Review: "The Risk Pool" by Richard Russo

Reading a Richard Russo novel, especially one of his first three, is kind of like being wrapped in a warm blanket during a cold fall or winter evening, even if the things he writes about are far from being warm or comforting. He writes about such devastating topics as loneliness, isolation and the marginalization of an individual in a small town, but he does so in a way that is completely optimistic and loving, that you just can’t help being entranced by the stories he weaves and the people he crafts, even in a novel like The Risk Pool, which isn’t as good as his other two novels in his first three published, Mohawk and Nobody’s Fool. Russo, while a great storyteller second to none, he is not without his weaknesses, which show a little to often in this novel, with them being his tendency to throw around exposition a little too freely. The title of the book is very misleading, with the story focusing mainly on the life of Ned Hall, whose adolescence is stuck between to parental figures who are anything but shining examples of stability. His mother, a manic-depressive, is pushed to the breaking point by a love life that is constantly in a state of flux. His father is even worse, coming off like Sully from Nobody’s Fool with zero sympathy. He gambles, beats up his wife’s lawyer, and refuses to divorce is ailing wife, driving her to be committed to an insane asylum, with little remorse that is kind of forgiven through his self-awareness, but not really. Like all of Russo’s fiction, it is very light-hearted even if it shouldn’t be, and it is impossible not to fall in love with it somehow. But he can be a bit long-winded with his explanations of events. It was okay in Nobody’s Fool, but here, it gets really old and tarnishes the books. Still, this is a very fun and loving book by a writer who is never afraid to face the harshness of the world with a loud smile.

Rating: 4/5

Review: "The Age of Wire and String" by Ben Marcus

I guess this is the year of changes and firsts. I usually have the luck of reading only one bad book a year, but after finishing Ben Marcus’ The Age of Wire and String, you can add another really bad reading experience to that list. It isn’t as bad as Noughties by Ben Masters, a writer with a similar name, but it is really, really bad. After finishing it mere minutes ago, I can hardly consider it a book or a short story collection. It really is just a collection of failed ironic musings that fit together as well as damp puzzle pieces. It actually retroactively makes his novels seem worse. I gave four-star ratings to each. My opinions have changed since then even before reading this, especially when it concerns Notable American Women, which I don’t think I’d give a passing grade to now (The Flame Alphabet at least has a cool premise amid the mindless meandering). I hesitate to call him and overrated writer in the vein of Jonathan Safran Foer, since he is not as popular among large groups of readership, but among other writers who are his fans, I would totally say that, especially when you really look at what he writes. It is overwritten, obtuse for the sake of being obtuse, and just plain not fun. I’d give you a plot synopsis or favorite stories, but there really isn’t. Nothing makes sense, and the only real world that you inhabit in its pages is Marcus’, and you don’t want to be there, unless you want to be bored to tears. I feel bad saying this, but I would question the validity of any one’s opinion if they actually liked this book, or called Marcus a genius. To end, just don’t read this book, anything else will be a better way to spend your time. 

Review: "NW" by Zadie Smith

I don’t know what it is about British writers attempting post-modern novels and always failing, but they really do not have the technique down very well. I am not a very big fan of the genre itself for the most part, with House of Leaves and Infinite Jest being the two high points for me, but even with the most vague form of an idea in an American post-modern novel is at least cohesive or have a noticeable trajectory. But with books by Ali Smith and this one, NW by Zadie Smith, there seems to be only random thoughts and ideas put down on the page without any kind of path to follow. But while Ali Smith’s Hotel World was not very fun to read, NW is at least that. Granted I find it rather pretentious in its subject matter, something Hotel World admirably wasn’t, this is a quick read, despite the 400-page length, even if it doesn’t have much of a story. What little story concerns a day in the life of Leah, a white woman married to an African hairdresser, who allows a woman into her house who cheats her out of her money. Her husband scolds her for not being more vigilant, since she is very much a person who sees time more slowly. The later sections deal with other people who inhabit this upscale loft in London, from the past Leah shares with another character Natalie, as well as a guy named Felix, who is concerned about his race. It is hard to grasp hard details of this book because it is written in that awful style that seems like second rate Martin Amis, who is, I would argue, already second rate. But like I said, despite that giant flaw, it is sometimes fun, even though you may not know what is really going on. But it is a quick read that some could finish in a day, if you really, really like it.

Rating: 3/5

Review: "Home Land" by Sam Lipsyte

Sam Lipsyte is a very funny writer, maybe the funniest if he ever turns to writing pure comedy, which I think he is doing. This is very evident in his novels The Ask, his breakthrough hit, and this one, Home Land. He has a scathing satirical voice that brutally critiques modern life, but does so while critiquing the critiquer. It is refreshing in its themes and ideas, but the execution can be a bit clunky sometimes, due solely his strong sense of control over the story. By that I mean he never really lets it take off into places it needs to go to be really, truly great storytelling instead of just great satire. Too many times in Home Land, he forgoes more realistic and more interesting route to make a funny joke or have a character say something really clever. It leaves me begging for something that might have been, even though, in small doses, it can make a reader laugh quite uproariously. The premise of this novel is really interesting, and is what made me read it as a follow-up to The Ask. Lewis Miner, known unaffectionately as “Teabag” by his high school classmates at Eastern Valley High School, decides to write to the school’s newsletter, Catamount Notes, and tell the world his awful history post-high school, from being left by the love of his life for an incestuous relationship with the love’s brother, his screwed up friendship with his best friend Gary and his antagonistic relationship with the principal Mr. Fontana, who publishes Teabag’s musings to spite him. There is very little plot, but of what there is, it is quite funny and sad all at once, leading to a climatic speech at Teabag’s high school reunion being the highlight of the novel. As I said before, there are a too many instances where a plot direction is ignored for a joke, but if you want a gut busting read, look no further than this, or any other Lipsyte novel.

Rating: 4/5

Review: "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman

As a reviewer, I pride myself on letting people who read my reviews find out about new authors they may have never heard of, so a book like Neil Gaiman’s American Gods is probably one of the more well-known titles I will read, at least among the book lovers I know. I have mentioned before that I do not like Science Fiction, and the same can be said for fantasy as well. I do not find it low art or anything like that; it’s just not for me. There isn’t any other explanation I can give. But before I criticize this book, I would like to point out what I feel personally for Gaiman, from the interviews I see him in. Aside from Stephen King, he is one of the nicest literary figures out there, and carries himself with gentleness and eloquence in an industry that rewards crassness and belligerency all too often. Having said that, I must say, I did not like American Gods very much. It has elements that I really enjoyed, but none of those are probably what will drive many people to heap claim on it. It begins with a man named Shadow, who, once he is released from prison, finds that his wife and best friend have been killed, leaving him lost and alone. With no real options, he takes a job offered to him by Mr. Wednesday, a slick con man who introduces him into a world where gods live among us, and war between the old and new that brings with it worldly implications. What I liked about this book were its more realistic elements, such as the prison setting, and the journey Shadow takes after losing everything. The real treat with this book is how the loneliness of Shadow really permeates every word on the page. He is a man dealing with forces he has no comprehension of, and is totally out of place in this battle. But that is an exception, because most everything else really lost me. Since I do not know much about mythology, I didn’t get many references to who the gods were or why they were doing what they were doing, post-God status. I felt the plot was weak, which is what drove me away from Sci-Fi/Fantasy, which is more based on cool ideas than story. By no means a bad book, and one I understand can capture a reader’s imagination; I am simply not the audience for this find of story.

Rating: 3/5