The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

I can't say that I wasn't engrossed in this book. It's a fast read and I read it in a couple days. I did enjoy it, even though it was a bit cliche in parts.

The novel is told from the point of view of Enzo, a dog, who is loyal, smart and very insightful. Even though I have never had a dog, I could relate to my friends who do and who cherish their dogs and think of them as human. There was so much to love about Enzo in this story.
His owner, Denny, encounters all kinds of bad luck that seems to keep piling up. But as a race car driver, he always keeps his eyes ahead and on the road. The book is a bit preachy in that regard but the message is good. I can see this being a really good book for high schoolers. It's a fast read, holds your attention, and has a message. The art of racing in the rain is a metaphor on how to lead your life, staying in focus.
So, I will recommend it - not as a great work of literature, but for providing an interesting twist to a story of a family struggling through hard times - and surviving!

Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

I had my stab at Murakami a few years ago when I read (did I finish?) "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle." I was reading it voraciously on the plane to Paris when one of the flight attendants interrupted me to ask "Did I love it?" I answered in the affirmative, but if he had asked me a few hundred pages further into the book, would I have answered the same? I am not sure.
It seems like Murakami has a following, a cult, like Harry Potter or Stephen King fans, albeit of very different genre! Look at the popularity of his new novel right now. It's a staggering 900+ pages. That is an immediate turn off for me, but people are gobbling it up.
So, when the movie version of "Norwegian Wood" came out and I ran into this short paperback in Barnes and Noble, I picked it up. And I finished it. And I enjoyed reading it, even if it was rather depressing. But at the heart, there was the hint that the main character, Watanabe, might find happiness with Midori.
The female characters in Murakami's books are disturbing. They prey on and tortue the male protagonist in a very subtle way; you never know if they are victims or predators.
Needless to say, Murakami is an interesting writer: thoughtful, mysterious and spiritual. But I am not sure when I will try another one of his books. Probably not while I am still working. Need more reading time to delve into his newest, "1Q84."

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides

Eugenides wrote one of my VERY FAVORITE contemporary novels, "Middlesex." It did win the Pulitzer Prize. And I DID love the book. And not for its topic: hermaphroditism. But for the story, the saga of a family coming to America and all of the rich and captivating stories that follow.
So, I was so excited when  Eugenides' new novel was released. And I did enjoy this book. Not as much as "Middlesex," but I did like it. The book's title comes from the fact that the main character, Madeleine Hanna, is writing her senior thesis about Jane Austen, George Elliot and other classic authors who write about courtship and marriage and "happily ever after." But "the marriage plot" no longer exists in contemporary life and literature; it's the age of prenuptuals, divorce, living together, gay marriage and more. The courtships written about in those novels of yesterday are no longer relevant, except to Madeleine.
So the story unfolds in similar fashion to these classic novels, with Madeleine being courted by two men vying for her love and attention. But these men are so different from the ones we read about in Austen and the like. One of them, Leonard, battles mental illness, while the other, Mitchell, grapples with finding himself.
Who will Madeleine end up with? Which one will she marry? I won't tell, but will invite you to read it and enjoy the contemporary twist to the classic romance novels of the nineteenth century.

The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer

This is quite an epic novel: about 600 pages and spanning nearly a decade. It is a "holocaust novel," but a different one, at least for me. The story opens in the late 30's in Hungary. Young Andras, a Jewish student in Budapest, has the opportunity to travel and study in Paris. He is to be an architect. His brother, Tibor, is studying medicine, and his younger brother, Matyas, is still in school, but not much of a student.
The beginning of the book, dealing with Andras' life in Paris is satisfying for him.  We get glimpses into the terror that is starting to overcome Europe, but for the most part, Andras has a full and successful life as a student in Paris.
As time passes, things become more and more difficult for Andras; his scholarship is revoked because he is Jewish; he eventually has to return to Budapest to renew his visa, but he is never to return to Paris.
In Paris, Andras meets Klara through a chance encounter before he left for Paris. Although she is older and has a teenage daughter, they manage to forge a strong relationship and end up married with two children.
I really appreciated the way the author told this story; the backdrop of politics tempering every aspect. Even though we all know the story of the Holocaust, every individual story is unique and captivating.

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