Eating The Chesire Cat
Helen Ellis

This novel follows Sarina, Bitty Jack, and Nicole, three southern belles whose lives intertwine throughout the book. I liked this book because it wasn't your average "beautiful southern girl" story. All three leading ladies have their own wonderfully deranged psychosis and emotional hang-ups. In the first chapter, Sarina's mother gets her drunk and then breaks her fingers with the blunt end of an ax to correct a birth defect. The rest of the book is equally cynical in its own "Southern" type of way, with Bitty Jack and Nicole getting their rightful revenge on Sarina in the end.

****

Helter Skelter
Vincent T. Bugliosi

This is an excellent book about the Manson murders. It was written by Vincent Bugliosi, the defense attorney in the Manson case. A good book to read if you're interested in learning more. As with the Donner Party book, there is a chronology of events in the beginning, but you don't have to use it much because everything is explained very well throughout the book. (If your really looking for some sadistic pleasure bring this book to school and tell your teachers you're trying to "learn from the master.")

*****

The Poet
Michael Connelly

The main character of this book, Jack McEvoy, is a crime reporter for the Rocky Mountain News. After his brother, a homicide detective, apparently commits suicide, Jack decides to write a feature on police suicides. Soon, however, he begins to question his brother's "suicide" and finds he may be the next to die. (This is a really good suspense novel, and once you pick it up it's hard to put it down. I only gave it four stars, though, because once you read it once you can't really read it again.)

****

Fight Club
Chuck Palahniuk

Ahh, who doesn't love a good wholesome bath with some soap made out of human fat? This is another movie-book-movie thing. Anyway, if you've read the book, see the movie; if you've seen the movie, read the book. If you've done both, it can't hurt to do either a second time. If you havent' done either, what's wrong with you?! And remember, "Tyler Durden says, 'Use Soap.'"

****

The Melancholy Death Of Oyster Boy and Other Stories
Tim Burton

All credit goes to Johanna for introducing me to this book in the long school days of Mr. Clancy's English Class. This is a great book of poetry whether you're a fan of Tim Burton or not. Unless you are completely "normal" (and I shudder at the thought of what someone "normal" is doing at my web page), you'll find yourself identifying with these hapless super heroes.

*****

The World According to Garp
John Irving

This is a book you will pick up, look at how many pages are in it, see how tiny the print is, and think, "Cripes, I am never going to finish this monster." At least, that's what I thought. Turns out that once you get started on this book it gets hard to stop and before you know it (Presto!) you're finished with it. I wouldn't necessarily run right out to watch the movie after you read this book because the movie actually turns out to be kind of a disappointment after you've read the book. Now, if you see the movie first...

****

The Milwaukee Murders: Nightmare in Apartment 213 : The True Story
Don Davis

For a book about Jeffrey Dahmer, this one sure had a lot of other useless bs in it. Don Davis goes from talking about police officers finding a severed head in Dahmer's refridgerator in one chapter to discussing Milwaukee's 1984 economic recession in the next. This book was published in 1991, shortly after Dahmer was sent to trial in the first place, so it doesn't have a lot of the more recent information. It does have a lot of cool information about the murders themselves, though.

****

Slab Rat
Ted Heller

In the first chapter of this book, you are introduced to Zachary Arlen Post, a prosperous magazine editor. Then, in chapter two, you are introduced to the real hero of this book (and the same person you had just met in chapter one), Allen Zachary Post. This is a great book to read for anyone who has ever had a job/boss they hated. (And I think that would apply to just about everyone.) Also a good read if you're just looking for a little cynical insight into the methods of publishing a magazine.

****

The Hot Zone
Richard Preston

There are no words to describe how gruesome this book actually is. You just have to read it for yourself to find out. This book is about the E-Bola virus--and spares no detail in describing just what E-Bola can do to a person. Not for people with weak stomachs.

*****

Psycho
Robert Bloch

Based on the serial killer Edward Gein (it was based on a second one, too, but I can't remember which), this is not necessarily a "gore" novel. It's more of a deep psychological chill. (If anyone other than myself is even going to understand what I mean by that.) Anyway, the movie is also good, with Anthony Perkins eerily portraying Norman Bates. Believe me, if you read the book first, just watching Perkins in the movie is enough to give you chills.

*****

The Postman Always Rings Twice
James M. Cain

Since this was a SGR (Sam Gray Recommendation), this book was guaranteed to be good from the get-go. Movie with Jack Nicholson isn't half bad, either.

****

Jaws
Peter Benchley

A good book, although it turned out to be more about all the people looking for the shark and their messed up lives than about the shark. Have yet to see the movie.

***

Along Came A Spider
James Patterson

A good story, although Patterson takes up about 500 pages explaining what he could have explained in under 400. Just cut out all the gushy romance stuff and underlying racism and you've got yourself a very good book.

****

Don't Say a Word
Andrew Klavan

Yes, this book is so incredicly great that I finished it in one day. Sure, so I'm a reading junkie and finish most books in two days, but this one was really, really, really good. Even if you've seen the movie already, this is one you are not going to want to put down. I promise.

*****

The Magus
John Fowles

This one was a MCR (Mr. Clancy Recommendation). It's about 1000 pages long with really tiny print so it's not for people who lack ambition. Well worth the effort if you finish it, though.

*****

Spares
Michael Marshall Smith

A science fiction novel, this isn't normally something I'd read. However, after picking it up at the library, I found it quite enjoyable anyway. Wish they would have gone into more info about the actual spares, though.

****

St. Burl's Obituary
Daniel Akst

This is a very funny book, unless you're not into "sick" humor like me. Then, it's probably just going to be weird. I think everyone will find something to identify with in Burl.

*****

Frankenstein
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Written in the same style as Dracula, Frankenstein is infinitely more fascinating. It hardly ever bogs down into needless details or narratives.

****

Rocket Boys
Homer Hickam
(Later published as October Sky)

This book reminded me of Boy's Life (hi, Becky!) in it's nonstalgic-type story telling. Although much less of a suspense--Rocket Boys is more of a "feel-good" novel.

*****

History of the Donner Party: A Tragedy of the Sierra
C.F. McGlashan

It took me about three weeks to get "into" this book but once I did it turned out to be worth it. For anyone who is looking for more information on the Donner Party, this is the place to find it, with names, dates, and a useful chronology of events in the beginning.

***

The Last Victim
Jason Moss

Jason Moss, an eighteen-year-old honors student, writes letters to imprisoned serial killers John Wayne Gacy, Richard Ramirez, Jeffrey Dahmer, and Charles Manson. He winds up having phone conversations with Gacy and visiting him in prison. This book winds up giving you a somewhat guarded look into the minds of serial killers, and lets you watch Moss become encredibly paranoid after conversing with them, which I thought was great.

*****

The Bone Collector
Jeffery Deaver

Well, I saw the movie and then spent about three months trying to track the book down so after I read the book I wound up having to watch the movie again. (Okay, so I'm hopelessly compulsive.) Anyway, this is a fairly well-writen book, another grisly suspense type. This, however, is one that you could read over and over again and never get tired of.

*****

Angela's Ashes
Frank McCourt

After all the hoo-haw over this book, I finally picked it up and decided to read it. It wasn't as "sad" as everyone made it out to be, or maybe it really is a very sad book and I'm just an insensitive person. I'll just say one thing, if you're going to read this book, it goes faster if you read it with an Irish accent. (Don't ask me how, just trust me that the book is a lot more enjoyable if you just succumb to it.)

***

Geek Love
Katherine Dunn

I picked this book up off the shelves at B-Dalton on a whim and ended up liking it. Perhaps it's just my infallible need for a little sadism once in awhile that lets me enjoy a book that follows the lives of circus freak family members.

***

The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove
Christopher Moore

Another "whim" book, this one turned out to be better than "Geek Love". (I haven't figured out how to underline just one or two words yet on this Tripod set-up, so give me a break here, grammatical nazis.) Anyway, this book is all about Prozac, a demented little town in California (Pine Cove), and a big, radioactive, lustful lizard named Steve. What more could you ask for in a book? "Lust Lizard" manages to be both amazingly funny and shockingly satirical at the same time.

*****

The Catcher in the Rye
J.D. Salinger

This, I suppose, is what some people might call a "classic" novel. I first read it when I was 13, and thought, "Now what the hell was that all about?" Then I read it again and it started to make a little bit more sense. This is a great book because no matter how many times you read it, there's always something new.

*****

Raveling
Peter Moore Smith

This is a good psychological thriller. (With the main character, Pilot Aerie, being a schizophrenic, how much more psychological could you get?) It gets a little confusing at times as Smith tinkers around with his first-person narrative near the end of the book, but if you don't worry too much about it, things go quite smoothly.

****

Chocolat
Joanne Harris

Great movie, great book. What more could you ask for? (The movie's better--just because of all those shots of Johnny Depp. *Yum*)

****

The Cider House Rules
John Irving

Just about anything you read by Irving is bound to be a good, quick read. (This one took me three days.) However, if you've already read the book, don't see the movie. It's a great big disappointment.

*****

One For the Money
Janet Evanovich

Supposedly, this book is supposed to be part of a series or something. I've only read this one, though. It's a good mystery-type story with a healthy dose of sarcasm. (Which never hurts.)

****

Final Cut
Pamela Chais

Picked this one up on a whim from the shelves of the library. Turned out to be a good quasi-mystery type novel. Thought it was great how all the characters had ulterior motives for everything they did.

***

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Hunter S. Thompson

I stole this quote from the publisher at BarnesandNoble.com because it does a heck of a lot better job describing this book than I ever could. "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is the best chronicle of drug-soaked, addle-brained, rollicking good times ever committed to the printed page. It is also the tale of a long weekend road trip that has gone down in the annals of American pop culture as one of the strangest journeys ever undertaken." Pick this one up for a hilarious story that is probably even better if you read it while on drugs. (But that's just my personal opinion.)

****

Fast Food Nation
Eric Schlosser

Well, after reading this book, I can proudly say that I'm still a fast food junkie. No matter how disgustingly franchised, no matter what they're actually putting in the meat. I still love fast food! Yummmm....greeeeeeaz.

*****

Tell No One
Harlan Coben

Suspense, suspense. Found a rather amusing review on this one, by someone named Vicky--titled "Awesome Book". "I'm not a big fan of reading but when I researched this title I thought I'd check it out and I was unable to put it down I read it in 5 days and that's very unusual for me. I would highly reccomend this book." (sic)

*****

The Tailor of Panama
John leCarre

At least half the time you spend reading this book you'll spend wishing it was over. Interesting in parts and then it just bogs down into needless details.

**

The Rapture of Canaan
Sheri Reynolds

I guess you could say that this is a semi-religious book. But where can you go wrong with a story about a stringent religious society and those who doubt it?

****

An Unquiet Mind
Kay Redfield Jamison

A quite good book dealing mostly with the author's battle with manic-depressive illness.

****

The Walrus Was Paul
R. Gary Patterson

Even people who are not Beatle's fans should enjoy this book. A good read for anybody who has never heard of the great Beatle death hoax or anyone looking to learn more about it.

*****

Going Crazy
by Otto Friedrich
(Couldn't find a picture of this one anyplace!)

A very interesting read, this one goes into the historical perception of "insanity" and also the present perception. With many analogies along the way about actual people and their bouts with different types of mental illnesses.

*****