What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty.

“But maybe every life looked wonderful if all you saw was the photo albums.”

What Alice Forgot is not a book I would normally pick up. It doesn't scream to me that it's something I would really love, but after hearing rave reviews, I added it to my Amazon wishlist to investigate at some point the the future. And then, my book swap partner gifted it to me, so I picked it up one afternoon and read it straight through.

And that is why we don't judge books.

I ended up really love Moriarty's book. It was funny, entertaining, and gave me some things to think about. It also led me to checking out another of her books from our media center-The Husband's Secret (which is still sitting unread on my nightstand, but you know...).

What Alice Forgot opens with Alice coming to on the floor of her gym. She doesn't remember why she's there, or who she's with. In fact, she still thinks she's 29, newly married to her love, Nick, and expecting her first child. But no. She's actually 39, has three kids, and is in the midst of divorcing Nick.

It's not a truly original or groundbreaking premise for a book, but it is well-done. I think that Moriarty did a fabulous job of showing that relationships do change over time and that what we think we want forever may not be the same ten years down the road.

“Relationships don’t stay the same. There isn’t time.” 

As Alice has lost her memories of the last ten years, we, the readers, get to go along for the ride as she "meets" her children for the first time, sees a ten-years-older Nick, and watch as she struggles to understand why her priorities have changed so drastically. In some ways, it's a bit heartbreaking to see Alice battle her sense of self and what she thinks is most important.

Her relationship with Nick is what really drew me in. As someone who got married young (I married Matt when I was 24, but had been dating him since I was 16/17), I know first-hand that people can change drastically in a marriage. What you think you both want can and will change. Sometimes people change together (so far, that would be Matt and I), and sometimes we don't. Alice and Nick lost that connection, so she searches to find out why.

Alice uncovers a lot of secrets about herself along the way, and slowly begins to fill in the missing pieces of her life. Her journey gives a lot to think about. I mean, would my younger self be happy with where I am now? I don't know. But Alice is forced to face that over and over again. 

She's also forced to come to terms with her younger self...and allow herself to feel that freely again. As older Alice, she's lost sight of some of that whimsy. And younger Alice doesn't get the sterner, more serious older version. That's a good message for us-not to lose that sense of youth. 

“She had always thought that exquisitely happy time at the beginning of her relationship with Nick was the ultimate, the feeling they'd always be trying to replicate, to get back, but now she realized that was wrong. That was like comparing sparkling mineral water to French champagne. Early love is exciting and exhilarating. It's light and bubbly. Anyone can love like that. But love after three children, after a separation and a near-divorce, after you've hurt each other and forgiven each other, bored each other and surprised each other, after you've seen the worst and the best--well, that sort of a love is ineffable. It deserves its own word.”

There was a larger side story surrounding Alice's sister, Elisabeth, that I have to mention. Elisabeth is someone Alice used to be close to, so when she thinks she still has that closeness, she has to learn Elisabeth's story. Unlike Alice, who had 3 healthy kids, Elisabeth had struggled and struggled to get pregnant, having multiple miscarriages and going through rounds of medical interventions. It's a side story that in some places feels disjointed, but I appreciated it for being there.

In contrast to Alice, Elisabeth's life has been much different, and like Alice, I think she forgot who she used to be before being consumed with her infertility. But, in watching Alice, I think Elisabeth also learns to let go of what she has become and ends the novel much happier than she started.

I also appreciated the raw honesty of her story, as it's something I can understand on some level. It also added another layer to Alice's own transformation and challenges.

“Each memory, good and bad, was another invisible thread that bound them together, even when they were foolishly thinking they could lead separate lives. It was as simple and complicated as that.”

In all, What Alice Forgot was a great read and I know that more by Moriarty is in my future. I am curious to see how they turn this into film, since so much is in Alice's head, but Hollywood can supposedly make miracles happen, right? ;) Let me know what you thought about this one!

Landline by Rainbow Rowell.

“You don't know when you're twenty-three.
You don't know what it really means to crawl into someone else's life and stay there. You can't see all the ways you're going to get tangled, how you're going to bond skin to skin. How the idea of separating will feel in five years, in ten - in fifteen. When Georgie thought about divorce now, she imagined lying side by side with Neal on two operating tables while a team of doctors tried to unthread their vascular systems.
She didn't know at twenty-three.” 

I have loved all of Rowell's books, and Landline is no exception to that love. Truthfully, I put off reading it until well after the debut out of fear that it wouldn't live up to her other titles. And while I do have one small complaint about it, I really loved this title (more on that complaint in a bit).

Essentially, Landline is about Georgie McCool and her husband Neal. They married relatively young and while Georgie undoubtedly loves her husband, she's not the best at showing him how much. The novel begins when Georgie has to back out of a family trip to Neal's childhood home for work, and Neal decides to leave without her, taking their two daughters with him. For whatever reason, Georgie cannot get in touch with Neal once he leaves, and she is forced to face the fact that perhaps their marriage isn't as solid as she once thought. The book follows her thoughts throughout that separation (with a bit of magical realism thrown in), and shows her thinking back to the beginnings of their relationship.

This book was one of those titles that hit me at the right place and in the right time. I think, had I read this before I got married, I would have been bored by the very real marriage parts of this. And I think a lot of Georgie and Neal's relationship as a married couple is realistic. My husband and I discussed the other day that we sometimes go in waves in terms of commitment and energy invested into our relationship. When he was working his incredibly stressful job, I took on more responsibility and care for us and our home. When he was unemployed, that responsibility shifted to his shoulders. Now we're pretty even as he is back in school. I think that kind of give and take is normal in a relationship.

What's abnormal is when one participant in the relationship takes more and more without ever giving, which is the situation Georgie finds herself in. As Rowell writes,

“Nobody's lives just fit together. Fitting together is something you work at. It's something you make happen - because you love each other.” 

I find that to be very true after 5+ years of marriage and 13 years of being with Matt. And while I know that might seem insignificant to some, I do know that we have learned that making a life together is all about that balance and that we must work to maintain that balance. For that, this book really resonated with me in my current (happily) married state. It was just an affirmation of something I already knew-that love and fitting together takes a lot of work. If you expect it to just happen and be fine forever, you have some struggles in the future.

I also loved the flashback between Georgie's current relationship with Neal to her memories and conversations with Neal as a young twenty-something. The portions about long conversations on the phone for hours and hours made me melt a bit, as it brought back memories from my senior year of high school, right after Matt and I started dating. There were a few times I fell asleep as we talked into the early morning hours. :)

I found myself making comparisons between that part of their relationship and my own, as I know how hard it is to be young and in love. I also know that as you grow older, you do change and mature. You've got to accept those changes.

The other aspect of the novel that I enjoyed was Neal's attitude toward Seth-Georgie's co-worker and friend since college. There were a couple of times in the novel where I thought that Neal was finally going to flip on Georgie for still being bonded to a male friend, but when he treated Georgie's relationship with Seth as important to her and her happiness and goals...well, I found it refreshing. How often do we read about a male imposing restrictions on their wife and her relationship with other men? Too many. For that, I really gained respect for Neal.

My one complaint? I felt that at times some of the scenes dragged on a little too long. The puppies? Not really necessary. Some of the whining? Not needed either. But neither was distracting enough to pull me away from finishing this in two sittings.

In all, I found Landline to be refreshing and as hopeful as some of Rowell's other work. I think she has a knack for creating relatable characters (Heather! I would love more about her!). I look forward to seeing what else Rowell has in store!

“Nothing good is easy.” 

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan.

“Walking the stacks in a library, dragging your fingers across the spines -- it's hard not to feel the presence of sleeping spirits.”

This is a book that I picked up over my winter break. It came home with me after I grabbed it randomly off the school shelves (it did make me a little sad to know I was the only one to check it out). It was a good choice and offered me a fun little excursion away from reality.

Clay Jannon has been laid off from his recent media job and goes in search of employment on the streets of San Francisco. He stumbles across Mr. Penumbra's bookstore and sees a sign looking for a clerk to work the nightshift. After going in and applying, he becomes the new night-clerk.

Mr. Penumbra's store offers Clay with enough to divert him from his unhappiness over a lack of career. Mysterious customers come in to check out books from the "Waybacklist," a series of books that take over the tall shelves lining the back of the store. They return and check out books without paying anything, and Clay is required to jot down everything about their appearance and state of mind in the store ledger.

As Clay's curiosity is spiked, the mystery begins. Who are these odd book readers? What is Mr. Penumbra hiding? What is in the books in the Waybacklist? Who started all of this?

Clay begins to uncover the secrets, pulling in friends from set designers to a Google genius to crack the mystery and code of the books.

This was a fun book. Not a book that challenged me, but something fun and fast and adventurous. It is a book that contains a lot of bookish love, with beautiful descriptions of tall, dusty shelves, the scent of paper, and the feeling of a good book in your hands.

 “Neel takes a sharp breath and I know exactly what it means. It means: I have waited my whole life to walk through a secret passage built into a bookshelf.” 

It's a book that is very much about the enduring power and meaningfulness of words and stories-how they capture us and become a part of us. It made me want to work in a bookstore and touch the spines of books that have been there for years and wonder at their stories.

This was very much a book for readers and about readers, which we need more of today. So, this is definitely a read for a good diversion from the usual-from the heavy and dark and droll.

“After that, the book will fade, the way all books fade in your mind. But I hope you will remember this:
A man walking fast down a dark lonely street. Quick steps and hard breathing, all wonder and need. A bell above a door and the tinkle it makes. A clerk and a ladder and warm golden light, and then: the right book exactly, at exactly the right time.”

Room by Emma Donoghue.

“People don't always want to be with people. It gets tiring.”

I was living under a rock when this novel came out and people told me to read it. Generally speaking, I avoid books that come out with a bang (example: The Hunger Games. I refused to read it when it first came out and started getting press). You would think I would learn my lesson. It's my inner book snob.

In any case, I was wandering the shelves in the media center before I left for our Winter Break when this one jumped out at me-it was mishelved. I grabbed it to put it away, but read the back cover and decided to bring it home with me, just in case.

So, over break, I happened to finish another book (Champion by Marie Lu) and wasn't quite tired yet. After reaching into the bag filled with books from school, this one found it's way into my hand. And I started reading...

3 hours later, I finished it. That should say something. I mean, you know when people say that they couldn't put a book down, and you're like, "No, you probably did put it down to go to the bathroom." Nope, I waited until I finished it. It drove my husband nuts.

As for the actual content of the book....it sucked me right in. 5 year old Jack has always lived in Room, along with Bed, Wall, Egg Snake, and a host of other objects and locations in the small room he shares with his mother. It is the only place he has ever known-he was born in the room and has never left, or seen the outside (there is only Skylight in Room).

The narrative starts on Jack's birthday and tells the story of how Jack and his mother decide to escape after a series of events, their rescue, and their rehabilitation into society. And while I certainly enjoyed Jack's description of Room and his life there, it was the second half of the novel that really grabbed me.

Because once out of Room, Jack has to come to terms with the fact that everything he has been taught his entire life wasn't completely true. He has to learn how to interact with people who aren't his mother, understand their emotions, and how things work in the real world. There was a scene where he was at a bookstore and saw HIS book-Dylan the Digger-and decided to keep it without understanding that there could be more than one. It was that kind of scene that really grabbed me.

I think Donoghue really excelled at capturing that kind of confusion and loss. Repeatedly Jack asks to go back to Room-not because he necessarily loved it there, but because it was what he knew, it was what he knew to be safe.

“The world is always changing brightness and hotness and soundness, I never know how it's going to be the next minute.” 

The result is a book that sucks you in-you have to know how Jack will handle the world around him. And how his mother will adjust to being back in the world after being gone so long.

It was a beautiful and haunting book that I really want to read again and soon. And if you brushed it off like I did, you should really give it a chance.

“In Room me and Ma had time for everything. I guess the time gets spread very thin like butter all over the world, the roads and houses and playgrounds and stores, so there's only a little smear of time on each place, then everyone has to hurry on to the next bit....”

Mini-Reviews Part 3 (Adult Titles).

This is the third and final post in my attempt to catch up talking about the books I've read this year and haven't reviewed. The first two posts focused on young adult titles and this one is all about those adult books I've picked up and read in the last few months.

Keep in mind that these are just short little blurbs about the books and my impressions of them.

Loteria by Mario Alberto Zambrano

I was actually pitched this book for review and accepted for two reasons. First, the cover. Second, the title. If you are unfamiliar with Loteria, it is a card game-a bit like bingo-from Mexico. I took a lot of Mexican and Mexican-American history courses in college for my history degree (I have a specialization in Mexican-American Culture and Studies), and in one of my courses, a professor taught us how to play Loteria. I haven't played or seen cards since then, but when I saw the title of this book, I knew I had to read it.

Young Luz Castillo has been taken in by the state while her father is in jail and her sister is in the ICU. Alone and feeling very isolated, she takes to writing a journal in a very interesting way. With a deck of Loteria cards at her side, she pulls a card and writes a piece of her history. What unfolds is a very touching and emotional story of her childhood and how her family fell apart.

I loved this book. It was raw, emotional, and tugged at every heart-string. This is one of those books you don't see coming...but you need to read it. I promise.

*I will warn you that Zambano throws in quite a few Spanish phrases. Most you can pick up from context clues, but some are a bit trickier. I figured them out from my background, but some might be hard for you if you don't know any Spanish.

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

This was a book not at all on my radar. I really don't read contemporary adult fiction. I really couldn't tell you what's "popular" right now. But I remember hearing someone on the blogosphere raving about this book, and I had it in the back of my mind. So, while down in Indiana in May for the Indy 500, I went to the bookstore with my sister-in-law. This was on a shelf and jumped out at me. So I bought it.

At times this book was...absurd that I laughed out loud. There were phrases that just jumped off the page...including quite a few f-bombs. It just seemed so raw and edgy. It was in my face and aggressive. The footnotes were insightful and interesting. I just sucked them up.

The book is about the life of Oscar Wao, a Dominican living in the United States. Through a series of different narrators, the book explores Oscar's life and how he became the person he is. In some ways, the book reminded me of One Hundred Years of Solitude-not the magical realism part, but the depth of family history and strength.

By the end of the novel, I was completely obsessed. It was a book that just took me over. And told me that perhaps I need to read more adult fiction...from this era. :)

Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris

I've never read anything by Sedaris, but he is one of those writers I've been meaning to get to. Then this book came out and I was so intrigued by the cover and title that I figured I would read it soon. Then I happened to win a copy from the 24-Hour Readathon, so it was perfect.

This is a collection of essays from Sedaris about a whole range of topics. Many made me chuckle and I flipped through them rather quickly. I will say that some of them would have gone over better had I been listening to Sedaris talk. I feel like a lot of his humor is lost in the written form. He must be hilarious in person.

I did enjoy my first exposure and have another one of his titles on my shelf (Me Talk Pretty One Day). He is someone I will definitely read more of in the future!


As you can see, I don't read much in the way of current adult fiction and non-fiction, so please give me some recommendations for other titles to check out. I think I read diversely, but I know this is an area I know nothing about. :)