The Tennis Partner - Abraham Verghese -------------------------- 3.5 Stars

The Tennis Partner has been on my list to read for quite a while. Thanks to the free time allotted from Winter Break, I finally had a chance to enjoy this book. While it was a heavy read, it turned out to be a meaningful and worthwhile book.

If you are not familiar, this book is about an impressive doctor in the El Paso area who befriends a former tennis pro aspiring to also be a doctor. Through their shared love of tennis, they get to know each other more closely, and it becomes clear that one of them has a dark secret.

While the book is dated (it often refers to the challenges presented by AIDS), the themes and challenges are relevant. The author is an excellent writer writer who has a playful, lyrical, and when needed, serious style that moves forward the story through some slower parts. He also does a superb job of personalizing his experiences through the book and displays his vulnerabilities at multiple times.

Ultimately, the book is at its best when the author shows depth in his areas of expertise. Whether it be the detail and specificity with which he highlights an exciting tennis rally, or sharing his encyclopedic knowledge of internal medicine, the story is buoyed by those exciting passages that allow the reader to share real depth with a master in two different, but oddly relatable fields. Relatedly, near the tail-end of the book, he really hits his stride waxing thoughtfully about the existential nature of our lives. This is certainly put into great focus after learning more about his tennis partner. For me, this was the best part of the book.

A few drawbacks of this book. It can be slow. While he does have an engaging style, I found the detailing of the scenery repetitive and unnecessary.  And while I enjoyed the medical jargon and expertise he shared, it occasionally became tiresome without any background knowledge (at least for me). I also found the book heavier than I realized. As I knew that it was more than simply about tennis, I didn't realize the depth of the material this book would approach. Things like drug addiction, sex addiction, suicide, friendship, and a few others deep subjects are littered throughout the book. While the author does a super job approaching them, it's a lot to take on. Finally, I found the lack of depth about his tennis partner's character frustrating. Potentially this was done to be as accurate as possible to his experience with this person but it made the book, and the ending especially, more difficult to understand.

On a whole, this is a very strong and meaningful book. I would recommend doing a bit more digging about the themes and challenges offered prior to reading it, but if you are looking for a meaningful story about addiction, life, and tennis, this should be a welcome read. 

The Flight Attendant - Chris Bohjalian ------------------------ 2 Stars

The Flight Attendant is a very popular book that has recently been made into a dark comedy series of the same name on HBO. I figured I'd enjoy due to the large amount of positive feedback and interesting plot. Unfortunately, for me, it was a huge flop. Let me do my best to explain.

To start with the positive, this book has an interesting and somewhat engaging plot. A flight attendant wakes up in a hotel room with a dead (more or less) stranger next to her and does not know (or remember) what happened to him. A pretty good set up the reminded me a lot of The Girl on the Train (review here) or The Woman in the Window (review here). All have a similar formula - something crazy and unexpected happens and the unreliable narrator is an alcoholic type woman.

This actually might be my first problem with the book. Clearly this type of narrative plot has been used before (and, as I believe, much better) with past novels. Perhaps if this was the first time I had seen this device used, it would have been more engaging. However, the lack of plot originality was a problem.

Another problem I occasionally have with fictional books is how realistic they may or may not be. While I know this book is fictional and not real, the book could be told in a way that is based in reality or is more fantasy. While this book makes clear it attempts to base itself in a reality of the world we live in, I found numerous things occur that seemed unrealistic. Perhaps, most notably, the work of the main character's lawyer. While I am not a lawyer, I feel like I have enough experience with them to know that they tend to be professional and focused. Not drama maniacs who curse often and belittle their clients. The lawyer in this book is where I felt the novel "jumped the shark" from being based in reality to something else.

Finally, and perhaps most frustrating, the book is simply slow and not engaging. In the other novels mentioned, the action was packed from start to end and the exposition left the reader wanting more. Not here; rather, I was shocked at how dozens of pages could go by without anything noteworthy happening (other than the author talking about the significant anxiety the main character had over and over). I feel like some of the other challenges could have been overlooked had the story been more engaging. Again, it just seemed like it was following an overused script that I've seen too many times.

I'm sure this book is well liked by many others. Perhaps I just have a skewed and too negative a viewpoint. So, you should it read it and decide for yourself. However, if you do, please be wary of my concerns and don't be surprised if you are under engaged by this novel.

The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit - Michael Finkel ------------------ 4 Stars

 The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit is a really great title. I find the idea of hermits fascinating, and once I heard a little about this story, a Maine man who lived in the woods by himself for twenty-seven years, I felt I had to give it a try. The book was not a disappointment.

As noted, this book is about a Maine man, who, at 20, decided he wanted to live in the woods of Maine. He did not have a real plan nor a willingness do die; rather, he felt disconnected and uncomfortable in modern society and was seeking relief. As he was arrested 27 years later for stealing food, his adventure came to an end and his story became public. The author, who had a deep interest in his story since it was first publicized, eventually began corresponding with the hermit and eventually interviewed him numerous times. Based on those letters, interviews, and conversations with others, wrote this story.

While not long, this book moves at a nice pace and is an enjoyable read. The author has a simple but engaging style that appropriately moves the reader along while filling in many questions about the past and current status of the main character. I find the later chapters, which focus more on the psyche of this person, to be the most interesting. As he goes deeper into the reasons the hermit made this choice many years ago, the reader quickly becomes aware of the deep longing he has to remain in the woods and how comfortable he is in that setting. As the reader learns more about the hermit's current status and some of the challenges facing the author as he gets closer to this individual, I couldn't help by sympathize with both of their situations. In addition, many philosophical and existential questions are raised in the last parts of the book. These questions do not have easy answers and seemed to be perfectly placed as a great juxtaposition to so much of the prior novel (which is much more focused on the "what/how" and not the "why".)

While there was nothing I particularly disliked about this book, I also found the story-telling often perfunctory. Some of it was slightly repetitive and not as engaging as other parts. That may be in part because of the difficulty of the subject matter - the story of the prior 27 years in the woods lacks excitement (the hermit only said one word to another human during that entire time).

If nothing else, this book is a fascinating look at a true recluse and hermit (although that term is debated about its appropriateness in this case - read the book to figure out why). As a person who values nature and understands the allure, I found this book engaging, and the quest to understand his motivations, fulfilling. 

Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir ---------------------- 4.5 Stars

I presume most of you know about the movie the Martian, which I found entertaining and enjoyable. You may not know that it was based on a book by Andy Weir. After seeing the movie and hearing good things about the novel I picked it up along with his first book, Artemis (here is my review of those books). So, it was only natural I check out his new novel, Project Hail Mary. Wow, I am really happy I did!

So, I'll start with a quick note - these books are not pure science-fiction that many people assume. While the books do depict things that are fantasy and certainly are fiction, I find them different than some of the more traditional science-fiction novels that seem totally disconnected from our human existence. Rather, one of the pleasures of these books, is how relevant Weir makes the characters and their human experiences vis a vis these unbelievable things happening to them.  It's so fun when he puts his very real and human characters in experiences that seem unreal. How would someone survive on a foreign planet? What would it be like meeting an alien? Things that seem fantastical are juxtaposed with all realness of being a human from Earth - it's fun to read!

This book isn't dissimilar from this last two; it's still about incredible adventures and unbelievable challenges that need to be overcome with some amazing science. In this book, the world is going to end due to a slow lessening of sunlight coming to earth and a team of scientists need to be sent many light years away to the one place they can find an answer to the problems. Once there, hilarity ensues. Well, not so much hilarity I guess. Really, almost dying ensues. Over and over and over. But, the almost dying is really entertaining.

As I alluded to early, the joy in this read is how well the author is able to make so many of the interactions and scenes have a playfulness to them. I think that is why Weir's style is so attractive to readers. While he is describing incredibly complicated and difficult science (from what I understand, is 99% accurate), he quickly offers some very real and explanatory human responses. Often, these happen to be very funny; which helps as well.

Finally, for as much as the characters are great, his storytelling is super fun, and it's a pretty easy book to engage with, the plot is fantastic. He has a gift of pulling in the reader from page one, keeping the plot moving forward at a steady rate (neither too slow or too fast), and ensuring the plot is something relatable that the reader cares about.

As you can see, I am huge fan of this book.  It almost got a 5 star rating though I tend to save that for epic, longer reads that end up needing more investment (and offer more reward). For pure entertainment value, this book is near the top of the list. On many occasions, I slowed myself down from consuming large chunks knowing how much I enjoyed it and savouring the read. I urge you to give it a try!

The Plot - Jean Hanff Korelitz ------------------------ 4.5 Stars

The Plot has been a pretty hot book since it's release in May of this year. I heard good things about it and was happy that I was able to borrow a copy (after a few weeks on the waiting list) from the local library. It did not disappoint!

Synopsis - a struggling writer "borrows" a fantastic plot from another author and quickly rises to fame but someone who knows more about the origin of the story starts bothering him. Mystery begins as the reader is slowly feed clues about what really happened in the plot of the fictional book and also "The Plot."

So, as you can see by the rating, I REALLY enjoyed this book. While not a great piece of literature by any means, based on my ranking, which is purely on entertainment value, I struggled to put this book down. While slow in some parts at the start when developing the story, I truly had to slow myself down to savour the last quarter. In fact, the final 50 pages were almost impossible to put down - the telltale signs of an entertaining book.

Not surprisingly, this book talks often about how incredible the plot is of this novel being written in the book, and while that plot really isn't that incredible, the way the author weaves it into the story of this book was enjoyable. I struggled to guess where the book was heading and was flabbergasted on more than one occasion as I continued moving through the final chapters.

Interestingly, I figured the internet would have loved the book as much as I did. I thought wrong. While it's still hailed as a strong book, I was surprised by how many people figured out the mystery early on and struggled to enjoy the final parts of the book. Many, including my wife, realized what was going on with a number of chapters left, which took away from the strength of the novel. I, on the other hand am no detective, and I was kept guessing into the final pages. I could imagine not enjoying this book nearly as much as if I different experience. 

Overall, I highly recommend this book. It's got a great plot (no pun intended), an interesting set of characters, and is a page turner! While some readers seemed to not enjoy, I thought it was one of my favorite books that I can recall. Enjoy!

Shadow Country - Peter Matthiessen -------------------- 4 Stars

Shadow Country was unknown to me until I recently read an article that mentioned this long, epic tale. During summer, I always feel like I can take on a longer book, and I ended up going much deeper into the history of this novel than I expected.

Released over a decade ago, Shadow Country was not on my radar. When I read a synopsis - an epic tale about E.J. Watson, a notorious farmer and outlaw in turn of the 20th century Florida Everglades - I thought I'd give it a shot. Interestingly, the book was originally written as 3 different novels. The first, a retelling of Watson's life from the viewpoint of friends and associates; the second, a retelling from his son (1st person) years after his death as he tries to put together what was real and what was exaggerated; and a third, a first person retelling from Watson himself. The author shaved over 500 pages off these books to offer them together as the sprawling, 900 page Shadow Country.

Another development also elevated this novel for me. While I knew the novel was entirely fiction, I had figured that main character and events were also totally fiction, but with about 100 pages left, I Googled a place in the book to learn more about it and found out that Watson was a real person! In fact, the entire book was based on real history that occurred in Florida over 100 years ago. After finishing the book, I did go down the Google black hole to learn more about how much was real and what may have been made up. While this book is in no way a biography, it does have some factual elements that improved the reading experience.  

So what was good about this book? Well, the three ways of telling the story was great. While there were shared events and characters between all three retellings, each varied enough to read as differentiated stories. I also loved the character of EJ Watson. While it's commonplace now to see the anti-hero depicted on TV and movies, here was a much less recent literary example. Much like a Tony Soprano, Watson was a pretty awful dude but his charisma and odd empathy for certain people made him captivating. Finally, I loved the story itself. His trials (literal and figurative) and tribulations were thoroughly engaging and there were large pieces of this book that I found myself unable to put it down.

Alternatively, there were also large parts of the book were I struggled NOT to put it down. At almost 900 pages, more could have been edited out and streamlined. Because of the large number of characters (too many in my opinion), I also had difficulty keeping up with who everyone was (I did appreciate the handy ancestral chart that at least made it easier to keep the Watsons straight). I also think others might find the content difficult to navigate. Quite similar to the Wild West at this time, much of the book focuses on death, detailed violence, rape, racism, sexism, etc. So, not for the faint of heart.

As a whole, this book is quite an investment. It took me over a month to read, and that included many stretches of multiple hours a day. While it helps that the book is based in real life events, includes exciting characters, and is an enjoyable read, be aware of the difficulty of getting through the text. This includes both the page length and content included. However, if you can, it is a fulfilling read.

The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook: A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal - Ben Mezrich ----------- 4 Stars

By now, most people have seen the excellent The Social Network, which tells about the founding of Facebook from the college dorm room of Mark Zuckerberg. The movie goes into the lawsuits filed by the Winklevoss twins claiming Zuckerberg stole their idea, while also how Eduardo Saverin helped Zuckerberg start the company, and, eventually be pushed out. But, you probably are not aware that Aaron Sorkin's excellent script was based on Ben Mezrich's book The Accidental Billionaires. After being on my "to read" list for years, I finally got to it this summer.

The book is pretty darn engaging. While it's almost all based on real events, the author does have to create dialogue in a number of parts and there is no way to know if those were the words being said. However, it's awfully dramatic and interesting and, as a reader, I appreciate these offerings (as opposed to straight reporting of facts). The characters are absolutely fascinating, and it was interesting to learn more about what motivates/motivated Zuckerberg and the clear awkwardness he exhibits socially. Getting the background about the Winklevoss twins, Saverin, and, the interesting, Sean Parker also made this book a fun read.

Interestingly, I did find this book more dissimilar from the movie than I expected. I think this is a testament to the genius of Sorkin (my favorite screenwriter). While The Accidental Billionaires is a good book, I think The Social Network is a phenomenal movie. I believe much of its greatness is attributed to Sorkin. The opening scene in the movie, which immediately pulls you in, does not exist in the book. But Sorkin does a phenomenal job, in his rapid dialogue style, to paint an immediate picture to allow the viewer to understand Zuckerberg. Alternatively, it takes Mezrich numerous chapters to accomplish the same goal.

The book may be less of a draw to some that already know the story of the founding of Facebook. If you have not seen the movie or are not familiar with the story, I HIGHLY recommend this book. The story is absolutely fascinating. If you have seen the movie recently, it's probably not a "must read" but may be enjoyable. Either way, see you online! 😃

The Vanishing Half - Brit Bennett ------------------------ 3.5 Stars

So, another book with the same challenges I've had with others I've read recently. I had the same problem of The Vanishing Half as with some other recent novels I read; they have an amazing and engaging start but it didn't keep the pace as the book continues.

The short synopsis on this book (which you may know as it's SUPER popular right now) is about two twins girls born to black parents. One twin has a much lighter complexion and lives her life as a white woman and the other as black. The book presents this dichotomy immediately and quickly grabs the reader's attention. In fact, the first 30-40 pages were so engaging, this book was on track to be a 4.5 or even a 5 star novel. But, alas, it couldn't sustain.

What went wrong? Well, I felt the author went away from the interesting characters she started with and introduced less interesting characters. Also, I felt the story went away from what made the book so captivating. The twin sisters diverging lives was the best part of the story, and it seemed like the author told that entire story, realized there was a lot more necessary for a novel, and then switched to a couple other characters to fill it out. I also felt the author was stuck between trying to make it as realistic as possible and it be fantastical; she does neither well. If it was the former, then some of her plot elements are beyond incredible in how they occurred. If more the latter, she shouldn't have spent such large amounts of the book making, what could have been quite interesting, interactions between the conflicting characters so mundane.

Don't get me wrong, the book is still an enjoyable read and a very strong story. I enjoyed picking it up and reading it and found the many interwoven themes - race, gender, sexuality, socioeconomic issues - clear and thoughtfully presented. For as strong as the book started, it did get as close to that peak in the last 15% of the book, as the author did a great job bringing the varying characters together and concluding their journeys in and engaging and thoughtful way. I DO recommend this book for many reasons; just know that it likely won't stay on that pace throughout the whole book.

High Conflict: Why We Get Trapped and How We Get Out - Amanda Ripley --------------------- 4 Stars

One can argue there are no books more relevant in the past couple of years than Amanda Ripley's High Conflict. Released a few months ago, the intent of this book is to have the reader better understand why people get into  massive arguments and disagreements with people and the ways to avoid or remedy these situations. While I really enjoyed the book, it was not because of the reasons I had expected.

I have written here before how much I have liked books by Malcolm Gladwell and those similar. These are the non-fiction books that have a few ideas to get across and the author does so by offering fascinating anecdotes to make their points through varied stories. In the best books, I feel like the salient viewpoint the author is expressing is about 25% of what's offered, while 75% are the relatable stories. And, if done well, both leave an indelible mark. 

This book tried to follow a similar formula. It was clear the author had some very specific explanations of why and how we get into a high conflict and a number of suggestions about ways to remove ourselves. Interestingly, I didn't actually find those items captivating. In fact, if you want to jump to the CliffsNotes version of her findings, there is a nice 2-3 pager at the end summarizing what she's learned and suggests.

But, skipping to the end would be a large mistake. You would miss the real reason to read this book -- the fascinating stories she offers to illuminate her points. Like Gladwell, and others before her, she works to have about 75% of her book offering stories to better illustrate her points. And, while I think she only did a marginal job using these stories to support her arguments, the stories themselves are excellent. She chooses fewer rather more; she ensures the characters are interesting; she gives you depth about their background and details about the conflicts that were created and how they moved past them (never cleanly).

As a whole, it's quite a worthwhile book. Perhaps you get more out of it from the self-help side than I did. While there are a number of suggestions and ideas for people/society, most boil down to communication. Really, just engage in conversations with people, listen better, be more open with your viewpoints and have some empathy. The anecdote for so many of our societies problems is empathy (easier said than done, right?), But, while you are searching for those answers, make sure you enjoy the personalized stories she shares; they are excellent!

American Dirt - Jeannie Cummins ------------------ 4.25 Stars

American Dirt is only a year old but I had MANY people suggest I read this book as they thought I might enjoy; they were right - it was a good read. And, in a first, I went to the hundreth spot for the decimal ranking. I was torn between a 4 and a 4.5. So many books I've read earned a 4, and I felt this book was significantly better than those. However, 4.5 is a score that signifies a book I truly couldn't put down and that wasn't quite true in this case. Hence, it's a 4.25.

So, I knew a little about this book before beginning. I knew it was about immigrants from Mexico coming to the United States. Prior to starting, I thought the title referred to how they were treated once in America (like dirt!). I was wrong; the title is literal. The book follows a mother and her son (and some secondary characters) about their adventures to reach America.

The book is excellent though it's a tough read. Not a difficult read because of challenging language or unknown vocabulary, but rather for the intimate and dark picture that the author paints from page 1 of the novel onwards. After an incredibly violent start to the book, the pace of the novel slows down but not the gruesomeness or hellish environment mother/son have to go through to arrive in American. Lack of money, more violence, sexual assaults, these are just some of the challenges many have to overcome during the arduous journey from Mexico to America. 

Partly because of all these challenges necessary for characters' to overcome, this book was an engaging and interesting read. While I wanted much more background about the mother's relationship with the "bad guy", I did find it easy to root for the characters. In fact, there were almost too real - I struggled to stop thinking about this book once I put it down. The plight and awful circumstances necessary for them to overcome just to get to a place I take for granted each day, left its mark on me. Interestingly, this is what kept this book from earning a higher rating. While I was entertained and interested in reading, I had to put it down from time to time and take a break. Most of the books I consume don't have such a large amount of painful storytelling as this book did. 

As a whole, American Dirt is a really great book. The story is fantastic, characters real, action consistent, and it educated me more fully about the dangerous and painful fight many immigrants face to enter America. If you go in understanding it can be a dark and emotional read, most likely you'll come out the other side happy you took on this excellent novel!

The Orchid Thief: A True Story of Beauty and Obsession - Susan Orlean ----------------------- 4 Stars

I recently read and reviewed The Library Book  by Susan Orlean and really enjoyed it. Her writing style is informal and fun and her non-fiction pieces really are engaging. So, I was excited when I realized that one of her earlier books was well regarded, The Orchid Thief. Like The Library Book, The Orchid Thief was a fun read too, and I'm happy to have picked it up.

If not familiar, this book started as a New Yorker essay about a person in Florida who was charged with stealing rare orchids from a state protected swamp. The article was well regarded so the author decided to write a fuller book about his story along with many related and interesting people and side stories that relate to the orchid stealing.

Like The Library Book, Orlean followed a similar format (well, really, she followed a similar format for The Library Book since that came later, but I read them in reverse order). This included a quick synopsis of what occurred right in the beginning, then a slow retelling of how we got to this spot while taking a bunch of interesting and fun detours along the way, while you get introduced to LaRoche - main protagonist - early in the book. She slowly veers away from home as she shares about her musings about Florida, the fauna/flora of the area, the Seminole tribe, the incredible history and variety of orchid plants, and much more. And this is truly the strength of the book - her diverging from the original action to share all these other thing she learned. Oddly but also interestingly, she often inserts herself into the narrative. How she is feeling, what she is thinking, etc.; which feels odd in a non-fiction book but is often entertaining and welcome.

As it comes to the end, she does bring it back around to where the book started and, by now, explained what happened and theorizes about why the original crime actually occurred. Of course, by the end, you really don't care so much about some of the things you did at the start as her navigating and sharing of so many other related and interconnected pieces actually seem more interesting.

Of course, like any book, there are some slow parts; some diversions that go on too long; occasionally, I just didn't have as much interest in a specific subject as she did. In general, you have to like her style to enjoy these types of books. If you do, this is one is another treat, and I'd be surprised if you don't come away with a greater interest and desire to learn more or go see some orchids - I know I certainly did!

Healing the Heart of Democracy: The Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit - Parker Palmer ----------------- 3 Stars

I've had Healing the Heart of Democracy: The Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit, on my "to read" list for about 5 years. For some reason, I felt like now was the time to take it on; honestly, I regret it a bit but will try to keep that faith.

A bit of background, Parker Palmer's The Courage to Teach , is one of my favorite books about teaching and education. In it, Palmer makes such a strong argument about the importance to teaching from a place of passion and understanding yourself fully before you enter the classroom. Knowing this book would be similar, with an expressed purpose to focus on politics, I thought I might enjoy. Also importantly, this book was written in 2014, pre-Trump (I'll come back to this later).

What I had forgotten about Parker Palmer is just how passionate and motivational his writing is. Unfortunately, what I also forgot about is how naive it sometimes comes across. This book, even more so than his past. While I love the arguments and suggestions he espouses throughout his writing, after spending the last four years with Trump, they seem more unrealistic than ever. While I do recommend people read this book (because. honestly, if the whole world followed what he suggests, the world would be a much better place), it's important to realize just how unlikely people will follow him. Much of it is based on being more open to listening to others, rejoining community and religious gatherings, and putting more emphasis on democracy in our individual lives.

Like many of Palmer's writings, it can be slow to read at times and repetitive. While I absolutely LOVE what he shares and wish everyone would read this book, I do admit that's it hard to stay engaged throughout the whole book and, as I mentioned above, hard to take some of his thoughts seriously. Sadly, that's the current state of democracy in our country. We can only hope that we are able to heal the heart of our democracy and country, and reading this book is a great way to start!

The English Teacher: A Novel -- Yiftach Reicher Atir ----------------------- 2.5 Stars

I was not familiar with The English Teacher when I picked it up from my sister's bookshelf. That's because it was written as an Israeli spy thriller and never really made it big here in America. With an interesting premise and cool cover art, I thought I'd give it a try. 

Well, it really didn't live up to my expectations (granted, they shouldn't have been high from simply reading the back cover and front picture). I think the biggest reason I didn't enjoy had to do with how the novel was structured. It reminded me of a basketball team that comes out to a blazing start. The book was like 9 for 11 from the field with a bunch of 3s. Truly, the first 50 pages were awesome. It had a real cool way about introducing the characters and created a lot of intrigue about who they were and their motivations. As I went on, I became excited about what might come of these characters as the novel continued.

Unfortunately, the pace didn't continue through the remainder of the book. Normally, books increase the action as the story continues and the author leads the characters into more conflict. While that did happen here, I never felt the pace picked up. Rather, the book always maintained the cool, slow style from the beginning of the novel. Again, while that style was great as the story began, I was hoping the author would hit another gear, you know, when the main characters were doing super cool spy stuff, but did not. 

I then held out hope that this book would be like many others: cool start, slow middle, and exciting ending. Sadly, that didn't happen either. While the ending wasn't bad, it certainly wasn't super surprising and was a pretty quick end (again, the uber-slow lead up kind of held it back).

For all it's faults, the book is strong in many areas. Clearly the author was working to create fully round characters and it was no doubt their motivations and goals. Relatedly, because it was focused on spies, the author would often confuse the reader about whether the motivations offered were really or simply set ups. The book was also told in an interesting way - one of the main characters was revealing much of what happened in the past via conversation. But, since it was third person, the author would often describe the person's feelings during past events and also how he feels now (decades later).

Overall, the book is not a terrible read and certainly comes out of the gate strongly. I was just hoping the rest of the book could have kept pace. 

Cherry - Nico Walker ------------------ 3.5 Stars

The only reason I came across this book is because of a commercial about the upcoming release of a movie based on the story. Then, I quickly researched what it was about and the synopsis was about an army medic that came back from the Middle East, got PTSD and addicted to opioids (Oxy then heroin). he then had to start robbing banks to get money to support his addiction. The book, while fiction, is based on the author's life and struggled to get published as the author was in jail for a while. So, yeah, Cherry had quite a backstory for me prior to picking it up. Interestingly, it's also the debut novel by the author and has earned some rave reviews, though I am not sure they are full warranted.

The book is a tough read in many ways - gritty, sexual, explicit about drug use, violent, and includes more than an average amount of curse words. What's hard is that the book rarely gives the reader a break. While the book starts with a bit more about the "good ol days" of the narrator, once he gets into the Army a quarter of the way, the book doesn't slow down until you are finished. Many of his stories are not pleasant. Detailing the specifics of a person dying from an IED, to the stories about his poor choices when high on heroin, ensure you are prepared for the graphic nature of the story.

While the book is interesting and his stories fascinating, it reads like an author writing his first book. It would be hard to read it and think he was a well trained student of writing. The sentences are often short, simple, and occasionally scattered. Often, I was not sure his writing had logic. While not quite stream of consciousness, many paragraphs and chapters feel like they were thrown together as someone was doing their best to remember whatever details might have come to them while in an traumatic situation (the war) or under the influence of drugs. It probably reads that way as that was likely what was happening while he was writing the book!

But, the book is still a really great read. Again, it's gritty and not nearly as polished as much of the other literature that is out there, but the point of view style, coupled with the detailed and graphic realism of his story, make it an enjoyable read. Again, going in be prepared that it may offend you or that it might rattle you. He does a great job putting you right in the room with him, whether he's shooting up, or helping an amputee. Overall, its probably worth giving this book a try - or - check out the movie (on Apple TV) and see if the book is worth reading!

The Library Book - Susan Orlean -------------------- 4 Stars

I really enjoyed The Library Book (non-fiction) by Susan Orlean. Published a few years ago, it was a pleasure to read as it covered a variety of loosely connected stories and items related to libraries.

The premise of this book is the author's quest to learn more about a massive fire that destroyed Los Angeles' largest library in April 1986. If, like me, you were unaware of this event, you are not alone. It occurred one day after the Chernobyl disaster and received little media coverage. To make even more interesting, it's highly likely the fire was an arson and there is a mystery about the suspected arsonist.

As the book begins telling the background about this story and the devastation of the fire, it then moves into a variety of vignettes all related to libraries. The author then weaves in her investigation about the fire and arson while sprinkling in side stories about librarians (local and famous (if there is such a thing)), types of libraries (old and new), and other interesting connections to libraries.

As I mentioned to start, this was an enjoyable read. To begin with, the retelling of the fire and mystery about how it occurred is quite interesting. Orlean goes into some real depth about how fires work and why libraries are particularly good sources for fires to burn (hint - it's filled with books). I learned more than I ever thought I could. From there, her biography about the accused arsonist is also intriguing.  

Perhaps why the book is so engaging is the author's strong and fun writing style. Combining a mix of adroit word usage with a flair for understanding the humor and realism of her subjects, I rarely was bored. No matter what she might be covering, perhaps a story about a 19th century librarian who walked the West, she tells the story in a way that makes it impossible to not want to continue reading.

While on the surface, this book might appear boring - how interesting can a book about libraries be? It's actual quite the opposite. From the beginning mystery about about the LA library fire, to the many side stories about library history, I am confident if you give this book a chance, you'll enjoy this book too.

Is This Anything? - Jerry Seinfeld -------------------- 3 Stars

Like many people, I'm a huge fan of Jerry Seinfeld. His show is the greatest sitcom ever made (in my humble opinion), and I've always enjoyed his stand-up routines. Is This Anything is a retrospective of, I believe, every joke he has written starting with his rise to fame in the 1970s and moving to the modern day (it includes a few bits about COVID). While the book was good, it feel a little flat.

While the book also included a few pages about that status of his life prior to presenting jokes from each decade, 95% of the book was simply the telling of every routine, joke, bit, etc. he has ever thought of. The book reminded me from an important part of Adam Grant's Originals (review here) - basically, creative people produce a lot of stuff that's not useful. One of the most interesting findings Grant has about really successful inventors and people is just how much is not used. Well, this book is a testament to that theory! 

And that's really a big part of the comedians process - produce as many jokes as possible, do some stand up and try them out night after night (tweaking language along the way), and then narrow down, based on audience reaction, what's the best stuff.  So, when you see any comedian, like Seinfeld, do a 45 minute stand up routine, that's pruned down from hours worth of material. Well, this book is decades worth of material that never "made it". And, as you might guess, a lot of it is not good. I mean, it's not bad; I smirked on occasion, but often, it was just not funny to me.

The other BIG problem with the book is just that; it's a book. Obviously, comedy is done best when you hear the comedian present it and see the facial expression, body movements, and hear the roar of the laughing crowd. I realized after about 10 pages of this book, I would need to at least get the audiobook. If this is not great material, it would at least help to have it delivered by someone other than my own voice! So, I did make the wise move to the audiobook, which is read by Seinfeld himself; this made a huge difference!

I'm not sure if I can truly recommend this book to all readers. I think if you're an uber fan of Seinfeld and his stuff, you will enjoy this book. Otherwise, it really is a long book to get through with some material that's not so great. Though, it will give you a great sense of how he thinks and what it takes to put together a great standup routine or sitcom. Again if you do pick it up, I strongly recommend the audiobook. My guess is Seinfeld delivers a joke better than you do!

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx Is Burning: 1977, Baseball, Politics, and the Battle for the Soul of a City - Jonathan Mahler ------------------- 4 Stars

As the real title is too long, I'll just reference this book as The Bronx is Burning. You may also be aware of it because ESPN did an 8 part miniseries with the same name in 2007. I did watch the miniseries as I was finishing the book and it was fun to have some visuals to compare to the story (the miniseries is odd but also kind of cool as they have decent actors playing the major stars in the book while including real video footage from the 1977 to make it more realistic).

If you are not familiar with the book or miniseries, both take on the crazy year of 1977 in New York City. While the miniseries is nearly all focused on the Yankees story line of Reggie Jackson feuding with manger Billy Martin, the book covers far more areas of interest. While the baseball story line still dominates the book, there are also fascinating stories about the mayoral election which included 4 fascinating candidates, the Son of Sam killer who had been terrorizing the city for more than a year, and some other interesting storylines (disco dying and punk music coming, a momentous blackout which led to massive looting, and newspapers changing to tabloids).

In general, the book is engaging and the writing is crisp and interesting. As someone not alive nor informed about many of these events, the stories presented are notably diverse but fascinating. Most interesting are the personalities involved. All intelligent in their own way, how they move forward to meet their goals, and how that often conflicted with other's goals, makes a great story.

As my father would say about a book of this type, it's a real "slice of life" (which, after Googling, I realize my dad did not invent, but took from the observation of literature/theater - but still a great term, nonetheless). With a decent length and many memorable details, this book really puts you in NYC during the crazy year of 1977. I love books/movies/TV of this type - ones that take a real deep dive into something so the reader/viewer can see the nuance in a deeper way. If you like the same, do take a look at this book!

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln - Doris Kearns Goodwin ------------------- 3.5 Stars

Luckily for me and any possible readers, there is no correlation between the length of my blog and the total pages of the book being reviewed. This is especially good news in the case of my review for Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln. While an entertaining and enlightening book about the life of Abraham Lincoln and critical members of his Cabinet, this book did check in at nearly 1,000 pages! (On a positive, the last 200 was nearly all footnotes and resources).

I vacillated immensely as I was reading this book about how much I enjoyed it. There were parts that I loved and slowly read to savor the prose, while there were other parts that I worked hard to not skip multiple paragraphs. I guess there were parts that were 5 star worthy and others that barely earned 1 star; hence, the 3.5 star rating. 

As noted, the book is quite long and comprehensive. While it serves as both a biography of Lincoln, sharing about his early life and transition to the White House, it also gives similar biographies about the main competitors to his first presidential run and eventual Cabinet members. Such fascinating people included William Seward, Salmon Chase, Edwin Bates, and others. The genius of Lincoln was in how he treated others, especially those that he disagreed with or competed with him. The fact that he wanted the three biggest competitors (some from different political parties!) to serve in his Cabinet as his most trusted advisors, tells you much about him. 

Ultimately, the best parts of the book were about the genius of Lincoln. This included his personality, his strong sense of fairness and empathy, and his excellent political understanding of people's motivations. It's hard to finish the book and not believe he was the greatest president in America's history. Besides keeping the Nation together during the most challenging period in our history, the reader leaves with a strong feeling that Lincoln is also among the greatest human beings in our history as well. 

Unfortunately, I had hoped that more of the book would focus on Lincoln's intelligence and determination and less on the retelling of much of the battles of the Civil War or specific and detailed historical aspects. Honestly, the book could have gone for a good editor as there are multiple parts that were unrelated to Lincoln and only made minimal sense in the scope of the novel.

As a whole, it's a strong book if you have the time and interest. It's impossible not to walk away enamored with Lincoln and the tremendous efforts he put forth to keep the country together. While his life was cut short early, he did more in his 56 years than most men could do in a thousand life times and Team of Rivals does an excellent job explaining his greatness.

Artemis - Andy Weir ----------------- 3 Stars

You probably are more familiar with Andy Weir's more famous book (and movie) - The Martian.  Here is my review of it. Artemis was his follow-up release, and while it was not as entertaining as his first book, it's still a decent read, especially if you like science fiction.

This book was not what I expected. While I thought it would be similar to the Martian and mostly be a novel about a person overcoming the challenges of space, this was really a crime/mystery novel that HAPPENED to take place in space (I'm a poet and I know it!). Really, the first 1/4 to 1/3 of the novel was spent introducing the narrator/main character and explaining how Artemis (the first colony of the moon, taking place circa 2080) works. This is pretty much what I thought the entire book would be about; which was fine with me. The author does a good a job as possible to explain how things work on the moon and the science behind while most things are designed. 

Then, unexpectedly, the novel swerves into a crime novel that leaves the reader not sure people's motivations and where the story might go. This is both where the book became good and became more confusing (at least to me). The crime story is pretty fascinating and you can't help but love the main character. Weir also has a fun way of telling stories (sardonic and playful) that you may remember from The Martian.  My problem, is that while I enjoyed the mystery and crime story (typical, small group of people have to save the world!), the science got more and more confusing as the action became more and more complicated. While the author did as good a job as possible to explain with great detail each scene and action, it was very challenging for me to picture something I had never seen before! Usually, the reader can picture whatever the author describes, but it was problematic for me to imagine a person welding in a space suit on the surface of the moon while in a special facility.

Overall, it's not a bad novel; just not what I expected. Again, it's definitely entertaining and a quick, enjoyable read, but it helps to go in knowing it's pretty similar to many of the mysteries I've read before - it's just happening on the moon!