Miki: I do. I thought the characters were very complex. I loved the two parts: Fates and Furies. The ‘fates’ was basically book one, the happy times, the times when two people believe they were fated to be together happily ever after. The ‘furies’ part looks at the deep, realistic aspects to marriage that is not all sunshine and lemon drops.
Auggie: Who can you recommend this book to?
Miki: Anyone who enjoys strong, literary fiction. I really loved it.
Auggie: Italian author Elena Ferrante had a hit with My Brilliant Friend, the first in a series of Neopolitan books about the friendship between Elena and Lila. You’ve recently finished book three in the series, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay. What did you think of it, and how does it compare with the other books in the series?
Miki: It’s difficult to compare the books because each book is a continuation on the other. One must think of them as one long story. This is such a passionate set of novels. They’re about love, relationships, and children. The most important relationship in these books, however, is that of friendship. That is, how friendships shape us as we go through life. The friendship in these books is so intense and challenging, and unlike anything I’ve ever read before -- especially how women understand friendships, how friendships change and evolve over time.
Auggie: It sounds as if you really enjoyed the Ferrante book.
Miki: I sure did! I can’t wait until the next one.
Auggie: Another book I’d like to ask you about is Witches: Salem 1692 by Pulitzer Prize winning author Stacey Schiff. In a wave of witchcraft hysteria, 19 men and women are hanged and another is pressed to death. How would you describe the book?
Miki: It’s the history of the Salem witch trials that we only thought we knew about. Schiff’s book digs so deep and brings a human face to the madness of the era. There were so many issues at play here, be it religious oppression, social and sexual oppression, threats of Native American attacks, and stretches of outright boredom. At the peak of the hysteria there was so much superstition, so much fear of the unknown. What was most fascinating to me was how Schiff tied this witch hunt to other more recent witch hunts including the Rosenberg case and the Hollywood red scare of the 1950’s.
Auggie: Do you think something like this could ever happen again?
Miki: Absolutely. We’ll see what the next election brings. She may have to write a sequel.
Auggie: Speaking of witches, we hear you’re currently reading The Witch of Lime Street by David Jaher. How’s that one coming?
Miki: It’s so good.
Auggie: Can you give away anything?
Miki: It’s a true story about the friendship between Sir Arthur Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, and Harry Houdini, perhaps the most famous magician of all. Doyle is a spiritualist who believes in mediums who speaks to the dead, and Houdini, a fierce skeptic who does everything in his power to debunk the spiritualist movement. But can he?
Auggie: Miki, we know you as a big fan of J.K. Rowling. It’s no secret that she also writes under the name of Robert Galbraith. We hear you’re reading the Cormoran series, which currently consists of three titles: Cuckoo’s Calling, Silkworm, and Career of Evil. You recently finished Career of Evil. What did you think of it?
Miki: This has to be one of the creepiest books I’ve read in quite some time. So of course I highly recommend it. I listened to this one on audio, and I wanted to mention that it’s read by Robert Glenister. He reads all the audio in the Galbraith series and he does such a fantastic job. When he reads the part of the serial killer it sent chills up my spine. He’s an incredible reader.
Auggie: The literary community knows that you’re a big fan of Patti Smith’s Just Kids. Isn’t it interesting that she wrote the Blue Oyster Cult song that gave Career of Evil it’s name?
Miki: I never put that together until I heard about it, but the more I read, the more I can see how Patti has been so influential in so many ways.
Auggie: If you read the first book in a series, do you feel compelled to read them all?
Miki: I would like to say no, but I can’t think of an instance where I hadn’t.
Auggie: Miki, do you still mourn for Dobby?
Miki: I do still mourn for Dobby. I love him.
Auggie: You’ve also recently finished Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling, star of tv’s The Mindy Project. What did you think of her book?
Miki: Mindy cracks me up. I would read anything she wrote. I love her show. She basically writes what I’m thinking. I also did this one as an audio book. Mindy reads it herself, and there’s such a special connection between the reader and the listener.
Auggie: And did you also read her first book, Is Everybody Hanging Out Without Me? What’d you think of it?
Miki: I liked it even better. There were times when I would be just laughing out loud. I love that she’s not afraid to be the butt of a joke -- something I’ve gotten used to as well.
Auggie: Finally, Harper Lee’s Go Set a Watchman. Did you like the book and do you think she actually wrote it?
Miki: I do think she wrote it, because I actually thought it was just as good as To Kill a Mockingbird. I think if people would relate Atticus to the turbulence of the times, they’d see him as less heroic but perhaps more human.
Auggie: What do you think you’ll be reading next, Miki?
Miki: Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase.
Auggie: Thank you, Miki. We look forward to hearing your thoughts on this one.
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