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rachel papers, the
martin amis
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| I've tried reading Amis a time or two. He never really has struck a chord with me, but I do recognize that he must be a very talented writer. This book was good in that it was set in beloved England and involved a budding love relationship. I thought the woo-ing scenes were fabulous. I liked that he loved her even though he didn't know her very well. There is a lot of meat in this book (details not cooked flesh). The one thing I still glean from it is as he was woo-ing Rachel, he picked a mid-Beatles album (Revolver) reasoning that only an unworthy nut would not like it. (Which is ironic as the only Rachel I know doesn't like any Beatles be it middle, early, or late.) |
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reviewed by: kristen |
September 2000 [link] |
recommend 1 thumbs up
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rainbow’s end, the
martha grimes
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| I was in the library just feeling guilty because what I really wanted to do was read some comfortable British mystery, but what I felt I should be doing was be writing a book of my own (yes that’s one of my dreams). I knew that I had read all of the Inspector Wexford series by Ruth Rendell, but I thought surely there was a Martha Grimes Inspector Jury book I hadn’t read. Ahhh. This was the last book on the shelf that I hadn’t read. It is now my favorite one too (besides the Christmas one). The characters had more soul than they have had in earlier books. Inspector Jury himself seemed to be in soul searching funk. It was the usual solace in a English village, but this time Jury went to New Mexico. Good read. |
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reviewed by: kristen |
October 2000 [link] |
recommend
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ray in reverse
daniel wallace
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So, there is this guy, Ray. And he dies and stuff. And this book is about him in heaven, and then in the next chapter - get this - he's alive again.
This is a nice read. The life story of Ray is told in reverse order - we meet him in heaven and the book ends when he is a child. Each chapter is an emotionally pivotal moment in his life, and it allows you to watch (in reverse) as Ray goes from child to adult and from innocent to jaded and cranky. Very entertaining and often very funny.
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reviewed by: rich |
May 2002 [link] |
recommend 1 thumbs up
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rebecca
daphne du maurier
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| When my current boyfriend told me about being married before and as I caught glimpses of her life, I remembered this book and actually re-read it. As much as it does have a bit of the cheese factor, it was an excellent book for seeing how jealous women can be. I felt exactly the way that this mousy second wife felt. Oh I've been there. |
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reviewed by: kristen |
September 2000 [link] |
recommend 1 thumbs up
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rituals
cees nootesbaum
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| This is another of the Bristol Books era. This book is about a jaded man in Amsterdam. It is very tongue in cheek. I love the voice of this book. This book definitely belongs on my top six books. My favorite idea that it brings up is the contrast between the Buddhist monks in a 1200A.D. monastery and the modern city of Amsterdam – also how there is so much stuff for people to choose from that people have to pick/select one thing they love (a hobby, a passion) and then make the rest of it hubris so that the world won’t drive them mad. I.e. computers, films, cameras, books, etc. One of the characters in this book chose ming dynasty pottery to be his passion. |
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reviewed by: kristen |
September 2000 [link] |
recommend
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robbing the bees
holley bishop
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| This extraordinary bio is all about the sweet "liquid gold" and those furry little flying bees. For a year, Bishop shadows Don Smiley, a beekeeper in Florida, and writes about everything bee-related from Smiley's lucrative tupelo honey crop to his rendering of beeswax at the end of the season in an easy to read and immensely interesting book. The book covers everything about beekeeping as well as the role of bees and honey throughout history and reveals some startling facts: bees help produce one third of our food supply including garlic, apples, melons, almonds and onions. Bees were often used in medieval warfare in the form of projectiles (also popular in catapults were bags of snakes and the dead bodies of plague victims) and both honey and bees are valued for their medicinal properties. Makes you appreciate your little bear-shaped squeeze bottle of honey all the more. |
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reviewed by: lisa may |
February 2007 [link] |
recommend
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running with scissors
augusten burroughs
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| Augusten Burroughs first work chronicles his childhood in what can only be described as a psychotic catastrophe. His writing style is clear and somewhat flippant regarding the severity of damage that was done to him and others at the hands of his guardians and parents, and I find it remarkable how daily writing in his journals served as a grounding for what sanity he maintained during his formative years. I recommend this book to anyone who thinks that they had it bad growing up in a home filled with neurotic, middle class family members. This book will make you call your parents and thank them. |
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reviewed by: nate |
May 2004 [link] |
recommend 3 thumbs up
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