Collected Miscellany

I seem to be back on a fables, myths and legends type kick again (not that I ever got off it). And certainly Bill Willingham’s Peter & Max fits right in to that theme.

As the subtitle notes (a Fables novel) this book is an outgrowth of Willingham’s popular Fables series of comics:

Fables is a unique series imagining that all of your favorite nursery rhyme, storybook, and fable characters are real and living in New York City.

The characters have all escaped from their own homelands and gathered in a small area of New York. Of course, this is only the human looking characters. All of the animals, Puss in Boots, the Three Little Pigs, Mother Goose, and more, live in an area of upstate New York Known as The Farm.

I have not read any of these comics but the hook was intriguing.  I immediately thought of the Sister’s Grimm series but with an adult perspective rather than YA. Since I love SG I wanted to check out this similar sounding take on fairy tales. The fact that it came with illustrations only added to my interest.

And those expectations were largely met. Peter & Max is a creative and interesting reworking of the Pied Piper story. It left me wondering if this is a one off building on the comics or whether we can expect more novel exploration of Fabletown.

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The few dedicated regular readers of this blog will know that I am fascinated by myths and legends and of their reworking and re-imagining. So it is not a big surprise that I was intrigued by the novel Ransom by David Malouf.

Edmund White’s NYT review has a concise plot summary:

David Malouf’s “Ransom” reimagines the tragic story at the heart of “The Iliad.” Achilles mourns his childhood friend Patroclus after he is killed by Hector. Achilles takes his revenge by killing Hector in battle and desecrating his body.

The central action in Mr. Malouf’s novel occurs when Priam, Hector’s father and king of Troy, travels in a mule-drawn cart with half of the city’s treasure (the “ransom”) to plead for the return of Hector’s body so that it can be buried properly. Two instances of towering grief meet in the encounter.

As is so often the case, your knowledge of the backstory and your expectations will play a big role in your take on this story.

Those with a stronger knowledge of the Illiad and the story at the center of the novel might have stronger feelings and/or higher expectations that those who read it “straight” as it were.

But one thing I think everyone can agree on is that it is beautifully written and, at times, quite moving. More below.

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I was practically bullied into reading 31 Hours. So many people on Twitter were gushing about it and the folks at Unbridled Books were obviously excited about it. When I was able to get an ARC at Net Galley I figured I should just give in to the peer pressure.

Like most things in my life these days, it took me a while to get it together but I finally managed to read it. And I am glad I did as it was an enjoyable and interesting read. But I had a host of reactions from a variety of angles that led to an ambivalent conclusion.

So I will try to organize my thoughts by themes or perspectives.

First the basics. As you might have guessed from the title, the story takes place over 31 hours. The central character is Jonas Meitzner a 21-year old who has dropped out of college and who – lonely, emotional and confused – connected with Islamic terrorists in New York City.  The story relates the hours as he prepares to complete a suicide mission in the heart of the city.

Interwoven in with the story of Jonas are the lives of his friends, family and potential victims: his divorced parents, his high school best friend turned recent lover (and her family), and a homeless panhandler who makes his living on the subway system Jonas plans to attack.

My semi-organized thoughts below …

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Death of a Valentine (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries) by M.C. Beaton

Publishers Weekly

In bestseller Beaton’s enjoyable 25th Hamish Macbeth mystery (after 2008’s Death of a Witch), a Valentine’s Day parcel explodes in the face of the Scottish Highlands’ Lammas festival queen, Annie Fleming, as soon as she tries to open it, killing her instantly. Hamish Macbeth, newly promoted to sergeant, would rather investigate with only his trusty pets in tow, but is instead forced to tote along his new constable, the less than professional Josie McSween. Considered “prim and proper and a right innocent,” Annie turns out to have been leading a less than virtuous double life, with no shortage of suspects in her murder. A much sought after bachelor, Hamish desperately tries to break the case, while Josie, with dreams in her eyes, strives to crack Hamish’s heart. Will Josie succeed in getting Hamish to say “I do” at the altar? For all the book’s farcical moments, Beaton takes care as usual to provide a satisfying police procedural.

I thought it would be appropriate to look back over the books I read in 2009 and pick out a few of my favorites.  Keep in mind what follows is my list of favorite reads in 2009 not books published in 2009. And the list is not in particular order or rank.

1) John the Baptizer by Brooks Hansen:

No matter your faith background, or lack of it, or your knowledge of the Bible, or lack of it, I highly recommend John The Baptizer.  Its blends the historical and the literary in ways that defy genre and subject matter to create a powerful story.

2) Right Time, Right Place by Richard Brookhiser

For anyone wanting to understand the conservative movement, and its flagship magazine, Right Time, Right Place is a must read.  And anyone interested in becoming a journalist/writer would do well to read it. But at its heart is a more humane vision: that being true to your ideals and friends is what’s important.

3) The Everafter War by Michael Buckley

With the Everafter War Michael Buckley again shows why this series has won the acclaim and popularity it has.  Each book has just the right amount of humor and seriousness; of plot and character development mixed with satire and slapstick.  He keeps the reader guessing – although both the traitor and the master are pretty easy to spot – and despite all the silliness (and the YA audience) the characters are surprisingly well developed. It is just an ideal light read for me and for kids of all ages.

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The Five Greatest Warriors by Matthew Reilly

Publishers Weekly:

In the thrilling third installment in bestseller Reilly’s series to feature Jack West Jr. (after Seven Ancient Wonders and The Six Sacred Stones), the adventurer from the Australian outback and his band of merry men, women and children race against several nefarious groups to defuse a disastrous celestial event. The planetary entity known as the “Dark Star,” the evil twin to our sun, is set to return to our solar system, igniting a massive negative energy source that will destroy all life on earth. It’s a tough challenge, but if anyone can save the world, it’s Jack. There are riddles to solve, bad guys to kill and derring-do to be done, all of which flashes by as one action scene piles onto the next. Readers should leave their thinking caps behind, hang onto the panic bar and be prepared to be flung hither and yon.Plenty of maps and diagrams add to the fun.

Death of a Witch (Hamish Macbeth Mysteries) by M.C. Beaton

Publishers Weekly

Cover via Amazon

In bestseller Beaton’s devilishly droll 24th mystery to feature police constable Hamish Macbeth (after 2008’s Death of a Gentle Lady), the Scottish Highlands’ most stubborn (and romantically challenged) bachelor returns to his home village of Lochdubh from a disappointing vacation to discover a witch stirring up trouble. To Macbeth’s annoyance, the sex-starved local men have fallen under the spell of Catriona Beldame, who turns out to be a runaway bride with a shady past. Macbeth longs to prove she’s selling illegal (and bogus) remedies for sexual dysfunction, and warns her to stop if she is. Macbeth gets a shock when someone murders Beldame and sets her house on fire-soon after Macbeth is overheard to say he’d like to kill her. Three more murders of other women quickly follow. Could a serial killer be loose in sleepy Lochdubh? As usual, Beaton’s crisp plotting and effervescent humor complement Macbeth’s deft crime solving.