CHICK LIT - IF ANDY WARHOL HAD A GIRLFRIEND

"IF ANDY WARHOL HAD A GIRLFRIEND" by Alison Pace is a book about Jane Laine. Jane Laine works in the most prestigious of New York art galleries, The Dick Reese Gallery, where she works for the odious Dick Reese himself. The novel opens with Jane discovering the infidelity of her long term boyfriend when she goes to his apartment, unannounced, to retrieve her perfect pair of black pants.

Soon though, when she expects to be fired for buying regular sized Reese's Peanut Butter Cups rather than mini (something only a really odious boss would make such a dramatic scene about), she instead finds herself being packed up and accompanying world-renown sculptor Ian Rhys-Fitzsimmons on a 5 month trip around the globe to various art shows.

Jane is not particularly fond of Ian, she thinks him and his work are frauds, mostly because she does not understand his work. She finds his flashy manner of dress pretentious and she is rather put off by all the people who fawn all over him at each art fair.

As they travel from London to Rome, Chicago, and finally to Santa Fe, she begins to appreciate the experience and especially Ian more. For a world famous artist Ian is very thoughtful and down to earth; in London he makes sure to take Jane to the one restaurant she had expressed a desire to see, in Rome he sets up the art fair exhibit for her after Dick Reese unexpectedly arrives to terrorize her, in Chicago he proposes visiting "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte" to make them forget about the bitter winter going on about them, and finally in Santa Fe he makes in through a Christmas dinner with her family. Its in Chicago that Jane final "gets" Ian's artwork, she realizes that it makes her happy and that surely the happiness it brings to people is the point.

I found most everything that went on in this book to be delightful; I laughed out loud many times and was left with a huge smile on my face when I finished. There are such tiny things that are just so sweet; Ian's obvious pleasure at the hours spent on the plane with Jane, especially when he reveals later in the novel how much he hates flying and his telling Jane that he picked her for the art fair when she was speculating that she had been sent because she wasn't valued or needed at the gallery.

Jane spends a lot of the book trying to find a new boyfriend, someone who she can take to dinner at her friend Kate's house in Miami (an inside joke with her friend Kate, only Jane's perfect guy would be invited to dinner at her house). She goes on lousy first dates, amazing first dates, and attempts to settle for the guy who had been into her for ages, but none of these potential relationships work out. And all the while Ian is there, being supportive of Jane's decisions and being patient waiting for her to get over her ex. As she comes to realizations about Ian's art she also comes to know herself and her heart more, culminating quite hilariously in a session in a Santa Fe sweat lodge.

Jane mother was quite a humorous addition to the novel. When Jane moved out of her parents house Jane's mother seemed to have turned her attention to her pet Schnauzers, giving them ridiculous names like Elijah Darjeeling and Fideleis McSween, so they feel like individuals. Jane's parents travel, with Elijah, to Santa Fe for Christmas, not to visit Jane, but to visit one of Elijah's offspring; her mother is then very put off when the people who have Elijah's puppy do not invite the whole family over for Christmas. At Christmas dinner though, the family partakes of a rather interesting tradition called Pass the Schnauzer, which involves passing Elijah around the table. When all of this is going on Jane is, of course, mortified, but Ian really takes in in stride.

In addition to Jane's mom and her Schnauzers, there are many delightful secondary characters in this novel; from Dick Reese, the boss from hell and all the other caricatures that inhabit the Dick Reese gallery, to people who frequent and travel from art fair to art fair along with Ian and Jane.

I enjoyed this book too much to relegate it to "predictable" but the ending is what you would expect it to be. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a few hours of Chick Lit enjoyment though.

MORE THAN A MISTRESS

MORE THAN A MISTRESS - BY MARY BALOGH

"More than a Mistress" is a story about the romance of Jane and Jocelyn. Jane and Jocelyn have a rather inauspicious beginning; he has been challenged to a duel over another man's wife, she interrupts the duel and is somehow blamed by everyone for getting him shot.

When Jane arrives to her new job as a milliner's (that's a hat maker) assistant and delivers her tale about being delayed by a dueling Duke (Jocelyn is a Duke) she is laughed out of the shop and told she can have her job back if she gets a signed note from the Duke verifying her "story". Outraged at losing her job and being laughed at, Jane decides she will have that note and somehow finds herself not only in the Duke's mansion, but in his bedroom assisting the doctor in removing the bullet from his leg. Naturally, Jane is then employed as the Duke's nurse during his convalescence.

In between making verbal barbs at each other for the two weeks he spends recovering, the two being taking notice of each other in other ways. Their growing attraction culminates with their first kiss one night when, conveniently, neither could sleep. When she walks in on him playing the piano one night, he is initially angry but his anger leads to passion as they share their first kiss, in which every part of Jane's body, "sizzled with awareness and ached with desire."

Since Jocelyn is not without his principles he can let things go no farther between them while she is living in his house as a servant. He therefore suggests that maybe she would consider becoming his mistress, which is when the novel begins to heat up.

Despite being a "Lady" Jane consents to this because she is a bit of a fugitive; having defended herself from the unwanted advances of a cousin she has fled from home, taking with her a bracelet that had belonged to her mother - her Uncle has since let it be (falsely) believed that she has killed her cousin and robbed the family.

And so she becomes Jocelyn's mistress and they are both a bit overwhelmed, and embarrassed, by the passion and feelings that arise in them during their first, chapter long love scene. Their relationship is a constant step forward and then one back; she is confused by his coldness after a moment of passion, he begins to open up to her, he thinks she is ashamed to be his mistress when she is really unwilling to go out because Bow Street Runners are searching for her. The indulge together in their love of culture; she embroiders while he reads her Jane Austen, she reads while he plays the piano, she sings for him, until she does become more than a mistress.

But of course the truth about her past had to be revealed eventually and when it does Jocelyn is horrified that she has not only deceived him but that in doing so he made a Lady his mistress (which is apparently a horrible thing to do). And of course the revelation leads straight to the alter, well with, I have to say, an unexpected detour or two.

(There is also a subplot involving Jocelyn's brother, the lady the duel was fought over, and her brother's repeated attempts at getting "satisfaction" but I'll leave that an easy to forget subplot.)

A SUITABLE VENGEANCE - A KIRKUS STYLE REVIEW

In "A Suitable Vengeance" Elizabeth George delivers a prequel in order to provide her dedicated readers with some insight into the earlier lives and relationships of Inspector Thomas Lynley and forensic scientist Simon Allcourt-St. James. In a book billed as a "mystery" novel, the mystery is never very mysterious or intriguing. The death and castration of a local journalist is the first of the bodies to pile up, but doesn't do so nearly early enough in this novel; the reader is forced to anticipate the introduction of a mystery for over 100 pages. The mystery itself and its subsequent solving are secondary; the novel is bogged down with relationship angst and a love triangle, which may appeal to dedicated fans of the series and characters but befuddle and annoy those not familiar with the series looking for a page turner. Those looking for an edge of your seat page turner would be best to look elsewhere, those looking for a slow paced romance with a dash of mystery may just find this fulfills their needs.

GENERATION KILL - Get Some

Generation Kill by Evan Wright

I just finished reading "Generation Kill", my foray into non-fiction, and I have to say I'm glad I made it.

"Generation Kill" is the story of the First Recon Marines' part in the initial invasion of Iraq in March 2003, as witnessed and reported by the embedded reporter (Evan Wright) who was with them. Evan Wright initially wrote this as a series of articles for Rolling Stone Magazine, the articles were later built upon and became this book (and later became a fantastic HBO mini-series!). I appreciate that the author doesn't really inject the book with his personal feelings about the war, but rather just relays events as they happened.

I really enjoyed this book, not because I particularly love accounts of war, but because of the people in the book. I think Evan Wright really manages to capture and portray the Marine's of the First Recon Battalion as the intriguing characters that I'm sure they are. The things that come out of their mouths at time range from the ridiculous obscene to the ridiculously thoughtful and I have to say I enjoyed it tremendously.

"Generation Kill" focuses primarily on Bravo Company and more specifically on the lead vehicle (the one the reporter rode in) commanded by Sergeant Brad Colbert. Colbert's vehicle is comprised of Colbert, driver Corporal Josh Ray Person, Lance Corporal Harold Trombley, and Corporal Walter Hasser. The banter that goes on in the lead Humvee range from the hilarious to the disturbing. Person, living off of amphetamines regales the Humvee with his theories of war, sings Avril Lavigne songs, and rails on the idiotic things going on around them. Colbert, nicknamed "iceman" is the calming, parental influence in the Humvee, often telling Person to stop talking while making sure everyone is taking care of themselves and "staying frosty". Trombley is often a bit on the disturbing side, telling outlandish stories of his childhood and complaining, early on, like a child over not having shot anyone yet. (the fourth member of the team rides with his head outside the Humvee manning the gun and therefore says and offers very little to the story).

I think First Recon's part in the invasion is really secondary to the stories of the Marine's themselves. Despite being trained (and often eager) to kill, you really feel for the Marine's anger and emotion when a civilian is mistakenly shot and their frustration about how ineffective they were at maintaining order once in Baghdad. You also lament with them over what they see as incompetent leadership from their officers much as we civilians deride our bosses at times. And just when you think you have a grasp of the character of a certain Marine, they do or say something that really throws you.

Writing home to his wife, Sergeant Antonio Espera, who loves nothing more than a good rant about the evil's of the white man, says:

"I've learned there are two types of people in Iraq, those who are very good and those who are dead. I'm very good. I've lost twenty pounds, shaved my head, started smoking, my feet have rotted off, and I move from filthy hole to filthy hole every night. I see dead children and people everywhere and function in a void of indifference. I keep you and our daughter locked away deep down inside, and I try not to look there."

Its those sort of passages, for me, that really made this book enjoyable. It was the surprising things people would say, the camaraderie and love they clearly had for each other, and getting to hear their thoughts and feelings on what was going on.

There are so many notable characters in this book, I wish I could write in detail about them all and share all the funny things they all say, but then this would go on forever so best to just read it for yourself (or watch the mini-series).

Also, as far as non-fiction goes, its sort of fun to know that these people are real people with real lives, so real that I even follow one of them on twitter!

MY CLASSIC - VILLETTE

I've just finished reading Villette by Charlotte Bronte and honestly I don't really know how to feel about it. It was hard to get into, it was time commitment, it was slow paced, very introspective, but it was intriguing.

Villette tells the story of Lucy Snowe, and girl at the beginning of the story who, at 14, has experienced great loss. The losses she has suffered in the past are never detailed, but they are clearly integral to Lucy's psyche and therefore the story; Villette is very much a story of the inner turmoil Lucy experiences throughout her life as a result of dealing, or not dealing, with losing her family.

The story opens with Lucy staying with her godmother and her godmother's son Graham, the Brettons of Bretton. Also a resident in the house at the time is another young girl, Polly, who was seemingly dumped upon the Brettons while her father dealt with the death of his wife. During this time, Lucy is very much an observer; it is unclear to the reader who the female protagonist of the novel will be. However, once this little party at Bretton breaks up, the reader follows Lucy on her path towards whatever it is she is looking for, escape perhaps.

First she ensconces herself with an old, invalid lady, acting as companion until the lady's death. Next Lucy travels to London, where on a whim she boards a boat to France. On the journey to France she meets Ginevra Fanshawe, who mentions in passing the school she attends and a vacancy for an English speaking teacher. Words spoken casually by Ginevra lead Lucy to the town of Villette and a school run by Madame Beck, who takes her in and employs her.

The past that Lucy is perhaps trying to forget has an uncanny way of emerging in Villette; Lucy is soon reunited with Dr. John Graham Bretton, her godmother Mrs. Bretton, and Polly and her father (now a rich count going by a different name). Lucy seems to have mixed feelings about all of these people returning to her life; she relishes their company while in it, but she never seems to want to become to close to any of them. She keeps herself isolated throughout the novel. At points I questioned her sanity as she experiences a sort of mental breakdown and seemingly has several run ins with the ghost of a nun.

In addition to her mental turmoil, Lucy also comes into a lot of flak for her religion. Villette seems to be quite the Catholic town, as a Protestant she is seen as quite the oddity; people don't quite know what to think of her. A fellow teacher at Madame Beck's school, M. Paul Emanuel, tries, unsuccessfully, throughout to convince her to convert to Catholicism. This is, apparently, a constant point of strife in their relationship.

Villette seems like a very personal novel. The reader is constantly in the head of Lucy Snowe, privy to all of her whims, fears, neuroses; the reader sees happiness within her reach and watches her continually let is slip away due to her seemingly overwhelming doubts about her own worth, first in her relationship with John Bretton and then in her relationship with Paul Emanuel.

Despite the personal success Lucy manages to achieve for herself (she begins the novel with nothing, a poor orphan, and ends as the Directrice of a school), is not a particularly uplifting or happy novel. I think someone could make quite the study of the mental state of Lucy Snowe, she seems to be a character begging to be analyzed ad infinitum. I personally chose not to analyze the flaws in her character and the coarse her life took because of those flaws anymore and instead take her advice, "let them picture union and a happy succeeding life." And since I love a happy ending, this is what I will do.