A Master’s Parting Gift

The world lost one of its greatest literary minds in January with the death of John Updike. But as fate would have it, Updike left a collection of short fiction unpublished at the time of his death. My Father’s Tears and Other Stories will be Updike’s last contribution to a remarkable body of work. In this collection of 18 stories, to be published June 2, Updike takes us from his native Pennsylvania to Spain to India and back again, offering a multi-faceted portrait of the American experience. The stories and their subjects may vary, but the constant is Updike’s graceful, poignant, keenly observed prose.

Without a Map, by Meredith Hall

In 1965, when Meredith Hall became pregnant and gave her child up for adoption, she was expelled from school, and her parents and neighbors in her small New Hampshire town shunned her.  Powerful and unflinchingly honest, this memoir recounts the life journeys through which she came to terms with those early losses, as well as her reunion with her son years later.  While that reunion is more complicated than a fairytale ending, this story is ultimately full of both hope and forgiveness.

You can hear an NPR interview with the author and read an excerpt here.

Rating:  **** Very, very good
Reviewed by:  stc

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The Levee: A Novel of Baton Rouge, by Malcolm Shuman

After many years away, true-crime author Colin Douglas returns home to Louisiana, to revisit both an unsolved murder and his childhood memories.  Based on a true story, this novel is a quick read with a moody sense of place.  The murder is the hook, but the exploration of how adults deal with their past is the real story here.  You don’t have to be a big mystery reader to enjoy this one.

RATING: * * * A good read
Reviewed by: stc

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Dry, by Augusten Burroughs

This second memoir by the author of Running with Scissors chronicles his efforts to overcome alcoholism at a Minnesota rehab clinic ’s 30 day inpatient program and afterwards back in Manhattan. Who would have thought this could be a funny topic? Witty and entertaining on this very serious issue, Burroughs comes across as “sympathetic even when he is neither likeable nor admirable.” I listened to the audio version narrated by the author.

RATING: * * * A good read
Reviewed by: kh

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Voices, by Arnaldur Indridason

This is the third noir mystery to feature Police Inspector Erlandur Sveinsson of Reykjavik, Iceland. I enjoyed the local details of the cold, dark Nordic winter. The characters are well developed, if a little depressed and morose as the detectives try to find the murderer of a hotel Santa, and Erlendur deals with family tragedies from his youth and the present including his daughter’s drug problems.

RATING: * * * * Very, very good
Reviewed by: kh

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The Music Teacher, by Barbara Hall

A richly entertaining look into the heart and mind of a woman who has failed as an artist and as a wife. It tells the story of a violinist who has struggled with the limitations of her talent and starts working with a young girl named Hallie who is the real thing.

RATING: * * * * Very, very good
Reviewed by: KMD

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