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All posts for the month November, 2016

WRITERS OF THE FUTURE, VOL. 31 – anthology

Posted by Daniel on November 30, 2016
Posted in: SF/FANTASY, SHORT FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Although this is a long-running series and has produced a number of popular authors today, I have never before read any of the L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writer of the Future volumes.  I am sorry for that because there really is some good writing inside (this volume, at least). But …

…While there is some very good work within, there really isn’t anything so outstanding that I’ve added the author to my ‘watch’ list.  I think I enjoyed some of the essays by the established authors and artists more than most of the fiction here.

Of the stories, “Switch,” the first story in the collection, by Steve Pantazis is a nice beginning and establishes that this will be a strong collection.  The story is a sci-fi thriller in which an embedded drug allows for a direct link to the internet.  It’s a nicely written story, though the ‘direct-link-to-internet’ is not an uncommon theme anymore — the Nexus series by Ramez Naam has done it exceedingly well.

“Twelve Minutes to Vinh Quang” by Tim Napper was one of the stronger stories for me.  It was another thriller and perhaps I was in the mood for this sort of sci-fi?

If you’ve followed my reviews much, you will know that I do not like books that are all about form rather than story, so it may comes a surprise that I liked Scott R. Parkin’s “Purposes Made for Alien Minds” as much as I did.  The story begins with: “I think five word thoughts.  I express five word sentences.”  And he does all through the story.  It’s clever and Parkin’s does it well.  The short story is EXACTLY where form should be experimented with – not the novel.

Other highlights in the book, for me, were L. Ron Hubbard’s essay “Art”; Orson Scott Card’s “Fiction without Paper”; “Inconstant Moon” by Larry Niven; and Bob Eggleton’s “The Illustrators of the Future” and “On the Direction of Art” which was the first time I’ve ever really gotten any insight to the art direction process.

I was a little less excited by the artwork.  Daniel Tyka (who is featured twice) and Greg Opalinski are the only two who stood out.  Others were fine, but it’s clear why this is an anthology of new, or raw, talent.

This book was certainly worthwhile and a good mix of new writers and established authors.

The book contains the following:

Preface
Introduction – David Farland
“Switch” – Steve Pantaszis; art – Daniel Tyka
“The God Whisperer” – Daniel J. Davis; art – Alex Brock
“Stars That Make Dark Heaven Light” – Sharon Joss; art – Choong Yoon
“Art” – L. Ron Hubbard
“When Shadows Fall” – L. Ron Hubbard; art – Greg Opalinski
“A Revolutionary’s Guide to Practical Conjuration” – Auston Habershaw; art – Shuangjian Liu
“Twelve Minutes to Vin Quang” – Tim Napper; art – Quinlan Septer
“Planar Ghosts” – Krystal Claxton; art – Amit Dutta
“Fiction without Paper” – Orson Scott Card
“Rough Draft” – Kevin J. Anderson & Rebecca Moesta; art – Daniel Tyka
“Between Screens” – Zach Chapman; art – Trevor Smith
“Unrefined” – Martin L. Shoemaker; art – Tung Chi Lee
“Half Past” – Samantha Murray; art – Megan Kelchner
“Purposes Made for Aline Minds” – Scott R. Parkin; art – Emily Siu
“Inconstant Moon” – Larry Niven; art – Bernardo Mota
“The Illustrators of the Future” – Bob Eggleton
“The Graver” – Amy M. Hughes; art – Taylor Payton
“Wisteria Melancholy” – Michael T. Banker; art – Michelle Lockamy
“Poseidon’s Eyes” – Kary English; art – Megen Nelson
“On the Direction of Art” – Bob Eggleton

Looking for a good book?  Writers of the Future, Volume 31 is a decent collection of new talent (with some established authors for balance) and is nice if you’re looking to see who is on the rise, but is otherwise a rough assortment.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Writers of the Future Volume 31

editor: David Farland

publisher: Galaxy Press

ISBN: 1619863227

paperback, 496 pages

WYNONNA EARP, VOL.1: HOMECOMING – graphic novel

Posted by Daniel on November 29, 2016
Posted in: GRAPHIC NOVEL. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

I watched the first few episodes of Wynonna Earp on SyFy and enjoyed it more than I thought I would.  I mean… a modern-day western gun-fighter battling the supernatural?  Really?  A cross between Dresden Files and Gunsmoke?  But it worked, even if the stories I saw were a little simple.

I hadn’t realized, at the time, that the show was based on a comic book series (but of course it was…is there any ‘original’ television?) so when I saw that there was a graphic novel available, I thought I’d give it a try.  Unfortunately, the stories here seem even more simple and the art is generally weak and cartoony.

Wynonna is a great character.  She’s the descendant of Wyatt Earp and is a special agent for a division of the U.S. Marshalls known as The Black Badge division.  Wyatt, it appears, also fought supernatural creatures, and his six-shooter is one of the only weapons that will actually send a demon back down to hell.

So it’s an interesting character with a pretty good set-up, but there’s an obvious lack of world-building here.  These stories are like reading an issue of Archie and Jughead.  Things just happen and the reader has to accept it (or not) because no background is going to be built up.  In each story, Wynonna and her associates face off against some supernatural attack.  End of description.  In one case, it’s zombies in a shopping mall – except the zombies are created by and obedient to a deranged doctor.  In another story, Wynonna goes back in time to Tombstone, Arizona and fights with her ancestor.

The stories here are just dull and the art (mostly) is really awful.  I actually regret reading this because now I’m not sure I want to watch any more of the episodes.  After all, if the series is based on a comic book and the comics are this bad, will the series be any good?

I may watch the show, but I’m not likely to read any more of the comics/graphic novels.

Looking for a good book?  Wynonna Earp, Vol. 1: Homecoming is a graphic novel that just falls flat in every aspect.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Wynonna Earp, Volume 1: Homecoming

author: Beau Smith

artists: Chris Evenhuis, Lora Innes

publisher: IDW Publishing

ISBN: 1631407538

hardcover, 136 pages

REYKJAVIC NIGHTS – Arnaldur Indriðason

Posted by Daniel on November 28, 2016
Posted in: MYSTERY, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . 1 Comment

Mysteries by Scandinavian authors are very popular.  Reykjavik Nights is a prequel to a series by Arnaldur Indridason featuring his detective Erlendur when Erlendur was still just a street cop and not yet a detective.  I have not read any of the other books in the Erlendur series so I can’t comment on how this fits in the storyline, but it seemed like a good place to start.

Two different cases in the Icelandic city of Reykjavik have gone cold and are written off as accidental.  Erlendur knew Hannibal, the homeless man who was found drowned in a peat bog.  Hannibal had his problems but Erlendur isn’t 100% convinced that he would have drowned this way, even if he had been drinking.  And when Hannibal’s sister asks Erlendur to look into this, he does (on his own time).

About the same time, a woman from a very different social circle goes missing on her way home from a club.  She’s assumed drowned.  There is no reason to connect these two incidents, and no one does. Except for Erlendur, who slowly and methodically puts some pieces together to see a possible connection.

What we see in this book is a young cop, Erlendur, who cares.  It would be easiest to write off the death and disappearance as accidents, just as most everyone else does.  But Erlendur is still young and still an idealist.  Perhaps he stays that way through the other books?

We see Erlendur come in contact with some of the criminal elements of Reykjavik and stand tough against it.  His investigation (on his own time, it’s important to remember) helps bring down a large drug smuggling ring, but it’s a resolution to the death and disappearance that currently drives the young policeman.

The story and location (the location is a character here) is bleak, and the progression of the story is methodical (ie: slow), but it is interesting to take part in this by getting a direct POV through Erlendur’s eyes.  He is persistent and has great intuition, which would appear to pay off given the popularity of this series.

Even with a ‘positive’ ending (can it be positive when there is death?) this book maintains a dark atmosphere, but Indriðason keeps us interested with his strong portrait of the idealist policeman Erlendur.

Looking for a good book?  Reykjavik Nights is a steady, fascinating mystery set in the bleak, dark nights of Iceland with a cop destined for detective, written by Arnaldur Indriðason.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Reykjavík Nights: Murder in Reykjavík

author: Arnaldur Indriðason

translator: Victoria Cribb

publisher: Minotaur Books

ISBN: 1250048427

hardcover, 304 pages

 

OLIVER TWISTED – Cindy Brown

Posted by Daniel on November 26, 2016
Posted in: MYSTERY, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

This is my third Ivy Meadows Mystery (and third in the series) and I find these books to be just plain fun.

Ivy Meadows is an amateur actor and an amateur detective, working for her Uncle Bob’s private investigations firm (Duda Detective Agency). This time the agency has a special client … a cruise ship line. There have been a rash of thefts aboard a series of cruises that are dedicated to a literature theme. Bob goes aboard as a wealthy rancher and Ivy goes undercover in the role of ‘Nancy’ in an unusual version of Dickens’ “Oliver Twist.” But things get off to a horrible start when Ivy discovers her ship-board roommate dead and stuffed in a closet.

The list of potential suspects grows rapidly and the apparent gold-digger who’s attached herself to Bob, and who is clearly hiding something, has Ivy worried. But she should be more concerned for her own safety, given the constant mishaps following her.

I love the concept for this series and author Cindy Brown really tells a delightful tale.  There’s some anxiety and excitement in the mystery, but there’s more than a fair amount of humor, usually surrounding Ivy’s stage time. Here she has to perform as an aerial artist in flowing silks which might be tough enough.  Now complicate that with the fact that she’s on a cruise ship and suffers from a fear of the open water!

The theft and murder investigation is nicely complicated for this typically light read, but just as with the other two books, it is Cindy Brown’s characters that really shine.  Everyone we meet seems like a real person with their quirks and foibles emphasized.  We chuckle at what they get in to, we don’t really fear the ‘bad guys’ too much, and we have a generally good time. And what more can you ask of a book?

You don’t need to read books one and two to get a feel for the characters, but you will probably want to just because it’s a good time.

Looking for a good book? Cindy Brown’s Oliver Twisted is a fun, funny mystery that will leave you asking for “more” at the end.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Oliver Twisted

author: Cindy Brown

series: An Ivy Meadows Mystery #3

publisher: Henery Press

ISBN: 1635110416

paperback, 288 pages

THE INVISIBLE LIBRARY – Genevieve Cogman

Posted by Daniel on November 25, 2016
Posted in: SF/FANTASY, Uncategorized, YA. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Author Genevieve Cogman tapped into the dreams and desires of just about every bibliophile I know when she created The Invisible Library.

There exists a library of all libraries – much like the famed Ancient Library of Alexandria – except that this library exists between dimensions.  The librarians here often work as spies and thieves, jumping into different dimensions to collect rare and important works of fiction in order to preserve and study them.

We follow Irene, a junior librarian, just as she is returning from an assignment and looking forward to a little down time.  But her superiors have another task for her.  She is headed to an alternate world London to retrieve a rare book of fairy tales.  This mission is a little different, however, as she is paired with a new, young assistant – a young man named Kai.  What should have been a fairly routine grab-and-go task, even in a steampunk-like London with supernatural creatures, becomes complicated when the book disappears just before Irene and Kai arrive.

Cogman has created the genesis for a series with unlimited potential.    This idea of searching for books from a variety of worlds is really exciting, but at the same time, Cogman has her protagonist address a couple of important issues, starting with the idea that this is stealing, even if it is for a ‘good cause.’  And is possessing the books enough?  Shouldn’t they be used in some way?

While Irene appears to have been born into the job of working for the Invisible Library, she’s always been a bit different from the other librarians – not following the rules explicitly and questioning anything that doesn’t seem right to her.  But she’s still a librarian and devoted to the inter-dimensional library and what it consists of.  Irene is clearly a character conflicted.

This first book in what must be a planned series does a very nice job of setting up the premise, central characters, and general conflict and offers up a pretty simple, sf/f plot.  Maybe too simple?  I want to say that this plot feels like a YA action story, but I’ve read some pretty intense YA.  Let’s just say that the book doesn’t delve too deep.  This is about action, with secret agent-like librarians at the center.  Does that sound like a fun read?  It is.

Looking for a good book?  The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman is a light but spirited read with room for growth and plenty of stories.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Invisible Library

author: Genevieve Cogman

series: The Invisible Library #1

publisher: Roc

ISBN: 1101988649

paperback, 343 pages

THE CHRISTMAS TREE – Julie Salamon

Posted by Daniel on November 24, 2016
Posted in: OTHER. Tagged: , , , , , . 1 Comment

THROWBACK THURSDAY: REVIEW A REISSUE

One of the jobs of the chief gardener at Rockefeller Center is picking out the massive Christmas tree to have in the plaza for display to the public.  It’s all just part of the job and most of his work takes places well before the Christmas season so it doesn’t bolster his appreciation for the holiday spirit.  The gardener finds his perfect tree on the grounds of a convent.  When he approaches the Mother Superior to make his request for the tree, he is told that he will have to take it up with Sister Anthony – a nun (formerly an orphaned girl by the name of Anna) who has a special relationship with the flora on the grounds and has taken to referring to the Norway Spruce in question as “Tree.”  It takes a bit of convincing and explaining but the gardener gets more than he bargained for.

I was not familiar with this story before reading this reissue, but I’ve come to understand that it’s a bit of a modern classic.  It definitely has many of the things one looks for in a feel-good holiday story.  Our main characters come to learn something about themselves and their place in the world and how they can have a positive impact on others.

It is interesting to note that the book starts out with the Rockefeller Center gardener speaking to the reader, and it is his story that we follow, but if you read the Goodreads description of the book, it is about a little girl named Anna who becomes Sister Anthony and who has a special bond with nature and one particular Tree.

The book is barely more than 100 pages and yet it is indeed about both the Rockefeller gardener and the orphan girl Anna/Sister Anthony. This is one of the few times that you will see me write this … this book needs to be just a little bit longer.

I felt just a little bit short-changed on the story bout Anna/Anthony.  I was drawn into the story by the writing and because I was curious to see how we would get to the end (we see the very end of the story at the beginning of the book, so I know from the outset that this is about the journey to get there) and while it is definitely a sweet, nearly touching story, it could have gone just a little deeper to have a fuller impact.

This newest edition has sweet illustrations by Jill Weber.

I can understand why this has become a popular story to read during the Christmas holiday season.  It is brief and hits all the right notes.  It is worth making it a tradition to read this story each year.

Looking for a good book?  The Christmas Tree is a touching holiday tale by Julie Salamon and is might just have you making a new holiday tradition to read this novella each Christmas.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Christmas Tree

author: Julie Salamon

artist: Jill Weber

publisher: Random House

ISBN: 0679452532

hardcover, 118 pages

PEPPER’S GHOST – William Auten

Posted by Daniel on November 23, 2016
Posted in: Uncategorized, YA. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Pepper’s Ghost by William Auten is an ambitious coming of age novel as Charlotte Alexandra Long (“Alex”) struggles through a series of teen tropes but finds some answers in the circus sideshow where tricks serve as truths.

This is one of the most difficult sorts of books to review.  There’s nothing specific here that one can point to and say, “This is bad” but at the same time, there’s nothing you can point to and say, “This really works.”  This is about as average a book as you will find.

I never got pulled into the story and Alex remained just a character in a book.  Coming-of-age stories are pretty common fare for YA books, but if the central figure is distant or aloof, or otherwise doesn’t capture the reader’s attention, then the book becomes just another story instead of an adventure that you care about.

What drew me to the book was the circus theme.  It’s a popular theme in books today (it’s hard to find a best-seller shelf that doesn’t have at least one book set in or around a circus) but it’s popular for a reason.  Circus are fun and full of promise and mystery and just a little magic.  But the inclusion of a circus also means that there’s a bit of a promise from the author to the reader for that magic and I just didn’t feel it.

There were little moments that I enjoyed though it ended a little easily and neatly.

Looking for a good book?  Pepper’s Ghost by William Auten is a tepid, average read.

I received a digital copy from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

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Pepper’s Ghost

author: William Auten

publisher: Black Rose Writing

ISBN: 1612966527

paperback, 266 pages

 

A WHOLE LATTE MURDER – Caroline Fardig

Posted by Daniel on November 22, 2016
Posted in: MYSTERY. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

I’m liking these Java Jive mysteries!

Juliet Langley is a manager at a local coffee-house, Java Jive.  She works for her long-time friend, Pete Bennett.  At one time, Juliet wanted to be a singer, but a bad case of stage fright has put that passion to rest, though she still enjoys playing her guitar and singing once in a while … as long as no one is around to listen.  Juliet is in a relationship with Ryder Hamilton, a local detective.  Their relationship hasn’t been the smoothest, but right now things seem to be good.  Then Ryder tells Juliet that he’s been promoted to the homicide division and his partner is the cranky detective who’s been on Juliet’s case since she first discovered a dead body (Death Before Decaf).

Now, a college student has gone missing and all of Nashville is concerned.  When Juliet discovers the student’s dead body, everything goes from bad to worse.  Add to this that her relationship with Ryder is getting more stressed, and then one of her employees goes missing and Juliet is completely on edge.

Author Caroline Fardig has created a really fun, believable set of characters.  Juliet is a young woman who female readers can likely identify with and male readers want to meet.  Ryder and Pete seem to be competing for Juliet’s attention and depending on her mood (and how Fardig manipulates us [and I use the term affectionately and in the best possible way]).

This is some pretty light reading, and yet the mysteries are real solid and so far all involve a murder.  I’ve seen many people refer to this series as a ‘Cozy Mystery’ series.  There are many ways in which this fits the bill, but it seems just a little stronger, a little deeper than most of the other ‘cozies’ that I’ve read.  In many ways, this is more a series about Juliet Langley, modern single woman who happens to get involved in some murder investigations, than about Juliet Langley, amateur sleuth.

I will pick up a Java Jive mystery any time, any where.  You should too!

Looking for a good book?  A Whole Latte Murder by Caroline Fardig is the third book in the Java Jive Mystery series and continues to deliver a well-written, interesting mystery with great characters.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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A Whole Latte Murder

author: Caroline Fardig

series: A Java Jive Mystery #3

publisher: Alibi

ISBN: 0425284255

ebook, 272 pages

THE FIRESIDE GROWN-UP GUIDE TO THE HUSBAND – Jason Hazeley & Joel Morris

Posted by Daniel on November 21, 2016
Posted in: HUMOR, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

‘Tis the season for parody and humor.

This is a quick read, offering up a few good chuckles.

Based on an old book series, Ladybird Books based in the United Kingdom, this series cleverly uses the original illustrations from the mid-twentieth century and adds new story.  You know what you’re getting in to with the very first page:

“This is a husband.  He may look complicated, but he is in fact very simple. He runs on sausages and beer.”

The rest of the book is very much in the same vein.

This is a gift book.  It is the sort of thing you give to a sibling or a spouse or a business associate as a funny holiday gift.  It is meant to be read and enjoyed, then passed around a room for others to get a chuckle as well.  It is the sort of book that will be talked about – for about an hour.  After that, it’s a dust-collector.

I enjoyed the book for what it was.  I can picture me giving this book or even getting this book at a Christmas party and everyone at the party enjoying it.  But this is not a book to give or get if you want something with a little more substance.

Looking for a good book?  The Fireside Grown-Up Guide to The Husband is a humorous book, just right for gift-giving during the holiday season.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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The Fireside Grown-Up Guide to the Husband (Ladybird Books for Grown-Ups)

authors: Jason Hazeley & Joel Morris

publisher: Touchstone

ISBN: 1501150731

hardcover, 64 pages

EMERGING FROM THE SHADOWS, VOL. 4 – Maurine St. Gaudens

Posted by Daniel on November 19, 2016
Posted in: NON-FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

This is an important series of art books.  The format for each book is generally the same, so my review will be the same.  The four volumes that make up this book set are packed with incredible information and beautiful photos of a wide range of art.

The subtitle (“A Survey of Women Artists Working in California, 1860-1960”) implies a fairly narrow focus, but it is awe-inspiring to see just how many women are included in the series. I am by no means an authority (or even an avid fan, for that matter) of the subject matter specifically, but I’m always interested in seeing art that I personally think of as ‘good’ or that ‘speaks’ to me in some way. I started book-marking pages with art that I felt was exceptional and writing down the artists’ names so that I could research them and their work, but it became apparent fairly early that I was book-marking nearly every page. It would have been easier to make note of the art that I did NOT find worthwhile.

The book gives a detailed mini-biography of the artist – family life, education, influences, associations, shows – and then a sampling of the artists work. Even with my digital copy of the book, these photographs of the art are stunning.

I really liked that author/editor Maurine St. Gaudens starts each mini-biography with a close-up of the artists signature from one of her works. It’s a brilliant way to introduce the artist as the signature is often more telling to a person’s character than a photo or portrait of the artist herself. I so came to look forward to the signature that when it wasn’t there (in the case of at least one sculptor) it stuck out.

Volume 4 is the selected artists with the last name beginning with “S” through “Z.” This volume concludes with information on the Lenders and Contributors.  This volume includes the following artists:

Nina Saemundsson
Elaine Sagerhorn
Geneve Rixford Sargeant
Rose Schneider
Donna Schuster
Patty Switzer Scratch
Elise Cavanna
Helen M. Seegert
Helen Inez Selbert
Ethel Sharp
Ada May Sharpless
Hazel M. Sheckler
Marie O. Sheppard
Henrietta Shore
Hazel Brayton Shoven
Burr Singer
Anna Katharine Skeele
Dorothy Sklar
Eva Slater
Helen Edell Sloan
Helen M. Smith
Ann Louise Snider
Edith Sowersby
Anna Lee Stacey
Vera C. M. Staples
Juliette Steele
Mary L. Stevens
Edna Stoddart
Dorothy Stratton
Phyllis Strickland
Vivian F. Stringfield
Beatrice Stuart
Mabel Sumerlin
Emily E. Syminton
Alice Blair Thomas
Jane McDuffie Thurston
Florence H. Tompkins
Mary Travis
Janet Turner
Muriel Tyler
Althea Ulber
Nina Ullberg
Kathleen Taylor Upper
Cora A. Van Epps
Lucretia Le Bourgeois Van Horn
Hilda Van Zandt
Calthea Vivian
Grace Vollmer
Inez Johnson von Hake
Luvena Vysekal
Marion Kavanaugh Wachtel
Lillias Waddell
Phebe Ray Wadsworth
Elizabeth F. Waggoner
Mildred Kizzie Walker
Florence Walsh
Louise Cooke Ward
Nell Walker Warner
Kaye Waters
Adele Watson
June Wayne
Emilie Sievert Weinberg
Ludmilla Welch
Julia Bracken Wendt
Carol Caskey Weston
Eva Blanche Whelan
Lenora Whelan
Edith White
Emily H. White
Nona L. White
Ethel M. Wickes
Edna Marrett Wilcocks
Mary Belle Williams
Anna Wilson
Alice Beach Winter
Beatrice Wood
Ellamarie Woolley
Virginia Woolley
Isobel Wurtele
Mary Agnes Yerkes
Florence Young
Frances Upson Young
Enid Zacharias
Paula Zen

Looking for a good book? Emerging from the Shadows, Vol. III: A Survey of Women Artists Working in California, 1860-1960 is a tremendous resource for anyone interested in art, women’s studies, art history, artist biographies or anyone just interested in a high quality art book.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

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Emerging from the Shadows, Vol. IV: A Survey of Women Artists Working in California, 1860-1960

author/editor: Maurine St. Gaudens

publisher: Schiffer Publishing

ISBN: 0764348876

hardcover, 336 pages

ROOMIES – Sara Zarr & Tara Altebrando

Posted by Daniel on November 18, 2016
Posted in: Uncategorized, YA. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Two high school seniors on opposite coasts (one in New Jersey, the other in California) have been assigned each other as roommates in the upcoming school year at Berkeley.  Elizabeth (EB) is brash, rash, and impetuous.  And just a little bit nervous about moving across the country to attend school.  Lauren lives not too far away but will struggle to find a way to pay for school.

The girls email and get to know one-another as they share dreams and fears, sometimes very intimate.  In addition to the worries over “what will my roommate be like,” these girls have all their every-day concerns as well, topping that list would be ‘boys.’

Lauren has a crush on a co-worker, the son of the owner of the store where she works.  EB has just broken up with her boyfriend but is already seeing someone else … this one she’s sure she loves.  The girls become best friends before ever meeting.

This is a decent, but not very deep YA novel (I read the entire book in about two hours).  The drama is on high and the two main characters go through a lifetime’s worth of highs and lows in the two months span that this book covers.  Which, of course, is moderately appropriate for a lot of teens.

Mostly I enjoyed the book and could see where it would be tremendously enjoyed by teen girls (sorry for the sexism, but truly … I’ve watched teen girls behave this way – teen boys, before heading off to college?  It’s like pulling teeth to get them to send a note to their future roommate just to introduce themselves).  But I did not enjoy how quick one of them was to turn and the vehemence in which she did so.  Her reasons were really pretty threadbare.

I also didn’t care for the casualness of sex.  Should I?  Shouldn’t I?  Okay, I will, because I really love him. Done.  If there’s going to be a lot of angst in a YA novel (and there usually is), isn’t this a good place for it?  But sex seemed like the least of the drama in these girls’ lives.

This was not a bad read, but it definitely didn’t make me want to run out and hurry to read more by either author.

Looking for a good book?  Roomies is a light, fluffy YA novel, by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando that draws on a teen girls anxiety over the unknown and the desire to make a new BFF for the college years.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Roomies

authors: Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando

publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

ISBN: 0316217492

hardcover, 279 pages

HIGH ON REBELLION – Yvonne Sewall-Ruskin

Posted by Daniel on November 17, 2016
Posted in: MEMOIR, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THROWBACK THURSDAY: REVIEWING A REISSUE

This may be one of my shorter reviews as, really, there isn’t much to review in this book.  This isn’t so much a book about Max’s Kansas City bar in New York, as it is a series of mini-memoirs/reminiscences by some of the former patrons and workers at the club.

I had not heard of Max’s before this book … I thought the idea of reading about a popular club during the 60’s and 70’s would lend some insight into the culture of the day.  It does, I suppose, but not in the best of light.  There are moments, quite scattered, that are like little nuggets of interest, but there aren’t enough of them.

Max’s was a popular hang out for artists of all kinds.  The man behind Max’s, owner Mickey Ruskin, appears to have been a generous, mostly tolerant man who allowed many starving young artists to get on their feet and served dinner and drinks at Max’s.  As Larry Zox writes:

It was the beginning of all our careers at that time, from Stella for abstract painting to Lichtenstein or Warhol in the Pop world. We were all there. Someone would come over to your studio and you’d hook up and go over to Max’s and have a late lunch, and you’d make deals.

But this is the 1960s/70s.  It’s not just an era of peace and love, but an era of outrageous sex and drugs. And drugs.  And more drugs.  Were there drugs at Max’s?  Derek Callender writes: “There were enough drugs in that back room to cause genetic defects. That was pill city.”  Night Manager Ritty Dodge said, “One good thing about working the back room is when the lights came up, you could pick up enough pills to last you the week.”

And if it wasn’t drugs, then it was sex.  Rampant, flaunting sex or naked cavorting among the other guests.

Most of the memories/memoirs included in the book talk either about the drugs, the sex, or all the famous people who came in and did drugs or had sex in Max’s.  When one person writes

It was sort of common knowledge that Jackson Browne couldn’t stand the heat in the back room, and that was why he moved back to California. … He was really not equipped to handle that scene.  He had to go to California where it was easier to deal with life.

it actually makes me think more highly of Jackson Browne. (The comment was made by a former bartender at Max’s … someone whose name means nothing to this reader.)

And it wasn’t just the patrons at Max’s who were out of control.

We had to deal with not only impatient customers, but Izzy, Max’s insane cook, who was constantly grabbing at your boobs and freely swinging the butcher knife. He was actually hired by Mickey out of jail on a murder rap. But, as Mickey always reminded us, “good cooks were hard to come by and waitresses were not.”

I was pre-teen in the 1960’s, but the era has fascinated me and I usually really enjoy reading about the artists and their lives during this turbulent (“rebellious”?) time.  But this book really was nothing more than memories of hedonism and illegal pharmaceutical use with a whole lot of name-dropping to boot.  There’s nothing really to get here, other than that a bunch of famous, some not so famous, and many not at all famous people had a ton of (illegal?) fun at Max’s.

Looking for a good book?  High on Rebellion is a series of reminiscences about the sex and drug culture at Max’s Kansas City bar in New York during the 1960’s, by Yvonne Sewall-Ruskin, a former waitress and wife to the owner.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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High on Rebellion: Inside the Underground at Max’s Kansas City

author/editor: Yvonne Sewall-Ruskin

publisher: Open Road Media

ASIN: B01CTOTFTG

Kindle Edition, 288 pages