Wednesday, November 14, 2018

The Other Woman by Sandie Jones- Book Review

For the sake of being open and honest, I will admit at the beginning of this review, I did not read this entire book. I read the beginning 3/4ths of the middle, and then jumped to the ending. I will explain why in the review, but I wanted to put it up front in fairness.

I am a big fan of Reese Witherspoon’s book club Hello Sunshine. She has a tendancy to pick books which are interesting and can get me thinking. When I saw this was the pick for the month and it was a thriller, I jumped to grab it.

This is the story of Emily and Adam- a young couple who have a quick and fast love affair which begins to turn serious. It is also the story of Pammie, Adam’s mother (the other woman dun dun DUNNNNN) who does everything she possibly can to keep Emily and Adam apart from one another. Pammie regularly insults Emily, faints when the two get engaged, and is just a pain in Emily’s world.

Emily has a good support system, but slowly is dragged away from them because of Adam and Pammie. As Emily is wondering what to do, she begins to have coffee with Adam’s brother. Emily begins to have feelings for him too. Will she act on them? Will Pammie get in the way?

A good protagonist makes or breaks a story. If this book were a movie, I would be yelling at the screen because at times I was internally yelling at Emily in the book- JUST LEAVE! While it may be true love, yadda yadda yadda, Emily regularly reminds the reader she has been with Adam only a few weeks and then a few months and through this entire time Pammie has verbally attacked her and Adam has snapped at her quite a number of times. Why didn’t she just leave?!?

Emily as protagonist wouldn’t be so bad, but Jones wrote an over the top antagonist in Pammie. Up against Pammie, Emily becomes more brooding in the corner than standing up to Pammie. Emily will get her licks in, but Pammie is too strong of an antagonist compared to Emily, who makes so many bad choices, it will drive you crazy.

Then there is a twist. I knew there was going to be a twist going into the book. I won’t say what the twist is, but you can probably figure it out about a quarter way into the book, I did which is why after reading about 3/4ths of the book, I had to just skip ahead to see if I was right and I was. While Jones is a very skilled writer and the book is fun, even at 300+ pages, it was becoming too long. Too many bad choices by Emily, too many one ups by Pammie, and Adam is just too perfect that he doesn’t makes much sense when he lashes out at Emily. Again, after the first one, why not just leave since you knew each other only a month at the time!

I would say this book is enjoyable and would even be a good book club book. It just wasn’t may taste and I had to skip to get to the already knowable ending. Take that as you will.

Monday, October 29, 2018

Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami

I am going to be up front with a full disclosure that I am a huge Murakami fan. After reading 1Q84 for the first time, I went through all of his books in a row and he moved to the top of my purchase anything he writes list. So, when I heard about this book coming out in Japan, I waited impatiently for the translation to come out and grabbed it on day one of release.

I am writing this because I can fully see how someone might not enjoy this book. It is slowly pace, gets very strange, and there are inappropriate conversations about breasts between a young girl and an older man.

For the Murakami fan, this book is probably the most Murakami that he could be. It contains the typical Murakami man- a main male character who is mostly detached from life looking in on it as a curiosity and loves sex, even though he is detached from that too. It contains a Murakami world- some might call it magical realism, but I would say it is mostly fantastic with a little bit of realism to give the reader an anchor. It also contains talking paintings, bells which ring mysteriously, trips into the unknown, and moments that will leave you scratching your head. To me, if this is your first Murakami, I would say try a different one before taking the plunge into the 700 pager that this is.

In Japan, this came out in two separate books which is important because book 1 is mostly a slow trudging setup, while book 2 takes the world which was slowly built and crumbles it with so many fantasy scenes that one begins to question what was real.

At its core, it is about a painter- Tomohiko who is known for his portrait paintings. After he and his wife separate and he takes a “find yourself” camping trip for a few years, he settles into the home of an artist who is dying. In the attic, he finds a painting titled “Killing Commendatore.” One day, a rich man,  from on top of a hill comes to his house to commission a painting of himself. After resisting, Tomohiko decides to take the painting on, but does a technique he has not done before. At this point, a mysterious bell begins ringing, but I won’t say why. As time moves forward, the rich man become bolder and asks for another portrait. This time the portrait is of a young girl who may or may not be the rich man’s daughter. After accepting and as the girl poses, more strange things begin to take place which will lead Tomohiko down a path into another world wrapped around his current world.

Let me re-emphasize, this book is about 700 pages and at times is mind numbingly slow, but stick with it! By the time you get to book 2, whoa nelly!

What I enjoyed most about this book is it feels as autobiographical as Murakami is going to get. As Tomohiko talks about his painting process and what it feels like to create, I believe we get a glimpse into Murakami’s writing process. As the paintings begin to beacon and call to the painter, I think we see what writing is like for Murakami. In fact, there was a line in the book where Tomohiko states how he feels he is in a fantasy world with bits of reality peeking in. To me, that easily describes a Murakami book.

It is a trudge and this book took me about a week+ to finish because of that slowness, but the payoff in book 2 makes it all worth it. This shouldn’t be your first Murakami though. Become a fan first and then dive head first into this one.

Thursday, October 4, 2018

The Parking Lot Attendant by Nafkote Tamirat

If it were not for Book Riot’s All the Books Podcast, this book would not have been on my radar. One of the hosts, Liberty, said this is a book she has read 10 times so far this year. I usually trust her picks, so I grabbed it the first chance I could.

What a strange little book!

I have been sitting at the keyboard trying to think of how to describe this book- do I focus on plot? On characters? On overall theme? And still am unsure where to begin with this as one of my goals is to convince you this is a good book, but there is nothing within any of the things mentioned above which will do that, even though it is a good book.

The book largely centers on an Ethiopian girl, her father, and a mysterious hustler named Ayale, who runs the local parking lot, which seems to have more cars in it than it can hold. Our protagonist is drawn to Ayale and her father is not happy about it.

Ayale is very mysterious and there is a wonderful chapter where our protagonist lists all the things she knows and doesn’t know about him. He is opinionated, seems to sleep with tons of women, and has lots of friends who come and go often.

As the relationship grows, our protagonist, become a courier for Ayale delivering mysterious packages for not quite small amount of money. While she likes Ayale, her trust begins to wane as she realizes she does not know what is in these packages and Ethiopians in Boston keep getting murdered around the neighborhood. The question is what exactly is our protagonist doing for Ayale?

As I read the book, I too kept being drawn to Ayale. Tamirat has written a truly remarkable character who lures the reader in with his opinions, his strange lifestyle choices, and his job. It is strange, but for me, the plot became secondary as I wanted to spend more time with Ayale.

The one distracting part of the book is Tamirat will go into a conversation with two people by having a quick back and forth and doesn’t let the reader know which person is speaking. If you lose count, you will forget exactly who is speaking and often times I had to go back to re-read the conversation. Part of it is the writing is so good and the conversation draws one in.

Definitely read this one with an open mind and knowing the book may not be for you. I wound up loving it though, largely due to Ayale.

Friday, September 28, 2018

The Real Lolita By Sarah Weinman Book Review

I remember reading Lolita in High School and not liking it very much. I found it a tad dull at times and didn’t quite get the appeal. One of the issues was I wasn’t much of a reader at the time and the other issue was Lolita is about a pedophile who ruins a young girl’s life.

I did know a bit about Nabokov and his denial that Lolita wasn’t connected to anyone or anything in real life. This book states otherwise.

The book is focused on Sally Horner, a young 11 year old girl who is abducted by a 50 year old Frank LaSalle from 1948-1950 in Camden, NJ. LaSalle posed as an FBI agent who caught Horner stealing a $.05 notebook. He threatened to put her in jail and to tell her parents unless she boarded a bus with him to Atlantic City. He posed as one of Sally’s girlfriend’s dad to convince Sally’s mother to let her go. Mom dropped her off at the bus stop and Sally was taken for 2 years. Eventually Horner escapes and is tragically killed in a car accident a few years after her escape.

Weinman tells Sally and LaSalle’s story using interviews of living survivors and court records. She also tells Nabokov’s story and where he is during Horner’s abduction, asking did Nabokov know the story, especially since the two stories line up very closely and Nabokov references a Sally in the book?

I read and finished this book in less than a day because it is an interesting story and the book was written like a true crime novel (Weinman’s background). At times, if I am honest, I found Weinman’s narrative a bit self focused, especially the intro, but it was not distracting. It is also difficult to put Horner’s narrative into place since most of it was on the run and LaSalle disappears at moments using aliases.

While Lolita is told through the pedophile’s eyes where he convinces the reader that Lolita is seducing him and makes himself the victim; the Real Lolita paints a picture of a young girl who’s life is stolen from her and is raped repeatedly. I will say, the book did make me want to re-look at Lolita to see some of the connections Weinman proposes.

I would library this one as it is a very quick read.

Monday, September 24, 2018

Washington Black by Eli Edugyan Book Review

I’m back! There were a whole variety of reasons why I stopped book blogging for a bit, but the easiest answer is I made it no fun for myself. When I started requesting more ARCs than I could read, started putting self administered deadlines, and put pressure on myself to produce reviews, I made something which started as a hobby into a job. So, I am not going to do that again. I am going back to my original format of writing reviews for books which I enjoyed when I can post them. No deadlines and back to being a hobby.

The other reason I wanted to restart by book blog was to share this book with as many people as I could, since it is now one of my top 10 favorite books of the year- Washington Black.

I will fully admit when I read the description for this book, I wasn’t sure about it. It was then shortlisted for the Man Booker and more importantly, was available on Litsy the day it was published from my local library, so I grabbed it. I am so glad I did too!

I have been describing the first portion of this book as an adult Huck Finn, if Huck was a British noble named Titch, Jim was a slave who was on the run for witnessing a white man’s suicide (he was going to be accused of murder) named George Washington Black or Wash, and the raft was a hot air balloon! As they adventure in the Sky Cutter, danger is lurking everywhere as a slave catcher is after the two of them. Danger also looms because slavery exists everywhere they travel, so Wash is treated as such everywhere he goes.

The great thing about the book is once one gets a feeling of knowing where the book is likely to head, Edugyan flips the story and takes it a completely different direction. As a wonderful storyteller, she does this a few times too! The other great thing is it all holds together wonderfully.

Let’s just say I loved this book so much that I returned my digital library copy and ran to the local bookstore to purchase a paper copy. It is really that much worth the read. While I have only read one other Man Booker nominee, between the two, this is the one to bet on. The others are on their way from England.

This one is a solid 5 out of 5.

Monday, March 26, 2018

Heart Berries by Therese Marie Mailhot- Book Review

I became aware of this book because of an article about new Native American authors on the rise. The book was then picked for several celebrity book clubs. It has gotten a lot of buzz. The question is- is it worth it? In short, absolutely!

If you have never read a Native memoir or book, you should know going in that they are often difficult reads because they explore the deep and tough aspects of life. Mailhot’s book is exactly this. She explores her life and her upbringing. She looks at her dual diagnosis of PTSD and bi-polar. She explores her relationship with her father who was a drunk, abusive, and who was murdered and her mother who was an advocate for prisoners and a social worker.

While this is not a “happy” read, it is an incredible read. Her writing is poetic at times and just draws the reader in. She has an incredible voice, even in the midst of all that is surrounding her in this narrative.

This is what is incredible in Native writing, the struggle is always worth exploring because it is a deep part of life. Trials build the person, but they are never easy to go through. Going through them shows the strength of the person.

There is one thing to note for those that may get a icky feeling, Sherman Alexie is a part of this book besides the Introduction. This was published just before the information about Alexie came out and of course there has been a big backlash regarding his behavior. He is part of her story and he shows up in the memoir. Just be ready for that.

Monday, March 12, 2018

Batman Nightwalker Marie Lu- Book Review

There has been a pleasant series created by DC taking the very famous characters and placing them before they become heroes and are still teenagers. The first was on Wonder Woman right after the release of the movie and now Marie Lu has come out with a Batman one.

In this book, Bruce Wayne has just turned 18 and has now inherited his family’s fortune as well as Wayne Enterprises. He has largely been protected from the media because he was underage, but now that he is 18, his movements in Gotham have become front page news. This is a bit of fun, except on the night of his birthday when Wayne crashes his brand new and highly expensive car and is forced to clean floors in Arkham Asylum.

As he begins mopping, he is harassed by the prisoners there except by a quiet girl who is also 18. She seems too young to be there and has not spoken a word to anyone until Bruce passes her cell. She and Bruce begin a conversation and a relationship, but can Bruce trust a criminal in Arkham?

At the same time, there is a group running around Gotham robbing and killing the rich. Bruce is rumored to be the next on their hitlist. Is the girl connected to all this? (Hint: yes)

One of the biggest difficulties with the book is it is not a “Batman” book, it is a Bruce Wayne book. The Bat does not make an appearance in this book, so the title is pretty misleading.

Marie Lu knows how to tell a story as we saw in her great book WarCross earlier this year. The difficulty is she was given such a legend of DC comics with a deep lore and story that this particular book seems out of place in the Batman/Bruce Wayne universe. If the TV show Gotham did not exist, this might be an exciting entry to have a young Bruce Wayne, but in the Gotham series, the Joker and Penguin are already running around, so a girl in a cell is a pretty tough sell.

It isn’t a bad book though and if the rumors are true, I think I would have liked that book more. The rumor was Lu didn’t want to write a Batman book, but rather a Nightwing/Robin book, which would put this book into a better place. Robin doesn’t have as much of a lore as Wayne does and he is a bit more impulsive, so the book would have fit his character. It just didn’t work for Batman.

I gave this one 3 stars, but not for the writing. It was for the subject.

Monday, March 5, 2018

The Prey of Gods by Nicky Drayden- Book Review

I wanted to give a quick update as to what has been going on with my reviews. I am still reading, but have been in a nonfiction/religious/continuing education mode meaning I have been reading more to strengthen my career skills rather than for fun. I have also read quite a number of books, but had no desire to write a review for them because I either did not enjoy them or just thought they were just ok. I like to use this outlet to promote books I really enjoy and want to highlight. So, that is why the number of reviews have dwindled a bit.

This brings me to the latest book review and boy is it a doozy. I loved this book, but absolutely do not know quite how to describe it.

It takes place in the near future Africa, where personal robot assistants are on the upswing. There are is also a new drug beginning to show up, but only to certain people. Not only do the people get high, but then develop some kind of super powers after some weird trips. There is also a singer about to have one of her biggest concerts, but some want to ruin the concert. Going around there is also a little girl who has more power than anyone.

The story is told from differing perspectives with everything moving toward the big concert. There will be gods, crab people, and an AI becoming self aware. This will be a weird trip if one is willing to go on it.

I do love a good straight sci fi story and this is definitely one of them. I cannot say I have read anything quite like it. There is lots of drug use and some sex scenes both gay and straight for those who might want to avoid those topics. Otherwise, this is worth your time.

I gave this one 3.5 stars.

Monday, February 26, 2018

Red Clocks by Leni Zumas- Book Review

The hype on this book was pretty exciting. People were calling it the spiritual successor to The Handmaid’s Tale, so I was naturally excited. It was one of the Book of the Month selections the month after I had stopped subscribing to the service, so I knew it should be on my radar. After reading it, while I would not compare it to Handmaid’s, it is an incredible work of women’s lit on motherhood and loss.

The chapters are told from different perspectives and are named by what the woman represents- Daughter, Mother, Biographer, and Mender. What we know is abortion is illegal in the US and a new law is about to take effect requiring two (a man and a woman) to raise one child. It is sometime in the near future.

The Daughter has been having sex with a boy in her class who quickly moves on from her when he gets bored with her. He leaves her not knowing she is pregnant. The daughter does not want to keep the child and now must figure out what to do.

The Mother is the mother of two in a marriage which is failing. Her children continue to get on her nerves and are growing into this world where clearly males are in charge. She longs to get out of her family, but is completely stuck.

The Biographer is a teacher and a writer. She has been trying to become pregnant by in vitro fertilization and other methods, but is beginning to run out of time and money. The law is changing and if she does not get pregnant, she will be out of time to be a single mother. She longs to be a mom.

The Mender has been labeled the town witch. She performs natural abortions for those seeking her help. Recently, she has given a drink to induce labor to the local principal’s wife, who died shortly after she drank the tea. The Mender will have to fight for her life in a court which has banned any type of abortion.

As the story goes on, the 4 women’s lives will become intertwined with one another as they live their lives within this town.

There are parts of this book which are slow moving, but at the conclusion of the book, I found those parts to be more deliberately slow to draw out relationships or struggles within the women. Their characters become more and more alive as the story progresses and as the world becomes fuller. We see there are no easy answers or black and white answers within this world, even though the country has decided to make the abortion issue black or white.

As much as this is about motherhood and children, it is also very much about the loss of children/family. I will not give too much away as some of it lies in spoiler territory, but I can safely talk about the Biographer. She longs for motherhood and we see her heartbreak as her chances for such become slimmer and slimmer. She begins to get desperate and makes some questionable decisions. She is recognizing though that the family she longs for will not be, so she must wrestle with that loss of the child that never was.

This is overall an incredible book. I can see some being turned off by it because it approaches abortion directly and does not give a quick or easy answer. These women struggle and their world is very much against them, with the Mender, quite literally. There cannot be a happy ending for these women in this world and we recognize that from the very beginning of the book.

I gave this one 4 stars.

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

The Adulterants by Joe Dunthorne- Book Review

If you are a regular reader of my blog or of my reviews, you know my love for Tin House books. I tend to enjoy them because they stick with me and continue to unfold the more I think about them. I was excited to receive a copy of The Adulterants from them for review, but I will say it has not been my favorite.

The book flows, almost dream like as Ray Morris goes from place to place throughout the book. He goes from cheating on his wife, Garthene, to being part of a looting incident, and into other conversations and adventures.

Ray is in a state of arrested development as he must grow up, but almost refuses to. He is not a man of great character (in the book) and at times can be almost unbearable. He is a guy you want to see fail.

As a praise, I would say that is a draw of this book. Ray is not great. Through his immaturity, we are forced to examine our own lives. We ask the questions around what makes one grown up?

The drawback is it is difficult to be with Ray. There are anti heroes who are terrible, but kind of fun to be around and there are anti heroes, who you do not want to spend much time with. For me, Ray was the later. I didn’t care if he succeeded or even got his comeuppance. It was a tough read for me.

I gave this one 3.5 stars.

Monday, February 12, 2018

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones- book review

There were a few books I anticipated for the first quarter of 2018 and this one was on the top 5. Then Oprah picked it as her book for this month and I knew it had to be a hit. I have to write, I picked it up to read on Friday afternoon and was done with it by Saturday afternoon reading it without any interruptions from other books. That is how much I enjoyed this book.

The book centers on Roy, Celestial, and Andre. Roy and Celestial are married and have known each other since college. Andre has known Celestial since birth and introduced Roy to Celestial as Andre and Roy were “boys.”

Celestial and Roy have a rocky marriage which becomes tested when Roy is arrested for rape, which he did not do. He has to serve out a sentence, during which Celestial’s life goes on. Andre is still in the picture and he and Celestial become a bit closer.

As the years pass, Roy writes to Celestial that he is coming home. How does one re-enter into a life, when life has been passing you by?

The great thing about this book is there are no innocent characters. There is not a character you feel sorry for, although you can side with each person at one time or another, which is incredible writing. Roy, Celestial, and Andre all have deep flaws, yet are just trying to get by in life with a very complex situation.

While my only minor criticism is that at times, this plays out a bit soap opera like, it is very minor. The book explores the complexity of love, marriage, what family is, and how every choice (even if it is not your choice) has implications and complications. For example, Roy is imprisioned, not by his choice, but due to a slanted justice system- does he really expect Celestial to sit still and wait for him? Does he really expect things to stay exactly the same? He was not a great guy to begin with, wouldn’t that come into play? These are all questions the book wrestles with.

The entire story is told from one of the 3 characters with brief intervals where the book is told through letters. While the straight prose portions told you exactly how characters were feeling, I found the letters just as revealing as pain is shared through these letters. Sometimes months pass before another letter arrives and the reader is left to fill in the blanks.

I cannot recommend this book enough. This is definitely one of the top 10 contenders already. I gave this one 4.5 stars.

Friday, February 2, 2018

The Dry by Jane Harper- book review

I purchased The Dry within weeks of its release and simply sat on it. It was added to the TBR pile that kept getting bigger and The Dry sat for almost a year. A week or so ago, I wanted to read a good mystery/thriller and there was The Dry just staring at me. I cannot believe I sat on this one for so long because it lived up to all the rave reviews.

In an Australian small town, a man shoots his wife and child leaving one child alive and then shooting himself in the head down the road. It seems an open and shut case, but the man’s father doesn’t think it is all that simple and ensures the man’s childhood friend comes back to town with the simple note “I know you lied and Luke lied.”

Aaron Falk returns to the town who had driven off he and his father years ago. Aaron and Luke were the prime suspects of the death of a young girl back in his teens. The town has not forgotten.

As Falk looks into the death of his friend, he begins to see patterns which connect deeply to his past. As he investigates, the town begins to also remember his past and aggressions begin to gain and gain. Falk is now on a timeline to solve this mystery before the anger from the past catches up to him.

I will warn readers, this is a slow moving mystery. There are no great shootouts or car chases or anything like that. This is a slow simmer in a small town who remember years ago and holds resentment no matter how long time has past. This is more of a character study of small town life than deep mystery.

That does not mean the mystery is irrelevant. The past mystery will overtake the present one the more Falk remembers, but that was perfectly fine in this book. The past mystery will show how the town really doesn’t care that Luke and his family died. For them, it is sweet justice.

The characters are incredibly alive in this book. This town lives and breathes. You can almost feel the dryness of the land and the farms surrounding it. The simmering tension just gets to the reader the more the book goes on. Even the ending plays into this a bit.

I really enjoyed this one, but again, it is a slow burn. I gave this one 4 stars.

Monday, January 29, 2018

Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez- Book Review

Earlier this month, the long list for Canada Reads was announced. For those who are not familiar, each year, a long list is released and then is narrowed down to 5 books for all of Canada to read. Each book for one week is defended by a celebrity and is narrowed down to 1 book for all of Canada to read. It really is a fantastic concept and is fun to watch as people argue about why a book is relevant and needs to be read.

One of the books on the long list this year was Scarborough and it was one of the 7 books I purchased out of the 10 announced that seemed interesting. Let me assure you, my hope after reading this book is this not only needs to be on the shortlist, but might be the winner this year (granted, I have not read all of them yet).

Scarborough is an impoverished neighborhood east of Toronto. It is where immigrants often wind up and is a diverse group of people living together outside of the big city. That is about the only Canadian centric piece of information needed as the rest of the book could be applied to any neighborhood like Scarborough.

The book is told through several eyes, children and adults, and focuses in on the school where all of these children go to school. There are also a series of email exchanges between the protagonist teacher, Ms. Hina and the school administration as racism and Islamiphobia rears its head.

There is so much in this book, it is almost impossible to cover in a tiny review. There is racism told through the eyes of on of the fathers, poverty as many of the kids go without food, neglect as one child is often left alone to fend for herself, sexuality as one child discovers his orientation, and just plain old everyday school life.

The kids pick on one another as classism comes into play in their teases. There is the hiddenness of poverty as one girl brings a lunch bag, but it is never filled. There is a little bit of everything and there is a gut punch within the book that just ups the ante.

This is not a heartwarming, the teacher will make good in all of these kids lives type of book. This is a real look at the cycle of poverty and race as individuals try to make the best out of situation where there are so many things working against them. This is definitely one to read.

I gave this one 5 stars.

Monday, January 22, 2018

Who Is Vera Kelly by Rosalie Knecht- Book Review

If you have read any previous entries for this blog or followed my profile on Goodreads, you will know I am a big fan of the publishing house Tin House. I enjoy what they publish because often I find myself thinking about the titles long after I have read them. The books tend to get better as they age in my brain.

This would definitely be one of those books. I will admit while reading this through the first time, I was not a big fan which was surprising. I loved Relief Map by Rosalie Knecht, but something was not clicking with me with Vera Kelly. When I finished it, I started it again knowing the end of the book and just read the first quarter of the book again. That is when it clicked for me.

Vera Kelly is a book about self discovery.

Throughout the book, we alternate between two time lines one is later in her life where she is on a mission to eavesdrop on a political conversation in Argentina which begins to turn ugly during the revolution. The second timeline is her younger years where she is shaped by time in juvie, she has sexual encounters, and becomes the person we see in the later years- an almost accidental spy.

This is a slower moving book for a spy novel and that, I believe, is where the disconnect came for me. When I read the blurb and it mentioned spy, my mind went to Bourne or Bond or Atomic Blonde, but this is not that. There are action sequences, but this is primarily a book about self discovery. How did this girl, now a woman wind up in this predicament after just wanting to live her life around gay bars and struggles with rent. How do we become the person we are today?

Once that epiphany happened- self discovery first and spy second, I began to churn this book a bit more in the brain and wound up enjoying it. I will not go so far as to say it is my favorite Tin House books and I still think Relief Map is a better read, but this one is worth a read through too. Just don't expect big action, cool gadgets, or explosions. This espionage in the truest sense as you spy into her life and watch her become the person she becomes.

I gave this one 3.5 stars.

*I want to thank NetGalley and Tin House for the advanced copy. I received it in exchange for an honest review.*

Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Heather, the Totality by Matthew Weiner- Book Review

This book came out at the worst time for a book like this to be released. We are in the midst of the #metoo movement where movie execs, actors, and other people in show business are being revealed to have done and said things completely inappropriate (putting it mildly).

In the midst of this come Matthew Weiner, creator of Mad Men with a book about stalking an underaged girl. While not unheard of in the writing world with such hit books as You or Diary of an Oxygen Thief, it is just really bad timing right now.

If we attempt to push the timing aside, Heather, the Totality is still an ok novella (more on that later).

The book centers around 4 characters- Mark- Heather's father, Karen- Heather's mother, Heather, and Bobby- Heather's stalker. The bulk of the book is about Mark and Karen's relationship as Heather grows up to be a teen. As time moves forward, Mark and Karen's relationship begins to get tense as Heather gets older.

The other portion of the first half of the book is Bobby's upbringing and his imprisonment. He has a rough life and becomes more and more psychotic as he grows older. He is arrested for rape and attempted murder after becoming obsessed with a woman.

The back quarter is what happens when these 4 characters come together. Bobby is working construction outside of Mark and Karen's apartment and begins to notice Heather.

It is difficult not to spoil this book because the first thing that will be noticed is how short it is. In print, it is 145 pages. My ebook version had it shy of 100. It reads more like a novella than a full novel. It is very short, especially for a storyteller like Weiner.

While the premise is about the stalking, the bulk of the book is about the prequel of what is to come. I think the reader would be surprised how little the book is about Heather and Bobby.

What I did love about the book was the ending. I will not talk about it, but what would be interesting to pay attention to is how Mark reacts. He does not know Bobby's thoughts, so pay attention to how things play out.

I gave this one 3 stars. I really was hoping for more, but I think the mindset with the #metoo movement and the shortness of the book worked against it.

*I want to thank NetGalley for the advanced readers copy. I received it free in exchange for an honest review.*

Thursday, January 11, 2018

The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld- Book Review

Sometime during one of the big Amazon sales of ebooks during the Christmas season, I picked this one up after seeing the starred reviews. I was looking for a good thriller and wanted something for the new year. This was such a “fun” book that I couldn’t put it down and read it in almost a day.

Naomi is a child finder. When the police have a case going cold and give up looking for a lost child, Naomi can be called by parents as a private investigator. She is blunt to the parents in her manner of speaking, but is excellent at what she does. Naomi never gives up.

Madison is an 8 year old snow child. She lives and was born in the cellar of Mr. B. She has some memories of a past little girl named Madison, but she is a snow girl born 3 years ago. Mr B can be very cruel at times, but each and every day, her relationship with Mr B grows. She has made it her mission to touch his heart and help him realize he is a snow child too.

Madison is the little girl Naomi is searching for and will not stop until she finds her. The problem is she is in a place in Oregon where there is perpetual snow, deep forests, and tons of tunnels. Finding Madison will be tricky, especially since Naomi still needs to deal with issues from her past.

The entire book is told in a back and forth perspective between Madison and Naomi within the chapters. Time also jumps a little as we learn about Naomi’s past and her past traumas. There is also a side case Naomi is working on at the same time, so we jump there on occasion. There is no warning for the jumps and it takes a moment to get oriented, but it flows quite nicely.

The technique that most stood out for me in this book is how little violence there is. This is a horrific story, as is the side story. There are some horrific things that happen, for example, Mr B rapes Madison, but it happens off page and there are no details of it as Madison doesn’t know what happened. It is completely left up to the reader to fill in the blanks. There are no gory descriptions of things, there is very little violence (Mr B hunts and there are descriptions of skinning the animal), yet there are some graphic and cringe worthy activities that happen, but everything is off the page or something else is described. Naomi finds a dead body at one point, but rather than talk about what she is seeing, she just describes that she knows there is a body because of the smell, so she describes the smell. It was very clever.

If you are looking for a quick thriller to start your year off, check this one out. I really enjoyed the time with it. I gave it 4 stars.



Monday, January 8, 2018

Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff- Book Review

If you asked me if I would be reading a book on President Trump a week ago, I would have stated “absolutely not!” Then a tweet happened, a lawsuit, and a threat to shut down publishing of a simple book by the President of the United States, and like many readers, I found myself reading a book on President Trump.

Now it is difficult to separate all the hubbub around the book from the book itself, in fact I am still amazed the President has had two press conferences, several tweets, a lawsuit, and used his staff to try to fight this book (a book that would probably have gotten published and read by only a few readers if not for the President), but I will try to focus on the book only.

If one goes into this book looking for some new revelations, especially if one is already critical of the President, you probably will not find many. The book paints the White House as a place where individuals vie for power to bend the President’s ear. It shows a White House where individuals are more against one another rather than working toward a common goal. The book really centers on Trump’s staff rather than the man himself. While Trump is a constant presence within the book, he is painted as a blank slate who when he sets his mind on something, it is set regardless of facts presented. His staff’s role, in the book, is to try to sway him their way.

Wolff paints Trump as a man who did not want the Presidency, but wound up being elected much to the surprise of others. Due to his inexperience, he desired to surround himself with family and people within his inner circle trusting only them.

The true reason individuals want to read the book is for the dirt. While there are some passages that go to those places, it is more a book outlining the first year of the Presidency. I found I often forgot certain things happened, until reminded by the book, as it seems this year has been filled with so many things. Whole speeches are presented, along with the dirt behind those speeches.

My biggest takeaway was around the leaks coming from the White House. Wolff suggestion was not only did those leaks come from Bannon and Jared, but possibly from the President himself. According to Wolff, the President would often speak to his friends unfiltered in the evening, dishing dirt, and sharing items. Those individuals would then turn to the press and leak them out. Wolff makes this point several times and even backs it up a bit with the incident at Mar a Lago where the President openly talked about North Korea in front of other diners.

As stated, I am trying to distance myself from the hoopla, so I will say as a heavy reader of books about politics and a reader of non-fiction, reading the book was a small chore at times. The book was often filled with whole speeches or lots of passages explaining items Wolff previous explained or went over. There were also a few typos and some mistakes, such as a Mike vs Mark at one portion. This though is to be expected in books of this nature.

I will address one big criticism of the book and that is the disclaimer in the beginning of the book. My guess is many who are lifting up this disclaimer as proof that this book isn’t truthful. It is a pretty standard disclaimer though to protect from lawsuit. My guess is it is also there because of the number of options Wolff heard. If two people say the President did such and such, but one said he did this and that, as a writer, he would have to figure out the place of truth and take a guess based on the three accounts. That is how I viewed the disclaimer.

As for the book itself, I found it a good book. I gave it 3.5 stars.

Wednesday, January 3, 2018

The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne- Book Review

Happy New Year! After a small blog break, I am back to review books and boy do I have a good one to start the year off!

I am going to give a tiny, itty, bitty spoiler warning in that I need to spoil one portion because this one portion leads to the second half of the book and it is difficult to review without that tiny spoiler.

This was my last book of 2017 and I had put off reading it because it is a giant book and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read a book where I know a certain part of the book will go, but enough people said “I had to read it!” So I did.

This book is the life of Cyril, a gay man from Ireland, beginning from his birth to his death moving through all the decades of his life. In Ireland, it was a crime to be a gay man, so much of the first half of the book is Cyril trying to live his life as a closeted gay man even going as far as getting married to his best friend’s sister.

(Here comes the minor spoiler)

On his wedding day, Cyril reveals to his best friend his true feelings and is forced to go through with the wedding, but runs away during the reception.

It is here where the second half of the book begins. Now far from Ireland, Cyril begins the rest of his life journey in locations where being a gay man is more accepted. He finds a partner, moves to NYC with him, after they take in and “adopt” a young man who was a former prostitute.

In NYC, Cyril becomes a volunteer in an AIDS clinic where his partner is the head doctor. This is during the 80s when AIDS is a new disease and is not completely understood by the rest of the community. It is still looked at as a “gay” disease. A major tragedy happens and a big reveal happens which brings Cyril back to Ireland where he must confront his life left behind as he lives out his later years.

This is a big, epic book, but so worth the journey! I know some who have stopped when Cyril was still in Ireland and I have told them to keep going or to jump to the 70s or 80s because it is during those years where his fuller story takes place. Even within my small summary, I am leaving out massive parts of the book. I keep stating, go through the journey!

The reason I didn’t want to read the book is I knew it would journey through the 80s and I heard it took place in NYC. I lived there at the time and saw some of the reactions and knew what AIDS did to the gay community and reading about it touches some old nerves. Even though I was a kid during that time, my church was one of the few churches helping AIDS patients and I saw firsthand how people discussed patients and how people were treated. The book does a very accurate portrayal of that time.

With all my gushing, I will state there is a very neat bow ultimately on this book, which comes off as believable, but just at the threashhold of believable. I could imagine some readers getting really turned off by the ending, but I thought it fit pretty nicely. I also use the happy ending as a way of getting people to read the book- his life will get better.

The final wonderful part of this book is Boyne dedicates the book to John Irving and has stated in interviews that Cyril has some Garp within his character and that is so true. It made me want to go back and read The World According to Garp because there are so many parallels. This is definitely Boyne’s love letter to Garp.

This was my last book of 2017 and my last 5 star book. It isn’t without problems, but this is simply great storytelling and character development.