book 67
special topics in calamity physics, marisha pessl
rating:
it's been a while since i finished this but it was entertaining. a lot less annoying than i expected. though, i really must say, the many comparisons to donna tartt's secret history (aka greatest book about college ever written) seemed quite unfounded to me. also, the "solution" to the "mystery" was a little far-fetched and the narrator's voice was a little TOO consciously precocious. plus, marisha pessl has said some nasty things about librarians. but that's okay. a fun read, if long. also, a very cool website.
book 68
one mississippi, mark childress
rating:
all about a teenaged boy whose family moves from indiana to mississippi when he's sixteen, and all of the things that happen thereafter. a very funny, promising start, but it became one of those books where too many things happen. too many "issues." like a YA problem novel but a bit more satisfying.
book 69
the princess of burundi, kjell eriksson
rating:
a crime/mystery novel that won some big time awards in sweden. john johnsson (aka little john) a reformed small-time criminal, is found dead, and apparently tortured beforehand. meanwhile, a disturbed former classmate of john's is on a crime spree. do the twain meet? read and find out. really good most of the way through, but i got the feeling at the end that a huge chunk was edited out, because the mystery was solved very quickly.
book 70
paint it black, janet fitch
rating:
eh. i loved fitch's white oleander when i read it all those years ago. this one also features a young female protagonist, but i found her considerably less sympathetic. josie is a teen runaway working as an art model in LA in (i think) the 1980s. her boyfriend is found dead in a hotel and she spends the whole book trying to figure this out, along with his cold, strange mother, famous concert pianist meredith. too much time spent on sex, drugs, and rumination for my tastes.
book 71
sharp objects, gillian flynn
rating:
enterainment weekly television critic flynn's first novel was pretty awesome. almost ran the risk of having too much happen at once (see book 68), but it seemed to work okay in this situation. reporter for a lesser known chicago newspaper has to go back to her hometown in missouri to cover the murders of two pre-teen girls. while there, she has to deal with some pretty heavy issues -- her family, her past, her own self-destructive behavior. flynn keeps up a really nice, creepy feel throughout.
book 72
helen of troy, margaret george
rating:
i really love sweeping historical novels, but it probably wasn't a brilliant idea to get wrapped up in this one just as i was trying to reach my goal for the year. curse you, helen of troy! okay, i don't really think i need to summarize the story here. it's pretty much what you think. i found the writing to be a little stilted, but the story was generally good and interesting. my knowledge of greek mythology is sadly limited, so i actually ended up learning a lot. and don't worry, i checked it all in wikipedia and it's pretty much accurate. but i like george's english historical novels much better.
book 73
the ghost at the table, suzanne berne
rating:
i was so worried that this book would be pretentious, since the author teaches literature at harvard or some such nonsense, but it was really rocking my face off for more than 200 pages. a woman goes to connecticut to have thanksgiving with her sister's family and has to deal with her dying father and so forth. i had to behead that last robot because it really seemed to fall apart at the end, but up until then, two thumbs way up.
book 74
a spot of bother, mark haddon
rating:
like everyone else, i loved the curious incident of the dog in the night-time, but i was somewhat apprehensive about this novel b/c it seemed to be focused on an old man. full disclosure: i typically stay away from books with old men as protagonists/narrators. but here's a goo example of why that logic is faulty. this book is really not just about george, the old man, but about a whole family. george's daughter, katie, announces that she's marrying ray, a less educated man that the rest of the family isn't too crazy about. meanwhile, george thinks he has cancer and begins to slowly lose his mind; jean, his wife, is having an affair; an jamie, his son, has a huge fight with his boyfriend that makes him question his whole personality. lots of family drama ensues, but it's mostly quite funny. a perfect read for the holidays, when everyone's family goes crazy.
book 75
mr. timothy, louis bayard
rating:
ending the year with a five robot read is priceless, really. i really liked bayard's most recent novel, pale blue eye. but i LOVED this one. it's so creepy and weird. mr. timothy is timothy cratchit, or tiny tim from dickens' a christmas carol. now twenty-three, tim lives in a brothel (he's teaching the madam to read) and somehow stumbles onto a strange series of crimes taking place in london in 1860 - young girls are turning up dead... and branded. ewww! clean, taut writing. a highly recommended read!
and here ends my reading journey from 2006. thanks so much for your support. stay tuned for 2007, where i try to beat this year's reading record all while finishing my master's degree, finding a job, and moving away. whee!
