Category Archives: Books

I laughed out loud more often when reading this than any other book I’ve read recently, and that’s strange considering this is a novel about the Holocaust.

Everything is Illuminated is told in three different styles. One is an account of events unfolding when a Jewish-American named Jonathan Safran Foer heads to the Ukraine to find the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis. What makes this account hilarious is that it’s told from the perspective of a Ukrainian boy named Alex, who speaks in an incredibly humorous form of broken English. This storyline is interspersed with letters from Alex to Jonathan following their search and pieces of a novel being written by Jonathan describing the city where his ancestors were raised.

This is an extremely well-written novel by a first-time writer. Every piece of the story builds on the component before it until the point when everything is well…, illuminated.

“A Dirty Job” is a difficult book to describe, but one which I enjoyed quite a bit.

Charlie Asher, the fairly mild-mannered owner of a secondhand shop in San Francisco, begins the story in the hospital for the birth of his daughter. When complications arise following the pregnancy, Charlie notices a man in the room wearing a light green suit. This probably wouldn’t be so strange if it weren’t for the fact that no one else can see the guy.

Giving out any more details would ruin the fun of the book’s plot, but this strange occurence sets off a series of events that are definitely quirky and often quite funny.

The climax of the story seemed like it was over almost before it began, leaving me wishing that the build-up had led to a stronger payoff. All in all, though, I recommend this book if you’re looking for an offbeat, quick read.