The Foreign Service Journal, November 2012

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | NOVEMBER 2012 43 Continued on page 48 Wide Awake: A Novel Robert Bober (Translated from French by Carol Volk), The New Press, 2012, $15.95, paperback, 195 pages. Robert Bober’s Wide Awake is a coming-of- age novel documenting Bernard Apple- baum’s journey to uncover his family’s past. Applebaum, a young man experiencing life in Paris during the 1960s French NewWave, has been kept ignorant about his ancestry. As an extra on a film set for Francois Truffaut’s “Jules and Jim,” he experiences a series of events that reveal his deceased father’s history. Applebaum’s attempt to find the truth about his father takes him through the streets of Paris and beyond—all the way to Germany and Auschwitz. But is he prepared to find the truth and uncover lost memories that may ultimately change his perspec- tive and cause him pain? His story is not just an example of the legacy of the Holocaust, but a reminder that one’s past is always with one—hidden or not. Robert Bober, who lives in Paris, is a film and stage director and writer, whose work includes more than 120 television films and five books. Carol Volk, who has translated more than 36 titles from French, is a 10-year veteran of the Foreign Service and lives in Chevy Chase, Md. Last Summer at the Compound JH Bartlett, CreateSpace, 2011, $12.95, paperback, 158 pages. The Fukushima nuclear disaster, the larg- est of its kind since Chernobyl in 1986, prompted new concerns for those living in close proximity to nuclear power plants— like the Lloyd family, the protagonists in this novel, who own a compound in Plym- outh, Mass., near the Pilgrim Nuclear Plant. The drama centers on whether the family will sell their quiet and peaceful place of escape from the world. The decision- making process is complicated by the fact that five generations of the extended family have frequented the shingled cottages on the ocean-front property for secluded quiet summers. In the face of their new awareness of potential dangers, this “WASPy” New England family is torn between tradition and practicality. JH Bartlett is a graduate of Dana Hall School who attended McGill University before earning a bachelor’s degree from Harvard. She is married to Samuel Bartlett, a retired FSO. The two spent 20 years abroad in locales ranging from Paris and the Philippines to El Salvador and Belfast. They currently live in Plymouth, Mass. The Five Gringas Nancy R. Asencio, Manuel Asencio Publishing, 2011, $12.95, paperback, 234 pages. The Five Gringas is the story of the friendship of Hope, Emily, Sue Anne, Stephanie and Millie, a close-knit group of women who form a bond at Embassy Mexico City that lasts throughout their lives. The story begins with the death of Hope, the wife of a retired ambassador. The loss triggers an emotional domino effect that leads to disclosure of past secrets, withheld feelings, nostalgic reminiscence of the many adventures they shared and an appre- ciation for true friendships that withstand both the strains of geographic distance and time. Nancy R. Asencio was born in Cuba but grew up in Washing- ton, D.C. She accompanied her husband, retired Ambassador Diego C. Asencio, to Mexico, Panama, Portugal, Brazil, Venezuela and Colombia. She and her husband co-wrote Diplomats & Ter- rorists , an account of their experience at the hands of terrorists in 198 0 (see p. 38). T hey reside in West Palm Beach, Fla. The Light fromMaggie’s View Cheryl Nugent, iUniverse, 2012, $18.95, paperback, 294 pages. A finalist for the 2008 Rupert Hughes Award for Fiction, Cheryl Nugent’s The Light fromMaggie’s View is a page-turner. In 1958 Veronica “Ricky” Cooper and Ann Sympson are best friends in Kentbury, N.J. They spend their summer exploring the small town’s quiet neighborhoods and gently pushing the rules enforced by Ann’s strict grandmother. But two days after they visit the lavish Maggie’s View estate, a young girl’s body is found close to where they had ventured. As the details surface, the assault and murder shake the town and thrust it into national focus. After a second girl’s body is found, it becomes clear that Kent- bury is dealing with a serial killer. Impetuous Ricky leads the way as the two young sleuths investigate the events on their own. What starts out as an adventure becomes far too real when following the evidence brings them closer and closer to the murderer’s grasp.