Wednesday, August 27, 2008

The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Started: 8/18/08
Finished: 8/26/08
Year: originally published 1851. This edition 1963
Pages: 285
Genre: Classic
Grade: B-
Reason for reading: booksfree.com, one of 1001 books you should read before you die
Blurb (from back cover): "Among the Puritan ancestors of the sensitve and guilt-persecuted Hawthorne was a judge-John Hawthorne-who participated in the infamous witchcraft trials of Salem. This John Hawthorne was probably the original of the cruel Colonel Pyncheon, builder of the House of the Seven Gables, upon whose head old Matthew Maule, about to be hanged, uttered the curse that was to haunt the old house and its inhabitants for generations.
"The climax of this powerful and darkly tragic novel comes when Judge Pyncheon, wealthy and hypocritical cousin of Miss Hepzibah Pyncheon and her brother Clifford, attempts to have Clifford declared insane. In a conclusion of great depth-and containing some of Hawthorne's best writing-the judge's hand is stayed by death and his wealth reverts to his intended victims. When the Pyncheons' country cousin Phoebe marries the lodger Holgrave-old Maule's descendant-the ancient curse is broken and peace descends on the House of the Seven Gables."
Opinion: Hawthorne certainly has his own writing style-10 pages on one's death? It was an enjoyable classic but one that I don't think that I needed to read.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Diary of a Serial Killer by Ed Gaffney

Started: 8/11/08
Finished: 8/18/08
Year: 2007
Pages: 352
Genre: Suspense
Grade: B+
Reason for reading: library book
Blurb (from back cover-parts are hidden by library stickers):"For Zack Wilson and Terry Tallach, time is precious. Not just because they're paid by the hour. Or because their careers have taken off after a succession of high-profile cases. Or because a baffling, shocking serial murder case is threatening to tear Zack's family apart. For these two lawyers, time is precious because they have just walked into the wrong courtroom at the wrong time, where a man is shooting a gun into a crowd that includes Zack's innocent young son."
Opinion: A great suspenseful mystery that kept me guessing until the last chapter. Well-written.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Borrowed Lives by Laramie Dunaway

Started: 8/1/08
Finished: 8/11/08
Year: 2008
Pages: 413
Genre: Fiction
Grade: C
Reason for reading: Review for MyShelf.com
Blurb: There is no written blurb on the gallery copy that I received. Basically, a woman takes over the identity of her best friend when she dies and attempts to live her life.
Opinion: I could never get a true feeling of why Luna would do what she did. What I really enjoyed was how most of the chapters ended suspenseful. It made you want to turn the page and continue reading. For a more complete review, check out MyShelf.com in the following months.

Saturday, August 02, 2008

Singing in the Comback Choir by Bebe Moore Campbell

Started: 7/27/08
Finished: 8/1/08
Year: 1998
Genre: African-American fiction
Grade: C
Reason for reading: fan of the author, library book
Blurb (from book jacket): "Forgiveness is the key to the recovery of the soul. It is the lesson that the characters in Bebe Moore Campbell's poignant new novel must learn.
"Life is good for Maxine McCoy. She is the executive producer of a popular talk show, married to a man she loves, and pregnant with their child. Although she faces challenges-coming to terms with her husband's past infidelity, attempting to reverse her program's sliding ratings-as she looks down on Los Angeles from her hilltop home, Maxine feels satisfied, grateful that she has managed to rise about the limited circumstances of her childhood in a struggling Philadelphia community. But her security is shattered when a call from the caretaker of her seventy-six-year old grandmother, who reared the orphaned Maxine, summons her back to the old neighborhood she'd rather forget.
"Once a brilliant singing star, Maxine's grandmother, Lindy, has become a smoking, drinking, embittered woman whose glorious voice as atrophied from disuse. The house that previously shook with laughter and music is dim and lifeless, and the aspiring community Maxine grew up in is now a blighted, crime-infested area, its residents resigned to living narrow lives of fear and despair. Maxine is determined to move her grandmother away from the hopelessness around her, but Lindy is prepared to fight for her indepencece. When an opportunity arises for Lindy to sing again, both she and Maxine understand that Lindy and her neighborhood are worthy of restoration."
Opinion: I have read a few of Ms. Campbell's other novels and have thoroughly enjoyed them. Parts of this novel were slow. Very strong lesson to learn which makes it worth reading.