Fixers

Clever. Who thought that a novel about a Wall Street and Washington conspiracy involving political fixing and easy treatment for executives during the financial crisis would be entertaining? I was thoroughly entertained by Michael Thomas’s novel titled, Fixers. Thomas is a former Lehman Brothers partner (way back) and he knows more than enough about finance and Wall Street to present lots of accurate information while not diminishing the entertainment value of the novel. He used great name changes, often humorous ones, to thinly disguise some individuals on whom certain characters were based. While the diary form of the prose can be tedious and a bit didactic, this led to more exposition than dialogue and worked fine for the author’s purposes. If you’re far enough past the financial crisis for you to imagine being entertained by events from that time, be sure to read this novel. Anyone still angry might be more enraged than entertained. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Fixers from amazon.com.

The Portable Veblen

Unconventional. I ended up enjoying the quirkiness of Elizabeth McKenzie’s novel titled, The Portable Veblen. Readers who enjoy the unconventional are those most likely to enjoy this novel. What might that mean? Well, if you consider talking to squirrels as unconventional, when that happens in the novel, you will not be surprised. There’s a large cast of oddball characters and interesting relationships. McKenzie’s prose is finely written, and her dialogue is always realistic. There’s an exploration of modern striving and consumption in this novel that adds pleasure for those readers who understand Veblen’s writing. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase The Portable Veblen from amazon.com.

Fool Me Once

Twists. Some readers choose Summer as a time to indulge in guilty pleasures. For those who are overdue for a plot-heavy thriller packed with surprising twists, consider reading Harlan Coben’s novel titled, Fool Me Once. Chances are you’ll be fooled more than once. Guilt is one of the themes in this novel, and pleasure comes from the sheer joy of riding the plot waves wherever they went. By the time I finished the novel, my credulity was stretched to its limit, I was still waiting for more character development, and I remained totally entertained by a plot that keep wending and weaving. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Fool Me Once from amazon.com.

Hunters in the Dark

Borders. Lawrence Osborne’s novel, Hunters in the Dark, takes readers across many different borders. Protagonist Robert Grieve is a disillusioned twenty-eight-year-old teacher from England, on the border between late adolescence and adulthood. His chosen profession is nothing like what he expected. He leaves Sussex on holiday for Thailand. Running out of money, he crosses the border in Cambodia where he thinks his funds will stretch further. He wins money at roulette, and what seemed like a path of decline and destruction seems to turn in his favor. Osborne keeps Grieve off balance, and the clouding of identity creates a new kind of border that needs to be crossed. Osborne’s descriptive language makes every scene come alive. If sunny days lead you to a dark novel, consider reading this one. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Hunters in the Dark from amazon.com.

Sweetbitter

Spoiled. Have you ever had high expectations about a meal, and while eating, kept building the impression that those expectations would not be met? That’s how I felt while reading Stephanie Danler’s debut novel, Sweetbitter, set mostly in a New York City high end restaurant. I read some reviews that raised my expectations, but as I read, I found the prose over-seasoned, the characters under-baked, and the action usually unappealing. On one level this is a coming of age story, involving naiveté and the chance to make many mistakes with drugs, drinking and sex. I just never cared enough about the protagonist to enjoy her experiences. Life is often sweet and bitter, but in this novel I kept thinking it was just all spoiled. Rating: Two-star (I didn’t like it) Click here to purchase Sweetbitter from amazon.com.

The Queue

Authority. The pain of living under political repression builds on every page of Abdel Aziz’ novel, The Queue. A populist uprising failed, and the authoritarian regime has installed a bureaucracy that presents citizens with the absurdity of their harsh reality. The pain Aziz describes is both physical and psychological. This examination of power and control contains deep insight and understanding. Readers looking to understand better our complex human condition, especially when under the stress of authoritarian rule, will find insights from this finely written novel. Rating: Five-star (I love it) Click here to purchase The Queue from amazon.com.

In Other Words

Creativity. Language, identity and culture are all elements that combine into making one feel at home. Our creative artists help us understand those elements, and Jhumpa Lahiri does that extremely well in her book titled, In Other Words. Raised speaking Bengali, Lahiri has won prestigious awards for her writing in English. Living in Italy, she chose to immerse herself in Italian, and wrote this book in Italian. She had someone else provide the English translation, which is side-by-side with the Italian in this book. Being in a new place can create feelings of exile, and for a creative writer, it is words that tie one to a place. Lahiri offers to all exiles a chance to reflect on the words in our lives and in this book she shares her love of languages in ways that any reader can appreciate. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase In Other Words from amazon.com.