Friendship and Loss and Life

Truth and Beauty 

by Ann Patchett

Genre: Memoir


Review: Once again, Patchett takes my breath away with her writing. This book made me cry, and it was earned. Although we know at the outset that Lucy Grealy, Ann's best friend since Iowa Writer's Workshop, is no longer alive, in the book she is liveliness itself. We follow their friendship from grad school to transitions, and later literary success and teaching careers, as Ann helps Lucy through one surgery after the next. She never gave up on Lucy, who was brilliant and fun-loving and never gave in to self-pity or tragedy. This book is the best kind of literary portrait--honest, fierce, and above all, real.

Best Line: Near the end, Patchett describes Lucy's new apartment in Brooklyn, an empty kitchen far away and Lucy in tears on the phone. Patchett, in Tennessee, feels near-helpless to assist her friend, goes online and orders her an entire set of kitchen things, writing something like...It was my own particular brand of insanity that I thought Tupperware would save Lucy. That is what brought on the tears for me, how symbolic of their friendship this is.


Song to Read By: "Anna Sun" by Walk the Moon

Timely Topics, Character Studies, Yet Lacking Suspense

So Far Away

By Meg Mitchell Moore

Genre: Women's Fiction


Review: The second novel by the author of The Arrivals, follows 13-year-old Natalie, a victim of cyberbullying, who finds solace in the journal of a servant, Bridget, found in her basement. Her search for family takes her to the archives and Kathleen, a quiet librarian who is searching for her lost daughter and discovers a sense of purpose through helping Natalie.

This novel is what I would call a “too quiet novel.” Not much happens, and the story revolves around the conflict in the hearts of two people; while this isn't always bad, in this case I just didn't care enough about the characters.

Bottom Line: Skip it. I had trouble connecting to the characters and the plot didn’t propel me to keep reading.



Author Website: http://megmitchellmoore.com/ 


Song to Read By: "Titanium" by David Guetta and Sia

Social Commentary at an English Country House!

Hi Everyone,

I'm catching up on my posts from the last two weeks, when I have been travelling the country, visiting family.

Enjoy!

The Uninvited Guests

By Sadie Jones

Genre: Literary Fiction

Review: Be forewarned, this clever book, chronicling what happens when you take the "nice" out of social niceties during a birthday dinner party at an English manor house, may disturb you. Near the end, this book devolves into unexpected strangeness.

The highly honest, dead-on observations spared no politeness, but were funny and interesting. The best part was hearing one character's thoughts about another character. Emerald develops feelings for a childhood friend, and the youngest child, Smudge, is left to her own devices, while a mysterious man from the mother's past appears along with the "uninvited guests," refugees from a nearby train accident.

Author Website: Profile in UK newspaper, the Independent

Song to Read By: "Rivers and Roads" by the Head and the Heart

Strange but Interesting--Lone Wolf

Lone Wolf 

By Jodi Picoult

Genre: Popular Fiction


Review: Edward returns home to New Hampshire from Thailand after six years of estrangement from his family. His father, famous wolf biologist Luke Warren, is in a coma, after a car accident with his sister Cara. Cara wants her dad to live, but Edward wants to terminate life support. The medical and courtroom drama that ensues is interspersed with Luke's life living among the wolves (bizarre yet interesting descriptions) and flashbacks to the family's past. The metaphor of the wolf pack/human family is developed throughout the novel. Not my favorite Picoult novel, but intriguing nonetheless.


Author Interview about the Book: http://www.jodipicoult.com/lone-wolf.html
http://www.jodipicoult.com/lone-wolf.html#chat


Song to Read By: "Seven Devils" by Florence and the Machine (atmospheric and thrilling, like the novel)

The Real Mona Lisa

The Smile 

by Donna Jo Napoli

Genre: YA Historical Fiction


Review: If you love Italy, the Renaissance, or Art, then you will enjoy this novel. Elisabetta is 13 years old when she meets Leonardo da Vinci, who vows to one day paint her portrait. She also meets Giuliano, her star-crossed love, the youngest Medici brother, at the wrong time in history. Lisa struggles with the choices that are best for her family, and what she desires. This book is a great way for teens to enjoy history while relating to the characters and enjoying a romance. The setting descriptions of Tuscany and Florence are intriguing and sensual. 


Author Website: http://www.donnajonapoli.com/ 


Song to Read By: Italian Lute Music

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett--A Masterpiece

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

Genre: Literary Fiction


Review: Not since Bel Canto have I read a book so breathless, completely absorbing, astonishing. Patchett combines a literary writing style with the suspense of a thriller and the characterization of a book much longer. Now we know the meaning of the phrase "tour de force." Follow Marina Singh, pharmacologist, to Brazil as she seeks the truth about the death of her friend with her teacher, Dr. Swenson. In the Amazon, she finds much more than she expected, as researchers search for a fertility secret and malaria cure. How will this place change her? Will she ever be able to return home?


Author Page: http://www.annpatchett.com/
In addition to winning tons of book awards, she owns an indie bookstore in Nashville called Parnassus Books! http://www.parnassusbooks.net/ 


Song to Read by: "To Be with You" by The Honey Trees

A Turning Back Toward Literary Fiction

The Cookbook Collector 

by Allegra Goodman

Genre: Literary Fiction


The Review: Follow two sisters, Emily and Jessamine, in Silicon Valley, in the years 1999-2001. Historic American events, from the tech bubble to 9/11 are chronicled in this novel. Emily is a young CEO of up-and-coming tech company Veritech, competing with her fiancee Jonathan while trying to create "the next big thing" in technology as they go public. Jess is a drifter who volunteers for "Save the Trees," works at a used bookstore, and studies philosophy at Berkeley. They are still dealing with the loss of their mother and searching for meaning in their respective worlds, business/technology and philosophy/rare books. 


Also Recommended: Intuition--set in a science lab, takes us deep into the intrigue of reseach, yet makes the characters real, a fast, suspenseful read with literary merit and moral and ethical ramifications.


Author Page: http://www.allegragoodman.com/


Song to Read By: "Speak for Me" by John Mayer