Reading Lately

The Witch and Other Tales Retold by Jean Thompson
This book is a retelling of fairy tales in modern times. It made me wonder if the originals were based in truth as well. The very first story "The Witch" is so well done you will feel the emotions of the children. The reader will quickly realize that this is a modern day Hansel and Gretel. Instead of a witch in a candy cottage in the woods, she is an evil foster mother. I enjoyed figuring out which fairy tale was being retold. You will recognize “Little Red Riding Hood” but with a twist. I loved the last story "Prince" about how an unusual Prince Charming of sorts comes to the heroine’s rescue.  Every story was thoroughly enjoyable and some stayed with me for a while.

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
This book is about Jason Dessen, an average type college physics professor, husband and father, who is kidnapped, drugged, and wakes up in an alternate universe.  He is still Jason Dessen, but now he is a world famous quantum physicist, who has invented a machine that can transport people to other worlds. Who kidnapped him, and why? Will Jason be able to return to his old life?  It reminded me of the movie “The Family Man” with Nicolas Cage and Tea Leoni - except Nic’s character started out successful and woke up as the middling family guy. This is fast paced and I liked it until the end when it got more and more outlandish.

Little Sister by Barbara Gowdy
Another supernatural book!  This book is about Rose, who runs the family’s indie theater which her late father adored, while trying to look after her mother, who is in the early stages of dementia. Rose’s entertainment is suffering through dinner dates with her boring boyfriend Victor. During a summer lightning storm, Rose is somehow transported into the body of Harriet. Harriet is the complete opposite of Rose, and also bears an uncanny resemblance to someone from Rose's past.  Basically there are two stories going on at once, as the story follows Rose’s life and Rose gets drawn into Harriet's exciting life. I liked this book but it ended abruptly and never explained how Rose ended up inside someone else’s head (or how she got out).

Pilgrims by Elizabeth Gilbert
This was another book of short stories. They’re all real life; nothing supernatural going on here. These are the type of stories that are snippets of different people’s somewhat ordinary lives. The author was adept at creating characters who were all a little downtrodden, yet Gilbert always seemed d to convey an optimism that things would turn out okay. My favorites were “The Many Things That Denny Brown Did Not Know” about a few summer weeks in 15 year old Denny’s world, “At The Bronx Vegetable Terminal Market” which is just one thought provoking night in Jimmy Moran’s life, and “The Famous Torn and Restored Lit Cigarette Trick” which is just a little bit about magicians but ends up magical. Every story was a little gem to read.

Happy Reading!