The Body in Question by Jill Ciment

5/5 stars

What's it about? C-2 gets involved with F-17, a fellow juror on a high-profile murder trial in which an adopted teen is accused of killing her baby brother. Even this brief escape from caregiving doesn’t relieve C-2 of her life at home with her aging husband. A sharp little novel with heart.

How’d I find it? I found this at Powell’s, and the bookseller who checked me out fussed over this writer. I now understand why.

Who will enjoy this book? This had the tone of the fantastic 2002 film Unfaithful.

What stood out? Ciment takes us into the sexuality and morality of adult womanhood. It’s raw, genuine, and a thrill to read. The wrench thrown into the works by the health of C-2’s husband, a much older man who depends on her, provides a compelling contrast to the isolation of jury duty and C-2’s affair.

Which line made me feel something? “Grief doesn’t feel as if a rug has been pulled out from under her. There is no rug. There is no floor on which to lay a rug. There is no ground on which to build a floor to lay a rug.”

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis

?/5 stars

What's it about? Patrick Bateman, our titular psychopath, works on Wall Street (though he’s plenty wealthy without the gig) and can’t seem to stand out from the vapid New York City of the 1980s no matter what restaurant he books—or how depraved he becomes.

How’d I find it? This is my spouse’s book, and I could not believe he bought this at the age of 17. I clutch my proverbial pearls! And Ellis would probably hate me for it.

Who will enjoy this book? No one will enjoy this book. It’s evil incarnate.

What stood out? This intense satire is a highly effective takedown of consumerism, conveyed via mind-numbing lists of purchases and their features, inane descriptions of who-wore-what, nauseating meals, and chapter-long rants on various musical acts. Part of the novel’s effectiveness derives from its depictions of violence, so brutal and appalling that they are nearly unreadable. Bateman’s rage towards female bodies in particular had me overcome and skimming chapters. Look, American Psycho is a work of brilliance, but I can’t rate it, much less recommend it, because I wouldn’t wish the reading experience on another person. Honestly, I can’t wait to exorcise this copy from my home.

Which line made me feel something? “To Evelyn our relationship is yellow and blue, but to me it’s a gray place, most of it blacked out, bombed, footage from the film in my head is endless shots of stone and any language heard is utterly foreign, the sound flickering away over new images…”

True Story: What Reality TV Says About Us by Danielle J. Lindemann

4/5 stars

What's it about? In this sociological analysis of reality TV, Lindemann examines how the genre represents us as a culture and the values by which we live. An incisive and convincing reflection.

How’d I find it? Multnomah County Library always has the goods. I love “a wormhole day,” in which I relive childhood Saturdays spent at the San Antonio Public Library following the meandering of my interests.

Who will enjoy this book? If you enjoy the writing of Emily Nussbaum, this is a solid readalike.

What stood out? Lindemann dissects the constructs embedded into the likes of The Bachelor and The Real Housewives franchise, teasing out what this media reveals about our thoughts on race, gender, class, and how we relate to each other and ourselves. I rediscovered so many shows to revisit. How could I have ever forgotten Breaking Amish?

Which line made me feel something? From the chapter on “deviance,” which discusses how people on reality TV who break social norms are depicted to viewers: “Like townspeople in an old horror film chasing after a monster with their torches, we are bonded in our collective rejection of the ones who do not belong.”

A Wind in the Door by Madeleine L'Engle

5/5 stars

What's it about? In the second installment of the Time Quintet, Meg Murry must team up with Calvin, her nemesis/old principal Mr. Jenkins, and some mysterious new partners to pass a series of tests that determine the fate of a rapidly ailing Charles Wallace. A perfect little book that explores the miracle of being with whimsy and wisdom.

How’d I find it? Since rereading A Wrinkle in Time, I’ve been excited to see what the Murrys get into next.

Who will enjoy this book? Reading Madeleine L’Engle is like being in front of a cozy fire on a drizzly winter day, all warmth and weight. If you relish such a tone (for me, it’s like an injection of Christmas spirit), this book is for you. Think Everything Everywhere All at Once.

What stood out? L’Engle pitches out the rules of reality as we know it and writes a more daring, imaginative possibility. The mysterious farandolae, the mattered form of a cherubim, the song of the universe—delights for the mind. The fascinating cast, including the terrifying and annihilating Echthroi, propels with velocity this quest that is just as much physical as spiritual. Meg is a Namer!

Which line made me feel something? Mr. Murry makes a brief cameo to deliver this whopper on hope: “There are still stars which move in ordered and beautiful rhythm. There are still people in this world who keep promises.”

Underground by Haruki Murakami, translated by Alfred Birnbaum and Philip Gabriel

2/5 stars

How’d I find it? My spouse and I spent our honeymoon in Japan, and I borrowed this book from one of his stacks. I am new to Murakami, having only read Norwegian Wood.

Why not 3 or more stars? Murakami compiles interviews with survivors and witnesses of the sarin gas attack on several Tokyo subway trains in March 1995, contrasting them with views from individuals linked to Aum Shinrikyo, the cult that perpetrated the terrorist act. Murakami gestures at the social and cultural context of modern Japan which made the tragedy possible, but a more profound excavation fails to materialize in this journalistic endeavor.

Mood Swings by Frankie Barnet

4/5 stars

What's it about? Animals finally take their revenge against people, until billionaire Roderick Maeve develops a sound that kills every non-human beast on the planet. Jenlena and Daphne are roommates navigating a post-fauna reality wracked by social and environmental upheaval, influenced by the Moon Bethlehems, a cult rallying against the natural degradation caused by humans. Jenlena starts a fling with Maeve just as he’s developing a time machine to possibly save the world. A smart, funny, and relevant first novel.

How’d I find it? This wild cover caught my eye as I strolled the shelves at Powell’s on a Sunday, coffee in hand.

Who will enjoy this book? Mood Swings echoes many of the themes and plot devices of Girlfriend on Mars by Deborah Willis, another talented Canadian writer.

What stood out? The odd thoughts during sex, the ennui, the self-conscious paranoia—Barnet gets young womanhood and knows how to write it without judging her characters. She also evokes a future all too probable; I can absolutely envision a future in which houseplants replace the lost experience of pets. Reading this book in 2025 hits a special nerve, so I recommend picking up Mood Swings as soon as you can.

Which line made me feel something? How I loved the writing in this novel: “It was dark and Jenlena made out only shapes: the shape of branches, the shape of underbrush, the shape of wanting to do anything he asked her to, the shape of being afraid to do it.”

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

3/5 stars

What's it about? Gifty, an ambitious and talented doctoral candidate in neuroscience at Stanford, takes in her mother as she grapples with a depressive episode that rivals the one she survived when Gifty’s brother died of an overdose. A tender sophomore novel about family, faith, and grief.

How’d I find it? How I miss Politics and Prose and the way they have every title I could possibly imagine.

Who will enjoy this book? The book reminded me heavily of the excellent 2019 film Waves. If you like the work of Celeste Ng, pick this one up.

What stood out? Transcendent Kingdom covers relevant themes about immigration, race, mental health, and modern religion, so it will appeal to any reader who seeks a solid pick from the bestsellers table. Despite Gyasi’s sure command, the novel lacks an edge, and this well-written approachability fails to cloak its formulaic narrative.

Which line made me feel something? “God was gone in an instant, but my mother became a mirage, an image formed by refracted light. I moved toward her and toward her, but she never moved toward me. She was never there.”

Bright Unbearable Reality by Anna Badkhen

3/5 stars

What's it about? Badkhen reflects on humanity, origins, and the inequities of our world in this collection that is part travelogue, part reckoning. Bright Unbearable Reality figures into the chorus of responses to the pandemic and its aftermath.

How’d I find it? One always finds something on the sale tables at Powell’s.

Who will enjoy this book? If Zadie Smith’s Intimations resonated with you, Badkhen’s thoughts might, too.

What stood out? Badkhen takes a graceful approach to mass migration, displacement, and injustice, and, while her sumptuous language doesn’t always work, it’s intoxicating to read. She pulls from across the spectrum of human creativity to enrich her subjects, like, for example, when she references the sculptures of Roni Horn in an essay set during a pilgrimage across the Sahara.

Which line made me feel something? From “Dark Matter:” “Why refuse to address head-on the two experiences that pinnacle our humanness, violence and astonishment, why find circuitous ways to describe them; why not behold and marvel at what is before us on its own terms, just as it is; what avarice within us makes us plow right through the miraculous, or past it, without pause, makes us insatiable?”

Seven Empty Houses by Samanta Schweblin, translated by Megan McDowell

3/5 stars

What's it about? The dark and cruel little stories of Seven Empty Houses explore domestic dangers: loved ones turned enemies, intruders, and even child abduction. A solid collection.

How’d I find it? You can’t go wrong with Samanta Schweblin. If I see something of hers I haven’t read, I pick it up. This copy was discovered at Powell’s.

Who will enjoy this book? Those who enjoy the stories of Ottessa Moshfegh will find much to admire in Seven Empty Houses.

What stood out? The claustrophobia that Schweblin creates throughout the book works its magic, and the tension is a delicious addition to the complex interiors we visit. There’s also a range of emotion for the reader. “Breath from the Depths” will break your heart, while “An Unlucky Man” will make you shudder. Schweblin lets her characters be themselves, even when they’re horrible or selfish.

Which line made me feel something? Lola’s to-do list: “Classify everything. Donate what it is expendable. Wrap what is important. Concentrate on death. If he meddles, ignore him.”

The Hidden Lives of Owls by Leigh Calvez

2/5 stars

How’d I find it? You know how you find books on your shelves and have no idea how they got there? The Hidden Lives of Owls was one of those.

Why not 3 or more stars? This sweet and cozy read resembles many of its fellows in the light nature category: lots of gratitude, reflections on motherhood, and marveling at non-human residents of the planet. It’s all very nice. This reader simply wants a book that’s more…robust.