The book: Tortuous to get through
The author: Avoid at all cost
Review:
My book club had decided we would read The Winged Seed because it sounded like an intriguing concept: The author was reconciling himself to his father's death through retelling a number of stories from his life. The reality of this book was far different.
Li-Young Lee appears to speak fluent gibberish. He did indeed incorporate stories from his childhood and his father's life into the story, but they were interspersed with streams of consciousness that left me wondering whether he should be locked away in a padded room somewhere. Freud would have had a field day with a number of the scenarios. There were times when the father was described as a saintly man, yet the detailed abused heaped upon his son clearly demonstrated the lie behind that imagery. However, Li-Young Lee seems almost proud of those times. At one point, he mentions his father beating him simply to try and make him speak, and how he knew his father really only wanted to hear himself speak so he hoped to be beaten until his father had to give up in defeat. There's something seriously wrong with father-son relationships like that.
The author also threw sporadic curse words into the middle of random stories or trains of thought. My presumption is that it was to keep the reader awake. I can normally sit down and read a 200-ish page book in one sitting, but this one kept me struggling for days before I could finally say I finished it.
I detest writers who think they are more intelligent than their readers, and that was the perspective I had on this book. The only other writer I ever perceived in the same manner was James Joyce, and I at least thought Joyce was intelligent. This author did nothing to convince me that his gray matter is still present, and instead made me wonder whether he was covering up his own ineptitude and dysfunction with his style of writing.
I can honestly say that I will never read another book by Li-Young Lee again. That was three days' worth of my spare time that I want back.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Aunt Dimity's Death by Nancy Atherton, a review
The book: Well worth the read if you enjoy mysteries and do not mind a slight paranormal twist.
The author: Worth reading again. And again. And again.
Review:
A few weeks ago, and completely on a lark, I had picked up my first Aunt Dimity book after a series of overwhelmingly disturbing and depressing books that my book club read. I needed something that was lighthearted, cheerful, and perhaps even goofy. It apparently takes just one book like that to get me hooked, and I have been reading my way through the series, and in no particular order, ever since.
When I got around to reading the original story in the series, I figured I would review it here in order to give myself a place to list the books I have already read so I can hunt down those I have yet to peruse. I never thought I would enjoy it so much that I would go out and purchase it so I could have my own copy, which is something I only do with my most treasured reading materials. It was inconceivable that I would not buy Aunt Dimity's Death to add to my collection.
The basic gist of this first story is that Lori Shepherd, newly divorced, poor, and reeling from her mother's unexpected death, finds out that a woman she thought was a fictional character created by her mother was not only real, but also has something she wants Lori to do now that she has died. The subject of many childhood stories, Aunt Dimity, was a woman named Dimity Westwood, whose will left an assignment of sorts for Lori, along with the financial help to pay off Lori's debts so that she can fully handle taking care of that task without added worries. Lori is sent off to England along with one of the lawyers from the firm handling Dimity's estate, as per Dimity's willed request.
Lori finds out that her mother and Dimity had a lengthy correspondence about which she had been unaware. Lori discovers a task her mother needs her to complete while she works on Dimity's assignment. Through this story, a broken, down-on-her-luck young lady (Okay, fine, so she is only slightly younger than I am. I'd still like to pretend I'm young. Shaddup.) discovers a number of buried secrets along the way of her road to recovery. A changed Lori completes her tasks, learns a lot about her mother, Dimity, and herself, and wins the object of her affections.
I absolutely adored this book. As a character, Lori and I have certain similarities, and I'm thankful to say numerous differences, but she is believable and I found it easy to relate to her. There is a paranormal element to the story, and I shall not spoil it for the reader, but it is not sufficient to turn me off to the story. I do not normally enjoy paranormal mysteries, but found this series to be well-worth my time in both reading and re-reading its pages. And now that I am the proud owner of this book, I plan on re-reading it often in addition to hunting down other works in the series.
Other books I have read in this series:
Aunt Dimity Takes a Holiday
Aunt Dimity: Snowbound
Aunt Dimity and the Next of Kin
Aunt Dimity and the Deep Blue Sea
Aunt Dimity Goes West
Aunt Dimity: Vampire Hunter
Aunt Dimity Slays the Dragon
Aunt Dimity Down Under
Aunt Dimity & the Family Tree
The author: Worth reading again. And again. And again.
Review:
A few weeks ago, and completely on a lark, I had picked up my first Aunt Dimity book after a series of overwhelmingly disturbing and depressing books that my book club read. I needed something that was lighthearted, cheerful, and perhaps even goofy. It apparently takes just one book like that to get me hooked, and I have been reading my way through the series, and in no particular order, ever since.
When I got around to reading the original story in the series, I figured I would review it here in order to give myself a place to list the books I have already read so I can hunt down those I have yet to peruse. I never thought I would enjoy it so much that I would go out and purchase it so I could have my own copy, which is something I only do with my most treasured reading materials. It was inconceivable that I would not buy Aunt Dimity's Death to add to my collection.
The basic gist of this first story is that Lori Shepherd, newly divorced, poor, and reeling from her mother's unexpected death, finds out that a woman she thought was a fictional character created by her mother was not only real, but also has something she wants Lori to do now that she has died. The subject of many childhood stories, Aunt Dimity, was a woman named Dimity Westwood, whose will left an assignment of sorts for Lori, along with the financial help to pay off Lori's debts so that she can fully handle taking care of that task without added worries. Lori is sent off to England along with one of the lawyers from the firm handling Dimity's estate, as per Dimity's willed request.
Lori finds out that her mother and Dimity had a lengthy correspondence about which she had been unaware. Lori discovers a task her mother needs her to complete while she works on Dimity's assignment. Through this story, a broken, down-on-her-luck young lady (Okay, fine, so she is only slightly younger than I am. I'd still like to pretend I'm young. Shaddup.) discovers a number of buried secrets along the way of her road to recovery. A changed Lori completes her tasks, learns a lot about her mother, Dimity, and herself, and wins the object of her affections.
I absolutely adored this book. As a character, Lori and I have certain similarities, and I'm thankful to say numerous differences, but she is believable and I found it easy to relate to her. There is a paranormal element to the story, and I shall not spoil it for the reader, but it is not sufficient to turn me off to the story. I do not normally enjoy paranormal mysteries, but found this series to be well-worth my time in both reading and re-reading its pages. And now that I am the proud owner of this book, I plan on re-reading it often in addition to hunting down other works in the series.
Other books I have read in this series:
Aunt Dimity Takes a Holiday
Aunt Dimity: Snowbound
Aunt Dimity and the Next of Kin
Aunt Dimity and the Deep Blue Sea
Aunt Dimity Goes West
Aunt Dimity: Vampire Hunter
Aunt Dimity Slays the Dragon
Aunt Dimity Down Under
Aunt Dimity & the Family Tree
My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok, a review
The book: Well worth reading
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
There are precious few books in my life that will lead me along willingly into subject matters that are outside of my interests. I might have to read them for a book club or because a professor informed me I must, but I skim them as quickly as possible and refuse all pleasure from contemplating their words. I am a fickle reader, and I only wish to devour those works that soothe some aspect of my soul. So it was with great trepidation that I started reading My Name is Asher Lev with only the background knowledge that both art and messed up relationships with one's parents were involved. Neither subject struck me as interesting enough to warrant careful attention to these pages.
Chaim Potok had other ideas. He wove his story in a such manner that drew me in willingly, and I made sure I read it carefully. I found myself struggling with young Asher while he could not prevent himself from drawing, no matter what his parents, teachers, classmates, and others said. I, too, know what it is like to feel irresistibly drawn towards something, where no amount of scolding or mockery will be able to force a person to stop. As human beings, I would hope we have all felt that pull. It might not be towards art, and in my case it certainly isn't, but Potok masterfully draws the reader into Asher's world of art obsession.
There were three main sections of this novel. The first detailed Asher's early life as he started drawing, then continued to do so against his father's wishes. His parents were religiously and politically connected, and their absences and reactions to life seemed to draw him deeper into his need for art. The second section was where Asher became a student of a great artist, who praised, scolded, and sulked in a grand fashion. The final section described Asher's life as an emotionally tortured master of his art, although I am sure that the art was the master of Asher instead of the other way around.
This book is not a straightforward or easy read. I felt certain that the main character was suffering from a nervous breakdown of sorts. As a mother, I was horrified to read the pages detailing Asher's mental deterioration. As the adult child of my own not always supportive parents, I was shocked to read just how brutally Asher's parents wound up turning him aside once he grew into adulthood and expressed his discomfort in the world through his art. Yet despite their rejection, you still feel their own hurt and his mother's love shining through the emotionally draining existence of a tortured artist.
This novel is a powerful work of art in the form of the written word. I might never understand what makes art good or bad, but I feel I have an understanding of what forces compel a person into becoming an artist while the whole world strives against it. Thank you, Chaim Potok.
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
There are precious few books in my life that will lead me along willingly into subject matters that are outside of my interests. I might have to read them for a book club or because a professor informed me I must, but I skim them as quickly as possible and refuse all pleasure from contemplating their words. I am a fickle reader, and I only wish to devour those works that soothe some aspect of my soul. So it was with great trepidation that I started reading My Name is Asher Lev with only the background knowledge that both art and messed up relationships with one's parents were involved. Neither subject struck me as interesting enough to warrant careful attention to these pages.
Chaim Potok had other ideas. He wove his story in a such manner that drew me in willingly, and I made sure I read it carefully. I found myself struggling with young Asher while he could not prevent himself from drawing, no matter what his parents, teachers, classmates, and others said. I, too, know what it is like to feel irresistibly drawn towards something, where no amount of scolding or mockery will be able to force a person to stop. As human beings, I would hope we have all felt that pull. It might not be towards art, and in my case it certainly isn't, but Potok masterfully draws the reader into Asher's world of art obsession.
There were three main sections of this novel. The first detailed Asher's early life as he started drawing, then continued to do so against his father's wishes. His parents were religiously and politically connected, and their absences and reactions to life seemed to draw him deeper into his need for art. The second section was where Asher became a student of a great artist, who praised, scolded, and sulked in a grand fashion. The final section described Asher's life as an emotionally tortured master of his art, although I am sure that the art was the master of Asher instead of the other way around.
This book is not a straightforward or easy read. I felt certain that the main character was suffering from a nervous breakdown of sorts. As a mother, I was horrified to read the pages detailing Asher's mental deterioration. As the adult child of my own not always supportive parents, I was shocked to read just how brutally Asher's parents wound up turning him aside once he grew into adulthood and expressed his discomfort in the world through his art. Yet despite their rejection, you still feel their own hurt and his mother's love shining through the emotionally draining existence of a tortured artist.
This novel is a powerful work of art in the form of the written word. I might never understand what makes art good or bad, but I feel I have an understanding of what forces compel a person into becoming an artist while the whole world strives against it. Thank you, Chaim Potok.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
"A" is for Alibi by Sue Grafton, a review
The book: Overly drawn out, but an interesting read nonetheless
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
For perhaps the first time ever, I picked up this book with the sole intent of reading a new series by starting at the beginning. This Rinehart Suspense novel introduces Kinsey Millhone, a female private investigator, which was an interesting concept as far as I was concerned. PI's, in my experience, are written as cold, aloof, unfeeling individuals who are typically male. The only way Kinsey appears to stray from that stereotype is by having a second X-chromosome.
This story takes place eight years after a murder of a very unlikeable philanderer. Kinsey is hired by the person jailed for committing the crime, the dead man's wife, who professes her innocence even after all this time. She wants to find out who really killed the man she was unfortunate enough to call her husband. Kinsey has to wind her way through strange family ties, odd employees and co-workers, and ultimately determine who of that set is trustworthy. I had trouble keeping up with the web that was spun, and felt that things were intentionally being overly drawn out. By the time I read about Whodunnit, I had to flip back to a few parts of the book to see if it made logical sense. I suppose they made enough sense, although I was starting to wonder if Sue Grafton was getting paid by the word.
I did enjoy several aspects of the book. Kinsey was a rather foul-mouthed, incredibly sarcastic, psychologically messed-up individual, and that actually endeared her to me. Perhaps I can somehow relate to her need to push others away and not wanting to feel close to anyone else. I did want her to be the victim of a drive-by Zolofting, but thought that she might not quite be herself if such an event transpired. I found it interesting that the book opens with her discussing how she had to kill someone in her line of work and how weird that makes her feel, while at the same time talking about how nice she is and how she has oodles of friends. I did not see her character as the type to get close enough to anyone to actually make friends. I suppose I shall have to read the next book in the series to see where she goes from here.
All in all, this was a decent suspense novel, as far as I was concerned. It did not freak me out unnecessarily, and I was able to sleep after finishing the book. I shall continue on to the next book in the series and hope that Kinsey's persona continues to grow on me with time.
Other books I have read in this series:
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
For perhaps the first time ever, I picked up this book with the sole intent of reading a new series by starting at the beginning. This Rinehart Suspense novel introduces Kinsey Millhone, a female private investigator, which was an interesting concept as far as I was concerned. PI's, in my experience, are written as cold, aloof, unfeeling individuals who are typically male. The only way Kinsey appears to stray from that stereotype is by having a second X-chromosome.
This story takes place eight years after a murder of a very unlikeable philanderer. Kinsey is hired by the person jailed for committing the crime, the dead man's wife, who professes her innocence even after all this time. She wants to find out who really killed the man she was unfortunate enough to call her husband. Kinsey has to wind her way through strange family ties, odd employees and co-workers, and ultimately determine who of that set is trustworthy. I had trouble keeping up with the web that was spun, and felt that things were intentionally being overly drawn out. By the time I read about Whodunnit, I had to flip back to a few parts of the book to see if it made logical sense. I suppose they made enough sense, although I was starting to wonder if Sue Grafton was getting paid by the word.
I did enjoy several aspects of the book. Kinsey was a rather foul-mouthed, incredibly sarcastic, psychologically messed-up individual, and that actually endeared her to me. Perhaps I can somehow relate to her need to push others away and not wanting to feel close to anyone else. I did want her to be the victim of a drive-by Zolofting, but thought that she might not quite be herself if such an event transpired. I found it interesting that the book opens with her discussing how she had to kill someone in her line of work and how weird that makes her feel, while at the same time talking about how nice she is and how she has oodles of friends. I did not see her character as the type to get close enough to anyone to actually make friends. I suppose I shall have to read the next book in the series to see where she goes from here.
All in all, this was a decent suspense novel, as far as I was concerned. It did not freak me out unnecessarily, and I was able to sleep after finishing the book. I shall continue on to the next book in the series and hope that Kinsey's persona continues to grow on me with time.
Other books I have read in this series:
Lavender Lies by Susan Wittig Albert, a review
The book: A decent murder mystery, although not overly suspenseful
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
I have no idea what possessed me to randomly pick up Lavender Lies, which happens to be a China Bayles Mystery. If the series had sounded interesting, I should have sought out the first one, but, par for the course, I did not. As it was, what sounded interesting to me were the comments on the back of the book. Various groups all claimed that the characters were "quirky" (Raleigh News & Observer), the book was well-written (paraphrased from the Los Angeles Times), and it was "a page-turner" (Publishers Weekly). That sounded reasonable enough for me, since I had actually heard of both the Los Angeles Times and Publishers Weekly. Hey, books have been read and reviewed with less of a recommendation.
Anyway, the premise of this book is simple enough: Shortly before the upcoming nuptials of the main character, the China Bayles mentioned earlier, a local blackmailer was murdered. Since the groom-to-be is in charge of the investigation, China and her friends decide it is in the best interest of her wedding and honeymoon that the case get solved quickly.
I enjoyed several things about Lavender Lies. First of all, the main character is intelligent and snarky, a combination that typically fills me with glee. Secondly, there were random tidbits of herblore strewn throughout the book, which made for a generally interesting side note to the subject matter at hand. Most of the characters were ones to whom I easily related. Around the same time that I was angrily glaring at the groom-to-be's comments at certain stages of the book, I realized I had to be investing myself into the characters for me to be that angry at that moron. Personally, I would never have married someone who thought his job had to come before his own wedding, and having never read any of this series before, I do not believe the characters' relationship was believable the way it was summarized. However, I must have felt drawn towards the bride-to-be for me to be so miffed at her choice of spouse.
All in all, this was a decent read, with a solution that was nice and tidy and even made this reader feel badly for the person who committed the crimes. I believe I will seek out other books in this China Bayles Mystery series to see if the initial setup of the characters is more realistic and believable than the summary provided in this book. I hope that it is, since Susan Wittig Albert writes in a style I felt comfortable with, and even though she strayed from what I would normally call "a G-rating," she did not stray far.
Other books I have read in this series:
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
I have no idea what possessed me to randomly pick up Lavender Lies, which happens to be a China Bayles Mystery. If the series had sounded interesting, I should have sought out the first one, but, par for the course, I did not. As it was, what sounded interesting to me were the comments on the back of the book. Various groups all claimed that the characters were "quirky" (Raleigh News & Observer), the book was well-written (paraphrased from the Los Angeles Times), and it was "a page-turner" (Publishers Weekly). That sounded reasonable enough for me, since I had actually heard of both the Los Angeles Times and Publishers Weekly. Hey, books have been read and reviewed with less of a recommendation.
Anyway, the premise of this book is simple enough: Shortly before the upcoming nuptials of the main character, the China Bayles mentioned earlier, a local blackmailer was murdered. Since the groom-to-be is in charge of the investigation, China and her friends decide it is in the best interest of her wedding and honeymoon that the case get solved quickly.
I enjoyed several things about Lavender Lies. First of all, the main character is intelligent and snarky, a combination that typically fills me with glee. Secondly, there were random tidbits of herblore strewn throughout the book, which made for a generally interesting side note to the subject matter at hand. Most of the characters were ones to whom I easily related. Around the same time that I was angrily glaring at the groom-to-be's comments at certain stages of the book, I realized I had to be investing myself into the characters for me to be that angry at that moron. Personally, I would never have married someone who thought his job had to come before his own wedding, and having never read any of this series before, I do not believe the characters' relationship was believable the way it was summarized. However, I must have felt drawn towards the bride-to-be for me to be so miffed at her choice of spouse.
All in all, this was a decent read, with a solution that was nice and tidy and even made this reader feel badly for the person who committed the crimes. I believe I will seek out other books in this China Bayles Mystery series to see if the initial setup of the characters is more realistic and believable than the summary provided in this book. I hope that it is, since Susan Wittig Albert writes in a style I felt comfortable with, and even though she strayed from what I would normally call "a G-rating," she did not stray far.
Other books I have read in this series:
Thursday, August 4, 2011
The Cat Who Could Read Backwards by Lilian Jackson Braun, a review
The book: Engagingly outdated murder mystery, even if it did have an overly tidy solution
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
This was my first time reading one of the "Cat Who..." books. I had heard of them before, generally well-praised, but never got around to reading any of them. One of my local librarians drew my attention to them again a week or so ago, so I picked up one that looked suitably old. I probably should have looked at all of the print dates and chosen one an older one, mainly because I prefer reading any given book series in somewhat of a chronological order. However, with three kidlets in tow who were miffed at how long I was taking, I settled for grabbing one that just looked older.
One of the first things I noted about this book, which had a 1966 copyright but was printed in July of 1986, was that it had a scent that brought me back in time. I suspect the book was stored in somebody's somewhat dank basement before it was bequeathed to my library system, but that endeared it to me all the more. When a story is written as a current piece of fiction, yet is as obviously dated as this one is, it is a much more delightful experience to read about pea green typewriters, clunky corded phones, and apartments that are rented for fifty dollars, with a book whose scent alone brings you back to days of a bygone era. If I were to read a newly printed copy of The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, I doubt very highly that I would enjoy it half as much as I did with that captivatingly musty copy, freshly plucked from my library's shelves for the first time in years.
The story itself is fairly straightforward. Jim Qwilleran joins the Daily Fluxion and is given the assignment to delve into the local art world and report on a few of the characters he meets, all without any actual background in art. He winds up renting an apartment that comes with the occasional pampering of a highly intelligent cat, redundant as that may sound, who has a rare feline ability to read newspapers backwards. I often got the impression that this impressive feline was the one running the show. When several seemingly unrelated deaths appear to coincide, it is up to Qwilleran and that magnificent cat Koko to figure out Whodunnit before they become the next victims.
I found myself deeply engrossed in this enchanting story, despite my initial reserve at reading something clearly outdated. I do enjoy historical fiction, but prefer when it is actually written in future times. This book's perspective on a situation that is supposed to be current, as seen in the 1960s when the book was written, does not quite fit the bill, yet I found myself eagerly sinking into the story instead of feeling mired down by how out of date it could have been. It did not have the historical feel of, say, a Little House on the Prairie, but I distinctly felt the difference that fifty years makes in the presentation of reading material. I found myself pleasantly amused at how "modern art" is still seen by those both in and out of the art world. As they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
All in all, I intend to go back to my local library in search of more of Lilian Jackson Braun's works. Her tidy ending might have turned me off to her style of writing, since I do like mysteries to have more of a drawn out solution, but I instead found her description of the everyday life of her characters to be sufficient motivation to draw me back into her world. I am half a century removed from Qwilleran's fictional investigations, yet feel drawn towards the experience of living them through the descriptions of a more than capable author.
The author: Worth reading again
Review:
This was my first time reading one of the "Cat Who..." books. I had heard of them before, generally well-praised, but never got around to reading any of them. One of my local librarians drew my attention to them again a week or so ago, so I picked up one that looked suitably old. I probably should have looked at all of the print dates and chosen one an older one, mainly because I prefer reading any given book series in somewhat of a chronological order. However, with three kidlets in tow who were miffed at how long I was taking, I settled for grabbing one that just looked older.
One of the first things I noted about this book, which had a 1966 copyright but was printed in July of 1986, was that it had a scent that brought me back in time. I suspect the book was stored in somebody's somewhat dank basement before it was bequeathed to my library system, but that endeared it to me all the more. When a story is written as a current piece of fiction, yet is as obviously dated as this one is, it is a much more delightful experience to read about pea green typewriters, clunky corded phones, and apartments that are rented for fifty dollars, with a book whose scent alone brings you back to days of a bygone era. If I were to read a newly printed copy of The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, I doubt very highly that I would enjoy it half as much as I did with that captivatingly musty copy, freshly plucked from my library's shelves for the first time in years.
The story itself is fairly straightforward. Jim Qwilleran joins the Daily Fluxion and is given the assignment to delve into the local art world and report on a few of the characters he meets, all without any actual background in art. He winds up renting an apartment that comes with the occasional pampering of a highly intelligent cat, redundant as that may sound, who has a rare feline ability to read newspapers backwards. I often got the impression that this impressive feline was the one running the show. When several seemingly unrelated deaths appear to coincide, it is up to Qwilleran and that magnificent cat Koko to figure out Whodunnit before they become the next victims.
I found myself deeply engrossed in this enchanting story, despite my initial reserve at reading something clearly outdated. I do enjoy historical fiction, but prefer when it is actually written in future times. This book's perspective on a situation that is supposed to be current, as seen in the 1960s when the book was written, does not quite fit the bill, yet I found myself eagerly sinking into the story instead of feeling mired down by how out of date it could have been. It did not have the historical feel of, say, a Little House on the Prairie, but I distinctly felt the difference that fifty years makes in the presentation of reading material. I found myself pleasantly amused at how "modern art" is still seen by those both in and out of the art world. As they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
All in all, I intend to go back to my local library in search of more of Lilian Jackson Braun's works. Her tidy ending might have turned me off to her style of writing, since I do like mysteries to have more of a drawn out solution, but I instead found her description of the everyday life of her characters to be sufficient motivation to draw me back into her world. I am half a century removed from Qwilleran's fictional investigations, yet feel drawn towards the experience of living them through the descriptions of a more than capable author.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)