errantreads's reviews
219 reviews

Beaverland: How One Weird Rodent Made America by Leila Philip

adventurous hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

Beaverland is a narrative deep dive (impressively researched) into the the world of beavers and all the folks who champion (from trappers, to enthusiasts, to scientists, to everyday people) this most important keystone species. The focus is on North America, and Connecticut more specifically, but the author does a great job outlining the specie's ecological importance globally as well. Great book. It's at times light and full of adventure as the author tramps through swamps and other times very appropriately serious and academically detailed. Recommend.

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

adventurous dark informative lighthearted sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A re-read. Tremendous, of course. The translation (from German to British English) renders the prose a bit matter-of-fact, losing some of its emotional heft, but this book is still rightly poised amongst the top war novels of all time.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Second time reading. Still brilliant. And the prose ... incredible. This is one of those few books I could set down after finishing and then just pick right back up again.

Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman

inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.25

Stella Maris by Cormac McCarthy

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Literary and very cerebral and 100% dialogue. A brilliant complement to The Passenger that explores genius and the big questions of life, meaning, and purpose. The real genius here is McCarthy. This story could only have been pulled off by this author.

UPDATE: I can't stop thinking about this book. I changed my review from 4.0 to 4.75. it may be a 5-star review in another month of musing. It is just so good.

Quote from this Nation article...
https://www.thenation.com/article/culture/cormac-mccarthy-late-style/
Billed at once as the culminating pinnacle of McCarthy’s career and an unexpected departure from his earlier work, The Passenger and Stella Maris are sibling novels about incest, mourning, mathematics, salvage diving, schizophrenia, New Orleans, theoretical physics, Knoxville, the invention of nuclear weapons, car racing, suicide, vaudeville theater, the weight of history, the sins of the father, psychiatry, the crisis of the European sciences, and the moral decline of the West. At once intricate and beautiful, challenging and moving [...]

The Passenger by Cormac McCarthy

challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Very literary. There is setting and character and relationships. That's it. The plot is interesting in that it is never really what you expect it to be. The main thrust of the novel is an exploration of the mind and spirit and mythology and state of being.

Only mature and focused readers will "get" this novel, but if they do, it's a real treat created to make them think and reflect. And of course, as always, McCarthy's prose is so very elegant. Loved it.

UPDATE: I can't stop thinking about this book. I changed my review from 3.5 to 4.75. it may be a 5-star review in another month of musing. It is just so good.

Quote from this Nation article...
https://www.thenation.com/article/culture/cormac-mccarthy-late-style/
Billed at once as the culminating pinnacle of McCarthy’s career and an unexpected departure from his earlier work, The Passenger and Stella Maris are sibling novels about incest, mourning, mathematics, salvage diving, schizophrenia, New Orleans, theoretical physics, Knoxville, the invention of nuclear weapons, car racing, suicide, vaudeville theater, the weight of history, the sins of the father, psychiatry, the crisis of the European sciences, and the moral decline of the West. At once intricate and beautiful, challenging and moving [...]

Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential and How You Can Achieve Yours by Shirzad Chamine

hopeful informative fast-paced

3.0

Succinct. Measurable-ish. Actionable. Chamine offers a practical approach to shifting individual and team dynamics towards a more positive pathway. This is not a book that offers a plan to merely "think positive" or "meditate your way to happiness." No. It's an actionable approach to identifying and then addressing fundamental problems through analysis, introspection, and communication. 

Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

A solid read. I would say a fun read, but fun is probably not the right word. The writing itself is more than a bit sophomoric, though. Especially the first third. The writing really reminded me of Patrick Bateman's internal dialogue in American Psycho. I wonder if this was intentional for some reason, or was this just how the author writes? She *does* write for Cosmo, though, so . . .  It seemed to tone down later in the book. But the story and characters are tremendous, IMHO. I give it 3.5 stars.

The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher

adventurous lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

The writing conveys a very creepy Lovecraftian vibe, but set in modern times. Really very unique and otherworldly.

My only criticism (a quibble, really) is that the characters were So. Very. Sarcastic. All of the time. Distracting and it made the tone a bit juvenile. Still, it's an excellent read. Recommend.

P.S. You'll find plenty of antlions in North Carolina, and really most temperate and warmer parts of the world. ... You'll understand when you read the book. Heh.

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

adventurous reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Pachinko is a sprawling examination of a family and a place and a time over several generations. More specifically, it is an examination of one family's experience as Koreans navigating the unbending world of the Japanese people and culture and their status as second-class unacknowledged citizens. Sometimes happy, often tragic, always fascinating, the author—from my limited knowledge of this history—does a tremendous job humanizing this period in time and the lives orbiting it.

Here comes the criticism . . .

The storyline is too ambitious for one volume. This book should have been either edited down or split into two or three volumes and fleshed out a bit more. I would have voted for editing it down.

Also, it's written in omniscient POV. This is terribly distracting. There is so much unnecessary exposition and individual backstory thrown in and then sometimes a significant event or subplot is tied off with a single phrase or sentence.

I have no idea how this became a National Book Award finalist other than as acknowledgment of the depth of research and breadth of storyline. BUT! I still recommend this book. Maybe a change of POV and two more editing passes and this book would have been elevated from very good to excellent. This year, I suspect I  will be recommending this book to every reader I know.