Fallen Leaves: Last Words on Life, Love, War, and God

Eloquent. I was blown away by the breadth and range of perspectives by Will Durant in his book titled, Fallen Leaves: Last Words on Life, Love, War, and God. Unpublished in his lifetime, the manuscript was found more than three decades after his death. The eloquence of his reflections kept me reading with great interest. I realized two key points: he was clearly a person of his time, and his views were consistent with those of an educated man of his era; and his insight about our time can be even more significant when we realize how the seeds of our current world and national situation were visible to a keen observer decades ago. Rating: Five-star (I love it) Click here to purchase Fallen Leaves from amazon.com.

A Spool of Blue Thread

Storytelling. I think one reason that Anne Tyler’s fiction pleases so many readers is that so many of us enjoy fine storytelling. In her latest novel titled, A Spool of Blue Thread, Tyler remains in Baltimore and tells readers the story of the Whitshank family and a house that was important to them across generations. This melding of people and place is something Tyler does so well. I gave myself over to her in this novel, and enjoyed every minute listening to the story of this family. While giving myself over to her, I was alert to the many ways in which she uses her characters and their situations to deliver deep insight about our human condition. Fans of Tyler will love this novel, and any reader will likely appreciate and enjoy her fine storytelling skills. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase A Spool of Blue Thread from amazon.com.

Lucky Alan

Laughter. Jonathan Lethem crafts great sentences, so I laughed out loud when a character in one of his stories (and the title) is called “The King of Sentences.” The stories in a new collection titled, Lucky Alan, are funny and entertaining. Lethem takes the ordinary and removes the mundane in a way that finds the humor in anxiety and quirkiness. I restricted myself to no more than one story per day, and was rewarded by many days of fine reading and satisfying laughter. Readers who like short stories and enjoy reading great sentences are those most likely to enjoy this collection. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Lucky Alan from amazon.com.

Etta and Otto and Russell and James

Connections. Emma Hooper muses about memory and identity in her debut novel titled, Etta and Otto and Russell and James, as she takes readers on a journey with octogenarian protagonist Etta who’s walking east from Saskatchewan to see the ocean. It doesn’t take a reader long to consider that Etta may be facing dementia. After her husband, Otto, receives her note about her journey, he cooks from her recipe cards and engages in something new as he awaits her return. Hooper offers their connections across the kilometers and across time in ways that will delight many readers. Neighbor and long-time friend, Russell, decides to track down Etta. James may be the most interesting character of all, since he is presented as a coyote with whom Etta communicates. The prose soars often, and might frustrate those readers who prefer more directness and clarity. I was entranced by Hooper’s prose and found the characters complex and interesting. Rating: Five-star (I love it) Click here to purchase Etta and Otto and Russell and James from amazon.com.

The Remedy for Love

Intimacy. This has been a good winter for reading Bill Roorbach’s novel titled, The Remedy for Love. Set in Maine during a major snowstorm, the novel pairs two troubled and dysfunctional protagonists who end up trapped together and have to deal with more intimacy that either expected. This novel may appeal to multiple audiences. I enjoyed reading it for the psychological insight into the struggles of the characters and the nature of rescue. Some readers will enjoy the novel because of the love story. Fans of thrillers will like the plot that pits the characters against nature in a struggle to survive the snow and cold. I recommend reading a sample to see if you’re likely to fall into one of these audiences. Roorbach’s writing is likely to be satisfying for most readers who like to read an entertaining story. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase The Remedy for Love from amazon.com.

The Martini Shot

Language. There are seven gritty and well-written short stories and one entertaining novella in a new collection by George Pelecanos titled, The Martini Shot, after the novella. Pelecanos captures the language of the streets in all his crime writing, and the characters in the collection, their dialogue, and the descriptive prose are all superb. Fans of crime fiction who enjoy compact stories are those who are most likely to enjoy reading this book. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase The Martini Shot from amazon.com.

Bryant & May and the Bleeding Heart

Grave. Fans of the entertaining series about the Peculiar Crimes Unit by Christopher Fowler are those readers who will delight in the eleventh installment titled, Bryant & May and the Bleeding Heart. New readers who like crime fiction should take a look at this novel and the series. Detective John May is disciplined and methodological while Arthur Bryant follows an erratic and indirect path while solving the unusual cases assigned to this unit. There’s a cemetery at the center of the action in this installment, and graves are being opened for nefarious purposes. There’s secrecy, danger, murder, mayhem, and the Peculiar Crimes Unit now reports to a new boss who expects greater bureaucratic compliance. Needless to say, Bryant & May are on the case in their clever and entertaining fashion. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Bryant & May and the Bleeding Heart from amazon.com.