Month: March 2013

Review: Murder Your Darlings

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Murder Your DarlingsJ.J. Murphy, Murder Your Darlings

Dorothy Parker is famous for her elegant quips, biting wit, and copious consumption of alcohol, but this novel also imagines her as an amateur sleuth. When Dorothy shows up at the Algonquin for lunch with her fellow literati, she sees a man’s feet sticking out from under the Round Table. But he’s not dead drunk, as Dorothy first assumes — just dead. Dorothy and her friends soon learn that the corpse is Leland Mayflower, a famous critic with many professional rivals. The police are intent on arresting a shy young Mississippi writer named Billy Faulkner, but Dorothy thinks they’ve got the wrong man. Along with Robert Benchley and the rest of the Algonquin’s “vicious circle,” Dorothy sets out to find the real killer, tossing off jokes and martinis with equal speed along the way.

I don’t know too terribly much about Dorothy Parker, but when I saw the premise of this book, I knew I had to check it out. It’s an extremely fun read, mostly because of the rapid-fire dialogue between Dorothy and her literary friends. I especially loved Robert Benchley’s character, whom I pictured as a slightly more intelligent Bertie Wooster. The mystery itself is definitely secondary to the setting and all of the famous characters, but it’s still well-plotted. My only complaint is that the ending dragged on for too long. After the guilty party’s identity is revealed, there are several more chapters in which Dorothy, the police, and a mob boss all chase the murderer around New York City. It got a bit tedious for me; I don’t enjoy a long denouement once the villain is unmasked. But overall I enjoyed this book a lot, and it’s inspired me to finally read some Dorothy Parker!

Review: Warm Bodies

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Warm BodiesIsaac Marion, Warm Bodies

In this unusual take on the zombie novel, the protagonist is one of the walking dead. Sometime in the near future, civilization has collapsed, and the world is a perpetual battleground between the living and the undead. “R” and his fellow zombies live in an abandoned airport, where they shuffle around mindlessly and occasionally hunt the living to satisfy their desire for human brains. But “R” is different; though he can’t speak or move like a living person, he is a thoughtful and sensitive soul who can’t help wondering why the world is in such terrible shape. Then he meets Julie, a living girl who sparks an unusual desire in him: instead of eating her brain, he wants to protect her. As “R” and Julie slowly get to know one another, they decide that it’s time to heal their damaged world — and maybe heal each other in the process.

I am emphatically not a reader of zombie novels, but so many people have raved about this one that curiosity got the better of me. Overall I thought the portrayal of zombies was very clever. In the world of this novel, they’re not necessarily mindless monsters; they just can’t communicate with the living (and, of course, they eat brains). But some things did confuse me: for example, “R” says he can’t remember anything about his former life, yet he’s able to make complex literary references (he mentions Moby Dick at one point). Why can he remember these details but not the bigger picture of his life? But speaking of literary references, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the characters’ names are “R” and Julie — there’s even a balcony scene! The book also mentions John Lennon’s “Imagine,” which got me to thinking…in a sense, this book hypothesizes what kind of world might exist if the lyrics of “Imagine” came true. Imagine there’s no countries, no religion, no possessions…and you might get a world close to this one. (Of course, Lennon also imagines world peace, so it’s not exactly identical.) Anyway, I have mixed feelings about this book, but I did find it quite thought-provoking.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books on my spring TBR list

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meme - top ten tuesdayI often don’t do the Top Ten Tuesday posts because it’s too hard for me to come up with, say, my 10 favorite female characters of all time. (All time! I just know I’m going to leave out someone really important!) But this week’s topic is extremely angst-free: the top 10 books on my spring TBR list. I’ve got tons of books I’m dying to read this spring, so here’s a random sample of them:

1. Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo — I feel it’s important for me to start the list with this impressive classic novel, since most of the rest of my picks will be fluffy romances. I have never read an unabridged version of this book, and now is the time! I’m four chapters in right now, and it’s actually quite a page turner.

2. Sarra Manning, Adorkable — Last year I read Manning’s You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me and thought it was really good, so now I’m trying to track down the rest of Manning’s work. Adorkable is a YA romance about opposites who can’t seem to stop snogging. (See? It’s already interesting, even though the plot isn’t exactly original — because of the snogging!)

3. Kristan Higgins, The Best Man — Kristan Higgins has a new book! OK, it actually came out last month, but it’s still exciting! There is a jilting at the altar, and also a winery. Sounds like fun to me!

4. Jennifer Echols, Star Crossed — I’ve been gobbling up Echols’ YA books, so why not give her first adult romance a try? I’m not normally super enthused about the romantic travails of Las Vegas publicists, but this is Jennifer Echols!

5. Jude Morgan, A Little Folly — Jude Morgan is one of those authors who deserves to be a lot better known, particularly among the Janeite crowd. Where do you go when you’ve already read all of Austen and Heyer? This guy! I really enjoyed both Indiscretion and An Accomplished Woman, so I have high hopes for this one too. I even splurged on the hardcover!

6. Patrick deWitt, The Sisters Brothers — I’m reading this one for a challenge I’m doing, not because I have any particular affinity for Westerns. But I’ve heard this one is really good, so why not? I snagged it from the library a little while ago, so I’ll need to get to it soon.

7. Mary Stewart, The Crystal Cave — Stewart’s Merlin trilogy has been on my shelves for far too long. Time to dust book #1 off and read it! I’m hoping that Carl V. will once again host his Once Upon a Time Challenge, which he’s been doing every spring; assuming he does, these books will be perfect!

8. Julie James, Love Irresistibly — This latest book in James’ FBI/U.S. Attorney series is coming out in April. Apparently the hero is Cade Morgan, Rylann’s handsome co-worker from About That Night — I totally called it!

9. Sharon Kay Penman, Time and Chance — I’m participating in a group read of this book over at LibraryThing, which is good because I read When Christ and His Saints Slept quite a while ago! Time to move on to book #2 in Penman’s series about the Plantagenets.

10. Candice Hern, A Proper Companion — I was lucky enough to win this book through a giveaway at Austenprose. That site compared Hern to Georgette Heyer and Lauren Willig, so I’m hoping to enjoy this book a lot!

Tune in Tuesday with Katelyn: I said it once before, but it bears repeating

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Tune in Tuesday with KatelynSometimes I feel like I have a split personality when it comes to music. On the one hand, I really love peaceful, melodic songs with intelligent lyrics. On the other hand, sometimes you just have to rock out! So for this week’s Tune in Tuesday, I give you “Fell in Love with a Girl” by the White Stripes. Prepare to spend the next 2 minutes thrashing about to the pounding guitar rhythm and snarling vocals!

Review: Eleanor & Park

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Eleanor & ParkRainbow Rowell, Eleanor & Park

Eleanor is a chubby new girl with out-of-control red hair and weird clothes. Park is a quiet half-Korean boy who clings to his position at the edge of the cool group. In the normal course of things, they would have no reason to speak to each other. But the first day that Eleanor gets on the bus, she is immediately taunted and ostracized by the other students — and Park surprises himself by letting her sit next to him. Tentatively, Eleanor and Park begin to build a friendship, which gradually deepens into an intense love. But the odds are stacked against them: Park’s parents don’t warm to the prickly Eleanor, and Eleanor’s family life is such a disaster that Park can’t even come to her house. Plus, they’re both smart people and know that high school relationships rarely last forever. Will their relationship be able to survive these obstacles, or will love ultimately tear them apart?

After loving Rowell’s debut novel, Attachments, I naturally had to check out this book too…and happily, it is equally awesome! Both Eleanor and Park are wonderful, likable characters, and it was lovely to see each of them through the other’s eyes. I completely believed in their passionate love for each other, which is unusual for me with teen romance. I tend to scoff at happily-ever-after endings in YA, because very few high school relationships actually work out over the long term. But this book swept me away with its giddy intensity, and I found myself happily rooting for Eleanor and Park to make it. I also really enjoyed the pop culture references that are sprinkled throughout the book; it’s set in the 1980s, so there are many mentions of New Wave and cassette tapes and feathered bangs. I would definitely recommend this book to fans of romance or chick lit, even those who don’t normally read YA.

Review: Luckiest Man

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Luckiest ManJonathan Eig, Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig

This well-researched biography of Lou Gehrig follows his life and baseball career in vivid detail, from his humble beginnings playing high school ball to his stellar performance as first baseman and power hitter for the New York Yankees. Along the way, Eig discusses some of the broader social developments in America in the 1920s and ’30s, but the focus remains on baseball and how it evolved throughout the early 20th century. The book uses a wealth of primary sources, particularly the many newspaper stories that covered Gehrig’s remarkable career. Most importantly, though, this biography illuminates Gehrig’s personality — humble, modest, conscientious, hardworking, and determined to do his best in life both on and off the field.

I don’t particularly follow baseball (or any other sport, frankly), but for some reason I’ve always been interested in Lou Gehrig — probably because he was left-handed, like me, and because he died tragically young. So I decided to check out this biography, and I’m glad I did because it is fantastic. I felt like I really got a sense of Lou Gehrig as a person, and it was a pleasure to read about someone so admirable. I also loved learning more about the other legendary players of that era: Babe Ruth figures prominently in the book, and there are plentiful references to other greats like Ty Cobb and Joe DiMaggio. Eig discusses Gehrig’s baseball career in great detail, sometimes describing almost every play of a game. I suppose this might be boring for some, but I really appreciated all the information since I knew basically nothing coming in. Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anyone, although it will probably be most appealing to baseball fans.

Top Ten Tuesday: Series I haven’t started yet

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meme - top ten tuesdayWow, it’s been a while since I’ve done a Top Ten Tuesday list! This week’s topic is series I’d like to start but haven’t yet. I don’t know if I’ll be able to come up with 10, since my usual problem is reading book #1 of a series and then never getting around to the rest! But here goes…

1. Song of Ice and Fire (George R.R. Martin) — I may be the only person who likes fantasy but still hasn’t gotten to this series yet! The length is daunting to me…but one of these days I’m going to pick up A Game of Thrones, I swear!

2. InCryptid (Seanan McGuire) — I love McGuire’s Toby Daye books, so of course I’m interested in this series too! I think it involves monsters and monster hunters, which could be fun. And the first book is called Discount Armageddon, which is just a great title in my opinion!

3. Seven Kingdoms Trilogy (Kristin Cashore) — Graceling has been on my shelves for AGES, so I really ought to read it soon! So many people have told me it’s great, too.

4. A Series of Unfortunate Events (Lemony Snicket) — Yes, I know these books are for children. But they look like smart, silly, slightly sinister fun!

5. Algonquin Round Table Mysteries (J.J. Murphy) — You guys, there is a series of mysteries featuring Dorothy Parker as a sleuth! I am intrigued. The first book, Murder Your Darlings, is on my shelves, and I plan to read it later this month.

6. Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes (Laurie R. King) — I’m not a huge Sherlock Holmes enthusiast, but I do think he’s an interesting character. I won book #1, The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, in a reading challenge a few years ago, and I’ve been meaning to start it…one of these days!

7. Aubrey/Maturin (Patrick O’Brian) — I love this time period, and I’m always up for a good seafaring yarn. (Well, not always. But I sometimes am.) I’ve wanted to start this series many times, but 20 books is a big commitment!

8. Dublin Murder Squad (Tana French) — I own the first two books of this series, so there’s really no excuse now!

9. Iris Anderson series (Kathryn Miller Haines) — I’m still reading Haines’ Rosie Winter books, but I’m equally interested in this YA series that takes place during WWII.

10. Curse of Chalion (Lois McMaster Bujold) — I also need to catch up with Bujold’s Vorkosigan series; I’ve only read Shards of Honor and Barrayar! But this fantasy series looks really good too.

Tune in Tuesday with Katelyn: Spent too long alone tonight

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Tune in Tuesday with KatelynI definitely owe a debt to someone at Tune in Tuesday for introducing me to the band Frightened Rabbit. Sadly, I can’t remember who it was…but to whoever posted “The Loneliness and the Scream” (you know who you are), thank you so much! I’ve continued listening to their songs and haven’t hit a bad one yet. So this week I’m sharing a tune off their new album, Pedestrian Verse, called “The Woodpile.” Enjoy!

Review: Lessons in French

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Lessons in FrenchHilary Reyl, Lessons in French

In 1989, Kate is a fresh-faced college graduate who dreams of becoming an artist someday. So she’s overjoyed when she is hired as an assistant to Lydia Schell, a famous American photographer currently living in Paris. Kate is excited to make the most of this opportunity, but she soon discovers that Lydia is an extremely demanding boss. For example, Kate not only coordinates Lydia’s schedule and runs her errands, but she is also expected to help Lydia’s husband Clarence with the book he is writing about 19th-century French fashion. The longer Kate stays with the Schells, the more she realizes that their seemingly successful family is fraught with dysfunction. As Kate tries to please all parties, she is pulled in so many conflicting directions that she begins to lose her own identity in the process.

I liked the basic idea of this book — naive American girl moves to Paris and learns about herself and the world — but overall it fell far short of my expectations. My biggest problem was that every single character, including the heroine, is absolutely insufferable. Kate is a total doormat, doing every single thing the Schells tell her to do regardless of how demeaning (and how unrelated to her job description). She’s also too stupid to see some really obvious things about the Schells that are going on right under her nose. I spent the whole book wishing she’d grow a spine, and while she sort of does at the end, it’s definitely too little, too late. As for the Schells, they’re pretentious pseudo-intellectual snobs with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. I did like the 1989 setting, with the Berlin Wall coming down and the Gulf War about to begin, but it didn’t play a very big part in the novel. Basically this book made me feel angry and frustrated, and only the somewhat competent writing style kept me reading until the end.

Bookish Update: February 2013

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bookish updates

Currently reading: Hilary Reyl, Lessons in French

Books read in February:

  1. Phillip Rock, The Passing Bells
  2. Alicia Thompson, Psych Major Syndrome
  3. Tayeb Salih, The Wedding of Zein and Other Sudanese Stories
  4. Claudia J. Edwards, Taming the Forest King
  5. Anne Fortier, Juliet
  6. Gail Carriger, Etiquette & Espionage
  7. Kathryn Miller Haines, The Winter of Her Discontent

Favorite book of the month: Etiquette & Espionage — a finishing school that teaches young ladies how to be spies? To quote Liz Lemon, “I want to go to there!”

Least favorite book of the month: Juliet — cool premise, horribly annoying heroine.

Books acquired in February:

  1. Hilary Reyl, Lessons in French
  2. Liza Palmer, A Field Guide to Burying Your Parents
  3. Kristan Higgins, The Best Man
  4. Jennifer Echols, Star Crossed

Clearly I am craving the light and fluffy these days! But I’m proud of myself for only acquiring three four new books. 🙂 Onward to March!