My TBR pile is out of control. Since I started blogging and researching books (not to mention requesting and receiving them (even unrequested) from publishers), I have amassed piles of books I want to read. Someday I will upload some photos of the various towers and shelves of books that are "next" on the to-read list.
In the meantime, rather than wait until I've read them to get the word out about these books, I thought I'd start featuring them on EDIWTB. Some of them have already been discussed, but I am going to start shedding light on the other ones that are currently waiting for exposure.
The first is All About Lulu by Jonathan Evison. From Amazon:
Evison's debut—of love and loss, growing up, throwing up and moving on—is a stunner. William Miller Jr. is a scrawny loner whose mother dies of cancer when he is seven years old, leaving him an awkward vegetarian with an ominously macho father and idiot twin brothers in mid-1970s Santa Monica. William's father, Big Bill, remarries a grief counselor named Willow, and Will spends the following decades in love with Louisa (Lulu, as she prefers to be called), his new stepsister. They are close throughout adolescence, but after a summer at cheerleading camp, Lulu returns home distant and hostile, leaving Will to pine for her in solitary desperation. Will finally appears to be on the path to normalcy in the early 1990s when he lucks into a radio talk-show hosting gig, but the stroke of good fortune is short-lived, as he discovers things about Lulu he'd rather not know. Evison provides readers a viciously funny and deeply felt portrayal of a blended family and one man's thwarted longing.
I learned about this book in a circular from the Elliott Bay Bookstore in Seattle, and requested a copy from the publisher, Soft Skull Press. Here are some blog reviews:
Minnesota Reads: "Basically this is a book about William Miller and the things that happened in his life. It might sound like a yawner, but it’s so not yawn-worthy at all. Will has an original and engaging voice. While Evison, the author, is coy about what happened to Lulu that summer choosing to dance around that information until a sort of climax, William, the character, is honest to the point of it being nearly painful. And it is awesome."
Largehearted Boy: "All About Lulu is an impressive debut novel, the moving story of a vegetarian, skinny boy in a family of bodybuilders who loses his mother and develops an obsession with his stepsister. Even the ancillary characters are well-written, and Evison shares surprises along the way in an incredibly satisfying read that seems way too short."
And here's an interview with Jonathan Evison about All About Lulu.
I will report back when I eventually read this book. It sounds excellent.
Gayle,
I know what you mean about an out of control TBR pile - just looking at mine is beginning to stress me out!
FYI - I tagged you for the Bookshelf Meme :)
http://lookatmybooks.blogspot.com/2009/01/bookshelf-meme.html
Posted by: Alicia | January 26, 2009 at 10:31 AM
Read this earlier this month...very quick, enjoyable read...not perfect...3 1/2 - 4 stars.
Posted by: Kari | January 26, 2009 at 11:41 AM