The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver

This amazing book is the latest by Barbara Kingsolver and was bought for me for Christmas. I loved two other books I have read by her: The Bean Trees and The Poisonwood Bible. This story told through only letters and diary entries is the story of Harrison Shepherd, a young half-Mexican, half-American boy who loves to write. The book follows him all the way through to his supposed death.

The book is populated with both true historical characters such as Diego Rivera, Lev Trotsky and Frida Kahlo as well as ones like Harrison himself who is entirely fictional. How Kingsolver manages to incorporate both true historical accounts and an interesting fictional character is beyond me but she does it incredibly well, especially with the historical clarity which serves as a setting for Harrison's life from before World War II in an American Military Academy to the intrusive American practice of McCarthyism where Harrison finds himself persecuted as a political subversive. This story could contain mirrors of the truth of some people during this period in history and shows the possible consequences both emotional and life-changing of the twentieth century. The writing is entrancing and believable and matures as the narrator does throughout the telling of the book.

I guess what I appreciated most about this book was its awesome literature, the way in which even throughout the letters the story was told beautifully. The historical characters were brought to life and my interest in all of them began/was renewed. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of Kingsolver or who is interested in this part of history. It is truly a classic.