Sleeping Beauties

Using the same characters that appear in the first two books of her Hawaiian trilogy (My Old Sweetheart and The Whiteness of Bones), Moore continues to explore the dilemma of tradition and culture --- and what one is to do with these precious things. Her love of nature is manifest, as in her earlier books, but her attempt to discover what it means to be a woman is moving and heart-breaking. Whereas The Whiteness of Bones seems to be a milder, dress-rehearsal for her later novel, In the Cut, this book is concerned with the importance of cultural history --- it can't be an accident that the heroine's name is Clio, who is also the muse of history. It's also very sexy --- Clio marries a movie star and tries to escape her heritage by running off to Hollywood. I don't understand why this book is never mentioned when Moore's work is under its (sometimes controversial) discussion...