Crazy Rich Asians

Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Despite the fact that I like to read current fiction, I avoid books that are trendy. The Twilight phenomenon just seems too easy to repeat. But this book just kept being talked about...and then they made a movie of it, and I have to read a book before I see the movie version, so here we are...

I am blown away by the level of detail in this book. The tangible specifics about what the characters are wearing, driving, and buying must have taken an incredible amount of research. What's more impressive is the amount of characters Kwan deftly wove together. Sometimes books lose their grip on reality because the characters all seem to be only children with four people who come to holiday gatherings. This book showed the aunties, the cousins, the neighbors that become family, etc in all their messy glory.

My main issue with this book lies with the cruelty of some of the characters. The unfortunate existence of the Real Housewives shows is proof that people scheme their way to the top, but in book form, it made for entirely unsympathetic or hateful characters. I inwardly cringed over and over again at the lengths that some of the characters would go to in order to reach their own selfish goals. Still the story is well told.

This book gets a mixed recommendation from me. On some levels, it is great, but the language is rough and some will find it hard to keep the families in order. That said, if this doesn't make you want to go to Singapore and Paris (especially if it's Astrid's couture version), you're missing the luscious imagery of the book.

Happy reading and happy street food eating--

Persuasion

Persuasion by Jane Austen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am late to the game when it comes to Austen's lesser known stories. I, of course, have watched the movies many times, but most of my "Persuasion" knowledge comes from references in other books and films. It's fun to get lost in Austen's stories - to walk the streets of Bath or to sit in a quiet library with her characters. It's comforting to know that her heroines will get what they most desire by the end of the story and to be a part of a world that is so blithely unaware of the world at large.

That said, this is not my favorite of her books. It's solidly good. I just get too frustrated with the side characters, especially her father and sisters, being so unlikeable. A woman in my book club pointed out that having unlikeable characters is part of Austen's own maturation, but in this stage of life, I need the balance of good people to negative, back-biters to be on the side of the good. Still like I said, Austen is faithful to her heroines ultimately winning the day. I love that about her.

Happy reading and happy fall--

ps. I never thought I'd say this after her convincing portrayal of the horrible Mrs. Elton in "Emma", but Juliet Stevenson is a great reader for all things Austen. If you haven't fall in love with a Jane Austen book yet, try her version of "Emma" or Rosamund Pike's version of "Pride and Prejudice". They're wonderful.