The Book Review Club (January 2010)

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Welcome to the first meeting of The Book Review Club of 2010! Our resolution this year? To absolutely 100% TOPPLE your to-be-read pile. So grab a mug of java and a handful of cookies. Or water and carrot sticks, if you've made THOSE kinds of resolutions! Pull up a chair and join us as we usher in the new year with a bunch of book reviews.



You remember KELLY HAYES, one of my Denny's Chicks critique partners? OUT OF THE GOODNESS OF HER HEART, Kelly is reviewing a book for us this month. Why? Because she loves me. And she knows I'm on deadline for Sherry's fourth mystery adventure. Kelly INSISTED on getting me off the hook by taking over this month. INSISTED.

Note from Kelly: Barrie is holding some of my chapters hostage until I produce a book review for her. Few know that under her sweet, funny persona, there’s a ruthless streak. I try not to cross it. So here goes. (Barrie's reply: Uh, Kelly, I believe I said a review per chapter you want critiqued! So, get reviewing, Missy!)



Nick Hornby’s latest, Juliet Naked is a novel about deep-seated obsession of the worst kind: the music fan. And in Hornby’s deft hands, it’s hilarious. Duncan is a rabid English fan of Tucker Crowe, a reclusive American singer-songwriter who is barely living off his brief career in the mid-80s. Duncan, a “Crowologist”, considers himself the foremost authority on all things Tucker Crowe. So when Crowe releases the demo version of his only hit album, Juliet, Duncan is the first to give it a glowing online review.

Annie, Duncan’s live-in girlfriend of fifteen years, disagrees with his effusive assessment of the album and publishes her own, more realistic review, which captures the attention of Tucker Crowe himself. Thus begins an online relationship that quickly elevates to a face-to-face one for Annie and Tucker. Of course, all of this causes Annie to reevaluate the last fifteen years of her life, spent with a man obsessed with someone he’s never met. “It had always been hopeless. It was an unsuitable internet date with an inadequate, unexciting man that had lasted for years and years and years. “Annie realizes the only way forward is to kick Duncan out.

This is where it becomes more Annie’s book than anyone else’s. Annie is a woman approaching middle age who never had children because Duncan, caught up in his narrow self-absorbed world, never wanted any. Now she’s wondering how to live her life for herself and on her own terms. Deep down she’s a nurturer who feels this part of her has been wasted on clueless Duncan. In Tucker, she finds a man more worthy of her generous nature.

It’s also Tucker’s book. I found it fascinating to get a glimpse into the inner workings of a one-time rock hero whose continuing fame (obscure though it may be) is due solely to the internet and the sense of community it offers to obsessed fans. Tucker is a reluctant hero: sober, clean-cut, bookish. In short, nothing like the image his fans have created. The scene where Duncan finally meets his hero and refuses to believe it’s him, is a comic moment not to be missed.

Tucker and Annie’s budding relationship feels real because the characters are fully-fleshed people who we can root for. Neither of them are larger-than-life hero types. They’re just ordinary people doing real things, making bad choices and some good ones too. Even Duncan evokes our sympathy because he’s what we could turn into if we’re not careful. One of Nick Hornby’s biggest talents is in creating characters that live and breathe because they’re flawed. He sees the humor and depth in people who haven’t figured things out yet. And he makes us all feel it. We can inhabit his characters because they’re a lot like us, no matter what country they live in or what music they listen to.

Thank you, Kelly. That was wonderful. You should review every month! ;) And now...onto amazing reviews by amazing reviewers!

MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Sarah Laurence: DARKLIGHT and WONDROUS STRANGE by Lesley Livingston (paranormal, young adult) (Reviews of 2 books + Author Interview)

Alyssa Goodnight of the Writers' Road Less Traveled: THE REVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE by Jacqueline Kelly (Middle Grade)

Keri Mikulski: PRADA AND PREJUDICE by Mandy Hubbard (young adult)

Stacy Nyikos: THE OLD COUNTRY by Mordecai Gerstein (middle grade)


ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Staci of Life in the Thumb: LA'S ORCHESTRA SAVES THE WORLD by Alexander McCall Smith (historical fiction WWII)

Ellen Booraem of Freelance Ne'er-do-well: HER FEARFUL SYMMETRY by Audrey Niffenegger

Jenn Jilks of My Reflections: 13 1/2 by Nevada Barr (mystery)

Sarahlynn of Yeah, but Houdini didn't have these hips: THE GATHERING STORM by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson (fantasy)

Beth Yarnall: VISION IN WHITE by Nora Roberts (romance)

Kaye of the Book Review Forum: THE CHRISTMAS TRAIN by David Baldacci


GRAPHIC

Scott Parker: THE TRIAL OF SHERLOCK HOLMES by Leah Moore and John Reppion


ADULT NON-FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Linda McLaughlin: TAROT FOR WRITERS by Corrine Kenner

Prairie Rose of Prairie Rose's Garden THE GEOGRAPHY OF BLESS: ONE GRUMP'S SEARCH FOR THE HAPPIEST PLACES IN THE WORLD by Eric Weiner

THANK YOU ONE AND ALL!

Reviewers: You know the scoop. If I've left you off the list, just leave a comment or email me, and I'll rectify the situation asap.



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

The Book Review Club (June Meeting)

Welcome, welcome one and all to our FIFTH get together! I know, it's incredible. Well, really, it's not all that incredible. You take a bunch of good books, a bunch of enthusiastic reviewers, and toss them out in the blogosphere and, pouf, you have our amazing Book Review Club.

So, grab a cup of coffee and a cookie or two, and settle in for some terrific reviews. This month, we'll be talking young adult and adult. And even about a picture book. We'll bring you mysteries and historicals and biographies and more. Fair warning. Your to-be-read pile will grow!



Before beginning, though, I have some sad news. Last Friday morning, my high school English teacher died in hospital. He was sixty-eight. Today is his funeral. Mr. Peter Magee was an awesome awesome teacher. If it weren't for him and his passion for reading and writing and creativity, I wouldn't be a writer. I'm truly honored to share that the acknowledgment to him at the front of I So Don't Do Mysteries will be part of the eulogy. I wish I'd written more. I certainly could've. I will do a proper post about Mr. Magee. But I didn't want the day of his funeral to come and go without paying some tribute on the blog. At eleven o'clock Eastern Daylight Time, I'll have a moment of quiet time in his honor.

Condolences to all his friends and family. Especially to David.



And, now, a book review.

A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby was published in 2005. It is his fourth book.

The plotting is exquisite. The dialog is a work of art. The voices of each of the four characters is unique. And in first person, which I love. The humor is biting and wry. If you haven't figured it out yet, A Long Way Down is my favorite Hornby book.

From the New York Times Book Review: One New Year's Eve, four people with very different reasons but a common purpose, find their way to the top of a fifteen-story building in London. None of them has calculated that, on a date humans favor for acts of significance, in a place known as a local suicide-jumper's favorite, they might encounter company. A Long Way Down is the story of what happens next, and what doesn't..."

The four characters are Martin Sharp, Maureen, Jess Crichton, and J.J.

Martin is a middle-aged British TV personality who made the huge mistake of getting involved with a fifteen-year-old girl. He spent three months in prison, ruined his career, his marriage and his relationship with his two young daughters.

Maureen is a fifty-one, a single mother who has given years of her life caring for a severely disabled son.

Jess Crichton is an angry self-centered eighteen year old. She's the daughter of a local politician and does not get along with her parents. Her sister went missing a few years prior.

J.J. is an American musician who's delivering pizza in London. His band broke up and his girlfriend dumped him.

At the end of Act I, Jess convinces everyone not to jump, but to help her find her ex-boyfriend. And, thus, this oddball group joins forces and agrees to climb down from the roof. They plan to meet at regular intervals. And each meeting is zany and poignant and never what I'm expecting.

This review is definitely not capturing the humor in the book. Sorry about that. A Long Way Down really is funny. For example, at the end of Act I, they decide to give life another six weeks and arrange a Valentine's Day get-together. From the book:

Martin shook his head, but it was to indicate defeat rather than refusal. "We'll all live to regret it," he said.

A Long Way Down will probably be made into a movie. Yay. Johnny Depp bought the film rights. More yay.

From the author's website, here's a description of a typical day: 'I have an office round the corner from my home. I arrive there between 9:30 and 10 a.m., smoke a lot, write in horrible little two-and-three sentence bursts, with five-minute breaks in between. Check for emails during each break, and get irritated if there aren't any. Go home for lunch. If I'm picking up my son I leave at 3:30. If not, I stay till six. It's all pretty grim! And so dull!'

If you'd like to read an online interview with Nick Hornby, click here.

sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Long_Way_Down
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/12/books/review/12HEATHL.html
http://www.powells.com/biblio/1573223026

Below are links to our wonderful and amazing reviewers. Enjoy!

PICTURE BOOK REVIEWS

Sarahlynn of Yeah, but Houdini didn't have these hips: A SOUP OPERA by Jim Gill


YOUNG ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Linda McLaughlin: THE GRAVEYARD BOOK by Neil Gaiman (middle grade)

Ellen Booraem of Freelance Ne'er-do-well: NATION by Terry Pratchett. Includes an interesting look at his books for adults vs. his books for kids.

Stacy Nyikos: SHIFT by Jen Bradbury

Thao of serene hours: TWENTY BOY SUMMER by Sarah Ockler

Kathy Holmes: GIRLFRIEND MATERIAL by Melissa Kantor



ADULT BOOK REVIEWS

Sarah Laurence: DUNE ROAD (USA)/GIRL FRIDAY (UK) by Jane Green. Includes an author interview.

Sandy Levin of Peaceful Heart Stained Glass: THE ULTRAMIND SOLUTION by Mark Hyman, M.D.

Jenn Jilks: THE MIND OF NORMAN BETHUNE by Roderick Stewart (biography)

Beth Yarnall: SURRENDER TO A WICKED SPY by Celeste Bradley (historical)

David Cranmer of The Education of a Pulp Writer: L.A. OUTLAWS by T. Jefferson Parker

Scott Parker of SF Safari: COUNTDOWN (the Star Trek graphic novel) by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman

From the Desk of Bee Drunken: HEARTS AND MINDS by Amanda Craig

Alyssa Goodnight: THIS ROUGH MAGIC by Mary Stewart

Keri Mikulski: THE YEAR OF THE FOG by Michelle Richmond

Kaye of the Book Review Forum: WILD INDIGO by Sandi Ault (mystery)



P.S. If I left you off the list by mistake, just leave a comment. I'll get it right!