The Liars' Club

Mary Karr
Penguin Books
Reviewed by: Nancy
5 out of 5 stars

Overview

When it was published in 1995, Mary Karr's The Liars Club took the world by storm and raised the art of the memoir to an entirely new level, as well as bringing about a dramatic revival of the form. Karr's comic childhood in an east Texas oil town brings us characters as darkly hilarious as any of J. D. Salinger's—a hard-drinking daddy, a sister who can talk down the sheriff at twelve, and an oft-married mother whose accumulated secrets threaten to destroy them all. Now with a new introduction that discusses her memoir's impact on her family, this unsentimental and profoundly moving account of an apocalyptic childhood is as "funny, lively, and un-put-downable" (USA Today) today as it ever was.

My Review

After reading Will's intriguing review of Lit: A Memoir, I decided it was time to explore Mary Karr’s work, so I went to the library and borrowed The Liars' Club. Written in 1995, this memoir explores the author’s dysfunctional childhood in sweltering and swampy Leechfield, Texas.

Though Mary Karr and I did not have similar childhoods, there were definitely certain life situations and reactions to them that I could relate to and I came to realize that no matter how different people’s lives are, there are always things that will connect us. I was enthralled by her writing, which is very intimate and lyrical and enabled me to empathize with her.

Just like my dad, Mary’s dad saved receipts from nearly every bill he paid (and he always voted Democrat).

“It was a feat Daddy never got to perform, but on nights when he spread the receipts out chronologically, he made it clear to my sister and me that every day some suit-wearing, Republican sonofabitch (his term) weaseled a working man out of an extra three dollars for lack of a receipt. He would not be caught short. These notorious Republicans were the bogeymen of my childhood. When I asked him to define one (I think it was during the Kennedy-Nixon debate), Daddy said a Republican was somebody who couldn’t enjoy eating unless he knew somebody else was hungry, which I took to be gospel for longer than I care to admit. Maybe the only thing worse than being a Republican was being a scab.” 

 My brother was an obedient child and always stayed still while my dad was smacking him. To me, that made no sense and just made it easy for my dad. If I put enough energy into evading and escaping, dad had to spend energy grabbing for my wrist or bending over to yank me out from under the bed. This did not exhaust him, as I hoped it would, but only made the beating worse when he finally got a hold of me.

“Of course, I am famous for running in the middle of a spanking. It makes me proud that Daddy used to run too. I always figured only a dumbass would just stand still and take it.”

So Mary’s parents weren’t so great, but I loved the details she used to bring them to life. Even with all their flaws, I found it difficult to dislike them totally. My parents weren’t so perfect either. For the most part I was able to get past that when I remind myself they are human beings with flaws, and children don’t come with an instruction manual, and people just do the best they can. It’s not always good enough, but it’s easier to understand and empathize with your flawed parents when you’re not putting them up on a pedestal attributing superhuman qualities to them.

This is a very worthwhile story about hardship, family relationships, survival, and growing up. It is absorbing, disturbing, hilarious, honest and difficult to put down. I am looking forward to reading about Mary’s teen years.

Also posted at Goodreads.

Calling All Smegheads!

Reviewed by Zorena

Summary

The first lesson Lister learned about space travel was you should never try it. But Lister didn't have a choice. All he remembered was going on a birthday celebration pub crawl through London. When he came to his senses again, with nothing in his pockets but a passport in the name of Emily Berkenstein.

So he did the only thing he could. Amazed to discover they would actually hire him, he joined the space corps and found himself aboard Red Dwarf, a spaceship as big as a small city that, six or seven years from now, would get him back to Earth. What Lister couldn't foresee was that he'd inadvertently signed up for a one-way jaunt three million years into the future... a future which would see him the last living member of the human race, with only a hologram crew mate and a highly evolved cat for company. Of course, that was before the ship broke the light barrier and things began to get really weird...

My Review

I'm not usually a fan of book tie ins with movies and television but this was so much like the BBC show's episodes in book format that of course I loved it! I've been a fan of the show since it started and was gleeful when I found there were actually novels I had to at least try them. It tells the tale of the Red Dwarf crew from the start. It includes a lot of what was in the first two series as well as a ton of details that you wouldn't know if that was your only source. Then it throws in whole new story lines and tangents. Lister's back story of how he ended up on Red Dwarf was something I had wanted to know for a long time.

This is one book I would compare to Adams style and it holds its own admirably. Kudos to Grant and Naylor. I really must find the rest of the books they have written for Red Dwarf. I've also noted there are audiobooks of this and the other novels read by Chris Barrie (Rimmer)! I would be a total smeghead if I didn't add then to my listening list as well.Red Dwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers

Red Dwarf #1

Bob Grant and Doug Naylor

Five Stars

Have Sword, Will Travel

Lone Wolf & Cub, vol. 1: The Assassin's Road

Kazuo Koike & Goseki Kojima

Dark Horse Comics

Reviewed by: Terry 

4 out of 5 stars

A ground-breaking manga first published in Japan in 1970, Koike & Kojima’s “Lone Wolf & Cub” series follows the exploits of a laconic master assassin whose most defining characteristic, aside from his near unstoppable lethality and ingenious tactics, is probably the fact that he wanders Tokugawa- era Japan pushing a baby cart containing his three-year-old son Daigorō. As a result they are known throughout the country as Lone Wolf and Cub, a mysterious assassin ‘team’ who, for 500 ryu (gold pieces) will kill anyone so long as all details about the victim and circumstances are provided. The series became a pop-culture phenomenon in Japan, spawning six movies (they’re quite good), four plays (thanks Wikipedia!), a television series, and numerous rip-offs and homages. This volume is part of the reprint series published by Dark Horse comics starting in 2000 and contains nine of the adventures of Lone Wolf and Cub.

If you’re going to read this series you should be prepared for a few things: graphic violence involving samurai combat and assassinations is prevalent as is (usually violent) sex scenes and nudity…so not one for the kiddies. Also keep in mind that the basic premise behind each of the stories is usually a depiction of the various assassinations undertaken, and invariably completed, by Lone Wolf and Cub. There can, as a result, be an apparent sameness to many of the stories once the novelty of a new victim being dispatched in a unique way loses some of its shine. Keep in mind, however, that as the stories build we begin to get glimpses into the life and motives that drive Ogami Ittō (the eventually revealed name of the assassin) and each individual ‘adventure’ starts to tie in to the larger story arc of his tale of loss and vengeance. You will also be treated to some wonderful artwork and storytelling depicting both the stunning natural beauty and convincing historical details of 17th century Japan.

One thing to note is the way in which, while we come to learn a lot about both Ogami and Daigorō as the stories progress, in many ways it is the secondary characters who really shine in these stories. Even though they are usually people we will never see again, often because they don’t survive the issue, they really do come to life on the pages and often resonate far beyond the confines of their individual stories. Their diversity is also impressive as they exemplify a truly varied range of characters, lifestyles, and outlooks within the Tokugawa-era Japan that Koike & Kojima bring to such vivid life on the pages. One final element to note: Ogami is an assassin who has willingly ostracized himself from normal human society and he acts accordingly, thus we do not have the somewhat dubious paradox of the ‘good guy assassin’. Ogami is certainly often sympathetic, and when he is able to do so he is often more than willing to help those in need, but he is first and foremost an assassin with an agenda of his own that overrides all other concerns and thus he will always finish the job, whether we think his victim deserves their end or not.

“Son for Hire, Sword for Hire”: Koike & Kojima drop us in media res as we are observe a secret meeting between a nobleman and an unknown assassin. His assignment is to kill a high ranking noble who schemes to gain control of his Han as well as ‘the Guardian Eight of Mibu‘ who defend him. Ogami uses both his skill with weapons and tricky planning to earn his gold as he faces off against the group of famed warriors that guard his mark, a fairly typical scenario for LW&C. We see that Ogami plays the long game even in this very first story as he safeguards himself against not only his opponents, but also his employer.

“A Father Knows his Child’s Heart, as Only a Child Can Know his Father’s”: We learn that Ogami is truly single-minded in his devotion to his path of vengeance, even to the point of using his own son as a tool in his missions, whether that be as bait or in other ways. As far as Ogami is concerned both he and Daigorō truly are united in their endeavour and both father and son “walk the path of meifumado”, or Hell on Earth.

“From North to South, From West to East:” Ogami uses his martial skill to despatch many assailants, but proves that it is his strategic and tactical decisions that truly make him formidable. A child once again proves the key to Ogami completing his mission, though this time it isn't Daigorō.

“Baby Cart on the River Styx”: Ogami and Daigorō are caught between corrupt government officials, a shift in local power, double crosses, and an imminent gang war between rival Yakuza clans. I have to admit that I didn't fully follow the intricacies of the plot in this one, maybe they got the story from Raymond Chandler?

“Suiō School Zanbatō”: Ogami again uses Daigorō in his plans, this time to draw a samurai into a fight he can't win. When his victim’s friends look for vengeance Ogami utilizes the secret of his Suiō School Zanbatō technique to even the odds.

“Waiting for the Rains”: Ogami uses Daigorō as a way to secretly transport both instructions and payment from his current employer and then shows how his thorough research into both his victims and his employers leads him to success.  Even though only drawn with minimal strokes the background story of two of the secondary characters revolving around love deferred and promises kept even in the face of death was pretty striking.

“Eight Gates of Deceit”: Ogami proves his martial skill as he faces off against eight famed female assassins and then proves his superior strategy and forethought in the midst of a wily trap.

“Wings to the Bird, Fangs to the Beast”: Ogami and Daigorō come across a village famed for its hot springs spa that has become overrun by a gang of rōnin where they meet a hooker with the proverbial heart of gold. This seemed like a pretty light issue with not much to it aside from the proverbial fight and a partial reveal about Ogami’s background.

“The Assassin’s Road”: The final story of the volume gives us a flashback glimpse into the events that led both Ogami Ittō and his son Daigorō to choose the path of meifumado and head out on the ‘Demon’s Road’ of assassination. Schemes at the highest levels of government have targeted Ogami and his family and only his cleverness allows him to escape his most dangerous foes with his life.

What can I say? LW&C is truly a classic of the genre and as long as you can stomach some significant scenes of violence and a ‘hero’ whose gray shades significantly into black at times, then I highly recommend it. Especially excellent for its depiction of a historical era and society so different from what we know that still manages to bring the characters it presents to vivid life.


Also posted at Goodreads

The Lost Boy

Coreyography by Corey Feldman
2013
Reviewed by Diane K. M.
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars



Once you get past the ridiculous title and intense cover photo, this is a good memoir. I read very few celebrity biographies, but Corey Feldman's appealed to me because I grew up watching his movies. I loved "The Goonies" and "Stand By Me," and even the campiness of "The Lost Boys."

What I didn't know back then was that Corey's personal life was hell. His parents were abusive and neglectful, and for much of his childhood he was the sole breadwinner of the family. He had started acting in commercials when he was 3, and he worked steadily until he was a teenager. Both of his parents did drugs and Corey's paychecks were frittered away. If he lost an acting job, his mother would beat him. Once she beat him so hard that he blacked out. She also tormented him by constantly telling him he was fat and ugly, and that he was klutz.

Corey was so miserable that he tried to kill himself. When he was 12, he swallowed a bottle of aspirin. Later he found one of his grandfather's guns and came close to pulling the trigger, but he couldn't go through with it.

The first time Corey slept over at a friend's house, he was shocked when the boy's parents tucked his friend in at bedtime and said they loved him. Corey realized what he was missing and that his family wasn't normal. He often cried himself to sleep and wished he could escape. Eventually he started experimenting with drugs and alcohol, which set him on a path to addiction and gave him a bad reputation.

As if that wasn't awful enough, Corey wrote about how he was frequently molested by older men, and said pedophilia is a serious problem in the entertainment business. His longtime friend and fellow actor, Corey Haim, was raped on a movie set when he was just 11. In a disturbing description, Feldman looked at a photo from his 15th birthday party and saw that there were five different child molesters in the picture, along with himself and Haim. He said they were surrounded by "monsters." Feldman said he later tried to bring charges against one of his abusers, but the statute of limitations had run out.

One of Corey's childhood idols was Michael Jackson, who became a good friend. Corey's home life was so screwed up that Michael's house was a safe haven for him. The memoir has several sweet stories of hanging out with Michael, going to Disneyland with him while wearing a disguise, and attending Michael's elaborate parties. Years later, when MJ was accused of molesting children, Corey spoke up in his defense. In 2001, Michael broke off their friendship when he heard a rumor that Corey was writing a book about him, which Corey denied.

Hollywood is so far removed from my world that I had never seriously considered the plight of child actors. It's just not fair to put kids under such pressure to earn a living and support a family. When parents ask Corey for advice on how to get their child into the movie industry, he tells them to "get these kids out of Hollywood and let them lead normal lives."

I'm glad I read this memoir, even though I'll never again be able to watch those beloved 80s movies the same way. Corey tells some good behind-the-scenes stories about making "Gremlins," "The Goonies," "Stand By Me," and "The Lost Boys," and fans will probably appreciate this book. But the details of his abuse and neglect are very disturbing and sensitive readers should be warned.

Corey closes the book on an upbeat note, saying he's been sober for years and he's happy to have a son, Zen, who is now 8, and is still focused on his movie and music career. He hopes that talking about his abuse may help prevent other children from the same fate.

History Is Important, You Guys

1776 by David McCullough
2005
Reviewed by Diane K. M.
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars



There are several reasons why I think this book is important, and it has a lot to do with the state of our schools. You've probably heard that public education in America is becoming more of a shambles each decade. I work at a community college and often feel like I'm on the front lines of this battle. While we have a number of good students, we also have a fair number 18- and 19-year-olds who simply aren't prepared for higher education and who, if the economy weren't so degree-oriented, probably wouldn't choose to go to college at all. A number of factors have been blamed for the decline of American schools, but one of the biggest culprits in my opinion is the overemphasis on standardized testing, especially as codified by the dreadful No Child Left Behind Act.

Both students and teachers have complained that high schools place so much emphasis on memorizing facts for the annual tests that it leaves little room for critical thinking, or interesting stories of history and literature, or anything else that makes learning fun and inspiring. I think this is a travesty, and it's not just the students who are being cheated — it is all of society, because without an educated citizenry we are lost.

We. Are. Lost.

Every time I see the title of McCullough's book, 1776, it reminds me of this issue because of an incident in a colleague's classroom. An English professor was making a point about how people today rely so much on their smartphones and the Internet that no one bothers to remember anything anymore because they assume they can just Google it. The professor pointed out that this lack of internal knowledge can hinder understanding and complex thinking. As an example he asked his students when America was founded. 

Dead silence. 

There were about 30 students in the class, and none of them knew. The professor said, "Seriously? You don't know when our country was founded?" After a few more moments of silence a student meekly raised his hand and said, "If we didn't have to memorize it for the test, we probably don't know it."

Big sigh.

OK, boys and girls, America was founded on July 4, 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress. This event happened in the midst of the American Revolutionary War, which is the focus of McCullough's book. 

I wanted to read 1776 for several reasons. First, I had loved McCullough's biography on President Harry Truman and was eager to read more of his books. Second, it has been almost 20 years since I was in an American history class, and I wanted to revisit the details of how my country was founded. The stories, myths and legends about each nation are passed through the generations and become part of someone's culture and identity. I don't think these stories should be forgotten.

The book focuses on battles with the British between 1775 and 1777. It opens with a quote from a letter written by General George Washington in January 1776: "The reflection upon my situation and that of this army produces many an uneasy hour when all around me are wrapped in sleep. Few people know the predicament we are in." 

Reading this book reminded me of how fragile America's independence was. Few of the "rebels" had military experience. Weapons and gun powder were in short supply. Because the colonial men had volunteered to fight, some resisted following military orders and didn't understand army discipline. Plus, the Brits controlled the sea. But for a few lucky turns of fate, the British might have won the war. McCullough concluded the book with this summation: "Especially for those who had been with Washington and who knew what a close call it was at the beginning — how often circumstance, storms, contrary winds, the oddities or strengths of individual character had made the difference — the outcome seemed little short of a miracle." 

My favorite stories in the book were of the fortification of Dorchester Heights during the Siege of Boston, the Battle of Long Island and how the colonialists managed to retreat the entire Army in one night, and Washington's crossing of the Delaware. McCullough weaves a pleasant narrative and makes long-ago events seem very real. I liked his inclusion of quotes from letters, and the details of each military strategy, including how the weather was that day. And his description of Washington made me want to read a good biography about him.

I listened to this on audio CD, and McCullough is an excellent narrator. I highly recommend it to fans of history. Hooray for lifelong learning!

Silver John

Who Fears the Devil by Manly Wade Wellman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Silver John travels the Appalachian mountains, encountering all manner of strangness, with only his silver-stringed guitar for a companion...

I have a confession to make: I think 95% of fantasy stories are derivative and unoriginal. This collection is neither. Who Fears the Devil is the complete collection of Silver John short stories, 30 in number, ranging for three or four paragraphs to fifteen pages. Silver John is a wandering balladeer, modeled after a young Johnny Cash, who wanders from one strange event to the next.

The first thing I noticed about the stories were how skilled Manly Wade Wellman was at rendering Southern dialogue without making the speakers seem stupid. Once I dug in, the book was hard to set aside for too long and I'm not a big fan of short stories by any means.

The best way to describe the stories would be to call them American fantasy. The stories explore different aspects of Southern and mountain folklore, much having to do with witches, ghosts, demons, and other supernatural creatures. The line between fantasy and horror is blurred in some of them while others are pretty humorous. Silver John outwits supernatural beasties, encounters a giant, a house that's acutaly a living organism, and other things too odd to mention, all the while playing songs on his guitar and singing.

If you like fantasy that isn't derived from Tolkien, you could do a lot worse than spending a few evenings with Silver John.

The Old Gods Waken by Manly Wade Wellman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

While Silver John is staying with his friend Creed Forshay and Creed's son Luke, odd things start happening, odd things that seem to center on Forshay's new neighbors, two Englishmen named Brummitt and Hooper Voth. Can Silver John stop the Voth's from using Druidic magic to release an ancient evil?

Silver John is back in a full length novel. If you've read Who Fears the Devil, you know what to expect. The Old Gods Waken reads like an expanded version of a Silver John short story. All the things I liked about the Silver John short stories were here: Silver John himself, his bits of lore, and ancient evils lurking just around the corners of the Appalachian mountains.

The supporting cast was a little ahead of its time. Reuben Manco could have easily been a stereotypical Indian character and it was nice to see him mocking such stereotypes. Holly was a much stronger character than most female characters of the period, back when women in pulp stories were either victims or bait. The Voth brothers were suitably creepy and I loved how Wellman wove the Raven Mockers of Indian mythology into a story about druids.

It wasn't all roses and sunshine, though. I felt like parts of the story were a little on the convenient side and I didn't think the writing was as good as it was in the short stories in Who Fears the Devil.

Really, no big complaints. It was nice to read about Silver John again. I'd give it a 3.5 if I could.

Still on Goodreads

A Busy Spring in the 87th Precinct

Reviewed by James L. Thane
Three out of five stars


Spring finds the detectives of the 87th Precinct busy as usual. As the book opens, Detective Steve Carella has to deal with a beautiful young woman who decides she has nothing to live for and who has climbed out onto a ledge high above the street in her nightgown. She's ready to jump and in 1962, the PD doesn't yet have trained specialists to deal with a situation like this. Carella will do the best he can, but this really isn't his area of expertise.

Meanwhile, a hairbrush salesman is making his rounds. (Remember, it's 1962 when people other than the Girl Scouts apparently still sold things door-to-door.) The unsuspecting salesman rings the doorbell at an apartment which, unfortunately is filled with leaking natural gas. The electrical impulse from the bell touches off an explosion which blows the salesman and his hairbrushes all to hell.

When the dust settles, the police discover a man and a woman lying virtually naked in the bedroom dead from inhaling the gas. They also find a couple of empty Scotch bottles and a suicide note. But something seems off and most of the detectives believe that the deaths were really homicides.

Sadly, their investigation leads them nowhere. They discover some quirky facts about the case but nothing that absolutely disproves the apparent suicide and nothing that points the finger at a viable suspect. In the meantime, some unknown person has made it his hobby to periodically kick the crap out of Steve Carella, which does nothing to improve the detective's disposition. And unless the detectives catch a break soon, it appears that none of this will be resolved to anyone's satisfaction.

This is another very good entry in this series. As always, it's a pretty quick read and fans of the series are certain to enjoy it.

That is "Some Badass Pig"!

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I don't give a fig if it is a kid's book, Charlotte's Web is one of the most well-crafted stories ever written. This classic children's tale deserves 5 stars for story craft and language usage alone! (Read your Strunk & White to understand this man's talents in that regard.) The fact that it's a heart-warmer/wrencher clinches it. Never was I made to love pigs and spiders so much in my life. Charlotte's Web will always rank high amongst my favorites. But why, for the love of god, did they make us watch the cartoon version of this tear-jerker in school? Did they want to make us weep embarrassingly in front of one another? If so, mission accomplished, you sadistic school district!

View all my reviews

Curse of the Spellmans. Lol.

CURSE OF THE SPELLMANS
Lisa Lutz
2008 by Simon & Schuster

Reviewed by Carol
three and a half stars



Lisa Lutz‘ Isabel Spellman series is a little like Janet Evanovich‘s Stephanie Plum. Not the recent ones but the early ones, the ones that made me laugh out loud before they got progressively more absurd and recycled the same plots. The Spellmans, however, are a family team and the nature of the family business means they can’t really escape each other, although they may periodically try. Book two, Curse of the Spellmans, was just as much fun as the first and perhaps even a smidge better. I found it to be an enjoyable, light read that was a load of fun on a sick day.

Plotting is typical Spellman craziness.  Rae accidentally runs over her police detective friend, Henry, who has to stay in the hospital with a mild concussion. A new neighbor moves in, equal parts cute and mysterious, and Isabel finds herself wondering if he has ex-boyfriend possibilities. Bernie is back from Vegas after his wife left him, so Isabel finds herself crowded out of her sublet by his all-night poker games and is forced to return home. Mom and Dad are trying out their own series of vacations, aka ‘disappearances;’ neighbor Mrs. Chandler wants Isabel to discover who’s re-creating her childhood pranks with her elaborate lawn displays; and Isabel’s best friend Petra is strangely out of touch. Eventually, Isabel gets arrested four times (but #2 and #4 don’t count) and learns some lessons, although perhaps not the ones she should.

This time the mysteries were more interesting, perhaps because with so little initial information, Isabel’s problem solving stays pretty true to real life. Unfortunately, her unsanctioned techniques result in a string of arrests, resulting in a legal needs. As brother David is AWOL, she turns to the octogenarian Morty, former D.A., who meets clients (she’s case #2) in his unfinished garage. Or the deli. Isabel has to call him to bail her out:
“‘I brought you a sandwich,” Morty said, and then handed me the abused paper bag. ‘It’s your favorite. Pastrami on rye.’
‘No, Morty, it’s your favorite, which would account for why there’s only half a sandwich left.’”

One of the interesting aspects of the Spellman series is Lutz’ unusual storytelling. The latest devices are chapters on “Suspicious Behavior Reports,” transcripts from Morty’s “Law Offices,” chapters peppered with footnotes and frequent taped conversations between Henry and Rae that become known as the “Stone and Spellman Show.” I don’t mind the footnotes, which are used well enough that they don’t break the rhythm of the story. Many of them reference book one, The Spellman Files. As far as series recap, that’s a nice way of saying, “find info here if you missed it,” while reminding current readers who might have forgotten and not annoying other readers with better memories.
Isabel’s voice is interesting. She has plenty of wry observations, but only shares them with the reader. I got a giggle out of Morty’s wife offering them an extensive list of refreshments, all of which Isabel politely declines. But then Morty interrupts:
“She’d like a cocoa,’ Morty said to Ruth, apparently placing his own secret order.”  

Isabel is self-aware enough that there are times when she realizes she’s pushing boundaries or obsessed, yet she still can’t let go. So far her awareness is interesting and adds possibilities for personal growth:
“On those occasions I may cross some ethical boundaries to reach my goal, simply to get answers to questions that won’t go away. I have many flaws, but I suppose the only one that truly damages my life is that I believe all questions have answers and I believe that I am entitled to those answers.”

Isn’t that the truth?

The Henry and Rae interludes are fascinating. Isabel’s mom encourages Rae’s association with Henry, figuring he’s probably the best role model she could find. Isabel finds herself playing chaperone to them, acting as the beard so they aren’t accused of an improper relationship, and taping the conversations at her mom’s request. Henry’s the straight foil to the general weirdness of the Spellmans, and Isabel just might be falling for him. An episode from the Stone and Spellman Show called ‘Henry’s Choice’ cracked me up:
Rae: Did you read any of that organ-donation material in the hospital?
Henry: Yes. It’s very sad.
Rae: More people need to donate their organs.
Henry: I agree completely….
Rae: Henry, if you ever needed a kidney, you could have one of mine.
Henry: Thanks, but I think you’re too young to be donating kidneys.
Rae: So you wouldn’t take it?…
Henry: So, I wouldn’t want to take a kidney from either of you.
Rae: But you have to pick. That’s the game.
Henry: I’m unaware of any such game existing.
Rae: I just made it up. It’s called Choose Your Organ Donor.
Henry: I don’t want to play that game.
Rae: Please.
Isabel: Just answer the question, Henry.

Absurd, misguided, melancholic with a touch of romance and a dollop of fear. I’ll check out the next when I need a light read, hoping that Lutz can manage some character development for Isobel while continuing interesting storytelling.


Cross-posted at  http://clsiewert.wordpress.com/2013/10/21/curse-of-the-spellmans-by-lisa-lutz-more-lolz/

Boy A

Jonathan Trigell
Serpent’s Tail
Reviewed by: Nancy
5 out of 5 stars

Summary

A is for Apple. A bad apple.

Jack has spent most of his life in juvenile institutions; he's about to be released with a new name, new job, and a new life. At 24, he is utterly innocent of the world, yet guilty of a monstrous childhood crime.

To his new friends, he is a good guy with occasional flashes of unexpected violence. To his girlfriend, he is strangely naive and unreachable. To his case worker, he’s a victim of the system and of media-driven hysteria.

And to himself, Jack is on permanent trial: he struggles to start from scratch, forget the past, become someone else.

At a time when the privacy of the individual is under threat from all sides, BOY A raises fundamental questions about the morality of the media.

My Review

If I hadn’t come across Mariel's review, I’d probably never have found out about this chilling story. To my surprise, it won multiple literary awards and was adapted to film. I really need to get out from under my rock more often.

Boy A is Jack, newly released from prison for the brutal killing of a young girl. He was a child himself when the crime occurred. Now he is 24 years old and trying to adjust to a world that has passed him by while he was imprisoned.

This story is not an exploration of the criminal mind, or about life in prison. It is about Jack’s life as an adult living under an assumed identity while he works, makes friends, and finds love. Jack has the support of his “uncle” Terry, who helps him adjust to life on the outside while protecting him from those who would not let him live his life if they knew about his crime.

I am reminded of Walter Mosley’s Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned, a gripping story about a black man released from prison for a murder he committed while in a jealous rage. This story is different, because the man is an adult when he killed. There is no awkward transition between childhood and adulthood. He must live the best life he can while enduring poverty and prejudice.

Because Jack was a child when he killed, public outrage and media hysteria are at its worst. It is not enough for a criminal to do his time. He must pay for his mistakes the rest of his life. While Boy A is Jack’s story, it is also a commentary on the inadequacy of the prison system, how media can damage lives, and the influences parents, friends, and others can have on impressionable young lives.

I want to believe that Jack made it to the boat safely.

Also posted at Goodreads.