Mermaids in Paradise

Satire. Lydia Millet’s novel, Mermaids in Paradise, offers readers who love satire the hilarious story of a honeymoon. Narrator Deb met her husband, Chip, on a speed date and for so many reasons they seem made for each other. The contrasts in their personalities provide abundant material for Millet’s narrative and for her humorous and quirky viewpoint on contemporary behavior. After Deb and Chip discovery mermaids Millet delivers page after page of satire with sharp wit and finely written prose. I laughed often while reading this novel, and was thoroughly entertained. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Mermaids in Paradise from amazon.com.

See You in Paradise

Odd. Readers who are comfortable with the quirky and odd are those most likely to enjoy reading the fourteen stories in the new collection by J. Robert Lennon titled, See You in Paradise. I found some of the stories funny enough to laugh out loud. Lennon can draw a thin line between pleasure and pain and drift back and forth across the line over the course of a few pages. The relationships that Lennon presents are troubled ones, and he draws us into lives that are at once strange and familiar. Paradise isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and zombies can be more alive than the living. Rating: Three-star (It’s ok) Click here to purchase See You in Paradise from amazon.com.

Belzhar

Journal. Words matter. In Meg Wolitzer’s novel, Belzhar, the adolescents at The Wooden Barn, a Vermont boarding school for troubled kids, who have been selected for the Special Topics in English class learn quickly how much words matter. They are required to write in special journals for this class that does close reading of Sylvia Plath. The journal writing transports the students to a place they named “Belzhar,” a take on the famous Plath book. While this may be categorized as a young adult novel, that distinction may not mean much to those readers who appreciate finely written prose. I was entertained and delighted by this novel. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Belzhar from amazon.com.  

Revival

Electricity. For those readers who most enjoy fiction that presents a well-told story, the master storyteller Stephen King’s novel, Revival, will be just the right book to read over the course of a few cold winter nights. Two relationships weave through the narrative: the bond between Jamie and Charlie and the tension between religion and science. We meet Jamie as a boy and Charlie as the new minister in town. James becomes a musician and drug addict while the reverend, always interested in harnessing the power of electricity, uses his skills as a means to understanding the afterlife. I was thoroughly entertained by this story and by the skill with which King drew me in. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Revival from amazon.com.  

The Murder of Harriet Krohn

Mind. Inspector Konrad Sejer doesn’t appear until more than halfway through the novel by Karin Fossum titled, The Murder of Harriet Krohn. Instead, protagonist and criminal Charlo Torp draws readers into his world and into his mind. By the time we meet his daughter, Julia, we understand how important she is to Charlo, and how he would do anything for her. All the setup narrative about the mental state of Charlo provides the context for Sejer to solve the case. Readers who like psychological novels will be delighted by this one. Those readers of the series who expect a more traditional crime procedural may be surprised by this installment. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase The Murder of Harriet Krohn from amazon.com.

Thunderstruck and Other Stories

Losses. We can seem so different from other people and then something happens that pierces us and we recognize ourselves as having so much in common with others. In the collection of nine short stories by Elizabeth McCracken titled Thunderstruck, the characters at first can seem so different: their losses are not our losses, their pain and grief are not our pain. Somehow McCracken finds the universal experience in the human behavior of characters who upon second or third reflection are just like us. The finest fiction accomplishes this deft trick: using some different reality from our own to enliven the world in which we live and then lead us to deeper love and understanding. McCracken’s writing in each story accomplished this feat, and those readers who appreciate fine writing will enjoy this collection. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Thunderstruck from amazon.com.

The Dog

Adrift. I surrendered myself to Joseph O’Neill’s finely-crafted witty prose in his novel titled, The Dog. The unnamed narrator is adrift in contemporary life and alert to his predicament. He’s living in Dubai, working for a superrich family handling business affairs. O’Neill’s riff on class relations and the unspoken reactions employees have to the demands of unreasonable bosses were among the finest parts of the novel. Readers who are comfortable with meandering, being as adrift as the narrator, while enjoying finely written prose are those most likely to savor this novel. Rating: Three-star (It’s ok) Click here to purchase The Dog from amazon.com.