Customer Reviews

Homeland: A Novel

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
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HOMELAND is an unusual novel, both in its epistolary style, and in the unusual situations of the two protagonists. (One is a Southerner who doesn't support the Confederacy; the other a Northerner whose husband left home in Philadelphia to join the army, but didn't join until he was in the South.) Acquaintances in person, they become friends through their letters.

Most striking is the look at everyday life that develops in the course of the correspondence. Heroics are there, both obviously and also in the continued, determined survival in the face of overwhelming odds. More than any other book, this conveys the dogged, everyday struggle that each woman experiences, just because she sees no other choice. Others may give up; they keep going because they truly see no choice.

As Barbara Hambly's Benjamin January books give a view of slavery that is probably more accurate than any other that I've read, this book impressed me with the endurance required to survive insanity, horror, and the overwhelming pettiness of people at war.

It is a fascinating read, and I recommend it highly.

I got the book because I know Barbara Hambly's work and enjoy her writing. Little did I know how good this book is. It is outstanding, and one I will recommend to all of my reading friends.

Hambly tells the story in letters between two women, one a Southerner, the other a Northerner, at the beginning of and through the Civil War. Neither woman quite "fits" into her culture and community, and each sustains the other's right to be different. They write of their lives, their frustrations, happinesses and unhappinesses. They tell of their everyday lives, with all of the tragedies that took place during that War, and how each struggles to be faithful to her own principles and beliefs. Their letters speak not only of the commonplace and extraordinary tragedies of the Civil War, but, to me, of all wars, of what happens to the women and children who are not fighting but are deeply and personally affected by this war and all wars.

I am going to buy another copy just to lend to close friends, because this is a story worth reading. I know it will haunt me forever, and I will probably re-read it at least once a year.

I read this book when it was first released. I am a fan of Barbara Hambly's writing from her earlier science fiction/fantasy books to her meticulously researched historical novels. This book shows a side of the Civil War rarely presented - the view of women who are friends on opposing sides. I found that there were many issues that the two women in this book dealt with are also issues modern women deal with today.
I recommend this book any chance I get. I will definitely be rereading and its a great addition to my Barbara Hambly collection.

Not having been a fan of Civil War stories, this book was recommended to me by my penpal who is a Southerner while I am a Mainer. She and I discussed the book via email... it was wonderful...I wanted it to end differently but how could it as it followed historical facts. I highly recommend this book.

A great achievement. Beautifully written, interesting, moving, and at times funny! It had me laughing out loud. The characters are complicated and entirely believable. I thought the 'letter' format would be distracting and it really wasn't. And I'm not so easily impressed.

I can't think when I've gotten such a vivid "you are there" feeling about the Civil War. I highly recommend this book for that reason. I grew fond of both of the women. I was a bit baffled (Spoiler Alert) about why the Southern heroine felt so guilty-- I couldn't make sense of why she felt that way. But that's a minor caveat. Great book.

This book portrays the experiences of 2 women who dealt with the Civil War. It describes the day to day trials of survival and emotion during challenging times with extraordinary eloquence.
And if that is not enough, well, I won't talk about the ending. From the lack of reviews here, it is a sleeper, that I hope gets its just acclaim...

Homeland is primarily about friendship, specifically between two women; Cora living in ME, and Susanna living in TN during the Civil War, but it is also about the relationships we form with characters from books and how books become some of our most coveted friendships.

The story is written in epistle form, with most of the letters written between the two women (many not sent due to lack of mail service, others because of content, and some lost en route). Their letters document the war and the trials and tribulations they must face to endure it. They give each other encouragement and support, even if only imaginary at times since many of their letters are not sent.

Hambly does a good job of portraying the many hardships faced by both sides in the war, and the fact that both sides had resisters, and many were not supportive of the side they were "supposed to be on," something that is often overlooked in books about the Civil War.

Once the war begins they live very isolated lives, especially Cora, the woman who lives on the small ME Island and has been shunned by neighbors, friends and even her sister-in-law because her husband goes back to his home state of TN to fight for the South. In the South most of Susanna's friends and neighbors have fled leaving her with only her bleeding-heart confederate sister and the militia with whom to contend. So without much company to interact with they each seek solace and escape in reading novels, although Susanna has to resort to remembering books since she has none physically to read anymore. Hambly pays tribute to classic authors such as Austen, Dickens, Thackery, Homer, Hugo, Cervantes, and Swift among many others. Cora and Susanna talked about the characters as knowingly as friends, questioned their motives and their character at times, and wondered aloud about what happened to them after the story officially ended. They also relate their own situations and reactions to those of characters in the novels, which gives them a sense of validation.

I don't generally read a lot of "chick lit" but this was better than most and I especially enjoyed her literary allusions which made me remember a lot of my old "friends" whom I haven't thought about in awhile.

This novel would be a perfect choice for a book group for several reasons. The style of writing is in the form of letters between 2 friends during the civil war. Cora living on an island off the coast of Maine and Susanna living in Tennessee and later Vicksburg, Missippi.

Their lives are very different. Cora is married but ostracized because of a choice her husband makes. She has a child and struggles for survival during the long brutal winters on her island.

Susanna fights for her survival from invading armies and deserters from her own army.

Both of them rely on their friendship and letters (even if they aren't sent or received) to see them through unimaginable (to us) hardships.

The descriptions of their lives are very vivid and I really became involved in them. The thoughts of the women from their struggles to feed their families, the books they were reading, their views of the war and the lack of rights of women are fascinating. When I finished the book, I wanted to start it all over again. It gave me a lot to think about. It's that good!

There certainly would be a lot for a book group to discuss.

Letters written back and forth from north to south were interesting and beautifully written by two women well ahead of their time. It seemed long at times with repetitious detail. The many characters became a souce of confusion at times also, but brilliant research shone through making it a good read. A satisfying ending!