Minding Ben: A Novel
by Victoria Brown
Minded a little (12/21/2010)
One test of a novel is how eager you are to pick it up. "Minding Ben" was compelling and I read it in large gulps over 48 hours. The wonderful nanny, Grace is so likable and you can't help but wish her well...although well is hard to come by in her life. But here is what I minded...I found there was a lot of anti-semitic rhetoric in the book and not much to counter it. If there had been more emphasis on a least one sympathetic Jewish character, I would have been more comfortable.
Raising Wrecker: A Novel
by Summer Wood
The opposite of a wreck (10/30/2010)
Really enjoyed this one. Wrecker is set in northern California and is the story of Wrecker, a three year old in 1968, whose mother is sent to prison. Adopted by a distant relative, he is raised by a diverse group of people who become a family. The characters are so natural and flawed and three dimensional, you'd swear they are real people. Expressively written with great tenderness and affection.
The Clouds Beneath the Sun
by Mackenzie Ford
worthy, not perfect (7/2/2010)
This is a flawed but fascinating story of a group of paleontologists in Kenya in 1961. I loved the African setting, the inclusion of the Masai, and the sexual jealousies and competition between the scientists. The biggest problem in the novel is pacing. There are periods of extreme tension and excitement and then periods of dull almost repetitive exposition. Then there's the end which has more drama than necessary...however it passed the number one test for any book... I couldn't put it down. Would make a great movie.
A Thread of Sky: A Novel
by Deanna Fei
threads not cloth (3/30/2010)
This story of 3 generations of American-Chinese women taking a trip to China had great possibilities, but ultimately fell short. Every character is unhappy but I couldn't empathize with any of them, in fact finding some of it rather whiny. We have threads of each story but never a whole cloth and that makes it hard to care too much. It was like a depressing and boring literary version of " Joy Luck Club".
Under This Unbroken Sky
by Shandi Mitchell
Too dark to embrace (8/31/2009)
Under This Unbroken Sky is not for the faint of heart. It is very well written and sustains a high level of suspense, even through scenes of daily domestic routine, as you wait for the tragedy promised on the first page to unfold.The characters are believable and compelling and the setting perfectly rendered. However this novel is saturated in unrelenting grimness. It is bleak and you can taste the desperation of the poor family, who are clearly headed for a catastrophic end. I can't say I enjoyed the book although I appreciated it's artistry.
Something Like Beautiful: One Single Mother's Story
by Asha Bandele
Overexamined life (11/30/2008)
The unexamined life may not be worth living but this over-examined life is not worth reading. While much of the writing is lyrical, this overly repetitious and often overly romanticized story of Bandele's love life and motherhood is muddied and dull. This is her 3rd or 4th memoir and I would suggest she moves to fiction.
Holding My Breath: A Novel
by Sidura Ludwig
I Held My Breath (6/13/2008)
I liked this book a lot...the problem is I wanted to love it a lot. The first chapter was so well written and compelling that my expectations might have been too high. I thought the characters, who had acted consistently throughout the story changed too rapidly in the book's rather rushed ending. The unique setting was fresh and made this coming of age story worthy. Good...not great.
Dervishes
by Beth Helms
Dervishes (11/29/2007)
This very well written novel set in Turkey in the 1970's provides a new view of the clash between West and East. In fact everything and everyone seems to be clashing: the children with their parents, the husbands with their wives, lovers, frends, just to name a few. There are some very lyrical and wonderful passages and I was kept interested by the promise of secrets uncovered....secrets which proved to be underwheming when finally revealed. I thought the loneliness, alienation and despair that most of the characters operated in was so real that the novel reeked of bleakness, Certainly not for the reader who wants entertainment, but a well-crafted, beautifully expressed and believable book.
The Quiet Girl
by Peter Hoeg
Interesting and challenging (10/14/2007)
The Quiet Girl by Peter Hoeg was hypnotic and mysterious. The beginning is confusing with seemingly unconnected strings of plot and characters and for some readers that may be a deterrent, but if you stick with it, the end will be rewarding. Kasper Krone, the main character is fascinating, unusual, and sympathetic. I would recommend this to readers who have no trouble suspending disbelief , enjoy a bit of the fantastic, and have patience for not understanding everything from the beginning. I found it compelling and interesting.
Power Reviewer
