*****A Long Way Off, by Pascal Garnier

LibraryThing.com Early Review
French Literature

A page turner, A Long Way Off is a quirky novella of the noir genre. Pascal takes his reader on a dark, yet funny, unusual ride. One disappears for a short time with an odd, aging father and his mentally unique adult daughter, only to experience a sudden turn of events which transforms the comic into sinister. This is my first book by Pascal and I am hooked.

****Sexus: The Rosy Crucifixion I, by Henry Miller

Henry Miller is a skilled, intelligent and creative writer. His philosophy of art and social criticism are relevant for the 30 year old struggling artist he depicts and is beautifully written, as is his self-analysis and criticism.  His alleged sexual exploits are unfortunate.  Usually sexual literature does not bother me.  However, this time, I took exception.  I believe Miller’s self-doubt caused him to feel an obsessive need to relate his imagined, or real, sexual escapades and abuse ad nauseam. He had something to prove to himself and his readers. It was not art he was sharing, it was his immaturity.  It is my hope that, over time, Miller self-actualized and wrote Nexus and Plexus with more self-respect and full use of his illustrious, imaginative writing faculties.  Outside of this mild rebuke (humor), I do enjoy his writing and will continue to explore his work.

2019 Books Read

 ****Us Against You, by Fredrik Backman, 2017, Swedish Literature 

****Hill Women: Finding Family and a Way Forward in the Appalachian Mountains, by Cassie Chambers, 2020, American Memoir 

*****The Sudden Travelor, by Sarah Hall, 2019, English Literature 

***Ordinary Girls: a Memoir, by Jaquira Díaz, 2019. American Memoir

***Florida, by Lauren Groff, 2018, American Fiction 

*****The Translators Bride, by João Reis, Portuguese Literature,  2019

****The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead,  2019, American Literature 

****The Sparsholt Affair,  by Alan Hollinghurst, 2017 English Literature 

*****Daring to Drive, A  Saudi Woman's Awakening, by Manal Al-Sharif, 2017, Saudi Arabian Literature 

****The Interestings, by Meg Wolitzer, 2013, American Fiction

***The Secrets We Kept, by Lara Prescott,  2019, Historical Fiction 

****Another Brooklyn, by Jacqueline Woodson, 2016, American Literature 

*****To Keep the Sun Alive, by Rabeah Ghaffari, 2018, Iranian 

*****The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,  by Bauby, Jean-Dominique, 1997, French Memoir

*****In Life We are Briefly Gorgeous,  by Ocean Vuong,  2019, Vietnamese-American Literature 

*****Special Topics in Calamity Physics, by Marisha Pessl,
American Literature, 2006

****Lost Children Archive, by Valeria Luiselli, 2019, Mexican Literature 

***The Sisters Brothers, by Patrick DeWitt, 2012, Canadian Literature

*****A Dance to the Music of Time, 2nd Movement  by Anthony Powell,  1957, English Literature

****The Quiet American,  by Graham Greene,  1955, British Literature 

*****From the Shadows,  by Juan José Millás, 2019, Spanish Literature 

**In Pieces, by Sally Fields,  
2018, American Memoir

****Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, 2013, Nigerian Literature 

****Fly Girls,  by Keith O'Brien, 2018, American History 

****Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owen's, 2018, American Literature 

***Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee, 2017, Korean Literature 

****The Fisherman,  by Chigozie Obioma, 2015, Nigerian Literature 

***Bogota 39: New Voices From Latin America, Various Authors, 
2018, Latin American Literature

****Born a Crime, by Trevor Noah, 2016, South African Memoir

***Mohawk, by Richard Russo, 1986, American Literature 

***Maid, Hard Work, Low Pay and a Mother's Will to Survive, by Stephanie Land, 2019, Memoir 

*****Things That Fall From the Sky, Selja Ahava, 2019, Finnish Literature

****City of Jasmine,  by Olga Grjasnowa, 2019 German Literature

****There There, by Tommy Orange, 2018, Native American Literature

**Clock Dance, by Anne Tyler, 2018, American Literature

*****The White Book, by Han King, 2018, Korean Literature

****My Sister, a Serial Killer,  a Novel, by Oyinkan Braithwaite, 2018, African/Nigerian Literature 

***Camino Island, by John Grisham, 2017, American Fiction

*****The Temple of the Golden Pavilion,  by Yukio Mishima, 1956, Japanese Literature 

****A Ladder to the Sky, by John Boyne, 2018, Irish Literature 

****My Life on the Road, by Gloria Steinem, 2015, Autobiography

****Becoming, by Michelle Obama, 2018, American Autobiography 

****Learning to See: A Novel of Dorothea Lange, the Woman Who Revealed the Real America, by Elise Hooper, 2019, Biography 

*****Friday Black, by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyan, African-American Literature,  2018

*****Hunger, by Knut Hamsun, 1890, Norwegian Literature

****Washington Black, by Esi Edugyan,  2018, Canadian Literature

*****Sudden Traveler by Sarah Hall

LibraryThing.com Early Review

I am not a big fan of short stories. I often feel they are incomplete, that they end too soon. (Full disclosure, I love a good tome.)  Sarah Hall's work is different.  Whatever the length of her story, or subject matter,  each piece - each phrase -  is complete.  Her words work together like an exquisite piece  of art.  Line by line, story by story, one feels ultra satisfied and powerfully moved, such is the quality of her writing. Hall is truly a master of the written word.

***Ordinary Girls by Jaquira Díaz

LibraryThing.com Early Review Ordinary Girls is a memoir that illustrates what defines ordinary in a poor community where dysfunctional families are the norm and drug use runs rampant; where the only hope of escaping this life is through an early death or education. With minimal, if any, family support education is not an obtainable goal for many. The author, Ms. Díaz, is one if the fortunate ones. She made it out. How she gets there is not the subject of her story. Living and growing up under these extreme, yet all to common, circumstances defines her book. Ms. Díaz has a deeply compelling story to share. Unfortunately, it suffers from a lack of editing. The last half of the book is redundant and the structure weak. Despite this problem, the first half of her memoir confrms that she is a talented writer. Revision would have greatly improved the overall quality of her book.

*****Special Topics in Calamity Physics

“One should never dribble speculation like a leaky garbage bag.”

I love Pessl’s writing! It is witty, intelligent and imaginative.  Despite dark themes of murder, suicide and deception, Pessl humors her reader with her astute narrative and finely crafted plot.  This is a brilliantly conceived novel that will make you laugh… and shudder.

*****A Dance to the Music of Time, 2nd Movement by Anthony Powell

Powell’s comic magnum opus is beautifully  illustrated with reflective passages that weave back and forth through time effortlessly.  In short, Dance is a meditative social history which depicts the rhythm of life. It is an understated work that sometimes feels tedious, yet is often hilarious and quietly infectious.  Patience is required when reading Powell, but his literary prowess is an apt reward.

*****From the Shadows by Juan José Millás

Darkly humorous and surreal, this novel delivers! It is psychological and allegorical fiction rolled into one as is revealed through these alluring themes: family secrets, jealousy, love, voyeurism, madness and murder. I thoroughly enjoyed and savored the skill, pure imagination and creativity of this talented author. From the Shadows is the first of Millás' novels to be published in North America. I look forward to future translations of his other work. A true treat!

*****Things That Fall From the Sky by Selja Ahava

Finnish Literature

Ahava’s novel centers around two main interconnecting themes:  grief – our need to make sense of, and clearly define, life and death; and the randomness of life – its haphazardness, whether good or bad. These themes overlap and converge and are affected by the weight of time.  The author explores our human desire to fully comprehend the incomprehensible; to define what cannot be fully defined. 

Ahava’s skill at normalizing the very randomness of life is both intuitive and sensitive.  She has created a highly relatable novel with nuance and subtlety. I enjoyed this work and look forward to future translations by this talented author.

****City of Jasmine by Olga Grjasnowa

An intensely moving novel that shares the fictionalized experiences of individuals who live and lived under Assad in wore-torn Syria. The violence, despair, ruined dreams, escape experiences, and then their lives as refugees is nothing less than horrifying.  Ms. Grjasnowa’s writing style is unpretentious and direct, yet not overbearing. She writes with fluidity and care.  This is a relevant read considering today’s national and international political climate. City of Jasmine is an interesting, well thought out novel, that tells a story and informs.