Life Among Giants by Bill Roorbach
331 pages
 
What’s it about?
Mix rock stars, dancers, money launderers, restauranteurs, pro football, mental illness, and a double murder and you have the subplots of “Life Among Giants”.  What a book!  Every once in awhile a book sneaks up and surprises you.  For me- this was that book for 2015!  It was a totally unexpected surprise.  Where has Bill Roorbach been? 
 
What did I think?
I loved it!  I really enjoyed the writing style in this novel.  Mr. Roorbach’s characters were amazingly interesting and fully drawn out.  The mark of a really good book for me is that I turn the last page, and I am so sorry it is over.  I know I am going to miss the amazing cast of characters that I have been spending time with the last week.   This was one of those books.  
* This is a book that will appeal to both men and women.
 
Should you read it?
YES!  I stumbled upon this book while traveling.  Another great find in the staff picks at Powell’s books in Portland.   It always amazes me how many really good books go unnoticed!
 
Quote-
“I attempted an end run, called up all my indignation: ‘What are you doing opening my mail?’
                  ‘I’m your mother, David Hockmeyer, and I’ll open your mail when I see fit.  Do not change the subject.  Whose accusations?’
                  When you can’t tell a little, tell it all, tell it at length, tell it so thoroughly you never get to the end:  ‘You remember I mowed her lawn the other day?’
                  “I remember you didn’t mow ours.’”
 
 
If you like this try-
The World According to Garp by John Irving
Tell The Woves I'm Home by Carol Rifka-Brunt 
Skippy Dies by Paul Murray
 

9 stars
 

​ The Unfortunates by Sophie McManus
353 pages

What’s it about?
 Cece Somner is an aging heiress dealing with her own mortality.  As she nears the end of her life the difficult relationships in her family become a cause for concern.  Cece is the center of this book and she is a real caricature of a wealthy woman from a certain time and place.  The author does a really good job of showing her characters with all of their flaws- sometimes we see the flaws too well...

What did it make me think about?
It made me wonder if all that money and privilege is a blessing or a curse.  Cede and her son are just awful people for the most part. They have no concept of how most people live.  In fact they live in a totally different world than most of us inhabit.   Here is an example-  Cece is giving instructions to the help before a party,   "To reveal the tastes of others you must reveal no tastes of your own.  I hope the eggs, over there, are underpoached to account for the heat of the sun?  Madame is a forbidden address.  It's old-fashioned!  Fruit should not be next to salmon tartare.  Try not to fret if a guest takes out some frustration on you.  It may not be pleasant, but you are repository.  George?  Young miss, please set yourself to extracting those Brazil nuts from the mix.  No one ever wants a Brazil nut."    This book certainly gave a glimpse into a world I do not live in, and it made me glad for it!
 
Should I read it?
I did not enjoy this book until the end was in sight.  I did enjoy the last 50 pages.  Despite having to slog through the first 300 pages of this book,  I will try Ms. McManus's next book because she writes some really insightful passages.   Unfortunately the insightful passages were muddled in with long, boring passages.   I would have liked to be invested in the book long before the last 50 pages.  The book did have a great cover though.

Quote-
"But now she thinks maybe the truth is that at first, what she liked most about George was how much he liked her.  How that night she'd pretended to be someone better than she was, and he'd believed her."

Question-
 What did you think of Cece?

If you like this try-
Love, Nina by Nina Stibbe
Bittersweet by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

4 stars

Disclaimer by Renee knight
352 pages
 
What’s it about?
This is a really creative psychological thriller from first time author Renee Knight.   She is so inventive in her plot and the pacing of the book was pretty good.  I was impressed with the plot twists she threw in.

What did it make me think about?
This novel really made me think about perceptions.  How much our perceptions color how we view situations.   How often do our assumptions change the course of events?

Should I read it?
Anyone looking for a good psychological thriller should pick this book up!  This is a page turner with a twist.   Very impressive debut author!

If you liked this try-

Night Film by Marisha Pessl
Gone girl by Gillian Flynn
The Girl on a Train by Paula Hawkins
An Untamed State by Roxanne Gay

8 stars

Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg
293 pages
 
What’s it about?
How would you go on if everyone you loved disappeared in a flash?  June Reid's life is destroyed when her whole family is killed in a unforeseen disaster.  This novel examines the tragedy through the eyes of June, and also through the eyes of people around her. 

What did it make me think about?
Another novel that makes us see how fragile life is.  Although immensely sad, this book is also about the love we share.  How we not only hurt each other,  but we also save each other.

Should I read it?
This is Bill Clegg's first novel and he is a keen observer.  His observations make this a book worth reading.  I thought this was a really good book, but I would warn that it is also a sad book.  

Quote-
"The weekenders from the city not only take the best houses, views, food, and, yes, flowers our little town has to offer, but they take the best of us, too.  They arrive at the end of each week texting and calling from trains and cars with their demands- driveways to be plowed, wood to stack, lawns to mow, gutters needing cleaning, kids to be babysat, groceries to be bought, houses to be cleaned, pillows needing fluffing.  For some, we even put up their Christmas trees after Thanksgiving and take them away after New Year's.  They never dirty their hands with any of the things the rest of us have to, nor shoulder the actual weight of anything.  We can't bear them and yet we are borne by them.  It makes for a testy pact that for the most part works." 

Question-
 Which character was the most tragic?

If you liked this try-
Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
Father of the Rain by Lily King

8 stars

 A God In Ruins by Kate Atkinson
453 pages
 
What’s it about?
Kate Atkinson wrote "Life After Life" in 2013.  I think I was one of the only people I know that did NOT love that novel.   Ms. Atkinson uses the same characters in this book, but her main focus shifts to Ursula's brother Teddy.   The novel skips back and forth in time and viewpoints but at least we do not replay the same day over and over! 
 
What did I think?
By page 200 I was not feeling too optimistic about this book.  The book skipped around in time and viewpoint so much that I often just tired of it.  Once again being stuck on a plane with hours to kill had it's reward.  I thoroughly enjoyed the second half of the novel!  Teddy may be one of my favorite fictional characters in the last year- and let's not even get started on what I thought of Viola!  Like all good books I will miss this cast of characters now that I am done reading.  No one is more surprised about this than I!

Should you read it?
If you liked "Life After Life" then do not miss this book!  If you did not like the earlier book then you may initially struggle with this book as well.  I would encourage you to keep at it.  It has so much to say about war, memory, history, fiction, and our own mortality.  I am dying to talk about it with someone.  A sure sign of a good book!
 
Quote-
"They were all happy, this much at least he was sure of.  Later on he realized it was never as simple as that.  Happiness, like life itself, was as fragile as a bird's heartbeat, as fleeting as the bluebells in the wood, but while it lasted, Fox Corner was an Arcadian dream."

If you liked this try-
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

8 1/2 stars