The Piano Teacher, Janice Y.K. Lee (3)
I enjoyed this book, but not as much as I had anticipated. Since I love historical fiction, I was eager to delve into a new setting - pre/post-WWII Hong Kong. In this respect, the book did not disappoint; I learned a lot about the social hierarchy in Hong Kong and the subsequent lives of different nationalities during the war and occupation. The book alternated between two timelines with overlapping characters, so I was anxious to uncover the tie-in and any possible linking mystery. My expectations were rewarded at the end, but only minimally. My main complaint is that the three main characters were so distant, aloof, and closed off from society, that they were closed off from the reader too. If an author fails to garner a certain requisite amount of respect or emotional attachment between her readers and the characters, there is little more than indifference to link them. While I enjoyed the actual mid-course reading of the book, my retrospective rating is only lukewarm.
Vacation Reading (Vicki)
I just got back from vacation and am so happy that I was finally able to squeeze in some good reading time. 2011 has been severely lacking so far (sigh). We went with a group of 11, so I surveyed what everyone was reading.
Me: I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak. Since this is for book club, I'll reserve my comments, but I really enjoyed this book.
Me: The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Lee. Very good so far. I love historical fiction and this one is set in Hong Kong, during and after war time, so it's a new setting for me.
Stacy: The Unhealthy Truth: One Mother's Shocking Investigation into the Dangers of America's Food Supply - and What Every Family Can do to Protect Itself by Robyn O'Brien. I've read excerpts of this and found it very interesting. Stacy loved it. She liked that the author followed the more realistic 80/20 rule. Do what you can 80% of the time and don't stress over the other 20% that you can't because of time, money, convenience, est.
David: The 3rd Game of Thrones book by George R.R. Martin. He loves this fantasy series; lucky for him, because the books are huge!
Jon: Unbroken by Laura Hillendbrand. Can't wait to read this memoir. This author also wrote Seabiscuit, one of my favorites. Great writer!
Michele: Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky. I read this a few years ago and didn't entirely enjoy it. Read more like a short story and didn't allow you to really dig into the characters. Michele ended up reading The Unhealthy Truth instead.
Happy to report that the 6, 8 and 10-year olds read LOTS in the hammocks. Here is what my 10-year old read:
Ryan: Fish by Gregory Mone. A modern day pirate tale.
Ryan: Dying to Meet You: 43 Old Cemetary Road: Book One by Kate Klise. Fun easy read. Written in a series of letters, communiques, ads and other printed words.
Danielle, my 4-year old, was read to every day before nap and bedtime. We took a handful of favorites along. Keep them in mind for toddler gifts!!!
Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman and Marla Frazee: Got this book solely because Marla Frazee is my very favorite illustrator. The story and pictures are well-thought out and have a charming complexity that are not dumbed down for kids. I never tire of this book ... well, almost never, we've read it A LOT.
Big Chickens by Leslie Helakoski. Fast paced, hilarious tale about a group of very "chicken" chickens who learn their inner bravery and pride. The writing is simple, but so smart with lots of alliteration and parallelism from page to page.
Princess Pigsty by Cornelia Funke. Cute non-stereotypical story about a princess who just wants to be a little girl, have fun, work hard, and learn things, rather than continue one more day of the privileged, stuffy life she leads. Simple, cute little story.
Happy Reading!
The Last King of Scotland, Giles Foden (3)
I enjoyed this book, but not as much as I had anticipated. Since I love historical fiction, I was eager to delve into a new setting - pre/post-WWII Hong Kong. In this respect, the book did not disappoint; I learned a lot about the social hierarchy in Hong Kong and the subsequent lives of different nationalities during the war and occupation. The book alternated between two timelines with overlapping characters, so I was anxious to uncover the tie-in and any possible linking mystery. My expectations were rewarded at the end, but only minimally. My main complaint is that the three main characters were so distant, aloof, and closed off from society, that they were closed off from the reader too. If an author fails to garner a certain requisite amount of respect or emotional attachment between her readers and the characters, there is little more than indifference to link them. While I enjoyed the actual mid-course reading of the book, my retrospective rating is only lukewarm.
Vacation Reading (Vicki)
I just got back from vacation and am so happy that I was finally able to squeeze in some good reading time. 2011 has been severely lacking so far (sigh). We went with a group of 11, so I surveyed what everyone was reading.
Me: I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak. Since this is for book club, I'll reserve my comments, but I really enjoyed this book.
Me: The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Lee. Very good so far. I love historical fiction and this one is set in Hong Kong, during and after war time, so it's a new setting for me.
Stacy: The Unhealthy Truth: One Mother's Shocking Investigation into the Dangers of America's Food Supply - and What Every Family Can do to Protect Itself by Robyn O'Brien. I've read excerpts of this and found it very interesting. Stacy loved it. She liked that the author followed the more realistic 80/20 rule. Do what you can 80% of the time and don't stress over the other 20% that you can't because of time, money, convenience, est.
David: The 3rd Game of Thrones book by George R.R. Martin. He loves this fantasy series; lucky for him, because the books are huge!
Jon: Unbroken by Laura Hillendbrand. Can't wait to read this memoir. This author also wrote Seabiscuit, one of my favorites. Great writer!
Michele: Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky. I read this a few years ago and didn't entirely enjoy it. Read more like a short story and didn't allow you to really dig into the characters. Michele ended up reading The Unhealthy Truth instead.
Happy to report that the 6, 8 and 10-year olds read LOTS in the hammocks. Here is what my 10-year old read:
Ryan: Fish by Gregory Mone. A modern day pirate tale.
Ryan: Dying to Meet You: 43 Old Cemetary Road: Book One by Kate Klise. Fun easy read. Written in a series of letters, communiques, ads and other printed words.
Danielle, my 4-year old, was read to every day before nap and bedtime. We took a handful of favorites along. Keep them in mind for toddler gifts!!!
Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman and Marla Frazee: Got this book solely because Marla Frazee is my very favorite illustrator. The story and pictures are well-thought out and have a charming complexity that are not dumbed down for kids. I never tire of this book ... well, almost never, we've read it A LOT.
Big Chickens by Leslie Helakoski. Fast paced, hilarious tale about a group of very "chicken" chickens who learn their inner bravery and pride. The writing is simple, but so smart with lots of alliteration and parallelism from page to page.
Princess Pigsty by Cornelia Funke. Cute non-stereotypical story about a princess who just wants to be a little girl, have fun, work hard, and learn things, rather than continue one more day of the privileged, stuffy life she leads. Simple, cute little story.
Happy Reading!
The Last King of Scotland, Giles Foden (3)
I really enjoyed the movie based on this book and wanted to get more of the back story by reading the book. Of course, I believed there was a back story as I thought it was a non-fiction memoir. When I got it home from the library, I noticed the small print under the title: ‘a novel’. I was a little disappointed. Now the scenes with Idi Amin were based on rumor and hearsay, not first person accounts. That is always the issues I have with historical fiction, you don’t know where reality ends and fiction begins. The story is about a Scottish doctor who goes to Uganda to work in the countryside. Due to an accident, he is ‘requested’ by the new head of the country, Idi Amin, to become his official doctor. The rest of the story follows his personal witness to the atrocities of the time and his struggle with the charisma versus the horror that was Idi Amin. Much of the novel is interesting as almost a Stockholm syndrome type story. It’s always difficult to understand how anyone stays while terrible events happen around them.
Chocolate Wars, Deborah Cadbury (2.5)
This book, written by a descendent of the founding family of Cadbury Chocolate, tells the story of the various businesses (mostly from British Quaker families) who developed the chocolate industry. While there were interesting tidbits throughout this book, I basically found it rather boring. The word ‘Wars’ in the title is a little dramatic given the history. The most compelling issue was the dichotomy of Quaker families dealing with successful businesses. I was impressed at how the Cadburys kept true to their faith with regards to helping others and improving their workers’ lives while establishing a successful business. I also enjoyed the trials of how each chocolate company moved from a drink to establishing chemistry that allowed for bars and other forms of candy. It really wasn’t easy. Unfortunately, after that the rest of the story was pretty basic and not very riveting. In addition, after a largely boring middle bit, the end felt rushed. The book is hard to recommend as I had to force myself to finish it.
Always Looking Up: The adventures of an Incurable Optimist, Michael J. Fox (3)
This is Michael J. Fox’s 2nd of 3 non-fiction memoir-like books, the first in 2003, this in 2009 and recently in 2010. I was drawn to it as I’ve always enjoyed his acting work, I appreciate his efforts to further stem cell research, and, frankly, I just find him very likable. There were 3 things about this book that I really liked: (1) his warm stories of everyday life that show him as a very loving and appreciative father; (2) the details of a famous person battling a personal and political challenge from the ground level; and (3) his very strong relationship with his wife (not all famous people act like Arnold or Mr. Weiner!). Oddly, as optimistic as he is, I didn’t think the theme was overly optimistic. I was somewhat depressed by what he’s had to go through. A large part of the book deals with the last days of his acting in ‘Spin City’, his transition to philanthropy for Parkinson’s and his political obstacles. I was uplifted by his ability to move forward and appreciate all he has, but I was saddened by the delays in research based on who is in the oval office (in the early 2000’s, public support was for stem cells use in research, congress and the senate passed it, but Bush would veto. Not until a midterm election, where the democrats won the senate, did they get the 2/3 majority to override the veto.) No matter what your views on politics, Michael J. Fox does have a very interesting story and I left the book with even more respect for him and his attitude than I had started it.
The Snowman, Jo Nesbo (3.5)
Jo Nesbo is touted as Norway’s Stieg Larsson. I actually found Mr. Nesbo’s writing to be darker, which seems to shock some friends. I’ll admit it’s a subtle difference when discussing the mystery, serial killer genre, but that was the beauty of ‘The Girl Who…’ series – you were so caught up in the characters and plot that the serial killer part of the story was not in your face each page. In ‘The Snowman’ women are found missing throughout, with some gruesome bits found and the hints of a snowman built outside each residence oddly facing towards the house. The main character, Harry Hole, is a suitably broken detective with a good heart and keen mind who has you rooting for him the whole way. Apparently this is the most recent Hole story, but you don’t need to read the others to appreciate this one – it stands on its own. If you are a big fan of serial killer/mystery novels, you would probably rank this higher, but I just didn’t think it held up to my favorite mysteries. I also had to subtract points as I had guessed the killer pretty early on, which is a disappointment in this type of book!
Just Kids, Patti Smith (3)
While some of the group gave this a rating of 4, and many found some fault with it and gave it a 3, we all agreed that it was not quite what we expected. We all assumed that the decadence of Robert Maplethorpe’s photos eked out into their lives. Surprisingly Patti Smith was quite innocent when it came to alcohol and drugs as she mainly abstained from both. The story is far more about their touching relationship and growth as burgeoning artists. Speaking of which, she name drops many artists and poets, this can become tiresome for anyone not familiar with those of that time. There were a few shockers, one being a famous play-write and actor who is also an anonymous drummer and Patti Smith lover????. Her narrative style has an interesting matter of fact quality as she discusses rubbing elbows with famous people in the same paragraph as having to use the bathroom in the next building (as they didn’t have facilities in their rented loft). While we found issue with the tempo and believability of some of the passages, everyone was moved by the thoughtfulness of the ending and the summation of their relationship. In the end of the day, with husband and new family, Patti was completely there for her ‘soul mate’ in artistry during his last days.
An Object of Beauty, Steve Martin (2.5)
As much as I like and admire Steve Martin for his accomplishments, I have to say I found this book had some interesting elements, but was not outstanding. I liked that it discussed art and printed the actual paintings in the book, but I felt something was missing from the narrative. The voice is a ‘friend’ who discusses the story of a young woman who works in the New York galleries. He describes the art scene and her attempts to move up in it. The plot is not particularly compelling as you follow her through gallery openings, art auctions and her various sexual conquests. Neither of the main characters is particularly likable nor are you very invested in what happens to them. That being said, I enjoyed the look behind the curtain of the art world and the detailed description of artists and paintings. As I re-read this quick review, I am quite sure that Sacaric will cry ‘foul’ with my original 3 rating and I am compelled to down-grade it to a 2.5.
A Game of Thrones: Book One of A Song of Ice and Fire, George R.R. Martin (3.5)
While hiking in the wilds of Southwest Ireland, I decided to bring a book to read each evening that would fit the mood (note: Sacaric brought ‘Lord of the Rings’). ‘A Game of Thrones’ did just that. It is the first of a series (5th book due out in July) that has recently been made into a TV series by HBO. We had seen 3 episodes and thought the book might add more background lore to the fictional place and time of the series. The time is reminiscent of the King Arthur days, but this is definitely not England, Dorothy! While there are kings and knights there is also a big wall built in the northern country to keep the ‘Others’ away. Also there are not yearly seasons. Summers can last a few months or a few years. It has been summer for many years and ‘winter is coming’ is the ominous phrase of the day. The supernatural aspects are not obvious, but there are references to dragons (now extinct), giants and various bits of magic, but the current generation feels these might just be fairy talks they were told by their Nan. At first I was disappointed that the extra background was not as extensive as I had hoped, but more and more things came out and I think it ends up being the writer’s strategy. You feel like the younger generation in the book, realizing that there may be some magic waking up – it keeps you observant. I also liked that he doesn’t hold any characters sacrosanct. Major characters die, as they should with the politics and battles for thrones as the title implies, and you realize that you can’t assume anything. There are plenty of characters, both good and bad so once you get over the shock it compels you to read on that much faster to see if your favorites survive! The sharp edge of that blade is that there are already 5 books. I’ve now read two and many things remain unresolved (maybe I ought to give this a ‘4’, since I made Sacaric download the second on our trip J). The reading is fast paced and full of drama, energy and action. It is no LOTRs, but if you want a fun escapist book, it is that.
Pandora’s Star, Peter F. Hamilton (3)
For the Sci-fi fans out there, here is an interesting, albeit long book. I was very torn in reading this book. It has some very innovative ideas and concepts, but it was far too long and had a very abrupt end. Luckily the sequel has already been written. I do think the brilliant concepts make up for the length, but you need the patience to make it through. Overall I felt the rhythm and story would have been better with about 2/3 the words. I’m not going to go into the story, as I believe the best part of this book is discovering the concepts on your own. I will say that it is set in the 25th century and has elements of society, politics and economics wound around the science fiction ideas that advance the story. There are many character’s stories that do not integrate for some time (hence more patience needed), but as you understand how things are evolving based on new scientific discoveries, you begin to understand why we were following each of the seemingly disconnected characters. If you are a Sci-fi fan, enjoy Vernor Vinge or Charles Stross, AND have the time and patience, give this a shot. I am going to force Sacaric to read it just so that I have someone with whom to discuss the ideas! I have giving this a 3 – which is a blend of a 1 for writing and 4 for concepts.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Truman Capote (4)After reading ‘Fifth Avenue: 5am…’ (see March 2011 Book Reviews), I expected to find this novella to be darker and more scandalous than the movie. I was pleased that this was not exactly correct. It had much of the whimsy and even some of the best dialogue word for word. Until reading both the original and the recent analysis of the movie, I didn’t appreciate the freedom writers and movie makers have today compared to the 60’s. Capote wrote of a free spirited young woman who mainly took ‘bathroom’ money from men for the benefit of her company. On occasion, it is intimated that more occurs, but it is very subtle. At one point she claims to have had 11 ‘lovers’, but the definition of ‘lover’ seems to also be ambiguous. Even with all the subtlety, the movie version made some interesting changes. She discusses getting money for the bathroom at restaurants, but never implies in any way that she is sleeping with her dates. In order to soften the impact of her male friends, in the movie they added the sugar momma character of ‘Apartment 23’ for Fred. I always thought that felt a tad disingenuous and didn’t flow well in the movie. Overall the book is filled with little gems that aren’t in the movie and is very worth reading. The ending is very good and true to Holly’s character. My library’s edition had a couple of Capote’s other short stories. I would also recommend reading ‘A Christmas Memory’. It was very touching.
Into the Wild, John Krakauer (3.5)
‘Into the Wild’ is the true story of a young man, Chris McCandless, who abandoned family, friends and possessions in order to live off the land on a 2 year adventure culminating in a trip to Alaska and his eventual death. It is a sad and bittersweet story where you struggle to understand his drivers and his demons. He has the typical 20-something idealistic tendencies, but comes across as an anomaly of smart-college graduate with manners versus hippy hitchhiking bum. His charisma is enticing to all who meet him on his travels, but his stubborn nature and youthful feelings of invincibility appear to be his downfall. John Krakauer always tells a good story, though this one may be too close to home. I struggled with being annoyed at his inserted personal stories to appreciating his point of view, given their similar stories. I also struggled with the rating for this book. I think the book is very interesting and recommend it to anyone who likes adventure stories, but I have a hard time giving a ‘4’ if I had said anything negative in the review.
Little Women, Louisa May Alcott (3.5)
Many in the book club had read ‘Little Women’ in their childhood, so a big question was: did we feel the same way reading it as an adult? The responses were quite interesting. Most of us appreciated the characteristics of the girls more when we were young, but found their language and antics a bit cornier as adults. We also recognized the theme of family more strongly now. One of the group (we’ll call her Lawyer-K) even found it tougher to read as a mother – she associated more with Marmee and found her to be so perfect as to be intimidating. We assured her that the situation was far more idyllic than humanly possible, both in terms of the mother’s and the girls’ behaviors. The morals of the story (family=good, money=bad) came across as very clear and even a tad heavy-handed to the adult readers. Overall many of us had good nostalgic feelings about rereading the story, even if they were slightly different feelings from our younger selves. There is something for people of all ages to appreciate in the cleverness of the post office and the Pickwick Portfolio, particularly when compared to the entertainment available to kids ‘these days’. What imagination can do when there is no TV or computer available! Our rating of 3.5 is an average of the group’s ratings (from between 3 and 4).
