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Reviews by Julie Z. (Oak Park, IL)

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This Strange Eventful History: A Novel
by Claire Messud

This Strange Eventful History (4/17/2024)

How I loved being immersed in the world to which Claire Messud introduces us in This Strange Eventful History! This novel is a generational family saga, set across many countries, and told through the lens of Lucienne and Gaston Cassar and their children. The couple is French-Algerian, and after WW II, spend the beginning of the novel moving across the globe searching for a homeland. They share a very special love. Their children, and then grandchildren, have much to live up to in their own relationships, it seeming close to impossible to recreate what their parents have.
Messud writes with elegance and finesse, making the reader want to linger in these pages. This semi-autobiographical story of her own family is the most fully realized of the books I have read of hers - not to diminish her wonderful back-list. Strongly recommended.

Help Wanted: A Novel
by Adelle Waldman

Help Wanted (1/10/2024)

Having spent almost twenty years working in a "big box" bookstore, much of this book rang true. While Help Wanted was character driven, making it both interesting and fun to read, the underlying message about what this type of store does to their workers is very realistic. Waldman highlighted the single mom, the ex-con, the student, and others who have not had a shot at a middle management 40 hr per week job, and what their struggles are. The varying schedules where one can never plan ahead or budget, the quotas that are always unattainable, all make for miserable work conditions. I appreciated this novel for both its humor and realism.

This Is Salvaged: Stories
by Vauhini Vara

This Is Salvaged (8/25/2023)

As I have aged, I find myself more drawn to short stories, with Alice Munro and Jhumpa Lahiri being the standard-bearers. In this collection, Vauhini Vara proves herself to be a welcome addition to the genre. The ability to look at the darkness found in so many lives and be able to temper it with a keen sense of humor is what stood out to me in these inventive tales. In the title story, Marlon, an artist working in found objects, says of his wife "Irina had married him because she found him charming at first, and he had married her because he loved people precisely to the extent to which they found him charming". Ultimately, people are the found objects in Marlon's life -easily come upon and then replaced.

Do Tell: A Novel
by Lindsay Lynch

Do Tell (6/26/2023)

1930s Hollywood: Edie O'Day is an actress whose contract is about to run out at FWM studios. She has not achieved great success in acting, but as an insider, has flourished in helping out the local gossip columnist with her work. When Edie decides to write her own column, she finds that writing about her former peers can be uncomfortable, and the repercussions downright nasty. This book is for anyone who loves the golden age of Hollywood. Lynch does a great job recreating the atmosphere of the time.

The Gifts: A Novel
by Liz Hyder

The Gifts (3/10/2023)

Set in Victorian England, this is a fable about females and the abuse they suffer at the hands of men - be it intentional or not. The plot is set in motion when a fisherman rescues an angel who has fallen into the Thames. We are then introduced to four female characters whose lives become entwined with both the angel, and a surgeon who is a religious zealot. His greedy ambition is his downfall, leading to the suffering of his wife and other women. I appreciated the nods to the importance and beauty of nature, but the mystical happenings left me cold. The chapters are brief; told by the varying women. I found this device to make the novel seem disjointed, creating a lack of flow of the story. I was ultimately disappointed in this brutal tale. Thank you to Source Books for the ARC.

The Critic's Daughter: A Memoir
by Priscilla Gilman

The Critic's Daughter (1/17/2023)

Priscilla Gilman is the eldest daughter of Richard Gilman, renowned theater critic, and Lynn Nesbit, an accomplished literary agent. She and her sister seem to have everything- a large apartment in NYC and summer home in Connecticut, education at the best schools, and a rotating list of house guests from the theater and literary worlds. At age ten, Priscilla's mother divorces her father, and her world collapses. Her father suffers greatly, and she feels responsible for saving him from a dive into deep depression.
Gilman's writing is evocative and beautiful. I read this memoir in one sitting, as I was wrapped up in the NYC setting and the extensive literary references. Gilman vividly describes growing into this new relationship with her father, working through his fears, and making peace with who he is. The road is not easy, but the results are moving and satisfying.

Ghost Season: A Novel
by Fatin Abbas

Ghost Season (11/16/2022)

Abbas has written an excellent first novel. Following five characters that live at an NGO compound in South Sudan in 2001, the diverse group of people include those born in Sudan, an American map maker, and a Sudanese American filmmaker. As a civil war is coming closer to this small town of Saraaya, the native Sudanese are being moved from their small shacks while trying to eek out some sort of living. The characters are well drawn; their relationships becoming entwined while they try to sort out what is going on around them. I was truly invested in the outcome of this satisfying story.

Natural History: Stories
by Andrea Barrett

Natural History (8/9/2022)

A beautifully written collection of short stories, all interconnecting with the characters appearing more than once. The setting is central New York, and the time spans the Civil War era to the present day. The subjects vary, but women in the fields of science/nature are the focus. There iss a tone in the writing that is evocative of a simpler and more elegant time and place, which set the tone for the stories. "Out on the porch, where the candles cast confusing shadows, a warm breeze pushed through the leaves encasing the columns, muting the words and music easing through the open parlor windows".

Two of the characters- Henrietta Atkins and one of the "Marburg" sisters appeared in Barrett's earlier book- Ship Fever. Based on my opinion of Natural History, I will rush to read more of Barrett's work.

One's Company: A Novel
by Ashley Hutson

One's Company (5/22/2022)

Bonnie Lincoln has not had an easy life-both her mother and father died at an early age, leaving her without resources. She is "taken in" by her friend Krystal's family, but soon the mother, father, and brother are murdered in the grocery store which they own. Luckily, Bonnie wins a huge amount of money in the lottery, allowing her to escape her reality by building a life within the set of popular 70's sitcom "Three's Company". Bonnie creates a life in which she rotates living as each of the television show's characters; cutting herself off from all communication with the outside world.
In Bonnie, Ashley Hutson has created a surreal heroine. What is real and what is imagined? How have the traumas that Bonnie has suffered contributed to this bizarre life she has created? I was puzzled at many of her choices, but was riveted to the book until completion. Hutson has a bright future in literature- I found this to be a well-written, gripping novel.

Activities of Daily Living: A Novel
by Lisa Hsiao Chen

Activities of Daily Living by Lisa Hsiao Chen (1/17/2022)

Alice is a Taiwanese immigrant living in NYC. In her free time, she is researching and writing about Tehsching Hsieh, an obscure performance artist, whom she refers to as "the Artist" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tehching_Hsieh). While Hsieh's art often is centered on the notion of time, Alice's stepfather ("the Father" in the novel) is dying of Alzheimer's disease; wrestling with time in his own way. Alice flies back and forth to San Francisco, trying to find the best care for the Father, while trying to carry out her own daily living through her job, research, and relationships with friends. Hsiao Chan has a spare, distinctive writing style, which lends itself to the story at hand. Her treatment of the end of her stepfather's life is touching and rang true to me, as my mother also died of Alzheimer's. An excellent debut novel.

The Family Chao: A Novel
by Lan Samantha Chang

The Family Chao (11/30/2021)

Years ago, an immigrant family from China moved to small town Haven, WI. There they have operated Fine Chao, a Chinese restaurant, for over thirty years. The father, Leo, is a tyrant to both his wife and his three sons. With nods to The Brothers Karamazov, we watch him rule with an iron fist, loosing his wife to a spiritual retreat, and his sons searching for their identities. With a mysterious twist in the middle of the book, Chang keeps the reader engaged throughout. Having just read Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang, I have been immersed in the plight of the Chinese immigrant trying to assimilate to our culture. Thanks for the review copy of this excellent novel.

New York, My Village: A Novel
by Uwem Akpan

New York, My Village (8/30/2021)

Ekong Udousoro is a Nigerian editor. When he wins the Toni Morrison publishing fellowship, he moves to NYC to edit an anthology of stories of the Biafran war. He is given a job at a large publishing house. From the start of his time in New York, he has countless issues adapting to his new life- most of the issues stemming from the racism that he encounters day to day. He takes an apartment in Hell's Kitchen, which he soon finds out is infested with bed bugs. The bed bugs continue through the entire novel, becoming a symbol of the racism he encounters.

The character of Ekong is extremely likable. His reactions to New York are almost as if seen through the eyes of a child- he gets excited by all that is new. Starbucks becomes his refuge. And the novel is infused with humor even when problems seem insurmountable.

I received an ARC of New York, My Village in exchange for a short review. What I read was pre-publication. I feel there was a choppiness to the telling of Ekong's story that could have done with a good edit, but I enjoyed the book (and also learned much about Nigerian and the Biafran war).

The Lost Notebook of Edouard Manet: A Novel
by Maureen Gibbon

The Lost Notebook of Édouard Manet by Maureen Gibbon (6/23/2021)

Told in the form of a notebook, this diary of the later years of Edouard Manet is both lovely and sad. Sad in that his later years are plagued with syphilis and the accompanying decline, but lovely in the memories reflected. Manet is determined to finish a final work- A Bar at the Folies-Bergere (coincidentally one of my favorite works of the age). We read of his attempts to paint while suffering severe health issues and traveling back and forth between a sanitarium where he receives treatment and Paris, where he works. The allusions to nature are lovely, as are the actual sketches reproduced in the notebook. I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for a review.

A Theater for Dreamers
by Polly Samson

A Theater for Dreamers (3/18/2021)

A sensual haze of a novel, set on the Greek island of Hydra in the 1960's. Young Erica has come to find herself after the loss of her mother. She reaches out to her mother's friend, Charmian Clift, a bohemian writer. She and her husband, George Johnston are surrounded by a group of artists, where a hedonistic life is the norm. Erica is with her boyfriend, her brother, and a few other friends, but soon becomes enmeshed in the lives of the older artists. As this was an ARC, I knew nothing of the book before reading, and am embarrassed to say that I did not know that Clift and Johnston were actual writers. Leonard Cohen also makes an appearance.
This was a dream of a novel with sensuous and lush descriptions of the beauty of Greece. A small treat for those of us who cannot travel!

The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman: A Novel
by Julietta Henderson

The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman (2/16/2021)

Norman Foreman is a 12 year old son of a single mom, who loves stand-up comedy, and has a terrible case of psoriasis. Norman and his best (and only) friend, Jax, make a 5 year plan, which includes taking their stand-up duo to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. When Jax dies suddenly, Norman's plans must change, His path to the festival takes a different route, giving Norman the opportunity to meet many memorable characters along the way. They are rooting for Norman to not only perform stand-up, but to also find his birth father. Both Norman and his mother grow and blossom during this process, and though some of the situations lead to more slapstick outcomes than I would prefer, Norman and his new friends are characters that will not soon be forgotten.

Big Girl, Small Town
by Michelle Gallen

Big Girl, Small Town (10/26/2020)

Set in Northern Ireland during "The Troubles", 27 year old Majella O'Neill (Jelly), is perfectly happy with her daily routine of working at the local fish and chip shop, and then coming home to watch Dallas. She lives with her alcoholic mother; her father is long gone, and her Gran has recently been murdered. Gallen does a good job of having us view Jelly's tedious life, and the dialect, although a bit difficult to decipher at the onset, lends a wonderful air to the feeling of the book. If diagnosed, Jelly would be on the autism spectrum, but aside from wanting to live on her own, she seems perfectly happy with her situation. An endearing look at a memorable character.

The Paris Hours: A Novel
by Alex George

The Paris Hours (3/30/2020)

Day 10 of Coronavirus quarantine, and The Paris Hours was just what I needed. Paris in the twenties comes alive with fictionalized and true to life characters interwoven with individual plots that come together in the end. I most enjoyed the sections with Proust and his maid. Although I felt some of the stories seemed a bit too "convenient" to be plausible, I was wrapped up in the story, and practically read the book in one sitting. It will take you away and set you in Paris!

Miss Austen
by Gill Hornby

MIss Austen (2/18/2020)

One would assume that a book titled Miss Austen would be about Jane Austen, but Cassandra Austen, Jane's sister is the protagonist of this well written historical novel. Jane is deceased, and Cassandra is going through old letters of hers, deciding which are important to tell the story of Jane's life. Using the letters as a device to take us from Jane's early years to 1840, when the aging Cassandra comes across the letters adds an interesting perspective. Ultimately, this novel could have been written about anyone from this era, as the Austen references are secondary. An interesting look at the time period, with well fleshed out characters and atmospheric environment.

The Yellow Bird Sings: A Novel
by Jennifer Rosner

The Yellow Bird Sings (12/13/2019)

A moving Holocaust story centering on a mother and child in hiding in Poland. The mother makes the decision to let the child go into hiding in an orphanage, while the mother must struggle for survival on her own until the end of the war. I found the ending a bit abrupt, but appreciated both the lyrical writing style and the many allusions to the idea that it was both love and music that kept both mother and daughter fighting for their lives. The book held my attention from beginning to end, and I finished it within 24 hours. Thank you to BookBrowse for the ARC.

We That Are Left
by Clare Clark

We That Are Left by Clare Clark (6/29/2015)

Bringing the effects of the Great War to life, Clark does a wonderful job of combining historical facts with this fictional story. Two sisters, Jessica and Priscilla grow up amidst great wealth. When the unthinkable happens to their brother, their mother becomes emotionally remote, leaving the girls and their father to fend for themselves. Both become attached in different ways to Oskar, their mother's godson. One of the sisters wishes to save the vast estate from debtors, yet the other one is not interested in the least.
With the setting similar to Downtown Abbey, readers will love this story of wealth, heroics, and mistaken identity. Based on this novel and her previous works, Clark is obviously a historical researcher- enhancing what is already a well written novel with a look into the era.

Reviews by Julie Z. (Oak Park, IL)

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