As promised, I’ll write regular installments about the books I’m reading. I introduced the idea here, and will continue the effort over time.

The Tin Horse, by Janet Steinberg

I’ve read a lot of books (textbooks, even) from the European Jewish perspective during WWII, but this may be the first story I’ve read from an American Jewish perspective from that time. This was a tale of teenage life and love, complicated by immigrant parents and cultural expectations. It isn’t the most well written book in the world – there were too many adjectives, I think – but the characters were strong and the plot was engaging.

The Case of Lisandra P., by Helene Gremillon

A French teenager once told me that he can always tell when a movie in France was dubbed and when it was actually French, because American movies always end happily, even in the most unlikely of circumstances. This book is translated from the French, and squarely proves his point. Even relative to other plots that seek to determine how or why the main character was killed, this does not end happily. It is well written, presumably well translated, and reading it feels like an artistic experience of sorts, but boy is it depressing.

A Window Opens, by Elisabeth Egan

I was bothered by this author’s frequent references to hipsters and e-readers and brand names of all sorts (and her unforgivable decision to employ the word “momversation”). I’m also resistant to incorporating text message and email language into the story, but all of that aside, this was a quick read. A family in New Jersey is facing career shifts, marital challenges, and aging parents. The “working in Manhattan and bemoaning recent changes to the city” commentary and specificity of the whole tale will feel wildly outdated in about 18 months, but the heartbreakingly insightful passages related to family dynamics and career exploration held my attention.