The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley

 

This is a solid story that felt very much like a puzzle slowly coming together. I loved the interconnectivity of the characters and the way one small gesture brought them all together.

Julian used to live a life of excess and eccentricity. As an artist, he had a life in the spotlight, but now, in his 80's, he's lonely and forgotten. To break back into the world, he creates The Authenticity Project. He writes his truth in a notebook and leaves it behind in his neighborhood coffee shop, encouraging the next person who finds the notebook to add their own story and pass it on.

The concept works, drawing in a cast of characters who somehow become engaged in each others' lives. There's Monica, the uptight cafe owner. Hazard, the adict. Riley, the traveler. Alice, the frazzled new mom. Lizzie, the nosy, but caring nanny. And, finally, the notebook comes to Mary, who surprises everyone and brings the story full circle. There's no rationale, really, for why a group of strangers suddenly want to be there for each other after reading a few pages in a notebook, but they do, and it works. 

By the end of the book, almost everyone has found their potential, what was honestly missing for them when they initially discovered the notebook. It's not necessarily closure on what was pressing on them, but a sense of hope that wasn't there before.

It's hard to say which character is at the heart of the story, and I was surprised at how Pooley was able to take such a large cast and not make anyone feel more important than another. They all seem to have equal impact on the movement of the narrative, and I found that different and very well done. This is a nicely packaged story that moves quickly, and proves to be a satisfying read. Although some of the 'surprises' are a little predictable, I didn't finish things up feeling like I was reading a cliche. 

A Deadly Education (The Scholomance #1) by Naomi Novik

 

I needed a dose of science fiction/fantasy, so happily picked up another book by Naomi Novik. Although a bit verbose, she's an excellent storyteller and creator of worlds. I might not always like how she wraps things up, but I appreciate the work that goes into her narratives.

In A Deadly Education, we're put into a high school situation on the fringes of the void. All the students have magic, and if they can survive through graduation, they can go out into the world and use it. The problem is the whole pantheon of Mals who want to eat them. We're talking serious monsters of every shape and size. There are pinchers, tentacles, webs, and blobby goo. Breaking into what should be a protected space, the Mals are doing their best to create a student feast. Students expect something bad at every turn, never go anywhere alone, and use enchantments and shields just to get from their dorm room to the cafeteria.

There's also the graduation hall. It's full of hungry creatures just waiting for the end of the year.

The school has no teachers, just a self-motivated, magically-guided curriculum, where books find you. They appear on the library shelves when they want to, or come flying out of the void if you ask right. Students focus on a specialty, spending time in language classes to learn spells and the workshop to construct magical objects.

It's the junior class that stands out the most in this book, thanks to two specific students. Orion is a real hero. He can't help but attack, and successfully bring down, any Mal who threatens a student. What's more, the monsters seem to avoid him. El, short for Galadriel, is an outcast harboring a prophecy and a strong magical ability. She's never had friends, has a bad attitude, and is someone people usually avoid. Orion has the opposite problem. He can never get a moment alone, away from adoring fans.

Suddenly, these two are seen together. In fact, Orion begins picking El over his established group of friends. El isn't thrilled by this change, but it forces her into the realization that she needs friends. She'll need them to survive the school and graduation itself. Then something unexpected happens, and she must learn to trust others more than she ever thought.

This book is full of magic and the threat of death, but it's more complex than that. You're stuck in the middle of fragile teenage relationships while exploring human nature and the tendency we have to judge books by their cover (ha, ha). The book also explores intelligence -- academic vs ability vs natural intuition. 

The best parts of the book flow through the action, which increases in intensity as you read on. It's a fun and exciting read and an interesting new world to explore. Just prepare yourself to hit small roadblocks of over explanation -- it's the author's style.

Other reviewed books by Naomi Novik

• Spinning Silver

Best. State. Ever. A Florida Man Defends His Homeland by Dave Barry

 

Second Book Club Book #15

The title of this book is perfectly accurate. Barry spends the entire time defending his homeland of Florida. His methods are a little unconventional though. Rather than convince the reader that Florida is not, in fact, as unusual as it's portrayed, he embraces the strangeness. Weird things happen in Florida. They're often the norm rather than the exception. That's cool for Barry, who uses this book as an opportunity to highlight a few of the more permanent facets of strange you'll only find in Florida.

From a natural spring where "mermaids" perform all the way to an entire city made up of line-dancing retirees, Florida has plenty going on that makes it stand out. Barry gets in deep, experiencing each location he writes about in person, giving us an observational, historical, and sometimes political perspective on where he's at. It's a great combination and an engaging way to learn.

Barry is also funny. His humor, mostly presented like he's side-whispering to us so the rest of the crowd won't hear, fits the mood of the absurd locations in Florida he's hanging out in. I laughed out loud more than once.

This short book isn't going to change your mind if you've already developed a serious opinion about Florida. It's going to reaffirm that there's some strange stuff going on down there, but at the same time it opens up the state. There's nothing warm and fuzzy, but there's a piqued curiosity, a desire to maybe look a little closer at some of those roadside attractions and well-known pit stops. 

This one is a lot of fun to read.

Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid

 

I have to start off by saying that this was an amazing book. Every character was perfectly written. The flow of the story was ideal. I loved that there's a 'villian,' (no spoilers, I promise.) I loved the connectivity of all the characters throughout the book and on into the epilogue-style ending. I just can't say enough.

To break down the plot, Emira is a mid-twenties babysitter who's about to age out of her parents' health insurance. She loves little Briar, who she cares for, but realizes that this isn't a sustainable career.

While in flux about her future, she begins to form this odd relationship with her boss, Alix Chamberlain, mostly because Alix is extremely interested in getting to know Emira. It's an almost cringe-worthy situation of the older mom trying to connect with a younger person, and having no idea how to really do it.

Emira also, during this time, meets Kelley. He's a little older than she is too, but he likes her, treats her well, and they start dating. Emira also has a strong core group of girlfriends supporting her, who are there for her along the way.

It's all pretty standard, until it isn't. Emira is black, and one night, when she's at the grocery store with (white) Briar, around the corner from her boss' house in a predominantly white neighborhood, her professionalism gets called into question. A white security guard stops Emira and Briar, questions the legitimacy of Emira having Briar in her custody, and refuses to let them leave the store. It's all settled when Briar's dad comes to the store, but holy shit, it's sad the world is like this.

A video of the whole incident is captured, but safely hidden in Emira's email. She wants to forget the whole thing and just move forward. This, however, is just one example of the perspective your race gives you over another that's found throughout the book. Misconceptions about who she is and a need to "help" Emira because she's not white are effectively strewn throughout the book. All of this is often done before anyone takes a moment to get to know Emira, or ask her what she wants. It's such a deep topic inlaid in such a relatable story. Perfection.

While race is a central theme of the book, it's also a story about personal struggles. Each character is dealing with imperfections in their own personality, struggling and sometimes overcoming, their own shortcomings. These themes add a universal quality to the story that makes it something more than a fictionalized breakdown of white privilege and the oblivious nature we sometimes possess when talking to others in different phases of their lives.

And then, you get to the end --- Whoa! It's so amazing. That's all I'll say about that.

This book did an excellent job of hitting on so many current and ongoing themes any individual could face. It was truly a joy to read. I learned some things, felt a lot, and appreciated the opportunity to reflect on my own behaviors when in situations similar to these. Sometimes, I saw myself as the older white lady, but sometimes I was the 20-year-old still trying to find myself. Nice work! Go read this!