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Month in review

Reviews:
Archibald's Swiss Cheese Mountain by Sylvia Lieberman
Arkfall by Carolyn Ives Gilman
The Blunder by Joe Kilgore
A Bell for Adano by John Hersey
The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder
The Chinese Orange Mystery by Ellery Queen
The Copenhagen Connection by Elizabeth Peters
Eat, Drink and Be Married by Eve Makis
Forty Days by Jill Smolinski
Four Seasons in Five Senses by David Mas Masumoto
The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton
Hello Piglet! by Muff Singer
Idaho Snapshots by Rick Just
Inside Story by Albert E. Cowdrey
Just Visiting by Nancy Sparling
King, Queen, Knave by Vladimir Nabokov
King of the World by David Remnick
The Last Plague by Glen E. Page
Lifeguard by James Patterson and Andrew Gross
Marvin K. Mooney Will Please Go! by Dr. Seuss
The Mental Environment by Bob Gebelein
Moscow Rules by Daniel Silva
Night Train to Memphis by Elizabeth Peters
Nine Whispered Opinions Regarding the Alaskan Secession by George Guthridge
Peachblossom by Eleanor Frances Lattimore
Picnic at Pentecost by Rand B. Lee
Ookpik by Bruce Hiscock
Quondam by Jayel Gibson
Run! Run! by John Aikin
Salad for Two by Robert Reed
Search Continues for Eldery Man by Laura Kasischke
Shed That Guilt! Double Your Productivity by Michael Swanwick and Eileen Gunn
Small Worlds by Gretchen Laskas
Templeton Turtle Goes Exploring by Ron Pridmore
The Twenty Dollar Bill by Elmore Hammes
The Uncertainty Principle by Lynda Curnyn

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3 stars: Average
2 stars: OK
1 star: Did not finish

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A Bell for Adano: 09/12/08

A Bell for Adano by John Hersey won the 1945 Pulitzer Price. In it, an American army major, Victor Joppolo is put in place as a temporary administrator during the occupation of Italy near the end of the war. To help the town recover from Fascist rule, Joppolo sets out to find a replacement for the bell that was stolen and melted down.

A Bell for Adano has similar humor to Catch-22 but I found it more accessible than Joseph Heller's novel. Joppolo has to bend the rules to make the Adano run and he has to learn who he can ask for favors to get things done. Besides the military chain of command, Joppolo has to gain the trust of villagers who are suspicious of all authority figures after years of Fascist rule.

On the surface, A Bell for Adano is a simply a glorification of democracy over the evils of fascism. If it were that simple, Joppolo wouldn't have to risk his post disobeying orders that place Adano's citizens at risk. The novel is about the ways that war muddles everything and basic humanity can easily be forgotten.

I read A Bell for Adano for the Classics Challenge being hosted at Classics 2008. As I was reading it, I quickly realized I was actually rereading it. It was an enjoyable reread, like a visit with an old friend.

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