So here's the long and short of it.
A Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood -- the first Atwood novel I've read that I wasn't crazy about. It was interesting sci-fi, but I am positive that I would have enjoyed the book more if I had read it when it first came out. I had difficulty with the one-sided nature of the story, and with the victimized, rolling-over nature of every single female (and, for that matter, male) character in the book. Also, I think times have changed since 1986 (one hopes), and Atwood's thought experiment of what would happen if fundamentalists took over the American government. Well, that's sort of already happened, and the world has not changed as dramatically as this experiment foresaw. Turns out that most everyone involved in politics, fundamentalist or not, is a little bit racist/sexist/crazed/opportunistic/corrupt. As always, her writing is so amazing and irresistible, but I just couldn't get past some of my own hang-ups for this book. We'll call my dislike a lack of reader openness.
Spook by Mary Roach -- Loved it! This nonfiction jaunt was fascinating, funny, and very good-natured. Roach's objective in the book is to find out what scientific proof there is for an afterlife. Buckwalter recommended this one to me, and at first, I wasn't sure I wanted to read it, because I have my own unconfirmed but regardless unstaunchable beliefs on this front. Worried about being a little bit rocked in my ideas, I avoided it. But it was a fun book. Roach truly does concentrate on the scientific side of things, looking back at varied "scientific" approaches like mediums, ectoplasm, the weighing of the soul, and other more modern efforts. My favorite part? When she, a total skeptic, enrolls herself in a "medium school" to see what's going down. In her own words:
This is a book about the afterlife for people who never read that sort of book. Most afterlife books fall into two camps. There's the earnest New Age type of book, with the swirling colors and light-beings on the cover, and lots of inspirational anecdotes inside. Then there are the debunking books. Spook is different in that it's first and foremost a fun read. This subject area is fascinating and bizarre and silly and profound all at once; most afterlife books don't take advantage of that richness.
The Memory-Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards: Great book. The whole story centers around familial ties -- what makes a family? What can break a family? What can mend a family? I really enjoyed it. Great characters, beautiful descriptions, and an emotional read.
Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris: I read this book in Taos, NM, while staying with the hospitable Taosanians. This is a great summer read, as are all of her books, simply because of the mystery that unfolds and because her writing is so crisp. Actually, I guess that would make it more of an early fall book -- Red Delicious type.
There were some others scattered in there, but these were the books I knew I had to mention. Also, Buckwalter and I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It is a very satisfying ending, and no more need be said.
Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris: I read this book in Taos, NM, while staying with the hospitable Taosanians. This is a great summer read, as are all of her books, simply because of the mystery that unfolds and because her writing is so crisp. Actually, I guess that would make it more of an early fall book -- Red Delicious type.
There were some others scattered in there, but these were the books I knew I had to mention. Also, Buckwalter and I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It is a very satisfying ending, and no more need be said.
