Book Review- L.B. Gschwandtner's The Other New Girl

Thank you to She Writes Press for providing me with an advance copy of L.B. Gschwandtner's novel, The Other New Girl, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT- Susannah Greenwood is one of two girls starting at a Quaker boarding school in their sophomore year. Susannah joins the swim team and is quickly accepted by the popular group of girls. The other new girl, Moll, doesn't have an easy time. She quiet and simply different than the other students. Susannah tries to befriend Moll, but a series of events leads to disaster.

LIKE- I've always been drawn to stories that take place in boarding schools. I didn't attend a boarding school and I didn't even go to summer camp, so the idea of kids living away from their parents is somewhat romanticized in my mind. Additionally, I'm drawn to stories about religion. I didn't know much about the Quaker faith and I found that aspect of Gschwandtner's novel to be fascinating. In fact, I wish she had dove deeper into it. 

The Other New Girl is written from the perspective of an adult Susannah who runs into an old classmate which sends her down the rabbit hole of reflecting on a terrible thing that happened in high school. There are themes of guilt and regret. The teenage Susannah is placed in an incredibly difficult position and she is shaken to the core by what happens around her, things that were set into motion by her and that quickly spiral out of control. The Other New Girl is about the domino affect of actions and how your life can be impacted negatively, even when you have the best intentions. 

DISLIKE- I found it difficult to connect with Susannah. I can't pinpoint it, but there was something about Gschwandtner's writing that made me feel distant from the protagonist. Although I found the story compelling, this lack of connection with Susannah hampered my ability to emotionally connect with The Other New Girl. 

I recently read an article ( unfortunately, I can't remember the source, but it was in one of my writing magazines) that mentioned the 1960's as being an over-used era for coming of age novels. The Other New Girl takes place in the late 50's/early 60's and it does have many of the cliche historical/social references of the era. If I hadn't read this article, I probably wouldn't have thought about it one way or the other, but since I did, I wondered how different and perhaps more potent this story would have been, had it been set in a different era? 

RECOMMEND- Maybe. Although I couldn't connect with the protagonist, I still was compelled to read The Other New Girl. It's a quick read and Gschwandtner hit on subjects that interested me. Also, I did a quick scan of reviews and other readers are loving this book. I think I'm an outlier with my dislikes. 

Book Review- Zoe Whittall's The Best Kind of People

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for providing me with an advance copy of Zoe Whittall's novel, The Best Kind of People, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT - Avalon Hills, an affluent suburb in Connecticut, is rocked when beloved high school teacher George Woodbury is accused of sexual misconduct with several students. While George is in prison awaiting trial, his family must deal with the fallout. They find themselves unsure of his innocence, yet in the position of defending him and themselves, against a very angry town. 

LIKE- The Best Kind of People isn't so much about George or his trial; it's about how his family experiences the trauma of having a loved one accused. It's about how they process whether or not to believe him and what that means for their family moving forward. This is not a crime or legal novel, this is a family drama.

When a tragedy or crime happens, I do always wonder about the families of the accused. Depending on the crime, it sometimes seems like they are automatically judged as guilty alongside the actual accused. Joan, George's wife, experiences this when people in town don't understand how she could have been unaware of her husband's transgressions. Joan works as a nurse and is highly regarded by her colleagues and patients, yet she feels that she has to take a leave of absence from her job and hide from the people in her town, as they harass her; throwing eggs at her car and leave threatening messages on her answering machine. When she does build up the courage to return to work, she has support from some of her colleagues, but gets the cold shoulder from others. She is guilty by association.

Also guilty by association are George's children. His daughter, Sadie, still attends the high school where her father taught and is forced to interact with the girls who have accused her father of misconduct. His son Andrew, is now a lawyer living in New York, but he finds that small town gossip from the past comes back to haunt him. As far as the town and the media are concerned, the entire Woodbury family is fair game. Adding to the drama is Kevin, who is dating the mom of Sadie's boyfriend. Kevin is a novelist who hasn't had a hit in over a decade and he decides to use his proximity to the Woodbury family to cash-in by using their story as the basis for his latest manuscript. 

Whittall has a talent for create fascinating characters who react in diverse ways to adversity. I like how she focused her story on the family members, rather than George or his legal problem. Her characters each react in surprising, yet organic ways that make for a compelling read. Although many readers have probably not been in this specific situation ( I hope not), I think most people will find areas to which they can relate. If not, I think this story will make readers more compassionate, especially when it's so easy to engage in gossip or judgement. 

I didn't know much about the story going in and I actually thought I was reading a true story for the first few chapters. It felt real, rather than fiction. I was engaged immediately.

DISLIKE- I'm still contemplating the ending. I don't want to give anything away, but I expect that I'm not the only reader that will have trouble with the ending. I think it's probably very realistic, but it's also incredibly frustrating. I actually gave a rather mournful "NO!" outloud when I read the last line.

In general, The Best Kind of People is a very heavy read. This isn't a negative, it is what it needs to be for the story, but I also felt that it affected me personally. I found myself feeling low energy and negative on the days I was reading The Best Kind of People. Whittall's writing and story had a noticeable affect on me.

RECOMMEND- Yes. The Best Kind of People is a shocking and affecting story. Whittall has crafted emotionally rich characters that are placed in a desperate situation. I will not soon forget this story. 

Book Review - Michael Ausiello's Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies

Thank you to Atria Books for providing me with an advance copy of Michael Ausiello's memoir, Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT- In his memoir, Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies, entertainment journalist Michael Ausiello writes about his thirteen-year relationship with his husband Kit Cowan and Cowan's death after an eleven-month battle with a rare form of cancer.

LIKE- I finished Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies two nights ago and I'm still feeling shattered. I feel like I might cry while writing this review. I've been a fan of Ausiello's entertainment writing for many years, but I did not know anything about his personal life. Ausiello has written a true love letter to Kit, who died painfully and tragically in his early forties. I related deeply to Ausiello's emotions as a caregiver and his fears for Kit. I think this is what hit me the hardest. I still feel emotional over my own role as a caregiver for family members who have since passed.

The best aspect of Ausiello's memoir is his complete openness to share sensitive topics. He clearly loves and adores Kit, but he also doesn't refrain from sharing Kit's infidelity or the problems that they faced in their relationship. It's raw and honest. Ausiello shares intimate moments that made me feel like I knew both him and Kit personally. What's more, I really liked both of them. Ausiello has a warm way of bringing the reader into his life; a talent that not all memoirist have and that really makes his story a stand-out. This aspect of his writing is probably what left me feeling utterly crushed in the last quarter of the book, which involved Kit's decline and death. 

I love the title; that Kit is the hero in Ausiello's life. How perfect and touching. 

DISLIKE- Not a single thing. 

RECOMMEND- YES!!! Do you like memoirs? Do you like love stories? Are you prepared for an emotional rollercoaster? Ausiello has poured his heart out on paper and it's a very worthy read. Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies is one of the best memoirs that I've ever read. It's just beautiful.