Imposter Syndrome by Patricia Park

 This audio book that I downloaded last night came "librarian recommended" from the best books of the year. It looked interesting, and I'll tell you, it captivated me from St. George clear to Fresno as I drove today, It made the trip fly by. I left at 7 AM and didn't even turn it on until almost to Mesquite. I realized several times, that I was watching the road, but remembered nothing about it. Maybe it's unsafe to be so caught up in a story, but I was grateful I could focus on that and not, for example, on the somewhat scary fog I encountered around Tehacipi. I didn't want to stop for bathroom or lunch breaks. I drove through McDonald's for a frozen coke so I could keep listening. So good!

The main character, Alejandra Kim, descends from Korean Argentinians, and we suffer and relate with her as she attends her private high school on scholarship and meets racism at almost every turn. This theme is thoughtfully handled with many nuances and nothing ahem, black and white. Ale's ambivalence about being a person who fits in vs. someone who calls out blatant racism is instructive to watch. I really enjoyed the journey of her growth through her interactions with her friends and family. 

The New York City milieu plays a significant role in the story as well, as Ale travels to friends and to work and to school. Her description of her barrio and feeling at home is poignant. Her insistence on going to an expensive college and her blindness to her mother's poverty reminded me of my own selfishness thiat that period in MY life. It's just really well done, and I didn't like the somewhat frequent F-bombs, I know that's probably authentic...

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

 I finally figured out the free Libby library app, and was able to listen to the amazing novel about an uncompromising woman Chemist from the sixties whose sensibilities were wayyyyy ahead of her time, and probably could have only be written in retrospect. 

I enjoyed the characters, the dog, and the way the story told the backstories of the characters. Although they were all somewhat extreme and cartoonish, they had real things to say and brought the theme to life. The way the different threads came together at the end was marvelous to behold.

HOWEVER! The notion that scientists have to be dishonest or deny evidence to believe in God is utter trash and completely untrue! I understand the frustration with religion and the hate it can spawn when misguided, but still, I don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. And I don't even believe women were so "religious" in the sixties, the way they were portrayed. To posit atheism as the main character's philosophy, based on "science" and as a natural conclusion, was disingenuous at best. All science and all evidence-based vs. religion is a false dichotomy and I didn't like the way it was woven and portrayed.

And yet...there is truth in the notion that many traditions will keep people oppressed and women especially. 

The plot moved beautifully forward and I envied Elizabeth Zott's commitment to do what she felt was right, no matter the consequences. 

I also enjoyed the notion that chemistry and cooking are about life and are important. Well done. Mostly okay language, too, with a few exceptions. Rather graphic rape scene, but it served a purpose.

Listening to this story was delightful and made my walks and housecleaning very enjoyable!

Restart by Gordon Korman

 I've been experimenting with the public library app, Libby. The first audio book I've been able to access on this app was this one. Although it's a YA title, I really enjoyed it! The characters were fun and some were predictable and over the top, but the growth of the main character was fun to observe. His jock-father, a junior high football star in his youth, was particularly over the top and not believable!

I enjoyed the humor and conversations that this author was able to share. It felt pretty real for thirteen-year-olds, though I wouldn't know that for sure! The story kept moving and took some interesting twists and turns, which was enjoyable. The different audio voices were effective in helping me keep the different characters straight. I especially enjoyed the kid who kept trying to make video for YouTube that would go viral. He was a hoot!

Lightning Strike by William Kent Krueger

 I've read some Krueger before and enjoyed it. At last month's book club here in St. George, we decided to read This Tender Land, which I have read years ago. I decided to read it again, and, while at the library browsing, I came upon this one. It's the prequel to his "popular" Cork O'Connor series. So, I thought, I'll give this one a try. It's good. Not as lyrical or inspiring as his others, but okay. Not a great detective story either, but I enjoyed the characters. It's kind of low key.

I enjoyed the accurate depiction of the stress between Native Americans and the whites who live nearby the reservations. This story is set in Minnesota, but is very like what I felt and saw in South Dakota, though a bit over-simplified. I liked the twelve-year-old Cork character--what a good and honest kid! I may read another one of this series when he's an adult, but may not. We'll see. Still searching for some great authors and some great literature! Sigh...

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

 While I was at the St. George library hunting down Dutch House, I grabbed this one as well. It was similar to Dutch House in that it had great, unpredictable characters and great dialogue. It was also a shade depressing because of the difficult and selfish parents who divorced to marry each other. The fallout from that impacted everyone involved, and not for the better.

This story also had a somewhat of a mystery involved. One of the siblings died, and we only learn in pieces along the way how exactly it happened. There was lots of jumping between time frames as we follow the siblings to maturity, but I was able to follow it just fine. I really enjoyed and admired the tenacity of the main character, Franny, especially her relationship with the famous author. And the story of how that went bad was almost funny; no, it was funny. Pathetic, really, but she ended up with a much better prize. I enjoy stories where people are real and when their goodness is eventually rewarded. 

I also liked Franny;s father, Fix, who was loyal and kept his sense of humor. It was satisfying to see him enjoy his daughters at the end of his life, despite his cancer and pain. The selfish parents, who caused the breakup didn't fare so well... And that seems fitting!

Patchett's dialogue is fun to read, although this book's dialogues didn't have as much clever repartee as the Dutch House did.. On the other hand, this story was a little less dark. I'll take a break from Patchett now, and return to others of hers later, I think!

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

 I first heard about this book from June Apaza, but when I read the reviews on Amazon, it sounded kind of dark. Then at our Ridgeview Ward book club, Geri Aldrich mentioned she loved this book. I was between authors, and enough time had passed that it was now in the library downtown, so I decided to give it a try.

I am so glad I did! It is somewhat dark, because the parents in this family saga are so difficult, cruel, and even negligent. What glows, though, is the story of the two siblings, Danny and Maeve, and the way they navigate their difficult family situation. Maeve is so unselfish; Danny doesn't even realize it until he's older; he's a typical teenager, although much better than most! I really enjoyed their conversations; filled with love and humor. Patchett is brilliant at writing captivating conversations with interesting characters. 

The return of their runaway mother is interesting to read about. What makes it interesting is Danny's battle to forgive and welcome her. Patchett plays this out so realistically and beautifully. It was a fascinating and satisfying story with llots of twists and turns. 

The Book of Lost Names by Kristen Harmel

 The Ridgeview Ward's book club, Patti, in particular, chose this book, so I ordered it. I had high hopes after the first few interesting pages, and generally got into it and enjoyed it until I realized the characters were not going to develop, Eva was going to be tearful and cry through the whole book, and the romantic interest was going to be rather trite. Oh well. I hope I can be diplomatic tonight when we discuss it at our little meeting. I like interesting characters who develop and have nuance and shades of good and bad. These poor characters were flat, flat, flat, and Eva was plagued with guilt, and her mother was always negative and awful...it just got redundant.

The interesting part for me was the plot around the forgeries of papers for Jews and others seeking to escape Nazi Germany. They used a book, and put symbols above the letters on each succeeding page in a Fibonacci sequence so they could never be traced. Eva didn't want the names to be lost. It was also cool how her great lover, Remy, survived the war and how they were reunited years later. That was sweet. Otherwise...ho hum. I'm kind of over the World War II Nazi era....

As Jewish Eva became acquainted with the Catholic priest and other thorny issues, it could have been an interesting look into the kind of thinking and learning that goes on as one examines their religious beliefs. This was only done in the most superficial manner. I won't be bothering with this author's other books, although this one wasn't bad...just not that great, and not worth pursuing others...