Big Brother by Lionel Shriver

Wow, Big Brother by Lionel Shriver is a great book. Ms. Shriver took a chapter from her own life--the loss of her older "big" brother from complications of being obese and told a fictional account that, true to her form, was surprising and rang so true. 

In real life, Shriver's older brother lived life large, in all ways, not just his clothing size. In the book this big brother does the same. I read an interview Shriver gave that said she wanted to honor him and help a character in a book lose the weight she was unable to help her brother do.

She tackles this big subject with wit and honesty. I laughed out loud when reading the scene where the sister takes responsibility for cleaning up the overflowing toilet and collects her brother's turds like Easter eggs. It's hilarious and gross all at once.

For more on this book, check out my Bubblews post.

Read it. You'll love it.


Author:  Lionel Shriver
Book Read:  Big Brother

Still Life with Bread Crumbs by Anna Quindlen

Okay, every once in awhile I read a book that I really love. I hadn't done that in quite awhile, but Still Life with Bread Crumbs by Anna Quindlen did the trick. I love this book!

I wrote about this novel on Squidoo so will let you go there to get a synopsis if you like. 

If you've read other books by Quindlen and liked them, you won't be disappointed. She's a terrific writer and storyteller.

Book Read:  Still Life with Bread Crumbs
Author:  Anna Quindlen

After I'm Gone by Laura Lippman

I finished reading this book on the flight home from my vacation so had almost a week of not reading it, which made the ending more anticlimactic than it should have been. 

I liked this book a lot, much more than Laura Lippman's other more recent books I've read. I think the last one I read that I liked this much was What the Dead Know.

If you like suspenseful well-written novels, check out After I'm Gone.

Book Read:  After I'm Gone
Author:  Laura Lippman