Frozen Solid
by James Tabor
2013/336 pages
read by Paul Mitchell 9h 20m
rating B+ / crime-thriller
Having been sent to a South Pole research station in the winter, Hallie Leland realizes this may not be a safe place for women. Three women die within weeks of her arrival, one a week prior and two the same week. It looks to Hallie, after seeing the room with built-in camera, that at least one death was a murder.
But investigation proves difficult because all the >>>>MORE>>>>
Telex From Cuba
by Rachel Kushner
2008/322 pages
rating 8.5 / historical fiction
This is Kushner’s first book which I decided to read after falling in love with her second, The Flamethrowers (2013). To an extent we have the same themes in play – identity and class for instance, but here race is significant. They both deal with revolution and revolutionaries. Also, they are historical fiction in a sense although The Flamethrowers is set mostly in the 1970s.
Telex From Cuba takes place in a place called Preston, Cuba (very near Holguin toward the southern end) during the late 1950s – the United Fruit Company has been harvesting the sugar cane for all it’s worth supporting whomever is in power >>>>MORE>>>>
The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age
by Janet Wallach
2012/ 304 pages
Rating 7 /biography
Hetty Green is a fascinating character – at least I’m fascinated. She was born very well off and was the only child and grandchild to inherit the family wealth. Lacking a son, the girl-child Hetty had been groomed for finance by her father, but when he died the money was put in a trust. This infuriated her as it showed he didn’t really trust her.
Then her mother’s sister died with a very questionable will and Hetty challenged that one in a court case noted even today for its>>>>MORE>>>>
Hetty: The Genius and Madness of America’s First Female Tycoon
by Charles Slack
2004/288 pages
Rating: 8 / biography
What a fun book! I really didn’t expect it to be so entertaining. And Hetty is a rather surprising woman in some ways. As I read I think I know her and then she does the most surprising things – like make a friends with folks so different from herself and going to Europe on her honeymoon. Other times she’s just exactly what I expected – greedy and conniving. And although she lived very modestly, loved her children, was loyal to her husband and was good to her neighbors. She even stood up for the working poor. Stuff you don’t hear about her. >>>>MORE>>>>
The Burgess Boys
by Elizabeth Strout
2013/ 320 pages
Rating 8.5 / contemp fiction
Every once in awhile a book comes along which just amazes me – how do authors do this – grab some thread of an idea and tease it into a plot developing multi-layered characters and themes along the way and then interweaving them all into a lush fabric of something close to life?
This is a book about contemporary families and small towns, guilt and fear and love and truth and sibling rivalry along with racism, aging, and >>>>MORE>>>>
The Flamethrowers
by Rachel Kushner
2013/400 pages
Rating 10 /contemp fiction
(notes /spoilers —–>)
Oh my what an excellent book! I was not prepared at all for this from a woman author – (shame on me). What I mean is that it’s a very strongly written book – along the lines of Don Delillo – with strong undertones of Patti Smith. It seems the themes are more cognitive than emotional and the plot has to do with machines and speed as well as love. That said, I think *perhaps* only a woman could have written it as there are bits about modeling from the model’s perspective and there’s a huge feminist tone in places. >>>>MORE REVIEW>>>>
Love Medicine
by Louise Erdrich
1984/4o0 pages (rev. 1993, 2009)
Rating: 8.5 / contemp Native American fiction
Heck of a good book! I’ve read several of Erdrich’s novel’s and I think this is the best of the lot so far. I’ve read The Beet Queen (an 8.5 – 25 years ago?), The Painted Drum (a 6 – maybe 7 years ago?) and The Round House (an 8, earlier this year). But Love Medicine was Erdrich’s first novel and it got >>>>MORE>>>>
The Cuckoo’s Calling
by Robert Galbraith (England)
(J.K. Rowling)
2013/464 pages
Read by Robert Glenister 15 h. 54m.
Rating: A- / Crime
After losing a leg in Afghanistan, Cormoran Strike is currently semi-employed as a private investigator. It looks like he’s going to have to close up shop when, on the same day, he gets both a new client and a temporary assistant. The client, John Bristow, is the brother of the celebrity model, Lula Landry, who died as the result of a fall from a window three months prior. The police decided it was a suicide – John believes otherwise and is willing and able to pay. Strike’s new assistant, Robin Ellacottt, >>>>MORE>>>>
The Blue Fox
by Sjon (Iceland)
2003/117 pages (Kindle)
Rating 9 /magical realism
This is a very short but dense and complex book – on top of that it’s beautifully written. The word minimalist fits perfectly. Perhaps also magical realism – I don’t know – It’s historical fiction with some realism at it’s base but infused with the stuff of fairy tales. >>>>MORE>>>>
The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America
by George Packer
2013/437 pages (Kindle)
Rating: ? /contemp. US non-fiction
This book got hugely positive reviews and it was chosen as the book for the All-Nonfiction reading group for September. What is Packer’s main point? Why did he write THIS book now? From the Prologue:
When the norms that made the old institutions useful began to unwind, and the leaders abandoned their >>>>MORE>>>>
To the Lighthouse
by Virginia Woolf (England)
1927/122 pages
Rating: 10 / classic
This is a reread for me. I loved it the first time but this time seemed kind of a slog, at least for the first few chapters. I got pulled in at Chapter 9 or so. I think the characters did it.
The characters are fascinating in their differences. >>>>MORE>>>>
I’m doomed. In my last post I wrote about how I couldn’t decide what to read next, whether to tackle the books on the tbr shelf, listen to a couple of Audible books or just go ahead and read some September selections for my reading groups.
I tried – I’m listening to the Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) and it’s pretty good. But I can only listen so long at a time, I need a print book going, too. So looking around I see I’m reading Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898 but that’s a long term project – it takes some focus. And I tried rereading To the Lighthouse (Virginia Woolf – for a group) but it was sooo slow this time. I loved it the last time I read it. Next, I checked ye olde tbr shelf and came up with a Philip Deloria book on Native Americans and DeLillo’s Americana. I just could not get interested in either one.
I went to my Kindle app and read some samples of books on the “Reading Next” list. Oh my – I should go get the car washed. There was a line but this is the best place in town so while I waited I just downloaded The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America by George Packer. And I started in reviewing what I’d read in the sample and moving on. Yes! Sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.
The doom? I’ll be finished in 2 or 3 days – then what? Another book from September? The rule is I’m not supposed to start those until the 15th of the month prior to the month they are scheduled. That’s at least 2 books away. (sigh) And if I do read them, what will I read come August 15? Continue ahead with the September 15th books? Okay and then what? On August 22 I’ll start the October books? See what happens?
The basic problem is that I’m unable to pick out books for myself anymore – the reliance has become on the reading groups. I think I need to check myself into a rehab but they probably woudn’t let me read there.
Oh dear, except for one really long history book, Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898 by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace, I seem to have caught up on the reading. At least I’ve finished the “group reads” scheduled. Now what? I belong to several active Reading Groups and I’m caught up through August. I try to hold off on the next month’s books until the 15th of the prior month or I’ll likely forget too much to discuss well – the enthusiasm lags. But reading ahead is one option.
There are books being read by groups in August which I could reread – To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf, Reef by Romesh Gunesekra or any other goodie from this month. My copy of Woolf’s book is all marked up from my last reading several years ago so I’d kind of like to get a new one – Kindle for iPad probably – pretty cheap. The Kindle has some nice introductory material or I could get the free pdf.
Another option is that I could listen to The Cuckoo’s Callling by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling). Her “Casual Vacancy” was pretty good – this has had good reviews. – But I’m kind of tired of listening to books and my house is clean. I usually like to have one print book and one audio book going at a time.
Other options – read ahead with a select few – I’ve got Louise Erdrich’s Love Medicine from the library because I wasn’t sure I’d care for it. I’ve read a couple others by her. I’m always kind of fascinated because they take place in North Dakota – home of my heart. But I don’t like library books – I can’t write in them and they have to go back. So I downloaded the sample and started a bit, and it looks better than I thought. (This is a Sept. reading selection for the 20th Century group.)
And there are several other books I could read if I want to get into September readings but … it’s too early! (But oh it’s so tempting.) This leaves the rereads or my old TBR shelf or a new audio.
I’ve got a week – probably 2 or 3 books. We’ll see – I’ll probably get the Kindle version of To the Lighthouse and reread it first. That’ll take a day or so. Then maybe a bit more of Gotham – maybe 50 pages. Then perhaps ye olde TBR pile – ??? I actually have no idea.
The Bellini Card (#3 in Yashim the Ottoman series)
by Jason Goodwin
2008 / 304 pages
read by Steven Hove 10h 24m
Rating B+/ historical crime
In the mid-15th century a Turkish sultan named Mehmed conquered Constantinople and much of the rest of the area . In 1480 Gentile Bellini the Venetian painted his portrait while visiting the area in a diplomatic effort between the two cities. The portrait stayed with the Sultan but after several years it went missing.
The working hypothesis is that perhaps Bellini’s painting has turned up in Venice – it’ said to >>>>MORE>>>>
The Shell Game
by Steve Alten
2009 / 488p.
Rating: A- /dystopian
I read this on the recommendation of my son-shine, Isaac. He warned me that it was definitely 9/11 conspiracy-theory type stuff, but said he enjoyed it tremendously. He tends to like action-packed page-turners with an element of suspense.
Yup- it’s decidedly based on various 9/11 conspiracy theories >>>>MORE>>>>
Villette
by Charlotte Bronte (England)
1853 / 432 pages
rating: 9.5 / classic
I truly enjoy reading classics – they provide a peak into the past from the viewpoint of that past. Yes, it takes a bit of work to get used to the language and understand the social-political background, but it’s worth it to me – and I‘m getting fairly well versed in the Victorian era. (lol!) >>>>MORE >>>>
It’s probably apparent from my reading choices and ratings that I really enjoy and appreciate good historical fiction but what does that mean, “good”? I know it when I read it? (LOL!) Pretty much. It can mean different things in different books but – as far as I can tell …
1. The only common thread has to be that it takes place at least 50 years ago (or prior to the author’s birth). Before that and I’d have to call it “nostalgic-al” fiction. Imo, the author should not have memory of the events and very very little family relationship associated with them – s/he should have had to have researched his era, etc. via the usually reliable and verifiable sources – these sources will not change, and I can go hunt up the original or a confirming source.
2. The history doesn’t have to be factually accurate – there are lots of conflicting reports about a whole variety of things. Sometimes the tone of the book serves as warning to the reader that this account may not really be literally factual (see John Barth or Thomas Pynchon or Gabriel Garcia Marquez). But other times the tone is straight and the historical material is in error – then it will irritate me.
3. Where does the history end and the story begin? Is a given book history first and fiction second? I think you just have to look it up every time – I’ve been so surprised to verify some things but, otoh, there have been times when the supposed history is just not accurate and the story (fictional characters, plot, etc.) works (or doesn’t work) from there. I’m not a big fan of alternative history, but it can be done well enough – this is largely a matter of personal (in)ability to suspend disbelief. I’m getting better at allowing an author of historical fiction more leeway in creating his own story.
4. If I’m reading fiction I do NOT want to be beat over the head with irrelevant tidbits the author happened to find in the course of research. The material has to have some bearing on the story – with fiction the story and style come first. If I wanted to read non-fiction I’d go get it and not have a big problem with some digression. But be warned, Dear Author, if your story is draggy or the characters boring, no amount of research will fix it. Otoh, a great story can support an enormous amount of research – love it!
5. I enjoy it when the author shows how the history (social and political – all kinds) and the times play into the lives of the people – not when it’s simply background. The story should be integrated with the history – it shouldn’t be able to take place anywhere although “universal” themes can obviously be used.
6. I really don’t care if an author supplies some notes about his sources or not. I’d rather that was kept for the end so as to leave the story intact but … that’s not my call. It’s up to me if I want to find sources – it’s just for my own interest anyway – fiction is fiction.
Actually, with some books it’s a wee bit disrespectful of both the imagination of the author and the intelligence of the reader to include a note on the history sources when that material is readily available for the checking. It might even detract from the “mystique” of some novels to include it. Not all source notes are disrespectful or detract – some history is pretty obscure. Generally, I figure if I don’t know it or can’t find my own verification, the “history” is invented.
Some of my favorite historical fiction is (in no particular order):
Hillary Mantel’s Thomas Cromwell series – (16th c. England)
War and Peace by Tolstoy – (19th c. Russia – historical when written)
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (early 20th c.. Colombia)
Against the Day by Thomas Pynchon (20th c. world)
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco (14th c. Europe)
The Greenlanders by Jane Smiley (14th c. Greenland)
The Long Ships by Frans G. Bengtsson (10th c. Sweden)
Europe Central by William Vollmann (Europe – WWII)
Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar (2nd c. Rome)
Shogun by James Clavel (17th c. – Japan)
The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (US Civil War)
The Far Pavilions by M.M. Kaye (India – mid 19th c. – lots of HF re India)
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (Nigeria – 19th c.)
Teahouse by Lao She (China – early 20th c. – a play)
There are lots and lots more where those came from –
Becky's Books - 