I grew up in upstate NY.
One of the strangest, most compelling novellas I've ever read. A German woman undergoing an unstated voluntary medical procedure monologues to her Jewish doctor about her strange fetishes, her violent workplace outburst, her therapist, her gender theories, her family, her sexual history, Adolf Hitler, and the idea of national reparations as physical act...among other things. Blackly humorous, controversial, indulgent, transgressive, and ultimately fascinating, this is oversharing at its wildest. ~ Reviewed by Joe Michon-Huneau
Quirky, subtle, and absorbing, this is a near-perfect collection of brilliantly worded, precisely constructed essays. Bouncing from topic to topic, the menagerie includes: sci-fi fandom, Queen Elizabeth's personal effects, UFO enthusiasts, the Iditarod via biplane, India's tiger-centric ecotourism, the historical complexities of sumo wrestling, author Yukio Mishima's politically inspired seppuku, an oil tycoon's love life, and the drowning of an Oklahoma city. Phillips' collection reads like a less tangled David Foster Wallace, or like Jon Krakauer with a more pronounced sense of observational humor. ~ Reviewed by Joe Michon-Huneau
A slim, melancholy novel consisting of brief chapters that center around places the narrator inhabits ("At the Supermarket," "On the Couch," "In My Head"). Lahiri's nameless characters simmer slowly throughout: details are specific but not peculiar; characters are unique in the way you or I are unique, but neither singular nor extraordinary. Her quiet protagonist is more approachable to the reader than to her surrounding characters: her experiences are immediately recognizable, her thoughts intimately known; she's commonplace but not mundane, her lifestyle simple but not unremarkable. Though much different in style and tone than her acclaimed books The Namesake and Interpreter of Maladies, I liked this one just as much. A meditation on loneliness and longing, frustration and distance, it's a novel that expects nothing of you: do it the same favor and you'll be delightfully surprised. ~ Reviewed by Joe Michon-Huneau
Reminiscent of his highly praised Never Let Me Go in both tone and intention, Ishiguro is exploring near-futures again in this sci-fi-tinged literary novel. Klara is an Artificial Friend, a solar-powered, artificially intelligent, humanlike robot designed to accompany a child as they grow up. Klara is observant, noticing patterns around her and expressing them eloquently if uniquely; she's tender, empathetic, and optimistic, but the family she is sold to has complexities beyond the familiarities of the shop. The daughter is excited but the mother is hesitant, and there's much more to their purchase than first meets the eye. As this quasi-dystopian world opens up through Klara's narrow perspective, Ishiguro reveals just how many layers are hiding beneath the surface. I was taken aback by the plausibility of this future, and by the generosity and humanity Ishiguro continually gives his characters—even when that character is a robot. ~ Reviewed by Joe Michon-Huneau
What a gorgeous, strange, interpretive picture book! A wordless, magical tale of seafaring exploration centered around an adventurous paper boat that will invoke wonder in artists and story lovers of all ages. Full of strange underwater creatures both real and not, rendered in impeccably detailed black and white illustrations. ~ Reviewed by Joe Michon-Huneau
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