Tag Archives: Friday Reads

Last year the nation recognized the centennial of the First World War. The sacrifices of men and women on the home front, as well as the violence and hatred that swept across America during World War I (WWI) are addressed in The Meaning of Names.

From Amazon:

“Stuart, Nebraska is a long way from the battlefields of Western Europe, but it is not immune to the horrors of the first Great War for Peace. Like all communities, it has lost sons and daughters to the fighting, with many more giving themselves over to the hatred only war can engender.

Set in 1918 in the farm country at the heart of America, The Meaning of Names is the story of an ordinary woman trying to raise a family during extraordinary times. Estranged from her parents because she married against their will, confronted with violence and prejudice against her people, and caught up in the midst of the worst plague the world has ever seen, Gerda Vogel, an American of German descent, must find the strength to keep her family safe from the effects of a war that threatens to consume the whole world.”

The Meaning Names is the 2014/15 Omaha Reads selection.  While I am only half-way through it, I completely agree that this is a must-read about what life was like in the Midwest during World War I and the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918-1919.

Nebraska author Karen Gettert Shoemaker is a faculty mentor with the University of Nebraska’s MFA in Writing Program. She lives in Lincoln, Nebraska, where she and her husband own and operate Shoemaker’s Truck Stop and Travel Center.

It’s a Greek god like rollercoaster, with the politics of nations, the politics of gods (a family), and the politics of the emperor’s family and succession, and all of it interrelated and convoluted. All of it in a city created by magic in a palace that resembles a rose which towers far above the capital city. Into all of this you follow the trajectory of Yeine Darr (a forgotten, dismissed, “half breed” heir, but ruler of her own country in the heretical North), from the start, plunging into this seeming tranquil pool, to plunge through its roiling depths.
Yeine, also has her own agenda, to discover why her grandfather, the emperor killed her mother, after letting her live for 20 years in a foreign land. Not to mention why she’s now an acknowledged heir, and competitor for the throne (excuse me, stone chair.)
And of course, there’s magic and gods. But the gods are bound, and living at the palace, doing the ruling family’s every whim. No matter who gets hurt, including themselves, or entire nations.
Watching Yeine try to manage her way through all the protocols, snares, and attacks, without injuring the innocent, is worth the read. A fresh voice, and a very different world view. This is the first book of The Inheritance Trilogy.
Reviews & an excerpt:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/valerie-stiversisakova/review-nk-jemsins-the-hun_b_5585765.html
http://www.amazon.com/Hundred-Thousand-Kingdoms-Inheritance-Trilogy/dp/0316043923

Andre the Giant: Life and Legend by Box Brown is graphic nonfiction, a biography of Andre Roussimoff told in graphic novel format with black, white, and grey art.  I picked this up wondering both about Andre’s life and how the author/illustrator would choose to present it.  Brown opens with a three-page explanation of professional wrestling as it was during Andre’s time in the World Wrestling Federation.

Andre had gigantism, the result of an excessive production of growth hormone during his childhood.  During his adult life Andre suffered pain, his brow became more pronounced, his joints were affected, and he had back surgery to ease his pain.  He was presented as a kind and considerate person, but he could get upset at times and not many people wanted to push the point with him.  Not surprising, I also learned that Andre enjoyed drinking and partying.  While reading about specific wrestling matches and heavy drinking is not my usual reading choice, I also learned about his life, how tired he became of people gawking at him, and the difficulties of being so large.

This title will appeal to older teen and adult fans of wrestling, graphic novels, and of “The Princess Bride.”

From the publisher:
“The Weird Fiction Review is an annual periodical devoted to the study of weird and supernatural fiction. It is edited by S.T. Joshi. This fifth issue contains fiction, poetry, and reviews from leading writers and promising newcomers. It features original stories and essays by Jason V Brock, Dennis Etchison, John Butler, Sherry Austin, Stefan Dziemianowicz, Darrell Schweitzer; a lengthy interview with Michael Aronovitz and one with Ray Bradbury; an 8-page full-color gallery of art by Travis Louie; regular columns by Danel Olson and John Pelan and much more.”

This wonderful journal from Centipede Press, a small publisher located in Colorado, generally runs about 300 pages and contains fiction, poetry, articles and interviews. At $35 per copy and with a limited print run of just 500 copies per issue, it isn’t available in most libraries but there are a few that do have it in their collections.

It’s been almost five years since Nick Hornby released a novel, and I have been waiting eagerly for this one. So far, it has not disappointed me. While most of Hornby’s other works are contemporary fiction, Funny Girl is set in the 1960s. It follows Barbara Parker (or Sophie Straw, once she starts using a stage name) as she rises from a small-town beauty queen with a desire to make people laugh to a national television comedy star. The book explores the theme of light entertainment versus serious art and the importance of each.

Though many of Hornby’s earlier books, such as High Fidelity and About a Boy, are considered to be targeted toward men, I enjoy his books in general. I think that Funny Girl in particular will appeal to both male and female readers. I’m looking forward to reading more.

Hornby, Nick. Funny Girl. New York: Riverhead Books, 2015.

I know Eleanor & Park has been out for almost two years and many librarian-types have already read and loved it, but I just got around to listening to it this past week. I’m glad I did. It was evocative, filled with both angst and sweetness. The tragedy is that in the end Eleanor’s family situation is too dire to overcome by any other means than escape. I don’t want to provide a plot summary or review – those are plentiful elsewhere – but I will share a few personal thoughts/impressions:

• The fact that the story was set in Omaha in 1984, when the characters were 16, definitely brought back memories. Though I graduated from a Lincoln high school in 1983, Rowell’s descriptions of students’ styles and (sadly) interactions rang true. References to music, the Old Market, and coffee at Village Inn also firmly grounded the narrative in a familiar time and place.

• I loved Park’s parents, the way sometimes one was the good guy while the other was the bad guy, and then at other times the roles would be reversed. It seemed realistic, since as parents we each have blind spots as well as soft spots. I also loved the way the point of view switched back and forth between Eleanor and Park, sometimes moment by moment.

• While high school definitely wasn’t a high point in my life (I considered myself somewhat disaffected at the time) I was completely sheltered from the type of dysfunction in which Eleanor’s life was steeped. However, I’m sure I had classmates who, unbeknownst to me, lived lives very similar to Eleanor’s. This is why I absolutely abhor the fact that parents try to ban books like Eleanor & Park from school libraries. If a book accurately portrays the lived experiences of some students, it strikes me as condescending and dismissive to claim that it is “inappropriate” for other students to even read about it, especially if the subject matter is handled compassionately, in a way that may cultivate empathy. And what about the potential value to students living lives similar to Eleanor’s in seeing their own experiences in print? Eleanor is beaten down, but she retains a sense of self, her quirky point of view, and is able to experience moments of sweetness and acceptance with Park. Although she doesn’t get the proverbial fairy-tale happy ending, she survives long enough to escape – and sometimes in real life maybe that takes precedence over the stereotypical though not universal “happy highs” of high school (e.g. boyfriends/girlfriends, parties, football, prom). That seems like an important message to me.

Having finished Eleanor & Park, I’ve now moved on to Fangirl, another book by Rainbow Rowell. This one is set in Lincoln, on the University of Nebraska campus. The main character lives in Pound Hall, is an English major who hangs out in Andrews Hall, and haunts the north basement of Love Library. Ditto, ditto, ditto.

Rowell, Rainbow, Rebecca Lowman, and Sunil Malhotra. Eleanor & Park. Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group, 2013. Internet resource. (Listen to excerpt)

This past week, I was looking for comfort reading while I was home with a bad cold. I suppose everyone has their own requirements for a good comfort read.  For me, that’s almost always an old friend—a book that I’ve enjoyed before.  And if I’ve enjoyed the book previously, then the unfolding of the plot and the building of suspense aren’t so important as how those things happen, so language, the setting, and the way the author discloses details become more important.  Humor is good—and a good-humored outlook is essential.  The characters are important—I want to visit with friends.

Georgette Heyer fills the bill. Ms. Heyer had a long career, writing over 50 novels, a few historicals, some contemporary mysteries, and many titles in the genre she is best known for, the Regency romance.  Many of her Regencies include elements of mystery or suspense (e.g. The Toll-Gate.)  All include a lot of accurate period detail (An Infamous Army includes a recounting of the Battle of Waterloo and has a formidable bibliography.)  Most important, the books are full of witty banter, attractive characters, and fun.  Ms. Heyer herself once said “I think myself I ought to be shot for writing such nonsense, but it’s unquestionably good escapist literature; & I think I should rather like it if I were sitting in an air-raid shelter, or recovering from flu.”

The Reluctant Widow starts with a “meet cute” that’s tough to swallow, but Ms. Heyer brings it off. Elinor Rochdale, a lady fallen on hard times, travels to take up a post as a governess and finds herself, by mistake, at the home of Lord Ned Carlyon, who was expecting a woman who had agreed to marry his dissolute cousin, Eustace Cheviot, so that Ned could avoid inheriting Eustace’s estate. The situation is desperate as word comes that Eustace has been fatally wounded and lies dying.  Elinor is convinced against her better judgment to marry and becomes a widow overnight.  After that, a stolen secret memorandum, a dog named Bouncer, and a midnight intruder keep the book moving along briskly.  And since it says right on the cover of the book that it’s a Romance, “will Elinor and Ned get together in the end?” is not really a question.

The book is almost 70 years old, but its charm is still fresh and engaging. Readers of Romance, Historical fiction, or even Napoleonic War buffs might enjoy it.  A number of Georgette Heyer’s books are available through Nebraska OverDrive.

From Amazon:

“The Homesman is a devastating story of early pioneers in 1850s Nebraska. It celebrates the ones we hear nothing of: the brave women whose hearts and minds were broken by a life of bitter hardship. A “homesman” must be found to escort a handful of them back East to a sanitarium. When none of the county’s men steps up, the job falls to Mary Bee Cuddy—ex-teacher, spinster, indomitable and resourceful. Brave as she is, Mary Bee knows she cannot succeed alone. The only companion she can find is the low-life claim jumper George Briggs. Thus begins a trek east, against the tide of colonization, against hardship, Indian attacks, ice storms, and loneliness—a timeless classic told in a series of tough, fast-paced adventures.

Glendon Swarthout’s novel from 1988 won both the Western Writers of America’s Spur Award and the Western Heritage Wrangler Award. A new afterword by the author’s son Miles Swarthout tells of his parents Glendon and Kathryn’s discovery of and research into the lives of the oft-forgotten frontier women who make The Homesman as moving and believable as it is unforgettable.”

Having seen a trailer for the recent movie of the same title, starring Hillary Swank and Tommy Lee Jones, I picked up a copy of the book at the airport while my husband and I were traveling this past Christmas.  The minute I started reading it, I was completely pulled in ; it was riveting and shocking, all at the same time.  I highly recommend this book (and movie) about frontier Nebraska.

This is one of those authors I wish would write faster. I recently discovered Daniel Silva’s thrillers about Gabriel Allon, Israeli spy/assassin and restorer of great masters.  I’m a little late to the party–Silva has made the bestseller lists for years now–but I’ve made up for lost time and binged.  Read–or mostly, listened to–all 14 books in the series (so far.)  Now I’m going back to read one of Silva’s earlier titles, The Mark of the Assassin.  It’s been fun, partly because it contains a number of precursors to the Allon books, and partly because, as with Silva’s other books, the writing is good, the plotting is fast-paced and twisty, the characters are interesting, and the issues and events in the book seem so dreadfully plausible.  There’s plenty of action, but I think The Mark of the Assassin contains a little less gadgetry and hardware and a little more thinking than many spy thrillers.  Silva, Daniel. The mark of the assassin. New York: Villard, 1998.

The small town of Miles City, Montana, serves as the setting for this coming-of-age novel. It takes place in the early 1990s and follows its protagonist, Cameron from age 12 to age 16, so it definitely has nostalgic appeal for someone like me, who was also in junior high and high school in the early 90s.

The book revolves around two major occurrences in Cameron’s life: the death of both of her parents in a car accident and her growing awareness of the fact that she is gay.

This is a well-written book that vividly creates the setting of rural Montana. The author holds a Ph. D. from UNL, though I was unaware of that Nebraska connection when I started the book. I am about halfway finished listening to the audiobook version of this title, and I’m looking forward to the rest.

Danforth, Emily M. The Miseducation of Cameron Post. Newark, NJ: Audible Studios, 2013.

I’ve recently been reading some of Suzanne Brockmann’s romantic suspense novels, which feature Navy SEALS as leading men. This got me wondering about real Navy SEALS—can they truly be as accomplished and multi-talented as Brockmann makes them out to be? My curiosity piqued, I searched Lincoln City Libraries’ OverDrive collection and wound up checking out the audiobook edition of SEAL Team Six: Memoirs of an Elite Navy SEAL Sniper, by Howard Wasdin.

I’m about half-way through at this point, and so far have found it quite interesting. Wasdin begins by recounting his difficult childhood, which he later credits with preparing him to withstand many of the rigors of the SEAL training and selection process. His descriptions of the physical and mental challenges SEAL candidates endure definitely inspire awe and respect. At the same time, it’s easy to see what a toll this career would take on family life. At the point I’m at in the story Wasdin is still married, with two kids, but his allusions to relationship strain make me think the marriage won’t survive.

So far I’d say that Wasdin’s non-fiction account of the numerous and incredibly varied skills and abilities of Navy SEALS is every bit as impressive as Brockmann’s fictional version—meaning maybe she’s not exaggerating. Unfortunately, I’m not sure the path to a happy ending is going to be quite as straight-forward and assured.

Wasdin’s memoir definitely offers a window into a life very different from my own. It’s impossible not to admire and respect the strength, tenacity, and intelligence required to make it as a SEAL, and I’m definitely looking forward to listening to the rest of his story.

Wasdin, Howard E, Stephen Templin, and Ray Porter. Seal Team Six: Memoirs of an Elite Navy Seal Sniper. Ashland, Or.: Blackstone Audio, Inc, 2011. Internet resource. (Listen to excerpt)

Doctorow’s First Law:
Any time someone puts a lock on something that belongs to you and won’t give you the key, that lock isn’t for your benefit.

Doctorow’s Second Law:
Fame won’t make you rich, but you can’t get paid without it.

Doctorow’s Third Law:
Information doesn’t want to be free, people do.

Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free: Laws for the Internet Age by Cory Doctorow. McSweeney’s, 2014.

He looked a malenky bit poogly when he viddied the four of us like that, coming up so quiet and polite and smiling, but he said, ‘Yes? What is it?’ in a very loud teacher-type goloss, as if he was trying to show us he wasn’t poogly. I said:

‘I see you have them books under your arm, brother. It is indeed a rare pleasure these days to come across somebody that still reads, brother.’

I don’t re-read books all that often but this week I’ve stared re-reading Anthony Burgess’ A Clockwork Orange. As with many books that have been turned into films, this one yet another that’s been generally overshadowed by Stanley Kubrick’s version. However, I’m rediscovering this wonderful and challenging book because a brand new edition has been recently published by The Folio Society. And, as much as I love the content, this physical book was worth every penny.

First, the binding and new interior artwork are superb, and a joy to hold. (For more on the artwork, see the video below.) Second this edition contains an introduction by novelist Irvine Welsh and a carefully edited text that includes not only the deleted last chapter that was removed from the original US editions, but also a revised text based on Burgess’ manuscript and even a recorded version where the author read it himself. (Back when vinyl albums weren’t just collector’s items.)

In the end, as much as I’m encouraging everyone to read this novel if they haven’t before, especially if the film version is your only experience, I highly recommend this particular edition; a fine addition to any collection.

There is something that has always fascinated me about the idea of time travel.  I’m not sure if it’s a desire to change the past, or a desire to just experience a different time period, whether past or future.  Either way, when the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon was first published, I was immediately caught up in the adventures of English nurse Claire Beauchamp Randall and her journey back in time to 18th century Scotland.  I’ve enjoyed this series so much I’ve read it twice, and at the moment, I’m listening to it in audio format.  Here’s a little more detail about the story, from Amazon:

“In 1945, Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon–when she innocently touches a boulder in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach—an “outlander”—in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year of our Lord…1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire’s destiny is soon inextricably intertwined with Clan MacKenzie and the forbidden Castle Leoch. She is catapulted without warning into the intrigues of lairds and spies that may threaten her life …and shatter her heart. For here, James “Jamie” Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, shows her a passion so fierce and a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire…and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.”

The books are so well written, rich in history and characters that you’ll remember long after you’ve finished the books, that it now has eight+ titles, and is in its’ first season on the Starz TV network.  Enjoy!

What if you could protect someone by pulling a ray gun out of the book Slan, by A.E. Van Vogt? That’s what Isaac Vainios of Codex Born, the book I’ve been reading, can do. He is investigating a murder by using a machine that views the past written in a short story called The Dead Past by Isaac Asimov (in his anthology, The Best of Isaac Asimov), which leads to an attack on his girlfriend. And the price of using too much of his book magic in too short a space of time, is losing his mind or his life. The characters are fun and irreverent, the action is fast, and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed as much as I’ve read so far. There are definitely adult sexual situations.

Magic systems interest me, and this is one is a fit for librarians. Any book, as long as the person with the talent can concentrate, and imagine it, can draw any item out of a book. If the item is larger than the book when the book is open, it can’t be pulled through…usually. And of course, a lot can go wrong. There are of course, bad guys, and a force on the inside of the book world that is inimical to humans that Isaac calls the Devourers. Some of the side effects of the magic from the books is that there are several types of vampire—defined by the writers of the books: Sanguinarius Meyerii (a sparkler, from the Twilight trilogy), Sanguinarius Meadus (from the Vampire Academy novels), etc., with powers defined by those described in the books. There are other magical creatures as well: werewolves, dryads, golems, and more.

Also a fun plus, the author includes a list of the books mentioned in the text, and marks the titles fabricated for the story. Included are references to A.E. Van Vogt’s Slan, Isaac Asimov’s The Best of Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein’s Friday, Randy L. Daly’s African Honey Bees in North America, and others.

Codex Born, by Jim C. Hines, 2013, Daw Books, ISBN 978-0-7564-0816-9, Magic Ex Libris, Book Two.

Friday Reads: Avalon High by Meg Cabot (YA)

A blending of Arthurian Legends and High School Chick Lit, Avalon High is a sweet and simple story of girl meets boy for the first (or is it the second) time and then is politely pursued by boy until she clues in that her crush isn’t unrequited; just add a dash of reincarnation and a pinch more of intrigue.

Avalon High by Meg Cabot

Elaine “Ellie” Harrison is a typical high school girl who moves with her professor parents for their research sabbatical, temporarily enrolling at a new school. Inundated for the past sixteen years by the facts, literature and legends of the dark ages, Ellie has developed an aversion to all things medieval; but when she is assigned a history report on Arthurian Legends, Ellie finds startling parallels between handsome, golden-boy Will Wagner and King Arthur of legend. But just like Arthur, Will may to be facing dark times ahead. Each chapter begins charmingly with a quotation from Alfred Lord Tennyson’s classic poem, The Lady of Shalott. I give it a solid 3 stars and recommend for junior high readers.

The Nebraska Library Commission has 2 book groups: Adult & Children and I belong to both. This past month we read Cat Girl’s Day Off by Kimberly Pauley. The author pulls off a high school life with superpowers (like there isn’t enough drama already in high school), friends that have way too much worldly knowledge for their age, and too much pink (cats, clothes, dogs, hair). In a family full of “talented people” Nat, our lead, has a lower level Talent–she can talk to cats–which can be embarrassing especially when they start telling boy secrets (you’ll have to read it).  The story develops into a celebrity kidnapping mystery you’ll never forget, with twists that are almost believable. Did you enjoy Ferris Bueller’s Day Off? That should give you a hint of the comedy, action, and drama that Kimberly unveils for us. As Pauley says on her blog “Find out what happens when the kitty litter hits the fan”. Ages 12+

Pauley, Kimberly.  Cat Girl’s Day Off.  New York: Tu Books, 2012.