What I've Been Reading Lately: October 2022
Here are the books I've read in the month of October. It was a month of long walks and a trip to New Jersey to spend time with my mom while she had surgery. I read on rainy, grey mornings and late at night cuddled up under covers. I just love October!
by: Christopher Priest
A friend of mine read this and said she loved it. The description sounded too good to resist: two rival magicians working at the turn of the twentieth century spend years trying to best each other. The ramifications are WILD.
Like my friend, I loved this book and the experience was enhanced by watching the movie after I finished it. The movie was very different from the book but that didn't bother me...I mean, Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman, you can't go wrong. The book lagged a little in the middle but I loved the creepy, dark, and twisty vibes of this one.
by: Andrew Sean Greer
I loved this book when I read it years ago and I'm happy to report that I love it still. Less is a must-read for any wannabe authors (like me!). The way Greer writes so candidly about the creative life and Arthur Less' inner struggles were absolutely relatable. And I was here for the drama and the travel. But one thing that surprised me about the book the second time through was the way it really showed the reader what it meant to be a gay person who lived through the AIDS crisis. That sounds really dark, and it was a dark time, but this book puts it in context and makes the reader empathize with Less who has his future before him and is left saying, "Now what?" This is a book I know I will reread again just because I love Arthur Less so dang much.
by: Mary Shelley
I read Frankenstein in college and I remember enjoying it. But it got lumped in with other gothic horror novels and the class moved on and so did I.
Cut to, October 2022. One of my daughters was reading it for school and I had a long drive ahead of me. On a lark, I looked it up on audible. It was only two hours long. Two hours! I downloaded it and hit play as I was pulling out of my driveway.
The plot was twistier than I remembered. Despite the fact that everyone seems to know the story of Dr. Frankenstein and his monster I still found myself holding my breath in suspense. There were a lot more murders than I remembered. And when characters seemed a tad melodramatic I reminded myself that Mary Shelley wrote this at eighteen years old.
If you're looking for a quick classic that dips its toe into the genres of sci-fi, horror, and psychological thriller, look no further than Frankenstein.
by: James McBride
After I read Deacon King Kong by McBride I decided I needed to read some of the man's backlist. This is where I started. It didn't hurt that there was a mini-series ready and waiting for me on showtime.
This book was emotional, smart, historical, brutal, and FUNNY.
The story centers on a real historical figure, John Brown, and an invented but equally dynamic character, Onion. Onion is a boy who gets mistaken for a girl and goes along with John Brown and his rag-tag army as they begin the war on slavery.
I can't stop thinking about Onion and Brown. McBride's portrayal of his characters left an indelible mark on my brain and made me hope for the courage to do the right thing when the against injustice battle comes my way. If that's not a five-star book, I don't know what is.
(And the miniseries was a banger too)
by: Audrey Magee
I heard about this gem on bookstagram. It was long-listed for the booker prize and I can see why. I wish this novel was getting more attention because it is brilliant.
A man goes to a remote Irish colony to paint. That's what it's about. But what the author did with that was inspiring and as artistic as any brushstroke in a Gauguin painting. Though it sounds like it might be slow, it was not. The pacing kept me up at night, turning page after page after page.
Magee uses poetry to depict the paintings. And it works. The way she shaded and sketched with words was gorgeous and surprising.
For such a simple plot, the themes are deep. Art, language, loss, culture, violence. The time period is during the troubles in Ireland and Magee explores how even the tiny island is affected by this.
Smart but accessible. Innovative but traditional. This book is a contender for my top ten books of the year.
by: Daniel Nayeri
This was good. Maybe better on audio, though? The thing is, it took me a minute (or about 75 pages) to get into the flow and rhythm of the story. Once I was in, I loved it.
In this middle-grade novel, Daniel flees Iran with his mother and sister. The author is open about saying that it's semi-autobiographical and I think that's part of what makes the story so compelling.
I loved the way this book gave a crash course on Persian culture, religious conflict in Iran, and myths and legends from the middle east. Plus, my husband is Persian and he also left Iran when he was a boy so I felt an immediate connection with the main character/author.
When I was finished, I wanted to hug Daniel Nayeri and the book. I wanted a part two: Daniel in high school, and a part three: Daniel in college. I'm glad I stuck with it because it comes together into a beautiful story that weaves in tall tales and Persian food and a few well-timed miracles.
How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water
by: Angie Cruz
I listened to this on audio and it was a delight. I loved the narrator who turns this book into a PERFORMANCE. I wanted to give her an Oscar.
This book combined two things I love, the immigrant experience and an older protagonist. Cara Romero recounts the story of her life to a job counselor and we get to sit in on these sessions. She has not been immune from hardship and she has made plenty of mistakes, but the book rang with hope and you just root for Cara to get a break, to not give up.
I finished this early in the month and I can't stop thinking about Cara.
by: Donna Tartt
My oldest daughter picked this off the shelves in our library before she left for college. When I saw her reading it, I knew it was time for a reread. I read it a long time ago when my kids were small and I only kind of liked it then.
This time I lost myself in the novel. The characters were horrible but I don't mind that. They did dumb stuff, but don't all college kids? And somehow, even though you know who is murdered and who the murderers are on page one, Tartt manages to hold you in tension for 600+ pages. The final climactic scene took my breath away.
A reread can be a really good thing.
by: Yiyun Li
When I closed this book I looked up and said, "What the hell did I just read?"
I'm not sure if I loved this book or not. The writing was the strongest in the beginning. I couldn't put it down and found myself highlighting line after line. But then in the middle the pacing slowed and it almost became a grind.
Two girls write a book in the French countryside and the book becomes an international bestseller. That's the plot. But what the author does with it is a meditation on ambition, fame, death, compromise, class, and love.
I've seen comparisons to My Brilliant Friend. Honestly, I think I liked that one better. But I've seen this one getting a lot of love on the internet so I may be in the minority. I have a book club to discuss The Book of Goose this week and I hope that helps me clarify my feelings...
by: Elissa Sussman
If you're looking for a romance where you have to suspend your disbelief a little but it's still really fun, look no further. I had so much fun listening to this audiobook on walks and drives this month.
It gets a little steamy toward the end and there was one tiny detail at the very, very end that made me cringe. But I loved the way Sussman develops the chemistry between the main characters.
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches
by: Sangu Mandanna
It was a fun change of pace that I've heard compared to The House on the Cerulean Sea (which I'm reading next month for book club).
So...what are you reading?
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