Review: The Lifeboat

The Lifeboat By Charlotte Rogan (Reagan Arthur Books, Hardcover, 9780316185905, April 2012, 288pp.) The Short of It: Strong start, weak finish. The Rest of It: After an explosion sinks the luxury liner she and her husband were on, Grace Winter finds herself floating across the Atlantic with thirty-eight other passengers in a lifeboat meant for [...]

Review: The Elephant Vanishes

The Elephant Vanishes (stories) By Haruki Murakami (Vintage, Paperback, 9780679750536, June 1994, 336pp.) The Short of It: Endlessly amusing. The Rest of It: I think this is the third short story collection that I’ve read by Murakami and it might be one of his tamest. These stories are a bit longer than the ones I’ve [...]

Review: Swamplandia!

Swamplandia! By Karen Russell (Vintage, Paperback, 9780307276681, July 2011, 416pp.) The Short of It: A departure from my normal reading. Entertaining and often sweet but in the end, not all that satisfying. The Rest of It: The Bigtrees run a theme park called Swamplandia! Located on a small island, just off the South Florida coast, [...]

Review: Nightwoods

Nightwoods By Charles Frazier (Random House, Hardcover, 9781400067091, September 2011, 272pp.) The Short of It: The looming darkness of this story is unrelenting and wickedly constructed. The Rest of It: Set  among the Appalachians during the 1960′s, Luce is a women who has literally turned her back on society. Working as a caretaker for an [...]

Review: Emily Alone

Emily Alone By Stewart O’Nan (Penguin (Non-Classics), Paperback, 9780143120490, December 2011, 272pp.) The Short of It: A wonderful, poignant follow-up to Wish You Were Here. The Rest of It: When I read Wish You Were Here back in March, I expected to love the writing because so many have gushed about O’Nan’s work, but I didn’t expect [...]

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 137 other followers