In “Songs for the Missing” by Steward O’Nan a young girl, Kim, mysteriously goes missing. Left behind are her mother, father, younger sister and a core group of friends. O’Nan takes us along as Kim’s friends and family deal with the emptiness and pain that follows.

O’Nan gives an honest account of how I imagine things really work when a child goes missing. It was interesting to follow the internal struggles of the characters, but, putting that aside, nothing made “Songs for the Missing” stand out. It was depressing and O’Nan’s writing style was forgettable. Especially when compared to another novel I read called “Wickett’s Remedy” by Myla Goldberg.

“Wickett’s Remedy” follows a young woman from south Boston during the Spanish influenza. Her story is not that remarkable (she falls in love, her husband dies, she becomes a nurse at a facility conducting experiments on prisoners
to learn more about the influenza), but how Goldberg told the story and the different techniques she used to move
the plot along makes for a good read.

A ghost narrator gives additional information and Goldberg inserts newspaper articles and letters from other time periods to provide additional insights. The relevance of the articles and letters becomes clear as the story progresses.

With so many authors spitting out novels that seem to run together, I admire Goldberg’s courage to try something new.

­ — NATALIE

I don’t understand all the hub-bub about the new location of the public library. Over the last few months I have read a number of stories on the Gazette’s website and for some reason continued on down the page to view the comments. I am shocked that not only do people have emphatic opinions on the subject but are quite rude and presumptuous with them.

Personally, I want the library back. I don’t care if it’s at True North, Emerald Knights,  KCRG or back in it’s previous spot (and I understand that this is impossible according to FEMA guidelines). Now that these decisions are made, perhaps people can be grateful that we’ll get another part of our city back and they can throw their hostility elsewhere.

I am just happy it’s coming back.

Some weeks I don’t read many books. But I’ve noticed that it’s not because I’m not reading. It’s just that a lot of my reading time is spent on the Internet. Yep, I’m getting sucked in for hours at a time by blogs. These cursed little gems of reading fun cart me from corner to corner of the world wide web.

So, rather than guiltily wonder why I haven’t read a book this week, I thought I’d share some of the other reading I’ve been doing:

• www.stumptuous.com

Krista’s blog about weightlifting for women is one of my absolute favorites. She doesn’t update much, but when she does, it’s always worth it. She scorns the pink rubber dumbbells made for women. Instead, she recommends, with much humor, that women “butch up” and lift some real weights. She’s solely responsible for my third-trimester pregnant self busting out some Olympic lifts in my basement on occasion. Beware ladies, you’ll get major pull-up envy if you spend too much time on her site.

• http://mimismartypants.com

The everyday observations of this Chicago dwelling medical journal editor are always hilarious. Her exploits on the public transportation in Chicago give a real flavor for the Urban Crazy. Smart and smart-alecky, she’s good for everything from a quick laugh to a book recommendation.

• http://deadspin.com

OK, I’ll admit, I only read this sports blog on occasion when my husband tells me to, but I didn’t want the guys to feel left out. But, seriously, this blog is a riot. The language can be, well, flavorful, and the content, um, a bit irreverent but it walks that fine line that Jon Stewart has perfected — hilarious while still being informative.

• http://thepioneeerwoman.com

What would a list of some of my favorite blogs be if I didn’t include something about food? Unfortunately, food blogs are almost too numerous to pick a favorite. For lots of all around amazing recipes, I keep going back to Thepioneerwoman.com. She’s a self-deprecating rural housewife/mother who ain’t shy about using loads of real butter in her cooking. Most of her stuff is simple and made with real ingredients. I’ve made her carrot cake about a hundred times. Her step by step guide to making the perfect steak has also served me well. People with limited free time, beware: her blog contains a lot more than just recipes.
— CAITLIN

“The Help” by Kathryn Stockett was absolutely wonderful. The plot is generally about the life and times of black domestic servants in the Southern United States in the 1960s. But trust me, it is SO much more. Stockett confronts some touchy racial issues through the eyes of three women — Skitter, Aibileen and Minny — and somehow manages to inject humor and hope into what could be an overwhelming and heavy topic.

Eugenia “Sketter” Phelan just graduated from college and returns home to start her career (or, if she adhered to tradition, to find a husband and attend social gatherings). It all begins when a friend makes an issue out of letting the black help use the same restroom as the rest of the household. Skeeter is not necessarily appalled by her friend’s racist attitude but more bothered and decides to write a book about the lives of black domestic servants in her community. But she finds the black women are less than willing to talk to her for fear of possible retribution even though she agrees to change the names of all involved. Finally, one after another she finds a number of women willing to tell their stories.

Minny and Aibileen are the first black servants willing to share their stories and, after a series of unfortunate events, are able to convince other women in the community to follow suit.

Aibileen is kindhearted and cares deeply about the children she cares for even though she knows they will likely break her heart in the end.

Minny, Aibileen’s best-friend, is a sassy, troublesome woman who is constantly getting fired by her white employers because she can’t manage to bite her tongue. After making an enemy of the wrong white woman, Minny is unable to find a job as a domestic servant until Aibileen helps her essentially trick a newcomer to town into hiring her. Minny is known not only for her sassy mouth but also for her cooking. She turns her cooking skills into a particularly hilarious and advantageous act of revenge. Trust me, it’s classic!

One of the things I liked most about “The Help” is how Stockett conveys the story. Each of the three narrators has a different voice and when you read “The Help” you can actually “hear” the characters speak and their personalities jump off the page. As the book progressed I developed a friendship with and appreciation for each of the three women. Minny’s sarcasm is perfect. Aibileen’s love for the families she cares for is heart-wrenching. And Sketter’s naivete and individualism commendable. The other characters we meet in “The Help” are equally as vibrant and emotion provoking. Some I wanted to hug and others I wanted to hit.

I truly can’t say enough about “The Help.” It is Stockett’s first novel. What a
way to start!
— NATALIE

Every once in a while, a book comes along and catches me completely off guard. On Chesil Beach was one of these books. I picked it up because it’s by Ian McEwan, the author of Atonement.  After finishing it, I’m not sure what I expected, but it was not the story of a marriage consummation gone horribly wrong.

Actually, it was a sensitive, microscopic look at the anxieties of a couple on their wedding night in 1962. But it was the subtle information provided about the wife’s life that made the story such a shocker.  From its moment-by-moment beginning, to the frustrating ending, McEwan weaves in the life story of each.

Florence is a talented violinist who grew up wealthy with and educated mother and a successful father. Edward is an intelligent and curious academic whose upbringing was more modest. When the two meet in college in London they fall in love. They spend hours together mooning over each other but remaining physically chaste.

For Edward, all this anticipation makes him anxious about his wedding night and his ability to meet Florence’s expectation. For Florence, she flat-out dreads everything about it.  Neither tells the other a thing about how they are feeling. This eventually leads to the end of the book when it is the words not spoken to one another that most affect what happens. And for Edward, this haunts him the rest of his life. With hindsight he later wonders what a simple kind word would have done to change the future for them both.

If the book has a point it is to show readers how powerfully the failure to do or say something can change everything. The story is tragic and at times it requires careful reading to follow the subtleties McEwan weaves. A slim book, it won’t take long to read, but it will take longer to think about.

– CAITLIN

This past month we lost two great writers: J.D. Salinger (1919-2010) and Howard Zinn (1922-2010). As tribute to these esteemed men, why not give one of their books a try?

J.D. Salinger was a recluse.

After publishing his most popular work, “The Catcher in the Rye,” in 1951, Salinger withdrew from public and only published a few other projects (“Nine Stories” “Franny and Zooey” and “Raise High the Roof Beam”) none of which attained the notoriety of “The Catcher and the Rye.”

“The Catcher in the Rye” is a story of Holden Caulfield, a 16-year-old boy living in the 1950s. From the very first sentence, it is clear we are in for a treat: “If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don’t feel like going into it if you want to know the truth.”

Holden is in his fourth school, after being kicked out of three, where he is on the verge of being expelled. A

fight with his roommate sends Holden home from school early and when he arrives in Manhattan, after a run in with a parent of one of his school mates and an unpleasant taxi ride, he checks himself into a hotel. That is where his “adventure” really begins. Holden takes us along as he meets various characters and confronts his own demons. The story is told from Holden’s brutally honest perspective. He doesn’t censor his thoughts or feelings, which is part of what makes the book shockingly good.

When first published, “The Catcher and the Rye” was extremely controversial due to profanity and sexual references. Challenges to the book continue today (Although I am not sure why. It’s not like the media isn’t flooded with profanity and sexual references). “The Catcher in the Rye” is commonly identified as one of the top 100 books of all time. I am not sure I would agree it is one of the 100 best, but it is a great book. Give it a shot. If anything, you’ll sound very intelligent at your next cocktail party. (Or if you aren’t up for the read, watch “Field of Dreams;” the character Terence Mann is based on Salinger.)

Howard Zinn was an author, historian and political activist. Zinn’s most well-known book is “A People’s History of the United States.” In the book, Zinn presents our nation’s history from a totally different perspective than we learned in school. He starts at the beginning and takes us through today (first published in 1980, “A People’s History” has been continually updated). Much of what he includes is shocking to say the least. For example, he tells of a Christopher Columbus who was actually quite cruel and responsible for the mass murder of the Arawak Indians.

“A People’s History” is not light reading. Zinn’s writing is repetitive at times and it is hard to know what exactly is the truth (for example, how can he know how many thousands of Arawak Indians died), but it is an interesting take on history nonetheless.

— NATALIE

I’m so excited to read this book that I’m going to write about it before I read it. First, its title, “Lies My Teacher Told Me,” screams from the shelves and practically forces you to buy it. So maybe the subtitle, “Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong” is a little more boring and actually explains what the book is about, but … BOOM! Lies! How could you not pick it up?

I’m sure the author, James Loewen was not out to disparage our long-suffering high school history teachers, but it does sound like he takes the status quo version of history to task. I’m looking forward to reading Chapter Two — 1493: the True Importance of Christopher Columbus. I think he might tell us that Christopher Columbus wasn’t an American hero, but I’m just guessing. That chapter is followed by Chapter Three — The Truth About the First Thanksgiving. Perhaps it was not the peaceful exchange of turkey and corn I learned about in
first grade?

From the Civil War to Vietnam to the Gulf War, I’ll probably think more about war than I normally do (never). But I’m curious to hear Loewen’s take. Having war as part of most of my adult years, I’m now in a position to hear about the non-sanitized version of these wars with an understanding that the purpose and strategy may not always have been clear, even to those in charge.

I think it’s good to question what we learned in school. I don’t do this just for the sake of disagreement, but to examine the context. In the same way I think it’s important to consider who is paying for a particular scientific or health study, thinking about who wrote history can help find bias. I suspect that many of the spotlighted lies in the book are lies of omission.

Finally, Loewen claims that he set out to examine why students just aren’t interested in history. It sounds like he thinks it may be the fault of the textbook writers.

Well, let my re-education begin. I’d love to know what I missed.

— CAITLIN

A while back, I publicly shunned and criticized electronic books. Well, I am now the proud owner of a Sony eReader and I love it. Some may call me a hypocrite, but I prefer to see myself more as someone who will not cut off her own nose to spite her face.

I still love the feeling of holding a book in my hand and dog-earing pages, but my eReader has its advantages. It is about the size of a little planner and easy to transport; books are usually less expensive than in the store; I can find previously hard-to-find titles and
buy on impulse.

For months I looked for “How to Read Like a Writer” by Francine Prose. Last weekend, while sitting on my couch sipping coffee, I bought the book from the Sony ebook store. On my last road trip, I started listening to “The Lost Symbol” by Dan Brown. Unfortunately, I got home after bookstores and library were closed with more of the book to go. So I simply downloaded it.

The biggest difference between a Sony eReader ($199 to $299) and a Kindle ($295) is that with Sony eReader you have to first download books to your computer then transfer them to your eReader and you can download books from and directly to the Kindle. The other big difference is that a Kindle holds more books, 1500 to eReader’s 350. Kindle also gives you access to a number of Web sites and an e-mail account. For me, the Sony eReader is just fine.

Whether you like electronic books or the good old paper version, don’t waste your time on P.D. James’ “The Murder Room.” It started out strong, but in the end I was not impressed. . It features a detective by the name of Adam Dalgliesh, who apparently is in many of James’ books. It is set up as a kind of murder mystery who-done-it. But there were too many suspects and I couldn’t keep them all straight. I may have enjoyed it more had I read the prior books in the Dalgliesh series.
— NATALIE

I haven’t read a good sexy book in a while. “The Sundowners,” by Lesley Lokko, broke this streak. The cover says dramatically, “four friends, two decades, one glorious love story.” These four friends — Rianne, Nathalie, Gabrielle and Charmaine — meet at an English boarding school when they are 16 and their friendship lasts for decades.

While the book is told from each girl’s perspective, the beautiful and unimaginably rich Rianne is the main character of the novel. The spoiled and selfish Rianne cares little that her family’s money is from questionable means in Apartheid South Africa. As she makes her way as an international model, though, she eventually raises her consciousness of the way her family acquired its wealth.

After an adolescent meeting with the striking Ree Modise, a South African (or “native” as Rianne calls him) boy whose dad is a political prisoner, Rianne can’t get the boy out of her mind. As Rianne and Ree make their way through adulthood, their paths continue to cross.

In the meantime, Gabrielle, Charmaine and Nathalie all take different paths. One involves copious amounts of cocaine in L.A. Another involves a wildly successful business venture in London. Still another goes to Oxford and becomes a human rights lawyer. Despite their divergent lives, all four still have each other when their hearts are broken and their dreams are dashed.

The book spans two decades — the 80s and 90s. It’s a time when life is becoming more international and South African politics are heating up. One part sex and love, another part drugs, yet another part money and a whole lot of international intrigue makes “The Sundowners” a long book that reads quickly.

I love these unexpected book surprises that I picked up at the library book sale in the fall. Now, with my regular dose of literary sexy, I can move on to some more fantasy.
— CAITLIN

“Take it from me, a scar does not form on the dying.
A scar means I survived.” — Little Bee

The inside cover of “Little Bee,” a novel by Chris Cleave, says “We don’t want to tell you what happens in this book. It is truly a special story and we don’t want to spoil it. Once you’ve read it, you’ll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don’t tell them what happens. The magic is
in how the story unfolds.”

I have to agree.

I came across this book completely by accident. I recently joined a book club and the organizer asked everyone to suggest a book for the group. I did a quick look on Oprah’s Website (seriously, her book recommendations are usually pretty good), saw “Little Bee” and sent an e-mail with my recommendation. After a quick group vote, we decided “Little Bee” was our first book. This made me a little nervous; if it wasn’t any good my credibility among my group would be shot. Thankfully, once I started reading I knew my credibility would remain in tact (at least for now). I couldn’t put it down.

The story is about two women from very different sides of the world. When the novel opens, Little Bee, a Nigerian refuge, finds herself in an immigrant detention center. Before becoming a refuge, her path crossed that of the novel’s other protagonist, a British woman named Sarah O’Rourke. The two women lead very different lives that intertwine in a beautiful, yet tragic, way. In telling the story, Cleave alternates between the two woman’s points of view.

Both women are truly genuine and Cleave does an excellent job of capturing the struggles each
woman faces.

Little Bee appears to have the worst of it. After “escaping” from the detention center, she remains on the run from the authorities. Little Bee is so terrified of the authorities that when she enters a new environment, her initial instinct is to determine how she can end her life if she is discovered. She has no money, no family and nowhere to go. She can, however, speak perfect English, having taught herself the language during her two years in the detention center.

Contrast Little Bee with Sarah O’Rourke, the woman who, on the outside has it all. A good husband, a beautiful son and a great job. But dig a little deeper, and it is clear that Sarah is suffering from her own set of demons. Her seemingly perfect marriage is anything but (think affair and husband suffering from depression), and an unexpected tragedy leaves her trying to handle her 3-year old son all on her own.

What I really loved about Little Bee was that the women, while seemingly so different, were both struggling in their own way. Little Bee’s struggle came across as calm. She seemed to accept her life and what she was faced with. Sarah, on the other hand, came across as constantly frenzied and unable to accept where she was in life. This is interesting because arguably Sarah created her problems, while Little Bee had little choice.

Little Bee is the best book I’ve read in a long time.

If you aren’t in the mood for a tragic, though heartwarming tale, try “The Murder Room” by P.D. James. This is a classic who-done-it novel that I just started. So far, I’m into murder number one …

— NATALIE