*Sweet Tooth by
Ian McEwan “is a suspenseful plot-and-character-driven novel with an unexpected
postmodern twist.” Serena is brilliant and beautiful, a speed-reading lit geek
and Oxford math major, who is recruited by MI5 in the 1970s. “Sweet Tooth” is her only operational
assignment which is to infiltrate and influence the literary circle of a
promising young writer named Tom Haley.
Although slow at times, the book offers a bit of suspense, romance,
political intrigue and insight into the human psyche.
Hallucinations,
according to Oliver Sachs, are not the exclusive property of the
insane. More commonly, they are linked
to sensory deprivation, drugs, intoxication, illness, or injury. Told largely through
well-crafted anecdotes, Sacks
emphasizes Charles Bonnet syndrome, a
condition characterized by intricate visual hallucinations and his own
experience with hallucinogenic compounds.
The book is moderately engaging, but I did not find it substantive.
*Gone Girl by
Gillian Flynn is masterful, witty and humorous
suspense story about a marriage
gone terribly wrong. On Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding
anniversary, clever and beautiful Amy disappears. Her diary is found, and Nick is exposed as a lying, cheating jerk, but the alpha-girl Amy could put anyone on edge. Under
mounting pressure to find the person responsible for a wealth of clues, the
police become increasing focus on Nick.
“Marriage can be a real killer,” but just how guilty is Nick?
The Boy Kings of
Texas: A Memoir by Domingo Martinez is a “lyrical and authentic book that
recounts the story of a border-town family in Brownsville, Texas in the 1980's.” It is a tribute to all the smart kids who
knew they had to leave home or die or boredom. “Martinez lushly captures the
mood of the era and illuminates the struggles of a family hobbled by poverty.”
**Flight Behavior by
Barbara Kingsolver is “is a brilliant and suspenseful novel set in present day
Appalachia; a breathtaking parable of catastrophe and denial.” The story
introduces a young wife and mother on a failing farm in rural Tennessee who
experiences something she cannot explain and how that discovery energizes
diverse factions—religious leaders, climate scientists, environmentalists,
politicians to address issues of
poverty, consumerism, illusion and fear. “Flight Behavior
is arguably Kingsolver's must thrilling and accessible novel to date” and the
best fiction I’ve read in over a year.
What’s a Dog For? The Surprising History, Science, Philosophy, and Politics of Man's Best Friend by John Homans explores the dog’s complex and prominent place in our world and how they evolved from wild animals to working animals to nearly human members of our social fabric. Homan reviews the extensive serious scientific studies concerning pet ownership, evolutionary theory, and even cognitive science. He explores how dogs moved into our families, homes, and beds in the span of a generation, while becoming a $53 billion industry in the United States in the process.
*Ancient Light by
John Banville portrays an actor, Alexander
Cleave, in the twilight of his career as
he plumbs the memories of his first love
(when he was fifteen) with the mother of
his best friend. The story explores the impact of his daughter’s madness, a movie role
portraying an enigmatic literary figure
and his young, famous and fragile leading lady.
“Ancient Light is a profoundly moving meditation on love and
loss, on the inscrutable immediacy of the past in our present lives.”
