Whalefall by Daniel Kraus

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars 

Pages: 327 pages
Published: August 2023

Whalefall by Daniel Kraus was more like a whaleFAIL for me. The cover is beautiful. The premise is intriguing, but the story simply fell flat for me. To be honest, this is not something I would normally read, but the synopsis and aforementioned cover just grabbed me. (So much for judging a book by its cover!). 

The arresting plot is about a young man, Jay, who is attempting to grieve and cope with the death (by suicide) of his father, Mitt. Mitt and Jay have been estranged for sometime, and even on Mitt's deathbed, Jay can't seem to bring himself to visit and reconcile with his father. And quite honestly, I understand the hesitation. Mitt was described as a narrow-minded, chauvinistic man's man who could not process that his only son had different aspirations and was a bit more nuanced as an individual. Mitt lived his life without much emotion, and he seemed to be embarrassed when Jay showed any. But I digress. 

The story opens, and Mitt has died. Jay is grieving, and has decided to go out to the ocean where his father died by suicide to find and collect his remains. What he sets out to do at the beginning of the book is so dangerous that he must do it in secret. As luck (or commonsense) would have it, he dives in with this scuba gear, encounters trouble with a squid and ends up swallowed by and in the stomach of a whale. The story is told as he travels through the four stomachs of said whale, and it claims to be scientifically accurate. I am not a scientist or a diver, but there was definitely an overabundance of technical details in the story, so yeah I guess it probably is technically accurate. But does that really matter? I would argue, no. The scientific minutiae made it difficult for me to accurately picture what was happening. Coupled with the overwrought descriptions are seemingly random flashbacks in Jay's mind of interactions with mainly his father but also his mother and sisters. 

Any adult reader can discern the main character is grappling with his father's death and the overbearing whale is serving as some sort of paternal metaphor. I think the overall premise is thoughtful; however, the execution just didn't do it for me. It was erratic and disjointed, and I didn't really enjoy the journey. I was just ready to take one big breath of fresh air when it was over. 

Recommendation: I always say not every book is for every one, and maybe this one wasn't for me. I don't know that I'd be running to the bookstore or library to read another book by this author. But to each his own. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Pages: 264 pages
Published: September 2020

I have had a difficult time pulling together a review for Yaa Gyasi’s sophomore novel, Transcendent Kingdom I absolutely loved Homegoing. I read it twice, which is something I rarely do. (There are simply too many books to read.) Gyasi is a talented writer, a gifted storyteller. However, despite warnings by the publisher, critics and the author herself, I wanted Transcendent Kingdom to be like Homegoing. It was not. The story was told in a stream of consciousness format from Gifty, the main character’s viewpoint of she and her mom healing from a husband and father who deserted them and a son and brother who died of an opioid addiction. As a result of these traumatic events, Gifty has dedicated her education to studying addiction and trying to find a cure to help people overcome it. This is where we find her in the opening of the book - in the midst of her PhD research on the subject. In addition to healing from the loss of her brother, Gifty is also trying to come to terms with her father’s return to Ghana from the United States many years earlier. And she is trying to reconcile her dedication to science while being the daughter of a devout Christian mother.

Even though the page count is a little over 250, the book had so many layers. I found it to be very complex and reflective but also very sad. The book does have some elements of hope but overall it basically focuses on the psychological struggle of a young woman attempting to synthesize the very heavy life experiences she’s faced. 

Recommendation: This is not a book that ties up neatly in the end. It’s one that you have to consider the journey more so than focusing on the ending. While I loved Homegoing much more, Transcendent Kingdom is good in its own right. It is different, but the writing is solid and I would recommend picking it up when you’re in the mood for an in-depth read. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach

Rating: 2 of 5 stars
Length: 8:21:00
Published: April 2013
Read by: Emily Woo Zeller

If you follow my blog, you may know that I've been trying to listen to more audiobooks. I had hoped to visually read this book, but only the audiobook was available at the time I started*. While the topic of this book was the stomach, it literally gave me a headache. 

In my book club (check us out!), we read a different genre each month, and April's genre was popular science. I've decided that maybe this just isn't my genre. I don't think the book is poorly written or lacks depth, it's just not something that is of genuine interest to me.  

Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal by Mary Roach is a comical yet informative non-fiction, popular science book about all things having to do with the alimentary canal. I work in the arts, so I had to look this up. According to dictionary.com, alimentary is concerned with the function of nutrition; pertaining to food. A quick perusal of goodreads.com offered that Ms. Roach is one of the leading authorities in presenting this type of material in an easily digestible (pun intended) manner. So, I nominated it for book club and was pleased when it won by popular vote. (We don't deal with that messy electoral college.) 

Roach is clearly well-read and studied in this topic. She is also quite hilarious, so much so that she probably could choose a career in stand-up comedy if the science writing thing doesn't work out. (Although, I think the science writing bit is working out for her. She's pretty prolific.) In Gulp, the author offers various historical vignettes delivered with a humorous punch to illustrate the fascinating characteristics of the body. While some parts are funny, the book is very detailed and scholarly. It got a little cumbersome at times for me as I typically read to escape reality. However, there were nuggets of information I found interesting. For example, Roach tells us that her research has shown that we eat with our ears. We consume crunch/crispy foods to alleviate stress. These type of foods also signal freshness and healthiness to us. On the contrary, I found the chapter on flatulence to be the most dull chapter. I have never understood why boys (and some men) are so amused by this topic. 

Recommendation: Overall, the book was an informative read but not one that I would pick up again nor recommend to a friend with similar reading tastes. Albeit educational, I wouldn't recommend it to my elementary school-aged niece either as there is some pretty colorful language. I think readers who appreciate math and science might find this book intriguing. 

Until next time ... Read on!

*As an aside, my awesome Librarian was able to secure a license for the eBook when I was about halfway through, and I read the second half of the book while listening.

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