Honor
by Thrity Umrigar
Honor (10/4/2021)
Thrity Umrigar once again brings India alive on the page so that even those who have never been, feel as though they are at the center of all the sights and sounds of this country of contradictions. Her stories never fail to evoke deep emotion, and Honor is no exception. It is a heart wrenching account of two women whose lives are connected by brutality, grief, and loss, and their ultimate triumph over hate, each in their own different way. This is one book that I will remember for a very long time.
Never Saw Me Coming: A Novel
by Vera Kurian
Never Saw Me Coming (6/14/2021)
The premise of this book sounded fascinating, but unfortunately, for me, it failed in the execution. The only character I found really interesting was Charlie, who internalized his therapy to live what appears to be a "normal" life. The other students, and in particular, Chloe, were not particularly well developed. The narrative itself was a bit too convoluted and I felt the story dragged in many places. I pushed myself to finish this one and will probably not recommend.
Lookaway, Lookaway
by Wilton Barnhardt
Lookaway, Lookaway (6/12/2013)
I loved this book! Acerbic witty prose, characters you love, and some you love to hate, and an engrossing storyline that kept me reading into the night.
Only cautionary note, this one might not be for those who are put off by strong language and graphic sexual references.
Palisades Park
by Alan Brennert
Palisades Park (2/24/2013)
I enjoyed this novel that used the backdrop of the iconic Palisades Amusement Park in NJ to tell the story of the Stopka family over several decades. At all times, the author's depictions of the changing times rang true, from the pre WWII era and the societal changes the war brought, to the struggle for integration in the 50's and 60's. For me, having visited the park as a child, I found the portions of the novel focusing on the park's history the most interesting.
Indiscretion
by Charles Dubow
Simply wonderful (10/21/2012)
This is what reading is all about for me -- an absorbing story, beautifully written, with characters that seem so real I know I will miss them when I am done.
Dubow has taken what should be an ordinary, time worn story -- a man's adulterous affair -- and turned it into something riveting. The device he employs of having the narrator recount the story by looking back on events only adds to the tension. I am in awe of this author's ability to capture so authentically the shifting feelings of the players involved, and in doing so to evoke sympathy for all the players involved. Is Claire, the other woman, to be loathed, feared, pitied? And what of Harry, is he weak...a fool...deserving of forgiveness? So too, the narrator, the affable family friend Walter, an echo of Nick from The Great Gatsby, who is hopelessly in love with the wife, is a man of many shades.
Top it all off with a quiet and gut-wrenching ending that does not resort to tricks or big fireworks for impact, but instead, packs its punch through sheer brilliance of feeling and emotion .
I cannot wait to see what this author does next.
A Hundred Flowers: A Novel
by Gail Tsukiyama
A Hundred Flowers (7/14/2012)
I selected this book because friends have been telling me for quite some time to try one of Gail Tsukiyama’s books. As a result, I went into this one with very high expectations and I am afraid that I was disappointed.
I simply could not connect at all with any of the characters, and the book moved at an excruciatingly slow place. I have no problem with books where the action is limited, and the work is essentially a character study. Here, though, because the characters felt so remote, I was left with a book where nothing really happened, and I had no feeling for the people who were ruminating on their lives. I think perhaps I was expecting a book more along the lines of those written by Lisa See, and A Hundred Flowers was not in that vein.
I don’t mean to imply at all that this is a bad book -- it is very well written in fact. It just was not for me. I will be curious to see if this book is an anomaly, or if those who love her other books love this one as well.
The Land of Decoration: A Novel
by Grace McCleen
The Land of Decoration (3/19/2012)
Rarely have I encountered such an engaging narrator as 10 year-old Judith McPherson. I am amazed at the way the author crafted the voice of this sensitive young girl who believes that she is in direct communication with God. The descriptions of the bullying and abuse that she and her father endure are so authentic that I found the book hard to read at times. This is a very well written novel, though one that left me feeling quite depressed. For that reason alone, I would hesitate to recommend this to others.
The Good Father: A Novel
by Noah Hawley
The Good Father (12/20/2011)
A book that pulled me in from the first page, The Good Father is a work that is both wholly mesmerizing and utterly disturbing.
The book shifts focus subtly, at times questioning the level of Daniel’s actual guilt, but always returning to the ultimate issue of how Dr. Allen can reconcile the man his son has become.
A good portion of the middle section of the book contains detailed accounts of the actions of several well-known killers. This material at times felt creepy, and I was somewhat put off by the frequent interruption to the feel and flow of the narrative that resulted from including this information. As the book moved past this section, though, I quickly got back into the story, and it ultimately did not detract from my reading experience.
A book that will stay with you after you read the last page, and a definitely a conversational gold mine for book clubs.
The Sisters: A Novel
by Nancy Jensen
A well written book that I couldn't really enjoy (9/21/2011)
It is hard for me to assign a numerical rating to this book because while I believe that it is very well written, with authentic characters and an interesting story, it was simply too bleak for me to enjoy it. The women in this story endure one tragedy after another, and are uniformly tortured souls. I can read and appreciate a sad book with the best of them, but this one had not one uplifting moment, with the exception of one section toward the end.
While reading this one, I couldn’t help but think of another novel that I read last year that I recommend often, The Quickening, by Michelle Hoover, which was also quite bleak in its tone and underlying story -- but I ended up really liking it because there were moments of pure joy expressed by some of the characters.
This was a fine book. It just wasn't for me.
The Things We Cherished: A Novel
by Pam Jenoff
The Things We Cherished (5/29/2011)
I selected this book because I love historical fiction, and I particularly enjoy things set in WWII. However, while I did like the book, it was not a "must read" for me, mostly because the romance aspect is predominant, as opposed to the historical narrative. From the synopsis, I expected more in the way of courtroom and suspense elements. To be fair, I don't tend to read fiction with a strong romance component, so I am probably not the right audience for this one.
The book was very well-written, and the story was engrossing. I just expected something different.
Minding Ben: A Novel
by Victoria Brown
Minding Ben (12/27/2010)
An interesting story with insight into the immigrant experience. Grace was a wholly sympathetic character, and the peek into the world of "playground politics" was fascinating. The problem that I had with the book was the one-dimensional quality to the ogreish family for whom Grace worked, and the absence of a more developed relationship between Grace and her young charge, Ben.
An Amish Christmas: A Novel
by Cynthia Keller
A lovely book (9/16/2010)
I found this book to be an entirely charming and enjoyable read. Ms. Keller has delivered an even-handed portrayal of Amish life that is both interesting and informative. The religious emphasis is subtle; the theme of forgiveness is present, and the ending is, if predictable, not unrealistic. I would note that despite the title, I would not consider this a typical “Christmas book“ in that the story does not revolve around, nor really take place at Christmas, although the story does end on Christmas Day. Instead, it is more a cautionary tale of how easy it is in the modern world to lose one’s way spiritually, and an invitation to consider what is truly important in life. In that sense, I suppose the message of Christmas is there, without the commercial elements -- making it truly An Amish Christmas story.
The Quickening
by Michelle Hoover
Wonderful literary novel (6/21/2010)
I was given an ARC of this book by the publisher, Other Press LLC.
I highly recommend this book for those who like literary fiction.
By the end of this novel I was simply captivated. Ms. Hoover is a wonderful storyteller and her characterizations are vivid and entirely believable. I could clearly see each of the women, their husbands and their children as if they were sitting with me while I read. Turning the pages, you feel the dreariness, desperation and deep isolation as the families struggle to survive. And, while the book is a somber one, there are also moments of profound joy, particularly in the marriage of Enidina and Frank. Perhaps most compelling for me was way the author enabled me to appreciate the sensibilities of a community and way of life with which I am wholly unfamiliar.
The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives: A Novel
by Lola Shoneyin
A family of secrets (6/7/2010)
The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives takes place in present day Nigeria and tells the story of Baba Segi and his four wives and seven children. Much of the novel is narrated by Bolanle, the last wife. Her entrance into the family causes turmoil above and beyond the usual upheaval that occurs when a new wife is taken, as it exposes a secret that will change the family forever.
While the novel is set in an unfamiliar world, both geographically and culturally, the author makes you feel as though you know these people because the stories they live out and the emotions they display are common to people the world over. And because each of the women has a fully developed back-story that explains how they came to participate in the marriage, the reader easily understands why they act the way they do. Apart from the fact that the characters seem to jump off the page, the machinations of the family are fascinating. In particular, the first wife, Iya Segi, is wickedly Machiavellian in her running of the household, although her attempt to insure her place of superiority amongst the wives ultimately ends in tragedy for her.
Apart from the richly drawn characters, the author spins a gripping story that kept my attention throughout until the poignant ending. When I finished this book, I felt as though I were returning from a far-off world and while I’m glad to be home, I thoroughly enjoyed the journey.
Innocent
by Scott Turow
Innocent (5/20/2010)
This was a book that I received from the publisher as a giveaway on another book-related site.
Like many other people who will read this book, I read Presumed Innocent, the prequel to this book, many years ago. I have vague recollections of the plot of that book -- the basics, but not really the nuances. While you could conceivably read Innocent as a stand alone, I think the reader is better served by having read the first book.
That said, I thought this was a great ride! Scott Turow is a gifted writer, his prose is beautiful, and at the same time, the plot twists keep you turning the pages desperate to see what will happen next. One of the things I think I most appreciated about the book was the way it ended. Often, this type of courtroom novel can leave the reader feeling unsatisfied with a nice neat conclusion or a totally preposterous one. Turow avoids that pitfall here, resolving the story in a credible and yet surprising way.
In sum, I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes literary courtroom works.
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet: A Novel
by Jamie Ford
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet (5/14/2010)
This tender story between Henry, a Chinese-American and Keiko, a Japanese-American, who fall in love in Seattle during WWII and are then separated by the internment camps, is an engaging read. The book is written in alternating time from Henry's point of view as a 13 yr-old, and that of a man in his 50's in the mid-1980's who has recently lost his wife. Notably, when as here, a novel is set within two time periods, one part of the narrative often suffers by comparison. That is not so in this case, as each portion of the tale is equally strong, vivid in description, and believable in the way the characters act. Throughout the book, the tragic circumstances of what was done to the Japanese in the Pacific Northwest during the war is pointedly conveyed without overwhelming the underlying love story.
One of the strongest aspects of the novel is the author's depiction of his characters. You can feel the fierce national pride of Henry's father that motivates his hatred of the Japanese who are at war with China and causes him to treat Henry in a way that may seem inexplicably cruel to a modern reader's sensibilities. In the same vein, the reader feels the struggle of Henry's mother to support her son within the strictures of her old world relationship with her husband and the accompanying fear for her family should they viewed as supporting the Japanese in America.
In sum, I would recommend this book for the redemptive nature of the story and the vivid portrayal of the devastating effects of a period of American history not often discussed.
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