The Book Review Club (March 2017)

Happy Very First Day of March! And welcome to this month's edition of The Book Review Club.  On this day in 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed an executive order which established the Peace Corps. Today also happens to be National Horse Protection Day and National Pig Day. And I'd say that's about enough trivia for one paragraph! And now our book reviews! Interestingly, we have an abundance of reviews of non-fiction books this month. Enjoy!

ON TURPENTINE LANE
by ELINOR LIPMAN (adult, romantic comedy)

Do you want to be charmed and entertained? Fall in love with a crew of quirky characters? Get tangled up in a twisty-turny plot? Yes? Then I have the book for you! On Turpentine Lane by Elinor Lipman.

In a Nutshell: Our sassy thirty-something protagonist, Faith Frankel, buys a small 5 1/2 room quaint but rundown house with an unexpected history. This purchase somehow sets off a crazy chain of events. There's Faith's deadbeat fiancé whose idea of a ring is a piece of red wool that makes her finger itch. He's walking across America. I'm not exactly sure why. I don't think he knows either. Enter Faith's meddling mother, her father and his wandering eye, her snow-plow driving brother with a new relationship. And, and, and a perfectly delightful officemate named Nick. Now, toss in a murder and a few more zany characters. It's all just so amusing!

What I Loved: 1. This book is beautifully, perfectly, wonderfully plotted. The plotting is a work of art. 2. The dialogue is spot on to the point you feel you're right there with the characters, perhaps sitting at the kitchen table, sipping a cup of coffee with them. 3. Great humor. And lots of it. 4. The writing is so damned good. Here are a few of my favorite examples:
~"...Windexed at the first sign of a fingerprint..."
~"His next question, eyes never leaving a colorized Kris Kringle, was..." (character is watching Miracle on 34th Street)
~"One of the things I love about you is your doomsday outlook based on affection for whoever's at risk."

What I Didn't Love: I have to wait another year or so for the next Elinor Lipman novel!

Kirkus Reviews describes On Turpentine Lane as "warm, clever, a little silly, a lot of fun." 

I'd say it's all that and more! Heartily recommended!

(Dear FCC: Bought it.)

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

YOUNG ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEW

Stacy Nyikos: THE SUN IS ALSO A STAR by Nicola Yoon (contemporary YA)


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD by Colson Whitehead 
                                          (historical, literary)

Tanya Sutton: BIG LITTLE LIES by Liane Moriarty (contemporary women's lit)


ADULT NONFICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Alyssa Goodnight: TALES OF HISTORY'S BOLDEST HEROINES, HELLIONS, AND HERETICS
                                by Jason Porath (biography/folklore)

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: THE BLUE SATIN NIGHTGOWN by Karin Crilly (memoir)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: BORN A CRIME: STORIES FROM A SOUTH AFRICAN
                                                            CHILDHOOD by Trevor Noah (memoir)

Linda McLaughlin:WHITE TRASH: THE 400-YEAR UNTOLD STORY OF CLASS IN AMERICA

                                by Nancy Isenberg (sociology)

Margy Lutz: TIDE RIPS AND BACK EDDIES by Bill Proctor and Yvonne Maximchuk
                     (autobiography)

Ray Potthoff: THE PATRIARCH by David Nasaw (biography about Joseph P. Kennedy)                            

Sarah Laurence: BECOMING NICOLE by Amy Ellis Nutt


Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

The Book Review Club (May 2013)

May?! Are you serious?! Where did April take off to?

Welcome to the May meeting of our little online book review club. We've put together reviews of books we've read and enjoyed. So, please click through the links under my review. Settling in with a good book is a surefire way to slow life down. A way to stop and smell the roses. Uh, er, ink.  ;)

I CAN'T COMPLAIN
(ALL TOO) PERSONAL ESSAYS by Elinor Lipman

Do not fall off your chair, but I am actually reviewing a book for adults this month! Even more shocking, it's non-fiction!

As  you may or may not know, I finish a book by Elinor Lipman and then begin the wait for the next book. So, you can imagine how beyond thrilled I was to discover this spring would bring not one, but two books by one of my favorite authors.

I CAN'T COMPLAIN is a collection of short essays that were written for a variety of venues (magazines, newspapers, websites). The essays are about Ms. Lipman's mother, son, husband, friends, herself, her thoughts on writing. Reading these essays was like having Ms. Lipman in my living room. Minus having to clean my living room! I loved being a part of her inner circle and listening to stories about how she and her husband originally planned not to have children. How her mother couldn't stand condiments. How son learned the facts of life. How she's dealing with life after her husband's death. I could've used her questions for a potential marriage partner a couple of decades ago!

With a book by Elinor Lipman, I know I can get comfy in my favorite chair, crack open the pages and kickback. Because I trust this author to come through for me. She doesn't settle.  She's going to come up with that perfect word, that perfect turn of phrase. She's going to toss in her signature humor at just the right moment because her timing is always oh-so perfect. ( For example, pointing out how her husband put the "mensch" in "dementia" in the chapter about his disease. )  I always walk away from a Lipman book satisfied and feeling good.

What up next for me book-wise? THE VIEW FROM PENTHOUSE B by Elinor Lipman. Of course.

Without further ado, here are the links to this month's AMAZING AND THOUGHTFUL reviews! You don't want to miss them.

MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

 Ellen Booraem of Freelance Ne'er-do-well: GHOULISH SONG by William Alexander (middle grade fantasy)

Stacy Nyikos: THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN by Katherine Applegate (middle grade)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: UNREMEMBERED by Jessica Brody (young adult)


ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Alyssa Goodnight of the Writers' Road Less Traveled: TEMPEST RISING by Nicole Peeler (urban fantasy)

Patti Abbott: BURIAL RITES by Hannah Kent (historical)

Sarah Laurence: TALE FOR THE TIME BEING by Ruth Ozeki (literary) 

Scott Parker: CALIBAN'S WAR by James S.A. Corey (science fiction)


MEMOIR REVIEWS

 Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country:THE WORLD IS MOVING AROUND ME: A MEMOIR OF THE HAITI EARTHQUAKE by Danyy Laferriere


                                             
Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!

The Book Review Club (August 2010)

Welcome one and all to the twentieth meeting of The Book Review Club. The TWENTIETH! Twenty is such a big number.

Here we are at the beginning of August. Which means there's a whole month left of summer and, hopefully, bunches of leisurely reading time. We've got some great book reviews this month. So have a seat and start scrolling. You're sure to find something that grabs you.

THE FAMILY MAN by Elinor Lipman

I read every novel by Elinor Lipman that I can get my hands on. Why? Her books make me feel good. Why else? I'm a people person. Her books are character driven. Also, Ms. Lipman's books have unexpected twists and turns. And they end happily (which really means a lot to me during these days of raising teens).

From the Amherst Bulletin:

THE FAMILY MAN is the story of Henry Archer, a divorced gay man who reconnects with his long-lost stepdaughter, Thalia. The book opens with Henry's phone call to Denise, his ex-wife and Thalia's mother; Thalia's father had been Denise's first husband. Then there was Henry, who had still been in the closet at the time. Now, Denise Krouch - the grasping, grating Denise - has just lost the husband she'd dumped Henry for years earlier.

Henry and Thalia's story of forging a new, loving bond is the backdrop for other goings-on. Thalia, an aspiring actress, is hired by a public relations firm to pretend to be the girlfriend of a horror movie actor whose career badly needs a boost from the tabloids. Henry, meanwhile, falls in love with Todd, who sells table settings at a Manhattan store. And Denise, after adopting a greyhound, is on the prowl for a new husband.

This is a good summing up of the plot, but doesn't give you a sense of how very special Elinor Lipman's writing is. Her stories are humorous, have perfect dialogue and offer just the right amount of detail so that you can imagine yourself in the scene.

For example, when Henry first goes to his ex-wife's house, he sees a recent photo of Thalia, the long-lost stepdaughter, and realizes that he has seen her recently but didn't recognize her. From pages 7-8: She is the unfailingly friendly girl behind the half door who hangs up his jacket and offers the coral smock before Giovanni cuts his hair. She is the coat-check girl with the big brandy sifter at her elbow in which he places oen dollar as he collects his outerwear and she tell him that this is a very good cut for him.

See what I mean about Elinor Lipman? Don't you just want to while away a summer afternoon stretched out on a lawn chair, a frosty drink in one hand and a few hundred pages of prose like that in the other?

Here's a delightful interview with Elinor Lipman, where she shares some details regarding the writing of THE FAMILY MAN.

Now, without further ado, let's have a drumroll for the following amazing reviews from amazing reviewers!! Please, please visit. You won't be sorry.

MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Sarah Laurence: TOUCH BLUE by Cynthia Lord (middle grade)

Stacy Nyikos: A STEP FROM HEAVEN by An Na (middle grade)

Kaye of the Book Review Forum: A CURSE DARK AS GOLD by Elizabeth C. Bunce (Young Adult)

Keri Mikulski: FIRST KISS (THEN TELL) and THE YEAR WE WE DISAPPEARED by Cylin Busby (both books are young adult)

Thao of serene hours: THE PIPER'S SON by Melina Marchetta (young adult)

ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Patti Abbott: THE IMPERFECTIONISTS by Tom Rachman

Jenn Jilks of My Muskoka: THE DEATH DEALER by Heather Graham (romantic thriller)

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: THE GRAND SOPHY by Georgette Heyer (romance)

Kathy Holmes: MY FAKE FIANCEE by Nancy Warren (romance)

Linda McLaughlin: LESSONS IN FRENCH by Laura Kinsale (historical romance)

Staci of Life in the Thumb: STILL MISSING by Chevy Stevens (suspense)

Beth Yarnall: HOMICIDE IN HARDCOVER by Kate Carlisle (mystery)

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: ANGELOLOGY by Danielle Trussoni

NONFICTION REVIEWS

Scott Parker: MEDIUM RAW: A BLOOD VALENTINE TO THE WORLD OF FOOD AND THE PEOPLE WHO COOK by Anthony Bourdain (adult)


**Exceptional previous reviews are only a click away.**

Note to Reviewers: You know the drill.:) If I missed you, leave me a comment and I'll rectify the situation pronto. And award myself one less chocolate today!

ENJOY!