Review: Anxious People (by Fredrik Backman)

My Rating: 5 stars

I've been wanting to read a Fredrik Backman book for a while now (I have pretty much all of his previous works on my TBR), but hadn't found the time to do so until recently when I was approved for an ARC of his latest novel Anxious People (which is scheduled for publication next month).  Of course, I had high expectations going into this one given the reputation of the author — well, after I finished reading, my first reaction was:  Wow!  Now I know why Backman is such a beloved author to so many (my second reaction was:  I need to go back and read all his previous books, like asap!).

 

This book was so unlike anything I've read before.  On the one hand, this was a sad story where each character had at least one (in some cases more) issue they were trying to deal with -- issues "serious" enough so as to make their lives seem utterly miserable and hopeless: be it a painful memory from their past that they were trying to suppress, worries over an uncertain future after entering a new stage in life, fear of losing loved ones due to circumstances beyond one's control, feeling helpless in the face of life's many injustices, etc.  There were also some "heavy" topics explored in the story, such as death, suicide, divorce, betrayal, emotional and psychological distress, etc.  But yet, this was not a "heavy" read at all – in fact, truth be told, this was actually one of the funniest books I've ever read!   Yes, I know it sounds odd – after all, how can a story be so sad and heartrending one minute, to the point that I'm tearing up, yet so witty and hilarious the next minute that I found myself laughing until my insides hurt?   Therein lies the brilliance in the way Backman crafted the story – the topics were heavy, yet the light-hearted tone in which this was written didn't diminish the issues in any way...in fact, it did the opposite in that it actually made me pay more attention to the circumstances that caused the characters to be in the predicaments they ended up in. 

 

Speaking of the characters, they were another reason why I loved this book so much.  All the characters were so brilliantly written – every behavior, emotion, quirk, personality flaw, etc was so spot-on!  Also, each character had distinctive personalities, yet their experiences and behaviors were so relatable and resonant on a personal level that with every single character, I actually found something in common either with myself or with someone in my life (in fact, I was nodding my head so often when I came across some familiar trait / habit / circumstance with the characters that I ended up with a neck cramp after I finished reading, lol).  If I had to sum up this book, I would say that, in essence, this is an ingeniously-told, character-driven story that, at its heart, explores the trials and tribulations of what it means to be human. 

 

Another thing I loved about this book was its cleverness in terms of structure.  On the surface, it sounded like a really simple story – so simple in fact that, after the first 10 pages or so, I thought for sure the story was over, as what else was there to tell?  A lot, it turned out!  The "simple" story turned into multiple seemingly unrelated threads, with various tidbits of information added here and there as the story progressed that seemed to alter the narrative slightly -- just when I thought I had things figured out, well, it turns out I had nothing figured out at all!  The way all the variant threads came together so perfectly and flawlessly at the end, I only have FIVE WORDS* to describe my reaction:  Fredrik Backman is a genius! (*inside joke for those who read the book).

 

If this review sounds a bit vague, note that this was done on purpose, as nothing I say (or write) about this book will be able to do it justice.  You need to experience this wonderful book for yourself – and sooner rather than later!   Oh and if you're like me, who usually only skims the Acknowledgements section after finishing the book, you may want to actually read this one, as it was as much fun as reading the book itself!

 

Received ARC from Atria Books via NetGalley.

 

Review: Dear Emmie Blue (by Lia Louis)

 

My Rating: 4 stars

I usually don’t do sappy romances, especially ones with too much fluff and not much substance.  But I needed something lighthearted after a slew of heavy reads, plus I figured a bit of “sappy” would even be welcome given everything that has been going on as of late.  After hearing this book described on a podcast that I listen to, it actually sounded like something right up my alley in terms of a lighthearted enough story but with a serious element to it.  Now after finishing this one, I’m happy to say that it was just what I needed, but more than that though, I was pleasantly surprised by how well the characters were developed and also the good balance that the author was able to achieve between the lighthearted elements and the “serious” moments.  Nearly all the characters were endearing and easy to root for, though if I had to choose my favorite characters, they would actually be the side characters such as Louise and also Rosie and Fox.  I think one of the elements that made this story work really well (for me at least) was the chemistry between the cast of characters — the camaraderie between Emmie, Rosie, and Fox; the unexpected friendship between Louise and Emmie; also Emmie’s relationship with the Moreau family (Luke, Eliot, and their parents), etc.  

In addition to the character dynamics, I also like the way the writing flowed.  The entire story was narrated from the first person point of view (in this case, entirely from Emmie Blue’s perspective), which I will be honest in saying that I’m not generally a big fan of in fiction because, depending on how the author handles it, writing from first person sometimes throws off the flow of the story, especially when there is too much description.  However, in this instance, the first person narration (no doubt helped along by the fact that there was more dialogue than description) worked well, to the point that I was able to get into the story pretty much right away and breeze through it fairly quickly.

Overall, I enjoyed this one quite a bit, even though the story was technically not very original — it was actually pretty easy to see how everything was going to pan out in terms of the plot (funny thing is that the ending scene I actually guessed within the first few chapters and it played out nearly identical to how I imagined it, ).  This is one of the reasons why I decided to keep this review brief and not delve too much into the plot, as there isn’t a whole lot more that can be said (outside of what is already mentioned in the book’s summary) without giving away the rest of the story.  

If you’re looking for a well-written, “feel-good” read during these current turbulent times, I highly recommend Dear Emmie Blue. Added bonus is that this definitely doesn’t fall into the “fluff” category— rather it does a nice job balancing “sweet” with “serious” and therefore brings an unexpected but greatly appreciated substance to the story.

Review: The Exiles (by Christina Baker Kline)

My Rating:  5 stars 

Even though I’ve had most of Christina Baker Kline’s works (including her 2 most famous ones Orphan Train and A Piece of the World) on my TBR for quite a while already, I’m sorry to say that I have not been able to explore her backlist as I’ve been intending to (mostly due to timing issues).  Despite not having read her previous works (yet), that didn’t prevent me from jumping on the chance to read an advance copy of her latest historical novel, The Exiles (scheduled for release at the end of this month). I’m so glad I did, as this was such a brilliantly written masterpiece and definitely one of my favorites this year!  I was so invested in the story and characters that I didn’t want to stop reading if I could help it, so I ended up finishing this in pretty much one sitting.

Set in the 1840s, the narrative revolves around the experiences of 3 ordinary women — Evangeline, Hazel, and Mathinna — and the hardships they encounter in a society that doesn’t value them.  Evangeline Stokes is the young educated daughter of a vicar who takes up a post as governess with a local English family the Whitstones after her father dies, only to be seduced by the young master of the house and sent away to prison after a string of false accusations (including pregnancy out of wedlock, stealing, and tempted murder) are levied against her.  After a few months at the Newgate Prison in London, Evangeline is eventually sentenced to 14 years at Van Diemen’s Land, a penal colony in Australia.  On the months-long journey there via a repurposed slave ship, Evangeline befriends a teenager named Hazel, a fellow prisoner who was sentenced to 7 years transport for stealing a spoon.  Despite her young age, Hazel has lived a life of suffering— unloved by her alcoholic mother, she was forced at a young age to fend for herself and soon becomes adept at pickpocketing in order to survive.  Hardened to life, Hazel soon figures out that the only way to make the transport bearable is to utilize her midwifery and herbalist skills (both of which she learned from observing her mother, who was a midwife) to help others in exchange for more favorable treatment.  In a separate but related story arc, we meet Mathinna, the eight-year-old daughter of an Aboriginal chief, a native whose people were largely killed off when the British government colonized the Australian territory.  Mathinna is “adopted” into the household of John Franklin, the new governor of Van Diemen’s Land, at the whim of his wife Lady Franklin, whose outward charity actually masks deeply rooted prejudices toward the natives.  As such, Mathinna’s adoption is actually an “experiment” for Lady Franklin, who wants to prove to her friends and acquaintances that “wild savages” of Mathinna’s ilk can be “tamed” into propriety.  As the 3 narratives intertwine, the women‘s lives eventually cross as well, but their fates follow markedly different paths.

When it comes to books, a “masterpiece” for me needs to encompass, at minimum, the following:  a well-crafted story that flows effortlessly, beautiful writing, well-developed and unforgettable characters that I can’t help rooting for, emotional resonance, nearly flawless execution of story elements, and most importantly, it needs to either teach me something or make me reflect, whether about my own values / beliefs or those of the society in which we live.  In this regard, The Exiles, with its heart-wrenching, powerful story so exquisitely told, definitely qualifies as a masterpiece.  Prior to reading this, I knew very little about Britain’s colonization of Australia in the nineteenth century and even less about the history of female prisoners being transported overseas and assigned as free labor for mostly wealthy British families in the colony.  It was gut-wrenching to read about how badly these women were treated, the brutal conditions they had to endure, and worse of all, how little their lives were valued in a society where blatant discrimination was the norm.  Both Evangeline’s and Hazel’s stories were heart-wrenching and made me cry, but Mathinna’s story absolutely broke my heart – an adult having to deal with racial discrimination is difficult enough, but for an innocent child to have to endure what Mathinna did (which was essentially to be treated as the Franklin family pet – dressed up and shown off when they wanted some amusement, kicked aside and ignored when they grew tired of her), it honestly made me sick.

For me, the best historical fiction has the ability to seamlessly weave real historical details into a fictional story in a way that is powerful, transformative, and opens our eyes to the indignities in society as well as the world we live in.  More importantly, in allowing the voices of the oppressed to be heard, it also serves as a much-needed reminder that, as a society, we need to do better.   Christina Baker Kline is an amazing storyteller – not only was she able to weave an atmospheric and completely absorbing story (the strong sense of time and place absolutely made me feel transported into theses characters’ world), she also managed to make the story relevant to modern times and what we as a society are currently going through.  

I love stories with strong female characters and this one had many -- Evangeline, Hazel, Mathinna, Olive, Maeve, Ruby, etc. – and also all of the unnamed female prisoners who were also an important part of the story.  This was an enlightening read, albeit also a challenging one given that some parts of it for sure won’t be easy to stomach, but overall a necessary read that I absolutely, wholeheartedly recommend!

Received ARC from William Morrow (HarperCollins) via NetGalley and Edelweiss.

Review: Until I Find You (by Rea Frey)

My Rating: 2 stars

This book annoyed me from the moment I started reading all the way to the very end. The story was far-fetched and the way much of the plot played out, I basically had to suspend disbelief the entire time.  But what annoyed me most was actually the main character Bec (short for Rebecca), who was so overwritten as a character that I ended up tremendously disliking her (even though I think the intention was, based on the way she was portrayed, the reader is supposed to sympathize with her).   Bec is diagnosed with a condition that causes her to gradually lose her eyesight, yet despite that, she is happy and intent on living a blissful life with her wonderful, supportive husband and their soon-to-be born baby.  But then Bec's husband dies in a horrible accident and instantly her world is shattered.  Unable to bear living in the same house without her husband, Bec decides to move in with her mother, who still lives in the house in Elmhurst that she grew up in.  Shortly after her son Jackson is born however, tragedy strikes again, as Bec's mother dies unexpectedly, and  with no other living relatives to speak of, Bec is left to take care of her infant son Jackson by herself.  Fortunately, Bec has a group of friends and neighbors – other moms in their small, close-knit community – who understand what she is going through and are more than willing to help her out. 

 

The problem is, Bec is fiercely stubborn (probably "obsessively stubborn" is a more accurate term) and basically refuses any type of help from anyone — in fact, she is so adverse to people even offering to help her that she often goes out of her way to demonstrate she is perfectly capable on her own, even if it involves lying about predicaments that she finds herself in.  To me though, it's not just the fact that Bec constantly and deliberately pushes away all help of any kind that annoyed me, but also the aggressively defiant way she refuses the help, almost as though she is insulted by the notion that other people are offering to help her.   It defies logic and quite frankly, I found her behavior tremendously offensive.   One example (out of many) that especially frustrated me was when she's at the park with the other moms and she passes out briefly (likely from sleep deprivation and exhaustion, which she was already complaining about early on in the story) — she then falls and hits her head and of course, her friends rush to help her, but she refuses their efforts to help her up, refuses to let them tend to her wound, refuses to let them accompany her home.  Instead, she ridiculously insists that she has no problem walking home by herself in that condition (with her baby in tow) and to prove it, she charges forward to grab the stroller and head home, except that her friends intervene and force her to let them accompany her (they actually had to get on either side of her and drag her with them!).   Another example — the stairs in her old house, which have broken steps that caused her to trip and nearly fall multiple times, yet doesn't get it fixed because she either doesn't have time (overexertion with doing everything herself) or doesn't want to ask others to help her fix it.  So instead, it's one excuse after another — she knows her way around the house well enough to avoid the broken step, and is very careful on the stairs when carrying the baby (indeed, the 2 times — maybe more, I just stopped paying attention after awhile — that she actually fell down the stairs, she wasn't holding the baby, which I guess is justification that she's in the right?  And don't get me started on the "drama for drama's sake" plot point of having Bec – and other characters -- repeatedly  trip / nearly fall / actually fall down the stairs multiple times over the course of the entire story – why not just get the darn stairs fixed!?).

I think one of the reasons why Bec's stubbornness irked me as much as it did was because of the impact of her actions and behavior on her baby, which she seemed completely oblivious to.  Decisions such as choosing to take her son with her everywhere she went Instead of hiring a nanny or babysitter or even having her friends help watch the baby for a few hours so she could run errands or whatnot, were irrational, especially when a few of those situations actually put the baby in danger (like that one scene where she had the baby in a carrier strapped to her chest and insisted on going to the park all alone late at night to poke around, even though she was given specific instructions to stay home).   This kind of nonsensical behavior from Bec basically permeates the entire story.  

I actually had a lot more issues with the story (particularly as it relates to Bec's interactions with her ex Jake and also the local police), but I can't bring those up without giving away the plot, so I won't list those at this time.  Overall though, as I mentioned earlier, the entire story felt very unrealistic to me.  I mean, I get the message the author is trying to send here — the blind young widow who rises above her circumstances in spite of tragedy, who should be admired for her strength, courage, and unfaltering devotion to her infant son — but execution-wise, it went the wrong way in my opinion.  I think most of us would agree that asking for help when it's warranted (I.e.: when one is injured, as an example), is not normally viewed as a sign of weakness, so for Bec to be portrayed to such extreme, just doesn't make much sense. 

One thing I do want to mention — this is actually the third book I've read by Rea Frey and I actually liked both of her previous novels quite a lot, so I'm a bit disappointed (and surprised) that this one fell so far off the mark for me.  With that said, it hasn't put me off from reading her works in the future, though I do hope that I will take to her next book much better.

Received paper ARC directly from publisher (St. Martin's Griffin).

Review: The Night Swim (by Megan Goldin)

My Rating:  4 stars

Last summer, I received an ARC of Megan Goldin's second psychological thriller novel The Escape Room, but unfortunately, despite my best intentions, I never found time to read and review it.  I was still feeling bad about that, so a few months ago, when I was offered an ARC of Goldin's latest book The Night Swim, I snatched it up and made absolutely sure that I would get to it this time around.  Now after having read the book, I'm so glad I prioritized this one because it was actually really good!  I've heard people say that Goldin's books are "unputdownable" and while I can't speak for her previous 2 thrillers, since I haven't read them, I CAN say that for The Night Swim, that is definitely a true statement – as soon as I started reading, I found that I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.

 

Not wanting to give too much away, I will be brief with the premise:  Riding off the popularity of her true crime podcast's first 2 seasons, Rachel Krall is under a lot of pressure to make season 3 of her program Guilty or Not Guilty a success.  She decides to do things differently this time around and cover a rape trial in the small town of Neapolis, North Carolina as it plays out in court, in essence putting her listeners in the jury box along with the real-life jurors who will decide the case.  At the center of the trial is 19-year-old Scott Blair, the town's golden boy athlete and Olympic hopeful, who has been accused of raping high school student Kelly Moore, the granddaughter of the town's long-time police chief.  As Rachel arrives in Neapolis to prepare for the trial, she starts to receive mysterious letters from a woman named Hannah Stills, who wants Rachel to help her find out the truth about the death of her sister Jenny Stills.  Twenty-five years ago, at the age of 16, Jenny tragically drowned in the waters of Morrison Point in Neapolis – at least that's the official version of the story – but in her letters, Hannah insists that her sister was actually murdered. Despite being busy with the trial, Rachel's curiosity is piqued, and figuring that this is a small town where everyone pretty much knows everyone, she decides to utilize the little bit of free time in between attending court sessions and recording her podcast to ask around with the townsfolk about Jenny.  What Rachel doesn't bargain for is that, in a town where everyone seems to have an opinion on the Blair trial (to the point where the town is being torn apart by the divisiveness over people's support for Kelly versus Scott), when it comes to Jenny Stills' case, there's a hesitance among those who were around during that time and no one seems to want to answer any questions.   As Rachel starts to dig deeper, she discovers surprising connections between the 2 cases – connections that could impact the trial as well as upend the lives of everyone involved.

 

One of the things that makes this story unique is its structure – alternating between podcast episodes, courtroom scenes, Hannah's letters recounting the events of 25 years ago, and Rachel's perspective in present time, we get a well-rounded narrative that pretty much covers all the bases.  For me, this structure worked really well, as there was a good balance between getting to know / feel for the characters and driving the plot forward in a well-paced manner – this is important because a lot of times with this genre (mystery / thriller /suspense), the focus is more on the plot rather than on character development, so for this one to balance both is great to see.   From a suspense perspective though, I did feel that this was a bit lacking, as there weren't any shocking twists or turns that left me feeling stunned or blown away – in fact, I actually figured everything out very early on (there were some clues that were fairly obvious in my opinion), but that's okay, since the story itself was compelling enough that it kept me wanting to turn the pages to find out if my theories were correct.

 

Another thing that made this stand out from other thrillers for me is the fact that there was a certain amount of depth to the story that I wasn't expecting.   Both of the cases (Jenny's case in the past and Kelly's in the present) in the story involve a thought-provoking exploration of our country's criminal justice system and our attitudes as a society towards victims of rape and assault.   Goldin did a great job of transferring real-life experiences to the page and, albeit indirectly, forcing us as readers to not only reflect upon the same issues that plague our own society, but also what our own roles are in perpetuating those issues.  To this point, some of the courtroom scenes actually made me angry, as I was thinking how certain characters could so blatantly distort facts to suit a particular argument and get away with it – but then I remember this is what happens all the time in real life.  Stories like this one -- that put a spotlight on the not-always-pleasant realities of life and also of society, that challenge us to think and reflect and question society's reasoning for believing what we do – are so relevant and necessary right now, especially in light of the reckoning our country is currently going through on so many fronts.   In this regard, the chapters with the podcast episodes were particularly well done and, without a doubt, the most powerful parts of the story.

 

I definitely recommend this book -- especially for those who prefer a thriller / suspense read with substance -- but with the caveat that parts of this story will be frustrating and maybe even upsetting.  Fair warning that this will be a difficult read majority of the time, but absolutely worthwhile and necessary!

 

Received ARC from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley.