52 PICKUP (Elmore Leonard) - July 29/11

This fast-paced and often exciting crime thriller is, at times, just a little too sleazy for its own good, as Leonard spends too much time on the exploits on the three criminals. But it moves like a rocket and contains a stellar protagonist. I also liked the way the whole thing with the aggressive union boss tied into the ending, as it seemed as though he was going to take the fall for the explosion (since he had already blown up the main character's car). The abrupt ending is a little disappointing - it would have been nice to see how the couple handled the aftermath and if they even stayed together - but that's a minor complaint for what is otherwise an entertaining, breezy book. *** out of ****

FREAKONOMICS (Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner) - July 27/11

This interesting yet overlong book admittedly does contain a number of eye-opening facts and revelations (eg the whole abortion prevents crime thing), but it's often just too academic and bogged down in facts to be as compulsively readable as it should be. It's short, at least. **1/2 out of ****

JANE EYRE (Charlotte Brontë) - July 23/11

Yeah, I know, I said I wasn't going to finish it, but it just ate away at me, so I finally decided to bite the bullet and pick up from where I left off. The book really didn't get any better. Looking at it in retrospect, Jane Eyre is packed with surprisingly decent plot twists - Mr. Rochester goes blind, the crazy lady living in his house, Jane becomes a teacher, etc - but Brontë just goes nuts with the descriptions and flowery language. (I mean, she devotes page after to page to the simplest conversations.) The book feels about 75% longer than it has any right to be. But I did like the characters and the aforementioned plot twists, so I guess it's barely passable. *1/2 out of ****

SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN (Lisa See) - July 13/11

This passable book contains a few admittedly interesting stretches and certainly provides an eye-opening glimpse into a barbaric way of life (footbinding!), but there's not even remotely enough plot here to consistently sustain the reader's interest. It is, as a result, not surprising to note that big chunks of the novel are awfully tough to get through, and the book did, at times, feel more like work than entertainment. Still, See offers up compelling characters and a vivid picture of a specific time and place, so it's not all bad. **1/2 out of ****