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#716) ADA, Vladimir Nabokov- Nabokov is a ridiculously talented writer, one of those who intimidates if you believe that you yourself are a writer. Imaginative, playful, intelligent, inventive, Nabokov produces tapestries that reward close attention and re-reads. BUT when his subject matter is yet another novel about sexualized children- and ( Read more... ) -
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#714) GROUP PORTRAIT WITH LADY, Heinrich Boll- A peculiar yet gripping book, sadly relevant to today's current political situation, centered around a German woman living through WWII. The entire story is told through interviews and comments from people who knew the woman- once hailed "The Most German Girl in Germany"- with only a sparse handful of ( Read more... ) -
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#711) IN THE FIRST CIRCLE, Alexander Solzhenitsyn- Political prisoners in Russia housed in a minimum security compound in the suburbs of Moscow are the focus of this autobiographical novel. The book opens with a phone call made by a spy inside the complex and the ensuing 700 pages detail the ripple effect one action has on many. The title refers to ( Read more... ) -
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#710) THE WOODLANDERS, Thomas Hardy- Another slice of 19th century English life courtesy of Mr. Hardy, this time taking place in the forested countryside. While the plot is standard- love, romance, some requited, some unrequited, scandal, intrigue- the development and layout of the novel is superb! Every character is connected to every other ( Read more... ) -
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#707) LORD JIM, Joseph Conrad- I have a hard time with Conrad. Dry, serious, very English, his writing has never caught my attention in a way that makes his books compelling. "Lord Jim" concerns itself with a mysterious ship wreck at sea and the possibly cowardly actions of the title character, actions which lead to legal consequences. Jim then ( Read more... ) -
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#705) THE SIEGE OF KRISHNAPUR, J.G. Farrell- Based on an historical rebellion in the mid-nineteenth century, this hilarious and engaging novel follows a group of English diplomats as they confront a violent and murderous Indian revolt that threatens the colonial British Empire. Oblivious to their many many flaws, the aloof, racist, and ( Read more... ) -
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#704) Imre Kertesz, FATELESSNESS- Second only to Primo Levi's account, "Fatelessness" is the most compelling, heartbreaking, illuminating, thought provoking account of the Holocaust I have read. Autobiographical yet not an autobiography, Kertesz' novel follows a 15 year old Hungarian boy's ordeal as he is detained, transferred, taken to Auschwitz ( Read more... ) -
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#703) GRIMUS, Salman Rushdie- Rushdie is easily one of the greatest authors of the 20th/21st centuries and that applies if you ignore "The Satanic Verses", which ranks in the middle of the pack as far as his classics go (though it is still an amazing book). "Grimus" is his first novel and while it toys with the magical realism that characterizes ( Read more... ) -
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#702) THE BRIDGE ON THE DRINA, Ivo Andric- This an informative, engaging, yet very dry historical novel. Centering around an actual bridge built in the 1700's, the book follows the citizens of the town next to the bridge, which is located at an Balkan hot spot inhabited by Muslems, Christians, Jews, Turks, Serbs, Austrians, and Germans, resulting ( Read more... ) -
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#699) BILLY BATHGATE, E.L. Doctorow- An engaging novel about a teenage boy caught up in gangster life in New York in the early 20th century. Informative, suspenseful, and a not too flattering snapshot of life in America, "Billy Bathgate" entertains from start to finish ( Read more... )