Darkly Dreaming Dexter - Jeff Lindsay (Book 1)

So many people keep telling me that Dexter is a great series to watch. I know the premise - a serial killer who only kills other serial killers. Given what I do for a living, I didn't think I needed to spend my time watching such a show. Though, obviously I am intrigued. Then while at the library the other day, I stumbled upon this book, and discovered that Dexter the TV series is based on it. The alliteration in the title, and throughout the book does not seem to have much relevance to the subject matter - other than that Dexter is methodical in his thinking, and somewhat prone to patterns. He is a blood spatter expert with a foster sister on the force. She is having trouble moving up the chain of command, and calls Dexter in to help her with a rash of prostitute murders. We learn that Dexter has a sixth sense about these things. He was brought into his foster family when he was three, with no real memories of his life before. There are hints of horrific abuse, but nothing concrete. Dexter describes himself as emotionless, and having always harbored this urge to kill. His foster father, also a police officer, recognized this trait in Dexter and honed Dexter's skills, hoping that someday when he finally carried out his need to kill a human being, that he would do so for the greater good. Dexter's character plays into all the stereotypes of a sociopath that I work at trying to dispel - the idea that people are born evil, that they have no choice, and that given the benefit of a loving family and an adequate support system, they cannot possibly make good choices. Of course, Dexter does exhibit symptoms of mental illness - he seems to have hallucinations and he sense a controlling presence in his life. But, ultimately, Lindsay has written him as an attractive Hannibal Lecter who just can't help himself. This part of the character frustrated me. But, as a straight-forward quick mystery with gory details, I did find it entertaining. But, do not look here for complex characters or witty dialogue. Like any form of entertainment that promotes sterotypes of presents certain groups in a less than realistic way, I worry that the general public's view will be warped - and that in this instance, their humanity toward the mentally ill or those who have suffered tortuous upbringings will be lessened. That being said, I can understand the appeal. There are a couple more books in Lindsay's Dexter series, though apparently the television show is not based on these - and has simply taken the underlying premise and gone off independetly from there. Someday, I'm sure I will get around to watching it.

The Final Solution - Michael Chabon

Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, this is Chabon's crack at the great detective story. A young mute boy, Linus, shows up at an English boarding house with his pet parrot, Bruno. Bruno mysteriously recites numbers in German which the lodgers speculate are the key to some sort of German code. When one of the lodgers is found dead, and the bird missing, the local police inspector enlists the help of a strange aging beekeeper (a nod to Sherlock Holmes who retired to take up beekeeping) to solve the crimes. The old man agrees to find the parrot and return it to his rightful owner, but has no real interest in the deceased. Like Doyle's famous tales, this is an exercise in deductive reasoning - but in the end, the most interesting question still remains unanswered. A fun little mystery with a very clever parrot.

The 19th Wife - David Ebershoff

If you enjoyed Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven or are fascinated by the HBO show "Big Love," then this is the book for you. Ebershoff's novel has two separate focuses - in present day, a polygamous sect of the Latter-Day Saints is alive and well in Utah, and a man with upwards of 25 wives has just been shot and killed, alledgedly by his 19th wife. When the woman's excommunicated son finds out, he returns home to help investigate. While the murder mystery unfolds, Ebershoff goes back in history to the beginning of the Mormon religion, and ultimately to Brigham Young's 19th wife, famous for divorcing her husband and becoming an anti-polygamy activist. The historical part of the story is told through diary entries, journalistic accounts, and fictionalized research papers. Given the recent focus on the Mormon religion in the media, I feel like most people are basically familiar with the history of the religion and polygamy's role in it. For this reason, much of Ebershoff's story seemed old hat. I was more interested in the murder mystery, though the twist in the whodunnit was predictable. This was a book I got into quite quickly and I liked the idea of it - and all the feminist issues that are wrapped up in polygamy, and the idea that it is quite difficult to give up the ideas you are raised with, not matter how crazy they sound to outsiders. This was a good story, but I didn't feel like it presented anything too original in the attempt to be scandalous polygamy genre.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

This book is written as a series of letters about the WWII occupation of the Channel Islands by the Germans. Juliet Ashton is a writer, famous for her humorous columns during the way. As she seeks for a more serious topic to write about after the end of the war, she is contacted by a gentleman from the Channel Islands, Dawsey, a member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. They begin a correspondence, and as Juliet asks more questions about the Society, Dawsey puts her in touch with the other members. In addition to their letters, Juliet writes back and forth with her publisher, as well as Mark, a wealthy admirer. The focus, however, is on the Society, which was created on the fly by a woman named Elizabeth when its members were questioned by the Nazis about their meetings. As Juliet digs further, she learns more about occupied life - and discovers that Elizabeth was taken away and remains missing despite the war's end. This charming book reminded me quite a bit of 84, Charing Cross Road - both because of the frequent talk of rationing, but also because of the shared love of books and reading across water. I am a fan of the lost art of letter writing, and am quickly taken in by all books that take this format. There is a lot to this one -from politics to love. It left me feeling quaint and warm, and wanting to join a book club of my own.

Outliers - Malcolm Gladwell

Gladwell's latest book takes a look at successful individuals and groups, and their paths to success. His hypothesis is that while innate ability and hard-work ceretainly play a major role in success, all successful people have been given some preference and chance that was not based on being the best or the brightest. His areas of examination are quite interesting - he looks at professional hockey players and their dates of birth, he looks at Bill Gates and his access to computers at a very young age, he looks at Asians and their cultural work ethic which had lead to their superiority in math. I've seen several critiques of this book, accusing Gladwell of molding the facts to fit his hypothesis. But, possible criticisms aside, I think Outliers makes a very important and relevant point about success. It is a call to provide opportunity to everywhere - not to discount the people who have achieved success, but to imagine the efficient and productive world we would live in if everyone were given the same chances. I particularly enjoyed the chapters about airline crashes - in which Gladwell argues that the reason for non-mechanical crashes are often due to cultural coomunication styles involving deference (or lack thereof) to heirarchy. His dissection of conversations is fascinating - and is easily transferable from the cockpit to any work situation. I also enjoyed one of his later chapters about KIPP schools - and the idea that public schools work for both low-income and high-income students, but that the difference in achievement lies in what these kids are exposed to during their summer breaks. Like Gladwell's other books (The Tipping Point and Blink), this book is filled with ideas that make for fun and worthwhile discussion.

2009 Tournament of Books

http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/the_rooster/the_2009_tournament_of_books.php

If you're looking for award-worthy fiction in the new year, this is a really fun way to learn about some new books. The Tournament of Books is the NCAA Tournament for readers. It starts out with 16 books - one pitted against another. Different authors determine which book "wins" and proceeds on to the next round. But, there is also a Zombie round in which readers can vote on-line and resurrect books that have already lost. It's arbitrary, but fun. And, even if you don't play along, at the very least, it is a good list to mine for great books.

This year's list of 16 includes only one book that I've already read (Unaccustomed Earth), but many that I'm in the queue for at the library. I'm not sure when the tournament kicks off, but hopefully I'll have some time to digest a bunch of these so I can be justifiably outraged when my favorites are kicked to the way-side.

The Flying Troutmans - Miriam Toews

This book was one of the submission for the Saroyan Prize - the contest I reviewed books for earlier in the year. I did not review this one, but it ended up being a finalist and I'm glad I remembered to add it to my "to-read" list. The Flying Troutmans is justifiably billed as a literary Little Miss Sunshine (I don't know if that movie was itself actually based on a book) - and features Hattie, home from a recent break-up in Paris, who finds that her unstable sister Min has been committed to a mental hospital. Hattie is left to care for Min's teenage son (obsessed with basketball and carving words with his knife into Hattie's dashboard) and pre-teen daughter (full of questions, a need for love, and a disdain for cleanliness). She decides to take them on a road trip in her van to California to find their long-lost father. The brilliance of this book lies in the interaction of the characters - the dialogue is hilarious, and Hattie's desire to protect the children, despite her inability to do so and their perceptive abilities, is touching and heartbreaking at the same time. This is a book that deals with serious family issues, but in a way that is real - with lots of humor to mask the pain and helplessness of the situation. It made me smile, laugh, and cry all at once. Definitely better than Cats.