Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier June 4, 2006

I'm sure my enjoyment of this book was colored by the fact that I had already seen the movie and knew the ending. My advice: Read the book first. Frazier has a beautiful way with words and his imagery is fantastic. It made me want to go and see the places he describes. The movie was also cinematographly (is this a word?) beautiful. I understand this is Frazer's first novel which I find amazing as he tells the tale so well. The story takes place during the Civil War and follows the two main characters, Ada and Inman, as they cope with the changes in their lives since they first met and then reunited four years later. Two quotes I really liked:"--That's just pain, she said. It goes eventually. And when it's gone, there's no lasting memory. Not the worst of it anyway. It fades. Our minds aren't made to hold on to the particulars of pain the way we do bliss. It's a gift God gives us, a sign of His care for us. Inman thought he would keep silent but then his mouth just started working and he said, I wouldn't want to puzzle the why of pain nor the frame of mind somebody would be in to make up a thing like it to begin with. She said, You get to be my age, just recollecting pleasures long ago is pain enough."Later Inman shares the old woman's thoughts with Ada. "--She said, I think you have to give Him some help in forgetting. You have to work at not trying to call such thoughts up, for if you call hard enough they'll come."One more I liked from the old woman. "--Marrying a woman for her beauty makes no more sense than eating a bird for its singing. But it's a common mistake nonetheless."
Rating: 4