Sydney Avey

Dynamic Woman — Changing Times

Book Reviews: A steal, a deal, and a struggle for truth

Nov 3, 2016 | Book Reviews | 0 comments

Steal some time to read these books

I stole some time to finish some books on my night table this week. I’m fudging a bit. Stolen Postcards is the type of book you set down and pick up again and again–unless you are a greedy reader who wants all the goodies in one sitting! Lightning Strikes introduced me to the writing of a local author of promise, and The Explanation of Everything prompted lively discussion about  science vs faith here in our little desert hideaway.

Stolen Postcards

Stolen PostcardsStolen Postcards by Jan Ackerson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Stolen Postcards is a good title for this collection of vignettes. I have the book on my eReader and I steal time to read these stories. When I’m waiting for my tea water to boil or having a quick bite of lunch, I play in the mind of Jan Ackerson.

These stories are like soap bubbles. One by one, you watch them float off the page. You appreciate the color, shape, or movement. Then pop, they are gone, and you look for the next one. Whether whimsical, warm, chilling, or downright horrifying, each story engages.

In a world where we speed read to get through our booklist, it is refreshing to slow down and take note of telling details that provide the context for each story. Or to ruminate on what prompted the story.  Sometimes the author tells you (Doctor Appreciation Day). Other times you have to guess. (My, someone must have been in a pissy mood.)

Stolen Postcards reminds us that there are stories everywhere. You might be tempted to try writing one yourself. Go ahead. Try this at home.

Lightning Strikes

Lightning StrikesLightning Strikes by Daniel Babka
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you are the parent of a middle schooler, Lightening Strikes by Daniel Babka is a worthy choice. This short story about a young boy finding his moral core in a mid-twentieth century, middle America town. Racism, crime, and poverty are part of the landscape for 12-year old Ben, but so is an essentially loving family.

Ben observes, he considers, and he takes action to right wrongs. The consequences of his actions are heartwarming, but I did wonder if the adults involved would truly have been as forgiving, given the stakes. We could hope so.

This is a good book to read and discuss with your child. And it’s a good introduction to Babka’s writing. There seems to be a trend to publish shorts as samplers to greater bodies of work. (Think of the clerks behind the See’s Candies counter setting a chocolate in your hand to tempt you to invest in the one or two pound box.) Good idea.

The Explanation of Everything

The Explanation for EverythingThe Explanation for Everything by Lauren Grodstein

In this present climate of heated rhetoric, poor listening, and pressure to consider only one point of view, The Explanation for Everything is refreshing. If you are expecting a polemic that comes down solidly on the side of Darwin or God, you will be disappointed. What you get instead is a story about real people on both sides of this equation who struggle with personal and social issues.

Lauren Grodstein does a good job of balancing the concerns of both science and faith. To my mind, her approach requires a paradigm shift. Certainty is not a requirement in either discipline.

As we begin to notice the effects of sloppy thinking, careless attitudes, and moral or ethical failures in characters on both sides, the tension builds. Scientific discovery is a reasoned process that yields exciting results, but life is more a science experiment. Faith is a mystery that offers hope; but strip away the mystery and it falls apart.

About the time that we realize the story is not a debunking or vindication of extreme points of view, we come to an understanding. If you have seen the movie, Sully, you will recognize the theme. It’s the human factor.

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Crafting a Novel Around a Real Person: An Interview with Sydney Avey – WRITE NOW!

Crafting a Novel Around a Real Person: An Interview with Sydney Avey – WRITE NOW!

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