“Lauren Fox writes with verve and a keen understanding of human relationships. She also happens to be riotously funny. Friends Like Us
is at once a hilarious page-turner and a wise meditation on friendship,
marriage, and the ways in which our parents’ mistakes so often shape
our lives.”
- J. Courtney Sullivan, author of Maine and Commencement
Giventhis endorsement, I thought I would love this book, and the author. I was so sure, I checked this book out along with her first book, Still Life with Husband, at the same time. And I was almost right. The writing is clear, precise and has little tidbits of real life that other authors tend to leave out, especially those funny rifs between friends when the littlest thing can make you laugh and only you and your friend think it is funny. While I didn't LOVE Friends, I did like it enough to read Still Life and now as I finish the last 50 pages of Still Life, I keeping asking myself, why? Why am I reading this, why did she write this?
Both books have a pivotal event that is creepy. Won't give away what happens in Friends, but in Still Life, the main character, Emily, cheats on her husband. This in itself is not the creepy part. The creepy part is that Fox still tries to make Emily a sympathetic character that the reader will relate to and appreciate. And maybe if I were 40 years younger, I might, but probably not.
The other thing about Fox as a writer is that she essentially has one character. Emily is almost the same character as Willa and physically they resemble pictures of Fox. Personally, I think she is carrying write what you know a little too far. Let me know some authors where you find this same phenomenon. Some people have laid this at the feet of Jane Austen, but I would have to disagree there.
Also reading lately: (Rating based on five star being great and 1 star don't bother!) Ruby red by Kerstin Gier *** (young adult, beginning of a series, probably won't read the others, complicated plot and didn't hold my interest enough to want to pay more attention) A Christmas garland by Anne Perry **** Deadly Valentine by Carolyn Hart **** (love Carolyn Hart) Deception by Jonathan Kellerman **** The last coyote by Michael Connelly **** Trunk music by Michael Connelly **** Angels flight by Michael Connelly ****
See a pattern here, just started the next MC book A Darkness More Than Night. Have not yet gotten bored with Harry Bosch and his unending temper!
Best news: all these books except Ruby Red are available through my library on the kindle, so I could take them with me on my trip to Mexico.
Sunday, December 30, 2012
I can't believe I have not posted since the beginning of September! It has been a busy four months and I have been reading, but not as much as usual. this post will include all the books, but not all the reviews. The best books are at the top of the list. New Year's Resolution: revamp the blog and post more often. Let's see how I do with that!
1.Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear: Author recommended by
Sheila, these are great books! Mysteries about a young nurse during World War
I.
2.Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear
3.Run by Ann Patchett
4.Fierce angels by Sheri Parks: Non-fiction, one of the best books I
read in 2012!
5.The importance of being seven by Alexander McCall Smith
6.A conspiracy of friends by Alexander McCall Smith
7.The dog who came in from the cold by Alexander McCall Smith
8.Corduroy mansion by Alexander McCall Smith
9.The Limpopo academy of private detection by Alexander McCall Smith If
you haven’t read any Alexander McCall Smith, make that your new year’s
resolution. These are great books and he has several series; a most prolific
author!
10.The red book by Deborah Copaken Kogan More by Kogan is on my list for
2013!
11.The time in between by Maria Duenas
12.The undomestic goddess by Sophie Kinsella
13.I'd know you anywhere by Laura Lippman A stand-alone novel with a
great concept for crime fiction.
14.The devil in silver by Victor LaVelle A realistic fantasy about life
in a mental hospital in 2012. Scary in a very deep sense.
15.Gone girl by Gillian Flynn The book everyone is talking about. The
big secret is easy to detect, but the ambiguous ending left me with something
to think about.
16.The black ice by Michael Connelly
17.The concrete blonde by Michael Connelly Will read more Michael
Connelly in 2013
18.Chasing the skip by Janci Patterson (Young Adult) Contemporary
fiction, realistic voice, new author
19.The stolen one by Suzanne Crowley (Young Adult) Historical Fiction
20.More than you know by Penny Vincenzi True love gone bad, nothing
special here.
21.The red tent by Anita Diamont
22.Gold by Chris Cleave This was good, but not as good as Little Bee
23.An impartial by Charles Todd
24.A duty to the dead by Charles Todd witness
25.A test of wills by Charles Todd
26.A bitter truth by Charles Todd
27.One day by David Nicholls
28.The lost years by Mary Higgins Clark
29.God don't like ugly by Mary Monroe
30.A stranger's child by Allan Hollinghurst Highly touted literary
novel, not my cup of tea, a little too full of itself.
31.Merry ex-mas by Sheila Roberts
32.A place of secrets by Rachel Hore
33.The great escape by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
34.Jason's why by Beth Goobie
35.Now and Then by Robert G. Parker (audio book)
36.Murder on bank street by Victoria Thompson (audio book)
I am trying something different this month and will post fiction separate from non-fiction. The fiction list is always longer, thought I'd give this a try.
Thanks to friends and family for great reading recommendations, keep sending those in!
Fiction: in order that I would recommend them.
1.Bury your dead by Louise Penny
2.Breakdown by Sara Paretsky
3.Epic fail by Claire LaZebnik
4.Just flirt by Laura Bowers (young adult)
5.Can you keep a secret? by Sophie Kinsella
6.Breathing room by Marsha Hayles (young adult)
7.Arranged by Catherine McKenzie
8.Night whispers by Judith McNaught
9.Before ever after by Samantha Sotto
10.The Tiger's wife by Tea Obreht
1.Louise Penny is a fantastic author and her stories of Armand Gamache,
a chief inspector in the Canadian Police Force just get better and better. If
you like mysteries and have not read Penny, start from the beginning and read
them all. This is the sixth book in the series and within this, she intertwines
two mysteries, or maybe even three. Well written and the characters are
exquisitely developed.
2.I love the V. I. Warchowski books. This is the latest in the series
and Vic is growing old, but hardly slowing down. Just for fun!
3.Another recommendation by my sister, Katie. This was a cool
re-telling of Pride and Prejudice but for younger readers, set in a private LA
high school. Well-done on its own, but if you know P and P, then it’s even
better.
4.A relatively new author out of Maryland, Bowers writes about the
difficulties of real life (dads who dies, dads who leave, mothers who embarrass
the hell out of you) as well as the difficulties of finding your own place in
high school. I loved all her characters, even the despicable ones. Excellent
job!
5.Sophie Kinsella is my new hero! Her writing is funny and her
characters say and do things that we all say and do, but don’t usually end up
in the pages of a book. Keep writing, Sophie and I will keep reading!
6.This is the second young adult book this year about a young woman in
the 30s with TB who has to go to a sanatorium. The writing is well-done, but
this one
7.At the end of the month, if I have to look a book up on the internet
to see what it was about because I can’t remember, then I know the book should
not be too high on the list. An interesting premise, a modern-day arranged
marriage. But, the telling is just so-so.
8.Another one I had to look up. This was a book club read, but I did
not get to go to the meeting. Pretty much your standard mystery with a
love-story. The reader knows the ending by about page 10.
9.I was not sure I liked the premise of this story, but read it anyway.
I would say that this is one I slogged through without really enjoying it. Not
sure what made such a big disconnect, but it was not one I would recommend.
10.Weirdly enough, this book had many similar elements to #9: immortal
beings, death of a close loved-one, story within a story. Again, I did not
enjoy the telling of this story. Maybe it is the fantasy elements that are not
my cup of tea. This one was a National Book Award Finalist, so I gave it the
best shot I could, but just did not enjoy!
Just realized that I forgot to post the list from July. Some really good reads this month, but I think my favorite was A Beginner's Good-Bye by Anne Tyler.
Happy Reading!
Books- July 2012
1.A beginner's good-bye by Anne Tyler
2.Little gale gumbo by Erika Marks
3.Nightlife by Thomas Perry
4.Bakers towers by Jennifer Haigh
5.The Meryl Streep movie club by Mia March
6.A confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
7.Jane Austen made me do it edited by Laurel Ann Nattress
8.The invisible bridge by Julie Oringer (audio book)
9.Girls in white dresses by Jennifer Close
10.Remember me? By Sophie Kinsella
11.Beach girls by Luanne Rice
12.The sense of an ending by Julian Barnes
13.My name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira (audio book)
14.Miss Peregrine's home for peculiar children by Ransom
Riggs
1.Anne Tyler is simply superb! The story of
Aaron’s first year after losing his wife Dorothy to a freak accident (a large
branch fell on their house during a storm), this is so simple, yet so very
complex. Told in Aaron’s voice, the level of grief is palpable as Aaron
negotiates both old and new relationships. I would read anything Anne Tyler
writes.
2.This was a quick read about a family of women
who move from New Orleans to Maine to escape an abusive husband/father. But, it
was also a story of A loves B, B loves C, C loves D, etc. Why do they all have
to be living with unrequited love?
3.We read this for book club. It was fast paced,
with tons of characters. It took me a little while to figure out who was the
main good guy (actually good woman!). While I liked this, I would not go out of
my way to read Thomas Perry again.
4.Bakers Towers is set in Western Pennsylvania in
a mining community that thrives in the early part of the 20th
century and then slides into oblivion in the middle of the century. Following
the siblings in one family, Haigh manages to make all of them somewhat
unlikable, even the ones who are upstanding. While the historical references
were well-done, this was not a pleasant book to read.
5.Four women come back together when one is dying
of cancer. Every Friday night they watch another Meryl Streep movie and there
are endless good ones from which to choose. I loved the premise of the book and
then reading how the author thought about the themes of the movies and worked
to blend these with the lives of the women. Nicely done!
6.Recommended by my brother who read this in a
book club, I enjoyed this book full of nonsense. As Kip described it, the main
character (Ignatius Reilly) is a fat slob with few redeeming characteristics.
Many story lines run somewhat separately, but all come together in the end and Ignatius
ends the book as self-deluded as he began it. Hilarious!
7.Short stories all based on either Jane Austen
herself, or one of her books. While it is always fun to read about Austen, this
was not very well done.
8.This was quite long and I found the story to be
a little contrived. The story of the three Levi brothers from Budapest,
starting in the late 1930s. It follows these men and their love interests
through work camps and the war. Great details of history.
9.When I started reading this book, I was not too
interested. But, as I got into it, the book grew on me. This is a series of
stand alone short stories with interconnected characters; young women fresh out
of college, living in large cities and negotiating work and relationships. Very
well done!
10.Another
Sophie Kinsella. I liked this better than Confessions of a Shopaholic, but not
as much as I’ve Got Your Number. The situations Kinsella’s characters get into
are so real, but ones that you do not often see in books. If you read this, you
will laugh out loud!
11.I
like Luanne Rice as a good chick lit writer and she did not disappoint here.
This was a perfect read during vacation!
12.Trying
to up my reading list a little bit, I checked out this book, the winner of the
Man Booker Prize. The reviews suggest that while it is short, it is something
that you might need to read more than one time. I agree and may choose to read
this again in the next few months. Though-provoking and well-written.
13.Another
historical novel, based on a woman who wants to become a doctor during the
Civil War. Mary Sutter leaves her home in Albany to go to Washington DC and
doctor the myriad of wounded. Listening to this was difficult as the injuries
and treatments (primarily amputations) were recounted with gory and unstinting
detail. Mary was a great character and was rendered as a woman with a
multi-faceted personality.
14.A
young adult novel that is quite sophisticated in its telling and in the
content. As I generally do not like fantasy, this was not a good choice for me,
but I thought it was well-done. It also seemed to be set up to have at least
one sequel. It seems to have caught the eye of many readers, wonder if we will
be hearing about a movie soon?
Another hit! When Horsefly and Honeybee have a fight over who
can take a nap in a flower, they both lose a wing. Ultimately, they figure out
they can still fly by holding on to each other and using the two wings they
have left. Good for teaching cooperation and survival skills. Illustrations are
wonderful!
A Home for Bird by Philip C. Stead
Vernon is a frog who finds a wooden bird. No matter what
Vernon says or does, Bird will not speak. Finally, Vernon finds a broken cuckoo
clock and puts Bird inside. A few repairs and Bird is happily springing out
saying, “Cuckoo, cuckoo, cuckoo!” A delightful story with many points of
interest to engage young readers in discussion. What a great friend Vernon is!
Plant a Little Seed by Bonnie Christensen
I loved this book, although it took me a while since it is
written in a very rhythmic fashion, without the rhyming endings. It tells the
story of a garden from seed to eating and illustrations show a white girl and a
black boy working happily together in this garden. The end notes give some fun
facts, including why some plants we eat are called fruits and why some are
vegetables. If you don’t know why tomatoes and zucchinis are fruits and not
vegetables, you should read this book!
The Hero of Little Street by Gregory Rogers
A small boy is running, ever running, away from bigger boys,
away from the dog-catcher, away from a woman after he breaks the dishes she was
carrying. His companion is a small dog who has jumped out of an imitation of
Vermeer’s Piano Player. Told all in pictures, this is an excellent wordless
picture book with a touch of fantasy. Maybe I have to read it again, as I could
not tell how the child in the book was a hero.
I read 12 picture books today, these are the best of the lot. I was looking at gender today, because I began noticing that many of these had a boy main character. The final count: 9 main character male, 1 main character female, and 2 have both male and female main characters. To be fair, yesterday, there were 2 with main character female, only one with a male and three that were mixed. Overall, the percentages are: male: 55%, female: 17% and both male and female: 28%. The authors are evenly split, male and female, so now we have to encourage women to write about girls.
A sweet rhyming story that tells all the things a young
child can do on a summer day. The characters are of Asian descent.
Red, White and Boom! By Lee Wardlaw, illustrated by Huy Voun
Lee
A saucy, brightly colored picture book that tells the story
of July 4th with short , spiky rhymes: “Oohs and Ahhs/Cheers,
applause/Shoulder sighs/Drowsy eyes.” Plenty of diversity in age, race and
gender. Very well done!
Creature Count: A Prehistoric Rhyme by Brenda Huante,
illustrated by Vincent Nguyen
Prehistoric monsters are anthropomorphized and rendered
quite cutely in this simple counting book. The rhyme is quite rhythmic and
could be sung to the tune of “Over in the Meadow.”
Some Cat by Mary Casanova, illustrated by Ard Hoyt
Violet is an abused cat who needs a new home. When she is
adopted by a couple with two dogs, Violet causes all kinds of trouble for
Zippity and George. But, when a pack of stray dogs go after Violet, Zippity and
George come to her rescue and then all is right with the world. Great
illustrations. Maybe a little too simplistic in the plot line.
Flabbersmashed about You by Rachel Vail, illustrated by Yumi
Heo
What happens when your best friend chooses another friend as
a playground buddy? Katie Honors finds out and it does not feel good. While
this story has a happy ending, and not all playground disasters end happily,
this is a great book to use when kids need some help making and keeping
friends. You might consider readingYou Can’t Say You Can’t Play by Vivian
Paley, a book about how to keep kids from being mean to each other, even at a
very young age.
Mom, It’s my First Day of Kindergarten! By Hyewon Yum
A five-year-old is more than ready for his first day of
school, but is his mother? Very clever tale of the first day, with the
illustrations portraying the mom as tiny, compared to her brave boy. Great
story for the first day in Kindergarten, maybe even something that can be
shared with parents. I love this one!
Just a weird thing to notice:
Of these six books, five have either an author or
illustrator who is of Asian descent. Hyewon Yum is Korean American, Vincent
Nguyen is Vietnamese American, and I am not sure of the heritage of Yumi Heo, Huy
Voun Lee, or Herbert Lee. But, it is interesting to note. Three of the six
books have Asian children represented within them. Go diversity!
