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Powell's Staff:
Five Book Friday: In Memoriam
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Every year, the booksellers at Powell’s submit their Top Fives: their five favorite books that were released in 2023. It’s a list that, when put together, shows just how varied and interesting the book tastes of Powell’s booksellers are. I highly recommend digging into the recommendations — we would never lead you astray — but today...
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Brontez Purnell:
Powell’s Q&A: Brontez Purnell, author of ‘Ten Bridges I’ve Burnt’
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Rachael P.:
Starter Pack: Where to Begin with Ursula K. Le Guin
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Customer Comments
Cheri P has commented on (21) products
Plover
by
Brian Doyle
Cheri P
, April 22, 2015
When I told my husband I'd finished The Plover, his first comment was, "I bet you're going to give The Plover a lot of stars." Yup, he knows me well. This is, quite simply, a marvelous book - I loved it at least as much as I loved Mink River. That's saying quite a bit. Mink River is quite possibly in my top 5 books... ever. Doyle clearly has a style. I can read a passage (say, an essay in a magazine) and know, within lines, that it's Doyle. The lyrical language, the lists, the asides, all written in this poetical prose that makes me want to read aloud. Reading Doyle's novels put me in a happy place. What I loved about The Plover: * The characters. Declan comes from Mink River, but otherwise they're new. None of them are simple - they're complex, and human, and, well... they're good. Nobody is all good or bad - they all have stories, and they've taken paths that have led them to where they are today... and they have choices ahead of them, and somehow, as the pages march on, I just know that even the most dastardly of the bunch has it in him to be good, and bright. That hope for humankind tickles my soul. Heck, in Mink River I didn't care much for Declan; he was a bit of an ass. But here? We see the whys and hows of Declan - more than he sees himself, I think. Oh, and Pipa... I can't stop thinking about Pipa. I especially loved how he wrote her in the first of the novel, all her fluttering and chirps and trills. He honored her shattered, wounded self in a way I've not read before. * The magic. This is not a world of spells, or mantras, unless you count the odd Irish motto or the simple magic of the world. And in Doyle's world, things are not as simple as we humans see them. The birds speak, the fish have thoughts, gulls tell stories and get offended if we mock them. Warblers have joy and rats make plans. The most wonderful dog in the history of dogs has an island that he intends to thoroughly explore before he dies. * The world. The world is a dangerous place. Murder, death, war, hate, kidnapping, violence, despair. And yet - magic miraculous things happen every moment. Each being is miraculous, and unique, and deserves to be sung. * And, the language. I already waxed on about that. I can't wait for Martin Marten to come out in paperback.
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Oliver Twist
by
Charles Dickens
Cheri P
, March 24, 2015
Every year I read a Dickens; Oliver Twist is number four. I continue to be struck by the power of these novels. It always takes me some time to fall into Dickens. Archaic language, references to unfamiliar things both foreign and outdated, social norms no longer appropriate... and yet, somehow, the books remain current. Oliver Twist is a horrific novel, really. Gory murders, brains dashed out on rocks, abhorrent poverty, intentional starvation, gross disregard of humanity... It's a study of contrasts. Oliver Twist and Rose are so sweet and pure as to be allegorical, and Fagin and Stiles and yes, even the Bumbles are so dark as to be nightmares. And sometimes, yes, it's wordy. Really wordy. Paid-by-the-word wordy. And yet: I loved this book. Not everyone is black and white, though. Nancy was one of my favorite characters, and she wasn't pure by any definition. Charles Bates grows, in the end. And the description of London... sometimes I felt so soiled, oppressed by the description of the lives the dredges of humanity led. More disturbing then the grittiest fantasy out there, if you read closely.
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Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
by
Haruki Murakami, Jay Rubin, Philip Gabriel
Cheri P
, March 05, 2015
I am a fan of Murakami. Kafka on the Shore is one of my favorite novels, and I've enjoyed quite a few others as well. This is my first foray into his short story fiction, though... and I'm not sure what to think about it. It reads like Murakami. In the novels, I like this "Murakaminess." I've pondered much over the last few days how to describe Murakami's style, and I can't figure out how to put it into words. Sparse. Pragmatic. Something. The short stories are fine. Some fall flat, others are quite good, but maybe so many stories is a bad thing for me because it really shines a light on how repetitive he can be. Jazz. Adultery. And emotional flatness that seeps into so many of his characters. An "oh well" attitude that just seems, well... empty. Perhaps these things just don't translate well into English? I don't know. I'll give another short story collection a shot, though. And his novels? Still working my way through that cannon.
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
by
Junot Diaz
Cheri P
, February 07, 2015
I liked this book more than I expected to, and I'm likely to read more Junot Diaz in the future. Even though I missed a good chunk of the novel due to my complete lack of Spanish, and even though it's full of footnotes (which I generally dislike in my fiction), I found this book compelling. And, I found it compelling even though this is not a happy novel. But it feels real. Most characters are so distinct and filled out, complex with desires and goals that aren't always the most honorable. There is no magical redemption, no saving grace... just life, in a harsh and yet somehow beautiful way. This book has violence, both physical and emotional. It has love, in its most twisted manifestations. It has degradation, and ostracization. It has hope and resignation, sometimes in the same thought. Yes, I liked this one.
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Authority (Southern Reach Trilogy #2)
by
Jeff VanderMeer
Cheri P
, February 02, 2015
Not nearly as riveting as Annihilation, Authority is, nonetheless, good enough to stay on my list of series to complete. This volume lacked the lush vibrancy of Annihilation, though, and I found myself struggling to stay focused on the text. My mind wandered. I often skimmed. About fifty pages from the end I was prepared to give it two stars and give up on the Southern Reach Trilogy, but the ending is intriguing enough to make me change my mind. Once again characters are stripped of their names, though less thoroughly than in the first installment. This is an interesting device, and I admire VanderMeer for continuing with the practice. Moving from an individual with an identity to a role is interesting. I enjoyed seeing a couple characters move forward, re-grasp their identities, even though they aren't sure what those identities really are. I'm curious about what happens next, which is a good thing for a "book two" to do. Is this book wonderful? Not really. But it's good enough to invest in book three. It could go either way.
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A Night in the Lonesome October
by
Roger Zelazny and Gahan Wilson
Cheri P
, January 27, 2015
Ugh. I know this book is well-loved by many, but I just cannot count myself among them. Did I hate this book? No. Did I like it? Not really. It's a book group book, so I read it, thanking my lucky stars that it was a quick read. The conceit is interesting but did not pull me in. Too clever, too cute. I liked the people/familiar idea, though. My favorite was the cat. There's a good chance I just didn't "get it." But you know? I hated James Joyce's Ulysses because I didn't get that one, either. Whenever a book is so referential it requires volumes of previous knowledge, I get irritated. I can see how others could like that. But me? I'll just move on to November, and leave October to Jack. And Jill. And the hill.
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Magician: Apprentice: Riftwar Saga: Magician 1
by
Raymond E Feist
Cheri P
, January 25, 2015
It's been awhile since I've indulged in a really good book-binge, and this was a good one to do it with. I read this book before, long ago, and barely remembered it. During this re-read, I remembered bits and pieces, but basically this was close to a fresh read. Feist can craft a good story. This is not complex writing. Indeed, as I read through Magician: Apprentice I was often pulled out of the story by the often clumsy text. I don't think I read Feist for his language, or his sentence structure.... I read him because he's just... fun. Fantasy, pure and simple, with a dash of interstellar something or other (aliens!) to make things interesting. Pug is a great character, and so is Tomas; we leave them in dire circumstances at the end of this novel. I've read enough other Feist to know that both boys just get more interesting as the series continues. A masterwork? No. But an excellent way to binge away a winter's weekend.
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Maddaddam
by
Margaret Atwood
Cheri P
, January 23, 2015
I loved MaddAddam. Five stars? Let's say 4.5, with a bonus tossed in due to the limitations of a 5 star scale. This volume of the MaddAddam trilogy is delicate. The tale unwinds through several voices, and always Atwood seems to nail the perspective that tells just the right sort of story. My favorite passages were Toby's, when she is telling goodnight stories to the Crakers. Telling just one side of the conversation was completely amusing, often causing me to laugh out loud. I don't do that often. I also really enjoyed Bluebeard. Bluebeard was not just endearing. He also caused me to think, to wonder, to ponder potential. This is a trilogy worth digging into. Yes, I'm in an Atwood phase right now, but that's because she's such a delicious writer. I was sad for this one to end. I even shed a tear, it ended so well. Hope. It lives.
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Tales from Earthsea 05
by
Ursula K Le Guin
Cheri P
, January 19, 2015
It's hard for me to verbalize LeGuin's impact on me. Her writing is so... simple. Her style reads so often like writing for youngsters (and maybe it is...), but the ideas are not simple. They're complex and somehow sit in my mind for weeks after I've finished one of her books. I have a few authors who I am working on "completing:" reading all they've published. Le Guin is one of them. So, yes. I very much enjoyed this collection of stories. They run the entire timeline of the Earthsea series, from before book one and as a bridge between 4 and 6. The world filled out for me with this volume, and I have a hankering to go back and start over with number one. But first, I'll dig into 6. Big things are going to happen.
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1984
by
George Orwell
Cheri P
, January 14, 2015
I swear I read this book before... and yet, nothing was familiar. The scene that stuck in my mind from my supposed previous reading? Not there. All in my imagination. An invented memory. Surprisingly apropos, in a twisted, not-quite-linear kind of way. I liked the book - mostly. The twenty-or-so page passage of The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism didn't endear me to the book; in our household, this "here's what you need to know" technique is referred to as "The Librarian" method of storytelling (a la Neal Stephenson's convenient data-dump device in Snow Crash), and it's a readerly peeve of mine. The Librarian Data Dump aside, I did like 1984. I get why it's a classic. Heck, it's a classic that's held its own - over 60 years old and the ideas in there are relevant. Scary. Thought provoking. I especially enjoyed the discussion of language, and how controlling one's access to language controls one's thought. In the coming days, I'll be thinking about concepts of power, control, and what happens when we destroy human bonds of friendship, love, and empathy. When we hate simply because we're supposed to hate. When we fear original thought. It's dangerous stuff. Makes me worry even more about the way popular media functions... it seems to me that some "news" functions more like Big Brother, whipping people up into thoughtless frenzies, revising truth to mirror ideologies. How far are we, really, from those Big Brother telescreens? How many people let their sets murmur rantings all day and into the night? We are not so far from 1984 as we would like to think, I fear. This book is unsettling (as it's supposed to be), and even crept into my dreams (no, not restful dreams, thank you Mr. Orwell). It was not a happy book. I finished the last page and wanted a shower, a cry, and a drink. At least we can get better gin than poor Winston Smith.
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All American Poem
by
Matthew Dickman
Cheri P
, December 19, 2014
I haven't read poetry in a long while, and this was a good re-entry into the practice. Contemporary, full of references I "get." Dickman is good at language and rhythm, and I enjoyed reading many of the lines aloud. I'll probably revisit this collection a year or two down the line. My favorite aspects of these poems? They're emotional and intellectual. Sensual and also blunt about sexuality. They're about complex emotions involving people and things and symbols. They're now.
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Anansi Boys
by
Neil Gaiman
Cheri P
, December 11, 2014
Sometimes, what I want is a book that's quick, fun, interesting... Gaiman is often that way for me. Anansi Boys is a fast book with a story that's quirky, very Gaiman-ish, fun... And yes, I stayed up way too late last night to finish it. I enjoyed the character development in this one; Charlie's progression from start to finish was significant, as was Spider's. Yes, some of the romantic stuff was mildly predictable, but that's okay. This is just a story. A fun one. I especially enjoy how Gaiman plays with gods - this is one of the things that draws me to his work. That, and his language - simple, but not elementary. Worth my time.
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Daytripper
by
Ba, Gabriel and Moon, Fabio
Cheri P
, December 09, 2014
I liked this book, quite a bit, actually.... though it wasn't as powerful as I expected. Sometimes other peoples' reviews can do that, set you up for something that's more obtuse than it really is. Daytripper is a gentle sort of novel, even though there is a lot of death. It's a thoughtful book about life, and why we live it, and what makes it important. It's a sad book, and yet as I finished the last page I was struck by how hopeful it all was, too. I wonder, how will my obituary read? Who will note my passing? Will people focus on what I've done, or what I never managed to do?
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Mink River
by
Brian Doyle
Cheri P
, December 03, 2014
Ever read a book that ends up turning you into a short-term fanatic? Right now, I think Brian Doyle is the most awesomest thing since sliced bread. (Yes, I know. I meant to write it that way.) Mink River has been coming up on various "you'd like this" lists for awhile, and I enjoy his column in The Oregonian. His column in no way prepared me, however, for this novel. It blew me away. What I loved: * Characters. They are wonderful, deep, human, special. Magic. * Moses. An off-shoot of "Characters," but worth it's own asterisk. I love Moses. I want to know Moses. * Irish stories. Native American stories. Cuchulainn, my favorite literary hero has a place in this book. * A healthy dose of magical realism. * Spirituality, as seen through flawed souls. * Lyricism. This is lyrical prose. It's poetic prose. It's prosely poetics. Okay. It's just lovely. I had to read some passages aloud to fully taste the loveliness. My husband was frequently treated to "Hey, listen to this paragraph!". *Gentle and powerful. This isn't a book to power through. It merits listening. Some complain that it's got strings of nouns, adjectives, whatever.... but the thing is, that's a chunk of the point. Life, beauty, nature, societies - we're all a collection of things and sights and sounds, and those things together build a world. Doyle's world is full and magic and, to me, oh, so real. Sometimes, once in a great while, a book comes along that I just don't want to end. I begin reading slower, and slower, feeling the end draw near, and I just don't want it to happen. Mink River was one of those books. I look forward to his next novel. I'll be checking out some of his short story collections in the meantime
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The Dead Lands
by
Percy, Benjamin
Cheri P
, December 01, 2014
Red Moon, a previous novel by Percy, is already on my "to read" shelf. When I had the chance to read The Dead Lands, I was pretty pleased. It was a very satisfying read. While it's inspired by the Lewis and Clark saga, I wouldn't go much further than that; if you're expecting a close retelling of the historical journey across the US, you may want to adjust your mindset. This book falls a bit short of 5 stars, though it's tricky to say exactly why. There is something a touch flat about the narrative, so that I never quite got all the way into the characters. This is odd to me, actually, because when I think about each of the characters I'm struck by how they are each very individual, with developed motivates, strengths, and weaknesses. There are very creepy characters, brutal characters, blindingly brilliant characters, brave characters, weak, characters. The women aren't shrinking violets (Thank you, Percy. I'm done with pale-skinned, twig-boned, hysteria-prone female characters...), but neither are they man-haters. They're just, well... women. You know, people. Would I recommend it? Yes. Will I pick up what I imagine will be a continuation of this saga? Yes. And I'll be going back and reading Percy's back catalog.
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Dark Tower 05 Wolves Of The Calla
by
Stephen King
Cheri P
, November 20, 2014
Wolves of the Calla was a significant uptick in the series; Wizard in Glass (#4) did not do me well, so what a relief to be sucked in. Even though the novel stays in one little town, the larger arc of the series is pushed forward. I am impressed by how King did this. The town story was riveting, and never did I feel like the "true quest" got forgotten. Jake is coming into his own, which is a fine thing, and I am enjoying how Roland is becoming more human. The power structure of the ka-tet shifts in this book. If I read King's horror stuff I would have probably loved the Salem's Lot link-in. Even having not read it I was pulled along just fine, and I liked the Callahan character a lot. Overall, a very fine read.
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Altered Carbon: Takeshi Kovacs 1
by
Richard K Morgan
Cheri P
, October 31, 2014
I finally dove into Altered Carbon after receiving a baker's dozen recommendations. I enjoyed it well enough, but it didn't prove to be the knock-my-socks-off experience I thought it may be. I liked settling into the book. I liked figuring out the world, sleeves, stacks, needlecasts, dipping, viruses, meths, real death... pretty interesting stuff. I disliked the body count in this book, though. This is one of the more violence-ridden novels I've read in a very long time, and I admit that it put me off. I disliked the torture in this book. I disliked how graphically Morgan detailed the torture, especially when it was done to Kovacs's temporary female sleeve. That really bugged me. There are some solid female characters here, that's a plus, though they all seem to use sex as a weapon or tool (with, perhaps, the exception of Trepp... she may be my favorite character in this book). At it's core, this book is about sex, violence, and moral depravity. Maybe I'll read the next one. If Trepp is in it, I probably will.
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Sword & Citadel The Second Half of The Book of the New Sun
by
Gene Wolfe
Cheri P
, October 24, 2014
So, I read this book mostly out of a completionist impulse rather than any strong drive to actually read the thing. Clever, creating a 2-volume omnibus edition. I guess The Book of the New Sun is a classic. Do I see good things in it? Yes... there are dozens of wonderful ideas in this series. Interesting twists, fascinating mythos.... And the concept of the autarch (and who and what that is...)? Very cool. Yet this book never grabbed me. While there are riveting concepts here, the writing is so utterly flat to me. I am honestly bewildered how so much wonderfulness can be so, well... boring. Aside from a writing style I didn't exactly fall into, I struggled with the absence of plot. Like a roughly-connected series of DnD adventures featuring cool min/max characters, Severian just moves from adventure to adventure, gaining the occasional clue, an item here or there, and bits of experience. He gets progressively awesome with his sword (too much xp for each adventure!), and quickly seems immune to most human weaknesses (even when he's near death he's still pretty snappy). Bits of character development are still flat. A more emotive story-teller could have really put some zing in these books. Still, it gets 3 stars. It was okay. I'm glad to move on, though.
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Shadow & Claw Omnibus
by
Gene Wolfe
Cheri P
, October 13, 2014
So this book is entirely problematic for me. Do I 'get it?' No. It confuses the curl right out of my hair. I keep losing the plot thread. I can't figure out what all the invented words mean. I feel like I'm wandering through this quartet of books. And yet... I made a trip to Powell's to pick up the second half of the series. What magic is it that forces me to read on? I cannot say. The world in the Book of the New Sun series is dark, scary, violent. Life is cheap. And yet, there is love and mystery here, too... A lot of mystery.
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Leviathan Wakes: Expanse 1
by
James S A Corey
Cheri P
, October 13, 2014
I really liked this book. A lot. As in, I pushed my bedtime back to read one more chapter. Snuck in reading sessions in between household chores. Ignored other tasks in favor of Leviathan Wakes... Yes, I'm tired. Sleep deprived. If only I could read rather than, oh, go to work. Four or five? Such a hard call. Is this book amazing? I don't know if I'd go that far... but I thought it was really, really good. I don't read detective fiction, but I sure loved this element in Leviathan Wakes. Miller was an interesting (flawed, thoughtful, human) character, and I enjoyed each of his chapters. Jim Holden was also good - space cowboy with an ethical flair.... I liked how these two characters played off each other. They're both brilliant and idiotic. Idealistic and jaded. Selfish and utterly selfless. Sometimes "space operas" are hard for me. I want to like them, but often they're just... too much. Here, though, it's closer to home. Our solar system, our little piece of the sky. Just close enough to make sense to me. I'll be reading Expanse #2, for sure.
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On Basilisk Station Honor Harrington 01
by
David Weber
Cheri P
, June 03, 2014
I was very disappointed with this book. I'm not generally into military SF, so maybe... this sub-genre is okay with page upon interminable page of exposition? I resorted to skimming in order to make it through the textbook-like passages. I liked Honor, would have enjoyed the treecat if it had played a more active role, and enjoyed watching Fearless's crew "coming around." Ultimately, this book fell completely flat for me, and I was thrilled to finally find the last page.
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