The Quirks: Welcome to Normal by Erin Soderberg

Yes, this is a kids book for ages 8 - 12. I received an advanced readers copy, thought it looked amusing, and read it this morning. The story is about a family, the Quirks, who have moved to the town of Normal, Michigan. Each member of the family except for one, Molly, has a magical power that makes them unique. These 'powers' have continually gotten the family in trouble, so they have moved around often. They chose Normal because they hoped that they could be normal there instead of quirky. The mom in the family can control minds to a certain extent, the grandpa can leap back and forth in time a few minutes each way, the little brother is invisible to all but his sister Molly, things in the other sister's imagination have a way of becoing real. All these quirks lead to many funny situations.

I had thought from reading brief summaries ahead of time that the book would be a little funnier than it turned out to be, but I liked it anyway. It has a nice theme for middle grade kids. The idea is that, if you feel you are different  and have a hard time fitting in because of it, stop thinking of your difference as a bad thing and instead think about how you can use your different abilities for good.

But, no mistake, there are many funny events and situations in the book which will amuse young readers. The little brother gets into lots of mischief because no one can see him. For instance he 'painted' the white picket fence around his house with a sandwich which left the fence with a pinkish tinge and a hammy smell. The sister imagined a little monster into existence which she named Niblet because of its tiny toes.

I'd recommend The Quirks to young readers. I'm sure they'd get a kick out of it. I think there will be other Quirk books in the series too.

Room by Emma Donoghue

Loosely based on similar actual events, this is the story of a little boy, Jack, who was born in captivity and remained there until he was 5 in 'Room' with his mother, who had been kidnapped and held captive for sexual purposes. The story is told from his viewpoint. Jack is very verbal and intelligent, but has absolutely no concept of the world outside. He has been able to watch tv, but thinks everything on it is fantasy.

I liked how the mother structured Jack's day and tried to see that he studied and learned, got as much exercise as possible in the confines of their small space, and ate as well as possible. I was bothered about her plan to use Jack as a means of escape.

Much of the story revolves around the post-Room life of Jack and his mother...people's reactions to them, and how they learned to integrate into the world. For the mother it was a long hoped for return, but for Jack it was a whole new world that could be quite frightening.

I don't think the mother's depression was explained well enough. I didn't think the way her parents treated her on her return was realistic. If it was, it was very annoying. I didn't understand how some of the family could take Jack to the mall on his first trip out. I could understand that there would be mixed feelings and misunderstandings, but such gross lack of understanding on the part of seemingly intelligent people was unrealistic.

All in all this was an interesting story that ends with a feeling of hope for the future. of Jack and his mother.

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Though normally I don't care for fantasy, I did find the time travel aspects of this book moderately interesting. It was written of as a genetic defect in a way that made it seem more 'real' than if it were written as pure science fiction.

The story is about the love between Henry, the time traveler, and Clare. From Clare's point of view they meet when she is 6 yrs. old and he is 36. They meet in real time when Clare is 20 and Henry 28. The books chapters are written alternately from Clare's and Henry's viewpoints. The chapters are headed with a listing of the date and the ages of Clare and Henry at the time. Not being able to read this entire, somewhat long, book at one sitting, I found it somewhat hard to keep track of who was who, and what was when, and what had already happened, or what was in the future.

For all it's length, the author didn't really develop the personalities of the characters that much. Henry the son of musicians, was an alcoholic and did drugs, but managed to hold a job as a librarian. Clare, a paper artist,  came from a weathy pampered  background and seemed to only work on her art, apparently not needing a day job. Once the two of them met in their twenties, their relationship seemed to be based almost entirely on sex. That became tiresome when I would have rather learned something more about them as people.

I did want to see what happened, but it took a long time for the book to get there. A lot of what was written about seemed peripheral to the story, and I found myself wishing the author would just get on with it.

There was some good almost poetic writing in the book, and I enjoyed the setting in Chicago since I am familiar with many of the places mentioned.

I gave this book a 3 star rating (liked it) on Goodreads, but really would have rather given it 2 1/2.

One Day by David Nicholls

The chapters in this book each cover one day, July 15, for 20 years in the lives of the two main characters, Emma and Dexter. It's an interesting approach which jumps back and forth between the viewpoints of the characters in a kind of 'how does each one view the same events differently?' way. The tale is basically about how these two are drawn to each other but can't really admit it. We see how that affects their relationship as friends over the years.

I found the book interesting enough to finish, wondering how it would all turn out, but there were things that bothered me. Dexter seemed like such a looser who faced almost everything in his life, good or bad, with drinking and drugs. Emma was more interesting and had much more character as a person, but even she did some crummy things. I really couldn't see why she was so attracted to Dex. At one point a drunk Dexter is left alone with a baby. Wow. That really angered me.

Also there was the occasion where a letter from one to the other was inadvertantly and unknowingly left unsent, thus perhaps altering the course of the relationship. I hate when that kind of thing happens. It always seems contrived.

Then finally I hated the ending. It was also contrived. It made me feel like I had wasted my time reading through all the rest of the book.

There was some humorous dialogue in the book, but overall I did not care for this novel.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

 

This is the true story of how cells taken in 1951 from Henrietta Lacks, a poor black woman, have been used ever since as one of the most important cell lines in medical research. For some reason, these cells, called HeLa, would continuously divide, unlike any other cells previously known. They became an invaluable tool in the development of the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping and more.

The author has done exhaustive research into the background of Henrietta and her family. She writes about their ignorance concerning what was done by the medical establishment... they didn't learn about the cells until more than 20 years after they were taken. And she writes about the whole issue of medical ethics, dealing with racial politics and the even broader issue of informed consent.

This is a fascinating book. I was totally unaware of the HeLa cells previously, so found the story so interesting. At the same time the treatment of the Lacks family, who couldn't even afford proper healthcare themselves, while companies were making money selling the HeLa cells, was really maddening. The author writes about the family in such a compassionate way, even while talking about their foibles and faults.

At the end of the book the author has included several helpful reference chapters, Where Are They Now, an Afterword, a Cast of Characters, a timeline, notes, and an index, among others. There are also a few pages of photos of the family and the doctors.

I would highly recommend this well written book to everyone. You will not regret reading it.

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson

 

 

What an enjoyable book this is. It's the story of a retired English army officer who leads a quiet life as a proper Englishman, set in his ways, in a small village in the English countryside. Though Major Pettigrew is a stickler for convention, he is still likeable. After the unexpected death of his brother, he becomes friends with Mrs. Ali, a widowed local Pakistani shopkeeper, when he finds they have much in common. This is a very unconventional friendship in a society that thrives on thinking of itself as the privileged locals, and turns up its nose at 'foreigners'.

The whole story charmingly and humorously details the budding romance of this older couple and tells how the two deal with the stodgy culture and traditions of the townsfolk and with the pressures of families who are slow to change from the way things have always been.

The story equally pokes fun at the younger generation as well as the older, at the English as well as the Pakistani, and all in a lighthearted way. I can easily see it as one of those wonderful British TV series on public television.