web analytics

book review

Bliss Montage

“Another self was needed to move into the future.” Author: Ling Ma Running the gambit from abusive relationships to surreal pregnancies, from secret worlds hidden in professor’s closets to intimate relationships with yetis, Ling Ma’s Bliss Montage is a psychedelic dream of melancholy and trauma, wrapped in a dispassionate voice that has seen it all before, and expects no better. While there isn’t a theme, per say, one might argue that a line of longing punctures each story: a longing to understand, a longing to be understood, a longing for justice, a longing for belonging, a longing for escape, a longing [...]

2025-10-24T14:24:38-07:00October 24th, 2025|Tags: , , , , , , |

Nicholas Nickleby

“Such is hope, heaven's own gift to struggling mortals...” Author: Charles Dickens After the death of young Nicholas’ errant father, the Nickleby family is cast into poverty, at the mercy of Ralph Nickleby, their only remaining relative. Ralph is a scheming uncle who finds love in money, not family. True to Dicken’s approach, the story unfolds almost as a fictional biography, highlighting the injustice of society and the importance of character over station. At Ralph’s arrangement, Nicholas is sent to a cheap school for boys, where he will work to support his mother, a ridiculous woman who spends her life toadying [...]

2025-10-22T22:00:17-07:00October 22nd, 2025|Tags: , , , , |

My Year of Really Bad Dates

The Dangers and Heartaches of Dating Author: Rachel J. Lithgow Let’s be honest: movies and TV lie, because dating at any age is horrible. For Rachel, it’s insult added to injury. She is recently divorced and recovering from essentially being her depressive husband’s around-the-clock caretaker and his verbally abusive family’s favorite punching bag. She’s broken and finally seeking a relationship that gives instead of only taking. Even worse, the man who was her touchstone after the divorce, her on-again off-again ex-boyfriend Joe, is leaving her to move to another state with another woman, a blonde real-estate agent with a “live-laugh-love” vibe.  [...]

2025-10-21T14:49:42-07:00October 21st, 2025|Tags: , , , , , , , |
Go to Top