Todd Warner
Pachinko is a sprawling examination of a family and a place and a time over several generations. More specifically, it is an examination of one family's experience as Koreans navigating the unbending world of the Japanese people and culture and their status as second-class unacknowledged citizens. Sometimes happy, often tragic, always fascinating, the author—from my limited knowledge of this history—does a tremendous job humanizing this period in time and the lives orbiting it.
Here comes the criticism . . .
The storyline is too ambitious for one volume. This book should have been either edited down or split into two or three volumes and fleshed out a bit more. I would have voted for editing it down.
Also, it's written in omniscient POV. This is terribly distracting. There is so much unnecessary exposition and individual backstory thrown in and then sometimes a significant event or subplot is tied off with a single phrase or sentence.
I have no idea how this became a National Book Award finalist other than as acknowledgment of the depth of research and breadth of storyline. BUT! I still recommend this book. Maybe a change of POV and two more editing passes and this book would have been elevated from very good to excellent. This year, I suspect I will be recommending this book to every reader I know.
The writing conveys a very creepy Lovecraftian vibe, but set in modern times. Really very unique and otherworldly.
My only criticism (a quibble, really) is that the characters were So. Very. Sarcastic. All of the time. Distracting and it made the tone a bit juvenile. Still, it's an excellent read. Recommend.
P.S. You'll find plenty of antlions in North Carolina, and really most temperate and warmer parts of the world. ... You'll understand when you read the book. Heh.
A posthumous collection of Conroy's short reflections on his life as a writer. His words further flesh out a somewhat troubled, flawed man who also deeply loved beauty, nature, and his fellow humans. His heart was almost too enormous for his body, which comes across in his writing.
If you appreciate memoirs, especially memoirs of readers and writers, I would recommend first Conroy's The Reading Life and then this. Excellent. Recommend.
A fascinating look into the world of obsession and the lives of exceptional children and their parents. The prose was more than a bit stilted and cold as was the author himself (my impression), but the story of their lives is engaging and truly very unique.
(Note, the book is a very different animal from the movie. The movie is spectacular, by the way.)
What makes this book stand out are the characters. Each were so different and written so well. This is particularly difficult for writers and Jackson really nailed it
A fellow writer handed me this book. She chuckled and said, “You only have to read the first chapter.”
Well. I read the first chapter. Then the rest of the book. I know it was supposed to be clumsy and bad, but ... I actually kinda liked it. Ha!
Is it often ridiculous? Oh yes. Like, Hallmark movie ridiculous, with enough melodrama to make a romance writer blush. The opening scene alone took WTF? to 11. Did the novel always make sense? Not a chance. Were there plot holes? Yup.
But ...
The writing at the line level mainly was pretty darn good. Zooming out, the structure was solid, and the pacing was on point. And the characters ... at least some of them were interesting.
All this book needed was an editor with the power to say “No.”
So. Fun read. Don't expect a lot and you may enjoy it. Think of it as a romance writer attempting to write suspense, which should set the right expectations.
Happy reading, folks.
Excellent. Excellent memoir that weaves in some high-level advice for writers. Oddly, this is perhaps my favorite Stephen King book. But, I recommend this for both writers and non-writers alike. Half of this book is straight-up memoir, but the half that is focused more on the writing process blends the how-to with King's life narrative and is a great peek inside of an extremely creative mind.
Just remember that it is subtitled, “A Memoir of the Craft”. It is not a “how-to” on writing though it discusses process and whatnot, and it makes you think. As a memoir this is a solid 4 or 5 stars. I removed 1 star because it is often touted and marketed as advice for writers. There are gems in there, but on the whole, I would go elsewhere for that sort of thing.
Recommend. But only as a memoir (as I think King really initially intended it to be). King is a fascinating man.
My first romance. I met the author at her lovely little local bookshop. I like to support local and independent authors and asked her to recommend one that would serve as a gentle introduction to a crusty cynical old man. She handed me this novella, smiled, and exclaimed, “Even my husband enjoyed this. And hey, the guy is a geologist!” Sold. The story is breezy and fun and indeed the love interest is a geologist. Success! A romance that charmed this particularly crusty cynical old man. You'll enjoy it too. :)
It won the Pulitzer. I can see why. The prose is spectacular. Night Watch is a story of how trauma is experienced in so many ways and how, in the end, we cope. This book was a four star for until the wrap up. SPOILER? It felt like the author struggled and ... forced THE ending. Otherwise, an impressively created story.
Saunders is one of those authors whose style is a bit off-putting. I would love to crawl into his brain for a day. Always thought provoking, he looks at the world from a curious angle. I didn't love this collection but I would still recommend it if you are a serious reader who values introspective books that stretch you.
Best book on the topic, hands down. We purchased this book many years ago and used it to train two rescue dogs, one of whom was a huge HUGE handful (especially destructive and out of control misbehavior). Using this book as a guide, we guided those two dogs into becoming extremely well behaved, loving life partners. And that “handful of a dog” was often cited by friends and neighbors as turning into the “perfect” dog. And he was. He lived a long happy life, but has since passed.
Since we gifted that book and several other copies to friends to help them, today we received in the mail the new revised version of the book. The timing compliments our two new rescues! Again it will help guide us developing these precious challenges into becoming the next generation of “perfect” dogs.
Buy this book. There is no better. Follow their advice to a T and we wish you a happy journey towards your “perfect” dog.
A good premise, poorly executed.
It's fun, even silly, which is fine. In fact, that's all it has going for it really. But it has nearly zero depth. It's incredibly short, but still far too long. Rip out the copious fluff forcibly added to make it into a book and tone down the religiosity which adds nothing (and comes across, to be frank, more than a bit creepy) and this becomes a 5 to 10 page solid essay. I suspect the follow-on books add some depth, but after this... I'm just not going to waste my time.
Excellent advice on and guidance for managing diplomatic interaction between humans.
My quibbles: dated language and tone, and the paraphrased examples can seem contrived as summarized. Could use a rewrite for modern audiences. Overlook this though because the lessons are as relevant today as they were yesterday.
