3 stars
A fisherman named Cenzo drags a young woman, who he believes is dead, out of the lagoons near Venice. He is surprised to discover a plucky Jewish woman on the run from the Third Reich and the man who betrayed her family. As Cenzo tries to help her escape, he works with an interesting cast of characters including a film star brother awash in betrayal. The best parts of this book deal with the family dynamics that surround Cenzo. Cenzo, himself, is a strong character who simply wants to be a quiet fisherman, even amidst all the craziness surround him. It did feel like the book was rushed and parts skimmed over so that I felt like I didn't always get what was happening. These are good characters that deserve more in depth stories so while I mostly enjoyed this book, I think that it could have used more substance. I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Public Library: and Other Stories by Ali Smith
3 stars
This collection of stories was written in response to the declining existence of public libraries in the U.K. I wanted to read this book as soon as I saw its description but after reading it, my reaction is a bit more tepid. There were a couple of stories that I really enjoyed about reading, writing and the difficult of connection in a tech world. There were also lovely vignettes included between each story with a different writer's experience growing up in the library. I actually could have read an entire book of just that. Most of the stories, however, were written more experimentally with stream of conscious narrative and lots of descriptors. I'm just not a fan of that kind of writing which is why I could not connect as much to the majority of these stories. I am glad that this book exists, though, as a tribute to the importance of libraries even if it just wasn't really for me. I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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