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Recent Prose Reads
Jun. 7th, 2023 11:20 amLong time no see! Still alive, trying to get back into Posting.
I've been reading a lot of prose books recently, for the simple reason that a bunch of them came off library e-book hold at the same time. Here's what I thought!
Biography of X by Catherine Lacey: I haven't read anything by this author before, but I got the impression from this book that writing about The South is her Thing. Even though that's a small part of the book it is the linchpin of the entire story. Was surprised by the Connie Converse RPF subplot. I guess if she's still alive she can reappear to complain about it, but that's unlikely. I enjoyed the prose at first (that's why I picked this book up at all) but the narrator and cast all started to wear on me as it kept going. The gender reversal of the art world status quo was weird. I don't know if that one key event would actually end sexism to that extent and in that direction. I finished it, and I feel like I should read it a few more times to really understand the story, but I don't know if I want to. This one I got a physical copy of at the bookstore where I worked right before I quit working there. The hardcover feels like a cheap book imitating a more expensive one. It was not actually that cheap, but I got an employee discount which helped.
Beartown by Frederik Backman: Hockey! I've heard people write fanfiction about that! What really impressed me about this book was the sense of atmosphere, place and mood. It felt overwhelmingly cold and wintry. Also how easily he balanced such a huge cast. The teens were the most interesting part, but the story as a whole would've been weaker if it was a YA novel from the point of view of Maya only.
The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka: Somehow the opposite book to Beartown! This also has a very strong sense of atmosphere, but instead of the cold Scandinavian snow, here we're in the humid smoggy jungles of Sri Lanka. The story feels like a spiral, slowly revealing its center as you keep reading. Like Beartown, it's an intimate family story that affects the whole world around it. The writing is really interesting-- it's not laugh out loud funny, but it is fun and enjoyable.
I've been reading a lot of prose books recently, for the simple reason that a bunch of them came off library e-book hold at the same time. Here's what I thought!
Biography of X by Catherine Lacey: I haven't read anything by this author before, but I got the impression from this book that writing about The South is her Thing. Even though that's a small part of the book it is the linchpin of the entire story. Was surprised by the Connie Converse RPF subplot. I guess if she's still alive she can reappear to complain about it, but that's unlikely. I enjoyed the prose at first (that's why I picked this book up at all) but the narrator and cast all started to wear on me as it kept going. The gender reversal of the art world status quo was weird. I don't know if that one key event would actually end sexism to that extent and in that direction. I finished it, and I feel like I should read it a few more times to really understand the story, but I don't know if I want to. This one I got a physical copy of at the bookstore where I worked right before I quit working there. The hardcover feels like a cheap book imitating a more expensive one. It was not actually that cheap, but I got an employee discount which helped.
Beartown by Frederik Backman: Hockey! I've heard people write fanfiction about that! What really impressed me about this book was the sense of atmosphere, place and mood. It felt overwhelmingly cold and wintry. Also how easily he balanced such a huge cast. The teens were the most interesting part, but the story as a whole would've been weaker if it was a YA novel from the point of view of Maya only.
The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka: Somehow the opposite book to Beartown! This also has a very strong sense of atmosphere, but instead of the cold Scandinavian snow, here we're in the humid smoggy jungles of Sri Lanka. The story feels like a spiral, slowly revealing its center as you keep reading. Like Beartown, it's an intimate family story that affects the whole world around it. The writing is really interesting-- it's not laugh out loud funny, but it is fun and enjoyable.
