Mini Reviews: Wayne, Moran, Marion and Smith

1. Teddy Wayne, The Love Song of Jonny Valentine:  I really enjoyed this book.  It is written in the voice of a Justin Bieber-esque child pop star, on tour, searching for his biological father while dealing with his overbearing momager (mom who is also his manager for those of you who don't watch anything with the Kardashians) and coming to terms with the beginnings of puberty and the sudden increase in his desire to break the rules.  The voice is funny and young (although matured by the experience of being in the limelight) and Wayne's cunning observations concerning the lives of the rich and famous (or not-so-famous), along with his parodic portraits of real musicians, make this worth a fun, lighthearted, but clever read.

2013/Free Press/ 285 pages/ I received a copy from the publisher and another from the library.

2. Isaac Marion, Warm Bodies:  I had this book on my shelves for a while and was compelled to read it since the movie was coming out (which I also saw).  The young zombie R is the narrator of the story, and the book is a zombie romance, riffing on the bard's Romeo and Juliet.  The voice in this book is definitely unique, but the story isn't, and it is a little cheesy at times, although I would recommend it for fans of both zombies and traditional YA romance (which is a pretty big audience).

2011/ Atria Books/ 239 pages/ I bought my copy.

3. Ali Smith, The Accidental:  This one was for my book club.  We waited a really long time between reading the book and talking about it,  but eventually it came back to us.  It is an experimental novel about a family on holiday, whose lives are interrupted (as the narrative is interrupted) by a stranger named Amber who becomes enmeshed with each of the characters.   The novel told in third person limited point of view, with a section for each of the four members of the family and interjecting chapters for Amber.  In the end, we had a lot to talk about with the book, but one of the members summed it up as, "We thought the book was weird, don't know what the point was, but we liked it."  I find myself wanting to read it again.

2005/ Anchor Books/ 306 pages/ I bought my copy.

4. Caitlin Moran, Moranthology: I haven't read How to be a Woman yet, although bloggers that I love rave about it; however, I was pretty excited to get a galley of Moran's book of essays (previously published columns from the London Times), Moranthology.  My favorites were about musicians: a day spent with Lady Gaga, and an interview with Keith Richards which sparked my interest in My Life.  If you are a fan of funny writers and newspaper columns, I can't think of any reason you wouldn't read this.

2012/ Harper Perennial/ 256 pages/ I received a copy from the publisher and then purchased it for Kindle.