I've been reading like a demon over the past month or so, all sorts of books on all sorts of subjects. Here are the mini reviews of those I haven't already mentioned, in case some of you are looking for something new and cool:
Sky Time in Gray's River by Robert Michael Pyle. Pyle is an excellent nature writer - one I really enjoy reading and this year long look at his home in western Washington is wonderful for nature readers. He excels at the small stuff (he's a butterfly man first and foremost) but he has mixed in plenty of thoughts on the town and people to make this book seem like a lovely visit with a thoughtful friend. This, to me, is what nature writing should be like. Full review at Bookslut in the next month or so.
Blue Arabesque by Patricia Hempl. This is going to be a tough book to review as it is about so many things - that all interrelate somehow in the author's mind. Primarily Hempl is writing about art and mostly Matisse and mostly his run of paintings that relied on the lounging woman figure - the touch of Orientalism that struck both his work and many other great artists for a time. But beyond that there is Hampl's life, the lives of Matisse's models, the life of the artist, many other artists and writers from his time, etc. It's gorgeous writing - very smart writing, for lack of a better word. Full review in Eclectica this Spring.
The New Policeman by Kate Thompson. Did you ever read a book where you just adored the main character - you just knew this person quickly and instantly and loved spending time reading about him? That's how I feel about 15 year old JJ Liddy who lives in Ireland with his family, plays a mean fiddle and wants to give his mother more time. Time seems to be slipping away in the Liddys' lives - time to do anything, go anywhere, enjoy any part of life. At first it all reads like so many other modern families but then JJ finds his way to faerie and you realize this is a fantasy novel and there is a reason why time is such an issue. There's also a family mystery (or two), and it's all brought around to a most satisfying ending. This will go in a column in April and is one of my favorite books read in 2006 (although it's a 2007 title).
Severance by Robert Olen Butler. Butler is one of my favorite authors, a truly elegant writer and I was just blown away by this collection of very short short stories from the perspective of people who have lost their heads. The premise is this: there is some thought that consciousness remains for a decapitated person for 1 and a half minutes and secondly, in a heightened state of emotion folks speak at 160 words per minute. So Butler has written stories at 240 words in length from the perspective of decapitation victims, both real and fictional. Some will blow you away (Nicole Brown Simpson for sure), some make you merely wonder but the whole book impressed me deeply. Although written for adults I think it would be great for teens - reviewed in my column next month as a "cool read'.
The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca by Tahir Shah. I've seen this described as a Moroccan Year in Provence and that is a perfect comparison. It's the "whole family moves to new place, buys broken down yet amazing home and sets about trying to get it renovated while coping with a crazy cast of characters" sort of premise. As that sort of book it is very very good - certainly as good if not better than Provence, but I do have to admit these books tend to drive me a little crazy. I just could not be as patient as the authors are - I would be screaming at people or moving back to England or having to be committed if I endured all the chaos the Shah family does. It is wonderfully written though and if you have any taste at all for this little sub genre, you'll love. it Review this spring - in Bookslut I think.
Fresh Water: Women Writing on the Great Lakes, ed by Alison Swan. I'm reviewing this essay collection for Booklist right now but really really liked it. It's the first thing I've ever come across of its kind on the Great Lakes and the essays are pretty much all great. If you've been wanting to read about the area, this is the place to start.
Salon Fantastique, ed by Terri Windling & Ellen Datlow. Okay, it was a no brainer that I would love this - Windling and Datlow rock and I've loved their work (separate or together) forever. There are some standouts here (for me anyway) - the opening piece by Delia Sherman is great historical fantasy very firmly rooted in the real world (how often do we read about Parisian prostitutes?), Richard Bowes' piece freaked me out - big time - and was a great peek into the world of artists and critics; Catherine Valente - I will be looking for more of your work right away and Christopher Barzak how the hell did you come up "The Guardian of the Egg"? Wonderful, just wonderful.
The book will be reviewed in the April column, it's for adults but YAs need to read it and find new authors to love.
Journey to the Blue Moon by Rebecca Rupp: Also in the April column, this delightful fantasy/adventure follows Alex to the "blue moon" looking for his lost watch. (You've heard "once in a blue moon" - well get ready to go there.) There's adventure, and a need to be smart, and a villain (very creepy villain) and some stalwart companions who round out the story with some nice bits of real history. It reads fast and is the perfect boy or girl book. Easy to recommend this one.
The Girl I Wanted to Be by Sarah Grace McCandless. Sent my way on the recommendation of the fab Jamie Rich, this book was totally not what I expected. A lot of family drama with serious fallout - and an excellent look at the responsibility of growing up. I had hoped to review this one already, but it has not fit anywhere yet (oh the burden of thematic columns!). It will probably have to wait until the late spring, but I promise to gush accordingly.
Rescued by Allen & Linda Anderson. This is the next book for the Voices site - a very gripping look at the many animal rescue organizations that were in LA and MS after Katrina. What's interesting is seeing how they often acted under different rules with different priorities. It goes way beyond what we saw on Animal Planet specials and although I was less than impressed by the authors' need to include celebrity opinions on saving animals (big suprise - they are all for it), the sections on Katrina are very well done. Full review up in a week or so.
I also read four books on young men who write comic books for the February column and while all were good the one thing that bugged me was the young polio victim in The Wonder Kid was the most normal (as if being diagnosed with polio in the 1950s was normal) - the other three boys (in Stuff, Drawing a Blank and Astonishing Adv of Fanboy and Goth Girl) are really all cliches at least to a certain extent. Of course they don't fit in, of course they have few friends, of course their home life is screwed up and of course it takes one young woman - one girl who sees past their weirdness to their inner smarts and coolness - to rescue them. (This even happens in Wonder Kid.) The protagonist in Stuff is the most normal, but he's far from popular - he has one real friend, a girlfriend he doesn't really like all that much and is the class smarty pants (he knows "stuff"). And don't even get me started on his homelife (a psychotic pet rabbit is involved). Why can't typical kids like comics anymore? Or is this just adult authors maintaining long outdated cliches.....I'll be writing about it all next month at Bookslut!
Back tomorrow with links and opinons and maybe even a resolution or two. (Heaven help me.........)
