When I picked up this ARC at SIBA last fall, I had no idea it was written by THE Steve Martin. I had no clue he had written the novella "Shopgirl" for example. I just thought he was a wild and crazy guy that I loved in The Jerk and made a bad career choice by starring in those awful Pink Panther remakes. Where have I been?
Imagine my shock! I did some poking around, and not only is Martin an accomplished writer of adult and children's literature and actor, but is an award-winning banjo player with CDs and everything. And he is an avid art collector, and his years of observation of the business was his muse for this novel.
Synopsis: Set in the decadent 1990's and cautious 2000's in Manhattan's swanky art society, our narrator Daniel Frank, an art journalist, tells the tale of his long-time friend Lacey Yeager. Lacey is one of these fascinating creatures that demands attention when she walks into a room (a fact of which she is highly aware) and will do whatever it takes to get what she wants. And what she wants is lots of money and the prestige to make it big as an art dealer. Daniel retraces Lacey's steps to this end goal...a grunt position at Sotheby's, sleeping with clients, some questionable deals, some lucky investments, a job at a high-end gallery, eventually opening her own gallery, and alot of hard work.
We also get to experience a real behind-the-scenes view of the art world. Martin interlaces real personalities with fictional ones (which are which?), capturing the fevered passion of collecting, the breathtaking beauty of oil on canvas, the fickle nature of the market, the theft and the scams. There is a whole sub-culture not privy to us middle income earthlings, until now.
My thoughts: I'm not sure what I expected when I started this book, but it wasn't conversational prose and smart, snappy characters. Who knew this guy could write? Apparently not I.
I can't say that I actually LIKED Lacey. She is every woman's nightmare (and girls, we all know one or two of these don't we?) who will steal your man if it suits her agenda. She is so self-absorbed, she has no idea the path of destruction she leaves in her wake or the people she ruins in her climb to the top. She is also smart though, and I found her undeniably witty and hard not to be mesmerized by her when she is "on".
The supporting characters (and everyone in Lacey's orbit is the supporting cast) were all amusing and believable. It was hard not to sympathize with one of Lacey's conquests, a European collector, as he loses his heart to her. We know full well he will be cast aside when she is done with him. I enjoyed the eccentricities that are permitted to the New York's filthy rich (food sniffing? telling bad stories over and over again?). Some have criticized that the characters came straight out of Vogue or Sex and the City. Maybe, but who says that is always a bad thing?
Another bonus afforded to the reader (except recipients of ARCs - boo!) is with the mention of every famous piece of art, we are treated with pictures. Oh, how I would have LOVED to have seen some of these works of art! Yes, I know, I could have googled them, but that requires too much effort. Next time I'm at Barnes & Noble, though, I'm going to sit down and have a good look.
On the downside, there is very little plot, except that it is twenty-ish years of Lacey-cam that includes the aftermath of 9/11 and the financial blowout of Wall Street. I was waiting for something big to happen, and there is a reveal, if you will, about an illegal activity, but it wasn't all that shocking or climatic. I didn't much mind though. I was too busy having fun.
4 out of 5 stars
Last fall, I was nudged gently by Rhapsody Jill to read "Before I Fall" by Lauren Oliver. What are friends for, but to give us recommendations that blow our minds and change the way we think about our lives? When the opportunity presented itself to receive an ARC of Oliver's new release "Delirium", and first of a trilogy (of course), I didn't even care what it was about. Just bring it on. I'm buying what she's selling.
Synopsis: Some kinds of love can be a good thing...love for your pet kitty, or your grandmother. But passion? People can act pretty irrational, even stark raving mad, under the grip of that kind of love. It can cause people to kill, cheat, steal, or even cause wars. That is the conclusion of a future US of A, and therefore, once a person reaches the age of 18, they will be "cured" of this disease forever - emotional neutering, if you will. They will be evaluated, and offered a choice of a handful of mates, they will have kids and live their lives as a calm, rational, unemotional law-abiding citizen.
17 year-old Lena loves her life, her best friend Hana, and running. She is still haunted, however, by the suicide of her mother when she was young. Her mother couldn't be cured, and it drove her mad. Lena is afraid she may have some of that gene in her, so the quicker she gets this over with, the better.
Until she meets Alex. He has the scar of the cured, but has a joie de vivre that suggests otherwise. And...he thinks Lena is beautiful. Through Alex, Lena learns of an underground movement against the authorities, of a world she's been sheltered from her entire life, and she learns about crazy, intoxicating, delirious love. She only has weeks until her cure though, and she is scheduled to marry some skinny dude with allergies. How will she be able to live without Alex in her life? How will she be able to live without love?
My thoughts: From the outset, I thought the premise of a world without love was a tad bit silly. No, really. The government lobotomizes people and sucks the emotion out of them to control them? Please! But an intellectual I am not, and I decided I could get behind this idea without further analysis. Once I dropped the tendency to mentally pick, I was swept away. All that teenage angst and euphoria just washed right over my 44 year-old self. Hey, I've been there. I remember.
The connection between Lena and Alex is almost immediate. It may seem a little too hasty, but again, been there done that. These are teenagers we're talking about here. And their relationship sizzles. Not in a sexual way (for those of you wondering whether your daughter should read the book), but in an almost spiritual way. Sparks almost fly off those pages.
The world-building definitely brought an appropriate amount of gravitas into the mix. Despite the wackiness of the government messing with affairs of the heart, these guys mean business. If anyone attempts to cross fences into The Wilds and are caught, they are executed without trial. If "regulators" unearth sympathizers, or even catch someone out after curfew, they might bash their heads in with a billy club, turn their bloodthirsty dogs on them, or dump them in the prison called The Crypts where you are left to rot. It seemed alot like Nazi Germany, personally, and was scarey.
There are moments of beauty in the pages, and there are scenes that made my heart pound. The ending is sudden, violent, and leaves many unanswered questions. I told you I didn't really care what the book was about upon receiving it, so I had no idea originally that this was a trilogy. As a result, the ending about made my head explode. HOW DARE THEY LEAVE ME LIKE THIS??? After my frantic, slobbering e-mail to Jill, she soothed my nerves by telling me there was more to come. Thank God.
The book wasn't exactly a mind-blower like Before I Fall. The plot wasn't as tight, and there were a lot of theoretical snags with which you could get hung up on. But I'm frankly tickled this story isn't over.
Want the opinion of Jill (Rhapsody in Books) on "Delirium"? Hop on over here, for the second part of our one-two punch.
4 out of 5 stars
The captain's helper, Colby, catching some bait fish. For more Wordless Wednesdays, click here.
A little update on my year of reading what I want...it totally rocks. Proof positive was this book. I'd finished The Cypress House and was shopping my bookshelves, specifically the stack of beauties I'd obtained from SIBA last fall. Ah! A YA novel, just what I needed! So I started thumbing through the pages, to get a feel for it, and ended up finishing it in two hours. Serious impact, minimal time investment. This is one you should all read.
Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Liz is a photography genius, destined for journalistic success. Her forever-best is Kate, a talented dancer. They've been friends since childhood, and they couldn't imagine a day where they wouldn't always have their Saturday Night Slumber, their Friday nights at Salvatore's pizzeria, and be there for each other through thick and thin.
Shockingly, however, that day comes. Kate avoids Liz at every turn, refuses to talk to her or even look her in the eyes. When Kate finally reveals to Liz what is troubling her, Kate's world implodes...her family is devastated, and she stands to lose everything that is important in her life.
In this emotionally-wrought debut, written in free verse, Marcus brings us nose-to-nose with a very serious, very prevalent issue in society today.
My thoughts: This free verse thing is new to me. I first experienced it recently with "Song of the Sparrow", and found it very easy to read and very impactful in its sparseness and simplicity. Why haven't I tried this before? It's wonderful! Marcus employs this method of prose so skillfully, it nearly brings you to tears. Her chapters are short and each have titles, like little journal entries or shapshots. You'd think, then, that the content would be superficial, but that couldn't be further from the truth.
Marcus has chosen a topic that has been covered before, but it doesn't make it any less raw for those involved, or for the readers. (And no, I'm not telling! This story deserves to be protected!) And she NAILS it. All of it...the emotions, the repercussions, the distraught, confused, angry voice of the teenage narrator. Each entry a sucker punch to the gut, leaving you gasping for breath, but turning the pages faster and faster.
I'd call this one a no-brainer. Get it, read it in one sitting, then sit back in awe and wonder at how this debut author has got it all going on.
5 out of 5 stars
You'd think we would see a romantic theme today, or maybe something Grammy-ish, but it appears the Bumbles were doing their taxes this weekend, so instead we are talking about money (as in stealing it, spending it, or Lord have mercy, giving it away). Luckily, there is no end to movies about money...they are probably more numerous than movies about love. (What does that say about us?) Here are a few that we enjoy in the Nawrot household:
1. Wall Street - obviously. This movie is the original lesson plan for greed.
2. Trading Places - all about the almighty dollar, but definitely more light-hearted. I have this one permanently on my iPod, because it is always good for a laugh. Also a great movie for Jamie Lee Curtis to showcase her new boob job, and wins the award for the best drunk Santa scene.
3. A Simple Plan - a most excellent movie, riveting to the point of putting a hard knot in your stomach, about two brothers and a friend who find a few mil in a plane that crashed on their property. Funny how scenarios like this always head south...
4. Millions - more found money, but this time by a seven-year-old in England, and as charming as a movie can get.
5. There Will Be Blood - I don't remember seeing too much paper money in this movie, but instead it was in the form of oil. And the plot is just as dark - I felt like I needed a shower when it was all said and done. I drink your milkshake!
6. The Counterfeiters - based on a true story about the largest counterfeiting operation in history, organized by the Nazis in a concentration camp. Received quite a bit of love at the Oscars a few years ago. If you don't mind subtitles, you must add this one to your Netflix Q toot sweet.
I actually came up with a few more, but I like to limit myself to six. I must give you time to visit the other participants of this very fun meme!
Good morning, all of you Valentines! Can you just feel all that love in the air? No? In our case, it is more a brisk 39 degree chill in the air, coupled with a slight headache from all that romancing my husband and I did at a soiree at our favorite wine store last night. Nothing says hubba hubba like a wine tasting, chocolate, and good friends.
It was a extra busy week this past week, with my sister in town. She is a great cook, and a movie fanatic, so these are the activities we dabbled in. We went to see "The King's Speech" at the theater (who dare not love Mr. Firth?), watched "A Film Unfinished" at home (unearthed German footage of the Warsaw ghetto), as well as "Let the Right One In", a Swedish vampire movie based on the book I just finished. I also re-watched "The Notebook" with my daughter, and cried like a damn fool. We also had a couple nights of uber-cooking. Lots of fun.
But as a result, not much reading was accomplished. Like I said, I did finish "Let the Right One In", which was pretty long, and am about halfway through "The Postmistress". In the audio world, it was a much sadder scene. I'm STILL listening to and enjoying "Venetia Kelly's Traveling Show", and I also started listening to (and not really enjoying) "Housekeeping" in my car for Books, Babes and Bordeaux at the end of the month. It came from the library on an MP3 disc, and for the life of me can't figure out how to transfer it to my iPod. I'm so bad with technology sometimes, I scare myself.
I'm doing great with my TBR Dare still, but I seem to have subconsciously figured out a way around it. All book club reads are exceptions to The Dare, and I've now just joined my THIRD book club (a Skype book club). Don't tell my husband or he will think I'm insane. So between the three, I am feeling rather gluttonous with books NOT sitting on my bookshelf. Pretty shifty, huh?
The problem is...when to get all this reading done. For a girl who swore off all challenges and ARCs, I'm sure feeling some pressure. Three book clubs, and books that need to be read and reviewed for the UCF Book Festival in April, and I've got a full plate. I need to get down to serious business here this next week, which, with the exception of a Sea World field trip, should be relatively calm.
Before I ship out here for church, I had to share a book that appeared in EW this week, and it almost made me drool for wanting it. "House of Prayer No. 2"??? Anyone heard of it? Seriously, read the review on EW. It must be mine. But how to read it before April 1st? Hmmm...wonder if I could convince a book club to read it?
After pretty much loving A Given Day, Shutter Island, and Mystic River, I decided that this is as close to fan girl as I was going to get with an author. I love his gritty, blue-collar Boston thing he's got going on, he's good for some in-your-face foul language, and he throws a nice twist or two in there to keep you on your toes. Unfortunately, I'd never read "Gone Baby Gone" because my library doesn't have it on audio, and of course, here comes a sequel, all squeaky and shiny and new, tempting me to read out of order. My solution was to watch the movie, just to get the flavor of the characters we are dealing with. I'll try to be as unspoilery as possible, but a few tidbits of "Gone Baby Gone" are going to be revealed, so be warned. I will, however, protect the integrity of "Moonlight Mile".
Synopsis: It's been twelve years since the abduction and recovery of Amanda McCready, and the ethical dilemmas of that situation haunt Patrick Kenzie to this day. Still, life has moved on. Patrick and Angie worked out their differences and are now married with a little girl. They are struggling to make ends meet, and desperately wish for a normal stable life in which to raise their child.
Then their past comes to haunt them. Amanda's Aunt Beatrice calls Patrick for help...Amanda is missing again. Despite Amanda's home life, she is the brightest and most promising in her class...Harvard-bound. It seems unlikely she has run away on her own. Even though this is not a case that is going to pay the bills, Patrick and Angie decide that this might be the chance to make good on all the mistakes that may have been made twelve years ago.
My thoughts: Even without the benefit of getting to know the literary characters of Patrick and Angie, I liked them, and was genuinely excited to find out how they were doing after all this time. I found that they had matured nicely, but both still had that wild edge that loves the thrill of danger. I was also nostalgic about Amanda, that poor poor child with that horrible mother (who is still just as bad as ever). Lehane easily jumps right back into the storyline without a hitch, providing all that stuff I love...all that edgy, hard-ass fast talk, working class neighborhoods, and the squalor and depravity of the underbelly. He also blessed the story with some really colorful characters. I almost felt guilty for loving the Russian hitmen, but I couldn't help myself.
I also appreciated Lehane's examination of social issues, particular with abused children. Is is our right, as a by-stander, to guess what kind of a life a child might have, and act on our own accord to ensure they get the love and protection they need? Or do we let the government handle it and turn our heads, knowing it might not be the best alternative?
But somewhere down the path, believability and plausibility took a hike. The Big Explanation (you know, the one near the end that resolves all the questions), and to a certain extent The Lehane Twist, were waaaaay out there. I just couldn't buy what he was selling. I'm itching to go into details, but that would blow the whole thing for you. Suffice it to say that no matter how Lehane justified himself, I still found myself just shaking my head.
I guess my bottom line is that I enjoyed this quick listen, and I love what Lehane brings to the table, but this isn't the best of him. It is worth the effort, though, just to catch up with Patrick and Angie, and adore some Russian mobsters.
A word about the audio production: I squealed with delight when I discovered that this audio was narrated by the most wonderful Jonathan Davis. Unwittingly, I think I have listened to more of Jonathan Davis than any other narrator out there. He is ONE CLASS ACT. He does accents like Meryl Streep, he offers nuances, he offers emotion, all effortlessly. He is a delight to listen to.
3 out of 5 stars
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