Mailbox Monday May 6th

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme started years ago by Marcia (she of many blogs) who is no longer actively participating but who manages the string of wonderful Hosts for the weekly bloggers who do participate.  This month's hosting duties belong to Abi of 4 the Love of Books.  Thanks Abi for keeping this going so we can all see what's been landing in our mailboxes.  As you can see, Tutu still goes to the Post office, where I wait to see if there's a little yellow slip in my box telling me to go to the window to pick up my newest tome to add to my every growing pile of goodies to be read.


This week's treasures started off with a book I got through LibraryThing.com's Early Reviewer program: His Majesty's Hope by Susan Elia MacNeal.  It's number 3 in the Maggie Hope series and I was thrilled to be chosen to get it.  I've read the first two and loved them both.  Due out next week, here's what Bantam publishers has to say:

For fans of Jacqueline Winspear, Laurie R. King, and Anne Perry, whip-smart heroine Maggie Hope returns to embark on a clandestine mission behind enemy lines where no one can be trusted, and even the smallest indiscretion can be deadly.

World War II has finally come home to Britain, but it takes more than nightly air raids to rattle intrepid spy and expert code breaker Maggie Hope. After serving as a secret agent to protect Princess Elizabeth at Windsor Castle, Maggie is now an elite member of the Special Operations Executive—a black ops organization designed to aid the British effort abroad—and her first assignment sends her straight into Nazi-controlled Berlin, the very heart of the German war machine. Relying on her quick wit and keen instincts, Maggie infiltrates the highest level of Berlin society, gathering information to pass on to London headquarters. But the secrets she unveils will expose a darker, more dangerous side of the war—and of her own past.

If you only get one book in a week, this is surely a good one to get!

Review: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

If I hadn't had to read this for the Maine Reader's Choice Award panel, I'd never even have picked it up.  The premise didn't appeal to me, I'd heard too many less than positive reactions from my patrons at the library and my fellow readers on LibraryThing.com, and I just had too many other really good books screaming "pick me, pick me".

I'll be honest-- of the ten books on the short list, I ranked this one #9.  It's not a bad book at all.  It's actually very well written, and tells us the story of a toxic relationship between two of the most screwed up, egotistical, damaged, and obnoxious people I've read about in a long time.

The genre is difficult to assign. It's not exactly a mystery, it's a suspense story in which the reader is taken on a roller coaster ride of emotions of love and hate for the two main characters.  Nick Dunne and Amy Elliott Dunne are married to each other.  When they marry, they are living the high life in New York, depending on Amy's job and her trust fund from the proceeds of a series of children's books her parents wrote featuring "The Amazing Amy" when she was a child.  Unfortunately, Amy bought the package, and while she resents her parents and their continued presence in her life, she is unable to shed the persona they developed for her.  Nick on the other hand, is Midwest small town Missouri Huck Finn, basking in the light of the Amazing Amy.

When on the morning of their 5th wedding anniversary Amy disappears, Nick, the police and readers of the story are baffled.  The question that fuels the rest of the book is "Where is Amy?"  Is she dead?  Was she abducted?  Did she run away?  Is she hiding?  In short....no matter.....she's GONE.

The story is then told first by Nick as he narrates each day of Amy's absence, interspersed with Amy's side of the story based on her diary which is found by the police.  The story becomes stranger and stranger, and the reader, however reluctantly, is sucked into the vortex of this toxic piece of drivel.  In spite of my hatred of both of the main characters, (and a distinct lack of respect for most of the peripheral actors) I couldn't put it down.  There were too many possible answers to the questions, too many potential villains (did Nick do away with his wife?) and too many possible resolutions to the mystery to walk away without finishing  it.

Be warned....it's great writing...it has well defined characters, a gripping plot, and a pretty good sense of place.  It's also got more gratuitous sex and raunchy language than I prefer and it's just such a dark and depressing read, totally lacking in redeeming social value, that I'd only recommend it if you really have 8 hours in which you have nothing else more productive to do with your time.

Title: Gone Girl
Author: Gillian Flynn
Publisher: Crown Publishers, Random House (2012) 419 pages
Genre: suspense, psychological thriller
Subject: toxic relationships
Setting:New York and Missouri
Source: Review copy from publisher
Why did I read this book now? Short-listed for Maine Readers' Choice Award

Review: Canada by Richard Ford

First, I'll tell about the robbery our parents committed. Then about the murders, which happened later.

So starts one of my most baffling reads of the year.  The story of 15 year old twins Dell and Berner Parsons is told by Dell in a reflective voice from many years in the future.  It is a slow read:  the prose, while laconic and sparse, is powerfully descriptive and evokes a mood that puts the reader right inside the head of the narrator. The pace is anything but thrilling.  However, the story is riveting  because there is enough revealed in the beginning to compel the reader to continue even when the going gets tough.

The characters are not the most attractive people ever portrayed.  In fact, some of them are downright bizarre.  The motivations of the parents are very well explained, even if they aren't very laudatory. The father's previous peripatetic military career has made it difficult for the children to develop normal childhood friendships, or participate in school activities and left them feeling detached from any sense of a permanent home.  The twins themselves are as different as chocolate and vanilla.  Dell is timid, completely lacking in self-confidence, and incredibly unmotivated to do anything on his own. He just wants to enroll and stay in one school and join the chess club. His sister, on the other hand, is spunky, fed-up with the status quo, and in no way willing to continue wasting her time and talents on the current model of family life. 

The book is divided into three parts: Part I takes place mostly in Great Falls, Montana and centers around the life of this nuclear but dysfunctional family headed by a failed salesman father who has delusions of grandeur, and his wife who doesn't have a clue about how to encourage him toward some other lifestyle. In this part, the parents commit their crimes almost as a lark, and their already fractured life really begins to unravel.

The book title led me to believe it was going to be about Canada, or at least would have that country as a setting, but it was not until Part II, page 207 of 432, that Dell begins his journey to Canada.  Once he gets there, we encounter one of the most bizarre collections of characters ever presented.  I found this part of the story especially hard to come to grips with because all of the people who make up the adult world of Dell Parsons are just not the kind of people I'm used to dealing with.  The entire section is one long day after day parade of really unbelievable situations, of ignorance and disregard of the boy, of scenes bringing to mind indentured servitude, or total parental indifference, or incredible lack of any official oversight of either child.  I really couldn't say whether it gives an accurate portrayal of Canada, but it does paint stunning word pictures of the geography and scenery of Saskatchewan.

It is not until the rather short Part III that we get the grown up Dell's reflections on his life and how the events shaped in Montana and then Canada resolved to allow him to become the adult he is as he tells the story. In the end, we finally come to terms with all those unconventional situations and find a character reconciling his past with the present and future.

The whole time I was reading this book, my reactions ranged wildly from really liking it (particularly Ford's way with words), to wanting to throw it across the room at exasperating situations and characters.  The pace was so slow that at times I felt I was wasting my time, that nothing was ever going to happen, but then I'd realize that is often how teen-agers feel about life and I was then able to climb into Dell's skin to see things from his perspective.  When I finished the book, I remember feeling that this was really an exceptional achievement.  It is definitely a great book, and deserves the accolades it has received. I've seen many reviewers who claim it will be a classic (whatever the current definition of that is).  Richard Ford is the only writer ever to win both the Pulitzer Prize and Pen/Faulkner Award for a single novel (Independence Day) and he has given us a reading experience that will definitely remain in the memory of all who immerse themselves in his eloquent, lean and poetic words.


Title: Canada
Author: Richard Ford
Publisher: ECCO (2012) 432 pages,
Genre: literary fiction, mystery
Subject:  murder, parenting, coming of age
Setting: Idaho, Montana, Saskatchewan
Source:  Copy from the publisher for review
Why did I read this book now? It was on the shortlist for the Maine Reader's Choice Award.

Review: A Land More Kind than Home by Wiley Cash

Wiley Cash has produced a stunning debut novel set in rural Appalachia in the mid 1980's. Telling the story from three different points of view (9 year old Jess Hall, 60 year old  Sheriff Clem Barefield, and 81 year old Adelaide Lyle, midwife and Sunday School teacher) Cash skillfully presents a picture of the power of evil disguised as religion, and the harm caused by alcoholism, secret-keeping, and lack of understanding at all levels of the town.

Each narrator tells different aspects and events of the lives inhabitants of the town, and each brings us closer to the chilling ending, while at the same time giving us back-fill about themselves and the community.  Jess tells us about his older brother Christopher (called "Stump") who is autistic.  Stump's never spoken a word, but he and Jess are able to communicate without difficulty.  In the course of normal boyhood games, they spy on the happenings inside the community's fundamentalist Pentecostal church, led by Pastor Carson Chambliss (the villain every reader will love to hate). Unable to process what they have witnessed or ask adults for an explanation for fear of being punished for snooping, they stumble along toward the inevitable.

Preacher Chambliss believes in a form of religion based on an interpretation of scripture that posits a God who will protect believers from evil--in this case evil in the form of bags of rattlesnakes--and that those who expose themselves to such evil, e.g., plunge their arms into sacks full of snakes, can be cured of the maladies caused by their sins by trusting in God.

Adelaide Lyle, increasingly convinced that the preacher is up to no good, removes her Sunday school students from the church services rather than have these children she has delivered brought into contact with these bizarre rituals.

The boys' mother has bought into the preacher's promises of God's restorative powers and wants to have Pastor Chambliss "cure" Christopher of his speechlessness.  Her motherly love and her misguided sense of faith engenders a huge rift between the boys' parents, destroying her marriage, and driving her more and more to the solace offered by the preacher, thereby adding more tension to the story.

From the beginning, I had a sense of doom, despair, and utter devastation waiting at the end, but could not put the book down.  I even got the audio version--admirably read by Mark Bramhall, Lorna Raver and Nick Sullivan-- so I could continue with the story even when I couldn't sit with a book.

I sometimes needed to remind myself that 9 year old Jess was the younger brother, although never did Cash drop out of character and make him seem older than he was.  It was simply the fact that without the ability to process what Stump was experiencing and thinking, and the fact that Jess had been assigned the duty of watching after his brother, that he came to be seen as the more mature.  Either way, these two boys were surrounded by adults who were not helping these young boys make sense of their world and were therefore unable to protect them.

The Sheriff, one of the sharper knives in the drawer, at least pays attention to his sense of unease and begins to investigate the Pastor, but is not able to put the brakes on the happenings before it's too late.  The same holds true for Adelaide:  while she can see what may be coming, she simply cannot overcome years of fear and ignorance to break down the prejudices and false ideas of the community.  She feels a responsibility for the children, she tries as best as she knows how to shield them, but in this case the power of evil, the overwhelming reliance on a religious fanatic (and quack) is too much for her.

Wiley Cash grew up in the South.  Those roots shine through in his gorgeous portrayal of the customs, the people, and the geography.   His sense of place is one of the best I've seen in years.  His ability to write in three distinct voices and give each of them a unique perspective is uncanny, and one of the strengths of this work.  I don't want to say more about the plot to avoid spoilers.  This is a book that will stay with me for a long time, and one which I will read again.  It will be an outstanding book for a reading discussion group.

Many thanks to William Morrow for making it available to me as a member of the panel for the Maine Readers Choice Award.

Title: A Land More Kind than Home
Author: Wiley Cash
Publisher: William Morrow (2012), 330 pages
Genre: Southern fiction
Subject : Religious fanaticism, sibling relations, secret keeping
Setting: Appalachian North Carolina
Source: Copy received from the publisher for participation Maine Reader Choice Award Panel
Why did I read this book now? It was on the shortlist for the program.

Review and Giveaway - Miss Julia Stirs Up Trouble

Miss Julia is one of my favorite characters, and southern fiction is one of my favorites genres.  So when Viking/Penguin offered me a copy of Ann B. Ross' latest episode of Miss Julia's antics, along with the opportunity to do a giveaway, I couldn't resist.

In this latest, when James, the housekeeper for J.D. and Hazel Marie, falls and breaks his hand, he is unable to cook, leaving Hazel Marie --who can't even boil water--to cope with serving meals, cleaning house and taking care her husband, her teenaged son, and her less than a year old twin girls.  Miss Julia of course, steps right in to solve Hazel Marie's problem.  Her solution is to teach Hazel Marie to cook.

Her help results in a collection of cooking lessons and recipes that are right out of the Southern Cooking hall of fame.  However, as in any Miss Julia story, the fun doesn't stop (or start) there.  We have the ever obnoxious Uncle Vern who arrives to add to the chaos, when he moves in and begins bilking the ladies of the town for funds to open a "soup kitchen".  Lloyd and James become engaged in some sort of internet/lottery scam scheme, Julia thinks J.D. is chasing another woman, and sets out to catch him red-handed.  As usual our heroine manages to twist good intentions into a variety of mash-ups requiring help from all the friends,family and helpers in her life.

The recipes in the book are a large part of the fun.  Everyone else seems to be doing "cookbook" versions of their stories, so why not Ann B. Ross?  Although Miss Julia of course can't cook anything but basic grilled cheese, she manages to sweet-talk her trusty maid/cook/housekeeper, and other friends into "donating" recipes and lessons that are lots of fun.  They are well-indexed in the book, and make this one a keeper for the cookbook shelf in your library even if the story is lighter than it might be.

If you like Miss Julia, if you like cooking, if you like Southern lit, this one's for you.  It was published last week.

I have one copy to give away thanks to Viking/Penguin.  Easy entry - no PO Boxes, leave me a comment saying why you want to win.  Include your email address.  Contest ends May 10th.  I'll draw and announce on May 11th.


Title: Miss Julia Stirs Up Trouble (#14 of Miss Julia series)
Author: Ann B. Ross
Publisher: Viking Adult (2013), Hardcover, 368 pages
Genre: Southern Fiction
Subject: Housekeeping, cooking, family dysfunction
Setting: Abbotsville NC (fictional town)
Series: Miss Julia
Source: ARC from the publisher
Why did I read this book now?  I love the series, and the publisher asked for a review.

And the Winner is...

The Winner of Constance Hardy's (Rather) Startling Year is

MARGIE

I've sent an email and she has until Friday May 3rd to send me a mailing address. Thanks to all who entered.  Be sure to check back tomorrow for another giveaway.

Monday Mailbox

This month  Monday Mailbox  is being hosted by Mari at MariReads. The wonderful weekly meme gives us a chance to shout out books that have appeared in our mailboxes (real or virtual).  This week, two ARCs arrived, both set in Maine.  They both look perfect to put on that summer reading list we're all starting to compile.

 

A Skeptic's Luck....Intrigue, adventure and romance find Maxine Rholf, botanist in Maine, as she pursues orchid research. She has started wearing Lewis's clothes five years after he was lost in New York during 9/11. The relationship with her wealthy friend Byron is souring. While she collects data in the wilderness, she contends with quarrelsome motorcyclists who step on her orchids. She ignores her doubts, but when daughter Eva tells Maxine that she has seen Lewis at the Bangor airport, she must face a stark possibility -- could Lewis be alive?

Doesn't that sound intriguing?   Maine Author's Publishing has been sending us some great reads this spring, and this one is definitely going into the queue.

 

Sweet Salt Air....Charlotte and Nicole were once the best of friends, spending summers together in Nicole's coastal island house off of Maine. But many years, and many secrets, have kept the women apart. A successful travel writer, single Charlotte lives on the road, while Nicole, a food blogger, keeps house in Philadelphia with her surgeon-husband, Julian. When Nicole is commissioned to write a book about island food, she invites her old friend Charlotte back to Quinnipeague, for a final summer, to help. Outgoing and passionate, Charlotte has a gift for talking to people and making friends, and Nicole could use her expertise for interviews with locals. Missing a genuine connection, Charlotte agrees.

Another Maine summer and island, and this one sounds just as intriguing.  Maybe I should look for a Maine island (or pretend my house on the river is really on an island?) so I can lock myself away and read all these goodies.

What's been arriving in your mailbox lately?

The Maine Readers Choice Award - Tutu's latest project

well...let's talk for a bit about the Maine Readers Choice Award program. I was invited to serve on this panel late last year, and we are now entering into the next phase. The participants are finishing their reading of the short list (listed below)  and now must rank these from one to ten. We then "vote" no later than May 1st. The top choices will be announced shortly thereafter and promoted to the readers of Maine.

We are going to be promoting these books all summer, encouraging adults to read some really good stuff. The Readers themselves will then vote for their Choice as the best of the best, and the winner will be announced in the fall. We hope to have the award presented at the Bangor Book Festival in October.

So Tutu has finished reading the shortlist, and several from the long list too. I haven't quite finished the final ranking, but I have pretty much separated them into two tiers: 1-5, and 6-10. All of tier 1 are solid ★★★★★ reads. These are going to stay in my permanent library for a long time, and they will stay in my psyche for just as long. They are incredible tributes to the art of good writing.

The second tier are excellent, but not quite as earth-shaking. So here's my list by tier. I'll be writing reviews for the next several days. I don't think you can go wrong reading any of the top 5. My comments about a couple of the others will be in my individual posts. The links are to reviews I've already posted.

Top Tier
Billy Lynn's Long Half-time Walk by Ben Fountain.
The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers
The Light Between the Oceans  by M.L. Stedman
Canada by Richard Ford
A Land More Kind than Home by Wiley Cash

Second Tier:
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Mr. Penumbra's 24 hr Bookstore by Robin Sloan  

I'm going to be honest and say that when I voted for the first cut, none of the 2nd tier books were on my top 10 list, even though I had already read three of them. I am looking forward to getting to some of those books that were on the long list, but will not be reading them in such a compact time frame. These are all books that deserve to be read slowly and carefully. The top five are definitely going to be re-read because I can't help but think I didn't get everything there was to get.

It's been an interesting project. I'm hoping to be asked to have another go for next year, and I'm already starting my 'long list' for 2013 books to suggest to the committee.

Now I'm going to settle back, read a couple good mysteries and a good old southern fiction Miss Julia Stirs Up Trouble so I can clear my brain before the final vote in a few days.

For the original long-list, be sure to visit the Maine Reader's Choice Award page.

We're Home! - Contest extended.

Just a quick note to say thanks for your patience to all my faithful readers. We've arrived safely back in our nest in Maine, and while Real Life is still keeping us busy, I'm going to be able to catch up on posting here during the next week, so get ready to read about some awesome books. Our Maine Readers Choice Award is up and running. I hope to finish reading the final one of the 10 books on the shortlist today or tomorrow and then give you reviews and comments.

Don't forget the contest for the giveaway for Constance Harding's (Rather) Startling Year ends soon.  The original deadline was tomorrow but I'm extending it until the weekend.  So leave me a comment for an entry no later than 11:59PM Sunday night April 29th.  If you've entered before, you are hereby granted a special blessing to leave another comment for a second entry.  I'll pick the winner on Monday.

And......I plan to finish Miss Julia Stirs up Trouble by the end of the week.  That contest will post with the upcoming review.

I haven't gotten to the Post Office to pick up my two weeks worth of mail waiting there and see what goodies the book fairy has left.  I did pick up a few from Net Galley which I 'll tell you about in the next Monday Mailbox.

Now if I could just convince spring to come here in Maine ....those plain brown trees are just begging for some leaves!

Stay tuned............

Travels with Tutu

As I've mentioned, the Mr and I are having a delightful visit with old Navy friends here in Jacksonville Florida. Yesterday, we went out to Mayport where we lived in the mid 80's on a beautiful stretch of beach where we walked everyday looking for shark's teeth, building castles with the kids, and generally enjoying life while our sailor husband/dad spent most of his time at sea.

We had a wonderful time with two busloads of retirees who had previously served on three different ships here in the area as we climbed up and around the USS FARRAGUT DDG 99 - a new and beautiful vessel. They had just returned from a 9 month overseas deployment but were more than gracious in proudly showing us around their ship. We met some outstanding young Americans who deserve every ounce of our support. We were all blown away by the safety advances and the steps the Navy is taking to help our young men and women maintain a happy and healthy life style while enduring the rigors of endless days at sea.  Unfortunately, Tutu was too old-fashioned and thought that photos would be verboten, so I did not take my camera aboard.  The photo here is an official Navy shot.

In the afternoon, we went across the base to the USS STARK Memorial for a service of remembrance for our departed shipmates. The weather was Mayport perfect...blue skies, gentle breezes, temps in the low 80s. The service was quite moving, and the reading of the long list of those who went before us, gave us all time to reflect on the tragedies our country continues to endure.

Tonight, we have have one final gala (after a water taxi ride across the river to attend a shorefront event).  Then we're off tomorrow to the next adventure: Tutu's High School reunion.

I have been reading, but just haven't been able to generate the energy to put together good reviews. So be patient book friends, they're coming.

Can you say "Sendak"?

Last week while I was cataloging new books for our library, I had to stop and read this one immediately. It's exquisite!! And sadly, it's the last gift we'll receive from Maurice Sendak.

How can you not love anything written by Maurice Sendak? This one takes only about 15 minutes to read, but will stay with you for the rest of your life.  An elegant tribute to love for his brother Jack, and for his life partner Eugene, this is truly (IMHO) his  tour du force...a journey back through tales of Shakespeare, and through a mind as imaginative and exploratory as any writer ever possessed. 

An ordinary review is impossible...it's only 32 pages...buy it, treasure it, read it, again and again. And when you go, be sure to bequeath it to someone you love.

Title: My Brother's Story

Author:  Maurice Sendak

Publisher: HarperCollins (2013), Edition: First Edition, Hardcover, 32 pages
Genre: farewell valedictory
Subject: life and love
Setting: Sendak's mind
Source: Library (but I subsequently bought one).
Why did I read this book now? Can you say "Sendak"?

Monday Mailbox

This month  Monday Mailbox  is being hosted by Mari at MariReads. The wonderful weekly meme gives us a chance to shout out books that have appeared in our mailboxes (real or virtual).  I haven't played the game in a while (it's a little hard for the UPS truck to get down our long windy driveway in the snow), but here are the ones that were delivered in the last two weeks.

Fonduing Fathers by Juli Hyzy was a contest win from Karen at Bookin' With Bingo.  I've read a couple of Hyzy's mysteries, love cozies, and having spent several years living just outside the DC beltway, I'm looking forward to this one. It's on the top of the summer reading list. 

White House executive chef Olivia Paras has enough on her plate. But after gaining new information about her father’s death, the First Family isn’t the only family Olivia is concerned about… Olivia has always believed that her father was an honorable man—until a trip to visit her mother reveals that he was dishonorably discharged from the army. Olivia is even more shocked to learn that he was brutally murdered because someone at his company suspected him of selling corporate secrets. Refusing to believe that her father was a scoundrel, Olivia won’t rest until she proves his innocence. Enlisting the help of her boyfriend, Gav, Olivia must reach out to her father’s colleagues to discover the truth behind his murder. What she’s about to discover may not only put her at risk, but threaten national security as well…

Miss Julia Stirs up Trouble. This latest in the delightful series by Ann B. Ross is scheduled for release by Viking/Penguin next week.  I received a review copy from the publisher, and will be running a giveaway toward the middle of April.  Stay tuned, because Miss Julia fans are not going to want to miss this one!

With a crisp bite in the air, Miss Julia is enjoying a well-earned respite by her new fireplace. But autumn leaves aren’t the only things falling: James, Hazel Marie’s housekeeper, has had a nasty tumble down some stairs. How can Hazel Marie feed and take care of him—not to mention a husband and two babies—when she barely knows how to boil water?

Miss Julia jumps in to help by convincing the ladies of Abbotsville to put on their aprons and give cooking lessons. With success so close she can taste it, Miss Julia isn’t thrilled when an unexpected visitor shows up. Brother Vern Puckett, Hazel Marie’s no-good uncle, started life on the wrong foot and stayed there. What could he possibly want from his frazzled niece this time?

With a delightful helping of madcap antics, Miss Julia Stirs Up Trouble is a perfect next course in this charming series.

 Darcy Scott, author of the fabulous debut novel Matinicus, an Island Mystery, has just published her next story in the series: Reese's Leap.   Maine Authors Publishing has sent me a review copy and I'm anxious to get to this one.  I loved the first (it was one of the most popular in our town library last year) and expect this one will be every bit as exciting and enjoyable.

In this much-anticipated sequel to the award-winning Matinicus, five longtime friends--briefly freed from their complex lives for an annual, all-female retreat on Adria Jackman's remote, 200-acre enclave of Mistake Island, Maine--are forced to put the partying on hold to host the hard-drinking, bachelor botanist, Gil Hodges, stranded there for what could be days. A hopeless womanizer, Gill is secretly pleased at the layover, but soon finds Mistake's deeply forested interior deceptively bucolic and the women a bit too intriguing for comfort, stirring both glorious memory and profound regret. When a ruthless, diabolical stranger appears out of nowhere, insinuating himself into the fold and bent on a twisted kind of revenge, it falls to Gil to keep the women safe, despite their dawning awareness that not everyone will make it off the island alive.

And finally,  Maine Authors Publishing also sent a review copy of Joel Chandler's debut crime novel The Fine Art of Murder.  I'm thinking May is going to be a marvelous mystery month with this many good ones stacking up.

 A murder is committed in an art gallery overnight by a copycat artist, using the same manner, technique and materials used by the artist whose work is on display. An art critic is convinced that the perpetrator has committed this murder, not because of the usual motives of revenge, anger, jealousy, greed, etc. but as a work of fine art in itself. If he is right, the key to discovering the anonymous murderer is to correctly attribute the work to an artist. A police detective is skeptical of the critic's assumptions and pursues the murder in her usual ways and finds a few suspects with compelling motives. The critic follows several preconceived ideas, assumptions, and false clues to no avail. Who will tag the murderer first? Meanwhile art students and faculty of nearby Boston art colleges are convinced that the person responsible, if an artist, will surely reveal himself on his own, and wanting credit and acclaim for a famous and major work of art, will eventually come forward and sign the work as his or her own.

So what was in your mailbox lately?  Next week, I'll let you take a peak at my virtual mailbox....it's been pretty full lately too.

Sunday Shoutout - Life and Reading don't always mesh

Let's hear it for a Sunday as a day of rest.  I have been so involved with Real Life that I didn't even get around to two very important posts last weekend, so I'm doing this one early and scheduling it for Sunday so I can truly have a day of doing NOTHING.

First,  a belated Happy Easter to all my Christian friends who celebrate this important holiday.  We had a very intense week of church services and choir practices starting with Palm Sunday (March 24th) and ending on Easter Sunday.  I had choir practice and/or church service every night that week with the exception of the Tuesday nite when we had our annual TOWN MEETING here in Maine.  I love the dynamics of the Town Meeting form of government.  The town is the legistlative body.  The town passes the budget, the town elects its officials for the year, and decides what projects to undertake.  A lot of people went to a lot of trouble putting together a very well developed budget and ordnances making it a relatively painless experience.  It took only two hours to get everything voted on.



The other important post I missed (again this year) was to mention that March 29th was my 4th blogoversary.  I  started this adventure in March 2009, and have enjoyed every minute of being able to blab about books, travel, and life in Maine.  I look forward to having all my wonderful followers tagging along for another year or two or three or more.....

Last week I also did a lot of work on my upcoming class reunion.  I managed to complete the 50 page memory book, inserting biographical sketches and updated photos my classmates sent and getting the booklet to the printer on time.  I picked up the finished pages, collated them with front and back covers, and they are now packed and ready to go in my car when we leave later this week.

 I've been reading a lot of really good books for a special project, and should be ready to blog about them and the project itself later this month.

And finally, under the good news/bad news column,  I managed to kill my MP3 while swimming last Monday.  It appears that the waterproof pouch only works if the user LOCKS the pouch closed.  When this vital step is overlooked, water pours in and the electronic device says "Too bad, so sad, I'm not going to work any more."    AARGH..............I cannot live without my audio books, so I quickly ordered a much cheaper and less fancy model online, paid for next day delivery, and had resigned myself to having to re-learn a new set of controls and menus.  In the meantime, just for chuckles, I put the drowned unit in a big ziplock bag of rice, and left it.  On Wednesday, after my new MP3 arrived, and I went to get my charging cord, I discovered that the old one had an Easter moment and had returned from the dead.  I now have two (port and starboard as we say here in sailor land) ---great deal because now I can have one charging while I listen to the other.  A better Easter present than all the Chocolate bunnies in the world.

The rest of the month will be exciting - two reunions to attend: one a ship reunion in Florida, the other a high school reunion in Baltimore.  I promise to take pictures, and a Kindle and a Nook and at least one MP3 so I can get some reading done in the car and on the planes.

Have a wonderful week.

Review: Keeping up with mystery series

As most of you know, when the going gets tough, Tutu turns to mysteries, particularly those that come in series. Recently, I've discovered these two, and can't seem to stop reading them.


Title: A Dedicated Man
Author: Peter Robinson
Publisher: Scribner (2001) , 352 pages
Genre: mystery -  police procedural
Subject: murder
Setting: Yorkshire England
Series: Inspector Peter Banks
Source: Public Library
Why did I read this book now? A friend recommended the series.

Peter Robinson published the first Inspector Banks mystery back in 1988.  Since then, there have a been many more- the 21st was just published in January of this year!   Since Dedicated Man is only #2, I have a ways to go, but I am already excited when I know that I can look forward to meeting characters who grow with each book.  It's refreshing to be able to read an "old-fashioned" mystery story - no instant DNA analysis, no cell-phones, no CSI, etc.  Banks is a steady, sure and intelligent plotter of facts, a listener who puts as much faith in what he doesn't hear from those he's interviewing as in what they say.  His solving of the puzzle is not instantaneous, but rather slow, measured, and finally correct.  It's a series I'm definitely going to continue.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Title: The House at Seas End

Author: Elly Griffiths

Publisher: Mariner Books paperback reprint 2012, 384 pages;

      also audio : Audio Go Ltd, 2011 10 hrs, 45 min

Genre: mystery - forensic detective work

Subject: unidentified bones

Setting: Norfolk England

Series: Ruth Galloway

Source: public library

Why did I read this book now? I'm hooked on this series.

Elly Griffith's Ruth Galloway series has been compared to Kathy Reichs' books, although I like Ruth much better than Temperance Brennan.  Ruth is middle-aged and overweight, an academic, a forensic archaeologist with a precocious one year old daughter (Kate) and no husband. The only reason she's excited to be involved with police work is her attraction to Kate's father Harry Nelson, who is married to a drop-dead gorgeous woman he's still in love with.  The Norfolk England setting in the salt-marshes is fantastic, the range of characters from professors, to detectives, to druids, to English aristocracy, makes for a wonderful blend of motives, raising red-herrings galore as Ruth and Nelson try to ascertain the origin of six skeletons unearthed on a ragged cliff overlooking the sea.  Were they German soldiers?  Did they invade during World War II?  How did they come to be buried in this spot?  Great suspense, wonderful human interest, and you bet I'm looking forward to the next one because she has a 5th coming out later this year!

Review and a Giveaway: Constance Harding's (Rather) Startling Year by Ceri Radfords

The publisher sent me this one for review enticing me by saying

CONSTANCE HARDING’S (RATHER) STARTLING YEAR hilariously observes what happens when a delightfully oblivious Surrey housewife—think Bridget Jones’s insanely daffy mother—pulls back the curtain on her chintz-covered domestic fairy tale and goes in search of a life of her own. Constance has filled her time leading a bell-ringing club on Tuesday evenings, and concocting ways to get her son Rupert to settle down and her daughter Sophie to wear appropriate clothing and snag a smart man. But like it or not, change is in the air. Constance is about to learn that her perfect home conceals a scandal that would make the vicar blush. Her Lithuanian housekeeper's polyester underwear keeps appearing in her husband's study, and her husband is—well, let’s just say his career is going south—all the way to South America. But as Constance’s family life seems to be falling apart, she begins to discover a whole new side of both herself and the world around her. And she’s putting it all in her blog-thingy. Side-splittingly funny, CONSTANCE HARDING’S (RATHER) STARTLING YEAR is a witty, sharply observed and relatable tale of one woman’s midlife crisis and self-discovery (well, sort of).

 I really enjoyed this one.  I'm a huge fan of Brit-lit, and this one just pushed my giggle button.  The main character reminded me immensely of Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced "Bouquet") in the BBC comedy "Keeping up Appearances."  In the beginning at least, Constance Harding doesn't handle change well (or maybe not at all.)  She is almost too oblivious to be believable, but in the meantime, her snooty attitude, and lack of comprehension about what is happening all around her, leave readers shaking their heads, laughing at her interpretations of events, and just snorting out loud at some of the situations described. It is written as a series of blog posts, and Constance doesn't seem to understand that the world is reading her blog!!!

If you are a fan of Brit-lit, or British comedies, this one is for you. It's a quick, fun read. It was published last year (under the title A Surrey State of Affairs),in Britain, and is now available in paperback.  Viking/Penguin has offered a copy for me to give away to some lucky reader.  If you'd like a chance to win this one, just leave me a comment with your email.  I'll pick a winner on April 25th.

Title: Constance Harding's (Rather) Startling Year
Author: Ceri Radford
Publisher: Viking/Penguin (2013) trade paperback, 288 pages
Genre: Fiction
Subject: changing mores
Source: ARC from publisher
Why did I read this book now? The publisher asked me to review it and it sounded like fun.

Review: What My Mother Gave Me

I enjoy short stories and was prepared to like this collection enormously. Some of my favorite women authors are represented in this collection--Joyce Carol Oates, Eleanor Clift, Luanne Rice, and Lisa See to name a few. The thirty-one contributors were asked to relate stories about their relationships with their mothers. Some were touching, others seemed a bit contrived. I especially loved Oates' description of the multi-colored patchwork quilt her mother had given her and how she would curl up with it during the terrible period of her first husband's illness and subsequent unexpected death. I could almost picture a small child clutching a "lovey".

The premise behind the collection is a good one, the stories are short and easy to read, even if their quality is a bit spotty. It speaks of tangible inheritances, such as jewelry and horses, to more ethereal but just as long-lasting gifts of life lessons, such as when Eleanor Clift says "On the surface, my mother was a deferential housewife, but she shared her secret weapon with me when I was still a girl: 'Do what you want to do. Just don't talk about it.'"

It is a book that would be a lovely gift to exchange between mothers and daughters.

Title: What My Mother Gave me : Thirty One Women on the Gifts That Mattered Most
Author: Edited by Elizabeth Benedict
Publisher: Algonquin Books (2013)
Genre: short stories
Subject: mother-daughter relations
Source: egalley from publisher via Net Galley
Why did I read this book now? I like the genre, and the cover grabbed me.

Many thanks to the publisher for making a copy available for review.

Review - Summers in Supino: Becoming Italian by Maria Coletta McLean

Due out today, just in time for spring and getting ready for summer reading.  This surprising memoir brings much more than travel, food, and scenery.  I expected it would be about another American couple who decided to go back to the old country and how they dealt with the language and culture differences and the difficulties they occasioned.  Instead, I got a warm, loving, bittersweet story of a Canadian couple returning to an Italian  home they've had for years, and the growing affection they felt for the village and its people: an affection that was obviously reciprocated.

Maria Coletta McLean's father came to Canada from the village of Supino.  When she married Bob McLean, she and her Italian family embarked on a mission to help Bob become Italian.  Later, she and Bob purchased a small home in Supino to take her father home again before he died.  Her earlier book " My Father Came from Italy" published in 2011, gives the backfill.  However, I didn't feel I needed to read the earlier one to enjoy this one.

The heart-warming stories of how the Canadians (the becoming Italians) learn the pace of life in this tiny village, how to deal with electric companies, narrow streets, bathrooms that are only accessible by going outside and then coming in another door, village shopping, festas, and an entire cast of lovable, eccentric (to our eyes) characters who guide them on the journey of acculturation. Each summer, they stay a little longer, and each year the pull of staying permanently grows stronger.  Bob, who runs a coffee roasting business in Toronto, finally decides he wants to open a coffee shop in the village.

When they return to Toronto to begin preparations for this momentous step, the story takes an unexpected and heart-stopping twist.  Maria Coletta McLean's beautiful tribute to her husband, her family (both Canadian and Italian) is much more than a summer read.  It's a memoir of love, loss and comfort.  A definite cut above the average travel diaglogue.And  I'm definitely going to go read the first one.

Many thanks to ECW Press for making the galley available for review.

Title: Summers in Supino
Author: Maria Coletta McLean
Publisher: ECW Press
Genre: Memoir
Subject: intercultural living
Setting: Supino Italy
Source: E-book ARC from publisher via Net Galley
Why did I read this book now?  My father was Italian....what more do I need to say?

Sunday - 24th The First Sunday of Spring

Early this week, the calendar said we had turned from winter into spring.  However, you'd never have guessed that if you work up here in MidCoast Maine that first morning of spring 2013. Here's what we saw when we pulled open the curtains!! We had between 10 and 12" of new gorgeous heavy snow coating everything.  The sunshine was brilliant, the sky was pure blue, and fortunately the wind was almost non-existent.  The intrepid members of our book discussion group refused to let me cancel book club, so Mr. Tutu and another librarian's hubster volunteered to shovel off the steps and walk, the plowman came and cleaned up  the parking lot and we met to discuss Geraldine Brook's wonderful book Caleb's Crossing.  If you click on the link you can see my review from last year.  To a member they all enjoyed the book, and agreed that we were happy we kept to our schedule.


I'm still doing a lot of deep reading for a Maine state reading project I'll tell you all about next month.  In the
meantime, I'm trying to sprinkle in some ARCs from Net Galley but those reviews have to be released at pub dates - all of which are in the next month or so.  In between, I turn to my favorite comfort reads - mysteries and cozies to give my brain some time to decompress, relax and enjoy a good twisty turny who-dunnit.

I read another Cork O'Connor - Purgatory Ridge by William Kent Krueger
I've only read two so far, but am now sufficiently hooked that I can simply say that if you like Tony Hillerman, Nevada Barr, Margaret Coel, or any other Native American, off in the wilderness, semi-police-game warden-local sheriff-boy meets bear kinda stories, with strong women characters, some very green story lines, and wonderful scenic backgrounds, this series will appeal to you. I'm certainly enjoying them, and watching the relationships ebb and flow, the crooks get caught, and reacting strongly to surprise twists and turns. As Mikey used to say in the cereal commericals: "Try it---you'll like it."


 I also just downloaded the third in Elly Griffith's Ruth Galloway series, so I'll be listening to that in the pool this week.

And today is Palm Sunday in the Christian Calendar, so I'll be spending almost my entire week at church since I'm in the choir.  Not too much reading is going to get done but I'll be feeling good about doing something worthwhile that I like.  Perhaps, spring will really burst forth for Easter!

Gallows View: An Inspector Banks mystery

A new series for Tutu.......you know by now how mysteries are my favorite comfort read genre and once I find one that has a promising kick-off I'm usually lining up for more.  One could almost call this one a cozy-- set in England where Detective Inspector Banks has moved from London to York in search of a less hectic workload and lifestyle.  There are lots of things to like about this book:  there is a wide range of characters, from the peeping Tom to an attractive police psychologist who is called in the help solve some of the crimes.  Banks gets along well with his boss, who seems a nice enough chap, he adores his wife, he's committed to solving crimes, and all around we see people and relationships that work.

The plot revolves around two different crimes - the peeping Tom and a murder (or is it a series of crimes?)  At times, Robinson leads us to believe that they might be connected.  And when Bank's wife becomes a victim, the action really picks up.  The York setting is pleasant, but very much in the background.  All in all, this series looks like one that has potential to catch and hold a reader's attention for at least 2 or 3 more books, without causing lack of sleep or great anxiety.  The series currently has over 20 volumes, so if I go for the whole set, I think I'll be reading these for awhile.  I have the 2nd one primed to listen to in audio later this month, and will let you know if it lives up to expectations.


Title: Gallows View
Author: Peter Robinson
Publisher: Scribner New York (1990) 225 pg.
Genre: mystery - police procedural
Subject: murder, peeping toms
Setting: York England
Series: Inspector Banks Mystery
Source: Public library
Why did I read this book now?  It was recommended by a friend

Review: Billy Lynn's Long Half-time Walk by Ben Fountain

Billy Flynn's Long Half-time Walk, by Ben Fountain - a finalist on the 2012 National Book Award list was not at all what I thought it was going to be.  I'm not sure what I expected.  I think I was expecting yet another "shoot 'em up" war book.  So this was a (dare I say?) delightful surprise.   Billy Lynn is a member of Bravo company, a group of young soldiers currently on a "victory tour" around the United States to celebrate their now famous actions in a fire-fight in the war in the Middle East.  Their unit just happened to have a FOX news reporter embedded and his footage and report of the battle made instant heroes of this band of brothers --so says the publisher's cover flap blurb.

A story of growing up, not a war story, but a novel of exquisite sensitivity about how heroism and  patriotism can be very different entities when viewed through the lens of the hero and patriot as opposed to the eyes of the grateful nation's stay at home, football fanatic, rock star worshipping citizens of the good Ole U. S.of A.

We meet Billy and his buddies as their victory tour draws to a close, when they are slated to be part of the half-time show on Thanksgiving Day at the Dallas Cowboy football game.  Billy, a Silver-Star recipient for his part in the battle, and a Texas native, has just finished a 2 day visit with his family and is struggling to reconcile his sense of forboding about returning to the war, along with his desire to take his sister's offer to help him run-away with a pacifist group who promise to hide him safely from legal action.  He's had a chance to reflect on conversations with his best friend, who died in his arms.  He's unimpressed with the Hollywood agent's offer to sell their story for $100K each - especially when the deal never seems to be quite finished.  In short, he is fine tuning a healthy cynicism and skepticism about everything happening in his just beginning to form adult world.

At the stadium, the group is introduced to a plethora of Texas big-wigs, a gorgeous born-again cheerleader, and some rather clueless football players.   Ben Fountain's incredible writing has kept this group from becoming cardboard stereotypes of both sides of the patriotism coin.  Billy and his buddies soon realize they are propoganda pawns, and that no one is really interested in them as individuals, except their Sergeant who tries to keep them together physically and mentally.  Billy and his cohorts react to this emotional and philosophical overload by drinking, fighting, and generally acting like the scared but brave heroes they really are.

This is a raw and unvarnished devastating look at an unpopular war.  Fountain manages however, to separate the issues of those who fought the war from the issues of war itself.  Many have compared this to Catch 22, and M.A.S.H. where the combatants and participants are looking at events through totally different lenses than the planners, plotters, and politicians.  The novel is certainly destined to be regarded as a classic, and will be one I'll re-read more than once.  It will absolutely be one of my top ten reads of this year, and should be on any list of top books of 2012 (the year it was published.)

Title: Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
Author: Ben Fountain
Publisher: ECCO, an imprint of Harper Collins (2012)  307 pages
Genre: War fiction
Subject: Psychological damage of war
Setting: Dallas Texas
Source: Review copy from publisher

Sunday Shout-Out: St. Patrick's Day

 Happy Saint Paddy's Day!

Welcome to Sunday Sound-Off, a regular weekly posting about my reading life, my other than reading life, and life in general in Maine. I also encourage you to drop a comment sounding off about your week, your gripes, your reading life, etc.

During my few minutes of free time in the past several weeks, I've been listening to a couple of my favorite mystery writers. 

I finished the Rose Connor series featuring attorney Marty Nickerson.  False Testimony was every bit as good as the earlier three in the series.  I haven't seen any information that there are any more forthcoming, but I would certainly welcome another.  Marty Nickerson is a sharp, empathetic, decidedly human defense attorney.  Her relationships with her staff, her clients, her adversaries are sharply described and deftly handled by this talented author.  In this story echoing a famous case in DC in the past several years, a US Senator is a "person of interest" in the disappearance of a young female aide. Marty must tiptoe through the legal minefield while trying to figure out what really happened.  Several plot twists along with a very realistic dialogue make this one a winner.

Last fall I was introduced to Elly Griffiths' exciting Ruth Galloway mysteries.  I finished the first one and vowed that I would keep reading in the series.  I put #2 on hold at the local library for an audio download, and finally got that one available in my account in February.   The Janus Stone was very cleverly done.  It definitely builds on the first book, but provides enough back fill to help any reader who starts with this one.  Ruth Galloway is a forensic archaeologist who specializes in bones.  The author is skillful in mixing old Celtic and Roman history with modern day technology, dating methodology, and historic research.  In this story, there is an unidentified headless skeleton that obviously is that of a murdered child.There are several possibilities for the identify, and several suspects from different areas of the country, from different time periods, and with different motivations. There are gory theories, but little actual gore.  There are scary claustrophobic episodes, but they are not enough to turn off this queen of the claustrophobics.  I especially like the way Ruth's private life is highlighted, but not allowed to get in the way of solving the murder and the mystery.  In fact, the timing of events in her life is such that I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series, because something has to give soon. Even with a very thoughtful and thought-provoking ending that seemingly resolves many of the issues Ruth is dealing with, there is still plenty to look forward to in the next book in the series. I've already got it on reserve.

For next week I've got several in the mix:

I'm reading a fun Brit-lit....Constance Harding's (Rather) Startling Year originally published in Britain in 2011, now coming to a bookstore near you.  This is laugh-out-loud fun. I needed something to lighten the mood from some of the others I just finished earlier this week (reviews to come).  Written in the format of a series of blog posts (how fun is that?) it captured me immediately.  Just perfect for quick reading in short spurts, and incredibly amusing.

I've got a delightful ARC on my NOOK : What My Mother Gave Me by Elizabeth Benedict.  It's a memoir about mother/daughter relationships. I've just started it, and I'm enchanted.  It's due out in April, and the publisher says

In What My Mother Gave Me, women look at the relationships between mothers and daughters through a new lens: a daughter’s story of a gift from her mother that has touched her to the bone and served as a model, a metaphor, or a touchstone in her own life. The contributors of these thirty-one original pieces include Pulitzer Prize winners, perennial bestselling novelists, and celebrated broadcast journalists.
      Whether a gift was meant to keep a daughter warm, put a roof over her head, instruct her in the ways of womanhood, encourage her talents, or just remind her of a mother’s love, each story gets to the heart of a relationship.

I'm listening to (and reading the hard copy) another best seller - Canada by Richard Ford  This is a fairly hefty one but it's going pretty well being able to go back and forth, so I'm not losing too much time when I can't be sitting down reading (like driving, swimming, folding clothes, etc).  Of course, I just got to page 200 (Part II) where the word CANADA is finally mentioned. It was a slow but steady build up to this point...a really engrossing read.

I'm  making some progress on my Lenten reading - although Real Life keeps getting in the way.  I did find that  Dermaid McCullogh did a series for the BBC based on his Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years that is available through Netflix.  We've watched the first installment, and have the second one scheduled for this week. It is making me more than ever want to snuggle down into this work. I've finished about 70 pages and find it fascinating but it's daunting to think about almost another 1100 to go!

Well we have been promised a Sunday Without Snow (doesn't that sound like a book title?) even though the temperature is supposed to be rather frigid.  I'm looking forward to a short walk in the fresh air, and then an afternoon in front of the fire with the corned beef, cabbage and potatoes in the slo cooker, and the Irish Soda bread warming in the oven. 

Enjoy your St. Paddy's Day!

Sunday Shout Out - March 10th

Wow, I can't even seem to get a weekly post done on time.  This one's been sitting half done for over two weeks.  I have been reading, but as I mentioned in January, I knew this was going to be a busy couple months.  I got the library's annual report done, I started on my taxes, I'm working diligently on compiling the high school class's memory book for the reunion in April, and I'm holding down the fort at the local library.

I'm also involved in a huge reading project that I can't say too much about yet, but it's consuming a lot of my reading and listening time.  In the meantime, here's some of what's been on my book menu lately:

Last week our book club met to discuss Annie Freeman's Fabulous Traveling Funeral, the story of a woman who plans her own funeral before she dies, makes all the arrangements and then has her ashes and instructions sent to her best friend who must then contact four other close friends to conduct Annie's traveling funeral.  I read this one several years ago, and found I had a different perspective the second time through.  Our book club discussed whether the reaction to the book is based on the age of the reader, or it just wasn't as deep as I initially thought it was.  It was chick-lit with a bitter-sweet message.  As I read of friends reminiscing about their experiences together, I was also reading through short bios my classmates have been sending for our memory book.  One of the questions we asked the members of our class was to tell us their fondest memories.  There were some eerily similar outlooks in those bios with the vignettes in Annie Freeman.  This is a book worth picking up if you come across it.  There are laugh out loud parts, and grab your kleenex moments.  But then, isn't that what life is all about?

I also spent some audio time listening to the next installment in William Kent Krueger's Cork O'connor Series: Boundary Waters. This is going to grow to be a series I'm not going to want to stop too soon. A bit too many twists and turns, but still good enough to keep me marching on with reading this series. It was difficult to follow in a couple places since I'm not a kayak/canoe/cabin in the woods/thousands of rivers and lakes person. The characters were well drawn, the plot was quite suspenseful. All in all worth the time. In fact, I just downloaded #3 Purgatory Ridge as my next swimming read.

For about a week, I wallowed in the glorious prose of Jumpa Lahiri's Pulitzer Prize winning collection of short stories: Interpreter of Maladies. This is one of my favorite genres, and this book has been on MT TOOBIE way too long. There have been reviews galore written about it, so I won't waste your time with the details. Suffice it to say, they are exquisite short but well-developed character studies of Indian immigrants, or children of immigrants, living in America, struggling to reconcile the traditions of their culture with their desire to fit in and become American. A book that will remain in my permanent collection and be picked up for another look-see in the future. I've already added several others of Ms. Lahiri's works to my ever-growing pile of reading delights to look forward to.

Review: The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout

Title:  The Burgess Boys
Author: Elizabeth Strout
Publisher: Random House (pub date Mar 26,2013) 336 pages
Genre: Literary fiction
Subject: Family relationships
Setting: New York, Maine
Source: Publisher ARC from Early Review Program at LibraryThing.com  
Why did I read this book now?  Love the author and couldn't wait.

Elizabeth Strout's newest story The Burgess Boys is, if possible, even better than her Pulitzer winning effort Olive Kitteridge.  She based her story on an actual incident that occurred in Lewiston Maine in July 2006 where someone threw a frozen pig's head into a mosque full of worshippers.  The perpetrator claimed it was meant to be a joke, and the police treated it as a misdemeanor.

Strout frames her story on the Burgess family - adult brothers Jim and Bob, both attorneys, sister Susan (Bob's twin) and Susan's son Zach who throws the pig. The authorities are determined to bring hate crime charges against Zach. As the issues of assimilating Somali immigrants into the community swirl, and as the family becomes embroiled in resolving deep seated sibling rivalries, ruined marriages, and the different perspectives of various family members: Mainers vs those who are "from away" we get a true picture of life in Maine today.

Jim, a highly successful New York corporate attorney, wants nothing more to do with Maine.  Brother Bob plods away as a public advocate in New York, basking in his brother's light, enjoying family life vicariously through Jim's family, but remaining in touch with his ex-wife.  Neither brother wants to return to Maine, and neither is in close contact with sister Susan who ekes out an existance as a single parent (her ex lives in Sweden) in their hometown of Shirley Falls Maine.  Zach, a recluse and troubled adolescent, inadvertently sets a firestorm of family emotions into action when his actions lead his mother to call on her brothers to help keep Zach out of jail.

Elizabeth Strout has given us an deeply moving portrait of a family dealing with painful and buried memories, of a community dealing with a diversity of cultures unknown to heretofor all white Maine, and of legal issues that can become exacerbated by misunderstanding, lack of knowledge and fear of the unknown.  The characters in this one are even more sharply drawn than those in Olive Kitteridge.  The story is clear, crisp, at times bluntly cruel, but always empathetic towards the feelings and issues swirling around having a large group of "different" people suddenly inserted into a community that was not prepared for them, and for which they (the refugees) were also unprepared.

How the Burgess boys deal with their sister, their painful childhood memories and  their failing marriages, how the community deals with issues of racial, religious and cultural diversity, and how a single mom deals with a troubled teen-ager are inter-woven threads of a magnificent novel. I consider Elizabeth Strout one of Maine's treasures. I want to own and read anything she does. Her prose is like a painting of Maine: painfully blunt, colorful, windy, soothing, sunny, rainy, etc. Exquisite.  It's sure to make of the best of the best lists of the year!

Many thanks to Random House for making this available through LibraryThing.com's Early Reviewer program.

Review: Out of Nowhere by Maria Padian

An insightful look at the issues facing teens in America today: diversity, security, cyber-bullying, racism, sexism, substance abuse, overbearing parents. In fact, these are issues that are also being dealt with by the adults in our world which is precisely why I hesitated to catalog this book in the Young Adult section. I'm ready to get another copy and shelve in the adult section too.

In addition, while I love the Maine setting (and know that the story is based on very true situations here in Maine) this could be a story happening anyplace. Tom Bouchard, a high school senior, from a working class family of Franco-Americans who were themselves immigrants, is captain of the soccer team, all-around All American,  a girl loving white teenager who explains the problem early on:

 You gotta wonder who the genius was that came up with the plan to put a bunch of Africans in Maine, the coldest whitest state in America. Ok, maybe Alaska is colder, but not whiter.....our town wasn't ever anybody's first bright idea.  We'd gotten what's called a "secondary migration".....Anyway just about the time a bunch of Muslims took out the Twin Towers, a bunch of  Somali Muslims started seriously secondary-migrating here. (pp. 8-9).

This isn't just a book about how white teen-agers deal with "others".  It's also about issues faced by young adult Muslims trying to live, learn, and settle in post 9/11 America in a town that was totally unprepared to help them. It wasn't necessarily a lack of desire to learn or help on either side.  The issues were timing, resources, and a huge information gap. The story is not just about religious differences, it's about intolerance learned from parents, it's about a town coping with chance happening faster than can be handled.  It's about friendship, cultural diversity, poor parenting, good parenting, coaches, mentors, role models, fear of the unknown, bullying, courage, and the coming of age of an entire community - black and white.  It shows a town with all its warts, all its strengths, and offers hope for the triumph of wisdom and humanity over prejudice, ignorance and mean-ness.

The story is wonderfully crafted, sensitively written, heart-breaking, funny, affirming, discouraging and grand. The sports settings, high school pranks, hallway antics are all entwined with religious celebrations, teenage rites of passage, and encounters with the criminal justice system.  It is a book destined to be on many high school reading lists next year.  I just wonder if there isn't a way to require the parents, and all thinking adults to read it.  Although written and published as a Young Adult book, it's definitely worth a grown-up read.

Title: Out of Nowhere
Author: Maria Paladian
Publisher: Random House Children's Books (2012)  348 pages
Genre: Young Adult Fiction - coming of age
Subject: Diversity, racism, Muslim refugees
Setting: Enniston Maine
Source: e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley
Why did I read this book now? I was offered a review copy and was attracted to the setting.

Review: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

The actual book cover glows in the dark! Too bad I can't get it to do that on the blog! This is a weird book. I'd say it's "Harry Potter meets the DaVinci Code" weird. I read the whole thing. I kept reading to see if somewhere along the line I'd get it. But I didn't. I think it's the story of a young man, Clay Jannon, recently laid off from his advertising job, who starts out working the 10PM to 6AM shift in Mr. Penumbra's book store. When he is hired, he is told that under no circumstances may he open or look into any of the books. He must keep a journal/log of EVERYTHING that happens while he is there. And borrowers (not buyers???) must have a membership card.  Nights are long, alternating between boredom and absolute lunacy.

Coming from a web design and advertising background, Clay decides that Mr. Penumbra isn't getting enough business and trys to find ways to attract more customers. Having grabbed one of his "e coupons" while she was waiting for a bus at the corner, geek girl Ashley enters his life. By then Clay and another friend have also taken an illicit peek at the contents of this multi-storied - accessible only by ladder- book collection and decided there is something secret and coded going on with the "members" of the book store and the strange volumes with only roman numerals on the spine.   Ashley works for Google, and together with an entire cast of "today" characters, and secret forays into the code busting capabilities of Google's machines, they set out to discover Mr. Penumbra's secrets, and help him.

I wish I knew what they were helping him with.  It was at this point I got lost. I suspect that readers who are into Google, Microsoft, code, web pages, and secrets will love this book.  I suspect that it's one you either get or you don't.  The writing is fun, clear and if you understand the plot, you won't have trouble with it.  If you enjoy fantasy, and perhaps some contemporary science writing, you'll love this.  There appear to be several layers, focusing somehow on the war between digital and print publishing, between paper and ebooks. I suspect it may take some of us more than one read to get everything out of it, and I intend to give it another try sometime in the future. For now, I'll let others delve into the story and perhaps explain it to me.

Did I mention that the cover glows in the dark?

Title: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
Author: Robin Sloan
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (2012), Edition: First Edition, Hardcover, 304 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Subject:Books, technology
Setting: San Francisco, New York
Source: Public library