MADE FOR LOVE (Alissa Nutting) - May 29/21

 I'm pretty conflicted about this one. The first half of the book is almost intolerably quirky, and I skimmed over everything involving Jasper and the dolphin pretty hard. But the book eventually becomes impressively engrossing in its final stretch, particularly as Nutting explores the likeable protagonist's less-than-healthy mental state. **1/2 out of ****

BRAT (Andrew McCarthy) - May 19/21

 Such a breezy read. As expected, McCarthy is a very good writer who certainly knows how to keep things interesting, although I could've used a few more movie stories. (A couple of pages for Weekend at Bernie's and *nothing* for the sequel? That's harsh.) *** out of ****

THE GOLDFINCH (Donna Tartt) - May 17/21

 Wow, this took a while. (Just over a year and 61 returns/checkouts from the library.) Anyway, it's obviously extremely well written but boy oh boy does the narrative drag sometimes. There's a long stretch near the end where Theo is recovering and Tartt spends page after page dwelling on his dreams and thoughts. It's not great. But there are also some really profound portions that I actually found really moving, especially the final 50 pages or so. I'm glad I read this, ultimately, but I wish it had been shorter. *** out of ****