The World to Come by Dara Horn October 28, 2006

I found this story to be hopeful and optimistic, despite all the terrible things that happen to the characters in this novel. They survive pogroms, prisons in the Soviet Union from which they will never return, the Vietnam War, bombings, and a great deal of loss. They also find great love and passion in their lives, and the will to survive.

The story begins with Ben, who steals a Chagall painting from a museum, believing that it was the painting that hung on the wall of his childhood home. His twin sister Sara, who is an artist, decides to make a forgery of the painting to return to the museum, to keep her brother out of trouble. The novel moves through a variety of points of view from the twins to their grandfather, mother, father, the museum curator who knows that Ben stole the painting, and a Yiddish novelist known as Der Nister. There is even a chapter from the point of view of Sara’s unborn child in the land of Not-Yet.

I found myself having a lot of emotional reactions to the story, reactions that kept me thinking of it long after I’d put it down. It made me cry several times, and it made me angry several times, too. But the magic in the story, and the love, are what eventually stuck with me.

Rise and Shine by Anna Quindlen October 27, 2006

This book was effective in portraying the relationship between sisters and how sisters can say horrible things to each other, can do all sorts of things that would ruin a friendship, yet cannot break their connection to one another. The sisters in this novel have a deep bond as they lost their parents at an early age and turned to each other. Though one sister is the most famous woman on television and the other a social worker, they are incredibly important in one another’s lives.

Bridget, the main character and the social-worker sister, spends much of the novel explaining why it is that she lives in New York City, almost in a defensive way. I thought the book was a compelling view of why New York City is beloved (and hated) by so many people. But so much of the book seemed to be a justification that I wanted to tell the main character, “It’s OK. I wasn’t really wondering why you chose to live in New York City. I accept that you do.”

The book had a tendency to move from scene to scene a little too quickly, and what seemed like a reminiscence suddenly was another scene. At one point in the novel, the main character was having dinner with a couple who were friends of hers, then thought about a dinner she had with her boyfriend, and suddenly the scene moved to the new dinner and never went back to the first. It distracted me a few times to realize that something wasn’t a flashback, but a whole new scene.

So it wasn’t my favorite novel ever, but a good story and a good way to spend an afternoon.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen October 20, 2006

I really liked this book. The characters were interesting and the animals unforgettable, which always makes for a good read. The novel takes place in the present, when Jacob Jankowski is living in a nursing home, and 70 years before, when he worked for a circus during the depression.

It was hard to read about the conditions of the animals and the people (note the mention of “animals” first) who belonged to the circus. And it was really hard to read about the Very Bad Things that kept happening to the elephant. Poor Rosie! I really felt drawn into the story and captivated by the imagery and the lives of the people.

Incantation by Alice Hoffman October 20, 2006

This was a short novel, but, like everything else I’ve read by Alice Hoffman, very enjoyable. The story takes place in Spain at the beginning of the 16th century, and is the story of a young girl who learns that she is stronger than she ever could have imagined.

Estrella learns her family’s big secret just as tragedy strikes, and finds within her the strength to survive. Her transformation is the heart of this book.

When Madeline Was Young by Jane Hamilton October 11, 2006

Madeline is a young married woman when she has a bike accident that leaves her with the mind of a six-year-old. She is cared for by her husband and his second wife, and is essentially raised along with their children. The story is narrated by Mac, who considers Madeline his sister.

This story didn’t have much of a plot, but it was interesting to get a glimpse into the life of a very unusual family. Mac is not the most interesting of characters—he is on the passive side and resents his more colorful cousin Buddy, who reveals his family’s secret to Mac when he is a child. Mac’s mother is the most interesting character in the novel, and it would have been interesting to read the story from her point of view. What would go through the mind of a woman who holds her husband’s first wife in her lap to comfort her?

I felt like this book took me weeks to read.  It was a well-written story that could have used a little more excitement.

One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson October 9, 2006

This book is the sequel to Case Histories, and revisits the character of Jackson Brodie, former police investigator and private detective. This book is another mystery novel which takes seemingly unrelated characters and brings them all together in an often-surprising way. Even at the end, when everything seems to have been explained, the author throws in another surprise.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

Paint it Black by Janet Fitch October 9, 2006

I really liked White Oleander, the previous novel written by this author, but this book didn’t really capture my interest. Paint it Black is the story of a woman named Josie whose boyfriend Michael kills himself. The novel focuses on the grief that Josie feels and her relationship with her boyfriend’s possibly crazy mother, who tries to strangle Josie at Michael’s funeral.

The book really drags for a while as Josie tries to live a life without Michael. It picks up when Michael’s mother Meredith forces her way into Josie’s life, as her every move seems sinister and her interest in Josie becomes suspect. But the story never really takes off, it just kind of drifts along.

Josie is a sympathetic character and her grief process really does ring true. It’s just hard to read chapter after chapter of grief and self destruction. The book does manage to end on a hopeful note—of sorts—and the journey down the 10 Freeway that the main character takes is an interesting one, especially for someone who grew up seeing the same landmarks.