I have books piled up everywhere it seems - and not a chance of catching up. I love getting my monthly Book of the Month selections, but are of course, behind on them as well. I'm feeling quite proud of myself for getting through three of them over winter break, although it has certainly been a mixed bag.
The Chicken Sisters by KJ Dell'Antonia was a delight to read. Sisters Mae and Amanda have not gotten along for years. Mae hasn't even been home in six years, having done her best to run away from a childhood she would rather forget. Amanda married the son of a rival restaurant owner and doesn't have much to do with her family, either. But she does need their help when she applies to be a contestant on Food Wars which is a reality show pitting the two restaurants that specialize in chicken against each other. There's so much to like about this story which is a lot of fun, but which also has some deeper messages if you're wanting to find them.
Leave The World Behind by Rumaan Alam has been controversial since the day it was published. I have loved Alam's other novels, and although I knew the writing style of this one was different, had high hopes for this one as well. I will admit I was disappointed. A family that rents a home for vacation is unhappy when the owners return late one night, needing to stay there as well since the power is out in New York City and they don't feel comfortable staying in their apartment there. There's very little plot movement and although I love character driven novels, I never felt like I even knew any of the characters or cared to. This is one I could happily have passed on, yet felt the need to know what all the fuss was about.
The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans is a story collection, something I don't often pick up. I do try to try them from time to time, and as with this one, I find myself enjoying some of the stories and not others. There were several stories in this collection I loved, and wouldn't have minded Evans fleshing out a bit more, but the story for which the collection is named was the longest story in the book, and one I didn't enjoy much at all. I'll still happily pick up something Evans writes to try her work again, and for anyone needing a good story collection, this one fits the bill.
The January selections are already available from BOTM and I happily picked three books - which means that I'm right back where I started as I checked three off of my BOTM stacks and am adding the same amount right back on.
1 comment:
Interesting mix of reads.
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