What I'm Reading, What I've Read

Salvage The Bones, by Jesmyn Ward A young girl spends the summer before Katrina surrounded by new life as her brother's pit bull births its first litter and she realizes she is pregnant herself. This was a really great book. I was completely immersed in Esch's world and hopes and family and never wanted to leave. Her rich inner life makes you rethink a story you've heard a hundred times in real life with a dismissive sigh (drunk father, dead mother, dogfights, teen pregnancy) with new eyes. It's as heart-wrenching and epic as the myths Esch relates to. Her mixture of youthful innocence and responsibility beyond her years is poignant and touching. So many times I wanted to reach out and comfort her, even though I didn't have any more answers than she did. I just really, really loved this main character. The world of the book is small but tight, centering almost entirely on the family home. Besides her brother's pit bull Esch is the only female character, creating an interesting sense of isolation despite her place in the middle of a very tightly knit family. Between her father, brothers, and their friends there are around seven male characters, most of whom are teenage boys, but they're all fully formed and multi-dimensional enough that I never once got confused about who was who (which is something I tend to struggle with in ensemble casts, see most fantasy novels). I loved this book. It's beautiful and haunting and emotional and I will definitely reread.

The End of Mr. Y, by Scarlett Thomas A postgrad student stumbles upon one of the rarest books in the world in a thrift store and must figure out what it has to do with her adviser's disappearance, if it's really cursed, and whether she's going to read it. The very premise of this novel - I don't believe in curses but this thing is supposed to be cursed and weird things keep happening and am I going to use it, of course I am because I'm too smart to believe in curses but I'm still scared - is enough to make me giddy. Probably all the Scooby Doo I watched as a kid. In an interesting twist, the academic protagonist is also a broken-home-self-destructive-antihero type character, which you don't usually see combined. I didn't find her very relatable, but that was more because of the half-understood regurgitation of pretentious philosophy and theoretical physics. I hate when novels try to sound lofty with that, especially when you know juuuuust enough about the subject to have a sneaking suspicion that the author is pretty wrong about most of the things they're talking about. And there was a LOT of that in this book. Another unexpected twist was that I was honestly kind of disappointed when it took a turn for sci-fi. It was surprising and well done but I was so invested in the original premise that I just couldn't get into it again that far into the book. Plus, with the story's sketchy history with pop science up to that point I was cringing anticipating what the rest of the book would be like. It turned out to be okay, but by the time I relaxed into it I had to recringe about the time travel. There are a lot of well established rules and theories of time travel that the author doesn't seem to be aware of, because they answered all of her Big guess-we'll-never-know-what-a-huge-mystery Questions. I'm not hugely into sci-fi beyond Doctor Who so I feel like what I know about it can be used as a pretty good baseline for the casual observer, and she just did not approach it. Oh, and what she called a "feminist analysis" of major religion amounted to "Hey, what's the deal with all those male leaders, am I right?" The recurring theme of why this book fell short for me is the dabbling and consequent misunderstanding of so many subjects that this supposedly educated character egregiously missed the mark on every time. Even I could tell that most of it probably isn't correct. It was sloppy and misguided and made parts of the book a chore to get through. I finished the book but I didn't enjoy it. It did not live up to the promise of the premise.

Me Before You, by Jojo Moyes An optimistic girl with not much going on gets a job caring for an invalid millionaire and a secret missive from his parents to make him appreciate life again. I have mixed feelings about this book. It was well-written and I enjoyed reading it for the most part, but I didn't agree with the main theme of the book. I don't really dig romance novels as a rule, but every once in a while I'll give the genre another shot. As far as that aspect goes, I liked this one. The main character was relatable. Moyes makes the hate-to-love trope work well. I even cried two or three times throughout the book. But the exploration of human euthanasia is out of place and a little off somehow. I'm always leary of able-bodied people writing about disabled issues and her conclusion that death is better than being a disgustingly wealthy straight white man in a wheelchair (and that we should sympathize) just...didn't ring true. Jojo had me on his side up until then but the grandiose posturing on something that she admittedly has no experience with diminished the emotional impact of the ending. I guess if you don't mind fakedeep diatribes on massive, heavy themes in your romance, you could enjoy this. I certainly did until the end. It should be more up front about the ending, though. That's a very heavy subject and people should know what they're getting into in a seemingly light-hearted comedy. So, trigger warning guys, assisted suicide. If that doesn't bother you and you like romance novels then sure, get this book.

The Girl On The Train, by Paula Hawkins An alcoholic divorcee fills her empty days by riding a train in and out of London. When the wife of a family she can see from the train every day goes missing, she becomes obsessed with this couple she has fantasized about for so long and can't help herself from getting involved with the investigation. This book is a spiritual successor to Gone Girl, and I don't mean that in a bad way. It's not a rip off or anything like that, but the suspense involved and the tone of the whole thing reflect the aforementioned novel in the best way. The main character is richly protrayed. She is riddled with flaws female protagonists are rarely allowed to have, like alcoholism, the weight gain often resulting from said addiction, and a general inability to hold her life together in a pretty way. Her post-divorce breakdown isn't tragically beautiful. Her flaws are big but they're real, not softened or feminized in any way. Even if you don't always agree with her you sympathize with her. She's not making good decisions but you can see why and you can see when she's doing her best and she doesn't kid herself about it when she's not. I can see in her a rare opportunity for a lot of real women who are almost never protrayed in fiction to finally see themselves as a three dimensional hero instead of a caricaturized shrew or villain. It also deals with a lot of complex issues without reducing them to good-evil right-wrong dichotomies. Spousal abuse, the alcoholism that the protagonist doesn't allow herself to blame on her hardships, infidelity from several different perspectives, are just some of the issues that the novel examines without trying to "solve." Each character is going through a lot, and their struggles to balance their mistakes and their own wounds with their consciences so they can live with themselves and find some order of peace are individual and nuanced. It gives you a lot to chew on for ages after reading. I'm repeating myself but I really like that it tackles tough issues without trying for force a Final Answer on any of them. There were a few weird things going on. When I said each character, I mean EVERY main character seemed to be a little bit of a sociopath. It was kind of overwhelming that there were no ordinary or morally "decent" people involved. There was almost too high of a concentration of complex characters. It got to be a little distracting. Another weird thing was that every female character spent a good amount of her inner monologue time obsessing over children. Whether they want them, whether they can have them, whether their husbands or lovers want them or expect them. Once again, a legitimate worry for many women, but to have every woman in an otherwise diverse cast (well, I mean, everyone's white and middle class and straight and English, but compared to other stories where everyone is white and middle class and straight and English) equally obsessed with childbearing is kind of unnerving and distracting. It's also a loaded subject with its own history and connotations so to make it the main preoccupation of every female character with so much other stuff going on doesn't really sit right. Overall it was a good read. I bought it at a super market to pass the time while my tires were being changed (and yes I did finish it, it took almost 8 hours. I'm never going to Pep Boys again) and I'm glad I did. As weird as some parts of it were it was in the end a thrilling and surprisingly thoughtful ride. Would recommend.

Kindred, by Octavia Butler A black writer from the 70s is repeatedly sucked backward into the past to protect her ancestors and ensure her own existence. The only problem is that the man she is meant to protect is a slave owner that claims possession of her the moment she arrives. This was so good. As an educated modern woman stuck in 1815, the main character is constantly walking a line between keeping herself alive and staying true to herself; both in an immediate sense of not blowing her color or insulting fragile white male egos and in a more overarching sense of protecting a man she despises because without him she will never have existed. Her lack of control over her time travel reflects her powerlessness in her new circumstances beautifully. Butler has not only a distinctive voice but a story interwoven with amazing and subtle metaphors that keep on giving the more you think about them. The main character herself is great. She is not a trained fighter or an expert on antebellum history but she is smart and determined. When she returns to the future and believes this will be a repeated thing she and her husband take safety measures for his disappearances and spend days researching, arming themselves with knowledge. She is brave and determined and deals with her strange hard new life head on. She also just lets herself stick it to her adversary/ward every once in a while which is thrilling. Butler should be a standard of sci fi and I am definitely going to seek out more of her work. Kindred is defintely worth the read.

The Witches of Eileanan (series), by Kate Forsyth A young witch lives an idyllic and secluded life until her sixteenth birthday, when she learns things about her guardian and herself that change the course of her life in ways she could never imagine. This was a series that I enjoyed reading very much. There are six books in all. It was the perfect length; I started getting a little tired of the world only around the fifth book. It wrapped itself up at the perfect time. The story telling was engrossing, and the world building hit a perfect balance with enough details to make it feel real but not enough to bog you down. The feminist and religous allegories were predictably heavy-handed and flawed, but not enough to distract from the story and in line which the time in which it was written. As the main character grows up the story gets more and more political, which is understable both as a sign of her maturing worldview and a way to keep raising the stakes in a six book series. But I don't care for politics so I enjoyed the first books more. The political aspect did lead to further worldbuilding via the exploration of other cultures, which provided a nice break from the politics and war in the later books. It was also interesting to have a (mostly) pacifist main character in a story about war. The contrast with her warrior sister and how they learned and grew from each other while still staying true to themselves and respecting each other was good. Again, a very enjoyable series. I probably won't find time to read it again but I will always be glad I did.

The Ocean At The End Of The Lane, by Neil Gaiman An English office worker visits his childhood home and starts remembering his adventures with the neighbor girl that can't possibly be true because magic isn't real. This was a standard Gaiman romp, very enjoyable. I think it was the first thing I've read of him written from the point of view of a child. I waited way too long to review so I can't remember much but it left a favorable impression and I know I listened to the audiobook several times. Recommend.

Time's Mirror, by Risa Walker A kind of slutty teenage girl accidentally time travels to the future, then to the past, then starts a cult. This is a pretty standard starter story for a middle school fanfic author. It feels like a first draft in that all the elements to a plotline are there, but no elements adding gravity or character have been incorporated. It was really short as well, which really added to the first draft feel. I wouldn't recommend reading this. It just wasn't very good, and even if it had been fleshed out more I don't think I would have cared about any of the characters or story.

The House Girl, by Tara Conklin A young lawyer avoids family tension by throwing herself into the search for an antebellum slave artist's living relatives. This was a pretty good book that is nominally about the mystery of an artist's descendants, but what stood out to me was how it tackled the relationships scattered throughout. The artist and her master's wife whom she cares for like a child, and whose legacy of ownership lives on in a future where her art has been lauded as her mistress for decades; the present day owners of the plantation who are heavily invested in that false legacy and protecting it; Lina the main character's relationship with her absent-minded artist father and the shadow of her absent mother; her relationship wth her male-dominated workplace; the family who helps the Underground Railroad and their ward who may know too much; and many more are all very meaty and weighty and give you a lot to think about. It is pretty fluffy and G-rated when it comes to portrayals of slavery, and it is yet another "plight of black people validated because now a white girl is involved" story, but overall it was a pretty good book. I might recommend this to someone looking for a very light semi-historical-fiction read.

War Brides, by Helen Bryan Birthday Bonus! It's my birthday today, so here's an extra post! Five young women thrown together in a tiny British village do their best to deal with the challenges World War II brings to their lives, from rationing and small town gossip to searching for German spies. I wasn't sure about this book at first, as I don't usually really like books or movies about wars. But this one won me over. Even though there are several main characters, none of them get lost in the crowd. Their voices don't get spread so thin that you have trouble sympathizing. And it's a pretty diverse crowd. I mean, it's a bunch of straight white women, but they're all from different backgrounds. There's a London cockney that got relocated for the bombings, a wealthy, confident socialite sent to the country to be reformed by her conservative aunt, A German Jewish woman trying to reunite with her family after their escape, a New Orleans debutante who married an Englishman to follow her lover across the see, and the staid, reliable local who follows the rules and does the right thing no matter how grumpy she is about it (and whose fiance was stolen by the American). They each have experiences and problems that are unique to themselves, and unifying with the group. They grow together over their differences by helping each other through shared and personal problems, leading to alliances with girls that they never would have associated with before the war. It's a nice tale of people that take care of each other even though they have differences and disagreements. It leads to personal growth that they may never have experienced otherwise. There's a couple of really big storylines. I won't say anything spoilery but they are both good and one involves badass old ladies taking care of business. I liked this book. It was like "chick lit" with depth.

The Hangman's Daughter, by Oliver Potzsch BONUS REVIEW! Because it's my birthday! A medieval executioner and his surgeon sidekick work against the clock to prove the innocence of the local midwife and find the real culprit behind the deaths and abductions of several orphans. This is a pretty standard murder mystery. Pretty much the only reason it's set in the past is so that everyone believes in witches. Anachronisms include the hangman (who really executes most people with a sword so he's just called that for the book title) being the most educated man in the village and having the equivalent of a medieval forensics lab in his hovel and the surgeon caring about how he smells. Chronisms (which is what I have just now decided to call the opposite of anachronisms) include the actual hangman's daughter being used as a piece of property that bonds the two real main characters together through common interest. For real, she's got maybe three paragraphs in the book. And she does technically solve the mystery, but it doesn't matter AT ALL. The titular character could have not existed and it wouldn't have affected the story one bit. She's a sexy lamp. I spent most of this book focusing on how improbably educated the detectives were and wondering when the book was going to actually be about the hangman's daughter. There's not even very much mystery, because you know who the bad guy is (and get his perspective) for most of the book. The final chapters fill out a few unimportant details but are more about how the hangman figures it out and the confrontation. The twist doesn't even have very much impact because I don't know what is standard experience of a medieval executioner anyway? Is he really smart to have figured it out or should he have known all along? I have no idea and I did not care. This is pretty clearly one of those books trying to cash in on the success of "The Time Traveller's Wife" by hoping a similar name will confuse people into thinking it's popular. It's not even very good as historical fiction, as it doesn't feel like it was researched very much at all.

Book of Longing, by Leonard Cohen This is a book of poetry by Leonard Cohen. Honestly, I didn't dig it. It was loaned to me by a friend who really digs Cohen and classic rock. There were a couple of things I liked but it was mostly just self-indulgent tripe about how he's bad at relationships and Buddhism didn't wrk for him because he wouldn't give up smoking or whatever. It's definitely something for fans of Leonard Cohen. I just...don't feel the need for his perspective on anything.

Illumination Night, by Alice Hoffman The arrival of a rebellious teenage girl sento live with her grandmother brings the tensions and problems of the couple next door to a boil as they try their best to solve their problems by not talking about them. This is one of those typical New England books where the very tone of the narrative can only be described as "WASPy." No matter how intense the situation (vague senses of discontent from never having really lacked anything they needed) everything feels like it's being related at one remove. All the experiences and emotions disconnected from the reader AND the character experiencing them, somehow. The conflicts in this book are all interpersonal and very delicate and specific. A marriage quietly going to seed for no apparent reason, an old woman who wants to die, a teenager that is self-destructive because her parents are divorced and her mother is kind of selfish. Basically, people with no real struggle in their lives kind of floundering for direction by overthinking their relationships with other people. I never realized this type of story is so specific until I read this book. It's just not for me. It's not an examination of human nature that I can't learn anything from, the story itself isn't exciting, and I don't really feel deeply for any of the characters. So, it has nothing to offer for me personally. I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone.