Coming soon: a search engine for the archives! Whoopdy-doo!

• (4/30)Some Things That Stay by Sarah Willis.
  
  Excellent novel about the Anderson family's latest move. Mr. Anderson, a landscape painter, has his family move every year so he has new scenes to paint. After the latest move, into a little farmhouse on the outskirts of a small town in Western New York, 16-year old Tamara (pronounced "like tomorrow with an a") swears she will never move again. But when he mother is sent to a sanatorium because of a particularly strong case of TB, Tamara has to stop being a headstrong child and suddenly become a mother to her younger brother and sister. The stress the family goes through as a result ties them together just as they are beginning to fall apart. This is a truly beautiful novel. I loved it.
  [FICTION]

  (4/25)Under the Beetle's Cellar by Mary Willis Walker.
  

  Mesmerizing thriller about a crazy cult leader and his followers who kidnap a bus driver and 11 of his young passengers (all under the age of 11) and bury them underground in a school bus for 50 days. The story has two settings -- the outside world, featuring a reporter who is trying to find out as much as possible about the cult leader's past so she can figure out a way to convince him to let the children go -- and the world inside the bus, where the bus driver, a Vietnam vet with no experience with children, overcomes his own fear to try to keep the kids calm and safe. He starts telling them a story in installments, one chapter a day, and also begins working on a way to barricade themselves in the bus in preparation for the day he knows is coming, the day the cult leader will try to sacrifice them all. Something about these kids and that bus driver's story (about a turkey vulture named Jacksonville) really drew me in. This is probably the first time a stock thriller has ever reduced me to tears by the end (of course, I did have a fever of 102 at the time). Highly recommended!
  [FICTION]

  (4/23)Hugger Mugger by Robert B. Parker.
  

  Latest Spenser novel (yay! yay!). Everything I thought it would be except EVEN BETTER. The plot centers on a family who owns a bunch of racing horses that are being shot one by one. When someone makes an attempt on their star racer, Hugger Mugger, they call in Spenser to investigate. Spenser novels are intelligent, funny, and always perfectly crafted. They always make me laugh out loud and I've been totally head-over-heels in love with Spense ever since I started reading the series, about 10 years ago. NOTHING makes me happier than a new Spenser novel and if that's not the best recommendation ever, I dunno what is.
  [MYSTERY]

  (4/20)Breaking News by Robert MacNeil.
  

  Novel by MacNeil of the MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour about, surprise surprise, television news broadcasting! It's actually a very funny novel about a famous news anchor who is approaching retirement age and feels like he's getting pushed out by the young'uns around him. At the same time, there is an insider somewhere in the newsworld posing as a transvestite in an internet chatroom and gossiping about all the trashy stuff going on behind-the-scenes. Very well-written and a lot of fun. Recommended!
  [FICTION]

  (4/18)Blind Instinct by Robert W. Walker.
  

  My first Walker mystery also happens to be his latest -- this is the most recent installment of a series I've heard referred to as the "instinct" series (I think they all have that word in the title). The protagonist is a female medical examiner (yay!) named Jessica Coran and the series has been compared to Patricia Cornwell's (which is why I wanted to check it out). I have to say, though, PC's Scarpetta books have been going rapidly downhill -- the last one was very poorly written and weak plotted. I enjoyed this mystery a lot more than I enjoyed the last PC mystery (though she's got another one coming out soon and I'll give that one a chance before deciding if she's worth my time anymore). In "Blind Instinct" Dr. Coran travels to England to consult on a series of murders by crucifixion. While there, she gets romantically involved with one of the local cops on the case, and a bit infatuation with an elderly priest who specializes in philosophy about the nature of evil. I really liked the characters and the plot was interesting, though maybe a bit slow in places (and just a teeny bit predictable). Overall, quite enjoyable. I have one more in the series out from the library right now and will probably read it this month, so check back if you're interested!
  [MYSTERY]

  (4/15)Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout.
  

  Wonderful novel about a mother and her daughter struggling with their emotions for each other and the men they think they love. The mother (Isabelle), a mill worker, is infatuated with her married boss, who has begun to snub her. Her 16-year-old daughter (Amy) has fallen in love with her math teacher, who uses and then ditches her. As they try to figure out how to process their respective broken hearts, they begin to pull away from each other as well. But can mothers and daughters ever truly break that line that connects them? Very moving and compassionate novel, with amazing characters (who provide a great deal of comic relief) and profound wisdom. Highly recommended!
  [FICTION]

  (4/11)Cold Comfort by Scott Mackay.
  

  Mystery about the murder of the daughter of a prominent government official. Interesting twists, but kind of slow in places.
  [MYSTERY]

  (4/9)Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet out of Idaho by Jon Katz.
  

  Katz, a known on-line writer focusing heavily on the "geek" movement, turned his original Rolling Stones article on two geeks from Idaho who summon up the guts to move to Chicago (with $10 to spare) into this full-length book. The two kids are amazing -- brilliant, talented, and extremely misunderstood. Katz captures quite well the suffering geeks go through in high school -- the teasing, isolation, and disdain they are subjected to from both kids and adults who are intimidated by their knowledge. A fascinating look at a growing subculture most people don't understand (think about the headlines about computer games after Columbine). I was really impressed by the stronger-willed of the two boys, Jesse. This is a kid we will be hearing about in the future.
  [NON-FICTION]

  (4/2)True North by Kimberly Kafka.
  

  Bailey, a strong-willed white woman living among native Alaskans, isn't used to having to care for anyone but herself. When Kash, a local Native American trying to encourage tourism in the area, asks her to fly down and pick up a young couple planning on camping in the area, Bailey is a little annoyed with how needy and unprepared they turn out to be. Little does she know, they aren't planning to just camp and instead have gone north to do something to the land they swore they would not do. However, they get mixed up with some very dangerous locals and Bailey soon has to decide whether to help them or stay out of it. Very engaging. Loved the setting.
  [FICTION]