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(originally posted on June 13, 2005)
In truth, there's a fair bit that doesn't work about the book, but for someone so young, Oyeyemi has a knack at depicting the confusion and desperate hope of a young girl looking for her place within family, school and separate countries. There are flashes of absolutely wonderful writing that suggest a bright future for Oyeyemi. I wouldn't count her out, that's for sure.
(originally posted on June 13, 2005)
This is a finely-wrought tale of three tortured souls: Lewis, still devastated by the loss of his wife and the slower loss of his own control; Jay, struggling to raise a young daughter as she drifts away from the promise of childhood genius; and Stephen, a young tenured professor who knows his charms, but not necessarily the limitations. How Skinner brings them together and tears them apart is what makes the book so damn good.
(originally posted on June 13, 2005)
Really, there's only one thing to say about this book: why the hell didn't I read this earlier? Oh, I know why, because I knew I wanted to save it for the right time, to savor Chaon's marvellous ability to probe deeply into the lives and thoughts of his wounded characters, bound together by time, place and other secret ties. He's exceptionally good at building suspense in the unlikeliest of manners. Amazing.
(originally posted on June 6, 2005)
Think the child as narrator in the face of a tragic event has been done to death? Then think again, because 9 year old Harry Pickles is a voice to remember as he copes with life, football, friendship and survivor's guilt when his younger brother disappears. Sambrook creates a wonderful portrait of a plucky lad bewildered by what's going on around him even as he has to keep going -- because what else is there to do? It's certainly a keeper.
(originally posted on June 6, 2005)
Does Atkinson need more hosannas in light of her choice as the inaugural LBC pick? Maybe not, but her first novel is yet another demonstration of what makes her one of my very favorite authors now: the utter, undiluted joy of her authorial voice. Even when the mood turns tragic -- and there are many such moments in this structurally complex work -- Atkinson never veers into melodrama or heaviness. It's almost like she doesn't know how, and thank god for that. Read this, too.
(originally posted on May 23, 2005)
With crystalline prose and obvious empathy for his characters, Parsons creates a moving portrait of the horrors of war and how they ripple across oceans to affect entire families and subsequent generations. At the center is Jack Strickland, who left for the army against his family's wishes and struggles as a POW in the Phillipines. But back home, his elders struggle too, with deep desires and against government wishes to use their land as nuclear testing grounds. Now I want to go and read as many classic war novels as I can.
(originally posted on May 23, 2005)
Half the fun is trying to match the fictitious versions of the rock stars and flacks depicted in Hiltbrand's second effort with their real-life counterparts (Angel = Madonna, Lani Ross = Liz Rosenberg, and on and on) The other half is seeing how PI Jim McNamara navigates his way through the music business, murder and all sorts of entertaining twists and turns. Insider knowledge combined with sound plot structure makes this a worthwhile effort.
(originally posted on May 23, 2005)
With this fourth stellar effort (due out in a couple of weeks) Spencer-Fleming ratchets up the tension by switching from more traditional mystery format to that of a thriller as Clare and Russ get embroiled in a missing persons case that affects Millers Kill townsfolk in surprising, sometimes shocking ways. It goes to show that it doesn't take much for someone to cross seemingly uncrossable lines. And the tension between Clare and Russ remains maddeningly believable, but don't you think it's time Linda got to have her say?
