false 59 185 151 true 5789470 read 10 true 378768 currently-reading 24 true 378767 to-read 14 false 1447233 conversation-starters 14 false 1447255 disappointing 12 false 1447242 distopia 9 false 1447245 my-list-of-classics 7 false 2598606 nerd 4 false 2611702 to-re-read 4 false 4180390 on-hold-for-now 4 false 1447214 books-that-make-me-rage http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77414241 The Fifth Child (Paperback) by Doris Lessing
bookshelves: distopia
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77195645 to: This Is Where I Leave You (Hardcover) by Jonathan Tropper
This book - I want to be clear here - is ridiculously readable. But it is also like watching an episode of Friends in that outrageous events keep piling up on top of each other and not one of those improbable plot twists is really that unexpected. But that is satisfying in its own way. Tropper knows what needs to happen and he delivers.
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/76501078 to: Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood (Paperback) by Alexandra Fuller
I suppose my one major criticism is that Fuller speeds through the last third of her book, abandoning the luscious and leisurely attention to detail that makes her work so delicious. Fuller has a visceral connection to Africa and she is remarkably skilled at conveying these thick and sensory emotions through spare words. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/75259451 Nothing to Be Frightened Of (Hardcover) by Julian Barnes
bookshelves: on-hold-for-now
Julian Barnes is one of my favorite authors, in part because of his ability to weave philosophy into deft and often humorous plots. This memoir-esque book is not dissimilar in that sense from his fiction. But Barnes takes the opportunity to spread out, to meander through memories and literary sources, and while his writing is never dull, it does make for difficult morning commute reading. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/75259519 to: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Paperback) by E.L. Konigsburg
bookshelves: to-re-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/73722884 Juliet, Naked: A Novel (Hardcover) by Nick Hornby
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/37033053 to: Innocence (Hardcover) by Jane Mendelsohn
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/38897327 to: A Better Angel: Stories (Hardcover) by Chris Adrian
bookshelves: distopia
Adrian writes gorgeous stories that drift into lush and disturbing territory with such grace that I would gladly offer up my heart for him to break again and again. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/73188166 to: Lying on the Couch: A Novel (Paperback) by Irvin D. Yalom
bookshelves: disappointing
This book has no subtlety. Within the first 50 pages, I knew what was going to happen in the next 150 pages. That's not necessarily a deal breaker for me; if a book is beautifully written, I'm willing to forgive a lot. But this is not beautifully written. In fact, the dialogue is frequently painful.

My partner asked me why I insisted on reading the whole thing. I'll update my review when I have a response. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/73188126 to: The Virgin Suicides (Hardcover) by Jeffrey Eugenides
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