The Master by Colm Toibin

The author selected writer Henry James to base this novel on. It is the life of Henry James as imagined by Colm Toibin.  What is interesting to me is that throughout the novel, the character Henry James chose people he knew and based characters on them in his stories.  Did the real Henry James do that in real life?

The character went through reservations about his life as a writer.  When he tried his hand at play-writing, he wasn’t successful so he went back to writing. 

It took me a few chapters to get hooked into the story and I enjoyed it.  I don’t know much about Henry James, but after reading this “make-believe” tale, I will be reading some of his novels.

My Not So Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella

Katie or Cath or Cat has not come to terms with herself.  She lives a fantasy life in her mind even to the point of not using her real name or telling people where she is from.

When she is fired from her job, she returns home to help her father turn their farm into a camping business.  After not telling him she was fired, her ex-boss shows up at the farm with her family and Katie disguises herself so she doesn’t recognize her. 

A cute story about a young girl, who may be a tad insecure, but has the potential to be a superstar!

The Naked Soul of Iceberg Slim by Robert Beck

He tore woman down emotionally and physically.  He brutalized and beat women.  They were his property, strictly to make money for him. 

This is a collection of writings and memories from the life of Robert Beck, aka Iceberg Slim.  He writes short chapters on people that he met in his life.  Actresses, pimps, people walking up to home from the street, Black Panthers, professors, etc…

I must say that this man has truly made a 360-degree turn with his life.  He admits in the beginning that even though he stopped pimping, moving into a different lifestyle still had its challenges but he was willing to keep striving.

Note to take away from this book:

These writing were written in the 70’s and Mr. Beck realized (back then) that black men use other black men as objects to vent their rage and hatred that they feel for the white man.  Why does it feel like this has not changed?  

The Blackwater Lightship by Colm Toibin

Helen and Declan.  Brother and sister. They get along okay.  Helen and mother don’t.  When their father dies when they were young, the relationship between Helen and her mother deteriorated.

Now that her brother is dying, the relationship is redeemed.  When their father died, Helen felt that her mother didn’t try to be loving and consoling to the children.  Helen felt she was too distant.  She held onto these feelings all through her adult life.  It takes a tragic moment to bring the family together under the same roof. 

Moshi Moshi by Banana Yoshimoto

I don’t remember where I saw this title but I was intrigued by the author’s name.  Who names their kid “Banana”? 

This edition was translated from Japanese and the title was “Moshi Moshi Shimokitazawa”.

It is a coming-of-age story about a young girl whose father dies in a tragic situation.  Yoshi talks about the heartbreak that she and her mother feel as they try to move on. They can’t even stay in the same house that the three of them lived in. She has dreams that her father is calling from his cell phone.

Yoshi is a young girl in her early twenties whose father doted on her as a little girl and even as she became an adult. She never knew her parents were growing apart from each other until her mother told her after he died.  As she matures and tries to figure out what to do next, she comes to learn other things about her father and her mother.

The author wrote intensely from her characters heart and soul.  You almost feel Yoshi’s hurt as she tries to find some normalcy in her life.  She even contemplated how her mother must feel differently as the woman who lost a husband then the girl who lost her father. 

I really enjoyed reading this novel and could not put it down.  I finished it in three days.  Now I want to know more about the small town Shimokitazawa. 

Long White Con by Iceberg Slim

This story is a continuation of Iceberg’s ex-cellmate, White Folks.

After Iceberg got out of jail and squared up, he began a new career as a writer.  He ran into White Folks who was checking into a hotel in Los Angeles.  They caught up with each other on their lives and Iceberg felt another story about White Folks could be done after White Folks told him more about his life as a confidence man.

 I still can’t figure out how White Folks never got caught.

I Almost Forgot You by Terry McMillan

At first I was trying to figure out where the story was going, but it got interesting as only Terry McMillan can do.  I have always enjoyed her novels.

This book made me think about old boyfriends. Do you only do that when you are single?  Or do married folks have the same thoughts?