Explosive Eighteen- Janet Evanovich

Once again, I’m not sure what there is to say about the 18th book in a series when you’ve read 17 before that. Anybody reading this knows what they’re getting into. I’m probably never going to stop reading these. They’re entertaining, and I enjoy all of the characters. That’s all there is to it.

The last time I read a Stephanie Plum novel I argued that Evanovich knows she has a winning formula and knows what to do with it. She knows what the fans like, the way to write ridiculous, klutzy Stephanie and her insane life, and she knows how to write Morelli and Ranger. This time it’s more of the same, although Stephanie had finally gotten herself into a truly preposterous case, and most of the stuff surrounding it made no sense at all. Somehow that doesn’t bother me though, because like I said, I know what I’m getting into. Still funny. Still hilarious characters and nutso skips.

3. I like all of these books, but I’m pretty sure I’m not going to reread any of them.

A Million Little Pieces- James Frey

Anybody who hasn’t heard of this book has probably been living under a rock. I’ve been avoiding it the past few years because of the controversy around it (marketed as a memoir, embellished to the point that it’s not), but after a lot of discussion with a few of my friends, I finally decided it was time to read it.

And I have to say, I’m glad I did. A Million Little Pieces is a pretty unique book. The writing style is weird but intriguing, most of it is plausible enough to have been true, and it’s an incredibly blunt, somewhat amazing look at a 23 year old man going through withdrawal and rehab.

I don’t know what I can say that hasn’t already been said. When I finished I went immediately on the internet to look up what was true and what wasn’t, the infamous Oprah interview with the author, and general reaction. I would think that’s a pretty reasonable reaction. But even putting aside the things in the book that weren’t true, this is an incredible account of life within a rehab center, and it was worth the read.

4- I can see myself reading this again, and I liked the style enough that I want to check out the next book from Frey- My Friend Leonard.

Girls in White Dresses- Jennifer Close

Girls in White Dresses is, at its core, a story about growing up, a story about a group of friends who have graduated from college and have no idea what to do with themselves when faced with the real world. I think that, essentially, is why I liked it so very much.

I admit that when I started this book I was expecting something entirely different. Something like J. Courtney Sullivan’s Commencement, which was about four college roommates and their lives during and after school. This has the same pretense, but is even more identifiable. It’s more of a collection of short stories like The Imperfectionists, but it revolves around the same group of friends, who are all adjusting to life after college. I would have liked slightly more cohesiveness, because I couldn’t entirely keep up with how each girl was related to the other ones. But that is a pretty minor complaint, and once I stopped trying to figure out their relationships, I had completely given into the book and was loving it.

I constantly found myself nodding along or completely identifying with the characters. The kindle version of the book is highlighted right and left with sentences that sound like me, or sound like something that I have thought in the past.

5- I highly recommend this to any woman in her 20s trying to figure out what to do with her life after college. I still can’t really believe how many parts of this book were so perfect. When I finished this I wanted to buy it in hard copy so I could keep it on a bookshelf forever and read it whenever I feel lost and like I have no idea what I’m doing with my life. If only so I know that I’m not the only person who has ever felt that way.

The Imperfectionists- Tom Rachman

The Imperfectionists is a book about an English language newspaper in Rome. Told as a collection of short stories about the employees interwoven with the origin of the newspaper itself, it was a really well done book that was entertaining and highly enjoyable.

This book was put on my radar after I read A Visit from the Goon Squad, and I can completely understand where that recommendation comes from. This one is 100% more my style. Instead of skipping around in time and in character, we only skip through different characters, all of whom overlap, as those in Goon Squad did.  I really liked Rachman’s writing. Each chapter starts out with a headline from whichever character you are about to read about, a headline that is usually written as a direct result of the story, which was a genius idea. 

My biggest complaint about Goon Squad was that just as I was getting invested in the characters, Jennifer Egan switched things up on me. That is still a complaint here, but at least with this book’s storytelling you end up with some closure for each of them. And the overlap between characters still produces people who are recognizable as those you’ve already read about, rather than identifying them as some random person in the past lives of whoever you’re currently visiting.

Strangely, the part I didn’t like was the story of how the paper was founded, and the politics between the originating journalists. I say strangely, because I expected that I would like something that’s more like a typical novel, as it started at the beginning and ended in present time. But instead I was always eager to get back to the current staff of the paper, and didn’t care much about those who had already taken part in it.

The end was a bit depressing, but I suppose I should have seen that coming. I wish he had mixed up the stories a little bit though because the last two were probably my least favorite. But I’m glad at least that we got closure.

All in all, this was an excellent book, and one I would definitely read again. 4.

The Marriage Plot- Jeffrey Eugenides

The Marriage Plot is a book that’s been on the best seller list for awhile now, and was the first book chosen (ok, I chose it) for a newly formed book club. On the one hand, it was perfect for it, because we had a lot to talk about, but on the other, I think I was the one that liked it the most, and I was really just ok with it.

Madeline Hanna is the female protagonist in this book, caught between two men: emotionally unstable and manic depressive Leonard, and friendly, lost, Mitchell. The book follows her through college and the years after, including her relationships with both men. She and Mitchell, with one memorable chapter from Leonard, narrate the book as we watch them try to identify who they are and who they are becoming. That’s really the entire premise: Just a few years in the life of three characters.

I say I was ok with the book. Honestly I think the more that I think about it, the less I liked it. Nearly every character met within the pages was unlikable, with Madeline chief among them. It’s hard to like a book when you can’t identify with or even much care about the characters, but for some reason I couldn’t stop reading. I liked it against all odds, and it was only after finishing it and talking it through with the book club that I realized that it was really not that likable.

But I also think that was sort of the point. Everyone sucks, but everyone is also captivating in their own way. Basically I have no idea what I think of this book anymore, and I’m not sure I would recommend it. At the very least it had a lot of stuff in it to talk about, which made it a good book club pick, but I’m not sure I’m going to read it again. 3.

Thanks for the Memories- Cecelia Ahern

Another pretty typical chick book, Thanks for the Memories is a story of boy meets girl with a twist, which is what most of the books I’ve read from Ahern have been since I read and loved P.S. I Love You. I think I ruined Ahern’s chances of ever writing another book I was going to love by reading that one first.  All of the rest have been merely ok in comparison.  This one is no different. 

The story starts with a pretty disturbing accident and miscarriage for the main character, Joyce. After this event, the book flashes back to a month previous when Justin Hitchcock is donating blood. Spolier alert, Joyce ends up with Justin’s blood, and this leads to some pretty surreal experiences in her life. Suddenly she can speak languages fluently, knows an absurd amount about architecture and art, and other events occur that are obvious to the reader both through Ahern’s writing and common sense that they are shared experiences and hobbies from Justin.

This was a really cute book. But like I said, I think I’m ruined for Cecelia Ahern’s books unless she comes up with something past cute, a la P.S. I Love You. So another good, not great book.  One that I liked and found entertaining but won’t be reading again.  3.