Archive for September, 2010

HALF BROKE HORSES by Jeannette Walls

Jeannette Walls is a natural-born storyteller. In her memoir THE GLASS CASTLE, she described in fascinating detail what it meant to be the daughter of Rose Mary and Rex, perhaps two of the most dysfunctional individuals on the planet, brainy underachievers who raised their bevy of children in a most unconventional way.

By the end of that book, Jeannette was on her way to graduating from BARNARD COLLEGE and becoming a celebrated journalist in New York City. I exited the book wanting to know more and in ways, HALF BROKE HORSES goes back to the well, helping readers understand the forces that shaped her mother Rose Mary.

September 18, 2010 · Judi Clark · No Comments
Tags:  Â· Posted in: Facing History, Family Matters, US Southwest, Wild West

DEMONS IN THE SPRING by Joe Meno

Joe Meno’s stories are like taking a trip, on a magic school bus, to the twilight zone. One after the other, in this virtuoso collection of 20 stories, Joe Meno gets behind the wheel and deftly navigates the reader through oddly poignant drive-by visits to the human condition. And in case you haven’t been able to picture it – but you can, no problem – twenty artists have illustrated each of the stories from their own perspective. The illustrations lend each story a touch of whimsy, a hint of color, a bit of hopefulness. It’s a good thing because these stories charm us into entering frightful and fantastical moments wrapped up as ordinary life.

September 17, 2010 · Judi Clark · No Comments
Posted in: Short Stories

NASHVILLE CHROME by Rick Bass

I’ve often thought that being famous must be a horrible burden. There would be the fun bits, of course, but there’s a definite downside: the psycho fans, the paparazzi, and the fact that every little thing you do could potentially end up on the cover of National Enquirer. But perhaps what’s even worse than being famous is tasting fame and then fading into complete obscurity.

Rick Bass’s novel Nashville Chrome is a fictionalized account of the Browns: Maxine. Jim Ed, and Bonnie. At the height of their fame, this singing trio was second only to Elvis, and even the Beatles shared a few jam sessions with their idols. Have you ever heard of the Browns? I hadn’t, and I’ll admit that I was some way into the novel before it dawned on me that this is a story of very real and very forgotten people.

September 16, 2010 · Judi Clark · No Comments
Tags: , , , , ,  Â· Posted in: Facing History

BETWEEN SUMMER’S LONGING AND WINTER’S END by Leif GW Persson

At the center of this Swedish espionage thriller is the death of an American journalist, John P. Krassner, circa 1988. Was it an accident, a suicide, or murder? The facts known at the opening is that first his body and then his boot falls from the 16th floor of a student dormitory. The boot struck and killed a Pomeranian named Charlie. Charlie’s owner, Vindel, is trying to recount the seconds between the body and the boot falling from the window. After this wry and arresting opening, the reader is plunged into a dense and plodding world of Swedish politics.

September 15, 2010 · Judi Clark · No Comments
Tags: ,  Â· Posted in: Facing History, Sweden, Thriller/Spy/Caper, Translated, World Lit

FAME: A NOVEL IN NINE EPISODES by Daniel Kehlmann

I was recently talking to my nephew. He’s a new college freshman and was heading off to school. “Do you ever think about reinventing yourself,” I asked him. I was making dinner and he was sitting in the kitchen, keeping me company. His mouth dropped open and his eyes grew wide when I asked him the question. “I mean,” I continued, “you are going to a place where you are not known by anyone. You have no biography. You can be whatever and whomever you wish to be. Have you thought about that?” He nodded his head. “I think about it all the time,” he confessed.

I was reminded of this recent exchange while reading Daniel Kehlmann’s new book, FAME, as translated from the German original by Carol Brown Janeway.

September 14, 2010 · Judi Clark · No Comments
Posted in: Contemporary, Humorous, Literary, Satire, Translated, Unique Narrative, World Lit, y Award Winning Author

MAN IN THE WOODS by Scott Spencer

Scott Spencer’s MAN IN THE WOODS is a novel that chronicles the life of Paul Phillips, a man who has been on his own since he was sixteen years old. Paul is both a simple and a complex man – simple because he has relied on good luck and good looks to open many doors, and complicated because he is an artisan of deep convictions that he is unwilling to compromise. He is not a man to say very much but a lot goes on in his mind that does not come out in words. He creates beautiful furniture, crafts, and remodels with wood. Each type of wood speaks to him in its own way. He has never given a lot of thought to his life. Where he is and what he’s doing have a way of simply falling into place. He has traveled around a lot, living in Alaska, South Dakota, Colorado and currently in rural New York State.

September 14, 2010 · Judi Clark · No Comments
Tags: , ,  Â· Posted in: 2010 Favorites, Contemporary, NE & New York