Customer Comments

I rarely can find a book that, at its end, makes me both heartbroken and hopeful. Murray has created a moment, built on so many other moments, that catapult the reader into a complete state of turmoil. Skippy Dies artfully constructs the lives of its many characters around this one moment and once it passes, you are just as changed as they are. This book is a study of youth, of fading, of secrets, of horror, of pain, but also of innocence in all its forms, and how easily it breaks.

This book really blew me away. I was expecting to hate it because I'm an academic that specialises in Japan... But David Mitchell is brilliant. Each character is perfectly rendered, perfectly heartbreaking, and each scene comes alive in your mind as if he's painting with words. By the end, you're in love and you're relishing how life sometimes can only beautiful because of tragedy.

What an epic story! Mitchell deftly weaves all the interconnected stories for each character so perfectly, they achieve a sort of wholeness that makes them seem like one giant entity. And really, that's what this is- there's no separating them because each of their small actions builds upon each other to create the entirety of their universe. In Japanese, there's this saying- "Ichigo ichie", which is what this book is for me- one time, one encounter- that changes everything. Although, happily, unlike life, this book is always waiting for me to come back to it. There's so much here that you could only hope to catch most of it after a few readings.

I'm a big fan of Jennifer Egan's Look at Me, so I was eager to pick this up... but I just wasn't sucked into it the way she has done in her other books. The progression from the start of the modern-modern era, to a slightly-in-the-future-future was good, but at the same time, I felt like she was being too opaque. Her theme of human disconnectedness in the face of modernity is just constantly banged over your head after the first 100 pages and then just when you think it could get better, the whole theme-bucket gets emptied on your head. Definitely worth one read, but not my favorite.

Holy paydirt! This is, in my humble opinion, THE BEST canning book out there right now. It's no-nonsense, totally clear and the recipes are killer. Vinton encourages readers to find their own way and be creative, but still provides great basic recipes with little twists to bring a breath of fresh air to an old-school art. Plus, the sweet art style really gives the reader that crafty-homey feeling without the associated chintz and old-lady-ness. All around awesome. Everything I've made so far has turned out beautifully.

There is something about Balram that has stayed with me ever since I finished The White Tiger. He is at once abhorrent, disgusting, pitiable and yet somehow, I cheered him on every step of the way. I rejoiced for him, worried for him and felt like I was there with him when he commits his drastic act of defiance. I will not make excuses for him, but I will say that I forgave him entirely.

Probably my third favorite Murakami book. The characters are ridiculous, the action is confusing, and every moment word leaves you bewildered. You must savor this book many times to truly extract the real flavor, but it is brilliant and worth the effort.

Definitely not my favorite Murakami, but he manages to create such a mood and such a light-headed fuzziness through his words that I couldn't help but get sucked in. Truly masterful in its sparseness.

This book is one of those reads that sucks you in so quickly, you don't even realize the hours that have passed. Galloway has created a time and place in layers that you must peel back to reveal the heart of the book: that daily life is so fragile and so perfect, we can never appreciate it, even when it seems it will never return. Truly masterful and truly heartbreaking. I will be rereading it again soon.

I can't really describe what this book did to me, but it comes close to heartbreak and revelation. I loved these characters wholeheartedly and I wanted to step inside the book so I could hug each one. Jonathan Safran Foer has done something incredible and taken history, family, and love to a place that is at once wonderful but soul-tearing. Absolutely one of my all-time favorites.

This has to be my favorite sorta-girly, sorta-old school book of all time. It's got hot boys, high romance, and more than enough eccentricity. A Gossip-girl for the vintagely minded, if you want to stretch it even further. Perhaps I'm not extolling the virtues of this novel properly; you will fall in love, feel like teenage crap, and overflow with hope right along with Cassandra. You will root for her, cry with her, and miss her when the last page is turned. And years laters, when you are older and more acquainted with heartbreak, you will come back to her like she's an old friend. In an age of rubbish tween lit and vampire sexy trash, I Capture the Castle appeals for its simplicity, its wisdom, and its charm. If I ever have a daughter, I will be putting this into her hands and pray she loves it half as much as I do.