I signed up for Shelfari (sorta of a book club recently bought out from Amazon where you can categorize your book collection and/or explore books of interest) last year but I hadn’t been to my account since. Last week I got a notification that someone was following my account and I decided to take a second look. I’m glad I did since I didn’t even know they had book clubs. The groups I’ve joined aren’t very active but what I like about it is they have their own bookshelves that I can view once I’ve joined the club. I am only very vocal about political and historical issues so I don’t think I would be very active anyways.
Currently, a friend lent me Sarah’s Key. I haven’t finished the book yet but everyone is eager to get my opinion on the novel as I have always had an interest in the Holocaust. Why the Holocaust? Every race has gone through some kind of oppression throughout history and it’s mostly been the nations in power oppressing other poorer and less developed nation. The Holocaust is memorable for being horrendous and happening where people didn’t expect it to, within the powerful nations. It was keep secret for a long time and people had to fight hard to make sure it got on the curriculum and exposed the horrors of the Holocaust to world. The concept of ethnic cleansing though did not start in Europe. It was practiced in the United States shortly before. Mentally retarded individual were sterilized in the United States to prevent the genes from passing along into the next generation.
What I like about Sarah’s Key is that aspect of the unexpected. Instead of the Germans arresting and having Jews in horrible conditions, it is the French. As much as I’ve read about the Holocaust, I didn’t even know about this event in history. It’s a great reminder that even your own country can turn on you. Remembering the Holocaust is not about shaming the French or the Germans. Every nation has secrets in their closet. What is important is to learn from our past and continually work hard to provide a better future for ourselves. A better future seems so far away judging by the recent events in history. As they say, history always repeats itself, just in a different form. Whether this is true or not, only time will tell. That will be another long and heated discussion though.
Since my last writing I’ve finished reading:
The Queen of Water by Laura Resau (I’ll be posting about this shortly)
Vampire Academy Book 4- Blood Promise by Richelle Mead
Vampire Academy Book 5 - Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead
Vampire Academy Book 6 – Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (Yes, I plan to watch the movie, out on 03/23/2012)
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Currently reading: Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
