Small Treasons by Mark Powell

PageHabit (formerly Bookly Box) Subscription - June - Literary Fiction

What a dark book.  In both big and small ways.  Check out this quote:  "...but somehow they ate nothing but strawberries, a pint of them in their plastic coffin..." Yikes.

I'm still deciding if I liked the book or not.  I was first distracted by what is a trademark thing for the PageHabit books; post-it notes from the author interspersed in the book.  The post-it notes themselves aren't distracting, but Powell would have a post-it note referencing something that didn't actually happen for several pages later, so it was more the confusion of the post-it note placement!

The book was a struggle to read as Powell had a prose-like, stream of conscious writing that at times I lost both the plot and any message that he was trying to convey (or maybe he wasn't).  For awhile the book dragged quite a bit due to this, but the last 1/4 gathered speed and suspense as he tried to reign in and tie up the plot lines.  As much as I could stay on target, I think he did.

Without giving too much of this book away, it was a dark and depressing read and all too real in today's world of terrorism.  The book has gotten stellar reviews on Goodreads and Amazon, so I question if my reluctance to "like" the book is more based on my own dark dwelling of the state of our world.

Quotes:  "She knew now her mistake was too quickly abandoning her new life, rushing into marriage, giving herself away before there was a self to give."

"Grief....Suffering, but to a particular end.  Suffering as a means of revelation.  There's a secret, John.  You said so yourself.  It's locked inside all of us and it takes trauma to bring it out....The necessity of suffering, the revelatory nature of it."

No One Can Pronounce My Name by Rakesh Satyal

Bookly Box Subscription - May - Literary Fiction

There were many things I liked about this book - the Indian/Hindu culture, the honest and real LGBTQ characters (not token/comedic), the chapters volleying the focus on a different character yet bringing them all together.

While I didn't fall in love with any one character or even the book itself, I did come to care about all of them.  There was a flow, almost prose to Satyal's writing that made it fairly easy and enjoyable to read.  Yet, I find it to probably be a more forgettable read without it being the typical fluff book/mind cleanse/guilty pleasure type of book.

While I didn't mark any standout quotes, there were passages that resonated with me in regards to creating and being responsible for your own happiness,  living for yourself and accepting yourself.

The Murder of Mary Russell by Laurie R. King

Series

The 14th and final (?) in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series??

I don't want to give too much away in this review; overall I liked it.  There was a mystery, there were red herrings and there was a wrap-up to tie everything up at the end.  But I hadn't read the book jacket or reviews so I was completely surprised by the direction we went in.  While I enjoyed it, I do hope this is not how Ms. King chooses to end the series.

Quote:  "...men did find it so titillating when a woman was performing an act they considered their own"

Marlene by Julie Buntin

Bookly Box Subscription - April - Literary Fiction

Not exactly what I was expecting, and with some hesitation I say I liked the book.  It was a slow crescendo of character development to the "climax", though in the end it was rather anti-climatic.  I did struggle with some of the timeline.  The chapters alternated between present and past, but the narrator interjected the past with her present day thoughts which at times, was confusing.

I think the draw to this book is the reader's connection to the tumultuous times as a teenager.  Wanting to be liked, the difficulties of body image, the good girl wanting to be bad, first romances/crushes, teenage girl friendships that you presume will last forever.

I think I liked this book because it took me down memory lane, not that my teenage years reflected those of Cat or Marlena, but the emotional roller coaster of those times.  I closed the book feeling very melancholy.

Quotes: "Privilege is something to be aware of, to fight to see beyond, but ultimately to be grateful for.  It's like a bulletproof vest, it makes you harder to kill.:

"..so many people cultivate that air of intensity cut with indifference"

"She thought marriage was a 'manly' and offensive concept"

"When you grow up, who you were as a teenager either takes on a mythical importance or its completely laughable"

"Now it strikes me as a profoundly American thing - an epidemic that started as an abuse of the cure, a disease we made ourselves"

"...because I was still here.  I was right here, where he'd left me."

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

2017 Reading Challenge - Read a Fantasy Novel

I'm not much one for fantasy novels.  Lord of the Rings, Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones), Twilight - I have no desire to read any of them.  The sole reason I even had this book on my shelves is because the author was only 15 when he wrote it.  That alone intrigued me.  And like many other books it sat on my shelf patiently waiting to be read.  Thankfully, due to this challenge, it no longer had to wait!  At 500 pages, I was leary about choosing it for the June challenge of fantasy read, (but I only have few fantasy books on my shelves!) but I'm SO glad I did!!  A well-written book for a 15 year old (yet, he graduated high school at 15, so this was no average teenager).  I didn't allow myself to get caught up in the frustrations I have had in the fantasy genre - understanding and/or picturing a purely fantastical, imaginative world.  I simply went with it.  The character development of Eragon has you cheering for him at every obstacle, and the dragon....well, let's just say that in addition to a skunk (favorite childhood animal), an elephant (read Modoc), and a pig (read The Good Good Pig), I now want a dragon!  Paolini's descriptions of the dragon and the fictional landscape are gorgeous!

I have seen reviews of this book that are all over the map from 1 star to 5.  Many claiming it is a mishmash of Star Wars and LOTR rather than an original plot all its own.  I rarely take reviews into account when selecting or reading a book (yet here I am writing one!), but I do peruse them upon completion and it always amazes me the vast spectrum the reviews cover - lovers and haters alike, just proving once again that reading is completely subjective and all that really matters is if YOU enjoyed the book and gained pleasure, insight, and/or an emotional connection to the book.

So, now of course I want to read the rest of the series (4 in total) and I already have Eldest, again patiently waiting on my shelves for years now, yet each sequel increases in pages!!  Eldest is a tome of 704 pages!!  Gonna have to do some bicep curls so I can read and walk with that one!!!

Quotes:  "Keep in mind that many people have died for their beliefs; its actually quite common. The real courage is believing and suffering for what you believe."

"Lastly, a very special thanks to my characters who bravely face the dangers I force them to confront and without whom I wouldn't have a story." (author's acknowledgments)

Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

2017 Reading Challenge - Read a book that is set more than 5,000 miles from your location

What a gem of a book!  A quick read in a unique format of emails, blog posts, announcements, etc. with interjections by the narrator, Bee.  Funny quips, heartfelt sentiments, descriptive writing and dysfunction - lots of dysfunction.  Characters to fall in love with, to hate, to find redemption and to miss when you close the book.  A book to remind you that it's not okay to lose YOU in the midst of the complications of life - that knowing you and being true to you is the only way life makes sense.

Quote: "My heart started racing, not the bad kind of heart racing, like I'm going to die.  But the good kind of heart racing, like, Hello, can I help you with something?  If not, please step aside because I'm about to kick the shit out of life"

The Mysteries of Pittsburgh by Michael Chabon

2017 Reading Challenge - Read a book that is set within 100 miles of your location.

Since I live 13 miles from a big city (Pittsburgh), this challenge proved to be fairly easy to find a book, as there are a handful of novels set in Pittsburgh.  I've read The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay and enjoyed that one so I was looking forward to reading another Chabon.  Unfortunately, I cared less for this one, his first novel.

It is a coming of age novel, and while I appreciate the time period in which the novel was first published (1988) and the introduction of a homosexual character, I never really connected to any of the characters and their struggles.

With just shy of 300 pages it was a quick and fairly easy read, and I enjoyed recognizing streets and landmarks mentioned throughout the book, but I can't say that any of the characters will live with me.

Wicked by Gregory Maguire

2017 Reading Challenge - Read a Book You've Read Before

This month's challenge was really hard for me, as I rarely re-read books (I have TOO many books I've not read once!).  I didn't want to pick an all-time favorite (almost any Jodi Picoult, Language of Flowers, Me and Emma), nor an easy read such as Patterson or Clark, but something that I could glean new thoughts, feelings, etc. with a second reading.  I toyed with re-reading a classic, something I'd read in my undergrad years, but nothing was speaking to me.

As I perused my shelves my eyes alighted upon Wicked by Gregory Maguire.  Not only had I read it before and enjoyed it, but I've also met the author, had my books (yes, I own quite a few of his) signed and have seen the musical.  I didn't recall everything about the book, but I did remember it being rather complex, so this seemed a perfect re-read for me!  And my witch bookmark is a perfect accompaniment!!

  I love the humanizing of the "evil" character of the Wicked Witch from the much loved movie "Wizard of Oz" (I never have read the books by L.F.B.), discovering the Wicked Witch of the East and seeing the tarnished crown of Glinda, the "Good" Witch.

And what a time to re-read this novel full of politics, oppression and resistance in the world of a tyrant leader; religious conflicts - too much faith, not enough faith and can you have a soul if you don't believe in an "unnamed god"; the question of what is evil and from where does it come, are some just born bad?  Good or bad - are we truly free to make our own choices in life or are we led to our choices by others?

I'm so thankful for this challenge that took me back to Maguire's complex, at times disturbing, but thought-provoking land of Oz!!

Two Little Girls in Blue by Mary Higgins Clark

Guilty Pleasure

After reading quite a few rather heavy books (2 Holocaust books for book club and the 2017 reading challenge), I needed just a quick, who-dun-it murder mystery and Mary Higgins fit the bill.  Short chapters, red herrings, and a neat twist with the rare communication between twins - this was just what I needed.  Took me back to Cape Cod and towns that my mom and I visited on our trip there a couple years ago!

Not too much in-depth thinking and something I could quickly pick-up and put-down, yet still had me reading past midnight to finish it!!

Amberlough by Lara Elena Donnelly

BooklyBox Subscription - March - Historical Fiction

This was my first book from the new monthly book subscription that Book Worm and I started getting.  There was a mix-up in the mailing so I received the historical fiction while Book Worm received the literary fiction.

Though, at first I wasn't sure I had in fact received the historical fiction.  Even after reading it, I feel it is a loose interpretation of "historical fiction".  Typically the author takes either a character, event, or time in history and builds up around it to give the reader a personal connection or investment into that history.  This book created an entirely fictional world (place, political parties, etc.) that was suppose to slightly resemble Germany and the Weimer Republic.

Unfortunately I didn't enjoy this book on many levels, besides the fact that it didn't fit my bill of being historical fiction - the language was difficult - the author using what I can only surmise is a British terminology, the gratuitous sex scenes (I'm not a prude, but if I want that in my reading I will seek out that kind of book) and maybe because of the difficult political climate we are currently living under - I struggled with this central theme.

On a positive note, Donnelly did have some beautifully descriptive language that truly painted a picture.

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

2017 Reading Challenge - Read a travel memoir

I approached this book with some trepidation - I mean how exciting could a 315 page book about hiking a trail be?  I anticipated being bored for good chunks of the book, yet....I was not just pleasantly surprised, I was elated to find myself thoroughly enjoying this book.  Strayed wrote this so well, I was drawn to it over and over again to discover the people she met, the animals she encountered (even the snakes!) and the travails she overcame.

A part of me was jealous that she had the stamina, but even more so the personal freedom to embark on this challenge.  Whether it is nature or nature or my own fear or limitations, whatever you want to call it - I don't believe I have the personality to be that untethered to venture out with little preparation, with no Plan B.  My spontaneity is not having hotel reservations on a road trip, or getting off the interstate to drive a local route (a marked, local route).  Heck, I got nervous walking a poorly marked trail in a 259 acre CITY park!

So, the other part of me was not at all jealous of her adventure.  I enjoy wildlife from a distance, a far distance, and snakes - don't even enjoy them.  At the first site of a rattler I would have dropped all my gear and called it quits!

Like Cheryl, I think when you try to embark on something grandiose such as this to "find yourself" you envision having this moment(s) of clarity, a transcendence, when in fact you end up thinking (or trying not to think) about how painful each step is, how hungry you are, what that noise was behind you - the daily or hourly, minute details that we all get caught up in.  It isn't until the end of the journey that you understand that the clarity was in the process of the minute, its in the reflection of how you dealt with the difficult and the simple, its in letting yourself be quiet enough to let your soul speak to you and you taking the time to listen.  This can be done on months long hiking expedition, in a yoga class, in a soup kitchen, or in your own backyard - and can be done without encountering a single snake! ;-)

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

2017 Reading Challenge - Read a book published between 1900 and 1950.

I have an entire bookshelf of classic books from Easton Press, so this was a perfect challenge topic to open one of those beautiful books with it's leather binding, gold bound pages, hand drawn illustrations and ribbon bookmarks.

I've not read Steinbeck since high school when I trudged through Grapes of Wrath.  So I wasn't sure about selecting Steinbeck for this challenge, but I have a friend who loves him, another who recommended Of Mice and Men and it was a novella, so I knew I could get it done in no time!

What a profoundly sad book, which tends to be right up Steinbeck's alley.  I love Lennie and love George even more for loving Lennie.  Yet, there are just such sad lonely characters throughout the book who in the hopes of forgetting their troubles will belittle, threaten and bring down someone else.

I'm glad I read the book and I enjoyed it, but it leaves me with a heavy heart.  Thankful today is a bright sunny day that I can get out and shake off some of the sadness it has left me with.

Away by Amy Bloom

2017 Reading Challenge - book by an immigrant or with a central immigration narrative.

This was a two-fer for me. I had selected this book in our regular book club and it just so happened to fit the theme of the reading challenge - immigration narrative.

I have had this book on my club selection list for awhile and was SO looking forward to it! While I don't read detailed reviews, I do a little research on my book selections through book club websites, noting the book's popularity with clubs and their ratings. The book jacket seemed intriguing so it seemed like a good selection!

While I'm not a prude (I've read my share of erotica), I was taken aback by the few, but VERY detailed sex scenes in Bloom's book. I certainly don't mind erotica, but I know what I am getting when I choose to read that genre. It's another thing when I choose a historical, literary fiction book and discover erotica scenes that really were not necessary. The messages could have been conveyed with less detail and written innuendos. I felt Bloom did a disservice to the reader.

Aside from the surprise sex scenes, I never really connected to the characters. The end of the book felt terribly rushed compared to the drawn out detail of the first 1/2. The rushing of the final chapters also made the plot seem terribly unrealistic. Sadly, I waited a long time to savor this book and found myself terribly disappointed.

Quotes: "I think the most important thing in the world is being brave, I'd rather be brave than beautiful."

Portrait in Sepia

2017 Reading Challenge (Central/South American book location or author

I didn't dislike this book, but because I read most of it in fits and starts I had a hard time staying focused on the book.  The novel takes place over about 50 years in the 1800s-1900s in San Francisco and Chile.  The characters are well developed as are the locations.  During this time Chile is involved in war and the war scenes are reminiscent of some well-written Civil War historical fiction books I've read.

While this was a sequel to Daughter of Fortune it really wasn't necessary to read that one first.  Portrait in Sepia continues with the story of a new generation so I found little lacking by not having read Daughter.  In time I may pick up Daughter, but I do not feel compelled to do so with any urgency.  

The narrator is Aurora, who tells her life story.  The majority of the book focuses on her childhood and the people in her life at that time.  There was a little bit of mystery; memories that she couldn't understand or explain.

I enjoyed the strong female characters and found myself marking some significant passages:

Quotes: "Tao believed that the soul makes its way toward heaven through compassion and suffering, overcoming obstacles with nobility and generosity, but if Lucky's road was easy all the way, what would he have to overcome?"

"Above all, she thought me not to believe anything blindly, to doubt, and to question even what seemed irrefutably true, such as man's superiority over woman, or one race or social class over another."

"Conceit is a privilege of the ignorant; the wise man is humble because he knows how little he knows."

The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe

New Author/2017 Reading Challenge (Book About Books)

My mom loved this book and wanted me to read it long before I got around to do so.  I finally put it on my TBR and due to the 2017 Reading Challenge of a book about books it moved up quickly to the top of the stack.

A book I could relate to on so many levels - my personal love of reading, the shared love of reading between my mom and I (who are in an actual book club together as well as the reading challenge and in general share books all the time), and the shared love of reading between my mom, my grandmother and I.  The book touched an even more personal note as my mom and grandmother shared their love of books recently in my grandmother's final years/months as my mom was her live-in caretaker, uploading books to gramma's kindle for her to enjoy and often reading books to her.

The book's subtle political tones, while written in 2012, were very relevant today as Mrs. Schwalbe was active in the arena of refugees.  I can only imagine how heartbroken she would be with the current "presidency" and ban on refugees and immigrants.

Quotes: "One of the many things I love about bound books is their sheer physicality...printed books have body, presence.  Sure, sometimes they'll elude you by hiding in improbable places:  in a box full of old picture frames...or in the laundry basket, wrapped in a sweatshirt.  But at other times they'll comfort you, and you'll literally stumble over some tomes you hadn't thought about in weeks or years.  I often seek electronic books, but they never come after me.  They may make me feel, but you can't feel them.  They are all soul with no flesh, no texture, and no weight.  They can get in your head but can't whack you upside it."

"The world is complicated...You don't have to have one emotion at a time."

"...people aren't here for you; everyone is here for one another."

"Evil almost always starts with small cruelties."

"To be an American is to be a believer...They're [refugees] just people like us who've lost everything and need another chance.... it takes so little to help people, and people really do help each other, even people with very little themselves.  And its not just about second chances.  Most people deserve an endless number of chances."

"...books are the most powerful tool in the human arsenal, that reading all kinds of books...is the grandest entertainment, and also is how you take part in the human conversation....you can make a difference in the world and that books really do matter:  they're how we know what we need to do in life, and how we tell others....books can be how we get closer to each other, and stay close..."