I texted a friend who read this book while I was in the middle of it and said, “Good GOD American Psycho. I have never had such a visceral reaction to a book.” (Note: I had forgotten about the time I threw “Message in a Bottle” across the room because Nicholas Sparks – bleh. But I digress.) This book…this book. I had seen the movie long ago so I thought I was mentally prepared but boy was I wrong. Patrick Bateman’s descent into madness is […]
The Tourist that isn’t the Depp movie
Though I’m a fan of fiction and mysteries I don’t often pick up spy thrillers but my boyfriend enjoyed it so I figured I would give it a go, and I was not disappointed. (It didn’t hurt that the cover boasted a beaming recommendation from the one and only Stephen King.) Milo Weaver is a Tourist, a member of black ops of “The Company,” ie, the CIA and he is as good at his job as he is unhappy. I don’t want to say much […]
Understanding Laura Bush. Kinda.
Though I read “Prep” many years ago I really enjoyed it and was excited to see what else Sittenfeld had up her sleeve. This novel, loosely based on the life of First Lady Laura Bush, is a fictional memoir of Alice Blackwell, wife of the sitting president Charlie Blackwell. Beginning on “what might become one of the most significant days in her husband’s presidency,” Alice reflects on all the steps, and missteps, that have shaped her life and gotten her to this moment. […]
I’m a teenager and my world is ending. But seriously.
Not one to often pick up a young adult novel, I was intrigued by this month’s book club choice. Much like the protagonists, I had to fiercely struggle my way through Grasshopper Jungle, but I’m glad that I did. This book is, well, weird. The narrative choices are interesting and for the first half of the read for me, annoying and distracting. Our narrator is sixteen-year-old Austin and he prides himself on being a historian, with volumes written about the nothingness that happens in Ealing, […]
Like Justified, but with less moving pictures
This is my first Elmore Leonard read, and it will not be my last. I was introduced to Leonard through the show “Justified” which is based on his stories, and because of the unwavering devotion I have to the series, I suspected I’d enjoy his works, and I was right. With rich dialogue, unique characters and a twisty plot, Leonard tells a story you just can’t put down. George Moran lives a quiet life as a hotel owner in Miami who through a chain […]
Scientology: somehow worse than I thought
Whoa nelly. Before this read I had what I would describe as a cursory understanding of Scientology. I knew about L. Ron Hubbard and the foundation of this “religion” (note the purposeful quotation marks), its science fiction roots, its adoption by many celebrities, and the weight of the church that fell upon members who chose to leave. What I didn’t know could fill a book, this book apparently. Jenna Miscavige Hill is the niece of David Miscavige, the current head of the Church of […]