![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
terrikoRather than brain dump at the end of the month, I'm going to try to get back into the habit of more frequent reviews. Turns out April's a busy month for books, since I've been a bit under the weather and reading is always a great distraction. So today you're just getting the two novels I read, because they were both good and worthy of a post where they're not buried in graphic novels.
Goodbye, Dolly
I have a weakness for books with goofy titles, and one of the genres that takes pride in goofy titles is the themed murder mystery genre. This particular one's theme is doll collecting and doll repair, which isn't my speciality, but thankfully subject knowledge is rarely required to enjoy a themed mystery. Actually, doll repair and collecting is somewhat interesting anyhow, and I'm not just saying that 'cause my grandmother has a nice doll collection -- I think determining how old a doll is often involves a fair bit of sleuthing, and my sister and I spend enough time thinking about home repairs that learning to patch things invisibly is cool whether it's a doll or her front closet. Anyhow, this book was exactly what I wanted: a mystery with a lot of quirky characters and enough twists to make it fun. Gossip-prone doll club? Cute policeman with a doll phobia? "Psychic" aunt who purse-trains teacup sized dogs? Adorable teensy dogs? Crazy exes? Obnoxious tabloid writer? Crazy old doll-loving rich lady? It's got 'em all. Recommended if you like mysteries that are more fun than scary.
Good Enough - Paula Yoo
A cute Asian-American coming of age story, where the girl who thought she should aspire to be the PKD (Perfect Korean Daughter) learns that there's a lot more to life (and to the people around her) than scoring 2300 on your SATs. Loved the music jokes, the recipes, and lead character Patti's great sense of humour about her self and her life. Definitely a young adult novel I'd recommend, even if you've never been forced to be the perfect korean daughter.
Goodbye, Dolly
I have a weakness for books with goofy titles, and one of the genres that takes pride in goofy titles is the themed murder mystery genre. This particular one's theme is doll collecting and doll repair, which isn't my speciality, but thankfully subject knowledge is rarely required to enjoy a themed mystery. Actually, doll repair and collecting is somewhat interesting anyhow, and I'm not just saying that 'cause my grandmother has a nice doll collection -- I think determining how old a doll is often involves a fair bit of sleuthing, and my sister and I spend enough time thinking about home repairs that learning to patch things invisibly is cool whether it's a doll or her front closet. Anyhow, this book was exactly what I wanted: a mystery with a lot of quirky characters and enough twists to make it fun. Gossip-prone doll club? Cute policeman with a doll phobia? "Psychic" aunt who purse-trains teacup sized dogs? Adorable teensy dogs? Crazy exes? Obnoxious tabloid writer? Crazy old doll-loving rich lady? It's got 'em all. Recommended if you like mysteries that are more fun than scary.
Good Enough - Paula Yoo
A cute Asian-American coming of age story, where the girl who thought she should aspire to be the PKD (Perfect Korean Daughter) learns that there's a lot more to life (and to the people around her) than scoring 2300 on your SATs. Loved the music jokes, the recipes, and lead character Patti's great sense of humour about her self and her life. Definitely a young adult novel I'd recommend, even if you've never been forced to be the perfect korean daughter.