FINISHED:
 Tyler, Anne. (2012). The beginner's goodbye.  New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

[Well, the New York Times review that I've linked to (click title above) says that this is one is "arguably this talented author’s tritest and most predictable novel," and I might be somewhat inclined to agree.  I'll tell you, even when the book was first announced and I saw that it was going to be under 200 pages I thought, "Well, this one's going to be kind of thin..."  Thirty-something Aaron loses his wife, Dorothy, in a "freak" accident and attempts to move forward, occasionally seeing Dorothy at random places and times.  There are definite shades of The Accidental Tourist (Random House, 1985) here (the main character works in publishing a series of "how to"-ish books, his sister ends up with someone Aaron knows) which made this one seem like a bit of retread, though I enjoyed hearing about Aaron and Dorothy's "unconventional" relationship because it reminded me a bit of my own...]

STARTED:
Lawrence, Caroline. (2012). The Case of the Deadly Desperados: Western Mysteries, Book One.  New York: Putnam.

[Reviewing for ACL...]

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FINISHED:
 Wood, Maryrose. (2012). The unseen guest [The incorrigible children of Ashton Place #3]. New York: Balzer + Bray.

[Not my favorite of the 3 so far, but it's still a highly entertaining series.  Much like the TV show LOST (best. show. ever.) she seems to be presenting a whole bunch of clues to something (but, what??), and asking a whole bunch questions and not answering any of them.  In this one, the Widow Ashton comes to visit her son with her new boyfriend and their pet ostrich in tow.  When the ostrich mysteriously gets away, Penelope and the three incorrigibles head off into the forest to find it, eventually having to spend the night in a cave - a cave which Alexander, Beowulf, and Cassiopeia seems to know only too well...]

STARTED:
Tyler, Anne. (2012). The beginner's goodbye. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

[NEW ANNE TYLER! NEW ANNE TYLER!!]

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FINISHED:
Shelton, Dave. (2012). A boy and a bear in a boat. New York: David Fickling.

[Life of Pi meets Waiting for Godot... for kids!
That sounds like a joke, but it’s not.) This existential and esoteric title involves a boy who jumps in a rowboat captained by a bear and asks to be taken to the “other side” of a vast expanse of water.  What follows is 300 pages of hilariously dry, meaningless “action” including:  for a whole chapter the two play “I spy” with the only things to really spy being the sea and the sky (“Um, what did you say it began with again?” said the bear.  “S,” said the boy.  Like everything we’ve spied for the last hour, he thought.); the bear assures the boy that he knows where he’s going by pointing to a spot on an all blue map (“The boy was speechless.  A single tear traced a route down his cheek.  ‘No need to cry with joy,’ said the bear.  ‘It’s all part of the service.’”); and encounters with a terrifying creature from the deep (“Don’t hit him!” shouted the boy.  “Ask him if he knows the way!”) and a ghost ship (“What do you smell now?” said the boy.  “Danger!” said the bear.  “…or maybe marmalade.”).  The text is littered with cute, simple spot art every couple of pages which show a good amount of emotion (the bear is sticking his tongue out of the side of his mouth while tying a fishing fly), and the chapters are episodic, relatively short, and easily digestible.  Although I fear this one might not get the response that it deserves, it sure made me laugh out loud!]

STARTED:
Wood, Maryrose. (2012). The unseen guest [The incorrigible children of Ashton Place #3]. New York: Balzer + Bray.

[Loving this series - they're pretty darned hilarious and clever...]

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FINISHED:
Hall, Teri. (2011). Away. New York: Dial/Penguin.

[.]

STARTED:
Shelton, Dave. (2012). A boy and a bear in a boat. New York: David Fickling.

[We were talking about whether or not to get this one at SFPL and couldn't decide - so I took it to read because it instantly made me think of The Life of Pi which I LOVED.]

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FINISHED:
Mull, Brandon. (2012). Seeds of rebellion (Beyonders #2). New York: Aladdin.

[Well, this one suffered a bit from the "middle book" syndrome. It really seemed like not a whole lot happened in this one, even though it was almost 500 pages and took me way too long to read. There was a bunch of stuff presented that it seemed was set up for the final installment in the trilogy, and there were WAY too many characters and places (some of which weren't even included on the map at the beginning) to keep track of. Jason took a bit of a backseat and didn't really have a whole lot to do in this one, though the Rachel character was definitely given a greater role and it would appear that the powers she is developing will play a large part in Maldor's downfall. I'm still a Brandon Mull fan and eagerly await not only the conclusion to this series, but all other works from him in the future.]

STARTED:
Hall, Teri. (2011). Away. New York: Dial/Penguin.

[.]

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