Three Weeks in December, by Audrey Schulman, was well-liked by the 8 participants at February's meeting. We all agreed the quote found by Barbara, our host, that the book was a "bizarre, creepy page-turner" was only partly accurate. We felt it was certainly a page-turner, and certainly bizarre and even creepy in parts, but to characterize the entire book this way would be inaccurate as well as dismissive of its many charming moments.
The novel follows two separate protagonists who both represent foreign interests in African projects, one at the turn of the twentieth century and one at the turn of the twenty-first. The success of each project has been hampered by peculiarly African challenges: Jeremy, the American engineer overseeing the construction of a railroad, has his progress impeded by a pair of man-eating lions that keep carrying off the workers, thus decimating morale; Max's modern-day quest to find a life-saving plant is complicated by political unrest caused by roving bands of child soldiers, as well as by the necessity of finding the plant by observing its use by a group of mountain gorillas.
Everyone agreed the parts of the novel told from Max's point of view seemed strongest. We had quite a bit of discussion about Asperger's syndrome, what we learned about it, and how it played such a large part in the story. Kathleen liked the statement made by Max about how everyone was "on the spectrum"; Janet reminded us that from a diagnostic point of view, everyone is not on the spectrum, and this led us into a discussion of what is considered "normal" human behavior and what is not, and why. We also all loved Max's reasons for why she preferred plants to humans, as well as her focus, stubborness, and determination; she has no doubt whatsoever that she will find the plant she is in search of.
Barbara asked if anyone was surprised by Jeremy's secret (no) or about the relationship between Max and Jeremy (yes, but we felt we shouldn't have been). She asked what we thought Max's fate, suggested but not specified by the author, might be (we all thought Max probably had the safety of the gorillas uppermost in her mind, not her own) and if we saw similarities between Max and Jeremy's stories (yes, both on the fringes of their particular societies, both more comfortable in Africa), and there was a side discussion about the origins of autism and whether "curing" it would lead to a different kind of society.
We all agreed the bizarre, creepy parts were those dealing with the murderous Kutu in Max's story and with the man-eating lions in Jeremy's story. Someone pointed out that the lions' method of smothering their prey by placing their jaws over their victim's face was reminiscent of the old wives' tale of housecats smothering babies, and wondered if this was its origin.
We were all interested in the tension created by the desire of the other members of the research group for the protection afforded by Max's presence, and their fervent wish that she not be successful in her search. There was also a discussion about pharmaceutical ethics--or lack thereof--and the author's implied criticism of both imperialism and colonialism.
There are plenty of complementary books and movies for this book: The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (another book club selection) also deals with Americans attempting to bring "progress" to Africa; Out of Africa (both the film and the memoir by Isak Dinesen); and the film Gorillas in the Mist would also enhance a reading of this book. To learn more about mountain gorillas, click here: http://mountaingorillas.gorillacd.org/
Next month: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
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