THE BREAST (Philip Roth) - July 23/08

Well written but eye-rollingly pretentious, Philip Roth's The Breast follows David Kapesh as he's mysteriously transformed into a giant breast. The absurdness of the premise proves to be the least of the book's problems, as the entire thing seems to consist solely of long, drawn-out monologues in which Kapesh whines about his situation, his marriage, his work, etc, etc. Who cares? And the dude turns into a breast, for crying out loud. How pretentious do you have to be to think that's a workable idea? *1/2 out of ****

BOOKS OF BLOOD: VOLUMES ONE TO THREE (Clive Barker) - July 19/08

This extremely spotty collection of stories - that last one, with the statue double, was pretty much interminable - does contain its bright spots, with Midnight Meat Train and Rawhead Rex clearly the highlights. Barker's obsession with religion and the church does grow tiresome, though there's no denying that he's an extremely talented writer. *** out of ****

THE OTHER (David Guterson) - July 9/08

David Guterson bogs the proceedings down with mind-numbing minutia from start to finish, emphasizing John William's mountain-climbing exploits, the history of minor characters, etc. There are a few interesting segments but this is mostly a pretentious and overlong mess. ** out of ****

COMFORT (Ann Hood) - July 4/08

Brisk and heartbreaking, Comfort is a compilation of stories revolving around Ann Hood's deceased daughter - who died suddenly of a strep infection. It's short and to the point, and I was surprised to note that I did find myself getting choked up. It'd make a fantastic movie, as the story does end on a hopeful note as Ann's family adopts a Chinese baby. *** out of ****

TIMELINE (Michael Crichton) - July 2/08

Entertaining though overly descriptive, Timeline would surely benefit from a reader with a more pronounced interest in historical matters. Crichton devotes pages and pages to descriptions of historical buildings, classes, and relationships... while the scientific stuff is just as prevalent and impossible to follow. Still, it's generally quite entertaining and there are a number of genuinely thrilling sequences - though the decision to send the corporation's president to the Black Plague era seems rushed and inexplicable. *** out of ****