Stone's Fall

Iain Pear's latest novel, Stones' Fall, is a murder mystery and historical novel with a satisfyingly complex plot. Three narrators provide us with the portions of the story that concern them, gradually building to a revelation that I did not see coming.

Set in England, France and Italy, Stone's Fall unfolds over the course of approximately fifty years. It begins in London in 1909 where we are introduced to the widow of the recently deceased John Stone, an industrialist of extraordinary wealth. He fell from a window. Was he pushed, did he trip, or did he perhaps jump? Who and where is the child mentioned in his will? What are we to make of his widow's odd behavior and mysterious past? Each successive narrative jumps back in time and adds a piece to the puzzle.

Fans of fast-paced thrillers may find this story slow to unfold, but Pears' graceful prose, believable characters, and skill at weaving his plot with the geo-politcal intrigue of late 19th and early 20th century Europe are so engaging that I was sad to see it come to an end.

I would recommend this highly to fans of complex mysteries and historical novels.

-Paul


If you like Stone's Fall, you may also enjoy:

An Instance of the Finger Post by Iain Pears
Ex Libris by Ross King
Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson

Book Lists

Occasionally, when I cannot decide what work of fiction to read next, I will look at a ranked list of books and let the list decide for me. I find this technique more successful in cases where the list is compiled by a jury rather than by popular vote. For this reason, I tend to ignore best seller lists -- at least most of the time.

Works that stand the test of time tend to be solidly written and revolve around themes that do not ever go out of style. Some of these books will be recognizable classics; others will be highly regarded books you may never have heard of. Some of them will be great; others you will hate.

Here are some good places to start:

The Modern Library's list of the 100 greatest novels of all time. Defining greatness and narrowing the winners down to a field of a mere 100 are equally arbitrary exercises, but this list is worth a look.

The Modern Library also has a non-fiction list. The reader's choice section of this list strikes me as a bit suspect and appears to have been spammed, but there are some interesting titles on the board's list.

Man Booker Prize. An award given to British works of fiction. Frankly, I find that they give preference to "literary" works and think their picks can be boring, but many people would disagree strongly with my opinion.

ALA's Best Books for Young Adults. This is a set of links for various lists of quality young adult titles chosen by the American Library Association.

Also, be sure to see this ALA list for reluctant young readers.

-Paul

The Passage

Justin Cronin's The Passage is this summer's must-read blockbuster. For some reason I never seem to read must-read books, but I read this one. The novel is divided in two sections. The first is set in the very near future and describes the destruction of civilization following the escape of vampire-like creatures that are the result of a military project gone bad. The second half skips ahead 100 years and focuses on an isolated band of survivors as they defend themselves from the now plentiful vampire monsters. A very long-lived girl is present in both narratives and ties them together. And she might just be what saves humanity from extinction. But you will have to wait for the sequel to find out.

I enjoyed the first part, but felt that the second part was too slowly paced (the book is 784 pages long). The characters in the first part were more substantial, while those in the second were flat and indistinguishable from one another. Many of the survivors in the second part get killed -- sorry if I spoiled a surprise, but hey, there are vampire things around after all -- and I found I didn't really care all that much if they lived or died.

While reading, I could not escape the notion that when the author first put pen to paper he was thinking movie deal. I then found out that a movie is already in the works though the ink is barely dry on the first printing! And then I heard the author interviewed and discovered that this is the first book in a trilogy. Marketing! I guess I should not be surprised. But don't let this dissuade you from reading it. Despite some reservations, I enjoyed it and read it to the end.

-Paul

If you like The Passage, you may also enjoy:

The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan (also the first book of a trilogy)
The Stand by Stephen King
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
I am Legend by Richard Matheson

Overboard: a True Bluewater Odyssey of Disaster and Survival

Overboard: a True Bluewater Odyssey of Disaster and Survival by Michael Tougias recounts the 2005 Coast Guard rescue of two sailboat crews trapped in a raging Atlantic storm. If you liked Sebastian Junger's The Perfect Storm, you will enjoy Overboard as well. Tougias has written several books on maritime disasters and he is good at it. In Overboard he recounts a complicated rescue effort without sacrificing suspense. The most engaging part of the book is the account of two sailors who spend a day and night in the Gulf steam with only life vests to help them survive in waves over 30 feet high. One survives the ordeal; one does not. By the time the surviving sailor was rescued, I felt exhausted myself. -Paul Read-alikes: The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger Into thin Air by John Krakauer  Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer Touching the Void by Joe Simpson You may also wish to read these other books by Tougias.

Birdology

Naturalist and New Hampshire resident Sy Montgomery’s new book, Birdology, is subtitled “adventures with a pack of hens, a peck of pigeons, cantankerous crows, fierce falcons, hip hop parrots, baby hummingbirds, and one murderously big living dinosaur.”  There is a chapter on each of these birds, the titles of which reflect “seven essential truths about birds.”  For example, the chapter on hummingbirds is entitled “Birds Are Made of Air.” 

Montgomery’s studies take her everywhere from assisting a hummingbird rehabilitator to apprenticing with a falconer to coming face to face with the giant, dangerous cassowary in Australia whose dinosaur lineage is strikingly apparent.  With affection for and appreciation of birds and plenty of humorous anecdotes and fascinating findings, Montgomery has penned a book that should have broad appeal for bird lovers and nature enthusiasts alike.

-Elizabeth

I am the Cheese

I am the Cheese by Robert Cormier is a book I have seen on school summer reading lists here at the library year after year.  This year it's my son's turn to do his required summer reading and I brought I am the Cheese home to try to motivate him. Frankly, I was judging the book by its title: I am the cheese?! -- it's got to appeal to an adolescent boy's sense of humor.  Of course, my son wasn't interested. I started to read it, in the hopes of learning enough about it to be able to talk it up as something he would like. And WOW! I was blown away by this book. I read it in one sitting.  It is suspenseful, well-written, and has great characters. It kept me guessing until the end and surprised me with a great "never saw it coming ending."  I had no idea that this is considered a  "young adult" classic and would never have guessed that I would love a "young adult" book.

This summer the Kelley Library is offering its first adult summer reading program. It is called Water your Mind." The goal of the program is to encourage you to read something you would not normally read -- in other words, to not judge a book by its cover.

-Natalie