bunch o'books
so, maybe i've lost my mojo and these capsule reviews/commentaries are all i'm capable of now. i blame the weather; or rather, i blame the weather for virtually everything else, so why don't i blame it for this as well? oh well. at least i'm reading.
the pale horse by agatha christie - the streak continues. i liked this book because it does not really feature any of christie's famous detectives, there is a lot of talk about wacky bohemians, there is a shadowy group of nefarious individuals and i didn't figure out the culprit until just before it was revealed. it also only took slightly longer than the train ride from eastern long island to new york city - decent entertainment without actually taxing the brain. i guess i will also go ahead and mention reading a pocketful of rye - which does feature miss marple, although she doesn't show up until like two-thirds of the way through the book, at which point i'd totally forgotten she was in it and was rather surprised to greet her. i find her more annoying the poirot, but the novel was still decent enough. i rather which the murderer had turned out to be someone else. and then, the man in the brown suit, which is once again marple/poirot free, much to its benefit. i rather enjoyed this one - the heroine was alone and plucky and met very interesting side characters. plus, there is a boat, hidden identities, a torrid love affair and adventure in south africa. it is a fitting one to suspend my agatha christie kick on, as i think my interest has finally be satiated.
summer at tiffany by marjorie hart - super lightweight memoir about the summer of 1945, when ms. hart made her way from her native iowa to work as a page at tiffany & co. she and her friend were the first women employed on the floor there, a situation made necessary by the shortage of men brought about by world war ii. very breezy and enjoyable, sort of like reading a book of a movie from that era. not tons of depth, but enjoyable.
the yiddish policemen's union: a novel by michael chabon - those of you who read my regular journal know how super excited i was about getting this book. i am a huge chabon fan, and like so many i have been eagerly awaiting a worthy, full-length offering from him. plus, as i mentioned, it is a beautiful book. so then - how is it?
it's good. maybe even really good. the premise - too complicated for me to detail here - is fascinating and it's well-executed, although the alternative-reality and the language of it does take a while to grasp a hold of. the numerous aspects of the story are woven together nicely and plot points that might seem contrived in the hands of a lesser writer don't ever seem so here. characters are well-drawn and likable and i found myself thinking about the book well after i had finished. that being said, i wasn't totally blown away by it. if i were to make a list of my favorite chabon books, this would probably rank third, behind the amazing adventures of kavalier and clay and wonder boys.
the oxford murders by guillermo martinez - sorry, not at all good. the only part i liked was the math, which is not a statement i would ever expect myself to say. not nearly as intellectual or interesting as i would've hoped and even though it was only 200ish pages, i couldn't wait until it was over. i think i even fell asleep a few times (granted, i was reading before bed, but still), so not engaged was i by the story.
austenland by shannon hale - another disappointment. two clunkers right in the row? it's so not right ... this was probably a bigger disappointment, because i'm rapidly becoming a fan of shannon hale's work for younger readers (see the goose girl below, and i also really liked princess academy and have enna burning on reserve at the library). also, i am fan of jane austen, the bbc adaptation of pride and prejudice and the occassional bit of chick lit. so it seems that this book would be tailor-made for a girl like me, featuring as it does and hip young gal (ostensibly) who is bequeathed a vacation at austenland, a recreation of a manor house out of austen's time, complete with fawning or dreamily aloof suitors. alas, the book kind of sucks. it totally felt like it was a first draft. sketchy, flat, cliched, gratuitous cultural references that one is supposed to totally relate to, uninspired characters. just not good in so many ways. alas.
gilda joyce and the ladies of the lake by jennifer allison - the second mystery for tweens featuring the spirited gilda joyce. a very welcome offering; kids are constantly requesting mysteries, both for pleasure and for school assignments and this is one that i happily steer them towards. and the fact that this is, in addition to nice mystery, also a private school story, just makes the pleasure all the keener.
there's a (slight) chance i might be going to hell by laurie notaro - the first novel from best-selling essayist laurie notaro. not unlike her own life, this book features a plucky journalist from arizona, prone to amusingly embarassing situations, relocating to a small college town in the pacific northwest after her husband gets a university job there. she has a bit of trouble making friends and after a few mishaps with wiccans and hippies and other assorted types, decides to enter the local not-beauty pagent. alas, her sponsor dies and she has to depend on the kindness of an eccentric old dog breeder on the outskirts of town, who just might be the long-lost pagent queen who disappeared under mysterious circumstances and is the key to an long-buried town secret. it's not a great book; by playing for laughs so broadly, there are events that just don't make logical sense and that sort of thing maybe works in a movie or a sitcom, but just seems false in a book. and, there are other plot points that you can see a mile coming and you can't hope but wish for something more original. the characters are broad and frequently rely on sterotypes. and yet, i have to say that the book did have me laughing heartily more than a few times, and i couldn't help but really liking the main character. notaro is one of those authors who i think it would be really really fun to hang out with and would make a great friend, but she's also a writer who i think is capable of much more than she usually offers.
the double bind: a novel by chris bohjalian - really, really good. but really complicated, so read the reviews on amazon for a much lengthier take on things.
silence of the grave: a thriller by arnaldur indridason - hm, i would not have subtitled this "a thriller." i liked that it is set in iceland; that's pretty much it. although lots of other people seemed to like it, so perhaps you should take my lukewarm response with a grain of salt.
the green glass sea by eleen klages - excellent kid's book, set in los alamos during the manhattan project. the setting and the implicit history is completely fascinating and dewey is such an interesting, well-drawn girl. and for grown-up science dorks, it's very cool to see richard feynman and other scientists pop up as peripheral characters. about two-thirds of the way through there is an Unfortunate Plot Point, which i sort of hated and which felt really forced and fake and bothered me so, so much. and yet, i still loved the book, which i think is a good testament to klages and the characters she created.
the goose girl by shannon hale - loose take on a grimm's fairytale. fabulous. features a wane princess, sent to marry a distant prince. before arriving, her handmaiden decides to replace her, finding the princess lacking and herself much more suited for the role. the no-longer-a-princess ani must fend for herself, figure out how to get her identity back and, eventually, save both her homeland and adopted home from war and destruction. oh, and also, gain control of the mysterious power she has to talk to birds and other elements of nature. that's a bad description, but the book is so, so good and i am really looking forward to reading the other books set in the same land.
the enchanted castle by e. nesbit - kids! magic! e. nesbit! i heartily approve.
the pale horse by agatha christie - the streak continues. i liked this book because it does not really feature any of christie's famous detectives, there is a lot of talk about wacky bohemians, there is a shadowy group of nefarious individuals and i didn't figure out the culprit until just before it was revealed. it also only took slightly longer than the train ride from eastern long island to new york city - decent entertainment without actually taxing the brain. i guess i will also go ahead and mention reading a pocketful of rye - which does feature miss marple, although she doesn't show up until like two-thirds of the way through the book, at which point i'd totally forgotten she was in it and was rather surprised to greet her. i find her more annoying the poirot, but the novel was still decent enough. i rather which the murderer had turned out to be someone else. and then, the man in the brown suit, which is once again marple/poirot free, much to its benefit. i rather enjoyed this one - the heroine was alone and plucky and met very interesting side characters. plus, there is a boat, hidden identities, a torrid love affair and adventure in south africa. it is a fitting one to suspend my agatha christie kick on, as i think my interest has finally be satiated.
summer at tiffany by marjorie hart - super lightweight memoir about the summer of 1945, when ms. hart made her way from her native iowa to work as a page at tiffany & co. she and her friend were the first women employed on the floor there, a situation made necessary by the shortage of men brought about by world war ii. very breezy and enjoyable, sort of like reading a book of a movie from that era. not tons of depth, but enjoyable.
the yiddish policemen's union: a novel by michael chabon - those of you who read my regular journal know how super excited i was about getting this book. i am a huge chabon fan, and like so many i have been eagerly awaiting a worthy, full-length offering from him. plus, as i mentioned, it is a beautiful book. so then - how is it?
it's good. maybe even really good. the premise - too complicated for me to detail here - is fascinating and it's well-executed, although the alternative-reality and the language of it does take a while to grasp a hold of. the numerous aspects of the story are woven together nicely and plot points that might seem contrived in the hands of a lesser writer don't ever seem so here. characters are well-drawn and likable and i found myself thinking about the book well after i had finished. that being said, i wasn't totally blown away by it. if i were to make a list of my favorite chabon books, this would probably rank third, behind the amazing adventures of kavalier and clay and wonder boys.
the oxford murders by guillermo martinez - sorry, not at all good. the only part i liked was the math, which is not a statement i would ever expect myself to say. not nearly as intellectual or interesting as i would've hoped and even though it was only 200ish pages, i couldn't wait until it was over. i think i even fell asleep a few times (granted, i was reading before bed, but still), so not engaged was i by the story.
austenland by shannon hale - another disappointment. two clunkers right in the row? it's so not right ... this was probably a bigger disappointment, because i'm rapidly becoming a fan of shannon hale's work for younger readers (see the goose girl below, and i also really liked princess academy and have enna burning on reserve at the library). also, i am fan of jane austen, the bbc adaptation of pride and prejudice and the occassional bit of chick lit. so it seems that this book would be tailor-made for a girl like me, featuring as it does and hip young gal (ostensibly) who is bequeathed a vacation at austenland, a recreation of a manor house out of austen's time, complete with fawning or dreamily aloof suitors. alas, the book kind of sucks. it totally felt like it was a first draft. sketchy, flat, cliched, gratuitous cultural references that one is supposed to totally relate to, uninspired characters. just not good in so many ways. alas.
gilda joyce and the ladies of the lake by jennifer allison - the second mystery for tweens featuring the spirited gilda joyce. a very welcome offering; kids are constantly requesting mysteries, both for pleasure and for school assignments and this is one that i happily steer them towards. and the fact that this is, in addition to nice mystery, also a private school story, just makes the pleasure all the keener.
there's a (slight) chance i might be going to hell by laurie notaro - the first novel from best-selling essayist laurie notaro. not unlike her own life, this book features a plucky journalist from arizona, prone to amusingly embarassing situations, relocating to a small college town in the pacific northwest after her husband gets a university job there. she has a bit of trouble making friends and after a few mishaps with wiccans and hippies and other assorted types, decides to enter the local not-beauty pagent. alas, her sponsor dies and she has to depend on the kindness of an eccentric old dog breeder on the outskirts of town, who just might be the long-lost pagent queen who disappeared under mysterious circumstances and is the key to an long-buried town secret. it's not a great book; by playing for laughs so broadly, there are events that just don't make logical sense and that sort of thing maybe works in a movie or a sitcom, but just seems false in a book. and, there are other plot points that you can see a mile coming and you can't hope but wish for something more original. the characters are broad and frequently rely on sterotypes. and yet, i have to say that the book did have me laughing heartily more than a few times, and i couldn't help but really liking the main character. notaro is one of those authors who i think it would be really really fun to hang out with and would make a great friend, but she's also a writer who i think is capable of much more than she usually offers.
the double bind: a novel by chris bohjalian - really, really good. but really complicated, so read the reviews on amazon for a much lengthier take on things.
silence of the grave: a thriller by arnaldur indridason - hm, i would not have subtitled this "a thriller." i liked that it is set in iceland; that's pretty much it. although lots of other people seemed to like it, so perhaps you should take my lukewarm response with a grain of salt.
the green glass sea by eleen klages - excellent kid's book, set in los alamos during the manhattan project. the setting and the implicit history is completely fascinating and dewey is such an interesting, well-drawn girl. and for grown-up science dorks, it's very cool to see richard feynman and other scientists pop up as peripheral characters. about two-thirds of the way through there is an Unfortunate Plot Point, which i sort of hated and which felt really forced and fake and bothered me so, so much. and yet, i still loved the book, which i think is a good testament to klages and the characters she created.
the goose girl by shannon hale - loose take on a grimm's fairytale. fabulous. features a wane princess, sent to marry a distant prince. before arriving, her handmaiden decides to replace her, finding the princess lacking and herself much more suited for the role. the no-longer-a-princess ani must fend for herself, figure out how to get her identity back and, eventually, save both her homeland and adopted home from war and destruction. oh, and also, gain control of the mysterious power she has to talk to birds and other elements of nature. that's a bad description, but the book is so, so good and i am really looking forward to reading the other books set in the same land.
the enchanted castle by e. nesbit - kids! magic! e. nesbit! i heartily approve.