I have just finished two books, both of which felt like they fell into the category of Remarkable. One of them was recommended to me by my sister-in-law, who said while she was reading it she didn’t want to do anything else, and that she thought I might like it even though there were Child Endangerment themes. The other was recommended to, well, not to me specifically, but I like to think of it as being to me specifically, by Nicole (HI NICOLE).

The book recommended by my sister-in-law despite upsetting themes was The Left and the Lucky, by Willy Vlautin.

(image from Amazon.com)

I have never once gotten the title right. The Lost and the Lucky. The Lost and the Lonely. The Lucky and the Lonely. The Left and the Lost. Just never once. RIGHT NOW, AFTER writing the real title twice, I tested myself—and I came up with The Left and the Lonely.

This is a book I never would have tried without the fervent recommendation. I am not really reading male authors unless there is a compelling reason; I am especially not reading middle-aged male authors writing a book about a man and his male associates and a boy and his brother. Even the dog is male. The three female characters are: unfaithful unreliable addict; negligent stripper; dead. It fails the Bechdel test as if on purpose. And there is the strong theme of disturbing abuse.

But I am telling you I loved it, LOVED IT. I needed to pee, but could not stop reading the book to do so, and it took probably an hour before I was uncomfortable enough to put the book down even briefly, and I nearly took it with me. It is written in a calm, matter-of-fact, short-sentence style, where rough issues are addressed calmly and matter-of-factly and in short manageable little sentences. There is a main character who Knows What To Do, and Does It, again and again, and I found that very, very soothing. I say get it from the library and try it for free. If you don’t like it, I think you’ll know pretty early on; I don’t think this is the kind of book where you have to give it 100 pages or whatever. The style will either grab you or it won’t.

The book recommended by Nicole (here’s the post with her review) was The Reservation, by Rebecca Kauffman.

(image from Amazon.com)

I love behind-the-scenes stuff, and this is behind-the-scenes at a restaurant. I had some awareness of the restaurant backstage because Elizabeth spent a summer as a dishwasher, but this was MORE. I did not know there was such a job as a “pantry chef.” I did not know the free bar drink for staff members at the end of the shift was a typical thing, rather than just something done at the restaurant where Elizabeth worked.

Each chapter is told from the perspective of a different person at the restaurant, as the owner tries to figure out who stole a bunch of steaks. Each person’s story reveals something about that person’s life/backstory, but also reveals details about OTHER staff members, and about various staff relationships. The mystery itself was uninteresting; some of the chapters dragged; but overall I enjoyed the whole thing, and also the resolution. There are many little OH!! moments, where something is revealed.