Barry Stewart Levy's Blog, page 5
November 11, 2020
Book Review #116
The Chef
by James Patterson with Max DiLallo
A lousy read. And not even a quick read, despite chapters that are mostly three pages long. The writing is amateurish and cliched. I spent the end of nearly every chapter rolling my eyes. A waste of time and a slog to get through.
by James Patterson with Max DiLallo
A lousy read. And not even a quick read, despite chapters that are mostly three pages long. The writing is amateurish and cliched. I spent the end of nearly every chapter rolling my eyes. A waste of time and a slog to get through.
October 12, 2020
Book Review #115
The Plague
by Albert Camus
Camus' searing tale of a coastal town in North Africa infected with a plague deserves its status as a classic. It manages to be both epic and intimate at the same time. The descriptive passages of illness and death are graphic, painful and occasionally heartbreaking. Camus describes the reactions to the plague by various townspeople in ways that are at times sardonic, existential, melancholy, hopeful yet always relatable and thought provoking. His novel is especially prescient today, as a viral pandemic spreads throughout our world. It forces us to ask ourselves, just as it does Camus' characters, how do we react in a time of crisis, how has our world changed and what kind of world do we want to create once the plague/virus finally leaves us? And who will we be in this new world?
by Albert Camus
Camus' searing tale of a coastal town in North Africa infected with a plague deserves its status as a classic. It manages to be both epic and intimate at the same time. The descriptive passages of illness and death are graphic, painful and occasionally heartbreaking. Camus describes the reactions to the plague by various townspeople in ways that are at times sardonic, existential, melancholy, hopeful yet always relatable and thought provoking. His novel is especially prescient today, as a viral pandemic spreads throughout our world. It forces us to ask ourselves, just as it does Camus' characters, how do we react in a time of crisis, how has our world changed and what kind of world do we want to create once the plague/virus finally leaves us? And who will we be in this new world?
October 6, 2020
Book Review #114
You Can Heal Your Life
Louise L. Hay
Considering the poverty and sexual abuse she endured in her early years, writing this book was a brave and generous undertaking on the part of Louise Hay. I am not sure that I agree with all of her ideas -- but I do believe that this book can alter your life for the good, if you are courageous and honest enough to follow the precepts she promotes. "You Can Heal Your Life" is a game changer.
Louise L. Hay
Considering the poverty and sexual abuse she endured in her early years, writing this book was a brave and generous undertaking on the part of Louise Hay. I am not sure that I agree with all of her ideas -- but I do believe that this book can alter your life for the good, if you are courageous and honest enough to follow the precepts she promotes. "You Can Heal Your Life" is a game changer.
September 13, 2020
Book Review #113
10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works -- A True Story
by Dan Harris
Dan Harris takes us on a personal journey where he is able to find a modicum of stability, inner peace and fulfillment. Even though the writing is breezy and often self-deprecating, it is also painfully honest and personal. As a fellow meditator I appreciate Harris sharing his developing unfoldment and gradual self-acceptance. His memoir is a pleasure to read, and I highly recommend it.
by Dan Harris
Dan Harris takes us on a personal journey where he is able to find a modicum of stability, inner peace and fulfillment. Even though the writing is breezy and often self-deprecating, it is also painfully honest and personal. As a fellow meditator I appreciate Harris sharing his developing unfoldment and gradual self-acceptance. His memoir is a pleasure to read, and I highly recommend it.
Book Review #112
Listen to Me
by Hannah Pittard
In all honesty I cannot understand why the critics raved about this book, calling it chilling, suspenseful and unsettling. Frankly, I hated the first half and almost stopped reading it. There is virtually no suspense, until you reach one of the final chapters. While reading the second half of the book, I noticed words like "limbo" and "purgatory" and a number of references to ancient time periods. I began to wonder if perhaps I had been missing something. Maybe these annoying and banal characters were dead. Perhaps their dog, who was often referred to in human terms as if it were the child they never had, represented Cerberus, guardian of the Underworld. So I actually went back to the beginning and skimmed through the first half of the book and found what appeared to be some other "clues." But by the end of the book the couple is indeed very much alive. So in its favor I will say it is a fairly fast read and it did get me thinking. But this is hardly the thriller of the year.
by Hannah Pittard
In all honesty I cannot understand why the critics raved about this book, calling it chilling, suspenseful and unsettling. Frankly, I hated the first half and almost stopped reading it. There is virtually no suspense, until you reach one of the final chapters. While reading the second half of the book, I noticed words like "limbo" and "purgatory" and a number of references to ancient time periods. I began to wonder if perhaps I had been missing something. Maybe these annoying and banal characters were dead. Perhaps their dog, who was often referred to in human terms as if it were the child they never had, represented Cerberus, guardian of the Underworld. So I actually went back to the beginning and skimmed through the first half of the book and found what appeared to be some other "clues." But by the end of the book the couple is indeed very much alive. So in its favor I will say it is a fairly fast read and it did get me thinking. But this is hardly the thriller of the year.
August 26, 2020
Book Review #111
The Woman in the Window
by A.J. Finn
Very hard to put down, once I got past the first 35 pages, which I found plodding and confusing. But overall it is a rapid read and an entertaining one, too, with a couple of moments that actually made me gasp. I do think, though, that all the film noir references amounted to little more than name dropping and added nothing to the story. Also, I found the ending ridiculous, though (NO SPOILERS) the final words spoken by Anna, the main character, to her nemesis tie up the whole book nicely.
by A.J. Finn
Very hard to put down, once I got past the first 35 pages, which I found plodding and confusing. But overall it is a rapid read and an entertaining one, too, with a couple of moments that actually made me gasp. I do think, though, that all the film noir references amounted to little more than name dropping and added nothing to the story. Also, I found the ending ridiculous, though (NO SPOILERS) the final words spoken by Anna, the main character, to her nemesis tie up the whole book nicely.
Book Review #110
The Art of Time in Fiction: As Long As It Takes
by Joan Silber
This is the second book that I have read in the Graywolf Press series of essays on fiction and other genres .In my opinion this one is not as interesting or entertaining as Stacey D'Erasmo's "The Art of Intimacy." However, the one segment of Joan Silber's book that I did enjoy and appreciate was her reference to and discussion of Virginia Woolf's "To the Lighthouse," one of my all-time favorite pieces of literature. So I was confused and disappointed when she omitted Woolf's novel from Works Discussed, which appears in the final pages. Actually I tried to contact the author about this through Graywolf but I never got a response.
by Joan Silber
This is the second book that I have read in the Graywolf Press series of essays on fiction and other genres .In my opinion this one is not as interesting or entertaining as Stacey D'Erasmo's "The Art of Intimacy." However, the one segment of Joan Silber's book that I did enjoy and appreciate was her reference to and discussion of Virginia Woolf's "To the Lighthouse," one of my all-time favorite pieces of literature. So I was confused and disappointed when she omitted Woolf's novel from Works Discussed, which appears in the final pages. Actually I tried to contact the author about this through Graywolf but I never got a response.
July 31, 2020
Reaching Out
It has been over ten days since I contacted Rima Staines about buying her photograph and asking for her permission to use it as cover art for the novella I am writing, "A Solitary Landscape." Unfortunately, I have not heard from her. So...time to move on.
Today I sent an email to Graywolf Press, asking how I might contact Joan Silber, author of "The Art of Time in Fiction," which I recently finished reading. It is the second book in "The Art of Series..." published by Graywolf. I had previously read "The Art of Intimacy in Fiction" and really liked it. Silber's book...not as much. But still a good read. Anyway, in the closing pages she lists the stories and books, etc., that she references in her book-long essay but for some reason omits "Invisible Cities" by Italo Calvino and Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard to Find." I would like to know why she does not mention those works. Hopefully, Graywolf will respond to my query so i can contact her.
Today I sent an email to Graywolf Press, asking how I might contact Joan Silber, author of "The Art of Time in Fiction," which I recently finished reading. It is the second book in "The Art of Series..." published by Graywolf. I had previously read "The Art of Intimacy in Fiction" and really liked it. Silber's book...not as much. But still a good read. Anyway, in the closing pages she lists the stories and books, etc., that she references in her book-long essay but for some reason omits "Invisible Cities" by Italo Calvino and Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard to Find." I would like to know why she does not mention those works. Hopefully, Graywolf will respond to my query so i can contact her.
July 24, 2020
Book Review #109
Before the Fall
by Noah Hawley
This is an extremely well-written novel, highly suspenseful, with well-drawn characters and a story line that has you hooked until the very end. The book is also an exploration into the psyches and lives of the various characters, up to the time of their doomed flight and beyond its aftermath.
If there is a love story of sorts, it is between Scott Burroughs, the reluctant hero, and J.J., the four-year-old boy he rescues, when the small plane they are on crashes into the ocean. Their relationship is tender and heartbreaking.
On the other end of the spectrum there are at least three reprehensible characters who are manipulative, damaged and self-destructive. Their presence alone is enough to induce anger and disgust in any reader.
I read the book at a rapid pace. But as I approached the end, I found the events too intense for comfort. I dreaded reading about the inevitable plane crash and who ultimately was responsible for the awful fate of the passengers. So for two days I put aside the book and picked it up again yesterday and read it to its conclusion, even rereading the final pages to clarify certain points in my mind. In the end, "Before the Fall" is a terrific read and one of the best thrillers I have read in quite sometime.
by Noah Hawley
This is an extremely well-written novel, highly suspenseful, with well-drawn characters and a story line that has you hooked until the very end. The book is also an exploration into the psyches and lives of the various characters, up to the time of their doomed flight and beyond its aftermath.
If there is a love story of sorts, it is between Scott Burroughs, the reluctant hero, and J.J., the four-year-old boy he rescues, when the small plane they are on crashes into the ocean. Their relationship is tender and heartbreaking.
On the other end of the spectrum there are at least three reprehensible characters who are manipulative, damaged and self-destructive. Their presence alone is enough to induce anger and disgust in any reader.
I read the book at a rapid pace. But as I approached the end, I found the events too intense for comfort. I dreaded reading about the inevitable plane crash and who ultimately was responsible for the awful fate of the passengers. So for two days I put aside the book and picked it up again yesterday and read it to its conclusion, even rereading the final pages to clarify certain points in my mind. In the end, "Before the Fall" is a terrific read and one of the best thrillers I have read in quite sometime.
July 22, 2020
Another Try
I contacted Rima Staines again, this time offering to purchase a copy of the photograph I want to use for the cover of the book I am currently writing. I asked if it is for sale and for how much in U.S. currency (She's in the U.K.) and if it's available in more than one size, and, if so, what are the dimensions? This was on July 17. As of today I have not heard from her. Nothing ventured...
