A taut, shocking murder mystery with enough twists & turns to keep you hanging right ‘til the end. I devoured it!

Not great literature, but a solid outing in the Leaphorn/Chee series. Petty criminals & witches, shamans & lawyers, they all come together as the everyday world and the mystical mingle effortlessly, as they do in all of Hillerman’s books. A nice quick read.

A disturbing but compelling portrait of a father dealing with the aftermath of his teenage daughter’s first foray into the sexual arena. I couldn’t put it down—it was like watching a train wreck. The insensitive tone was a bit over the top, though.

This evocative, multi-layered story was a wonderful read—the author managed the jarring time-jumps perfectly, evoking the shock of chronological displacement without losing the narrative thread. One of the best reads of the past year or so. Much Recommended.

Ho hum, more angsty sound-alike pop. Nothing much to distinguish it from a zillion other artists. Why the heck did this show up on my recommended list?

The Chicks are still angry about the ridiculous reactionary backlash & it shows in almost every track on their new effort. In particular, “Not Ready to Make Nice” and the furiously unrepentant “Lubbock or Leave It” show that these women are saddened but standing firm. Because of this, it’s not exactly a rollicking good-time album, although the closing track, the gospel-infused “I Hope”, ends it on an optimistic note. A thoughtful, thought-provoking disc from some of the best voices in contemporary country music.

Young returns to his 60’s protest roots. Rock on Neil!

Mildly entertaining, but didn’t live up to the hype. The tone is very uneven, veering wildly between straight teenaged-wasteland tragedy and absurdist suburban dytopia—I found myself thinking “Get on with it already” for most of the second half of the book. Perhaps Mr. Eugenides’ later efforts will be more promising.

Not the famous Botticelli painting (it makes only the most parenthetical of appearances) but an allegory for the awakening of an unconventional young woman in Medici-era Florence. The historical details snap with authenticity, and the narrative is propelled along smartly enough, although it drags a little in detailing the religious conflicts that followed Lorenzo de’ Medici’s death. A thoroughly enjoyable read!

Part survival story, part mediatation on the natures of god, man, and beast; it starts slowly, but the delightfully dry tone offsets the wildly improbable nature of the story, and had me engrossed by the fourth chapter or so.

I loved the twist at the end!