The Chosen by Chaim Potok

From Amazon reviews:

In 1940s Brooklyn, New York, an accident throws Reuven Malther and Danny Saunders together. Despite their differences (Reuven is a Modern Orthodox Jew with an intellectual, Zionist father; Danny is the brilliant son and rightful heir to a Hasidic rebbe), the young men form a deep, if unlikely, friendship. Together they negotiate adolescence, family conflicts, the crisis of faith engendered when Holocaust stories begin to emerge in the U.S., loss, love, and the journey to adulthood. The intellectual and spiritual clashes between fathers, between each son and his own father, and between the two young men, provide a unique backdrop for this exploration of fathers, sons, faith, loyalty, and, ultimately, the power of love.

I read this book for my book club.  I had actually read it many years ago (probably while I was in high school), and then my husband and I had listened to the audio version a couple of years ago while on a car trip.  I decided to read it again in order to be able to discuss it somewhat intelligently and I'm glad I did - I enjoyed it again and it was an interesting discussion.  I rate it 4 out of 5.

The Shipping News by Annie Proulx

This was my book club's selection for the month, and I didn't think I was going to like it at first.  But I stuck with it and I liked it pretty well by the end, and it made for a good discussion at our meeting.  It was a very quirky story about Quoyle, a man who flees to Newfoundland with his aunt and two daughters after his wife dies in an auto accident.  Quoyle has been badly treated most of his life and has no self confidence because of it.  But neighbors and friends in his new home help him to gain confidence and reclaim his life.  I enjoyed the story but struggled with the writing style; I rate it 3 out of 5.

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

This was my book club's selection for May.  I finished it on the 8th, but put off writing my review, hoping for enlightenment at our meeting on the 20th.  That didn't happen.  Many of the members (including me) found the book disturbing; some didn't finish it.

According to Wikipedia:

Lolita is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov, first written in English and published in 1955 in Paris and 1958 in New York, and later translated by the author into Russian. The book is internationally famous for its innovative style and infamous for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, middle-aged Humbert Humbert, who becomes obsessed and sexually involved with a 12-year-old girl named Dolores Haze.

The novel is a tragicomedy narrated by Humbert, who riddles the narrative with word play and his wry observations of American culture. His humor provides an effective counterpoint to the pathos of the tragic plot. The novel's flamboyant style is characterized by double entendres, multilingual puns, anagrams, and coinages such as nymphet, a word that has since had a life of its own and can be found in most dictionaries, and the lesser used "faunlet." One of the novel's characters, "Vivian Darkbloom", is an anagram of the author's name.

As mentioned above, while I was disturbed by the book, I also recognized that it was well written.  Although I often didn't "get" the word play, and I was very annoyed by the fact that there were whole passages in French with no translation.  So I can't really say that I liked the book or that I would recommend it.  I rate it 2 out of 5.

A Room With a View by E.M. Forster

Lucy Honeychurch, a young Englishwoman, goes to Italy with her prim cousin, Miss Bartlett, acting as chaperone.  While staying at a pensione in Florence, she meets George Emerson, an Englishman she is attracted to, but whom is considered unsuitable.  After Lucy returns to England, she accepts the marriage proposal of a more suitable but stuffy man she has known for a number of years.  It is a satirical look at the manners of the time and I found it to be quite entertaining. This is the second book by E.M. Forster that I have read; my first book was A Passage to India.  This book was lighter in tone than A Passage to India, and I enjoyed it a bit more (although I liked A Passage to India as well, and I liked the look into the British attitude towards and treatment of Indians in that book).  One similarity between the two books was that there was an "incident" in both that was considered shocking at the time but would be considered trivial to us today.  This is my second book for the 2nds Challenge 2011 and my book club's current selection.  I rate it 4 out of 5.

the curious incident of the dog in the night-time by mark haddon

Christopher, a 15-year old autistic boy, discovers that his neighbor's dog Wellington has been killed.  He is very sad about that because he loves dogs, so he decides to try to discover who killed Wellington.  The book is narrated by Christopher, who is very intelligent but can't stand to be touched and finds people confusing.  Christopher is really good at math, so when he gets overwhelmed, he works out math problems in his head.  When I first read about this book, I didn't think I wanted to read it, but I really liked it.  It was my book club's current month's selection and my 4th book for the New Author Challenge 2011.  I rate it 4 out of 5.

The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards

This was my book club's current month's selection.  I've also had the book on my shelf awhile, waiting to be read.  I really enjoyed it, and I think it will generate good discussion at our meeting.

During an unusual blizzard in Lexington Kentucky in 1964, Norah Henry goes into labor a bit early.  Her husband David, an orthopedic doctor, drives her to the clinic he shares with an obstetrician, who has unfortunately driven his car off the road and doesn't make it to the clinic.  This leaves David to attend his wife with the help of his nurse, Caroline Gill.  He delivers a healthy baby boy, and is then surprised to deliver a second baby, a girl with Down's Syndrome.  He asks Caroline to take the baby girl to an institution (a common practice in 1964).  Caroline agrees, but when she sees the institution, she can't leave the baby there; instead she takes the baby, leaves town, and raises her as her own child.  Meanwhile, when Norah wakes up from anesthesia (another common practice of the time), David tells her that she had a second baby who died at birth.  He believes he will spare Norah grief and heartache, but this lie haunts him the rest of his life and creates a wall between him and his family.  It was well written and I rate it 4 out of 5.  It was my second book for the New Author Challenge 2011 and my third book for the Off the Shelf Reading Challenge 2011.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Skeeter has just returned home to Jackson, Mississippi after graduating from Ole Miss in 1962.  She wants to be a writer and gets a job with the local newspaper, writing the weekly cleaning advice column.  The only problem is, she doesn't know anything about cleaning.  She asks her friend Elizabeth's black maid, Aibileen, for help.  Skeeter convinces Aibileen to tell her what it has been like to work as a maid for white families and begins writing a book, which has many repercussions for Skeeter and Aibileen, as well as other maids who also agree to tell Skeeter their stories.  It is a very well written book and a look into a shameful part of our very recent history.  It is my first book for the New Author Challenge 2011, and I rate it 5 out of 5.

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

This is my book club's current month's selection.  I didn't expect to like it as much as I did.  I knew it would be a somewhat interesting story, but I generally prefer reading novels to non-fiction.  But this wasn't a somewhat interesting story; it was fascinating.  Greg Mortenson wandered into a small rural village in Pakistan after a failed attempt to climb K2 in 1993.  The villagers took him in, fed him, and nursed him back to health.  When he learned that the village didn't have a school, but the children met in the open, kneeling on frosty ground, to practice lessons that a neighboring village's teacher left for them, he promised to build them a school.  The book traces how Mortenson kept his promise.  Mortenson is now the director of the Central Asia Institute (CAI), which has built at least 55 schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.  It has also awarded scholarships to graduates who wish to further their education, assisted in teacher training, and provided resources for clean drinking water and sanitation.  CAI's motto is Peace and Hope Begin With Education: One Child At A Time.  I highly recommend this book.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

This is the second time I've read this book.  The first time was almost 3 years ago.  But because it is my book club's current month's selection, and I really liked the book, I decided to read it again so that I could discuss it intelligently.

The story is set in Germany beginning in 1939 and is narrated by Death (sounds strange, but it works).  A 10-year old girl, Liesel Meminger, is put into foster care with Hans and Rosa Hubermann because her father is a communist and her mother can no longer care for her.  Liesel's younger brother dies on the way to the Hubermann's home.  Liesel picks up (steals) a book at her brother's funeral that was left behind by one of the grave diggers; the book is The Grave Digger's Handbook.  Even though Liesel is 10 years old, she doesn't know how to read.  When Hans discovers the book that Liesel has been hiding, he helps her learn to read.  Liesel's best friend is her next door neighbor, Rudy Steiner.  Liesel's life changes again when the Hubermann's hide Max, a Jewish man in his 20's, in their basement.  My favorite quote in the book is this (Alex Steiner is Rudy's father):

* * *  THE CONTRADICTORY POLITICS  * * *

OF ALEX STEINER

Point One:  He was a member of the Nazi party, but he did not

hate the Jews, or anyone else for that matter.

Point Two:  Secretly, though, he couldn't help feeling a

percentage of relief (or worse -- gladness!) when

Jewish shop owners were put out of business --

propaganda informed him that it was only a matter of

time before a plague of Jewish tailors showed up

and stole his customers.

Point Three:  But did that mean they should be driven

out completely?

Point Four:  His family.  Surely, he had to do whatever he

could to support them.  If that meant being in the party,

it meant being in the party.

Point Five:  Somewhere, far down, there was an itch in his

heart, but he made it a point not to scratch it.  He was afraid of

what might come leaking out.

I believe there were many people who felt similarly in Nazi Germany; not evil, but afraid to stand up for what was right.  I rate this book 5 out of 5.

The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian

Laurel Estabrook was brutally attacked by 2 men in her sophomore year of college.  After graduation, she goes to work for a homeless shelter, where one of their clients is a schizophrenic elderly man named Bobbie Crocker.  When Bobbie dies, he leaves behind a box of photographs and negatives of surprising quality.  Laurel becomes obsessed with learning the truth about Bobbie and his photographs.  This was a gripping story that I enjoyed very much, although I was a little disappointed with the writing style.  I don't know enough about writing to be able to put into words what I like and what I don't like, but some writing just seems to sing and this didn't.  It wasn't bad, it just wasn't great.  But the story was good enough anyway (I had similar comments about the last book I read by this author - Skeletons at the Feast.  You can read my review of it here).  This is my book club's current month's selection, and I rate it 4 out of 5.

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers

This story deals with the isolation that is common to people no matter what their income or race or status.  It centers around a deaf-mute, John Singer, in a southern mill town in the 1930's, and the various people who are drawn to him:

Mick Kelly, a 14 year old tomboy who loves music.
Dr. Copeland, a well-educated African American doctor.
Jake Blount, an alcoholic carnival worker and labor organizer.
Biff Brannon, a cafe owner and silent observer of his patrons.

The book was very well written and I rate it 4 out of 5.  It is my fifteenth book for the New Author Challenge 2010 (my goal was 15 books - so I met my goal!) and my book club's current month's selection.

In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O'Brien

John Wade has just lost a primary election for the U.S. Senate.  He and his wife escape to a remote cabin in northern Minnesota.  A few days later his wife disappears.  The story moves backwards and forwards in time.  Through flashbacks, we learn about John's difficult childhood, his love of magic, his service in Vietnam, and his political ambitions.  The author presents a variety of theories for what might have happened.  He also presents a great deal of information about motivations and how it is impossible to really know another person.  It was extremely well written, and I rate it 5 out of 5.

This was my first book for the Vietnam War Reading Challenge, my third book for the New Author Challenge, and the current month's selection for my book club.

The Shack by Wm. Paul Young

This is my book club's current selection.  I stopped reading on page 114 (of 248).  I usually read the books for book club, but I really couldn't get through this one.  It is a poorly written evangelical Christian story, and I'm not a Christian.  I was surprised that a book like this was the selection for our book club.  It would be different if it was well written, or if the book club was sponsored by a church.  But my book club is sponsored by my local public library.  Doesn't that imply that it is open to anyone, of any faith (or lack thereof)?

I haven't decided yet whether I'll go to the meeting when the book is discussed; if other members like the book, I might say something that someone would find offensive, and I wouldn't want that.  But I am curious what others thought of it.  Of course, I also realize that someone reading this entry might take offense.  I'm sorry if that's the case.

Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson

I read this book several years ago, but it was the current month's selection for my book club, and it was a really good book, so I decided to read it again so that I could discuss it intelligently.

Kabuo Miyamoto, a commercial fisherman, is on trial for the first degree murder of Carl Heine, another fisherman.  the story unfolds slowly and deliberately and is primarily about prejudice and racism.  There are many parts to the story:  a childhood romance between Kabuo's wife Hatsue and Ishmael Chambers, the owner of the local newspaper; the internment of Japanese Americans after the bombing of Pearl Harbor; the cheating of the Miyamoto family by Carl Heine's mother during World War II, which might be a motive for murder.  It was very well written.  I rate it 5 out of 5.

Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

This was a very strange book.  I didn't really like it very much, but after discussing it in my book club, I appreciate it a bit more.  It is the story of Billy Pilgrim, an unprepared soldier who survived the fire bombing of Dresden near the end of WWII.  He has become unstuck in time and travels through time.  He was also abducted by space aliens and taken to the planet of Tralfamadore.  Several of the characters have appeared in other Vonnegut novels.  Most notable for me was Howard W. Campbell, Jr., who was the main character in Mother Night, the only other Vonnegut novel I've read (and liked much better than this one).  I rate this book 2 out of 5.

The Photograph by Penelope Lively

I liked this book much more than I thought I would from the description of it.  A man, Glyn, finds a photograph of his late wife, Kath, holding hands with her sister's husband.  Glyn becomes obsessed with trying to find out whether Kath had had other affairs.  The story is told from several different characters' points of view.  It is about relationships and listening and whether it is possible to really know another person.  I rate this book 4 out of 5.

The Night Journal by Elizabeth Crook

I read this for my book club; otherwise I never would have picked it up. The blurb on the back made it sound almost like a romance novel. It started slowly for me, and I wasn't sure I was going to like it. But I did - it was a great story. Part historical fiction, part mystery, part love story, it is the story of Meg Mabry, her overbearing grandmother Claudia Bass (whom Meg lived with as a child), and Claudia's mother Hannah Bass, who kept diaries from 1891 until her death in 1902. Claudia published her mother's diaries and became somewhat famous; Meg refused to read them in rebellion against her grandmother. Claudia convinces Meg to accompany her to her childhood home in New Mexico, and they make surprising discoveries while there. I rate this book 4 out of 5.

The Beak of the Finch by Jonathan Weiner

This book follows Peter and Rosemary Grant, who have spent 20 years studying finches on the Galapagos archipelago. This book was the current selection for my book club, and I was afraid I would find it boring, but it was really very interesting. It talked about many examples of evolution that are occurring right now, in an understandable way for non-scientists. Anyone who doesn't think that evolution is a fact should read this book. I rate this book 3 out of 5.

The Cloud Atlas by Liam Callanan

Book 3 for my World War II Reading Challenge, and April's selection for my book club. Louis Belk, a soldier who has recently completed a bomb disposal course, is sent to Alaska on a secret mission: the Japanese are making bombs and sending them out in balloons, hoping that they will reach the US and explode here. I had never heard of these balloon bombs before; maybe because the news media cooperated with the US government in a policy of silence in order to reduce the chance of panic among Americans and to deny the Japanese information about the success or failure of their program. The story is told by Belk, who after the war becomes a priest and returns to Alaska. The story goes back and forth between past and present. This seems to be a very popular way of telling a story these days; several of the books I've read recently have used this method. It was quite effective for this story. I rate this book 4 out of 5.

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce

I have to start out by saying that I never would have read this book if it hadn't been the current month's selection for my book club. I'm not sure how to write a review of it, other than to say that I really didn't like the book at all. I didn't understand it very well either. I had a really hard time finishing it, feeling the way I did. If I had liked it even a little bit better, I might have been willing to put in the time it would take to study it, but I didn't. I hope that doesn't make me sound shallow or illiterate, but if it does, it does. The part I had the hardest time with was the third chapter, when the main character attended a 3-day spiritual retreat. This went on for page after page after page after page, and since I am not a Catholic, or even a Christian, I really couldn't read it all. After this, I pretty much lost any interest in the book I'd had up to that point. I rate this 1 out of 5.