Author Benjamin Wood seems to find his stories among the desperately brilliant and talented, who can’t seem to get a handle on their own intelligence. In The Bellwether Revivals, his characters get themselves into trouble because Cambridge somehow isn’t intellectually stimulating enough. Wood’s characters are continually grappling with the anxiety of influence, paralyzing themselves entirely.…
I am still reeling from this book. Surprising at every turn — and I’m not easily surprised. Nor am I easily impressed, particularly when it comes to books. The writing is fabulous – both in style and in storytelling. The first-person narrator, Harriet Baxter, is an older women now, in 1933. She has decided to…
This was another young adult (I’d place this in the 9-13 year old age range) title that made its way into my review pile. Something about its description, and yes, its cover, kept tempting me. It centers around a group of young teens who are assigned to do a historical art project. Two of the…