Due to be published in early February, Kate Elizabeth Russell's My Dark Vanessa seems likely to be a word of mouth winner and book group pick.
My Dark Vanessa is a dark novel indeed. It reads like non-fiction and is not an easy book to review. What I can tell you is that is has haunted me since I finished reading it. The two main characters are Mr. Strange, a teacher, and Vanessa, his fifteen year old student. It begins with a pat on the knee by Strange and a whisper in which he draws Nessa into his web by comparing their similarities. Though a bit shocked she is also intrigued by that hand, his continued sensual stroking, she on the cusp of budding sexuality and the feelings of adulthood this provokes. Sounds so innocent and yet as adults we see the lure, the web he weaves. Vanessa is a vulnerable young woman yet she doesn't see herself as such. Strange, I hate to dignify him with the Mr., is a groomer, yet he doesn't see himself as such. Psychologically compelling.

American Dirt will be published January 21, 2020. It has already made my 2020 Best List as I was fortunate to be an early reader thanks to Amy Einhorn, and Flatiron Books.

Have you ever experienced a horrible trip or had a bad experience visiting another country, one that made you promise to kiss American soil and be happy to be on solid American ground if you made it home? We take our freedom and homeland for granted. Imagine living in village in Mexico. You are a bookstore owner, you live your life for this and also for your eight year-old son and your journalist husband. Today you are hosting the Quinceañera of your niece. This celebration of the coming of age, the ritual of the transformation of a 15 year-old girl to woman, is stopped short, never to happen but forever to be imprinted in your mind. Instead this festive, proud day turns into a blood-bath of horror when gunmen come out of nowhere and sixteen of your relatives are killed, including the girl, your mother and husband. Only you and your son remain and you know you must flee before you are found. It takes you time to realize there are few places you can hide as this is more than a cartel lesson; it is revenge and nothing will stop the search until you and your child are dead. You must make it out of the country as the Los Jardineros will hunt you down. Many readers might have visited Acapulco for some rest and relaxation at one of its many resorts but probably none of you have thought what it would be like to walk from this southern Pacific Coastal town over 2500 miles to Mexico's border with the US. You will walk each mile with Lydia, Luca and those they meet on this harrowing journey.

In 2001 I read Highwire Moon by Susan Straight. It has always been a book that haunted me, putting face and story to immigrants and undocumented persons in our country. American Dirt is another eye-opener of a novel with characters you will not soon forget. Haunting. I find myself looking for Lydia and Luca on our streets.

Stephen King “defies anyone to read the first seven pages of this book and not finish it”. I was hooked in less than that.

One final note. As a bookstore owner, Lydia mentions many of her favorite books. She refers to Love in the Time of Cholera by the late Gabriel García Márquez. Makes me yearn to read that book once again

Jodi Picoult is well known for not shying away from the tough topics, in this case, that of race in present day America. A black nurse, working on a Labor & Delivery floor at Yale, is “fired”, forbidden to care for the son of a white supremacist. If the ramifications of this are not enough, Picoult offers a lesson in facing one’s own prejudices for consideration. Told in alternating pov, Picoult’s winning formula has proved successful once again.

Small Great Things has stayed with me these past few months. I don’t think I have felt as conflicted about any book as much as this one in a long time. I liked Small Great Things for the questions it presented, its ability to make me think and the conversations with others it has encouraged. Plot wise I did have some issues with the outcome. I could live with that. What kept niggling at my brain is whether or not the voice of the main character, Ruth, rang true. This is a difficult question for me to answer. I’m a white middle-aged woman, living in a predominantly white community who has few African American friends.

In the author’s note, Picoult explains that early in her career she wanted to write a book about racism in the United States. She knew little about what it was like to grow up Black in our country. She gave the thought up. Moving forward twenty years the urge to write about racism came up again. She questioned her right to write an experience she had never lived. And yet she had written about subjects and voices she had not lived before. Why should this be different?

I have often wondered how it must feel for a person of color to walk into a room, into a sea of white faces, to live in a world where most people look different than you. That is just the tip of the iceberg of questions Picoult tried to explore. I honestly wondered if I had the right to like Small Great Things without any real experiences to go by or conversation with anyone other than my own race about perspective on this book

After reading a review of Small Great Things composed by my friend Tracey, a woman of color, I contacted her and we were able to discuss our feelings about the book. What really stood out to me in Tracey’s review was this quote:

”I didn't want Ruth to have to be a teaching moment. I wanted Ruth to be able to have her story without the function being to teach white people something. I believe that if this was written by a person of color, this would have been Ruth's story.”

Many fans of the book feel getting people to talk about the subjects of prejudice and race are enough to make this a winner. A small example of its popularity is illustrated by my suggestion to my daughter to read Small Great Things so we might discuss it. Her library had 300 holds on the book. Amazing and a bit sad.

With consideration to my own mixed feelings I’ve decided that Ms. Picoult’s intentions may have been good but I believe she missed the mark on this one. I will remain open-minded however and am willing to continue the discussion.

Kyung Cho and his wife, Gillian, are in over their heads financially. Things are so bad that they are facing the reality that their home must be sold. As a reader I felt the doom as the realtor, Gertie, delivers the stark news that the sale of their house may not bail them out. Gertie seems uninterested in this lower class sale and becomes even more distracted by something in the Cho’s backyard. All three can’t believe their eyes. It’s a woman, a naked woman at that, and the real shocker is that it appears to be Kyung’s mother, Mae. On reaching her, Kyung sees she is bruised, and dirty and is begging for help. This beginning sets the tone of what can only be seen as a plummeting course of disaster.

I found this story of a dysfunctional family sad, fascinating and haunting at the same time. Kyung and his family immigrated to America from Korea when he was a young boy. The author, Jung Yun is quick to point out that Koreans are not the sum of her characters but I feel culture definitely plays a role in who these characters are, how they live and their interrelationships in family. They need not be Korean though. This could be any first or second-generation nationality bringing their cultural mores to America and adapting to life here.

Shelter is a story immersed in secrets kept, guilt, duty, abuse, love and hate. It explores how all of these define Kyung and his family and the context of home. The title itself found me contemplating the meaning of the word. Is shelter the home, the protective sanctuary it should be? Shelter, with its clash of culture and family conflict has the forlorn tone of another favorite book of mine, The House of Sand and Fog, and may appeal to those who found that book a compelling read.

Jung Yun has written an outstanding, intricately woven, debut. It begs reflection and discussion.

Breaking Wild is a perfect read for March’s celebration of Women’s History Month. This story of survival in the Colorado winter wilderness features two incredible female protagonists. Amy Raye, a bow hunter becomes lost on her solo quest to fill her elk quota. Rescue Ranger, Prue Hathaway and her dog, Kona are determined to find Raye. Each character is fleshed out in alternating chapters, which allows us to see the thoughts of each woman and back-story of their lives over a several week period. Diane Les Becquets presents detailed description of what a hunt entails which might be difficult reading for some. I found it a fascinating process and appreciated the perspective of the elk’s gift of sustenance to Raye. Will Hathaway’s mission become one of search and recovery instead of rescue? My prediction is that Breaking Wild will be a word of mouth hit and one and a book discussion choice.

The premise of Our Souls At Night grabbed my attention. I’ve been married 45 years and can easily count the nights I have not slept in the same bed with my husband. As we age we think more about the inevitable parting that will come. I could easily relate to the idea of a widow wanting the closeness and comfort of someone to share her nights, a warm body, but more than that, someone to talk with and ease into a soothing sleep.

The opening line, “And then there was the day Addie Moore made a call on Louis Waters.” tells it all. Every review or publisher’s promotion tells why Addie is knocking on Louis’ door. What I wanted to know is how her proposition works out.

Kent Haruf knew he was dying when he penned Our Souls At Night. I can only imagine what this story meant to he and his wife. Haruf is a man of few words but managed to stir my emotions is his sparse novel. It’s a story about aging, loneliness and yearning, simply told. I easily identified with the characters and rooted for a happy ending. Some would say it was but I would go back to this quote “Who does ever get what they want?” in wonder.

Though I rated Our Souls At Night very good, I did feel a bit conflicted. A choice the author chooses for his character didn’t quite ring true for me. Suffice it to say there are elements here worthy of discussion and I’m open to other opinions.

Girl Waits With Gun is a delightful romp. Though the plot is quite sinister, it is done in a lighthearted way. It seems suitable for those of you who do not care for graphic violence. The sisters, Constance, Norma and Fleurette Kopp are vividly drawn, each exhibiting their own quirky personalities. On an outing one-summer day in 1914, a motorcar driven by a wealthy factory owner, Henry Kaufman, broadsides their carriage. Though not seriously injured, the carriage needs extensive repair. Mr. Kaufman refuses to pay. He becomes the major suspect in the threatening and harassment of the Kopps and possibly others who work for him. Based on a true event, Stewart blends fiction and fact providing a fine historical tale of the country’s first female deputy sheriff. Stewart’s writing easily places you on the streets of the New York City borough of Brooklyn and the towns of Patterson and Hackensack, New Jersey with her descriptive narrative of time (early 1900’s) while also providing a realistic picture of the Kopps home and life. Stewart leaves us suspecting there may be another case in Constance Kopp’s future.

I often think that my grandparents and parents lived in interesting times. They saw so many things come about in their day. Theirs were exciting times. Women won the right to vote, slaves were freed, and medical advancements were plenty. It was the time of The Industrial Revolution, electricity, the telephone, planes, trains, and automobiles so to speak. I tend to downplay the important breakthroughs of my life and times, Television, Computers, a second industrial revolution of Technology, several wars, the quest for Space, and The Civil Rights Movement.

The debate about Capital punishment and the death penalty has been one I have tussled with from my teens to this day. The older I get, the more I read, the more I lean to the correctness and justification for its abolishment in our state. I haven’t come to this decision lightly; it’s a real struggle for me. Perhaps this conflict of soul is why books such as Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption interest me so much.

Bryan Stevenson didn’t start out walking the path to where he is today. While a student at Eastern University in Pennsylvania, he thought he might choose a career in music or sports. He majored in political science and philosophy and eventually decided on law school. While a student at Harvard in the early 80’s, Stevenson participated in an internship in Atlanta, Georgia with The Southern Prisoners Defense Committee (SPDC), relating to race and poverty. During this time he spent many hours seeking appeals for inmates on death row.

”I wasn’t prepared to meet a condemned man.”

"I had never seen the inside of a maximum security prison and certainly had never been on death row.”

Steve Bright, the head of the project, met his plane. He told Bryan

”Capital punishment means ‘them without the capital get the punishment.’ We can’t help people on death row without help from people like you.”

It came time for Stevenson to meet one of the men in a case they were working on. Can you imagine this inexperienced, twenty-three year old driving himself to this high security prison to meet with a man convicted of murder and sentenced to die? Stevenson knew little about capital punishment and had not taken a class in criminal procedure. He wasn’t even certain he wanted to be a lawyer or confident that he could make a difference in the race or poverty issues that motivated him thus far. It is here that his course is set and his lifetime work begins, even if he was not quite aware of the full impact as yet. His mission was to be to assure the inmate that he could not be executed anytime soon. He meets Henry and ends up apologizing, admitting he is just a law student. After the initial awkwardness they go on to talk for three hours about anything and everything. When it’s time to leave Henry just asks that Stevenson come back again. As Henry leaves the visitation room he sings a part of the hymn On Higher Ground:

After finishing his degree, Stevenson begins taking on cases. One that is documented in detail is that of Walter McMillan, a black man accused of murdering a white woman. There are many others. In my experience of listening to the author narrate his book I couldn’t help but shake my head at the wrongness of many of the convictions. There were times when I had to stop listening and needed to wipe away the tears at man’s inhumanity to man. Mental illness, children tried as adults, minorities, poverty and race played a large part in many of the cases explored.

Ultimately Bryan Stevenson establishes The Equal Justice Initiative, a non-profit in Montgomery, Alabama that represents wrongful convictions and has won many exonerations.

This is a book that will stay with me. It is an important book. I plan to make a donation to The Equal Justice Initiative. That just seems right.

In the end it became more a matter of just justice than just mercy for me. That is all I wanted, Just Justice!

It is hard to imagine the true implications of living a life in the dark. Anna Lyndsey (pen name) allows us glimpse of her black box life in this beautifully poetic memoir. If it is often emotionally devastating for the reader, envision that we get to go back to our world of light.

It begins slowly with light sensitivity, burning facial skin when sitting in front of a computer screen.

”Burns? Burns like the worst kind of sunburn. Burns like someone is holding a flame-thrower to my head."

Rather than diminishing, this sensitivity to light progresses and Lyndsey’s life is changed forever. Had she written Girl in the Dark in diary format, it may have kept my attention. Instead, she chose to present a group of vignettes in no particular order of occurrence making this blueprint of her daily living a compelling reality.

Lyndsey does not seek our sympathy. She presents it like it is, in itself a way to pass her days.

My book is marked with so many colorful sticky notes, red, green, purple. If I were to quote each passage that touched me I’d be guilty of infringement.

"I covet tales of human beings in extremis; want to know how they felt, what they did, how they bore it.”

This, in the end, may be why I found my way to Girl in the Dark. It is an exquisitely written testament to the human spirit. I have learned something invaluable in its reading. My hope is that you will also.

Add me to the legions of fans of JoJo Moyes. I’m not exactly certain how to classify her books but women’s contemporary fiction suits as well as anything. The two I’ve read were love stories at their core. Some would call them romance, not me. Romantic perhaps.

It is 1960. Jennifer Stirling is hospitalized, suffering from memory loss due to a severe car accident. This alone caught my attention as what the brain will forget when stressed interests me. When released she goes home to her husband and we can feel her confusion and awkwardness as she tries to regain consciousness of who she is or was for that matter. Something seems off. Then she finds a letter with an impassioned plea for her to chuck her life and meet said composer at the train station. It is signed B. Who is this man and why would Jennifer consider giving up her privileged life to follow him? The reader will find out all in a story told in dual time frames over a span of 40 years.

Essentially a thriller reader in need of a feelgood story now and then I am often left cold by forced sentimentality or down right sappiness. The Last Letter From Your Lover evoked feelings of sadness, both hopefulness and hopelessness, nostalgia and a yearning hunger for a love letter of my own. Aptly titled, I loved it.

Lauren Owen has managed to take something old, the vampire myth and put her own spin on it. This debut horror tale held my interest but could have been tighter than its 500 pages. Not perfect but I'd like to see what else Ms. Owen has up her sleeve.

Grace Reinhart Sachs has got it all. The trendy New York apartment, a son enrolled in the best private school, an oncologist husband who specializes in pediatrics; the perfect marriage, the perfect life. In her own right, Grace, a couple's therapist, is the author of a book soon to be published called You Should Have Known. It's the book for all her clients suffering the demise of their partnerships. If they had only noted the early signs, they would have known their marriages were destined for failure.

Things are going so well that I'm beginning to think, nice but so what? Without warning the proverbial you know what hits the fan and all goes south, plunging Grace into a reality she could not have imagined. To tell you more would ruin this beautifully constructed psychological study of a marriage.

An all out character driven novel with a slow building plot with quite an ending. My kind of book! and should make a great book discussion.

Rindell fleshes out her character(s) quite well, with excellent narration, reliable or not, by Rose, the original typist. Rose Baker, clicks away her days in a New York police department back in the days of prohibition and the speakeasies. Rose is quite the formal young woman and takes her job quite seriously, making few mistakes and not tolerating any from others. She's a bit stodgy to say the least and at first I liked her but after a bit, I thought, oh drat, I could never live up to her expectations and would I want too. Still all seems to be going well when enters the other typist, Odalie. Odalie seems to be all Rose is not, flamboyant, a bit crass, and not the greatest of typists. You guessed it; Rose becomes infatuated with Odalie and soon they are the best of friends. You definitely want to see how this relationship pans out.

An excellent psychological study of morals and more; The Other Typist is spooled out like the ribbon of a typewriter to its very end. Suddenly there is no more. Find someone who has read it to compare notes. I know I will!

Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis was such an interesting read for me on many levels. There's the history of Seattle, the culture of its American Indian Tribes, the beauty of the Cascades and Mount Rainier, the lure of the west of long ago. What makes this book shine is the story of the Shadow Catcher himself, Edward Curtis, a brilliant photographer, a man with a challenge that would haunt his soul and become the meaning and also the obsession of his life. His dream to record through images and word, a twenty volume set detailing the dying rituals, stories and culture of The North American Indian.

Beginning in 1900, Timothy Egan takes us on a three decade journey unfolding in chapters of time , Curtis's "big idea" using a technique similar to the photograph stills Curtis took.

I was amazed that a man who was once renowned, died penniless, virtually alone, with his life's work unappreciated. He never knew how important his accomplishments would be. Was it all worth it in the end?

Edward Curtis could have been a fine portrait photographer and wealthy man but at what cost to his own plan, his dream, his desires.

Impressed doesn't cover the half of it. Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland's History- Making Race Around the World is one romp of an adventure. A fan of vicarious thrills, this book gave me more than my money's worth. Who could not love the intrepid spirit of both these women and what they accomplished?

Of course I had heard the name Nellie Bly but truly knew little about her. Born Elizabeth Jane Cochran I was surprised to read what lengths she would go to for a good news story for New York's The World. From buying a baby to expose the slave trade, to feigning insanity to report on the mistreatment of women in Blackwell Island Insane Asylum there was little Bly wouldn't do for an expose. None though would bring her the acclaim and fame of her proposal to beat Jules Vern's 80 day around the world trip. With just a single grip to carry her needs and "dressed in a snugly fitted two-piece garment of dark blue broadcloth trimmed with camel's hair", she sets out on the journey of a life-time. Little did she realize rival magazine, The Cosmopolitan headed by John Brisben Walker, would pit his own candidate, Elizabeth Bisland, against her to circumnavigate the world in less than 80 days. Bly sets out in New York heading across the Atlantic, whereas Bisland's route takes her west across, 8 1/2 hours behind Nellie.

The race was enough to keep my interest but there's so much more for the reader to appreciate. A memoir not only of the women, Bly and Bisland but a period piece of New York and journalism. Nellie Bly's determination and fearless nature help to build a strong foundation for the right for women to hold leadership roles in the workplace.

Riveting narrative non-ficiton.

If you're expecting Anna Pigeon, put the book down! I had to ask myself where did this one come from? Left field doesn't quite explain it, but 13 1/2 is so far removed from what I've read of Nevada Barr., it's almost like an evil, gleeful twin has taken over her writing hand. I liked it, in fact, I loved it. Many fans get angry when their favorite authors stray from the garden path. I embrace it. Bring it on, show me what you've got. And show me Ms. Barr did.

Spanning forty years, we're taken on a bloody, gruesome ride, that opens with the brutal slaying of eleven year old Dylan Raines's family; mother, father and baby sister, Lena. Brother Rich, hangs on by a thread, his leg hacked, bloody and bleeding, Dylan holds the ax that killed them all. Tried, convicted and off to prison Dylan goes, presumably to rot in jail, close the door, throw away the key. Still Rich stands by his brother, hates to see this young boy's life wasted, visits and supports him despite the awful crime and his own loss. Great characters, tight plot, fast paced psychological read. Though slightly predictable it didn't mar my enjoyment.

Barr's 13 1/2 should appeal to James Patterson fans and his ilk. The only comment I can add is Barr is better. Keep it up!

Connecticut is fortunate to have many fine authors, Stewart O'Nan, being one of them. This past summer I read three books about missing children. One of these and the best by far was O'Nan's Songs for the Missing. There are only so many plots and it always amazes me how differently each author will handle similar stories. It sounds like a simple plot. Eighteen year old Kim Larsen disappears from her Lake Erie town. Read this opening and see if you are not intrigued to continue...

“Description of the Person, when Last Seen

July, 2005. It was the summer of the Chevette, of J.P. And letting her hair grow. The last summer, the best summer, the summer they'd dreamed of since eighth grade, the high and pride of being seniors lingering, an extension of their best year.”

It should have been a summer of swimming at the lake, after work late night dates, a last glorious summer respite before college life begins. All this changes in an instant. Here one moment, gone the next. O'Nan's pen explores this tragic event so beautifully that at times you almost forget the underlying story of love, and loss. He gives us a detailed view of what it means to lose a loved one and how this missing affects each member of Kim's family; how each relates to the other, the ebb and tide of hope, and how each member tries to live without being disloyal to Kim. It's about the regrets, the sadness, the grief, what was and was not said or done.

This is not a fast read and probably would not appeal to thriller readers. It takes a bit of commitment on the reader's part but is definitely worth the effort. The best of O'Nan to date.

Beat the Reaper is an unique read. Read it for the quirky characters. Read it for its dark humor. Read it because it's one heck of a thriller. Read it for the history, or for the medicine. Read it before it's turned into a bad movie. Read it for the gimmicks; I'm not telling. Read it because it's a debut effort and a new voice in fiction. Read it because it's a real hot book and everybody's reading it. Read it before Bazell publishes a second in the series fingers crossed!

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was not quite what I expected. An
international thriller by a new voice, a long awaited translation that had been
a sensation in Europe led me to believe I was picking up one of those fast
paced, quickly written stories. I never expected the depth of plot, well,
actually several stories, layered quite neatly, one upon the other which finally
came together with excellence. Yes, it's a thriller, but also a locked room
mystery, a study in greed, corruption, the world of finance, violence against
women and throws in a love story for good measure.



It's long; I think it could have been cut down but in the end that didn't bother
me. The setting is Sweden, but locale is not developed as well as I might have
liked. Some reviewers thought the characters not well drawn and didn't care
about them. For me, the characters are what captivated me and kept me reading to
the very end. Journalist Mikael Blomkvist, (Larsson did work for Tidningarnas
Telegrambyra, the largest Swedish news agency) is arrested for libel of a
businessman, Wennerstrom, having written a story about him that can't be proven.
He is sentenced to jail and though the sentence is short, his career as co-owner
of the newspaper Millennium becomes a shambles. Enter, Henrik Vanger, an
elderly, wealthy businessman seeking closure to the long ago disappearance of
his niece, Harriet. Vanger is the patriarch of a well-known and large Swedish
family Vanger proposes to hire Blomkvist to write his biography and to solve the
mystery of Harriet's disappearance. He details that day in 1966 when most of the
Vanger family was gathered for their annual dinner and board meeting on Hedeby
Island. Off island there was a Children's Day Parade planned by the sports club
of Hedestad. Harriet had gone to Hedestad to see the parade with some school
friends, came back to Hedeby just after 2 in the afternoon. At 2:15 a farmer
collided with an oil truck and caused a horrific explosion cutting off any means
of anyone coming or going from the island. Moments before the crash, Harriet had
told Henrik she needed to talk to him but he was busy and told her he'd catch up
with her later.



The accident happened, all heck broke loose, and that was the last time Vanger
saw Harriet. With all the confusion of the bridge accident he didn't even
realize she was missing until the next morning. There were many people on the
island that day and Vanger spent the ensuing years trying to figure out which of
them had killed Harriet, as he was certain she was murdered, probably for
something she knew and had tried to tell him. No body was ever found; she could
not have run away as the bridge was the only way out. The author describes this
as a locked-room mystery in island format. Blomkvist is hesitant to take on this
assignment but is lured by the payment offered, Wennerstrom 's head on a
platter. 



Larsson includes a family tree and thank heavens he does as it would be
difficult to keep all the Vangers straight without it. There are a multitude of
suspects and other great characters with varying roles to keep the story
interesting and entertaining. One character, Lizbeth Salander, odd girl out is a
fascinating study throughout the story. She plays a central part in her role as
a sort of investigative assistant to Blomkvist. Fittingly her birthday is
Walpurgis Night, an old pagan festival. The Blomkvist character reads novels
throughout the story, one of which is Val McDermid's Mermaids Singing. He
pronounces it grisly.



Be forewarned that Larsson also presents a grisly and violent tale. For a first
time effort I'd call this one first rate. Four star rather than five for some
plot flaws in the wrap-up. Still, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a sequel!

As a true crime fan, I picked this up initially as H.H. Holmes is billed as the first serial killer in the US. How could I resist this tease? But as I read, the killings became less important (not to belittle the awful lost of life) and the building of the fair took on a life of it's own. The fair became a character, more than a backdrop for this well told story. I was enthralled by the images and history Erik Larsen shared. This book was a jumping off point for interlibrary loan of many other books dealing with the fair itself. I loved the weaving of Holmes story and the fair. H. H.Holmes certainly was an evil man, handsome, smart, and charismatic like many serial killers. If I met him, I'm positive I would have liked him and that's what is truly scary.

If you can get your hands on the DVD H.H. Holmes: America's first serial killer / Waterfront Productions presents a John Borowski film ; producer, John Borowski ; writer, John Borowski ; director, John Borowski, it's worth a watch.

I had read Isaac's Storm (Larsen) before this for a book discussion in our library. We all agreed we liked the author's writing but didn't care about the people as much as we thought we should in Isaac's Storm. Thunderstruck is on my bookshelf waiting for my the right reading moment. Mr. Larsen is top-notch on my list.