Book Review: The Round House

Louise Erdrich


This book helped me understand some of the issues with VAWA (Violence Against Women Act) and its connection to Native Americans.

From Amazon.com:
"One of the most revered novelists of our time--a brilliant chronicler of Native American Life--Louise Erdrich returns to the territory of her bestselling, Pulitzer Prize finalist The Plague of Doves with The Round House, transporting readers to the Ojibwe resercation in North Dakota. It is an exquisitely told story of a boy in the cusp of manhood who seeks justice and understanding in the wake of a terrible crime that upends and forever transforms his family."

Riveting and Suspenseful, arguably the most accessible novel to date from the creator of Love Medicine, The Beet Queen, and The Bingo Palace, Endrich's The Round House is a page-turning masterpiece of literary fiction--at once a power coming-of-age story, a mystery, and a tender, moving, novel of family, history and culture.

(Reviewed by Ginger)

Book Review: Banished

Lauren Drain

Very fascinating, inside look at what happens behind the scenes of the notorious Westboro Baptist Church. Though not particularly well-written, Banished was too interesting for me to abandon.

(Reviewed by Emily)

Book Review: Unbroken: A WWII Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

Laura Hillenbrand

Unbroken is a true story and is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body and spirit. Laura Hillenbrand is the author of Seabuscuit.
On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army bomber crashed into the ocean and disappeared. Then on the ocean's surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane's bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.
The lieutenant's name was Louis Zamperini. In boyhood, he'd been an incorrigible delinquent. As a teenager, he channeled his defiace into running, a talent that carried him to the Olympics. But when war came, the athlete because an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown.
Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and beyond, a trial even greater. Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor and brutality with rebellion.

(Reviewed by Ginger)

Book Review: Gone Girl

Gillian Flynn

Two twisted people married...what do they truly know about each other?
Had me hooked - wanted to read to find out the next "kicker."
The end was never expected.

(Reviewed by Susan)

Book Review: The Red Tent

Anita Diamont

This is one of my all-time favorite books! It is historical fiction set in Biblical times. It was written in 1998, so it has been on my favorite list a long time! Enjoy!

From Amazon.com:
"Little is known of the life of Dinah, daughter of Jacob and Leah, sister of many brothers, leaving plenty of scope for fictionalizing her life story. Those who know the Biblical stories of Jacob and his sons, Dinah's brothers, will recognize the framework that gives to the story of The Red Tent. Beyond that, Dinah's story, as told here, is fascinating fictional insight into the lives of the women of that place and time, their hopes, fears, practices and beliefs. The handling of female rites of passage, adolescent awareness of sexuality and motherhood, death and the clashes resulting from the attempt to marry differing belief systems, are just some of the life challenges this book deals with from the perspective of women living their lives in a patriarchal society."

(Reviewed by Ginger)

MPL Book Sale!

Marshall Public Library's Book Sale will be held next week on November 8, 9, and 10! It will be open at the following times:

11/8 9:00-11:00 a.m. ($10 early entry fee)
11/8 11:00-5:00
11/9 10:00-5:00
11/10 1:00-5:00

This year, it will be held across the street from MPL at the Marshall Municipal Court Building. We will have 1000s of books and other materials available for purchase!

Book Review: The Twenty-Year Death

Ariel S. Winter

A breathtaking first novel written in the form of three separate crime novels, each set in a different decade and penned in the style of a different giant of the mystery genre.
 
1931, Malniveau Prison, channels Georges Simenon as Chief Inspector Pelleter tries to deduce how a murdered prisoner escaped the prison walls.

1941, The Falling Star, is the Chandleresque story of a private eye, Dennis Foster, who’s hired to reassure a paranoid movie star and maybe take the rap for a murder. A recurring character in both books is Shem Rosenkrantz, an American writer who first seeks seclusion in France and then squanders his talents in Hollywood.

1951, Police at the Funeral, Rosenkrantz takes over the narration with the voice of a washed-up Jim Thompson protagonist, and, as he unravels, we see how the stories are stitched together. 

I found this book to be a neat surprise and thoroughly enjoyed the technique used by the author in capturing and paying homage to the distinct writing styles of Simenon, Chandler and Thompson.