The Last Unicorn

Staff Review

The Last Unicorn

Peter S. Beagle

When I tell people that The Last Unicorn is one of my favorite works of fantasy, sometimes I get odd looks. Dude in his 20's? Unicorns?

The truth is, this book has a much wider appeal than people would tend to grant it, and it is more than a children's book. It has many of the qualities of The Once and Future King by T.H. White: it is full of wit, anachronism, mythology, and magic, and it's a fairy tale of a different sort. The Last Unicorn follows the quest of a band of misfits, as they adventure through a troubled land, in order to find where all the other unicorns have gone. It's really a classic, but I think it was rather overshadowed by the success and craze of The Lord of the Rings, my other favorite work of fantasy.

I would recommend it to kids, as young as 10-12, but anyone who appreciates mythology and fantasy will get a kick out of this book.

Someone said that The Once and Future King is a book that should be read in three different periods of life, because it will possess new meaning, when seen from a different perspective. . I feel that this is also very true of this 'modern fairy tale.' It's bizarre, quirky, and it possesses that bittersweet quality which tempers the otherwise frivolous aftertaste of Fantasy. There is a lot to this book.

- Jack

Staff Review

Nibble & Kuhn
David Schmahmann

I enjoyed this book because it is reminiscent of early John Grisham, when his characters were still fresh, and his plots original. I also appreciate the story’s lack of violence. The main character, an attorney at a staid old law firm under management nouveau, is a striver, hoping to make partner. But, like most of the lawyers I know personally, he is decent, realistic, and likeable. His love interest, also an attorney, is an independent woman, interesting, bright, and adorable. The bad guys are a little over the top, but they do mimic the ‘success at all costs’ mentality and lack of judgment recently demonstrated by a few of our larger legal and financial conglomerates. The plot moves right along without any padding, the dialogue is crisp, and the dialogue is crisp, and the author is professional. This is a neat and entertaining novel.

- Lou Miller

Staff Review

The Last Song

Nicholas Sparks

This was my first Nicholas Sparks novel. I’ve heard that his books sell themselves, and now I know why. His writing is as easy and smooth as a quiet conversation and he brings out the best and the worst in his characters. This store may be particularly enjoyable if you have found yourself at odds with someone whose actions make no sense to you. After all, there is always another side to the story.

- Trish

Staff Review

Have a Little Faith

by Mitch Albom

No, I'm not trying to give you advice or be sarcastic... Have a Little Faith is a wonderful new book just out by Mitch Albom. Albom's book begins with with an unusual request: an eighty two year old rabbi from his old hometown asks Albom to write his eulogy. This is the begining of an eight year realationship between the two men. I'm in love with this book because it really made me think about my own spirituality and what faith means to me. Albom asks the question "What if faith wasn't what divided us, but what brought us together?"This book is truly about Albom's journey, questions of life's purpose and a story that really is everyman's story. This seems like a perfect book for the holidays as we head into a season that reminds us of our own feelings about faith.

- Kate

Staff Review

Lamb

by Christopher Moore

I’m an older guy, and sophomoric, antiestablishment humor like National Lampoon or Saturday Night Live is just plain boring. Been there, done that in the 60’s. So, when I picked up Lamb, an attempt to recreate the first 30 years of Christ’s life (about which little is known) and saw the subtitle, “the Gospel according to Biff, Christ’s childhood pal,” I almost put it back.

I’m glad that I didn’t. While Jesus (Joshua), Biff, and Mary Magdalene are interesting, loving Jewish children who outwit the occupying Romans, they do a lot of funny, laugh out loud antics. Imagine that you are twelve years old and were told that you were the Messiah. The novel is about Joshua’s efforts - with Biff's help - to grow into the job. They head for the Orient (some biblical scholars believe that Jesus was in the Orient during the time that there is no record of his whereabouts) to get information from the Three Wise Men. They have interesting, hilarious adventures. Lamb is special because the author has written humor without sacrilege or snark. Lamb is a nicely written, funny, and heart-warming read.

- Lou Miller

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

Alan Bradley

This utterly delightful mystery, set in 1950’s England, is the tale of 11 year old evil genius Flavia de Luce and what happens when she finds a dead body in the cucumber patch of her family’s crumbling country house. It’s Harriet the Spy meets Sherlock Holmes and should not be missed!

- Kath

Let the Right One In

John Ajvide Lindqvist

This is not some run-of-the-mill ‘tween vampire pulp. This is dark, at times disturbing, and has a down-to-earth, gritty feel to it that is sure to make it a classic of the genre, even if it joined the ‘game’ a little late. People have likened Lindqvist to a Swedish Stephen King, and I can’t deny it. This is my first stab at contemporary Vamp Fic, and I was amazed. I was pretty leery and skeptical of this whole developing vampire phenomenon, but I am glad I went out a limb with this one. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to dabble in modern Vampire and Horror writing, but at the same time wants something a little more ‘grown up’ than some of the books out there. And if you like the book, be sure to see the movie that came out last year!

- Jack