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She Was
Doreen Woods is many things: a successful dentist who donates time and skills to the needy, a loving wife and mother, a sister who cares for her dying brother. She has carefully built an exemplary life. But all of this is threatened when a comrade from the seventies shows up. Over the next week Doreen's past rushes in as she is forced to admit to her family and herself the actions that caused her to change her name and identity three decades earlier.
In 1970 she was impressionable and idealistic Lucy Johansson. When her brother, Adam, came home from Vietnam damaged and bitter, they moved to California, where she raged against the war and the Establishment with many others of her generation. She joined an antiwar group and participated in increasingly militant protests designed to bring attention to their cause and to change the world for the better. But all the best intentions and careful planning couldn't keep things from going terribly wrong.
Told from a twenty-first-century perspective, She Was spans the width of the American continent and the depth of social upheaval of the second half of the twentieth century. She Was explores the violent, determining act in one woman's life that mirrors the formative trauma of her age. She Was is a story about the indelible nature of the past, about hiding in the ordinary, and, ultimately, about making amends.
In 1970 she was impressionable and idealistic Lucy Johansson. When her brother, Adam, came home from Vietnam damaged and bitter, they moved to California, where she raged against the war and the Establishment with many others of her generation. She joined an antiwar group and participated in increasingly militant protests designed to bring attention to their cause and to change the world for the better. But all the best intentions and careful planning couldn't keep things from going terribly wrong.
Told from a twenty-first-century perspective, She Was spans the width of the American continent and the depth of social upheaval of the second half of the twentieth century. She Was explores the violent, determining act in one woman's life that mirrors the formative trauma of her age. She Was is a story about the indelible nature of the past, about hiding in the ordinary, and, ultimately, about making amends.
- GenresFiction
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2008
2 people are currently reading
123 people want to read
About the author
Janis Hallowell
4 books8 followersJanis Hallowell is a MacDowell Fellow, and her short fiction has been published in Plowshares. She lives in Colorado with her husband and daughter.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
March 27, 2008
SHE WAS
Hallowell is a deft craftswoman, and her novel, an absolutely must read, is a masterful braiding of two counterpoint stories: Doreen the passionate anti-Vietnam war Weather Underground activist who plants a bomb that inadvertently kills a man, and her brother Adam, who serves in that war only to prove to their father that he’s not a coward—neither realizing that their choice will have unintended repercussions which will dictate the shape of their lives.
Vietnam wasn’t the front line for freedom, Adam realizes, or the thumb in the dike of communism, or any of that bullshit. Once you’d been in-country for a week or two you realized that in Vietnam there weren’t any fronts. The only reason you had a gun and were humping those hills for gooks was because Command wished it. And the only way you were going to survive it was to do whatever you had to do and stay as high as possible.
The portrait of Adam, who in the war’s aftermath, is a walking casualty (MS ironically renders him mostly immobile), is riveting, and his honoring of the Vietnamese monks who burned themselves in protest against the war is deeply affecting. The contrasting, counterpoint and back-and-forth between these two story lines is a brilliant move, in which we see the horrific and senseless violence of the war which Doreen in her youthful idealism hoped to prevent. The contrast skyrockets after the war when Adam comes out of the closet and lives his homosexuality honestly and openly, while Doreen, who deeply regrets the death she caused, chooses to go underground and live a lie—hiding her true identity and constructing a good citizen’s productive life as a dentist, a life which is as resoundingly false as it is real.
Hallowell is a master of characterization, setting and plot—all those elements with which one builds a novel, and the contrasting counterpoint and reverse parallelism in the book’s structure is more than compelling—this is a book that keeps you up at night, reading on and on! Go get it!
Hallowell is a deft craftswoman, and her novel, an absolutely must read, is a masterful braiding of two counterpoint stories: Doreen the passionate anti-Vietnam war Weather Underground activist who plants a bomb that inadvertently kills a man, and her brother Adam, who serves in that war only to prove to their father that he’s not a coward—neither realizing that their choice will have unintended repercussions which will dictate the shape of their lives.
Vietnam wasn’t the front line for freedom, Adam realizes, or the thumb in the dike of communism, or any of that bullshit. Once you’d been in-country for a week or two you realized that in Vietnam there weren’t any fronts. The only reason you had a gun and were humping those hills for gooks was because Command wished it. And the only way you were going to survive it was to do whatever you had to do and stay as high as possible.
The portrait of Adam, who in the war’s aftermath, is a walking casualty (MS ironically renders him mostly immobile), is riveting, and his honoring of the Vietnamese monks who burned themselves in protest against the war is deeply affecting. The contrasting, counterpoint and back-and-forth between these two story lines is a brilliant move, in which we see the horrific and senseless violence of the war which Doreen in her youthful idealism hoped to prevent. The contrast skyrockets after the war when Adam comes out of the closet and lives his homosexuality honestly and openly, while Doreen, who deeply regrets the death she caused, chooses to go underground and live a lie—hiding her true identity and constructing a good citizen’s productive life as a dentist, a life which is as resoundingly false as it is real.
Hallowell is a master of characterization, setting and plot—all those elements with which one builds a novel, and the contrasting counterpoint and reverse parallelism in the book’s structure is more than compelling—this is a book that keeps you up at night, reading on and on! Go get it!
Read
September 13, 2008"She Was" is a wonderful new novel by Janis Hallowell, the author of "The Annunciation of Francesca Dunn". Set in 2005, it is the story of a secret that has been tightly held for 34 years by Doreen Woods, the main character. Suddenly, as it breaks through the surface of her happy and orderly life, we see the many and painful consequences of one horribly wrong decision made by a young woman caught up in the swirl of the anti-war movement in the United States during the 1970's.
Her story and that of her brother, who served in Viet Nam and was forever marked by his experiences there, are stories that not only resonant with the many of us who lived through those times, but also speaks to another generation confronting their own personal and political decisions. Like Jodi Picoult, Janis Hallowell is an able and engaging story teller, who has a story for us that is well worth the reading.
-Linda M
Her story and that of her brother, who served in Viet Nam and was forever marked by his experiences there, are stories that not only resonant with the many of us who lived through those times, but also speaks to another generation confronting their own personal and political decisions. Like Jodi Picoult, Janis Hallowell is an able and engaging story teller, who has a story for us that is well worth the reading.
-Linda M
July 1, 2009
Wow, I am the first person to review this book! I liked this book a lot. It is about a woman who leads a very normal productive life. She is a Dentist, mother and wife. She has set up a clinic to provide homeless with Dental care...she is a well respected person in her community. She has a past that no one knows anything about, including her husband. She was a part of the radical group "Fishbone" in the early 70's....she had a part in an act gone bad. She is a wanted woman. She has a new identity and has successfully been undercover for 35 years. This is the story of the week that everything falls apart....
Really, really well done book.
Really, really well done book.
November 18, 2008
It was okay.
May 29, 2020
I accidentally came across this title via an internet meme and thought I'd give it a try because the subject interested me. It's so well written and is such a powerful story that I was surprised I hadn't heard of it before (it was written 10 years ago). Very much along the lines of The Girls (which I loved) but even better in my opinion.
February 18, 2024
Lol didn't like the cliff I was left in, I was so invested in the story. Wished she showed the trial and super sad Adam had to go like that 😔
June 9, 2008
Summary:
This book has been an interesting read as it incorporates the seventies history era with today’s. The setting takes place in major cities around the United States and follows the life of a former radical group member, Lucy Johansson. As the war in Vietnam is going on, Lucy joins a radical group and plants a bomb in a New York university hoping to bring attention to their views against the war. Unfortunately, plans go wrong and the bomb Lucy plants ends up killing a person and she must learn to defend for herself when the radical group drops her. For the next five years she depends on her brother’s help to live “underground” and survive without being caught or turned in. The readers are then taken thirty years later where Lucy goes by Doreen McFadden, is married, has a son, and has a career as a dentist. It seems that life is going well for Doreen until an old radical group member shows up with a desire to turn Doreen into the FBI. The books takes place over a single weekend where Doreen realizes that her life she has been living will soon be over, and she must come to amends her mother, her husband and her brother. In the end, Doreen turns herself in and she comes to understand that she could be in jail the rest of her life, or she could be free. This book does leave the reader hanging in a sense because we don’t know the ultimate fate of Doreen, only that she has come to peace with herself.
My Review:
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book because it did incorporate two different settings which demanded my full attention while reading. I enjoyed learning about the seventies era, and the problems the “people” had with the president of the US and Vietnam. I was able to see one woman’s personal view and how she handled the issues that were in front of her. It was interesting to see a woman could suddenly go from living one life and training her self to become another person and living another life. I also began to understand the full extent how every action has a reaction and the consequences that can occur.
Selected Quotes:
“She drives into the heart of the city and the sense of fragile good fortune rises again. Such a morning, such as day is a gift. You don’t sneer at a gift (15)”.
“A peculiar sense of giving in, of giving up, claims her and it is terrifying and painful but also a relief. TO allow for not struggling and maintaining, to allow her past to touch her now, is to feel a strange sense of release (190)”.
“He feels sudden shame in his gullibility. In his world, when you love someone, trust someone, you can’t help but know everything essential and fundamental about them (147)”.
This book has been an interesting read as it incorporates the seventies history era with today’s. The setting takes place in major cities around the United States and follows the life of a former radical group member, Lucy Johansson. As the war in Vietnam is going on, Lucy joins a radical group and plants a bomb in a New York university hoping to bring attention to their views against the war. Unfortunately, plans go wrong and the bomb Lucy plants ends up killing a person and she must learn to defend for herself when the radical group drops her. For the next five years she depends on her brother’s help to live “underground” and survive without being caught or turned in. The readers are then taken thirty years later where Lucy goes by Doreen McFadden, is married, has a son, and has a career as a dentist. It seems that life is going well for Doreen until an old radical group member shows up with a desire to turn Doreen into the FBI. The books takes place over a single weekend where Doreen realizes that her life she has been living will soon be over, and she must come to amends her mother, her husband and her brother. In the end, Doreen turns herself in and she comes to understand that she could be in jail the rest of her life, or she could be free. This book does leave the reader hanging in a sense because we don’t know the ultimate fate of Doreen, only that she has come to peace with herself.
My Review:
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book because it did incorporate two different settings which demanded my full attention while reading. I enjoyed learning about the seventies era, and the problems the “people” had with the president of the US and Vietnam. I was able to see one woman’s personal view and how she handled the issues that were in front of her. It was interesting to see a woman could suddenly go from living one life and training her self to become another person and living another life. I also began to understand the full extent how every action has a reaction and the consequences that can occur.
Selected Quotes:
“She drives into the heart of the city and the sense of fragile good fortune rises again. Such a morning, such as day is a gift. You don’t sneer at a gift (15)”.
“A peculiar sense of giving in, of giving up, claims her and it is terrifying and painful but also a relief. TO allow for not struggling and maintaining, to allow her past to touch her now, is to feel a strange sense of release (190)”.
“He feels sudden shame in his gullibility. In his world, when you love someone, trust someone, you can’t help but know everything essential and fundamental about them (147)”.
May 4, 2008
Janis Hallowell's amazing novel SHE WAS lifted off for me in the first few lines, and soared the deeper I got into it. It takes its charge from a young woman's bombing of an ROTC building to protest the war in Vietnam, but it's a novel very relevant to today's political climate. It draws parallels between the wars in Vietnam and Iraq, but its real resonance is in the emotional devastation wreaked on the characters. Doreen Woods--an activist turned mother and dentist, her husband Miles, and their teenaged son Ian come alive as people I really cared about, in their attachments to each other, and their love and losses. Doreen pays a heavy price for the political sins of those in power; she's at once our cultural conscience and the one who atones. Doreen's brother Adam, wracked with the pain of MS, bears this cultural pain in his body but in an increasingly redemptive way. The significance of the translucent wings on the book's cover emerged as the story unfolded with exquisite suspense.
One person's pain is interwoven with the others', in alternating chapters that allow each of the main characters his or her voice. This unfolding net of pain would be unbearable were it not for Hallowell's talent, affection for her characters, and commitment to justice in the deepest sense of the word. This book makes the reader ask what justice is, what it means. In SHE WAS, Janis Hallowell gives us a dizzying look into our collective shadow. She's a terrific storyteller, offering a truth that left me in tears.
One person's pain is interwoven with the others', in alternating chapters that allow each of the main characters his or her voice. This unfolding net of pain would be unbearable were it not for Hallowell's talent, affection for her characters, and commitment to justice in the deepest sense of the word. This book makes the reader ask what justice is, what it means. In SHE WAS, Janis Hallowell gives us a dizzying look into our collective shadow. She's a terrific storyteller, offering a truth that left me in tears.
February 8, 2013
She Was tells the story of Doreen Woods (mother, wife, dentist, upstanding citizen for the past thirty-four years) previously Lucy Johanssen (Vietnam war protester, activist, domestic terrorist, unintentional murderer) who is a soon to be discovered fugitive. As I was reading this, I really liked Doreen and her family and I didn't want her to go to jail, which I guess speaks to Hallowell's writing. As I got towards the end, I started asking myself what I would think should happen to someone if I just saw this story on the news. And, I really don't know. I think I would look at the fact that her actions while misguided were specifically carried out in a way that she intended for no person to get hurt and she has never committed another crime, so I would probably lean towards leiniency. But, what if I was that man's family? So, I enjoyed this book for the way it made you think. The picture it gave you of Vietnam through the eyes of her brother was also very interesting. Their relationship and her care of him as he battled MS was very humanizing. I appreciated his storyline and the conclusion of his story, but I'm not sure I am on board with his hallucinations of the firefly. It was a little weird and didn't really add anything to the story for me.
May 21, 2008
This book by Colorado author Hallowell (who also wrote The Annunciation of Francesca Dunn) is perfectly at home in today's political climate with it's under-tones of "recreate '68". It centers on Doreen Woods, Denver dentist and mother. She does charitable work, she takes care of her brother (a Vietnam vet in the last stages of MS), worries about her son who has recently graduated from high school, and loves her husband of 20some years. But Dorrie has a secret that is about to blow all of their lives apart. Dorrie is actually Lucy Johansson, who has been wanted since the 1970s for murder because she planted a bomb in what was supposed to be an empty ROTC office but was not. The author's masterful handling of the various relationships in Dorrie/Lucy's life makes this an engrossing read that I highly recommend. The plot weaves back and forth over 35+ years and paints a rich picture of one woman's guilt and redemption that is unforgettable.
November 24, 2015
Another book about changed identities as a result of political activity in the 1970s in the USA. This one is a very personal story about the transformation of a woman into someone else. The politics and her changing views over the years are there, but not as strongly as in, for example, The Company You Keep - which really goes into the politics of the time, ad deconstructs the rationales through the lens of time.
May (who gave me Eat The Document to read) adds: 'I could not put it down in the end. Very moving. Made me think that so many lives run in parallel in different parts of the world. Similar choices, mistakes, joy, pain and shame.'
May (who gave me Eat The Document to read) adds: 'I could not put it down in the end. Very moving. Made me think that so many lives run in parallel in different parts of the world. Similar choices, mistakes, joy, pain and shame.'
June 13, 2008
B At times, I couldn't wait to get to the end of this novel, but other times, I was feeling more eh. There are three stories: young Lucy who is becoming engaged with a radical movement of the sixties, who ultimately plots a bomb that kills someone; Lucy as Doreen who has lived for years in hiding, forgetting her past, as a dentist, wife, and mother; and Lucy/Doreen's brother's Adam's recollections of his horrendous time in Viet Nam while he suffers with MS. Interesting plotlines, though at times it isn't totally credible, still, a good read. A heavier beach read.
November 6, 2009
A book about strong political beliefs in the '60's and the consequences of acting on them. So many were opposed to the Vietnam War, and hoped their actions would send a message to the government to end it. Unfortunately, some took their actions too far. This book reads like non-fiction. I have to wonder if it is based on true happenings. The main character deals with what must be an amazing amount of anxiety hiding her past and completely reinventing herself. I liked this one quite a bit, but wished the characters were more interactive with each other. Hated the no-ending ending!!
August 1, 2015
I was fully prepared to hate this book; I was sure it was going to be sympathetic to a terrorist. In actuality it helped me to understand the mindset of these young people who are going to join ISIS by looking into the mind of a Vietnam protestor. "The pull of the group" she describes. "They made revolution look sexy and heroic". "Intoxicating" is how she describes the feeling of belonging to this elite force. I think the feeling of the time and the horrors of the war were laid out without justifying the response. A very interesting read.
January 18, 2016
Oh dear, I'm the only one to rate this? It was the only way I could mark it read. The premise was good, but it just did not grab me, in any sense - character, plot, even place. Moved on to something else. I literally just cannot and will not force myself to read a book that does not grab me. Literally cannot. Being "discerning," and a good book will keep my attention. 2015 was not a good year for my brain, and I literally got back into reading with a bookmark that says "5 pages." And then read the huge tome that was LONDON. So, good books - yes. So-so, no.
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September 26, 2008So far, I'm finding this book very ho-hum. I checked it out from the library. It's about a former counterrevolutionary who went underground, formed a new identity, and has been living with her unsuspecting husband and son in Denver for the past twenty-five years. Now, the FBI is on her trail...
Actually, my summary makes it sound more interesting than the book really is. With all that's going on in the world right now, the 60s seems so...irrelevant.
Actually, my summary makes it sound more interesting than the book really is. With all that's going on in the world right now, the 60s seems so...irrelevant.
December 16, 2012
The book She Was so far was a good book, i enjoyed what ive read so far. I only got to chapter three, thats why i rated it a one star because i didnt get to read the entire book. What ive read was intense in a good way., but like i said i only read to chapter three so i dont have that much to go off of. The cover of the book got my attention it seemed so mysterious, and interesting that i had to read it. I know if i read the entire book it wouldve been awesome.
February 17, 2010
This story is about a woman who is a member of a radical antiwar group in the 70's. After one fateful event, her life is changed forever and she is forced to change her identity. She spends the next 34 years living the life of an upstanding citizen, mom, wife and dentist. a very good read!
In addition, this author resides in Denver CO ... and some of the story takes place in Denver :)
In addition, this author resides in Denver CO ... and some of the story takes place in Denver :)
December 5, 2013
I nearly abandoned this during the first or second chapter as I didn't love the tone or style. I'm so glad I pressed on. I loved this story and the characters. I couldn't put it down and read it in a 36 hour period. I'm rating it a 4 as i didnt find the opening to be great and I wanted more of a closing to the story as well.
April 2, 2008
Doreen Woods is a middle class successful dentist, with a decent marriage, a son about to head off to college, and a secret which seems to be catching up with her. One wishes the author had been able to take the story to a deeper level emotionally, but it was still an interesting read.
May 8, 2008
Quite good. Reminds me a bit of Jodi Picoult, a bit of Alice Hoffman, a bit of...maybe Anna Quindlan. Can't wait to read her first book. (And maybe interview her? She's in Denver!)
June 25, 2008
Loved it. Such a timely story. Enjoyed meeting the author at my bookclub.
September 25, 2008
This book was fantastic. It really opened my eyes to the 60's and the Vietnam war. I really love it and recommend it to anybody interested in the 60's, the Vietnam war, and hidden identities!
October 3, 2008
This book was excellent! The ending was a little weak, but very thought provoking.
unfinished
March 28, 2009(not a bad book, but i lost it for a few weeks and then couldn't get back into it/had other good books to read.)
May 18, 2009
As Hallowell weaves her story of how the past influences and haunts the present, she recreates the social activism of the 60's. Her scenes transition seamlessly from present to past to present.
October 4, 2009
Great read;characters very believable.The story grabbed me and kept me interested.
January 10, 2013
Well written but SO disappointed in the ending. Talk about not tying up ALL the loose ends!
July 2, 2010
Author also wrote the Annunciation of Francesca Dunn
November 19, 2009
Read in 2008
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews