The Comforts of a Muddy Saturday by Alexander McCall Smith

I really enjoy McCall Smith's Isabel Dalhousie series.  This is another book about the moral philospher.  Isabel is still with her partner, Jamie, and their son Charlie is getting older.  Isabel is considering making the situation more permanent, in spite of the fact that she wants Jamie to feel free.  The "mystery" in this story occurs when a doctor's wife asks Isabel for her help with her husband, the doctor.  The doctor had overlooked information about a drug and some one ended up dying from it.  Isabel's conclusions, as usually happens, are completely wrong, yet she still makes things better for the doctor who is suffering from crippling shame and depression.

This is probably one of my least favorite of the Isabel Dalhousie books.  I think because she continues to obsess about the age difference between her and Jamie, and it makes her jealous and possessive in this book.  We see a lot of her weaknesses in this particular story, and I got a little tired of the repeated theme of Isabel suspecting Jamie of some underhanded behavior and then he proves that he was actually thinking of her.  And then she suspects him again!

It is a quick read.  Like all the Dalhousie books, it is intelligently humorous and quirkily clever.  It is worth the time, but if you're new to the Dalhousie series, don't start with this one!

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

When I started this book, I had rather low expectations, as I didn't really enjoy Crime and Punishment, Dostoevsky's most well-known novel.  I figured this would be more of the same.  I was pleasantly surprised in that it caught my attention, and I enjoyed the book.  It is a Russian novel, so it is kind of dark and depressing.  I did take a break and read something lighter partway through, but I wanted to return and finish it.  It takes a while to read.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

This is a truly great book, in spite of its dramatic nature and unbelievable story line.  The Bronte sisters are pros at writing outlandish stories that feel believable while you read them.  Jane Eyre is the story of a poor young girl who is orphaned and has to live with her cruel cousins and their family.  She escapes to school and eventually becomes a governess for a wealthy eccentric gentleman's ward.  There are, of course, extremely unusual circumstances in Mr. Rochester's life.  Jane Eyre will keep your attention for its fairly large length.  It is mostly a romance, so if you don't enjoy that aspect of books, it may not be for you.  Definitely worth the time.

The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen

This book is well-written, interesting, and thought-provoking.  It is also quite depressing.  It tells the story of the Lambert family:  Enid; the elderly mother, who is exhausted from caring for her husband and is super-critical of her family; Alfred; her husband, who is losing himself to Parkinson's, Gary, the oldest, who worries about being clinically depressed and struggles with his wife Caroline (an unlikeable, manipulative woman with strange parenting ideas); Chip, an intellectual academic whose life is a mess; and Denise, the youngest and only girl, who is challenged by her sexual identity and sexual choices that make her life harder.  They all have big challenges and don't seem to communicate with the people in their lives to make it better.  I just had a hard time reading about people's mistakes and wanted to see them make different choices.  Even the end, which is optimistic if you read it exactly as it is, still feels depressing. 

I found myself thinking about the story after I finished it, which is a good indicator to me of at least an intellectually stimulating book.  But don't read it if you want a feel-good story.  It is also a fairly long read, so it takes some time.

Middlemarch by George Eliot

This book follows various, loosely-connected plot lines of different people in the English town of Middlemarch.  These include Dorothea, an idealistic young woman who wants to change the world, Lydgate, an ambitious doctor with a giant crush on self-centered Rosamund, and Fred, Rosamund's brother, and his childhood sweetheart, Mary.  It is well-written and interesting.  Occasionally, the author makes a comment separate from the narrative, which is a little odd.  Dorothea makes a choice that seems somewhat against her character, but I do like the narrator's conclusion that people can make a huge difference to those around them without making an obvious difference in the world.  It does take some time to read, and I personally took a break or two during the process to read something fluffier, but it is worth the time.

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

I love this book.  It is my favorite of all of Irving's books that I've read.  As usual for Irving, the story draws you in and you hate to put it down!  Also, as usual, it is way too long to read without putting it down frequently!  Irving is very frank about sexual matters, so there is some discussion that may be inappropriate, particularly for younger readers.  The story is told from the point of view of John, a teacher in Canada, and largely concerns his memories of growing up in New Hampshire with Owen Meany.  Owen is a very unique young man, physically, emotionally, and mentally.  He believes himself to be the instrument of God and spends his life preparing to fill his higher purpose, revealed to him in a vision.  The ending is both touching and sad. 

This is a wonderful book that is easily worth the time.  If you've never read Irving, this is a great place to start.

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

I thought I reviewed this book before, but I'm not seeing a post for it, so I will do it again.  This is a loosely connected collection of short stories about soldiers and their experience in the Vietnam War.  The first story tells of O'Brien and the Alpha company and the things they carry in the war.  Some are intangible, like guilt and love, and some are physical objects.  These things they carry are occasionally referred to in later stories as well.  This first story was one of my favorites because it gave such a variety of views of the war in such a quick, concise way.  I also really liked "On the Rainy River" when O'Brien considers escaping the draft in Canada because of his political views.  Some of the stories are told from the viewpoint of 20 years after the war. 

I really enjoyed this book, which suprised me, because I am not necessarily a big fan of realistic war stories.  It had a good balance in the collection.  It is written very well and reads easily.  You can fit a short story in any time, which is one of my favorite things about short story collections.  This book is definitely worth your time. 

Drama City by George Pelecanos

This is a typical Pelecanos book in that has lots of violence and drugs.  There is also a brief sex scene and some language.  "Drama city" refers to D.C.  Pelecanos always presents a side of Washington I have never seen as a tourist!  This book introduces all new characters I haven't read about before in his books, although Derek Strange of Strange Investigations makes a cameo.  The story is largely concerned with a man who was recently released from prison.  We also get glimpses of the lives of his probation officer, his former drug crew, their competition, and the narcotics anonymous members who attend his same meeting.  It doesn't read as a straight narrative and seems more like a series of vignettes.  It is a quick easy read.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

I enjoyed this book, but it didn't make a very big impression on me.  It tells the story of Janey, a black woman who lived in Florida during the early 1900's.  Her life story is told in three sections, based on her marriages to three very different men.  It's a little depressing.  Janey wants a marriage based on love.  Spolier alert!  Don't read the next two sentences if you want the ending to be a surprise.  She finally finds that in her third marriage, and she is forced to kill the husband she loves when he contracts rabies and attacks her.  She is acquitted of his murder, though, so I guess it isn't an entirely unhappy ending.  It's safe again.  I guess it wasn't a book I could relate to, and I found it terribly sad.  Even the marriage she wanted didn't seem that great to me.  It was interesting, though, largely because it was so foreign to me and my experiences.  It was also a short book and an easy read.

The Man Who was Thursday by G. K. Chesterton

One word continually came to my mind while I read this book:  outlandish.  On the surface, it is the story of the anarchist movement in the early 1900's and a special police force that is designed to combat it.  It actually reads like a comedic farce that reminds me of a vaudeville act.  The plot line's idiosyncracies were entertaining while being completely absurd.  It was also pretty predictable.  Then suddenly in the last chapter you're given another view of the story that gives it a serious, satirical meaning.  It was definitely an unusual and creative read.  It was easy and read quickly, so I would say it was worth the time, especially if you're looking for something different.  If you like straightforward, clearcut stories that stick to the normal and accepted vagaries of storytelling, then skip this one and try something else!

Espresso Tales by Alexander McCall Smith

This is the second book in the 44 Scotland Street series.  Since these books were originally written in serial format for a newspaper, it has very short chapters and occasionally feels slightly disjointed.  As usual for Smith, it is cleverly written and the characters pull you right in.  I enjoyed catching up with the character in the building, particularly 6-year-old Bertie and his pushy mum, since at the end of the book things are looking up for him!  Smith makes you envision Edinburgh and feel like an "insider" of the city.  It is a quick read and easily worth the time.

Something Blue by Emily Giffin

The first half of this book is very hard to read.  You want to like the main character, Darcy, but she just isn't likeable!  And when she finally changes (what a relief!), the change doesn't feel particularly believable.  I struggled with the first book in this series, Something Borrowed for similar reasons.  I found I couldn't really relate to either heroine, and I really struggled with supporting some of their big choices.  Yet, Giffin writes well, so I keep trying to read her books!  I keep expecting to read one that I love the character and not just her writing.   In spite of not liking the main character, this book is still entertaining and while it has an unbelievable and somewhat cheesy ending, at least it is nice and happy.  It's a fairly quick and easy read, too.

Fifth Business by Robertson Davies

I had never heard of this book or this author, so I wasn't particularly in a hurry to read it.  I checked it out from the library last week, though, since it was a short book and I needed something short once I finished Les Miserables.  I was very pleasantly surprised.  What a great book!  Now I'm excited to read the rest of Davies' Deptford trilogy.  The title comes from opera:  there is a heroine and a hero, a contralto (support for the heroine or an enchantress), and the villain.  Then there is "fifth business," the fifth character who is necessary for the plot line.  The "fifth business" referred to in this book is Dunston Ramsay, and the story is told in first person from his point of view.  It is his autobiography, which is largely concerned with other people from his hometown of Deptford.  It is well-written and interesting.  It feels literary while still being vastly entertaining.  An excellent read that goes quickly, easily worth the time.

And Then You Dye by Monica Ferris

This is another book in Ferris's Betsy Devonshire series.  Devonshire is the owner of a needlecraft shop and also an amateur detective who solves murder mysteries.  I prefer the earlier books I have read in the series.  This particular story felt less involved and not as well-developed as Ferris's other books.  A dyer, who has provided demonstrations and products to Betsy's shop is murdered in her basement.  The chief suspect, who owns a nursery next door to the dyer's home, asks Betsy to prove her innocence.  The needlecraft connection is less than in most of the books in the series.  It is a very quick easy read that is still entertaining.

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

This is the first time I've read the unabridged version of this book.  The version I read was translated by Noman Denny.  He seemed to do a good job.  There were actually two parts, one on convents and one on argot that he didn't include in the story and placed at the end in an appendix.  I didn't miss them!  The unabridged version does contain quite a bit of extraneous material, like an exhaustive account of the battle of Waterloo, a philosophical discussion of revolution, and the history of the Paris sewers.  It is nice to get additional detail and the whole story.  Hugo does like to include "everything" in his writing.  "Les Mis" tells the story of Jean Valjean, a French convict.  He is jailed for 19 years for stealing a loaf of bread and subsequent escape attempts.  After he is released, no one is willing to give him shelter or sell him food until he finds a benevolent Bishop.  Valjean robs the bishop during the night and flees.  He is captured and brought back to the bishop's home.  The truly good bishop says he gave Valjean the silver as a gift, so that he can go free.  He tells Valjean he has purchased his soul from evil for good.  Valjean changes his life, although he continues to face challenges because of his convict status.  It is a great story and an interesting book.  It takes a pretty big time commitment to read its 1000+ pages, though.  Worth the time, but it needs a big chunk of it!

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

This is a truly great book.  It is an interesting story that is well-written, and it also makes you more aware of how things were during the Great Depression.  It made me want to help and make a difference for people who struggle similarly today.  It tells the story of the Joad family from Oklahoma.  They are evicted from their farm after their crops fail in the "Dust Bowl" and decide to move to California to seek a better life.  When they arrive in California, things continue to be extremely challenging for them.  This book is definitely worth the time it takes!

Dracula by Bram Stoker

I found this book a little odd.  The story and legend are so well-known and have been assimilated so thoroughly into society that I was surprised to read that it wasn't exactly the story it has evolved to be.  The essentials are there, just some of the details have changed over the years.  I am not at all a horror fan, so I was happy this book wasn't too graphic or even scary at all.  The story is told through different perspectives with journal entries, letters, etc.  It is short and a very quick easy read, so I suppose it is worth the time it takes, but it certainly isn't my style and I didn't really enjoy it.

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

This book isn't a favorite of mine.  Beyond the wordiness and usual darkness of a Russian novel, I am just not a fan of the story.  Raskolnikov, a poor Russian student, has a theory that great men can commit murder without it actually being a crime.  He thinks about this theory a lot, and then when he feels he is repeatedly given motive and opportunity to kill someone, he decides to test it.  After his crime, he falls apart mentally and emotionally.  A lot happens in the characters around him as well (death, suicide, madness, broken engagements, threatened rape, etc) while he struggles with his crime.  By the end, he confesses to the authorities and realizes he must not be a "great man" according to his theory.  It seemed strange to me to commit such a rash action on an intellectual theory;  I just couldn't relate to Raskolnikov or his family or friends at all!  Not worth the time.