me when I read it in 2001. But now I sort of want to go back and reread it because I found “The Invention of Wings” to be quite authentic and moving. So perhaps I was mistaken about the former, or was I?

“The Invention of Wings” is the story of Sarah Grimke, the daughter of a white wealthy South Carolina plantation owner, who on her eleventh birthday in 1803 is given a black slave named Hetty by her parents to be her waiting maid for life. Sarah tries to refuse but is forced to succumb to owning Hetty over a couple decades time. The story, which alternates chapters narrated by Sarah and Hetty, details the lives and families of both women over many years linked by the horrors of slavery.

It’s a riveting story and one that I found even more so because it’s inspired by the real life of Sarah Grimke and her sister Angelina Grimke of Charleston. I had not heard of these famous Grimke sisters, who grew up in a large slave-holding family and later became early abolitionists and suffragists, but their incredible lives of courage are detailed in this novel. It’s said that Sarah’s writings influenced Harriet Beecher Stowe and pre-dated “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” by 13 years, wow!

But I actually didn’t know this till I read the Author’s Note at the end of the book. While I was reading the novel, I liked the story for its moving tale about the two women, Hetty and Sarah (and their families), one black, one white who are trapped by the confines of the day and the diabolical institution of slavery. They share an uneasy relationship, but come to rely on each other in unexpected ways. I liked too how the alternating chapters of the two women are equally interesting and contain page-turning incidents that transform them both and move the story along.

Author Sue Monk Kidd does an amazing job at seamlessly blending fact and fiction to create a totally believable tale, making the 19th-century setting and the characters’ voices come alive. It felt very real and visual to me. Hetty’s narration seemed just as strong, if not stronger than Sarah’s, lending a visceral look at how the institution affected both. I think it’s one of the best novels about slavery I’ve read in a long while. I know there’s other recent popular books on the subject that I would like to get to, notably: Lois Leveen’s novel “The Secrets of Mary Bowser,” Kathleen Grissom’s novels “Kitchen House” and “Glory Over Everything,” which Michelle over at the blog That’s What She Read just reviewed and liked a lot, and of course Solomon Northup’s “Twelve Years a Slave” which I found an unflinching movie that I’d love to follow up with the book. Have you read any of these?

But at first I need a break as the subject matter is so disturbing. So thank goodness for the wicked, offbeat tales of Margaret Atwood’s in “Stone Mattress” this past week. I’m no expert on Atwood, though I know she’s royalty here in Canada. I’ve read about five or six of her books over the years, but I guess if I plan to stay in the country I need to do a lot better than that, or else I might face deportation, joke joke. My favorite novel of hers has been 1996’s “Alias Grace” about a notorious 19th-century murder case, but now I’m thinking the array of tales in “Stone Mattress” perhaps better showcase her talent and total command as a writer.

Parts of the tales in this collection are funny, while some are eery and sinister, a couple are otherworldly, some deal with literary, artsy things, some with retribution and quite a few in the book deal with aging. I laughed at parts of her tale “Torch the Dusties” about companions trapped inside an assisted living facility besieged by a violent anti-elderly movement, though other parts of it are real and unsettling. Atwood has a bit of everything in her tales, they’re clever like that, just don’t call them short stories — or you’ll be remiss for making a bad faux pas.

At first I thought the tales in “Stone Mattress” would all be linked by the same characters since the first three in the collection start out that way. I was imagining something like the novel “Olive Kitteridge,” but no, after that the rest are all separate. I liked the first three linked tales — they’re clever, imaginative and entertaining, but my favorite ones in the book (besides “Torch the Dusties”) are the sinister ones: “The Freeze-Dried Groom,” “The Dead Hand Loves You,” and my favorite one, the title story “Stone Mattress,” which is about a damaged woman who plans a murder on a trip to the Arctic. A perfect way to bump off your spouse, right? (Ahh don’t worry honey …) This tale involves retribution for a crime done long ago.

Oh yes, Atwood is at the top of her game with these! I particularly loved listening to the audiobook version of the book because different readers narrate each tale (except one who reads two of the stories). All are done exceptionally well, though Atwood’s own narration of her title story “Stone Mattress” was my favorite by far. It’s done so sedately and matter-of-factly — it’s wonderfully unsettling. I had to listen to its entirety twice. What a master!

But what about you have you read Sue Monk Kidd’s novel “The Invention of Wings” or Margaret Atwood’s book “Stone Mattress” and if so, what did you think?

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18 Responses to The Invention of Wings and Stone Mattress

  1. Judy Krueger says:

    First of all, thanks for the shout out!
    I have read both of the books reviewed here. The Invention of Wings is all you say; a wonderful review in fact. I also loved The Secret Life of Bees back in the day. It was a little bit Oprahish but went beyond what I usually think of when I say that.
    I am a huge Atwood fan! I have read all of her novels and in fact she is in my top three of favorite novelists. Alias Grace is one of her best out of novels that are all impressive. I have read some of her story collections and I found Stone Mattress a stellar one among them. Shout out to her for writing about aging. She is even older than I am!!
    I’ve also read Twelve Years A Slave and found it excellent though the movie was pretty darn good too.

    • Susan Wright says:

      Thanks Judy, your insight and feedback on books are always invaluable. Also you should be given an honorary Canadian badge or citizenship for reading all of Atwood’s books. She’s quite prolific and continues on! Sometime I will get to Twelve Years a Slave. The movie pretty much blew me out of the water.

  2. Brian Joseph says:

    I generally love Margaret Atwood’s works. I would like to read The Stone Mattress. I like the fact that the stories seem very eclectic.

    The Sympathizer also sound so good. I had barely heard of Viet Thanh Nguyen before. I want to read him now.

    • Susan Wright says:

      Yes Brian, I can see where you would like Atwood — some of her fiction is sci-fi-ish though I think she calls it speculative fiction, like the Handmaid’s Tale. Also Oryx and Crake. (I need to read the two last ones of that trilogy.)
      And I agree with you on The Sympathizer. I’d like to get to it soon.

  3. I couldn’t agree more about The Invention of Wings. The audio version was also amazing. I was not a big fan of The Secret Life of Bees way back when. It was good enough, but not great or especially memorable in my opinion.

    • Susan Wright says:

      Okay good, I guess I wasn’t too far off on The Secret Life of Bees. Glad you liked The Invention of Wings too!

  4. Naomi says:

    I loved The Secret Life of Bees when I read it long ago, and have been meaning to read this one since it came out. I think I’d like it even more. I do like stories about slavery or anti-slavery. Have you read The Book of Negroes? That’s a good one!
    Isn’t Margaret Atwood amazing? Really, she is. She can write anything! Your review of her ‘tales’ makes me want to read them again.

    • Susan Wright says:

      Yeah I still need to read The Book of Negroes. I should have put that on the list up above as well. That actually should be near the top of slavery books I need to get to. Thanks for mentioning it. And yes Atwood still reigns. I’ll be interested to see what she puts out next.

  5. Great reviews! I’m curious about the Pulitzer winner as I heard nothing about it before it won. I loved Secret Lives of Bees but disliked her second book so much that I didn’t buy her latest one. From your review and other recommendations, I’m now tempted to give her a second chance. The Invention of Wings sounds marvelous. You have a good list. Another fine book on the horrors of slavery is Valerie Martin’s Property, told from the perspective of a selfish slave owner’s wife. It’s short but powerful. I’ve read and enjoyed several novels and a short story collection (Dancing Girls) by Margaret Atwood but haven’t read the Stone Mattress – you make me want to do so.

    • Susan Wright says:

      Thanks Sarah for the additional good book about slavery — Property. I haven’t heard about that one. As well — I’ll have to check out Atwood’s Dancing Girls. Thanks for mentioning it.

  6. Oh, I so want to go to Book Expo again…I went once, in 2008, when it was in LA. Then it was in NY every subsequent year…until now. Chicago is moving a little closer, but since I hate flying (yeah, I know!), it will have to be even closer, as short flights are manageable for me.

    I like some of Atwood’s books…Stone Mattress looks intriguing, but I don’t usually enjoy story collections.

    Thanks for sharing.

    • Susan Wright says:

      I didnt realize you’re a reluctant flyer. It’s not really my favorite thing either. But I hope the Expo will be fun. I’ll give you an update once there!

  7. I’ll miss BEA this year but you’re sure to have a blast!

  8. I haven’t read none of the books reviewed here ;-((
    I am a huge Margaret Atwood fan! I have read The Robber Bride and Alias Grace which is one of my favourite books – I read it twice in 1998 and in 2001 – I have also reviewed last September. Unfortunately, she is little known here in Switzerland. ;-((
    Lastly, I adore book fairs, but I live too far away to attend the Book Expo America in Chicago.  But I look forward to reading your article on this event. Have a lovely weekend. 

    • Susan Wright says:

      I’m impressed you have read Alias Grace twice. My husband grew up in Kingston where the penitentiary stands (which is the setting for much of that story if I recall correctly). I read the novel a pretty long time ago so I could reread it again too — to help my memory. You’ll have to represent Atwood’s fan club in Switzerland I guess. 🙂 I’m hoping the Book Expo will be interesting and a lot of fun. We will see

  9. John Wright says:

    Re: Barbarian Days–for anyone interested in this tale of surf life/travel, I suggest ideally as a prequel or at least a sequel the more edgy and rollicking In Search of Captain Zero by Allan Wiesbecker.

    • Susan Wright says:

      Oh thanks. I will check this one out. In Search of Captain Zero sounds more fun and a better adventure than Barbarians, judging by the descriptions I’ve seen of both. I will put it on my To Be Read list.

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