Books shelved under “General”

Despite its rather rambling plot, I actually have a soft spot for All Families are Psychotic. It has something to do with the zaniness of the characters being so realistic. And the ending always chokes me up.

As the title implies, the book's about family and the tribulations one's family undergoes as the wheel turns and one generation supplants another. Yet it's also about all the motifs surrounding family: growing up, maturity, dealing with…

International political thrillers aren't always my cup of tea, but this book was just bad. I don't pretend to hold thrillers to the same standards as great works of art, but one has to draw the line somewhere. David Baldacci's writing isn't the worst I've seen, but it's not great. More worrisome, however, is the absence of an interesting plot or fascinating characters.

The Whole Truth concerns a plot by the head of an…

Far too long for its own good, The Origin of Species seems to have one goal: destroy any last shred of sympathy the reader might have for the protagonist, Alex Fratarcangeli.

Part of my trouble with this book is a defect of self. I'm too young to have lived through the 1980s, and I've never been to Montreal. Thus, it's difficult for me to comprehend Alex's preoccupation with Pierre Trudeau, Bill 101, and tension among…

This book was difficult to review. The premise was intriguing, and John Dufresne's writing is very tight, both in dialogue and in characterization. Unfortunately, as the story progressed, I felt less and less interested in it, until I became totally detached and just wanted the book to end.

For a character-driven story, Requiem, Mass. lacks enough depth to succeed in sharing characters' souls with us. It tries admirably, and nearly succeeds on one or two…

This book was intriguing at first. Halaby creates two rich characters, Jassim and Salwa Haddad, whose personal lives become much more complicated post-9/11. Jassim, comfortably encapsulated in his routine, accidentally hits a boy with his car, killing the boy and pushing Jassim's life off course. He grows distant from his wife. Salwa, meanwhile, suffers a miscarriage after intentionally "accidentally" getting pregnant and conducts a brief, confused affair with a much younger coworker. As their lives…

Cover-to-cover, Salt is lyrical, evocative prose, with an indigo but definitely not purple hue. Jeremy Page's writing drew me into the world of the salt marshes in Norfolk without so much as a backward glance to the rest of the world. He made me forget that the rest of the world even existed. The first part of the book briefly takes place during the Second World War, and aside from some references to other places,…

Having finished this book, I can't recall what made me decide to read it in the first place. I can't think of much to recommend it.

The basic premise sounded OK (and maybe that was why I borrowed it)--an elderly woman, Bernice, stops by the apartment of her deceased friend's daughter, Janet. Bernice is a member of a small church group (which is "notacult"), and her reverend has announced that the Rapture will visit them…

This book began with a great deal of promise, but as I got to knew the characters, I liked it less and less.

Heidi Julavits demonstrates how one can avoid using quotation marks to indicate dialogue without confusing the reader, a lesson Ali Smith could stand to learn. The Uses of Enchantment is far superior to The Accidental in use of language and style to create a particular atmosphere and introduce the character. I enjoy…

The flashback is the weakest of all foreshadowing, and it is the device that ruined this book for me. It's a shame too, because Thomas H. Cook uses other foreshadowing as well--hints about the deadliest sin being pride, allusions to the consequences similar characters faced in great literary works. The flashbacks were confusing at best and disruptive to the pace of the story at worst. I don't mind so much if the entire story is…

I picked this up from the library hoping it'd be about a plucky protagonist with a quirky attitude who would stop at nothing to save the day. Well, I was right, but not in the way I was expecting.

I seem to have stumbled upon the ninth novel in a series of novels intended for an audience composed primarily of people who are not me. By which I mean, I didn't like this book all…

While the theme might be interesting, this book did not live up to my expectations. The changes the main characters underwent seemed rough and somewhat arbitrary, as if they were changing because the author wanted them to change for the purposes of the plot rather than through their own internal motivation. Tom Perrotta's writing style does nothing to rescue me from this plot-driven drivel. Don't get me wrong: this book has its moments; they are…

Not my cup of tea.

I like books like this, but I didn't enjoy this particular one as much as I had hoped. I just could not commit myself to empathizing with the narrator, so the entire story left me hollow. I felt like I was a passenger.

The first part of the book was quite intriguing. The narrator is a noncomformist boy who's been expelled twice; this is literally the boarding school of last…

This is my first Paul Quarrington book, but after reading it, I will definitely read more of his work. His writing reminds me of Douglas Coupland, only with a slightly more Ontario flair. As a resident of Thunder Bay, I smiled at the few scenes set there. It's nice reading fiction by Canadian authors set in Canada.

The last book that I read, The Mistress of the Sun, had a great beginning but a…

Some books are written purely to entertain. Some books are written with a purpose in mind, to explore a theme and somehow communicate an essential aspect of humanity from one person to another. This is art through language. The Cellist of Sarajevo exemplifies this.

Steven Galloway very clearly states in his afterword that this is not a historical novel; it is not meant to accurately convey the details of the siege of Sarajevo. What it…

It's exciting to read a new Douglas Coupland novel. After discovering jPod two years ago, I devoured the rest of Coupland's oeuvre. When I learned he had a new book out, I rushed to pre-order the trade paper back version. The Gum Thief. Intriguing.

In fact, I didn't expect an epistolary novel. But that didn't detract from my experience.

The two main characters, Roger and Bethany, have a bizarre relationship and play counterpoint to…

I went through alternating appraisals of Overture. At first I thought it was boring, then sweet, then sickeningly romantic (if I ever hear the words "torrid but virginal liaison" again, I will snap, I swear), and finally, musical.

I can't say I like the main character. She is one of those people who feels a constant, almost pathological, need to sabotage her own happiness. And I just can't accept that philosophy--even in the name…

I picked up Addled not knowing what to expect. I got a hilarious story involving upper crust country club members, country club employees, and of course, geese. It all related back to the geese in one way or another, which makes the title's double meaning perfect.

Addled is endearing. I was enjoying the levity of the book, the way that it treated each situation as if we were watching it unfold in a terrarium of…

Noah Charney knows a lot about art. His writing, however, leaves much to be desired.

The book improved much throughout the course of the story. It started out as an uninteresting, rather dull story with disparate characters. Charney employs some rather unusual metaphors and descriptive phrases. At the very end of the story, when all is revealed and the mystery solved, one can look back and say, "Oh yes, this all comes together, how interesting."

…

The best part of the book was the theme, which Clair Messud does handle well. For that reason alone, I gave this book as a gift to a friend once, hoping that even if I didn't enjoy it, she might like it.

Aside from that, this book has little to recommend it, unfortunately. It's a shame, because I really wanted to like it: it had interesting moments, little bits that I enjoyed. Overall, however, it…