Guest Review: Police by Jo Nesbo

Here is a guest review by Shirley Ayres of Jo Nesbo's Police. Thanks again, Shirley!

If you'd like to submit a review, email sharlene@bradleybeachlibrary.org or drop off a copy of your review at the library.

The latest book featuring the Oslo, Norway Police Investigator, Harry Hole (pronounced Hol-ley).

In the city of Oslo, police officers are being brutally murdered.  The Police Department believes the killer is baiting officers to get more victims. As the suspects are eliminated, one name keeps popping up.  The name of a child molester who was thought to have been killed in prison. At last, Special Investigator Harry Hole is called back in to serve on a Special Task Force to find the murderer.  He is teamed up with several of his former colleagues who have worked cases with Harry in the past. The reader never suspects the outcome because Nesbo cleverly weaves the plot and characters well.

The usual gory murders, nasty murderers, and complicated plot twists just make this book, and all the other Nesbo books so interesting to read and impossible to put down once you have started to read the book.

SPOILER ALERT.  On the last pages, you can see that there will be another Harry Hole mystery very soon. That, to me, is very good news.

Perennial Favorites

It's funny how some books are being discussed in book clubs long after they have been printed.

My book club is reading, The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. Our copy was out, because another book club was reading the book, but I got a copy through inter-library loan. This seemed like a remarkable coincidence for a book that was published in 2001.

Another favorite is The Hare with Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal We have a beautiful copy that includes pictures of the netsuke that are such an important part of the story.

Do you have an all-time favorite book club read? Let us know.

The Wonderful World of Large Print Books

Have you tried a large-print book lately? Once a fusty afterthought, the volumes are slimmer and many best sellers release the large-print versions at the same time as the hardcover version.

For a small library, we have a thriving large-print collection. Check it out!

Our large-print book club recently read The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey. This illustrates another trend in large-print publishing: reissuing old-favorites such as Tey and Agatha Christie in large print. The book club was divided on The Daughter of Time: some enjoyed the fresh look at Richard III and some felt it was just too complicated.

Next month we're reading Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford. We're offering bonus points for reading his newest book Songs of Willow Frost (simultaneously released in large print :)

Guest Review: Silencing Eve by Iris Johansen

Guest Review by Shirley Ayres:

1. Silencing Eve by Iris Johansen (2013)

Book 2, Hunting Eve, ends with Eve Duncan and her kidnapper, James Doane, being in the house when a massive explosion takes place. FBI agents confirm that two people were seen just as the house exploded. No one could have lived through it.

But there are doubts about the facts. A well-hidden escape route is discovered and Eve's lover, Joe Quinn, her adopted daughter, Jane MacGuire, and friends are almost positive that Eve and Doane survived and are hiding out. But where?

From the beginning, Doane has an evil plan and Eve Duncan is a big part, and the man who killed Doane's son, Kevin (the mass murderer of children) is another part. What is the connection between the two soon-to-be murdered persons? Johansen has prepared a surprise that will floor you.

Publicly pretending that Eve is dead gives Joe Quinn and the gang a head start in finding Doane and rescuing Eve from his clutches.

Will Joe find and rescue Eve before Doane finally kills her? Are you ready for an unhappy ending? The final book of the Eve Duncan trilogy is filled with twists and turns and surprises and even a good guy being killed. You won't be sorry when you read all three books, in order of course.

Thanks, Shirley!

Guest Review: The Eve Duncon Trilogy by Iris Johansen

Shirley Ayres on the first two books from Iris Johansen's Eve Duncan Trilogy:

1. Taking Eve (2013)

Eve Duncan, Forensic Sculptor, has been kidnapped from her Atlanta, Georgia, home by Jim Doane and held in an unknown location forced to do a reconstruction of the skull of a serial killer. Doane's son, Kevin. Her lover and longtime companion, Atlantic Police Department Detective Joe Quinn, Eve's and Joe's adopted daughter, Jane McGuire and others are drawn into the hunt for Eve. Positive she will be killed once the reconstruction is finished, Eve looks for ways to escape.

2. Hunting Eve (2013)

The second book of the trilogy has Eve Duncan realizing her goal. After planning her escape into the surrounding forest and wilderness of Colorado, she takes food, water, warm clothing, and Kevin's skull with her, but Doane is close behind her. When he catches up with Eve, she throws Kevin's skull over a cliff, hoping that Doane will go after it, giving her time to escape but that does not happen. She does escape again, but Doane is always close to her. 

Meanwhile, Joe Quinnn, Jane McGuire, the FBI, and lots of others try to find Eve's location so that they can rescue her. Will they find her? Who will get there first? The FBI? Quinn? And will Eve be alive when they find her? Stay tuned for the third and final book of the Johansen trilogy.

Thanks, Shirley!

Book 10: Drunk Tank Pink by Adam Alter

This review for Drunk Tank Pink: And Other Unexpected Forces that Shape How We Think, Feel, and Behave is a long-time coming. The reason being that it took me several months to read it from cover-to-cover.

It is my experience that this is not a book that lends itself to being devoured. The content is too dense and just a bit too dry.....the literary equivalent of Shredded Wheat. This isn't to say that it isn't worthwhile. The subject matter is fascinating, and you'll step away from this book wondering if any attempts to thwart your inner biases are anything more than futile. If you like the work of Malcom Gladwell, you'll enjoy this book that is chock-full of facts and cutting-edge experiments. 

A few quick thoughts on some other books that I've read in the past few months:


1. The Love Song of Jonny Valentine by Teddy Wayne: While this book did get decent reviews owing to its criticism of the fame machine, I thought it was pretty tame. There is nothing new here. Jonny Valentine's career seems to be very closely modeled after Justin Bieber's career even down to the small details. Ultimately, this novel is a missed opportunity. 

2. Summerland and The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand: I picked up both of these novels because I needed a break from heavy reads. I'm so glad that I did. Hilderbrand writes stories full of scandal (everyone's a cheater and everyone has secrets) and sets them in the beautiful Nantucket Bay area. The bottom-line: Hilderbrand is a quality writer. While her content won't win her any Nobel Prizes, she knows how to tell a tale.

3. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan: I loved this book. I was hooked after the first four pages. Google worship, ancient cults, conspiracy, and booklove - what more could you ask for? This will feed your inner tech geek/bibliophile (and the cover glows in the dark)!

4. Daddy Love by Joyce Carol Oates: A young boy is abducted and "raised" by a serial-killer/pedophile. This is a story of horrifying abuse and depravity. I could say that I enjoyed this book but that would be misleading. This isn't a book that you enjoy- it's a book that shakes you up inside and makes you uncomfortable. It is raw and disturbing. JCO is a master at her craft. 

5. Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams: I waited entirely too long to read this hilarious, brilliant work of fiction! Seconds before the destruction of the earth, the unsuspecting Arthur Dent is saved by his friend Ford Prefect, an extraterrestial who has been posing as an out-of-work actor on Earth for the past fifteen years. The two go on a wild adventure through the Universe with the help of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Adams has an insight into existence that will blow you away. I found myself laughing out loud and dying to share his book with all of my friends. 

6. The Dinner by Herman Koch: Koch explores the ever-intriguing question: how far would you go to protect a loved one who has committed a terrible crime? This has been touted as a European Gone Girl. While both authors explore the dark side of society, Koch's writing is less action-packed and his characters are not as well-done. 

7. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline: The story shifts between the perspective of Molly, a troubled foster teen, and Vivian, a 91year old woman who was an orphan train rider in the early 1900s. The best parts of this novel are the ones that include descriptions of the orphan train movement. Kline did her research, and it shows. The present-day story, which details the blossoming friendship between Molly and Vivian, is one that has been done many times over. Kline is not a brilliant writer, but this book is worth the read if you're a fan of historical fiction. 

8. We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler: What a doozy. I couldn't put this book down. Fowler's narrator is witty, engaging, and believable, and the family issues dealt with in this novel are familiar but refreshingly unique. 

9. The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer: This is a hefty novel- in size, not in scope. The reader is subjected to a main character whose unabated jealousy of friends of higher socioeconomic status will make you cringe...over and over...and over...and over again.

10. Confessions of a Sociopath by M.E. Thomas: This is a work of nonfiction that begs to be talked about among friends. The author is a diagnosed, non-criminal sociopath. Her intent is to convince the reader that sociopaths can be productive, successful members of society. To do this, she uses her life and the lives of other noncriminal sociopaths as examples. I was blown away by the layer of delusion and mental illness that is readily apparent in her writing. This memoir will make you question whether anyone can really KNOW another person. 

Happy Reading!

Sharlene Edwards

Banned Book Week

From our dear friends at Better World Books, who truly make a better world by selling and donating unwanted books: 

It’s Banned Books Week, a time to celebrate the freedom to read. As readers, we are thankful to have access to lots of books. (Our warehouses in Indiana and Scotland have around 5 million between them!) The American Library Association keeps an eye on books that are challenged in the U.S. for removal from a school curricula or a library, or even banned. Here are their top 10 books that have been challenged or banned in the US in 2012—you might be surprised at what titles made the list! - 

1. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey.

Reasons: Offensive language, unsuited for age group

2. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie.

Reasons: Offensive language, racism, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group

3. Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher.

Reasons: Drugs/alcohol/smoking, sexually explicit, suicide, unsuited for age group

4. Fifty Shades of Grey, by E. L. James.

Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit

5. And Tango Makes Three, by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson.

Reasons: Homosexuality, unsuited for age group

6. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini.

Reasons: Homosexuality, offensive language, religious viewpoint, sexually explicit

7. Looking for Alaska, by John Green.

Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited for age group

8. Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz.

Reasons: Unsuited for age group, violence

9. The Glass Castle, by Jeanette Walls

Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit

10. Beloved, by Toni Morrison

Reasons: Sexually explicit, religious viewpoint, violence