I've been reading non-fiction and book club books, which seem to be slowing me down a little lately. That and the early evenings that make me want to retire earlier and earlier! But I've gotten a few things finished...
The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers, by Maxwell King. I am absolutely a child of the PBS era and have a soft, nostalgic place in my heart for Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. So this, the first full-length biography of an American icon, is right up my alley. Following Fred's story from a shy, kindhearted boy through his education where he excelled at music, and told with the help of numerous interviews and archival documents, King's biography is simply perfect, thoughtful and insightful and wonderfully detailed.
How to Knit A Heart Back Home, by Rachael Herron. Herron, writer and fellow knitter, has a great knack for writing perfectly flawed characters who find each other in the most entertaining ways. Here, bookshop owner and long-time knitter Lucy has made peace with being single, choosing to live vicariously through the exploits of her socially avid best friend, Molly. Then Owen comes back to town to deal with some family issues, and Lucy goes to pieces. In high school, Lucy had been Owen's math tutor, her the nerd and him the bad boy with a tough home life. They shared one intensely memorable kiss...just before he left town. Now after close to two decades, he's back and maybe, just maybe, they might find their next steps together...
The Visitors, by Catherine Burns. Burns' debut, which was published last September, has been on my list for some time, and now I know why. This is not a comfortable read, both claustrophobic and grimly tense. Marion Zetland lives in her crumbling childhood home with her older brother John--she a timid spinster who spends her days napping with teddy bears and avoiding conflict of any kind, he a surly recluse who spends the bulk of his time in their basement, which is off limits to everyone else. Marion has spent years turning a blind eye to John's ominous deeds until one day, these heinous responsibilities fall to her and she must unravel many truths, including her own. A slow and uncomfortable start picks up a full head of steam about halfway through, and the finish is absolutely worth it. If you're looking for a novel full of dark suspense, add this to your list.
The Law of Similars, by Chris Bohjalian. Bohjalian (Midwives, The Sandcastle Girls, etc.) is a favorite of mine and I parcel his books out as stories to savor. Here, Vermont widower and attorney Leland is consumed by his job, the raising of his young daughter...and a collection of anxieties manifesting as illness. Over the counter remedies and antibiotics have failed him. It's only when he turns to homeopathy that he begins to see improvement, not least because he is instantly smitten with his homeopath, Carissa Lake. But after one of Carissa's patients falls into an allergy-induced coma, possibly because of her prescribed remedy, Leland's office begins to investigate the case. Leland is faced with a monumental ethical dilemma as love and legal obligations clash head-on. Fascinating on multiple levels, this was definitely a novel to linger over.
The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, by Lisa See. My book club's November selection, The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is the story of Li-yan and her family, living in a remote village in a southern province of China where life revolves around the seasons and the farming and harvesting of tea. It is only after a stranger visits their village that Li-yan begins to venture forth, receiving an education and beginning to reject traditional beliefs. It is the birth of her daughter, born out of wedlock with a man her family considers a poor choice, that finally causes Li-yan to break away. She gives her daughter up at an orphanage in hopes of giving the girl a better life, then makes her own way in the world, choosing city over village. This is also the story of Haley, Li-yan's daughter, who is being raised by an American couple in California, and her own unique struggles with identity.
We Should All Be Feminists, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Adapted from Adichie's much-admired TEDx talk of the same name, this long essay is both personal and eloquently argued, offering a unique definition of feminism for the twenty-first century, one rooted in inclusion and awareness. Drawing on her own experiences and her understanding of the often-masked realities of sexual politics, this is both Adichie's own exploration of what it means to be a woman now, and also a rallying cry to the world. I loved it so much, I read it twice.
The Stranger in the Woods, by Michael Finkel. This is a reread for me, the selection for my book club's December meeting. You can read my original review here.
I have nine books left to read in 2018 in order to hit 100 books in a calendar year. Think I can do it?
Showing posts with label memoirs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memoirs. Show all posts
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Thursday, September 27, 2018
What I've Been Reading: September 2018
It's that time again!
Sweet Little Lies, by Caz Frear. D.C. Cat Kinsella is hesitant as she investigates the murder of a young Islington housewife. The woman's body was found not far from the pub run by Cat's estranged father. When the woman turns out to be a girl the Kinsellas had met on holiday years earlier, Cat finds herself torn between loyalty to her dysfunctional family and dedication to her job. Full of twists and turns, this was a riveting procedural.
The Moth Presents: All These Wonders, edited by Catherine Burns. I am hopelessly in love with The Moth podcast. For those of you who are unfamiliar, The Moth is a non-profit group based out of New York City that is dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. The group presents a wide range of themed storytelling events across the country--many of which have been recorded for the long-running podcast, which was my introduction. Celebrating their 20th anniversary (The Moth was founded in 1997), this collection of 45 stories culled from their events focuses on stories about risk, courage, and facing the unknown. I read this collection over two days, so enthralled was I in these people's stories. I very highly recommend both the book and the podcast--they are honest, wise, insightful, life-changing.
On Call in the Arctic, by Thomas J. Sims. As Sims was finishing his residency and on the cusp of beginning his career as a pediatric surgeon, he was alerted to the impending change in his life: he was going to be drafted as a M.A.S.H. surgeon and sent to Vietnam. His alternative was accepting a commission in the U.S. Public Health Service for an assignment in Anchorage, Alaska--he took it, and brought along his very pregnant wife and young daughter when the moved days later. His life changed again when he was reassigned: instead of being Chief of Pediatrics in Anchorage, he would now be serving as the sole physician in Nome, providing medical care to not only Nome's residents, but also those of thirteen surrounding Eskimo villages, with very little support and in archaic conditions. The stories he relates in this memoir are truly amazing, by turns spine-tingling, jaw-dropping, and heart-warming. I'm recommending this to readers who also liked The Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel.
Leverage in Death, by J.D. Robb. When a marketing executive walks into a board meeting wearing a suicide vest and takes out friends and coworkers on the day his company was set to sign a significant merger, NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas is puzzled. She soon finds that the man's family was held hostage as collateral, forcing the man to commit this unthinkable act. But who would do such a thing? And why? The motive seems murky, only slowly clearing as the case progresses. I have to say, this was not one of my favorites in this long-running series--the pacing was off, there was a huge amount of stock market information that I personally found tedious. Your mileage may vary.
Today Will Be Different, by Maria Semple. This morning, Eleanor will take small actions to get her life in order. She will follow through. She will be a responsible adult, a good wife, an attentive mother, a patient friend. This ordinary, responsible day begins a slow-but-sure nosedive after her son finagles his way out of school for the day and then she finds that her husband, Joe, has told his office (but not her) that he's on vacation for the week. Eleanor abandons all of her best intentions in favor of unraveling the mysteries before her, because how is a person supposed to be a responsible adult when everything you counted on being true may not be? This second novel by Semple, author of the best-selling Where'd You Go, Bernadette?, was everything I needed it to be: introspective, funny, irreverent, and deeply relatable.
The Stranger Beside Me, by Ann Rule. Ann Rule, former policewoman, crime journalist, was volunteering at a crisis call center in Seattle as a series of murders occurred in the area. Then the crimes stopped as quickly as they started. Several years later, a man in Florida was arrested after a horrific multiple murder in a sorority house. The man was Ted Bundy, and man who was eventually linked to more than thirty murders across the country, and a man who had once been a fellow volunteer in the same crisis center as Ann Rule. This is her story, both of the crimes and of the man who committed them. I'm a true crime buff, and this really is the ultimate true crime story.
Sweet Little Lies, by Caz Frear. D.C. Cat Kinsella is hesitant as she investigates the murder of a young Islington housewife. The woman's body was found not far from the pub run by Cat's estranged father. When the woman turns out to be a girl the Kinsellas had met on holiday years earlier, Cat finds herself torn between loyalty to her dysfunctional family and dedication to her job. Full of twists and turns, this was a riveting procedural.
The Moth Presents: All These Wonders, edited by Catherine Burns. I am hopelessly in love with The Moth podcast. For those of you who are unfamiliar, The Moth is a non-profit group based out of New York City that is dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. The group presents a wide range of themed storytelling events across the country--many of which have been recorded for the long-running podcast, which was my introduction. Celebrating their 20th anniversary (The Moth was founded in 1997), this collection of 45 stories culled from their events focuses on stories about risk, courage, and facing the unknown. I read this collection over two days, so enthralled was I in these people's stories. I very highly recommend both the book and the podcast--they are honest, wise, insightful, life-changing.
On Call in the Arctic, by Thomas J. Sims. As Sims was finishing his residency and on the cusp of beginning his career as a pediatric surgeon, he was alerted to the impending change in his life: he was going to be drafted as a M.A.S.H. surgeon and sent to Vietnam. His alternative was accepting a commission in the U.S. Public Health Service for an assignment in Anchorage, Alaska--he took it, and brought along his very pregnant wife and young daughter when the moved days later. His life changed again when he was reassigned: instead of being Chief of Pediatrics in Anchorage, he would now be serving as the sole physician in Nome, providing medical care to not only Nome's residents, but also those of thirteen surrounding Eskimo villages, with very little support and in archaic conditions. The stories he relates in this memoir are truly amazing, by turns spine-tingling, jaw-dropping, and heart-warming. I'm recommending this to readers who also liked The Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel.
Leverage in Death, by J.D. Robb. When a marketing executive walks into a board meeting wearing a suicide vest and takes out friends and coworkers on the day his company was set to sign a significant merger, NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas is puzzled. She soon finds that the man's family was held hostage as collateral, forcing the man to commit this unthinkable act. But who would do such a thing? And why? The motive seems murky, only slowly clearing as the case progresses. I have to say, this was not one of my favorites in this long-running series--the pacing was off, there was a huge amount of stock market information that I personally found tedious. Your mileage may vary.
Today Will Be Different, by Maria Semple. This morning, Eleanor will take small actions to get her life in order. She will follow through. She will be a responsible adult, a good wife, an attentive mother, a patient friend. This ordinary, responsible day begins a slow-but-sure nosedive after her son finagles his way out of school for the day and then she finds that her husband, Joe, has told his office (but not her) that he's on vacation for the week. Eleanor abandons all of her best intentions in favor of unraveling the mysteries before her, because how is a person supposed to be a responsible adult when everything you counted on being true may not be? This second novel by Semple, author of the best-selling Where'd You Go, Bernadette?, was everything I needed it to be: introspective, funny, irreverent, and deeply relatable.
The Stranger Beside Me, by Ann Rule. Ann Rule, former policewoman, crime journalist, was volunteering at a crisis call center in Seattle as a series of murders occurred in the area. Then the crimes stopped as quickly as they started. Several years later, a man in Florida was arrested after a horrific multiple murder in a sorority house. The man was Ted Bundy, and man who was eventually linked to more than thirty murders across the country, and a man who had once been a fellow volunteer in the same crisis center as Ann Rule. This is her story, both of the crimes and of the man who committed them. I'm a true crime buff, and this really is the ultimate true crime story.
Tuesday, September 4, 2018
What I've Been Reading: August 2018
It has been a busy reading month for me! I'm glad I use Goodreads.com to track what I read, though, because when it comes time to write up one of these posts, my memory is NOT what it used to be!
The Wife, by Meg Wolitzer. World-famous novelist Joe Castleman and his wife, Joan, have kept a secret from the world for decades. The novel opens as the couple travels to Helsinki for Joe to receive a prestigious award. Joan, who has spent their entire relationship stifling her own career to fan the flames of Joe's writing, and his ego, has finally had enough. A story of the choices we make and the repercussions far down the road, this was a compelling and captivating read. I love readers who can surprise me, and Wolitzer had surprises aplenty in store for me here. Very highly recommended.
How to Keep a Secret, by Sarah Morgan. Three generations of women brought together by crisis finally have to deal with the secrets they've kept from one another. Matriarch Nancy has been holding onto the family home despite dire financial straits, and that's just the beginning of what she hasn't told either of her daughters. Lauren's perfect life turns out to be more facade than fact, and when she must head back to her roots for both herself and her daughter Mack, the stark reality of their plight hits home. Lauren's sister Jenna keeps a trademark smile plastered on her face, but look a little deeper and she's hiding something from those she loves most. A fast, intriguing read--I very much enjoyed it.
The Bookshop of Yesterdays, by Amy Meyerson. Miranda Brooks spent her childhood exploring the stacks of her Uncle Billy's bookstore, following clues in his ubiquitous scavenger hunts through the shelves and volumes. Until she's twelve, and mysterious falling out between her mother and Billy causes her uncle to disappear from her life. She doesn't hear from him again until sixteen years later, when he dies and leaves one final scavenger hunt for Miranda to follow. The journey toward solving his final puzzle leads Miranda to speak to people from Billy's past, and in the process, uncover the secret that tore her family apart years ago. Part mystery, part bibliophile's delight, this was excellent.
The Sun Does Shine, by Anthony Ray Hinton. In 1985, Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in Alabama. Hinton knew this was a case of mistaken identity and had an alibi, but a combination of a lack of funds to pay for his defense and a different system of justice for a poor black man in rural Alabama lost Hinton everything--he received a death sentence. Full of despair and refusing to speak for his first three years of incarceration, Hinton eventually came to the decision to not only live on Death Row, but thrive. A story of a man who fought for his life and for his freedom, fiercely believing that the truth would ultimately set him free, which did indeed happen in 2015, with the help of civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson. Intense and deeply thought-provoking.
Whistle in the Dark, by Emma Healey. While on holiday together, Jen's teenage daughter Lana goes missing. When she's finally found four days later, she's bruised, bloodied, exhausted, and all but mute. She cannot, or will not, tell her parents, doctors, or police where she was or what happened while she was missing. In the weeks that follow, Jen becomes increasingly worried about her daughter, the child who has always been plagued by dark demons. Without telling her daughter, or the rest of her family, where she is going, Jen sets out to retrace Lana's steps during her disappearance, with a result she hadn't imagined.
The Other Mother, by Carol Goodman. In the months following the birth of little Chloe, her mother Daphne has suffered from dark moods and intrusive thoughts. It seems natural for her to bond immediately with another mother, Laurel, from their new moms group. After all, Laurel also has a daughter named Chloe. And Daphne and Laurel even look a little bit alike. Outwardly, Laurel is sarcastic and confident, but it turns out that she's also suffering from postpartum symptoms. But becoming friends with Laurel will come at a shocking price, and everyone's secrets will out. Don't blink while you read this--it is packed full of so many twists!
The Lost For Words Bookshop, by Stephanie Butland. Loveday Cardew prefers books to most people. While she has tattooed her favorite opening lines on her skin, there are so many things she refuses to share with others. And then the secondhand bookstore where she works, her second home, begins to funnel things to her she'd never thought to see: a poet, a lover, and three donations of books which may expose her secret past once and for all. I am a sucker for fiction written with bibliophiles in mind, and this has to be one of my favorites to date. Fans of books like The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry or Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore should check this one out.
Pieces of Her, by Karin Slaughter. Andrea isn't sure of a lot of things. Like what she wants to do with her life. But she is certain she knows her mother, Laura. At least, she thinks she does until violence erupts in the mall while she's out to lunch with her mom and her mother turns out to be someone very different from the mild-mannered speech therapist Andrea has always known. And as Laura's past as someone other than Laura resurfaces, Andrea must flee, both to stay safe, but also to uncover Laura's past and make sense of the sudden shift in her reality. Meticulously plotted and fast-paced, this was a great stand-alone title from Slaughter.
A Noise Downstairs, by Linwood Barclay. When an ordinary evening drive nearly kills college professor Paul Davis, it's devastating. Months later, he's still struggling with recovery. There's the depression, the PTSD, the occasional memory lapses. In an attempt to cheer him, his wife Charlotte brings home a present: an antique typewriter. This present, however, seems possessed, haunting Paul with phantom typing noises only he can here. Is it communicating a message meant for him? Is he cracking up completely? Or is there something eminently more sinister at work here? Full of plot twists and red herrings aplenty, I have to say I think that this is one of Barclay's best in recent years. Highly recommended.
Not a Poster Child, by Francine Falk-Allen. You're not dreaming. I really did read two memoirs in one month. Weird, right? While polio is back in the news due to the anti-vaccination movement after over a half-century fading into near-obscurity in this country, it has never been forgotten by those who still experience its effects. Francine Falk-Allen was only three when she contracted polio and temporarily lost the ability to stand or walk. Here she recounts her experiences with hospitals, treatments, braces, and her determination to be a "normie". And later, as an adult, how she found balance and fulfillment in multiple ways. An eye-opening account of living with a physical disability, both funny and thoughtful.
The Wife, by Meg Wolitzer. World-famous novelist Joe Castleman and his wife, Joan, have kept a secret from the world for decades. The novel opens as the couple travels to Helsinki for Joe to receive a prestigious award. Joan, who has spent their entire relationship stifling her own career to fan the flames of Joe's writing, and his ego, has finally had enough. A story of the choices we make and the repercussions far down the road, this was a compelling and captivating read. I love readers who can surprise me, and Wolitzer had surprises aplenty in store for me here. Very highly recommended.
How to Keep a Secret, by Sarah Morgan. Three generations of women brought together by crisis finally have to deal with the secrets they've kept from one another. Matriarch Nancy has been holding onto the family home despite dire financial straits, and that's just the beginning of what she hasn't told either of her daughters. Lauren's perfect life turns out to be more facade than fact, and when she must head back to her roots for both herself and her daughter Mack, the stark reality of their plight hits home. Lauren's sister Jenna keeps a trademark smile plastered on her face, but look a little deeper and she's hiding something from those she loves most. A fast, intriguing read--I very much enjoyed it.
The Bookshop of Yesterdays, by Amy Meyerson. Miranda Brooks spent her childhood exploring the stacks of her Uncle Billy's bookstore, following clues in his ubiquitous scavenger hunts through the shelves and volumes. Until she's twelve, and mysterious falling out between her mother and Billy causes her uncle to disappear from her life. She doesn't hear from him again until sixteen years later, when he dies and leaves one final scavenger hunt for Miranda to follow. The journey toward solving his final puzzle leads Miranda to speak to people from Billy's past, and in the process, uncover the secret that tore her family apart years ago. Part mystery, part bibliophile's delight, this was excellent.
The Sun Does Shine, by Anthony Ray Hinton. In 1985, Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in Alabama. Hinton knew this was a case of mistaken identity and had an alibi, but a combination of a lack of funds to pay for his defense and a different system of justice for a poor black man in rural Alabama lost Hinton everything--he received a death sentence. Full of despair and refusing to speak for his first three years of incarceration, Hinton eventually came to the decision to not only live on Death Row, but thrive. A story of a man who fought for his life and for his freedom, fiercely believing that the truth would ultimately set him free, which did indeed happen in 2015, with the help of civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson. Intense and deeply thought-provoking.
Whistle in the Dark, by Emma Healey. While on holiday together, Jen's teenage daughter Lana goes missing. When she's finally found four days later, she's bruised, bloodied, exhausted, and all but mute. She cannot, or will not, tell her parents, doctors, or police where she was or what happened while she was missing. In the weeks that follow, Jen becomes increasingly worried about her daughter, the child who has always been plagued by dark demons. Without telling her daughter, or the rest of her family, where she is going, Jen sets out to retrace Lana's steps during her disappearance, with a result she hadn't imagined.
The Other Mother, by Carol Goodman. In the months following the birth of little Chloe, her mother Daphne has suffered from dark moods and intrusive thoughts. It seems natural for her to bond immediately with another mother, Laurel, from their new moms group. After all, Laurel also has a daughter named Chloe. And Daphne and Laurel even look a little bit alike. Outwardly, Laurel is sarcastic and confident, but it turns out that she's also suffering from postpartum symptoms. But becoming friends with Laurel will come at a shocking price, and everyone's secrets will out. Don't blink while you read this--it is packed full of so many twists!
The Lost For Words Bookshop, by Stephanie Butland. Loveday Cardew prefers books to most people. While she has tattooed her favorite opening lines on her skin, there are so many things she refuses to share with others. And then the secondhand bookstore where she works, her second home, begins to funnel things to her she'd never thought to see: a poet, a lover, and three donations of books which may expose her secret past once and for all. I am a sucker for fiction written with bibliophiles in mind, and this has to be one of my favorites to date. Fans of books like The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry or Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore should check this one out.
Pieces of Her, by Karin Slaughter. Andrea isn't sure of a lot of things. Like what she wants to do with her life. But she is certain she knows her mother, Laura. At least, she thinks she does until violence erupts in the mall while she's out to lunch with her mom and her mother turns out to be someone very different from the mild-mannered speech therapist Andrea has always known. And as Laura's past as someone other than Laura resurfaces, Andrea must flee, both to stay safe, but also to uncover Laura's past and make sense of the sudden shift in her reality. Meticulously plotted and fast-paced, this was a great stand-alone title from Slaughter.
A Noise Downstairs, by Linwood Barclay. When an ordinary evening drive nearly kills college professor Paul Davis, it's devastating. Months later, he's still struggling with recovery. There's the depression, the PTSD, the occasional memory lapses. In an attempt to cheer him, his wife Charlotte brings home a present: an antique typewriter. This present, however, seems possessed, haunting Paul with phantom typing noises only he can here. Is it communicating a message meant for him? Is he cracking up completely? Or is there something eminently more sinister at work here? Full of plot twists and red herrings aplenty, I have to say I think that this is one of Barclay's best in recent years. Highly recommended.
Not a Poster Child, by Francine Falk-Allen. You're not dreaming. I really did read two memoirs in one month. Weird, right? While polio is back in the news due to the anti-vaccination movement after over a half-century fading into near-obscurity in this country, it has never been forgotten by those who still experience its effects. Francine Falk-Allen was only three when she contracted polio and temporarily lost the ability to stand or walk. Here she recounts her experiences with hospitals, treatments, braces, and her determination to be a "normie". And later, as an adult, how she found balance and fulfillment in multiple ways. An eye-opening account of living with a physical disability, both funny and thoughtful.
Tuesday, July 31, 2018
What I've Been Reading: July 2018
I realize I say this every summer, but I love these long, light evenings, perfect for lounging with a good book. And I've been reading up a storm, in my usual array of different genres.
Calypso, by David Sedaris. Sedaris's new collection of cheerfully misanthropic essays, mostly autobiographical, was thoroughly entertaining. While slightly more maudlin and less raucously absurd than some of his previous work, his reflections on aging, middle age, and mortality are both wryly funny and thought provoking. Don't misunderstand me: I still laughed until my sides ached. But this collection is simply more reflective and thoughtful in some ways than his past work. I can never get enough. The audiobook, read by the author, is a stellar performance.
Only Human, by Sylvain Neuvel. Third in Neuvel's brilliant Themis Files series. As a child, Rose Franklin found a giant metal hand near her home in South Dakota. As an adult, she became a scientist who studied the hand and found the other pieces of the giant robot, assembling it and the team who would pilot Themis. She and her team used Themis to protect Earth from geopolitical conflict and an alien invasion. Now, returning to Earth after ten years on Themis's home planet, Rose finds her old alliances in shambles and the planet itself on the verge of collapse. Even as her oldest friends turn against one another, Rose must piece together the fragments of the Earth Defense Corps or all of her work will have been for nothing. This science fiction series reads more like psychological suspense, full of puzzles and twists--I love it.
Eleanor & Hick, by Susan Quinn. Having recently read Amy Bloom's fascinating latest novel, White Houses, about the relationship between AP reporter Lorena Hickock and first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, of course I wanted to know more. Quinn's book briefly covers the vastly different childhoods of these two unlikely friends, and then moves on to their enduring relationship which spanned more than thirty years. These two fiercely compassionate women spurred each other on to right wrongs during their turbulent lifetimes, and held each other up through private hardships. Quinn's work was masterful, and I greatly enjoyed this in audiobook format.
Set This House in Order, by Matt Ruff. I revisited this old favorite, which I had read more than a decade ago. Andy Gage was born in 1965 and was murdered not long after by his stepfather. Only, it was Andy's soul which was murdered, and it shattered into over a hundred pieces, many of which became souls in their own rights. Now, together, these souls run Andy's body and struggle to coexist in his head. Andy's new coworker, Penny, is also a multiple, only not all of Penny's souls know that the others exist. It's only in helping Penny's souls to work together that the two discover a terrible secret that Andy has been hiding...from himself. Truly fascinating stuff.
Still Alice, by Lisa Genova. Genova, who writes about characters with neurological disorders (Left Neglected, Every Note Played, etc.), writes here about Harvard professor of cognitive psychology Alice Howland. She's esteemed in her field, has written a text book, is married to another Harvard professor and scientist. And then she starts to become increasingly forgetful, missing a conference where she was meant to be a speaker, losing track of her lectures during classes. When the diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer's turns her world upside down, Alice must choose how to make the best use of her time while she is still herself. A fast and compelling read which made for excellent discussion in my book club. This is also available in Large Print and audiobook. It has also been made into an award-winning film starring Julianne Moore.
The Uncoupling, by Meg Wolitzer. Wolitzer (The Interestings, The Female Persuasion) is adept at giving readers a fresh lens through which to look at different issues. When the new drama teacher at Stellar Plains High School chooses "Lysistrata" for the annual school play (the comedy by Aristophanes in which women stop having sex with men in order to stop a war), a strange effect falls over the community--the women lose interest in sex, for reasons they don't understand. Even more confused and upset are their husbands, boyfriends, and lovers. The result is that these couples must all reflect on their shared histories without sex in the picture, with a variety of outcomes. Unusual but enlightening. Also available as an audiobook.
Bring Me Back, by B.A. Paris. Finn and Layla, young and in love, are on vacation when Layla disappears. Authorities are alerted, and while Finn is the original suspect in her disappearance, he is eventually cleared. Layla never resurfaces. A decade later, Finn has started to finally move on. He's moved out of the cottage that he and Layla shared, though he cannot bring himself to sell it. He's engaged...to Layla's sister, Ellen. Then Finn get's a call from an old neighbor, a man who swears he's seen Layla near the old cottage. Long-lost items from Layla's past begin to appear out of nowhere. And then someone emails Finn...claiming to be Layla herself. An absolutely gripping novel from the author of Behind Closed Doors.
Also available in Large Print and audio.
Caged, by Ellison Cooper. This debut thriller had me on the edge of my seat, and I could not put it down. You can read my original review here.
The Supernatural Enhancements, by Edgar Cantero. Told in a series of letters, journal entries, and transcripts, Cantero's debut begins months after the last of the Wells sons jumped out of his bedroom window to his death. His heir, a long-distant cousin from across the Atlantic, arrives with his sidekick/bodyguard, Niamh, a young mute teen with a punk hairstyle. They're excited about their change of fortune, and the rumors that the mansion is haunted are just an added bonus. Until, that is, they start to dig into the house's mysterious past and find that ghosts are just the beginning. Ambitious and ultimately very rewarding. His sophomore novel, Meddling Kids, is still my favorite to date, though his new novel due out today, This Body's Not Big Enough for Both of Us, may change that--we'll see!
1Q84, by Haruki Murakami. It's 1984 in Tokyo and Aomame, following the advice of a taxi driver, begins to notice the puzzling anomalies in the world around her. She realizes that she has entered an alternate, parallel existence, one that she calls 1Q84, a world that bears a question. Meanwhile, aspiring writer Tengo takes on a ghostwriting project despite some deep misgivings. It is only as their two stories converge over the course of this single year that we learn just how deeply these two strangers are connected. Also available in audiobook.
Suicide Club, by Rachel Heng. Lea Kirino is a "Lifer". Her genetic makeup has given her the opportunity to live forever, if she does everything just right. Lea is an overachiever--she's risen steadily through the ranks as a trader for the New York exchange, where they now trade organs and upgrades instead of stocks. She has a beautiful apartment and a fiance who rivals her own genetic perfection. With the right balance of calibrated nutrition, low-impact conditioning and systematic upgrades, she just might live forever. Of course, the flip side of this is that she cannot die--death is not just taboo in this culture, but illegal. Then she finds she has a connection to the Suicide Club, a group of people who reject the societal drive for immortality. There lies the choice: live forever by the governmental regime, or go rogue and have a shorter life knowing the only family she has left. Heng's debut is catalogued as science fiction, but is more psychological, and philosophical, thriller than anything else. Totally engrossing and ultimately brilliant.
The Kiss Quotient, by Helen Hoang. Stella, at thirty, loves her work developing algorithms that predict customer purchases. For her, math is the one thing that unites everything in the world, and she revels in the logic of it. She has more money than she needs, and no social life. Definitely no boyfriend, despite her mother's repeated attempts to set Stella up with suitable bachelors--Stella's mother wants grandbabies, now. It might have something to do with Stella's seeing French kissing as akin to pilot fish cleaning a shark's teeth. She applies logic to her quandary and decides she needs lessons in relationships, from a profession. The escort she hires, Michael, agrees to go along and help her check off the boxes for the list she has compiled--he can't afford not to. And he realizes that Stella has Asperger's, which will make his approach that much more complicated. But when their partnership starts to make sense, can a real relationship follow? I have to say that this debut was one of the most surprisingly emotional novels I've read in some time. For what looks like it might be a bit of fluff, the author's deft hand with a variety of subject matters (Asperger's, cultural clashes, relationship pitfalls) and her beautifully drawn characters made this one of my favorite reads of late.
Calypso, by David Sedaris. Sedaris's new collection of cheerfully misanthropic essays, mostly autobiographical, was thoroughly entertaining. While slightly more maudlin and less raucously absurd than some of his previous work, his reflections on aging, middle age, and mortality are both wryly funny and thought provoking. Don't misunderstand me: I still laughed until my sides ached. But this collection is simply more reflective and thoughtful in some ways than his past work. I can never get enough. The audiobook, read by the author, is a stellar performance.
Only Human, by Sylvain Neuvel. Third in Neuvel's brilliant Themis Files series. As a child, Rose Franklin found a giant metal hand near her home in South Dakota. As an adult, she became a scientist who studied the hand and found the other pieces of the giant robot, assembling it and the team who would pilot Themis. She and her team used Themis to protect Earth from geopolitical conflict and an alien invasion. Now, returning to Earth after ten years on Themis's home planet, Rose finds her old alliances in shambles and the planet itself on the verge of collapse. Even as her oldest friends turn against one another, Rose must piece together the fragments of the Earth Defense Corps or all of her work will have been for nothing. This science fiction series reads more like psychological suspense, full of puzzles and twists--I love it.
Eleanor & Hick, by Susan Quinn. Having recently read Amy Bloom's fascinating latest novel, White Houses, about the relationship between AP reporter Lorena Hickock and first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, of course I wanted to know more. Quinn's book briefly covers the vastly different childhoods of these two unlikely friends, and then moves on to their enduring relationship which spanned more than thirty years. These two fiercely compassionate women spurred each other on to right wrongs during their turbulent lifetimes, and held each other up through private hardships. Quinn's work was masterful, and I greatly enjoyed this in audiobook format.
Set This House in Order, by Matt Ruff. I revisited this old favorite, which I had read more than a decade ago. Andy Gage was born in 1965 and was murdered not long after by his stepfather. Only, it was Andy's soul which was murdered, and it shattered into over a hundred pieces, many of which became souls in their own rights. Now, together, these souls run Andy's body and struggle to coexist in his head. Andy's new coworker, Penny, is also a multiple, only not all of Penny's souls know that the others exist. It's only in helping Penny's souls to work together that the two discover a terrible secret that Andy has been hiding...from himself. Truly fascinating stuff.
Still Alice, by Lisa Genova. Genova, who writes about characters with neurological disorders (Left Neglected, Every Note Played, etc.), writes here about Harvard professor of cognitive psychology Alice Howland. She's esteemed in her field, has written a text book, is married to another Harvard professor and scientist. And then she starts to become increasingly forgetful, missing a conference where she was meant to be a speaker, losing track of her lectures during classes. When the diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer's turns her world upside down, Alice must choose how to make the best use of her time while she is still herself. A fast and compelling read which made for excellent discussion in my book club. This is also available in Large Print and audiobook. It has also been made into an award-winning film starring Julianne Moore.
The Uncoupling, by Meg Wolitzer. Wolitzer (The Interestings, The Female Persuasion) is adept at giving readers a fresh lens through which to look at different issues. When the new drama teacher at Stellar Plains High School chooses "Lysistrata" for the annual school play (the comedy by Aristophanes in which women stop having sex with men in order to stop a war), a strange effect falls over the community--the women lose interest in sex, for reasons they don't understand. Even more confused and upset are their husbands, boyfriends, and lovers. The result is that these couples must all reflect on their shared histories without sex in the picture, with a variety of outcomes. Unusual but enlightening. Also available as an audiobook.
Bring Me Back, by B.A. Paris. Finn and Layla, young and in love, are on vacation when Layla disappears. Authorities are alerted, and while Finn is the original suspect in her disappearance, he is eventually cleared. Layla never resurfaces. A decade later, Finn has started to finally move on. He's moved out of the cottage that he and Layla shared, though he cannot bring himself to sell it. He's engaged...to Layla's sister, Ellen. Then Finn get's a call from an old neighbor, a man who swears he's seen Layla near the old cottage. Long-lost items from Layla's past begin to appear out of nowhere. And then someone emails Finn...claiming to be Layla herself. An absolutely gripping novel from the author of Behind Closed Doors.
Also available in Large Print and audio.
Caged, by Ellison Cooper. This debut thriller had me on the edge of my seat, and I could not put it down. You can read my original review here.
The Supernatural Enhancements, by Edgar Cantero. Told in a series of letters, journal entries, and transcripts, Cantero's debut begins months after the last of the Wells sons jumped out of his bedroom window to his death. His heir, a long-distant cousin from across the Atlantic, arrives with his sidekick/bodyguard, Niamh, a young mute teen with a punk hairstyle. They're excited about their change of fortune, and the rumors that the mansion is haunted are just an added bonus. Until, that is, they start to dig into the house's mysterious past and find that ghosts are just the beginning. Ambitious and ultimately very rewarding. His sophomore novel, Meddling Kids, is still my favorite to date, though his new novel due out today, This Body's Not Big Enough for Both of Us, may change that--we'll see!
1Q84, by Haruki Murakami. It's 1984 in Tokyo and Aomame, following the advice of a taxi driver, begins to notice the puzzling anomalies in the world around her. She realizes that she has entered an alternate, parallel existence, one that she calls 1Q84, a world that bears a question. Meanwhile, aspiring writer Tengo takes on a ghostwriting project despite some deep misgivings. It is only as their two stories converge over the course of this single year that we learn just how deeply these two strangers are connected. Also available in audiobook.
Suicide Club, by Rachel Heng. Lea Kirino is a "Lifer". Her genetic makeup has given her the opportunity to live forever, if she does everything just right. Lea is an overachiever--she's risen steadily through the ranks as a trader for the New York exchange, where they now trade organs and upgrades instead of stocks. She has a beautiful apartment and a fiance who rivals her own genetic perfection. With the right balance of calibrated nutrition, low-impact conditioning and systematic upgrades, she just might live forever. Of course, the flip side of this is that she cannot die--death is not just taboo in this culture, but illegal. Then she finds she has a connection to the Suicide Club, a group of people who reject the societal drive for immortality. There lies the choice: live forever by the governmental regime, or go rogue and have a shorter life knowing the only family she has left. Heng's debut is catalogued as science fiction, but is more psychological, and philosophical, thriller than anything else. Totally engrossing and ultimately brilliant.
The Kiss Quotient, by Helen Hoang. Stella, at thirty, loves her work developing algorithms that predict customer purchases. For her, math is the one thing that unites everything in the world, and she revels in the logic of it. She has more money than she needs, and no social life. Definitely no boyfriend, despite her mother's repeated attempts to set Stella up with suitable bachelors--Stella's mother wants grandbabies, now. It might have something to do with Stella's seeing French kissing as akin to pilot fish cleaning a shark's teeth. She applies logic to her quandary and decides she needs lessons in relationships, from a profession. The escort she hires, Michael, agrees to go along and help her check off the boxes for the list she has compiled--he can't afford not to. And he realizes that Stella has Asperger's, which will make his approach that much more complicated. But when their partnership starts to make sense, can a real relationship follow? I have to say that this debut was one of the most surprisingly emotional novels I've read in some time. For what looks like it might be a bit of fluff, the author's deft hand with a variety of subject matters (Asperger's, cultural clashes, relationship pitfalls) and her beautifully drawn characters made this one of my favorite reads of late.
Thursday, May 3, 2018
What I've Been Reading: April 2018
I'm reading up a storm over here! Want to know what's good? Read on!
Need to Know, by Karen Cleveland. CIA analyst Vivian Miller loves her job and her family. Her husband is her best friend, they know one another better than anyone. Or so she thinks. One chance click as she researches brings her personal life crashing down around her, forcing Vivian to wonder whether her whole life is really a lie. This thriller from newcomer Cleveland is fast-paced and tightly plotted, gripping and compelling. I absolutely couldn't stand to put it down. Highly recommended. Also available in Large Print and audio.
My Absolute Darling, by Gabriel Tallent. Tallent's debut novel is not a read for the faint of heart. Fourteen-year-old Turtle lives a life unimaginable to her neighbors and classmates. Her father and grandfather live off the grid, her father obsessed with the certainty that doomsday is nigh. He prepares Turtle for this eventuality, teaching her to forage, to shoot, to hunt, to survive. She does survive, but she only imagines thriving after meeting Jacob, a boy who makes her want to live a normal, safe, sustainable life. Turtle must struggle to be her own hero, to extricate herself from the twisted relationship with her father. This is a harrowing, heartbreaking story, and I cannot wait to see what Tallent writes next. Also available in audio.
George & Lizzie, by Nancy Pearl. It has been a month for me to read debut novels, it seems. Nancy Pearl is "America's librarian" and a regular NPR commentator. Her first novel is about relationships, and how we can become stuck by our decisions, by what we keep from our past and what we choose to let go. George and Lizzie are as different as they could possibly be. George is from a warm, close family, Lizzie an only child raised by two very emotionally distant psychologists. Their marriage reflects this--George is happy, Lizzie is chronically unfulfilled and full of secrets. When crisis looms, Lizzie must decide once and for all, does she move on at long last? Or does she stick with what she knows? Wryly funny, this story really grew on me, and upon reflection with a little distance, I find myself looking forward to rereading this in the future with the benefit of foresight. Also available in Large Print.
A Stash of One's Own, edited by Clara Parkes. This collection of essays by knitters, designers, writers, spinners, and shepherds, among others, focuses on the individuality and approach to the ubiquitous yarn stash. For some, more is (almost) always more. Others have developed a zen-like minimalist approach, a KonMari-esque method of keeping only that which inspires one to create. Still others only keep on hand that which is necessary to design, refusing to keep anything beyond. Knitters are each as unique as artists in any other medium, and these essays were quite eye-opening on how widely varied their approach to their stash can be.
When Breath Becomes Air, by Paul Kalanithi. I've been reading ahead a bit for my book club--this is our selection for our June meeting. I was hesitant to read this, the memoir of a brilliant neurosurgeon turned patient with stage IV lung cancer, because I didn't want to read something sad. And yet, I read it early so that I might have some distance when we talked about it for book club. What I did not expect was to be completely overwhelmed by the wisdom, the deep thoughtfulness, that Kalanithi conveyed as his future disappeared and he was forced to stop planning and live in a perpetual present. Words like "beautiful" and "deeply moving" are inadequate to describe this slim volume teeming with meaning. Also available in Large Print and audio.
Spoonbenders, by Daryl Gregory. Teddy Telemachus is a con man with a talent for sleight of hand and some very unsavory associates who tricks his way into a classified government experiment concerning the use of telekinesis for intelligence-gathering. It's there that he meets the woman he's going to marry, Maureen McKinnon, a genuinely powerful psychic. Their Amazing Telemachus family becomes a show-biz act, each of the children with a gift of his or her own, until a television appearance that could have made them big-time goes horribly awry, and begins to tear the family apart from the inside. Two decades later, the family is growing steadily more dysfunctional, full of love-affairs, mob debts, and inexplicable behavior. The CIA is sniffing around again. And then things start to get weird... Laugh-out-loud funny and perfectly told, this is for the dreamers and believers in all of us.
Sourdough, by Robin Sloan. From the author of the extremely awesome Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore comes a new novel about food and technology. Lois Clary is a programmer working for a San Francisco company specializing in robotics tech. She enjoys her grueling work, but her joy comes from her regular takeout from a hole-in-the-wall eatery that brings her spicy soups and sandwiches each night. When the eatery suddenly closes, the owners gift Lois with their sourdough starter, and Lois suddenly finds herself baking bread. Then selling bread and gifting it. Then finds herself invited into a new breed of farmers' market seeking to fuse food and technology. But who are these people, really? Funny and insightful, Sloan's second novel delivers. I look forward to his next!
The Family Gathering, by Robyn Carr. Third in Carr's newest series, Sullivan's Crossing, The Family Gathering finds Dakota Jones freshly a civilian after a long career with the military. He decides to head to the Crossing, where both his older brother and youngest sister have settled down with their respective significant others. He's drawn to the place and its people, but also finds himself a magnet for trouble, especially that of the female variety. He's been trying to keep his options open, and trouble is something he'd like to avoid. He and his siblings gather for a family wedding, the first time all four have been together as adults, and it's here that he starts to understand their shared history a little better, and how he'd like to direct his life in the future. A sweet and easy read, if slightly overstuffed. Also available in Large Print and audio.
Need to Know, by Karen Cleveland. CIA analyst Vivian Miller loves her job and her family. Her husband is her best friend, they know one another better than anyone. Or so she thinks. One chance click as she researches brings her personal life crashing down around her, forcing Vivian to wonder whether her whole life is really a lie. This thriller from newcomer Cleveland is fast-paced and tightly plotted, gripping and compelling. I absolutely couldn't stand to put it down. Highly recommended. Also available in Large Print and audio.
My Absolute Darling, by Gabriel Tallent. Tallent's debut novel is not a read for the faint of heart. Fourteen-year-old Turtle lives a life unimaginable to her neighbors and classmates. Her father and grandfather live off the grid, her father obsessed with the certainty that doomsday is nigh. He prepares Turtle for this eventuality, teaching her to forage, to shoot, to hunt, to survive. She does survive, but she only imagines thriving after meeting Jacob, a boy who makes her want to live a normal, safe, sustainable life. Turtle must struggle to be her own hero, to extricate herself from the twisted relationship with her father. This is a harrowing, heartbreaking story, and I cannot wait to see what Tallent writes next. Also available in audio.
George & Lizzie, by Nancy Pearl. It has been a month for me to read debut novels, it seems. Nancy Pearl is "America's librarian" and a regular NPR commentator. Her first novel is about relationships, and how we can become stuck by our decisions, by what we keep from our past and what we choose to let go. George and Lizzie are as different as they could possibly be. George is from a warm, close family, Lizzie an only child raised by two very emotionally distant psychologists. Their marriage reflects this--George is happy, Lizzie is chronically unfulfilled and full of secrets. When crisis looms, Lizzie must decide once and for all, does she move on at long last? Or does she stick with what she knows? Wryly funny, this story really grew on me, and upon reflection with a little distance, I find myself looking forward to rereading this in the future with the benefit of foresight. Also available in Large Print.
A Stash of One's Own, edited by Clara Parkes. This collection of essays by knitters, designers, writers, spinners, and shepherds, among others, focuses on the individuality and approach to the ubiquitous yarn stash. For some, more is (almost) always more. Others have developed a zen-like minimalist approach, a KonMari-esque method of keeping only that which inspires one to create. Still others only keep on hand that which is necessary to design, refusing to keep anything beyond. Knitters are each as unique as artists in any other medium, and these essays were quite eye-opening on how widely varied their approach to their stash can be.
When Breath Becomes Air, by Paul Kalanithi. I've been reading ahead a bit for my book club--this is our selection for our June meeting. I was hesitant to read this, the memoir of a brilliant neurosurgeon turned patient with stage IV lung cancer, because I didn't want to read something sad. And yet, I read it early so that I might have some distance when we talked about it for book club. What I did not expect was to be completely overwhelmed by the wisdom, the deep thoughtfulness, that Kalanithi conveyed as his future disappeared and he was forced to stop planning and live in a perpetual present. Words like "beautiful" and "deeply moving" are inadequate to describe this slim volume teeming with meaning. Also available in Large Print and audio.
Spoonbenders, by Daryl Gregory. Teddy Telemachus is a con man with a talent for sleight of hand and some very unsavory associates who tricks his way into a classified government experiment concerning the use of telekinesis for intelligence-gathering. It's there that he meets the woman he's going to marry, Maureen McKinnon, a genuinely powerful psychic. Their Amazing Telemachus family becomes a show-biz act, each of the children with a gift of his or her own, until a television appearance that could have made them big-time goes horribly awry, and begins to tear the family apart from the inside. Two decades later, the family is growing steadily more dysfunctional, full of love-affairs, mob debts, and inexplicable behavior. The CIA is sniffing around again. And then things start to get weird... Laugh-out-loud funny and perfectly told, this is for the dreamers and believers in all of us.
Sourdough, by Robin Sloan. From the author of the extremely awesome Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore comes a new novel about food and technology. Lois Clary is a programmer working for a San Francisco company specializing in robotics tech. She enjoys her grueling work, but her joy comes from her regular takeout from a hole-in-the-wall eatery that brings her spicy soups and sandwiches each night. When the eatery suddenly closes, the owners gift Lois with their sourdough starter, and Lois suddenly finds herself baking bread. Then selling bread and gifting it. Then finds herself invited into a new breed of farmers' market seeking to fuse food and technology. But who are these people, really? Funny and insightful, Sloan's second novel delivers. I look forward to his next!
The Family Gathering, by Robyn Carr. Third in Carr's newest series, Sullivan's Crossing, The Family Gathering finds Dakota Jones freshly a civilian after a long career with the military. He decides to head to the Crossing, where both his older brother and youngest sister have settled down with their respective significant others. He's drawn to the place and its people, but also finds himself a magnet for trouble, especially that of the female variety. He's been trying to keep his options open, and trouble is something he'd like to avoid. He and his siblings gather for a family wedding, the first time all four have been together as adults, and it's here that he starts to understand their shared history a little better, and how he'd like to direct his life in the future. A sweet and easy read, if slightly overstuffed. Also available in Large Print and audio.
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
What I've been reading: October 2017
Hard to believe that it's already Halloween, when it still felt almost summery last week! I have, of course, been enjoying some great reads this month, and I can't wait to share them!
Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing, by Jennifer Weiner. This funny and incredibly candid collection of essays from best-selling novelist Weiner (Good In Bed, In Her Shoes, etc.) covers everything. From weight, sex, love, motherhood, marriage(s), and writing to divorce, reality TV, Twitter fights and dog ownership, the essays cover all of it and more. I've been a fan of her writing since her debut and found this collection equally entertaining--I couldn't put it down.
Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens, by Eddie Izzard. Izzard, comedian, actor, writer, here brings his own brand of sharp and clever humor to the page in essays that cover topics like mad ancient kings, politics both historical and sexual, chickens with guns, running marathons, and a number of other, more personal bits. He has long been one of my very favorite comedians, and if you're a fan, I highly recommend this memoir.
How to Find Love in a Bookshop, by Veronica Henry. Nightingale Books has been a fixture in its little village home for decades. After proprietor Julian passes away, his daughter Emilia returns to run it in its stead. She misses her father, as do the shop regulars, and together they form something close to family. Running the shop is not altogether easy, and the urge to sell to a local developer is hard to resist. More than anything, this is a story of stories, of books and how they connect to readers, of how readers connect to one another, and the stories each of us have to tell one another. Thoroughly enjoyed this one.
The Paris Architect, by Charles Belfoure. This is my book club's pick for our November meeting. It is 1942 in German-occupied Paris, and gifted architect Lucien Bernard has accepted a commission that will earn him a great deal of money, and quite possibly get him killed. His benefactor asks him to create hiding places for wealthy Jews being smuggled out of the country, hiding places so ingenious that no German officer could ever find them. And Lucien does these jobs, studiously ignoring the personal aspects...until one of his jobs fails, and Lucien's work becomes very personal, indeed. Belfoure, an architect himself, brings his knowledge to every detail. This was an enthralling read, and one I can't wait to discuss with our group.
Eleanor & Park, by Rainbow Rowell. I adore Rainbow Rowell's work, YA and adult titles alike. Her YA books do not condescend to the reader; she meets them on equal ground. Here, Park is used to being a relative oddity in his 1986 Omaha neighborhood, one of two (his brother being the other) half Korean kids in their entire school. His method of coping with teasing on the bus is to ignore the others, listening to loud music on his headphones and reading comic books. Then the new girl gets on the bus, a pale girl with a ton of red hair, an immediate new target for the bullies in the back seats. There's nowhere for her to sit except next to Park, and this is how the unlikeliest of friendships grows over the course of the school year together. Bittersweet and heartbreakingly honest, this was a book I devoured over the course of two evenings, I couldn't do anything else until I knew how it ended.
The Summer That Made Us, by Robyn Carr. Two sisters had three daughters each, and they all spent summers at their family lake house. Those were the best of times. Until tragedy struck one summer, and everyone scattered, and the family was no longer close and each woman went her separate way. Until tragedy becomes the catalyst to bring them together again, decades later. It's a story of loss and of hope and rebuilding one's life after catastrophe, of learning and loving and moving on. And while it was interesting and certainly readable, it felt a bit unfinished, maybe a little rushed. There were story lines left unfinished, sub-plots left unexplored, as though there was too much in the beginning to tie up in the end. Which makes me wonder whether this might be the first in a new series? Time will tell.
The Little French Bistro, by Nina George. I enjoyed this one so much, I couldn't keep it to myself. You can read my review here.
Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing, by Jennifer Weiner. This funny and incredibly candid collection of essays from best-selling novelist Weiner (Good In Bed, In Her Shoes, etc.) covers everything. From weight, sex, love, motherhood, marriage(s), and writing to divorce, reality TV, Twitter fights and dog ownership, the essays cover all of it and more. I've been a fan of her writing since her debut and found this collection equally entertaining--I couldn't put it down.
Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens, by Eddie Izzard. Izzard, comedian, actor, writer, here brings his own brand of sharp and clever humor to the page in essays that cover topics like mad ancient kings, politics both historical and sexual, chickens with guns, running marathons, and a number of other, more personal bits. He has long been one of my very favorite comedians, and if you're a fan, I highly recommend this memoir.
How to Find Love in a Bookshop, by Veronica Henry. Nightingale Books has been a fixture in its little village home for decades. After proprietor Julian passes away, his daughter Emilia returns to run it in its stead. She misses her father, as do the shop regulars, and together they form something close to family. Running the shop is not altogether easy, and the urge to sell to a local developer is hard to resist. More than anything, this is a story of stories, of books and how they connect to readers, of how readers connect to one another, and the stories each of us have to tell one another. Thoroughly enjoyed this one.
The Paris Architect, by Charles Belfoure. This is my book club's pick for our November meeting. It is 1942 in German-occupied Paris, and gifted architect Lucien Bernard has accepted a commission that will earn him a great deal of money, and quite possibly get him killed. His benefactor asks him to create hiding places for wealthy Jews being smuggled out of the country, hiding places so ingenious that no German officer could ever find them. And Lucien does these jobs, studiously ignoring the personal aspects...until one of his jobs fails, and Lucien's work becomes very personal, indeed. Belfoure, an architect himself, brings his knowledge to every detail. This was an enthralling read, and one I can't wait to discuss with our group.
Eleanor & Park, by Rainbow Rowell. I adore Rainbow Rowell's work, YA and adult titles alike. Her YA books do not condescend to the reader; she meets them on equal ground. Here, Park is used to being a relative oddity in his 1986 Omaha neighborhood, one of two (his brother being the other) half Korean kids in their entire school. His method of coping with teasing on the bus is to ignore the others, listening to loud music on his headphones and reading comic books. Then the new girl gets on the bus, a pale girl with a ton of red hair, an immediate new target for the bullies in the back seats. There's nowhere for her to sit except next to Park, and this is how the unlikeliest of friendships grows over the course of the school year together. Bittersweet and heartbreakingly honest, this was a book I devoured over the course of two evenings, I couldn't do anything else until I knew how it ended.
The Summer That Made Us, by Robyn Carr. Two sisters had three daughters each, and they all spent summers at their family lake house. Those were the best of times. Until tragedy struck one summer, and everyone scattered, and the family was no longer close and each woman went her separate way. Until tragedy becomes the catalyst to bring them together again, decades later. It's a story of loss and of hope and rebuilding one's life after catastrophe, of learning and loving and moving on. And while it was interesting and certainly readable, it felt a bit unfinished, maybe a little rushed. There were story lines left unfinished, sub-plots left unexplored, as though there was too much in the beginning to tie up in the end. Which makes me wonder whether this might be the first in a new series? Time will tell.
The Little French Bistro, by Nina George. I enjoyed this one so much, I couldn't keep it to myself. You can read my review here.
Thursday, August 31, 2017
What I've Been Reading: August 2017
My reading material this past month has been all over the map, as usual. Suspense novels and thrillers, a funny and touching memoir, a re-read for my bookclub, and some fiction that is both familiar and innovative. Curious? Read on.
Two Nights, by Kathy Reichs. Reichs is best known for her long-running Temperance Brennan series, the basis for the TV show Bones. What she's not known for is stand-alone novel, which is what her most recent work is, though it sets itself up nicely to kick off a possible sequel or series. Sunday Night is a woman with a dark past, full of secrets. Perhaps that's why she's so good at uncovering the secrets of others. In this case, it's a missing girl who is the sole presumed survivor of a terrorist attack which made her an orphan, a girl who vanished without a trace. Sunday, patient and ruthless, must backtrack the cold case only to find herself racing against the clock when the terrorist cell activates once more. This was a fast read but densely packed--skimming forward resulted in my paging back looking for clues I'd inadvertently skimmed over. I definitely hope for at least a sequel, though, as Sunday has more secrets of her own yet to be revealed.
Sworn to Silence & Pray for Silence, by Linda Castillo. These are the first and second entries in Castillo's Kate Burkholder series. Police chief Kate Burkholder works in Painter's Mill, Pennsylvania, a small community that relies heavily on tourist trade, owing mainly to its Amish community. And murder is bad for business. In the series opener, Chief Burkholder and her small but capable department find themselves racing against the clock when a single murder soon becomes part of a series, the murderer escalating quickly. In the follow-up, nearly a year later, the department works to solve a mass murder on an Amish farm. When a suspect's suicide yields a note confessing everything, the case should be closed, but the Chief is convinced the man wasn't working alone and must lay a trap to lure the accomplice out of hiding. These are excellent thrillers and I'm looking forward to picking up the next in the series.
Theft by Finding: diaries (1977-2002), by David Sedaris. Humorous essayist, playwright and memoirist Sedaris (Me Talk Pretty One Day, etc.) has kept diaries for decades, meticulously recording the interesting bits of his life each day. Here is the first half of his culled entries, ranging from his early twenties when he was perpetually broke, picking fruit and doing odd jobs, to his early years of success as a writer and playwright. Searingly funny and thoughtful, I loved every bit. The audiobook, read by the author, is an absolute winner.
Meddling Kids, by Edgar Cantero. For those of us who grew up on Saturday morning cartoons with Scooby-Doo and the gang, this second English language novel from Barcelona native Cantero scratches a particular nostalgic itch. In 1977, the Blyton Summer Detective Club (of Blyton Hills, a small mining town in Oregon's Zoinx River Valley) unmasked a the villain in their final case: a low-life fortune-hunter who was pretending to haunt an abandoned mansion and mine in order to get his hands on the riches supposedly hidden in the depths of the mansion. And he would have gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for those meddling kids. But did they catch the real culprit after all? Fast-forward thirteen years, however, and that final case is still haunting the remaining members of the Club, who have grown up and apart. At long last, the group decides that they need to return to the scene and put their ghosts to rest, once and for all. This was such a fun read! Funny, spooky, a little zany and totally endearing. I'd love to see a sequel.
The Good Daughter, by Karin Slaughter. This stand-alone thriller from best-selling Slaughter (Cop Town, etc.) During a home invasion, two sisters are forced out into the woods at gunpoint. One runs for her life. The other is left behind. In the aftermath of tragedy, the Quinn family and their happy, small-town existence is broken beyond repair. Twenty-eight years later, younger sister Charlotte is a lawyer, having followed in the footsteps of her father. But the ideal life she should be living is crumbling, even before violence revisits their small town of Pikeville, causing severe flashbacks for Charlie and her family. Shocking twists and relentless pacing in this story left me absolutely breathless, as secrets find the light of day and what has been hidden so long is at last revealed. I've read all of Slaughter's work and I think this just might be her best to date. Highly recommended.
Crimson Shore, by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. I'm nearly caught up with the Agent Pendergast series! This, the thirteenth in the series, finds Agent Pendergast and his ward, Constance Greene, on a case which takes them to the quaint seaside village of Exmouth, Massachusetts. Initially, they are there to investigate the theft of an artist's priceless wine collection. When the wine-cellar reveals a hidden chamber where the skeleton of a man was once housed, the case takes a decidedly darker turn. A Grey Reaper walks the salt marshes, bodies marked with occult symbols wash ashore, screams rend the silent nights. Is there validity to the old tale that when the trials began in Salem in 1692 that the real witches fled to hide in Exmouth? This was a somewhat slow start for the series, but when it picked up, it churned along at a breakneck pace. Thoroughly enjoyable.
A Sudden Light, by Garth Stein. This is a reread for me--my bookclub is reading it for our September meeting. You can read my original review here.
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, by Robin Sloan. Clay Jannon has gone from San Francisco web-designer to unemployed in the Great Recession, and within the first few days working at Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, Clay finds that the place is stranger than either its name or its rather gnome-like owner. In fact, none of the patrons ever seem to purchase anything. Rather, they "check out" large volumes from strange nooks and crannies in the store. Clay, with the help of a few friends, begins to catalog and analyze the customers behavior, but when the findings are brought to the owner, Clay discovers that the bookstore's secrets go far deeper than he could have ever imagined. Incredibly inventive, entertaining and captivating, I never wanted it to end!
Two Nights, by Kathy Reichs. Reichs is best known for her long-running Temperance Brennan series, the basis for the TV show Bones. What she's not known for is stand-alone novel, which is what her most recent work is, though it sets itself up nicely to kick off a possible sequel or series. Sunday Night is a woman with a dark past, full of secrets. Perhaps that's why she's so good at uncovering the secrets of others. In this case, it's a missing girl who is the sole presumed survivor of a terrorist attack which made her an orphan, a girl who vanished without a trace. Sunday, patient and ruthless, must backtrack the cold case only to find herself racing against the clock when the terrorist cell activates once more. This was a fast read but densely packed--skimming forward resulted in my paging back looking for clues I'd inadvertently skimmed over. I definitely hope for at least a sequel, though, as Sunday has more secrets of her own yet to be revealed.
Sworn to Silence & Pray for Silence, by Linda Castillo. These are the first and second entries in Castillo's Kate Burkholder series. Police chief Kate Burkholder works in Painter's Mill, Pennsylvania, a small community that relies heavily on tourist trade, owing mainly to its Amish community. And murder is bad for business. In the series opener, Chief Burkholder and her small but capable department find themselves racing against the clock when a single murder soon becomes part of a series, the murderer escalating quickly. In the follow-up, nearly a year later, the department works to solve a mass murder on an Amish farm. When a suspect's suicide yields a note confessing everything, the case should be closed, but the Chief is convinced the man wasn't working alone and must lay a trap to lure the accomplice out of hiding. These are excellent thrillers and I'm looking forward to picking up the next in the series.
Theft by Finding: diaries (1977-2002), by David Sedaris. Humorous essayist, playwright and memoirist Sedaris (Me Talk Pretty One Day, etc.) has kept diaries for decades, meticulously recording the interesting bits of his life each day. Here is the first half of his culled entries, ranging from his early twenties when he was perpetually broke, picking fruit and doing odd jobs, to his early years of success as a writer and playwright. Searingly funny and thoughtful, I loved every bit. The audiobook, read by the author, is an absolute winner.
Meddling Kids, by Edgar Cantero. For those of us who grew up on Saturday morning cartoons with Scooby-Doo and the gang, this second English language novel from Barcelona native Cantero scratches a particular nostalgic itch. In 1977, the Blyton Summer Detective Club (of Blyton Hills, a small mining town in Oregon's Zoinx River Valley) unmasked a the villain in their final case: a low-life fortune-hunter who was pretending to haunt an abandoned mansion and mine in order to get his hands on the riches supposedly hidden in the depths of the mansion. And he would have gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for those meddling kids. But did they catch the real culprit after all? Fast-forward thirteen years, however, and that final case is still haunting the remaining members of the Club, who have grown up and apart. At long last, the group decides that they need to return to the scene and put their ghosts to rest, once and for all. This was such a fun read! Funny, spooky, a little zany and totally endearing. I'd love to see a sequel.
The Good Daughter, by Karin Slaughter. This stand-alone thriller from best-selling Slaughter (Cop Town, etc.) During a home invasion, two sisters are forced out into the woods at gunpoint. One runs for her life. The other is left behind. In the aftermath of tragedy, the Quinn family and their happy, small-town existence is broken beyond repair. Twenty-eight years later, younger sister Charlotte is a lawyer, having followed in the footsteps of her father. But the ideal life she should be living is crumbling, even before violence revisits their small town of Pikeville, causing severe flashbacks for Charlie and her family. Shocking twists and relentless pacing in this story left me absolutely breathless, as secrets find the light of day and what has been hidden so long is at last revealed. I've read all of Slaughter's work and I think this just might be her best to date. Highly recommended.
Crimson Shore, by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. I'm nearly caught up with the Agent Pendergast series! This, the thirteenth in the series, finds Agent Pendergast and his ward, Constance Greene, on a case which takes them to the quaint seaside village of Exmouth, Massachusetts. Initially, they are there to investigate the theft of an artist's priceless wine collection. When the wine-cellar reveals a hidden chamber where the skeleton of a man was once housed, the case takes a decidedly darker turn. A Grey Reaper walks the salt marshes, bodies marked with occult symbols wash ashore, screams rend the silent nights. Is there validity to the old tale that when the trials began in Salem in 1692 that the real witches fled to hide in Exmouth? This was a somewhat slow start for the series, but when it picked up, it churned along at a breakneck pace. Thoroughly enjoyable.
A Sudden Light, by Garth Stein. This is a reread for me--my bookclub is reading it for our September meeting. You can read my original review here.
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, by Robin Sloan. Clay Jannon has gone from San Francisco web-designer to unemployed in the Great Recession, and within the first few days working at Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, Clay finds that the place is stranger than either its name or its rather gnome-like owner. In fact, none of the patrons ever seem to purchase anything. Rather, they "check out" large volumes from strange nooks and crannies in the store. Clay, with the help of a few friends, begins to catalog and analyze the customers behavior, but when the findings are brought to the owner, Clay discovers that the bookstore's secrets go far deeper than he could have ever imagined. Incredibly inventive, entertaining and captivating, I never wanted it to end!
Thursday, March 2, 2017
What I've Been Reading: February 2017
I was gearing myself up to write this post and thinking that I really hadn't read all that much this past month. February is a short month, after all, and I was a little under the weather and not in a reading mood for a few days in there (that's how you know I don't feel well!), but it turns out I'm ahead of myself for my 2017 reading challenge!
The Little Paris Bookshop, by Nina George. This was a reread for me, as I was brushing up for my February book club meeting. I loved it just as much the second time around--there's something that resonates so deeply with me as a bibliophile. You can read my initial review here.
The Underground Railroad, by Colson Whitehead. This bestseller has been one of the most talked about novels in the last six months, so I finally managed to snag a copy for myself. The tale is one of Cora, a young slave making a desperate bid for freedom in the antebellum South. Following her experiences with the Underground Railroad, her steps dogged by slavecatcher Ridgeway, her momentary safety in South Carolina giving way to insidious schemes, the novel was compelling and compulsively readable. Highly recommended, especially for book clubs.
The Fifth Letter, by Nicola Moriarty. If you're looking for a fast read in the vein of other popular novelists like Liane Moriarty or JoJo Moyes, consider picking this up. (How fast? I read it in an afternoon, totally unwilling to put it down for any reason.) Four friends who were inseparable in high school are losing touch as adults. Relationships, jobs, and children are dragging them further and further apart. Joni feels it's her responsibility to keep the four together and relentlessly organizes their annual getaway weekends together year after year. This year, however, is different. When a harmless game of "guess the secret" spawns a vicious fifth letter, Joni must uncover lies, hurt and secrets that have gone buried in her friends' lives for far too long.
A Killer Stitch, by Maggie Sefton. I'm steadily plugging along through this series, which is cozy as they come, centering around an amateur sleuth and her friends at a local yarn store in Colorado. Here, sleuth Kelly Flynn's circle of friends work together to clear the name of one of their group, who was the last to see her cheating ex-boyfriend alive. Fun for knitters and cozy enthusiasts alike.
Brain on Fire, by Susannah Cahalan. I borrowed this via the Trumbull Library's access to our Overdrive ebook collection. At age 24, Susannah was embarking on a new and exciting new life: her own apartment in New York, a great job as a journalist with The New York Post, a new relationship. Until she wakes up alone in a hospital room, strapped to her bed, unable to move or speak. In the matter of a few days, she has gone from promising new life to being labeled a violent flight risk. This is the true story of her month of madness, her family's unflagging faith in her and in her medical treatment team, and of the lifesaving diagnosis that almost didn't happen. Shocking and awe-inspiring.
Echoes in Death, by J.D. Robb. NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her husband, multi-billionaire Roarke, on on their way home from a fancy gala event when a woman nearly runs out in front of their car. They take her to the hospital, and a check at the woman's home reveals that not only was the woman brutalized, but her husband, a well-respected if not well-liked surgeon, has been murdered. As Dallas and her team investigate, they uncover a link to two other similar cases, and now they must try to anticipate this accelerating serial's next move to save his next targets. This is definitely a strong entry in this long running and very popular series.
The Magicians, by Lev Grossman. Grossman's Magicians trilogy is being adapted for television (season 2 is airing now on SyFy), and since I'm a fan of the show, I thought perhaps I ought to go back and read the series. (A note: while the series is based on the books, there are a number of differences. Just a fair warning--liberties are taken.) This first in the trilogy is the story of Quentin Coldwater, a typical high school senior in Brooklyn who is hoping to attend Princeton the following year...until a very different opportunity presents itself. Instead of boring Brooklyn, Quentin is transported up the Hudson River Valley to a school no one has heard of where he learns that magic? Is real. It seems like an answer to a life-long prayer, as Quentin has been obsessed with magic and fantasy for years. Except that everything is darker and more dangerous than he might have ever imagined. With nods to great fantasy authors from Tolkien and C.S. Lewis to J.K. Rowling, this is a great series kickoff and I'm looking forward to reading the next two books shortly.
Sugar Cookie Murder, by Joanne Fluke. I know, I can hardly keep up with the genre switches in this list either. I really am an omnivore when it comes to books! Book 6 in Fluke's Hannah Swensen mystery series finds Lake Eden preparing for the holiday season with the annual Christmas Buffet, which will showcase the final test recipes for Hannah's Lake Eden Holiday Buffet Cookbook. Until the recently divorced Martin Dubinski arrives at the buffet with his new Vegas showgirl wife--all wrapped up in glitter and fur. His ex-wife, however, seems as cool as chilled eggnog. And when Hannah's mother's antique Christmas cake knife disappears, its discovery in the décolletage of the new--and now late--Mrs. Dubinski puts the festivities on ice. With everyone stranded at the community center by a blizzard, Hannah puts her investigative skills to the test, using the ingredients at hand: half the town of Lake Eden--and a killer. Now, as the snowdrifts get higher, it's up to Hannah to dig out all the clues--and make sure that this white Christmas doesn't bring any more deadly tidings... All sorts of goofy fun, plus gooey desserts!
Sleeping Giants, by Sylvain Neuvel. First in Neuvel's Themis Files series (the sequel, Waking Gods, is due out at the beginning of April). A girl named Rose is riding her new bike near her home in Deadwood, South Dakota, when she falls through the earth. She wakes up at the bottom of a square hole, its walls glowing with intricate carvings. But the firemen who come to save her peer down upon something even stranger: a little girl in the palm of a giant metal hand. Seventeen years later, Rose is now a highly trained physicist leading a top secret team to uncover the secrets of the hand, as she and her colleagues are interviewed by an unnamed interrogator who is chronicling their work. Equal parts mystery, science fiction and conspiracy yarn, this was reminiscent of The Martian and Station Eleven. Very highly recommended.
Nine books for the month! I'm aiming for 90 this year, total, and I'm currently on track with 15. If you'd like to track along with me (and a million and a half other readers worldwide), consider joining and tracking with me over at goodreads.com!
The Little Paris Bookshop, by Nina George. This was a reread for me, as I was brushing up for my February book club meeting. I loved it just as much the second time around--there's something that resonates so deeply with me as a bibliophile. You can read my initial review here.
The Underground Railroad, by Colson Whitehead. This bestseller has been one of the most talked about novels in the last six months, so I finally managed to snag a copy for myself. The tale is one of Cora, a young slave making a desperate bid for freedom in the antebellum South. Following her experiences with the Underground Railroad, her steps dogged by slavecatcher Ridgeway, her momentary safety in South Carolina giving way to insidious schemes, the novel was compelling and compulsively readable. Highly recommended, especially for book clubs.
The Fifth Letter, by Nicola Moriarty. If you're looking for a fast read in the vein of other popular novelists like Liane Moriarty or JoJo Moyes, consider picking this up. (How fast? I read it in an afternoon, totally unwilling to put it down for any reason.) Four friends who were inseparable in high school are losing touch as adults. Relationships, jobs, and children are dragging them further and further apart. Joni feels it's her responsibility to keep the four together and relentlessly organizes their annual getaway weekends together year after year. This year, however, is different. When a harmless game of "guess the secret" spawns a vicious fifth letter, Joni must uncover lies, hurt and secrets that have gone buried in her friends' lives for far too long.
A Killer Stitch, by Maggie Sefton. I'm steadily plugging along through this series, which is cozy as they come, centering around an amateur sleuth and her friends at a local yarn store in Colorado. Here, sleuth Kelly Flynn's circle of friends work together to clear the name of one of their group, who was the last to see her cheating ex-boyfriend alive. Fun for knitters and cozy enthusiasts alike.
Brain on Fire, by Susannah Cahalan. I borrowed this via the Trumbull Library's access to our Overdrive ebook collection. At age 24, Susannah was embarking on a new and exciting new life: her own apartment in New York, a great job as a journalist with The New York Post, a new relationship. Until she wakes up alone in a hospital room, strapped to her bed, unable to move or speak. In the matter of a few days, she has gone from promising new life to being labeled a violent flight risk. This is the true story of her month of madness, her family's unflagging faith in her and in her medical treatment team, and of the lifesaving diagnosis that almost didn't happen. Shocking and awe-inspiring.
Echoes in Death, by J.D. Robb. NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas and her husband, multi-billionaire Roarke, on on their way home from a fancy gala event when a woman nearly runs out in front of their car. They take her to the hospital, and a check at the woman's home reveals that not only was the woman brutalized, but her husband, a well-respected if not well-liked surgeon, has been murdered. As Dallas and her team investigate, they uncover a link to two other similar cases, and now they must try to anticipate this accelerating serial's next move to save his next targets. This is definitely a strong entry in this long running and very popular series.
The Magicians, by Lev Grossman. Grossman's Magicians trilogy is being adapted for television (season 2 is airing now on SyFy), and since I'm a fan of the show, I thought perhaps I ought to go back and read the series. (A note: while the series is based on the books, there are a number of differences. Just a fair warning--liberties are taken.) This first in the trilogy is the story of Quentin Coldwater, a typical high school senior in Brooklyn who is hoping to attend Princeton the following year...until a very different opportunity presents itself. Instead of boring Brooklyn, Quentin is transported up the Hudson River Valley to a school no one has heard of where he learns that magic? Is real. It seems like an answer to a life-long prayer, as Quentin has been obsessed with magic and fantasy for years. Except that everything is darker and more dangerous than he might have ever imagined. With nods to great fantasy authors from Tolkien and C.S. Lewis to J.K. Rowling, this is a great series kickoff and I'm looking forward to reading the next two books shortly.
Sugar Cookie Murder, by Joanne Fluke. I know, I can hardly keep up with the genre switches in this list either. I really am an omnivore when it comes to books! Book 6 in Fluke's Hannah Swensen mystery series finds Lake Eden preparing for the holiday season with the annual Christmas Buffet, which will showcase the final test recipes for Hannah's Lake Eden Holiday Buffet Cookbook. Until the recently divorced Martin Dubinski arrives at the buffet with his new Vegas showgirl wife--all wrapped up in glitter and fur. His ex-wife, however, seems as cool as chilled eggnog. And when Hannah's mother's antique Christmas cake knife disappears, its discovery in the décolletage of the new--and now late--Mrs. Dubinski puts the festivities on ice. With everyone stranded at the community center by a blizzard, Hannah puts her investigative skills to the test, using the ingredients at hand: half the town of Lake Eden--and a killer. Now, as the snowdrifts get higher, it's up to Hannah to dig out all the clues--and make sure that this white Christmas doesn't bring any more deadly tidings... All sorts of goofy fun, plus gooey desserts!
Sleeping Giants, by Sylvain Neuvel. First in Neuvel's Themis Files series (the sequel, Waking Gods, is due out at the beginning of April). A girl named Rose is riding her new bike near her home in Deadwood, South Dakota, when she falls through the earth. She wakes up at the bottom of a square hole, its walls glowing with intricate carvings. But the firemen who come to save her peer down upon something even stranger: a little girl in the palm of a giant metal hand. Seventeen years later, Rose is now a highly trained physicist leading a top secret team to uncover the secrets of the hand, as she and her colleagues are interviewed by an unnamed interrogator who is chronicling their work. Equal parts mystery, science fiction and conspiracy yarn, this was reminiscent of The Martian and Station Eleven. Very highly recommended.
Nine books for the month! I'm aiming for 90 this year, total, and I'm currently on track with 15. If you'd like to track along with me (and a million and a half other readers worldwide), consider joining and tracking with me over at goodreads.com!
Thursday, December 29, 2016
What I've Been Reading: December 2016
Well, here we are at the end-of-year roundup, and as I look back at what I've read over this past year, I feel pretty accomplished. While I didn't set a formal goal this year, I have still managed to read 85 books this year, more than any other year since I started tracking back in 2011 (I didn't include all of my re-reads, either). My reading material of choice is still predominantly fiction, and I've recently read fewer thrillers and suspense novels in favor of more contemporary fiction and even cozy mysteries. A patron and I were recently talking about how our reading tastes change, depending on overall mood, personal life, weather, etc. Apparently I'm looking for easy entertainment, and I am completely okay with that--we all read for different reasons.
In any case, here's what I've been reading lately.
Blueberry Muffin Murder & Lemon Meringue Pie Murder, by Joanne Fluke. Books 3 and 4 in Fluke's bestselling Hannah Swensen cozy mystery series. Blueberry Muffin Murder finds Hannah caught up in the whirlwind of Lake Eden's Winter Carnival, with cooking and lifestyle maven Connie Mac rolling into town and taking over everything: the Carnival cake, local shops, even Hannah's own shop kitchen! Then Ms. Mac turns up dead and it seems everyone had a motive, so it's up to Hannah to pitch in and clear her own name as well as those of her friends. In the fourth series installment, Hannah's comfortable life is upended when her beau, town dentist Norman Rhodes, announces that he's bought a house. Friends and family assume that they're engaged...only Norman hasn't popped any questions, and the house purchase is a total surprise to Hannah. Then a body is discovered on the property, and Hannah's back in the thick of another small town murder investigation. These are light and breezy reads, nothing taxing, just what the season seems to require.
Knit One, Kill Two & Needled to Death, by Maggie Sefton. I read these both via the Trumbull Library's access to Overdrive. These are the first and second books in Sefton's Knitting Mysteries, featuring corporate accountant and amateur sleuth Kelly Flynn. In the first, Kelly returns to Colorado in the wake of her beloved aunt's murder, only to find herself caught up in not only the whodunnit of the murder, but also land disputes and a deep secret her aunt had kept hidden for decades. In the second, Kelly, who has chosen to remain in Colorado, agrees to chaperone a group of knitters on an outing to see a local working alpaca farm. Upon arriving at their destination, however, the group finds their hostess dead under mysterious circumstances. Of course Kelly can't help but get involved in solving the case. Again, cozy mysteries make for great, quick reads this time of year.
Between Breaths, by Elizabeth Vargas. This memoir of anxiety and addiction from the famous television news journalist (best known for her work on 20/20, World News Tonight, and ABC news specials) chronicles Vargas's struggle with panic and anxiety attacks from an early age, as well as her later struggles with alcoholism and the strains these secrets placed on her personal life and career. Deeply moving and insightful.
Mrs. Robinson's Disgrace: the private diary of a Victorian lady, by Kate Summerscale. More non-fiction? In my reading list? I know! Headstrong, high-spirited, and already widowed, Isabella Walker became Mrs. Henry Robinson at age 31 in 1844. Her new husband moved them, by then with two sons, to Edinburgh's elegant society in 1850. But Henry traveled often and was cold and remote when home, leaving Isabella to her fantasies. Isabella chose to record her innermost thoughts and feelings, her frustrations and her infatuations (including that with a married Dr. Edward Lane) in her diary over the course of the years that followed. But when Henry found her journals, aghast at his wife's perceived infidelity, he petitioned for divorce on the grounds of infidelity. The trial became a cause celebre and the diary was read aloud in court, much of it reprinted in the daily papers. Isabella's plight, that of a frustrated wife trapped in a rigid society, reverberates even today. I found it a fascinating read.
The Hero of Ages, by Brandon Sanderson. Book three in Sanderson's bestselling and immensely popular Mistborn series (following The Final Empire and The Well of Ascension) follows new Emperor Elend Venture and his wife, the assassin Vin, as they struggle in the wake of being tricked into releasing Ruin while trying to close the Well of Ascension. They must now battle Ruin's Inquisitors, the encroaching lethal mists called the Deepness, and the increasingly heavy falls of black ash that threaten to suffocate their very existence. Sanderson is an absolute master of his craft--I had worried that having taken more than six months off between books in the series that I would be lost, but he is so skillful a writer that I felt caught up almost immediately without feeling buried by a heavy-handed recap.
Carry On, by Rainbow Rowell. I've had Rainbow Rowell's work recommended to me repeatedly for the last several years, and now that I've capitulated, I wonder what in the heck took me so long! Simon Snow is officially the worst Chosen One ever. He can't control his magic, meaning that half the time he can't get his wand to work and the other half? Fire everywhere. His girlfriend broke up with him, his mentor is avoiding him, his alleged vampire of a roommate, Baz, never even showed up at the beginning of this, their final year at the Watford School of Magicks. Oh, and there happens to be a magic-eating monster running around, and it happens to be wearing Simon's face. Chatty, hilariously funny, and chock-full of monsters--if you think this sounds like Harry Potter, you're a little bit right and mostly mistaken in the best possible ways.
And that's it for me for 2016. I'll see you in the new year for new books and new recommendations. From all of us here at The Trumbull Library, Happy New Year and Happy Reading.
In any case, here's what I've been reading lately.
Blueberry Muffin Murder & Lemon Meringue Pie Murder, by Joanne Fluke. Books 3 and 4 in Fluke's bestselling Hannah Swensen cozy mystery series. Blueberry Muffin Murder finds Hannah caught up in the whirlwind of Lake Eden's Winter Carnival, with cooking and lifestyle maven Connie Mac rolling into town and taking over everything: the Carnival cake, local shops, even Hannah's own shop kitchen! Then Ms. Mac turns up dead and it seems everyone had a motive, so it's up to Hannah to pitch in and clear her own name as well as those of her friends. In the fourth series installment, Hannah's comfortable life is upended when her beau, town dentist Norman Rhodes, announces that he's bought a house. Friends and family assume that they're engaged...only Norman hasn't popped any questions, and the house purchase is a total surprise to Hannah. Then a body is discovered on the property, and Hannah's back in the thick of another small town murder investigation. These are light and breezy reads, nothing taxing, just what the season seems to require.
Knit One, Kill Two & Needled to Death, by Maggie Sefton. I read these both via the Trumbull Library's access to Overdrive. These are the first and second books in Sefton's Knitting Mysteries, featuring corporate accountant and amateur sleuth Kelly Flynn. In the first, Kelly returns to Colorado in the wake of her beloved aunt's murder, only to find herself caught up in not only the whodunnit of the murder, but also land disputes and a deep secret her aunt had kept hidden for decades. In the second, Kelly, who has chosen to remain in Colorado, agrees to chaperone a group of knitters on an outing to see a local working alpaca farm. Upon arriving at their destination, however, the group finds their hostess dead under mysterious circumstances. Of course Kelly can't help but get involved in solving the case. Again, cozy mysteries make for great, quick reads this time of year.
Between Breaths, by Elizabeth Vargas. This memoir of anxiety and addiction from the famous television news journalist (best known for her work on 20/20, World News Tonight, and ABC news specials) chronicles Vargas's struggle with panic and anxiety attacks from an early age, as well as her later struggles with alcoholism and the strains these secrets placed on her personal life and career. Deeply moving and insightful.
Mrs. Robinson's Disgrace: the private diary of a Victorian lady, by Kate Summerscale. More non-fiction? In my reading list? I know! Headstrong, high-spirited, and already widowed, Isabella Walker became Mrs. Henry Robinson at age 31 in 1844. Her new husband moved them, by then with two sons, to Edinburgh's elegant society in 1850. But Henry traveled often and was cold and remote when home, leaving Isabella to her fantasies. Isabella chose to record her innermost thoughts and feelings, her frustrations and her infatuations (including that with a married Dr. Edward Lane) in her diary over the course of the years that followed. But when Henry found her journals, aghast at his wife's perceived infidelity, he petitioned for divorce on the grounds of infidelity. The trial became a cause celebre and the diary was read aloud in court, much of it reprinted in the daily papers. Isabella's plight, that of a frustrated wife trapped in a rigid society, reverberates even today. I found it a fascinating read.
The Hero of Ages, by Brandon Sanderson. Book three in Sanderson's bestselling and immensely popular Mistborn series (following The Final Empire and The Well of Ascension) follows new Emperor Elend Venture and his wife, the assassin Vin, as they struggle in the wake of being tricked into releasing Ruin while trying to close the Well of Ascension. They must now battle Ruin's Inquisitors, the encroaching lethal mists called the Deepness, and the increasingly heavy falls of black ash that threaten to suffocate their very existence. Sanderson is an absolute master of his craft--I had worried that having taken more than six months off between books in the series that I would be lost, but he is so skillful a writer that I felt caught up almost immediately without feeling buried by a heavy-handed recap.
Carry On, by Rainbow Rowell. I've had Rainbow Rowell's work recommended to me repeatedly for the last several years, and now that I've capitulated, I wonder what in the heck took me so long! Simon Snow is officially the worst Chosen One ever. He can't control his magic, meaning that half the time he can't get his wand to work and the other half? Fire everywhere. His girlfriend broke up with him, his mentor is avoiding him, his alleged vampire of a roommate, Baz, never even showed up at the beginning of this, their final year at the Watford School of Magicks. Oh, and there happens to be a magic-eating monster running around, and it happens to be wearing Simon's face. Chatty, hilariously funny, and chock-full of monsters--if you think this sounds like Harry Potter, you're a little bit right and mostly mistaken in the best possible ways.
And that's it for me for 2016. I'll see you in the new year for new books and new recommendations. From all of us here at The Trumbull Library, Happy New Year and Happy Reading.
Tuesday, October 4, 2016
What I've Been Reading: September 2016
Well folks, summer is over, but my reading momentum is still screaming along here. I'm interested to see what happens when I run out of Robyn Carr books (anyone have any suggestions?), because I'm coming mighty close. These 2-3 day reads are great little escapes between some of the more substantial tomes! That said, I think I may need a break from series for a little bit--all but one of my reads this month were part of a series, and I think I may have hit my limit!
The English Spy, by Daniel Silva. This was selected by my book club by popular request as our October book, and I have to say, this wasn't easy. First, it's the 15th in a long-running series, so there is a significant cast of characters who have mostly been introduced and developed in past novels. That was a challenge, though I was intrigued enough that I may yet go back and start at the beginning. Second, I'm not sure how this thriller will hold up to an hour of discussion, regardless of the IRA, Belfast bombings, and other political events there are in the backdrop--this isn't our usual fair, and while we've tried some thrillers and suspense in the past, they don't always lend themselves to great discussion. (To be fair, there are some that have, like Gone Girl and Defending Jacob, though they are more suspense than thriller.) In any case, this follows art-restorer-turned-assassin/spy Gabriel Allon on a mission to solve the murder of a beloved British princess, only to find himself in the crosshairs of the assassin in a very personal, very messy cat-and-mouse game that takes Allon all over Europe in pursuit of his quarry. I loved the spy aspects, but felt more than a little lost at times, since I haven't read other books in the series. Yet.
White Fire, by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. Lucky thirteen in Preston & Child's FBI Special Agent Pendergast series finds our hero at loose ends, recuperating after the events of Two Graves. That is, until his young protegee Corrie Swanson (introduced in book 4, Still Life With Crows) contacts him after getting herself into some trouble with the law in a Colorado resort town, where she had hoped to do some research pertaining to her thesis--she had discovered that the 150 year old exhumed remains of miners thought to have been killed by a man-eating grizzly were in fact cannibalized. This fact, moreso even than an arsonist on the rampage in the small town, threatens the town's very existence, throwing Pendergast and Corrie into a maelstrom of peril. Fascinating, riveting, I can never get enough.
Harvest Moon, Bring Me Home For Christmas, Hidden Summit, Redwood Bend, Just Over the Mountain, & Down by the River, all by Robyn Carr. I know, I know. The first four titles are all from Carr's Virgin River series, while the last two are the second and third in her Grace Valley trilogy. The trilogy, I have to say, shows its age a bit, as it was published about fifteen years ago, though it was certainly a delightful portrayal of small town life in northern California. The Virgin River novels can be a little hit and miss individually, but all blend together rather nicely as part of a whole. I have been deeply grateful for the brain candy they've provided me in the recent months!
Apprentice in Death, by J.D. Robb. This is, if you can believe it, the 43rd installment in Robb/Roberts's NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas futuristic cop series. And while the main plot (a former sniper and his murderous protege out for blood on a revenge mission with an alarming body count and a steep escalation) hangs together very well in this outing, the writing has, I have to say, really started to suffer. The style of these novels has become very abrupt and almost jarring in places. The compelling plot and familiar characters definitely drive the novel forward, but without the solid footing of having read (almost all of) the previous books in the series, a reader could potentially find this off-putting. Here's to hoping that deadlines and editors allow for a smoother-reading novel next time.
You'll Grow Out of It, by Jessi Klein. What's this? A memoir? In my list? Crazy talk! Klein, a comedian who has written for shows like Saturday Night Live, Inside Amy Schumer, and Transparent, here recounts with candid insight and hilarious wit, her experiences as a tomboy and late bloomer. Likening her experiences trying to navigate feminine ideals to that of a wolf attempting to be a poodle, Klein shares stories both funny and poignant, all of them infinitely relatable. I thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact, I wished it were longer.
For those keeping track, I'm at 69 books for 2016 so far. I think this might be the year I actually hit 100. Stay tuned to find out!
The English Spy, by Daniel Silva. This was selected by my book club by popular request as our October book, and I have to say, this wasn't easy. First, it's the 15th in a long-running series, so there is a significant cast of characters who have mostly been introduced and developed in past novels. That was a challenge, though I was intrigued enough that I may yet go back and start at the beginning. Second, I'm not sure how this thriller will hold up to an hour of discussion, regardless of the IRA, Belfast bombings, and other political events there are in the backdrop--this isn't our usual fair, and while we've tried some thrillers and suspense in the past, they don't always lend themselves to great discussion. (To be fair, there are some that have, like Gone Girl and Defending Jacob, though they are more suspense than thriller.) In any case, this follows art-restorer-turned-assassin/spy Gabriel Allon on a mission to solve the murder of a beloved British princess, only to find himself in the crosshairs of the assassin in a very personal, very messy cat-and-mouse game that takes Allon all over Europe in pursuit of his quarry. I loved the spy aspects, but felt more than a little lost at times, since I haven't read other books in the series. Yet.
White Fire, by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. Lucky thirteen in Preston & Child's FBI Special Agent Pendergast series finds our hero at loose ends, recuperating after the events of Two Graves. That is, until his young protegee Corrie Swanson (introduced in book 4, Still Life With Crows) contacts him after getting herself into some trouble with the law in a Colorado resort town, where she had hoped to do some research pertaining to her thesis--she had discovered that the 150 year old exhumed remains of miners thought to have been killed by a man-eating grizzly were in fact cannibalized. This fact, moreso even than an arsonist on the rampage in the small town, threatens the town's very existence, throwing Pendergast and Corrie into a maelstrom of peril. Fascinating, riveting, I can never get enough.
Harvest Moon, Bring Me Home For Christmas, Hidden Summit, Redwood Bend, Just Over the Mountain, & Down by the River, all by Robyn Carr. I know, I know. The first four titles are all from Carr's Virgin River series, while the last two are the second and third in her Grace Valley trilogy. The trilogy, I have to say, shows its age a bit, as it was published about fifteen years ago, though it was certainly a delightful portrayal of small town life in northern California. The Virgin River novels can be a little hit and miss individually, but all blend together rather nicely as part of a whole. I have been deeply grateful for the brain candy they've provided me in the recent months!
Apprentice in Death, by J.D. Robb. This is, if you can believe it, the 43rd installment in Robb/Roberts's NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas futuristic cop series. And while the main plot (a former sniper and his murderous protege out for blood on a revenge mission with an alarming body count and a steep escalation) hangs together very well in this outing, the writing has, I have to say, really started to suffer. The style of these novels has become very abrupt and almost jarring in places. The compelling plot and familiar characters definitely drive the novel forward, but without the solid footing of having read (almost all of) the previous books in the series, a reader could potentially find this off-putting. Here's to hoping that deadlines and editors allow for a smoother-reading novel next time.
You'll Grow Out of It, by Jessi Klein. What's this? A memoir? In my list? Crazy talk! Klein, a comedian who has written for shows like Saturday Night Live, Inside Amy Schumer, and Transparent, here recounts with candid insight and hilarious wit, her experiences as a tomboy and late bloomer. Likening her experiences trying to navigate feminine ideals to that of a wolf attempting to be a poodle, Klein shares stories both funny and poignant, all of them infinitely relatable. I thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact, I wished it were longer.
For those keeping track, I'm at 69 books for 2016 so far. I think this might be the year I actually hit 100. Stay tuned to find out!
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