Ben Marcus's books The Age of Wire and String and Notable American Women were considered "experimental" fiction because of his unconventional use of...
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A stunning success, especially for a debut novel. Coal is king in West Virginia, but as the horrific practices of strip mining and mountaintop removal methods become the faster, cheaper choice of modern times, the lives of those who call these mountains home are changed forever. Their story is told here in alternating voices and with such truth and honesty and realism, you feel as if you too could wake tomorrow to find the landscape around you has disappeared and the people you care about gone.
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(3 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
Unflinching narcissism and unadulterated malevolence - this is what you’ll find in spades from the characters in Ron Rash’s book “Serena”. There are characters with redeeming qualities as well, but as you might imagine, those that are not strong and sure, quickly fall.
Using the historic backdrop of a Depression era lumber camp in 1929, “Serena” is largely an Appalachian retelling of Macbeth with a few twists of its own, so expect a tragic tale with a lot of wickedness and you’re ready for one enjoyable read!
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(5 of 6 readers found this comment helpful)
Out Stealing Horses was by far my favorite book of 2007 so the bar was set quite high when sitting down to read To Siberia by Per Petterson. I was not disappointed.
Quite different from OSH, Petterson's poetic writing style still took me away to a new place and time, this time to Denmark where I met a young girl and her family. Her story spans several years and is told from her perspective as her future self, many years hence, but the story begins as she is a young girl, just before WWII.
In addition to Petterson's lyrical prose, what brings his books alive for me are his characters, each one is fully realized and multifaceted. I loved Jesper, the brother – adventurous & ready to champion a cause (and he loves to tease his beloved Sistermine), but the real gem in this story is Sistermine - such a complex character that I can't wait to let a bit of time pass so I can pick up this story again and reread it – a chance to discover even more about this unique, nomadic soul…
This book that would do well in a book club or discussion setting, but even if you just read this on your own, your mind will wander back again and again, long after you've read that last page.
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(9 of 13 readers found this comment helpful)
Firefly Lane is not my normal read and yet the publisher's reference to Fleetwood Mac & Boones Farm wine drew me in - those were the days... :-). I wasn't disappointed. The trip down memory lane starts early on. Though the book focuses on the characters, musical and cultural references are quite prevalent throughout the book, through the peace and love 70's, the big hair 80's and into the more current 90's and present day, I found myself remembering tunes, hairstyles, clothes and events as I fell into the story.
Kristin Hannah has created warm, memorable characters that are also quite funny. My favorite character might actually be Kate's mother, who shows us just how wise our mothers are, at any age, whether we think so or not.
This is a book about a 30-year friendship, but as these women live in separate towns more often than not, it is also about two individuals. It is about strengths and insecurities, decisions, and consequences.
The reason that books like this don't usually find themselves on my bookshelf is that I often find the stories predictable, and this one does follow the typical formula at times, but it is well written, and again, so warm and funny that I didn't mind that I was guessing what was going to happen next. After all, we all do that in life anyway, don't we? We go through our lives and suppose that we know what will or will not happen from day to day, but when someone comes along and weaves a lovely story about it and makes you listen, laugh, and cry, then it was worth the stop along the way, wasn't it!
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(18 of 21 readers found this comment helpful)
This book is mesmerizing. The author dances with words in such a way that I found myself rereading phrases as if they were poetry. Trond, the man who we follow, is 67-years old with an aching back and a life of solitude. He lives a simple life but, due to a chance meeting with someone he once knew, the summer of 1948 comes rushing back - the summer when he was 15... a summer that shaped his life. We're taken back and forth in time fluidly and the storytelling is flawless. The author's attention to color, detail, feeling, and words actually took me to Trond's cabin where I could swear that I could feel the snow and see the sunrise and the colors in kitchen. Again... I was mesmerized...
A lovely book. I'd recommend it in a heartbeat. Then again, I suppose I just did!
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(35 of 41 readers found this comment helpful)
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wewells has commented on (5) products.
Strange as This Weather Has Been by Ann Pancake
wewells, July 19, 2009
A stunning success, especially for a debut novel. Coal is king in West Virginia, but as the horrific practices of strip mining and mountaintop removal methods become the faster, cheaper choice of modern times, the lives of those who call these mountains home are changed forever. Their story is told here in alternating voices and with such truth and honesty and realism, you feel as if you too could wake tomorrow to find the landscape around you has disappeared and the people you care about gone.(3 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
Serena by Ron Rash
wewells, March 3, 2009
Unflinching narcissism and unadulterated malevolence - this is what you’ll find in spades from the characters in Ron Rash’s book “Serena”. There are characters with redeeming qualities as well, but as you might imagine, those that are not strong and sure, quickly fall.Using the historic backdrop of a Depression era lumber camp in 1929, “Serena” is largely an Appalachian retelling of Macbeth with a few twists of its own, so expect a tragic tale with a lot of wickedness and you’re ready for one enjoyable read!
(5 of 6 readers found this comment helpful)
To Siberia: A Novel by Per Petterson
wewells, January 7, 2009
Out Stealing Horses was by far my favorite book of 2007 so the bar was set quite high when sitting down to read To Siberia by Per Petterson. I was not disappointed.Quite different from OSH, Petterson's poetic writing style still took me away to a new place and time, this time to Denmark where I met a young girl and her family. Her story spans several years and is told from her perspective as her future self, many years hence, but the story begins as she is a young girl, just before WWII.
In addition to Petterson's lyrical prose, what brings his books alive for me are his characters, each one is fully realized and multifaceted. I loved Jesper, the brother – adventurous & ready to champion a cause (and he loves to tease his beloved Sistermine), but the real gem in this story is Sistermine - such a complex character that I can't wait to let a bit of time pass so I can pick up this story again and reread it – a chance to discover even more about this unique, nomadic soul…
This book that would do well in a book club or discussion setting, but even if you just read this on your own, your mind will wander back again and again, long after you've read that last page.
(9 of 13 readers found this comment helpful)
Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah
wewells, March 8, 2008
Firefly Lane is not my normal read and yet the publisher's reference to Fleetwood Mac & Boones Farm wine drew me in - those were the days... :-). I wasn't disappointed. The trip down memory lane starts early on. Though the book focuses on the characters, musical and cultural references are quite prevalent throughout the book, through the peace and love 70's, the big hair 80's and into the more current 90's and present day, I found myself remembering tunes, hairstyles, clothes and events as I fell into the story.Kristin Hannah has created warm, memorable characters that are also quite funny. My favorite character might actually be Kate's mother, who shows us just how wise our mothers are, at any age, whether we think so or not.
This is a book about a 30-year friendship, but as these women live in separate towns more often than not, it is also about two individuals. It is about strengths and insecurities, decisions, and consequences.
The reason that books like this don't usually find themselves on my bookshelf is that I often find the stories predictable, and this one does follow the typical formula at times, but it is well written, and again, so warm and funny that I didn't mind that I was guessing what was going to happen next. After all, we all do that in life anyway, don't we? We go through our lives and suppose that we know what will or will not happen from day to day, but when someone comes along and weaves a lovely story about it and makes you listen, laugh, and cry, then it was worth the stop along the way, wasn't it!
(18 of 21 readers found this comment helpful)
Out Stealing Horses: A Novel by Per Petterson
wewells, September 30, 2007
This book is mesmerizing. The author dances with words in such a way that I found myself rereading phrases as if they were poetry. Trond, the man who we follow, is 67-years old with an aching back and a life of solitude. He lives a simple life but, due to a chance meeting with someone he once knew, the summer of 1948 comes rushing back - the summer when he was 15... a summer that shaped his life. We're taken back and forth in time fluidly and the storytelling is flawless. The author's attention to color, detail, feeling, and words actually took me to Trond's cabin where I could swear that I could feel the snow and see the sunrise and the colors in kitchen. Again... I was mesmerized...A lovely book. I'd recommend it in a heartbeat. Then again, I suppose I just did!
(35 of 41 readers found this comment helpful)