This year I'm going to blog about each book as I finish it, because none of these books is going to get the attention or criticism it deserves. Mostly because my memory is very, very poor.
Rating System:
**** = Amazing, Fantastic, Life-Changing
*** = Excellent & Worth a Read
** = Not a Complete Waste of Time but I Probably Wouldn't Recommend It
* = Blech!
And I don't do that half-star nonsense.
Let's just go in the order I read them. I should say "read." A fair number of these were audio books (have I mentioned that I have a long commute?), which is a different experience from reading a book, but not so different that they can't be judged under the same criteria. I try to listen to only unabridged audio books, but sometimes a book was too enticing and only the abridged version was available.
The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
I loved this book. What can I say? I remember talking to a friend a long time ago and him telling me that Jonathan Franzen received some negative criticism on his previous novel and was all,
you just wait and see, my next one is the next great American novel, and he miraculously lived up to his own hype. So, ten years later, I finally got around to checking it out myself, and I would have to agree. It's deeply dark, yet hilarious. Rich, colorful characters. The whole book felt genuine. I love the casting of Diane Weiss and Chris Cooper for HBO's pilot. But I'm not sure about Noah Baumbach. I know he'll capture the darkness, I'm just not sure about the funny, and that's what makes
The Corrections special. Best book I read in 2011. ****
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
I've picked this one up a couple of times but never made it through until this year. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's dark, but I think there's a rom com hidden in their somewhere. I'm going to try and dig it out. ***
The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon
Liked the first half of the book, then my interest dwindled. I didn't like the ending, either. It's the same ending that's been done better in other classic novels. **
Room by Emma Donoghue
This started out promising as well, but I really don't get the hype with this one. Yes, it's a good idea. But I don't think the execution was the best. The character inconsistencies are too noticeable to overlook. The suspension of disbelief is too much. Also, I don't know why this story was set in the U.S. I mean, I know we've had terrible kidnapping incidents like the one in the book in the U.S., but the author was clearly not American, made blazingly clear by her word choices. I can't remember specifically, but it was akin to referring to the bathroom as the loo on more than one occasion. I just wish she would've set it in whatever country she's from because it would've been one less thing that rubbed me the wrong way. **
Waiting by Ha Jin
This one is tricky. The writing was solid, but I wasn't whisked away or sucked into the story. But, again, excellent writing. ***
The Love of a Good Woman by Alice Munro
Not as good as last year's favorite
Runaway, but Alice Munro is a great writer and these short stories don't disappoint. ***
East of Eden by John Steinbeck
This was not as good as I'd expected. I loved
The Grapes of Wrath and this one didn't hold up. Lots of very unnatural sounding conversations. Don't think Steinbeck would've made a good screenwriter. **
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (audio book)
Hmmm. I expected to cry and did not, which was probably good as I was driving. Maybe my focus was in the wrong place, but I just kept being pulled from the emotional center of this book from the author's name dropping. Hotel name dropping. I think I have a problem: my empathy runs thin for wealthy people. Or maybe my empathy runs thin for wealthy people who talk about having no money on their honeymoon and then saying eff it and going to the Beverly Hills Hotel. Um. And. No. That is not what not having money is. And then later living in the Beverly Wilshire for months at a time (this time it was acknowledged that there was money). Maybe if I didn't live in L.A. and know where and how much these hotels are. But, why all the hotel name dropping? And why did these small details emphasizing privelidge comletely push me away from the story? Death is death. Sickness is sickness. But my empathy isn't empathy. **
Divisadero by Michael Ondaatje (audio book)
So I was reading this book about these three characters, and I was wrapped up in it, and then it got all cliffhangery and we went to a different set of characters who were a snore and... wait for it... never went back to the original characters. When it comes to books & movies, I try to know as little as possible before experiencing. I change channels to avoid trailers, I don't read reviews. I don't read the backs of books before checking them out. Halfway through this book I read the back cover because I was confused on who this book was supposed to be about. And, wouldn't you know, the back cover described the first, interesting storyline, never to be resolved. So I wasn't crazy after all. *
The Rug Merchant by Meg Mullins (audio book)
Meg Mullins is excellent with dialogue. I wonder how many screenplays she written. If she hasn't written any, she should. ***
When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris (audio book)
Perhaps not his best collection, but thoroughly enjoyable as always. And I love that he reads his own book. **
On Beauty by Zadie Smith (audio book)
Zadie Smith might just be my new favorite writer. Can't wait to read
White Teeth. What a great voice. This one was another dysfunctional family saga, much like
The Corrections, but funnier and not as dark. Which did not translate into a lighter read/listen. ****
A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon (audio book - abridged)
I loved
The Curious Incident of the Dog In the Night-Time, so I decided to settle for the abridged version of this. It has the trademark Mark Haddon humor. Didn't find the lead character as sympathetic as I would've liked to. But I suppose that added to the humor. Also, I don't know what was cut out, but this didn't feel abridged. So, good job, whoever edited this. But I'm not going to rate it due to the abridgement.
The Devil in the White City by Eric Larson (audio book - abridged)
This one, on the other hand, felt abridged. Mostly because it was really good and I wanted more. A serial killer against the amazing backdrop of the World's Fair. And a true story! Come on? This would be a movie if it wasn't so expensive to make. It made me miss Chicago and realize how little I know about a city I lived in for four years. No rating due to abridgement.
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri (audio book)
An amazing collection of short stories. It's been months since I finished it, and the last line of the last story still haunts me. ****
The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett (audio book)
Not as good as
Bel Canto, but a solid read. My only gripe is that I don't think Ann Patchett is very good at endings. She has rich characters, interesting plots, and then comes time for the ending and...yeah.
Bel Canto's ending felt completely rushed and tacked on to me.
TMA fared slightly better but it still felt too sudden. Amazing how a slightly-off ending can change your entire opinion about a book. ***
I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron (audio book)
Nora Ephron is my screenwriting hero and she could read the doodles on her napkin and I would think it was funny.***
