A Rookie Murder Mystery: Book Review of The Resemblance

 

The Resemblance by Lauren Nossett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Thank you to Flatiron Books and GoodReads Giveaways, who provided me with an ARC of The Resemblance by Lauren Nossett, which I received in exchange for a fair and honest review.

As the only female detective on the police force in Athens, GA; Marlitt has been relegated to safe investigations. When she steps onto the crime scene of a hit-and-run on the University of Georgia campus, she is determined to make the case hers, and it is an intriguing case from the start.

Jay Kemp was a member of an exclusive fraternity at UGA--until he was run over by his own car with someone else at the wheel. And according to witnesses, that someone else looked very much like Jay—and he made no attempt to slow down, instead accelerating with a smile on his face.

As Marlitt investigates the crime, she becomes convinced that it was no accident, and somehow, Jay’s fraternity is involved. Her suspicions and her fervor to solve the case are fueled by a resentment towards fraternities she developed while she was in college.

Pursuing the case in unorthodox ways, Marlitt's actions quickly come to the attention of influential people, including the president of the college, whose son just happens to be a member of Jay’s fraternity. When Marlitt is warned that she must not investigate the fraternity, but focus only on the murder, she goes even deeper into her determination and her resolve to find the killer at any cost.

Marlitt is an interesting case study of an only child. We meet her just before the accident, in her mother’s office on the UGA campus, where she spent a good amount of her childhood watching her mother speak with students and colleagues, often feeling lonely as the only kid in the room. She felt isolated from her peers and her father’s extreme anxiety about Marlitt’s safety isolated her further. Longing for a sibling, Marlitt has found companionship and a sense of family in her partner on the force, Teddy, who comes from a loving family. To her, Teddy is the brother she never had, and they spend time together outside of work, with Teddy’s girlfriend as part of the crew.

Although Marlitt lives in the same town with her parents, she rarely visits them and feels the burden of their worries for her. When Marlitt is forced to go home, her discomfort levels are palpable.

Would I teach this book? Female cops as narrators offer a lot of opportunities for plot and insight. The Greek system can be intriguing because it is so secretive. And, of course, a look alike murderer and victim? Yes, please. Nossett has a good imagination. However, it feels like there is some polishing that could be done with the plot.

First, Marlitt has to recuperate (I won’t reveal from what) and she is “better” way too quickly. When she decides to make some moves without the blessing of her boss, she seems to have no concern that what she is doing might actually harm the case rather than help it. The sequence of the events gets a little fuzzy at times, too.

This is Nossett’s first novel, and it is a good first round. The Resemblance is a fun and intriguing read.

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Teach This Book: Review of The Adventures of Rabbi Harvey by Steve Sheinkin

 

The Adventures of Rabbi Harvey: A Graphic Novel of Jewish Wisdom and Wit in the Wild West by Steve Sheinkin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I chose The Adventures of Rabbi Harvey for summer reading this year (2022). Students read the graphic novel and wrote their own comics on the topic of “advice.”

Steve Sheinkin’s The Adventures of Rabbi Harvey has been on my short list for summer reading for awhile, and one of my seniors requested it. It is a good choice not just because it is light and funny but also because it gives students a glance at a different culture and religion.

Sheinkin retells Jewish folktales in the setting of America’s old West. Rabbi Harvey is the clever protagonist, outwitting everyone and helping to support his community. Part sheriff and part congregational rabbi, he helps solve disputes and teaches people lessons.

In my students' favorite story, "Rabbi Harvey: Bearded Chicken," which is based on “The Turkey Prince,” Rabbi Harvey takes on a boy convinced he is a chicken. It becomes his job to bring the boy back from sitting naked under the table, clucking and pecking at crumbs—which the rabbi does by stripping down and joining him under the table. Hilarity ensues. By far, it was students’ favorite story.

One student was irritated by the silliness of the stories. The book is clearly aimed at younger children, but there is plenty for more sophisticated readers to dig into. For example, considering the overlap of the Jewish culture with the culture of the old West. Or how these tales fit in with other folktales or how logic is used (or misused) in the stories.

Would I teach this book? Well, yes, because I did, and I am glad I did. Students appreciated the book for many of the same reasons I did—the humor, yes, but also the depiction of a community that unites around a rabbi and looks to get along and maintain cohesion. They might, on occasion, try to cheat each other, but the threat of being on the outs is enough to make people back down or repent.

By the way—this year’s comics are incredible. Good work, students.


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A Parent's Worst Nightmare: Book Review of Stephen King's Doctor Sleep

Doctor Sleep by Stephen King
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thank you, again, to my parents, who bought me Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep to read while my family was in Covid isolation. It offered a good respite, and I appreciate it.

Most Americans know of The Shining, at least the Stanley Kubrick movie, even if they don’t know it was a book first. The famous scene of Jack Nicholson sticking his head through the door he just broke through with an ax and saying, “Here’s Johnny!” is enough to give any kid nightmares. The sequel, Doctor Sleep, is enough to give any parent nightmares.

Dan Torrence, no longer Danny, cannot stay in one place because he cannot hold a job. Between his alcoholism and his temper, Dan finds himself causing trouble in many different places, until he finally lands in Frazier, New Hampshire. There, he gets sober through Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), gets a job at a hospice facility, and sets roots. As those roots deepen, Dan begins to hear from Abra, a young girl who, like him, has the shining, or the ability to tap into other people’s minds, make contact with the dead, and have premonitions.

Abra’s powers go far beyond Dan’s, a scary amount, and her abilities bring her into opposition with the True Knot, a band of immortals who murder children who have the shining and feed off their essence. When Abra realizes the danger she is in, she reaches out to the only person she knows who might understand and believe her--Dan.

Doctor Sleep is slow, taking time to bring the reader through Dan’s alcoholism to sobriety, to show the beginning of Abra’s life through to her adolescence, and to introduce some of the members of the True Knot and their lives. King takes care to bring the audience into Dan’s life, learning his struggles with drinking and anger, how he tries to use his powers for good and prevent himself from being driven mad by them.

In Stephen King’s “Author’s Note” after the final chapter, he discusses how part of the idea for the sequel came about when he thought about how things might have turned out differently for Jack, the father in The Shining, if he had joined Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). AA plays powerfully through Dan’s life, not only changing his behavior and relationship to his shining, but also the friendships that will save him. King also uses AA sayings to punctuate the books of the novel. It reminded me of his candid discussion on his own alcohol and drug abuse which he discusses in On Writing, which is both a reflection on writing and a memoir. (I highly recommend reading it, especially for writers).

Would I teach this book? I can see teaching this book in a few different cases, for example in a class on monsters or writing sequels. It is definitely entertaining, and it creates real characters that hit the heart of the reader. There is plot, there is conflict, there is real danger. There is the supernatural, as King almost always does.

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