needed a map

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction

Review: Is it a novel? Short stories? A series of linked vignettes? A novel in stories?  Does it matter?  Not to me.  Call it what you will, A Visit from the Goon Squad is an excellent reading experience.  The goon squad of the title is time, and the chapters collectively tell a story of how time sometimes heals all wounds and sometimes ravages.

In 13 chapters, Egan gives us 13 characters, all of whom are linked to either Sasha or Bennie.  In the first chapter, we are introduced to Sasha, the 20-something assistant to bennie, a music producer whose career may or may not be coming to an end.  Bennie gets the next chapter, but at a very different time of his life.  Rhea knew Bennie in high school, which is when she met Lou, who got Bennie started in the industry.  And it goes on from there, with characters weaving in and out of each other's lives, and the story weaving back and forth in time.

I literally needed a map to keep everyone and their assorted connections straight in my head, but it was worth it.  Give this book to fans of everything from David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas to The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides.

on the road again

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles

Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

Genre: historical fiction

Review: When an author's first book is good, a reader has high hopes for the 2nd, which, unfortunately, often disappoints.  Not so with Amor Towles, whose second book (A Gentleman in Moscow) was, in my opinion, even better than the first (Rules of Civility).  But one could be forgiven for being even more nervous about his third book.  He can't possibly keep this up, right?  But one should have more faith.  The Lincoln Highway will not disappoint.

Towles is very upfront in telling readers that he wants each of his books to be different from the others.  Once again, he has succeeded, at least as far as subject matter and character go.  But he can't disguise his writing, so fans will still know it's a Towles book, and I think all will agree that it's a worthy addition to his card catalog entry.  I'm excited to see what "something different" he comes up with next.

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

like a snake eating its tail

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz

Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction

Review: Jake Bonner wrote a really good, very popular book.  But he was in danger of remaining a one-hit wonder when chance threw an opportunity in his way.  Many years ago, when Jake was a teaching at a low-rent writer's workshop, a student told him about the plot of the book he was writing.  Recognizing that the idea was sure to become a bestseller, Jake couldn't help but be jealous.  Several years later, he comes to learn that the student has died, his book never written.  So Jake takes the idea and runs with it.

Sure enough, the book is a hit, jumping onto the bestseller list, becoming an Oprah pick, everything Jake always thought he wanted.  But he can't enjoy his fame and fortune, because he's just waiting for someone to expose him.  And then one day, he gets a note: "You are a thief."  Someone knows his secret, but who?  And what do they want?  As the threats of exposure intensify, Jake falls down the rabbit hall of his former student's life, where he unearths more secrets than might be quite healthy for him.

Like other reviewers, I too found the plot twist to be kind of predictable, but there was still plenty of suspense as I read to find out how Korelitz was going to pull it all off.  On one level, this book is a disturbing, twisty story, with a somewhat pathetic main character you couldn't help but have some sympathy for.  On another level, this book is a meditation on the ownership of ideas and the responsibility wrtiers have to one another.  On either level, the book falls a little short, as characters and ideas aren't as fleshed out as one might like, but that doesn't prevent it from being an overall enjoyable read.

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

the value of perspective

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction

Review: This book is a bit of a departure for Picoult, as it doesn't involve an ethical dilemma where both sides are, if not sympathetic, at least fully fleshed out.  Here, the focus is on one character, Diana, who must decide if she really wants what she always thought she wanted from life.

The story starts just when things are starting to get serious in New York City with the COVID-19 pandemic.  Businesses and schools are being shut down and Diana's doctor boyfriend tells her how the hospital is becoming overrun with patients.  Is it too soon for a novel about the pandemic?  Maybe, but not in Picoult's hands.  Perhaps because the first part of the book keeps the pandemic at a remove.  I think the bigger reason (for me at least) is that, because the timeline of the book is largely the spring of 2020, I was able to read about what was going on with a whatever-the-opposite-of-nostalgia is (because I definitely wouldn't wish for those days all over again).  "Oh yeah, I remember all those celebrities singing on YouTube!" "That's right, I had forgotten about wiping down packages!"  "Oh yeah, I remember how we thought this was only going to last two weeks!"

Being able to achieve that kind of perspective is one of the great gifts of fiction and Picoult gives it to us in abundance.

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

what comes after

The Living and the Lost by Ellen Feldman

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Genre: historical fiction

Review: As teenagers, Meike and her brother David were sent to America from Germany in the aftermath of Kristallnacht.  Their parents and younger sister Sarah stayed behind.  Meike, who Americanizes her name to Millie, spends WWII at Bryn Mawr, and then as an editor at a magazine.  David enlists as soon as he turns 18.  Both go back to Berlin during the occupation, both to help in various official and unofficial capacities, and to try to make sense of what happened to their family, their city, and their country.

The reader's first question will be: what happened to the rest of the family?  The answer, and Meike's journey to come to terms with it, will haunt readers beyond the last page.  The second question may well be: can Germany and the German people ever recover?  History more or less tells us the answer to that question, but Feldman's exploration of the immediate aftermath of the war will also not soon be forgotten by readers.

Feldman has put all the pieces together to form a worthwhile addition to the genre.  She has a light touch on this weighty topic, but does not shy from addressing the mass hatred and prejudice on both the German and American side.  She brings her scenes and characters to life with heartwrenching feeling.  No reader will escape this book unscathed, and yet it is not so emotional as to get in the way of being able to process the narrative and really think about the larger story.

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

stalking data

Fan Fiction: A Mem-Noir: Inspired by True Events by Brent Spiner with Jeanne Darst

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Genre: fiction

Review: Was Brent Spiner the target of a stalker who sent him threatening notes signed by his fictional character's fictional daugter Lal?  He might have been.  Did that result in an entanglement with an FBI agent and her personal-security-guard twin sister and all the other dramatic events that follow as he writes in this book?  Probably not.  Spiner isn't telling which parts of this book are "mem" and which are "noir," but no matter where the the line is, he's written a fun, madcap story.

The book will, of course, appeal mostly to Star Trek fans, which is not to say that it won't appeal to people who don't identify as Star Trek fans too (except, perhaps, the ST:TNG name-dropping).  Fans will be pleased to see that Spiner's writing chops are almost as strong as his acting chops, and non-fans will enjoy a zany mystery with a true noir feel.

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

the art of the lumberjack

The Great Glorious Goddamn of It All by Josh Ritter

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

Genre: historical fiction

Review: Weldon Applegate was 13 when he and his father moved to Cordelia, Idaho.  Weldon's father wants his son removed from the civilizing influences of starched collars and Sunday services, but still intends to honor his promise to Weldon's late mother not to go to work again as a lumberjack.  Instead, he will run the general store while Weldon makes friends around town, and some pocket change, as he delivers the local hooch to its various hiding places.

But when the near-mythical lumberjack Linden Laughlin comes to town, promising the elder Applegate that they can both make a fortune if they partner together to clear the Applegate family's "Lost Lot," Weldon's father can't resist.  Weldon looks back on the results of that fateful decision from his deathbed 80+ years later and gives the reader the benefit of his acerbic observations.

From the very first sentence, readers will be transported into the rough world of lumberjacks, with all its coarseness and danger.  Filled with boldly written, exaggerated characters, this lush, yet gritty tale will captivate readers who appreciate authentic dialogue and a strong sense of place.

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