Jonathan Livingston Seagull

Author:  Richard Bach

Sad and hopeful at the same time, this is a bittersweet read. My teacher read this aloud to us in elementary school, and I've loved it ever since. Nice name for the seagull too.  This is a good book to read with your children to teach them about life, death, and the flight in between.

Overall Rating:  5 of 5 Stars

Every Zombie Eats Somebody Sometime: A Book of Zombie Love Songs

Author: Michael P. Spradlin
Illustrator: Jeff Weigel

This book was an astonishing quick read, although I suppose one could get extra enjoyment out of the slim volume by pulling up karaoke versions of each song on YouTube to see how the altered versions would sound. The words could have been better, less repetitive, or further from the original at times, but it was still a fun read. I liked the illustrations quite a bit, especially since the likenesses were clever and spot-on. This is a nice book to use to get yourself ready for Halloween or a Zombie Walk. It would be a nice conversation piece or gift for the zombie/horror fan with a protruding funny bone.

Overall Rating: 4 of 5 Stars

The Snowy Day

Author: Ezra Jack Keats

This is a really great winter read for teachers and parents alike. Keats is masterful in creating a fun day in the snow, full of events and choices that children can relate to. The fact that this book won the Caldecott Award also goes a long way in vouching for credibility.

There are also many opportunities for discussion based on the text, particularly those dealing with science through explaining cause and effect relationships within the text or hypothesizing what may happen next after a certain event. As a teacher, I see this story as a good primer for actually going outside and trying some of the activities Peter enjoys in the book. An excellent follow-up would be a winter craft, such as shaving cream art.

All in all, I would highly recommend this story for your personal collection, as it is one that can be enjoyed again and again. As children age beyond the discovery phase, I'm sure they will reach a nostalgic position as they remember when they were small and enjoyed the simple magic of a snowy day.

Overall Rating: 5 of 5 Stars

Girls On Top: Explicit Erotica For Women

Editor:  Violet Blue

I truly enjoyed this collection, mostly because it was all about taking chances. There were stories involving gender roles, cross-dressing, gay issues, subcultures and cultures, BDSM, and so much more. Each story found a way to go beyond the rudimentary motions of sex to find a way to say something more about society as well as the individual. There were opportunities to see a character get into something he or she had not experienced before, and it was refreshing to see some doubt, some trial and error; in that way, the characters were much more human than mere manifestations of animal instinct. There were roads to travel, narrow little perilous bridges to cross, relationships at stake. To me, that is more exciting than just reading the "hot" parts and not having more than a sham of a story to drape them.

I liked being able to see these stories play out and have to think about how I would feel or what I would do in the situation if I had the guts, which I usually don't in my mild-mannered reality. Maybe after reading this, I will reconsider some of my boundaries that I keep and how firm they really should be.

What I did not like so much was the story about the robbers. I cannot see her just going for a tryst with the criminals like that. Also, if the cops find her with them like that, she's in trouble as well because she's going to look like an accomplice. A bit of the writing in the rest of the book was a bit flimsy. There were a few typos, including one character being called by another character's name, but overall, the editing was fairly well-done. This was an exciting collection with a bit of something for everyone who wants to see evidence of more exciting sex lives.

Overall rating:  4 of 5 Stars

Dirty Girls: Erotica for Women

Editor:  Rachel Kramer Bussel

Pretty good. My first time reading an erotica collection. I was disappointed with the half-hearted attempt at stream-of-consciousness in the story "A Prayer to Be Made Cocksure"--especially since the first two pages were so confusing that I thought the story was about two men. The rest of the stories were quite good and usually worked an unexpected angle.

Overall Rating:  4 of 5 Stars 

Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine

Author:  Ben Tanzer

The first thing I thought when I finished this book was, that I saw the ending coming relationship-wise. It matters, not because I need a shock at the end of every book I read (I really don't). It matters because there is a natural progression to the end, and it feels like there would be loose ends if it ended differently. The couple that ends up together at the end have to work for what they have, to quit looking at the little things for evidence that they should be together and just go with where they are being driven, to see that their brokenhearted balms only inflame the injury they ultimately inflict upon themselves. With the other couple, it is pretty clear what their functions are in the story, and that was fine, if not mildly comforting. Not everyone reaches a state of relationship stasis at the same time, and a double-wedding ending would seem contrite.

I liked the indecision, the way at this age you never know what you should really do, especially when everyone else around you seems to know better. When Geoff asks his co-workers, they each speak in turn in a succinct succession, and they all bring their job title-shaded "expertise" to the table, even though they are just as lost as Geoff. they tell him what they would do, how they would want things to be, but they expose a bit of maturity in not telling him he has to do it their way despite the general immaturity of these suggestions. Jen has her sister and best friend to guide her, who falter along the paths of their own love lives but she still wonders if she should model after them. These are very real examples of how we use peer pressure to make decisions in our youth, and sometimes beyond.

Geoff and Jen also look to their parents, while acknowledging the parents' choices have led to dysfunction but still wanting to turn to the one who has helped them since their birth. I was a bit surprised to see the parents' ability to overlook their children's active sexuality when they feel like they may need to move on or when they move too quickly. Perhaps this is because I am from a small town with parents who are sexually conservative that I can't really talk to about intimate matters...even if I wanted to. This parenting model in the book feels like it comes from a place of personal liberation. Still, I was glad to see a model of caring parenting with lots of honesty. They seem a bit too much like friends at times, as is the case in some parent-child relationships, but they ultimately truly want the best for their children. Steven is a good addition because he not only fills out the story a bit more; he also shows that most parents will not give up on a child even when they struggle so greatly.

What I didn't like was the incredible sameness of the characters at times. They all have their own things going on and individual things to work out, but some things are a bit too close. Both Geoff and Jen had a parent move out when they were children. Geoff and Jen are paralyzed at times by their own neurosis and indecision. These are questions that enter every relationship, but they feel them at the same time from the start of the relationship. They both rely on a parent and either a group of friends or a friend and a sister for advice that gets them nowhere most of the time. This is realistic, but I would like to see maybe one struggle more individually or have a more adept sounding board board to switch things up. The uncaring girl with the tattoo was a good way to switch things up and to demonstrate to Geoff what not to want.

At first I mistook the brief chapters as laziness or ineptitude, and then I saw the genius of being able to switch between perspective so neatly, which is something I think a lot of other authors have a problem with. Also, the short snips and resulting disjointed feel of the quick switching of gears says something more of the inattention of youth and the aimlessness of those who are uncertain. I'm glad sometimes the jumps also served to move to a different point in time. This probably eliminated some filler in a book that keeps to a snappy clip. I think it is somewhat courageous to take a chance with a tableau-like series of vignettes instead of just moving beginning to end and acting like nothing else happens in between. On the topic of time, I think the time period is well-established in many ways: the slang, the music references, the attitudes, the bombing especially since it can be pinpointed in time. I also like that they mention past things they still like, such as Bob Dylan, since it's more realistic not to just deal with what is currently popular. It's nice to see a bit of nostalgia in a nostalgic novel. I think the title itself is good because it has a pop culture reference as a Bob Dylan song and sets a real tone for the story to come. I was supremely pleased to see mention of journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" mentioned, both because of its status as one of my favorite songs and also because it is meaningful to the text on a level beyond simply being mentioned.

What I couldn't stand is the numerous errors. Winona Ryder's name is spelled differently in different parts of the book, and another celebrity's name is misspelled, both of which could be remedied with a quick visit to imdb.com or similar simple research. The errors of grammar and other spelling (I spotted the wrong "too" once, for example) could also stand to be fixed. Since I majored in writing in college, I realize the over-sprinkling commas are most likely stylistic, standing in for natural pauses, another manifestation of the uncertain, among other things. I think it does turn off a quantity of readers who may not realize this, so it's a gutsy decision that makes repeating the reasoning worth it. Still, there were some straight punctuation errors. There is even one or two in the author bio and blurb on the back cover.

Overall, I really liked this book. I can see beyond its shortcomings to a story that feels very natural emotionally to someone who has dated or tried to get advice and came up wanting. I saw myself in the characters and wanted the best for them because of it. I felt several times that i wished I had been a part of the scene as it happened, to have such haphazard control over my flailing life. I wanted to have friends who could accept me and give me their frankness instead of playing games to try to hide their hearts and ill choices in exchange for trying to act like the ideal is always achievable. The stringency of the rules and thorough discussions of such rules remind me of how important standards are in life and how the ones society sets forth mean little when we want something different. Just reading this book felt like that for me. I don't like the best-sellers--I crave something a bit more unique, more risk-taking. I found that in much of this book and hope others will as well.

Overall Rating:  4 of 5 Stars

Drift: Stories from Newport Beach

Author:  Victoria Patterson

I really enjoyed this book--so much so that I was quite sad to reach the ending. The plots are original and carefully formulated, as are the intertwining characters. The continuity is flawless, even if the book does jump about in time. The voice, one of innocence, experience, and sometimes a bit jaded, serves the writer well. I felt so sorry for Rosie coming of age in such a brash, unprepared manner. John Wayne brought about pity and wonder and a hint of childhood wistfulness in his eternal shoeless journey.

This book would be a good introduction to those interested in a.m. homes and her masterpiece "The Safety of Objects." It would also be a muted hint at J. G. Ballard's controversially unsettling yet engaging novel Crash. Thus, it is a great introduction to literature that takes risks.

Overall Rating:  5 of 5 Stars

Tomato Girl

Author:  Jayne Pupek

There is a certain grace in the face of hardship factor that really makes me root for Southern fiction protagonists. This book made me ache for young Ellie, knowing that everyone around her would fail to help her through life’s struggles in the end, that she would have to grow to take care of herself in a different way than anyone else could. In that way, this book reminded me very much of the books Ellen Foster and Make Lemonade. There is such a danger for youth when the ones they count on the most cannot be counted on. This story is a prime example.

Ellie’s mother, who most likely suffers from severe bipolar disorder with psychotic features, swings like an off-kilter pendulum between inappropriate happiness to anguish, doing things I could not imagine. Her relationship with Baby Tom in the jar while he is refusing to nurse is a prime example of this. I saw this as a brilliant relationship opportunity for Pupek to explore and was glad she did. It was very original and sad with a tinge of the blackest humor. With the added injury until the point of her dramatic and somehow relieving death, Ellie becomes her crutch, leaning hardest as her husband brings in a teenage girl for help but ends up leaving with her.

All in all, this book has a flair for the dramatic, making it an enjoyable, fascinating read. And any book with baby chicks is likely to win me over. I hope to read more of Pupek’s work in the future. 

Overall Rating:  5 of 5 Stars

Six Fang Marks and a Tetanus Shot

Author:  Richard de Nooy

This book is so vicious and tender and, in short, real. I really enjoyed seeing the relationship between Ace and Rem evolve as the story unfolded. The accident prone quotes gave the book an extra kick and added to the mystique of Rem and seemed hip rather than out of place. The artwork was disturbingly great.

Overall Rating:  5 of 5 Stars 

Ashes to Water

Author:  Irene Ziegler

When I received this book for advanced reviewing, I was pleased to find the author was kind enough to write me a little note inside; the matching bookmark was a very nice touch as well. As a little side note, such small, intimate touches do not go unnoticed. I will also note this did not shade my opinion of the work itself.

As far as the book itself, I am giving "Ashes to Water" 4 stars out of 5, but it is closer to a 4.5. The story was imaginative, insightful, hard to put down, but not perfect. I loved the beauty of the language, the way details and descriptions seemed very real, or at least very beautiful or hard-hitting. reading the author bio and seeing Ziegler's stage experience made me think that in some ways she wrote these things as a playwright would, in a way in which the words must do so much more than say a line--they must characterize, move plot along, etc., in a way that is minced in so much of regular writing. Other times, the descriptions disappointed me a bit, as I wasn't sure what was being said. I read the chapter about Marguerite and Eugene in the boat several times, trying to discern how much was coincidence, how much was planning, and whether I had just missed something that would make it less surprising. Sometimes it seemed like ideas needed a bit more fleshing out to tell me what I needed to know. Still, I found my way through and enjoyed the liveliness of her wording. I write like this much of the time, so it was good to see someone else using a similar style.

As far as characterization, I really liked the characters. They were quite diverse, in appearance, jobs, mentality. I liked how different chapters had different viewpoints and knowledge bases, and these were kept separate quite carefully. I think the scene of Dade fishing near the end was nice, something he more or less deserved or would appreciate. Even when a character had bad points, they were usually endowed with good aspects too, which created rounder, better characters. The insight into pyromania, firefighting, addiction, family bonds, and mental illness seemed well-researched and fresh compared to what I have seen elsewhere. It made me wonder how much she knew before setting pen to paper and what led her to these niches of experience. Too often today is writing lazy, with authors sticking to what they know or what is popular, so these little details make Ziegler stand apart as an artisan in her characterizations.

The story moved along pretty well. It didn't lag, although the clip seemed to combust near the end in an almost hurried fashion. Things started to be mentioned rather than happen, and the ends that were so tangled may have been a bit frayed before they were neatly tied up. I think the death toll was a bit high, and I would like to know a bit more about what happened to Annie and her sister and even the lake after the book ends, but I suppose that leaves more room for another volume. Perhaps reading the Lake House book sometime will help clear some of this up.

All in all, the book was not perfect but its sins were forgivable. I am glad to have read it and find its merits many.