'The Boy in the Suitcase' by Lene Kaaberbol & Agnete Friis

The Boy in the Suitcase, Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis (3.5)

The title of this book should be a warning to any parent of young children that the book may be difficult to read.  I’m not giving away anything by saying that the main character, Nina, finds a small unconscious child in a suitcase in a bus locker.  This happens in the first few pages.  The rest of the book is a ‘Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ like Northern European mystery as Nina tries to find out what has happened to the boy and, in turn, locate his family. Her task is made more difficult as she realizes someone is trying to find her and the boy and they are leaving dead bodies in their wake.  Nina is the typical main character of this genre: generally strong, but also broken with a variety of personal issues. This book is fast paced and not your typical child kidnapping tale.  If you enjoy Jo Nesbo and Stieg Larsson, you will likely enjoy this book.

'Flowers for Algernon' by Daniel Keyes

Flowers for Algernon, Daniel Keyes (4.5)

I debated whether to write a review of this book or not. Most people I know have read it, so I was not sure I could add anything. So this is for the very few whom, like me, had heard the general concept of this book, but had never read it. The book is a diary of sorts written by Charlie, a mentally challenged adult. He participates in an experimental surgery that turns him relatively quickly into a genius. The majority of the book looks at the challenges he has when his intellect outpaces the emotional growth one needs to be a comfortable adult. The experiment was first done on the mouse, Algernon, who eventually shows mental deterioration. The question becomes: what will happen to Charlie? Written in 1959, some of the book is dated, but the main concepts are still compelling. Charlie’s path is painful and thought provoking: Is ignorance bliss? Does intelligence bring happiness? For those who have missed this book, I recommend you pick it up for your next read.

'Black Swan Green' by David Mitchell

Black Swan Green, David Mitchell (4)

This book was recommended by a publishing house contact as his favorite David Mitchell book (who also wrote ‘Cloud Atlas’). While it is fiction, it reads like a memoir. Each chapter is a vignette of commonplace issues of a 13-year-old boy in a small English town. The narrator’s voice is pure and innocent as he battles bullies, an older sister, inscrutable parents and the crazy characters of the town. While he believes his life is unique and he is socially doomed, the reader holds out hope that he will survive his childhood just like everyone else does.  I think that is what I liked most about this book – while parts are painful to read, you don’t lose hope that he has the strength and integrity to persevere and eventually thrive (become a best selling author maybe??).

'Shantaram' by Gregory David Roberts

Shantaram, Gregory David Roberts (4)

‘Shantaram’ is said to be a fiction version of the author’s life. This book is remarkable due to the multitude of dramatic events in the book, and thus, in his life. The protagonist, Lin, is an Australian man who does drugs, gets put in jail for armed robbery, escapes from jail, flees to India, starts a medical clinic in a slum, works for a branch of the Bombay mafia and eventually travels to Afghanistan to support his mentor’s personal war (and that is just a sample of the crazy events in his life). The novel mainly covers his time in Bombay, which in itself is quite extraordinary. At nearly 1000 pages, the drama in Lin’s life is constant.  Most impressive was Mr. Robert’s ability to take some of the most horrible conditions of poverty in a slum and allow the reader to see the grace and charm. This book has many lyrical passages and scenes of beauty amongst bad people and terrible circumstances. Interestingly, I believe the strength of this book come from the real characters and events. Often the author’s writing style got in the way, but the drama was strong enough to break through the sometimes-awkward prose. 

'The City of Ember' by Jeanne Duprau

The City of Ember, Jeanne Duprau (3)

This is the first in a four-part young adult series. The story is quite unique: a society whose days and nights are entirely determined by electricity (i.e. no sun). The story follows two pre-teens as they begin to realize that their city is in trouble as the lights start to go off randomly.  They also come to realize that the seemingly never-ending amount of food and supplies is dwindling.  While no one has ever left the city for the dark unknown, we follow the two as they try to find a solution to the current problem. Compared to others in the young adult classification, I would say this is written quite simply and would be appropriate for relatively young readers (unlike ‘Hunger Games’), but the concept is thought provoking and interesting for adults too. Unfortunately the second book is a pale version compared to the first and I cannot recommend it.

'The Power of Habit' by Charles Duhigg - Book club book

The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg (3.5)

Everyone in the book club agreed that this book had some interesting examples and was quite thought provoking with regards to habits we have or would like to have. A few have already used the techniques to change a habit in themselves or guinea pig family members (responsibly and positively, of course).  The first section of the book discusses how a habit is created in individuals and how it can be changed. The reader automatically compares the habit cues and awards seen in the examples with their own day-to-day life. The second section moves on to how businesses have used information about habits to market products. After reading this section, most of us now turn a very cynical eye on all advertisement – particularly something that can be personalized, such as email coupons from the grocery store. The third section describes how habits are linked to 2 specific episodes and their impact on society: how Rosa Parks’ actions affected the civil rights movement, and how the Saddleback church established a new type of mega-church. Most of us felt that the book was stretching a tad at this point. The descriptions of the events are interesting, but their link to habit felt forced.