the fantastic mr. fox :: roald dahl

Title: The Fantastic Mr. Fox
Author: Roald Dahl
Published: Puffin, 2008
Read: November 2009; NYC
Format: trade paperback

Three greedy, mean-spirited farmers plot to take out the fantastic Mr. Fox the next time he emerges from his fox hole. All the while, beneath their very feet, a grand heist is being pulled off by the wily fox and his fellow hole-dwellers.

I don't have a lot to stay about this one. It's a children's book. There is no subtext, really. It's not written especially beautifully and it's not notably heartwarming. It's just a cute, entertaining adventure with fun characters and a colorful world.

A joyful caper; definitely worth the 30 or so minutes it takes to read.
4 out of 5 stars

Jenny & the Jaws of Life :: Jincy Willett

Title: Jenny the Jaws of Life

Author: Jincy Willett
Read: November 2009; NYC
Format: trade paperback

For years and years, my stance has been firm. I'm not a fan of the short story. Brevity, in my opinion, ends up costing the plot and characters too much. And then, really, what's the point?

Though, reading and loving Elizabeth Strout's Olive Kitteridge got me thinking. Sure, those stories - in total - read like a novel, but they're stories nonetheless! Impressed with what these authors are doing with the format these days, I'm making a point to read more - even if it's against my instincts. This effort, plus a couple of full-throated endorsements, brought Jenny & the Jaws of Life to me.

The 13 stories that make up this collection are just perfect. Some are better than others, of course, but both individually and all together they left me in want of absolutely nothing. The characters and their worlds are richly drawn. Willett's writing glides between despair, horror, nonsense and joy - all with elegance and gorgeous wit.

One of my favorites of the set is "Melinda Falling". It was after reading this story that I realized that this book was really special. Willett paces the the story's joy and sadness at a beautiful tempo. At just 15 pages, you get a full sense of Melinda, her husband and the humor and loneliness of their world. Just lovely. Really.

The second title story, "The Jaws of Life," is equally brilliant. Like the collection as a whole, the story balances opposing emotions and challenges moral expectations. It also showcases a frenetic energy similar to Roth's Portnoy's Complaint.

I don't want to give away much more of the stories, because this is just one of those books I really insist everyone read. It was exactly what I needed to read at during a very difficult time in my life. And I'm certain that no matter what time you are in in your life, dear internet, you'll benefit from reading it too.

Beautifully written, poignant, sad, hilarious.

5 out of 5 stars

james and the giant peach :: roald dahl

Title: James and the Giant Peach
Author: Roald Dahl
Published: Puffin, 2008
Read: October 2009; NYC, CT
Format: trade paperback

After a chance encounter with a mysterious stranger, James accidentally sets an amazing voyage in place. He becomes captain of an enormous peach and finds travel companions in a gang of giant insects. Together, they face adventure and embark on lives far more extraordinary than the ones they knew before.

Like most of Dahl's children's books, James and the Giant Peach is a wonderful, comforting joy to read. I have nothing to say by way of criticism and will not theorize about possible messages or subtexts. Instead, I'll relish in one of Dahl's more darling moments:

'...Some of us, of course, are born with more spots than others, but we never change them. The number of spots that a Ladybird has is simply a way of showing which branch of the family she belongs to. I, for example, am a Nine-Spotted Ladybird. I am very lucky. It is a fine thing to be.'

'It is, indeed,' said James, gazing at the beautiful shell with the nine black spots on it.

'On the other hand,' the Ladybird went on, 'some of my less fortunate relatives have no more than two spots altogether on their shells! Can you imagine that? They are called Two-Spotted Ladybirds, and very common and ill-mannered they are, I regret to say. And then, of course, you have the Five-Spotted Ladybirds as well. They are much nicer than the Two-Spotted ones, although I myself find them a trifle too saucy for my taste.'

'But they are all of them loved?' said James.

'Yes,' the Ladybird answered quietly. 'They are all of them loved.'

Perfect. Charming. Sweet:
5 out of 5 stars.

a wrinkle in time :: madeline l'engle

Title: A Wrinkle in Time
Author: Madeline L'Engle
Publisher: Dell
Read: September 2009, NYC
Format: mass market paperback

Meg Murry is misunderstood. As she contemplates how to fit in better at school and make life more bearable, something interesting happens. She embarks on an interdimensional adventure with her remarkable 5 year old brother Charles Wallace, the handsome and popular Calvin O'Keefe and a trio of unusual old ladies. Meg is motivated to go along on the journey in the first place because she desperately wants to find (and rescue?) her long-missing father. In pursuing this end, she learns more about her parents, the universe and, of course, her own abilities.

1) A Wrinkle in Time is one of the first novels I remember reading (4th grade, Miss Mallory's class). While I remembered some of the characters' names, I remembered NONE of the plot.

2) Even though I didn't remember much of the story, I did experience weird sense-memory of reading it over 20 years ago (gasp!). Images I haven't thought about in many years rebuilt themselves around me. It was a weird sensation and topical, really, given the whole time travel theme.

3) I was caught off guard by all Christianity references. I obviously did not remember that from childhood.

4) When I last visited him, my very clever nephew - 9.5-year-old Noah, also an avid reader - and I chatted about the book (I was just about to start it). It seems sometime in the last year or so he had attempted reading it, but found it 'too complicated'. I can see that. Some of the most interesting concepts (interdimensional travel, mind control and homogeneity, etc) in this book are, in my opinion, a little too complex for it's target audience. And, stripping these out, what's left is not that memorable. This is why I didn't recall any of the plot. I'd say that this series is ideally for 5th graders and above. A year can make such a big difference in what kids are able to process. Though, I guess when 1 year amounts to more than 10% of your life to that point, it makes sense. But I digress.

An excellent, comforting, interesting story. I look forward to finally getting to the rest of the series: 4 out of 5 stars.

Man in the Dark :: Paul Auster

Title: Man in the Dark
Author: Paul Auster
Read: August 2009; NYC
Format: kindle

August Brill, book critic, is an invalid. He lives a lonely life with with broken women: his daughter who has been left by her husband and his granddaughter who is mourning her boyfriend. Stuck in bed, August lays in bed all night and spins a story to occupy his mind. He imagines a young man, Owen Brick, who wakes to find himself in an alternate world where 9/11 never happened and where the liberal states have seceded. To get back to themselves, everyone must reorient themselves, explore their situations, and confront difficult challenges head on.

This is another one of those Auster novels with layered stories and layered meaning; where fragility, mortality, and loneliness are prominent themes. Man in the Dark is not my favorite, though. While it's not completely bleak, it is still too gray for my tastes and lacks the magic, mystery, or sweetness that the author can do so well. Instead, we get a heavy-handed suspense narrative couched within an exploration of sadness and loss.

A fast read and well-written, so not not worth it.

3 out of 5 stars