About Book Marks
Recent Reviews
Ash Davidson
Rave The New York Times Book Review It’s a vivid portrayal of the land and its people, a snapshot of a not-so-distant time, but it also digs into the gnarled history of the place. And it’s a glorious book—an assured novel that’s gorgeously told ... This is a lot of material to marshal, but Davidson skillfully assembles it in a narrative that seamlessly flows between tense scene and quiet moment; her short chapters work in a broad range of characters, from kindhearted old-timers to less-than-compassionate henchmen ... Davidson was born in Arcata, the small California city that’s near the novel’s setting, and she brings the area to life with a deep understanding of its particulars. She’s as observant as a hawk, picking up on details that distinguish this fogbound and muddy territory ... Davidson is also gifted at describing the intricacies of the logging industry, from the grueling labor itself to the hidden practices of shady businessmen. And she captures the beauty and majesty of the redwoods ... Some will no doubt read Damnation Spring as a commentary on the divisions that separate Americans today—on the fact that many place blind faith in what authority figures and corporations say is true, even if it hurts people’s interests; that many have an anti-intellectual distrust of mainstream media and established institutions, even in the face of science and reason. There are certainly parallels. But the book is getting at something more timeless and universal: It’s about human nature. It’s about our relationships to our loved ones and our communities, it’s about morality and greed, it’s about our understanding of and respect for the natural world ... Redwoods have been plundered by humans, damaged in fires and taken down in floods, but they’re also incredibly resilient. And as characters in Davidson’s graceful rendering remind us, humans are equally resilient. After great loss, they, too, can keep growing.
Elizabeth Strout
Positive The New York Times Book Review Olive Kitteridge, the deliciously funny and unforgettable miserabilist at the heart of Elizabeth Strout’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 2008 novel that bore her name, fully deserves the sensitive and satisfying follow-up that Strout has written about her ... One of the strengths of Strout’s novel is that she realistically details the uncertainty and ambivalence, the revulsion and attraction, that these stubborn, no longer young people experience in each other’s company ... Ever empathic and intuitive, Strout delves into their begrudging romance ... Olive, Again doesn’t presume that the reader is familiar with Olive Kitteridge, and occasionally clunky recaps bring newcomers up to speed.
Lisa Brennan-Jobs
Rave San Francisco Chronicle Small Fry is a memoir of uncommon grace, maturity and spare elegance. In no way a lurid account that’s out to settle scores, the book seeks only to come to a better understanding of the author’s father ... despite it all, despite Jobs’ callousness...Lisa Brennan-Jobs writes about her father without a hint of rancor ... Instead, the reader of this exquisite memoir is left with a loving, forgiving remembrance and the lasting impression of a resilient, kindhearted and wise woman who is at peace with her past.
Michael Wolff
Positive The San Francisco Chronicle Fire and Fury is not a book for the ages. Nor does it presume to be. Its inelegant cover — a pairing of simple red-white-and-blue letters and an unflattering photo of a snarling Trump — gives an accurate sense of what’s inside: a few hundred pages of gossipy, anecdote-heavy accounts that paint a highly unfavorable portrait of a deeply unpopular president ... Fire and Fury is really not boring. In fact, it’s an enthralling read, an undeniably juicy chronicle of a presidential administration that in just one year has been beset by numerous scandals and crises. Of course, as with any satisfying dish that has you craving more, the book, with all its accounts of petty and profanity-infused backstabbing, can ultimately leave you with the feeling of having consumed one too many of Trump’s beloved cheeseburgers ... Much of Wolff’s book might not come as a surprise, but he’s good at putting the dirty laundry toward a greater purpose and providing concise summations of complicated story lines.
Norman Ohler
Rave The San Francisco Chronicle ...a revelatory work...that rare sort of book whose remarkable insight focuses on a subject that’s been overlooked, even disregarded by historians ... Ohler makes a strong case that one of the most powerful men on the planet — 'Patient A,' as the dictator was known to his personal physician — became a junkie.