September Reads: Diary Keepers in WWII, a Delightfully Nuts Australian Epic & More
A Fraction of the Whole
by Steve Tolz
Read it if you’re interested in: Madcap insanity, charming misanthropes, Australian epics
To say Jason Dean has grown up with a unique father would be an understatement. Upon his passing, he looks back at the life the two of them shared, recollecting the jaw dropping events that made his father who he was, in this epic father son saga.
This romping, rollicking yarn is a fever dream of a book, quite honestly one of the most out there things I’ve ever read. It’s led by chief misanthrope Martin Dean, who may or may not have been responsible for the death of his entire family, including his vigilante, outlaw brother, due to an ill placed suggestion box in the town square. Rarely have I laughed out loud so often while reading, and each line is so carefully crafted you won’t want to miss a word (even more impressive because there are a lot of lines). Down to the last detail, the author has created a distinct world, albeit not an entirely pleasant one, that will live rent free in the recesses of my brain for the foreseeable future.
The Diary Keepers: World War II in the Netherlands, as Written by the People who Lived Through it
by Nina Siegal
Read it if you’re interested in: World War II, Jewish history, oral histories
A firsthand look at World War II and the extermination of Jews in the Netherlands, told through the diaries of a group of people who lived through it.
The author scoured thousands of personal journals to piece together this book, which focuses on a handful of Dutch people living through the Second World War, including a Jewish diamond cutter, a prominent Jewish journalist, a Nazi housewife and a Dutch police officer on the side of the Germans. It’s shot through with the author’s own personal family history, which sheds light on much of the historical background, as well as an inquiry into the way in which the past is chronicled. I know a decent amount about World War II, having read quite a few books about it, but this was chock full of perspectives and information that were completely new to me. It’s narrower focus on the Netherlands allows for a very personal history of the period, and the intimate diaries of these people is so transportive as to be disturbing.
The Guest
by Emma Cline
Read it if you’re interested in: Having immense amounts of anxiety, deeply unlikeable main characters, rich Long Islanders doing rich Long Islander things
A slim but jarring book following a desperate young woman named Alex who drifts, virtually invisibly, through the enclaves of eastern Long Island in an attempt to run from her past…and herself.
This much hyped novel has inspired some adamant opinions: You will either love or hate this book — and I am fairly certain I hated it. I’m admittedly impressed by the author’s ability to create actual, physical tension (not to mention anxiety in the reader), but this book almost felt like an experiment in only that, with little else to show for it. It leaves much to be desired from a plot perspective, and you’ll be hard pressed to find a character worth investing in.