Mostly Mysteries 🔎

    What a good reading week I've had! I read three excellent books.

 

    The Latecomer by Jean Hanff Korelitz surprised me. At first, I didn't like it because it was full of unpleasant, selfish people, but then they grew up. When I googled The Latecomer, auto-complete said things like: is it true? I had those questions as well because Korelitz grounded the book in reality. Outsider artist Achilles Gildo Rizzoli's art is a critical ingredient in the plot. achilles-g-rizzoli Other "real life" characters had me checking to see if I was reading a novel. One review called it a "comic novel," but I found it a portrayal of family members trying to get their needs met at the expense of others. It is an intriguing book that I enjoyed. I frequently googled the people and events mentioned. It was intricate, thought-provoking, and unpredictable. I don't know if Korelitz would say this, but I found the story's moral to be that therapy can make you a better person. It worked for the characters in this book. 

    I listened to the audiobook Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto. A disclaimer at the beginning explained that the English the aunties spoke wasn't intended to mock Asian people, but to represent them. I learned so much from this book! The characters are Indo-Chinese, meaning in the past, family ancestors migrated from China to Indonesia and then to an English-speaking area like Hong Kong or the United States. The Aunties speak Chinese and Indonesian fluently, but English is more challenging. Many funny moments revolve around the Aunties not understanding what someone means in English and Meddie not comprehending what the Aunts are saying in Chinese and Indonesian. The main character, Meddelin Chan, is a mid-twenty-year-old photographer who helps with the family wedding business. Her male cousins all move away as soon as possible and encourage Meddie to do the same. Meddie believes there is a curse on her family that causes all the men to leave--all the aunts are divorced. So when Meddelin accidentally kills a date her mother set her up with, she turns to her aunts, and they ride to rescue. This is a screwball comedy book that also does an excellent job as a mystery. 

    Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke was recommended on the podcast What Should I Read Next several times, and I've had it on hold for over a month. It was worth the wait. Darren Mathews' family has lived in Texas for generations. He dropped out of law school to start the journey to becoming a Texas Ranger after the murder of James Byrd Jr, a Texas black man, by three white men from the same town. Byrd was dragged behind a pickup for several miles until he was decapitated. Mathews is pulled in several directions. He tries to live by the Ranger code, but circumstances make it difficult. He is called upon to look into the death of a black man in the small town of Lark, Texas, but only when a young white woman is found dead days after the first death. I gave this book five stars because it tells a suspenseful, tangled story. I was guessing until the end who the killer was. I knew who I wanted it to be. This is the first in a series, and I can't wait for more.