THE ENTERTAINER AND THE DYBBUK -- Sid Fleischman

Greenwillow Books -- hc
New York -- 2008 -- 180pp
ISBN: 978-0-06-134446-6

A second rate ventriloquist is inhabited by the spirit of a Jewish boy, murdered by a Nazi, who is seeking vengeance on the man who killed him.

#####

** spoiler alert **

I understand the need to tell the stories of the holocaust.

It is a personal need, it is a community need, it is a historical need. It is something that shouldn't be forgotten -- just how horrible a people can be. But does this need translate to quality work? Not always.

I was uncomfortable with this book as a book for children. Having said that, I know that I am supposed to be uncomfortable ... it's an uncomfortable situation, and the murdering of children by such nefarious means should never get comfortable. And yet...I'm torn.

In the balance to always try to protect my children and yet make them aware of history (including atrocious history) I have to draw some lines. To me, this book crosses some of those lines. It is forthright in descriptions. It is a book full of vengeance and revenge. And I'm not sure I approve of the ending. Not because of what the dybbuk does, but because I don't think he could tolerate it.

***WARNING SPOILER ALERT FOLLOWS***

Yes, I can understand that by having the dybbuk inhabit the Nazi responsible for killing him would be a terrible burden for the Nazi to live with the rest of his life, after hearing the dybbuk complain on how uncomfortable it was to inhabit the ventriloquists body, I can't imagine what it would be like for a Jewish soul to live in a Nazi's body. Wouldn't the torture be two-sided?

Just not a recommended book from me.

MISSION TO HORATIUS -- Mack Reynolds

MISSION TO HORATIUS (A Star Trek Novel)
Pocket Books -- hc
New York -- 1968, 1999 -- 210pp
ISBN: 0-671-02812-X
Illustrated by Sparky Moore

A reprint of a Whitman book. Had been out of print for 30 years.

The starship Enterprise receives a distress call from a system that has been virtually ignored since it's initial founding. The crew race to track down the distress signal while battling cafard -- a space sickness from being away too long without leave.

#####

Wow, does this bring back some memories!

I believe that I may have read this after picking it up in a used book store some 25 years or so ago.

I fully admit to being the Star Trek nerd and enjoying Star Trek novels. There's something very comfortable in reading books with characters who are so incredibly familiar to me.

The plot is paper thin and the characters less well developed than the average television episode. Some characters seemed to be named just for the sake of making sure to include them, but had no real role to play, and even their little moments were moderately out of character.

It was like reading exactly what it was ... a television-show-based book, by someone with only passing knowledge of the characters, using a stock plot.

It won't get a very high rating from me, but as a Star Trek nerd, I'm glad I read it.

RAIDERS FROM THE SEA -- Lois Walfrid Johnson

Raiders from the Sea: Viking Quest book one
Moody Publishers -- tpb
Chicago -- ©2003 -- 199pp
ISBN: 080243112-7

Viking raid a village in Ireland, taking a young Christian girl captive.

#####

I quite enjoyed Lois Walfrid Johnson's first series "Adventures in the North Woods" and moderately enjoyed her second series, "The Riverboat Adventures." This series departs from the earlier two in that this book was not a mystery, and had no true conclusion to the story, as the first two series' did.

The history was still apparently well researched, though I felt that the young girl was a tad too modern to truly be living in this time and place.

I never felt completely caught up in the story, and have a real negative reaction to any story that doesn't have a natural conclusion at the end of a book but rather requires one tow buy and read the next book installment.

I'll read more, but I won't race to get the next books.

RUBBER HOUSES -- Ellen Yeomans

Little, Brown and Company -- hc
New York -- 2007 -- 152pp
ISBN: 0-316-10647-X

Told entirely in verse, a high-school aged girl tells the story of her little brother's bout with cancer and his death.

#####

Yeoman's tackles the delicate subject again, of the death of a youngster. I know Ellen, and I know that it is a demon she is battling constantly.

I'm not sold on the idea of telling this story through a series of poems -- in large part, of course, because I so dislike reading poetry myself. That said, hoever, I thought this story was told a little easier, and more convincingly because of its unique format. It seems totally plausible that a teenage girl would write a great deal of poetry and tell this story in that way.

However, I did feel that some opportunities were missed. A girl writing poetry might not write so directly, all the time, about what has happened, but a sense of when she's feeling ought to come about in some more mundane writings. None of the poems were simple, everyday, kinds of writing that I thought should occur. For instance, suppose she wrote a couple of poems early in the book about liking cats, but at some point after her brother's death she writes a poem about a cat that got in her way and how she hates cats. That's the sort of opportunity missed here.

Even so, I enjoyed the writing more than I expected, and thought this did a good job of getting to the heart of a teenager.

WENCESLAS SQUARE -- Larry Shue

The Fireside Theatre -- hc
New York -- 1988 -- 106pp
two act play

A theatre director and teacher from Cementville, returns to Czechoslovakia (where he once witnessed some of the most invigorating theatre he'd ever seen) to write the finishing chapter of his new book.

#####

This is a real departure from the outrageous comedies of Larry Shue ... The Nerd and The Foreigner.

While still peppered with humor (some language confusion reminded me of early Ionesco), this play has a dark and depressing over-tone.

The minimal cast mirrors the Czech theatre scene that Vince is longing to see again, yet is feels very dated as I read through it now. I don't see it going over well in the community theatre scene, as the two comedies certainly do.

An interesting play, and I'm glad I just (re)read it, but I am not surprised that it hasn't had much life.

FLASHMAN -- George MacDonald Fraser

Plume -- tpb
New York -- ©1969 -- 256pp
ISBN: 0452259614
#####

This novel is wickedly humorous in the tradition of books like the M*A*S*H series or the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series.

Flashman is a complete cad and coward ... but fully admits it. That's his charm. He also admits to being completely lucky and being in the right place at the right times.

I laughed aloud at some of the escapades, and shook my head (with a grin) at others.

Even so, with all the wild humor and some pretty thorough history, I found the book dragging at times. Sometimes it actually reads like a history lesson.

I enjoyed the book, and will happily read more in the series, but it didn't grab me enough that I can't wait.

THE ROGUES -- Jane Yolen & Robert J. Harris

Philomel Books -- hc
New York -- 2007 -- 277pp
ISBN: 978-0-399-23898-7

A Scottish laird forces the tenants of his property out of his domain to make way for sheep. A young boy returns home to retrieve a precious family heirloom and hooks up with a notorious rogue.

#####

This book is incredibly slow to begin, picks up some speed and interest, but carries the reader along hesitantly before bringing it to conclusion.

I struggled to find interest in this book. It came, but after much effort. And for a decent portion I was interested and wanting to read more. However, as the boy and the rogue worked and journeyed together, I found their arguing and stubborness irritating and all too repetitive. it was a one-note theme that clung to far too many chapters.

Unless you have strong interest in Scottish history, I wouldn't recommend this book.

THE SENSUOUS SENATOR -- Michael Parker

Samuel French, Inc. -- acting edition
New York -- 1988 -- 104pp
ISBN: 0-573-62641-3

4 M, 5 F


A Congressman announces his candidacy for President of the United States, but the moment his wife leaves for a charity trip, the Congressman is visited by his girl-friend, an escort, a fellow Congressman and Senator, a policeman, and a reporter.

#####

This was an enjoyable comedy, and it hits home as much today as it likely did in 1988 -- which says, sadly, that things haven't changed much in 20 years.

This is a fun farce, with people in closets and under beds, and mistaken identities ... the full range of farce situations. If there is a 'down' side to this play, though, it would be that it doesn't take it far enough into the farce -- I think that without adding a whole lot of running time, there could easily be maybe two more situations added to give a few more belly-laughs.

However, I think this would be a delightful comedy, particulalry during an election year.

ZEITGEIST -- Bruce Sterling

Bantam Books -- hc
New York -- ©2000 -- 293pp
ISBN: 0-53-53-10493-4
signed copy

The key to profitting on pop culture is knowing when to get out. Leggy Starlitz is the master of pop but he's thrown a curve when the daughter he didn't know he had becomes his responsibility. How do you stay on top of the culture wars when culture is about to change, big time, because of Y2K, and how does a new family fit into the mix?

#####

Bruce Sterling is easily one of the most original writers out there today. So many works in the sci-fi/fantasy field are simply remixes of Lord of the Rings, or Conan, or a Heinlein/Asimov/Clarke/Niven novel. But when you open a Bruce Sterling novel you know you will be getting something that isn't like anything you've ever read before.

And for this alone, bonus points.

But I'll be honest...I'm not sure what I read. I liked the style, I got caught up in the characters, but I'm just not sure I'm clear on how the sub-plots and story lines all tied together. What's with the father? Was he really living his life Merlin-like? Arms dealers? Drug smuggling? What did Leggy know? How much did he approve of? Why the importance on getting the girls out alive?

Perhaps I didn't read it carefully enough, or perhaps much of these didn't matter. Chances are I'll read this again, because I am intriqued. The ending, with the observations that Leggy's daughter declared, and her goals, struck a chord. I think she did indeed "get it."

If you've never read a Bruce Sterling novel, then don't start with this one. Pick up Involution Ocean or Heavy Weather. If you have enjoyed Sterling before, then definitely give this a read. If you just want something that is so incredibly original, then this is the book for you.