Recent Reads

42. The Walking Dead, Vol. 03: Safety Behind Bars
Volume 3 contains issues 13-18.

Our weary, dirty and hungry band of survivors stumble upon a prison. Sure it is filled with zombies, but they move slowly and are easily dispatched. And there might be food inside. Could our motley crew have found a new home? What they certainly find is something more dangerous than zombies: each other. Rating: 3 stars.

43. The End
Blurb: The End is a collection of short strips about loss, paralysis, waiting, and transformation.

This is probably not the graphic memoir I'd recommend picking up in the middle of the night when you cannot fall back asleep. But then again, it might be the perfect one to read while the house is dark, and the only illumination in the room is from your book light falling on the page. The book is assembled from the author's sketchbook in the year following the death of his partner, and is a lovely meditation on love, and loss, and grief, and life. Rating: 4 stars.

44. The Winter People
Here is a blurb: a simmering literary thriller about ghostly secrets, dark choices, and the unbreakable bond between mothers and daughters . . . sometimes too unbreakable.

When will I ever learn to not fall for the hype?

West Hall, Vermont is a town with issues. A place where people mysteriously disappear, and ghosts seem to walk among the living. I really liked the premise of the book, and quite liked that the story unfolds in two time periods: the 1900s and present day. However, in my opinion, the author dilutes the strength of that technique with too many narrators who do not add to the story.

There is too much telling in this book, and not enough showing. At no point in the story did I feel immersed in it, and while I liked that the main characters were all women, none of them were compelling. If like me you were thrilled with The Monkey's Paw, and had to sleep with the lights on while reading Pet Semetary, you too might find this book disappointing. Rating: 2 stars.

45. The Walking Dead, Vol.4: The Heart's Desire
Volume 4 contains issues 19-24.

The action starts right away with the arrival of a woman with two zombies on a chain. Relationships change, lots of action, but not much development to the story line. This is the least interesting volume in the series so far. Rating: 2 stars.