The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante
…I state, after only reading two of her novels and two of her shorter pieces…but at this rate, I am all-in on Elena Ferrante and I am STILL mad at myself for taking this long to catch on. I’m two books deep in the Neapolitan Novels, but I had to interrupt my trajectory for two reasons: I needed to read this story before seeing the new (read: 2021) film adaptation I need to see the film in order to solidify all of my (mostly negative) […]
Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District by Nikolai Leskov
ESPECIALLY if you are the one to damn them into a life of boredom. I sought out this short story after being utterly enthralled by the 2016 Florence Pugh tour-de-force Lady Macbeth. If you are a sucker for a brutal period drama chock full of female desperation-disguised-as-power, then hustle your bustle to your nearest ye olde video rental and check. it. out. The film is phenomenal, and I was immediately curious about the source material! A little Wikipedia creeping led me to Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk […]
The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock
[TRIGGER WARNING: Violence, sexual violence, animal abuse] I have written and rewritten a summary of the plot of this book, and I end up in one of two camps: either I have written nothing substantial that would be worth keeping or I have written 4-5 paragraphs to explain everything. Author Donald Ray Pollock has created stories that weave and connect back on each in such incredible ways that it is difficult to summarize. I’ve decided on the insubstantial camp. The book tells the story of […]
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
Oh, Mr. Stevens. A tragic hero if ever there was one. As a butler to a great house of Britain, he kept his eyes to the floor while the ravages of post-WWI Europe came to a boiling point in the halls of his dear Darlington Hall. Kazuo Ishiguro is a master of quiet suffering. His characters come to slow, stark, and utterly devastating conclusions just a moment before the enormity of their despair hits the reader. The Remains of the Day is arguably his most celebrated […]
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
A Man Called Ove is about a delightfully stubborn widower in Sweden. He has a strict logic that he applies to the world. He yearns for consistency and routine. Anyone who deviates from the order is likely inefficient and an idiot in his mind. He is suspicious of most things and prefers to abstain from all social things. I enjoyed his rising frustration at the computer store when he attempts to buy a computer. Despite his crankiness, Ove fell in love with a woman named […]
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan was the April Mocha Girls Read book club selection. The story revolves around the romance between Rachel Chu and Nicholas Young. The two NY based professors are in love. Nick invites Rachel to spend the summer in Singapore with his family. Nick is the best man for his friend Colin Khoo’s wedding. The plan is to get the big event over with and travel around Asia. Sounds fun, right? However, Nick fails to explain exactly how extensive and wealthy […]
