The Yacoubian Building by Alaa Al Aswany

This book is absolutely brilliant. Set in modern-day Cairo, this wonderful novel follows the lives of a series of characters that live and / or work in the Yacoubian Building, which was built in the 1930s by the millionaire businessman Hagop Yacoubian.

In roughly 250-pages, we are introduced to a large cast of characters, each of which struggles with the problems of contemporary Egypt. For instance, there is the son of a doorkeeper whose dream is to become a policeman, but due to his poverty is rejected from the police academy, and in frustration joins the Islamic resistance. Then there is the gay editor of a French-language newspaper, whose professional success is tempered by the rampant homophobia all around him. There is the aging playboy who blames Nasser for the downfall of Egypt, his bitter sister who wants to throw him out of his apartment, and the young woman who discovers that all of her male employers want to sexually harass her.

This is fantastic book is noting short of extraordinary and I highly recommend it.

4 1/2 out of 5 stars

The Journals of Eleanor Druse: My Investigation of the Kingdom Hospital Incident by Eleanor Druse

This is a terrible book. Purporting to be the true life story of an elderly woman named Eleanor Druse, this novel is in reality the work of Richard Dooling, who co-wrote and co-produced the 2004 ABC miniseries "Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital."

Unfortunately for the reader, it seems that this story serves no major purpose besides acting as an advertisement for the Kingdom Hospital TV series. The writing is clunky, the plot progression incredibly slow, and the dialogue filled with cliché after cliché. This is a shame, as the idea behind the story -- an elderly woman discovers (and then remembers) horrible experiments on children that take place in a hospital -- has a lot of potential.

This is the first book by Dooling that I have read. I don't think it would be fair, however, for me to assume that he is a bad writer, as it is pretty clear that this book was written quite quickly for purely commercial reasons. I have a suspicion that his other works are much better.

1 out of 5 stars

Cranks and Shadows by K. C. Constantine

It is a pleasure to have stumbled across the work of K.C. Constantine. In a highly acclaimed series of books, Constantine has created a wonderful set of characters that revolve around Mario Balzic, the police chief of the fictional town of Rocksburg, Pennsylvania. But it's the dialogue -- a fantastic script that is nothing short of brilliant -- that makes the Balzic books sparkle.

In "Cranks and Shadows," a mysterious swat team suddenly appears in Rocksburg, filled with camouflage wearing men with machine guns. The police chief, who is caught flat footed, sets out to find out what is going on. But as he pursues his investigation, Balzic soon discovers that his power as chief has been undermined, and that he has been oblivious to who really controls Rocksburg.

In this very entertaining book, Constantine weaves a tale filled with, among other things, political power struggles, the fear of unemployment and the limits to what a newspaper reporter can print, all enclosed in a working class setting. If you enjoy mystery books you do yourself a favour and start visiting the world of Chief Balzic.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars

The Dark Half by Stephen King

Stephen King is a fantastic writer. Even great novelist, however, can produce boring stories. "The Dark Half," I was disappointed to discover, is one of those stories. This book recounts the tale of Thad Beaumont, a writer who pens several blockbuster horror books under the pseudonym George Stark. But when Beaumont decides to kill off his alter ego, and stop writing under his pen name, a series of strange murders start to occur. To his horror, Beaumont soon discovers that Stark has become real, and is threatening to kill him and his family if he doesn't start writing again under the Stark name.

It would unfair to call this book poorly written (King is too skilled of a wordsmith to write dribble). But what this book does suffer from is pages and pages of unnecessary scenes and narrative. Two-thirds into the book I became bored with the story, as I found the development incredibly slow. As well, some of the scenes descended into typical Friday the 13th slash-and-burn pulp, rather than interesting horror. By the end of the book my reaction was simply "blah".

I have read enough of King to know that he is a brilliant writer. But if I had to recommend one of his books, this one would not be it.

2 out of 5 stars

Family Values (Rocksburg Novels) by K. C. Constantine

After 24-years as the chief of the fictional Rocksburg Police Department, Mario Balzic settles into a well deserved retirement. But before he can get too comfortable into his new life, an official with the Pennsylvania Department of Justice comes knocking, and offers the newly retired Balzic the opportunity to be a special investigator for a post-conviction hearing. A prison inmate who has been incarcerated for 17-years, it turns out, is asking the court to have his conviction overturned on the grounds that he was wrongly imprisoned.

Balzic soon finds himself investigating a double homicide that took place more than one-and-a-half decades earlier, and which revolves around a corrupt police department, a tragic inter-family love triangle, and horrific domestic abuse.

In this gripping novel, K.C. Constantine presents an wonderful set of characters, whose brilliant dialogue sparkles off the page. A very enjoyable read for those who love police mysteries.

3 out of 5 stars

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King

It is early June and Trisha McFarland, a nine-year-old girl, sets out on a hike in the New England woods with her mother and older brother Pete. Ever since the divorce Mom and Pete have been arguing, and this family weekend is no different. So when Trisha has to pee in the forest, neither Pete nor her mom – who are busy fighting – notice as she scurries away into the trees.

But instead of heading back the way she came, Trisha decides to go down a different path to rejoin her family, and soon finds herself lost in the woods. As the hours pass, Trisha finds herself stumbling through the forest, and with each step getting more lost. When night arrives she has to scramble just to stay alive. With each passing day her ordeal worsens, with her only human contact being her walkman, which allows her to listen to Boston Red Sox games, and to hear if her favourite closing pitcher Tom Gordon can save the game.

In this high-enjoyable novel, Stephen King takes us into the mind of a lost child, who caught in an unimaginable situation is forced to find ways to survive, while trying to keep away from the mysterious creature that keeps following her through the trees.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Brushback (Mario Balzic Novel) by K. C. Constantine

Bobby Blasco was a sports icon in the (fictional) town of Rocksburg, Pennsylvania, after becoming the first – and so far only – town resident to play in major league baseball. But with the golden arm came a violent temper, and a tendency to hit batters on purpose, which earned him the moniker the “Brushback Kid.”

A mysterious accident, however, soon ends his professional career, resulting in his eventual return to Rocksburg as a restaurant owner. Flash forward several decades, and an aging Blasco is found murdered after being clobbered to death with a baseball bat. Sergeant Rugs Carlucci, the city’s acting police chief, is called to the scene, and the ensuing investigation is recounted in a series of brilliant dialogue.

K.C. Constantine is, without a doubt, a master craftsman of writing conversations. Reading this book is like watching a riveting play, or better still, listening to a captivating radio drama. For the dialogue in this book – a fantastic collection of sounds, images, nervous uhs and all too familiar hmms – that make this novel a pleasure to read.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars

The Man From St. Petersburg by Ken Follett

It is 1914 and the British government is preparing to go to war with Germany. Aware that the English forces are weaker than the German army, Winston Churchill recruits Lord Walden to initiate talks with Czar Nicholas’s nephew Prince Alexei, in order to form a military alliance with Russia in the event of war. The negotiations are soon thrown into turmoil, however, when an Anarchist from St. Petersburg arrives to kill the Prince.

At its best, this book is a fascinating look into English society just before the First World War. From suffragettes, to British nobility, to working-class revolutionaries, this book is filled with wonderful characters living in a world on edge. On the negative side, parts of the novel descend into tacky dialogue and / or sentimental sap that’s straight out of a harlequin romance. There is no doubt that Follett is a talented storyteller who can create wonderful historical fiction. What is disappointing, however, is that this skill is often lost in romantic dribble.

3 out of 5 stars

From a Buick 8 by Stephen King

Eighteen-year-old Nate Wilcox is lost in grief after his father Curt, a Pennsylvanian state trooper, is killed in a car accident. Wanting to help their late-colleague’s son deal with the tragic death, Curt’s coworkers invite Ned to become a member of the police barracks, first by allowing him to do odd chores – i.e. mowing the law; cleaning the precinct – and then working in the radio dispatch room.

One day Nate begins to inquire about a mysterious Buick that is parked in a shed in the back of the barracks. What follows is a fantastic story of this terrifying car, which some officers speculate is not a vehicle at all, but rather an alien creature from another world. As the reader flips through the pages of this wonderful book, it is revealed that the Buick could be responsible for the disappearance, murder or suicide of several characters. An incredibly well written book by a master of terror.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Hybrids (Neanderthal Parallax) by Robert J. Sawyer

In this finale in the Neanderthal Parallax trilogy, Robert J. Sawyer offers a book filled with brilliant ideas. Whether it's his speculation on religion -- he offers a biological explanation for the belief in God -- to his musings on sexuality and the reduction of crime, Sawyer proves once again why he is one of Canada's leading science fiction writer.

My only complaint with this book is that the writing can be clunky at times, resulting in some wooden characters. As well, with so many ideas packed into a single book, the reader is not able to fully enjoy many of Sawyer's wonderful concepts. A good example is the book's theory that human consciousness is impacted by the earth's magnetic field. This is an intriguing idea that unfortunately is not fleshed out, due to Sawyer's having to deal with so many other concepts. All in all, however, this is a highly enjoyable book.

3 out of 5 stars

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama

A wonderful book. The brilliant writing – boy can Obama write – is akin to the work of an accomplished novelist, rather than a lawyer just out of law school. As a reader, it was a joy to read this story of self-discovery. As a person living outside the United States, this book reaffirms my hope in an Obama presidency.


4 out of 5 stars