The Stranger in the Woods, by Michael Finkel: I know this was an expansion of a long-form article, and in some ways it felt like it should have either remained an article or gone deeper into the historical perception of hermits and of other “famous” hermits – it did so in a cursory way. Interesting nonetheless.
The Lola Quartet, by Emily St. John Mandel: So atmospheric. The members of a high school jazz quartet remain interconnected (but mostly unbeknownst to them) by events that took place just before they graduated, whose consequences reappear ten years later. Like most people, I’d read St. John Mandel’s three most recent books (Station Eleven, The Glass Hotel, Sea of Tranquility) but not her earlier work. Though it is a bit dreary, I enjoyed it.
Hot Springs Drive, by Lindsay Hunter: This book was so horny, which I guess fit with the (unrelated) title. I think I was more interested in the (real-life, which this was based on) murder and motivation than I was the characters, which may make me a sensationalist. The writing had teeth, but I wasn’t super taken with the way the perspectives shifted or the stories of the peripheral characters (with one poignant exception).
Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? by Seamus O’Reilly: I think the only time I’ve ever listened to an audiobook all the way through was when I was a child and there was a somehow Christmas-related novel that my parents and I listened to in the car while driving 12+ hours to visit cousins. I can picture the car and the sense I had while listening but remember zero details of the plot, characters, or any identifying info. I haven’t listened to an audiobook since then because 1) no car/no driving; 2) I cannot focus when the words are out loud and not on the page. I can do podcasts, but even that took practice. Anyway, this is the rare book that I think might have benefited from its audio version. It was funny, yes, but in a sort of small-stage way.
Small Things Like These, by Claire Keegan: This is a novella – almost a cross between a short story and a novella – that felt to me in tone and conclusion like James Joyce’s “The Dead.” Set in Ireland in the 1980s, it addresses the Magdalene Laundries where unmarried pregnant women were sent, shamed, and abused. Really, really lovely.
