In honor of Khadaji and all the recommendations I took from him, I’m finally getting off my lazy butt and catching up on posting about my recent reads (tho it may take a bit):
Niagara Falls All Over Again by Elizabeth McKracken. Picked this up from the library after reading Heart of Dorkness’ comment “if you like *The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay *you may like this”. Both novels follow the stories of two young men in the entertainment industry in the first half of the 20th century, but this novel is more concrete and a bit more humourous. Not surprising, as the main characters are a comedy duo (Carter and Sharp) who start their careers in vaudeville, then move on to radio, the movies and even television before their partnership unravels. The characters are incredibly well-drawn, with the story told mostly in flashbacks by Mose Sharp, the straightman of the duo. It’s a moving story, with some gorgeous writing: “Love is an animal that can - with a great deal of patience - be taught to sleep in the house. That doesn’t mean it won’t kill you if you aren’t careful.” I’ll keep an eye out for this in the Amazon Daily Deal, as well as used bookstores and may check out more of McCracken’s work.
The Better Mousetrap by Tom Holt. Picked this up from the local used bookstore, as I’m a fan of Holt’s writing. In this novel, Holt plays with the concept of corporate magic, where dragonslayers are hired by pest control companies (and are buried in paperwork), and a chap with a Portable Door can earn considerable cash from an insurance company by making accidents Not Happen. Like most of Holt’s work, the plot is difficult to summarize, but entertaining; the characters are quirky and quite British, as is the sense of humour. I first got into Holt when I saw him compared to Douglas Adams; the comparison is reasonably fair, I think and consider everything I’ve read of his so far having been worth my time & something I’d consider re-reading.
Wildwood by Colin Meloy, narrated by Amanda Plummer. A couple of my GoodRead friends gave this 4 stars; so I checked out the audiobook version of this from the local library. Prue McKeel and her baby brother, Mac, are having a fine time in a Portland, Oregon park until he is abducted by a murder of crows. She follows them into the Impassable Wilderness at the edge of town and, with her classmate Curtis in tow, discovers a new world of talking animal bureacrats, Dowager Governesses with dark intenstions and Mystics that communicate with the trees. Oh, and there’s coyote soldiers and Irish bandits. One review called it “The Narnia of the Pacific Northwest”; I don’t think I’d go that far, but the fantasy world is intriguing, and the main characters (Prue and Curtis) are engaging. The plot builds to a satisfying climax, and despite some nitpicks (birds carrying large burdens), I enjoyed the story quite a bit. That said, I kind of wish I’d read it instead of listened to it, as Amanda Plummer did this novel no favors. Her reading was flat at times with the character voices being inconsistently used & not always clear. (Tho I kind of liked Septimus!) Recommended as a library read, but avoid the audiobook.
