Vienna Nocturne by Vivien Shotwell is historical fiction based on Mozart's life in late 18th century Vienna, and the life of opera singer Anna Storace. Shotwell imagines Mozart and Anna in love, even though they are married to other people. In this story Anna is his muse.
It's a wonderful picture of life in the opera at the time, in London, Italy and especially Vienna. Shotwell, an opera singer herself, has done much research and fills the book with vivid details that make the music come alive on the page.
An enjoyable read.
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Look at Me
Look at Me by Jennifer Egan is a novel that has a fascinating concept, but didn't really work as a good story. Egan explores the idea of image, that we are what we see.
It is the story of a model in NYC who gets in a horrible car crash and her face, though still beautiful, is unrecognizable even to those who used to know her well. A plain looking teenage girl embarks on her own dangerous journey to be seen. A terrorist changes his image completely to fit into American society, and a half crazy history professor is writing a book about the changes in the world once glass was invented and we could see clearly, see ourselves for the first time.
The book got stuck in its own cleverness, and the characters were unlikeable and even harder to relate to. I wanted to like this book, but I just didn't.
It is the story of a model in NYC who gets in a horrible car crash and her face, though still beautiful, is unrecognizable even to those who used to know her well. A plain looking teenage girl embarks on her own dangerous journey to be seen. A terrorist changes his image completely to fit into American society, and a half crazy history professor is writing a book about the changes in the world once glass was invented and we could see clearly, see ourselves for the first time.
The book got stuck in its own cleverness, and the characters were unlikeable and even harder to relate to. I wanted to like this book, but I just didn't.
Thursday, February 19, 2015
The Burgess Boys
The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout is a novel about family; two brothers and a sister raised in Maine, the brothers both become lawyers and move to New York, they drift apart and come back together through a family crises.
Strout is a master at creating characters that feel so real it's almost as if we already know them. She delves into the inner life of each character and brings their emotions to the page in the way few writers can
The problem is her characters are always so unlikeable its a bit of a painful process. Although I admire Strout for being a master of her craft, her books always leave me feeling mildly depressed.
A worthwhile read nonetheless, especially if you are from New England.
Strout is a master at creating characters that feel so real it's almost as if we already know them. She delves into the inner life of each character and brings their emotions to the page in the way few writers can
The problem is her characters are always so unlikeable its a bit of a painful process. Although I admire Strout for being a master of her craft, her books always leave me feeling mildly depressed.
A worthwhile read nonetheless, especially if you are from New England.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Leaving Before the Rains Come
Books by Alexandra Fuller always take my breath away and leave me speechless for a while after I finish reading them. This remains true with her latest, Leaving Before the Rains Come. If you haven't read Alexandra Fuller you are in for a rare treat and a wild ride. Start at the beginning with Don't Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight, about her childhood in Africa in the midst of the Rhodesian wars, and just keep reading all her books from there.
Leaving Before the Rains Come focuses on the slow decay of her twenty year marriage to an American river guide she met in Africa, who she believed would save her from her life of chaos. Once settled in their big, expensive, sterile home in Wyoming, Fuller felt lost, lonely, and full of anxiety.
Her writing is superb; told with gut wrenching honesty, it is a book you won't soon forget.
Leaving Before the Rains Come focuses on the slow decay of her twenty year marriage to an American river guide she met in Africa, who she believed would save her from her life of chaos. Once settled in their big, expensive, sterile home in Wyoming, Fuller felt lost, lonely, and full of anxiety.
Her writing is superb; told with gut wrenching honesty, it is a book you won't soon forget.
Thursday, February 5, 2015
Prince Lestat
Prince Lestat by Anne Rice is the latest in The Vampire Chronicles, the first new addition to this series in over two decades. I loved the original books, but was underwhelmed by this latest installment.
Rice continues to enchant with her wonderful details of place, decor, clothing, etc, but the story was bogged down by the sheer scope of all the vampires included in this novel. It felt like a 500 page encyclopedia, a whose who of the vampire world. Although the characters mostly appeared in past books, its been so long I could hardly keep them all straight, thus the need for an index at the back of the book.
Still, a fairly fun read for those hooked on her past books, but I wouldn't recommend starting with this one if you are new to The Vampire Chronicles.
Rice continues to enchant with her wonderful details of place, decor, clothing, etc, but the story was bogged down by the sheer scope of all the vampires included in this novel. It felt like a 500 page encyclopedia, a whose who of the vampire world. Although the characters mostly appeared in past books, its been so long I could hardly keep them all straight, thus the need for an index at the back of the book.
Still, a fairly fun read for those hooked on her past books, but I wouldn't recommend starting with this one if you are new to The Vampire Chronicles.
Monday, February 2, 2015
The Unexpexted Waltz
The Unexpected Waltz by Kim Wright is a wonderful novel about starting over after fifty. A woman whose very rich, older husband dies and leaves her wealthy and alone in his big house, comes out of mourning to find herself a little lost.
By chance she wanders into a Ballroom Dancing studio in her town and thus begins her journey into a whole new world. This novel could only have been written by a Ballroom Dancer, as Wright brings the scene so completely to life I could almost smell the hairspray and see the spray on tans!
Filled with great characters, this novel kept me engaged the whole way through, and even made me want to get up and dance. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
By chance she wanders into a Ballroom Dancing studio in her town and thus begins her journey into a whole new world. This novel could only have been written by a Ballroom Dancer, as Wright brings the scene so completely to life I could almost smell the hairspray and see the spray on tans!
Filled with great characters, this novel kept me engaged the whole way through, and even made me want to get up and dance. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
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