The Breakdown Lane by Jacquelyn Mitchard July 31, 2006

A woman is abandoned by her husband just as she learns she has multiple sclerosis. The story is told from the points of view of both the woman who is left and her son.

I listened to this book over several weeks. I usually listen to books while I drive, and this one kept my interest, though I wouldn’t say it captivated me. The story wasn’t at all original, but the characters were interesting, and the author was careful to show how flawed they were. I felt that I was drawn in despite myself, starting to care about characters who I didn’t really like in the beginning.

The book did have a really strange ending, though. Why pretend at the end that the book is not a novel, when it clearly is a novel? I would think about this more, but it makes my brain hurt.

One thing I am starting to realize as I listen to audiobooks is that I have a hard time with readers who do voices. The reader for this book is very talented, and can do a number of accents and voices, but I don’t think it added anything to the story. In fact, there were times when I felt disappointed that certain characters returned to the story because it meant listening to a certain voice or accent again.

A Stranger in Their Midst by Frank Delaney July 29, 2006

This book continues the saga of the Kane family, who are introduced in The Sins of the Mothers. Progress in the form of electricity begins to make its way into their small town, and this progress has devastating effects on the Kane family. A sociopath named Dennis Sykes worms his way into their lives, dividing them from one another.

The author has a lot to say about the way women in Ireland at the time were kept from knowledge—about themselves, about men, and about the world. The Catholic church plays a major part in this “morality,” which doesn’t allow for conversation or argument or anything but blind following. The reason that the women in the Kane family are so taken in by Dennis Sykes is that they have never been taught anything that would help them recognize him for what he is.

The book does answer some of the questions left unanswered in The Sins of the Mothers. It also introduces a new family who are Protestants living in a Catholic country, and treated badly in a reverse kind of prejudice from the country’s earlier Penal Laws.

This was a good read—often sad but always interesting.

The Diary of Lucy Blue by Janice Mitchell July 29, 2006

A behaviorist I consulted regarding my new dog suggested this book to me. Lucy Blue is a sheltie who came from a puppy mill. When she was rescued, she was so depressed that she was nearly catatonic. The book records her progress as she settles into her new home. It’s an interesting read for someone who has a dog who has “issues.” The author, the woman who fostered and eventually adopted Lucy Blue, records all the progress Lucy makes, and all her setbacks.

Since I’ve only had my new dog for a little over three weeks at this point, it was good for me to read how much a dog can improve in time. I also appreciated that the author included her own mistakes made while learning to deal with Lucy Blue. It’s so easy to go to far too quickly, and I sometimes need the reminder that these things take time.

The Sins of the Mothers by Frank Delaney July 20, 2006

This novel takes place not long after the Irish Civil War. A young woman moves to a small town to become a teacher and falls in love with the principal, a man with a past. It’s a fascinating portrayal of life in a small Irish town, with the secrets that no one is able to keep, and the struggles between the Protestants and Catholics that go on despite the end of the war.

What was really interesting in the novel was the author’s clear opinion on following a religion that tells you to abandon and ignore your feelings in order to follow archaic rules. The main character’s decision to follow the Catholic church rather than her own heart has devastating consequences for her.

This novel is apparently part of a trilogy, which I was happy to learn, since there were a number of unanswered questions left by the end of the story.

Kill the Messenger by Tami Hoag July 14, 2006

This is not the kind of novel I usually read, but I enjoyed it. I don’t read many mysteries or thrillers—they have to come to me through a Spiritfriend who pushes me to read them.

I liked the fast pace, the surprises, and the unexpected twists that went on in this story. It was like a well-done action movie. The only complaint I have about books like these is that they don’t go deeply enough into the characters for my taste. For example, the beginning of the book introduces us to Jace, the bike messenger, and hints at some mysteries in his past. But the mysteries were never revealed. We never learned why his mother seemed to be hiding and who it was they were supposed to call after she died.

This was a good read for a busy week—a book I could easily escape into for a few hours.

Ireland by Frank Delaney July 10, 2006

This is a wonderful novel. It begins with a boy who becomes fascinated by the traveling storyteller who comes to his home one night. It continues with the boy’s search for the storyteller, a search that takes him across the country.

The stories that are told throughout the novel are stories of the history of Ireland. Some are true, some are imagined. But all are wonderful. I really felt like I had learned a great deal about the country of Ireland when I was finished listening.

The audiobook was read by the author, and he did an amazing job.

Love in the Present Tense by Catherine Ryan Hyde July 10, 2006

I read this novel in one afternoon. I was captivated by it and by the characters, who were so richly drawn and sympathetic. The story is about love in its many forms. Leonard, one of the main characters, is five-years-old when his mother disappears. But before she does, she manages to give him the gift of “forever love,” which he is able to feel as he grows up.

Parented by the neighbor his mother leaves him with and a family who adopts him, Leonard never feels that his mother has left him.

The story switches point of view, from Leonard’s mother Pearl to Leonard to Mitch (the neighbor). I loved Leonard’s point of view the best—he had such a loving spirit that it was impossible not to love him as everyone in his life did.

The Position by Meg Wolitzer July 10, 2006

In the 1970s, a couple writes a sex manual, complete with drawings for which they were the models. The book becomes wildly popular. Thirty years later, the couple are divorced and they and their children are still dealing with the impact that the book had on all of their lives.

I read a book by Meg Wolitzer years ago called Friends for Life that I thought was wonderful. Since then I’ve always picked up her books when I find them in bookstores, but none of them have captivated me the way that the first book I read did. This book was no exception. I didn’t care for the characters at all. I just found the lives of some of them, especially vanished daughter Holly, so sad. And few people really managed to grow and change over the course of the story.

Seriously, if marriage is like any of the examples in this book, I will gladly stay single.

The Rug Merchant by Meg Mullins July 7, 2006

An Iranian man who now lives in the United States meets a young American college student. Both are lonely and unhappy when they meet and fall in love. This novel is the story of their relationship.

I think the author is talented, but I don’t think she was really able to write in the voice of an Iranian man. It just never really rang true to me. I might have liked the novel better if it had been written from the woman’s point of view. I also felt like the author could have described more of the characters’ actions, allowing the reader to interpret the feelings of the characters, rather than coming right out and explaining how every single character felt.

Another thing—I never felt that the characters were the ages they were supposed to be. Ushman seemed young for his age and Stella seemed old for her age.

I always know I’m not enjoying a book when I make excuses not to sit down and read it. This is one of those books. I finished it because I started it, but it didn’t really captivate me.

Digging to America by Anne Tyler July 1, 2006

Two baby girls arrive in the United States on the same day and join their adoptive families. The families happen to meet at the airport and forge a bond that lasts for years through their “Arrival Parties,” which celebrate that day. The story is full of cultural differences and things not said as the girls grow up and the families stay in contact.

There is no character in this novel that is truly sympathetic. I liked all of them to a point. At first, I had a hard time liking the character of Bitsy, who was so free with her sharing her opinions and ideas, especially when they weren’t wanted. Her father comments in the novel that the way she shares her opinions makes others want to disagree with her. I don’t know if her attitude is supposed to be American or just her own, but I found her hard to take. I did warm up to her later in the novel.

The novel did make me think about cultural differences in the United States, and what we take for granted.