The Echo Maker: A Novel

Book Description

On a winter night on a remote Nebraska road, 27-year-old Mark Schluter flips his truck in a near-fatal accident. His older sister Karin, his only near kin, returns reluctantly to their hometown to nurse Mark back from a traumatic head injury. But when he emerges from a protracted coma, Mark believes that this woman–who looks, acts, and sounds just like his sister–is really an identical impostor. Shattered by her brother’s refusal to recognize her, Karin contacts the cognitive neurologist Gerald Weber, famous for his case histories describing the infinitely bizarre worlds of brain disorder. Weber recognizes Mark as a rare case of Capgras Syndrome, a doubling delusion, and eagerly investigates. What he discovers in Mark slowly undermines even his own sense of being. Meanwhile, Mark, armed only with a note left by an anonymous witness, attempts to learn what happened the night of his inexplicable accident. The truth of that evening will change the lives of all three beyond recognition.

Set against the Platte River’s massive spring migrations–one of the greatest spectacles in nature–The Echo Maker is a gripping mystery that explores the improvised human self and the even more precarious brain that splits us from and joins us to the rest of creation.

Customer Reviews:

Hated it!.......2007-10-09

I bought this book based on the strength of Powers' last novel, The Time of our Singing, which I loved. What a mistake! Though I appreciate the author's committment to perseving nature and his beautiful language, the story was ill-concieved and the plot was maddeningly slow. The only character I enjoyed was Mark - his confusion was touching and witty. Everyone else smoldered in self-pity and constant whining. The end was a complete letdown. I would NOT recommend this book.

A good book in many ways, but lacking in other ways.......2007-10-05

MY RATING SYSTEM:

* - if you have to chose between torture and reading this book, then you might want to consider reading the book - although it depends on just how severe the torture would be.

** - if you've lost your job and have quite a bit of free time on your hands, and don't have anything else better to do, then you might want to consider reading this book; don't expect to learn much or really be entertained. It will however, help you pass the time until your death.

*** - meh...I'm indifferent. Reading this book will not alter your life in any significant way, yet it is not so horrendously dreadful that your taking the time to read it will be a complete waste of time.

**** - Good book to great book zone here. You should probably read this book if you have some spare time. This book could be interesting, entertaining, or informative.

***** - Outstanding book! Make time to read this book - you'll learn or be entertained or intrigued. The book might even be good enough to provide original or helpful insights into the world that we live in.

REVIEW:

Generally, I found The Echo Maker to be quite interestingly written, but also quite cumbersome and slow-to-read in parts. Essentially, the book tells the story of Mark Schluter, a late-twenties Nebraska man who, as a result of injuries suffered when he flips his truck on a rural road in Nebraska, develops Capgras syndrome. The condition results in Mark thinking that his sister, Karin - who comes to his aid in the hospital upon hearing of the accident - is an impostor, ie. not the 'real' Karin.

The story is told from the perspectives of the characters, changing back and forth between the three main characters of the novel (Mark, Karin, and neurologist Dr. Weber, who Karin seeks out for assistance with Mark's problem). As Mark recovers from his accident, his brain still in shambles, his perspective is communicated as disjointed Jim Morrison-esque prose, evolving into understandable yet incomplete communication as he recovers from the injuries, and finally into understandable yet delusional communication after he has fully recovered from the accident but for the remaining Capgras . The early bits can be confusing and frustrating (likely the author's intent) and difficult to read, but Powers does an interesting job of re-creating Mark's state of mind and providing the reader with an opportunity to experience what it might be like to be Mark. In retrospect, this was a very interesting tactic in the book, as frequent reference is made to the idea that it's impossible to know what it is like to be anyone (or anything) else - yet Powers' seeks, and comes close to succeeding, to show the reader what it is like to be Mark Schulter as he recovers from his accident in the hospital.

As Mark heals, his sister Karin, who has returned to small-town Nebraska to help her brother, attempts to deal with the fact that her brother does not acknowledge her as his sister. More accurately, she aims for the reversion of her brother to the way he was before the accident, and struggles continuously with the way that things are now. Her return leads to the re-establishment of a relationship with one of her ex-boyfriends - Daniel, a conservationist/environmentalist who works with a non-profit seeking to protect the cranes and the river that pass through the area. In my opinion one of the biggest weaknesses in the book is the inability of the author to create compelling relationships - as is most often the case in the story, the relationships usually just appear out of nowhere, with some brief mention of a previous history, but little to convince the reader that anything genuine exists. The relationship between Karin and Daniel feels artificial and forced, which might reflect the fact that Karin is an insecure character constantly seeking approval. As a character, Daniel is quite hollow, and while he does a little to add to the story, he hardly warrants any interest of the reader.

As the story progresses and the severity of Mark's condition becomes obvious, Karin seeks out Dr. Gerard Weber, a famous neurologist apparently modeled after real-life popular neurologist Oliver Sacks. The following several chapters jump back and forth between the main story of Mark and Karin and his recovery, and asides about past patients of Weber who he had written about in his popular neurology books - much like Sack's The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat. I felt as though perhaps Powers' entire motivation for writing this book originated with his reading of one of Sack's own accounts, and whether you describe it as 'inspired', 'borrowed', or something less flattering, I felt the asides and at times the story of the book, was far too Sacks-like to be original.

The introduction of Dr. Weber also initiates the mysterious, indescribable 'connection'/'attraction' between Dr. Weber and Mark's nurse aide, Barbara. Again, the relationship comes across as fake and forced, with minimal development. Rather, Weber just has some instant, unspeakable attraction to this woman, with a faint idea that he knew her before, but with no further details. In fact, the only relationship in the book that I found enjoyable was that between Weber and his wife. In contrast with all of the other relationships, Powers' paints this one with much color, which makes Weber's straying desires all the more worthy of the harsh judgment of the reader. Weber's visit to Nebraska is short, failing to result in any marginal improvement in Mark's condition, yet sufficient enough for Weber to collect enough information to create a story for a future book involving the condition from which Mark suffers.

In the third part of the book, Mark's condition takes on increasingly complex dimensions, as his delusions about a grand government conspiracy against him start to evolve. Also, Dr. Weber's latest book is met with critical reviews, with several reviews criticizing his exploitive tactics, which leads Weber into a late mid-life crisis where he begins to question where his career and life have led him. In an attempt to resolve this personal crisis, Weber returns to Mark's aid, and to Barbara, before quickly returning home to his wife realizing his trips to Nebraska threaten his relationship with his wife.

As the story progresses, Karin continues to struggle with her desire to help her brother. Now that he has left the hospital and resumed living on his own, he finds that in many ways she may be hindering his life rather than improving it. While still in the relationship with Daniel, and now assisting him with his conservation efforts, she turns to another ex-boyfriend, Robert Karsh - a successful real estate developer who seeks to turn the land around the river into a tourist resort. Again, the relationship, while apparently having some past, has very little present, and feels as empty as a rusted can.

Ultimately, the book resolves the outstanding issues in rapid succession in the last few pages, allowing the story to end with cheap gratification. The resolution of the problems plaguing Mark, Karin and Weber all come across as forced, artificial, and unsatisfying. In some ways the ultimate developments of the characters and their resolutions might explain the uncompelling relationships that appear throughout the story, yet I still find it disappointing that the relationships were not developed and communicated in a more intriguing way.

In summary, the book featured an interesting story using what was at times a very interesting method of communication, with glimpses of beautiful language and interesting insights into life. Despite these positive elements, it book was perhaps too long for its purpose, with sections being difficult to read, and a sense throughout many of the parts of the book that left the reader unfulfilled. I'm glad that I did read all the way through, as I found the book did improve in many ways by the end, but I found it to be quite a lot of effort to make it through the book relative to what I got from the exercise.

Interesting.......2007-09-21

This book was an interesting read and an engaging mystery, at times emotinally touching at a level not ordinary in a fictional novel. I was definitely affected by what the characters were feeling, especially as related to the universal human experience of dashed dreams and bitter disappointments. But, I was let down in the last few pages. The twist at the end lacked punch and the resolution of the plot was ho-hum. Based on the ending, I would not recommend this book.

Well worth the effort and thought.......2007-09-14

Second only to his seminal "Goldbug Variations," this is my favorite novel from Powers. Some people here are complaining that the plot is slow and the characters are not life-like. I'll agree that at times the plot is slow, although it was always interesting to me just the same; I disagree about the characters, finding something in all of them to like and be interested in, and finding them all complex, believable people. The story itself works on so many levels, but I especially found the unraveling connection between the recognition of the human self and our subsequent treatment of the environment, and the creatures in it, powerful and timely. And frightening. This isolating novel creates an ominous portrait of our current state of being now in 2007, one that is both precarious - on the edge of destruction for so much of the natural world; and what about ourselves? - and yet holds hope that we will end up finding the right path. The atmosphere created has stayed with me long after reading the book. Like the best novels, this was an experience, even if it revealed itself slowly and thoughtfully.

Could have been a contender...........2007-09-07

Great concept, some brilliant passages, great plot, until....it gets repetitive, overstuffed with medical jargon, characters start to act out of character, and the plot becomes cliche, etc. In other words, until it disintegrates. However,there is a momentum that carries through, so I was glad I finished it.
Bottom line, Cannot BELIEVE this was a finalist for National Book Award. I wouldn't recommend it unless you love this writer.

Average customer rating:

Good and bad.
Don't Waste Your Time
Got under my skin a little...
The Package Deal
Not for me

Perfect Match: A Novel
Jodi Picoult
Manufacturer: Washington Square Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Picture Perfect

ASIN: 0743418735

Book Description

What does it mean to be a good mother?

How far would you go in the name of love -- and justice?

Perfect Match

In the course of her everyday work, career-driven assistant district attorney Nina Frost prosecutes child molesters and works determinedly to ensure that a legal system with too many loopholes keeps these criminals behind bars. But when her own five-year-old son, Nathaniel, is traumatized by a sexual assault, Nina and her husband, Caleb, a quiet and methodical stone mason, are shattered, ripped apart by an enraging sense of helplessness in the face of a futile justice system that Nina knows all too well. In a heartbeat, Nina's absolute truths and convictions are turned upside down, and she hurtles toward a plan to exact her own justice for her son -- no matter the consequence, whatever the sacrifice.

Download Description

"Career-driven assistant district attorney Nina Frost knows the guilt familiar to all parents torn by the demands of home and office. But whereas most parents imagine the dangers that can befall their children, Nina witnesses them firsthand. She prosecutes child molesters -- and she has seen too many criminals slip through the system and walk free. Nina's husband, Caleb, is a stonemason, a methodical man who glories in his ability to construct physical barriers. But even the strongest walls cannot guard Nina and Caleb from the shattering discovery that their own beloved son has been sexually abused. Five-year-old Nathaniel is the only one who knows the identity of his assailant -- but the trauma has left him mute. Knowing the futility of trusting the courts to exact justice for Nathaniel, Nina finds herself in a grip of rage she can't deny -- no matter the consequence, whatever the sacrifice. What does it take to be a good mother? How far can a person go?

Customer Reviews:

Good and bad. .......2007-09-21

I read reviews of the book here before I started it, so in the back of my mind I had the negative comments swimming around. I don't know if that affected how I felt about the story personally, but I do agree with the consensus that Nina is very hard to like as a protagonist and the outcome of her trial is more than a little ridiculous.

One thing that bothered me was the stereotype of the Louisiana characters. I am a native of south Louisiana, from a town about 20 miles south of New Orleans. I am familiar with Belle Chasse and it is not a redneck city - people one might stereotypically consider a redneck are found more in north Louisiana. Sorry, but it's true. Her description of the 'my neck is red' deputy annoyed me so much because it's inaccurate for the southern city she I guess randomly decided to pick. I mean, come on, even a bayou stereotype would have been closer to the truth. It was a tired stereotype, and an incorrect one at that. Ms. Picoult is from the north, and so while I wouldn't expect her to be an expert on the different accents and cultures you find in the south, I also wouldn't expect her to just assume she knows. OK, I'm done with my rant about that.

Overall, Picoult knows how to write a page-turner - but she probably could have done it in a lot less pages. Then at least some of those who felt let down by the ending would have wasted a little less time.

Don't Waste Your Time.......2007-09-07

This book is probably the worst I have read in several years. The characters are unappealing and the child (Nathaniel) is unbelievable. In fact, I'm really not sure how this book was approved for publication.

There are two major flaws in Perfect Match. The first is the underlying "morality" of killing someone in retaliation for harming one's child and knowing that as a lawyer you have a good chance of finding a way to get away with it. It doesn't matter if the alleged (and this is a key word here) molester is guilty or not; it is enough that one thinks he is. Nowhere in the book does the author make her protagonist truly sorry for what she did. Evidently the end justifies the means and it's icing on the cake if you happen to get away without punishment.

The second major flaw is the character of Nathaniel. It's evident that the author has no clue regarding the mental and emotional capabilities of a five-year-old child. If she is too lazy to really research this area indepth before writing another novel that includes a child, she should stick to adult characters. It did not appear that the author consulted any type of child development journals or books before developing the character of Nathaniel. Consequently, the character is unbelievable.

I'll give the author one star, but only because she is able to string words together to make a coherent sentence. Evidently she listened in Junior High English Comp class. However, that's as far as her abilities extend in this book. I wouldn't pay a dime for it and if someone wants to loan it to you you'd do better to spend your time on something far more deserving.

Got under my skin a little..........2007-08-22

I've been reading all of Picoult's books because I loved "Nineteen Minutes" so much, and I wanted to see what else she'd written. But the more I'm reading, the more I'm starting to see a common pattern: a speech about DNA, a tall black person which readers are constantly reminded is black but the race of the other characters are barely mentioned if at all, someone who answers questions by saying "Ayuh," and a trial. I like when writers leave their signature marks although I'm not too crazy about the CONSTANT need to bring up the black folks in her book as if we need the post-it every once in awhile, and for the life of me, I don't understand how the lone black folks in predominantly white towns manage to be so behind the scenes. I've been in small, white towns before and a brotha or a sista sticks out like an eagle, so how there are characters who manage to do hidden research and nobody knows who they are or where they are is so far-fetched to me.

But that's not what got me. This book rubbed me the wrong way for several other reasons. #1 I couldn't sympathize with the main character, especially when the DNA situation was resolved. #2 If I were on the jury and the ending hadn't been the way it did, I'd have voted the EXACT opposite of the final verdict! When I heard the results, I rolled my eyes and curled my lip. #3 Picoult has a habit of trying to talk like a child in those scenes with kids, but then going into too much grown-up vocabulary. There's a scene when Nathaniel is talking about a bird, but instead of just calling it a bird, he calls it the proper name for it. That's tedious, but it seemed a little odd to me considering his vocabulary throughout the rest of the book. Also, I wondered how Nathaniel immediately knew the bailiff was not a police officer considering the demeanor of both. To an adult, this would be fair, but to a five-year-old, it seemed too mature. #4 Throughout the whole book and as many times as the topic of the rape was brought up, I don't recall ONE scene where either of the parents, the babysitters, and even the psychiatrist told the boy it wasn't his fault. That was really aggravating me, especially when he vocally said he did something bad. I really wanted someone to sit down and talk to him and tell him he did nothing wrong and that never happened. #5 I almost took the book back when I read the line about Johnnie Cochran. Whenever people want to talk about defense attorneys who got their clients off, it always goes back to Cochran and usually hints at O.J. Nobody ever brings up how Emmitt Till's killers got off, trials like the ones the Jena 6 are going through, and so many other trials in small towns where people have gotten off scotfree. But Cochran is forever getting picked on, and I respect him (R.I.P.) a great deal. When I read that line about Cochran probably has nightmares about defending guilty people, I glared at the page, thinking of how many trials that Cochran has tried that meant so much to the Black community. I believe he slept well knowing the sacrifices he made to fight against racial profiling and so forth. That comment was my own personal hang-up, but considering Picoult felt the need to mention him in the book, I feel the need to mention it in my review.

However, there was one strong part of Picoult's book that kept me pushing through it. Without telling the story, there is a scene where Nathanial jumps up and Nina thinks he's going to run to Caleb, but instead he runs to Nina. My eyes immediately watered and I choked up, trying not to cry on a public, crowded train and look really crazy to other riders. That was the most memorable scene that I've read in all of her books because it was so raw, so open, so realistic, and very touching. Although I never want one, I think children are entertaining and enjoy watching them interact in stories and real life, and I'd become so smitten with Nathaniel (I wasn't buying that window/bathroom interruption at all--that whole scene should've been deleted because it did nothing for the plot). But as usual, I think Picoult is a fascinating writer. I'm going to give her books a rest for a minute to get over my grudge with the Cochran comment because that still bothers me, but I'll be back.

The Package Deal.......2007-08-11

It's rare in the world of publishing these days to find a book that not only provides you with a quality story, but with exceptional writing as well. Picoult offers us just that with "Perfect Match." She shifts perspectives throughout the novel to allow us into the hearts and minds of all of her primary characters and it is a unique reading experience that makes you feel so deeply involved in the story that you'll feel as if you could climb right into the book. You will find yourself sympathizing with even the most difficult of characters, and considering for yourself the true capabilities that we all quietly possess at the hands of love and despair. This book is about a struggle for justice in a world where right and wrong is a thousand shades of gray. Do not miss out on this precious read.

Not for me.......2007-06-17

This book convinced me that I'm no longer a Jodi Picoult reader. I get why some people would like it--the flowery imagery and heart-wrenching subject matter pulls at the heart; but I found the book to be overwritten and sensational. Besides, I couldn't identify with the main character who would add trauma to her already traumatized son by taking the law into her own hands. Picoult is known for her ability to end the story with an unforeseen twist and to effectively use various points of views; I guessed every twist in the book well in advance and I felt like each character had the same emotive voice, even the construction-worker husband. I like women's fiction, but this was a bit too much.

Average customer rating:

Excellent fast paced mystery with a surprise ending
Jaw-dropping twists!
Shallow 'Water'
more twists than a pretzel factor!
Stuart Woods improves with each book.

Dead in the Water: A Novel
Stuart Woods
Manufacturer: HarperTorch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0061093491

Book Description

In Dead in the Water, Stone has barely arrived in St. Marks, a lovely Caribbean island nation, on a sailing vacation when something very strange happens: A beautiful young woman sails into the harbor, entirely alone on a large yacht. Before long she is under the intense scrutiny of local authorities in the very considerable person of Sir Winston Sutherland, the minister of Justice. The problem is, though she arrived alone, she had departed the other side of the Atlantic in the company of her husband, a well-known writer, who is no longer in evidence.

Evidence is what fascinates Stone Barrington, and before many pages have been turned, he is all that stands between the apparently innocent Allison Manning and the patently evil intent of Sir Winston, whose motives are unclear. What is clear is that the St. Marks' system of justice bears little resemblance to the American courts to which Stone is accustomed and that his smallest error could prove fatal to his client.

Download Description

E-book Extra: 'We Are Very Different People": Stuart Woods on Stone Barrington. When beautiful Allison Manning arrives in St. Marks without her husband, she falls under the scrutiny of the notorious Minister of Justice Sir Winston Sutherland. Ex-cop attorney Stone Barrington spots Sutherland's strange motives, and must race to sort madness from murder -- before the storm of the century.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent fast paced mystery with a surprise ending.......2006-04-19

I'm really enjoying all of the Stuart Woods' novels with Stone Barrington. This one was a continuation of Stone's private life with a huge adventure into a hellish vacation in St. Marks defending a woman of murdering her husband. It's a fun ride. The only thing I'm always surprised at is Stone's avarice for bedding anything in a skirt. Of course they're all "beautiful" women with a voracious desire for sex, but it makes ole' Stone seem like a whore. Nevertheless, this book was a great read.

Jaw-dropping twists!.......2006-04-13

After Stone Barrington is stood up by his girl during a trip to St. Mark's, he gets involved in a murder trial for a fellow American, a young woman whom the local governmental big-wigs are apparently intent on railroading into a murder charge whether she is guilty or not. Stone, desperate to find some way to pressure the St. Mark's government into backing off, starts a major media blitz in the U.S. and floods the island with reporters. Various twists and turns ensue, and the final couple of twists in the story will absolutely blow your mind.

Woods had apparently been reading some L.E. Modesitt, Jr. around the time he wrote this, as he began paying very close attention to details about food for some reason, which I found quite wonderful. It's the tiny little day-to-day details in a book that truly bring it to life. I am not certain why more people do not enjoy this - I guess too many people want instant gratification and constant bang-bang action. I blame the television, and video and computer games for this. It has destroyed our capacity to enjoy details and the slow building of a story. Huzzah to Stuart Woods for going ahead and doing this anyway! He builds wonderful details into this book while still providing the action, suspense and thrills we have come to love from this series. I am hooked!

Shallow 'Water' .......2005-05-10

Stuart Woods' gifts as a writer are primarily in storytelling. His writing style isn't particularly exceptional and his characters are woefully one-dimensional, but he can spin a tale that'll keep you turning the pages. His Stone Barrington series is sort of the literary equivalent of an enjoyable-but-mediocre TV detective series. With "Dead in the Water," though, he drowns his story in bland dialog and meaningless detail (glad I'm not the only one annoyed that Woods chronicles the making of a Caesar salad, which was slightly more exciting than Stone Barrington's adventures in an earlier chapter making linguine and clam sauce). Though the state of journalism has declined to a degree that I could believe reporters could be goaded by a PR firm into flocking to an island resort to cover the plight of a rich housewife, the journalists in "Water" are never believable as journalists. Or as people. In fact, it's hard to believe any of the people in "Water," with all the characters shallow and broadly drawn. I never pick up a Woods novel with high expectations, but "Dead in the Water" leaves readers splashing around in a wading pool.

more twists than a pretzel factor!.......2004-12-11

ok, that title's a little cliched, but it pretty much sums up this book..

stone barrington returns for another great whodunnit penned by stewart woods..and this is my favorite of his books so far...

there's more than a few jaw dropping moments in this one...and the ending will have you wanting to read the very next book (which I plan on doing very soon)

very good read for fans of stone barrington, stuart woods, or good crime novels in general

Stuart Woods improves with each book........2004-09-23

I just started reading the Stone Barrington series. I'm finding that with each book, his storytelling gets a little better. Mind you, the first two were both enjoyable and quick reads, but I found that this one was more exciting. It's not necessary to rehash the plot, but the book definitely builds momentum at the end. I thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend it to other Stone Barrington fans. You will find, though, that it is best to read the books in order. He builds on the character with each book and makes references that would be lost if you haven't read each book that preceded it.

Average customer rating:

Mr. Roy Glen
A Modern Who Done It
2.5 Stars...This book is wack...
MAGNIFICENT
Once again!!!!

Outlaw
Roy Glenn
Manufacturer: Urban Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1893196763

Book Description

Roy Glenn, the Master of Urban Suspense, returns with possibly his best novel to date Outlaw; a tale of money, power, love and betrayal.

After settling some unfinished business, Mike Black finally returns to New York to retire and enjoy life. That is, until the police show up at his door, take him into custody, and chargehim for murder. His good friend and lieutenant, Freeze, is sure he knows who's really responsible for the murder, and during Mike's absence, takes the family to war. But a war's not what Mike needs. Mike needs for the real killer to be found. Now, it's up to an unlikely ally, Detective Kirkland, to find out who framed Mike Black for murder.

Customer Reviews:

Mr. Roy Glen.......2007-08-10

I LOVED ALL OF ROY GLEN'S BOOKS SO FAR. I STARTED OUT WITH M.O.B.
AND YOU SHOULD TOO. THE CHARACTER'S ARE AMAZING. THIS MAN PAYS GREAT DETAIL TO EVERYTHING. I'M AN AVID READER AND I WAS MESMERIZED. I READ ALMOST A BOOK A DAY....SO I FORGET ALOT OF NOVEL CHARACTERS...HOWEVER, I REMEMBER ALL THE CHARACTER'S IN HIS BOOK AND YOU WILL 2!

A Modern Who Done It.......2007-06-27

Can you imagine being blamed for a murder you did not commit? Mike Black certainly could not, until it happened to him. Outlaw, by Roy Glenn, chronicled Black's journey from being caught with bloody clothing and the murder weapon to endless possibilities of who the real culprit could have been. With the help of friends, Black put together a plan that would not only avenge the person's death but also allow him to grieve and return to taking care of his responsibilities.

There is a slight glitch in the plan, though. Detective Kirkland had been on a mission for years to try to get Black behind bars; where he felt killers should be. The problem was he could never pin any of the murders Black committed on him. While this particular case was not his own, Kirkland gathered details because his fellow officers were sloppy, at best. He wanted to make sure those charges stuck to Black like super glue. Disappointedly, during his investigation, he found evidence that proved Black's innocence.

With game plans mapped out and Black and Kirkland on two different sides of the law, would the killers be found? Or would Kirkland's disdain for Black lead him to ignore the facts before him?

Outlaw was a good read and easy to follow. The plot, while solid, was unoriginal yet engaging. The sex scenes were written with so much care to detail that Roy Glenn would be a great author of erotica. Main characters were well-developed but the supporting characters seemed one-dimensional and they needed to be just as strong as the main characters due to this being an urban fiction suspense tale. I recommend this novel to readers who enjoy modern `who done its' and also fans of Roy Glenn.

Reviewed by Darnetta Frazier
APOOO BookClub

2.5 Stars...This book is wack..........2007-05-16

This was my first Roy Glenn novel and I hope he's got better stuff out there. First off, murder mysteries are tough to do properly and I think he should study some of the masters and take a workshop or two. His sex scenes are pretty hot. But the characters in the book were flimsy. The explanation of how the murder was executed was amateur at best. (Not believable AT ALL!) I'll give his stuff another chance, but if it's more of the same I'm done with him.

MAGNIFICENT.......2007-05-07

ROY MAN U DID AGAIN! Your writing and storyline techniques is just outstanding.You keep wanting more and more. I love all the players, Nick, Wanda, Bobby and always gangsta Freeze. I gonna miss my gurl Shy too. Oh, thanks for introducing Xvavier, I know your next book will be exploding!!!!

Once again!!!!.......2007-03-11

Roy has done it again! Took me one day to read this book! Once I started turning the pages I couldn't stop. Mike Black is definitely an unforgettable character, along with Nick, Freeze, Wanda, Kirk, Shy.. Roy, keep em' coming!!!

Average customer rating:

a crucial attempt
Fiction of the Highest Caliber! Kudos to Viken Berberian!
relevant and nuanced work
How Did This Ever Get Published?
Style over Substance

The Cyclist: A Novel
Viken Berberian
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0743222830

Amazon.com

In his debut novel, Viken Berberian offers a rich and vital portrayal of a prospective Middle Eastern terrorist. The Cyclist explores the background and motivations of its unnamed narrator, a Lebanese terrorist-in-training given the task of detonating a bomb (delivered on his bicycle) at a luxury hotel outside of Beirut. Much of the novel's first half takes place in a hospital, wherein the narrator, seriously injured after a collision on his bicycle, shares details of his past and ruminates on his extreme political sentiments and love of food and bicycling. As the day of his planned sacrifice draws near, new obligations arise and he gradually realizes the possible ramifications of his proposed retaliatory strike. Berberian skillfully constructs a humanizing account of a man who is a witness to acts of cruelty, who is driven by fear, anger, and hope of retribution.

In recognizing the cyclical nature of Middle Eastern conflict, the novel suggests the courage required of those similarly victimized to resist fatalism and act nonviolently in support of peace. Berberian displays sensitivity toward--and insight into--a difficult subject, and his evocative, detailed descriptions enliven this often maligned and misapprehended region. The novel's vibrant metaphors and similes associate typically contrasting elements, illustrating the complexity of life in an area where the relative frequency of bloodshed colors and politicizes every aspect of it. Berberian's perceptive and unconventional eye adds dimension to a region and a growing ideology in desperate need of understanding, and makes The Cyclist an important as well as enjoyable work. --Ross Doll

Book Description

The enigmatic narrator is a young trainee of the Academy, a terrorist group in the present-day Middle East. This unnamed, transnational pawn has a single mission: to deliver a bomb by bicycle to a hotel, where it will explode, killing hundreds of civilians. But his story is anything but simple.

Combining surrealism, tragedy and humor, The Cyclist is a journey into the unsettling workings of the terrorist mind. Even as the narrator ponders his mission, only his musings about food and love reveal clues to his nationality and his agenda. But can such a zestful connoisseur also be a true agent of political violence?

Witty and wildly inventive, The Cyclist is a remarkable debut from a gifted novelist.

Download Description

The Cyclist is a stunningly original novel about food and political violence. It's a psychological ride into the tropics of terror, to the edges of our national and existential borders: the ones set at birth, the ones we are born into. The enigmatic narrator is a young trainee of the Academy, a terrorist group in the present-day Middle East. This unnamed, transnational pawn has a single mission: to deliver a bomb by bicycle to a hotel, where it will explode, killing hundreds of civilians. But his story is anything but simple. Combining surrealism, tragedy and humor, The Cyclist is a journey into the unsettling workings of the terrorist mind. Even as the narrator ponders his mission, only his musings about food and love reveal clues to his nationality and his agenda. But can such a zestful connoisseur also be a true agent of political violence? Witty and wildly inventive, The Cyclist is a remarkable debut from a gifted novelist.

Customer Reviews:

a crucial attempt.......2007-09-16

Viken Bernerian's first novel is a bold attempt to connect four crucial elements in modern life - sex, food, love and terrorism. It is the story of a young man who has been brought into a political cult called the Academy, and through a love of food as well as a love for life, he is brought to also believing in the bombing of a hotel while posing as the lagging element of a bicycle race.

Berberian's prose, in its attempt to be lyric, is also very cryptic at times. In a kind of updated Johnny Got His Gun, Berberian starts the novel in the hospital, where our unnamed narrator is in dire straits. This lets Berberian wander through his narrator's history as a kind of surrealistic dream, where characters enter and sometimes behave in mundane ways, like bringing in lentil soup, or float through unnoticeably for sexual trysts. The almost constant food references are palpable and lend a heavy cultural element to the story, but also become a kind of trap. While helping to create an image of the Middle East as a place full of great joys and horrors, the food references become almost too expected at around the three-quarters mark of the book, they become tedious and lacking (excuse, please) flavor.

The novel itself is quite a crucial document, or at least an attempt at one. While we may be able to sit from afar and condemn those who would agree to a suicide bombing, Berberian tries to take us through the steps that brings a man to that point, all the while showing the struggle of a zest for life paired with the resolve for one's own death to serve a greater cause. What will win out becomes the struggle through the book.

This book requires a bit a slow start, to get a feel for Bergerian's rhythms and narrative, but can prove rather interesting once engaged in fully.

Fiction of the Highest Caliber! Kudos to Viken Berberian! .......2006-02-10

Our unnamed protagonist, "The Cyclist," explains, "What makes our land such a volatile place is not that people get killed. It's that they get killed while waiting for a school bus, or they are blown apart in an open market, or they get shot eating hummus."

From a small village on the Galilee, our cyclist is a member of a progressive multicultural family. His father is a Druze, a small Arab minority which adheres to the principles of Islam, but "is not in the strictest sense of the word, Muslim. The Druze faith spans Sufism, Judaism, Islam and Christianity." And while it is never actually stated, I believe his mother is an Israeli Jewess. Both parents are intellectuals - one creates art, one teaches it. Their son, the cyclist, is an epicurean when it comes to food and one young woman, his girlfriend Ghaemi. He is also a terrorist. His political radicalization and dedication to violence were born with the tremendous bomb blast that splattered the blood of his neighbors, including his girlfriend's parents, all over the village square and shattered his innocence forever.

Enraged, he is determined to repay this terrible injustice with a terrible injustice of his own. He and Ghaemi join the Academy, a terrorist organization which schools them well. Their retribution is to plant a bomb at the Summerland, a five star hotel located along the Beirut coast. It is equipped with twin 12,000-gallon fuel tanks which, along with their powerful contribution, should light up the night quite well.

While terrorists are almost always portrayed as anonymous "evildoers," ruthless fanatics filled with blind hatred, Viken Berberian's cyclist epitomizes much of what is good in the human spirit - with the exception of his goal to perpetrate violence. When the novel opens, he is in a coma in a hospital room as a result of a horrendous bicycle accident. The initial narrative takes place in the patients head, a perfect place to get to know him as it is impossible to disguise one's thoughts when the reader is right there inside them. This is as up close and personal as it gets. The book, Berberian said in an interview, is an attempt "to slip inside the head of a man in the business of terror."

Berberian, with wit, insight and outrageous, poetic descriptions of food - of all things - makes manifest our terrorist's humanity, and his dilemma. The author's references to a delicious melting pot of cuisine - Eastern European Jewish, Israeli, Arab - give us a taste of how divided yet how united the peoples of the Middle East are. Hummus, babaganoush, noodle kugel, mujaddara, gefilte fish, are mouthywateringly described. He writes "as British as bacon and eggs," surely on purpose, so that his American readers will be brought up short, knowing that it should be "as American as bacon and eggs." Is falafel Israeli or Arab?

The prose is powerful. In a sentence or two the author can paint a clear historical picture that historians would need volumes to explain - "...in the Middle East, a year is an eon, the largest division of geological time; a centimeter of land can be more vital than a hectare, and every shred of memory is etched in ancient stone. In the Middle East, even the branches of the same olive tree fall in different countries."

I am truly surprised that a novel of this high caliber has not received more popular acclaim. "The Cyclist" is a real sleeper. I can only say that if you read this review and are considering purchasing or borrowing this book, by all means do so. I did, on the advice of a friend and found one of the best works of fiction I have read in many a moon. Highly recommended!
JANA

relevant and nuanced work.......2005-08-31

This is a somewhat strange and very relevant treatment of the
thoughts of a suicide bomber. Written well before 9/11, it
provides a 1) prescient treatment of a transnational globalized
bomber. 2) he is almost secular in his motivations as olivier
roy described in globalized islam years later.

How Did This Ever Get Published?.......2005-04-04

Amazingly bad prose combined with an anemic plot, an unsurprising denouement and fuzzy characters, this book isn't worth the paper it's printed on. It does absolutely nothing to elevate one's understanding of the forces at play that lead to suicide bombings in the Middle East. I had hoped to gain an understanding of those last-minute chaotic thoughts that rush through the mind of someone carrying out such a terrible mission, but this novel was a pure waste of time. Perhaps the worst element? His habit of rhyming within sentences which made me wonder whether his book had received any editorial guidance whatsoever.

Style over Substance.......2004-04-14

This absurdist debut is notable for its distinctive prose style, a highly manufactured cadence that sometimes sparkles with playfulness, and other times is cheezy and labored. The storyówhat little there is of itóconcerns a would-be terrorist whose mission is to deliver a bomb by bicycle to a luxury Beirut hotel in time for a major conference. Most of the book finds the roly-poly cyclist in intensive care in a hospital, recovering from a training accident. He lies there reminiscing over the events that took him to this place, and the people in his life, all of whom come to visit. The final part describes the actual day of the plot and the decision facing the cyclist when he instructed to graduate from delivery boy to suicide bomber.

If this sounds like a thriller, it isn'tóthere no dramatic tension, and there really isn't supposed to be. Instead, there is a series of loosely arranged vignettes, which serve to instill impressions rather than a concrete sense of the people or story. The terrorist in training belongs to a fringe group called "The Academy", whose views are ever-shifting but are apparently (per page 85) some kind of Israeli-sponsored "destabilizing" commando unit. The cyclist is given some motivation (a marketplace bombing in his village as a youth), but his group and his mission are so absurd (he's supposed to enter a cycling race in order to "blend in"?) that his situation can't be taken seriously as an insight to terrorist thought. What's more interesting is that he's an Israeli of mixed Druze/Jewish parentage, a choice Berberian makes for a reason, but it's not clear what that reason is. This is a point several reviewers have gotten completely wrong, calling him Lebanese (When he refers to fighter jets over Beirutóonly Israeli jets fly over Beirutóhe calls them "ours", and at one point he is brought a package of Bamba snacksóan Israeli productóto "remind him of home"). Other characters are ciphers: the flamboyant leader of his group, the loyal lover/childhood friend, the wizened grandfather, etc.

However, sights, sounds, and especially smells are quite vividly conveyed, especially when it comes to food, which is the central concern for the narrator. Indeed, foodies will revel in the lush descriptions of a wide variety of Middle Eastern dishes which Berberian writes about with a deft touch. Less deft is his use of simile: consider groan-inducing phrases such as "my dimensions were as big as a de Kooning canvas" or others like it. The prose is liberally dosed with rhyming couplets which can be fun to hunt for (they're not set off), but are at times too labored and coy. A neat trick, but in the service of what? Altogether, it's far too self-concious for its own good, and reads like a writing class project rather than a finished work.

God Still Don't Like Ugly
Average customer rating:

Loved It

Just Okay!

Monroe, honey you are wonderful!

LET'S SEE....

Where is Book 3????

God Still Don't Like Ugly
Mary Monroe
Manufacturer: Kensington
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0758203438

Customer Reviews:

Loved It.......2006-11-08

I absolutely loved this book. The characters are so funny that I catch myself cracking up. I feel like I know each one of them personally. I can't wait to read God Don't Play.

Just Okay!.......2006-05-26

"God Still Don't Like Ugly" by Mary Monroe, I felt was a okay book, I didn't read the first novel God Don't Like Ugly, so this book started off really slow, it took me a week to get into this book, but once I started understanding who the characters were and what part they played in this book and the first one, then I was able follow the book, and it was okay reading...

Maybe I should have read the first novel, then this one...

Monroe, honey you are wonderful!.......2006-05-18

I liked "God Don't Like Ugly" and I also liked this sequel, "God Still Don't Like Ugly". The two books told an incredible story of endurance and forgiveness. Though this book was truly an enjoyable read, it revisits the first one too much.

In this half of the tale, Annette and Rhoda are both adults and still face their share of trials. Annette comes into contact with her long lost father and her siblings. She also finds herself a fiancee by the name of Jerome Cunningham. At first, they are happy together, but when one of his family members find out that she is a former prostitute, he calls their entire relationship off. So, she finds love in her childhood friend Pee Wee. Rhoda resurfaces and has a family of her own. But, by the end of the story, she endures a bad turn of events.

I enjoyed this book. I read it in no time. This author has a gift and it is illustrated in her writing. I really like Mary Monroe! I know Mary, God don't like ugly...

LET'S SEE...........2006-04-21

NOT AS GOOD AS THE FIRST. I WANTED TO SLAP ANNETTE A FEW TIMES. AND HER FRIEND IS STILL CRAZY. WORTH A READ IF YOU RAN OUT OF ALL YOUR DRAMA FILLED BOOKS!

Where is Book 3????.......2006-03-25

The book does start off with some flashbacks, but it does get interesting. Annette is all grown up now and ready to do things at an adult level. As an adult she address the things that she held in bondage throughout her childhood. She begins to tell those secrets she swore never to tell.

It did end the same as book one: YOU JUST WANT MORE!!

Average customer rating:

Prepare yourself before you read
AMAZING
The Movie
Wow
Remarkable

Requiem for a Dream: A Novel
Hubert Selby Jr.
Manufacturer: Thunder's Mouth Press
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Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1560252480

Book Description

Over twenty years after its first publication in 1978, Requiem for a Dream makes it to the big screen in a major motion picture starring Ellen Burstyn, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans, Jared Leto, and Christopher McDonald. Directed by Darren Aronofsky, the highly acclaimed director of Pi, the movie was released in November 2000. In this searing novel, two young hoods, Harry and Tyrone, and a girlfriend fantasize about scoring a pound of uncut heroin and getting rich. But their habit gets the better of them, consumes them and destroys their dreams. "Selby's place is in the front rank of American novelists. His work has the power, the intimacy with suffering and morality, the honesty and moral urgency of Dostoevsky's....To understand Selby's work is to understand the anguish of America." -- The New York Times Book Review

Customer Reviews:

Prepare yourself before you read.......2007-01-30

You need to be ready before you read this book. Upon finishing this little dandy I was physically shaking. I can't think of any other book that has made of shake. The manic style and never ending punch in the face flow of this Hubert Selby Jr. masterpiece will stay with you for the rest of your life. If you saw the movie and so decided to not read the book, you are making a mistake. The book is a totally different experience then the movie. Each is a masterpiece in a completely unique way. It's amazing how real this book is. You will feel insane compassion for the lowest of individuals. You will want to reach out to these amazing characters. I don't know how Hubert Selby Jr. does it. His mind must have been a dark but beautiful and loving realm. If you want to be a book this one will make you its own. Read it.

AMAZING.......2006-09-30

by far the best book i have ever read about the troubles about addiction. and the movie was also the best movie i have ever seen. i recommend to do both. this story is so moving, and it introduces drugs, and addiction in a way i have never witnessed. the book is so descriptive, your reading about addiction, and at the same moment your so addicted to the book you cannot put it down for even a split second. the movie is a masterpiece, it is so emotional, you feel the pain, all the emotions the characters go through, you feel like you are there when you watch the movie. its amazing, Requiem for a dream takes four main characters, with the same excruciating addiction to drugs and creates a vivid illustration of what they deal with, words cannot describe how beautiful this story of reality is. and lastly after you watch this movie, you will be madly in love with jared leto.

The Movie.......2006-09-15

I happened to see the movie before I read the book, and I know that there are people who frown upon that. I've seen the movie a ton of times and it's a stunning piece of work, which made me finally decide the time was right to read the book. All I can say is the book is very intense. Had I not seen the movie first though, i'm not so sure i'd have been able to follow the book. Selby is a genius authour, but if you have not seen the movie or read his books, you might get a little lost. There are no quotation marks when people are speaking and that can get a little confusing.

Wow.......2006-07-21

I'm currently on page 233. I'm going to finish this book tonight and edit my review, but I had to type this. I never thought I'd read or see anything that matched the movie, but this has matched it, and may surprass it when I'm done reading it. It offers a lot more insight into the downfall and the reasons for it that the movie does. Excellent piece of writing.
Though, Selby could have used some quotation marks, but after a while, you start recognizing who says what.

Remarkable.......2006-01-27

Though i wouldn't recommend this book to everyone, i mark it as
one of my favorites. I have read most of Selby's work and I am
once again amazed by his talent to keep his readers. If you liked
Requiem for a Dream I would also recommend his other work.

Average customer rating:

Disappointing
Best novel I've read in ten years.
Maribeth Fischer is a genius
This would make a great movie!
heartbreakingly accurate

The Life You Longed For: A Novel
Maribeth Fischer
Manufacturer: Touchstone
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0743293282

Book Description

When every mother's worst nightmare becomes Grace's reality, she must examine her entire life -- from the wrong choices to the right mistakes.

Grace's son Jack is a miracle. At three years old, he's fighting a mysterious, deadly disease that his doctors predicted would kill him as a baby. Even though it was determined to be mitochondrial disease, the little-known illness remains a mystery to medicine. Grace has sat by his bedside every minute he has been in the hospital, questioned every diagnosis, every medicine -- even poring over medical journals and books at home late into the night. To the world, Grace's fierce dedication is the sole reason for her son's survival. But someone suspects that perhaps Jack's disease is not what it seems.

When an allegation of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy is leveled against Grace, she begins to live in constant suspicion of everyone -- from the doctors and nurses surrounding her son in the hospital to her own husband. Who could possibly think that she has been purposely making her son ill to gain attention for herself?

Although her husband believes their life is exactly as it seems to the outside world, Grace knows differently. She is harboring a secret -- the adulterous affair she's having with her first love. But perhaps her biggest betrayal of all is her shameful uncertainty about whether she's chosen the right path, the right husband, the right life.

In this compelling and heartbreaking novel, critically acclaimed author Maribeth Fischer addresses how the choices we made yesterday can affect everything that lies before us.

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing.......2007-08-07

I was disappointed with this book. The protagonist was unlikeable (surprisingly, since she was the mother of a terminally ill child). The author equates Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy cases with the Salem witch trials, and apparently doesn't believe that there are any "real" cases. This is provocative, but disingenuous when there are actually cases where mothers have been secretly taped in hospital rooms doing things to make their children sick. Each section starts with a pretentious introduction written in italics which is apparently placed there to show how thoughtful and philosophical the author is, but comes off as pretentious and does little to move the story along.

Best novel I've read in ten years........2007-06-02

A few years back I read and taught The Language of Good-bye, Fischer's first novel, in the MFA in Writing Program where I teach. The students (and I) were impressed with Fischer's beautiful style and ability to juggle plots lines and viewpoints, particularly because her two main characters came from such different cultures. TLOGB is a book I've read more than once and truly enjoyed, so naturally I looked forward to her next book, which was a while in coming. But SO worth the wait. There is nothing uneven about this book, so pay no attention to the Kirkus review. Having finished The Life You Longed For just moments ago, I felt compelled to write this review. It is an astonishing book. This is the best kind of story there is--involving, complex, raw in places, a peek into a world that could slip right by. The characters are imperfect and human and so real it gives you the shivers. The amount of scientific information, the weaving of 9/11, the denoument, wow. Another reviewer said it would make a great movie, and while that's true, I am satisfied that it is a book because I know I will read it again and again. TLYLF belongs on the New York Times bestseller's list. I plan to buy copies for my reader/writer friends and spread the word. Just a tremendous read. I hope Fischer has another book in the hopper so I can read more of her stories soon. Loved it.

Maribeth Fischer is a genius.......2007-05-08

This is one of the best books that I have ever read. Maribeth Fischer is now one of my favorite authors. You must read this story!

This would make a great movie!.......2007-05-06

I literally could not put this novel down. It grabs you on page one and never lets you go, never lets you relax. It procedes with high emotional intensity to the end.

This is a novel that teaches -- about mitochondrial disease, about Munchausenn's, about the failings of the child protective system in this country, and about our own human failings. It does so in an extremely well-crafted story. I read it wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

This would make an amazing movie.

I look forward to this writer's next novel.

heartbreakingly accurate.......2007-05-06

Maribeth Fischer manages to accurately capture the conflicting and confusing emotions surrounding the terminal illness and death of a child. She portrays the impact of a mother's seemingly obsessive devotion to her ill child on her marriage and surviving children. She also reveals the very human nature of grief-the need to retreat to a haven unrelated to death, a place where for a few hours Grace, the mother, can be an ordinary woman. Fischer maintains the integrity of real life by realistically portraying the consequences of Grace's actions. She introduces dramatic tension by carefully exploring how a loving mother's determination to do everything possible for her dying child can be misconstrued, leading to a tragedy of nearly equal proportions to the child's death. Her rich use of metaphor makes the dark subject a joy to read.

Even though this book is a novel, its descriptions of heartbreak and grief are spot on. Healthcare providers, especially social service professionals, could gain valuable insight by reading Fischer's book.

Average customer rating:

fascination with lost love
Cheap Ending
very satisfying! I loved it
Polly McCrillis
Rip out the last page and it's 5 stars

The Last Time They Met: A Novel
Anita Shreve
Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0316713732

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

The novel does get off to a slow start, with an unnecessarily drawn-out description of a luxury hotel. But it picks up speed as it moves backward in time, from the lovers' vividly evoked interlude in Africa, to their adolescent years in the Massachusetts village of Hull, and finally to Linda's deepest, darkest secret. Only then does the author unveil her final revelation, which should leave most readers somewhat out of breath, and possibly even obliged to turn back to the first page and read the book over again. Shreve is a canny storyteller, and she knows her characters inside and out. (As well she might: Thomas is the husband of Jean, the photographer in The Weight of Water.) And The Last Time They Met is yet another example of the kind of book she does best--one that's as skillfully plotted as a thriller, but with writing that lingers long after the last plot twist is unfurled. No matter whether people actually have affairs like these. Reading this book only makes you wish that they did. --Mary Park

Book Description

The Last Time They Met opens with two old lovers, both poets, running into each other at a writer's conference. Well, Linda Fallon and Thomas Janes aren't old, actually--just middle-aged, with a lifetime's worth of history between them. In the first section, Anita Shreve only suggests what that history contains: there was adultery, we gather, and a car accident, plus some illicit encounters under a pitiless Kenyan sun. Presumably the rest of the book will lead back to the beginnings of this grand passion, right? We think we know where this is going--but that's the tricky part, because we don't.The novel does get off to a slow start, with an unnecessarily drawn-out description of a luxury hotel. But it picks up speed as it moves backward in time, from the lovers' vividly evoked interlude in Africa, to their adolescent years in the Massachusetts village of Hull, and finally to Linda's deepest, darkest secret. Only then does the author unveil her final revelation, which should leave most readers somewhat out of breath, and possibly even obliged to turn back to the first page and read the book over again. Shreve is a canny storyteller, and she knows her characters inside and out. (As well she might: Thomas is the husband of Jean, the photographer in The Weight of Water.) And The Last Time They Met is yet another example of the kind of book she does best--one that's as skillfully plotted as a thriller, but with writing that lingers long after the last plot twist is unfurled. No matter whether people actually have affairs like these. Reading this book only makes you wish that they did. --Mary Park

Download Description

Linda Fallon encounters her former lover, Thomas Janes, at a literary festival where both have been invited to give readings from their work. It has been years since their paths crossed, and in that time Thomas has become a kind of literary legend. His renown is enhanced by his elusiveness; for most of the past decade, he has remained in seclusion following a devastating loss. This is no chance meeting. Thomas learned that Linda was reading at the festival and chose this moment to reestablish contact with a woman he passionately pursued years earlier. Their affair was disastrous, and a turning point in both their lives. Neither the intensity of their relationship nor the damage it did has ever been far from his memory. From the moment they speak, The Last Time They Met unfolds the story of Linda and Thomas in an extraordinary way: it travels back into their past, bypassing layers of memory and interpretation to present their earlier encounters with unshakable immediacy. In Africa, when Linda and Thomas were twenty-seven, and in Massachusetts, when they were in high school, the novel recreates love at its exhilarating pinnacle--the kind of intense connection that becomes the true north against which all relationships are measured. Moving backward through time, The Last Time They Met traces the extraordinary resonance a single choice, even a single word, can have over the course of a lifetime. At the same time, the novel creates an almost unbearable mystery, a mystery that can only be understood fully in the novel's final pages, in the eyes of young Linda Fallon and the young man who loves her. With a master's control of phrase, observation, emotion, and character, Anita Shreve has written a beautiful and unforgettable exploration of intimacy, loss, and lifelong desire.

Customer Reviews:

fascination with lost love.......2007-08-20

Terrible book...boring till the end (which is the only part I liked).
If you are wondering why Shreve likes stories about lost love, and the "what if" theme that runs through many of her books, read her book "When and where"...which I strongly suspect is autobiographical. She seems well-versed in the emotions of love rekindled and its adverse consequences on families because it reflects her own story.

Cheap Ending.......2007-08-17

I was able to finish this book, which rates it at least 2 stars, but I was sorry I did, because the ending is cheap. The ending essentially says, all events you read about and thought were evocative, thoughtful, sad, or whatever, were simply the imaginings of a secondary character. Why bother? If it was all Thomas's imagination, don't you think he would imagine something a little happier? It becomes the story of a sick and obsessed mind, rather than a poignant story of love lost. I had read Pilot's Wife and enjoyed it, but I don't think I'll be reading another of hers.

very satisfying! I loved it .......2007-08-17

The descriptions of the settings and people they meet are second to none. I liked the meandering off-beat way the story weaves thorough the small details of life. The characters are rich and satisfying. The romance was powerful but I did not feel it was "overly dramatic" like a soap opera since the characters had the proper setting and history behind it.

I was happy to see the reference to her other book The Weight of Water, I did not realize at first it's the same Thomas. I think that gave grater depth to the story since I had the begging and end from this book, and the middle from the other story. I can see how this book may not be for everyone, but I loved it.

Polly McCrillis .......2007-08-10

The ending came as a surprise, a sad surprise, for in the literary romance world, endings must end happily. Ms. Shreve does not follow the rules, and for that I am grateful. Her novels have their own persona, word choice, either in dialogue or narrative, suiting the time period, and her settings are characters unto themselves. I feel I've been given a magnificent gift when I read her works and know they will not disappoint, even when the ending is not the anticipated, hoped for, happy one. Bravo, to Ms. Shreve for having the temerity to not follow the rules. As a writer, I thank her for the inspiration her writing fosters.Almost Taken Flight of Faith

Rip out the last page and it's 5 stars.......2007-08-04

First let me say that I got this book second-hand many years after it was written and had not heard any reviews, knew nothing of a supposed "shocking" ending. So I was caught completely off guard.

As I read this book I remarked to my husband on how beautifully written it was, I was devouring every page, loving the writing style. Wishing there were a thousand Anita Shreve books if they were all this lovely. I am normally not a sappy romantic, but I was really rooting for Linda and Thomas, naively missed all the supposed "hints" in the book that something was up... was truly hoping for a happily-ever-after right up until that last page, when I feel like Ms. Shreve ripped the book from my hands and hit me over the head with it and said, "HA!"

I was SO ANGRY about the ending -- I had come to care for the characters, faults and all, was hoping for the happy ending (I would have taken a regretful or melancholy ending, anything but the ending I got), and then the cheapest ploy imaginable hits. It's like the author said, "Dear reader, you know that whole long story you just spent so many hours reading and got so involved in: Just Kidding FOLKS!!!!!!"

I took the book to my husband and said with venom, "You know the book I was loving so much? So romantic, these people who have a chance at reuniting with their one true love? READ THE LAST PAGE." OH I was so mad. It is like shock just for the sake of shock. Like a dirty trick. NOT clever, just infuriating. And looking back to "The Weight of Water"... again she breaks our hearts. Anita Shreve seems to get a kick out of pulling us in and making us care about a character (the romantic couple, the innocent child), and then SHE KILLS THEM.

The shame of it is, I LOVE her writing style. But I feel tricked here. I wish she would just write a book without having to insert random shocking death. Her writing is so good, she doesn't need those ploys, they just feel false and devious to me, especially when they play out in a single sentence or paragraph, like something added at the last minute. Like, "AHA!! I know!!! I'll just kill the character!! Suddenly!! For no apparent reason!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!"

Like I said, if you rip out the last page of the book (I don't care that it wouldn't have an ending, it would be better than the actual ending), I would have loved it, 5 stars. As it is though, I don't think I can bring myself to read another Anita Shreve novel. As much as I love her writing, it feels like a "Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me" thing. She's already clobbered me over the head with senseless death in the two novels I've read, I don't wish to be manipulated again.

Consciousness and the Novel: Connected Essays (The Richard Ellmann Lectures in Modern Literature)

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A treat for literature lovers

Consciousness and the Novel: Connected Essays (The Richard Ellmann Lectures in Modern Literature)
David Lodge
Manufacturer: Harvard University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0674009495

Book Description

Human consciousness, long the province of literature, has lately come in for a remapping--even rediscovery--by the natural sciences, driven by developments in Artificial Intelligence, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology. As the richest record we have of human consciousness, literature, David Lodge suggests, may offer a kind of understanding that is complementary, not opposed, to scientific knowledge. Writing with characteristic wit and brio, and employing the insight and acumen of a skilled novelist and critic, Lodge here explores the representation of human consciousness in fiction (mainly English and American) in light of recent investigations in the sciences.

How does the novel represent consciousness? And how has this changed over time? In a series of interconnected essays, Lodge pursues these questions down various paths: How does the novel's method compare with that of other creative media such as film? How does the consciousness (and unconscious) of the creative writer do its work? And how can criticism infer the nature of this process through formal analysis? In essays on Charles Dickens, E. M. Forster, Evelyn Waugh, Kingsley and Martin Amis, Henry James, John Updike, and Philip Roth, and in reflections on his own practice as a novelist, Lodge is able to bring to light--and to engaging life--the technical, intellectual, and sometimes simply mysterious working of the creative mind.

Customer Reviews:

A treat for literature lovers.......2005-01-11

I had several teachers throughout life that had an unparalleled ability to make knowledge seem arcane, obscure and utterly boring. Every two or three years, however, I had the privilege of being taught by a passionate teacher that had a real knack at making any subject sound enthralling.

I am sure David Lodge would be one of the latter. His essays are clear, witty, funny and knowledgeable. There wasn't a single essay that did not make me want to jump to the computer, connect to Amazon.com and buy a book from the author he was writing about. And all that with plain style devoid of the ubiquitous self conscious or ranting style of most contemporary critics.

A great read for literature lovers!

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