The Ring of Solomon (Bartimaeus #4)

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Title: The Ring of Solomon (Bartimaeus #4)

Author: Jonathan Stroud

Publisher: Hyperion

Year: 2010

410 pages

A prequel to Stroud's Bartimaeus trilogy. The reader knows that Bartimaeus survives, but it's still enjoyably suspenseful. This story underscores how old the demons are and how short the lives of humans and their empires. Many characters have very nice psychological storylines and the narrative is constructed with Stroud's usual care. The question of whose perspective, if anyone's, reflects reality is, as in his other work, a subtext once you know to look for it.

Slumdog Millionaire [Q & A]

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Title: Slumdog Millionaire [Q & A]
Author: Vikas Swarup
Publisher: Scribner
Year: 2000/2008
326 pages

While the background events are grim indeed, this floridly dramatic and coincidental novel is quite superficial. It's a fun narrative despite, or ignoring, the content, as long as one reads it for the entertainment value of those coincidences and not for realism.

Boneshaker (The Clockwork Century #1)

#610
Title: Boneshaker (The Clockwork Century #1)
Author: Cherie Priest
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2009
416 pages

I found this less engaging than many YA fantasy novels, especially with such promising components as poisonous gas and zombies in a Northwest steampunk context. My big problem (other than the thought, Really? You need poisonous gas and zombies to bring it alive?) was that the characters seemed to exist only to push the plot along. I had little sense of identification with most of the players. They spent much of the time that might have deepened them, or shown how events changed them, in walking, running, chasing, or being chased. I don't mind that to a point, but I'm hoping that the next in the series has less perambulating and more psychology. I'd like the next one to build on this promising beginning by being better than okay.

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

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Title: The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals
Author: Michael Pollan
Publisher: Penguin
Year: 2007
460 pages

Audiobook

Although often interesting, the poor organization and writing detracted from this book's overall appeal and success. This ambitious volume reads like several books jammed together rather than the interweaving of several narratives. I'd have preferred to read it as perhaps 3 companion volumes intended for simultaneous or sequential reading. In addition to the writing issues, in too many places Pollan's lack of specialized knowledge or expertise lead him to make inaccurate, overgeneralized, or contradictory pronouncements.

Behemoth (Leviathan #2)

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Title: Behemoth (Leviathan #2)
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Illustrator: Keith Thompson
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Year: 2010
489 pages

Continues Leviathan. This is a pleasure to read--clear, compelling, and funny. Again, the illustrations are quite fine. A hatching egg brings political intrigue, and we learn more about Darwinists.

The Dangerous World of Butterflies: The Startling Subculture of Criminals, Collectors, and Conservationists

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Title: The Dangerous World of Butterflies: The Startling Subculture of Criminals, Collectors, and Conservationists
Author: Peter Laufer
Publisher: The Lyons Press
Year: 2009
288 pages

This was emptier and less engaging than I expected, and not to the general standard of the genre. It was uneven, with some sections very good and others simply insufficient. Like Blechman's Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Reviled Bird, this is a natural and cultural history by an outsider without much background in the topic, with a tone that is more puzzled than affectionate. The puzzlement isn't as funny to the reader as Laufer seems to think. The tone crept toward disdainful at times, with a whiff of contempt for people Laufer repeatedly calls "butterfly huggers." People who know nothing about butterflies might enjoy this; don't give it to your lepidopterist friend, because it is likely to annoy her.

The Secret History of the Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued His Empire

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Title: The Secret History of the Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued His Empire
Author: Jack Weatherford
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
Year: 2010/2011
336 pages

Audiobook

 The second of Weatherford's books on the Mongol empire. This one uses a focus on women's roles, including leadership, as a lens for understanding Mongol history in relation to European and Asian history. Moral: It bites to be female, even if you're a queen.