Still Missing chronicles Annie's horrific abduction and imprisonment by a lunatic she calls The Freak, as told to her "shrink". Each chapter represents a therapy session, as Annie understandably needs a great deal of help processing her ordeal. It's clear from the very beginning that Annie's case has generated 24-hour news cycle notoriety, though the circumstances of her homecoming are only given to us in pieces during her sessions. How did Annie get away? Is the cops' investigation ongoing? Can Annie's relationship with her boyfriend survive? Can her parents and best friend find a way to support her and help her heal? How could someone ever heal from such tragedy?
I liked a lot of things about this book. The pacing was great. Annie's keen observational skills were believable, adding a lot of terror to her reports of The Freak's behavior. And though Annie suffers brutality beyond measure, Stevens doesn't present a damsel in distress.
This was my blizzard read, so my rating reflects just what a perfect choice this was...a twisty page-turner was just what Mother Nature ordered. The plot points are rather obvious at times. Annie's rather brash demeanor is a bit incongruous with her trauma and circumstances. The therapy angle isn't necessary and there's not a lot of originality here. But did I eat this up like so much snow cream? Indeed, I did. Sometimes there's a book that you know you shouldn't like as much as you did, but against all odds the timing and circumstance works out for a great read.
Sharing too too much of the plot would take away from your potential inclement weather fun, so I'll just say that I give this 4 snowflakes out of 5.
This review is also posted at: http://cannonballread.com/2016/01/against-all-odds/ Cannonball Read is a race to read and review 52 books in a year, hosted by many followers of entertainment site pajiba.com
“Why build an audience for the Ramones or the Pistols or the Clash? Why institutionalize them if they’re just going to be destroyed, if it’s their nature to destroy others and to destroy themselves?”
I have no idea how Iggy Pop is alive.
It took Bowie’s death to remind me that I’d wanted to read this book for years. I was not disappointed….this was a wild ride. I was hooked from the opening two paragraphs, where we start off with Lou Reed and the formation of the Velvet Underground. The book moves on to Iggy and the Stooges, the New York Dolls, the Ramones, and touches on the Sex Pistols and the British punk scene.
As the title promises, this is an oral history…each chapter is a collection of excerpts from decades of interviews with the main players in the American punk scene. The chapters move in chronological order, but the huge cast of characters makes it a bit hard to track, especially if you “meet” someone in the early chapters and then don’t hear from them again for a period of years. Thankfully, there’s a handy list of bios in the back so you can keep everyone straight.
I know nothing about punk, so as a non-fan I can still say that I thoroughly enjoyed this history lesson. Nothing is held back about the trysts and drug use. I find the music culture of the early seventies fascinating…the way in which these people became legends is insanely streamlined compared to what people go through today. My favorite passage concerned Iggy and the Stooges’ first gig and their creativity in the face of a lack of instruments. And I honestly have no idea how any of them are alive (most aren’t). Everyone was sleeping with everyone, no drug stone lay unturned, no regard for personal safety ever seemed to come into play.
While the structure took some adjusting, this is a solid recommendation for fans of rock, countercultures, or really seedy stories.
4 stars out of 5.
"Kill your darlings" never felt this personal.
Though published decades after the perfect To Kill A Mockingbird, this novel was written first. I think it's important to keep reminding yourself of that fact if you start to feel that Lee has *changed Atticus*. Watchman finds the adult Jean Louise, our beloved Scout, coming back to Maycomb County from the big city, and becoming disillusioned with the politics and bigotry of her hometown. She comes to question her relationship with her father, Atticus. In many ways, this is another coming-of-age novel, though a different age than Mockingbird. Many of us reach our twenties and find that maybe our parents aren't the idols we had thought.
I felt very apprehensive about reading this, and that unease isn't lifted now that I've finished. This isn't a great novel. But there are moments where I absolutely reveled in Lee's prose and voice. The scene between the adult Jean Louise and her former housekeeper Calpurnia in Calpurnia's home was particularly amazing. Jean Louise's discovery that her father may not be perfect and may not share her worldview was difficult to process, as I share her adoration of Atticus.
I thought about a 3- rating, but that lumps this book with so many "just ok" books that I won't remember. Or that weren't affecting. Reading this book was affecting. Disturbingly so, as my view of beloved characters was challenged and changed. So, it seems that once again Lee has made her point.
4 stars out of 5.
