Book Review Roundup: Milan Kundera, Tana French, Adventures On K2

"Encounter" by Milan Kundera

Milan Kundera asks this question in writing about the painter Francis Bacon, one of many cultural figures he addresses in his commanding, compelling new collection of essays, 'Encounter.' His essays express enduring aesthetic loyalties and provide unexpected aesthetic sparks that remind readers of a fuller range of authentic thought and feeling. We should be grateful for the encounter.

"The Last Man on the Mountain: The Death of an American Adventurer
on K2" by Jennifer Jordan

"The Last Man on the Mountain" focuses on an expedition that tried to be the first to climb K2 in 1939. It's a fascinating tale, taking the reader from Manhattan high society to the slopes of what the climbing community calls the 'Savage Summit.' Readers who are into high-altitude adventure stories won't be disappointed. These six men sought to put footprints on the second-highest mountain in the world.

"What the Great Ate" by Matthew Jacob and Mark Jacob

This amusing grab-bag of food-related anecdotes, by brothers Matthew
and Mark Jacob, looks at famous people and great events through a
culinary lens. In 2000, Colin Powell noted that Mikhail Gorbachev had
appeared in a television commercial: 'The former head of the evil
empire is selling Pizza Hut. Is capitalism great or is capitalism
great?' In another dietary role reversal we learn that kitchen
perfectionist Martha Stewart's delicate palate must have developed
later in life since, as a girl, she 'often stayed up to the wee hours
of the morning with her father, eating onion sandwiches.'

"Everything" by Kevin Canty

Four characters, three misguided romances, all forged from the madness of love, all made believable in Canty's skilled hands. In alternating sections, 'Everything' examines these relationships as they bud, blossom and then fail to progress as the characters might have hoped. There is a lot of booze and heartbreak in the book, yet it is full of optimism and humanity.

"Elegies for the Brokenhearted" by Christie Hodgen

Christie Hodgen's second novel offers a twist on the contemporary coming-of-age story: Her smart, mordant heroine, Mary Murphy, narrates in the second person rather than the first, piecing together the story of her life through a series of odes to five characters who shaped it, sometimes in the most accidental ways. If the philosophical and psychological notions behind the approach of 'Elegies for the Brokenhearted' seem obvious or clichéd -- that an individual's identity is formed by the people who surround her -- its execution proves deeply, satisfyingly original.

"Faithful Place" by Tana French

Along with her riveting depiction of place, French has a gift for dialogue so genuine that you can hear her characters breathe. This goes beyond dialect -- although lovers of 'local Dublin' will get their fix here -- to a pure pleasure in wordplay and banter. Take this book slowly and savor the details. Like a slow pour of Guinness, it's worth the wait.

"I Curse the River of Time" by Per Petterson

Set in 1989, three monumental events twine around one another in Arvid Jansen's penumbral soul. His 15-year marriage is dissolving, his mother is dying of cancer and the Berlin Wall is tumbling down. Petterson, humbly and with extra ordinary skill, makes standing on the edge of that soundless personal abyss seem heroic.

"The Cookbook Collector" by Allegra Goodman

Book reviews and book jackets can be pretty liberal about comparing authors to Jane Austen. When that happens, they often only succeed at driving committed Jane-ites away, but here's a book that actually lives up to that comparison. Allegra Goodman's The Cookbook Collector has much of what Jane Austen is most loved for: admirable and lovable heroines, ridiculous and foolish characters, and love stories that must overcome the impediments both society and fortune place in their path. And there's also food.