A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs

If I’ve ever read Tarzan, I don’t remember, so I think this is my first Edgar Rice Burroughs. But A Princess of Mars reminded me a lot of works by H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, and H.P. Lovecraft. (“Here, let me show off how imaginative I am by describing everything I’m making up in excruciating detail.”)

Imaginative and full of adventure? Yes. Character growth? Absolutely not. The most growth is shown by John Carter’s dog-like protector and his two beasts of burden on Mars.

The way John Carter gets to Mars seems hilarious to me (he goes into a mysterious cave and then he just – is on Mars), but I can’t take John Carter himself seriously. He can do no wrong, there’s never any doubt that he’ll win a battle, and he is never in any serious danger. And of course he Gets the Girl!

The worst thing about this book for me as a reader is the complete lack of humor. Still, I try to imagine myself reading this book in 1912, when no one had ever seen an adventure movie, and most people didn’t travel. Obviously it was popular since he wrote 10 sequels. I’m not moving on to book two but I’m glad to have read it.

The Galesburg Public Library's Tome Raiders book discussion group will have a virtual discussion of A Princess of Mars on 5/29 at 6:00 pm. The book is "always available" through the library’s Overdrive collection. 

https://alliance.overdrive.com/media/784351

Lab Girl by Hope Jahren

From the publisher: Geobiologist Hope Jahren has spent her life studying trees, flowers, seeds, and soil. Lab Girl is her revelatory treatise on plant life—but it is also a celebration of the lifelong curiosity, humility, and passion that drive every scientist. In these pages, Hope takes us back to her Minnesota childhood, where she spent hours in unfettered play in her father’s college laboratory. She tells us how she found a sanctuary in science, learning to perform lab work “with both the heart and the hands.” She introduces us to Bill, her brilliant, eccentric lab manager. And she extends the mantle of scientist to each one of her readers, inviting us to join her in observing and protecting our environment. Warm, luminous, compulsively readable, Lab Girl vividly demonstrates the mountains that we can move when love and work come together.

Lab Girl is Hope Jahren’s memoir and first book, and though it is about her life in science, you can tell that she also has a background in English. Her writing is beautiful and easy to follow, even when describing intricate scientific experiments. Indeed, she did start off as an English major in college before turning to science, but Lab Girl makes it clear that science is her true love. Even those who are not big into science will come out with a newfound interest in the subject due to Jahren’s affectionate descriptions of her work and trees in general. She manages to teach the reader a lot about what she does without making it seem like you’re reading a textbook. 

Jahren is a geobiologist, and studies trees and plants. Lab Girl follows her as she goes to college in Minnesota, gets her PhD at the University of California Berkeley, meets her best friend and lab partner, Bill, and builds several labs all over the world. Despite her love of science, her early years were lonely ones, and her story makes for an enlightening but often sad read. She discusses her mental health struggles, giving vivid descriptions of manic depressive episodes stemming from her Bipolar Disorder. She also talks frankly about the sexism she endures in her field. In telling about her first scientific breakthrough, she says “On some deep level, the realization that I could do good science was accompanied by the knowledge that I had formally and terminally missed my chance to become like any of the women that I had ever known”. She works with very few other women, and is often looked down upon and endures condescension and gossip about her looks and intelligence from the men she works with, except for Bill. Jahren meets Bill at Berkeley, and the two bond quickly over being outcasts in their field. Jahren hires Bill to work in her lab at Berkeley, and they have worked together ever since. Hope and Bill’s friendship is my favorite part of the book. They are there for each other every step of the way, at any time of day, and to help with any problem, work related or personal. 

I am not a big “science person”, so I was worried that this book would be boring or go right over my head. That was not the case. The book has interchapters, before each chapter about her own life, Jahren includes a short chapter about the growth or history of trees. These interchapters tie in to her story and she draws parallels between her life and the life cycle of trees. While some of these shorter tree chapters did drag a bit for me, they were mostly interesting and a creative way to tell her story while also showing how important and alive plants are. Overall, Lab Girl is a beautifully written story of an interesting and adventurous life. I would highly recommend it for anyone interested in environmental activism or women in science.

Jahren is passionate about environmental conservation and keeping our planet green and healthy. She ends the book with a plea to the reader to plant a tree, so I will end this review in the same way. If you are able, plant a tree this spring. Tree seedlings are fairly cheap, and it’s a great outdoor activity if you’re stuck at home during quarantine. Jahren continues her fight against climate change in her new book that came out in March, The Story of More: How We Got to Climate Change and Where to Go from Here. The Galesburg Public Library owns a copy, so if you enjoy Lab Girl, be sure to check it out. If you’re looking for more books on this subject, check out The Overstory by Richard Powers, also available as a print book and an ebook. 

The Galesburg Public Library owns Lab Girl as a print copy, an ebook, and an audiobook.

The Con Artist by Fred Van Lente

The Con Artist (Get it? Because he's an artist and it takes place at a convention) is the story of a comics artist, a few years past the height of his fame, who travels to San Diego Comic-Con and ends up becoming the prime suspect in a murder. So basically, it's a whodunit set in Nerd Mecca, with enough comic book and general geekdom references to rival Ernest Cline's Ready Player One. If that sounds like your cup of tea, this will not disappoint. 

Mike Miller is a comics artist whose best career years seem to be behind him. Though he has written for several successful comics and even had some of his work adapted for movies, that's all in the past. Now his marriage is over, and he basically lives at conventions, traveling directly from one to the next and supporting himself by drawing commissions.

Mike arrives at San Diego Comic Con, the largest comics convention in the world, where he's coming to present a lifetime achievement award to his friend and mentor. Unfortunately, when he's picked up at the airport by his designated assistant for the convention (who is dressed up as one of his characters), Mike learns that his mentor has just died. And things only get worse from there.

At a bar after the first day of the convention, Mike has a run-in with Danny, an old rival and his ex-wife's new boyfriend. After publicly getting into a fight with the Danny, Mike leaves. Unfortunately, Danny turns up dead later that night, and Mike is the prime suspect.

Can Mike clear his name, rescue his life from its downward spiral, and revive his failing comics career? There's only one way to find out.

Van Lente has a TON of experience in the comics industry, and it shows. His in-depth knowledge of the creative process, the inner workings of the comics industry and the convention circuit all lend a real sense of authenticity to the story. 

As mentioned earlier, the story is sprinkled with references to various comic and other entertainment franchises, similar to Ready Player One. So if you found yourself going through Ready Player One saying over and over...



...then you'll find that same satisfaction here. The constant parade of comic and entertainment name drops (both real and fictional) may feel gratuitous to some, but will also be quite familiar to anyone who has attended a comic con before.

Overall, The Con Artist should appeal to mystery fans and people who would enjoy a fictionalized behind-the-scenes look at the life of a comics industry professional. The Con Artist is available at Galesburg Public Library in the adult fiction collection.

A Pirate's Life for She by Laura Sook Duncombe

From the Publisher: Pirates are a perennially popular subject, depicted often in songs, stories, and Halloween costumes. Yet the truth about pirates—who they were, why they went to sea, and what their lives were really like—is seldom a part of the conversation. In this Seven Seas history of the world's female buccaneers, A Pirate's Life for She tells the story of 16 women who through the ages sailed alongside—and sometimes in command of—their male counterparts. These women came from all walks of life but had one thing in common: a desire for freedom. History has largely ignored these female swashbucklers, until now. Here are their stories, from ancient Norse princess Alfhild to Sayyida al-Hurra of the Barbary corsairs; from Grace O'Malley, who terrorized shipping operations around the British Isles during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I; to Cheng I Sao, who commanded a fleet of 1,400 ships off China in the early 19th century.

A Pirate's Life for She is a collection of tales about women from around the world who turned to piracy in one form or another. The women whose tales are told here come from all over the world and all walks of life: from ancient Greece to Australia, from prisoners to soldiers to queens.

Each pirate's tale is presented in short, easily digestible chapters, so the book is easy to pick up and put down. Some of these women such as the famous Caribbean pirates Mary Read and Anne Bonny, have fairly well-known histories, whereas others like 8th century Goth princess Alfhild are surrounded by conflicting tales with few primary sources. In each case, Duncombe states what sources historians have for learning about these pirates, and clearly labels conflicting stories and speculation separately from more established history. Each chapter also contains suggested books for further reading.

Readers will find a wealth of information about women from all walks of life, whose pirate careers are as varied as their origins. Some turned to piracy seeking freedom, such as Charlotte Badger, who escaped a life of near-slavery in British Australia. Others, such as Jeanne de Clisson, sought revenge against those who had wronged them. Still others sought fame, fortune, or just a way to stay out of debtor's prison. The author makes each of their stories real and is careful to separate fact from fiction and speculation.

This book makes for accessible reading for both teens and adults, and is recommended for anyone with an interest in pirates or history, and anyone looking for a quick book to read in between other tasks. A Pirate's Life for She is available in Galesburg Public Library's Young Adult collection.

They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us by Hanif Abdurraqib

From the Publisher: In an age of confusion, fear, and loss, Hanif Abdurraqib's is a voice that matters. Whether he's attending a Bruce Springsteen concert the day after visiting Michael Brown's grave, or discussing public displays of affection at a Carly Rae Jepsen show, he writes with a poignancy and magnetism that resonates profoundly.

In the wake of the nightclub attacks in Paris, he recalls how he sought refuge as a teenager in music, at shows, and wonders whether the next generation of young Muslims will not be afforded that opportunity now. While discussing the everyday threat to the lives of black Americans, Abdurraqib recounts the first time he was ordered to the ground by police officers: for attempting to enter his own car.

In essays that have been published by the New York Times, MTV, and Pitchfork, among others—along with original, previously unreleased essays—Abdurraqib uses music and culture as a lens through which to view our world, so that we might better understand ourselves, and in so doing proves himself a bellwether for our times.

I don’t think I possess the words to describe how important and powerful this book is. Yet, here goes.

This is amazing from the first page—from the introduction by Eve Ensler, perfectly setting up the prose that you’re about to read, to Abdurraqib’s first essay on Chance the Rapper, which so eloquently encapsulates the feelings of being alive in 2016 through the lens of a music review. 

“The soundtrack to grief isn’t always as dark as the grief itself. Sometimes what we need is something to make the grief seem small, even when you know it’s a lie.” He then transitions to Bruce Springsteen and the killing of Michael Brown, and then Carly Rae Jepsen and his unapologetic love for her music, but before you can even be confused by the chasm that lies between these artists and topics, Abdurraqib has pulled you in with his beautiful words and talent and you don’t even begin to think this wasn’t intentional. His writing is the definition of “Go Big or Go Home” in the best way possible.

And seriously, all that is in the first 30 pages. Abdurraqib blends the things he’s passionate about through essay after essay of thoughtful and deliberate writing that combines into something that again, can’t even really be described. There’s a point in this book where a passage about Allen Iverson MADE ME CRY.

It’s a love letter to a city, to a people, to a feeling. It so clearly and honestly defines what it was like to be in that city, to be one of those people, to feel that feeling. This book is perfect for lovers of music, of sports, of the black experience, or just good, entertaining writing that allows you to connect with the writer even when you don’t necessarily have shared interests.

I hesitate to gush too much about this book, because as a white woman I feel guilty. I feel that it doesn’t matter that I like this book, that it isn’t for me, that no talented black man needs my approval. And while I know all of that is true, I can’t help but feel so connected to this that I need to gush. And maybe that’s exactly where Abdurraqib’s talent lies. At one point he’s talking about white people loving Chance the Rapper, and says “... but I think what Chance does is what the best artists of color manage to do in this setting: make music facing his people while also leaving the door open for everyone else to try and work their way in.” I hope that Hanif would approve of me thinking of his writing in the same way.

Abdurraqib is also known for his poetry, and the Galesburg Public Library owns a copy of his latest collection, "A Fortune For Your Disaster"

The Last Human by Zack Jordan

From the publisher: The last human in the universe must battle unfathomable alien intelligences—and confront the truth about humanity—in this ambitious, galaxy-spanning debut.

The Last Human starts out really well. We meet a large intelligent Black Widow spider raising a human child in a vast Network of species. Shenya the Widow must however keep the real species of her adopted child Sarya the Daughter from everyone else on the space station on which they live, since humans were the most dangerous race in the Universe until they were destroyed. Sarya must pretend to be Spaal, a species with a low level of intelligence, when your intelligence Tier is everything in the world of the Network.

The culture of the Widow is fascinating and detailed. Pain without fear is a central proverb. If you don’t like it, you are free to borrow one of my blades. The standard Widow apology is Beware. Widows are incredibly dangerous, but Shenya is “allowed to mingle with Network society because, like any other evolved complex individual, she is in control of her instincts” (p. 63 of the advance reader copy). Unlike humans.

There is no doubt this book is imaginative. There are nice twists of phrase, like “whatever plots your orbit” (p. 43 of the advance reader copy). The relationship between Sarya and Shenya and the world building is great. Then – a shift. A shift to a lot of aimless philosophical wandering. Followed by a complete train wreck after going off the rails into a ruin of one star plotting and characterization. 

The second half of the book is so different from the first it’s almost like it was written by someone else. However, 50% of the Goodreads ratings are four or five stars. If you are at all intrigued by The Last Human you’ll have to read it for yourself and decide what you think of it. The Last Human has touches of Men in Black, the Borg from Star Trek, and my least favorite parts of Douglas Adams. It can be found in the Galesburg Public Library’s Overdrive collection as an ebook and a downloadable audiobook.

I read an advance reader copy of The Last Human from Netgalley.

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

From the publisher: Willis Wu doesn’t perceive himself as a protagonist even in his own life: He’s merely Generic Asian man. Sometimes he gets to be Background Oriental Making a Weird Face or even Disgraced Son, but he is always relegated to a prop. Yet every day he leaves his tiny room in a Chinatown SRO and enters the Golden Palace restaurant, where Black and White, a procedural cop show, is in perpetual production. He’s a bit player here, too, but he dreams of being Kung Fu Guy—the most respected role that anyone who looks like him can attain. At least that’s what he has been told, time and time again. Except by one person, his mother. Who says to him: Be more.

Charles Yu’s debut novel, How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe, was an intricate, inventive deconstruction of science fiction’s most recognizable time travel tropes, equally clever and comic. It shouldn’t be surprising, then, that his latest work, Interior Chinatown, occupies a similar intersection of intelligence and humor, but here his witty aim is set on the tragicomedy of Asian representation in American culture and consciousness.

The novel follows Willis Wu, a bit actor who aspires to achieve the iconic status of such kung fu luminaries as Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. Yu constructs his novel as a screenplay – included are location cues, stage directions, and scene headings – and in doing so, filters the details of Willis’s real life through the artifice of Hollywood, a structural conceit that both condemns the shallowness of minority representation in America (the creation of art works as illustrative microcosm) and highlights its ubiquity. At times, Willis and his on-screen persona blur and reality becomes muddled, a brilliant emphasis placed on the performance of living and the conflicting identities we feel compelled to don like so many coats.

The limiting factor of screenplays, which in television and film are enriched through performance and visual art, makes for a narrative that perhaps feels a bit slight, almost fast-forwarded through. But it also allows for a handful of affecting monologues, largely waxing wise on the nature of identity and prejudice, particularly that of Asian Americans always dually situated within two competing contexts: that of a minority alternately marginalized, romanticized, and exoticized in America; and that of a minority who never had to suffer American’s sin of slavery and how knowledge of that specific relativism is internalized.

Interior Chinatown is more clever than profound, but injects its gimmick with moments of palpable emotion and tragedy and proves genuinely unique among modern novels. It’s sketched out style allows for plenty of reflection and conversation for readers looking for a glimpse at underrepresented cultures or interested in atypical narratives.

The Galesburg Public Library owns Interior Chinatown as a print copy and an ebook.