Book #30: Wishin' and Hopin': A Christmas Story

Oh, Wally Lamb. He never, ever, ever fails to delight me. He can do no wrong.

As most of you probably know, I am a much, much bigger Halloween enthusiast than I am a Christmas enthusiast. I'm not that girl that starts listening to Christmas music on November 1st or begins to look for an excuse to put up the tree before Thanksgiving. As a matter of fact, Christmas decorations/music/commercials/references before Thanksgiving really tick me off. I guess it's because Christmas seems to get closer and closer to stepping on Halloween's toes, and I just can't have that. So, it was a bit unnatural for me to choose a holiday-themed book to start reading the day before Thanksgiving. (I think I was just itching for some Wally Lamb, to be honest.) I'm so glad I read it, though; it was a perfect little nudge into the holiday season for me.

Wishin' and Hopin': A Christmas Story is Wally Lamb's short novel set in 1960s Connecticut, narrated by 5th grader Felix Funicello. Last name sound familiar? It should. Felix's cousin is Annette Funicello, America's favorite Mouseketeer who went on to star in a string of beach movies and become a sex symbol. Felix's family owns a bus-stop lunch counter that has no shortage of Annette Funicello memorabilia. There's a lot going on in Felix's life aside from his famous cousin -- a quirky substitute teacher for his class at the local parochial school, his mother participating in a nation-wide baking competition, a strange new Russian classmate, some perplexing questions about the facts of life, and an upcoming school Christmas program.

I love books narrated by kids, especially if it's a book intended for adults. It's great to laugh at the innocence. Lamb is great at this particular aspect of the novel. For example, he somehow perfectly embodies a confused child trying to figure out what the dirty jokes, innuendos, and filthy language he encounters could possibly mean. I've always said this about Wally Lamb -- he is incredible when it comes to "becoming" his characters through prose. It's insane. Insanely good.

I saw a handful of reviewers on Amazon say that this book may not have been enjoyable to readers who wouldn't appreciate it as a walk down "memory lane" -- meaning, readers who weren't around for the 1960s. Well, I wasn't, and I enjoyed it all the same. I'm pretty sure if you were ever a child, you'd appreciate this book. Those incidents in your childhood that were, at the time, mortifying which you can now look back at and laugh? Yeah, they're all in here.

Don't be discouraged by the Christmas theme of the book. Actually, it starts out in October, and honestly the only part about Christmas is the last chapter or so about the school Christmas program. Definitely a great read any time of the year, but for me, it did help ease me into the holiday spirit. I can't recommend this book enough. It'll only take you a few hours to read. Come on. Do it!

5/5 Stars

Read from November 24, 2010 to November 28, 2010

--C

Book #29: Alentejo Blue

Monica Ali's Alentejo Blue is set in rural Portugal, and it's one of those books that ties several different characters and plot lines together into one. It reminded me a little of Let the Great World Spin, although it wasn't nearly as good. Or interesting.

This isn't a particularly long book. I can normally knock out a book of this length in 3-5 days, but I had to force myself to finish it. When I did manage to make myself read it, I often found I had turned the page and had no idea what I'd read. Maybe I'm too dumb for this book (although I really don't think that's the case), but I found it pretty pretentiously and unnecessarily complicated. Like... She would talk about things without really talking about them in a "read between the lines" sort of way, when, really, why can't you just say it? I get the intrigue that it's supposed to add, but it was just waaaaay too much in this particular instance.

There were some characters that I really liked in this book, but they happened to be the ones that lasted for a chapter and then never got mentioned again. The really boring ones were the ones who had several chapters devoted to them. Even the interesting parts about the boring characters got dropped. I don't even get the logic behind the plot of this book at all. And really, in the end, you realize that none of it had a point. I don't think it even made a statement about the Alentejo region, which I think is what the purpose of the book was supposed to be.

Whatever. I am rarely scathing with a book review (unless it's Twilight, but come on, who expects anyone to say anything good about Twilight?), but dang. Skip this one.

1/5 Stars

Read from November 5, 2010 to November 15, 2010

--C

Book #28: Leap Days: Chronicles of a Midlife Move

I've said it before,and I'll say it again: I'm a sucker for a memoir. I. Loved. This one.

Leap Days: Chronicles of a Midlife Move is Katherine Lanpher's collection of essays about her decision to leave her familiar life to live in New York City. The move came after Lanpher's divorce from her actor-husband (who was "married to the theatre") and several years as a Midwestern journalist.

(Those of you who are fans of Air America, the progressive talk-radio network, may recognize her name. She was Al Franken's co-host on The Al Franken Show/The O'Franken Factor.)

Lanpher discusses a variety of issues in the book -- her brother's accidental death, her marriage, her parents, her love of reading, and her time as a newspaper journalist, to name a few. Every chapter is a complete joy to read. She's a witty, intelligent, strong woman who reminds me a lot of Lauretta Hannon (whose memoir The Cracker Queen I reviewed back in July).

Lanpher writes beautifully, which is not surprising since she's a successful journalist, but that kind of writing is a different ballgame. She's got lovely phrasing and knows how to make you smile, even when she's discussing something depressing. Another thing that really struck me about her writing is how well she ties the beginning and endings of chapters together. She often begins chapters with a seemingly obscure anecdote or reference, and then at the end, she'll string everything together beautifully. It makes a bigger impact than you'd expect.

This is way up on my recommendation list.

5/5 stars

Read from November 1, 2010 to November 5, 2010
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Sidenote: I tried really, really, REALLY hard to read Frankenstein by Mary Shelley Wollstonecraft during the week of Halloween, but I failed miserably. I spent/wasted several hours staring at my Kindle trying to make myself enjoy the words I was reading, but I couldn't do it. I've always said that I'm one of those people who can read anything (I really thought I was after four Twilight books...), but apparently I'm not. I so am not.

--C

Book #27 -- Mockingjay

Derrick has already given you his thoughts on Suzanne Collins' final book in The Hunger Games trilogy, Mockingjay. Now it's my turn. I waited over 24 hours to gather my thoughts on this, and I'm still not sure I'm ready to review it. I'm going to try anyway. I'm going to try not to be too specific in case anyone reading this hasn't read the first two (and if you haven't, you should be ashamed), but there may be some spoilers.You've been warned



In Mockingjay, Katniss finds herself in the center of a revolution. The rebels are using her as the "face" of their cause, and the Capitol (the old regime in Panem) is determined to get rid of her. She's adjusting to a new way of life now that she's living outside of Panem's law, and she's also dealing with the fact that she feels personally guilty for so many deaths. Then there's the whole Peeta/Gale thing, and the fact that a lot of her former "team" members are being held and tortured by the Capitol. You know, basically the same thing every seventeen year old deals with. No big deal.

Despite the fact that there's a lot of stuff going on in this book, it's somehow still pretty slow. I read both of the first books in a couple of days each, in that "couldn't-put-it-down" fashion. This one took me... oh... almost a month. The pacing just seemed a little off. It seemed like the first 3/4ths dragged and the last 1/4th was rushed. Or that there just wasn't so much of an ending at all? I don't know, I'm so conflicted about this.

I wouldn't say that I'm disappointed, it's just that it feels a little empty. But I think it's supposed to. It is empty. There's no sense of hope and triumph and "yaaaay, it all worked out!" Strange for any book these days, but especially a young adult book. I was sad when I finished it, for sure. Much like Derrick said, I think the more I think about it, the more I understand why things happened the way they did, but man... I got so invested in all of these people that I wanted a little better for them.

Obviously, I still recommend the entire series, and for God's sake, if you've read the other two, don't skip the last one. But don't expect an epic feel-good ending, 'cause it ain't there.

Here's what I found the most interesting, though. At the end of the book, in Collins' acknowledgments, you will find this:

"... Jason Dravis, my longtime entertainment agent, I feel so lucky to have you watching over me as we head for the screen."

Well. That's intriguing.

3.5/5 stars

Read from October 5, 2010 to October 25, 2010.

--C

Drawing a Blank: Or How I Tried to Solve a Mystery, End a Feud, and Land the Girl of My Dreams (16)

I picked up Drawing a Blank by Daniel Ehrenhaft for next to nothing on the clearance shelf at BAM! one day last summer, and it's been sitting on my shelf ever since.  For some reason, when I was looking for my next read, I picked it up, and I'm glad I did.

The book centers around Carlton Dunne IV, a loner who is more at home in his published comic strip than in his own life.  His mother has died, his step-mother has left, and his father has shipped him off to a boarding school, where he suffers the tortures of adolescence.  Soon, however, he is drawn into a world shadowed in his comics where he learns things about his father, his family, and himself along the way.

With it's 17-year-old protagonist, you would think that the target audience would be high school students, but I found that it would probably fit better into a middle school classroom.  I could see myself teaching this to 7th or 8th grade students (or possibly 9th), but nothing much higher than that.  The chapters are short, which makes for a really quick read, and the comic panels sprinkled throughout add an element of creativity and depth.

Overall, I'm really glad I picked up this book.  I may even try to work it into a lesson some day.

4/5 Stars

--D

Fluke by Christopher Moore (15)

Yeah, I went with another Christopher Moore book. I loved Fool so much, I pretty much had to.

Fluke was quite a bit different than Fool or Lamb, though. The satire in this book is much more subtle, but definitely there. This book actually reminded me a lot of some of Kurt Vonnegut's books, with a humanist slant and a dash of sci-fi.

The writing quality was excellent, and the story was well crafted, if a bit like a roller coaster. The beginning of the book is a bit of an uphill climb, as it takes a while to get going. Once it does, though, it's a fast-paced, up-and-down ride with plenty of twists and turns and a nice coast into the end.

Fool is still my favorite Christopher Moore book, but Fluke was a good read.

4/5 Stars
--D

Fool by Christopher Moore (14)

This was almost my second review of a book by Christopher Moore.  His book Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff was the last book I read before we started the blog, and I loved it.  However, it wasn't until I read Fool that Moore cemented a place in my top five authors, putting him up there with my other two favorite satirists, Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., and Mark Twain.

Fool is Moore's take on a classic Shakespearean tale with the punchy satire of Vonnegut and the riotous British comedy of Eddie Izzard.  It follow Pocket, King Lear's court fool across five acts set in the early 13th century.  The key to its humor (humour?), though, is the blend of medieval society and Shakespearean language with modern memes and cheeky British wit.  I found myself laughing hysterically on several occasions (be sure to read the footnotes!).

Like the last few books I've read, I read this on in a mix of traditional and audio, but both were great.  The audio version was great because, as an American, British slang is funnier when I hear it spoken.  However, the audio version did not include the footnotes, and I often found myself reviewing chapters I had already heard just to read them.

All in all, Fool is one of the funniest book's I've ever read, and Christopher Moore is one of my favorite contemporary authors.  I cannot suggest this book enough.

5/5 Stars
--D