Fancy

by Jeremy M. Davies

A deeply strange book, challenging and peculiarly entertaining.

I'm tempted to call this book experimental and/or post-modern, but rather than the language (however acrobatic) or structure (quirky as it is) constituting the novel's raison d'être or rendering its meaning, the most unusual thing here is that the author's philosophical project is quite literally the protagonist's existential dilemma, unconcealed by metaphor or artifice, laid bare as the actual subject matter of a book-length monologue...about cats.

Though nominally about cats, the narrative has so many digressions that you'll more often than not lose sight of the cats — precisely the author's intention. Reality is as elusive as those cats, and nothing is certain in this tale of cat fancying: the speaker may or may not be who he says, he may be the other person about whom he speaks, he may be a cat; he may be speaking to a man and a woman, or to no one at all, or to a cat; he may or may not exist; he may have twenty cats, he may not. So the book is about that uncertainty, and the cats are somewhat beside the point (though there is a very satisfying moment toward the end when the cats are revealed as a possible solution to the fundamental metaphysical question of whether things exist independent of our perception of them).

None of which conveys the weird, chuckling humor and absolute genius of this novel.

The Mathematician's Shiva

by Stuart Rojstaczer

A young, female Eastern European Jewish mathematical savant survives a labor camp and makes her way to the U.S., where she has a long career as a respected academic, and a son. No surprise, then, that many colleagues want to attend her funeral and celebrate her life and achievements, even though her son would prefer a quiet and dignified period of mourning. He will not get his wish, though, especially once the rumor spreads that his mother had solved a very thorny and long-standing problem in mathematics, and spitefully taken to solution to her grave.

Doesn't sound funny, does it? This book does have some laugh out loud moments, along with touching emotional moments. No equations or hard to understand concepts, the math here is mostly a metaphor, a reflection of the riddles in human relationships, even with those we think we know best. A lot of people would enjoy this book, if the knew about it.

Engineering Animals: how life works

by Mark Denny and Alan McFadzean

Trying to jog my memory, I just found summary of this book citing "wit and a richly informed sense of wonder." I maybe get the wonder, but I don't recall the wit. The book is chock full of super interesting geeky things, but it's also kind of dry and academic. (I know, I know. I'm the Goldilocks of nonfiction.) A very worthwhile book, but not one that's going to keep you up reading past your bedtime. I remember being quite fascinated by the section on animal sonar; it's the most thorough explanation I've ever read. And the more I think about it, the more I realize this is a very special book — possibly the only book about animal ecophysiology that a non-scientist would ever get her hands on.

Deadman Wonderland

by Jinsei Kataoka

Death Race 2000 * meets The Hunger Games meets The Fugitive done as a manga. I didn't get hooked on this series, even though it has a bunch of promising (weird, but promising) elements. The plot has a lot of things going on, so I think maybe I was worried it would be a never-ending series that never really gets anywhere, but apparently it's only 13 volumes. Maybe if I'd had more volumes on hand I would have kept going. An anime adaptation aired in Japan in 2011, and I'm mildly curious about it.

Overall score: meh. I can see younger teens being into it, but parents should be advised there's quite a bit of gore.

* I'm referring to cult classic Death Race 2000, rather than the 2008 reboot and sequels, because the manga series has a certain dark humor mixed with the deadly mayhem.

The White Devil

by Justin Evans

A horror novel set at an English boarding school, complete with gay-vague and ghost-gay happenings. You tell me if  I liked this book.

The writing is satisfactory, serviceable; this a plot book, not a language book. Not my usual sort of thing, but I read it based on a recommendation from a friend. (Did she recommend the book to me particularly, rather than making a general rec to all and sundry, just because the story has gay-ish stuff, and me being gay... Who cares. I enjoyed it, and that's what matters.)

Be careful not to confuse this book with the several others having similar titles (though I've heard The Devil in the White City is quite good). Though it's cataloged in the adult section, you could certainly recommend this book to a teen.

Nothing to Envy: ordinary lives in North Korea

by Barbara Demick

I recently heard some talk on the NPR about the way North Korea is both terrifying and ridiculous. Even an intelligence analyst who professionally studied the DPRK as a serious security threat admitted to sometimes picturing Kim Jong Il as the singing puppet from Team America: World Police. As baffling as this hermit kingdom seems to an outsider, it is barely more comprehensible to most of the people living through it's totalitarian social, political and economic regime. For them, it is also terrifying in much more immediate ways than it is for us. Nevetheless, people will find ways to survive — and ways to escape.

This book offers a glimpse into North Korea through the stories of people who have made it to freedom in the south. Life in the north is in many ways rather primitive, but the military is working on nuclear weapons while people starve. Just another humanitarian crisis in slow-motion that no one is really confronting. But what could be done, short of a military takeover? Imagining how this regime might eventually come to a peaceful end is as difficult as understanding how it could have gone on so long already.

Definitely an interesting book, well-written and informative, with emotional heft. Several other books about North Korea came out around the same time, but I haven't read any of the others and can't compare/contrast.

The Book of David

by Anonymous

This book may be "anonymous," but I seriously doubt it was written by a teenager, let alone the teen whose story it is supposed to be. "David" writes suspicously well for someone who needed tutoring in English class. Anyway, in the tradition of Go Ask Alice, here we have "true" teen diary of someone going through troubles. In this case, a high school quarterback struggles to come to terms with being gay. The book jacket info doesn't say what his "secret" is, but you'd have to be pretty dull not to assume that he's gonna be gay. Lack of surprise notwithstanding, I'd say this book is not terrible, short and quick, occasionally mildly titillating, pretty entertaining. The ending is a little rushed, though, with some very bad reactions from his parents and a quick jump toward a promising future with the support of other, nicer adults.



 

In the Fat

by Sally K Lehman

My first e-book!

Started reading this for work purposes and enjoyed it enough to finish. The story is emotionally intense (multiple trigger warnings, if you're into that) but has moments of dark humor and a hopeful conclusion for the main character, despite an eleventh-hour bonus misfortune. The protagonist is a young girl, 13 going on 14, who is in a mental institution, and at first I thought it would kind of be Girl, Interrupted all over again. But the character's voice feels fresh and authentic, making it easy to empathize and want to find out what happens (and what happened to get her there). The author effectively shows how a person can be simultaneously stronger and more mature than her years, and also innocent and in need of nurturing. I would recommend this for teens and adults, mostly female.

Ninety Percent of Everything: inside shipping, the invisible industry that puts clothes on your back, gas in your car, and food on your plate

by Rose George

Is it an oxymoron (or is it ironic) to call something a textbook example of literary nonfiction (because not being like a textbook is what makes nonfiction literary)? Whatever it is, this book is a great example of the genre. It is factually interesting and informing, without cramming a lot of dry data, and the author makes herself and her experience part of the story. The romance of the sea wouldn't come through without her including herself in the story, and it is the tension between our feelings about the sea and the ugly realities of seaborne cargo that makes the book compelling.

Shipping is a murky world, filled with shell companies, owners in one country employing workers from other countries on boats registered in yet other countries. This book is only a glimpse into that world, since a lot more than one book would be needed to lay it bare. Either way, the industry is so invisible to us (the way farms and cows are invisible to supermarket shoppers) that it is unlikely to change, or be changed, with any swiftness, no matter how much of its underbelly is revealed. Not that this book is an expose or call for radical reform; it's actually pretty neutral, letting the facts speak for themselves.

Good book for nonfiction lovers and adventurous types. Could also be interesting to people concerned about the environment, workers' rights, and social justice. I'd even recommend it to business-types on the grounds that it's about commerce, therefore useful and productive, while also providing some measure of relaxing escapism and adventure.

London Under: the secret history beneath the streets

by Peter Ackroyd

I recently enthused about this writer's talent, and it is definitely on display in this book. Though much slimmer than his other books, this one has the same panache and wealth of fascinating, little-known information. From buried streams and springs to putrid sewers, Roman ruins, and abandoned Tube stations, myriad secrets lie beneath the streets of London, and you don't have to be an Anglophile, history buff, or archaeology geek to find it interesting. I liked this book very much and frequently place it on the staff picks shelf.

A documentary in this vein exists, but I don't know if it's related.

Empire of Self: a life of Gore Vidal

by Jay Parini

Gore Vidal hated the biography that was published while he was still alive. I don't think he would have taken much more kindly to this one, but then that's one of the essential paradoxes of narcissism: the narcissist doesn't want to see his true reflection; he is enamored of his self-image. An honest yet respectful, occasionally even tender, biography with its subject's narcissism — his "empire of self" — as leitmotif might also seem like a paradox, yet here it is.

Nicely written, comprehensive, and entertaining book about a fascinating figure in American literature, cinema, and political and social commentary. A solid 400 pages that's not a fast read but not a slog either, this book shows Vidal's genius, his foibles, his humanity. Not as amusing as his own memoirs, particularly Palimpsest, but a clear-eyed portrait drawing on numerous people and perspectives.

Loveless, vols. 1 & 2

by Yun Kouga

In terms of manga, I tend to stick to realistic stories in which people are just people and don't grow cat ears (or do so rarely, and usually just to convey a mood rather than to indicate an actual physical attribute). I also haven't read any with super-powered martial arts battles or spaceships and battle armor. So this series, despite its mild yaoi-ish younger/older homo-romantic themes, was a bit of a departure for me. I did read both "volumes" (1 and 2 are bound together as one book), and I had the next set on my (frozen) hold list for a while... but I ultimately decided against it when I needed to make room for other holds.

I read up about the series online, because the plot is rather convoluted. Even having done some background research, I found some of it hard to follow. I also felt as if it would take forever for anything really interesting to happen, and I knew from my research that the central mystery (involving the deceased — or not!? — brother of the main character) does not ever have a really satisfying conclusion.

Hollow Earth: the long and curious history of imagining strange lands, fantastical creatures, advanced civilizations, and marvelous machines below the earth's surface

by David Standish

Not the most scintillating writing, but effective enough and straightforward. Entertaining and informative, if you like reading about kooks and cranks. The book covers many oddball theories about our third rock from the sun, from literature to pseudoscience, occult mysticism to early twentieth century health food cults, religious movements and utopian societies: unknown civilizations (and/or dinosaurs) living in caverns deep inside the earth, attempts to prove the earth is flat, Hitler's alleged belief that we are living on the interior surface of a sphere, to name a few. Some of these ideas are sort of understandable, given the state of scientific knowledge when they were formulated, some are wild speculation and obvious fabrication regardless of origin. The author doesn't mock any of these theories (that would be me), he tries to show their cultural context and connection the zeitgeist. A-plus for the illustrations, too.

A Perfect Waiter

by Alain Claude Sulzer

Unlucky in love... just like me!

Okay, got that out of my system (maybe).

Seriously, though, this is a really sad book. A German-Swiss waiter leads a lonely life of rigid routine, having never recovered from a romantic betrayal 30 years earlier. He takes pride in being very good at his job, the same job he had in the 1930s when he met the love of his life, a slightly younger man who seemed to love him too for one bright, shining season, only to abandon him for a wealthy patron and a ticket to America.

A letter out of the blue from his lost love, alone now and in dire straits, asking for help, stirs up repressed memories and pain. Can he trust this tale of woe? Should he care? Does he owe anything to the man who ruined him so many years ago? If he's never recovered from the relationship, perhaps he owes it to himself to seek closure of some kind. But the truth is elusive, subjective and offers no solace. This story is relentlessly sad, but also beautiful, fragile and vivid.

House of Holes: a book of raunch

by Nicholson Baker

Nicholson Baker wrote The Mezzanine and A Box of Matches, and he also wrote The Fermata. If I didn't know better, you probably could convince me there are two different authors who both just happen to be named Nicholson Baker. But, no, there's only one, and he has two specialties: intricately crafted explorations of quotidian tasks, the universe contained in a single moment; and intricately crafted smut, no-holes-barred astonishingly raunchy sex. This book is the second kind. I'm not sure how much of a plot there is, definitely less than in The Fermata. Things happen, somebody's trying to do something, but it's all just a bunch of frames for different chapters of sex. Maybe I was too distracted to catch the mythos, or maybe there isn't one and the book is just an exercise in pornography. Not that it's bad. I don't regret reading it. But don't expect there to be some literary revelation hidden in the subtext. Or, if you find it, let me know.

The White Feather

by P.G. Wodehouse

Not as funny as I'd expected, but I'm not holding it against the author. I'm willing to read another of his books maybe someday. This story, being about a young man with few friends who learns boxing to save face after running away from a fight, is perhaps not so ripe for humor as some other topics Wodehouse has explored. I was enticed by the English boarding school setting and visions of athletic young men, so I wasn't just in it for the yuks. Pretty good, though: short, well-written (despite some dated language and references), nicely drawn characters.

Venice: pure city

by Peter Ackroyd

What a prolific author! Scads of biographies, history, fiction (mostly historical), essays, books for children... and all books that require mountains of research. Rather impressive. He's written several books about London and the Thames River, in a style that's a sort of "biography of place," which is what this book is. I want to call it a biography rather than just a history of a place because it's a type of cultural history that looks not only at the people and events but also the character and spirit a place and the ethos of its people.

Venice has its obvious source of fascination, but so much more than geography makes it special — while at the same time the city's unique location and environment permeate and inspire its history, from its fourth century founding by refugees fleeing the Lombard invasion of Italy to the present day. Ackroyd's vivid, sometimes florid, storytelling style is perfectly suited to a place as colorful and unconventional as Venice.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and learned a lot, including some great 50-cent vocabulary words. A terrific nonfiction readers advisory suggestion, it brings to mind the notion of "armchair travel" with the bonus of travelling through time as well as space.

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda

by Becky Albertalli

This book got a lot of hype, but I have no idea how it went over with actual teens (as opposed to librarians and other people who work with teens). Gay story lines are popular nowadays, at least with the nerdy kids who hang around the library. I found the book to be okay but in need of editing (which is making me feel like a broken record lately).

A high school student who isn't quite out yet (though he does do theater) is communicating online with an anonymous boyfriend who also goes to his school. Whoever could it be? What if he gets it wrong and makes a pass at the wrong guy? How awkward! Meanwhile, some other guy finds out and blackmails him for help getting closer to his best gal pal.

Promising story ingredients, right? My complaints are that the happy ending happens to fast, some character actions don't seem realistically teenager-y, and the like. On a technical level the writing is good, but I think some higher level polishing would have resulted in a better book overall. Still, looking back on it now, I would definitely recommend this book — not like, "OMG, you have to read this," but like, "yeah, it's a good book."

Shelter

by Benette Whitmore

So-so teen book about a young woman whose mother builds a fallout shelter that only winds up being used by her twin brother (to do drugs, including a near-fatal overdose) and by her (to lose her virginity to her brother's friend). Mom is distant and mostly unhelpful, dad's out of the picture. The story deals with fairly typical teen struggles and angst, but the setting is kind of dated and may not resonate with young people today. I finished reading it, so that's something.

American Honor Killings: desire and rage among men

by David McConnell

I found out about this book on a gay news and culture blog I used to like, and I wanted to read it right away. My library never got it (until recently, as an e-book), and I had to wait a whole year to be able to get it via interlibrary loan. Well, I finally read it!

The author examines a number of (relatively) high profile murder cases involving so-called "gay panic" and similar male-male sexual entanglements or insinuations. Relying on media reports, court records and some personal interviews, the book is well-researched but necessarily speculative in some places. The author is pretty clear about where he is guessing or imagining, and he also makes it clear in the introduction that he has a sort of sociological theory or agenda, so the book is not strictly reportage.

I'd say it's a pretty good book on an interesting but sad and distressing topic. Nothing transgressively sexy at all, just a disturbing reminder of the potential danger in the wider world. As a gay man in a rather liberal city, forgetting about homophobia is easy to do.