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The zookeeper's wife : a war story / |
Jan Zabinski, the director of the Warsaw Zoo, and his wife, Antonia, are credited with saving 300 Jews and Polish resisters during WWII. Diane Ackerman draws on Antonia's diary and other sources to relate this exciting and inspirational story. Antonia, who distracts Nazis from searching her by playing nationalistic German songs on her piano and keeps a variety of exotic creatures in her home, is particularly compelling. However, an equally interesting story is how Jan and Antonia used their zoo and exploited their knowledge of animals to aid in their resistance activities against a few Nazis whose theories of purification extended to the animal kingdom. Ackerman's scientific knowledge runs deep and at times the book is perhaps too academic for the lay reader, but overall this historical account reads like a satisfying novel. |
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The age of wonder : how the romantic generation discovered the beauty and terror of science / |
Age of Wonder by Richard Holmes is an accessible and fascinating account of some of the best minds of the Romantic generation, in particular scientists. There are portraits of botanist Joseph Banks, astronomer William Herschel, and chemist Humphrey Davies, among others. These men all contributed to the Romantic age of science, making advancements that captured the public's imagination, such as the discovery of the planet Uranus, the launching of hot air balloons, and the exploration of Africa's interior. Holmes writes of a time when science and art weren't antithetical but rather complementary pursuits: the Romantic writers, including Wordsworth, Shelley and Coleridge, were often fascinated and inspired by the discoveries of the age. Science and art were both inspired pursuits requiring imagination and creativity, and Holmes states that the "notion of wonder" seems to have united them. This absorbing book, poignantly observed and beautifully written, is an excellent narrative history of an era. |
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Lush life / |
Known for his writing contributions to the hit television series The Wire and his critically acclaimed novel Clockers (Spike Lee directed the 1995 film adaptation), Richard Price has made a name for himself writing gritty stories of urban street life. This story centers around three main characters. There's Eric Cash, a washed-up writer who gets caught up in a criminal investigation while making his way home after a late night out. Then there's Detective Matty Clark, the lead investigator in the case. Tristan Acevedo rounds out the main players as the young man who gets caught up in the whole mess when his pal talks him into committing what he assures him is some petty crime. The story unfolds as we follow Det. Clark, Eric, and Tristan through the ins and outs of the case with ever increasing tension as the case begins to draw to a conclusion. Price once again delivers great characters and quick, smart dialogue as well as a fast moving plot that feels destined for the big screen. |
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Franny and Zooey / |
Though he'll always be known for writing The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger's greatest achievement may be his Glass family stories. A troubled, yet close-knit family that seems to communicate best at a distance, writing letters or even phoning each other from another room of the same apartment, the Glass family siblings were child prodigies who had an unusually difficult time growing up. In "Franny & Zooey," the two youngest Glass siblings struggle to come to terms with the values of nonconformity and Eastern religion instilled in them by their older brothers. Salinger was troubled by the rampant consumerism of post-war America, and his darkly hilarious stories are every bit as relevant and powerful today. |
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The little stranger / |
The Little Stranger is set in rural England shortly after World War II. Dr. Farday is called to check on an ill young servant at Hundreds Hall, an estate where his mother worked as a domestic several decades ago. When he arrives, he finds the once-impressive estate in ruins, but his interest in the house and its inhabitants, Mrs. Ayers and her two grown children, keeps him coming back. Despite his lower social standing, he becomes a family friend, and before long he comes to realize that a decline of fortune is not the only calamity the Ayers are coping with. As a series of unexplainable events unfold, the sanity of some of the estate's inhabitants is questioned. Wonderfully detailed and capturing the ravages of war and the decline of the landed gentry, The Little Stranger is a sublime ghost story. Waters slowly but effectively builds suspense in this Turn of the Screw-esque tale and keeps the reader guessing about the narrator's reliability and motives. |