Marlena - Review

Marlena   🌟🌟🌟🌟

Julie Buntin 

Published April 4 2017 by Henry Holt and Company

Finished 4/28/2017

During our formative teen years, it's highly possible that one year out of all others will remain with us and shape our lives for better or worse.  Cat's year is her fifteenth, having just moved to Northern Michigan with her brother and divorced mom, when she meets the very intriguing, older (17 yo) neighbor girl Marlena.  From the outset we know that Marlena's homelife  is not typical -- her mother has left, her father is one you wish would go away too, and drug dealers are everywhere.  We also know from early on that Marlena's days are numbered, and Cat's narration will slowly reveal how one manages to drown in an inch of water.    Cat's loneliness and Marlena's neediness bring them together to form an odd couple-type friendship, but at Cat's young age she is vulnerable and easily immersed in Marlena's world.  

From those times in Michigan,  Cat moves to New York and is about to meet up with Marlena's  brother at his request after many years, sure to dredge up memories of the once vibrant and colorful Marlena.  But even without this memory prompt, however, you come to realize how Marlena's life and death are still haunting Cat all these years later. The story itself is haunting, very dark and pervaded with sadness. 

This author is one to watch.  Her talent is quite evident, and the dialogue and character development are exceptional.  Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a review copy.  

Woman No. 17 - Review

Woman No. 17   🌟🌟🌟

by Edan Lepucki  

To be Published May 9 2017 by Hogarth  

Finished April 22, 2017

Writer Lady Daniels and artist S Fowler  (pseudonym for Esther Shapiro) share the spotlight of this story set in the Hollywood Hills.  Lady gives the first POV, and I  was struck at how bluntly honest and forthright she was with us readers.  She kept me engaged even though her life was extremely messed up, but I eventually realized that she is not as honest  as she pretends to be, unfortunately for her family.  

S, on the other  hand, is upfront about her trickery and deceipt, at least with us readers.  She, weirdly, has taken on the persona of her estranged mother, who, when S's  age, was an irresponsible  nanny and a drunk. S also matches hair color change and makeup choices to Mom circa 1985.  Weird that S would want to imitate such a phase  in her mother's  life, and that she actually knew so many details.  S is doing this for an  "art project."  I didn't get it.  When Lady hires S as nanny to her three-year old, Lady has no idea that S is playing a part (Who would do that, after all?) and no idea how her 18 year old son will react to the new live-in.   S goes on to another  art project, one that Lady is unwittingly swept into, and I started to get the why, but felt it still very strange indeed.   

These women are more alike  than initially apparent.  Mother issues on both their parts; their mothers even had mother issues.  Mother issues are a big factor. That I  got!  Complicated relationships and self-absorbed characters make this one that you have to occasionally stop and wonder about, sometimes asking, Who are these people?  Do I  care about what will happen to them?  The children, yes.  The adults, not so much.   I read an ARC provided by LibraryThings.com.

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane   🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
by Lisa See
Published March 21 2017 by Scribner

Finished 4/13/2017

4.5 stars.

Lisa See has made me very happy.  She can always be trusted to provide historical pieces that both entertain and inform the reader.  So even though the only tea I care to drink is Arizona Zero Calorie Green with Ginseng, I now know more about making tea in China than I could ever imagine, and I loved reading about the ancient customs and superstitions of the  mountain people known as the Akha.  Li-Yan's Akha family spent their lives selling tea, her mother also using it for medicinal  purposes and hoping to pass her skills on to her only daughter. 

 Li-Yan was forced to leave her firstborn daughter with an orphanage, from which the baby was later adopted by white Americans.  Li-Yan was intent on making it as an educated tea seller, while always wondering about the baby she gave up.  Although most pages are dedicated to Li-Yan's  story, we also get to know the little girl as she matures into a young Chinese - American scholar, curious about her Chinese heritage and especially the tea cake  that accompanied her into the orphanage as a baby.  

I found many similarities between this book and Secret Daughter, which took place in India and America.  I thought that one had a disappointing  ending.  This book, though... The last chapter is sure to tug at your heartstrings.  A beautiful book!  Thank you to NetGalley  and the publisher. 

Everything Belongs to Us - Review

Everything Belongs to Us    🌟🌟🌟
by Yoojin  Grace Wirtz
Published February 28 2017 by Random House

Finished 3/24/17

Since I don't exactly keep abreast of what happens in South Korea, this story of student  protests in the 70s was interesting  at first. Halfway through, however, I felt a little lost and my interest waned.   The two female friends Jisun, rich girl studying life, and Namin, poor girl studying medicine, were refreshingly independent and intelligent. The two rebellious male characters did not engage me in the least. By the end, I was skipping pages and cared only what happened to Namin.  Her struggle to become someone was probably very typical. I am not sure what I  was supposed to glean from this story.  Everyone seemed so remote and distant from each other it was hard to feel anything for them.  

Thanks to Random House for a free review copy.  

New Boy - Review

New Boy   🌟🌟🌟
by Tracy  Chevalier
Expected publication May 11 2017

Finished 3/15/17

I did not read all of the Shakespeare plays as a kid and certainly won't start doing so now, especially Othello which sounds like a real bummer.  Well, it IS a tragedy.  Tracy Chevalier was charged with retelling the plot, and she sets in the 1970's; but it could just as well be today.  I read a quick summary of Othello just to see what happens, who lives and who dies.  Geez, there's  a lot of dying going on there.  I was afraid of where Chevalier was going to lead us, as her story is populated with sixth graders on the school yard of a Washington DC elementary school. 

Othello  was a Moor, a person of color.  Here, Osei is a new boy in school, born in Ghana, and although it's nearing summer break, it's O's first day.  Dee (Desdemona) is a popular girl assigned the task of taking O around to make him comfortable.  The entire book takes place in one day, mind you, and almost  immediately O and Dee hit it off and are considered "going together."  (These sixth graders move fast.)  Then the bully Ian has to step in and manipulate everything and everyone until chaos reigns and the story is turned on its head.

I think Chevalier did  a really good job with portraying racism and bullying.  I didn't think I'd be interested in the Hogarth series, but I am a fan of Chevalier.  And Hamlet  retold by Gillian Flynn sounds like a sure winner. 

A Bookstr win 2/2017.  

Idaho - Review

Idaho    🌟🌟
by Emily Ruskovich
Published February 16 2016 by Chatto & Windus

Finished 3/12/17

I received a galley copy of Idaho from NetGalley and the publisher.  

There was much to like about this book, but also tremendous frustration with it.   First, I looked at the chapter titles, which log the years going from 2004 to 2008 to 1985-1986, 1999, 1973, and at the end 2025, and I could not bring myself to even begin reading it, since I definitely do not enjoy timelines that jump around like this. 

But when I finally did start it, I was sort of mesmerized by the exquisite writing and drawn into the mystery of a mother who inexplicably murders her daughter on a family outing, causing the other daughter to run away and go missing for all time.  So two mysteries actually exist.  Two mysteries to solve...or not.

Then just as I was drawn in, I was turned off by more perspectives and timelines being introduced, and more questions than answers.  The last several chapters were interminable.  I guess if read for a book club, there could be lengthy discussions, analyzing, delving deeply, and sheer guesswork to be had.  Instead, I sit here very frustrated and not pleased one bit with the ending.  2.5 stars.

The Couple Next Door - Review

The Couple Next Door    🌟🌟🌟
by Shari Lapena
Published August 23 2016 by Pamela Dorman Books

Finished 3/10/17

The Couple Next Door is a fast-paced read that I finished in less than 24 hours. It felt like a race to the finish line.  Twists and turns, yes.  Multiple suspects and red herrings, yes.  Surprise ending, you bet, although I  wasn't that surprised given the set up.  

I was impressed with the plot, but the writing less so.  It felt repetitive and the endless inner monologues of the married couple had me gritting and grinding my teeth until they hurt.  None of the characters were people I'd  like to know.  However, it all worked to build the suspense and keep me interested until the very last sentence.