At first glance, Daphne has a great life. She’s in her early thirties, lives in San Francisco, is mother to a beautiful 16-month-old daughter, Honey, and is happily married, with a job that may not be the most satisfying, but pays well. The only problem? Thanks to Immigration officer intimidation at SFO airport her husband, Engin, had his green card taken away and was deported ... Read More...
She Would Be King
An unlikely trio comes together in the fight for a new nation in She Would Be King, Wayétu Moore’s debut novel about Liberia. There is 18-year-old Gbessa, exiled from her small West African village as a witch, who survives the bite of a poisonous snake. June Dey is a 15-year-old Virginian slave, who kills two men while trying to save the woman who raised him. When others try ... Read More...
Ohio by Stephen Markley
I don’t focus on writing negative reviews, but at the same time, when a new novel is getting a lot of hype, my reading friends want to know what I think about it. In this case the novel is Stephen Markley’s debut, Ohio. If all you need is a one sentence opinion then here you go: The novel is a grim mash-up of the plot from 13 Reasons Why and the setting of Hillbilly Elegy and ... Read More...
Vox by Christina Dalcher
Remember two weeks ago when, after reading Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, I was surprised that a political novel would turn out to be such a trigger for me? Magnify that times ten and you’ll have a picture of my reaction to Christina Dalcher’s dystopian debut, Vox. There’s a new American president, one not suited for the job, but well propped up by the religious right. Within ... Read More...
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
On Monday I mentioned having a book hangover and Delia Owens’s debut, Where the Crawdads Sing, is the culprit. What is worse is that I tried to read my way out of it and got mired in overwrought, pretentious prose that pushed all of Crawdads beauty out of my head and filled it with a tarry gunk that immobilized my brain. A foolish mistake that I’m paying for now. Still, I’ll ... Read More...
There There by Tommy Orange
One of the downsides of reading a lot is the feeling that, while you still enjoy most of what you read, some of it tends to sound familiar—as if you’ve read it before. Which is not unreasonable, as ‘how many truly distinct plots there are in fiction’ is a subject of debate even among critics. Still, it makes it that much more exciting when I come upon something wholly ... Read More...
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