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A review by laurieb755
In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills by Jennifer Haupt
5.0
The following came with my book, which arrived in the mail as a gift in celebration of my mid-November 70th birthday:
A brief on the book. I have not read it yet but in a journey to the book store it caught my eye and I thought of you. I thought of the pain, frustration and anger you maybe felt when Trump was re-elected. I thought of trying to find courage, strength, grace and love in the face of pain and difficulty. We will find and create light and a path forward! Love, R
Author Jennifer Haupt has written a gut wrenching yet loving story based on the 1994 Rwandan genocide. She traveled to Rwanda in 2007 to learn what she could about "the connection between grief and forgiveness" and to interview survivors and aid workers. As you might imagine, this is not a book for bedtime reading.
Nonetheless, it is a book that should be read. What I remember most about the Rwandan genocide is President Clinton essentially ignoring it. Indeed, four years after the atrocities occurred he issued an apology for not recognizing the magnitude of what was happening and thus not taking appropriate action to help mitigate the severity.
Haupt tells the tale from the perspective of two women in particular, Rachel Shepherd and Lillian Carlson. Rachel is a young married woman living in New York City. Married to a businessman, it quickly becomes apparent that their relationship is fraught with the backdrop of a miscarriage followed by a second one further enough along for Rachel to have formed a connection with the moving, kicking baby growing in her womb. Lillian's background is more *complex given what she faces in Rwanda. Older than Rachel, she grew up in the south and was an admirer of Martin Luther King Jr.
These two women's lives become entwined through the lens of Rachel's father, Henry Shepherd, an aspiring photographer. He first meets Lillian at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where Martin Luther King Jr is speaking. Lillian is present, standing at the very front of the congregation facing outward and Henry is drawn to her as he boldly strolls down the aisle to take her picture. This is the spark he needed to pursue his professional and life passion, though not without regret at having to leave behind his daughter. While Henry and Lillian build their relationship, eventually circumstances are such that Henry leaves the south and Lillian's passion eventually takes her to Rwanda.
This story is about their lives, spearheaded by Rachel's quest to learn more about Henry, which means a trip to Rwanda to meet Lillian and, perhaps, find her father. She will encounter another world entirely in Rwanda and meet people who will change her life forever, among them Nadine, Lillian's adopted daughter, and Tucker, who found his way to Rwanda to do something useful with his medical knowledge gleaned from years in medical school in the States.
So was my son accurate in his assessment…did this story show how devastated people can find courage, strength, grace and love in the face of pain and difficulty. ABSOLUTELY! And I took a second message from this book, building on my son's use of "We" - it is Community which helps provide the bedrock from which to find the courage, strength, grace and love.
*While I state that Lillian's trajectory is more complex than Rachel's, this is not to deny the complexity of emotions that Rachel experienced after her miscarriages. I understand all too well what it feels like to harbor a growing fetus and not have it survive to birth. It is devastating. What I also came to understand is that my community of three is what gave me the courage and strength to move forward and, ultimately, wind up with the amazing young man who gifted me this book, along with renewed grace and love.
A brief on the book. I have not read it yet but in a journey to the book store it caught my eye and I thought of you. I thought of the pain, frustration and anger you maybe felt when Trump was re-elected. I thought of trying to find courage, strength, grace and love in the face of pain and difficulty. We will find and create light and a path forward! Love, R
Author Jennifer Haupt has written a gut wrenching yet loving story based on the 1994 Rwandan genocide. She traveled to Rwanda in 2007 to learn what she could about "the connection between grief and forgiveness" and to interview survivors and aid workers. As you might imagine, this is not a book for bedtime reading.
Nonetheless, it is a book that should be read. What I remember most about the Rwandan genocide is President Clinton essentially ignoring it. Indeed, four years after the atrocities occurred he issued an apology for not recognizing the magnitude of what was happening and thus not taking appropriate action to help mitigate the severity.
Haupt tells the tale from the perspective of two women in particular, Rachel Shepherd and Lillian Carlson. Rachel is a young married woman living in New York City. Married to a businessman, it quickly becomes apparent that their relationship is fraught with the backdrop of a miscarriage followed by a second one further enough along for Rachel to have formed a connection with the moving, kicking baby growing in her womb. Lillian's background is more *complex given what she faces in Rwanda. Older than Rachel, she grew up in the south and was an admirer of Martin Luther King Jr.
These two women's lives become entwined through the lens of Rachel's father, Henry Shepherd, an aspiring photographer. He first meets Lillian at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where Martin Luther King Jr is speaking. Lillian is present, standing at the very front of the congregation facing outward and Henry is drawn to her as he boldly strolls down the aisle to take her picture. This is the spark he needed to pursue his professional and life passion, though not without regret at having to leave behind his daughter. While Henry and Lillian build their relationship, eventually circumstances are such that Henry leaves the south and Lillian's passion eventually takes her to Rwanda.
This story is about their lives, spearheaded by Rachel's quest to learn more about Henry, which means a trip to Rwanda to meet Lillian and, perhaps, find her father. She will encounter another world entirely in Rwanda and meet people who will change her life forever, among them Nadine, Lillian's adopted daughter, and Tucker, who found his way to Rwanda to do something useful with his medical knowledge gleaned from years in medical school in the States.
So was my son accurate in his assessment…did this story show how devastated people can find courage, strength, grace and love in the face of pain and difficulty. ABSOLUTELY! And I took a second message from this book, building on my son's use of "We" - it is Community which helps provide the bedrock from which to find the courage, strength, grace and love.
*While I state that Lillian's trajectory is more complex than Rachel's, this is not to deny the complexity of emotions that Rachel experienced after her miscarriages. I understand all too well what it feels like to harbor a growing fetus and not have it survive to birth. It is devastating. What I also came to understand is that my community of three is what gave me the courage and strength to move forward and, ultimately, wind up with the amazing young man who gifted me this book, along with renewed grace and love.