Thrillers, mysteries, spiritual development, and general interest books

Tana French’s first book, In the Woods, won the 2007 Edgar Award for Best First Novel. It is subtle and beautifully written, the kind of mystery that appeals to readers of literary fiction, but also one that keeps you reading eagerly, searching to unravel the mystery and to understand the narrator, Dublin Detective Rob Ryan. In the long tradition of unrealiable narrators (narrators who are flawed and whose understanding of the events they relate may be skewed, warped, self-serving, or outright false), Ryan tells the compelling tale of the murder he and his partner Cassie Maddox are investigating, intricately intertwined with the haunting story of murders he was involved in as a child. The conclusion of this outstanding mystery answers some questions, but leaves others hanging. In French’s mysteries, people are complex, operating from many levels of experience and understanding. A simple, complete answer may not be possible in this world.

French’s second mystery, The Likeness, features Cassie Maddox six months after the events of In the Woods. Cassie, too, brings her complex psyche to the murder she is brought in to help investigate. Her former boss asks her to go undercover, and she knows full well the dangers of the work: taking on another persona for a long period puts huge pressure on a detective, and in this instance, Cassie is taking on the identity of a murdered woman who was her physical double and who was using the identity Cassie herself developed when she worked undercover. Cassie is also struggling with unresolved issues from the events of In the Woods, so she is particularly vulnerable to the pressures and questions raised by this case. French explores questions of identity and loyalty-where one’s sense of self resides and how and when it is merged into identification with another person. Fascinating stuff. I know you’ll enjoy these unusual and beautifully written mysteries.

Request In the Woodsand The Likeness from Heights Libraries.

I’m just back from vacation (wonderful).  I continue to think about dogs and miss our Bouvier, Lucy. We are talking about locating our next dog now, and that is a comfort: there will be another running, barking, panting, chewing, cuddling ball of energy in our house someday fairly soon.

Apparently, I’m by no means the only dog lover around (big surprise). Coincidentally after my previous blog, I listened this week to Paul Auster on the Diane Rehm show. He was talking about his latest novel, Man in the Dark (it sounds like an intriguing book), but during the interview a caller asked him about Timbuktu and described how much she liked Mr. Bones, the dog, as the narrator. I hadn’t heard anyone mention Timbuktu in a long time, so it seemed rather serendipitous to hear Auster talk about the book.

I have just finished The Art of Racing in the Rain, a novel by Garth Stein, narrated by, of all things, a dog: Enzo. This one is the story of Denny, an aspiring race car driver, who marries Eve. Their daughter, Zoe, completes the family, and Enzo, who is adopted by Denny before his marriage, comes to accept and love Eve and Zoe as well. Various of life’s sad and difficult turns come to Denny, but Enzo is there by his side through it all. Although at moments Stein’s language and pacing seem a little forced (not always convincing as a dog’s voice), nonetheless, the story is rich and engaging. I continue to be intrigued by seeing events from the dog’s point of view. Request The Art of Racing in the Rain from Heights Libraries.

I mentioned Dodson’s The Well-Adjusted Dog earlier, and I think that is one of the best “living with your dog” books I’ve read, but an earlier series by the Monks of New Skete, including How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend, is also excellent. The Monks’ way of conceptualizing and relating to dogs is really wonderful. Give your dog an extra hug and an extra, happy walk today. And order How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend from Heights Libraries.

I’m a dog person. Today, I am without a dog for the first time in more than 20 years after losing my dog (Lucy, a Bouvier) two weeks ago to cancer. Even as we grieve her death, my sons and I have begun thinking about when we will be ready for another dog or dogs in our lives. And that led me to think about how often I read about dogs:fiction and non-fiction that is strictly or tangentially about the amazing relationship we have with dogs and have had, apparently since long before written history. So I thought I might share a few favorites.

Nicholas Dodman’s The Well-Adjusted Dog is a recent book on how to live with and train dogs and a welcome relief from the disciplinarian (punishment) school of dog management. Dodman suggests various humane and thoughtful ways of understanding dogs and managing their behavior, with huge emphasis on adequate exercise (most dogs need much more than people know or plan for, but that exercise is good for dog and human alike), appropriate diet, and reinforcement-based training methods. Whether you have a puppy or older dog or you’re just thinking about adopting a dog, this book is a great orientation to incorporating a dog into your life (and you into the dog’s!). (Request from Heights Libraries.)

Ted Kerasote’s Merle’s Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog  is a memoir of his life with Merle in rural Wyoming, from their first, unforgettable meeting to Merle’s death at age 14. As well as a vivid and moving biography, Kerasote shares a vast amount of information about the history and nature of the domestic dog and his understanding of how and why we are drawn to this relationship. Merle was probably born on a Utah reservation and spent at least some time roaming independently before he adopted Kerasote. Because of Kerasote’s lifestyle, Merle had an unusual amount of independent life (as well as a deep bond with Kerasote), and this made for an opportunity to develop different kinds of intelligence and experience than most dogs currently have. Additionally, Kerasote’s take on human life on the planet in the 21st century is provocative and engaging stuff, from his thoughts on hunting versus farming to his powerful portrait of the wilderness areas in Wyoming and Utah. (Request from Heights Libraries.)

Two old favorites are novels narrated by dogs, Richard Adams’s The Plague Dogs and Paul Auster’s Timbuktu. The Plague Dogs is the story of two dogs, Rowf and Snitter, who have escaped from a research facility in England and their harrowing journey in search of their previous lives and sanity. The early chapters may be challening to American readers because of Adams’s use of dialect and his attempt to convey the mental processes of the dogs, but we soon adapt to the style and enter into the fascinating, though distressing story. This book was written in 1977, five years after Watership Down. As you may know, Adams is an outspoken animal rights activist, but first and foremost, he is a fine writer. (Request from Heights Libraries.)

Timbuktu by Paul Auster is the story of Willy G. Christmas, a homeless schizophrenic man in Brooklyn, told by his dog, Mr. Bones. Mr. Bones takes the vicissitudes of their nomadic life matter-of-factly and knows the likely rejection or even outright cruelty to be expected from many of the people they encounter. His unsentimental loyalty and Willy’s dependence upon him ring true. This simple, loving relationship (in marked contrast to the complicated, devious, and self-serving motives of most of the human characters) suggests why humans have long sought the company of dogs. As well as a biting commentary on life of the mentally ill and homeless in contemporary society, this is a touching portrait of the canine soul. (Request from Heights Libraries.)

More books with dogs soon.

�

Let me backtrack to Dean Koontz’s first Odd novel, Odd Thomas, in which the charming, quirky Odd is introduced. He is a twenty year old man who lives in Pico Mundo, California, and would like to lead a simple life as a fry cook or a tire salesman and marry the love of his life, Stormy Llewellyn. Unfortunately, his life is not destined to be simple or quiet. Among other “gifts,” Odd sees and communicates with ghosts (these interactions are the source of much surprising humor), and receives forewarning of deaths and disasters. Being a pure spirit himself (not self-identified, but clearly so to us readers), he feels compelled to try to avert these catastrophes, although he has no idea how best to do that.  This first entry is surprising, charming, and totally entertaining. I strongly recommend it to anyone who is looking for an absorbing, action-filled novel with a twist. The second two (Forever Odd and Brother Odd) are equally satisfying, developing Odd’s sense of mission.

After thoroughly enjoy the first three Odd Thomas novels from Dean Koontz, I opened Odd Hours with great anticipation, but I found myself somewhat disappointed with this entry in the series. I know others have given it positive reviews, but my sense was that the writing and development went too far in the direction of things left unsaid and simple moment by moment narrative. Odd is wonderfully simple in his approach, and I understand that Koontz wants to emphasize this in the narrative style, but this time out, the narrative voice became almost silly at times. The addition of a major new character, Annamarie, suggests somewhat the track of the plot to come in the next installments, but again, she is too thinly drawn to be quite satisfying to me. Nonetheless, I heartily recommend the first novel and leave you to decide how many of the sequels you want to try. Request Odd Thomas from the Heights Libraries.

There is a significant trend among genre writers toward combining genres these days–”crossover” titles: romance and horror; mystery and the supernatural; science fiction and mystery; etc.–and this unusual series by Koontz seems to me to be right in that vein. Although these hybrids can drive librarians crazy (where do they go? where will our customers look for them?) they provide great variations for readers who enjoy surprises. One example is Stephenie Meyers. Her Twilight series is a romance and horror combo (vampires) that is in heavy demand with both teens and adults. Another is Charlaine Harris , whose Southern Vampire Series, a blend of humor, mystery, romance, and horror,  is hugely popular with a wide audience. Just about any combination of genres that appeals to you is probably waiting at your library! (Ask a librarian to point the way.)

James Howard Kunstler’s recent World Made By Hand is only one of a number of dystopian novels to be published in the last few years–and no wonder, with global warming a certainty, little concerted action from governments, and confusion or indifference from the majority of people everywhere. A number of artists have contemplated the earth after cataclysms from this all-too-human inaction. Kunstler’s fascinating novel, however, is not entirely bleak in its view.  Set in the near future, World Made by Hand posits a U.S. devastated years after terrorist bombings of its major cities, without power sources, communication systems, transportation, or effective government. In one small upstate New York town, the remaining people are in a state of shock and depression, even 20 years after the breakdown of society and its old ways. The younger people don’t remember television, the internet, airplanes, or cars, although certainly they’ve been told of these things; they think of them as fairly tales. It’s fascinating to think of the ramifications, and Kunstler does it convincingly.

Despite the grim scenario Kunstler lays out, he also provides a rich story, driven by complex and engaging characters whose handmade world seems that it could indeed be the foundation of a different kind of life in the future. Without beating us over the head with lectures, Kunstler suggests some of the ways of life that could be sustainable (at least with a vastly reduced population), and some of the essential human connections that are among the true necessities of human life.

(Request this thought-provoking novel from the Heights Libraries.)

A few other books contemplating the aftermath of a global catastrophe are Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, Jim Crace’s Pest House, P.D. James’s Children of Men and Alan Weisman’s (non-fiction) The World Without Us.

 If you like quality mysteries, try award-winning The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney. This mystery is also an outstanding historical novel, set in the Northern Territory (Canada) in 1867. On the outskirts of the small town of Dove River, Laurent Jammett is murdered in his cabin. Jammett was a voyageur for the Hudson Bay Company, but had left the Company and begun to trade independently with trappers, possibly making himself a target of the Company. Other aspects of his life might also have led to his murder. Various townspeople begin to investigate his death, and several are launched on long treks through the brutal landscape to find the truth. The novel gives us vivid images of Canada in the mid 19th Century, including a sense of the reach and importance of the Hudson Bay Company. The characters are well realized, various, and engaging. It took me longer to read than most mysteries, perhaps because I lingered over the descriptions and the characters, but it was well worth the time. If you are so lucky as to be looking for a beach read or some summer escape, you’ll love this one, and the snowy landscape will make the summer sun look more appealing than usual. Request this from Heights Libraries for a great escape!

If you intentionally or accidentally missed Oprah’s selection of Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth for her book discussion and her Monday evening webcasts, I’d like to suggest reading this one anyway. Tolle is an extraordinary voice in a world that is, often, quite insane, and his books seem to speak simply and directly to one’s inner self. As he says, “Millions are now ready to awaken because spiritual awakening is not an option anymore, but a necessity if humanity and the planet are to survive.  Everything is speeding up - the madness, the collective egoic dysfunction, as well as the arising of the new consciousness, the awakening.” Tolle addresses the preoccupations of human beings, the egoic madness that obscures our true purpose, and he addresses that “higher self” without promoting any religion or philosophy, without engaging in the divisiveness that furthers the madness. Truly enlightening. Request A New Earth from Heights Libraries.

If you’ve never tried a book by Minette Walters and you like smart, chilling thrillers, The Chameleon’s Shadow is one to read.

Charles Acland, a lieutenant in the British forces in Iraq, is leading a convoy on the highway between Basra and Baghdad that is struck by a roadside bomb. Acland slowly returns to consciousness in a hospital in England, unsure of who or where he is, but wracked with pain, crippled and disfigured, profoundly angry, and fiercely isolated.  He is released from the hospital and makes contact with an eccentric but astute doctor who has her own issues, but takes a supportive interest in Acland. Meanwhile, a series of murders seems to point to this clearly unstable man, and the police are also taking an interest in him. Walters takes contemporary political and social issues and weaves them into a riveting story. The narrative is interspersed with newspaper headlines and psychiatric reports. Like Ruth Rendell, Walters creates complex characters with fascinating psychological issues. This one is a great read, as always from Walters. Request Chameleon’s Shadow from Heights Library.�