Hi all. I hope everyone is well. We’re already flying through this month it seems. Our Labrador dogs had a nice swim in the river a couple nights ago when it was around 85/90 degrees. They really love swimming and retrieving the ball. Stella is 12 now and swimming gives her some much-needed physio for her arthritis and weak hind legs. Willow, in the foreground, is three years old and can swim very fast. She’s a turbo charger and retrieves the ball lickety-split.
Now today a rainstorm has moved in and the temps have dropped to 50F. I’m sort of wondering if the high heat is behind us here as we get closer to fall. Just a few weeks ago I was in SoCal visiting my Dad and now it’s being besieged by three wildfires there. I’m keeping a close eye on those from this map. They’ve actually arrested someone for arson in the Line Fire in San Bernardino County. Good grief. How awful to intentionally do this — it’s hard to imagine the malevolence. Meanwhile on the other side of the country, I hope those who endured the deluge from Tropical Storm Francine are okay and will get their power back soon.
Let’s turn to book news now. I see that the Booker Prize shortlist will be announced this coming Monday Sept. 16, so look for that. The 13 novels on the longlist will be whittled down to six. I don’t think I will guess which ones will make it since I’ve only read Percival Everett’s James, but I’m quite certain that James will be on the shortlist and has a shot to win the grand prize in November. Will you be reading any of the nominees?
Also I wanted to review how I did on my Summer Reading List challenge. When all was said and done I completed 10 of 15 novels on my list. I’ll go for 10 next year — as usually other reads slip in. Here are the ones on my list I finished in order of those I read first:
- The Road to Dalton by Shannon Bowring (4.2 stars)
- River East, River West by Aube Rey Lescure (4.3 stars)
- Kindred by Octavia Butler (3.5 stars)
- Clear by Carys Davies (3.75 stars)
- Prophet Song by Paul Lynch (near 5 stars)
- Long Island by Colm Toibin (4 stars)
- A Great Country by Shilpi Somaya Gowda (3.75 stars)
- James by Percival Everett (near 5 stars)
- The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng (4.5 stars)
- The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (3 stars) this was an alternate pick
Here are the ones I didn’t get to but might some other time:
- My Beloved Life by Amitava Kumar
- The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
- The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson
- The Women by Kristin Hannah
- How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair
- My Friends by Hisham Matar (I tried this but put it down after 5%)
I enjoyed most of them quite a bit. And here are a couple reviews of what I finished lately.
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore / Riverhead / 496 pages / 2024
3 – 3.5 stars. This drama/crime novel is about a teenage girl (Barbara Van Laar) who vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp in 1975. The disappearance lays bare the pain and troubles of her wealthy family who own the camp and who lost a son (Bear) similarly fourteen years earlier. As a panicked search begins, various suspects and secrets eventually come to light and a young, unproven assistant investigator Judy Luptack tries get to the bottom of what happened in the past and present cases.
This widely touted crime novel, which received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus among others and made Obama’s summer list, reminded me slightly of Rebecca Makkai’s 2023 novel I Have Some Questions for You. That one is set at a boarding school and this one is at a camp, but in both unsettling truths about the cases come to light that have affected those on the periphery for decades. Both, too, swirl around with various suspects and motives for a good long time. This novel, which I listened to as an audiobook, is 496 pages in print!
Eeeek. I wanted to really like it — as I had liked Moore’s novels Long Bright River and Heft quite a lot, but this one not so much. In fact I almost DNF’d it early on, but I struggled to continue on … trying to care about the case and the characters … trying to give it a pulse and thinking it would revive amid the woods, but the pacing and length felt sort of agonizing to me.
It’s a bad sign when I wanted the female investigator Judy Luptack (the most favorable character) to figure it out about 150+ pages earlier. I realize it’s a slowburn kind of crime novel that tries to delve deep into its large cast of mostly unlikable characters … the main ones from the wealthy troubled family that owns the camp — with the alcoholic mom and the unresponsive father, but man this felt like an eon. I felt the suspense was muted and thought I probably could return to summer camp by the time anything came of it. (For camp, I went only one summer as a youngster to Bob Mathias camp in the mountains east of Fresno, Calif. No persons disappeared there to my recollection, but it might have been around 1975, gulp.) Some of Moore’s writing was evocative and well done, but the pacing … and the ending needed a lifeline to me by then.
Still I seem to be in the minority on this novel, which has a 4.27 rating on Goodreads. So check it out if you think it might appeal to you.
A Hundred Flowers by Gail Tsukiyama / St. Martin’s / 288 pages / 2012
4 stars. A family is rocked when one of them — the man, a history teacher and an intellectual named Sheng Ying — is taken away to a reeducation camp in 1958 Maoist China. Told thru those left behind — who include his wife Kai Ying, who struggles to keep the family going; his elderly retired father Wei, who feels guilty his son was taken; his 12-year-old son Tao, who suffers a scary fall at the beginning and is taken to the hospital; his Aunt Song, an avid gardener; and a homeless pregnant teen named Suyin, who comes to take refuge with them.
The story took on a kind of slice-of-life look of those living under a repressive regime and trying to cope with the loss of a family member and the uncertainty of whether or not he will return.
Midway through you learn how Sheng came to be taken and what it was for … which leads to friction within the family and you wonder if they can forgive each other and be healed. Then late in the story, the elderly father of Sheng makes a cross-country trek to try to locate him and you have to wait to see what happens.
This was my first Gail Tsukiyama novel — found at a library book sale — and I thought she wrote simply and movingly about each member in the household and what they’re experiencing and have been through. I’ve read several books about China during the Maoist regime and each has given me a fuller picture of the terror during that time. Perhaps the best to me is the 1987 memoir Life & Death in Shanghai by Nien Cheng.
That’s all for now. What about you — have you read these books and if so, what did you think?
I read “The God of the Woods” and gave it three stars. I still have “James” on my TBR list and hope to get to it soon.
Hi Dorothy, yeah I read & related to your review of Moore’s book. Three stars for me is not what I was expecting since it received so much positive hype. It didn’t really move me or feel too suspenseful. I was surprised since I liked her two other books quite a bit. I hope you like James. Enjoy your weekend.
Oh no! I’m only three and a half books into the Booker longlist and the shortlist is soon to be announced! I think two of the three I have read will advance—James and The Safekeep. The God of the Woods is on my TBR. Too bad you didn’t care much for it. I don’t know when I’ll get to it, but I’ll try to read it. I like the other’s cover. It sounds like an interesting book.
Hi Carmen, at least the shortlist will narrow the reading down. I’m still on the library wait list for The Safekeep and I’m looking forward to getting it. Perhaps James and The Safekeep might be the strongest ones on the list? But we will see.
The God of the Woods probably was just not in my wheelhouse so it wasn’t for me — but see what you think. I was pretty exhausted by it … and I was expecting a faster paced crime book. She should study Small Mercies, lol. Now that was a crime book! I hope all is well with you. Keep up the reading.
Hi Susan,
Everything is well with me here, busyness is winding down a bit. I’ve taken up reading again after a two-month hiatus. I finished A Death in Cornwall and wasn’t impressed (3*). I’m liking Orbital but I suspect there isn’t really a plot. I’ll be 3* if something doesn’t change the course of the story (I’m at 49%). There’s a lot of navel gazing but the author burrows deep into the astronaut’s mind to great effect.
Thanks Carmen, for the update. Glad all is well. Seems like you’re getting back into your reading. Pleased for your thoughts on these. I tried Death in Cornwall but I didn’t think it was for me. Keep on with the Booker novels. I probably will read the ones that look good … I need to read The Safekeep when I get a library copy. Enjoy your week.
Looks like summer weather is well on the way out. Even down here we’ve been enjoying daily highs just into the mid-eighties instead of the mid-to-high nineties.
I’ve been reading the Booker Prize nominees since the longlist came out, and I’m about half-way through my sixth one, Headshot. I agree that James is almost certain to make it to the shortlist, and I was wondering if I would find I liked more than that one. It finally happened with The Safekeep by Yael Van Der Woudin. It’s my favorite of the six I’m familiar with so far. I also liked Wild Houses, but thought that Orbital and This Strange Eventful History are both pretty awful. But that’s just one reader’s opinion. I think that My Friends will be available for pickup at my library on Monday so I’ll see about that one. I did read the first 20 pages or so via an Amazon sample, so I’m really curious to see where it is heading.
Love your group of ten books. Several to check out there a little more; now I just need the time.
Hi Sam, thanks. My summer list of 10 turned out to be pretty good quality reads. & So glad to hear you really liked The Safekeep … yea! I have something to look forward to. I’m on the library wait list for it. You’re making good progress on the Booker nominees. I will check out your reviews and get the ones I think I’d like.
Things are starting to cool off here… we’ll be in the 60s for awhile. Glad things are better there too. Louisiana seems to have taken the brunt of Storm Francine. I’m glad Houston wasn’t hit too bad. Enjoy your weekend & reads.
I was reading about the three fires in Southern California today in the LA Times and was trying to figure out where they were and were they close to your father? Even having been in many of those areas, I get confused. Which fire is closest to your father? Is he affected by smoke from any of them?
In other news, my husband and I have contracted Covid … for the first time since the Pandemic. We tested positive (home tests) two days apart. We have no idea where we would have gotten it. We only go out to eat occasionally and to the grocery store and medical appointments. Oh well. We both feel pretty bad but are hoping it won’t last long.
I am hoping I can remember to come back and comment on more of your post. One of the worst things is I can’t think straight.
Oh no. Sorry Tracy to hear you both got Covid … for the first time. Ugh. It’s bad and not fun. I hope you both can rest up and will feel better soon. It takes awhile and you can’t do much, ugh. Sleep it off & stay hydrated. We got it once too … as we were coming home from Italy last October … I had a high fever for 24 hours and felt okay like 10 days later. I pretty much stay isolated.
The Line Fine in the foothills & mountains above San Bernardino is the closest to where my Dad is in Redlands. Part of the fire is in Running Springs and near Big Bear. It’s pretty major. I’m hoping they can get a handle on it before high winds wreck more havoc. The smoke has been bad there. I will check with my Dad today. take care.
Your dogs look so cute swimming with their balls! Thanks for sharing such a happy and smile-inducing photo. Have a great weekend. 😀
Hi Lark – thanks. Ha, the photo makes me smile too. They are in bliss when they’re swimming so it’s all good. You too. Have a great weekend.
Glad the weather is coolng down where you are and that Stella and Willow are enjoying their swim. I miss the seasons here in South Florida. But by December I am hoping for something approaching fall weather.
I normally like crime novels but I get what you mean about novels like The God Of The Woods where there are no characters I can bond with. And 496 pages is alot to ask of readers. I would definitely like to read about China and what it was like under Mao. I am thinking that I must read Life and Death In Shanghai and thanks for the recommend.
Hi Kathy, thanks. It’s nice here now and the dogs are happy 🙂 We’ll be in the 60s for awhile and fall feels like it’s here I think. I hope you enjoy South Florida – you still seem like a NYC person … and the falls are nice there.
For whatever the reason The God of the Woods was not in my wheelhouse and I didn’t bond with much in it except the female investigator perhaps.
I think you’d like Life & Death in Shanghai — it’s a gripping account that blew me away, and I met and interviewed Nien Cheng back when I lived in D.C. and she’s a hero! She passed away in 2009 but will always be a hero to me. 🙂 My talk with her is here at https://www.thecuecard.com/?s=Nien+cheng
Have a great weekend.
Those look like two very happy dogs! Glad you are getting some cooler weather. We might dip down close to freezing tomorrow night! We’ll be at 6,000 feet, I think, as we get closer to West Yellowstone. We’ll be in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest for three nights, which should be fun.
I was thinking about your dad and the fires in SoCal. It seems like the Big Bear/Arrowhead area gets hit with more and more fires as the years go by. We had a cabin near Fawnskin, across the lake from Snow Summit. Such a terrible situation this year with so many fires all over the western states.
You did well on the summer reading challenge. I’m sorry to see that you didn’t care much for Liz Moore’s latest. I’ve heard such good things about it, but maybe I’ll get it from the library…
Hi Lesley, the dogs are happy, lol. You’re headed for beautiful country! It will be cool at 6,000 ft. It’s cool here today. I hope your trip is going well … I need to check your photos.
The poor Big Bear /Arrowhead area really got hit with fire and smoke, ugh. It’s a tough situation. I’m going to call my Dad today to see what is happening in Redlands and if they’re getting a lot of smoke. I remember skiing Snow Summit as a kid on weekends … but haven’t been back there since then.
See what you think of the Liz Moore novel … perhaps you’ll like it more than I did. It’s quite a slow burn … Enjoy your week ahead and all the sights!
I returned to this post to read your review of the Tsukiyama book more closely (now that I have a better cell connection). I’ve not read this one, but have read three of her novels. I recently reread The Samurai’s Garden, which is a wonderful story. The Language of Threads, and The Women of Silk, are also worthwhile. Reviews for all are here
Thanks Lesley. I think I was reminded to read Gail Tsukiyama because of your posts. I had wanted to read her for a long time. I liked this novel and I hope to read her others. I have a copy of The Samurai’s Garden which I hope to read sometime later this fall. It’s a short novel but it seems wonderful — as you say. I like her writing.
always thanks for the tips.
Your reading list looks intriguing and I think I’ll transfer some of them to my amazon list of books to consider reading soon. (I use the “wish list” for this purpose. Very convenient!) I enjoyed your reviews, also.
I hope you do get really pleasant autumn weather.
best, mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Thanks Mae. There’s some yellow leaves on a few of the trees now. I enjoy fall even though it’s getting much cooler. I’m glad you told me about the Amazon list …. I guess I never realized you can create & put books on a wish list there. This is handy so I’ll start one there too. I hope you like a few of these. Enjoy your reads!
Stella and Willow photos always make me smile. They look like they are having a blast.
What a terrible thing those fires started over arson. What is Wrong with people?! Francine brought us rain for over a week but didn’t have it as bad as those west of us. Keeping an eye on T.S. Gordon now but it might fizzle out.
I’ve not read the books you mentioned but you gave A Hundred Flowers 4 stars so, that may need to go on my winter reading list.
Hi Tina, thanks, the dogs are happy girls especially when swimming, lol.
I’m glad Francine didn’t cause too much destruction there … lots of rain though. The New Orleans area seemed hard hit. I hope Gordon doesn’t get there.
I liked Gail Tsukiyama’s writing and should go back and read her most well-known novel The Samurai’s Garden from 1994. I’m glad I finally read her. You (& Loki) might enjoy this one. Have a great week.
I loved James and I never got around to Prophet Song, but if you rate it so highly I should probably look for it.
To think that those wildfires were started by arson is horrific. My grandchildren had to be sent home two days last week when police in their town were alerted to a possible school shooter. What is wrong with people indeed?!
Hi Deb, yikes that’s awful your grandkids went thru something like that. It’s scary and still a terrible problem in the U.S. And to think of all the young innocent people that have been lost this way. Ugh it’s just so maddening some more safeguards & gun regulations haven’t been done.
Prophet Song is pretty scary … but if you handled the scary parts in James then you’d likely manage it. I wasn’t happy the print version of Prophet Song contains no paragraph breaks so I listened to the audio … which is good.
Enjoy your week. & happy travels.
It frustrates me (and I am honestly not an angry person) when no one talks about the proliferation of guns in America. Automatic weapons, gifted to a young boy who has already had a run in with the police? I can’t understand it.
I agree with you. It’s completely frustrating … why & how troubled kids, known to police, are having access to such powerful guns. It’s beyond crazy.
How to Say Babylon has been on my list for a while now, so I hope to get to it in the colder months!
Hi Harvee, yes I’d still like to get to it too. It’s a long memoir and so I need some time for it. I’m glad you want to read it …. I’ll look for your review if you get to it before me. Happy reading.
The arsonists we have here in California always amaze me. The fires are so bad, and we don’t need any help with them starting.
Glad your dogs got to enjoy one more swim before things started to cool off.
Hi Mark – thanks, the dogs are happy. But so sorry for the fires there. How bad is the smoke where you are? Ugh it’s awful news. One fire was started by arson which is totally sick and the other two I believe were also man-made set off by sparks from heavy equipment. It’s just crazy.
I hope it gets under control.
Your dogs look so happy! You did a great job with your summer reading list. I find it really difficult to finish a book if I dislike all of the characters.
Hi Olivia, thanks I managed best I could on the summer list. I agree that it’s hard to stick with a book where the characters are unlikable. I struggled with The God of the Woods … and tried to cling to the female investigator who seemed to be the only one I liked. thx for stopping by!
Look at those river dogs!!! So cute!
Thanks Jinjer. These girls are happy … and a bit like sea otters. Have a great week!
We have a storm coming through set to give us rain on Wednesday. The temps are a lot cooler here too, but still in the 60s-low 70s. Good that your dogs got to take advantage of the warmer temps for some fun swimming! I keep encouraging my cat to go out during the day because once fall gets going the rain starts. It boggles the mind that someone intentionally sets a fire! The big fire (near where the fire that decimated Paradise) in NorCal this year was set by someone who set their car on fire and pushed in into the woods. He was a felon convicted of assault in the past. A real gem of a person. He was arrested, too. I hope they don’t go easy on him. Maybe it’ll make a person think twice before starting a fire.
I read *listened to* and really enjoyed I Have Some Questions for You last year. Did you like it? I’m not sure I’ll pick up The God of the Woods. I hate it when I’m thinking the character should be able to figure things out earlier than they do. Especially, if it’s 150 pages of feeling that way. The cover of A Hundred Flowers is beautiful. Happy to hear the story was a good one.
Hi Rachel, I’m quite curious — perhaps you would like God of the Woods quite a bit … since you enjoyed Rebecca Makkai’s mystery/crime novel. The two are slow burns (and dark-ish) that seem similar in some ways. Many others seemed to love God of the Woods … so perhaps it just wasn’t in my wheelhouse. I did like Makkai’s novel maybe a smidge more than Moore’s.
The arsonists are really terrible and make me wonder about humanity. So much destruction. The Line Fire in San Bernardino County was set deliberately by a delivery driver … who had a bunch junk in his house about fires etc. Ugh.
I hope you have some golden days there this week!
Stella and Willow look like they are having fun in the water. I hope your dad is safe and doing well. Luckily, the wind seems to be blowing away from us right now and so the smoke isn’t so bad. The worst of it we saw was from the Airport Fire, early last week. Everything had an orange/yellow tinge to it. The Line, Bridge, and Airport fires have resulted in evacuations that impacted coworkers and clients my agency serves, so we’ve been following the fire news quite closely.
I am looking forward to starting James this week once I finish A Girl Called Samson. I’ll likely finish that today or tomorrow. Ten out of fifteen from your summer reading list is great, Susan.
I have a couple of older books by Gail Tsukiyama on my TBR shelf (Women of the Silk and The Street of a Thousand Blossoms). A Hundred Flowers sounds like a good one and has such a pretty cover.
I hope you have a good week, Susan.
Hi Wendy, thanks. We have some beautiful weather this week, golden days yay.
And the dogs are happy to be out & about.
I’m glad you told me about the fires & smoke there … I seem to be missing my dad by phone these days, so I’m clueless except for news reports. I hope the firefighters can control the fires before the winds start up. Ugh always a worry.
Keep us posted.
Glad to move on from my summer list. 10 is what I’ll stick to for next summer. Good to hear you’re going to start James. I liked it better than Kindred so you might. And I definitely want to read more of Tsukiyama. I might try The Samurai’s Garden (it’s been on my shelf forever) … but all of hers look pretty good. Have a great week too.
I hope your father stays safe during the wildfires. It’s horrible that anyone would set those fires on purpose, I hope they get the punishment they deserve! I’m really curious about Percival Everett’s James. I hear so much praise for it! I haven’t read Huckleberry Finn though. I hope you have a wonderful week ahead!
Hi Haze, thanks. I talked to my Dad yesterday and the smoke from his area is pretty much gone. So I think it’s blowing the other way.
I found it a bit hard to get thru Huck Finn in a few places towards the end. But James is an easy read … and it’s not really a total requirement to have read Huck Finn though you might like to compare. Cheers! Have a great week.
I hope your dad is doing ok with the fires. What a nightmare.
I blazed through most of Gail Tsukiyama’s novels years ago and loved them. I haven’t read one in ages and you have motivated me to look up ones I haven’t read. Thank you!
Hi Helen, that’s good to know. Gail Tsukiyama seems a great writer. I know she’s been a writer based in Calif for a long time … but this was my first. I would like to read her other ones and I have a copy of The Samurai’s Garden still on my shelf. That will probably be next sometime.
My dad said he didn’t have smoke anymore … and that it was mostly last week when it was terrible. So I hope the fires are more under control … but we must cross our fingers. Enjoy your week.