Neighbors wonder what is going on when Patty and Walter Berglund, once an ideal couple and perfect parents, begin to unravel, with their son moving in with the Republicans next door, Walter, an environmental lawyer, taking a job in the coal industry, and Patty becoming unhinged.
What I loved, a Novel by Siri Hustvedt - 6 - Winner (one round of voting)
The lives and families of art critic Leo Hertzberg and obscure painter Bill Wechsler become irrevocably entwined when Leo becomes enthralled with one of Bill's paintings and decides to track down the artist.
The Sorrows of an American by Siri Hustvedt - 4
Erik Davidsen and his sister Inga, going through their father's papers after his death, come across a disturbing note that implicates him in a murder, and spend the next year trying to unravel the mystery.
The Autograph Man by Zadie Smith - 0
Library Journal (May 15, 2003)
This is the story of one man's journey to find meaning in his life. Alex-Li Tandem, a 27-year-old who is half-Chinese and half-Jewish, ekes out an existence as an autograph dealer. Besides trying to find himself, Alex is also trying to get an elusive autograph of his favorite actress, a B-movie star from the 1950s named Kitty Alexander. The story devolves into a mishmash of fantasy and half-truths that are so twisted it is impossible to know where reality begins, let alone ends. Most of the characters are without dimension and simply serve as caricatures of bizarre individuals. Despite the needlessly long path of madcap adventures that morph into dreams or fantasies, this is a tortured tale that will wear out the best-intentioned of listeners. Even the tidbits about the Kabbalah, Zen Buddhism, and an alphabetical pursuit of drinks do not uplift this drivel. Steven Crossley's masterful reading is the only elevating feature. He is able to breathe some life into these lackluster and boring figures in an attempt to instill some animation into a painful listening experience. Smith won the Commonwealth Writers First Book Prize and the Whitbread First Novel Award for her first book, White Teeth. Her fans may want to give this a try just out of loyalty, but they should be warned that they will likely be disappointed. Not recommended.-Gloria Maxwell, Penn Valley Community Coll., Kansas City, MO Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Details the experiences of Abdulrahman Zeitoun, a Syrian-American and New Orleans resident, and his family, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and describes how he was arrested and falsely imprisoned because of his ethnicity.
