City of Scoundrels by Gary Krist- Book Review

Apr 162012

City of Scoundrels: The 12 Days of Disaster That Gave Birth to Modern Chicago by Gary Krist
Published by Crown Books, an imprint of Random House

At the beginning of 1919, Chicago seemed like a city poised for a wonderful future. It was a time before the Great Depression and Prohibition, and after the end of the Great War, and the mayor had great plans to revolutionize and beautify the city, a feeling of optimism was only to be expected. For the first half of the year, it appeared that this optimism might not be misplaced, but over the summer everything changed.

It started on July 21, 1919. Along the lake shore, the Goodyear company was showing off their new blimp, The Wingfoot Express. The blimp made several runs throughout the day, the more influential people who saw it, the better the publicity for the company. Shortly before 5 pm, the blimp began its last run of the day, flying out over the Loop, the better to be seen. While they were over the city, however, the blimp caught fire, and the passengers and crew were forced to jump, hoping their parachutes would be enough to save them. It was not only those in the blimp who were injured or killed; the blimp also hit part of the Illinois Trust bank, causing an explosion and killing many who were there at work.

Devastating as this disaster was, there was worse to come for Chicago over the next two weeks, including a sensational child murder, a transit strike, and a deadly and divisive race riot, all exacerbated by politicians who failed to act as quickly or decisively as was needed.

In City of Scoundrels, Krist describes the genesis of these disasters, the ways they fed into one another, and the ways the influenced Chicago throughout the remainder of the 20th century. He writes with a style that is reminiscent of Erik Larson’s modern classic of Chicago history, The Devil in the White City. If anything, in fact, Krist’s book is more accessibly written and easier to read, despite the lack of a serial killer in his narrative. The events of that summer are laid out in a clear and engaging manner, given proper context without going into extraneous and distracting details.

City of Scoundrels offers an instructive and fascinating look into the history of Chicago. Chicagoans in particular should read this book, but anyone who enjoys a good narrative history is likely to be intrigued. Highly recommended.

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Source: Publisher, via Edelweiss.
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Zombiestan by Mainak Dhari – Audiobook Review

Apr 132012

Zombiestan by Mainak Dhari, narrated by John Lee
Published in audio by Tantor Media, published in print by TK

Synopsis:

It begins with an airstrike on a Taliban compound where new biological weapons are being stored. The initial response to the strike is unabashed joy, finally the US military has taken out some of the top members of the Taliban, certainly now that the leadership is dead, the group will fall apart. Soon, though, the allegedly dead Taliban are ravishing villages, storming US military compounds. Shooting them does nothing, nor does attempting to blow them up, and anyone they bite or scratch gets terribly sick and begins acting in the same mad way. Thanks to the soldiers who are on their way home, and the ones who are taken out of country for medical care, the epidemic begins to spread throughout the world, although it seems to be worst in the Middle East.

It is against this backdrop that our unlikely band of protagonists comes together in India. They include a Navy SEAL, an aging romance author, a teenage boy who has lost his family, and a teenage girl with her toddler brother in tow. During an attack by the “biters,” as they are being called, it becomes evident that the young boy is somehow immune to these strange zombies, a discovery that provides hope to survivors and enrages the creatures at the same time. Suddenly, there is more at stake that minute-to-minute survival, the fate of the human race may lie with a little boy obsessed with Disney.

Thoughts on the story:

With Zombiestan, Dhar introduces a new an interesting twist to the classic zombie story. Unlike most zombies, Dhar’s biters move quickly, possess rudimentary group memories from the original Taliban victims, and even seem capable of learning. These deviations from classic zombie lore kept Zombiestan fresh, aided by the quick pace and the engaging plot. The men were better developed than the women as characters, but the women still formed an integral part of the plot, and were able to play a significant role in the group’s quest to get to someone who could do something with the possibility of immunity. Zombiestan is very engaging, and incredibly easy to get caught up in.

Thoughts on the audio production:

Ah, John Lee. I haven’t listened to very many things he has narrated, so I tend to forget just how amazing he is; after all, he did manage to keep me grounded during The City & The City. In Zombiestan, he shows his exceptional talent with accents. Lee himself is British, and narrated the book as such, which works for something set in the Middle East and India. However, he had a variety of accents to cover among the different characters, primarily Indian and American. The main characters occasionally came into contact with others from the region, and Lee managed to switch voices and accents with a seemingly effortless flair.

soundbytes picture Overall:

Zombiestan is a captivating and unique zombie story, which is truly brought to its fullest potential by John Lee’s expert narration. Very highly recommended.

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I encourage you to review any audiobooks you review on Fridays and include the link here. If you have reviewed an audiobook earlier in the week, please feel free to link that review as well. Thanks to Pam for creating the button.

Source: Publisher.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

The Book of Madness and Cures by Regina O’Melveny – Book Review

Apr 122012

The Book of Madness and Cures by Regina O’Melveny
Published by Little, Brown and Company, an imprint of Hachette

From the publisher:

Dr. Gabriella Mondini, a strong-willed, young Venetian woman, has followed her father in the path of medicine. She possesses a singleminded passion for the art of physick, even though, in 1590, the male-dominated establishment is reluctant to accept a woman doctor. So when her father disappears on a mysterious journey, Gabriella’s own status in the Venetian medical society is threatened. Her father has left clues–beautiful, thoughtful, sometimes torrid, and often enigmatic letters from his travels as he researches his vast encyclopedia, The Book of Diseases.

After ten years of missing his kindness, insight, and guidance, Gabriella decides to set off on a quest to find him–a daunting journey that will take her through great university cities, centers of medicine, and remote villages across Europe. Despite setbacks, wary strangers, and the menaces of the road, the young doctor bravely follows the clues to her lost father, all while taking notes on maladies and treating the ill to supplement her own work.

The Book of Madness and Cures gets off to a strong start. Gabriella is an intriguing character, being a fairly independent woman, and a doctor in a time when women were categorically not doctors. In fact, it isn’t truly her father’s disappearance that sends her off into the great unknown – although she certainly misses him – but the fact that she is told that due to his prolonged absence she will no longer be allowed to practice medicine on her own. Without her practice, there is nothing keeping Gabriella in Venice, and she begins following the path of her father’s letters. Oddly, however, she seems to follow them largely in the order the letters were received, rather than either a route that made geographic sense, or one that hit later locations first. This was frustrating as a reader, because it seemed inconsistent with her logical and intelligent character, although it served the purpose of prolonging her journey for the sake of story.

Like Gabriella’s journey through Europe and North Africa, The Book of Madness and Cures eventually turns to meandering. It did not seem that she ultimately learned anything about herself or the world on her long and often arduous journey. Because of this, The Book of Madness and Cures seems to lose its purpose part way through the book. Gabriella’s journalings on diseases are certainly interesting, but they fail to really come to anything significant and thus feel like just one more piece of the book that doesn’t really come together.

Although it starts strong, The Book of Madness and Cures fails to live up to its full potential. It is interesting, but not captivating.

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Source: Publisher.
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The Song Remains the Same by Allison Winn Scotch – Book Review

Apr 112012

The Song Remains the Same by Allison Winn Scotch
Published by Putnam Books, an imprint of Penguin

When Nell Slattery wakes up in a hospital in Iowa, she knows nothing. Not how she got there, not who the people are surrounding her, not who she is. It was a flight from New York to San Francisco, and when it crashed she was one of only two survivors, the other being her B-list actor seatmate, Anderson Carroll. Although Anderson remembers horrible detail, Nell’s amnesia does not seem to be going away, not even in regards to her life before the crash. Luckily, Nell has her mother, husband, and sister/business partner around her to help fill her in on who she used to be. Unfortunately, each of these people has his or her own perspective on Nell’s life, what it was and what they wish it had been, and their stories for Nell reflect these wished for realities. Now, all Nell knows is that she knows nothing, and that she cannot fully trust what is told to her. It will be up to her and any outside help she can muster to sort out the life she used to lead, and the one she will lead going forward.

As always, Allison Winn Scotch has created a complex and moving story of identity and choosing what life to live. Nell’s story is affecting, not as much the tragic accident which she can’t remember, but her journey to remembrance, the decisions she must make about where to conform to what she knows of her former life and where to attempt to be a new and improved person. Certainly a story about a tragic accident and amnesia could have easily been trite, in soap opera territory, but Winn Scotch deftly avoids these traps and gives readers a book that is authentic, without resorting to cookie cutter genre conventions.

The Song Remains The Same is a new take on amnesia stories, and one written with the heart that I have come to expect from Allison Winn Scotch. Highly recommended.

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Source: Author.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

These Girls by Sarah Pekkanen – Book Review

Apr 092012

These Girls by Sarah Pekkanen
Published by Washington Square Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster

Living in New York and working at a lifestyle magazine like Gloss seems like it should be an incredibly glamorous life, but for roommates Cate and Renee, it isn’t really. Instead it is a life of long hours, intense competition, and still often struggling to make rent. Cate is the new features editor, but is feeling the pressure to prove herself; Renee is angling for a job as beauty editor at Gloss, but is worried that her weight – average, but much larger than most at Gloss – may be a hindrance in landing the job.

When Trey, a handsome writer that both women admire, brings his depressed and damaged sister Abby and asks if she can stay with Cate and Renee while he is on assignment, it seems that life can only bring them more confusion. Instead, though, having Abby living with them not only helps bond Cate and Renee, but gives them both a new woman with whom to form a beautiful, meaningful friendship.

Pekkanen’s latest, These Girls is a beautiful testament to the strength and depth of female friendships. Cate and Renee are not particularly close at the beginning, but in sharing with Abby in her sorrow, they begin to reveal themselves to one another and, in doing so, bind themselves closely together. These Girls is reminiscent of the relationship between Lindsay and Alex in The Opposite of Me, as the girls draw out of their own heads and lives into realization of the challenges that their roommates face, and begin to truly empathize with and support one another.

It is difficult not to get caught up in Pekkanen’s books, her characters are incredibly vivid and real, both likable and sufficiently flawed to be fully human. These Girls sweeps the reader up into Cate, Renee, and Abby’s world, to the point where their pain will, to some extent be the reader’s own pain. You may very well cry, but it is absolutely worth it. Highly recommended.

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Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Author.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Sister Queens by Julia Fox – Audiobook Review

Apr 062012

Sister Queens: The Noble, Tragic Lives of Katherine of Aragon and Juana, Queen of Castile by Julia Fox, narrated by Rosalyn Landor
Published in audio by Random House Audio, published in print by Ballantine Books, both imprints of Random House

Synopsis:

From the publisher:

The history books have cast Katherine of Aragon, the first queen of King Henry VIII of England, as the ultimate symbol of the Betrayed Woman, cruelly tossed aside in favor of her husband’s seductive mistress, Anne Boleyn. Katherine’s sister, Juana of Castile, wife of Philip of Burgundy and mother of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, is portrayed as “Juana the Mad,” whose erratic behavior included keeping her beloved late husband’s coffin beside her for years. But historian Julia Fox, whose previous work painted an unprecedented portrait of Jane Boleyn, Anne’s sister, offers deeper insight in this first dual biography of Katherine and Juana, the daughters of Spain’s Ferdinand and Isabella, whose family ties remained strong despite their separation. Looking through the lens of their Spanish origins, Fox reveals these queens as flesh-and-blood women—equipped with character, intelligence, and conviction—who are worthy historical figures in their own right.

Thoughts on the story:

Fox recounts the stories of Katherine and Juana in a clear and straightforward manner, making Sister Queens both fascinating and easy to understand. One thing I particularly appreciated was her nuanced view of Katherine of Aragon. Katherine is generally portrayed as a saint in historical fiction, a woman completely beyond reproach who would never let a falsehood cross her lips for fear of offending her God. Fox disputes this stereotype, while still acknowledging the importance of religion in Katherine’s life, and the religious implications of her fight to save her marriage and her adopted country from Henry’s break with the church and Anne Boleyn’s Protestant leanings. Juana’s story is also put forth in an interesting manner, but as less that Fox recounted shocked or surprised me I was slightly less captivated by it. Fox is not afraid to admit where the historical record is lacking enough that nothing can be said with certainty – was Juana mad? did Katherine and Arthur consummate their marriage? – and reevaluates such questions throughout the narrative as events continue to unfold, encouraging readers to consider the entirety of the evidence, rather than simply the propaganda put forth throughout the centuries. Fox keeps the sisters’ stories moving forward, while still engaging in a good amount of historical depth, it is really very well done.

Thoughts on the audio production:

Rosalyn Landor fit this history very well, with her elegant and poised narration. For more, please see my AudioFile Magazine review.

soundbytes picture Overall:

A fascinating history, and a well-produced audiobook. Either way you win, I think.

Buy this book from:
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Indiebound: Print*
Audible

I’m launching a brand-new meme every Friday! I encourage you to review any audiobooks you review on Fridays and include the link here. If you have reviewed an audiobook earlier in the week, please feel free to link that review as well. Thanks to Pam for creating the button.

Source: AudioFile Magazine.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

The Last Romanov by Dora Levy Mossanen – Book Review

Apr 052012

The Last Romanov by Dora Levy Mossanen
Published by Sourcebooks Landmark, an imprint of Sourcebooks

Communism has fallen in Russia, but the new power structure is not all that much better, at least to Darya Spiridova’s way of thinking. A former member of the imperial household, the 104 year old Darya has been waiting for decades to restore her beloved Alexei, who she believes survived the assassination of the royal family, to his rightful throne. Now she may get her wish. Darya has received a letter from the Russian Nobility Association about the existence of a Romanov heir they hope for her examine and approve.

Darya’s trip to see the Romanov heir is largely a frame for her remembrances of life in the last days of imperial Russia, starting around the time of Alexei’s conception and birth. Blessed with an opal eye, Darya has a reputation as a healer and is engaged by the Tsarina as Alexei’s nurse once his hemophilia becomes obvious. Darya is a woman with fingers in many pies, not only is she the tsarevich’s nurse, she is also a patron of the arts, and the woman who introduces Rasputin to the Romanovs.

The Last Romanov is an interesting account of the end of Imperial Russia. Intriguingly, the book is based around the story of a woman with a strong connection, much as is Kathryn Harrison’s Enchantments, another recent book about the same period. Here, the similarities stop, however. Despite the contemporary frame, Mossanen’s book employs a much more straight-forward style of storytelling, It is also, though, much more focused on Darya than on the royal family. There is a a bit of a strange semi-supernatural subplot, revealed to Darya by Rasputin, but it does not detract from the rest of the story, and in fact supports Darya’s obsession with Alexei regaining his rightful throne.

With engaging writing and an interesting, if at times slightly strange, plot, The Last Romanov is a great read for those interested in the time period.

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Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Publisher.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers – Book Review

Apr 042012

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers
Published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

This is the first book in the His Fair Assassins series.

The scars on Ismae’s body mark her as something different, something to be feared. Leftover from the failed abortifacient taken by her mother before her birth, the scars also mark Ismae as a daughter not of a human man, but instead sired by St. Mortain, otherwise known as Death. The fear induced by her heritage keeps her safe – barely – from her turnip farming father, but enrages the man she is sold to in marriage, a man who promises to see her killed. Luckily, there are many who are still loyal to the old gods of Brittany, gods who must now be called saints to avoid conflict with the Catholic church and these priests and herbwives smuggle Ismae to the convent of St. Mortain. In the convent, Ismae becomes a handmaiden of Death, trained in the art of killing those marked by St. Mortain, those enemies of Brittany.

Brittany has many enemies these days. The Duke is dead, and his daughter the Duchess Anne is only 12, although she is a wise and mature young woman. France is hungry to expand its borders and it seems that she must marry to ensure the safety of her country, but her most ardent suitor is a man not remotely suitable. Ismae, who grew up a peasant, finds herself sent to Anne’s court with a courtier and member of the Privy Council, Duval, to protect the Duchess and Brittany, and to ensure that Mortain’s will be done.

LaFevers has created in Grave Mercy a wonderful and engaging world that is particularly effective for being set against true historical events, such as Anne’s ascension to the Duchy of Brittany, and the ensuing Franco-Breton War. Whether Brittany the veneration of ancient pagan gods as saints continued in 15th century Brittany I do not know, but LaFevers certainly made it ring true, particularly when setting this veneration against the close relationship between Brittany’s enemy France and the Pope. In addition, Ismae is an incredibly captivating heroine, naive and damaged at the same time she is brave and strong. Her reactions and emotions are entirely consistent with her character as LaFevers develops it.

Perhaps best of all is the way that LaFevers ended this, the first book in the series. Although there is a question of what will happen in Anne and Ismae’s futures, the story that is being told is also completely wrapped up. I would be thrilled to read about Ismae’s continuing adventures, or in learning more about some of the other girls from the convent, and yet Grave Mercy completely satisfies in and of itself.

This series shows much promise, and I can’t wait for the next installment in 2013. Highly recommended.

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Publisher, via Netgalley.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore – Book Review

Apr 022012

Sacre Bleu: A Comedy d’Art by Christopher Moore
Published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins

Why would a painter at the height of his prowess shoot himself in the chest, and then walk over a mile in order to seek medical attention? What if the shot was not self-inflicted? Although the official story about Van Gogh’s death for the past 100 years has been that he committed suicide – after all, this is a man who cut off part of his own ear – what if that was not the full story?

Back in Paris, Vincent’s friends mourn his early demise, but they may have bigger problems of their own, problems perhaps related to Van Gogh’s death. Baker and artist Lucien Lessard has recently been reunited with the woman who broke his heart years earlier, and now he is painting better than he ever has before. His family and friends – particularly the artist Toulouse-Lautrec – realize that something isn’t entirely right. There’s something strange about Juliette, not least the strange little man with whom she seems to live, a man who may be the same mysterious Colorman Vincent wrote about before his death.

In Sacre Bleu, Christopher Moore mixes color theory and science with the art of the Impressionists and his own unique brand of humor and creativity to creative a bizarrely fascinating book. Juliette, it seems, it not Juliette but the incarnation of the sacred color of blue who can inhabit different bodies in order to inspire great art, although not for disinterested reasons.

Moore’s characters are, at times, more concerned with sex, drugs, and alcohol than even art and one another, but they still manage to be engaging, and even occasionally sympathetic. The characters and language also tend to be somewhat modern, instead of being properly 19th century. However, Sacre Bleu is not really meant to be proper historical fiction, it is simply a story Moore is telling about blue/Bleu, which is framed with the French Impressionists. In addition, Bleu and the Colorman are largely outside of time, which makes the modern feeling somewhat more understandable.

Sacre Bleu tells a somewhat unconventional story, and in a manner that is uniquely Christopher Moore. His humor will definitely not appeal to every reader, but if it works for you, you will find yourself enthralled what he has put together in Sacre Bleu. Highly recommended (with reservations).

Buy this book from:
Powells | Indiebound*

Source: Publisher.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

The Book of Jonas by Stephen Dau – Audiobook Review

Mar 302012

The Book of Jonas by Stephen Dau, narrated by Simon Vance
Published in audio by Tantor Audio; published in print by Blue Rider Press, an imprint of Penguin

Synopsis:

After the destruction of his home and death of his family by a rogue U.S. military operation, Jonas leaves his unnamed Muslim country to start a new life in the United States. Only fifteen when he first moves, Jonas has a fair amount of anxiety stemming both from trying to adjust to living in a new place, and from what he went through in the time immediately after the attack. Mandated by his school to see a counselor, after beating up another boy who was giving him a hard time, Jonas begins to open up, although slowly. A story comes to light about a soldier, Christopher, who saved his life after the attack, a soldier who never made it home and whose body was never found. After Jonas spends time with Christopher’s mother, a woman who has created a support group for families of missing soldiers, the reality of what happened begins to fester inside him, until he cannot help but let it out.

Thoughts on the story:

The story Dau is telling is particularly affecting. Interestingly, Jonas, the main character, is held at somewhat more a reserve than Christopher, whose words come to us only from a journal he left. Jonas is clearly damaged by what happened to him before he was brought to the United States as a refugee, it shows in his behavior both in high school and college and with his girlfriend. Christopher, too, was damaged by his time in the war. His journal shows a man who knows that much of what he has done is wrong, but can’t see that he might have acted any other way, due to the psychological pressures of dealing with an unhappy occupied populace. Their damage and experiences make their time together after the attack particularly unusual and poignant.

Thoughts on the audio production:

I tend to really enjoy Simon Vance’s narration, but I’m not entirely sure that The Book of Jonas was his best work. For one thing, he seemed to rush the story a bit, many sections would have been better served had he simply slowed down, and the American characters were not always easy to distinguish from one another. Of course, Vance being not at the top of his game is still much better than many narrators, but I did find his performance slightly disappointing because I felt that he could have done better. An additional hurdle for the audiobook listener is the addition of what I believe was Christopher’s journal woven throughout the story. Although Vance’s narration of Christopher’s point of view is easily recognized, it isn’t entirely clear for much of the book where this perspective is coming from, which may bother some (although certainly not all) listeners.

soundbytes picture Overall:

This is definitely a book worth experiencing. It may be a bit more challenging in audio than it is in print because of the challenges conveying some of the book’s structure orally, but it can definitely work either way.

Buy this book from:
Powells: Audio/Print*
Indiebound: Audio/Print*

Source: Publisher.
* These links are all affiliate links. If you buy your book here I’ll make a very small amount of money that goes towards hosting, giveaways, etc.

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Devourer of Books

City of Scoundrels by Gary Krist- Book Review

Zombiestan by Mainak Dhari – Audiobook Review

The Book of Madness and Cures by Regina O’Melveny – Book Review

The Song Remains the Same by Allison Winn Scotch – Book Review

These Girls by Sarah Pekkanen – Book Review

Sister Queens by Julia Fox – Audiobook Review

The Last Romanov by Dora Levy Mossanen – Book Review

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers – Book Review

Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore – Book Review

The Book of Jonas by Stephen Dau – Audiobook Review

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