Happy May Readers,
It’s been a hectic last few weeks for me between visiting my boyfriend in New York, getting sick upon returning to the Midwest, and one of the busiest bookselling days of the year: Independent Bookstore Day. In between in it all, I’ve read four books! I hope you’ve all been as busy (but hopefully not as sick) as me and haven’t missed my posting too much.
While flying to New York, I started 33 Brugmann Place by Alice Austen, a friend of my boyfriend’s mother. She is a successful playwright and screenwriter; this is her first novel. I was excited to receive a signed copy from my boyfriend’s mother a few months ago, and it felt right to read it on my flights to and from New York.
The novel is set in Belgium during World War II and follows a cast of characters that all inhabit the book’s namesake, 33 Brugmann Place. Immediately upon opening the book, I could see the influence of being a playwright because the reader is presented with a cast of characters along with which apartment they inhabit. I thought that each character was well-rounded, and I appreciated the diverse cast. Each chapter allows us a front-row seat to different characters’ thoughts, making their lives interconnectedness stand out. I liked the emphasis on what it means to share space with other people, especially during a time of cultural upheaval. How important are the connections we forge with our neighbors? What does it mean to be part of a community? I think that this novel has a lot to say about these things. Each person is involved in their own life, but their decisions influence others in the building regardless. Some higher-level philosophical musings from the characters had me a little confused, but I thought that it was fitting for the intensity of the major moral battlefield that World War II created. Seeing different characters observe their new realities seep in month by month and day by day stood true to what I think the experience would’ve actually been.
As soon as I got home from New York, I immediately fell sick and ended up being home a few days longer than I had planned. On the first day, I was too ill to do anything but nap and watch movies; on the second day, I picked up Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. Both my mom and my boyfriend have been insisting I read this book since last summer, so with nothing better to do, I began reading the 500-page behemoth. As a consistent best-seller for the past two years, and it already having been made into a well-liked mini-series starring Brie Larson, I expected it to be great.
Long story short, I didn’t dislike it, but I didn’t love it either. The narrative revolves around Elizabeth Zott, a woman in the 1960s who is fired from her job as a chemist and, needing to provide for her daughter, lands a job as a cooking show host. I can see why many people have really enjoyed this novel since Elizabeth is an intelligent, strong woman in the 1960s attempting to pave a path for herself in a male-dominated field. Very girl-boss. For me, though, there were stylistic choices that I disliked. For instance, the dialogue was almost like a caricature of how people spoke in the 1960s – it didn’t feel very genuine to me. Furthermore, the ending was supremely unsatisfying after 500 pages of building suspense. The reveal is there, but there isn’t any payoff, and I wanted more from all the time I invested in these characters. Ultimately, it all felt like it was trying too hard to rewrite the reality of the 1960s.
Finally, after mostly recovering (as I write this, I still have a runny nose), I made it back to Madison and spent a day and a half reading My Life with the Walter Boys and My Return to the Walter Boys. The first book I originally read eleven years ago in 2014 when it came out, and I subsequently reread it a few times during high school. I wanted to reread it because the second book, My Return to the Walter Boys, was just released a few weeks ago. More importantly, the bookstore where I work hosted an author talk/book signing, and I wanted to be prepared for it… while also reliving a little childhood nostalgia!
Revisiting the first book was great; I remembered why I loved it so much in the first place. The main character, Jackie, must relocate from New York City to rural Colorado after her family gets into a fatal car crash. Despite the harsh beginning, the story that follows is heartwarming but filled with enough teenage drama to keep it interesting. It’s one of the books that, as a teen, I felt captured teenagers in a reasonably realistic manner. Plus, who can resist a love triangle?! Not me!
The second book was a different matter. It’s important to understand that this sequel has come out over ten full years after the original book was published and that it’s coming out after a successful Netflix adaptation. I think the author is writing the sequel in good faith but is also capitalizing on the popularity of the Netflix show. Which, I want to emphasize, is not a sin. However, when I was reading this sequel, there were some glaring issues. One of my main complaints is that I spotted at least three fairly large grammatical mistakes. I’m not talking about misplaced commas, but complete words missing as if a sentence was re-worded but then never fully polished. I just think that if you’re getting paid to publish a novel, words should not be missing! It’s not that high of a bar. If I had to guess, it’s probably due to a rush to get printed before the Netflix show loses whatever relevance it gained – and a lack of real editing, but that’s a different conversation.
In terms of the storyline, I generally liked it. Keeping it interesting with a will they, won’t they dynamic worked for most of the book, but admittedly got tiring towards the end. So did leaving us with yet another cliffhanger.
Overall, I’m glad I read each of these books, but I’m still waiting to read something that I absolutely cannot put down.
Thanks for reading!
6 To Go,
Clare