Notable Reads Of Late

In The Cut by Susanna Moore--I had seen the film made from this book twice before I read it. The movie is notable for the acting, mostly due to the fact that Jane Campion (the director) completely toned down all of Meg Ryan's tics and got a real performance out of her. However, what the film and the book have in common is a difficulty in getting across the motivation and meat of the characters. And the whole plot hinges on a piece of information someone chooses not to reveal or even perhaps think about until the worst time. The book does a better job of establishing Franny Thorstein as a linguist and scholar, and has a more honest and chilling ending than the film.

Love Is A Four Letter Word edited by Michael Taeckens--A compilation of essays surrounding breakups. There's not a bad story in the volume, but I especially liked these ones: Junot Diaz tells of why sometimes you should just eat the money and not go on the trip with the girlfriend who just found out you cheated on her, Amanda Stern has a moment of reckoning in the mountains, Josh Kilmer-Purcell takes on the consequences of drowning your sorrows in promiscuity, D.E. Rasso on the relationship that never ends, and Michael Taeckens himself on revenge seized in the nick of time.