Homer and Langley

E. L. Doctorow has written one of my all-time favorite short stories, and I have always found the Collyer brothers intriguing, so I eagerly immersed myself into his newly-released novel, which is based very loosely on their history. Homer and Langley Collyer were famous for barricading themselves in their New York mansion in the early 20th century, filling it with hoarded miscellany, and dying--one under a collapsed heap of trash, the other, crippled and unable to care for himself, shortly thereafter of starvation.

But I found I could not finish the book. While Doctorow has a wonderful voice and storytelling skills, I found that knowing how it all ended made it incredibly depressing. Sometimes we really don't want to know that they don't live happily ever after. Also, sexual relationships are described in some detail. But with those caveats, you could enjoy a well-written story that I, alas, could not.

The Probable Future

Alice Hoffman has made a name for herself with such novels as Practical Magic, but I have not read her before this. The Probable Future touches on the lives of the Sparrow women, residents of Unity for generations, and definitely different. Each receives a gift on her thirteenth birthday: Elinor is able to smell a lie, her daughter Jenny dreams other people's dreams, and Jenny's daughter Stella can look at a person and see how they will die. Stella's inexperience in dealing with her gift results in her father being jailed for murder, and sets in motion a series of events that transform the Sparrow women and those who love them.

Alice Hoffman writes beautiful and compelling prose. Her characters are distinctive and, for the most part, sympathetic. "Magical" comes to mind--not just the peculiar gifts held by the Sparrow women, but Alice's entrancing voice and spellbinding narrative make this novel one I can highly recommend. The Probable Future is certainly an adult novel, although a mature teen could well enjoy it. I rate it no more than PG, since it eschews sensuality or graphic details.

Making Peace with the Things in Your Life

Why your papers, books, clothes, and other possessions keep overwhelming you--and what to do about it. 

Cindy Glovinsky is a licensed psychotherapist and personan organizer, so her take on getting your things in order has a different take: first, get inside your head and see why you have this problem. The advantage with this approach is two-fold: (1) by accounting for the individual hard-wiring of our brains, we can find strategies to work around any specific brain glitches, and (2) we can recognize that clutter is not a sin, merely a problem to be solved. I was relieved to find that I am not as dysfunctional at decluttering as I thought.

I read most of this weeks ago, so not all my memories are crystal clear. But I kept this book around so I could execute some of the strategies in the back, which indicates that there is more to this book than just a high-level discussion--there are exercises and solutions. Worth rereading if circumstances warrant. 

A Dedicated Follower of Fashion

Holly Brubach knows fashion and writing, and this collection of her essays and articles proves it. After two or three pieces, though, a bolt from the blue clarified a few points for me.

First, this book is now ten years old, and many of the pieces are much older than that. So the insights on fashion will be long-term and philosophical, rather than commentary on current trends. Caveat Emptor.

Second, midway through the third piece I realized I had read this before. This piece, this book. How did I not realize this sooner? Clearly the book did not hold its place in my mind.

So I cannot recommend it, except for the good writing, and clear insights on fashions that are no longer relevant. 

Full Dark House

Christopher Fowler launches his Bryant & May mystery series with an explosion that destroys the headquarters of the Peculiar Crimes Unit in London, along with Arthur Bryant, the elderly and eccentric detective that spent most of his waking hours there. John May, his colleague of many years, determines to discover the perpetrator of this outrage, following clues that force him to revisit the first case they solved together. So we follow two storylines--Bryant and May as fresh-faced novices exploring a string of theatrical murders during the London Blitz, and the modern-day May, painstakingly reconstructing the circumstances of the loss of his long-time partner in crime-solving.

Good things: Excellent characterizations, writing, and story line. Fowler skillfully manages the jumps between time periods without signposts--an impressive feat. And his development of the story is equally impressive--he neither clumsily tips his hand nor springs his surprises out of thin air, but smoothly brings you to the satisfying and clever resolutions of the parallel story lines. 

Bad things: The crudeness of some of the conversations is not to my taste. Also...(trying to avoid a spoiler here, but not succeeding entirely)...the nature of the murders suggested a cruel, even sadistic, mastermind, yet the unmasked villains are portrayed as pitiable, even pathetic. 

I'm still trying to decide if I will continue with the series. But if crudeness is not an issue for you, you could do much much worse. 

Burn Unit

Saving lives after the flames

Did I give up reading in the last year? Not really. I have been preoccupied with moving and convalescence, and reading helps restore balance to my universe. This book is a prime example.

When my nephew and his wife, Christian and Stephanie Nielson, were badly burned in a plane crash in August, in the midst of tears and prayers, I found myself with far more questions than answers. Up to this point, I have known no one who was a major burn victim. And somehow I couldn't see pestering all the loved ones on the front line with my gazillions of questions, when they had far greater demands on their time and thoughts and hearts.

So I reverted to habit and sought out books on the topic. Burn Unit was by far the most readable and helpful of all the books I read. Barbara Ravage takes the reader into the burn unit of a major medical center/teaching hospital, and shows us the devastation wrought by burns on not only the affected area, but the whole body, the whole person, and the whole family.

Besides a unflinching stare at the physiological process of burn damage and healing, we see the committed personnel who work in a burn unit, the procedures, such as debridement and skin grafts, that are peculiar to burn treatment, and follow two victims through the entire process. Add a comprehensive history of burn treatment, and the last question I have is: how did she make it so compelling?

I don't know, but I am grateful. This is the book to read on major burns.

Beatrix Potter's Nursery Rhyme Book

I have found a new respect for Beatrix Potter, who seems to be currently in vogue, what with a movie, a mystery series featuring her as the sleuth, and a biography emerging in the last few years. Part of my appreciation is surely tied to my rediscovery of all things child-related (even a new blog addiction), but the greater part is learning that not only did Miss Potter write her own charming stories and illustrate them with meticulous precision and adorable whimsy, but she did formidable work as an amateur botanist/mycologist, developed tie-in merchandise for the children who clamored for her books, and successfully farmed in the Lake District.

This nursery rhyme book is an attractive pastiche of classic nursery rhymes, her adaptations of nursery rhymes, and her own original poems, accompanied with her characteristic art. For those among us (for I am surely of this number) who cannot resist a good nursery rhyme book, Beatrix Potter's Nursery Rhyme Book is well worth acquiring.

Deluxe

How Luxury Lost its Luster

The Vuitton luggage, the Chanel bag, the Dior dress--all come from a tradition of luxury and exclusiveness. That tradition has evolved into a powerhouse industry that has changed luxury to a commodity that anyone can possess. Dana Thomas documents that evolution in Deluxe, which will change the way you see this season's Prada bag.

Thomas begins by noting the beginnings of luxury, the foundation of the great luxury product houses, and their corporatization, if you will, in recent decades. There are chapters on marketing through Hollywood celebrities, scent and its profitability, handbags, designer clothing, mass production and marketing, and the enormous problem of counterfeiting.

There is, however, a final chapter on The New Luxury. Because when luxury gets democratized, the elite consumers--those who have always patronized luxury--will find someone to provide something truly exclusive. So if luxury is your passion or your profession, you need to read this.