So there are a few more youth fiction books on my list this time around, along with plenty of not so youthful forays into nonfiction, the process of mourning, four memoirs, a classic, some light "erotica" which was decidedly unimpressive, and two of my favorite books that I've read so far this year. So here we go, there's bound to be something in here for everyone, and a guaranteed beach book or three for your upcoming vacation, which I'm totally jealous about. Here come the 30 second glimpses and my judgmental opinions:
The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - I read this series a few years ago but in advance of the movie release, I thought I'd try it again. It was as powerful and engaging as the first time, and though the subject matter is disturbing, the action, character development and plot lines are wonderful, particularly for a young adult novel. Read these even if you think the hype is too much.
Looking for Alaska by John Green - In sticking with my YA theme this time around, I read another novel by the delightful John Green who wrote The Fault in Our Stars that I reviewed for Blogher in March. If possible I liked this novel more. I've been listening to audio books on my commute, and this one is perfect for that medium. It's sad and heartbreaking and funny and a delight, and makes me wish I'd gone to boarding school.
Lost and Found by Geneen Roth - Here's another BlogHer book club review. I don't think I would have touched this book if I hadn't received it for free, but once I got past my judgments about the author, white people problems entitled rich whining and self delusions, I feel like I got something valuable out of this book. Click here for my full review.
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes- One of my favorite books this year. This book follows a platoon of soldiers during the Vietnam War and is populated with such vivid and real characters, infuriating and inane political motives, violence, humor and humanity that I was riveted. I wrote a quick review upon finishing the audio book read by Cousin Balki (Bronson Pinchot) who sounds nothing like I expected. "I'm sitting in my car having just finished listening to the 25 hour audio version of this novel and I'm wiping away the tears. I feel sad it's over and desperate to know what happens to these soldiers, knowing I never will. This book blew me away. My already significant respect for those who serve in the military, and their families, has tripled after reading this book."
What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty - Perfectly fine and vaguely charming. I enjoyed the epilogue most. A decent way to kill a few hours but, eh, otherwise.
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling - The first 2/3's of this is great. More like 3.5 stars. It's funny. She's funny. Mindy Kaling doesn't care if she's a little shallow and likes dieting and celebrity gossip magazines and cupcakes, she's herself and she's smart and funny but I got a little tired of this by the end, because it seems like she did too.
Therese Raquin by Emile Zola- Bleak and dramatic and analytical. This is the first book I've read by Zola and since it was an audio book read by the amazing Kate Winslet, it was much more enjoyable than it would have been otherwise. This is Zola's analysis of the human temperament and because of this it felt a little chilly and detached from the high emotions, adultery and murder that fills it's pages.
Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L James - I had a fascinating conversation with a friend at lunch the other day. She had just finished reading this incredibly popular, buzzed about novel. I had just started it the night before but I couldn't yet get past the mediocre writing. But we both wondered, when reading erotic literature, do we really care about writing? Turns out I do. Because on finishing this one I just thought "meh." Decent sex scenes, but essentially a slightly kinky, not particularly well-written romance novel. Maybe if you've never read well written erotica this could work for you. And if it helps jazz up a woman's sex life, who I am to criticize? But I don't want The Today Show to select my porn for me.
God, If You're Not Up There I'm F*cked by Darrell Hammond - This is closer to 3.75 actually, but he gets a 4 for sheer survival and determination, and a killer Clinton impression. I admire Hammond for his brutal honesty, his incredible mimicry/acting/comedy ability, but this was a hard book to read. A fast read, but he is such an unhappy and troubled man through most of the book that I had to keep pushing my pity aside to see what happens next. A terribly traumatic childhood, serious addiction and mental health issues combined with his impressionistic genius made this an odd memoir of name dropping, crack smoking and rehab stint after rehab stint. I'm glad I read the book but I'll never look at Darrell Hammond the same way again. And that's ok. I respect him more on this side.
An Abundance of Katherines by John Green - Reminds me of something called the Mandy- Festo that I wrote in college. 3.5- Funny, quite funny, mixed with sweet, real, and slightly irritating characters just like any good YA novel. All of Green's characters are wittier, smarter and better than you were as a teenager and that's what helps make his books a pleasure to read.
Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore - Clever, weird, fantastical, full of artists and work you know and love, brothels, cognac and so much color. Joe got tired of me laughing out loud while reading it. An incredibly well researched book on Paris and the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists, that Moore then put his delightful and masterfully strange spin on.
The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson - Epic. This is my second favorite book so far this year. Another stellar, long audio book that I listened to on my daily commute, while cooking dinner, while working out and generally anytime I could squeeze in another ten minutes. Wilkerson writes this non-fiction story of the Great Migration of African American people from the South to the North. Using the story of three different families fleeing the South during three different times periods of the movement, she takes what could be a more dry historical survey and makes it deeply compelling by connecting you immediately with these disparate characters. I learned so much reading this book and connected deeply with the characters, who aren't characters because they are real people with real struggles, and seriously admirable work ethics, morals and difficult decisions to make. I can't say enough good things about this one, it should be required reading for every high school student.
The Mercy of Thin Air by Ronlyn Domingue - This book is ethereal, sad, strange and one of those wispy melancholy love stories that swept me away in it's spell. With lyrical writing, brave characters and a strange paranormal overlay, I very much enjoyed with Domingue did with this one.
The Bay of Foxes by Sheila Kohler - This was a book I had the chance to read through Net Galley, so I won't write a full review until it gets released next month, but it reminds me of Patricia Highsmith's Ripley series. Dark, violent and immoral, it was a fast and dirty read. I like it.
Dark Lover by JR Ward - Nope, not for me. This is the first in a series of very popular vampire based romance novels following the Black Dagger Brotherhood. I picked it up as a palate cleanser after some heavy reads, but nope, I found myself laughing where I should have been scared, laughing where I should have been turned on, and laughing where I should have been crying. Not my kind of book, but I can see why millions of women read these, they have all the pieces of Twilight, and came out years before Twilight, and all of the hot sex and sexy vampires that Twilight was missing. Silly silly fun.
A Common Pornography by Kevin Sampsell - A fast, clear, quick and kind of sad memoir. I like how Sampsell writes his story in bits and lets the reader pull it all together. Unique and sparse and direct. His brief vignettes are an oddly successful but staccato way of writing a memoir. Vaguely chronological, but no real chapters or sections longer than a page. Glimpses really, and isn't that much closer to how we remember most of our childhoods?
Still Missing by Chevy Stevens - The plot of this novel sucked me in right away. A woman is seeing a therapist after being kidnapped and held captive by a deranged man for more than a year and finally escaping. Each chapter is a different session with her therapist and the whole story is told this way in first person flashbacks, with no dialogue with the therapist. I loved the first half of this book, though the writing is standard, the main character and bizarre plot held me, until we get more than half way through it and then the writer has to throw in some tricks, some twists and turns and some resolution that really bothered me, mostly because it felt gimmicky when the emotions and challenges of the main character's survival and reentry into society should have been enough to make the end of the story compelling. Instead we get an ending that felt false. I still recommend this one, but it ended up being more disappointing than I expected. I might try one of her other novels, but if she sticks with the therapist session chapter thing, that might get old fast.
So what are you reading now? I'm about half way through Child 44, which is a murder mystery set in Stalin's brutal and terrifying 1950's Soviet Union. I hate the claustrophobia and paranoia I feel reading this book, but it's so well written, fast paced and menacing and somehow educational that I'm hooked. How did I never quite realize how deeply horrible Stalin and his regime was? Where have I been? Now I'm on a Soviet history research kick.
How about you? Any recommendations for me?
Lady, what are you doing to me? I already have 200+ books on my GoodReads to-read list. Sigh. But thank you.
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