State of Wonder

Ann Patchett is becoming one of my favorite authors. This is the second book I've read by her and while Bel Canto is still my favorite, she does not disappoint with State of Wonder either. I enjoyed this book from the moment Dr. Singh starts her journey into the Amazon. One of her colleagues has died out there while helping Dr. Singh's former professor conduct research. Dr. Singh is assigned the task of finding out what exactly happens. This becomes a journey of self-discovery, self-reflection, and ethical dilemmas.

I would say more, but I want people to read it so I'm not going to give anything away. There are some significant plot twists and unanswered questions in the book as well that will keep you thinking for a little while after you finish reading. Ms Patchett has left me, once again, wanting more (in a good way). I will be taking a look at her other books now to see what else I can get my hands on.

Shibumi

This book had some promise and started out strong, but in the end I just wanted to poke my eyes out.  It starts out very interesting because the main character is this mysterious man who becomes an assassin. He's orphaned at a young age, lives on the mean streets of China, speaks about six languages, and then ends up living with a type of Sensei in Japan who teaches him about life and so on. That part was interesting and was the focus of the first half of the book. The American government is trying to figure out who may be helping a terrorist group and this lead them to the assassin.

Then the story just falls apart.  The next part of the book is about the assassin and his friend going spelunking. SPELUNKING! I'm dead serious. I am not a huge spy/assassin novel reader, but is this a normal part of this genre? I was bored out of my mind during this portion of the book and fell asleep many times. Finally I just decided to skim that part because it was like watching paint dry. Every crevice of the cave and every piece of equipment was described. I had zero interest in that. Then the story just goes on with this cat and mouse game, but I was no longer interested. The cave expedition ruined the book for me. I skimmed portions of it towards the end and then just gave up. If you try to tackle this book you can probably stop about halfway through and be satisfied with it.

Tibetan Peach Pie

I think if you've read any of Tom Robbins' work, you'll probably really love this book.  I have to admit, I haven't read any of his work and I still enjoyed it. Maybe not to the extent that a die-hard fan would, but it still had some funny moments and hidden life lessons that are applicable to everyone. Someone, whose thought process I really respect, recommended it to me so I gave it a go. The book is a mix of memoir and autobiography. He swears all the tales he tells are true and I believe it.  The bulk of his formative years as a writer were in the 1960s and 1970s and those decades are known for all kinds of craziness. If nothing else, the book provides you with a zany description of a not-so-ordinary life. Towards the end I was ready for it to be over, though.  Again, I think I felt this way because I have never read a lick of his work. Did the book make me want to read any of his work? Not particularly, but that could change. Overall, I think if you are not familiar with his work, you will either press on through the book because the tales are interesting or you will give it up after a few pages because you're not invested in knowing more about the author.  I will leave it up to you.