From the Shelves: Still Life

I literally finished reading this book last night and it was wonderful! The plot concerns a suspicious death in a small town in the province of Quebec. Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is sent to investigate. No one can quite believe that it was murder, who would want to murder retired school teacher Jan Neal? She was, by all accounts, universally loved. Surely it had to have been a tragic hunting accident? The reader knows better of course, this is, after all, a murder mystery novel.
The plot and characters captured my attention and held on to it from start to finish. I loved the character of Gamache, and how the author was able to flush out all of the characters, even fairly minor ones, into realistic people. I found the character of Yvette Nichol, a novice detective who has a massive ego, particularly interesting and aggravating. I wonder if she will appear in any subsequent books?
The mystery was tightly crafted and full of surprises. I loved all of the subplots and twists and how everything came together. (That is one thing I can't stand, when an author introduces minor mysteries or storylines and then fails to resolve them.) It was a thoroughly original in terms of how the mystery was solved, and the motives behind the crime, and it was exceedingly well thought out.
The book also provided for me an introduction into Canadian life, or at least a segment of life in Quebec. I know very little about our great neighbor to the north, and I loved noting the differences between American police work and Canadian. (I know that this is fiction of course, but those parts have to be based in reality or no one would believe them.) And those differences are pretty substantial at times. For instance, if the police were in the home of suspected murder in the states, the parents would have had the right to demand that they leave if they didn't have a warrant, and that doesn't appear to be the case in Canada. I don't know if this is just that Canadians are less paranoid/law suit happy than Americans or if the police really do have the right to stay until they crack you. See how little I know about Canada?
My only regrets are that Jane Neal's art doesn't actually exist, and that some of the inhabitants of Three Pines, more than likely, aren't in the other books in the series. This is an extremely well done mystery, and I extend a huge thanks to Tucker for recommending it to me. Highly recommended.

Edit: Apparently, the other books in the series also take place in Three Pines! Joyful day! Poor Three Pines, you are apparently like Cabot Cove Maine.

From the Shelves: Cat of the Century

Cat of the Century is the latest in Rita Mae Brown's murder mystery series that is "co-authored" by her cat Sneaky Pie. The series, overall, has been quite strong, although not every book is equally good. Occasionally, the motive for the murders has been very disturbing, and every now and again the method of murder rates high on the squeamish factor. However, Brown does a great job of letting her characters change and develop over time which is the key to longevity in a series.

Lately though, Brown has really started to use her characters as a way to express her political opinions, which are pretty liberal. Normally this doesn't bother me because 1)I tend to agree with her, 2)the opinions that are expressed are in keeping with the characters who express them, and 3)it is incorporated into the plot so as not to be jarring. That is, something has occurred that makes the character voice his or her opinion. However, in this particular novel, there seemed to be A LOT more of it than normal. Additionally, she chose to set a large part of the action at a real university in Missouri, William Woods University, for the express purpose of drawing her readers' attention to its existence. (She says as much in the afterword). Brown is an avid horsewoman and champion of animals, and William Woods offers a highly respected equestrian science, and she has formed lasting friendships with some of the professors and administrators. You get the idea.

The mystery was sound, and as I read the majority of this in one morning, it certainly kept me engaged. I did find the use of William Woods to be quite forced, especially since the rest of the action takes place in Crozet, Virginia where almost all of the other books are set. I also found the amount of politically infused dialogue to be over the top, making the characters more like mouthpieces instead of the characters I have come to love over the years. Not a bad read by any means, just distressing at times. If her next novel in the series follows this pattern, or worse, increases it, I will have to give up reading them altogether. Subtlety is our friend, and in this book, Brown passed right on by and got chummy with hit you over the head.

From the Shelves: Haunting Jordan

" Jordan Marsh left L.A. for the quaint Pacific Northwest town of Port Chatham in pursuit of some much-needed R & R. As the prime suspect in her cheating husband’s murder, she had been hoping to immerse herself in the restoration of the charming Victorian she’d just bought—and put all talk of homicide investigations behind her. But as she soon discovers, the coldest of cases cry out to be solved, too. For this old house comes fully furnished—with two garrulous ghosts who have a century-old murder of their own they’d like her to look into. Now, if Jordan can keep the L.A. police at bay, and sort through a suspect list of shady characters circa 1890, she might just clear a wrongly accused man’s name—and her own."

I thoroughly enjoyed Haunting Jordan by P. J. Alderman. It was exactly what it presented itself to be, and I came to care about the characters quite readily. I really enjoy a well-crafted mystery and I admire an author who can keep two different mystery narratives running in the same book. Did it bother me that I could figure out who the murders were slightly in advance of the heroine? Not particularly for the following reasons 1)for the historical murder it was fun watching how she figured it out and where she found her evidence and 2)for the present day murder, while I guessed who did it, I didn't know WHY. Plus, the climactic fight scene was something to be enjoyed.

I found the plot point of Jordan being able to communicate with and see ghosts to be handled fairly deftly. She was not at all happy to discover that she could do this and it takes her quite a while to adjust. She is not someone who had demonstrated psychic powers in the past, nor was she someone who makes her living dealing with anything supernatural or new age, which I found refreshing. This, combined with the fact that all of her neighbors readily accepted the fact that their town was heavily haunted and were excited that there was someone who could actually speak to the ghosts in their midst made for some very amusing passages.

I do have a few quibbles though. I thought that the loyalty and almost unnaturally good nature of her new friends was a bit much and a bit too soon. I realize that there was a bit of a time crunch in order to keep the narrative running in a realistic time, but to have developed such fast friendships like these seemed unrealistic. Additionally, there were a few loose threads that did not get tied up in this book. At the time I was unaware that this was the first in a new series so I was irritated, but now that I am aware of this fact I am less so. Finally, there were two different times when a major error took place, (the repetition of a phrase in the same sentence and calling a major character by the wrong last name) which made me wonder a bit about the editor. These are pretty minor quibbles though. I am looking forward to the next book in the series, whenever that may come about. The only information I can find on the author's website is that the second book (no title) will be published sometime this year. Highly recommended.

Book Review: Twenties Girl

So, I finally managed to finish reading The Elegance of the Hedgehog, and while I didn't hate it, I certainly didn't love it, and I was left feeling highly disappointed by the ending. Don't get me wrong, the book uses beautiful language, but overall it is fairly cold and then once you finally start warming up to the characters-wham! Badness. But this isn't a review of that particular book. No, this is a review of the book I used as a palette cleanser: Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella.
Sophie Kinsella writes what most people call Chick Lit, and while I hate the term, it is rather fitting. I first became familiar with Kinsella (like most people) through her very popular Shopaholic series. I've also read her stand alone novels, Can You Keep a Secret and Undomestic Goddess. Suffice to say that she tends to be a tad formulaic in her writing. Typically, things are only going okay for our heroine, something happens that brings her world crashing down in some sort of comedic way, and ultimately she ends up finding love, happiness and a better paying/more fulfilling job. Happiness ensues. Pure cotton candy. And every once in a while you need some cotton candy.

I purchased this book at a bookstore that was going out of business for a ridiculously reduced price. I kept it tucked away for when I needed something really frothy, and fortunately my sister was able to return it to me this week because I really needed something frothy after Hedgehog. Twenties Girl does in fact contain the parts of Kinsella's formula (or more accurately, the chick lit formula), but she changed things up a bit with this one. The comedic disaster that causes our heroine's world to come crashing down is the ghost of her great aunt Sadie. Sadie needs Lara's (our heroine) help to find her missing necklace or else she can never rest. Madcap adventures and a pretty good mystery follow. The dialogue between Lara and Sadie is delightful and funny. I wasn't bothered at all by seeing some of the plots points clearly illuminated as other plot points were clever surprises. Kinsella's books aren't for everyone, but if you enjoy a comical romance with a touching and happy ending you will like Twenties Girl.

Mystery Monday

If anyone were to give either my to be read list or my have read list even a cursory glance, it will become painfully obvious that I thoroughly enjoy mystery novels, especially ones that involve amateur sleuths. I also tend to prefer ones that would be classified as cozy mysteries, that is, no graphic sex or violence, but I have read others that are not cozies. I simply love a good mystery and I'm always on the look out for a new series to satisfy my craving.

I bring all of this up because I just recently finished reading The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley and I absolutely loved it. This is the second book in his Flavia de Luce series, after The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. Flavia is unlike any other heroine I have come across, not only because of her age (almost eleven), but also because of her obsession with chemistry and unhealthy interest in poison. And just so we are clear, even though she is a child, these aren't books for children.

Bradley does a fantastic job of breathing life into all of his characters, who are quirky without being caricatures, and with crafting mysteries that a wickedly intelligent and observant child could solve given an absence of parental supervision. And again, these aren't your garden variety safe mysteries, such as who stole a pie off of a kitchen window, but are in fact murder mysteries. Bradley also has a wonderful gift for language and many a turn of phrase in his books have found their way into my daily language. To give you an idea of his writing style here are some examples from Hangman's Bag:

"I have to admit, though, that Cynthia was a great organizer, but then, so were the men with whips who got the pyramids built." (page 31)

"God blind me with a fish fork!" (page 85)

"I wanted to throw my arms around this dotty old bat in her George Bernard Shaw costume and hug her until the juices ran out. But I didn't. I couldn't. I was a de Luce." (page 203)

The books are just wonderful, and I can't believe I have to wait until next year for the third book in the series. I'm hoping to find some other mystery series to tide me over, as I need them in my reading just like I need a nap every once in a while. I highly recommend both of the Flavia de Luce novels to any and all who enjoy a good mystery.

From the Shelves: Obit

I just finished reading the book Obit by Jim Sheeler. On the surface one might think that a book that is composed of obituaries would be at best morbid, and at worst, horribly depressing. It is neither. The subtitle is "inspiring stories of ordinary people who led extraordinary lives" and it lives up to that billing. Each chapter is an obituary, but it is also the story of that person. In short, Sheeler breathes life into them one last time and makes the reader wish they had known the people and mourn their loss at least in part.
The essays, for really that is a better description than simply calling them obituaries, are celebrations of lives well lived (and in some instances cut too short) as well as memorials to those who have passed on. They are touching and moving and extremely well written. We should all be so lucky as to have Jim Sheeler write our last story. It makes me wonder what sort of stories my family would tell about me when the time comes (hopefully far off in the future). I expect most of those stories would be about my vivid power of recall, or perhaps my ridiculously strong sense of smell. Who truly knows what others find to be especially memorable about themselves?
At any rate, this is a beautiful book and one that I highly recommend. However, it might be better to dip into it from time to time instead of reading it all at once because, while it isn't depressing, it will leave you quite subdued.

Fantasy Friday

So as I mentioned on Wednesday, I recently read Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris, which for those of you who don't know is the tenth book in the Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire series. And I managed this because my grocery store did, in fact, put it out for sale in advance of the sell by date. Oh noes!
One of the dangers with a successful series is the reluctance of the author to change anything about the characters since readers fell in love with them as the are. However, this eventually leads to boredom and repetition. Fortunately, this is not a problem that Harris has. Sometimes these changes are quite good, while other times they are very upsetting. Major changes started happening in book six, with all sorts of shit hitting all sorts of fans in book seven. Book eight was a rebuilding novel and then more crap hit even bigger fans in book nine. Book ten was another rebuilding novel. This is not to say it was bad, in truth, I liked it a lot more than book nine. However, it was a bit low on action and the cover synopsis was a tad misleading.
In this book we learn an awful lot about vampire politics, and Were politics (there are more than werewolves in this world, all collectively called Weres, which is confusing when writing a blog since it is spelled the same as the past tense of are), and to an extent, people politics. And there was a fair amount of vampire nookie which is always fun if it involves the fabulous Eric. Sigh.....
Overall, it was a good read, and it made me very curious about where she is taking the series and left me wanting more. Admirable qualities in a series, indeed, admirable qualities in any book. Provided there is more of course.

That's always the danger with a series, especially an open ended series. I mean, it was hard enough waiting for book seven of the Harry Potter series. I spent the whole time with this nagging worry at the back of my mind hoping nothing bad would happen to J.K. Rowling, not only since I don't typically wish ill on people but also because I had to know what happened. HAD to know. At any rate, with an open ended series the potential for disaster is much higher. Something might happen to the author, or the quality of writing will take a turn for the worse at some point and you're left all pouty over it. But I digress.

I give Dead in the Family four out of five stars. I counts towards my 100 book total, and towards the Fantasy challenge. And it has already been loaned to another fan.

From the shelves- The Lost City of Z

I just finished reading The Lost City of Z by David Grann yesterday for my book club, and I have to give it a qualified glowing review. Why qualified? Because there are some rather graphic descriptions in the book of horrific things that were done to the people of the Amazon basin as well as detailed descriptions of the myriad ways insects and other wildlife in the Amazon can kill you. So for those who are squeamish I would not recommend it. Otherwise, I found it to be a fast and entertaining read.

The book is a nonfiction account of the explorer "Col." Percy Fawcett, who along with his oldest son and son's best friend, disappeared in the Amazon jungle in 1925 while searching for El Dorado, and all of the subsequent people, including the author, who went in search of any evidence of the missing explorers. And there were tons of them, most of whom didn't make it out of the jungle themselves, or if they did, died shortly afterward from the illnesses and wounds they sustained in such an unforgiving environment.

I had never really given much thought to the Amazon, other than disapproving of the deforestation that is taking place there, and not harboring any desire to venture inside of it. (The comparatively benign variety of insects we have here in the states already think I am an all you can eat buffet. I would be devoured within minutes in the Amazon. No really. If you read the book you will realize this is not hyperbole on my part.) I knew (and still know) very little about it other than a passing knowledge of some of the more notorious types of wildlife and the fact that the Amazon river runs through it. It really is a fascinating place, and although I still don't harbor a desire to visit it, I do wish to learn more about it.

For me, that is one of the hallmarks of truly great nonfiction. It opens up an aspect of our world that you had never given much thought to and makes you desire to learn more. And in truth, that is one of the best things about my book club. It makes me read books that I would never have picked up on my own (or ones that it was very unlikely I would read it on my own), and more often than not I find I really enjoy them. Such is the case with this book. It was well written and entertaining. Grann cleverly interspersed the oldest part of the narrative, that concerning Fawcett and his history of amateur exploration, with his modern day quest to discover as much as he could about Fawcett's secretive route before setting out on his own. This could have been annoying, but instead made each section more interesting and vibrant. Additionally, Grann was able to breathe life into these long dead characters, as well as many others, not only through the use of their personal letters*, but also through his deft turn of phrase. Here is one of my favorite passages:

"Now, as Fawcett slipped away from the secluded base in Ceylon with his treasure map in hand, he suddenly found himself amid verdant forests and crystalline beaches and mountains, and people dressed in colors that he had never seen before, not funeral blacks and whites like in London, but purples and yellows and rubies, all flashing and radiating and pulsating-a vista so astonishing that even the arch cynic Mark Twain, who visited the island around the same time period, remarked, 'Dear me, it is beautiful!'"

While he didn't succeed in making me want to visit the Amazon, I certainly would like to see Ceylon (present day Sri Lanka). The Lost City of Z is an excellent read, and I highly recommend it. Just be careful if you're squeamish.

*I find the disappearing art of letter writing to be most distressing and disappointing. I know it is cheaper and more environmentally friendly to use email, but the romance and personalization of letter writing is lost with it.

Dusty Shelf

So this is an idea I snagged from the online version of Library Journal. One Thursday a month I will dust off an older book that I have read and give it its day in the sun. This month's books is Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns.

Here is the description of the book from amazon.com:
"On July 5, 1906, scandal breaks in the small town of Cold Sassy, Georgia, when the proprietor of the general store, E. Rucker Blakeslee, elopes with Miss Love Simpson. He is barely three weeks a widower, and she is only half his age and a Yankee to boot. As their marriage inspires a whirlwind of local gossip, fourteen-year-old Will Tweedy suddenly finds himself eyewitness to a family scandal, and that’s where his adventures begin."

I first read this book in the ninth grade and absolutely loved it. I re-read this book in eleventh grade and I liked it just as much, if not more, the second time around. So many authors who write Southern fiction tend to make their characters so off the wall or eccentric that they go beyond being colorful and into the realm of completely unbelievable. Frequently I want to ask them 1) if they realize that they have reinforced a lot of the stereotypes about the South, and 2) who they knew in real life who came anywhere close to the characters they've written about. This is not the case with Cold Sassy Tree. While the characters in this book are certainly unique and the events are mostly humorous, you never get the feeling that the author is trying to make fun of them. Or that she was trying to win first place in "craziest Southern family" contest. This is an easy read, but with more substance to it than what would be classified as a "beach read." Highly enjoyable.

If you are looking for a pleasant, fun read, I highly recommend Cold Sassy Tree.

Musing about authors

I find that it is very difficult when you have fallen in love with a particular set of works by an author (typically a series) to branch out to their other works. You run the problem of the other books either being derivative (such as Metro Girl by Janet Evanovich), or being radically different from what you fell in love with (such as anything by Rita Mae Brown that was not co-authored by Sneaky Pie Brown). I can only think of one adult author who have found this type of transition with, and that is Christopher Moore. (Children's authors are another matter, there are a loads of them where I managed this such as Elizabeth Enright, Beverly Cleary, and Richard Peck just to name a few).
I bring this up because I just read Deanna Raybourn's latest book The Dead Travel Fast, and while I liked it, I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as I enjoy her Lady Julia Grey series. This really surprised me since I love Ms. Raybourn's blog which covers a huge range of topics. However, I think it is more that I don't truly enjoy Gothic novels. I like elements of them, but generally find that even the best ones tend to be over the top and many of the characters a tad absurd.
That being said, I did enjoy TDTF. I read it in one day and was left with the simultaneous reaction of "what?!!! and "but of course!!!" This reaction is the hallmark of a good mystery novel to me and she really hit the mark. However, I don't think I can give it a complete and caveat free endorsement. If you aren't a big fan of Gothic novels you might want to look elsewhere. Other than that, but especially if you LOVE Gothic novels, give it a whirl.

From the Shelves 8

I've had a hard time picking a book for this month. Should I go with a classic of African-American literature like Their Eyes Were Watching God? Or should I go with a tragic romance, like Possession? Nothing seemed right. And then it hit me. Since February is the "love" month (more on my disdain for that later) why not make it a mini list of the books I loved as a child? So here they are, in no particular order.

1. The Ramona Books by Beverly Cleary (some more than others of course, but no series is equally strong for every book).
2. Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild (I read this so many times the pages of my copy are falling out).
3. Dancing Shoes, also by Streatfeild. (This one also has the pages falling out).
4. Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan. (My copy of this, that was inscribed by my mother, got ruined in our move to North Carolina. That year for my birthday she replaced it, complete with identical inscription. I burst into tears).
5. The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright. (This is the second book in a series of four and I just love it, and will re-read it now when I need a pick me up. I always wanted to be Miranda.)

I was a very girly girl when it came to reading material, but I loved playing with Legos, and the G.I. Joes and/or He-Man action figures that my friends (or their brothers owned). Odd child, that was me.

From the Shelves 7

It is well into the month of December and soon we will be overloaded with saccharine sentimentality and the cloying treacle that is most holiday entertainment. That is why I offer up this antidote, The Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore. Read it now as a preemptive strike or read later as a palate cleanser, but above all read it. It is a hysterically irreverent novel, complete with a twisted yet touching version of The Gift of the Magi, lessons about love and community unity, granting wishes for children, and oh yes, zombies. It sounds absurd, and in some ways it is, but it is wildly entertaining and funny.
A few caveats though. Do not read this in public. You will laugh out loud starting with the author's note and keep right on laughing throughout the book. For some reason other people find the sight of someone reading and laughing hysterically to be disturbing. Moore's books are filled with quotable dialogue. If your friends will look askance on you for saying things like "he no likea the light," then perhaps you should give it a pass. The Stupidest Angel features many of the characters from previous Moore books so in one way it spoils some of the suspense of some of his other novels, but that is a trifling concern.
But if you are already sick of the maudlin pap that is heaped upon us during the Christmas season, and/or A Christmas Story is one of your favorite movies then you will thoroughly enjoy The Stupidest Angel. Read up!

From the Shelves 6

As it is November, the month dominated by the most family oriented of all holidays Thanksgiving, I felt it only prudent to select a book that has something to do with family. To be fair, the connection to family is tenuous at best in My Uncle Oswald by Roald Dahl, but after reading it we can all either give thanks or bemoan the fact that he is not our Uncle Oswald.

Some of the more literate amongst you will recognize the author's name immediately, and you might assume that this is a children's book. You would be very, very, very wrong. My Uncle Oswald is the set up as the twentieth volume of Oswald's diary as published by some unnamed nephew. (It would have to be a nephew as no niece would brag about this man as her uncle.) Oswald is described on the back of the book as "aside from being thoroughly debauched, strikingly attractive and astonishingly wealthy, Uncle Oswald was the greatest bounder, bon vivant and fornicator of all time." And believe you me, Oswald lives up to that billing.

The book is raunchy, politically incorrect, naughty, decidedly odd, and hysterically funny. Basically take everything that makes one of Dahl's children's books so enjoyable, take out the creatures of fantasy, and mix in a great deal of sex and voila! While most people will be relieved that he is not their uncle, if you are anything like me, you will be a tad disappointed that this man never existed.

From the shelves 4

Ah August! The dog days of summer, when it is beastly hot and all you want to do is lay somewhere cool with an icy beverage. The perfect time to take a walk in the woods. No, not a literal one! I mean Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods.

To be fair, recommending A Walk in the Woods is a bit of a cheat as it was chosen as one of our book club books the first year I participated. (Yes, it was my suggestion). However, it is still worthy of it's moment in the blog spotlight. This was my introduction to Bryson's work, as it is for many people because it is the most well known of his books. The premise of the book is Bryson's ambition to walk the length of the Appalachian trail, albeit not in one fell swoop. Did I mention that Bryson is not a hiker, nor, by his own admission, particularly physically fit?

Along with some hilarious incidents, most involving an old friend of his named Katz, this book is filled with information about the origins of the trail, the status of the trail and the environment at the time, and lots of other fun facts and trivia and pithy observations about life, the wilderness and humans in general. At times the book will depress you, like when it discusses the deforestation that is occurring in the Blue Ridge Mountains, thanks in part to the pollution from the cars used by the countless campers who come there each year. Many of Bryson's books contain strong environmental themes so if you happen to drive a gas guzzling behemoth and think global warming doesn't exist then you probably won't enjoy this book. But quite frankly most people who are in that state of denial don't read anyway so it is moot point.

Bryson has caught a lot of flack for this book from die hard trail enthusiasts because they felt that he made light of the difficult nature of hiking the trail, and behaved irresponsibly by going out and hiking whilst being woefully unprepared. Clearly the die hard trail enthusiasts think that people who read books like this are stupid and can't learn from Bryson's mistakes. Anyone who reads the description of how he and Katz felt, looked, and smelt after their first foray on the trail will NOT think "hey! I want to do exactly that!" Or if they do and they end up dying because of their foolishness then they will be a prime candidate for the Darwin Awards. Really what bothers the die hard fans is that the book raised the popularity of the trail with day hikers, and they resent the intrusion. Not that you can really blame them for that sentiment, we've all experienced that feeling when the newbies invade.

But back to the book itself. A Walk in the Woods shines a spotlight on often overlooked, and underfunded national park. I grew up in Virginia and now live in North Carolina and despite my knowledge of the trail's existence, I knew next to nothing about it's history or how it was run. My cousin's ex-boyfriend attempted to hike the trail from beginning to end and the trail kicked his ass,(he readily admits this by the way) and he was a major outdoors kind of guy. It is not for light weights or the squeamish as the book makes perfectly clear. But the book is not all "Danger Will Robinson!", or gloomy environmental information. Large portions of it a extremely funny. Bryson has a very deft turn of phrase and the ability to draw the reader in and make them experience everything along with him. An excellent skill in a travel writer don't you think? So take A Walk in the Woods with Bill Bryson, I promise you that you won't regret it. And best of all, you won't need any bug spray.

From the Shelves 2

This post comes later than I had intended, primarily because I was trying to decide if I was going to comment on this book, as it violates the original idea of these book recommendations. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is not a happy book. It isn't completely depressing either, but if you read it and don't cry the police should come for you as you are clearly a sociopath with no feelings.

The story is set in Munich during World War II. Oh god! It's one of those books? Yes and no. Yes, because it is about the horrors of war. And no, because, you see, this book is narrated by Death. The title character is a young girl named Liesel who falls in love with books and decides, as her form of protest, to steal books (and a few other things) from the oppressors in her city. Liesel, it should be noted, is not Jewish. Max, who is hidden in her basement, is though, and this is as much his story as it is Liesel's. Ostensibly, this book is for middle school students, but at 550 pages, and with phrases like "he tasted like regret in the shadows of trees" and the liberal use of the word asshole, frequently as a term of affection, it is only pretending. Not that they wouldn't enjoy it, but there is so much in this book, it is unfair to stamp it with the stigma of being young adult literature. (And I think there is much more to young adult literature than most people are aware of and I still don't want it labeled as such.)

Despite the darkness there is humor to be found in this book, as well as much sadness. Death is a very busy man throughout this novel, coming to collect those you would least expect him to, and those you do not want him to. The ending is both sad and happy, much like life itself. I highly recommend this book, but have tissues at the ready. For you too, will be "haunted by humans" just as Death is after you read The Book Thief.