Tag Archives: 21st Century

The Brain in Your Kitchen by David DiSalvo

American Literature February 17, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: Subtitled: A Collection of Essays on How What We Buy, Eat, and Experience Affects Our Brains. Review: I read the essays in The Brain in Your Kitchen with interest, but have to admit I was disappointed that they weren’t expanded up on. It was just a collection of reprints–not that I had ever read them before, but I felt a little cheated. The essays were thought-provoking but the execution of the book itself felt more like an amuse bouche than a meal.

Vow: A Memoir of Marriage and Infidelity by Wendy Plump

American Literature February 12, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: A journalist details the multiple affairs that ended her marriage. Review: The story told in Vow is a train wreck. Wendy Plump and her husband pretty much destroyed their marriage with infidelity on both sides, ending finally when her husband had a baby with another woman. For all her candor, I never felt like Plump got to the heart of why she did what she did, or responded the way she did, or how she feels about the endeavor of marriage in general. I…

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

American Literature February 7, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: Seraphina is mistress of music at the royal court, but when dragon/human relations become strained, she fears that someone will discover her secret–that she is half dragon herself. Review: Seraphina was an absolutely delicious read. Fabulous world, great political intrigue, and a winning love story all centered around a fierce, strong, vulnerable, complicated protagonist. I am only sad that this is just Rachel Hartman‘s debut because I want to read more!

The Pretty One by Lucinda Rosenfeld

American Literature February 7, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: Three sisters approaching middle age find themselves caught in the roles they were assigned as children, and now the family tension is threatening to explode. Review: I loved the caustic, witty tone of Lucinda Rosenfeld’s I’m So Happy For You, and The Pretty One didn’t disappoint. Olympia is the titular pretty one, but she won’t tell anyone in her family that she used a sperm donor to conceive her 3 year old daughter Lola. Imperia (Perri) seemingly has the perfect life, but her obsession…

A Cold and Lonely Place by Sara J. Henry

American Literature February 5, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: When her roommate’s sort of boyfriend’s body is discovered frozen in a lake, a journalist struggles to separate personal from professional while pursuing the truth behind what might have been murder. Review: A Cold and Lonely Place is steeped in character and setting, much like the novels of my beloved Tana French. I only wish the mystery itself had been stronger and richer. I never really connected with Troy, the main character, perhaps because I haven’t read the previous book.

Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

American Literature January 27, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: Three girls plot revenge on three popular seniors in an idyllic resort town. Review: Yes, I loved Siobhan Vivian The List and Not That Kind of Girl, and my love affair continues in Burn for Burn. My only problem is that it’s the first in a trilogy and I’m going to have to wait to find out what happens next!

The Middlesteins by Jami Attenberg

American Literature January 27, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: When Edie Middlestein tips over into morbid obesity, her husband leaves her and her grown children don’t really want to pick up the pieces. Review: The Middlesteins is a family melodrama, pure and simple. I definitely got sucked into their unhappiness, but appreciated that I never felt like I was wallowing in it. The Chicago setting came through in a fully realized way, adding another element of depth I liked (as opposed to being the generic suburbs). I didn’t necessarily identify with any of…

Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian

American Literature January 22, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: Student council president Natalie has a lot of pressure on her, and a freshman girl’s provocative behavior starts to unravel the control she’s fought so hard to maintain. Review: In many ways I could relate to Natalie, the first-person narrator of Not That Kind of Girl, to the point of being annoyed with her for being so blind to the feelings of everyone around her. I do get frustrated with stories that revolve around a character who either misses something critical, or who others…

Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright

American Literature January 21, 2013 Superfast Reader

Synopsis: A history and exposÃ© of Scientology. Review: Cults and Hollywood–two of my favorite non-fiction topics in one. I was so happy to pay any price to read Going Clear and I was not disappointed. Meticulously researched, extensively detailed, and thoroughly suspensful, I wish it had been twice as long. Crash writer/director Paul Haggis’s story weaves throughout the history of Scientology and it’s an amazing journey that really sheds light on the appeal of Scientology. Tom Cruise and John Travolta are discussed in detail, and…

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry