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What I've been reading
Nov. 16th, 2012 10:33 amIt's my pleasure to review TWO books that I really adored. I haven't been forcing myself to read truly dreadful books, but some books have been a little dry or a bit of a slog. That is, happily, not the case with either of these:
1) I will start off by saying I'm not an entirely objective reviewer since I helped workshop "Act of Grace" by Karen Simpson in a writers group, and she thanks me in the acknowledgements. However, I really enjoyed this book even more than I expected. In this coming-of-age tale with supernatural elements, Grace turns 18 and comes into her power as someone who can talk to the spirits. They want her to bring to light a history of racial violence that has haunted her town for decades. The book handles the issue of racial intolerance very sensitively, the characters are well-drawn, and Simpson's prose is a joy to read. I REALLY liked that a potential romance was introduced but that it's not the main focus because Grace has other, more important things on her mind. Highly recommended.
2) "The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York" by Deborah Blum may end up being one of my favorite, if not my favorite, non-fiction read of the year. It's just over 200 pages but she packs in nearly the entire history of the birth of forensic medicine in the United States. There's some basic chemistry, but mostly it's the story of how New York's chief medical examiner Charles Norris and his top toxicologist Alexander Gettler created the standards for medical examiner offices all over the country and the many discoveries they made in how to detect poisons. Also highly recommended!
My full comments on both books here.
1) I will start off by saying I'm not an entirely objective reviewer since I helped workshop "Act of Grace" by Karen Simpson in a writers group, and she thanks me in the acknowledgements. However, I really enjoyed this book even more than I expected. In this coming-of-age tale with supernatural elements, Grace turns 18 and comes into her power as someone who can talk to the spirits. They want her to bring to light a history of racial violence that has haunted her town for decades. The book handles the issue of racial intolerance very sensitively, the characters are well-drawn, and Simpson's prose is a joy to read. I REALLY liked that a potential romance was introduced but that it's not the main focus because Grace has other, more important things on her mind. Highly recommended.
2) "The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York" by Deborah Blum may end up being one of my favorite, if not my favorite, non-fiction read of the year. It's just over 200 pages but she packs in nearly the entire history of the birth of forensic medicine in the United States. There's some basic chemistry, but mostly it's the story of how New York's chief medical examiner Charles Norris and his top toxicologist Alexander Gettler created the standards for medical examiner offices all over the country and the many discoveries they made in how to detect poisons. Also highly recommended!
My full comments on both books here.
