Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness

Stunning, Enthralling. Poignant. Astounding. Jaw-dropping. Witty. Breathtaking. Educational. Awesome. Courageous. Electrifying. Pulverizing. Shimmering. Stunning. Searing. Vibrant. Evocative. I give up, there are not enough adjectives for me to use to describe Fuller's incredible memoirs of her and her family's life/experiences in Africa - many of these adjectives have been used in many of the wonderful Editorial Reviews. Although each of Fuller's three memoirs can be read as 'stand alones', part of me would recommend reading them in the order they were written. But no matter which you read first, you will want to read the others. Firstly there is "Let's Not Go To The Dogs Tonight", then "Cocktails under the Tree of Forgetfulness", then "Leaving Before the Rains Come" (the latter is a south Africanism for 'get out while you can'). How could one NOT read these memoirs based solely on their titles and book covers???? I read the second memoir first, could not download the third fast enough, and am just embarking on the first one, which describes Fuller's growing-up years in Africa. I am addicted to Fuller's family and their heart-wrenching journeys. Fuller's second memoir (Cocktails....) was written 10 years after her first. In the second, she provides greater details about her unbelievable mother and her mother's remembered childhood. (Fuller's mother called the first memoir "The Awful Book"!) As one reviewer put it: "This narrative is a love story to Africa and Fuller's family". "Cocktails..." is written at a point whereby Fuller visits her parents at their Zambian banana and fish farm. The memories are shared by her mother under the Tree of Forgetfulness which is right outside the parents' home. But oh so much more is shared about the family/experiences. The third memoir ("Leaving...") chronicles Fuller's life in Wyoming (where she moved with her husband who is from Boston whom she met in Africa) and the circumstances surrounding the eventual dissolution of their marriage. Oh but there are such astounding revelations in this memoir of Fuller & Charlie's experiences in Africa before winding up in Wyoming. The description of her husband's accident and the aftermath rivals anything I've ever read - I was gutted. Fuller's interweaving of past and current events is seamless (I personally have no issue with an author going back and forth in time, interjecting fascinating side roads to the story). I for one was so ignorant going into the reads about Zambia, Rhodesia/Zimbabwe, all other places references, the history of the colonials, etc. I had to have a map next to me from the very beginning. I shall forever be shaking my head at the trials/tribulations Fuller's parents chose to endure while living through all that happened while living in Africa - and chose not to leave. You will cry and you will laugh at the parents' 'personalities'. Then there is Fuller's writing. Oh. My. God. Even throughout all the stories, the geography, the surreal occurrences, it's the writing that brought me to my knees. I will never get to Africa, but thanks to Fuller - I've now been there. Always always, throughout all three memoirs, is Fuller's visceral, unending bond to Africa. It's in her blood, her soul, and one wonders if she ultimately will finish out her future final days there. We avid fans of her can only hope that Fuller's third memoir will not be her last.

I'm a big fan of Alexandra Fuller's writing. I fell in love with her work when I lived in Zambia and stumbled upon her earlier non-fiction masterpieces about life, love, and tragedy growing up in southern Africa. A native of Zimbabwe who grew up in Zambia and now lives in the United States, this very talented writer weaves cheeky and amusing family narratives into her stories like none I've read. While entertaining and emotionally fulfilling, the unflattering portrayal of her mother in her earlier book "Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight" -- or as her mother calls, it, an "Awful" book -- left Fuller and her parents with strained relations. The resulting tension comes to a head in this book. Fuller's brutal honesty, and likely some embellishment of her family's -- especially her mom's -- quirky and erratic behavior in her earlier book left her with the unenviable task of writing a sequel that portrayed her parents in a more positive light in order to improve relations with "mum and dad." This book is an obvious "mea culpa" that atones for her earlier "Awful" book. "Cocktail" tells the tale of Fuller's mother and father from childhood to the present. The realistic, almost staid manner in which she rolls out the story -- such as instances that were once unchecked but are now vetted by her mother -- leaves the reader less satisfied than her earlier work. I wondered which depiction of her parents, the earlier one or this one, was more accurate, although I suspect the latter. Fuller's attempt to redeem herself by emulating her folks in this book is noble but leaves them less interesting. The narrative broken up into discreet stories meanders in the author's unique stream-of-consciousness. The book doesn't hold together as well as it did in her earlier work. While the order seems to be chronological, it's not clear why she choose to include certain stories except that they paint her mother and father in a positive light. I finished the book longing for more juicy stories about her family's madcap escapades, but it was not to be. Sensationalism was not Fuller's intention this time. The truth seems a bit bland compared to her fanciful tales. I still adore Fuller's work. I give this book 4 stars. I recommend first reading the prequel, "Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight" to set the stage for this book, but don't expect "Cocktail" to have the same pizzazz.

this was an unexpected book. I was sort of expecting a kinda serious, kinda historical book and I found instead a moving narration. Sometimes you laugh loud, sometimes it moves you deeply. A real masterpiece.

Good for book club

As I was finishing the book , a sense of sadness came over me , as if. I was leaving behind the wonderful characters in the book in a distant dream . Thanks to Christie Turlington for this book recommendation

The print size of the soft cover edition is miniscule!!

J ai retrouvé l humour incisif, l ironie de l auteure. J avais déjà lu un roman d Alexandra Fuller que j avais adoré, je n ai pas été déçue. Les descriptions de paysages sont très évocatrices, les personnages sont hauts en couleurs. Je commanderai d autres titres de A. Fuller.