Growing up in a poor small town in Texas, Mary Karr's family life was flawed by alcoholism, violence, and mental illness. But you don't pity her, and she doesn't pity herself either. A ferocious adoration for her family comes through strongly. The most stunning parts of the book are the situations surrounding her mother's mental illness and the insanity and manic depressive episodes that go along with it. You can feel the child's confusion and love for a mother as she goes on a rampage that she just doesn’t understand. The parents are tremendously self-centered but, in the end you know they love their kids. It is a tribute to Mary Karr and her siblings that they survived and prospered into well adjusted adults with their upbringing.
5 Stars
Friday, May 6, 2011
Wingshooters by Nina Revoyr
In the early 1970s, Deerhorn, Wisconsin, was very uniform. It caused quite a stir when 9 year old, half Japanese, Michelle, known as Mikey, went to live with her grandparents. She was bullied by her schoolmates who didn't care that her grandfather, Charlie, was one of the most respected men in town. And then a young professional black couple, a nurse and a teacher, moved to town, and folks kind of forgot about Michelle. Mikey treasured the moments she spent with her grandfather. She felt safe in his love and she knew that in spite of his prejudices, when he looked at her, he saw only his beloved granddaughter.
Then the situation begins to spin out of control, and Mikey, Charlie, and the black couple are caught up in a tempest of hate. This is a great story of determination and how to persevere.
3 Stars
Then the situation begins to spin out of control, and Mikey, Charlie, and the black couple are caught up in a tempest of hate. This is a great story of determination and how to persevere.
3 Stars
The Lost Library: The Autobiography of a Culture by Walter Mehring
“A man can become addicted to reading as to any other intoxicant.” After Walter Mehring’s father dies in his arms he inherits a library containing thousands of volumes and his father’s love of literature.
Merhing tells the tale of burning his own books, his interment by the Nazi’s and his eventual exile to Vienna. I have always been interested in this time period and to read a first account which was not focused just on the Holocaust was a treat. Mehring goes through many “jaunts” and describes second hand book stores with such alliterations I feel like I am there.
After reading this book I feel I have found a comrade in arms as Mehring and I have the same philosophy. I am addicted to reading.
4 Stars
Merhing tells the tale of burning his own books, his interment by the Nazi’s and his eventual exile to Vienna. I have always been interested in this time period and to read a first account which was not focused just on the Holocaust was a treat. Mehring goes through many “jaunts” and describes second hand book stores with such alliterations I feel like I am there.
After reading this book I feel I have found a comrade in arms as Mehring and I have the same philosophy. I am addicted to reading.
4 Stars
Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart
Super Sad True Love Story is set years about a half century in the future. The world is a intense adaptation of aspects of the world today. America has been condensed to three industries (Credit -- where men aspire to work, Retail -- where women aspire to work, and Media -- which is largely reality TV). Everyone carries around a social networking device and spends most of their time social networking, ranking each other, shopping on line, etc. Occasionally they take a break from this to actually verbally talk with a friend.
Set against this background, the novel tells a love story in chapters that swap between Lenny Abramov, a Jewish scholar, and emails and chats from his Korean girlfriend, Eunice Park. Both narrators are rather unreliable and the story moves along believably, as the world around them falls to pieces and the expected triangle in their relationship forms.
The writing is amusing and astoundingly inventive the plot is respectably sufficient that keeps you interested from beginning to end.
3 Stars
Set against this background, the novel tells a love story in chapters that swap between Lenny Abramov, a Jewish scholar, and emails and chats from his Korean girlfriend, Eunice Park. Both narrators are rather unreliable and the story moves along believably, as the world around them falls to pieces and the expected triangle in their relationship forms.
The writing is amusing and astoundingly inventive the plot is respectably sufficient that keeps you interested from beginning to end.
3 Stars
Rat Girl: A Memoir
I was instantaneously caught up in Kristin’s story even though I had never heard of her band Throwing Muses. The product of hippies, Kristin is a bashful, yet exceptionally intelligent, teenager. She feels music within her very soul and the music comes to her, playing constantly in her head until she puts down the notes and writes the song. As her band starts to become well-liked, Kristin is diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Hersh’s writing about being bipolar is exceedingly heartrending. Through her words, the reader experiences what it feels like for her during her controlling frenzied states. After reading this book I feel as if I know Kristin and she is in fact a friend.
4 Stars
Hersh’s writing about being bipolar is exceedingly heartrending. Through her words, the reader experiences what it feels like for her during her controlling frenzied states. After reading this book I feel as if I know Kristin and she is in fact a friend.
4 Stars
The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman
Tom Rachman's debut novel is one of the top books I have read this year. Each of his chapters can be read alone but works wonderfully when put together.
He tells the story of an English newspaper established in Rome. The story intertwines the past with the present effortlessly. Each character has their own section for their story. By the end of the novel the reader will have a glimpse of the toll it takes on a person’s life when they are running a newspaper in the twentieth century, including all the ups and downs changes in management can cause.
This is such an enthralling narrative that putting it down is near impossible and I finished the book in an hour and a half.
5 Stars
He tells the story of an English newspaper established in Rome. The story intertwines the past with the present effortlessly. Each character has their own section for their story. By the end of the novel the reader will have a glimpse of the toll it takes on a person’s life when they are running a newspaper in the twentieth century, including all the ups and downs changes in management can cause.
This is such an enthralling narrative that putting it down is near impossible and I finished the book in an hour and a half.
5 Stars
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Southland by Nina Revoyr
When Jackie’s grandfather dies, her aunt finds a box of cash from the sale of his old store in his closet, along with an old will leaving the money to someone they've never heard of. Jackie agrees to help find this person, only to find out was murdered along with three other boys, in her grandfather's store during the Watts riots in 1965. As she and James, a cousin of the boy, investigate the murders, Jackie learns more than she expected to about her grandfather and the difficulties associated with living at that period of time.
This book invokes feelings of questions of what I don’t know about my grandparents and what it was like before my time.
Definitely 5 STARS !!
This book invokes feelings of questions of what I don’t know about my grandparents and what it was like before my time.
Definitely 5 STARS !!
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