October 2018 Books

The Great Believers, Rebecca Makkai (2018)

This well-written novel begins with a funeral.  I want to name a new genre; Post-tragic literature would address how people survive after a tragedy when the story isn’t really comic, and this would be its epitome.  In The Great Believers, two narrators at different times tell their stories, crafted in a way that intersects and develops the other.  Yale Tishman is a handsome gay man in Chicago in 1985, enjoying a long term relationship that should protect him from the disease that has just killed a good friend.  Fiona in 2015 is the little sister of that friend, and she bonded with Yale and friends before Nico’s death.They supported each other as the AIDS crisis developed. Now Fiona is struggling with a soured relationship with her daughter, staying in Paris with an artist from her brother’s circle. With vibrancy and telling detail, friendships help them recover from pain and restore the desire for life and joy. Makkai has written a poignant treasure I highly recommend.

The Leavers, Lisa Ko (2017)

I read a total of 3 excellent novels this month. The second concerns a missing mother. Deming Guo’s Chinese mother disappears when he is still young. Deming is left with another family in NYC They put him in a foster home, and Deming is adopted by white professors upstate. His new parents change his name and bring him up in a town where he is the sole Asian. Now flunking out of college, Daniel (Deming’s new name) flounders, wondering where he fits and feeling unwanted.  Then a childhood friend reappears with a new clue about his mother. Will finding out what really happened solve his issues? We know it won’t be a fairy tale ending. Ko’s novel is very satisfying, a tale of cultures in conflict and the specific injustices wrought upon immigrants.

Daughter of the Pirate King, Tricia Levenseller (2017)

Alosa is the daughter of the Pirate King, and he wants a treasure map, so she goes into disguise as a captive on an enemy ship to locate the map. She is powerful even in captivity, with fighting skill, leadership abilities, and intelligence (as well as ego). When Riden, her attractive captor, seems to fall for her, she’s still manipulative even as she feels a similar attraction.  Tons of romantic angst does not cause her to lose her tough persona. This may have been written for middle schoolers, but my new favorite escapism will be reading Levenseller!

Overturned, Lamar Giles (2017)

I’d describe Overturned as Noir Young Adult in Las Vegas, perfect for a movie. Nikki’s father is famous gambler and he’s taught her to be a great poker player, surprising others with her skills as a young African American girl at the card tables. Nikki gambles to build her savings to pay for college tuition while her dad is in jail. After he gets out, tragedy leads her to investigate the mystery around her father, which will require her poker skills and more. I liked the pacing, the unreality of Vegas, and the Dashiell Hammett voice.

Geekerella, Ashley Poston (2017)

The book and the cover are both so cute, spoofing off the Cinderella story. Elle lives with her horrible stepmother and stepsisters after her dad dies.  She escapes by getting a job on a food truck, and watching Starfield reruns over and over, a show she loved with her dad. She blogs fan fiction and her suspicions of the planned movie reboot.  She considers going back to the big con (costumed convention) her dad started, and makes it a goal when she finds out about a cosplay costume contest, with the winners going to a Cosplay Ball. Meanwhile, she has started a conversation with a boy based on a wrong telephone number. Every other chapter is from Darien’s point of view, as he plays the hero of the movie, Prince Carmindor, and falls in love with the girl he met on the phone. Tensions build as readers realize Elle’s blogs have been blaming Damien for ruining the still unreleased remake, and they will meet at the ball. Don’t expect realism, but these two geeks recreate a fairy tale suitable for young teens and romance readers.

Oddity, Sarah Cannon (2017)

Ada is in charge of her middle school sneak squad, afraid of nothing in this absurd and eerie story of a town that battles monster puppets, robot bunnies, and blobs. Saddened by her sister’s disappearance, Ada challenges the town’s powers and runs headlong into an even more mysterious side of the town she loves to outwit. This preteen African American leads her buddies with quickness and aplomb aplenty.

Song of the Current, Sarah Tolcser (2017)

Caroline was raised by her father, a river boatman guided by the god of rivers. Worried that she never had the help of a god, she nevertheless determines to transport a cargo he refuses.  That is more work than she expected, but her friends and her determination help her succeed against political enemies, greedy mercenaries, and evil magicians. Romance ensues (spoiler alert needed for reading level: lots of not-too-explicit sex).