Book Review: "The Banks of Certain Rivers" by Jon Harrison

Is it possible for your life to be simultaneously simple and complicated? Just ask affable high school teacher Neil Kazenzakis. After struggling for a number of years following the freak accident that left his wife in a vegetative state and made him sole caregiver of his son, Christopher, the two have a strong bond, and Neil is excited about the possibilities that lie ahead for Christopher's future as he prepares to graduate from high school.

Neil is well-liked by his students and fellow teachers, and for the last two years he has been secretly dating Lauren Downey, a home healthcare nurse who takes care of Neil's mother-in-law. But Lauren wants their relationship to progress to the next level, and wants Neil to reveal the truth to Christopher. But when these pressures, along with an expected incident that leaves Neil's career in jeopardy (not to mention his freedom), the life he has carefully built for himself and his son starts to come down, and reveals there are far more fissures than he is willing to acknowledge.

"It's hard to love things, though. It's especially hard to admit it. In my experience, the minute you admit that you really love something? That's just about the time it decides to go away."

The Banks of Certain Rivers is a story about a man whose life was once rocked to its core, and when circumstances again force him to confront challenges he wasn't prepared for, he isn't sure how to react, or how to help those around him. It's a story about love, about being alive, and about the courage to admit when you're wrong, when you're scared, or when you're just not sure what your next step should be. And more than that, this is a beautifully moving story about relationships, and how moving on doesn't negate your memories.

Jon Harrison did a really great job with this novel. I enjoyed so much of this story, particularly the relationships between Neil and Christopher, and Neil and his best friend, Alan, and I also found Neil's strategies to cope with his wife's condition tremendously moving. I wish, however, that this had been the whole of the plot—I found the issue with Neil's job a distracting afterthought and its connection to the rest of the story was tangential at best. There was more than enough drama without it, and I felt that the more time the story focused on the case, the more it veered away from the elements that made the book so enjoyable.

Despite that issue, however, I thought this was a wonderful book and I read it in its entirety on a plane ride. It was moving, funny, and heartfelt, and definitely worth reading. I look forward to seeing how Jon Harrison's career progresses.

Book Review: "The Double" by George Pelecanos

George Pelecanos may be one of the finest crime writers around, but for reasons I can't quite figure out, he's not nearly as well-known as a number of less talented writers in the genre. While his work on the acclaimed television series The Wire has increased his name recognition a bit, it's a shame that more people aren't aware of the talent this man has to draw magnetic yet flawed characters, compellingly twisted plots, and crackling action.

His latest novel, The Double, is another example of Pelecanos at the top of his game. Young, dogged private investigator Spero Lucas, first introduced in Pelecanos' The Cut, returns. Iraq War veteran Spero works as an investigator for Washington, D.C. attorney Tom Petersen, but with a strong sense of duty to right wrongs, he also does some freelance work on the side. Petersen asks him to find evidence that might exonerate his client, Calvin Bates, who is accused of murdering his girlfriend. All the evidence points toward Bates, but Spero has his suspicions, and will do all he can to track down the truth, or at least give Petersen enough information to raise reasonable doubt among jury members.

Meanwhile, Spero is asked by a friend to help Grace Kinkaid, a woman emotionally and sexually manipulated by her magnetically powerful ex-boyfriend. But the man also took something valuable from Grace—a prized painting—and she wants Spero to get it back. Spero finds that this man is the center of a much larger scam—and he and his partners are just aching for someone to come looking for them. Spero will have his hands full—which is just the way he likes it.

As his work is heating up, his emotions are working overtime. When he meets an older, married woman, he falls hard, even though he knows their relationship has no future. And although he has always been tremendously active in working with and helping other Iraq War veterans struggling with PTSD and life after the war, Spero has never really experienced the side effects of his time in the military, but he is starting to find his mind drifting into places it shouldn't go.

The Double is the story of a man who knows the difference between right and wrong, but isn't above crossing over to the dark side in order to protect someone or avenge a crime. It is also the story of a man who has always been able to hold his life together, until he finally starts to realize he might not be as together as he thinks he is.

Like so many of Pelecanos' books, this is an excellent mix of character development, action, and suspense, and it hooks you from the beginning. Spero Lucas is definitely one of Pelecanos' finest characters—a protector who can't always reconcile his violent and sensitive sides. I hope we'll be seeing Spero again soon, and I also hope that Pelecanos will go back on his one-book-a-year schedule, because I don't want to have to wait too long for the next one!

Book Review: "Rules of Civility" by Amor Towles

This was a tremendously enjoyable book, not quite a skewering of 1930s New York social elite, but not quite a full embrace of the idea that the rich are different either.

On New Year's Eve in 1937, Katey Kontent, a secretary at a law firm struggling to make ends meet, and her boardinghouse roommate, the more flamboyant and daring Eve Ross, head to a jazz club in Greenwich Village to try and make their few dollars last past midnight. By chance, they meet up with dashing Tinker Grey, a banker with a wild side. The three form an amusing, competitive, and unusual friendship, as both women compete—both consciously and unconsciously—for Tinker's affections.

When an event occurs that inextricably links the three of them in ways they hadn't planned, Katey finds herself being drawn into New York society. Smart and ambitious, yet romantic and just as desiring of a life that others have, she knows she doesn't quite fit in but she enjoys the ride. And over the course of a year, Katey makes some interesting allies and enemies, deals with unresolved romantic feelings, is simultaneously attracted and repulsed by the society life around her, and realizes she must rely on her brains and her sense of humor as much as her looks.

"But for me, dinner at a fine restaurant was the ultimate luxury. It was the very height of civilization. For what was civilization but the intellect's ascendancy out of the doldrums of necessity (shelter, sustenance and survival) into the ether of the finely superfluous (poetry, handbags and haute cuisine)?"

Rules of Civility is part social satire and part comedy of manners, as well as a profile of a unique woman who finds herself in circumstances she hadn't really wished for but didn't necessarily want to part with once she had found them. What I liked about this book was Amor Towles' way of examining these individuals, foibles and all, but not making them look like buffoons, but rather the sensitive, flawed people they were. His characters are complex and tremendously interesting—you may not have wondered what life was like in the late 1930s in New York society, but these characters and Towles' plot make it worth the exploration.

While nothing immensely earth-shattering happens in this book, it's quite interesting and quite engrossing. You may have seen similar stories, but in the hands of Amor Towles, it feels a bit unique and very enjoyable.

Book Review: "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe" by Benjamin Alire Saenz

Let's talk about how tremendously much I loved this book.

Aristotle ("Ari") is a sensitive yet somewhat angry 15-year-old growing up in Texas in the 1980s. The baby of the family, he feels disconnected from his older sisters, and his older brother went to prison when Ari was very young, and his family never speaks of him. He also feels as if his father, a Vietnam vet suffering from PTSD, is a mystery to him, and he wishes that weren't the case. He spends most of his days alone, distant from others.

"In order to be wildly popular you had to make people believe that you were fun and interesting. I just wasn't that much of a con artist."

One day at the local swimming pool, Ari meets Dante, a boy his age from another high school. Dante offers to teach Ari how to swim, and the two begin an intense friendship. Their conversations touch on poetry, art, their shared Mexican-American heritage (of which Dante is less enamored), and the way they don't quite "get" their parents, although Dante's relationship with his parents is much more open and emotionally honest. which Ari envies.

"I was mostly invisible. I think I liked it that way. And then Dante came along."

As their relationship intensifies, Ari finds himself simultaneously needing Dante's friendship and being scared by that need. He's still not willing to confront his parents with the questions he has about his father and his brother, which makes him angrier and sadder. And when a split-second decision leaves their friendship on unequal footing, Dante reveals that his feelings for Ari are stronger than friendship. Ari doesn't want to lose Dante's friendship but he's not willing to deal with Dante's feelings.

What will it take for us to lay down the armor we have around our hearts, to put aside our anger and sadness and realize that we are worthy of love and being loved? How can a person determined never to need anyone let themselves actually need someone? How can you tell the difference between friendship and love? Benjamin Alire Saenz's novel is so beautifully poetic, so emotional—it's funny, heartbreaking, frustrating, and rewarding. Just like life is.

I thought the characters in this book were so beautifully drawn. While at times Ari's anger, depression, and withdrawal was a little frustrating, watching his character transition in a realistic way was worth it. I found myself re-reading paragraphs that I marveled at, both because of Saenz's use of language and because I was so moved.

Some have expressed frustration that the resolution of the book felt incomplete. While I might agree, it didn't take away from my enjoyment of this book at all. I do hope, however, given the response to this book, that Saenz might consider writing a follow-up, because I'd love to know what happens next.

I read a lot, and this year alone, have read some phenomenal books. Without a doubt, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe is one of those.

Book Review: "The Salinger Contract" by Adam Langer

Wow, this was fun. Part mystery, part riff on the literary world, all completely compelling.

Adam Langer is a stay-at-home dad living in Bloomington, Indiana, caring for his two daughters, Beatrice and Ramona (sound familiar, Beverly Cleary fans?), while his wife Sabine, is a college professor. Adam fondly remembers his days as books editor for the now-defunct Lit magazine, which allowed him to meet authors whose careers he had admired.

His time with the magazine also fostered his own short-lived writing career, as he wrote one novel, Nine Fathers, a fictionalized account of his quest to find out who his biological father was. When the book was first published, and he was searching for authors to write blurbs for the book jacket, only one of the authors he met—crime writer Conner Joyce—agreed to write something. However, the book didn't sell well, and life (and lack of interest in the literary world) got in the way of Adam's writing a follow-up.

Fast forward a few years, and Adam has a chance encounter with Conner at a book signing of his latest book. Yet things have slowed down for Conner, as his last few books in his crime series haven't sold as well as his first, and readers and his publisher are starting to lose interest. And one night, while doing a reading in Chicago, Conner is approached by the bodyguard of a wealthy, eccentric man who makes him an offer that seems far too good to be true, and one he can't seem to refuse. The mysterious Dex wants Conner to write a new crime novel—and only Dex and his bodyguard will ever read it. Conner can tell no one about this deal, ever, and he can't ever publish the novel he writes. And in exchange, he'll receive far more money than he'd get otherwise.

"Well, we all have our own fantasy about our favorite authors, don't we?" "Which is what, exactly?" asked Conner. "That the author is speaking only to us, that he is writing only for us, that no one on Earth has the same relationship to that author as we do...That the author has written his book only for me."

While this deal seems both irresistible and impossible to fathom, this isn't the first time Dex has worked with an author on this type of arrangement. And he has the unpublished manuscripts from all of them—Salinger, Mailer, Harper Lee, Truman Capote. How can Conner refuse? But after Conner writes his crime novel—an exercise he finds far more freeing than writing his novels had ever felt—events start occurring that convince him that he's blundered into territory he couldn't imagine, and the only place he can turn is to Adam.

I'm a huge fan of Adam Langer's books. I really enjoyed all of his previous novels, Crossing California, The Washington Story, Ellington Avenue, and Thieves of Manhattan. (The latter was on my list of my favorite books of 2010.) I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but it drew me in pretty much immediately and kept me hooked. I had suspicions as to where the plot would go—some were right and some were wrong—but I was impressed by the creativity of Langer's premise and the way he unraveled his story. I also really enjoyed his skewering of the literary world.

This is a fun and tremendously interesting book, with enough suspense and action to keep you hooked. Of course, now that I've devoured this book, I'll have to wait a while for Langer's next, but I guess that's the price you have to pay...

Book Review: "The Weight of a Human Heart" by Ryan O'Neill

Since rediscovering short stories about 15 years ago (for the longest time I didn't like them because I didn't like getting invested in stories that end so quickly), I've read the work of many different authors and seen all types of short stories, from the straightforward to the gimmicky. Ryan O'Neill's collection, The Weight of a Human Heart, combines both characteristics, and the end result is as you might expect from the meshing of the two styles, at times powerful and moving, and at times distracting.

With 21 stories at about 240 pages long, this collection feels surprisingly dense. Most of my favorite stories were the more straightforward ones—"Collected Stories," in which a woman recounts the difficult life being the daughter of an author whose popularity declines—and so does her motherly nature; "The Cockroach," one of many stories which takes place in Rwanda, this is about a young Tutsi girl forced to flee her home on the cusp of the Rwandan genocide; "Four Letter Words," which recounted a man's relationship with his father through the years, as explained by different four-letter words; "Last Words," about an aging doctor obsessed with people's last words; and "A Speeding Bullet," the story of a boy obsessed with superheroes, whose home life is less than super.

While I struggled with some of O'Neill's more gimmicky stories, which took the form of infographics, an exam, an overly footnoted story called "The Footnote," and a story that looked at different events that happened on July 1 throughout history and tried to link them to the character's life, I did enjoy a few, including "English as a Foreign Language," which meshed the story of a man who teaches English as a second language struggling with marital problems together with language exercises; and "Seventeen Rules for Writing a Short Story," which defies explanation but really made me laugh.

O'Neill is a tremendously creative writer and he definitely put a great deal of heart into his stories, particularly those which were emotionally evocative. I wish more of the stories were like that, because I didn't find all the stories as satisfying. However, I truly think he's a writer with enormous talent, and I'd definitely like to see what comes next for him.

Cool cover song of the week...

Almost every time I turn on the radio lately I hear Lorde's hit song, Royals. I don't honestly know most of the words short of the chorus (although I can make out "Grey Goose" and "driving Cadillacs in our dreams"), and I didn't know what the song was about until I read an interview with her, where she said the song was about the luxury and lifestyle of pop artists. (Interestingly enough, Lorde was inspired by seeing an image in National Geographic, of all places, which showed a baseball player signing baseballs, with his shirt displaying "Royals.")

The song peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and in August 2013, Lorde became the first female solo act to top the Billboard Alternative Songs chart since Tracy Bonham in 1996. Not bad for a 16-year-old, huh?

I've been a big fan of Mayer Hawthorne for several years now. I love the way so much of his music has a great old-soul vibe, and he has a terrific voice. He added some funk to Royals as part of VEVO's "Unexpected Covers" series, and I was completely taken by his rendition. It's a great counterpoint to Lorde's version.

Here's Hawthorne's take:

Here's a live version from Selena Gomez, which is a little closer to Lorde's rendition:

And here's the original, in case you can't get enough of it, or if you have no idea what I'm talking about:

Check out my previous Cool Cover Songs of the Week:

Borderline by The Counting Crows

How Deep Is Your Love by The Bird and The Bee

Life in a Northern Town by Sugarland, Little Big Town, and Jake Owen

I Don't Want to Talk About It by The Indigo Girls

Only You by Joshua Radin

Pure Imagination by Maroon 5

I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) by Blake Stratton

What a Fool Believes by Neri Per Caso

Poker Face by Daughtry

Back to Black by Ronnie Spector

I Will Survive by Cake

The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face by The Stereophonics

Rolling in the Deep by John Legend

Go Your Own Way by Lissie

Winner Takes it All by McFly

What a Wonderful World by Joey Ramone

Careless Whisper by Seether

I Walk the Line by Live

Dear Prudence by Siouxsie and The Banshees

Smooth Criminal by Alien Ant Farm

Who Wants to Live Forever by Breaking Benjamin

Redemption Song by Chris Cornell and Audioslave

Love Me Tender by Chris Isaak and Brandi Carlile

All You Need is Love by The Flaming Lips

Lovesong by Adele

I Love It by Robin Thicke

Billie Jean by The Civil Wars

Across the Universe by The Scorpions

Can't Hold Us by Pentatonix

Wicked Game by James Vincent McMorrow

Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) by The Postal Service

Jolene by The White Stripes

Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground) by Justin Timberlake

More Than This by Norah Jones