Book Report: Car Trouble

Another Cargo Largo bargain bin find: Car Trouble by Jeanne DuPrau.

"Recent high-school grad and computer-whiz Duff Pringle is on a cross-country road trip, headed from home in Richmond, Virginia, to a California job designing the next-generation something or other for a company that modestly calls itself "Incredibility, Inc." Alas, real life doesn't run as smoothly as a computer program, and, in short order, Duff's battered old Ford breaks down, he meets a fast-talking hitchhiker in a wild shirt, loses his wallet in a scary biker restaurant, finds himself stranded in St. Louis, and, well, that's just the tip of an iceberg of troubles."


I picked this up because it promised of interesting characters, and I wasn't disappointed. This was an easy read, and at times thought-provoking, with simple imagery and a predictable plot. But it was fun, fast, wrapped up nicely. Nothing outstanding, but still a good time.
Three out of five stars.

Book Report: The Bang Devils

Found this novel by Patrick Foss in good old Cargo Largo--the cheapskate's bargin bin--and picked it up based on my old rule of three: Interesting Title, Interesting Cover, Interesting Plot. Oh, and I think I actually read the first sentence, too.

I was hesitant because the book is set in Japan, and I know nothing of other countries or time periods, but curiosity won out and I started reading it the very next day. Three days later, I was cursing the ending. (But in the way I cursed the end of the first Lord of the Rings movie. You know, when you get invested in something and you want more.)

Book Description

If you commit a crime and nobody catches you -- is it really wrong?

For Chris Ryan and Jessica Romano, two Americans living in Japan, life is like a movie. Money comes easy when you're an "exotic" Westerner. Sex comes even easier. With every need instantly satisfied, the greatest worry is growing restless. Because when your life is a movie, it doesn't take long before you decide you need to do something ... cinematic.

So when a wealthy Japanese businessman, overcome with too much whiskey -- and too much Jessica -- boasts that he secretly keeps a fortune in cash in his home, Jessica enlists Chris and her boyfriend, Taro, to help her execute the perfect kidnapping. But they soon learn that the money might not be the only secret the businessman is keeping.

As the stakes start to rise, the three friends begin to question their motives -- and one another. It doesn't take long for them to realize that while the surest way to survive is sticking together, the surest way to get rich is betrayal.

The front-page praise for this book was another selling point for me: When I read about the 'graphic pop violence', I knew I was taking it home. And graphic it was, not nearly the worst I've ever read, but indeed graphic and messy. This story drives ahead and never stops to breathe, least not for more than a few pages at a time, but the action alternates between mental and physical in a way that ensures no one gets lost or drops out. I appreciated the very 'movie-like' style of storytelling, the flashy action and predictable scenes and cookie-cutter characters, with just a hint of sneaky plot twists. This story was very easy to visualize, and it makes me think it is targeted toward a younger audience, although not labeled as such.

However it seems as though all of Floss's creativity went into the scenery. I got a feel for Japan, especially the night life and the richer, sexier side of it all. But his characters were lacking. Chris could easily be played by the 'Sexiest Male Actor of the Minute', as he was all about cunning and flashiness. Jessica was over-feminized to the point of annoying--the classic blubbering blonde in any given slasher movie. And the third guy? Well, the fact that I've forgotten his name should be enough evidence.

Great idea, great twist on a tired-but-true plot, and 'Bang Devils' certainly had its moments and one-liners. But overall, the title impressed me more than the characters.
Three out of five stars.

Book Report: When I Was Five I Killed Myself

This novel by Howard Buten is one of the most complex and emotionally charged stories I've read.

"Burton Rembrandt is placed in the Children's Trust Residence Center, an institution for disturbed, psychopathic or autistic children, following an inappropriate amorous encounter with female classmate Jessica. Told in Burt's precocious voice, the story is supposedly written by the boy in pencil on the walls of the Quiet Room. It is a compelling study of the tragedy that can result when literal-minded children and literal-minded adults fail to understand each other. The adults (parents and psychiatrists alike) take little responsibility for the misinformation they spout while they narrowly interpret as sociopathology Burt's innocent comments, normal for any child, about his "hate" or his desire to "kill" something. Wrongly incarcerated with autistic and truly sociopathic children, it is not until Burt encounters a sympathetic psychiatric resident that hope begins to grow, both in Burt and the reader, that the boy will finally be seen for what he is: a child who has a right to an ordinary life."

Despite the front jacket's claim that Burt is misunderstood, I still found myself unsettled by this character. I don't remember having such violent thoughts when I was little, and I'm sure that any child who did even today would be placed in a facility as Burt was. Much of Burt's mannerisms were adopted from those around him: his older brother, his parents, his friends. He often uses words he doesn't understand. His imagination is hyper-active. Buten captured a child's voice with uncanny grace, but I felt like something is lurking on the pages, just beneath my understanding. I feel like I need to be told the answer, like I should talk with other people who have read the book so they can explain it to me. I enjoyed it, I really did, but I think it warrants a second read-through to unlock those deeper layers.
A trademark of a great story? I think so.
Five out of five stars