Book Log 2020 #29: Redwall by Brian Jacques

This is the first in a series of books about the animals of Mossflower Wood, and specifically in this case the mice of Redwall Abbey. One of their novices, Matthias, dreams of adventure and matching the exploits of the legendary Martin the Warrior. And as luck would have it, he gets a chance to live out his dreams when a pack of rats, led by the one-eyed Cluny the Scourge, arrive to attack the abbey.

There is a distinct Lord of the Rings meets Watership Down meets The Wind in the Willows vibe, but the book doesn't suffer by any comparisons. It's an enjoyable tale set in a fully developed world. I was drawn in almost immediately, and fantasy is not a genre I tend towards. The series is aimed at young adults, but is compelling enough to keep adults interested.

One decision you should make before starting this is whether or not you want to read the series in publication order or timeline order. Redwall is actually the ninth(!) book in timeline order. As someone who likes to read series from start to finish, I'm having a hard time deciding how to attack the rest of the books (as evidenced by not having read another book in the series as of the time of this writing). 

 Book Log 2020 #28: Pietr the Latvian by Georges Simenon

This is the first novel featuring Inspector Maigret, a police detective in pre-WW2 Paris, in which he is tasked with bringing in the titular Latvian, a master criminal who is currently on a train due to arrive at the Gare du Nord. Maigret heads to the station with a squad of police in tow. Once there he thinks he sees his man... only to learn that there's been a murder on the train, and the victim also appears to be his man.  It later turns out that there are at least two other people connected to the two potential Pietrs who also fit the description. Maigret has his hands full trying to figure out which one of these men - if any - is the actual Pietr.

This should be the set up for an interesting case, but I found the book pretty dull. Maigret's method of detection is apparently to play a hunch and then futz around with his pipe while waiting to see if the hunch pays off.  Part of me thinks that can't be all there is to him - there are 75 Maigret novels, published in a number of languages and adapted for the big and small screens - but based on this outing I don't feel compelled to find out.

 Book Log 2020 #27: The Office: The Untold Story of the Greatest Sitcom of the 2000s: An Oral History by Andy Greene

(I usually skip subtitles, but felt compelled to include it here for the rare subsubtitle.)

I thought it might be too soon to have an oral history of the US version of The Office, but then I realized that two of the more popular television oral histories of recent years - Live From New York about Saturday Night Live and These Guys Have All the Fun about ESPN - were written while both subjects were ongoing.

So maybe it's the amount of time being covered? Both SNLand ESPN had been around for decades when their histories were written, while The Office ran for seven seasons.

Whatever the reason for my trepidation, I was able to shake it off and enjoy this book. There is something to be said about compiling an oral history while everyone you want to talk to is still around to be talked to. I wouldn't say there were any real suprises in the book, but there's plenty of added detail for fans.

 Book Log 2020 #26: The Body by Bill Bryson

Similar to his approach in At Home, Bryson takes a tour around the human body, talking about various parts and systems and how they work, their histories, how things can go wrong, and so forth. And I had a similar reaction to this book as I did to that one: it's fine, has a lot of interesting bits, but isn't as funny as his earlier works. 

It could be that this style of non-fiction is less ripe for humor than books about his travels or his childhood. But I did enjoy One Summer: America, 1927, and found it funnier that either At Home or this book. 

One explanation for this, I think, is that Bryson was just losing interest in writing. He announced in 2020 that he was retiring from writing books, saying that he was enjoying reading for pleasure and not doing much else. How much of this came from being stuck at home due to the pandemic and how much came from his experiences writing these last couple of books I can't say, but I can see having time at home to reflect and do things for oneself might lead to a retirement.

I can't say I'd really recommend this book, but where it could be his last one maybe it's worth checking out.

 Book Log 2020 #25: 32 Yolks by Eric Ripert

Another chef memoir, this time by Eric Ripert, a multiple Michelin star-winning chef who may be best known to Americans for his appearances with Anthony Bourdain on shows like No Reservations. He's a pretty affable guy on screen, and gives off the same vibe on the page.

Though it would have been easy for him to cultivate some sort of edge or dark side based on his childhood. Like Kwame Onwuachi, Ripert found success through adversity as a child, though the issue here was a divorce, a less than supportive stepfather, and (spoiler alert) the unexpected death of his father.

Ripert found comfort in food, both in the home and in a local restaurant, where the chef would let him hang out and introduce him to new foods and what it's like to be a professional chef. Ripert worked through the drudgery of culinary school and survived the pressures and abuse of being a new line cook in Paris to become the celebrity chef he is today.

I liked the book, and found Ripert's story interesting, especially the parts that gave greater insight as to the culinary world in Europe (and France in particular). I do think it suffered a little bit from reading it so close to Kwame's book, though it could also be that being familiar with Ripert I was less invested in his personal struggles.

That being said I did enjoy the book, and think it would be a good read for anyone interested in chefs or the culinary world.

 Book Log 2020 #24: A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

The new ambassador from a small, independent mining station to the Teixcalaanli empire has a lot on her plate. She has to figure out how the previous ambassador died (no one will say it, but it seems like he was murdered), avoid being killed herself, navigate a looming succession crisis (the current emperor is quite old, while his likely successor is a child), and prevent the empire from taking over her station. She has to do all of this while protecting a state secret and trying to get used to living in a technologically advanced society where language and status are prized.

That all of this can be done in a book that's so entertaining is quite a feat. It also explains why this won the best novel Hugo in 2020. Martine's academic work focuses on the Byzantine Empire, which is put to good use here. If you are at all interested in science fiction you should read this book.

 Book Log 2020 #23: Notes from a Young Black Chef by Kwame Onwuachi

Like a lot of people, I first became familiar with Kwame through his appearance on Top Chef, where he finished sixth. He was probably my favorite chef from that season, and looked forward to reading about how he developed his interest in cooking, both generally and for the food from Nigeria.

Turns out both stem from a difficult childhood, which saw him sent to live in Nigeria for two years to "learn respect." That maybe didn't take as well as hoped - Kwame would continue to get into trouble - but it did set his culinary roots. Moving to Louisiana after getting expelled from college reconnected him with his interest in cooking as a career, which led to enrolling at the Culinary Institute of America, and everything that followed.

I do like that Kwame doesn't try to make excuses, or at least not transparent ones, about the choices he made. I also don't know if he would make different ones if given a second chance. As tough as it was to struggle and grind, it's quite possible he'd not be as successful as a chef if he'd taken an easier path. I did find this to be one of the more interesting chef memoirs I've read.

 Book Log 2020 #21: The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

In the last days of the Vietnam War, our narrator gets on a flight to the US with one of his friends and a South Vietnamese general. The group settle in southern California, where the general eventually opens a liquor store while continuing to plot a return to Vietnam to overthrow the communist government.

Little does he know, though, that the narrator is actually a mole for the communists. He continues to keep his handler apprised of the goings on with the general and their plans to foment rebellion, while working to maintain his cover.

I found this book fascinating. I know very little about how high-ranking Vietnamese refugees eventually settled in the US, and found the wishful thinking of returning in triumph (fueled by despair) an echo of the Cuban refugees who participated in the Bay of Pigs. I also found the narrator's constant balance of his roles engaging, as he not only had to deal with his professional cover, but by also being a mixed race person in the US (which sets him apart not only from white America but his fully Vietnamese friends). He's not an unreliable narrator, but you can see how his decision-making gets compromised by his dual life.

Nguyen won the Pulitzer Prize in 2016 for this novel, his first. Very much recommended.

 Book Log 2020 #20: Agent Running in the Field by John Le Carre

A veteran intelligence agent who has been more or less put out to pasture (a spiritual cousin of Slow Horses' Jackson Lamb) finds himself playing weekly badminton games with a younger opponent, whose post-match topic of conversation often lands upon Brexit, Trump, and his loathing of both. Our veteran agent mostly agrees with him, but mostly provides a sympathetic ear.

But then it turns out that the opponent may also be involved in giving secrets to the Russians, and the veteran agent suddenly finds himself both working to discover more about this betrayal while also proving to the higher ups that he's not involved. 

This was billed as le Carre's Brexit novel, and it's clear that le Carre was no fan. But he also used Brexit (and his distaste for politicians like Trump and Boris Johnson) to great effect. That in itself is no small feat, given that le Carre is 88 years old and could very easily have stuck to churning out novels that don't reflect, never mind address, current events.

It's not a perfect novel - there's some criticism over secondary characters and the ending - but it's still very much worth reading.

 Book Log 2020 #19: The Beat Goes On by Ian Rankin

This is a "complete" collection of short stories featuring Edinburgh DI John Rebus, with 30 tales spanning his early days with the police to his retirement. There appear to be some stories missing, at least if the list of short stories I've seen is correct, but don't let an interest in completeness deter you from reading these. Some are related to novels, most are stand-alone, and all contribute to a fuller picture of Rebus, his life, and his career.