Checking It Twice

For many of the books I have written about lately, I read them in galley form, meaning I read a pre-publication edition. It’s fun to read a book before most other people have, and this also means that, in writing about the books here, I’m ahead of the game. So when the books I read and blog about are actually officially published and the reviews start to come in, it’s always interesting to me to see how my opinion stacks up against the reviewers (i.e. the people who get paid to give their opinions about a book!).

Jonathan Evison, it turns out, is getting raves. Critics seem to be love, love, loving his book! Looks like I’m turning out, so far, to be the sole voice with anything negative to say about this book. How do I feel about this? First of all, as far as the author is concerned, I’m happy for him. He’s clearly a good guy and a hardworking author. And, hey, I’m ok with being out there alone on this. I think the author attempted something terrific, and accomplished a lot with the book. I still think, however, that it’s too sprawling and needed to be reined in some more. I stand by my review!

West of Here does, however, have a fantastic web presence, which I'm sure is contributing to the book getting all the press attention its getting. Check out the link below and follow it to other links:
http://www.westofherethebook.com/

I have Evison’s earlier book, All About Lulu, on top of my reading list, so I will be reading and blogging about that one too.

As far as the reviews of The Fates Will Find Their Way by Hannah Pittard, here’s one I’ve founds far--The Washington Post calls it “an impressive debut” also saying:

“I wish its plural narrator were more consistently convincing. . . . By the time these guys approach 50, those original differences in class, conscience and ability have scattered them across the spectrum of happiness and success in completely plausible ways. But this stitched-together narrator pulls at its own seams; such diverse men couldn't speak in a choral voice.”

I’d agree with that. But anyway, I’m not really a book reviewer. Sometimes I review, but I’m also interested in other things related to the book – things about the author, how it relates to other books, how its readers react to it. I’m looking at the cultural life of books. And if I agree or disagree with other people writing about the book, well, as Mom would say “That’s what makes chocolate and vanilla.”