'The Moonstone' by Wilkie Collins

The Moonstone, Wilkie Collins (4.0)

Once again, the father of the detective novel has delivered a page-turner. I think of Collins as ‘Jane Austen meets Agatha Christie’- the good detective whodonnit set in the very proper, upper class of the 1800s. He was famously friends with Charles Dickens. In addition to a good mystery, the book is told from the perspective of several characters via their letters, diaries or requested notes. The Moonstone is a valuable, ancient Indian diamond stolen from India and bequeathed to a young English Lady on her 18th birthday. Unfortunately, three Indians have made it their life’s work to retrieve the diamond. It disappears from her room after her party and, since the house was sealed from the outside, the guests staying in the house are suspected. Nothing is simple or obvious in this mystery – some clues are given, but the outcome unfolds like an onion with each layer being quite surprising. Not surprising for the mid 1800s, but still off-putting were the descriptions of the ‘Hindoo’s’ and anyone else of color. I also found the old servant’s repeated description of most women (albeit not his charge, Miss Rachel) quite misogynistic and really annoying. Given those complaints, a point was deducted (apologies – too much Olympics).

'Call for the Dead, A Murder of Quality, The Spy Who Came in From the Cold' by John Le Carre

 Call for the Dead, A Murder of Quality, The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, John Le Carre (4.0)

Three of Le Carre’s first novels introducing his reluctant hero, George Smiley, are included in this book. The third is the most famous, was made into a movie and pushed Le Carre into the world stage. The first two read more similarly to traditional ‘whodonnits’: murder, obvious suspects, handful of confusing clues and interesting results. George Smiley is introduced as an unlikely detective. He is a mousey, unkempt, bookish man, recently retired from Britain’s Secret Service. He tends to partner with a local policeman and uses his understanding of society and individuals to solve the murders. I enjoyed the first two books as pure murder mysteries, but the third is definitely something unique: a slow, intellectual, spy thriller with little action and lots of plot. The majority of the book is spent setting up an elaborate sting of a supposed East German spy. Until the end the reader is trying to understand who is really stinging whom. The movie with Richard Burton is also quite amazing.  In this book Smiley is a side character, but others from the earlier two books reappear. My only complaint about the books is the obvious anti-Semitism, particularly in the first book. It was written in 1961 with parts occurring both before and after WWII. He may have purposefully written the slights, but it was jarring to come from non-Nazi characters.

'The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing and the Future of the Human Race' by Walter Isaacson

 The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing and the Future of the Human Race, Walter Isaacson (4.0)

As with all the Isaacson books I have read, this book highlights the life and career of someone quite remarkable. While Jennifer Doudna is arguably less controversial than Steve Jobs or Leonardo Di Vinci, her main subject (CRISPR gene altering tools) drives important discussions in evolution and ethics. The book has a lot of science and could be difficult to read for those not familiar, but Isaacson does a good job of simplifying (i.e. core of CRISPR: ‘small snippet of RNA that acts as a guide and an enzyme that acts as a scissors’). The ‘how’ is complicated, but you can understand that if one can insert the RNA guide to cut a portion of the DNA helix, we can change our genes. Not controversial when it comes to obvious diseases, very controversial when it comes to ‘designer babies’, choosing height, sex, intelligence, etc. The book follows all the people working on the technology and highlights the competition for patents, credit of discovery and even businesses.  I appreciated that the author did not feed the stereotype that scientists compete to the point of losing their integrity. While the main actors in this story are very competitive, he has humanized them all and tended to give them good intentions, for the most part. That is refreshing in today’s media environment of ‘if it bleeds it leads’ on steroids. It would have been easy to stoke the paranoia and make the legal issues even more contentious. I was disappointed in the COVID section at the end, possibly due to the speed at which the science is moving, but it was not clear to me how CRISPR actually contributed. Tests were developed – but where did they end up being used? I remember a very long time over 2020 where the tests were not prevalent and not accurate.

'The Time Traveler's Wife' by Audrey Niffennegger

 The Time Traveler’s Wife, Audrey Niffennegger (3.5)

I first read this book in the early 2000’s and was captivated by the plot. The idea of a man who travels back and forth through his own life made for fascinating ‘what if’ scenarios. This time I was a bit less enthralled (older, more critical, or just less novelty the second time around?). I still enjoyed the puzzle – if an older Henry meets a younger Henry in a scene, what portends when we get to the later part of the book? I also found the love story touching, if not totally believable. Interesting that the idea of older Henry visiting his future wife as a child is fine in the book, but creepy in the movie. The questions of how one behaves if we know our future, how you can appreciate the time you do have together, and how we make choices knowing what we know are very interesting and thought provoking. I also liked how the author considers the ability to travel through time as an evolutionary change in humans – a condition, not something one does with a machine. Oddly that premise made it easier to ignore the issues with physics. Sadly, upon this recent reading the secondary characters don’t hold up well. They are very stereotypical of their ethnicity and/or culture. While I would have given this a ‘4’ in 2005, given my more critical older eyes, it rates a ‘3.5’.

'Entangled Life: How Fungi Make our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures' by Merlin Sheldrake

Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures, Merlin Sheldrake (3.0)

This book is filled with many eye-opening facts about Fungi and their relationships with plants and animals. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on truffles and how they have evolved a desirable scent in order to procreate. Since they are buried deep at a plant’s roots, their odor needs to be strong enough for a pig or dog to find it, eat it and defecate farther away for it to spread it’s ‘genes’. Also, interesting that the symbiotic relationship of the truffle with the plant is too complex for farmers to replicate, hence there are no real cultivated truffles! Mr. Sheldrake does a good job of describing the vastness of fungi (2.2-3.8 million species) and their complexities. I did find the book was a little redundant at times and didn’t hold my interest through all the chapters. If you are at all interested in the largest Kingdom, you will likely find this book interesting.

'Words of Radiance' by Brandon Sanderson

 

Words of Radiance, Brandon Sanderson (4.5)

At 1500 pages, this is one of the longest books I’ve read in a while, my only complaint is that it ended in the middle of the climatic battle! Apparently, there are 10 books planned in this series, with 4 already written.  This book is very interesting with a lot of movement of the plot and further character development. It’s hard to come up with new ideas in the fantasy/world building genre, but Mr. Sanderson has done just that. While the first book in the series could have easily been 200-300 pages shorter, this volume didn’t waste any pages- lots of action and forwarding of the story as the main characters find out more and more about what changes are happening in themselves and in their world. I don’t think you can skip the first book, but for those interested in a refreshing fantasy book with new concepts, this series is one of the best.

'Shadow and Bone' by Leigh Bardugo

Shadow and Bone, Leigh Bardugo (3.0)

I recently read a review of a Netflix series set in Ms. Bardugo’s Grishaverse, the world she has created with several books. This is the first book in that series and name of the show. The review mentioned two stories told concurrently. I didn’t realize it when starting, but this book follows the more predictable story: homely orphan has crazy powers (though doesn’t know it), falls into a love triangle (with her childhood friend and the dark, powerful head of the witch-like Grisha’s – both ridiculously good looking, of course), and is the only one who can save their world. Sounds familiar? I did find the writing fast paced and the world-building was interesting. Some of the magic concepts were quite unique. Sadly, much of the time I felt I was reading a Harlequin romance, predictable and manipulative. Apparently, the other storyline follows ‘Six of Crows’ and per that reviewer, has a more unique plot based on the group trying to kidnap the heroine of this book.