Looking for Your Next Book

CLASSICS WEEK I remember reading Oliver Twist back in high school (oh, the snickering over the name of the character of Master Bates) but that was a long time ago and so, since I had a free copy from Open Road Media on my Kindle, I thought I'd give it another read. This book definitely stands the test of time (not all classics do) and as an adult reader, I'm sure I picked up on some things that hadn't occurred to me in my teens (I'm sure my English teachers were trying to get some of this across). I hadn't realized how much 'the workhouses' played a part in some of Dickens' work (I'm thinking of Scrooge's comments, in addition to the plight of Oliver's mother). Dickens paints a bleak look at 1800's England. I hadn't remembered that Fagin played such a major role in the book.  When I think of a villain, I tend to think of Bill Sikes and his killing of Nancy. Of course Sikes is part of Fagin's gang. I felt less optimistic at the end...

CLASSICS WEEK  Regular readers of my reviews will know that I'm a relatively new reader in the mystery genre. It is for this reason that I have not read much Agatha Christie (I'm much more familiar with some of her plays than I am with her novels). Thanks to Open Road Media, I've been able to build a digital library of some classic fiction which I have been slowly reading through, including Agatha Christie's first novel and the introduction of one her most famous characters - Hercule Poirot. Poirot, a Belgian refugee from the first world war, is settling in England with the help of a wealthy benefactor - Emily Inglethorp. Poirot is moving to Styles Court when Emily is murdered, poisoned, and the local authorities are completely stumped, despite there being a good half-dozen likely suspects with secrets that rather not have revealed. Fortunately, Poirot has great detective skills, which he'll put to work to solve the crime of his benefactor's murder. This was a f...

CLASSICS WEEK Prior to this the only thing I've read by Mary Shelley was Frankenstein and so I thought I might broaden my reading horizons by checking out some of her other works.  Given the premise here and how sci-fi it seems, I thought this might be a good place to start. The Last Man narrates the story of, well, the last man on earth. Set in Shelley's future (now almost our past), a plague has wiped out all of humanity save for one man. The book doesn't start with the last man, but rather it spends a great deal of time spent of reflection and philosophy.  This is slow going.  Seriously slooooooowwwwwww going. I can't imagine any modern reader getting through this purely for the sake of reading enjoyment.  English majors and literature students may have to suffer through, and I can imagine the kinds of papers one might have to write, examining the general philosophy of the day and how Shelley's book challenges that thinking.  Frankly, I struggled to get thr...

CLASSICS WEEK Homer's The Iliad has been one of those books that I'd never read but always meant to 'get around to it.' When I saw this ARC for a new translation I thought it might spur me on, but even so it's been ten years! Finally, though, I devoted time to this reading and all I can say is ... really? The translation by Barry B. Powell is fantastic.  It is very readable to a modern reader and the notes are extensive, often helping to understand some of the relationships, locations, or what weapons of war are being used. I will say that while it is helpful on the one hand, it also slows the reading down. There is so much to unpack in a classic like this. But the story ... I can honestly say that I didn't realize that it was basically a very long poem/story about war, fighting, and killing. One man after another kills and/or dies and someone is anguished by this. And then there's Achilles .... What a jerk! He's like that bombastic starting quarterback ...

In the southwest corner of the state of Minnesota is the small town of Jewel. It is 1958 and the War is still fresh in people's minds and Memorial Day has significant meaning to most. But this particular Memorial Day, while many are celebrating the day, the body of Jimmy Quinn (a wealthy, local landowner) is found in the Alabaster River - dead from a shotgun blast. No one seems to upset at his passing, not even his own family (a daughter living in Iowa won't even come back for the funeral) but the general talk in town is that it might have been a suicide (he's tried before and he was a heavy drinker) but it was most likely a murder done by Noah Bluestone. Bluestone, a local Native American who grew up in Jewel, had worked for Quinn and was fired by Quinn just days before the murder. Despite growing up in Jewel, Bluestone has always been an 'outsider'. Being 'Indian' is enough to have most convinced he committed the murder, but coming home from World War II w...

 We've finally got the second book (third book?) in Jim Butcher's The Cinder Spires series. I wasn't particularly impressed with the first book, but this is Jim Butcher - author of one of the most popular urban fantasy series ever with The Dresden Files! Surely he can recapture some of that magic (pun intended). The surface is a deadly place for humans and for centuries the Cinder Spires has protected people from the dangers below. The aristocrats of the spires have seen to great scientific marvels, including air ships for trading among and protection from other spires. But the end of individualism and freedom is looming as Spire Aurora, with a massive armada, is on the move to take control of all the skies. It is reported that they have a new weapon - one which could eliminate everyone in all the spires.  Only Spire Albion is willing (or foolish enough) to stand up against Aurora and its fleet. A showdown will take place at Spire Olympia and it may be the only opportunity ...

I read a lot of books about The Beatles and it just never ceases to amaze me how much their legacy endures that people are still writing and reading about them. It seems that anyone who's ever listened to their music and felt as though their lives were affected by the band, has something to say. Rob Sheffield, the author of Dreaming the Beatles , is a columnist for Rolling Stone  and comes to this as someone whose life revolves around the music scene. And yet is one of the most confounding of the books I've read about The Beatles.  It is not strictly a history book, though there is a fair amount of history here and the book generally approaches the subject chronologically. It is not strictly a biography of the band or its individual members, but there's a fair amount of biographical information here as well. And this book is not strictly a memoir of the author and the impact and influence the band has had on him.  Though here, too, there is some of this within. The subtit...

I have not kept up with the Star Wars literary catalog.  If you include the animated series', I have not stayed up to date with the shows and I'm not entirely sure why. But what I find as I try to get back in to the Star Wars world(s) is that there are a LOT of characters whom I do not know. Crimson Climb centers on a character, Qi-ra, who has only appeared in the film, Solo (which I haven't seen) and then in a couple of books. Qi'ra grew up on the streets, one of her best friends being a boy by the name of Han. But when Han manages to get away from the street gangs and finds his way to his personal freedom, Qi'ra is pulled back into the White Worms gang. Until, that is, she is approached by a member of Crimson Dawn, a crime syndicate, brings her to meet with the syndicate's leader, Dryden Vos. Vos believes that Qi'ra has talents that would be useful to his organization and offers Qi'ra the opportunity to build for herself a life that could be comforta...

TRIGGER WARNING - THIS REVIEW (AND BOOK) SPEAK FRANKLY OF SEX AND SEX ACTS I've struggled to figure out how to start this review ... much the way that author Sophia Giovannitti appears to have struggled to get her thoughts across in her memoir Working Girl: On Selling Art and Selling Sex . Giovannitti has been both a sex worker and an artist. For her, the lines between the two are often blurred and sometimes intersecting as she worked (in both fields) to make a living. Many artists struggle define the difference between themselves and their art - where does the art stop and the 'self' begin? This is a question that Giovannitti faces but with the added complication: where does the art stop and the selling of sex begin and where is the separator between self and sex service? It's an interesting question. I've met many artists (in different mediums) who say that they have to sell themselves before they can sell their work. Of course 'selling themselves' doesn...

What do you do when you're an Alabama debutante and you've disgraced your family name in the 1920s?  You move to Paris and become friends with Ernest and Hadley Hemingway, of course! At least that's what Zoe Barlow does after she's been sent packing from Beech Glen, the family plantation, by her older brother and her stepmother. Zoe is an artist and finds comfort and camaraderie among the bohemian artists in Paris just after the War to End All Wars. One day Hadley Hemingway contacts Zoe. In a rush, she left a bag on the train, and in the bag was Ernest's latest manuscript - the only copy, of course. Hadley fears it may have been stolen and asks for Zoe's help to track it down. But in the process of searching for the manuscript the pair discovered the murdered bodies of a Russian man and his daughter, rumored to be the Princess Anastasia Romanov. As more people around her are murdered, Zoe realizes that there may be much more than a missing manuscript at stake an...

 It's been a few years since I've read a book that could very easily qualify for the prestigious Caldecott Award, but Cary Fagan's Hans Christian Andersen Lives Next Door is just such a book. Andie Gladman is the new girl in a school in a small Canadian town of Meaford, Ontario. She'd like to think that she's pretty normal, even if her parents aren't.  Formally of Toronto, they left their big city jobs and are now cricket farmers - raising the insects as food supply for pet stores, individuals, or anyone needing to feed reptiles. Being the new kid is hard enough, but with parents who raise crickets, it's next to impossible to stay out of sight of the school bully, Myrtle Klinghoffer. Myrtle, the biggest and loudest kid in class seems to want nothing more than to terrorize Andie every day. No one wants to be friends with Andie because no one wants to draw Myrtle's wrath. But two people come into Andie's life. There's the new boy in school, Newton...

**WARNING - POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!! *** Astronaut and author Chris Hadfield is back with another thriller in his Apollo Murders series. But anyone expecting a thriller in space may be disappointed. This book is much more down-to-earth. It is 1973 and Russian test pilot Alexander Vasilyevich Abramovich (better known by his nickname 'Grief') lands his MiG-25 - a Soviet jet that can fly faster and higher than anything the United States has - in Israel and calmly turns himself in. The Israeli's quickly stage a crash scene just off the coast and with some clandestine meetings, turns Grief and his jet over to the United States. In the Nevada desert, Grief will work alongside some of the elite U.S. test pilots, teaching them all there is to know about the jet. Kaz Zemeckis is a former US test pilot and current NASA Flight Controller, Kaz will be Grief's escort to the U.S. and responsible for keeping an eye on him and ensuring he has a pleasant experience as a welcomed defect...

 I've had some pretty lousy luck in the past with picking up a book that is in the middle or nearing the end of a series run.  More often than not these books really do rely on knowledge of what has transpired in the previous book(s). And so it is with great pleasure that I announce that I managed to pick up a book that is the FIRST book in a new series. (Hooray for me!) Like many who read and enjoyed The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo books (by Stieg Larsson), I found that I really liked what has been called 'Nordic Noir' - a dark mystery in which the climate and the Scandinavian landscape set a cold tone and add a dark character to the stories. With a book titled A Death in Denmark , set within memory of the events of World War II, I fully expected this to be a strong Nordic Noir styled thriller. It's not. Our protagonist is Gabriel Præst - a former police officer in Copenhagen and now a very modern private investigator. He loves jazz music and is a part-time Blues music...

On one hand, as a person who really enjoys learning about Norse mythology, I am really glad to see that publishers believe there's still enough interest in the Norse legends to keep putting out the books.  On the other hand, how many books about Norse mythology do we really need? I suppose, though, that we're only one blockbuster movie about a superhero named Banshee away from suddenly having a rush on Irish Mythology. This probably sounds as though I'm not happy about this book, but that is very much not true. I really liked this book.   this strikes me as being targeted toward school-aged readers (middle school and up?) but anyone wanting to get a better handle on who the main players in the Norse legends are can get a great snapshot with this book. Reading translations of Snorri Sturluson's Eddas can be daunting, but author Kelsey A. Fuller-Shafer, PhD hits all the highlights perfectly (okay ... it seems strange to add the author's degree when mentioning the pers...

In the community of Lower Lockwood, it is time for the annual tradition of the Christmas panto ("a loud, fun, enjoyable musical comedy theatre production" - according to an in-the-know website). The community has its own group of dedicated thespians, known as The Fairway Players. But even a small theatre group can see its share of petty jealousies, divas, and dictator-like behavior. But when things start to go wrong, someone needs to step up and take charge, right? The Christmas play this year is Jack and the Beanstalk . Since money is tight - tighter than usual - so they're renting a very old, slightly run down beanstalk. But a rumor starts to spread that the reason the old set piece is taped up is because it's made with asbestos. The truth, though, is much worse.  There's a body in there, well decomposed. But what's a little mummification when there's a show that must go on? And how do you keep control over a cast that mistakes illegal drugs for the swee...

Sy Montgomery will probably always be best known as the author of The Soul of an Octopus but the fact is that all of her books are beautiful testaments to nature and the animal kingdom. Of Time and Turtles , Montgomery's newest work, is another powerful book in her body of work.  While The Soul of an Octopus really brought an awareness of the intelligence and personalities of octopuses to the readership, this current book may have more of an impact, for a couple of reasons. First, Montgomery's experiences with the turtles and their rescuers occurs during the outbreak of COVID-19 and the author uses this carefully to make some observations ("it was clear that counting deaths was the new way to mark time in a pandemic"). But mostly I think this has a greater impact because, well ... turtles. Who, reading this book, hasn't seen a turtle?  Who hasn't picked one up, maybe moved one across a road or a parking lot? Who hasn't walked along a lake shore and point...

Try as I might, I haven't kept up with all the Marvel Cinematic Universe characters, shows, movies, and stories.  I'm aware of the television season with the Kate Bishop Hawkeye but I've only seen one episode and I don't recall ever reading any of the Kate Bishop comics. In Hawkeye: Bishop Takes King , Kat Bishop is still trying to figure out what being a 'superhero' means. Using her mad archery skills she manages to stop a few minor crimes and saves the boy Milo in the process. That Kate finds Milo pretty cute is pure bonus. It also seems like kismet to Kate that the two accidently grabbed the others' backpack (she'll have to meet with him again!). But in Milo's backpack is a book - a very special tome that is wanted by one of the most notorious criminals in New York.  Now that Kate's in possession of this book, she'll soon come into direct contact with Kingpin - the man who's taken down more experienced superheroes. Author Ashley Poston...

Robert Jackson Bennett is easily one of my favorite authors currently writing in the sf/f field. His world-building is strong, detailed, and comes across so very real. His stories are complex and while not always described, there is clearly history and future to the current events. And his characters are unique and admirable for their honesty and directness. In The Tainted Cup , Bennett departs just a little from his The Divine Cities trilogy and The Founders trilogy. The previous trilogies are definitely fantasies - high, dark, intricate.  This, while still in a very Robert Jackson Bennett world, is first a murder mystery, and second a fantasy. Dinios Kol is the new assistant (an engraver who has been magically altered via Leviathan blood, to have a perfect memory) to investigator Ana Dolabra. Ana's abilities are rivaled only by her eccentricities and few people want to be around her, much less act as her assistant. But the relationship between Dinios and Ana seems to be work...

Drama school graduate Jane Conroy is eager to get out of her steady-but-unsatisfying job and work in the theatre.  With the help of a family connection, she gets work as a production assistant on a brand new Lerner and Loewe musical ... something about King Arthur, based on a book by T. H. White. She gets to not only see, but be a part of the process of shaping a major Broadway musical through out-of-town previews and daily changes to the script and the score while working alongside some relatively new faces who have just started making names for themselves, like Richard Burton and Julie Andrews and Roddy McDowall. The tenacity of those involved at every level will be tested as the negative reviews come in, relationships develop and fizzle on the road, rehearsals of new material will occur during the day then there will a performance in the evening, and the legendary director, Moss Hart, will suffer a heart-attack and be forced to quit the show prior to the Broadway opening. Among ...

About a year ago I watched a documentary about Greta Thunberg (she would be disheartened to know I watched it while on a flight) and my impression of the young lady was very positive. Now, having read this book, I have to say that she is an incredibly impressive, very well-spoken, intelligent young woman. Her passion regarding climate change awareness is unmatched. And the eloquence to which she expresses her concerns is truly incredible. I haven't seen anything about a translator, and if this young woman is writing her essays and introductions in a language that is not her native language, I'm just blown away. If you don't know who Greta Thunberg is, you were not paying attention to the news the past five or so years. Donald Trump has no shortage of adversaries, but possibly, one of the biggest thorns in his side during his presidency was this school girl from Sweden. The book is FULL of very short essays and articles, the majority of them scientific treatise, complete wit...