My reading was hindered (no complaints here, though) by a great South American adventure in the fall, but I managed to wrap up my last half dozen before the New Year's ball drops.
This batch of books got me thinking about why we like a certain book. Some books might not be the greatest literary work but you still love them; while some books might be admired and loved simply for the literature itself - and that's the feeling I had reading my last half-dozen. Sometimes it's the emotion that gets you and sometimes it's just the beauty of words.
Maybe there's a book in here that you'd like to put on your New Year's TBR list (or there's still time to cozy up with a book and an eggnog before the old year ends).
In the order they were read, my last half dozen:
The Book Swap - Even if this book might be best suited for the millennium demographic, I really liked it a lot. Despite the cute cover, there’s a warning right at the front of this book that the story contains emotional topics such as “terminal illness, death, grief and illness, bullying and mental illness”. It’s certainly not a romantic comedy. Erin has experienced a recent tragedy, not to mention some unaddressed issues from her past, and at some level knows she needs to make some changes but is rather stuck in her self-absorption. As she starts to declutter her life, she decides to donate her books to a little community library, but in the process, mistakenly donates her favourite book, To Kill a Mockingbird, which contains a small treasure which she desperately wants back. This starts Erin’s relationship with a pen pal who comes to be known as her Mystery Man who borrows and then returns To Kill a Mockingbird to the community library with new comments in the margins and a note inside for her to read Great Expectations; and this pattern continues throughout the story as they exchange favourite books and notes in the margins. Eventually, their real life identities become known, and they realize they have a lot to unravel and painful decisions to make. The strength of this novel is that the two main characters face real life issues of illness and victimization and poor decisions, along with the accompanying self-doubt and guilt and anger that hold them back. There are so many words of wisdom in this little book. It’s about letting go, forgiving, honesty, confronting fears, taking chances, letting life unfold, resilience, navigating life, having hope, and giving ourselves permission to move forward. And if you like reading and books, you will love the references to everything from To Kill a Mockingbird to the Great Gatsby to On The Road. It’s a good reminder of the importance of books and the power of words. There are some great discussion questions at the end. Think about the different types of love in this novel. It would be a good pick for a book club; and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it made into a movie. Rating: 4/5
Pink Glass Houses - Ahhh, where to begin? This book is off the charts on so many levels. It’s funny, sarcastic, catty, cutting, and irreverent and contains lots of vulgarity but it's also observant and insightful and an intriguing social study. I, strangely, got drawn into it and read it in a day or so. I felt like a guilty voyeur peeking through a window. The story is set In Miami Beach which as they say, is a “sunny place for shady people” full of the rich, wealthy, and ultra wealthy; and the story centres around the Parent Teacher Association of the Sunset Academy which prides itself on being a public school but, like everything else in Miami Beach, is not like any public school that I attended. Charlotte is the blow-dried fund raiser striving to become the next president of the PTA. Melody is the down-to-earth new transplant from Wichita, Kansas, who feels she has walked into another world. Darcy is the self-appointed moralizer who would never stoop to the lows of the other PTA moms. Throw in the ultra-rich Walkers who literally live in a pink glass house and whose extravagant donations are gladly accepted by the Sunset Academy PTA. You’re probably not going to like any of these characters much. Amidst the over-the-top theme parties, designer ‘everything’, gossip, swimming pools, play dates, and a competition to be the new president of the PTA, you soon learn that nothing in Miami Beach is at it seems.
This is a fast, easy read that feels as if author Asha Elias is sharing the local gossip over a glass of wine. It is told in short, alternating chapters in the first person of all the characters interspersed by letters to the parents of the Sunset Academy and by interviews with the ultra-wealthy Walkers. This book is a laugh if you like sarcasm and scandal (and if you’ve sat on a few dysfunctional committees); but it’s also a nice reminder to think about who we are and who we want to be and who we align ourselves with in this life. It’s easy to get sucked into the status quo. Who stays the same and who changes for better or worse? Rating: 3/5
Shred Sisters - Ollie and Amy are the Shred sisters. The story is told in the first person perspective of younger sister Amy. As a youngster, Ollie was beautiful, talented, had a big personality, and lived life loudly, with little planning and with full confidence in herself and the future. This put her constantly in the spotlight while Amy was more quiet and introspective and methodical in everything. She had big plans for her academic future. Even as youngsters, you could already see the family system adjusting to accommodate and enable Ollie’s behaviour. As the sisters grow older, Ollie’s behaviour morphs into mental illness which as we know affects all members of a family and sometimes alters the very structure of the family unit itself. Ollie continues to have power over the family simply by her unpredictability and the attention her behaviour demands. Amy, meanwhile, is growing up and trying to find her way. Despite having the potential to be successful in academics and publishing, her life and decisions continue to be affected not only by Ollie’s behaviour but also by her own craving for love and acceptance. Shred Sisters addresses some touchy topics of mental health and addictions and infidelity and family dysfunction and therapy– and also that complex and tenuous relationship between sisters. And it’s about the need to become realistic and to become ourselves, and to make our own decisions and our own way despite the situation we have been dealt. Can family bonds persist? We can still love without giving ourselves up. I quite liked this book. It’s not heavy on plot or action but there is a lot of food for thought. Rating: 3.5/5
Blue Sisters - Blue Sisters is another in a common genre right now, the relationship between sisters; but Blue Sisters does a deep dive into the tenuousness and confusion and conflict and love and endurance that is the strange bond of sisterhood. And the Blue sisters, between the four of them, are the epitome of the complexities of the sister relationship. This book, especially the first half, is raw and graphic in it’s dealings with grief, addictions, and sexuality. There’s nothing humourous about it. So you might not like it if these are sensitive topics for you, but some reviewers love it for the emotion. Avery is the eldest sister, the most educated, and the most serious, having to look out for her three younger siblings and keep them safe as children, away from the ravages of an alcoholic father. She’s had her own issues with addictions but fought that on her own at a young age to become an accomplished lawyer. She and her wife live in a well-to-do neighbourhood in London, England. She, seemingly, has it all together. Bonnie, the second eldest, is the most physical and most introverted of the four sisters. She is a world class boxer who quit boxing after a devastating loss and is now a bouncer in a bar in Los Angeles. She hides all emotions in her physical outlets. The youngest sister, Lucky, is a beautiful, tall, lean model in Paris whose very appearance opens doors but whose hard lifestyle on the side threatens her very existence. And the third sister? Nicky was the most loved, the most feminine and the most emotional of the four sisters, and her premature death a year prior has sent each of the other sisters into a tailspin. They are all lost in some way and growing apart from each other. A year after Nicky’s death, they reunite in their childhood home to wrap up affairs, so to speak, and here it is that they have to face and navigate their grief, their childhoods, and their feelings towards each other. The story is told in the third person in alternating chapters of the three remaining sisters. It’s less about plot than character development, and you come to know each of the four sisters (Nicky included) really well. It was a little too graphic for me. Rating: 3/5
Hair For Men - This little novel is on several lists as one of the Finest Canadian novels of 2024. It really drew me in and grew on me as I joined protagonist Louise journeying from teenager to mature woman. I initially thought it was going to be really harsh and gruesome but, spoiler alert, Louise doesn’t actually have any dead body parts in bags. I don’t think the book goes to extremes in any way. Instead of simply being negative towards men as some feminist novels tend to do, the novel portrays men as having a vulnerable side that needs to be drawn out and empowers women to determine for themselves how they want to feel and act towards men. Louise is 16 when she looks back at her father’s attempts to toughen her up for the world and maybe give her a lesson about men while instilling in her a love of cutting men’s hair. Louise is tall and well-developed and is the victim of misconduct by some loathsome teenage boys which burns in her a rage towards men. As a way of coping, she immediately changes her entire persona to become one of the punk culture, adapting the clothes, the hair, the music, the skateboard, and the violence of the mosh pits. As a 19 year old, Louise acquires an apparent dream job in a men’s salon, Hair For Men, tucked far away in a dark industrial area where men are more free to show their vulnerable side, and her own perspective starts to soften. But this world is blown apart suddenly, and Louise escapes to the East Coast of Canada to start over as a dockmaster at a marina. It is here that she gets a chance, over many years, to reset her views and emotions, with some new acquaintances - and a blast from the past. This book manages to combine some harshness with tenderness and plenty of words of wisdom, all with the underlying influence of one of Canada’s most popular bands, the Tragically Hip, who just might be a symbol or metaphor for the whole meaning behind this novel. I just might read it again because I know I missed some of the value of this book and some of the Canadiana casually tossed in such as Tim Horton’s, Alanis Morisette, Moosehead Lager. . . . This would be a great book club discussion book. Rating: 4/5
Intermezzo - Intermezzo is on many of the ‘best book’ lists of 2024. It's a long, character-driven, novel that requires attentive reading. Some reviewers thought the story was stereotypical in it’s portrayal of men and women and in the portrayal of a person with neurodivergent traits. There is graphic sexuality, addictions, and suicidal thoughts. And if you are an English grammar purist, be aware that Sally Rooney has a signature writing style consisting of long paragraphs, no quotation marks, and incomplete sentences. Ivan and Peter are brothers living in Ireland, divided by a 10 year age gap and by personalities as different as possible. Peter is a smooth and accomplished lawyer who masks his insecurities and emotional issues with drugs and alcohol. He’s in love with two very different women, one 10 years younger than himself and one his first true love. Younger brother Ivan is a gifted chess player with a less than stable income. He sees the world differently, thinks differently, and is awkward in social situations. He, too, is full of insecurities. He finds acceptance in a much older woman. In their grief over their father’s recent death, the brothers are forced to consider their lives and their upbringing. Their relationship with each other suffers from mutual misunderstandings, judgement, personal pain, and hurtful actions; but they are both seeking love and belonging and understanding. Several lesser characters in the book – even the pet dog Alexei – give meaning to the story. The title “Intermezzo” is interesting. An ‘intermezzo’ might be a connecting interlude in a musical piece or it might be a surprise chess move between other tactical movements. Think how these meanings apply to the story line and then think about how all our lives have ‘intermezzos’ at some point. This book is worth checking out for it's depth and for it's journey through grief and finding love. It is sure to elicit a lot of opinions and might be a good book club discussion pick. I suspect you will either love it - or not. Rating: 4.5/5
And that completes my last half dozen. In order of my preference: 1) Intermezzo 2) Hair For Men 3) The Book Swap 4) Shred Sisters 5) Blue Sisters 6) Pink Glass Houses
Have a Happy New Year!
"A word after a word after a word is power" - Margaret Atwood
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