nomadreader

The basics: Mei-ling Hopgood is a Taiwanese-American who grew up in Michigan and now lives in Argentina. When she and her American husband had their first child, Sofia, they were surprised to discover the differences between Argentinian parenting and American. Mei-Ling sought out to discover the ways different cultures around the world parent. Each chapter is devoted to a different country or culture and a specific parenting task. My thoughts: I've always been fascinated by cultural differences, particularly the things one thinks of as normal that are far from normal in other cultures and parts of the world. When I stumbled upon this title shortly after I got pregnant, I knew I wanted to read it. (Admittedly, the title intrigued me too, as Mr. Nomadreader and I love to keep our house cold in the winter, and I'm always looking for options to keep the nomadbaby happy and warm without compromising our preferred temperature.) How Eskimos Keep Their Babies Warm  is part memoi...

The basics: When a mysterious figure arrives at Perla's home in Buenos Aires, she must confront Argentina's Dirty War, the role of her parents in it, and what it means for her. My thoughts: When I began this novel, I was immediately struck by the power and beauty of the writing. De Robertis writes with strength and smoothness. Her words commanded the page and transported me into the world of Perla. The line between reality and magical realism was not immediately clear, which helped draw me into this fascinating world even more quickly. I soon discovered I cared more about the journey of Perla than where magical realism began. In many ways, Perla is a coming of age story. The novel is largely told in flashbacks as Perla and this mysterious houseguest talk she revisits childhood memories for clues of what was really happening in Argentina. Perla's journey is both personal and an doorway into a fascinating and troubling piece of Argentinian history. Favorite passage:  ...