...my runner-up/didn't quite make the "Best of"-cut books are clamoring to be recognized:
*The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach -- 4.5 stars
Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada -- a strong 4 stars
The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan -- 4.5 stars
*The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock -- a strong 4 stars
White Teeth by Zadie Smith -- 4.5 stars
*Stone Arabia: A Novel by Dana Spiotta -- 4.5 stars
The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk --4.5 stars
*When the Killing's Done: A Novel by T. C. Boyle -- 4 stars
World War Z by Max Brooks -- 4.5 stars
The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood -- 4.5 stars
and maybe the latest Stephen King, 11/22/63 I'm reading!
* published in 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Saturday, December 17, 2011
It's a Wrap
BEST READS OF 2011
Unless by Carol Shields--5 stars
*There But For The by Ali Smith--4.5 stars
The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles-- 5 STARS
*Doc by Mary Doria Russell-- 4.5 stars
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison--5 STARS
*Train Dreams by Denis Johnson-5 STARS
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy--5 STARS
Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev--4.5 STARS
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith--5 STARS
Embers by Sandor Marai--4.5 STARS
*The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt--4.5 STARS
Finn by Jon Clinch--4.5 STARS
*The Silent Land by Graham Joyce--5 STARS
The Aeneid by Virgil--5 STARS
*Emily, Alone by Stewart O'Nan--4.5 STARS
*We, the Drowned by Carsten Jensen--4.5 STARS
*In the Company of Angels: A Novel by Thomas E. Kennedy--5 STARS
*The Hand That First Held Mine by Maggie O'Farrell--5 STARS
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry--5 Stars
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton--5 Stars
* published in 2011
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MALE VS. FEMALE READS-- 82 out of 140--Male or 59%
58 out of 140--Female or 41%
US VS. Foreign-- 91 out of 140 American or 65%,
49 out of 140 Foreign or 35%
Maggie O'Farrell at home in Edinburgh.Favorite Book Cover of the Year-- The Sisters Brothers
Best Rereads of the Year-- A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Peggy Ann Garner in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, 1945and Oryx and Crake
"Enter Oryx" by Jason CourtneyTome, Tome, Tome, Tome, Tome-- One of my goals this year was to tackle more chubby books-- And 20 out of 140 reads were over 500 pages long with War and Peace (1300+) and Infinite Jest (1000 +) leading the pack.
Favorite Book Trailer of the Year-- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZAKsO8wGG4&feature=related
Most Anticipated Book Event of the Coming Year-- (**Spoilers-- don't click if you haven't read We Need to Talk
About Kevin) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9ARcjET0xg&feature=related
Goals for Next Year-- more women writers (I told my bf that he must read one book this year that was written by a woman! He nearly fell out.), more nonfiction, more rereads of long ago's, and more provocative reads
.......
(drumroll please....) and the winner of Best Book of 2011 is--
(oh, this is tough)
-- it's true what they say! :o)
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Perrotta, Banks, and Tuck
132.
The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta
2007
358 pages
Two characters as different as night and day are attracted to each other. She's a divorced mother of two who teaches sex ed and is pressured by the school system to adopt the new conservative abstinence curriculum. He's a former rocker/drug addict who's turned his life over to Jesus but comes under fire while coaching the girls' soccer team for inviting them to openly pray with him. Perrotta doesn't shy away from discussions of fundamentalism and I appreciated the honesty. (Only with the church's pastor, perhaps, does he stray into stereotype.) Really enjoyed this.
4 stars
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133.
Lost Memory of Skin by Russell Banks
2011
416 pages
This was my first Russell Banks--won't be my last. I've loved the films of 2 of his works-- The Sweet Hereafter and Affliction, so I may try those next. Initially I was attracted to this book because of the gorgeous green cover with the iguana. And indeed, the iguana, named Iggy-- (all 6 ft. of him!), is the best friend and pet of the main character, Kid. The novel is about Kid, who at 22 is a convicted sex offender and has few options about where to live and where to work. He pitches a tent beneath the causeway of Calusa, FL with others suffering his same fate. A sociology professor befriends him and tries to empower Kid to rise above his predicament.
There's a lot of tension here. What did Kid do exactly? Is Professor trustworthy? The novel is sad and tragic and unflinching and doesn't always work, but I was intrigued by the discussion of homelessness and sex offenders. It wasn't easy to root for these characters, but I think that that was a mark of how well-crafted the story was.
3.5 stars
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134.
I Married You for Happiness by Lily Tuck
2011
193 pages
(How's that for a title?--ugh) A stream-of-consciousness novel of a woman's memories on the night of her husband's death. Lovely and romantic in parts, yet often tedious. The couple traveled and lead an upscale life. Perhaps I would have been more enamored if Nina had worked (she dabbled in painting) and had more real-life struggles. Not bad, but didn't fit my mood.
3 stars
Sunday, December 4, 2011
In Cold Blood and There But For The
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
1965
343 pages
Good read, but no surprises. Shame I wasn't more shocked-- perhaps I've seen too much. And truth be told, I just really don't care for the genre... but, hey, it's one everyone should read. I did enjoy my follow-up excursions on YouTube with the 3 films of the book: the gritty original film, Capote with Phillip Seymour Hoffman, and Toby Jones's Infamous.
3 stars
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131.
There But For The by Ali Smith
2011
236 pages
Brilliant exploration of our need for connectedness and listening to our inner voices. --I think! Not an easy read, but oh so rewarding. I love the author's playfulness with words and her take on the history that runs beneath our everyday lives. Please forgive me for not being able to express much more, but just trust me-- this book is wonderful.
4.5 stars
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Last Man in Tower and I'll Take You There
.129, 
Last Man in Tower by Aravind Adiga
2011
400 pages
Masterji is the holdout. All other tenants of the Vishram Society Towers A and B have accepted a payout by the real estate development company that plans to tear down their apartments and build a new luxury complex. But the retired schoolteacher Masterji has too many memories associated with his building, and with the recent loss of his wife and daughter, he can't let go of those connections. Because the society is a cooperative, if one doesn't accept the deal, then no deal. Pressures mount and I wasn't even sure whose side I was on. Adiga's second novel is a wonderful fable of economic and moral turmoil in modern Mumbai.
4 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
130.
I'll Take You There by Joyce Carol Oates
2002
290 pages
In what surely seems like a semi-autobiographical novel, Oates tells the coming-of-age of a young college woman in the early 1960's. The story is divided into 3 sections: her sorority fiasco, a mixed-race love affair, and a family crisis. The interesting thing here is the unnamed woman of the first person narrative. It almost reads like she is an unreliable narrator in the sense that she is just so hard on herself. She seems quite distant and it's difficult to accept that she was truly that awkward and strange. But of course I remember that age and the insecurities that come with "finding yourself". Oates writes beautifully, as always.
3.5 stars
Last Man in Tower by Aravind Adiga
2011
400 pages
Masterji is the holdout. All other tenants of the Vishram Society Towers A and B have accepted a payout by the real estate development company that plans to tear down their apartments and build a new luxury complex. But the retired schoolteacher Masterji has too many memories associated with his building, and with the recent loss of his wife and daughter, he can't let go of those connections. Because the society is a cooperative, if one doesn't accept the deal, then no deal. Pressures mount and I wasn't even sure whose side I was on. Adiga's second novel is a wonderful fable of economic and moral turmoil in modern Mumbai.
4 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
130.
I'll Take You There by Joyce Carol Oates
2002
290 pages
In what surely seems like a semi-autobiographical novel, Oates tells the coming-of-age of a young college woman in the early 1960's. The story is divided into 3 sections: her sorority fiasco, a mixed-race love affair, and a family crisis. The interesting thing here is the unnamed woman of the first person narrative. It almost reads like she is an unreliable narrator in the sense that she is just so hard on herself. She seems quite distant and it's difficult to accept that she was truly that awkward and strange. But of course I remember that age and the insecurities that come with "finding yourself". Oates writes beautifully, as always.
3.5 stars
Friday, November 25, 2011
Hit and Miss: Reviews of Unless and The Dovekeepers
127. 
Unless by Carol Shields
2002
213 pages
Shields' final novel is exquisite. She packs more into 200 pages than I knew was possible. While not plot driven, the story is nevertheless intriguing. Reta Winters is a happy novelist, wife, and mother of 3 girls who's never experienced heartache until she discovers that her 19 year old daughter has dropped out of life and is sitting for hours upon the hard Toronto pavement begging, with a sign around her neck reading "Goodness".
Norah won't speak to her family, and Reta, unable to break through to her, must try and carry on with her life.
The best parts of the book are letters that Reta composes to various authors speaking out against the exclusion of women in their writings. "But did you notice something even more significant: that there is not a single woman mentioned in the whole body of your very long article (16 pages, double columns), not in any context, not once?" Reta becomes convinced that her daughters, as well as herself and all modern women, are undervalued and not recognized for their greatness or potential greatness. "What Norah wants is to belong to the whole world or at least to have, just for a moment, the taste of the whole world in her mouth. But she can't. So she won't."
The reviews for this novel are quite mixed, but for me it was truly beautiful and said much that needed to be said. I've read only one other of Shield's novels, The Stone Diaries, which I loved, and I am sad to know that she's passed away. I can't wait to read the full body of her work.
5 stars
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128.
The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman
2011
501 pages
I used to read a lot of Alice Hoffman's novels back in my 20's. When I saw that her new release was a historical drama of the Roman conquest of the Jewish stronghold of Masada in the 1st C., I jumped at the chance to read of an important historical event that I knew little about. What I'd forgotten about Hoffman's books was that they are well known for their magical realism, and indeed that's what turned me off of this work. She writes well of grief and I appreciate her feminist-empowered narrators, but the book was too long (I admit to skimming the final chapters) and the use of magic and abundant metaphors was overkill for me.
2.5 stars
Unless by Carol Shields
2002
213 pages
Shields' final novel is exquisite. She packs more into 200 pages than I knew was possible. While not plot driven, the story is nevertheless intriguing. Reta Winters is a happy novelist, wife, and mother of 3 girls who's never experienced heartache until she discovers that her 19 year old daughter has dropped out of life and is sitting for hours upon the hard Toronto pavement begging, with a sign around her neck reading "Goodness".
Norah won't speak to her family, and Reta, unable to break through to her, must try and carry on with her life.
The best parts of the book are letters that Reta composes to various authors speaking out against the exclusion of women in their writings. "But did you notice something even more significant: that there is not a single woman mentioned in the whole body of your very long article (16 pages, double columns), not in any context, not once?" Reta becomes convinced that her daughters, as well as herself and all modern women, are undervalued and not recognized for their greatness or potential greatness. "What Norah wants is to belong to the whole world or at least to have, just for a moment, the taste of the whole world in her mouth. But she can't. So she won't."
The reviews for this novel are quite mixed, but for me it was truly beautiful and said much that needed to be said. I've read only one other of Shield's novels, The Stone Diaries, which I loved, and I am sad to know that she's passed away. I can't wait to read the full body of her work.
5 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
128.
The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman
2011
501 pages
I used to read a lot of Alice Hoffman's novels back in my 20's. When I saw that her new release was a historical drama of the Roman conquest of the Jewish stronghold of Masada in the 1st C., I jumped at the chance to read of an important historical event that I knew little about. What I'd forgotten about Hoffman's books was that they are well known for their magical realism, and indeed that's what turned me off of this work. She writes well of grief and I appreciate her feminist-empowered narrators, but the book was too long (I admit to skimming the final chapters) and the use of magic and abundant metaphors was overkill for me.
2.5 stars
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
The Sheltering Sky
The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles
1949
313 pages
I'm not sure why this book spoke to me. Could be the exotic North African Sahara setting. Or the 3 lost American travelers, not tourists, who felt disconnected from life. Or credit the author, Bowles, whose storytelling was fascinating and beautifully introspective. Whatever the reason, I loved it.
5 stars
here's some images from the Bertolucci film along with the gorgeous soundtrack-- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnRKWriyu-4&feature=related
Monday, November 21, 2011
A Compelling Coming-of-Age, a Disappointing Retelling of the Rape of Nanking, and a Supernatural Swedish Pleasant Surprise
123. 
We the Animals by Justin Torres
2011
125 pages
This beautiful novella is a series of vignettes that cast a light on the coming-of-age of 3 brothers who grow up mixed-race (Puerto Rican/White) in upstate New York. Their irresponsible, child-like parents are alternatively loving and kind and then neglectful and abusive. The spare language is almost poetic in its shocking vivid details. I did find the ending, with its leap ahead to their teenage years, to be too jarring. I think the author should have lengthened his narrative and given us more of a set-up to the finale. Still, a lovely debut for this young, promising author.
4 stars
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124.
Nanjing Requiem by Ha Jin
2011
300 pages
Former National Book Award winner Ha Jin's newest novel recounts the cruel treatment of Chinese citizens during Japan's occupation of Nanking in 1937. The story focuses on the well-documented girls' school run by the American Minnie Vautrin, that serves as a refugee camp during the invasion, boarding some 10,000 displaced Chinese. While the novel started out strong with devastating descriptions of the real-life horror, the drama turned dry and uninvolving. How I wanted Jin to follow the stories of individual lives, and instead, the documentary approach felt unexplicably flat. quite a disappointment-- wish I'd read the nonfiction accounts instead.
2.5 stars
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125.
Harbor by John Ajvide Lindqvist
2008 (Sweden) 2010 English translation
500 pages
The sea is the monster here. And the sea demands much of the inhabitants of a quaint Swedish island. Although some plot elements were perhaps silly, this Stephen King-like thriller really delivered, largely thanks to fantastic character development. There's the depressed Anders, who returns to the island two years after the inexplicable disappearance of his young child, his grandmother-- the matriarch of the town who knows the dark secret history of the sea, and her old boyfriend Simon, a former magician, who comes across a mysterious, worm-like, saliva awakened "Spiritus" that.. (no, I won't tell you!) The many backstories are each fascinating and often heart-wrenching and the novel moved at a brisk pace. -- quite a good read
4 stars
We the Animals by Justin Torres
2011
125 pages
This beautiful novella is a series of vignettes that cast a light on the coming-of-age of 3 brothers who grow up mixed-race (Puerto Rican/White) in upstate New York. Their irresponsible, child-like parents are alternatively loving and kind and then neglectful and abusive. The spare language is almost poetic in its shocking vivid details. I did find the ending, with its leap ahead to their teenage years, to be too jarring. I think the author should have lengthened his narrative and given us more of a set-up to the finale. Still, a lovely debut for this young, promising author.
4 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
124.
Nanjing Requiem by Ha Jin
2011
300 pages
Former National Book Award winner Ha Jin's newest novel recounts the cruel treatment of Chinese citizens during Japan's occupation of Nanking in 1937. The story focuses on the well-documented girls' school run by the American Minnie Vautrin, that serves as a refugee camp during the invasion, boarding some 10,000 displaced Chinese. While the novel started out strong with devastating descriptions of the real-life horror, the drama turned dry and uninvolving. How I wanted Jin to follow the stories of individual lives, and instead, the documentary approach felt unexplicably flat. quite a disappointment-- wish I'd read the nonfiction accounts instead.
2.5 stars
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
125.
Harbor by John Ajvide Lindqvist
2008 (Sweden) 2010 English translation
500 pages
The sea is the monster here. And the sea demands much of the inhabitants of a quaint Swedish island. Although some plot elements were perhaps silly, this Stephen King-like thriller really delivered, largely thanks to fantastic character development. There's the depressed Anders, who returns to the island two years after the inexplicable disappearance of his young child, his grandmother-- the matriarch of the town who knows the dark secret history of the sea, and her old boyfriend Simon, a former magician, who comes across a mysterious, worm-like, saliva awakened "Spiritus" that.. (no, I won't tell you!) The many backstories are each fascinating and often heart-wrenching and the novel moved at a brisk pace. -- quite a good read
4 stars
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Zone One plus 4
118.. 
Zone One by Colson Whitehead
2011
2011
K, maybe I've just had enough of zombies. I mean when you get down to it, it just doesn't seem to mean anything-- so completely random-- like let me revolve my dystopic novel around mutant shoes that come to life and stomp on people. Zombies have no personality, nothing interesting in the least. At least Whitehead tried a new brand of zombie in his latest-- the "stragglers" who stay forever in a catatonic state and don't even attack. (yawn) I found Zone One to be just ok. For me, the literary writing (this guy can write) was not really enough to carry the lackluster plot. Sure I see the deeper picture of society Whitehead wants to represent, but I didn't feel the zombies were needed or added anything at all to his theme. And to be honest, I felt detached the whole way through.
3 stars
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
119. The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach
2011
528 pages
Baseball lovers take note! The Art of Fielding is a wonderful novel of a small fictional Wisconsin college's baseball team. The characters are richly developed and the plot feels fresh. --a sweet homage to the game I love.
4.5 stars
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120. The Maid: A Novel of Joan of Arc by Kimberly Cutter
2011
304 pages
Nothing new here, but I'll take all the "Joan" I can get. To me, she's the ultimate heroine. I love the time frame (15th C. France), the spirituality, and the drama and doubt of accepting this sixteen year old at her word.
3.5 stars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
121. The Forgotten Waltz by Anne Enright
2011
263 pages
Enright's latest, with its gorgeous-sometimes odd-writing, tells the story of an adulterous love affair. quite good
4 stars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
122. Rabbit Redux by John Updike
1971
368 pages
2nd in his Rabbit Tetrology-- Not as good as the first. This one seemed dated and some of the characters and discussions were rather unsavory. Still, the writing is so, so solid and I will continue following the life of this "everyman".
2.5 stars
Zone One by Colson Whitehead
2011
2011
K, maybe I've just had enough of zombies. I mean when you get down to it, it just doesn't seem to mean anything-- so completely random-- like let me revolve my dystopic novel around mutant shoes that come to life and stomp on people. Zombies have no personality, nothing interesting in the least. At least Whitehead tried a new brand of zombie in his latest-- the "stragglers" who stay forever in a catatonic state and don't even attack. (yawn) I found Zone One to be just ok. For me, the literary writing (this guy can write) was not really enough to carry the lackluster plot. Sure I see the deeper picture of society Whitehead wants to represent, but I didn't feel the zombies were needed or added anything at all to his theme. And to be honest, I felt detached the whole way through.
3 stars
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011
528 pages
Baseball lovers take note! The Art of Fielding is a wonderful novel of a small fictional Wisconsin college's baseball team. The characters are richly developed and the plot feels fresh. --a sweet homage to the game I love.
4.5 stars
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011
304 pages
Nothing new here, but I'll take all the "Joan" I can get. To me, she's the ultimate heroine. I love the time frame (15th C. France), the spirituality, and the drama and doubt of accepting this sixteen year old at her word.
3.5 stars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011
263 pages
Enright's latest, with its gorgeous-sometimes odd-writing, tells the story of an adulterous love affair. quite good
4 stars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
122. Rabbit Redux by John Updike
368 pages
2nd in his Rabbit Tetrology-- Not as good as the first. This one seemed dated and some of the characters and discussions were rather unsavory. Still, the writing is so, so solid and I will continue following the life of this "everyman".
2.5 stars
Sunday, October 30, 2011
3 Lovely Reads
115. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
1977, 352 pages
exquisite early Morrison novel of man's journey to understand his family and find his identity -- for me, without question, I consider Morrison the greatest living novelist
5 stars
2011, 496 pages
so glad in the end that I didn't quit on this. Wonderful story of a place-- Washington state, modern day and 100 years ago. Author weaves together the stories of over 50 characters of the present day and their ancestors who settled the area in the 19th century (and only one didn't work for me). In the end, very rewarding.
4.5 stars
2011, 192 pages
Loved the first half, second half let me down-- Jozef is born in America, loses his mother at a young age, and is taken by his father back to the old country of Austria-Hungary in the early 1900's. Raised as a mountain sheepherder, Jozef learns to survive and hunt and when another boy is taken into their home, he becomes connected to the brother he's never had. When the young men come of age, they become engaged as sharpshooters during WWI. Much is beautifully written here, but the "soujourn" of the title as Jozef winds his way home, seemed rushed and underwritten.
3.5 stars
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