I haven't posted a Reading Roundup in over a year, but I like collecting all my reviews here on the blog so I'm going to catch up. If you're my friend on Goodreads you've already seen these, and if not, why not?!
Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua (4 stars)
Who knew this was going to be so funny and enjoyable? I thought I was in for a strident lecture; instead, I got a self-aware, self-deprecating memoir. It is true that Chua's parenting is extreme. But she is exquisitely aware of the benefits and risks of her chosen parenting style, as well as the dominant western style. She is dedicated to her children and willing to make the sacrifices necessary to give them what she feels is most important. Any thoughtful parent can respect that. It is a tough job raising kids, and I certainly feel conflicted about the right balance in my children's childhood between freedom and discipline, respect and self-assertiveness, passion and commitment, achievement and exploration. I enjoyed reading the reflections of a mother who has thought very seriously about these tensions. And she's so funny! It's a quick read, and so much smarter and more fun than the endless chatter it has generated.
Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami (4 stars)
I loved this book. Murakami manages the mood so masterfully; it's creepy in an understated way. You've got to be ok with magical realism, or this book will drive you nuts; fish rain from the sky and people talk with cats. But the surreal bits somehow seemed to fit for me. There is a lot to think about, and I've got some more thinking to do.
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein (4 stars)
So much better than I expected! Think of me what you will, but I'm not a big fan of dogs, which made me worried I was not going to love this book narrated by a dog. But it really works. It's just an enjoyable, well written story that tells you the end at the beginning. I like books like that; the tension isn't about what's going to happen next, but about how the characters get where they need to be.
Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah (2 stars)
This is the kind of book that it's hard to even give spoilers for, because it's so embarrassingly obvious from the beginning that people's relationships are going to heal and characters are going to overcome their inner demons by the end. Not that I'm saying that's what happens! The back story about the siege of Leningrad during WWII actually is fairly good and gripping. 700,000 people starved to death there; it's hard to even fathom. It's the wrapper story that I found painfully trite. I'd skip this one.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett (3 stars)
It's a 2010-2011 requirement for every book club in the country to read this book, so I did. It's pretty good, and was especially interesting to read right after The Warmth of Other Suns. It takes place in 1960s Jackson, Mississippi and describes the tension between the nightmarish junior-high-like culture of pathetic, simpering, fearful, petty, stupid, vindictive white women and the warm, wise, courageous black women who work for them as their "help". Ok, so I thought the stereotypes were a little overdone. And it's not that I don't think Jackson had serious problems, and white society apparently did suck, because, hello lynchings and Jim Crow. There was just something too simplistic about the writing and how Stockett handled the characters. But it's a decent story. When your book club reads it, I'd say you'll probably enjoy it.
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