The Nearest Exit

Children. Last year, I enjoyed Olen Steinhauer’s novel, The Tourist, introducing protagonist Milo Weaver, so when the second, The Nearest Exit, was published, I had high expectations. I’m pleased to say those expectations were met. Steinhauer presents a deeply developed character with a strong moral compass, facing impossible choices. Steinhauer weaves webs within webs of deception, and explores how the love of children can lead to all kinds of behavior, including revenge. Any fan of spy novels or thrillers will appreciate the plot here, and any fiction fan will enjoy the fine writing and character development.

Rating: Four-star (Highly Recommended)
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Spies of the Balkans

Choices. Alan Furst’s latest spy novel is titled, Spies of the Balkans. Set in Salonika, Greece in 1940, protagonist Constantine Zannis faces personal and professional choices as rumors of a Nazi invasion grow. Furst presents and develops Zannis as an ordinary and likeable character who is presented with choices during crisis. As a reader, I was compelled to reflect on whether or not I would have made the same heroic choices that Zannis does in this book. I concluded that his personal courage far exceeded my own, but remained believable. When asked to assist in the safe transport of Jews from central Europe through Greece to Turkey, Zannis readily responded with skill. Beyond fine character development, what Furst does well in this book as in his earlier work is to describe the places and period with such care that readers feel immersed in the situations presented. Any reader who loves this period and genre will find much to appreciate from these pages.

Rating: Four-star (Highly Recommended)
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Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War

Shadows. Over Memorial Day weekend, I had the honor and pleasure of reading Karl Marlantes debut novel, Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War. Weighing in at almost two pounds and just under 600 pages, this is a finely written novel that seemed to cover with great respect and care so many key components of that war: brave soldiers performing heroically in bad situations; the pointlessness and futility of why we were there and what we were doing; the foibles of leadership and the relentless politics. Protagonist Lieutenant Waino Mellas becomes a memorable and complex character on these pages, and by the time I turned the last page, I wanted the story to keep going. The memories of the Marines of Bravo Company, especially those killed in battle, remained with me like shadows after I finished the book. Any veteran and anyone who wants a glimpse of what Vietnam was like will likely find this book well worth reading.

Rating: Four-star (Highly Recommended)
Click here to purchase Matterhorn from amazon.com.

Boom!

Spunky. I decided to read Mark Haddon’s new novel, Boom!, because I thought his debut novel, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night was the best debut novel of 2003. The new novel is a rewrite of an earlier work of Haddon that was a bit of a publishing flop. As a result of Haddon’s rewrite, Boom is a fun book that will appeal especially to pre-teens. I laughed, and expect that kids who read this will enjoy it. Consider it for a vacation book to read aloud in the car.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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What the Dog Saw

Addictive. Malcolm Gladwell has assembled a collection of his articles from The New Yorker into a new book titled, What the Dog Saw. Although I had read most of these articles when they were first published, they still felt fresh as I re-read them. Gladwell’s writing style is always interesting and compelling, and his approach is often creative and unusual. The result is an enjoyable reading experience, especially for those readers who prefer short doses of reading on a variety of topics.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
Click here to purchase What the Dog Saw from amazon.com.

The Pregnant Widow

Stratagems. Maybe Martin Amis will finally win the Booker prize. His new novel, The Pregnant Widow, set mostly in the summer of 1970, provides the sweep, language, imagery and character development of the quintessential English novel. Protagonist Keith Nearing has joined his girlfriend Lily in Italy for the summer, in the castle of her friend Scheherazade’s uncle Jorquil, the romantic target of another houseguest, Gloria Beautyman. A broader cast of engaging characters come and go, as the sexual revolution satisfies and teases Keith. He gets some of what he wants, more than he imagines, and then nothing at all. Throughout the summer, Keith is reading the English canon of great novels, as he plots stratagems to pursue his carnal interests. Through chapters set in the present and in-between, readers come to understand just how pivotal that summer was for Keith and others. Amis writes with great skill and fans of finely written literary novels are likely to appreciate the talent he displays here.

Rating: Four-star (Highly Recommended)
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13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next Financial Meltdown

Power. Economists Simon Johnson and James Kwak present a little more than two hundred pages of clear and straightforward writing in their new book, 13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next Financial Meltdown. In a calm and reasoned way, the authors present an overview, context and historical perspective about many of the factors that led to the recent financial crisis, and how despite rhetoric about reform, we seem to be back to business as usual. Consistent with the principles of Thomas Jefferson, Johnson and Kwak express concern about the problems of concentrated power. They show clearly that a handful of privileged banks remain too big to fail, and continue to take risks that could lead to another crisis. Here’s the point (p. 180): “The large banks used their political power to protect their money machines from government interference, and when those machines exploded they used their size and importance to force the government to bail them out.” Johnson and Kwak propose capping the size of banks. At times, this book reads like a recap of the news headlines of recent years, but that adds to its readability, which is not a bad thing for a book written by economists. Any reader interested in a recap of what brought us to today’s concentrated risks, how past leaders broke up powerful concentrated entities, and how the current power of big banks puts us in jeopardy, will find a lot to ponder from these pages.

Rating: Four-star (Highly Recommended)
Click here to purchase 13 Bankers from amazon.com.