Not a Favorite by My Favorite Author

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

Dytopian/Futuristic Adult Fiction

At first, it seemed as if the book were taking place far into the future but the truth (and plot line) was so strange that it made perfect, horrifying sense.

'The Snowman', or Jimmy as he used to be called, is serving as some sort of prophet for an indigenous people who seem to have a completely different reality than he does, almost as if they are from different planets.  Jimmy also seems to know the indigenous tribe's gods....like, personally.  It is these two gods, Oryx and Crake, and their history with Jimmy, that is the story here.  I know that is a bit confusing but, well, so was the book and to give more away would be to give too much away.  I did enjoy Crake's role in the destruction and resurrection of the book's society but that part comes so late, it doesn't save the read for me.

Atwood is one of my favorite authors and I was sad that I didn't enjoy this book one little iota.  I found it to be laborious and I was creeped out by Snowman.  It's hard for me to read a book when the narrator is so sleazy--I just couldn't identify with him at all.  The book was extremely lengthy and detailed and I have no plans of reading the others in the trilogy. 

Pretty is in the Eyes of the Beholder

Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shephard

Teen Fiction

Once upon a time, five little girls decided to play a big girl's game and one of them ended up the ultimate loser.  Hanna, Aria, Spencer, Emily and Alison are best friends and the worst kind of enemy--one who knows all your secrets.

At first, the book reminded me of the Clique series except every third word wasn't a brand name.  And, these pretty little liars play for keeps.  This is a story of bullying gone extreme, a Queen Bee (Alison) who pushes her BFF's until one snaps and the Queen winds up dead. But which of them is guilty of the deed?  All are too scared to say and all are secretly a little glad the Queen Bee, Alison, disappeared.  And, yet, if they had to be honest......their lives are not better for her death.

This mystery is so addictive!  The plot line develops slowly and had me guessing which of the other teens could be the guilty one (still haven't decided!) and what exactly happened to Alison on that fateful night and why!  In the end, everyone is a suspect-a move that would make even Agatha Christie proud.

I literally could not stop reading it once I started.  It is full of juicy gossip, teen naughtiness and unexpected plot turns.  In my opinion, completely inappropriate for anyone younger than a teen, I (as an adult) was enchanted and rushed straight to the second one in the series.

Geek Freak Fun

Geek Love by Katherine Dunn

Adult Literature

Oly Binewski is a geek and a freak, by any one's definition.  (No, I'm not being politically incorrect.  Well, only as politically incorrect as the Binewski's are.)  Oly's parents engineered their children by partaking of a drug cocktail, all in order to keep the family carnival full of attractions and bringing in ticket money.  As part of the family tree, there's Arty, the flipper boy (born with flippers instead of limbs); Elly and Iphy, the Siamese twins; Chick, who can move things with his mind but who looks embarrassingly normal; and Oly, an albino, hunchbacked dwarf. 

Oly's biggest concern is that she isn't quite freak enough for her family and she spends most of her time ingratiating herself to everyone around her.  Her other time-consuming task is her dangerous hero worship of her brother, Arty.  While much of the book is a flashback, the other adult version of Oly is fixated on her daughter, whom she gave up for adoption and now stalks.

If you think this description is horrific, that's nothing compared to what actually happens in the story.  I enjoyed it but feel that isn't the right word.  Many parts are awkward and uncomfortable; much is hilarious and much is just tragic.  Don't get me wrong--I never feel sorry for any character as they never bemoan their own circumstances.  All boiled down, it is a tragedy as old as story-telling:  just a family drama with people we can't help being related to and whom we love both too much, and too little.

A weird, clever and creative read.

A Gift to Readers

Gift by Andrea J. Buchanan

Paranormal Teen

Daisy was born with a 'gift' that she's spent her whole life trying to hide--the manipulation of electricity.  Sounds cools?  Not when she is responsible for painfully shocking her loved ones and causing power outages all over town.

When Daisy saves a fellow student from a suicide attempt, even more strange things begin happening to her and Daisy has to figure out what connection these new paranormal events might have to her own freaky gift.  To make her life a little more difficult, an adorable boy named Kevin seems to really like her and she might just reciprocate--if she can avoid killing him first!

I really liked this book.  Of course, I'm a sucker for any paranormal tale, but this one captured my interest right away and kept it all the way to the very end.  (The end, by the way, has some very cool graphic elements via the voice of other characters from the book.)  This first one was definitely good enough to develop into a series.  The paranormal element is unique but  also crossed over into creepy and malevolent in places.  The plot was also quite original, no mean feat in today's overcrowded paranormal genre.

Truly, a gift to readers who like both the traditional and modern ghost story.

The Best of the Summer!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

Literature

I often get asked about the best book I've read lately, this summer, this year--this book fits all those categories!  I absolutely loved it.  It captured me from the very first page and never let me go.

The entire book is written in the format of a series of letters (how very Jane Austen!) but was written about the World War II time period.  Juliet is a writer who is looking for her next subject when she receives a random letter in the mail from a man in Guernsey who found one of her books.  He asks her for a simple favor and a long correspondence springs up between them.  Juliet is smitten with the story of the German occupation of this small island and the delightful people who endured through the war.

The books was so charming, so witty, so packed with the full range of what makes humanity so utterly delightful.  The sense of humor and warmth of the authors was woven into a masterful writing style and a beautifully crafted story that made for an incredible read!

For Adults Only

The Girl Who Was on Fire:  Your Favorite Authors on Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games Trilogy edited by Leah Wilson

Collected Essays

One of my middle school student brought this book to me, absolutely disgusted with it.  "It's not about anything," he said.  While I don't agree with his statement, I do agree with his premise==it is not a book than an adolescent would enjoy, no matter how many Mockingbird pins they have have.  This is for an older reader, adults only.

It isn't that it's inappropriate, only not very interesting for your average 12-year old.  The book is a series of random essays written by other authors on various aspects of the Hunger Games trilogy story.  many of the essays are on expected topics like the love triangle of Gale, Peeta and Katniss; the governmental aspect and even how reality TV is warping out children.  From the list of titles, I thought the fashion essay looked ridiculous when compared to the other topics, yet I found it to be one of the most fascinating. 

The lesson here is two-fold:  don't judge an essay by it's topic and don't judge a book by the cover, especially when it is trying to capitalize on a popular series and movie!

A Horror-Filled, Necessary Read

Auschwitz:  A Doctor's Eyewitness Account by Dr. Miklos Nyiszli

Memoir

Truly, a horror-filled read.

Nyiszli and his family were one of countless families who were bundled onto trains and shipped to Auschwitz for 'processing'.  He is separated from them, as it was the custom to remove the men from the women, the young from the old.  A split-second decision as he was disembarking likely saved his entire family from immediate death in the gas chamber.

And, yet, his story was not a happy ending.  Nyiszli had some pre-war medical experience and it is because of this he was saved.  He spent the remainder of the war doing autopsies of gas chamber victims and failed bizarre Nazi experiments. 

I've read many Holocaust survival books and stories but never one quite like this.  While he certainly had it a lot better than most, his tale was still an unbelievable and chilling read.  I was probably most disturbed by the clinical emotionless tone of the book.  His seemingly total lack of concern for the final outcome of his immediate family continues to puzzle me--one more senseless act of atrocity that can never be fully explained.