Reviews

According to Wikipedia, a “coming of age” story is one which details a young person's transition from adolescence to adulthood. This describes Every Last Cuckoo, except Sarah Lucas’ transition is one from a comfortable coupled existence as a mature woman to one in which she must make her own way. At seventy-five, Sarah’s husband of fifty years has died unexpectedly leaving Sarah and their two dogs alone in their rural Vermont home.

Here’s a bizarre tale by “the godfather of Japanese manga comics”. Dr. Kirihito of M University Hospital takes a research trip to a remote village where a man with the mysterious Monmow disease has come from. While there, in addition to contracting the disease, he learns that the director has sabotaged his career and tried to kill him. Full of political maneuvering, love entanglements, and the threat of Monmow, this graphic novel’s got it all.

Why has Miles spent his entire life chasing after Hayden, his mentally ill twin? Each time he receives communication from Hayden, he packs his things and embarks on another wild goose chase in hopes of catching up with him.

Why don’t things don’t go as planned for George Orson and Lucy? When they leave Pompey, Ohio where George Orson taught high school English and Lucy was his student they have big plans to live in glamorous places. It doesn’t quite work out.

Why is Ryan on his way to the hospital with his severed hand in an ice cooler?

Children of first generation Vietnamese immigrants, Van and Linny grew apart when their mother bought a house allowing them separate bedrooms. Once close, as adults they are now bound together only by their traditional father who has called them home to celebrate his finally having applied for U.S. citizenship.

Diana Campanella is coasting through life. She’s left the security of a steady job and purchased “Second Time Around”, a high-end second hand clothing store. She’s terminally engaged to a politically connected lawyer from an important Washington D.C. family. As the shop fails to gain new business and a wedding date remains undeclared, Diana grows more and more discontent. Harry blows into Diana’s life like a breath of fresh air and provides just the catalyst needed to set changes for Diana in motion.

The premise behind Water with Lemon is that it is a diet book told in the format of a novel. I appreciate the concept and can even say the story line had the potential to be very engaging. In a novel, however, I need a little more character development and a little less beating over the head with diet habits.

Alford’s exploration of what constitutes wisdom and where it comes from read a little more lightly than I would have expected. While Alford has done his research and shares many of the gems he has gleaned from his reading, I didn’t feel enlightened. His experiences during his mother’s divorce and his interviews with the elderly are entertaining, but they impart no wisdom in the end.

Dedicated to editor Hornby's son Danny, $2 of the cover price of this collection will be donated to Treehouse, a school for autistic children. Hornby’s explanation of why this collection came about in the introduction is in itself a heart-felt piece of writing. And then he's topped it with NippleJesus, a story about a nightclub bouncer turned art gallery security guard and his reactions to a controversial work called NippleJesus.