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.The Lucky One
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Nicholas Sparks

September 30, 2008
After seeing this book was #2 on the NYT bestseller's list, I read the jacket and dove in. The book starts extremely well with a modern and interesting narrative. The flashback scenes are well done and at no time lose the reader.

About 2/3's of the way into the book, the characters become well defined and start to gain a mild complexity. Unfortunately that is where the development stops. In an attempt to create a dramatic ending the book takes on a sit com like aspect. The characters become one dimensional, the story line predictable and you feel the author racing to create a tidy ending.

If the author had further developed the auxiliary characters and ending, it could of been on par with similar books in this genre ... Read More:
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.The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows

July 29, 2008
I rarely give a book 5 stars- BUT this one has it all. Well-drawn and interesting characters, an incredible setting, dire circumstances, suspense....and even a tiny bit of romance. It is told in the form of letters-an epistolary tale, an unusual and often difficult way to tell a story. But it works beautifully here.

Set in 1946, following World War II, author Juliet Ashton receives a letter from a man, Dawsey Adams, who has purchased a used book by Charles Lamb. This book has Juliet's name and London address written inside the front cover. Touched by his love of Lamb, Juliet goes out of her way to get him more books, and replies, asking him more about some of the stories in the first letter, specifically the Guernsey Literary and Potato ... Read More:
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.Infinite Jest
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: David Foster Wallace

November 13, 2006
Sadly, IJ will forever now remain as DFW's crowning piece of work. We'll always have to wonder how many more IJs and beyond he had in him.

That said, this book is incomprehensibly fantastic. I'm not sure many, if any, could understand the full breadth of it. But, there is something here for every reader. Stephen Hawking, as well as your fourteen year old sister could read it and recognize part of their existence in it. That's part of its majesty.

The real majesty is nothing more than Wallace, himself. His mind was a tormented, brilliant, colossal thing...and much of it is laid out for us here. A must read for everyone. Even if you don't finish the footnotes.
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.Tsar: A Thriller
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Ted Bell

September 23, 2008
I have read all of Bell's books and with all the hype about this one I eagerly looked forward to it. As I said in the title to this review it was
very readable and quite enjoyable until I hit a patch in the book which rather than explain, because it might detract from a reader's enjoyment of it, I will simply say that Hawke's encounter with Valerie Putin required "a willing suspension of disbelief." However, once by that, the book roared back to life and the conclusion is certainly a rouser.


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.Home: A Novel
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Marilynne Robinson

September 02, 2008
In Home, 38-year-old Glory Boughten returns to her childhood home to care for her dying father, a retired Presbyterian minister. Not long after Glory's arrival, her wayward brother Jack arrives after a twenty-year absence. By returning home, Glory and Jack are fleeing unhappy pasts and confronting inner turmoil. Robinson shows Glory and Jack reconnecting in slow, weighty dialog that emphasizes just how serious things are. The story is filled with religious discussions, regretful confessions, and also plenty of forgiveness. Movements are small, comments are oblique, and nothing much happens. Eventually, a secret is revealed about Jack, but, by that point in the story, we realize Home is not about what happens. Instead, it's about revealing the meaning of this life by ... Read More:
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.A Thousand Splendid Suns
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Khaled Hosseini

May 22, 2007
I enjoyed the book. Despite having a mostly sad story line, the two female main characters demonstrated courage, love, and hope in an otherwise brutal and oppressive marriage. This book is not for children since it frequently describes sexual encounters in a somewhat graphic, though tasteful, manner.

No need to recount the story since other reviewers have already done that. I'll just express some thoughts that occurred to me as I read the book:

1) The book describes at least two lines of Islamic thought. One is the oppressive, brutal Taliban variety that treats women harshly, prohibits them from study or work, and views them as male property. The other is a more open minded, progressive variety that encourages women to learn and work. The author clearly ... Read More:
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.Consider the Lobster: And Other Essays
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: David Foster Wallace

July 02, 2007
If your a Professor of English this book might be up your alley. Otherwise, stay away!

The first essay is about an adult film awards show. it's lengthy and rather hilarious. But the rest of the book is a snoozer.
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.I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Tucker Max

January 01, 2006
Tucker Max admits he's a jerk but he somehow thinks recounting endless vomiting sessions, discussing the many times he's acted like a shallow, abusive pig, and relaying the details of his bodily fluid excretions is worth a book. There are a few funny bits _ the Breathalyzer one at the beginning comes to mind _ but it all gets tedious really fast. It's frat-boy trash humor by a pampered kid who thinks he's being cute or profound, or something. You want to grab this idiot by the throat, shake him and say: "Grow up and care about someone else!" That said, maybe the book goes down better after a few shots of Jaegermeister. Better yet, save your money for the booze.
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.Unaccustomed Earth
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Jhumpa Lahiri

April 01, 2008
As we've come to expect from Jhumpa Lahiri, this collection of eight short stories examines the immigrant experience in America, including the difficulties of adjusting to a new culture and workplace and the clashes between immigrant parents and their fully American children. Lahiri's stories, however, are not limited to immigrant issues but address global issues relevant worldwide: how we need our parents, how we develop our independence, and how we give up that independence to form lasting relationships. More than anything, these stories capture the search for a comfortable identity.

Lahiri's writing is rich with detail and complexity, making these short stories seem more like novels that end too soon. Lahiri's style is powerful. There's no sentimentality here but plenty of sensitivity ... Read More:
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.Just After Sunset: Stories
City Travel Guides > Books > United States
by: Stephen King

November 11, 2008
As we've come to expect from Jhumpa Lahiri, this collection of eight short stories examines the immigrant experience in America, including the difficulties of adjusting to a new culture and workplace and the clashes between immigrant parents and their fully American children. Lahiri's stories, however, are not limited to immigrant issues but address global issues relevant worldwide: how we need our parents, how we develop our independence, and how we give up that independence to form lasting relationships. More than anything, these stories capture the search for a comfortable identity.

Lahiri's writing is rich with detail and complexity, making these short stories seem more like novels that end too soon. Lahiri's style is powerful. There's no sentimentality here but plenty of sensitivity ... Read More:
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