Eleven short reviews of November-December books

In November my computer came down with a virus which necessitated a visit to an expert and a hefty bill. Then came Thanksgiving and a weekend of cooking and feasting. After that I had to stay with my daughter for a bit while some work was being completed on my rented home. And then I visited my son in Phoenix for a couple of weeks, coming back to home and computer a few days before Christmas. During all this hurly-burly, I had little opportunity to write reviews of books, but I did have much time to read. All this is to say that rather than writing full reviews of the books I read the last part of November and all of December, I am bundling short reviews of all the books in one posting.

*Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Year of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami
Murakami is a somewhat unusual writer in that he is capable of writing well in two distinct styles. His most well known novels, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and Kafka on the Shore, are both surreal, filled with magic realism, Japanese-style. The novel which first brought him super stardom in his native Japan, Norwegian Wood, is realistic and wistful. This novel is written in the latter style.

The protagonist in a single professional, in his thirties, who is lonely, detached, and filled with self-doubt, due in large part to an incident which took place when he was in his teens. He is helped by a young woman to realize that he can have a happier future if he better understands his past. The prose is tinged with sadness and loss, even as it ends on a hopeful note. I have to admit I like the surreal style much the best.

*Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson
The best adjective I can think of to describe this novel is hallucinogenic. In tone it is very much like Apocalypse Now, Coppola's film about the war in Vietnam which used the plot of Conrad's Heart of Darkness as inspiration.

This also concerns Vietnam, but concentrates more on the shadowy behind-the-scenes actions of the CIA than on the soldiers on the ground. It is cynical, frightening, and extremely powerful, most likely a masterpiece. That being said, I don't believe everyone would enjoy it, maybe because it manages to make the reading experience more than a bit uncomfortable. This is not a feel-good book, for sure. (Winner of the National Book Award.)

*From Here to Eternity by James Jones
Second reading; first read in the '70s
Another big war novel, this one taking place just as World War II begins. Written in 1951, it is based on the army experiences of the author and features a very realistic style, including much dialogue, as it follows several main characters who are stationed in Hawaii just prior to the Pearl Harbor attack.

In addition to some engrossing plot lines, Jones gives us a glimpse of the politics and inadequacies of the command structure. Although a little dated in some respects, the book is still impossible to put down. (Winner of the National Book Award and included in the Modern Library Top 100.)

*Tempest-Tost by Robertson Davies
A comedic novel about a group of amateur actors in a smallish Canadian town who are mounting a production of Shakespeare's The Tempest. Quietly amusing, with characters who are only slightly exaggerated versions of people of very familiar types. This is Book 1 of Davies' Salterton Trilogy; his later novels which make up the Deptford Trilogy and the Cornish Trilogy are much more accomplished.

*Leaven of Malice by Robertson Davies
Book 2 of the Salterton Trilogy. This one concerns the mischief which ensues when a spurious notice in the local newspaper reports the engagement of two prominent young people. The small-town politics and sensibilities provide the subject for gentle comedy.

*Can You Forgive Her? by Anthony Trollope
This is my favorite Trollope novel out of the several I have read, but since he wrote so many (47), I still have many to look forward to. He was a contemporary of Dickens, but his books are much less melodramatic, much more gentle in their humor, depending on a more realistic depiction of the foibles of humanity.

This novel follows the love problems of three women, all of whom must make a choice between two men. In all three cases, one of the options is dependable, even though perhaps a bit boring, and the other option is more dangerously exciting and sexy. (Although Trollope doesn't actually spell out the sexy part, it is certainly implied.) Will reason and prudence prevail, or will the bad boys win? A very amusing look at the upper classes in Victorian England.

*NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
(Pronounced "Nosferatu") A supernatural thriller by Stephen King's son. His villain is a vampire of souls, who abducts children to an alternative world which contains Christmasland (where everything is fun, all the time), robbing them of their humanity. The results will remind you of those spoiled, cruel, self-centered kids whose parents have granted their every wish. I found that to be kind of funny, although it probably wasn't meant to be.

I didn't find anything very original here; in fact, several ideas were apparently taken from Hill's father. But it was suspenseful and fast-paced and the characters were well drawn.

It must be hard to have literary aspirations and be the offspring of a wildly successful writer.

*The City by Dean Koontz
Koontz is a very prolific writer, one of the world's most successful in terms of revenue. I have yet to read anything of his which would justify this level of acclaim, but maybe I have just not read the right books yet. This one is a suspense thriller with a slight intrusion of the supernatural. The plot centers on a young black musical prodigy and his family, who become involved with some political terrorists. I don't know why Koontz named it The City. Moderately amusing to read but immediately forgettable.

*Innocence by Dean Koontz
Another Koontz thriller, with a big dose of the supernatural thrown in, including the fact that just a glimpse of the protagonist causes ordinary people to attack him out of revulsion and rage. We don't find out the details of his appearance until the end. I found the whole plot to be fragmented and illogical.

*Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King
Second reading; first read in the '90s.
When I am visiting someone and run out of the books I brought with me, I borrow from the host bookshelf; thus I chose to read this novel for a second time. It is #5 of The Dark Tower books, a series I love, despite the fact that it is highly melodramatic and often pure hokum. Maybe that's why I love it. In this episode, Roland the gunslinger and his ka-tet of helpers are asked to rescue a rural community from man-like "wolves" who kidnap about half their children once a generation. The plot line is obviously lifted from numerous western movies, but that's OK. It still works.

*Barnaby Rudge by Charles Dickens
This book completes my reading of all the Dickens novels. I would put this close to the bottom in my ranking of favorites. In the first half of the book the plot centers around a mystery and a couple of love stories. The second half focuses on the Gordon anti-popery riots of 1780, with an almost incidental solution to the mystery and conclusion to the love stories. The two halves make for a very uneasy fit. Plus, the solution to the mystery is easily anticipated, and none of the characters are very interesting.

One interesting aspect: Dickens' depiction of the make-up of the rioters would apply just as well today, I would venture to say. What may start as a peaceful demonstration by people of conscience is easily turned into a riot by various varieties of low-life with very different motivations.

For inquiring minds who want to know, my favorite Dickens novel is Bleak House and my least favorite is The Old Curiosity Shop.

Miracle in the Andes by Nando Parrado

It's always good to be reminded that no matter how many hardships you face and how insurmountable they seem, someone out there has been dealt a worse hand and has come out whole on the other side. This is the true story of how a planeload of 45 rugby players and their friends crashed high in the Andes mountains in the '70s and despite all odds 16 managed to survive. A previous book, Alive by Piers Paul, recounted the same story from a third person viewpoint, based on his interviews with the survivors and their families. The author of this book is one of the survivors, and thus his account differs by personalizing the experience.

At the time of the incident, much attention was focused on the fact that the survivors consumed the bodies of those killed in the crash and in a subsequent avalanche. From Parrado's viewpoint this sensationalistic detail assumes its rightful place as necessary and unavoidable if they hoped to survive. His attention is more focused on the endurance of the cold and snow, the dangers of the trek over the mountain, and the state of mind of the men.

I found it particularly interesting that the men depended on different inspirations to give them the will to survive. Some were sustained by religious belief, some by thoughts of sweethearts. For Parrado, the memory of the love of his father kept him from lapsing into despair.

I don't often read nonfiction, so I don't have much background for comparisons, but I believe this is better than most. It is certainly inspiring.

Falconer by John Cheever

Even though this is obviously a masterful novel, elegantly written and often darkly humorous, it is not one that I really enjoyed reading. I believe that's because the central character and his angst are so foreign to my experience that I cannot empathize or sympathize with him or even understand the problems which shaped his life.

Falconer is the prison where the central character, the drug-addicted Farragut, ends up after killing his brother (perhaps accidentally, perhaps not). The story follows him through the dehumanizing prison experience, with flashbacks to his former life as a university professor. Actually, very little of actual prison life is described and what is told is very mild in comparison to what one understands to be prison life today. As I perceive it, the prison is meant to be symbolic of America, with its hypocritical expectations of behavior and its soul-destroying atmosphere. The novel was written in 1975, and perhaps this is the way many white, upper-class, educated males felt back then, but it is not a mind set that I can really understand. For the record, I have never really understood Saul Bellow either. Maybe I am not perceptive enough or intelligent enough to feel angst.

I expect many would appreciate this novel more than I did. It is certainly well written, though curiously devoid of emotional content.

Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

Here's yet another YA book recommended by my granddaughters. This is a sequel to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, and like that one, features vintage photographs. Whereas the first book was intended to be somewhat scary, this one is more of an action thriller, with the group of children facing one danger right after another. As such, it is a fun read, although again the author seems unable to decide what age group to appeal to. The story, the language, and the structure seem to be targeted to a child of 8-12, yet the novel continues its romance story between two of the older children.

As fantasy novels go, even children's fantasy novels, I would say that Riggs's books are grade B. The rules for his created world are not quite logical, and he keeps adding new rules to fit his story line. One also feels that he shapes his story to fit the photos rather than the other way around.

Still, if young people enjoy it and it encourages reading, it's all to the good.

The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

Here's yet another of my granddaughters' (ages 10 and 13) favorite books that they recommended that I read, and it's a real keeper. Out of all the books they have steered me to, I believe this is the most well done. It's dystopian fiction of sorts, set in a future when the the United States and Mexico are separated by a wide strip of poppy-growing land called Opium. The central character is a young boy, Matt, who discovers at age 6 that he is the clone of the most powerful drug lord of all, El Patron. Considered less than human and despised by El Patron's family, Matt is forced to flee for his life when the old man dies, only to land in more trouble in the borderlands of what was once called Mexico.

What makes this better than most YA books is the attention to character building, the believability and logic of the created world, and the non-preachy consideration of serious issues. I would fault it only for the inclusion of a romance, since Matt is only 14 when the book ends. That seems a bit young for romantic entanglement, but I suppose the author felt it obligatory to appeal to her target audience.

The House of the Scorpian won the National Book Award for Children's Literature and several other honors. I recommend it for age 10 and up. It can be enjoyed by adults as well.

The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling

If this novel were by an unknown author, I doubt that it would have made much of a splash at all. Since it was written by the author of the Harry Potter series, of course it attracted all kinds of attention and undoubtedly sold very well, despite the fact that it's not earth-shaking, groundbreaking, spirit lifting, thought inspiring, or page-turning. It's not a bad novel by any means, but it's not an especially good one either. It's actually pretty depressing in its picture of the people in a small English village.

The action follows several families as they interact with each other, centering around the death of a leading citizen and the subsequent election to fill his place on the Parish Council. The townfolk are variously revealed to be self centered, full of racial and class prejudice, petty, and sometimes just plain mean. Many have compared this to novels by Elizabeth Gaskell and George Eliot in their portrayals of small town life, but both those authors convey a fondness for their characters even while revealing their flaws. Rowling conveys contempt for her adult characters, reserving sympathy for the teenagers, particularly the most down trodden of the lot. She does have a great talent for portraying the confusion and agony of the teenage years.

Rowling is not a literary stylist by any means, but the writing is serviceable and readable. The plot is mildly suspenseful, though it does grow a bit contrived and melodramatic toward the end. The strength of the novel lies in the character portrayal, and all these characters are memorable and believable, even if most are unpleasant and unlikable.

It must be hard for an author to try to follow up such universally popular and acclaimed books as the Harry Potter series. This was not a bad effort, but I believe she is capable of better.

The Children Act by Ian McEwan

Ian McEwan's most recent publication is as much a polemic against religion as it is a novel. The central character, Fiona Maye, is an English family court judge who rules on matters pertaining to the welfare of children. Among those cases mentioned is one involving two Jewish girls whose divorced parents cannot agree on their schooling because of their religious differences, one being Orthodox and the other not. Another case involves a Catholic couple who refuse to have their conjoined twins separated to save the life of one, considering it to be the will of God that both should die rather than one be sacrificed. Her latest case, the one central to the novel, concerns a Jehovah's Witness boy who needs a blood transfusion to survive, and both his parents and the boy himself (he is almost 18) refuse on religious grounds. McEwan makes abundantly clear that he perceives decisions based on religious belief to be wrongheaded, his wise judge always favoring rational action over emotional reaction. However, the usually exacting and stable judge is undergoing a crisis of her own, leading her to react emotionally and make a misstep, with unexpected consequences.

This is a short novel, but McEwan has previously proven over and over that he can pack great power into a few pages. I did not feel that power in this one. The subplot about the judge's marital problems is given much space, but appears to be included primarily to account for her being uncharacteristically out of balance. (And maybe to flesh out the novel to just over 200 pages, so that it's not a novella.) The whole thing has an almost allegorical feel, a kind of reverse Pilgrim's Progress, with the characters encountering the perils of religious belief and emotionalism on the way to a rational atheism.

Do not make the mistake of presuming I judge this novel harshly because I agree or disagree with McEwan's attitude toward religious belief. I just object to novels whose main thrust is to preach to me, no matter what the subject.