A Small Town Near Auschwitz, by Mary Fulbrook

A Small Town Near Auschwitz: Ordinary Nazis and the Holocaust by Mary Fulbrook

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I liked this book but just didn't love it. The author provides a great deal of good historical information about the role of local government officials in clearing a town -- just miles from the gates of Auschwitz -- of its Jewish population. Of course, the process didn't begin with the cattle cars, but with restrictions on movement and employment, the requisition of Jewish-owned homes for ethnic German families, and ghettoization. And I think here lies one of the book's central strengths: portraying how a gradual process based on antisemitism allowed minor functionaries to serve as the cogs in the wheels of the Final Solution while being barely aware of what the Reich's endgame would be. Not only were Hitler and company thus able to use, as the author calls them, "ordinary Nazis" who might have been a little more squeamish about genocide, but later on, the frog-boiling nature of the events made it easier for these ordinary Nazis to lie to investigators, to their families, and to themselves about the roles they played and what they knew about the Holocaust at what point in the timeline of events.



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Finally, a breath

In the past month and a half, I have put my casa on the market, moved into a second-floor apartment, and sold said casa. I have done almost no reading, because most of my books are still in boxes, and I didn't want to risk losing a library book in the confusion (still looking for our potholders). But on the happy side, I have cash to spare again, which resolves all sorts of other tensions, so the world is looking up for the first time in ages.

Dark Matter, by Michelle Paver

Dark Matter: A Ghost Story by Michelle Paver

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


One of my favorite settings for horror is the Arctic (or Antarctica, I suppose) when the sun sets for months. When the light of day usually brings some measure of safety, what do you do when day won't come for a very long time? Paver uses it well for this book about several young men performing scientific research and seeking adventure in the islands at the top of the world just before the outbreak of the Second World War. Among the book's strengths is the ambiguity of the happenings: The actors are well aware of how the Arctic can affect men's minds, so until almost the very end they're not sure how to react to their experiences. Is it all in their heads, or did they see what they think they saw? A good read for a cold winter night.




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Rage Within, by Jeyn Roberts

Rage Within by Jeyn Roberts

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I was pretty meh about this book. On the plus side, we get a bit of an interesting backstory behind the events that transpired. On the negatives, parts of the plot were predictable (did anyone out there NOT know who the traitor would be?) and unbelievable (brain-splitting headaches and sexytimes usually do not co-occur). But the story was interesting enough to keep me reading to the end and wondering where the author will go in the next book (the final in a trilogy, I believe).



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The Last Watch, by Sergei Lukyanenko

The Last Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Usually when a series book takes a trip from its usual setting, it's a sign that the author is running out of ideas to keep the storyline fresh. In Lukyanenko's The Last Watch, taking a familiar character and putting him/her into an unfamiliar setting works well, almost a natural progression from Twilight Watch's side trip to Prague. As the protagonist Anton (and the reader) is educated more deeply about the essence of who the Others are and travels further into the Twilight world, the story expands externally from Moscow and heads farther afield into Edinburgh and the Stans. And although the external plot deals with a series of murders in Edinburgh, the book simultaneously delves into Anton's internal struggle over killing a vampire he once considered a friend and his role in the overarching struggles and balance of power between the Watches. To paraphrase Anton near the end of the book, he feels like a small screw in a huge, merciless machine. No doubt this struggle will come to a head in the fifth and final book in the series.

Despite some story holes (who couldn't guess the killer's true identify after the name was provided), Last Watch is a worthy successor that crosses genre (fantasy/scifi/mystery) boundaries.



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Hidden

Hidden: A Child's Story of the Holocaust by Loïc Dauvillier

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Who knew that an adorable book about the Holocaust was possible?

In this sweet-yet-heartbreaking graphic novel, we travel back in time as grandmother Dounia tells little Elsa about her life after the German occupation of France began during World War II. Dounia’s happy life of school, friends, and a crush on a boy changed overnight. The basic elements of the story are familiar. First, come the stars sewn onto clothing and the friends and teachers who suddenly shun Dounia. Her parents try to soften the blow by explaining that they have become a family of sheriffs, hence the yellow stars they must wear. Then, the pounding on the doors in the middle of the night. From there, the story portrays the brighter side of humanity. Hidden by her parents in the false bottom of an armoire before the soldiers burst in, Dounia is rescued and spends the next years being sheltered until the end of the war. I’ll leave the rest of the story for readers to discover.

This child’s-eye view of the French occupation is a perspective I’ve rarely seen. Here the approach works, mixing the horrifying with the bittersweet through the filters of childhood. The artwork--full of somber blues and browns--depicts Charlie Brown-like characters with heads disproportionate to the bodies, again reminding the reader that this story, despite the deadly serious themes, belongs to a child. I would totally give this book to one of my elementary school niecelets following a discussion of what transpired during WWII.




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The Sound and the Furry, by Spencer Quinn

The Sound and the Furry by Spencer Quinn

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


For the 6th book in his Chet & Bernie series, Quinn takes his protagonists on a road trip to Louisiana to look into a missing persons case. The change of scenery adds a bit of freshness to the story that has been missing in the past couple of books. We get to see Chet and Bernie out of their familiar environment, dealing with the unique culture that is south Louisiana. And Quinn did get that culture right -- the mixture of friendliness and wariness about outsiders, the shady deals, the shadier police force, the centuries-old family feuds, and the oil industry that covers it all; literally, when it comes to the land and wildlife.

One aspect of the book that was a bit jarring to me: Chet's inner dialog. Perhaps it's because I more or less only skimmed books 4 and 5, but this go-round, Chet seemed to be "talking" much more. Reading through the text was much like a conversation with a bipolar friend during a mania phase, just one thing after another punctuated occasionally by a Squirrel! Not that he's a bad narrator -- Chet is one observative dog, even if he can't always remember what the observations mean. I wish I knew how to what extent Quinn has incorporated real research about dog cognition into how he develops Chet's dialog, to know how accurate it might be.

Anyway, in summary, The Sound and the Furry is a nice read, with comparatively little dog abuse this time (a bonk or two on the head and some prolonged dog-paddling), some new characters, and a fairly pleasant resolution. What more could you ask for in a canine cozy?



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Twilight Watch, by Sergei Lukyanenko

Twilight Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Not many series get better as you get farther along, but the tales of the Others may just be one of them. Perhaps what I'm sensing is Lukyanenko's move from straight action to a more winding philosophical treatise on what makes the Others tick, the differences between the two "sides," and the individual characters on which he focuses. Again, the focus of this novel (or set of three stories) is Anton, although many characters from the earlier books make appearances: Sveta (now his wife and the mother of his little Other), Gesar, Zabulon, Edgar, Kostya, and Semyon. These stories center around issues of metaphysics--the relationship between magic and energy in the Others and in humans--and how these issues could be used within the world for good or ill (or a combination thereof). Twilight Watch is a great example of how good fantasy/science fiction can make you stretch your brain a bit.



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The Wicked, by Douglas Nicholas

The Wicked by Douglas Nicholas

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


IMHO, The Wicked is generally a worthy successor to Something Red. Featuring the same traveling musicians/family by choice as in the earlier novel, the book bit-by-bit reveals more about the characters, the world in which they live, and the overall plot. Although some parts of it may be a bit predictable to those who have been around the horror block a few times (eg, the nature of the beast in this one), The Wicked is still a great read, full of adventure, magic, humanity, and love.

A couple small quibbles though: The term "russet fur" sounds like it came straight from a Barbara Cartland novel with an Irish lassie on the cover. Actually, the phrase probably has been used in every cheesy romance featuring a redhead at least once. I hope the author avoids these sorts of scenes from here on out.

Disclaimer: I received an electronic manuscript from NetGalley.



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Saints, by Gene Yang

Saints by Gene Luen Yang

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Saints is a fabulous mirror to Boxers, depicting the side of the same events from the perspective of a Chinese Christian girl, Boxers' girl with a face like an opera mask. That said, this isn't a pretty story and the only saint here is Joan of Arc, who makes periodic hallucinatory appearances much like the gods and goddesses in Boxers do. One has to wonder how the events of the conflict would have unfolded if not for the superstition, ignorance, racism, and hatred on both sides. Or even the misery on a micro-level, such as a grandfather who declares a child as a cast-off, people who make assumptions about others' activities, and religious nutbags and zealots a-gogo. Despite all this, these books are incredibly written and drawn, providing a worthy container for the content.



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Day Watch, by Sergei Lukyanenko

Day Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The world of the Watches, as this series is sometimes known, seems pretty straightforward: You've got the Light and the Dark. Should be simple, right? Dark bad, Light good. Well, not so fast. One of the main themes of Day Watch is that the line between the sides is thinner than either side, particularly the Light, would admit. Like the first in the series, this volume is told in 3 separate mini-novels. Familiar characters make an appearance, but these stories are told from the perspective of the Dark, which depicts the events of Night Watch in a new light while adding to the canon. Although I enjoyed all 3, the section dealing with Alisa was probably the one that touched me the most.



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Changes afoot

Decisions have been made, and plans are in motion. It's going to be a wild few months. We're putting the casa on the market in early October and finding a rental as soon as we get an offer. I am going to be spending a great deal of time in the next 2 weeks cleaning and decluttering. As our realtor said: "It should sort of look like a Crate & Barrel catalog." Happily the bookshelves won't need much work (though I'm still riding Spouse's ass about getting rid of some of his grad school books).

Nightwatch, Sergei Lukyanenko

The Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I found this book in the reverse of the usual process, after watching a movie based on this novel and the next in the series. In Russia, the series represented sort of a breakout hit for the science fiction genre there. I can see why it was so popular. Despite opposing forces of the Light and the Dark, the world of The Others (not-quite humans who include in their ranks vampires, shapeshifters, seers, witches, and magicians) is one of shades of gray; the narrator for Nightwatch, one Anton Gorodetsky, especially so. In fact, the alternative plane of The Twilight--only accessible to the Others--operates in tones of sepias and grays. In addition to great world-building with interesting, nuanced characters, Lukyanenko tells one hell of a story. Actually, he tells three stories in this novel. The reader will ride along with battles large and small, doublecrosses galore, doomed romance, and wicked chase scenes (even in text). I enjoyed Nightwatch so much that I started the next book in the series, Daywatch, 10 minutes after I finished the first.



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Parasite, by Mira Grant

Parasite by Mira Grant

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Having read 4 of Mira Grant’s novels, I have to wonder who she trusts the least: the media, science, government, or parents. None of those entities come out looking good in her books, although all have what they feel are valid reasons for taking (or not taking) actions that impact others negatively. Money and power often play huge roles, as does the butterfly effect: when one decision or action—even with good intentions—has unanticipated ripple effects that change the world.

All of these concerns and more present themselves in Grant’s newest work, Parasite (the first in a series of the same name). Set about 15 years in the future, the book tells the story of Sal Mitchell, a young woman who in many ways is even younger: She has no memory prior to a car accident 6 years earlier after which she was saved from the brink of death by a genetically modified tapeworm. In fact, almost everyone, in the U.S. at least, has one of these implants, made by one company and created to address antibacterial resistance and immunodeficiency. As is usually the case, this miracle cure for everything from allergies to diabetes is too good to be true.

Like most first books in a series, Parasite takes its time revealing the situation—Sal’s history as well as the story of the implants—unravelling details and bit of information via Sal’s current experiences as well as article and book excerpts from various sources, including 3 creators of the implants. Though the book may move slowly, with a lot of detail about how Sal got to her current place in the world, the story itself captured my interest from the beginning and didn’t let go. Grant uses cliffhangers well, so that you just have to peek into that next chapter to see what happened. Alas, she ended the book the same way, so I felt like someone snatched away a piece of chocolate cake after allowing only one bite. Hopefully, Grant will fill the time until the appearance of the second book with related novellas, as she did with her Newsflesh series.




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Boxers, by Gene Yang

Boxers by Gene Luen Yang

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Going into "Boxers," I knew next to nothing about the Boxer rebellion (thank you crappy education). I had seen mention of it once or twice (including in the book "Midnight in Peking") but was short on the details. So, I can't speak to the historical accuracy of the book, although in a story such as this what "history" says and the reality may not be particularly close.

That said, I think that Yang does a bang-up job distilling the history into a tale about real people's lives. We follow the Righteous brothers from their start in one small village until the aftermath in Beijing. The artwork shows the duality of their story. On one hand, you've got the cartoonish peasants in panels of browns and grays, with our hero being a sort of Joe China. The other side of the coin shows the lavishly drawn and brightly colored gods into which the brothers (and their supporters) believed themselves transformed during battle. We see it all from the brothers' perspective: the training, the journey, and the slaughters. I could understand why the Boxers felt justified in what they were doing. Doesn't make the whole killing-women-and-children thing less horrible, but you see their perspective (fueled by superstition, religion, and probably opium).

Interestingly, Boxers is half of a pair of graphic novels, with the other (Saints) presenting the rebellion from the perspective of a Christian Chinese girl who we briefly meet in Boxers. I think it's a great idea on Yang's part, to tell the story of a place and time in history whose interpretation depends mainly on which side the interpreter was on.

Disclosure: I received an e-copy of the book via NetGalley.





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Sixty Days and Counting

Sixty Days and Counting by Kim Stanley Robinson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Who knew that a book about the end of the world could end on a positive note? Robinson is obviously a humanist and believes that the angels of our better nature will kick in at some point before we destroy the earth completely. Me, I'm not so sure, but it made for a nice thought. He ties up the problems of the previous 2 books perhaps a little too neatly in this one (and why do authors think that a happy ending must always involve someone getting knocked up). However, along the way he tells a fast-paced story that seems all too real (ripped from the headlines, as it were), which is one of the reasons the rainbows-and-unicorns ending seemed so off.



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Forgotten review: Ashen Winter

Ashen Winter by Mike Mullin

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


In the second book of a planned trilogy, Mullin's focus moves from the horrors of a ruined world (thanks to a huge volcanic eruption in Yellowstone) to the horrors of the people left in that ruined world and the horrific things they'll do when trying to survive. In the meantime, teenage boys can still be immature, and mothers are still overbearing. I'm looking forward to the next volume.



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Lots of books!

First the reviews:

Ancestor, by Scott Sigler

Forty Signs of Rain, by Kim Stanley Robinson

Fifty Degrees Below, by Kim Stanley Robinson

Spillover, by David Quammen

Now the rest.

Yes, it's been 2 months since I've finished a book, for a variety of reasons. First, I didn't want to get involved in another nonfic book until I finished Spillover, which was loooong (but totally worth it). Fictionwise, I just didn't get into anything for a bit. On the homefront, I was busy knitting and Netflixing, and...

Life has gotten really weird and life-changing recently. When the summer started, Spouse and I were seriously contemplating leaving the New Orleans area. I couldn't find a library job, the state legislature is batshit insane, and Spouse thought it would be rather difficult to be a family attorney doing crazy things like trying to help women and gay people (crazy for LA at least, where change won't happen until at least 2 more generations die off, although between the chemical and oil industries that may happen sooner than later). We both applied for positions in the Bay area, and I made it to the second round of the hiring process for my wet dream medical librarian job when...

I got a library job here, at last, and everything changed once again. Because the position would involve a pay cut and because Spouse still doesn't have a professional job, keeping our house was simply untenable. So, with some cash from my 401K at former job, we're going to clean it up a bit and put it on the market this fall. We're on the sliver by the river, and I don't expect we'll have any problems selling. With the money from the sale, we can dig ourselves out of the financial hole that Spouse's delayed re-entry into Grown-Up Land has caused. And I can finally get to enjoy New Orleans again, going out with friends (I actually have some!) to eat and hear music and maybe Spouse if he's good.

And in the midst of all this, I was sending resumes, prepping for interviews, and doing the work of at least 2 people since we were so understaffed (for about 3 weeks, I brought editing home every night).

So it's been a busy, crazy summer, and the fall looks to be similarly stress inducing (getting the house ready to sell, finding a rental, seeing if Spouse graduates and registers for the bar exam, and digging in to the new job, which is going quite well so far). Hopefully it won't be another 2 months before I finish a book.

Smile, by Raina Telgemaier

Smile by Raina Telgemeier

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Having nearly knocked two teeth out about a month into my 7th grade year, I empathized with poor Raina more than the average reader (happily, after being moved back and splinted into place for a couple months, my teeth survived). A heartfelt, well-drawn (figuratively and literally) story.



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Shadows by Ilsa Bick

The End Games, by T. Michael Martin

The End Games by T. Michael Martin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Even though at first glance it may look like your standard YA zombie novel, The End Games, at its heart, is a story of the lies we tell ourselves just to get from one day, one trial, to the next. All of the characters have one, from the 5 year old who needs his big brother to lead him to the cult leader who needs hope to survive a horrible loss. It was only after I finished the book that the thread among all the characters became apparent.

Being from WV, the setting was especially evocative. Because, let's face it, most former coal towns look like the apocalypse hit. How could you tell the difference between a community that hasn't seen new jobs in 20 years where anyone with any sort of spark left the day after high school graduation, and one where 9/10 of the residents died gruesome deaths and the rest are holed up with shotguns behind boarded up windows?

I'm already looking forward to Martin's next work.




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A review forgotten: I Am Not a Serial Killer

I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Very interesting premise, and the character development was well-done. However (and I'm not going into much detail do as not to spoil), I think some elements of the plot went a bit overboard in an attempt to cross genre lines. Wells could have done so much with the story without going THERE.



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Code Name Verity and I Don't Want to Kill You

Since I finished these 2 books within a day or two of one another, I'm just going to combine them:

http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/472311154

http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/591413295

I surrender. Maybe.

April has been a pretty craptacular month (I'll save that for another post), and I am way off track for my goal of reading 2 books I already own per month. I needed to read 3 during March to catch up. Not only did I not do that, but I didn't read any in April either. So, I may give up on the idea, unless I break a leg and suddenly have a great deal more leisure time (from my mouth to the FSM's ears). We'll see.

On the bright side, I have been singlehandedly improving the circulation numbers at both of my public library systems.

Slow Apocalypse, by John Varley

Slow Apocalypse by John Varley

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Varley weaves a tale that sounds much more plausible than concerns about zombies eating our brains: What happens when the oil that has fueled the modern economy literally dries up? Let me tell you, it ain't pretty. The author adds some extra disaster by setting the novel in southern California. It's quite appropriate, because perhaps no other city in America exemplifies the car culture, the lack of natural resources in most metropolises, and class divisions. We follow our protagonist, a down-on-his-luck screenwriter, from when he first hears a strange story about a biotechnologist who creates a living tool of destruction. As Dave, his neighbors, his family (blood and otherwise), and his city struggle for survival, we're swept along with him. Just as a good screenwriter would do, Varley paints his pictures with words and action and he does it well. (Of course, I read a large portion of the book during a power outage. This postapocalyptic novel will stay with you once you close it: It ends with some serious and all too nonfictional thoughts about how the U.S., and indeed the world, operate and reminds us that reality may be worse than fiction in some cases.



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City of Thieves, by David Benioff

City of Thieves by David Benioff

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Despite the grim subject matter, I adored this book. It's beautifully written in such a way that it brings alive the madness of the events with humor and horror at the same time. The characters are drawn in a similar way, with all of their foibles, mysteries, and heroism clear. The fact that Benioff is writing a vaguely fictionalized version of his grandfather's life during the siege of Leningrad makes it all that much more compelling.



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Mr. Monster

Mr. Monster by Dan Wells

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The character development in the second book of the John Wayne Cleaver series seemed to me to be more well-developed than in the previous novels. Perhaps it was a result of John's more pronounced inner struggle between his good and bad natures. I still find the supernatural elements of the book jarring, but not as much so as in I Am Not a Serial Killer. Disturbing and delicious at the same time.



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Why America Failed

Why America Failed: The Roots of Imperial Decline by Morris Berman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Another thoughtful and enlightening work of cultural criticism from Berman, but I perhaps was looking for a more detailed take on anti-intellectualism (particularly in light of his commentary on the South).



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Dead and Alive, by Dean Koontz

Dead and Alive by Dean Koontz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The third in the Koontz's Frankenstein series, Dead and Alive wraps up a number of the various threads from the prior 2 books while leaving the plotline open for continuation (spoiler: Koontz did indeed carry on the series beyond the originally planned trilogy, according to my local public library). I liked this one probably more than the others in part because so much of what was happening was psychological -- particularly with the replicants. Also, the joke about the naked district attorney running down the street gets an extra star for portraying New Orleans so accurately.



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Ashfall, by Mike Mullin

Ashfall by Mike Mullin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Beyond being a decently written postapocalyptic YA novel with a strong storyline, I think I most appreciated Ashfall for its portrayal of just how precarious our modern existence is. The planet, relying on the U.S. transportation system, only has about 20 days' supply of grain at any given time (at a homeland security conference I learned that the island of Manhattan only has about 1 days' worth of food -- think about that for a second). In turn, without adequate food and water supplies, society devolves pretty damn quickly, whether you're talking about looters with shotguns or religious nuts with Flavor-Aid. Lucky for our protagonist that he's in the Midwest, where the girls know how to fix machines and build grindstones, even if the corn is buried under a foot of ash. Oh, and Mullin gets bonus points for his portrayal of a refugee camp in which the military officials are baddies, out to protect corporate interests rather than human beings, not a surprise to anyone who's ever heard of Blackwater. Ashfall is the first portion of a trilogy, so we should get a fairly long-term view of this brave, new world.



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The Last Myth

The Last Myth: What the Rise of Apocalyptic Thinking Tells Us about America by Mathew Barrett Gross

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I read this book over just a couple days, I found it that interesting. The authors cover a lot of bases here, from the historical background that led to the societal mindshift that led to the first apocalyptic myths to the reasons why apocalyptic thinking is so prevalent in much of mainstream American society now. But these aren't just discrete points in human history; a thread ties them all together. What impressed me most, however, is how the authors went a step further in the modern-day discussion of apocalyptic thinking to address how this approach to life, the universe, and everything is affecting (and in most cases harming) not just the U.S. but the world as a whole. Also, the final chapter provides a useful summary of all the material in the book, once again tying the content together (the writer in me always appreciates a good conclusion).



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City of Night

City of Night by Dean Koontz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


City of Night makes for a good bridge within the series. A great deal is happening, and the reader doesn't necessarily have to have read the first book to enjoy this one. New characters are presented, the world is drawn more clearly, and further details are revealed. I perhaps wish the villain was a bit more nuanced a character: I like my evil a little more ambiguous. The one drawback I've found is that I'm becoming concerned that some of my local officials here in New Orleans are actually replicants. It would actually explain so much.



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White Horse

White Horse by Alex Adams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As I read through most of this novel, I was thinking I would give it 3 stars. White Horse had an interesting premise with a multi-layered apocalypse (if Big Pharma didn't scare you before reading...). The lead character was generally likable but somewhat flawed. Some portions of the plotline stretched my credulity, even for science-y fiction. But one villanous character kept popping up like a slasher movie serial killer, and that annoyed me. But the last couple chapters and the plot twists revealed completely blew me away and redeemed the novel for me. Apparently a second book is planned, and I look forward to seeing where this story goes.



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Neonomicon, by Alan Moore

Neonomicon by Alan Moore

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I haven't read any Lovecraft, so I can't speak to how this story compares to the original. However, despite being a brutal read, it did have its moments. I particularly enjoyed the "meta" aspects of it: the little bits of commentary about Lovecraft in a story riffing off of Lovecraft, the mention of plush Cthulu's, etc. And the illustrations are fabulous, with a wonderful level of detail.



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Salvation on Sand Mountain

Salvation on Sand Mountain: Snake-Handling and Redemption in Southern Appalachia by Dennis Covington

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


As a child in a fundamentalist, independent Baptist church in West Virginia, snake handling churches were given as a cautionary tale about misinterpreting the Word of God and worship being too theatrical. (At the other end of the Continuum of Batshit was the Catholic church, for their pomp and circumstance, idols, Mary worship, and infant baptism.) So, I was very curious about this inside look at the snake handling culture. And what an inside look it was -- Covington became almost a de facto member of the community, and indeed handled snakes himself during worship services. Nonetheless, he remained seemingly objective about the foibles of his subjects, although that may have been a result of writing retrospectively after those ties were broken. Worth the read if you're interested in the Protestant sects of the U.S.



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Reading Challenges: Improvement

February brought with it the end of cable TV in the Librarienne household, and not coincidentally I read more books. Regarding my nonfiction challenge, I read 2 qualifying works (The Canon and Quiet). Additionally, these 2, plus Ship Breaker, count toward my personal challenge of reading from my own collection. If I read another 3 in March (and it looks like I will), I will have caught up in that category. Full steam ahead.

Between Shades of Gray

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I first heard about the Baltic purges about 10 years ago, when a friend mentioned that her Latvian mother and grandparents had been in a Soviet prison camp for a few years before coming to the US. Between Shades of Gray is a brutal but touching novel about 15-year-old who overnight goes from the usual teenage concerns to fighting for her life as an enemy of the Soviet state sent to prison camps in Siberia. Periodic flashbacks provide information about the slow progression toward the Soviet takeover, brief vignettes that meant little at the time to Lina, our protagonist. Sepetys based the story on reports from family members and others who faced similar circumstances as well as other primary sources, which make the tale that much more horrifying. The ending is rather ambiguous, leaving a large gap in the time frame between the denouement and the epilogue. But that too seems appropriate, considering how many people never knew the confirmed fates of loved ones swept up in the madness.



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Ship Breaker

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I wanted to give this book a 3.5, but I rounded up today.

I got about 1/3 through the book before taking a break of a month or so. The story was so dark, with few redeeming values at the time. I got started again mainly because I scanned ahead and decided that I needed to read the part about Orleans, my current place of residence. Interestingly, it's only in the second half of the book that you start to get the back story about the world in which Ship Breaker takes place. In this milieu, the southern U.S. has devolved into a Third World country that supplies the world with resources (yeah, even more so than it is now) and most of the population lives in poverty under the rule of thugs. Think the Congo with half-man/half-dog hybrids. What happened: It seems that all of those predictions about climate change were realized in Bacigalupi's world. Meanwhile, Canada, India, and China are the benevolent superpowers using the U.S. as a colony. For some reason, this extra information that turns the current geopolitical situation on its head made the rest of the novel more palatable to me.

Ship Breaker has a strong, evocative story that moves along quickly. It's emotional without being angry or sappy. The ending is appropriately ambiguous. It all works.



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Quiet, by Susan Cain

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


For whatever it's logical flaws (judging from some of the other reviews), after finishing this book I felt like I could give it to other people and say "If you want to understand who I am, read this." (I've only had this reaction with one other book, Limbo by Alfred Lubrano.)



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Prodigal Son by Dean Koontz

Prodigal Son by Dean Koontz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


�I probably haven't read a Dean Koontz novel since I was in high school. This book (which takes place in my current home of New Orleans) may not cure cancer, but I enjoyed it thoroughly anyway. Not the modern retelling that I imagined, Prodigal Son starts off a 4-book series about the mad scientist and his original creation, here calling himself Deucalion. The story is fast, with unexpected twists and turns. The characters all have some depth to them, and Victor Helios (nee Frankenstein) is your archetypical American villain--insanely rich, evil on the inside but suave on the outside (think Patrick Batemen grown up), with half the city in his pocket. I'm looking forward to the next one.



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Dear European Union...

According to media reports, you're all very concerned about birthrates, replacement of retirees, and such. You fear that you'll soon lack the workers needed to keep your economies going. Well, I'd like to volunteer my services. I have at least 20 good years of working life ahead of me, and I believe I have a lot to offer.

I'm a fast learner, not afraid of hard work, and a professional at finding and disseminating information (and have master's and bachelor's, respectively, in both). I have a stronger knowledge of the vagaries of English grammar and syntax than a large portion of the American population. My particular specialty is turning research information into something folks can actually read. I adjust quickly to new situations and environments. After moving from West Virginia to Washington, D.C., I am undaunted by a life abroad. I speak a little of two of your languages and would jump at the chance to become fluent. I come with a spouse who is fluent in one and conversational in another. I admire and envy the societies you have developed and would love to be a part of them. I want to live somewhere where evolution is established fact, alternative energy is pursued and valued, and fossil fuels are avoided if at all possible.

In exchange, all I ask for is a work visa and a salary that will cover living expenses (including kibble for my canine family members) and such.

Sincerely,
Mtnlibrarienne

The Canon

The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science by Natalie Angier

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Natalie Angier is one of my favorite science writers, and this book did not disappoint. While her writing style allowed me to understand the scientific concepts involved, it is not simple, eg, Science for Dummies. Her lush use of language, including metaphor, pop culture as well as historic references, and rapid-fire banter, paints a picture with words. I will never write with a pencil without seeing the chemical bonds breaking as the graphite molecules attach themselves to paper. Speaking of pictures, I found that to be one of the few flaws of the book (other than the fact that she couldn't cover the entire body of science). The complexity of the material involved could have used some well-done illustrations to better, well, illustrate the concepts she was discussing.



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Reading Challenges, January: A Slow Start

Not just slow, but pretty damn bad. I read one nonfiction book, but for my personal challenge of reading 2 books I already own: zero. I'm almost done with 2, but didn't finish either by the end of the day on the 31st. January was a rough month in general: I got sick at Christmas and stayed that way for more than 3 weeks. After taking an extra day or 2 during the holidays, I had to drag my ass to work. By the time I made it through the workday, I didn't have the energy for anything more than walking the dogs in the evening and staring at bad television for an hour or so before falling asleep. I couldn't concentrate for more than 5 or 10 minutes at a time. This, in addition to a shitstorm of a financial roller coaster, meant that I was pretty useless.

However, it's a new month, I'm feeling human again, and I have high hopes to catch up with my challenges. Plus, we no longer have cable, which can only help.

Bonk, by Mary Roach

Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Like any good science reporter, Mary Roach transforms the jargon of scientific research into something understandable by lay readers while still being informative. With the subject of sex research, her sense of humor shines through while still presenting solid information. At the same time, you can't help but feel somewhat sad that human hang-ups about the topic have prevented really robust and useful research on the topic.



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Reading Goals for 2013

Every year I strive to read more, being of the opinion that the more I read, the more I know and feel, and the better a person I become. To that end, here are my reading goals for 2013:

My central goal is to read 2 books each month that I already own, for a total of 24. Because the mister and I have a library that flows into 4 rooms of our house (not counting the books sitting in the bathroom, the garage, or on random tables in the house), my only problem will be choosing which books to read.

Additionally, I will be participating in the Non-Fiction/Non-Memoir Reading Challenge sponsored by Chaotic Compendiums. I'm aiming for at least a Bachelor's on this one -- 15 books. Because I tend to read a lot of nonfiction, this shouldn't be tricky.

Let the games begin!