The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, by David Wroblewski

I loved this book... until I didn't. And the didn't happened about 2/3 of the way through. This book might have the WORST ending of any book I've ever read.

The book takes place on a farm with a dog kennel in rural Wisconsin in the 1970s. The interactions with the family and the dogs as they are breeding and training them are wonderful. The relationships are sweet and believable. The writing and description of every scene is beautiful. This author is quite the wordsmith. The author sets up all kinds of interesting mysteries and character traits that leave you wanting to learn more.

But you never get more. You know what they say about there being a gun on the wall in the first act? There were about a dozen guns on the wall in this book that never get spoken of again, let alone fired. I don't want to say too much for fear of spoilers, but I'm going to point out a few: what's the truth behind the original Forte story? Edgar is certain that what he's told isn't true, but then the story never returns. Where does the new Forte ever go? He keeps popping up, and you think he has a purpose, but, then..... nothing. Why was Claude in prison? What's the backstory of the brothers? We're told that someday Edgar will learn the story of his parents - what a lie that is! What about the voluminous number of pages dealing with the history of the breeding and the ancestors' debates? Were those just little stories that didn't actually have ANYTHING to do with the book? I guess so.

I don't require a particular type of ending to love a book. Happy, sad, ambiguous... all are fine with me if it is the right ending for that book. This was not. This talented author butchered an otherwise lovely book. What a shame.

P.s. I'm told that this book is modeled after Shakespeare. I wouldn't know, being an avid Shakespeare hater. But, if this author was being Shakespearean, it reinforces my hatred of said author.

Crossing California, by Adam Langer

California Avenue, that is. This book takes place in the West Rodgers Park neighborhood of Chicago in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The precise timeframe of the book is the 444 days of the Iran hostage crisis, but the book is not about the crisis. The book follows around several characters, mostly children, in their lives. It is a socio-economic character study, with California Avenue representing the dividing line between the classes. And is masterfully done.

I loved Langer's no-nonsense presentation of his characters. There was a total sense of detachment between the narrator and the characters. It was almost like I had to love them to compensate for the narrator's apathy toward them. There was real love in this book. Not fireworks-inducing, passionate, romantic love. But love that's about grinding along, living in harmony, and not being able to live without each other. I so identified with Jill Wasserstrom (I was always that kid that wanted to take the controversial side of the debate), but I envied her for her focus and ability to completely be her own person without caring what others thought. Everybody was really funny. I had a couple laugh-out-loud moments. The Rovners marriage was hysterical, as was their son, Larry's, quest for love. Everything about Michelle Wasserstrom, particularly the "Sterndick" plot, was hilarious. But most of all, I loved Muley Wills. He could never be a real person; he was just too consistent and principled, especially for a 13-year-old. But he's the person everyone should aspire to be.

A solid A, and a definite recommend.

The Lucky One, by Nicholas Sparks

The charge ran out on my Kindle while I was on vacation, and I had forgotten my charger. The rental home we were in had this book on the shelf, and I thought it would be an easy beach read. It was. The plot was perfectly entertaining for a lazy day at the beach. I enjoyed it just fine. But what a poorly written wreck of a book! Either Sparks is a moron or he thinks I am. I rolled my eyes right off the bat when there was a mystery woman known to the main character only as "E," and then a character popped up shortly thereafter named "Beth." He could have put a *little* more mystery into that one! Even reversing it would have been trickier (i.e. a mystery woman named "B" and a character named Elizabeth).

This was my first Sparks book I've ever read, and I'd like to say it was my last. But who knows when else I might get stranded on a beach without a Kindle.

City of Thieves, by David Benioff

This book tells the story of what appears to be (based on the first chapter) the author's grandfather in St. Petersburg during the 900-day German siege on Russia in WWII. This book is a positively fantastic adventure. The writer's voice is absolutely perfect. It is set amidst horrible, tragic events, but the story is told without the slightest hint of melodrama. Benioff reminds you of how awful things were, but in creative ways that are relevant to the story line without ramming it down your throat. For example, he reminds us of Lev's starvation-thinness by his fear of falling down while running because of his heightened risk of a broken bone.

While the book is highly plot-driven, it is really about the relationship between the two main characters, Lev and Kolya, who get sent on a near-impossible mission together by a Russian army official. Lev is a naive boy; Kolya is a conceited playboy with very few reservations. The character of Kolya opens up beautifully throughout the book, though, and he is instrumental in Lev's coming of age. I cared about these characters deeply.

I was incredibly curious about how much of the book is real. I tried doing some research on the main Nazi in the book, but couldn't find anything, leading me to believe names were changed. But then I did some more research and found out, from a Benioff interview, that the book is entirely fictional. Benioff's grandparents were born in the United States. That doesn't change how I feel about the book, though. A good book is a good book.

My only complaint about this book was that it was too short. I loved it. I'm sure we'll see a movie soon, since the author is a main-stream screenwriter.

Little Bee, by Chris Cleave

What a wonderfully written, moving book. I could not put it down. The book is about a teenage Nigerian refugee girl, and a British family with which she is intertwined. Such heavy issues in the book, but told in a light way. As the refugee girl tells us, she smiles when things are terrible because they would be even worse if she did not. I found myself smirking at her ideas for suicide -- that's just wrong, isn't it?!?

This was the perfect combination of present story and flashbacks, told from the voices of the refugee girl and the mother in the British family. I was always 100% engaged with the story being told at any given moment. The book was tremendously sad and powerful. Definitely recommend.

In The Woods, by Tana French

Well, so much for me not liking mystery thrillers. This was a fun, exciting book. It was about two detectives (Cassie and Rob) investigating a child murder in a small Irish town where one of the detectives was from and had experienced childhood trauma. The characters were interesting and believable. Their relationship was complex and did not take the turns that I necessarily expected. The crime itself was a bit predictable - the author could have deleted about 3 sentences of over-foreshadowing from her book. The end of the book was satisfying in its unsatisfying way. Not everything is neat and tidy. It did make me wonder if the author intends to reprise these characters, though. I wouldn't mind; she is a very good writer.

The Blood of Flowers, by Anita Amirrezvani

This book is about a girl from a small village in 17th century Iran that moves to the city. She is a carpet maker, which provides imagery throughout the book as the story is "weaved."

I loved this book. People are touting it as the female counterpart to The Kite Runner. I compeltely disagree; that comparison does not do this book justice. The Kite Runner was an enjoyable, but mediocre, tale with far too many neat coincidences. This book is far more real. The protaganist makes some very controversial (for her time and place) decisions, which come with very real consequences, both good and bad. There is no neat, pretty ending, although I found the ending to be very satisfying and beautiful. The plot was always exciting; this was definitely a page turner.

The relationships were so wonderfully complicated in this book. Her cautious love for her friend, and her friend's conditional love for her. Her mother's unconditional but sometimes reserved love for her. The feuding relationship with her caretaker aunt. Her strong desire and equally strong repugnance for the male character. And, my favorite, her relationship with her teacher uncle, which I can't quite describe in a little fragmented sentence.

Each chapter ends with a folk tale. I really liked the stories, but sometimes I rushed through them because I was so anxious to get back to the plot. My favorites were the one about chopping down the rosebush and the last one (about the bird). The author in the notes says that she made up two of the tales (the first and last) and the rest were Iranian folklore. I'm not sure if the rosebush one was first; it might have been. In which case, I obviously like her stories best - her two tales and the substantive novel itself, of course.

I definitely recommend this book.