Tag Archives: Adultery

The Down and Dirty Dish on Revenge by Eva Nagorski

American Literature June 12, 2009 Superfast Reader 3 Comments

Synopsis: A history of revenge and handbook for “serving it up nice and cold to that lying, cheating bastard.” Review: Breezy and snazzy, The Down and Dirty Dish on Revenge does a lot with what seems on the surface to be a thin premise. Eva Nagorski looks at revenge in literature, through history, and across different cultures, with almost a sociologist’s eye. She peppers the book with real-life anecdotes of revenge both creative and mean-spirited. And she closes the book with a chapter on the…

Sister and Husbands by Connie Briscoe

American Literature June 5, 2009 Superfast Reader 1 Comment

Synopsis: On the eve of her wedding, Beverly calls things off, in turmoil over the marriage troubles her sisters have been going through. Review: Sisters and Husbands is a good soapy read, with lots of drama and romance, though not so much that it goes over the top. Connie Briscoe’s characters are dealing with very real issues, and she doesn’t shy away from painting them in an unflattering light. I tend to like my chick lit either more satirical or way further out there (a…

The Accidental Bestseller by Wendy Wax

American Literature June 4, 2009 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: When novelist Kendall Ames is dropped by her publisher and her husband, she faces a case of writer’s block so severe that her best friends–also novelists–decide to help her writer her next novel and let her take all the credit. Review: I’m a sucker for novels about writers, because they always get me off my butt and working on my own stuff. And of course I like good chick lit, so I was primed to enjoy The Accidental Bestseller. The plot was a strange…

Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz

American Literature April 13, 2009 Superfast Reader 4 Comments

Synopsis: A Princeton admissions officer faces a long-buried secret in the height of application season. Review: The college application process, shrouded in secrecy and constructed with fuzzy logic, proved quite fascinating in Admission. Watching Portia speak to prospective students, looking over her shoulder as she read through applications, and hearing her defend a process most believe inherently unfair and corrupt perked up a book with an otherwise unimpressive plot. Portia and her long-time boyfriend Mark have reached a crisis in their relationship, just as Portia…

Laura Rider’s Masterpiece by Jane Hamilton

American Literature April 9, 2009 Superfast Reader 1 Comment

Synopsis: A married couple starts sending love emails to a popular public radio personality, leading to tragicomic results. Review: In Laura Rider’s Masterpiece, Oprah-blessed Jane Hamilton’s latest protagonist is a woman who dreams of being Jane Hamilton. Laura Rider is the owner of a midwestern garden center who’s been nurturing the fantasy of becoming a writer for ages. A chance meeting with new neighbor Jenna Faroli, the host of a “Fresh Air”-type show on public radio, gives Laura the impetus to take her dreams more…

Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Patillo

American Literature March 9, 2009 Superfast Reader 1 Comment

Synopsis: Jane Austen scholar Emma hunts Austen’s lost love letters in the hopes of restoring her besmirched academic name and to prove to the world that Austen was wrong about happy endings. Review: I came to Jane Austen relatively late in life. We were assigned Pride and Prejudice as summer reading in ninth grade. Honestly? It bored me to tears. For this sole reason I eschewed majoring in English in college in favor of a theater/American Studies combo just so that I could avoid British…

Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri

American Literature January 7, 2009 Superfast Reader 3 Comments

Synopsis: A collection of short stories featuring Indian American protagonists. Review: Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel The Namesake was one of my favorite books I read the year I was pregnant with Superfast Toddler, and I was so happy to get Unaccustomed Earth for Christmas this year. What I love about Lahiri’s stories is that I never feel shortchanged by them. No matter how good a short story is, for the most part I always wish I were reading a novel instead. Short stories are too brief,…

This One Is Mine by Maria Semple

American Literature December 22, 2008 Superfast Reader 2 Comments

Synopsis: A bored LA housewife falls into a flirtation with a scummy ex-junkie, while her sister-in-law sets about trapping a wealthy husband. Review: This One Is Mine cuts a lot deeper than my synopsis would imply. It’s not a trashy pulp beach read, but rather a scabrous dissection of the worst of human impulses, with a healthy dose of redemption thrown in at just the right time. In many ways, it reminds me of Elise Blackwell’s Grub, which I called a “satire brimming with humanism.”…

The Tremor of Forgery by Patricia Highsmith

British Literature April 12, 2008 Superfast Reader 5 Comments

Synopsis: While working on a novel in Tunisia, a writer encounters his own heart of darkness. Review: I had written a truly brilliant review of Patricia Highsmith’s The Tremor of Forgery, but it got eaten. Fie! The salient points were: Patricia Highsmith plays cat and mouse with the reader just like her most famous creation Tom Ripley played cat and mouse with anyone he encountered She is a master of nuance characterization The final third of the novel is a tour-de-force of subtle character dynamics…

Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri

American Literature March 9, 2008 Superfast Reader 7 Comments

Synopsis: A collection of short stories set mostly among Indian immigrants in the US. Review: Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake was one of my favorite reads of last year, so I decided I needed to check out her much-buzzed about collection of short stories, Interpreter of Maladies. It will surprise no one who has read these tales that I found them both simple and spectacular. I am not usually a fan of short stories, though now that I am short on time for reading I’m finding…

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