false 55 129 80 true 5755058 read 15 true 186013 currently-reading 34 true 186012 to-read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/79631725 Consider the Lobster: And Other Essays (Hardcover) by David Foster Wallace
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/67884704 to: The Busy World Is Hushed (Paperback) by Keith Bunin
"May He support us all the day long, till the shades lengthen, and the evening comes, and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over, and our work is done."
-John Henry Newman

Here's a dear little play that subtly packs a wallop. Six scenes, 55 pages, 3 characters. Questions arise of God and life and love and why, and few concrete answers are given (how postmodern, right?) while the characters yet wrestle and cope to the end.

They each have their reasons to do just that. Hannah is a middle-aged widow and woman of the cloth, mother to Thomas, and apartment dweller on NYC's 122nd Street. Her home features a brimming library, and Brandt is the young writer who signs on to help her write a book about a gnostic gospel that may reveal truths about the life and words of Jesus.

Hannah has her reasons for taking on Brandt, in particular - her lone offspring Thomas has a nomadic heart and keeps disappearing and returning, ever the prodigal. In a way she brings in Brandt as an anchor for her son, and the two do begin a relationship. Brandt has his own reasons for working on Hannah's book, as he deals with the most normal and basic and wrenching thing all humans encounter: loss.

Sound engrossing? It is. I'll say no more about the plot. The dialogue is crisp and smart, incredibly well-said. Sometimes hilariously witty, sometimes heartrending.

The relationship between Brandt and Thomas felt a bit forced, but, then again, it is just that. Hannah is not above a little deus ex machina action in her son's life. Oh, these three are all too human. They are all good people also, whether or not each is is inclined to snatch that goodness for themselves.

Some things in life you just cannot brace for. Each of these characters encounters that and responds in ways revealing true (vibrant) colors.

(Need another reason to read Bunin? His play 10 Million Miles has music and lyrics by one Patty Griffin.) ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77425954 Jonathan's review of Lit: A Memoir
by Mary Karr

Awhile back I read her most recent collection of poems, Sinners Welcome. Reviewed it on here. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77425954 Lit: A Memoir (Hardcover) by Mary Karr
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/76860176 Octopus (Paperback) by Steve Yockey
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/76860153 Bent: The Play (Paperback) by Martin Sherman
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/65250826 Brittany's review of Eiffel's Tower: And the World's Fair Where Buffalo Bill Beguiled Paris, the Artists Quarreled, and Thomas Edison Became a Count
by Jill Jonnes

This title reminds me of Devil in the White City, itself set at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. This account of Eiffel's tower reminds me of Devil's detailing of a new wheel revealed at that stateside world fair, fashioned by a fellow named Ferris. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/73579844 Laura's review of Atonement
by Ian McEwan

Yea, I say to you, it gets better! ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/76613142 Open: An Autobiography (Hardcover) by Andre Agassi
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5485291 Housekeeping (Paperback) by Marilynne Robinson
bookshelves: currently-reading
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