Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (1954) by J.R.R. Tolkien. Grade: B+

V is for Vengeance

V is for Vengeance (2011) by Sue Grafton. One can only guess that Grafton has made a fortune with her popular Kinsey Millhone detective series, which started with A is for Alibi and has continued through the alphabet. With V is for Vengeance, it is apparent that she is beginning to run out of ideas for fresh plots. Although she makes a valiant effort, the book just doesn't work for me. I like the parts where Kinsey Millhone takes center stage, speaking in her own voice. She is an engaging and likable character. But the parts where other characters in the story come to the fore are less effective, distracting as they do from the central thrust of the book. Don't get me wrong -- Grafton is a gifted writer, and it seems she will have no trouble completing the alphabet -- but this book just didn't quite do the trick for me. Good but not great, although it was like eating comfort food to read the parts where the Millhone character speaks and acts. Grade: B   

The Fellowship of the Ring

The Fellowship of the Ring (1954) by  J.R.R. Tolkien. This first of three parts of The Lord of the Rings truly took possession of my life. While I was reading it, which only took a couple of days, nothing else mattered. The book went with me everywhere, and I was riveted by the story of how Bilbo left the great Ring of Power to his nephew, Frodo, and how Frodo made his way from the Shire to distant regions of Middle Earth. Tolkien is a master of language, and it comes through everywhere in The Fellowship of the Ring. I have the second book in the trilogy, The Two Towers, on hold at the library and I can't wait to check it out and read it. This is quite simply the Best. Book. Ever. Grade: A   

The Good Nurse

The Good Nurse (2013) by Charles Graeber. This book tells the story of Charles Cullen, a serial killer who used his  position as a nurse to kill uncounted victims by injecting the wrong medications into their IV lines. While it's a true story, it lacks sharpness in nailing down sources and presenting facts. I felt like I was reading an abstract description of what Cullen had done. It's not until the police detectives enter the story, late in the book, that the tale really comes alive. So while this was a fairly interesting book, it lacked the punch that I've found in other true-crime tomes. Grade: B

The Interestings

The Interestings (2013) by Meg Wolitzer. Six teenagers meet and form a group at summer camp, and they dub themselves "The Interestings." Throughout the rest of the novel, their lives are intertwined -- even unto death. The question is, are they really interesting? and the answer is a resounding "Yes!" One of them goes on to become a famous (and rich) producer of an animated television show. One of them goes on to accuse one of the others of rape -- an occurrence that permanently disrupts both of their lives. The principal character, Jules, marries outside the group and forms the backdrop against which all the other action takes place. Wolitzer has woven a rich and varied tapestry of a novel, and it held my interest from beginning to end. Very good. Grade: B+

The Fun Parts

The Fun Parts (2013) by Sam Lipsyte. A collection of short stories which I felt came up short of being very good. Lipsyte is not an unskilled writer, but the stories contained in this collection just didn't speak to me. Two or three of them are really good, but the rest are only so-so. Grade: B-

The Humanity Project

The Humanity Project (2013) by Jean Thompson. Pretty good novel which follows the stories of several loosely connected characters, led by Mrs. Foster, a rich old cat lady who decides to start a foundation and call it The Humanity Project. The Humanity Project, it evolves, will pay people to be good. Meanwhile, a family of characters is introduced, and we wonder if they can be good, paid or otherwise. Major developments occur offstage, and are later introduced as faits accompli. I found this book readable but not profound, definitely not on my Top 10 list of books I have read. Grade: B

The Skull and the Nightingale

The Skull and the Nightingale (2013) by Michael Irwin. Moderately interesting novel, set in 1761, about Richard Fenwick, a young man with no family and no means, who is supported by his godfather. But his godfather is no benign benefactor; rather, he wishes Richard to experience London, in all its fetid and sensual glory, and to write letters to him (the godfather) telling him about his (Richard's) exploits. In other words, the godfather wants to live vicariously through his young (age 23) godson. Irwin, the author, is an academic, and no doubt his work contains many interesting references and insights into London in 1761; but I was not able to perceive them and saw only a mannered novel, modestly interesting, with a slightly disappointing ending. That it is a good book I have no doubt. But I was not able to fully appreciate it, and I doubt many Americans will. Grade: B 

Schroder

Schroder (2013) by Amity Gaige. Yet another novel, written by a woman, about a man who takes his young child and goes off an a wild, irresponsible road trip. In this case the man is Eric Schroder, a first-generation East German immigrant to the United States, who has taken the last name Kennedy and falsified his past in an effort to reinvent himself. I won't go into the details, but suffice it to say that he makes a series of really bad choices and eventually loses the trust of his daughter, Meadow. In fact, he is writing the book from prison, where he has ended up after "kidnapping" his daughter during a court-ordered visitation. There's not much to like in this book, but it is readable, and I didn't cast it aside in disgust. I don't recommend it. Grade: B-

Life After Life

Life After Life (2013) by Kate Atkinson. The brilliant author has produced a masterpiece about alternate realities, following the lives of a 20th century woman named Ursula Todd who, born in 1910, dies at birth, the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck. But -- and this is a big but -- she is also born and goes on to live a varied and eventful life. Through the course of the book, she dies a dozen different times, at different ages, but is always reborn in an alternate reality in which she somehow avoids her fate. This is an original book with original ideas, beautifully written, fascinating, absorbing and also deeply moving. When I finished it, my first urge was to read it again immediately. Could it really be as good as I thought? I need to reread it to decide. It seems to be one of the best books I've read, ever. I highly recommend it. To anyone who hasn't discovered Atkinson, it will be a revelation. Grade: A