The God of Animals
by Aryn Kyle

Reviewed by EVB Bookseller Patresa Hartman

The God of Animals is the very impressive debut novel from Aryn Kyle. Although I don’t like the term “coming-of-age” (it sounds too trite for such a hefty transition), the story could be described as such: It is told from the perspective of twelve-year-old Alice Winston who is struggling to make sense of a brutal adult world.
 
Alice’s older sister has run away with a bull rider, and her severely depressed mother has not left the bedroom in years. Consequently, Alice has been left alone to help her father run their struggling horse ranch. To regain some lost financial ground, they open their stables to boarders – the horses of a group of wealthy women (“The Catfish”). In the meantime, Alice’s father, Joe, invests much time and energy in training a young girl from a rich family, Sheila, to be a champion equestrian.
 
Via her interactions with Sheila and The Catfish and through the horses they break, train and board, Alice begins to recognize – painfully – a cruel thread in humanity: How we divide and isolate, prejudge and violate one another as well as those entrusted to our care.
 
This is such a beautifully written and heart wrenching book. There are scenes – particularly those describing various horse breaking methods – that are difficult to stomach; but they are not gratuitous. It is clear that every aspect of this novel was considered carefully, and every detail works fluidly to represent a harsh, yet resilient landscape of characters.
 
What I appreciated most was the fullness of Kyle’s characters – so real and relatable in that no individual appeared flatly good or purely cruel. There were reasons and histories and natural elements that underscored each behavior. And connecting all points was the question: If it is simply part of our nature, is it okay?
 
I also think it worked well to tell the story in Alice’s voice. Her naiveté and practical retellings were instrumental in clarifying an innately flawed humanity.
 
This is one of those books that lingers long after it’s finished. I closed it three days ago and am still thinking about it. Very powerful.  

The Girl With No Shadow
by Joanne Harris

Reviewed by EVB Bookseller Patresa Hartman

The sequel to Chocolat, Joanne Harris resumes the story of Vianne and Anouk Rocher four years beyond the original plot's end. Roux is absent, four-year-old Rosette is introduced, and Vianne and Anouk have reincarnated as Yanne and Annie Charbonneau, magic-less, lackluster mother-daughter shopkeepers in a failing Parisian chocolatier.

The wind chimes above the shop blow and a chance encounter finds Zozie de l'Alba (the present shape of this trickster's shifting identities) needling into the chocolatier. Zozie is a master of identity theft. Not your average credit card thief, she uses her own brand of magic to devour the lives of her witless victims and steal their souls.

Harris braids the plot with three alternating first-person points of view: Vianne's, Anouks, and Zozie's. It is fluid and natural, never seeming clumsy or jolting. The reader comes to understand why Vianne buries her magic and hides herself in the forgettable character of Yanne and how difficult it becomes to remain buried when Roux returns. Likewise, the heartbreak is palpable as she watches the relationship with her daughter turn fragile and distant. In turn, one empathizes with Anouk who misses the bold strength of her mother, despises Yanne's boring and uptight new fiancé, Thierry, and endures the challenge of appearing normal in school. Zozie's narration reveals the distinct vulnerabilities of her targets that make them so easily endeared to her.

The pace of the story is excellent: densely sensuous in its language while simultaneously light and quick to keep the pages turning. It is richly layered as a supernatural love story, commentary on family and the disintegration of relationships between mothers and daughters, and the constant question of identity: What happens when you deny who you are for the sake of conformity, for safety, or for power?

I loved it.

The Dumbest Generation
by Mark Bauerlein

Reviewed by EVB Customer Matt McQuillen

In the book The Dumbest Generation by Mark Bauerlein he asserts a potential situation he sees occurring in the future of America.  In a few decades time the current youth of America will be in the driver seat for leadership of this country.  What concerns Mark is the intelligence of that generation and how it could bring down the current prosperity America is experiencing.  While some scholars argue the youth are becoming more advanced in regards to new technologies the author feels the traditional aspects of education are being lost on our youth and if this does not change their could be a large leadership gap in this country.  The author goes into various studies to show how test scores in vital critical thinking areas are declining, how book readership by youth is declining, and how the youth's obsession with pop culture is increasing.

The book talks about how the youth are more concerned with chatting with their friends at all times of the day via the many of the new technologies that have been innovated in the past years, such as instant messaging, cell phones, texting and various internet websites like Myspace and Facebook.  The author offers a unique analogy of how the current youth generation is like Rip Van Winkle where they are asleep during a period when they could be learning the foundational principles of how this country reached the prosperity it is enjoying the fruits of, and when they walk up they will be responsible for leading a country they do not completely understand.  According to the author, "if things do not change they will be remembered as the fortunate ones who were unworthy of the privileges they inherited."

If you enjoy debate on the future of this country and whether America is letting its youth slip away you will enjoy reading this book.  Although the author writes in a more academic fashion, he offers vivid arguments for where we are going wrong with our youth.  I will admit, the book is not a constant page turner, but it does offer great issues to think about and is an important read for those responsible for educating and leading young Americans to positions of future leadership in this country.               

Charlatan: America's Most Dangerous Huckster, The Man Who Pursued Him, And The Age of FlimFlam
by Pop Brock

Reviewed by EVB Bookseller Ralph Childers

In the 1920s and ‘30s many holding themselves out to be medical doctors had less education than the people who mop the hospital floors today.  It was a time when the power of the American Medical Association (AMA) was starting to grow and the battles with the quacks and charlatans was fierce.

None was fiercer than that between John R. Brinkley, M.D. (?) and Morris Fishbein, M.D., editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association.  Brinkley built a thriving medical practice in Milford, Kansas, and in many other cities and towns across the country, using his theory that he could cure men’s sexual problems by transplanting goat testicles.  Later he would claim to cure other conditions in both men and women.

Sometime around 1922 Fishbein became aware of Brinkley’s notoriety.  Fishbein considered Brinkley the world’s greatest charlatan and began a crusade to put him out of business.  A crusade that lasted until March of 1939.

In this same era the radio was starting to come into its own.  Brinkley knew a good thing when he saw one and in 1923 he broke ground for his own station in Milford.  Brinkley created a program called “Medical Question Box” where he would diagnose and prescribe over the air.  In 1930 his station was considered the most popular station in the United States.  At that time radio stations were limited to five thousand watts of power.  In June, 1930, under pressure from the AMA, the Federal Radio Commission canceled Brinkley’s license to broadcast.  Not to be bested, Brinkley built a fifty thousand watt “border blaster” station on the Mexican side of the border with Texas
This is a great story of the struggle between Fishbein and Brinkley.  It reads like a novel, but it is all true.               

Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls: Moving Day
by Meg Cabot

Reviewed by EVB Customer Meagan Klus

Allie Finkle is not your typical nine-year-old; she is a one of a kind character that young girls will love. She collects rocks and likes to follow rules. She comes up with many rules that will make you laugh. She is perfectly fine until her parents tell her that they will be moving. She doesn’t want to move; she wants to keep her best friend and doesn’t want to change schools. She tries everything a nine-year-old girl can try to stop her family from moving. Meg Cabot has portrayed her character, Allie Finkle, perfectly throughout the story. This is a must read for young girls.

The Post-American World
by Fareed Zakaria

Reviewed by EVB Customer Matt McQuillen

During the current presidential campaign all of the candidates are talking about how to make this country better and how we need to restore our reputation throughout the world.  For anybody who has listened to these candidate speeches (and it is hard not to listen to them) I would recommend the book The Post-American World to you as a way to get a well-rounded perspective on the issues.  The author does not talk about the future as the downfall of America, rather his thesis is the future will not be about America's decline but the "rise of the rest".  He argues that countries with high-growth economies, such as India and China, will narrow the gap between themselves and America.  The author asserts America will not be surpassed, but the rise of the other powers in the world will reduce the dominance of America in the world.

The author compares American dominance to superpowers of the past, especially the former British Empire, although he points out that America has been the best superpower the world has ever seen.  He describes how all is not lost for America.  He argues there are many opportunities for America to regain its standing, and in some cases the opportunities are obvious and require easy decisions.  According to the author, Washington D.C. has been so bogged down in political bickering it has failed to adapt to globalization and allow America to strengthen its lead in the world economy.

Finally, I would recommend this book to a reader who enjoys hearing a good argument about what the world has become and what the United States needs to do to adjust to a post-American world.  The author does a great job of basing his opinions on studies, theories and research, instead of the endless opinion-strong-research-weak babble we hear everyday on talk radio and TV news channels.  After reading this book, you will understand an international perspective of what is happening to America.

Duma Key
by Stephen King

Reviewed by EVB Bookseller Ralph Childers

The essence of good storytelling is believability.  In early Stephen King one was asked early on in each work to suspend disbelief, think possessed dog (Cujo) and murderous cars (Christine).  Many of us were happy to rid ourselves of that disbelief for those happy hours of reading.  With Duma Key things have changed.  Late in the book you will still have to suspend your disbelief, but by the time that happens you will be ready, even eager, to do so.

Edgar  Freemantle was a very successful building contractor in Minnesota in his early 50s.  A job site accident leaves him with a head injury and only one arm.  The head injury leads to violence towards his wife, which leads to divorce.  With nothing to keep him up North Freemantle rents a house on Duma Key in Florida and takes up oil painting in which he had an interest as a young person.

We come to question whether his success as an artist, his selection of Duma Key, or even the construction accident were really what they seemed.  With a handful of very well developed characters King spins a tight tale you won’t want to put down.  Even at 609 pages it is way too short. DEFINITELY, HIS BEST

Churchill's Triumph
by Michael Dobbs

Reviewed by EVB Customer Matt McQuillen

For those who enjoy reading about the diplomatic history of the world, especially during World War II, I would highly recommend this novel to you.  The author tells the story of the Allied forces conference at Yalta in February 1945.  At this time the Allied forces were close to crushing the Nazi regime in Germany.  Russia was nearing Berlin from the West and the British/Americans from the East.  The focus of this conference was for the three Allied leaders; Franklin Roosevelt of the US, Joseph Stalin of the USSR, and Winston Churchill of Britain, to discuss what would happen to Europe and the rest of the world after Germany was defeated.  The story is told from the perspective of Churchill and what he went through both physically and emotional during the conference in Yalta.

The author does a wonderful job of setting the scene for the Yalta discussions.  What you get to see from this book is how frail Roosevelt was at this time, because it would only be two months after this conference that he would pass away.  At the same time the author shows you how arrogant and cunning Joseph Stalin presented himself.  He was a man who knew what he wanted and knew he had the advantage at the table with the Red Army nearing Berlin.  Churchill was in a situation where the influence of Britain was wanning with the emergence of the US and Russia towards the end of the war.

Dobbs takes you on a journey of Churchill fighting for the interests of Britain.  Perhaps the most important topic discussed during the Yalta conference was what to do with Poland and Germany after the country was conquered by the Allies.  Churchill fights endlessly to stop the Iron Curtain of Russia from taking over all of Europe after the war.  In the end, Churchill uses his diplomatic experience and vision to make the most of the conference, even though the world would not see the fruits of his efforts until long after his death in 1965.  As for the style of the book, the author writes the story in a way where you do not realize you are reading a history.  Dobbs puts a artistic touch on a pivotal time in world history and does it in a way where I could not put the book down, which is delightful surprise for a historical text.

In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto
by Michael Pollan

Reviewed by EVB Customer Tracey L. Kelley

The wording on the yellow binding around the lettuce reads, "Eat Food. Not Too Much. Mostly Plants." Pollan lays out the trials of
our processed food culture in a scientific, slightly chilling, but nevertheless captivating way.

The ills that riddle American society, Pollan suggests, are caused by an over-reliance on "nutritionism"–the injection of
chemicals to enhance food stripped of natural factors, otherwise known as the Western Diet. Any packaged product with more than
five ingredients crosses the boundary from food into Frankenfood. We've also stepped away from individual cultural methods of
whole food cooking, which affects our health, as well as our identity.

Pollan advises you to know where your food comes from. Enjoy small portions of delicious tidbits you really love. And, remember
every living thing thrives on green plants, even the chickens and pigs that you'll later enjoy as eggs and pork chops. Eat real
food, cooked at home by real people, presented in a setting where it is savored slowly and with great joy.

Flight Plan: The Real Secret of Success
by Brian Tracy

Reviewed by EVB Customer Mark Boyd

I cannot say enough about this book. Flight Plan by Brian Tracy reads like a modern day "Think and Grow Rich" except with more insight. I find myself referring back to the reading and quoting to my cohorts at work. Tracy really nails how to be successful by laying out your flight plan.

This book is an easy read but don't let that fool you; it is a must for anyone that is a student of life-long learning. I am recommending it to my mastermind group. I would hate for my competition to get their hands on it.