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1CliffBurns
Starting this month with travel books...and readings from Kafka.
Prepping for our upcoming trip.
Prepping for our upcoming trip.
2CliffBurns
Just finished Emmanuel Bove's HENRI DUCHEMIN AND HIS SHADOWS.
Another lovely edition from the folks at NYRB press.
Seven longish stories, reminiscent of Camus, mebbe Robert Walser--the central character always isolated, disconnected from the rest of society by disposition or circumstance. No happy notes struck, dark little gems, meditations on human loneliness and despair.
Another lovely edition from the folks at NYRB press.
Seven longish stories, reminiscent of Camus, mebbe Robert Walser--the central character always isolated, disconnected from the rest of society by disposition or circumstance. No happy notes struck, dark little gems, meditations on human loneliness and despair.
3Avdotya_Raskolnikova
Fun Kafka reading tip with "The Metamorphosis" and "The Judgment": After reading both, think about how/if the titles of each respective story would fit the other (ex. What would the implications of "The Metamorphosis" being entitled "The Judgment" be and vice versa). A professor I had tried that in class, and it made for an interesting discussion. I hope you enjoy your trip!
4CliffBurns
That sounds like a fun switch and I think I'll give it a try.
And I will be making a pilgrimage to ol' Franz's resting place.
And I will be making a pilgrimage to ol' Franz's resting place.
5mejix
>bluepiano
Another connection for our Six Degrees of Separation 19th Century edition:
Turns out that Delacroix, Chopin, and George Sand were music concert buddies. That is, until George Sands and Chopin had a tempestuous fallout!
also: did you know that the front figure face down in the foreground of Gericault's Raft of the Medusa is the young Delacroix?
Another connection for our Six Degrees of Separation 19th Century edition:
Turns out that Delacroix, Chopin, and George Sand were music concert buddies. That is, until George Sands and Chopin had a tempestuous fallout!
also: did you know that the front figure face down in the foreground of Gericault's Raft of the Medusa is the young Delacroix?
6justifiedsinner
>5 mejix: Chopin and Sand were lovers I believe.
7BookConcierge
The Golem and the Jinni– Helene Wecker
3***
From the book jacket (This) novel tells the story of two supernatural creatures who appear mysteriously in 1899 New York. Chava is a golem, a creature made of clay, brought to life by a strange man who dabbles in dark Kabbalistic magic. … Ahmad is a jinni, a being of fire, born in the ancient Syrian Desert.
My reactions
Gosh, I really wanted to like this book. I looked forward to learning more about the myths of these two cultures – ancient Judaism and Syrian lore. But it never really captured my attention, and I found it tedious to read in places.
The novel moves back and forth in time and place. In one paragraph we are in 1899 New York City, in the next in ancient Syria when the Jinni has yet to be captured, or learning the history of Yehudah Schallman in Poland, or in Paris with Sophia and her mother. There are long interludes in the action, where the characters simply wander about New York. While these are greatly atmospheric, they did little (or nothing) to move the story forward, and I grew bored.
I also didn’t understand the relationships between these two fantastical creatures and the humans they encountered – particularly Anna, Michael and Sophia. It wasn’t the golem or jinni’s actions in relation to these people that puzzled me, but the humans’ behaviors.
In general, I like fantasy, and I love magical realism. When the book was first released, I immediately put it on my TBR. But I felt that Wecker failed to deliver. I was not swept away. Still, there are passages that were riveting and I never felt like I should just give up on the book. Final verdict: a decent but uneven debut, and I won’t be in any hurry to read the planned sequel.
3***
From the book jacket (This) novel tells the story of two supernatural creatures who appear mysteriously in 1899 New York. Chava is a golem, a creature made of clay, brought to life by a strange man who dabbles in dark Kabbalistic magic. … Ahmad is a jinni, a being of fire, born in the ancient Syrian Desert.
My reactions
Gosh, I really wanted to like this book. I looked forward to learning more about the myths of these two cultures – ancient Judaism and Syrian lore. But it never really captured my attention, and I found it tedious to read in places.
The novel moves back and forth in time and place. In one paragraph we are in 1899 New York City, in the next in ancient Syria when the Jinni has yet to be captured, or learning the history of Yehudah Schallman in Poland, or in Paris with Sophia and her mother. There are long interludes in the action, where the characters simply wander about New York. While these are greatly atmospheric, they did little (or nothing) to move the story forward, and I grew bored.
I also didn’t understand the relationships between these two fantastical creatures and the humans they encountered – particularly Anna, Michael and Sophia. It wasn’t the golem or jinni’s actions in relation to these people that puzzled me, but the humans’ behaviors.
In general, I like fantasy, and I love magical realism. When the book was first released, I immediately put it on my TBR. But I felt that Wecker failed to deliver. I was not swept away. Still, there are passages that were riveting and I never felt like I should just give up on the book. Final verdict: a decent but uneven debut, and I won’t be in any hurry to read the planned sequel.
8anna_in_pdx
7: Thanks for this review - I have seen this book around and it looked like it would be right up my alley but given your reactions I am deciding against buying it. I still might check it out of the library and give it 100 pages or so, though...
9bluepiano
Chopin & Sand would as justifiedsinner implies have been likely concert buddies, smoking cigars companionably during the interval, but I didn't know about their friendship with Delacroix--for whatever reason I tend to think of Chopin as someone who performed & composed mid-19th-century & Delacroix as an early 19th-cent. artist.
CliffBurns, 'big, fat juicy summer reads' is even more fetching than reference to books that sizzle summertimes. I look forward to/dread your August thread title.
CliffBurns, 'big, fat juicy summer reads' is even more fetching than reference to books that sizzle summertimes. I look forward to/dread your August thread title.
10CliffBurns
I fear someone else will have to start that thread--I'll be overseas for the first two weeks of August, likely incommunicado.
I look forward to seeing what one of my clever colleagues here will come up with...
I look forward to seeing what one of my clever colleagues here will come up with...
11BookConcierge
>8 anna_in_pdx:
Anna - I got it from the library ...
Anna - I got it from the library ...
12BookConcierge
The Last Runaway – Tracy Chevalier
Audiobook performed by Kate Reading
2.5**
In 1850, Honor Bright accompanies her sister to America. Grace is betrothed to a Quaker merchant who has set up shop with his brother in Ohio. Honor is fleeing a failed romance, hoping for a new start. But the “frontier” of Ohio is very different from the long-established English community Honor left, and she feels adrift and unwelcomed, though she has little choice but to rely on these virtual strangers to help her.
I’ve been a fan of Chevalier’s for a long time. I like the way she puts the reader into the time and place of her historical novels, and this is no exception. I felt I was discovering the joys of sweet corn, the marvel of lightning bugs, and the trill of song birds right along with Honor. I was interested in the realities of life in such communities at this time in America’s history, and liked the references to the Underground Railroad and the subtle (and not-so-subtle) ways in which “Friends” helped the runaways.
But I didn’t really believe in Honor. She seemed way too naïve and trusting, and the whole “on and off” attraction to “bad boy” Donovan seemed way out of character for her. And then there’s the ending … it seemed to me that Chevalier got herself into a corner and didn’t know how to get out, so she used the most convenient way to end things. It was so dissatisfying, to me, that I dropped half a star.
Kate Reading does a fine job performing the audio version, although she never succeeded in giving Honor (or any of the other new arrivals from England) a British accent (something which is commented upon several times).
Audiobook performed by Kate Reading
2.5**
In 1850, Honor Bright accompanies her sister to America. Grace is betrothed to a Quaker merchant who has set up shop with his brother in Ohio. Honor is fleeing a failed romance, hoping for a new start. But the “frontier” of Ohio is very different from the long-established English community Honor left, and she feels adrift and unwelcomed, though she has little choice but to rely on these virtual strangers to help her.
I’ve been a fan of Chevalier’s for a long time. I like the way she puts the reader into the time and place of her historical novels, and this is no exception. I felt I was discovering the joys of sweet corn, the marvel of lightning bugs, and the trill of song birds right along with Honor. I was interested in the realities of life in such communities at this time in America’s history, and liked the references to the Underground Railroad and the subtle (and not-so-subtle) ways in which “Friends” helped the runaways.
But I didn’t really believe in Honor. She seemed way too naïve and trusting, and the whole “on and off” attraction to “bad boy” Donovan seemed way out of character for her. And then there’s the ending … it seemed to me that Chevalier got herself into a corner and didn’t know how to get out, so she used the most convenient way to end things. It was so dissatisfying, to me, that I dropped half a star.
Kate Reading does a fine job performing the audio version, although she never succeeded in giving Honor (or any of the other new arrivals from England) a British accent (something which is commented upon several times).
13Cecrow
>4 CliffBurns:, reading some Kafka myself. And if you're in the area you can take in / avoid (as per your preference) this monstrosity:
http://www.tor.com/2016/05/19/heres-a-giant-revolving-bust-of-franz-kafka-by-scu...
Also reading Red Mars, first of a trilogy that describes a detailed approach to how Mars could be colonized. Still not bad for being published in 1993 I think, although nobody uses a smartphone. Oops.
http://www.tor.com/2016/05/19/heres-a-giant-revolving-bust-of-franz-kafka-by-scu...
Also reading Red Mars, first of a trilogy that describes a detailed approach to how Mars could be colonized. Still not bad for being published in 1993 I think, although nobody uses a smartphone. Oops.
14CliffBurns
That's actually the SECOND ugliest Kafka sculpture I've seen--there's another metal/bronze of his head in Prague that looks like it was dropped while in the process of cooling. It's found at Franz Kafka Platz.
http://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-franz-kafka-statue-on-the-facade-of-his-birth-h...
http://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-franz-kafka-statue-on-the-facade-of-his-birth-h...
16CliffBurns
That's the one--hideous!
17Cecrow
Still it's gratifying to see so many tributes to him when you know his biography, especially his relationship with his father.
18CliffBurns
There's a delightful book by James Hawes titled WHY YOU SHOULD READ KAFKA BEFORE YOU WASTE YOUR LIFE (British title: EXCAVATING KAFKA).
He dispells a number of myths about Kafka: that he was unknown in his lifetime, poor, dour, etc. Here's a good review/summation:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/aug/17/fiction1
He dispells a number of myths about Kafka: that he was unknown in his lifetime, poor, dour, etc. Here's a good review/summation:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/aug/17/fiction1
19Jargoneer
Currently reading Anthony Burgess' Shakespeare novel Nothing Like the Sun. While reading it's difficult not to hear Burgess' voice in ear whispering, "My name is Burgess, writer of writers: Look on my works, ye reader, and admire."
20BookConcierge
84 Charing Cross Road – Helene Hanff
5*****
In October 1949 Helene Hanff, a single woman living and working in her small New York apartment, responded to an ad placed in the Saturday Review of Literature by Marks & Co, a bookshop in London that specialized in used books. Thus began a two-decade long correspondence and friendship between the reserved bookseller and the irrepressible Miss Hanff.
What a delight it is to be allowed to watch this growing relationship, fueled by a shared love of books, and an ability to laugh at oneself and one’s follies. I laughed aloud in places. I shared her outrage at books being torn apart to use as wrapping, and then agreed with Frank Doel’s explanation on the practicality of this practice. I marveled at their generosity – not just in the gifts they gave one another, but more importantly, their generosity of spirit, how they gave so freely of their thoughts, gratitude, wishes, grievances, and forgiveness.
I saw the movie, starring Anne Bancroft, many years ago. As I read the letters, I could not help but picture Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins as Helene and Frank. I’m so happy that Hanff decided to publish it, and that Doel’s family gave their wholehearted permission and encouragement to her to do so.
As with most books I read these days, I got this from the library, but I’m going to go out and buy a copy for myself. It’s the kind of book I’ll read over and over just for the sheer joy of it.
5*****
In October 1949 Helene Hanff, a single woman living and working in her small New York apartment, responded to an ad placed in the Saturday Review of Literature by Marks & Co, a bookshop in London that specialized in used books. Thus began a two-decade long correspondence and friendship between the reserved bookseller and the irrepressible Miss Hanff.
What a delight it is to be allowed to watch this growing relationship, fueled by a shared love of books, and an ability to laugh at oneself and one’s follies. I laughed aloud in places. I shared her outrage at books being torn apart to use as wrapping, and then agreed with Frank Doel’s explanation on the practicality of this practice. I marveled at their generosity – not just in the gifts they gave one another, but more importantly, their generosity of spirit, how they gave so freely of their thoughts, gratitude, wishes, grievances, and forgiveness.
I saw the movie, starring Anne Bancroft, many years ago. As I read the letters, I could not help but picture Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins as Helene and Frank. I’m so happy that Hanff decided to publish it, and that Doel’s family gave their wholehearted permission and encouragement to her to do so.
As with most books I read these days, I got this from the library, but I’m going to go out and buy a copy for myself. It’s the kind of book I’ll read over and over just for the sheer joy of it.
21BookConcierge
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down – Anne Fadiman
4****
Subtitle: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures
The 150,000 Hmong refugees who came to the United States in the late 1970s arrived in a country and culture that could not have been more foreign to them. The Lee family had escaped their native village in the hills of Laos and settled in Merced California. In July 1982 Foua Yang gave birth to her fourteenth child; Foua and her husband Nao Kao Lee would name the little girl Lia. She was a loved child, tenderly cared for and pampered as the “baby” of the family.
When she was about three months old, however, Lia had a seizure. Her parents believed this was caused when her older sister had slammed the front door of their apartment, drawing the attention of a spirit who had caught Lia’s soul. The Hmong call this condition quag dab peg and consider it something of an honor to have these spirits possessing the child; such a person might even grow up to become a shaman. Still, the frequency and severity of the seizures worried Foua and Nao Kao enough that they took Lia to the Merced County Medical Center Emergency Room. There the lack of a common language or trained interpreters, and the clash of cultures led to disastrous results.
This is a fascinating medical mystery, and a balanced exploration of two very different points of view. No one acted with malice, everyone wanted what was best for Lia, but there was no way for the two opposing sides – Lia’s parents and community vs the doctors and social workers – could come to agreement. And the person who suffered was Lia.
I thought the book could have used more editing. Perhaps Fadiman believed that the reader needed considerable repetition to get the message (and she may be right about that), but I really didn’t’ need to be told – again – that the Lees believed a spirit was the cause of Lia’s problems, or that they believe the medicine made her worse, or that the doctors thought the Lees were difficult or poor parents.
Still, I was really caught up in the story, and appreciated learning more about the Hmong culture. I’m looking forward to my F2F book club’s discussion on this book.
4****
Subtitle: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures
The 150,000 Hmong refugees who came to the United States in the late 1970s arrived in a country and culture that could not have been more foreign to them. The Lee family had escaped their native village in the hills of Laos and settled in Merced California. In July 1982 Foua Yang gave birth to her fourteenth child; Foua and her husband Nao Kao Lee would name the little girl Lia. She was a loved child, tenderly cared for and pampered as the “baby” of the family.
When she was about three months old, however, Lia had a seizure. Her parents believed this was caused when her older sister had slammed the front door of their apartment, drawing the attention of a spirit who had caught Lia’s soul. The Hmong call this condition quag dab peg and consider it something of an honor to have these spirits possessing the child; such a person might even grow up to become a shaman. Still, the frequency and severity of the seizures worried Foua and Nao Kao enough that they took Lia to the Merced County Medical Center Emergency Room. There the lack of a common language or trained interpreters, and the clash of cultures led to disastrous results.
This is a fascinating medical mystery, and a balanced exploration of two very different points of view. No one acted with malice, everyone wanted what was best for Lia, but there was no way for the two opposing sides – Lia’s parents and community vs the doctors and social workers – could come to agreement. And the person who suffered was Lia.
I thought the book could have used more editing. Perhaps Fadiman believed that the reader needed considerable repetition to get the message (and she may be right about that), but I really didn’t’ need to be told – again – that the Lees believed a spirit was the cause of Lia’s problems, or that they believe the medicine made her worse, or that the doctors thought the Lees were difficult or poor parents.
Still, I was really caught up in the story, and appreciated learning more about the Hmong culture. I’m looking forward to my F2F book club’s discussion on this book.
22anna_in_pdx
20 and 21:
1. I love the Charing Cross book, it is SUCH a warm, feel good book. It's like a wonderful dessert.
2. Have you read Anne Fadiman's collection of essays about books, Ex Libris? It's absolutely terrific. I have not read this book you mention though I heard about it. Anne Fadiman is the daughter of famed editor and essayist, Clifton Fadiman. She is a very literary person!
1. I love the Charing Cross book, it is SUCH a warm, feel good book. It's like a wonderful dessert.
2. Have you read Anne Fadiman's collection of essays about books, Ex Libris? It's absolutely terrific. I have not read this book you mention though I heard about it. Anne Fadiman is the daughter of famed editor and essayist, Clifton Fadiman. She is a very literary person!
23BookConcierge
>22 anna_in_pdx:
No, I haven't read anything else by Fadiman ... yet
I've also been told that Helene Hanff's follow-up book - The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street - is also worth reading. Yet another book for the TBR!
No, I haven't read anything else by Fadiman ... yet
I've also been told that Helene Hanff's follow-up book - The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street - is also worth reading. Yet another book for the TBR!
24BookConcierge
Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness – Susannah Cahalan
Book on CD narrated by Heather Henderson
3.5***
From the book jacket One day in 2009, twenty-four-year-old Susannah Cahalan woke up alone in a strange hospital room, strapped to her bed, under guard, and unable to move or speak. A wristband marked her as a “flight risk,” and her medical records – chronicling a month-long hospital stay – showed hallucinations, violence, and dangerous instability. Only weeks earlier, Susannah had been … a healthy, ambitious college grad a few months into her first serious relationship and a promising career as a cub reporter at a major New York newspaper. Who was the stranger who had taken over her body? What was happening to her mind?
My reactions
This was a fascinating memoir – drawn partly from interviews with friends, relations, colleagues and medical personnel, her journal writings during the period, and her medical records – of a time period when Cahalan was nearly completely lost. It was luck that caused her diagnosis to come early enough in her disease process to not only correct the problem, but minimize the brain damage she might otherwise have suffered. For the cause of her apparent mental illness (some physicians felt her symptoms pointed to alcohol withdrawal, other drug use, and/or schizophrenia) was actually a little-known form of encephalitis. The fact that she had a major seizure brought her to the attention of neurologists, rather than psychiatrists, and one neurologist in particular who followed a hunch and suggested a brain biopsy which the autoimmune disorder which was causing her brain to swell.
As she recovered, Cahalan was encouraged to write about her experience, and the first article (published by her employer, The Post) gained world-wide attention, and resulted in timely intervention for many other patients as well.
Her training as a journalist is evident here. She includes much background information on the research into the disorder – anti-NDMA-receptor encephalitis – and the history of mental illness (including “demonic possession”) and autism. I was engaged and interested from beginning to end, though I did feel it was a bit repetitive.
Heather Henderson does a fabulous job reading the audio book. Her performance really brought to life the deterioration Cahalan experienced, as well as how anxious and confused she felt. Henderson’s skill as a voice artist also allowed her to give the other people in the book unique voices, making it easy to distinguish who was speaking. The only thing missing from the audio, of course, are the illustrations – pages from Cahalan’s journals at the time, or slides of her brain scans, etc. – but this did not materially affect my understanding or enjoyment of the book.
Book on CD narrated by Heather Henderson
3.5***
From the book jacket One day in 2009, twenty-four-year-old Susannah Cahalan woke up alone in a strange hospital room, strapped to her bed, under guard, and unable to move or speak. A wristband marked her as a “flight risk,” and her medical records – chronicling a month-long hospital stay – showed hallucinations, violence, and dangerous instability. Only weeks earlier, Susannah had been … a healthy, ambitious college grad a few months into her first serious relationship and a promising career as a cub reporter at a major New York newspaper. Who was the stranger who had taken over her body? What was happening to her mind?
My reactions
This was a fascinating memoir – drawn partly from interviews with friends, relations, colleagues and medical personnel, her journal writings during the period, and her medical records – of a time period when Cahalan was nearly completely lost. It was luck that caused her diagnosis to come early enough in her disease process to not only correct the problem, but minimize the brain damage she might otherwise have suffered. For the cause of her apparent mental illness (some physicians felt her symptoms pointed to alcohol withdrawal, other drug use, and/or schizophrenia) was actually a little-known form of encephalitis. The fact that she had a major seizure brought her to the attention of neurologists, rather than psychiatrists, and one neurologist in particular who followed a hunch and suggested a brain biopsy which the autoimmune disorder which was causing her brain to swell.
As she recovered, Cahalan was encouraged to write about her experience, and the first article (published by her employer, The Post) gained world-wide attention, and resulted in timely intervention for many other patients as well.
Her training as a journalist is evident here. She includes much background information on the research into the disorder – anti-NDMA-receptor encephalitis – and the history of mental illness (including “demonic possession”) and autism. I was engaged and interested from beginning to end, though I did feel it was a bit repetitive.
Heather Henderson does a fabulous job reading the audio book. Her performance really brought to life the deterioration Cahalan experienced, as well as how anxious and confused she felt. Henderson’s skill as a voice artist also allowed her to give the other people in the book unique voices, making it easy to distinguish who was speaking. The only thing missing from the audio, of course, are the illustrations – pages from Cahalan’s journals at the time, or slides of her brain scans, etc. – but this did not materially affect my understanding or enjoyment of the book.
25berthirsch
enjoying a 600+ page turner, perfect for summer beach/hammock reading:
Umberto Eco, Foucalt's Pendulum
Umberto Eco, Foucalt's Pendulum
26berthirsch
enjoying a 600+page turner, perfect for summer beach/hammock reading:
Foucault's Pendulum by the recently deceased Umberto Eco.
Foucault's Pendulum by the recently deceased Umberto Eco.
27anna_in_pdx
I loved FP. I am currently trying to get into Baudolino. The problem I have with Eco is that his books take upwards of 100 pages to start getting into them and in the summer I am so easily distracted.
28Cecrow
Both are excellent, especially FC. Really want to read more by him soon, even though I've apparently covered all his best.
29RobertDay
Just started on a piece of political journalism by two (supposedly) unbiased academics, The blunders of our governments.
(Later) I'm now three chapters in and my draft review already runs to 1200+ words.
(Later) I'm now three chapters in and my draft review already runs to 1200+ words.
30BookConcierge
Death of a Kitchen Diva – Lee Hollis
ZERO stars
This cozy mystery is the first in the Hayley Powell Food & Cocktails Mystery series. Hayley is a single mother of two teenagers in Bar Harbor, Maine. She works at the Island Times newspaper as the office manager, but when the much-loved food columnist finally retires, Hayley steps in to that role. Unfortunately, she immediately runs afoul of the rival newspaper’s kitchen diva, and everyone in town is soon aware of the bad blood between Hayley and Karen Appelbaum. So when Karen is found poisoned, suspicion is immediately focused on Hayley.
Okay, there’s a decent idea for a cozy here. But the execution (and I use that word purposely) is terrible. The characters are cardboard cutouts, the plot (thin as it is) is completely ridiculous, and the dialogue is tortured. None of the characters – victim, suspects, Hayley, her friends, her brother, the police chief, her fellow reporters, etc – has an ounce of sense. They are simply too stupid to live. The author pads the book with nonsense – colorful descriptions of the dog, or the librarian, or the hunky groundskeeper – that does little or nothing to advance the plot or explain the characters’ motivations.
I kept reading only because fulfilled several challenges. At least it was a fast read.
ZERO stars
This cozy mystery is the first in the Hayley Powell Food & Cocktails Mystery series. Hayley is a single mother of two teenagers in Bar Harbor, Maine. She works at the Island Times newspaper as the office manager, but when the much-loved food columnist finally retires, Hayley steps in to that role. Unfortunately, she immediately runs afoul of the rival newspaper’s kitchen diva, and everyone in town is soon aware of the bad blood between Hayley and Karen Appelbaum. So when Karen is found poisoned, suspicion is immediately focused on Hayley.
Okay, there’s a decent idea for a cozy here. But the execution (and I use that word purposely) is terrible. The characters are cardboard cutouts, the plot (thin as it is) is completely ridiculous, and the dialogue is tortured. None of the characters – victim, suspects, Hayley, her friends, her brother, the police chief, her fellow reporters, etc – has an ounce of sense. They are simply too stupid to live. The author pads the book with nonsense – colorful descriptions of the dog, or the librarian, or the hunky groundskeeper – that does little or nothing to advance the plot or explain the characters’ motivations.
I kept reading only because fulfilled several challenges. At least it was a fast read.
31drmamm
I also posted this on the SF board, but I think that Justin Cronin's Passage trilogy is a great "Summer read" for the more literary-minded. The author does not have a horror/SF/Fantasy background, but decided to write a more adventurous story at the request of his daughter (who wanted a "story about a little girl that saves the world.") I just finished the first two The Passage and The Twelve and have just started The City of Mirrors. I've been very pleased so far. And vampires!
32Jargoneer
>27 anna_in_pdx: - I like some of Eco's books but found Baudolino to be a real slog. There were great ideas as ever but the whole thing never quite came together.
Finished Nothing Like the Sun - the more I read the more I enjoyed it but it is one of those novels it is easier to admire than love.
Onto We next. (Interestingly the initial link for this book was 1984. There is some evidence that Orwell cribbed the plot from We for his novel).
Finished Nothing Like the Sun - the more I read the more I enjoyed it but it is one of those novels it is easier to admire than love.
Onto We next. (Interestingly the initial link for this book was 1984. There is some evidence that Orwell cribbed the plot from We for his novel).
33BookConcierge
A Cold-Blooded Business – Dana Stabenow
Book on CD narrated by Marguerite Gavin
3.5***
After one too many drug-related deaths at the site, former DA Investigator Kate Shugak is asked to go undercover to the Prudhoe Bay oil fields to find out who is dealing drugs.
I had read the first book in this series a couple of years ago and I was not impressed, but I’m glad I gave the series another chance. I like that Shugak is a strong woman, smart, resourceful, dedicated, committed and independent. I also like her strong sense of integrity – her willingness to do what is right even when it may hurt someone she knows and loves. I also liked the subplot regarding the Native archeological treasures.
That being said, I did find some of the characters thinly drawn stereotypes. A hard-hitting PR type, who is all sweet façade with an inner core of steel; an angry, overweight head of security who is totally at a loss to explain what is happening; a lonely man, besotted with a woman.
Marguerite Gavin does a fine job narrating the audio book. She has good pacing and sufficient skill as a voice artist to differentiate the many characters.
Book on CD narrated by Marguerite Gavin
3.5***
After one too many drug-related deaths at the site, former DA Investigator Kate Shugak is asked to go undercover to the Prudhoe Bay oil fields to find out who is dealing drugs.
I had read the first book in this series a couple of years ago and I was not impressed, but I’m glad I gave the series another chance. I like that Shugak is a strong woman, smart, resourceful, dedicated, committed and independent. I also like her strong sense of integrity – her willingness to do what is right even when it may hurt someone she knows and loves. I also liked the subplot regarding the Native archeological treasures.
That being said, I did find some of the characters thinly drawn stereotypes. A hard-hitting PR type, who is all sweet façade with an inner core of steel; an angry, overweight head of security who is totally at a loss to explain what is happening; a lonely man, besotted with a woman.
Marguerite Gavin does a fine job narrating the audio book. She has good pacing and sufficient skill as a voice artist to differentiate the many characters.
34BookConcierge
Lunch in Paris – Elizabeth Bard
3.5***
Subtitle: A Love Story, With Recipes
When Bard was a graduate student in England (art history), she took a weekend trip to Paris, where she met and had lunch with a Frenchman. And the rest, as they say, is history.
This is a charming memoir where Bard explores the many differences between French and American culture. I did get a little tired of her whining about not knowing where she was going (career wise), but I loved her descriptions of the many meals she enjoyed – from simple brioche and coffee for breakfast to elaborate lamb dishes and the mouth-watering chocolate soufflé. As I read the recipes I found myself inspired, and thinking “I could make this.” (But I know I won’t.)
On the whole, an enjoyable, fast read.
3.5***
Subtitle: A Love Story, With Recipes
When Bard was a graduate student in England (art history), she took a weekend trip to Paris, where she met and had lunch with a Frenchman. And the rest, as they say, is history.
This is a charming memoir where Bard explores the many differences between French and American culture. I did get a little tired of her whining about not knowing where she was going (career wise), but I loved her descriptions of the many meals she enjoyed – from simple brioche and coffee for breakfast to elaborate lamb dishes and the mouth-watering chocolate soufflé. As I read the recipes I found myself inspired, and thinking “I could make this.” (But I know I won’t.)
On the whole, an enjoyable, fast read.
35BookConcierge
A Killer Plot – Ellery Adams
3***
Oyster Bay, North Carolina used to be a well-kept secret, but since a national magazine rated it one of the best places to live / vacation, the population has swelled and economic growth has increased. Olivia Limoges has recently returned to Oyster Bay; wealthy, single and aloof, she owns a number of commercial buildings as well as her family homestead. A chance encounter with a group of writers, draws her out of her shell, but before she had establish herself with the group one of them is murdered.
This is a pretty interesting cozy mystery, featuring a group of aspiring authors who together try to solve the murder of one of their group. I like Olivia Limoges, though I was picturing her as much older (and eventually figured out she’s probably in her mid-30s, or perhaps early-40s). I like that her faithful dog – a standard poodle named Captain Haviland – is a DOG, not a character who helps solve the crime (though his ability to track does come into play). I also like that Olivia and her friends do not take unnecessary chances; they are curious and do meddle (wouldn’t be much of a cozy mystery without SOME intervention by the amateur sleuths), but they seem to know when to back away and let Police Chief Sawyer Rawlings step in.
I thought Adams did a good job of setting the scene. I really got the sense of a small sea-side community that relies on tourist trade in season, fishing year-round, and is struggling with issues of new-found wealth and investment. As is typical of most cozies, there’s a pretty large cast of supporting players, not a few of whom are pretty colorful (a roller-skating dwarf waitress, for example) I found a few of the relationships stretched credulity, but not enough to mar the fun.
Adams includes several interludes where the writers’ group members share chapters from the books they are working on. Well … I could have done without those. The reveal seemed abrupt and it happened a good 50 pages before the book ended, which made me wonder if there wasn’t another twist coming up. That kind of extra padding really isn’t necessary.
Still, it held my attention, it had a good pace and I enjoyed trying to figure out who-done-it. I’ll definitely read another in the series.
3***
Oyster Bay, North Carolina used to be a well-kept secret, but since a national magazine rated it one of the best places to live / vacation, the population has swelled and economic growth has increased. Olivia Limoges has recently returned to Oyster Bay; wealthy, single and aloof, she owns a number of commercial buildings as well as her family homestead. A chance encounter with a group of writers, draws her out of her shell, but before she had establish herself with the group one of them is murdered.
This is a pretty interesting cozy mystery, featuring a group of aspiring authors who together try to solve the murder of one of their group. I like Olivia Limoges, though I was picturing her as much older (and eventually figured out she’s probably in her mid-30s, or perhaps early-40s). I like that her faithful dog – a standard poodle named Captain Haviland – is a DOG, not a character who helps solve the crime (though his ability to track does come into play). I also like that Olivia and her friends do not take unnecessary chances; they are curious and do meddle (wouldn’t be much of a cozy mystery without SOME intervention by the amateur sleuths), but they seem to know when to back away and let Police Chief Sawyer Rawlings step in.
I thought Adams did a good job of setting the scene. I really got the sense of a small sea-side community that relies on tourist trade in season, fishing year-round, and is struggling with issues of new-found wealth and investment. As is typical of most cozies, there’s a pretty large cast of supporting players, not a few of whom are pretty colorful (a roller-skating dwarf waitress, for example) I found a few of the relationships stretched credulity, but not enough to mar the fun.
Adams includes several interludes where the writers’ group members share chapters from the books they are working on. Well … I could have done without those. The reveal seemed abrupt and it happened a good 50 pages before the book ended, which made me wonder if there wasn’t another twist coming up. That kind of extra padding really isn’t necessary.
Still, it held my attention, it had a good pace and I enjoyed trying to figure out who-done-it. I’ll definitely read another in the series.
36BookConcierge
The Little Paris Bookshop – Nina George
Book on CD performed by Steve West and Emma Bering, with Cassandra Campbell.
3***
From the Book Jacket A warm and charming tale of love, loss, and the power of reading. Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can't seem to heal through literature is himself; he's still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.
My Reactions
I really wanted to love this book. Several people whose opinions I trust have recommended it, even raved about it. And there’s much here to like. It’s Paris. It’s a romance. It’s about reading. There are recipes at the end. I love the idea of a “literary apothecary.” I loved the many characters (save one) and their interactions and adventures. But …
The only thing I couldn’t reconcile was Manon – Perdu’s great, lost love. And ultimately, this was a significant flaw in the novel. I never understood why she acted as she did. Never understood how she could claim to love so deeply and yet behave as she did. She is such an important part of this book, and yet I feel that I don’t really know her, and never cared about her. At one point George describes Manon as: “She drank from life as if it were champagne and faced it in the same spirit: she knew that life is special.” I’m glad she told me this, because it helps to explain why Perdu acted as he did; but I didn’t really believe it because George never SHOWED me this Manon.
Maybe it’s a French /American disconnect (or German/American disconnect, as George is German). But whatever the cause, I’m left feeling a little disappointed. Although I did appreciate the “literary prescriptions” at the end, matching a variety of book to “what ails you.”
I should also comment that the book does move back and forth in time, as experiences Perdu has throughout the course of his journey bring up various memories of his time with Manon.
Steve West and Emma Bering (or is it Cassandra Campbell – I couldn’t tell) – do a fine job performing the audio version. Having the female voice for those sections narrated by Manon provided a necessary clue to change in perspective, time and/or place. I almost felt as if I were on the barge with them, navigating the rivers and canals of Southern France. However, the audio does not include the recipes or “literary prescriptions” found at the end of the text version.
Book on CD performed by Steve West and Emma Bering, with Cassandra Campbell.
3***
From the Book Jacket A warm and charming tale of love, loss, and the power of reading. Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can't seem to heal through literature is himself; he's still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.
My Reactions
I really wanted to love this book. Several people whose opinions I trust have recommended it, even raved about it. And there’s much here to like. It’s Paris. It’s a romance. It’s about reading. There are recipes at the end. I love the idea of a “literary apothecary.” I loved the many characters (save one) and their interactions and adventures. But …
The only thing I couldn’t reconcile was Manon – Perdu’s great, lost love. And ultimately, this was a significant flaw in the novel. I never understood why she acted as she did. Never understood how she could claim to love so deeply and yet behave as she did. She is such an important part of this book, and yet I feel that I don’t really know her, and never cared about her. At one point George describes Manon as: “She drank from life as if it were champagne and faced it in the same spirit: she knew that life is special.” I’m glad she told me this, because it helps to explain why Perdu acted as he did; but I didn’t really believe it because George never SHOWED me this Manon.
Maybe it’s a French /American disconnect (or German/American disconnect, as George is German). But whatever the cause, I’m left feeling a little disappointed. Although I did appreciate the “literary prescriptions” at the end, matching a variety of book to “what ails you.”
I should also comment that the book does move back and forth in time, as experiences Perdu has throughout the course of his journey bring up various memories of his time with Manon.
Steve West and Emma Bering (or is it Cassandra Campbell – I couldn’t tell) – do a fine job performing the audio version. Having the female voice for those sections narrated by Manon provided a necessary clue to change in perspective, time and/or place. I almost felt as if I were on the barge with them, navigating the rivers and canals of Southern France. However, the audio does not include the recipes or “literary prescriptions” found at the end of the text version.
37BookConcierge
Ghost Soldiers – Hampton Sides
Book on CD performed by James Naughton
4****
SUBTITLE: The Forgotten Epic Story of World War II’s Most Dramatic Mission
From the book jacket On January 28, 1945, 121 hand-selected troops from the elite U.S. Army 6th Ranger Battalion slipped behind enemy lines in the Philippines. Their mission: March thirty miles in an attempt to rescue 513 American and British POWs who had spent three years in a surreally hellish camp near the city of Cabanatuan. The prisoners included the last survivors of the Bataan Death March. …. Elsewhere in the Philippines, the Japanese Army had already executed American prisoners as it retreated from the advancing U.S. Army.
My Reactions
Sides crafts a story that is gripping, informative, horrifying and inspiring. I was captured from page one and mesmerized throughout. I felt that I really got to know the men involved – prisoners and rescuers.
My reaction to this book was somewhat personal. I could not help but think of my father, who served in the Pacific for 33 months, making seven landings with MacArthur’s forces. I remember his stories of how the Filipino guerillas helped them “string wire around Manila Bay. They said it couldn’t be done, but we did it.” I have a collage of photos of him hanging over my desk – including one where he stares into the camera, cigarette in one corner of his mouth, while he and six other men stand holding a large snake that Daddy had killed (Daddy holds the head). And I thought of my husband, an Airborne Ranger who served in Vietnam. In the 1990s, when visiting the Philippines on business, he walked about a hundred meters of the Bataan Death March route – “Just to get the feel of what they endured.”
This is a history that will appeal to fans of Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken or Doug Stanton’s In Harm’s Way.
James Naughton does a fabulous job of narrating the audio book. I really felt I was in the heart of the action.
Book on CD performed by James Naughton
4****
SUBTITLE: The Forgotten Epic Story of World War II’s Most Dramatic Mission
From the book jacket On January 28, 1945, 121 hand-selected troops from the elite U.S. Army 6th Ranger Battalion slipped behind enemy lines in the Philippines. Their mission: March thirty miles in an attempt to rescue 513 American and British POWs who had spent three years in a surreally hellish camp near the city of Cabanatuan. The prisoners included the last survivors of the Bataan Death March. …. Elsewhere in the Philippines, the Japanese Army had already executed American prisoners as it retreated from the advancing U.S. Army.
My Reactions
Sides crafts a story that is gripping, informative, horrifying and inspiring. I was captured from page one and mesmerized throughout. I felt that I really got to know the men involved – prisoners and rescuers.
My reaction to this book was somewhat personal. I could not help but think of my father, who served in the Pacific for 33 months, making seven landings with MacArthur’s forces. I remember his stories of how the Filipino guerillas helped them “string wire around Manila Bay. They said it couldn’t be done, but we did it.” I have a collage of photos of him hanging over my desk – including one where he stares into the camera, cigarette in one corner of his mouth, while he and six other men stand holding a large snake that Daddy had killed (Daddy holds the head). And I thought of my husband, an Airborne Ranger who served in Vietnam. In the 1990s, when visiting the Philippines on business, he walked about a hundred meters of the Bataan Death March route – “Just to get the feel of what they endured.”
This is a history that will appeal to fans of Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken or Doug Stanton’s In Harm’s Way.
James Naughton does a fabulous job of narrating the audio book. I really felt I was in the heart of the action.
38BookConcierge
Beloved – Toni Morrison
Audiobook read by the author.
4****
From the book jacket - Sethe was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not truly ree. She has borned the unthinkable and not gone made, yet she is still held captive by memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. Meanwhile Sethe’s house has long been troubled by the angry, destructive ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved.
My reactions
This is a challenging book to read (and to listen to) because Morrison uses multiple narrators, switches time frames without notice, and dribbles out clues to what really happened in a way that keeps the reader off balance and unsure where the story is headed. Sethe is an enigma – emotionally and physically scarred, she seems to have given up, waiting for a sign that she has been forgiven for what she has done in the past, for the impossible decisions she had to make. Those who care about her – her daughter Denver and friend/lover Paul D – are left to compete with Sethe’s guilt as they vie for her love and attention.
I did think the “atmospheric” writing sometimes got in the way of the storyline. And Morrison tells a horrific story of a mother trapped in an environment that is toxic and cruel, where her life and that of her children is meaningless. As Sethe’s desperation, fears and hopes are revealed I find myself changing my mind about her, alternately wanting to shake her or hug her.
Still, I loved Morrison’s use of language; I felt immersed in the story, the timeframe, the magic, the brutal reality. Here’s one example of her poetic turn of phrase:
…where blueberries grew, tasting so good and happy that to eat them was like being in church. Just one of the berries and you felt anointed.
Morrison read the audiobook herself. She obviously has a keen sense of exactly the atmosphere she wanted to convey. Her delivery is breathless, slow, and almost hypnotic; she frequently stops for a breath after every three or four words. I did not like this at first, but over time her delivery grew on me. However, I do think I may have missed some key elements by listening, rather than reading the text.
Audiobook read by the author.
4****
From the book jacket - Sethe was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not truly ree. She has borned the unthinkable and not gone made, yet she is still held captive by memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. Meanwhile Sethe’s house has long been troubled by the angry, destructive ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved.
My reactions
This is a challenging book to read (and to listen to) because Morrison uses multiple narrators, switches time frames without notice, and dribbles out clues to what really happened in a way that keeps the reader off balance and unsure where the story is headed. Sethe is an enigma – emotionally and physically scarred, she seems to have given up, waiting for a sign that she has been forgiven for what she has done in the past, for the impossible decisions she had to make. Those who care about her – her daughter Denver and friend/lover Paul D – are left to compete with Sethe’s guilt as they vie for her love and attention.
I did think the “atmospheric” writing sometimes got in the way of the storyline. And Morrison tells a horrific story of a mother trapped in an environment that is toxic and cruel, where her life and that of her children is meaningless. As Sethe’s desperation, fears and hopes are revealed I find myself changing my mind about her, alternately wanting to shake her or hug her.
Still, I loved Morrison’s use of language; I felt immersed in the story, the timeframe, the magic, the brutal reality. Here’s one example of her poetic turn of phrase:
…where blueberries grew, tasting so good and happy that to eat them was like being in church. Just one of the berries and you felt anointed.
Morrison read the audiobook herself. She obviously has a keen sense of exactly the atmosphere she wanted to convey. Her delivery is breathless, slow, and almost hypnotic; she frequently stops for a breath after every three or four words. I did not like this at first, but over time her delivery grew on me. However, I do think I may have missed some key elements by listening, rather than reading the text.
39anna_in_pdx
>38 BookConcierge: that is a very memorable book. I read it a few years ago, it hits one very hard.
40BookConcierge
Zia Summer – Rudolfo Anaya
3***
Sonny Baca is a private investigator in Alburquerque, specializing in divorce, insurance cases and missing persons. But when Gloria Dominic, wife of a prominent developer and mayoral candidate, is found murdered, her mother hires Sonny to find out who killed Gloria. The police chief seems intent on blaming it on a “bungled burglary,” but Sonny recognizes the sign of the sun at the murder scene and knows that the zia symbol frequently marks the work of brujas (evil witches).
This is a very atmospheric murder mystery, full of the magical realism that goes with ghost stories and folk tales. But the plot has a fair amount of very real and gritty violence, perpetrated by flesh-and-blood humans, not paranormal entities.
Anaya is best known for his poetic coming-of-age story, Bless Me, Ultima, and this is his first turn at gritty mystery writing. The poetry still comes through, however, especially in the ways he describes the landscape, and various characters’ relationship with the land. I particularly loved Don Eliseo and his cronies, and the ways they helped (or hindered) Sonny’s investigation.
I did think that Anaya went a little overboard with the brujas and mysticism, however. I felt that some of the scenes focusing on this aspect of the mystery actually detracted from the pace of the novel and the story arc.
Still, it’s a satisfying murder mystery, and I’d read more of the series.
3***
Sonny Baca is a private investigator in Alburquerque, specializing in divorce, insurance cases and missing persons. But when Gloria Dominic, wife of a prominent developer and mayoral candidate, is found murdered, her mother hires Sonny to find out who killed Gloria. The police chief seems intent on blaming it on a “bungled burglary,” but Sonny recognizes the sign of the sun at the murder scene and knows that the zia symbol frequently marks the work of brujas (evil witches).
This is a very atmospheric murder mystery, full of the magical realism that goes with ghost stories and folk tales. But the plot has a fair amount of very real and gritty violence, perpetrated by flesh-and-blood humans, not paranormal entities.
Anaya is best known for his poetic coming-of-age story, Bless Me, Ultima, and this is his first turn at gritty mystery writing. The poetry still comes through, however, especially in the ways he describes the landscape, and various characters’ relationship with the land. I particularly loved Don Eliseo and his cronies, and the ways they helped (or hindered) Sonny’s investigation.
I did think that Anaya went a little overboard with the brujas and mysticism, however. I felt that some of the scenes focusing on this aspect of the mystery actually detracted from the pace of the novel and the story arc.
Still, it’s a satisfying murder mystery, and I’d read more of the series.
