#76 - The Sea is my Brother by Jack Kerouac

I like Kerouac but I didn't love this book.  I was completely neutral on this story after my initial excitement over new discoveries of classic literature wore off.

It is now obvious that this was Jack's first crack at writing a novel. While the prose was exquisitely written, it was incredibly rambling.  I suppose that would be indicative of the thoughts of the first time sailor, Everheart but the more he rambled on, the more I tuned him out and DEFINITELY the less I liked him.

Contrasting Bill Everhart was Wesley Martin, the veteran Merchant Marine who talks Bill into this mission.  I enjoyed his story MUCH more.  What you see is what you get with Wesley and I enjoyed his broken road.  Unfortunately he gets very low billing in the character development arena.

While you'd think that this book took place at sea, only in the last chapter did the boat take sail. I admire this as a first novel, and a part of the Kerouac canon, but I don't love it as a stand alone novel.

Goodreads rating: 3 stars
In progress: Insurgent by Veronica Roth
On Deck: The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach

#75 - Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin

I can't believe I forgot to blog this book.  Bad blogger - bad bad blogger!

BIG thank you to Posse girl Lindsey for the borrow! Her recommendations are never off the mark so I knew that I would love it. And I did.  There were parts of this book that are truly disturbing so be warned before you pick it up.  Tartellin formulated all of the characters to work together and, unlike some books that fail to have a different enough voice when it switches their first person narrators.

Here's the deal.  (and this paragraph is hard to construct without giving away the MAJOR plot point in the first chapter.) But I HATED  the plot twist that happens just after the first chapter. I felt like "of course that's what's going to happen because that's always what happened."

What drew me back in is how everyone dealt with the consequences.  I found myself thinking that - if my sons ever developed a strange condition or disease, that I would want to treat them in  a similar way that Max's parents treated him.  Letting him make his own decisions when he is old enough instead of making the decisions for him and have him resent me later.  It was a genius plan in thought but in execution they skipped an important step in communication. Not talking about a problem doesn't make it go away.

I did ADORE Sylvie and her actions, reactions and attitude. She made the perfect relationship partner for poor Max as he was going through the craziest time of his life.

It may have taken me a long time to finish but that was no reflection on the book itself - it was more about having the time to devote to it.  This book is definitely a "to read" to bump up to the top of your list.

Goodreads rating 5 stars
In Progress: Insurgent by Veronica Roth

#74 - When It Happens To You by Molly Ringwald

What an adorable book this is!  I would have never thought of Molly Ringwald as an author but I thoroughly enjoyed this "novel in stories".  I'm a big fan of short stories - especially in audio versions since I can generally go through one story in a single back and forth commute.  The structure of this novel is really unique, each story could be completely self contained but each one also provides insight into other characters that revolve around this one instance in the life of this one couple.  It's hard to describe but it's simply symphonic when you figure out how the pieces fit together.

All in all this was a truly easy to fall in love with book that is equally easy to read in pieces.  A great one to keep in your car or your handbag to read in the waiting room or while your kids are at a practice.

Quick sidenote: if you can catch it on audio book (available on Overdrive) its well worth it, Molly reads her own writing in her unmistakably brat pack voice. I just took a vacation to Nostalgia Island!

Goodreads rating: 4 stars (4.5 really)

In Progress: (paper) Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin
ibooks Insurgent by Veronica Roth

#73 - Townie: A Memoir by Andre Dubus III

I have had this on my "to read" list for awhile and was browsing the non-fiction audio offerings from my library when this one popped up.  So I thought I would give it a try.

The good: It was read by the author which is really the only way a memoir should be presented in audio format. The bad: Mr. Dubus III has a very montone Jersey voice which made this a very long listen.

This is very much a "coming of age" type of story - coming from a rough, violent path and into adulthood where peace means more than punches.  The first half feels very disjointed - as if the author is trying to put as many rough stories into the book as possible with very little thought toward chronology but, as he grows, it becomes much more enjoyable and I am glad I knew the back stories for maximum impact.

All in all i'm split down the middle on this book but rounded my rating up for the lovely ending.

Goodreads rating: 3 stars

On deck(audio): When It Happens To You by Molly Ringwald
In Progress (paper): Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin and (ibooks) Insurgent by Veronica Roth.

#72 - Divergent by Veronica Roth

I resisted getting involved with the Divergent series for a long time dismissing it as a formulaic "Dystopian YA novel with a kick ass female lead" But I gotta say, after having a bad taste in my mouth after the first book of Matched and my own skeptical mind; I am glad I took the leap and gave Roth and her version of post-America Chicago a chance.

What's different between this and say The Hunger Games? (which I liked but didn't love and had totally lost interest in by the end of the series) In concept - not much...but in execution there was a world of difference.  The writing and character development in this book was really smooth and kept the action moving while not murking up the flow with too many superfluous fight scenes and violence.  I really enjoyed how the different factions are represented and how their different personality traits shine through in intense circumstances.

All of the actions and reactions felt very genuine (even though some of the love stories and face-offs remind you that you are reading a YA target market book) The last 10 chapters are not to be missed!!!

Goodreads rating: 4 stars
On Deck: Insurgent by Veronica Roth (gotta get it read before book 3 comes out in October)
In Progress: Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin.

#71 - Dan Gets A Minivan by Dan Zevin

Oh man did I ever need that belly laugh! Yeah I'll admit it, I giggled the whole way through this book...as I was driving...wait for it...my minivan.

How I related to each story about how hard it is to transition from being freewheeling singles with full control of the choice of dinner, footwear and even automobiles to being parents first and people second.  The description on Goodreads compares Dan to Dave Berry and, in a way, I can see that.  Although the satirical tone to this book feels more like a male, slightly less frenetic version of Jenny Lawson.

To anyone who have stood at that intersection between Dude and Dad or Hot Momma to just being a Momma...you will love and appreciate this book! Available on Overdrive Audio for those who are in the Iowa Library system.

Goodreads rating: 4.5 stars

In Progress: Divergent by Veronica Roth
Golden Boy by Abigail Tartellin

#70 - Astray by Emma Donoghue

I just love those moments when you stumble upon something special.  I was just browsing through the catalog of offerings from my library's audio book lending when I recognized Emma Donoghue's name from reading Room last year.  I was looking for non fiction but I got the best of both worlds with this well thought out collection of stories.

As the title suggests, each story in this collection deals with that moment, that one decision, that pulls everything off the tracks. Each story took about 30-40 minutes of audio which made it the perfect commuter book.  Some of the anecdotes were better than others (thus the 4 star rating) but, on the whole, it was easy to  insert yourself into the thoughts and feelings of these people who were on a journey but took a wrong turn somewhere and ended up on a different course than they thought they would.

The delicious surprise at the end of the book was an extra 20 minutes of audio in which Ms Donogue herself described her thoughts as she came across these bizarre little stories and fleshed them out into the writings she shares with us here.

Goodreads rating: 4 stars

In Progress: Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin

Nothing else on deck right now - weird.