Phyllis
The mystery behind “Elegy for Eddie” is more compelling than the last few Maisie Dobbs books.
As in the past few books, too many side characters are introduced that aren't red herrings or move the story along. I would have liked to spend more time amongst the costermongers and less time listening to Maisie waffle about the (lack of) romance with the endlessly dull James Compton. When he tells her he wants her to give up her detective work, she's upset but really quite ho hum about it. I also don't think Maisie's inheritance would have let her run amongst the upper class (especially with her “seedy” day job).
This is the first installment in the Maisie Dobbs series that I found really boring.
There seemed to be too many characters introduced that didn't provide interesting red herrings or do anything for the story. And the central mystery was underwhelming and didn't make any sense.
Also, the entire “romance” with James Compton is very superficial and really needs to be jettisoned!
I know it's not fair to compare an author's later masterpiece to his first novel.
But, I'll do it anyway.
“Norwood” was a slog despite being quite a slim volume. Even in the first few pages, I found myself not following what was happening. Sure, the characterization is interesting and there are sparkles of great dialogue, but this book goes a lot of nowhere despite mostly being set outside of the town from when Norwood came. Portis' later “True Grit” is absolutely amazing, so perhaps this book had to be shed to move on to future greatness.
A solid 2.6 rating on the 7th Maisie Dobbs installment.
In my opinion, this is the least enjoyable book in the series to date. I didn't find the mystery very compelling, and I guessed much of the outcome early on. Even the ending, which should've been rather harrowing as it affects one of the series' ongoing characters felt rather flat.
It's been a while since I've read one of these books, but it seems like the author is over explaining some of the day today activities to fill pages. (I can certainly understand add an explanation for customs that we no longer follow, but that didn't seem to be the case here).
Will I continue with the series? Sure, but I probably will stay with the audiobook versions to satisfy my completist self. My mom also love this series until around this point in the story.
For the last few weeks, I've been reading “Slider” along with my boyfriend's 9-year-old (the book is something her 4th grade class is reading).
I can't recommend this book to anyone. It tries too hard to be a morality tale, a coming-of-age story, an overcoming-personal-obstacles story, a how-to on win-competitive eating contests, a how-to-steal-from-your-parents story, a younger-sibling-has-autism book, plus a bit of education on why it's okay to cross union picket lines. Oh and what-happens-when-your-two-best-friends-are-kinda-dating book.
The characters are not well-drawn or believable.
And what 14-year-old is allowed to go to his big sister's boyfriend's frat party with zero supervision (not even his sister)? Really????!!!
Anyway, a big Do Not Read recommendation from me.
I can't decide what to think about this book.
It's highly-regarded by authors like Stephen King.
Stanley Kubrick referred to “Killer” as “probably the most chilling and believable first-person story of a criminally warped mind I have ever encountered.”
The beginning of the book, in which Lou Ford “kills” with never-ending platitudes and an “aw shucks” outward demeanor made me think I was in for a treat. The idea of one of the most upstanding citizens of a small town being not what they seem is a great premise.
Yet, the rest of the book was just okay.
“Killer” felt incredibly rushed and needed a free more passes to make it a real classic.
On the positive side, it's sort of interesting to be inside the mind of a psychopath. But, I find it hard to believe that Lou Ford kept his “sickness” at bay despite being a sheriff's deputy. Could it be that he committed more crimes between his youth and the rash of crimes in his 29th year that he didn't remember? We do know that Lou obscures and tries to find justification for his violent acts, so the most horrendous sections of the books are relatively short and hazy.
I found a lot of the dialogue hard to follow (much more so than other noir/pulp fiction writers of the 30s-50s I've read previously). And, other than the first few chapters and the character of Conway, I didn't really hear a Texas flavor to anyone's speech.
I wonder if “Dexter” was influenced by this book at all.
At the end of the day, I can't sash this is a great book, but maybe I'd think differently if I first encountered the book in the 50s.
A solid 3.49!
Grady Hendrix is a real South Carolinian who is expert at weaving Southern Gothic and weirdsies into each of his books. Every time I read one of his books, I am reminded of the 10 years I lived in Upstate SC.
The author also does a great job of creating individual characters that are reminiscent of real people. I wish we'd had even more of the aunts and cousins.
At first, I was annoyed by the endless sibling bickering; as we get further into the story and learn Mark's backstory, a lot changes. I can say I never really like Louise. But, maybe I'm not supposed to.
I had a hard time putting this book down! So, why not 4 stars? Having read a couple of other books by the author, I expected some gory sections. However, some of the gory sections didn't make much sense (getting hit by a hammer multiple times all over one's body or shelving falling on a person are not going to cause damage similar to shelves falling on a person.
I couldn't get a physical, electronic, or audiobook from any local libraries, so I decided to use up an Audible credit.
The narrator was quite effective at voicing different characters and suited the story. That's about where the positive vibes ended for me, though.
Bleakkkk.
I mean, I expected some level of darkness to this book. But, it was billed as wickedly funny. Honestly, I still haven't come across anything funny and I have a darkish sense of humor.
After hearing great things about Barbara Comyns, I was excited to try out a novella of hers, but I'm at the point where I don't want to know what happens next.
Colson Whitehead is probably one of the most talented writers of my generation. And I've really enjoyed several of his other books (“The Underground Railroad,” “The Nickel Boys,” “Zone One,” and “The Intuitionist”). After hearing a few long-form interviews with the author on both this book and the recent sequel, I was really excited to pick up “Harlem Shuffle.”
Yet, I just can't get into the book. I can only assume this is to do with my ever-encroaching need for bifocals or other daily distractions.
Try as I might, I could not make it very far into my print version. So, after about 4 attempts, switched to the audiobook version on Libby. Despite an excellent narrator (Dion Graham), I found myself just as bored as when reading the print book. So, after about getting through 1/3 of the story, I decided to suspend both avenues of approach.
A solid 3.49 stars! I dig the mystery within a mystery trope in this series.
However, I really don't like Susan Ryland very muc and find her sections of the book far less compelling. That was the case for me in the first installment in the series, but the story in book 1 was better. It seems like this book went out of its way to be complicated as opposed to creating interesting characters.
Many of a have lost pets and had to make the agonizing decision of when or if to let our dear animal go. To many non-household members, this situation doesn't mean much. But, to us, it's heart-wrenching and the grieving process is long.
After absolutely loving the author's “The Guncle,” I had high hopes for this earlier book. But, I found myself checking out almost right away. The entire octopus analogy was way too drawn out and childish. Once I hit the halfway point and little had happened, I decided to skim. Thank God, because the boat trip was making me lose my mind just peering at the pages.
I still have high hopes for Steven Rowley's books, but cannot recommend this one.
I really have enjoyed the author's Maisie Dobbs series, and not just because she has the same last name as I do!
However, this foray into a new series just wasn't clicking for me. I found the main character kind of boring and the story not that exciting either and ended up, stopping about a third of the way through.
As many of Tana French's characters say, Jaysus! That was a helluva ride that crackled from start to
finish. There was never a point in which the pacing was off or I found myself wondering how there were still another 200 pages to go.
The characters were stellar and real-life; it was interesting to be in DI Antoinette Conway's head, even when she had run unto obstacles or approached things in a way not everyone does. It's been awhile since I read #5 in the series, in which DI Conway's partner, Stephen Moran, is the driver. It would be interesting to go back and hear his POV now that we've heard hers.
As always, Tana French has an amazing here for dialogue and sneaks in poetic flights when you least expect it. She really is a gifted writer and seems to be improving her game as she goes along. I've now read all of the Dublin Murder Squad books, as well as the standalones and am itching for another book from her.
I heard an interview with the author and was really looking forward to the book. Then, I really enjoyed the author's introduction and thought I was in for an interesting read. But, I guess I missed the crucial “autobiography” element to this book. I appreciate the author, trying to take a different approach to explain the Milky Way galaxy, but the snarky tone did not let up and was very offputting. I'm afraid this is another DNF.
This is a nice book to introduce western folks to many different important concepts in Japanese culture. I was familiar with some of these through movies I've watched or art classes, whereas others I did not know anything about. The book is filled with many beautiful pictures that transport you too Japan, and give a glimpse into another culture.
The author includes a very personal and touching anecdote at the end that ties the book together nicely. I appreciate the author taking time to put together this book.
This book should be added to high school history curriculums across the United States.
Clint Smith takes us on a journey through parts of American history that are not taught or known by most Americans. From Monticello to the Whitney Plantation to the Blandford Cemetary, the author talks about stories of the enslaved people and the awful legacy of treatment of black and brown Americans. He also include the study of his grandfather and how this journey impacted him personally.
Clint Smith is also a tremendously talented author, blending solid journalistic techniques with poetry and soaring language. Next, I'd like to read his poetry and Atlantic articles. He also narrates the audiobook version, which I found even more compelling.
A few weeks ago, NPR did an interview with the author and illustrator of this book. I had to check it out even though I'm not necessarily the target demographic.
The book was just as ridiculous and silly, but also enjoyable, as the authors made it out to be. I would actually like to look for more interviews with them, because they really were delightful.
Anyway, this is a great book for kids and adults who have any knowledge of Fairy Tales.