May 2011 Reading Wrap Up (Part 2)

Just in time for the weekend! Part 2 of May’s Book Round-up. I do realize this is July and I’m still working on May, but I’ll catch up eventually. Who knew that without the computer to distract me, I’d get through so many books in one month?

May 2011 Book Round-up (Part 2)
This month: THE LOCK ARTIST, A PLAGUE OF SECRETS, THE WORLD AT NIGHT, NIGHT ROAD, THE GLASS ROOM, THE LORDS OF DISCIPLINE


NIGHT ROAD by Kristin Hannah
Poverty stricken, abused, motherless teen, Lexi, befriends rich overly-mothered teens, Mia and Zach, and high school tragedy ensues. I read the first chapter of NIGHT ROAD in a waiting room after shunning People Magazine. Even though the story was already veering toward hackneyed, the writing was so compelling that after my appointment, I went out and bought the book. This is very much a when bad things happen to good people story, along the lines of a Jodi Picoult novel. The characters are a little too idealized, the story line a little too cliché, and it's not really my taste, but I don't deny I was riveted. Funny thing happened when I went to fetch an image for this post. I noticed Stephanie at Misfit Salon had reviewed NIGHT ROAD [favorably] in March. Since I try never to miss a Misfit post, I'm not sure how this one got past me. Had I read Stephanie's description of the book, I probably would have realized this wasn't my sort of story and opted for People Mag. Did I mention I was riveted?



THE LORDS OF DISCIPLINE by Pat Conroy
It's the mid 60s, the war in Vietnam is escalating, and Will McLean, a Savannah boy and our narrator, is a cadet at the Carolina Military Institute (read: The Citadel). Much of the book explores the institute's plebe system with a nod to Charleston's caste structure. The story takes a turn toward suspense when Will, in his senior year, is assigned to keep an eye out for Tom Pearce, the first black plebe in the history of the Institute. A clandestine group wants Pearce out.  I loved this book. I picked it up and didn't put it down until I'd finished it two days later, all 500+ pages. What's not to love? Wonderful storytelling, lyric prose, conflict, romance, humor, friendship, loyalty, and betrayal. Most important? Memorable characters I truly cared about. I admit to figuring out the end twist long before I arrived, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment. By far the most memorable novel I've read this year. [Disclaimer: I am a huge fan of Southern Gothic]


THE GLASS ROOM by Simon Mawer
In pre-WWII Czechoslovakia, newlyweds Liesel and Viktor Landauer build a magnificent modernist glass house. THE GLASS ROOM chronicles the Landauers, from marriage, to their flight from the Nazis (Viktor is Jewish), and beyond. But THE GLASS ROOM is also the history of the Landauers' extraordinary house, a history that in many ways is more compelling than that of its owners'. Although THE GLASS ROOM is fiction, Simon Mawr was inspired by a very real house in Brno, Czech Republic which you can see here: Villa Tugendhat. Mawr is a fine writer (THE GLASS ROOM was shortlisted for the Man Booker in 2009), and while I didn't always connect with the characters, the Czech history was engrossing. Moreover, I was fascinated by the house itself. This was a very difficult review to write because I could discuss the symbolic meaning of this book for days. For me it boils down to this: Even through the darkest periods, light, balance, and reason will out. THE GLASS ROOM is well worth your time.

So how about you: 

If you spent less time on the computer would you read more?