The Magician of Tiger Castle
by Louis Sachar
Louis Sacher's Adult Debut (4/2/2025)
It's been years since I read Holes but Louis Sacher's "voice" was immediately and pleasantly apparent in this lovely adult fiction book. The characters were funny and touching all at the same time and utterly relatable. If you loved The Princess Bride you will love this book too. It shares the same combination of wit and poignancy. Highly recommend.
Serial Killer Games
by Kate Posey
A Killer of a Story (1/29/2025)
Serial Killer Games killed it. I loved the twisty plot and the characters. The story kept me engaged from beginning to end. The snarky, sarcastic tone and dialog were hilarious, and the ending was perfection. I hope Ms. Posey intends to be a serial author because I'm dying to read more books from her.
Happy Land
by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Happy Land, Happy Reader (11/21/2024)
I enjoyed this book. I'm a long time family researcher so I appreciated that this was based on a true story. I loved the woman-centered story lines, and the resiliency the women showed when faced with challenges seemed particularly appropriate right now.
The Very Long, Very Strange Life of Isaac Dahl
by Bart Yates
Short but Very Sweet (5/9/2024)
Isaac may have had a long, strange life but the book about him is short but sweet. I was a little skeptical that a book about a man's life that skips ahead every eight years would tell a coherent story, much less an enjoyable one. I was very wrong. Bart Yates did a masterful job of creating characters who came to life despite the gaps in the timeline. Each chapter presented new characters who added depth to Isaac's story and immediacy to the historical events each chapter depicted. I read the entire book in one sitting and was very sorry when it was finished. This one will go on my favorites shelf.
The Funeral Cryer: A Novel
by Wenyan Lu
If the Author Does Not Care, Why Should I? (2/12/2024)
I'm not sure what the author intended with this book that did not name any of the main characters other than their role in the story (Daughter, Husband, Barber, etc.) but keeping the characters at such a remove was a fail for me. I found it impossible to care about characters that the author did not bother to name or imbue with personality. I did manage to finish the book but the ending felt like the author was just as tired of the story as I was. The book ended abruptly without any sort of growth or resolution for the Funeral Cryer. Overall, a very dissatisfying read.
The House on Biscayne Bay
by Chanel Cleeton
Good but lacking in substance (12/14/2023)
The book was well written but the story was predictable and not all that engaging. I thought having Carmen and Carolina come from Cuba was odd. It didn't feel like that aspect of the story was well researched. If some of the main characters are from a different culture, it would be good to highlight aspects of that culture that are relevant to how the characters handled the events in the story. Overall, the book was okay but I prefer more history in my historical fiction.
The Divorcees
by Rowan Beaird
Midcentury Modern Divorce (11/7/2023)
The Divorcees is a fictionalized account about the "divorce ranches" in midcentury Reno, Nevada. It is well written and the story is engaging. My only criticism is the lack of depth in the women's stories. The difficulties women faced in trying to asset their independence in a male dominated culture at a time when they couldn't even get a credit card in their own name, is mentioned but not fleshed out as fully as I would have liked. I would have liked to have had more in depth in exploring the circumstances that lead the various women to the ranch and how they dealt with the aftermath. More focus on Lois and the other women and less on Greer would have made for a better book.
This Is Salvaged: Stories
by Vauhini Vara
Excellent Writing But The Stories Were Not For Me (8/26/2023)
Vauhini Vara is a talented writer. The writing is descriptive and vividly drawn but I found the stories to be very dark and cynical. I didn't find them humorous or enjoyable. Books are my safe space and this one didn't feel safe at all; I'm sure that appeals to many people but not to me.
Banyan Moon: A Novel
by Thao Thai
Mothers and Daughters (5/8/2023)
Banyan Moon is Thao Thai's debut novel and to some degree, it shows. The book has a compelling storyline but its execution is a little spotty. The overabundance of metaphors, similes and alliteration in the early chapters was jarring: "Her gait was purposeful but pinched. There was something dry and dangerous about her, like flint meeting flint." but that tendency evened out as the story progressed. I liked the way the characters evolved and grew in understanding of themselves and each other even after death. It was also annoying to reach the end of the book with the often alluded to mystery of how Minh bought Banyan House from an "old white woman" and why she felt compelled to keep all the woman's possessions intact, a storyline which seems central to understanding how Minh became the person she was, unresolved. I'm still wondering about that days after finishing the book. In sum, it was a good but not great debut effort. I do think this author will grow into her art and I will look forward to reading her next book.
Mrs. Plansky's Revenge
by Spencer Quinn
Delightful Read (4/4/2023)
Spencer Quinn has created a series worthy character in Mrs. Loretta Plansky. I was a little hesitant about the story at first because it seemed as if Mrs. Plansky was being taken advantage of by ungrateful family members but Mrs. Plansky proved more than able to take care of herself and her great adventure in righting the wrongs done to her and her family was both entertaining and heartwarming. I thought it was absolutely brilliant that Mrs. Plansky's late husband, Norm, was such an important influence for Mrs. Plansky that he became part of the story even though he was deceased. And yet we also saw her move on from Norm's death in important ways too. Overall this was a fun read with characters I hope we will see again in a new series.
Homestead: A Novel
by Melinda Moustakis
I wanted to like it more than I did (1/27/2023)
I really wanted to love this book but I often felt like the author was trying too hard to write great literature to the detriment of just telling a story. The writing was choppy and hard to follow at times; I found the tempo to be very staccato like here: "A testing, a trying, and he reaches the tractor once more. Wipes his forehead with a handkerchief. Dirt in his mouth, and he drinks from his canteen." The short choppy sentences made the reading feel jerky and disjointed. The only character that I really warmed to was Sheila who tried so hard to mother Marie while dealing with her own infertility issues. I did not find either Lawrence or Marie to be particularly likable or sympathetic.
In the Time of Our History
by Susanne Pari
In the Time of Our History (9/16/2022)
I loved this book. The themes of family, culture. loss and exile were so beautifully handled, and the characters are realistically portrayed yet handled with compassion for their faults and weaknesses. The female characters in particular who show their strength and resilience in such individual ways, are very finely drawn. Anahita, who we only see through the eyes of her loved ones, Mitra, and Shireen will stay with me for a long time.
Jackie & Me
by Louis Bayard
Fictionalized History at its Best (6/7/2022)
I loved Louis Bayard's fictional versions of Jack and Jackie as seen by Lem Billings, Jack's "wing man" during their courtship. The wistful tone of Lem's memories was poignant and endearing. Bayard's depiction of Jack and Jackie's relationship rang very true to me and gave a sense of depth and humanity to their iconic images. Highly recommend.
Peach Blossom Spring: A Novel
by Melissa Fu
Beautiful Writing, Moving Story (3/4/2022)
I absolutely loved this book. The author, Melissa Fu, was able to evoke a time and place I am wholly unfamiliar with by using language as delicate and precise as the artistry of the Chinese hand scroll that figures so prominently in Meilin's story. Even Henry, whose inability to move beyond his own fears was frustrating at times, was rendered with such sympathy that you are always aware of how his difficult past was impacting his present. A really moving glimpse into a different culture.
How to Find Your Way Home
by Katy Regan
The Journey Back Home (10/27/2021)
I enjoyed this book very much. The author did a good job addressing the many ways mental illness affects not just the person but everyone around them in varying ways. While I understand why it was done from a plot perspective, I do wish that the underlying cause of Stephen's mental health issues was more organic and less family-drama related. This would be an excellent book club book as the family dynamics would make for good discussion points.
The Sunset Route: Freight Trains, Forgiveness, and Freedom on the Rails in the American West
by Carrot Quinn
What a Trip! (7/12/2021)
Once I started reading, I could not put "The Sunset Route" down until the last page. The details about riding the rails were both fascinating and terrifying. The hardships Carrot overcame, described in such a matter-of-fact tone, were stunning to read. I mourned the necessity of the lessons she learned about how to take care of herself from such a very young age and cheered the resilience she showed in the face of overwhelming obstacles. She is a very inspiring person and her story is one that I think many young people will find very relatable. It was a very strong lesson in how easy it is for someone to slip through the cracks in our society. I hope it will make me more aware of the people around me who may be in a similar situation.
Everybody: A Book about Freedom
by Olivia Laing
It had moments (5/19/2021)
I really wanted to love this book. It had moments where I did. The problem is, I had to slog through a tremendous amount of what felt like unnecessary verbiage to get to those moments. The author's personal opinions seemed to taint her message as well. She spoke kindly, even glowingly about Reich and other males but all her dissections of the females she wrote about seemed sharply critical. A prime example of this is her treatment of Andrea Dworkin. All in all, I think this material would have been better presented in a peer-reviewed journal article instead of a full length book.
Ariadne
by Jennifer Saint
Mythology From the Female Perspective (3/12/2021)
Jennifer Saint has created a fresh and thought provoking take on the myths and heroes we normally see only from the male perspective. Her characters were well rounded and much more three dimensional than the original mythological figures. While the "heroes" were shown to be less than heroic (Theseus, I'm looking at you), the heroines were also shown to have very human flaws that made them more relatable. In particular, the contrast between Phaedra's struggles with motherhood and Ariadne's absorption by it and how both were influenced by their differing experiences of their own mother was exceedingly well drawn. Overall, a well written, well researched, highly enjoyable read.
The Narrowboat Summer
by Anne Youngson
A Coming of Age Story for Older Adults (11/24/2020)
Life is full of changes and transitions but most coming of age stories focus on the transition for youth to adulthood. It was refreshing to read a story that focused on older adults "coming of age" and realizing their full potential. I also enjoyed that the author allowed both Sally and Eve to find happiness without the necessity of a romantic pairing. That struck me as more authentic than if one or both of them found a "happily ever after" romantic partner. Many of us are happily single older adults and it was nice to have the book reflect that.
The pacing of the book is appropriately slow and in that, I felt it reflected the movement of the narrowboat. I really enjoyed reading about the mechanics of maneuvering a boat through the locks and the descriptions of taking the boat through tunnels was so vivid I could almost feel the claustrophobia.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I will happily add Anne Youngson to my "must read" author list.
Piranesi
by Susanna Clarke
Not Enough of a Good Thing (8/11/2020)
Piranesi was a perfect story to read during the pandemic with its underlying themes of loneliness and isolation. The story was intriguing, the characters were memorable and the world building was exquisite. My only criticism is that there was not enough of any of it. I would have loved to spend more time wandering the Halls with Piranesi and to learn more of the history of the thirteen people who inhabited the Halls like like the Biscuit-Box Man, and the Folded-Up Child; who they were and how they came to be there. I would have liked more detail on how Piranesi learned to live in the strange world he found himself in. It feels like there are many stories left to tell in this world and I hated to see it end so soon.
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