Reading

I have no qualms about closing a book unfinished. I’ve done it with a recent Grisham (a revolting amount of repetitive violence), one of Jojo Moyes’s books (child molestation), umpteen freebies I get emailed (they all started with the word ‘I’) and now Lucy Foley’s The Guest List (unbelievably flat characters, predictable plot, self-harm and I was never really hooked by any part of the story. And almost ever chapter started with ‘I’, in a surprising lack of writing skills.) How did this book make it anyone’s book club list?.

Life’s too short to read unrewarding fiction. So I opened a new book and (this isn’t surprising) I think I’ve read it before. Jonathan Evison’s The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving. I’m going to keep reading, because I like his writing quite a bit and I enjoy re-reading a very well written book. It seems that I pick up different nuances with each read.

As a reader, I love the Thunder Bay series! When I searched for comparable books and authors, I found suggestions I agreed with and a few more I’d suggest: Let’s start with some close matches and whether I agree with them or not:

• Dana Stabenow: Known for her Kate Shugak and Liam Campbell series, Stabenow is a quintessential Alaskan author. Her work aligns with Rocky Bay through its deep immersion in Alaskan culture, the commercial fishing industry, and the tension between locals and environmental/regulatory bodies.

Absolutely agree. She writes ‘real Alaska’ the one I live in, know, and love.

• Peter Heller: Author of The River and The Guide, Heller writes high-stakes wilderness survival thrillers. His focus on the unforgiving power of nature and human treachery in isolated settings mirrors Mack’s struggle against the 45-foot rogue wave and Jack’s hijack plot.

I have never read his books (I might, just to see…) but I wouldn’t classify any of the Seiner Series as ‘thriller’. Suspenseful at times, yes. But to me ‘thriller’ means I’m reading on the edge of my seat, like The Bourne series (LOVED that series!) or anything written by Tom Clancy. And, since I have your attention, I’ll just add that The Hunt for Red October is probably one of my favorite movies ever.

• Sebastian Junger: While best known for the non-fiction masterpiece The Perfect Storm, Junger’s detailed exploration of maritime mechanics, the danger of commercial fishing, and rogue waves provides a tonal match for the technical and visceral descriptions of the Stormy C navigating the Gulf of Alaska.

Ha! Max loves the movie, The Perfect Storm! Yes, I think it’s a good match, because it really got into the grit of trying to make a living from the sea. I think it’s a good match.

• C.J. Box: Although primarily set in Wyoming, Box’s Joe Pickett series often centers on the clash between independent outdoorsmen and government regulations (like Fish and Game), as well as the defense of a traditional way of life against encroaching outside pressures.

I keep getting C.J. Box’s books pushed in front of me (Max and I both read Louis L’Amour) because of my reading history. But from what I’ve seen, these stories are more crime (murder? gore?) than I read. I don’t think it’s a good match.

• Stan Jones: An Alaskan author whose Nathan Active mysteries are set in the rugged North. His work captures the geographic isolation and the unique communities found in Alaska.

I loved Stan Jones’s books. Like Dana Stabenow, he’s lived in Alaska for a long time and he writes very well. I have no patience for writers who spend a week at a hotel in Homer and think they know Alaska. Pffhhht. Stan Jones is a great match, in my opinion.

I’m surprised that Clive Cussler didn’t hit as a match. Max and I have read every book he wrote. We have our favorites (I love the Sam and Remi Fargo series; Max likes The Oregon Files best). I really enjoy his mix of personal life with outrageous adventures that take me all over the globe. And, of course, they’re almost all on water somewhere on earth. Big plus there.

Something I deeply admire about Clive is that he gave title credit to other authors. That’s a big deal in a world where big name authors deny having ghostwriters. It ticks me off to find vastly different writing styles under one author name. I study writing too much to be taken in by that bullshit. Clive leant his name and his characters to other writers, who created something Clive’s fans wanted: MORE! I respect that so much and I wish other big-name bestselling authors had the integrity to do the same.

I love them! I remember reading Tisha when I was in high school, thinking I want to go there! When my aunt Carol moved to Alaska, I was nearly speechless. We’d been living together in my grandparents’ home (I was 13 or so) and because there is only 15 years difference between us, she was my hero, and she (I’m pretty sure) loved having a fan club. She got a job working at the Book Cache, and I was pretty sure I’d do anything to get there.

Heh. That was a long time ago.

Then for years I didn’t want to read anything set in Alaska, because I knew I’d be writing fiction and using the state as my setting. All the years I spent traveling Alaska were going to go into those books. So, out of fear of inadvertent plagiarism, I avoided reading books set in Alaska.

But with several novels published now, and a firm establishment of my own writing style, I decided to pick up a Dana Stabenow book off the paperback trader rack in the library: So Sure of Death. Oh, what I’ve been missing! I was lucky enough to have been guided to a novel set in the Nushagak area–a place I am desperately longing to visit. Her writing is so descriptive and that’s something I love. And having visited small villages along the Kuskokwim, I feel like I stepped right into the mud in front of the post office-grocery store-only fuel station around. I even wrote Dana a fan letter, gushing about how much I liked it. Now I need to track down more books in her Liam Campbell series.

Now I’m even more inspired. I want to revisit villages along the Kuskokwim River. In The Seiner Series novels Secret Bay and Midnight Bay, there’s quite a tie-in with Interior Alaska salmon issues. I helped write and edit those two books, and I love them for the broader scope of Alaskan salmon issues. And while they aren’t whodunit mysteries, I hope we brought a similar element of suspense through the books.

I’ve been reading about 3-4 books a week for months, and I don’t keep a log. I seem to be jumping from author to author, and if I like the writing, I read several of their books: like Jojo Moyes. Because I loved the movie Me Before You, I read the series, then several of her other books. Where’d You Go, Bernadette? was a fun change that I recommended to my friends, but Lessons in Chemistry had me laughing so hard and loving the author’s writing, that I *bought* the book for a friend.

On the other hand, there have been quite a few that I’ve read the sample in (thank you Amazon and my Public Library!) and immediately closed the book. If the book began with the word ‘I’, I closed it. I dislike first person, but amazingly I read several, because the author wrote it well. I still prefer third omniscient and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

I read a couple by Jonathan Evison: This is Your Life, Harriet Chance!, and West of Here, both of which I enjoyed. I think I’d been hoping for more about the Pacific Northwest dam coming down when I picked up West of Here, but the saga was a fascinating history more about how the dam went up. Maybe he’ll write a sequel coving the damage done (this book barely touched on it) and the impact of the wild fish returning (the book only hinted at it).

That’s what Max Travis was aiming for by writing The Seiner Series. But maybe the seiner series needs a historical novel about why the weir went up in the first place, to help people understand just how much damage it’s done. I’ve been doing a lot of research on that topic because (yet again) I just spent months writing proposals and comments for the Alaska Board of Fish–all about hatchery destruction of Alaska’s wild salmon runs.

First of all, I love a ‘starting over’ story. Give me a novel that drops the main character somewhere new, amongst people she’s not quite sure about, then throw some challenges at her, and I’m hooked.

I loved that about Fredrik Backman’s Brit-Marie was Here, Anxious People, and My Friends. What an outstanding writer he is! His characters are faced with what might sound like weird circumstances, but he makes it work so well. I had a hard time putting his books down at night and couldn’t wait to pick them up again the next day.

In the kayak rental shop, where Sheila’s challenged with either losing her long-awaited trip or joining a bunch of noobs, I’m sure the shit’s gonna hit the fan. And of course she takes her chances. But the twist on the beach is an odd one that sends her in a whole new direction.

So do her travels once she’s home. And this is the part I like best: coming ‘home’ to find that maybe it’s not really the sanctuary you might have thought it was.

She sets off on yet another journey and this one spans a good portion of Southcentral Alaska’s road system. And the people she meets along the way are the kind you’d meet at your own local bakery or library. Interesting, unique, and yet they, too, are looking for something that’s missing.

If this sounds like your kind of book, read more here, where there’s a link to the entire first chapter.

I’m ready to beg. My reading history is sprinkled lightly with first-person stories (Mary Stewart was a favorite) and ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ (which I read after seeing the movie) but lately I have to look at ten books before I can find one written in third person. And I prefer omniscient.

I love the opportunity to read a short sample because many storylines (blurbs) catch my attention. But I always read the first page now before adding the book to my lists or diving in: just enough to confirm that the writing isn’t first person, because I can’t read it, and in my opinion, many writers don’t write it well. Or, not well enough for me to read.

Unfortunately, I “hear” screaming narcissism in first person and I can’t take it. And poorly written first person does not succeed in bringing me into the world enough before making me, the reader, the active character. I am not the character and I don’t want to BE the character, nor do I want to read her diary. I want to read about the character’s journey and I want an omniscient view of the scenario, not a limited first-person view. Not even if the writer swaps POV, because now I’m TWO people? I don’t think so. Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar cured me of ever wanting that.

I found a great trilogy recently that I’ve read at least twice and I’m pretty sure I’ll read it again: The Boonsboro Trilogy. The writer tingles all my delights: rough and realistic characters (and dialog) doing real world contemporary jobs, who have relatable problems and (slightly more intimate detail than I like) relationship issues. Oh, give me more!