THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson

Stieg Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Translation by Reig Keeland (Random House, 2008).

Available in hardback, paperback, large print, Kindle, Nook, and Audiobook.

(THRILLER)

Reviewed by Kevin Penrod

I recently went to theater to see the American film adaptation of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, after which I proceeded to the store and picked up the first 2 books in the series (they didn’t have the third one that day). Anyway, this isn’t a movie review; it is a book review, so here I go, my fellow book nerds.

This was the most interesting reading experience I have had in a very long time. This is an original story about the mysterious disappearance of a girl 40 years ago. Her uncle hires Mikael Blomkvist who, in need of help, goes to Lisbeth Salander. They join forces for a strange dark and mysterious journey while trying to solve the mystery.  Meanwhile also living amongst the family of whom one or more might be behind it all. This story takes place in Sweden and is a beautifully written masterpiece. It really held on to me mercilessly with every word. This book and its two sequels were written by the highly talented Stieg Larsson. 

PURSUIT OF A THIRSTY FOOL by T. J. MacLeslie

T. J. MacLeslie, Pursuit of a Thirsty Fool (BottomLine Meida, 2011). Also available on Kindle.

(MEMOIR; RELIGION)

Reviewed by Sallie Rupe

            Two days after I started my blog I was invited by Pioneers to read a Kindle book to share with you. As a new blogger, I was thrilled to enjoy an unexpected perk so soon into my writing adventure. The joy was increased by the fact that I fairly recently procured a Droid and was able to accept the challenge thanks to my free Kindle app. I received my free Kindle file of Pursuit of a Thirsty Fool by TJ MacLeslie and eagerly began to read. And read. And read. So long has it been since I literally read myself to sleep at night (at least with a book I actually wanted to read) or had to limit myself on how much I could read in one sitting. TJ’s story is absolutely fantastic. He was honest. He was candid. I was sad when the book ended.

            And then I ran into a problem.

            I had highlighted certain parts that were particularly good so I could touch on them in my book review. When I looked back over these I found that there were about a hundred. I knew that if I used them my review would be too long for anyone to read. . . and that there would be no point in your actually reading the book anymore. So I did what any rambling writer must do in this situation. I put it away and waited a few weeks. The only way for me to tell you about this book without telling you the book is for me to forget a lot of the book. So now, with the details of the story blurred somewhat in my memory, let me share with you the imprint that remains:

The first of the three main things I love about the book is TJ’s general writing style. It’s a lot like mine: simple, effortless, without fancy words. This is not “literature”. . . it’s a conversation. I felt like I was sitting in his living room and he was telling me his story. I think this is why I couldn’t put it down. I can call him TJ because I feel like I know the guy.

            The second thing that made TJ’s story unique was the blatant unabashed honesty. Not only honest about himself, but also about others. Not in a mean or vindictive way, and with respect and redemption by the end of the story, but honest about how the mistakes of others affected him in both positive and negative ways. I’ve often thought that if I ever write a book about my life I’ll have to wait until everyone I know dies – simply because I’m not sure if everyone could handle how their mistakes were used by God to mold and refine me. I really respect TJ for his courage in doing so, and the grace with which he was able to accomplish the task.

            TJ is honest about how his church deceived him early in his life. About the confusing and at times abusive treatment he received at the hands of those entrusted with his spiritual well-being. About how his father raised him both to be a strong man, and taught him coping skills that would forever challenge and test his self-control and willpower. About how he acted like a good Christian leader while living like a good selfish human. About how he one day found himself in a place where he never realized he was heading. About how, even now that his path is corrected, he struggles sometimes to believe God can do all the things He can do.

            The third thing I love about his story is that TJ takes great pains to demonstrate how God used all of the pain, abuse, loss, and stupidity to refine him and make him the man he was meant to be. He shares candidly how God shattered him, healed him, restored him, guided him, and grew him. He is honest about learning to be receptive to redemption from God, forgiveness of himself, restoration of relationships, and believing that God does unbelievable things.

            As I read this book I couldn’t help but think of several men in my life of whom TJ reminds me. These men have struggled with many of the same things: loss, abuse, pornography, sex, pride. They have made their digressions to these destinations. But these guys are some of my favorite people on the planet. Like TJ, they have a passion for truth. They discovered their digressions and trudged back through the drudge of their lives to the top of the mountain, running into the arms of their watching and waiting Father. These men in my life remind me that though all of us are at times big fat fools, we must remain Thirsty Fools. We must recognize that our Father pursues us despite our stupidity. In our thirst, we must slow down enough for Him to catch us. When He does, we must grab on and hold tight for dear life.

            My conclusion about this book: Read it. Just read it.

            To get a taste of TJ’s writing, you can follow his blog, http://thirstyfool.blogspot.com/.

            Just do it.

This review was first published at http://thoughtsbysallie.wordpress.com/page/3/.

LIVES OF THE ANIMALS by Robert Wrigley

Robert Wrigley, Lives of the Animals (Penguin Books, 2003).

(POETRY)   

Reviewed by Wilda Morris

                Most of the poems in Lives of the Animals could be considered “nature poetry,” but not necessarily in the way that genre is sometimes thought of. These poems are not sentimental sketches focused on the beauties of nature or the cleverness of the Creator. Rather, Wrigley gives us death, drought and mating, as well as movement and growth. All the senses are awakened as we read this collection. The poems present us with human beings among the deer, snakes, bears, mice—and other human beings. As he autographed my copy of the book, he told me that the “animal” he is most interested in is the human animal. But he also pictures interactions between other creatures, such as horse and snake, cat and song bird.

Wrigley shares unflinchingly honest pictures: ants exiting the eyes of the old buck as they “carry him away bit by gnawn bit” (“The Other World”), the frozen blood left in the snow where the narrator’s father fell from a ladder (“Helpful”), the boy setting fire to the rotting remains of the fallen horse, causing the horseflies to rise (“Horseflies”). He sees the rattlesnake as “eloquent and anachronistic,” admiring “the way he moves / out front of me, an undulant ornament on the car of my going” (“Following Snakes”).

                Some of the metaphors in this book are stunning and unexpected. One example is the likening of the snake moving ahead on the path to the ornament on the hood of a car, quoted above. In “Breaking Trail,” wind gusts combed “the beards of the yellow pines” till “every swatch of snow / lay whiskered as a dead man’s cheek.”  And that is just the first verse of this continuously stunning poem. In “Highway 12, Just East of Paradise, Idaho,” a doe, hit by a car “skidded along the right lane’s / fog line true as a cue ball.”

                In “Swallows” the narrator says he and his lover are pupils learning from “those thumb small / nestlings” above the hammock. Throughout the book, Wrigley invites us to learn from the animals we encounter. If we read carefully, we will find new ways of looking at and appreciating nature and what it—and the poet—can teach us. Wrigley, who is on the faculty of University of Idaho, told me that this book is “his favorite child.” It has become a favorite in my collection of poetry books.

NOTE: You can find an excerpt from the book and a biography of Robert Wrigley at http://redroom.com/member/robert-wrigley/books/lives-of-the-animals.