The Monsters of St. Helena

After reading his first book, The Chess Garden, I've kept my eyes open for books by Brooks Hansen. I loved Perlmans Ordeal, but I think Monsters of St. Helena is his best book yet. This story has a magic that pulls you right in to this strange island world of Napoleon in his first weeks on St. Helena. His relationship with a young teen, Betsy, and his relationship to the island itself, make for a rich read.The island ghosts and natives, slaves, settlers and interlopers - all play a role in this book to give it a deep, textured look into what were the last happy days for this historic figure. The beauty of the words is matched by the complexity of the characters. -- Simple things - Like:"all the leaves, the stalks, and blades are heavy with dew, waiting for the sun to come and warm them dry and open them. The same as every day, yet there is something different, something raw and tender, like the throat of a child who has been weeping and can't remember why." You can't miss the art of this writer --I can't write as well as Mr. Hansen, few folks can, but if I could, I would write about how much I loved this book and how strongly I recommend it! I'm looking forward to his next book -- and many more to come.