What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? Please share! We’d love to know.
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FINISHED:
COOL MACHINE by Colson Whitehead, read by Dion Graham—
Texas Book Festival author 2026
Another dnf for me. I just can’t bring myself to care enough about the characters in this series. Maybe it’s because it is mostly men doing bad things. It’s also not at all unusual for me to bounce in and out of a number of books pretty quickly leading up to the book festival. I still might try to see Colson Whitehead because I have loved some of his other books.
RASPUTIN SWIMS THE POTOMAC by Ben Fountain.
Texas Book Festival author 2026
The book opens at a rally with President XXXXX (and yes, the author refers to the barely fictional character in this manner all the way through the book) running for a Supreme Court cleared but Constitutionally questionable third term. It’s a satirical sendup with outbreaks of a mysterious “weeping sickness” and a reporter named Clarence Thomas Jr saying “he experienced an evening that has so far outperformed his brain’s ability to comprehend” (it’s somewhat uncertain whether that refers to the reporter or to the presidential candidate.) The Rasputin of the title is a professional wrestler favored by President XXXXX and when Rasputin appears to have a mystical ability to cure the weeping sickness his star begins to outshine the President’s. You cannot begin to imagine where this is going—or can you? It’s good to be able to laugh and take potshots at some of the strange happenings.
THE VANISHING FAMILY: Love, Fate, and the Quest to End Dementia by Robert Kolker—
Texas Book Festival author 2026
A family of nine siblings whose mother has died from a somewhat confusing set of symptoms that later connects with other members of the family. When the book opens the author says 5 of the 9 have been diagnosed with frontotemperal dementia (FTD) about which little is known. As the book progresses so does science until there is a test for the mutation carried by the members of this family. These people were born with a 50% chance of developing FTD as they mature and now they have to decide if they want to be tested to determine their own outcome. Many of the nine now have kids of their own who may have also been born with a 50% chance of developing FTD depending upon their parent’s test result. A book about neurodegenerative disease may not be for everyone but it was pretty near perfect for me. I have read Kolker’s previous books so I knew it would be meticulously researched, well written, and totally readable even by a non-medical audience.
NOW READING:
CHILDREN OF THE WILD by Kevin Powers
Texas Book Festival author 2026
The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel—
It’s my spooky season read and there’s Hitchcock on the cover and a Hitchcock quote as an epigraph. I’m thinking I might be in good hands.
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I am reading Harry potter’s last book in the series, and Imaginary Friend. I’m enjoying them both!
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The Vanishing Family sounds fascinating, Anne! I’ll have to look for that one. The premise reminds me of Hidden Valley Road, about a family with inherited mental illness - a book I also found quite interesting. I’ve got a friend whose partner’s family has a history of Huntington’s disease, and the siblings are wrestling with those questions right now - do you want to know if you’re headed down that path, how does this impact the next generation, etc…
I’ve had a cold this week and I haven’t felt like reading at all. I’m still working my way through The Long Walk by Slavomir Rawicz.
I do have to say you were right, @Anne_Glasgow, about the audio version of Angel Down. It’s amazing. I enjoyed reading the book when it came out last year, but listening to it is a whole other experience. The richness of Kraus’s prose is even more apparent when you listen to it. Thanks for the encouragement!
The Vanishing Family and Hidden Valley Road are by the same author. I liked this new one even better.
Yay! Thank you for giving Angel Down a taste test. It is a remarkable audio experience.
Hope you are feeling better.
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I am reading: EVERY SECRET THING by Susanna Kearsley. It’s good…intrigue, mystery, and danger.
Loved the Rasputin book! So quirky!
He pretty much covered the field with all of his fun and funny digs at the XXXXXs.
I finished The River Is Waiting by Wally Lamb and it was a transformative experience. The depth of emotion in the story cannot be described. So much suffering occurs between the pages but you leave with a sense of hope and inspiration. I had not read any of Lamb’s work previously but that will change soon. He does not think for you or preach but will give you plenty to think abIout loss, addiction, punishment, and forgiveness. I have given a lot of 5-star reviews lately but this may be the best of them.
My middle child bought me You Like It Darker by Stephen King last Christmas and it sat on my bedside table for 10 months. I had a bad experience with one of King’s books and quit seeking about his writing for a while. So far, some of the stories have resonated with me and others have not but I am in the middle of the longest one now and cannot put it down. Maybe I missed some good King books during my boycott.
I feel a bit like a fraud after reading all the serious, high-minded titles others have listed but I just can’t do those right now! I finished “Road to Tender Hearts” by Annie Hartnett, not at all believeable but people with good hearts was just what I needed. I’m now halfway through Richard Osman’s “We Chase Shadows”, the second in his We Solve Murders series. I prefer the Thursday Murder Club group but these characters are growing on me.
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I am right there with you - reading light reads, fun reads, cozy reads - and having an entertaining time doing it. Some books I’m reading because they are seasonal, some I am reading because they are simple enough when dealing with jet lag.
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A couple weeks ago I finished The Summer Book by Tove Jansson. Has anyone read her before? She was a Finnish author (1914-2001) who I’ve not read before. This little book was so sweetly wonderful about a grandmother and granddaughter spending their summer at the island summer house. A rustic place surrounded by stark but beloved nature. I then realized Glenn Close has made and starred in a film (2024) by the same name which I found at the library. I recommend both. Of course, the book offers much more wit and depth of characters.
Now I’m reading The Finest Hotel in Kabul. Such chaos.
This afternoon I’m off to cinema to see Daniel Kraus’ Whalewall movie which opens here today!!
@Janine_S Any feedback on these 3?
I’m halfway through Queen of Lombard Street. It’s really been enjoyable. Strong female character.
I finished The End of Everything. It’s a history of the extermination of Thebes, Cartage, Constantinople and Tenochitital and why that happened. It was a but repetitive but I enjoyed learning all the history.
Haven’t started Family Romance. It’s been on my TBR list for a bit so I try to check one off every weekend.
Please share your thoughts about Whalefall, the movie.
Just finished Kingsolver’s newest, Partita, and loved it. Now reading Lisegte’s List by Susan Vreeland.
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@Anne_Glasgow Whalefall, the movie, did a better job than most representing the book. The emotional side, the father-son relationship taking center stage. The actors were convincing, especially the Jay character and especially once inside the whale. Living through his despondence to resolve while being dissolved is quite the experience. This movie is not for the claustrophobic. But the flashbacks to his dad experiences in his head moves the emotional story along and gives viewer anxiety a break. That being said, the book offered much more detail of the adventures and details as to the various whale parts being experienced, Jay’s inner thoughts, etc. but for having to condense all that into 1 hr. 46 minutes it was an amazing job. Special effects were believable. I do recommend. Having read the book first is important, particularly if one is expecting this to be simply a horror flic. I’m glad the author’s hand in it is so evident.
Reading Louise Penny’s The Black Wolf which is horrifyingly plausible given current environmental issues and US political situation. The 20th book in the Chief Inspector Gamache series is eerily possible.
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