The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Give this book a chance! It's a complicated book to dive into. I started it, put it down and then restarted it, but it was worth it. 

It's groundhog day and a mystery set on a country estate in England. There are multiple characters to keep track of and it's a book that should come with a scorecard. The main character inhabits several of the guests throughout the book, each time getting closer to the solution. He must operate under a strict timeline. 

I loved the book, until the end. The ending worked, but it seemed rushed and wasn't nearly as clever or as twisty as the rest of the book.

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Hold Tight by Harlan Coben

Hold Tight by Harlan Coben
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I love mysteries and thrillers, but I have never warmed to Harlan Coben. I chose this book because I needed a paper book to take on our camping trip and it was on the shelf. It was the right book for the camping trip. I could read it and put it down without worrying about paying particular attention to the plot or characters.

Name any issue that was relevant in 2008 and it was in this book. The book had too many coincidences and too many interwoven plots to be realistic in any way.

I liked the parents' determination to keep their son safe. I also liked the short chapters, and while there were too many subplots, it helped distract from plot holes and inconsistencies.

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The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Wow, what a good book!  I read this book in one sitting.   The author takes very complicated issues and makes them understandable and relatable for all. 

Starr is the main character.  She straddles two worlds.  She lives in the same neighborhood her parents grew up in and where her dad is a small business owner.  She goes to school at a private school that is predominately white.  She has to constantly change depending on which world she is currently inhabiting.

Starr's parents want the very best for her and her siblings, but they also don't want to give up on making their neighborhood better.  And then the incident occurs and it becomes increasing difficult and dangerous for them and their family.

I know this book has been produced for television, but don't shy away from this young adult book.  The words are powerful and evoke such strong emotions.  It's a good read for all.

Family Vacation - Covid Style

This was the summer for our big, once in a lifetime, multi-generational family trip to Disney World.  Covid intervened and we found ourselves without any summer vacation plans.  

We typically spend a week on Lake Chautauqua in western New York with my husband's family, but were forgoing that for our big Disney plans this year.  With options limited, we decided to try a long weekend camping.  We ranged in age from 1 year old to the 60+ set and included one dog.  Dear friends joined us and we were off!

We went to Elk Neck State Park on the north end of the Chesapeake Bay.  The campground was beautiful, but the weather was HOT - 90° and humid.  The weekend was a success.  The grandkids spent the weekend dirty, watching for wildlife, and eating s'mores.  Their parents, aunts, and uncles played board games, took turns wrangling children, and telling tales around the campfire.  Looking forward to many more family camping trips (AND the eventual trip to Disney!!)

The Wives by Tarryn Fisher

Unreliable narrators...UGH.  Is it any wonder we no longer trust what we read or hear?  I think they've been overdone, and are too often used in place of clever plotting.

The Wives by Tarryn Fisher doesn't have an unreliable narrator, everyone is unreliable in some way and all are unlikable.

Our main character is the second (and legal) wife of a polygamist.  Part of her "arrangement" with her husband is that she will never learn about or meet the other wives who live in a different city.  Of course, you know where this is headed.  The reader learns more as she learns more.

The premise of this book is interesting, and has lots of potential, but it broached too many serious and difficult subjects without attempting to do them justice - polygamy, mental illness, abuse, stalking, gaslighting.   A deeper drive into any one of these subjects would have provided a meaty and interesting book.  Putting all of them in the same book made them superficial and tended to reinforce stereotypes.

The best thing it has going for it is that the book is a page turner.  I kept going, waiting for the next crazy person or plot point and then it ended.  Just like that, abruptly.  It was a like the author hit her word count and stopped.

The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin

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Melanie Benjamin writes historical fiction novels.  She doesn't just connect facts with anecdotes, she finds the narrative thread in each story she tells.  

I knew three things about Truman Capote before reading this book:  he wrote In Cold Blood, was an embarrassing talk show guest in the 70s, and was a boyhood friend of Harper Lee.  After reading this book I know many more things about Capote, and I now truly understand the meaning of the word sycophant.  

This book provides a look into the Cafe Society of the uber wealthy in NYC. The reader saw how Capote curated the group of women he called his "swans", and how he wormed his way into high society.  Even though Babe Paley was the richest and most privileged of the swans she never found happiness - few friendships, loveless marriage, strict social norms. I never felt sorry for her, she had the resources and options to change her situation It didn't escape me that in telling this story she is using the "nonfiction novel" approach that Truman Capote was claimed he created. It seemed just.

An Ending and A New Beginning

I have been writing this blog for several years now.  It started out as a way to give people a look at the books, students, and school that I loved.  It eventually morphed into a book review blog - children's books since I was an elementary school librarian.  

I retired this spring after 27 years.  I still loved my job, school, and students.  I didn't leave because of the Coronavirus.  I left because there are lots of things I'd like to do that don't necessarily fit in with the school calendar.  Things like visit out of state grandchildren, be available to share the daycare load for local grandchildren, and travel in the fall and spring (hopefully again!).  

I am finding my self reading - A LOT!  I love that I have the time to read without feeling guilty and I am free to read whatever I want.  As an elementary school librarian I read middle grade fiction all the time.  I no longer feel guilty when reading about serial killers or books that contain spanky sex.

As a result, this blog will be moving away from writing about children's books and moving toward to great wide world of the printed word.