What are You Reading / Reviews - May 2017

[Leah]

Please let us know what you have been reading, plan to read, reviews, and suggestion for May. Happy reading!

[Terris]

Listening to The View from Castle Rock by Alice Munro.
Reading News of the World by Paulette Jiles
and Leaving Cold Sassy: The Unfinished Sequel to Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns.

[Melissa]

The Mephisto Club by Tess Gerritsen
Rizzoli & Isles #6
4 ★

PECCAVI
The Latin word is scrawled in blood at the scene of a young woman's brutal murder: I HAVE SINNED. It's a chilling Christmas greeting for Boston medical examiner Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli, who swiftly link the victim to controversial celebrity psychiatrist Joyce O'Donnell, Jane's professional nemesis and member of a sinister cabal called the Mephisto Club.
On top of Beacon Hill, the club's acolytes devote themselves to the analysis of evil: Can it be explained by science? Does it have a physical presence? Do demons walk the earth? Drawing on a wealth of dark historical data and mysterious religious symbolism, the Mephisto scholars aim to prove a startling theory: that Satan himself exists among us.
With the grisly appearance of a corpse on their doorstep, it's clear that someone or something is indeed prowling the city. The members of the club begin to fear the very subject of their study. Could this maniacal killer be one of their own or have they inadvertently summoned an evil entity from the darkness?

My Review
I always enjoy a good Rizzoli and Isles book and this one was no different. Although the murders were quite brutal, the story line was excellent. I love books that explore ancient text, mythology and legends. The Mephisto Club centers around books from the bible that have been deleted and forgotten about. Stories of fallen angels and demons. I found it quite intriguing. Maura's story is very different from the one portrayed on TV, Rizzoli's as well. I'm interested in seeing where the author plans to go with Maura's background and story line. The chapters alternate between characters point of views, including the killers, and in my opinion it makes the story flow better. It really keeps the reader interested. I look forward to continuing the series.

[James]

Marlon James, John Crow's Devil [2005] 206 pages

Another author for the (Goodreads) World Literature group project on Jamaica; Marlon James is one of the newest and most powerful Jamaican writers (this was his first novel). The book is set in a small village called "Gibbeah", in 1951 (although the back cover says 1957). The date doesn't really matter as the story doesn't take place in any definite historical reality. The style is "magical realism", and the basic idea reminded me somewhat of Satanic Verses, with the conflict of two main protagonists, one of whom is "Christlike" and one who is "Satanic", but at least at the beginning it is ambiguous which is really which. Unlike that novel, however, the political point, if there is one (the New York Times Book Review in the blurb on the back cover talks about the "anguish of a postcolonial society struggling for its own identity") is not especially clear. The novel is well-written. The major themes seem to be the potential of a seemingly "normal", inoffensive church to become a violent cult in a short period of time given a charismatic (but insane) leader, the tendency of victims of abuse to become abusers in turn and the guilt of society turning a blind eye to abuses on the part of the rich and powerful (which may be the allegory of Jamaica the NY Times review is referring to). The content is heavily sexual and not for all readers.

[Book Concierge]

May 6 - Currently Reading

TEXT – Maurice by E.M. Forster
AUDIO in the car – The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
MP3 Player AUDIO - Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

[James]

Marlon James, The Book of Night Women [2009] 427 pages

Last year for our library's book club I began reading Kitchen House, a novel by a white Canadian woman about slavery in Virginia; it was so unbelievable and poorly written I couldn't finish it. This is the book we should have been reading instead. The basic plot is similar; a young girl who works in the kitchen of a plantation, and the evils of slavery, in this case in Jamaica. Both books are set in the first decade of the nineteenth century. This novel, however, is much more credible and well-written, perhaps because James is a Black Jamaican, and certainly because he is a good writer.

The protagonist, Lilith, is a relatively privileged slave, the illegitimate daughter of the overseer and a young slave girl he raped. The novel avoids the usual cliché (going back all the way to Uncle Tom's Cabin) of the good master/evil overseer; both the slaveowners and the overseers are presented neither as good nor intrinsically evil but as ordinary men who are permitted, and even forced, to do evil by an evil economic system, a perspective which was lacking in the other book. The characters are well-drawn and the psychology makes sense, while being put in historical and social context. The focus is not simply on the sufferings of the slaves, but on their resistance; Lilith is part, although ambivalently, of a rebellion lead by the "night women" of the title. The book's only real fault is that it gives too much credence to the reality of (as opposed to the belief in) the supernatural, i.e. "Obeah" and the African gods and spirits; but this is a feature of much Caribbean literature and perhaps also of the author's previous use of "magical realism", although I wouldn't describe this book as being in that style.

[James]

Honoré de Balzac, Le bal de Sceaux [1830] 65 pages

The second novella in the Comédie humaine, this also deals with love and marriage; where La maison du Chat-qui-pelote the couple come to grief by following their love and ignoring the differences in culture and class, in this book the young spoiled protagonist Emilie de Fontaine risks her chance at happiness by putting too much emphasis on nobility in her suitors. In terms of the Comédie humaine as a whole, the subject is the nobility of the early Restoration period; the father, the Count de Fontaine, is one of the favorites of King Louis XVIII.

[Terris]

Leaving Cold Sassy: The Unfinished Sequel to Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns, 3***s
I really enjoyed this unfinished sequel to Cold Sassy Tree. I only gave it 3 stars because it ends abruptly. But I love the story of Cold Sassy Tree, so much fun, and so many entertaining characters and situations! It was interesting to see the main character, Will Tweedy, ten years after the ending of the first book, and see where his life was headed, even though there was no ending because of the author's death.

[Book Concierge]

Rocket Boys – Homer Hickam – 4****
Homer Hickam Jr (a/k/a Sonny) grew up in Coalwood, West Virginia – a “company town” in built and owned by the mining company for whom his father worked. In his memoir, Hickam brings the residents of Coalwood to life. He shares stories of growing up, of high school football, a beloved teacher, unlikely allies, young love, and his mother’s determination that her boys would NOT go into that mine.
LINK to my review

[Terris]

Bel Canto by Ann Patchell, 5*****s
Oh my! What a wonderful story -- I wish I wouldn't have put off reading it for so long!
It is the story of terrorists taking over at a state dinner in an unnamed South American country, the taking of hostages in hopes of getting their demands met, and how the terrorists and hostages come to know each other and get along after living for several months together -- oh, and there's lots of opera music involved!
Doesn't that sound like the strangest concept? Well, it isn't. It is a beautiful story, beautifully written, and very believable. I highly recommend this book, and I'm going out to find more Ann Patchett books right away!

[Melissa]

Dead to the World
(Sookie Stackhouse #4)
by Charlaine Harris
4 ★

Sookie Stackhouse is a cocktail waitress in Bon Temps, Louisiana. She has only a few close friends, because not everyone appreciates Sookie’s gift: she can read minds. That’s not exactly every man’s idea of date bait – unless they’re undead; vampires and the like can be tough to read. And that’s just the kind of guy Sookie’s been looking for. Maybe that’s why, when she comes across a naked vampire, she doesn’t just drive on by. He hasn’t got a clue who he is, but Sookie has: Eric looks just as scary and sexy – and dead – as ever. But now he has amnesia, he’s sweet, vulnerable, and in need of Sookie’s help – because whoever took his memory now wants his life.

My Review
Sookie has much going on in this one. Eric has lost his memory and staying with her, her brother is missing and Bill is out of the country. And there are witched in Shreveport trying to take over Eric's club. Sookie is hoping that she doesn't break her New Years resolution so soon - not to get hit/punched by someone. The reader gets to meet a new 2 natured in this installment. I won't give it away, but you know if you've seen the series. I have watched some of the TV series and have been pleasantly surprised by the differences. It's almost 2 different stories. Bill does not make a huge appearance, which is not a disappointment, and Eric is amazing! I just loved his softer side, as did Sookie.

[Melissa]

Good Behavior
(Letty Dobesh Chronicles #1-3)
by Blake Crouch
4 ★

Fresh out of prison and fighting to keep afloat, Letty Dobesh returns to her old tricks burglarizing suites at a luxury hotel. While on the job, she overhears a man hiring a hit man to kill his wife. Letty may not be winning any morality awards, but even she has limits. Unable to go to the police, Letty sets out to derail the job, putting herself on a collision course with the killer that entangles the two of them in a dangerous, seductive relationship.

My Review
Letty Dobesh is a thief and drug addict who tries her best to stay clean so that she can get her son back. Unfortunately, she can't seem to get away from either. The only way she can stay away from drugs is by being occupied with a (theft) job. She's quite the character. Lonely and tired. The edition I read has all three short stories in one book and the author explains how each was used in the TV series and why. I liked this and it makes me what to see the series. The last story, Grab, has a surprise ending I did not see coming. I really liked Letty and hope to her again.

[James]

Honoré de Balzac, La bourse [1830] 52 pages [in French, Kindle]

Another story (too short to even call a novella) in the Comédie humaine, a love story of a young artist and his neighbor. One of the minor characters from Le bal de Sceaux reappears here; I'm starting to see how the series connects. It was a good story but the plot wasn't all that interesting; the social description of the girl's family was probably the real point.

[James]

Honoré de Balzac, La vendetta [1830] 118 pages [in French, Kindle]

Another early story of Balzac, this is a tragic love story about two Corsicans in Paris in 1819; if Le Père Goriot was somewhat based on King Lear, the story here is based on Romeo and Juliet. The background is the miseries of ex-Bonapartists under the Restoration; it's strange, considering that Balzac described himself as a Royalist, that the Royalist characters in the novels I have read so far are all superficial or corrupt, and the heroes and heroines are all either Republicans or Bonapartists.

[James]

Honoré de Balzac, Madame Firmiani [1832] 37 pages [in French, Kindle]

A short story, which took a bit of padding to get to 37 pages. The title character is the perfect woman, and Balzac adds so many charms and virtues to her that one can't help suspect he's satirizing here; the male character is also way more perfect than any real person. Perhaps he's satirizing in reverse here, presenting perfection to contrast with the reality he describes in his other stories. A good short story nonetheless.

[Melissa]

Dragon in the Sock Drawer
(Dragon Keepers #1)
by Kate Klimo
4 ★

Ten-year-old cousins Jesse and Daisy have always wanted something magical to happen to them. So it’s a wish come true when Jesse’s newly found thunder egg hatches and a helpless, tiny, but very loud, baby dragon pops out. Soon the two kids are at the dragon’s beck and call, trying to figure out what to feed her. An Internet search leads them to the library, which leads them back to the Internet, where they find a very strange Web site called foundadragon.org. Here the cousins discover that the dragon’s hatching has designated them “Dragon Keepers.” Not only do they have to feed the dragon, whom they named Emmy, but they also have to keep her safe from the villainous Saint George, who has kept himself alive over centuries by drinking dragons’ blood!

My Review
My daughter read this series and talked about it so much that I had to start it. Jesse finds a thunder rock while out hiking with his cousin Daisy. His uncle thinks it's a geode and tries to break it open, but it doesn't work. Jesse puts it in his sock drawer. A day later a dragon hatches from it. A cute green dragon they name Emerald, Emmy for short. This one event changes the cousins summer. They are now Dragon Keepers and must keep Emmy safe. Emmy is a fun character. And a hungry one! I really enjoyed this quick youth fiction book. The story flowed well. There is a pleasant surprise at the end. I like how the author ended it. I look forward to continuing the series.

[Book Concierge]

Eligible – Curtis Sittenfeld – 4****
The subtitle is all the synopsis you need: A Modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice. This is the fourth installment of the planned retellings that comprise The Austen Project, wherein contemporary authors tackle one of Austen’s works and reimagine it in a modern setting. All told, I found it entertaining and fun. Definitely helps if you’ve read the original, though it spoils any surprises as you anticipate “when will they …?” or “how will she include …..?”
LINK to my review

[Beverly]

The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing
4 stars

This was the first book I've read by Doris Lessing but I'm fairly certain it won't be the last. A fascinating story about Mary Turner who, instead of living her life as she wishes, lets her social circle kind of quilt her into a marriage. She is moved away to an isolated ranch in southern Rhodesia. Her husband means well and works hard but is unsuccessful at venture after venture. One of the most difficult things for Mary is dealing with the native farm workers. She is not kind to them and they in turn become resistant and surly which then makes her react even more strongly against them. Tensions increase as the interminable years pass by until the slave Moses arrives. The feelings between Mary and Moses are complicated...alternating between attraction and revulsion. When the situation finally reaches its peak, the outcome is deadly.

[Terris]

Beverly wrote: "
The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing
4 stars

This was the first book I've read by Doris Lessing but I'm fairly certain it won't be the last. A fascinating..."

I'm glad to see you liked this so much. Like you, I also have not read any of Lessing's books but plan to. Thanks for the inspiration :)

[Beverly]

Plainsong by Kent Haruf
4 stars

This is the second book by Kent Haruf that I've read for one of my book groups. I really enjoy Mr. Haruf's work. In both novels I've read, he writes about unusual circumstances in a small town setting. In Plainsong we have a family where the wife is retreating from her husband and children, another family where a pregnant daughter is disowned by her mother and two unmarried brothers whose life is farming. It's hard to imagine how these characters will all come together to help one another. Just plain folk living their lives the best they can and trying to do the right thing for their neighbors.

[Terris]

Beverly wrote: "
Plainsong by Kent Haruf
4 stars

This is the second book by Kent Haruf that I've read for one of my book groups. I really enjoy Mr. Haruf's work. In both novels I've rea..."

This is on my list for next month and I'm really looking forward to it! I have only read "Our Souls at Night" and I really enjoyed it :)

[Beverly]

Terris wrote: "Beverly wrote: "
Plainsong by Kent Haruf
4 stars

This is the second book by Kent Haruf that I've read for one of my book groups. I really enjoy Mr. Haruf's work. In both..."

That's the other one that I read and I enjoyed it as well. I think you'll enjoy this just as much!!

[Beverly]

When Women Were Birds by Terry Tempest Williams
3 stars

This was just OK for me. Ms. Williams groups her essays around the fact that when her mother dies, she left her all of her journals. When she found the journals, they were all blank. So her essays talk about the relationships that we develop in life with our mothers, sisters, female friends, aunts, grandmothers and ourselves. All of these relationships lead to considering how we live our lives and shaping the person we become. My take on this is that the blank journals were meant to push her daughter into thinking about her life thus "filling the journals" with all the knowledge she garnered.

[Beverly]

The Walking Dead, Compendium 3 by Robert Kirkwood
4 stars

It is so interesting to me to read these and compare them to the TV series. This 3rd compendium actually ends way ahead of where the latest season ended but they've made so many changes for the show that it really doesn't feel like a bunch of spoilers. My understanding is that they are working on the 4th compendium...so I'll just be looking forward to that. Certainly not for everyone, but if you watch the series, give the graphic novels a shot.

[Book Concierge]

Death in the Clouds – Agatha Christie – 3***
Christie’s Belgian detective has become my go-to comfort read. I never tire of watching Poirot exercise his “little gray cells” to the amusement and astonishment of fellow investigators, suspects, innocent bystanders, and, of course, the culprit.
LINK to my review

[Book Concierge]

The Christmas Thief – Mary Higgins Clark & Carol Higgins Clark – 3***
There’s not much holiday spirit in this slim volume; it is more a fun and entertaining comic crime caper than a mystery. I do like the cast of characters, and while the coincidences required for the plot to work stretch credulity a bit, but they do add to the suspense and enjoyment.
LINK to my review

[James]

Beverly wrote: "
The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing
4 stars

This was the first book I've read by Doris Lessing but I'm fairly certain it won't be the last. A fascinating..."

One of my top ten favorite authors. Don't expect to find them like The Grass Is Singing though -- everything she wrote is in a different style but nearly all the styles are recognizable as Lessing.

[James]

David Moskowitz, The Words and Music of Bob Marley [2007] 176 pages

I've gotten about halfway through Marlon James' A Brief History of Seven Killings, the novel about the assassination attempt on Bob Marley, and I was curious about what was based on fact and what was made up; so I decided to stop and read a biography of Marley first. The library had two, both by the same author, David Moskowitz, a musicology professor in the US; the other book was a YA biography, very short, so I decided to read this one, which focuses more on his music but also has a basic biography. I was surprised that some of the things I thought Marlon James had invented were actually based on fact, or at least on actual rumors (such as the horserace allegedly fixed by Marley's friend Alan "Skills" Cole, which rumors suggested as a reason for the attempt). I was less surprised that Papa_Lo and Shotta Sherriff were based on actual people. But this is a review of the Moskowitz book, not the James book, so . . .

The book is quite short, but it manages to cover all of Marley's albums; it explains simply the differences between ska, rocksteady and reggae, how they evolved, and how they differ from American rock music, and the political and religious background to the lyrics. The level of political analysis is less than in the novel, but the author explains the events in a straightforward way which I found helpful. I can figure out the analysis myself. I also got some good direction as to what to look for (and request at the library, which only had one Marley album) -- Marley and reggae were not something I was into in the sixties and seventies, so I'm discovering his music a few decades late, but it's incredible. Plus I'm learning a lot of new synonyms for marijuana.

[James]

Honoré de Balzac, Une double famille [1830] 114 pages [in French, Kindle]

This novella starts out as a love story and then becomes a very interesting analysis of domestic religious extremism -- one of the characters is a "devot", a word I remembered from Moliere's plays. I didn't particularly like the ending, which was rushed and in Balzac's most cynical vein. There were whole passages I was tempted to quote here, but read the book.

[James]

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, El coronel no tiene quien le escriba [1961] 99 pages [in Spanish]

His second novel, written after La hojarasca, describes the life of an old man who has been cheated all his life, yet continues to have illusions in everything -- his pension which has not come in 56 years will finally come, the cock which he is raising can never lose, all the people around him are honest. The book shows the corruption, violence and poverty of the country, without offering much hope of any change. Good writing, but still written in a purely realist style, with even less trace of "magical" elements than the first book, so not the style he's known for yet.

[Koren]

Murder for Hire: My Life As the Country's Most Successful Undercover Agent by Jack Ballentine
3 stars

Hard to believe there are so many people in Arizona that want to kill each other. This book was very interesting in the beginning but then each story started to sound pretty much the same. I enjoyed the parts about his personal life and finding the love of his life better than the stories about the criminals. There are a lot of typos in this book which I found distracting.

[Terris]

I'm reading Dear Mr. M and The Crossover, as well as listening to The Return of the Native and The Mighty Miss Malone. Enjoying them all so far -- they are all very from each other!

[Melissa]

The Beast Within by Serena Valentino
Villains series #2
4 ★

A cursed prince sits alone in a secluded castle. Few have seen him, but those who claim they have say his hair is wild and nails are sharp--like a beast's! But how did this prince, once jovial and beloved by the people, come to be a reclusive and bitter monster? And is it possible that he can ever find true love and break the curse that has been placed upon him?

My Review
The author has put an interesting twist in the Beauty and the Beast story with this one. The reader gets to take a trip down memory lane with the beast and I found it quite interesting. The journey included 4 witches, 3 of which mastermind the whole story. The author used actual lines and events from the Disney movie and the reader is able to "see" everything. I have enjoyed this series. It gives the reader a new insight into the villains and how they became who they are now. They also let the reader see "the bad guy" as a human being.

[Book Concierge]

Stargirl – Jerry Spinelli – 5*****
I’m long past high school, but I still remember the “pack” mentality that required conformity. It’s painful to revisit that, but Spinelli does a great job exploring what might happen, and how the events might affect some of the students.
LINK to my review

[Book Concierge]

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon – Grace Lin – 4****
What a delightful story for middle-school readers (and adults). Inspired by Chinese folklore, Lin weaves a fantasy tale of one young woman’s quest to help her family. Minli’s courage, grace, kindness and perseverance are to be admired. I am reminded of the stories my grandparents, aunts and uncles told on many a night, as we sat on the front porch in the dark, my imagination running wild with tales of adventure.
LINK to my review

[James]

Marlon James, A Brief History of Seven Killings [2014] 688 pages

Anything but brief, and more like the biblical "seven times seventy" killings. The style reminded me of Vargas Llosa's La Fiesta del chivo, short chapters from various viewpoints, none of whom can be singled out as the major character, and filled with violence leading up to an assassination attempt. It also reminded me of that book in another way: the novel reaches the climax at midpoint and then becomes anticlimactic. In this case, however, the anticlimax just becomes the setup for what is in effect a second novel. The first half is a five-star novel about Jamaican politics and the assassination attempt on Bob Marley (for some reason just referred to as "the Singer", although the back cover names him, and the identification is obvious); the second half is a three-star novel about the American drug trade, with some of the same characters. Much of the writing is in Jamaican dialect, and I can imagine people posting "warnings" about sex, violence, language ... basically, if you're sensitive about anything, don't attempt this. If you're interested in how the U.S. goes about ruling the Caribbean, on the other hand, this is a powerful work of political fiction.

Honoré de Balzac, La paix du ménage [1830] 64 pages [in French, Kindle]

Set a bit earlier than the other Balzac novellas I have read so far, in the design of the Comédie humaine this is concerned with painting the moeurs of the Napoleonic upper classes. As far as the plot, set at a ball, it seemed like a YA novel taking place at a high school dance, with all the stereotypes of the "popular girl", "mean girl", "new girl", "jocks trying to score" and so forth; rather disconcerting when the characters are supposed to be in their mid-twenties or older and the "jocks" are high ranking officers of "La grande armée". (In case you think this is anachronistic, at one point Balzac actually compares one of the characters to a high school student.) I guess when someone writes as many works as Balzac, he's bound to have an occasional "miss", and this is one.

[Melissa]

Women Heroes of World War II: 26 Stories of Espionage, Sabotage, Resistance, and Rescue by Kathryn J. Atwood

Noor Inayat Khan was the first female radio operator sent into occupied France and transferred crucial messages. Johtje Vos, a Dutch housewife, hid Jews in her home and repeatedly outsmarted the Gestapo. Law student Hannie Schaft became involved in the most dangerous resistance work--sabotage, weapons transference, and assassinations. In these pages, young readers will meet these and many other similarly courageous women and girls who risked their lives to help defeat the Nazis.
Twenty-six engaging and suspense-filled stories unfold from across Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, France, Belgium, Denmark, Great Britain, and the United States, providing an inspiring reminder of women and girls’ refusal to sit on the sidelines around the world and throughout history.
An overview of World War II and summaries of each country’s entrance and involvement in the war provide a framework for better understanding each woman’s unique circumstances, and resources for further learning follow each profile. Women Heroes of World War II is an invaluable addition to any student’s or history buff’s bookshelf.

My Review
This was an extremely informative, interesting book. I highly enjoyed it. I even learned from it. The stories of these brave women are inspiring. It takes a brave man to join the war and an even braver woman to join. They all put themselves in danger and risked their lives to help end the war. After reading this, I believe that WWII would not have ended as soon as it did if not for these women. I recommend this book to all the women/girls out there who are looking for inspiration. It truly makes you proud to be female!

[James]

Honoré de Balzac, La fausse maîtresse [1842] 61 pages [in French, Kindle]

Later than the previous novellas, set in the Orleanist period. The style is more Romantic than Realist, with an almost Dickensian unusual character; the plot is a love triangle with two Polish refugees and the wife of one.

Honoré de Balzac, Étude de femme [1831] 15 pages [in French, Kindle]

Too short to list as a separate book. This is an anecdote about a woman and a misaddressed letter; the main interest is that the male protagonist is Eugene Rastignac from Père Goriot.

[Beverly]

We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo
3 stars

I picked this book up during the "blind date with a book" event at our library. It was an unusual and interesting first novel for this author. It tells the story of a young girl, Darling, who has lived in Zimbabwe for her first ten years and then moves to America to live with her aunt as things in her country become more difficult. Conversation was done in dialect which made reading and understanding a bit harder but I really enjoyed seeing the perspective of the country and the people through the eyes of Darling and her friends. They steal guavas to eat and before they are stopped by Darling's grandmother, they attempt to help their friend Chipo get the baby out of her belly. It is not an easy life and as schools are closed down and their homes are destroyed, Darling is sent to live in America. The contrasts in her two situations are striking but as an immigrant, her life is still problematic. Because of the blunt descriptions of the settings and the wonderful style of writing, I really connected with the characters and their lives.

[Beverly]

The Twleve by Justin Cronin
3 stars

I did not enjoy this second book in the series nearly as much as I enjoyed the first book. However, a good friend of mine whose judgement I really trust, insisted that the 3rd book in the series was wonderful so I persevered. It was a horrible read (or listen). Scott Brick again read this huge audio (21 discs) and I've gotten acclimated to his voice now so I hope he reads the next one as well. This book is just so multilayered and alternates between present day and the future. Additionally, there is a raft of characters to keep straight. But the main thread, that of the "monsters" created by an out of control military experiment which are being stalked by those who want them dead, continues on. Many fight and many die. So, if you like a vampire novel with lots of action, you might want to try this series.

[Beverly]

by Jack London
3 stars

Read by Jeff Daniels, who did an awesome job, this adventure story is told from the perspective of a dog who becomes a sled dog in the Yukon. He starts out as a rather pampered dog, going where ever he wants whenever he wants. When is big enough to be sold to work in the reins of a sled, Buck has to learn how to survive in this new environment. Not unlike learning to get along with our coworkers, he learns the hierarchy that he must operate within on a daily basis. As his skill and confidence grow he becomes a leader for his owner and team.

[James]

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, La mala hora [1962] 207 pages

Garcia Marquez's third novel (the reviews say his first, probably because the first two, La hojarasca and El coronel no tiene quien le escriba are too short to meet a formal definition of "novel"), this is written in the same general style as the first two, which is to say realist in its depictions of the characters and situations, modernist in its technique (no single protagonist, shifts from viewpoint to viewpoint frequently, leaves events ambiguous.) There's no "magical realism", so I guess that his next novel, Cien años de Solitudo, which I read (in translation) in college and am re-reading for the first time in Spanish next month, was the first as well as the best-known novel in that style. The story takes place, as most of his novels do, in a typical but fictional small town in a country which could be his native Colombia, or any other country in Latin America -- a country where the "liberal", more or less bourgeois democratic government was replaced by a conservative dictatorship many years earlier, and the regime, though still officially in a "state of seige", has for some time entered into the phase of relaxing restrictions and trying to appear more legitimate, in order to replace rule by direct force by the more economical rule by illusion, without risking the return of the Liberal party to power.

Reading these "Macondo" novels at the same time as I'm working my way through Balzac's Comédie humaine is hard on my memory, because in both cases one has to remember the minor characters who return from one novel to another. Here the cast of characters includes the alcalde, who represents the government, thoroughly corrupt yet at bottom not an evil person, who truly wants to convince the people he's on their side but is forced by his position to commit political crimes (one of the things that sets Garcia Marquez above the "liberal" authors like Vargas Llosa is that he understands that political evils do not stem from "bad people" but from a bad system); the Judge, who is basically apolitical and used by the alcalde; Padre Ángel, the resident priest, who tries to ignore the political evils and coexist with the government, while focusing on individual -- mainly sexual -- "morality"; the doctor, a good-hearted but rather cynical representative of modern thought; Don Sabas (who played an important role in the previous novel), the most corrupt person in a corrupt town, a former leader of the opposition who changed sides and turned informer, becoming rich by buying up their property; the dentist, the other former leader of the opposition who managed to survive the purges; the barber, who supports the opposition, and is a source of information; two widows, with very different personalities, who are politically important in some way; and the wives, mothers, children of the above and many other minor characters.

The action begins when someone begins posting pasquines (satirical notices) on people's doors during the night, mainly exposing irregular sexual relations, all of which were already commonly known. For some reason, which the more "rational" characters try unsuccessfully to understand, having these "confirmed" by the lampoons gives them greater weight, there is a murder, some people leave town, and a few people are very concerned; which sets in motion a response which ultimately undoes all the efforts of the alcalde to seem legitimate and returns the town to its previous condition of rule by direct force. At one level, this is a mystery novel -- who is posting the pasquines? But unlike a traditional mystery, it is never revealed -- although perhaps there are clues, and many of the reviews I have read agree on one character; I think that the more likely solution is what some of the characters suggest, that after the first night it is a case of copy-cat activity by many citizens with personal and political scores to settle. In the end, this really become a side issue, and the book, like the community of Macondo, drops the interest in the pasquines for the more important questions of politics and ethics.

If this is an early, minor novel, I can't wait to re-read Cien años de Solitudo and move on to some of his later works.

[Book Concierge]

The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins – 3***
In a future dystopian North America, twenty-four contestants fight to the death on live TV. Collins draws the reader in and made me care about Katniss. She’s a strong, intelligent, resourceful female heroine. The cliff-hanger ending is a pet peeve and I dropped a star for that.
LINK to my review

[Book Concierge]

Maurice – E M Forster – 4****
Written between 1913 and 1914, Forster’s novel of a young man’s awakening homosexuality was not published until 1971, a year after the author’s death. I loved the way that Forster developed this character, showing Maurice’s progress from a naïve student, to a young man awakening to the possibilities that a mature and loving relationship might offer him.
LINK to my review

[Beverly]

This is Where it Ends by Marieke Nijkamp
3 stars

We read this for my YA book discussion group and unfortunately, it was a book just all too close to the truth to be comfortable reading. I thought this book was well written although there were a couple of plot points that I questioned but overall very believable. This story revolves around a young man who feels like he's lost everything in life and his attempt to take revenge on those who he feels caused his losses. It's a disturbing read and I'm not sure that reading it answers any questions about this tragic problem or offers any solutions to it. Reading it made me think too much about my own grandchildren in high school.

[Beverly]

March by John Lewis
3 stars

Reviewed for this year's Mock Caldecott Awards. This is the 3rd graphic novel in this series by John Lewis. I have enjoyed them all and learned so much. Even though these events happened during my lifetime, I lived in a very white, middle-class neighborhood and went to an entirely white school system and didn't listen to the news. Although I did hear about some of the more dramatic moments, I just didn't feel any more than being upset for the people who were injured or killed, not realizing the overall intent of what was going on. I'm still not a political person, but I'm certainly glad there are those out there who are and who stand up for the rights of others.

[Beverly]

Under the Harrow by Flynn Berry
4 stars

Nora is traveling from London to visit her older sister. When she arrives, instead of starting an exciting family visit, she finds that her sister has been murdered. Nora finds that she has no intention of leaving until the mystery is solved. She jumps right in, not really trusting the local police to conduct a complete investigation. She becomes obsessed with a neighbor, sure that he's the murderer and virtually stalks him. I could barely put this book down and it didn't end at all like I suspected it would. A great hit for a first novel.

[Beverly]

Story of O by Pauline Reage
1 star

A book about a young woman who subjects herself to subservience and humiliation in a sexual relationship with a man she says she's in love with. I did not like this book at all. It is totally beyond my imagination that anyone would submit to this type of submission...and actually want to do this, thinking that the person you loved required it to maintain the bond. Even though the book was not quite as sexually explicit as I was afraid it might be, the addition of violence to the mix just added to my incredulity. I would never recommend this book to anyone and I'm amazed it's on the 1001 list.

[Beverly]

A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch
4 stars

A nice start to a new, for me, cozy mystery series. Charles Lenox loves to drink a nice cup of tea and enjoy a good book but it doesn't take much to urge him to set off to solve a mystery. His good friend, Lady Jane, lives nearby and she has just learned that Prudence Smith, Lady Jane's former maid, has been found dead...and there's talk of suicide. Charles soon decides that she didn't commit suicide and was probably poisoned with an unusual and rare poison. As he tracks through the suspects, and there are quite a number of them, he discovers that Pru had several relationships with different men but that doesn't mean that one of them killed her. I listened to this presentation which was read by James Langton, who did a great job. This was an easy, entertaining read but I would recommend reading the book rather than listening because there are so many characters. It's hard to keep track of everyone without being able to page back.

[James]

Beverly wrote: "
Story of O by Pauline Reage
1 star

A book about a young woman who subjects herself to subservience and humiliation in a sexual relationship with a man she says she's i..."

The only reason I can imagine for reading this -- the reason I read it once a long time ago -- is because it was used as a (bad) example in Sexual Politics.