"I Leave It Up to You," a family drama by Jinwoo Chong, is a pandemic novel with a new twist. Here, a gay man who had distanced himself from his Korea"I Leave It Up to You," a family drama by Jinwoo Chong, is a pandemic novel with a new twist. Here, a gay man who had distanced himself from his Korean immigrant family wakes up from a two-year coma to find his old life is gone. His fianc茅 has moved on. His job as a copywriter and apartment in Manhattan? Gone. The reader is along for the ride as Jack Jr. struggles to figure out why everyone's wearing masks and what's going on with the sushi restaurant his family runs in Fort Lee, N.J. Will he find a way to rebuild his independent life or will he slide back into the one he left behind in a rebellious huff in his late teens? Jack Jr. makes a sympathetic main character, one who's open about his flaws and uncertainties as well as his wounded heart. I could see the story as the basis for a TV series, especially given Chong's evocative writing about the restaurant and the work that goes into stocking it with trips to the fish market.
Note: I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. ...more
"The Paris Express" races along on finely built tracks, but the narrative train is overstuffed and by the time it derails you may find yourself wonder"The Paris Express" races along on finely built tracks, but the narrative train is overstuffed and by the time it derails you may find yourself wondering if anyone ever punched your ticket. I'm a huge fan of Emma Donoghue's writing, and she has a great approach to historical fiction in general. This book, however, is trying to do too many things at once. It focuses on a well-known 1895 train derailment at Montparnasse and visits with numerous passengers as the express train barrels toward its destination. Unfortunately, there are so very many narratives happening that you never feel fully invested in any of them.
Note: I received a free ARC of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. ...more
Excellent! John Green, best known as an author of young adult novels such as "The Fault in Our Stars," branches out into the history of medicine with Excellent! John Green, best known as an author of young adult novels such as "The Fault in Our Stars," branches out into the history of medicine with this deeply frustrating tale. His central thesis in "Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection" is that humanity has the tools to treat and cure this disease but we choose not to do so (mostly) because of racism and income inequality. The book covers several centuries of humanity's battles with tuberculosis without ever feeling dull or dry. And woven throughout is a compelling story of one young man's battle against drug-resistant TB in Sierra Leone. Highly recommended, especially if you have even a slight interest in global health or drug discovery. ...more
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