very subtle

The Gold Coast by Nelson DeMille

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction

Review: This is a very subtle book. Told in the first person, DeMille's protagonist draws conclusions from what looks at first like very little evidence, but explanations later in the book always had me nodding my head and agreeing that it all makes perfect sense when you put it that way. In the hands of a less-skilled author, I would have found this very technique very annoying, but DeMille made it all work very well. I was very impressed.

Add to that overall good writing, including a narrator who tells his story in a very likable chatty voice (even if said narrator isn't himself always a likable character), a really interesting take on the Mafia, and a story that has some interesting twists and turns, and it all comes out to quite a good book.

not just what happened

What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell

Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

Genre: historical fiction, YA

Review: One good thing about this book is the particular aptness of its title. The book is not just about what happened, but about what Evie saw (or what she allowed herself to see), and yes, how she lied about both what happened and what she saw.

Not to worry, though, there are plenty of other good things about this book. It’s a good story, for one thing, and engagingly told. Evie is a well-written character. Her level of denial in parts of the book is a bit frustrating, but Blundell writes this aspect of her character, as well as how it changes, very realistically.

I have two fairly small criticisms: first, I'm not sure why Blundell chose to set this book in the early fall. Maybe so the timing of the hurricane would be more realistic? The problem is that by having Evie's family's sudden jaunt to Florida take place at the beginning of September, Evie misses the start of school, which nobody seems to care very much about (although there are a few mentions of how she's supposed to be studying on her own in Florida). Second, post-WWII slang is dispensed so judiciously as to seem forced. Either people use slang, or they don't. But even I must admit that these are nitpicky criticisms, and fade in comparison to the story itself.

downright uplifting

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Genre: non-fiction

Review: Greg Mortenson has unquestionably achieved something great in his quest to build schools for children in poor and remote areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan. And this book is unquestionably a great way to learn about Mortenson and his efforts. David Oliver Relin is to be credited with making not just Greg and his work accessible to readers, but also the myriad people and some of the complex politics of central Asia. Relin meshes anecdotes about mountain climbing, fundraising, and actually building schools into a seamless story. This story, dealing as it does with poverty, war, and serious lack of opportunity, could have been very depressing, but Mortenson's goal, coupled with Relin's writing, make it actually a very hopeful one that is enjoyable to read.

not as effective as it should have been

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow

Rating: 3 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction, YA

Review: Doctorow had all the right ideas in writing this book. Through his fictionalized account of a terrorist attack on San Francisco's Bay Bridge and BART system, and the resultant crackdown on the city by the Department of Homeland Security, Doctorow tries to paint a picture of what can happen when the zeal for security bests protection for civil liberties.

Unfortunately, his excellent point is drowned out by his heavy-handed sermonizing. Anyone reading this book will probably already understand the danger of protecting America by taking away civil liberties, so Doctorow is preaching to the choir to begin with. To hammer in his message so emphatically is somewhat insulting to his readers' intelligence. More subtlety would have made this both a better book as well as a more effective one.

un(trust)worthy

The Gemma Doyle Trilogy (A Great and Terrible Beauty, Rebel Angels, and The Sweet Far Thing) by Libba Bray

Genre: fantasy, YA

Rating: 3 stars (out of 5)

Review: Gemma Doyle is the worst kind of unreliable narrator. It's not that she herself is untrustworthy, but that throughout this trilogy, she can't figure out who to trust. As a result, the reader never knows who to trust, or what the rules are for "realms" or for the magic that inhabits them. This is problematic if one agrees (which I do) with the general rule for fantasy writing that the rules for the world that the author has created must be clear and consistent. If neither the reader nor the narrator know the rules or who to trust, the story doesn't hang together very well. At least, it doesn't in this case. Some of the people we initially think are friends become enemies, and then some become friends again, and it is never through actual shifting loyalties, but because Gemma doesn't ask the right questions and rarely takes the time to think things through the reader is never quite sure who's on what side. So although she's the only clearly identified "good guy" in the story, I couldn't help but wish she acted more like the heroine she's supposed to be.

beyond her years

Looking After Pigeon by Maud Carol Markson

Rating: 3 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction

Review: Judging from the title of this book, Pigeon needs looking after. Unfortunately, although Pigeon is 5 years old when the events of the book take place, far too much of the adult Pigeon who's telling the story creeps in. The result is a somewhat unevenly precocious 5 year old, who hardly seems to need any looking after. Far too often, I found myself saying "there's no way a 5 year old would understand that!" but then saying "if she understood that so easily, why can't she understand this?" Not only did this interfere with my reading of the book, but it made it hard to develop any sympathy for Pigeon.

FTC Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for this review.

seeking royalty

Someday My Prince Will Come: True Adventures of a Wannabe Princess by Jerramy Fine

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Genre: memoir

Review: It must be kind of strange to read a book about how someone organized their entire early life around the idea of meeting and marrying you. But I doubt that Peter Phillips (currently eleventh in line for the British throne) has read this book anyway. And Jerramy Fine has written this book with such grace and humor that if he did read it, he would probably find himself captivated by her adventures rather than embarrassed by being the focus of them.

The one flaw of this book is that the end comes too soon! Once Jerramy is able to find closure on her royal aspirations, we jump straight to her current successful relationship. But how did she find her wonderful boyfriend? I wanted more of the success story after hearing all of the woes.

Overall, though, this was a highly enjoyable and fun read.