The End Is Near.....

What would you do if you knew that the world might end in the next week as an asteroid capable of destroying the earth was heading your way?  For three teens connected to an island off the Massachusetts coast they are less concerned about the end of the world than they are about figuring out their place in the world.  Zan is dealing with the death of her boyfriend.  Caden is dealing with his relationship with his parents, especially his absentee father.  Sienna is dealing with her mental health issues and family situation.  Boyfriend, family, and sanity just about covers all the issues that teens face all the time - at least the teens that I've talked with and read about.  (All that's missing is school.)

This is a YA debut novel by Alexandra Coutts that should have a somewhat broad appeal.  The characters are interesting as is their relationship to one another.  Toward the end there is a connection that brings the three stories together - more than just the asteroid.

I normally don't make time to read YA, but there was something in the premise of this book that drew me in.  It was a good break from all the adult fiction that I've been concentrating on.  I liked the girls' stories but found Caden's too shallow.  I didn't like certain ways in which his father tried to reach out to him to make up for lost time (one approach in particular left me saying, "Really??????), but I guess when you're down to one week, you really try to cover all the bases (Ouch - bad baseball and sexuality reference). The asteroid should have been an important additional character but it wasn't and the book could have been written without it for the most part.  Overall, a good break and I'm sure that many of the teens who read this will enjoy it.

I  think this author has potential and I would definitely give her another go-around.

This is based on an advanced reader's copy that I received from Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) through NetGalley.  Thank you both.




If you don't get it right the first time......

I am having a total love/hate relationship with Kate Atkinson's Life After Life. The story focuses on Ursula Todd, born in England on a stormy winter's night in 1910.  She dies at birth.....or does she?  Well, she does and she doesn't.  Ursula is born again, but then she drowns as a young child...or does she?  Well, she does and she doesn't.  Ursula is saved, but then she's raped in a back stairwell by her brother's American friend.  She has an illegal abortion, develops and infection and dies....or does she?  Then there's the abusive husband who tracks her down and bludgeons her to death....or does he? Can you see the pattern here?  Along comes WWII and Ursula dies in London in the Blitz and she dies in Berlin...or does she? Atkinson keeps brining back Ursula, not from the brink of death, but never really letting her die - she is always in different circumstances.  The characters that share the story with Ursula never change, it's just Ursula who lives out what seems to be cat-like nine lives.

Ursula is always a member of the same family - Hugh, Sylvie, Pamela, Teddy, Jimmy and Maurice - her father, mother, and siblings respectively.  They never change.  Hugh is always the staid banker and Sylvie the rather shallow and dramatic mother.  Teddy and Jimmy are the sweet brothers and Pammy is the stalwart sister and confidante.  Maurice represents the dark side of the family with his meanness in childhood and self-importance in adulthood.  Then there's the aunt, Izzy, who as Sylvie's antithesis, provides a safehaven for Ursula at various times in her various lives.

Atkinson is a phenomenal writer, known for her popular Jackson Brodie mystery series.  The stories that she presents in this novel are compelling in and of themselves.  Her characters are well-developed, including Ursula whose life changes constantly.  What is driving me crazy, as I listen to this (Fenella Woolgar is an excellent reader), is the repetition of parts of the story.  Much of the story takes place during WWII.  Ursula always seems to have the same job, but her lovers change and her location changes, all with striking effects upon the story.  Right now, Ursula is part of a search and rescue team attending to a bombed out home where in another part of the book Ursula lived and "died."

Sometimes I feel like I'm reading one of those children's books where you choose your own ending. Other times I feel like these are scenes from the cutting room floor that are retrieved to retell the story until the director gets it right.  What I always feel is that this is a unique reading experience because while there are aspects of the story that drive me crazy, I love the way Atkinson ties everything together with a twist.  You have to keep reading (or in my case, listening) to see what happens.  What will be the ultimate fate for Ursula?  How will her presence in a particular place at a particular time affect the outcome?  How long can this go on and still remain a compelling story?  Well, I'll be happy to let you know as soon as I do.  In the meantime go out and get the book for yourself and enjoy the ride with me.

The Pressure Is Mounting

Well, we're coming up on two months since my last post.  Ugh!  What this really means is that the pace of my reading has slowed down tremendously.  Why, oh why?  Can you say Bejeweled, Papa Pear Saga, and Facebook?  Not entirely to blame, but close.  You would think that I'd be more diligent in my reading since I belong to what I consider a pretty great book club - the Maine Readers' Choice Award.  While we're waiting for Mainers to read our 2013 finalists and vote in September, I have the opportunity to read some great books for next year's award.  Time to get my act together.

I've already recommended a few books for "The List."  Elizabeth Strout's "The Burgess Boys" is the story of a young Maine man whose hate crime causes ripples throughout his family.  Herman Koch's "The Dinner" is another story of a family affected by a heinous criminal act. Even though I'm just about 2/3 of the way through it, Colm McCann's "Transatlantic" deserves a recommendation.  This novel centers around Ireland and spans more than 100 years - from a visit by freed slave Frederick Douglass to the efforts of Maine Senator George Mitchell to negotiate peace in Northern Ireland.  And, it looks like Claire Messud's "The Woman Upstairs" is on it way to a recommendation.  A lonely middle-aged teacher becomes overly attached to a family living in her building.  This looks like it's heading for a disasterous ending - stay tuned.

In the meantime, it's back to reading (after one more game of Papa Pear Saga).  What you can do is check out the Maine Readers' Choice Award at www.mainereaderschoiceaward.org.