Author Archives: ginnymalbec

Book Review Time: Intimations

Zadie Smith makes me wish my brain was bigger. Only then, might I stand a chance of keeping with her. Yet in Intimations, there is a marked vulnerability noted in this great writer/thinker, as she pieces together a revised philosophy on life. A revision made necessary by a global pandemic.  Covid-19 has changed (and continuesContinue reading “Book Review Time: Intimations”

Problematic: Ernest Hemingway and The Sun Also Rises

We find ourselves in the midst of a reckoning, centuries in the making. The cry to denounce racial and patriarchal constructs has increased across the world. Societies have begun to open their eyes to the inequities that have long existed. With this closer examination of culture, past and present, there has also been heightened (andContinue reading “Problematic: Ernest Hemingway and The Sun Also Rises”

Book Review Time: The Editor

As Barbra Streisand sang so beautifully “People/ People who need…people/ Are the luc–.” Well there’s no need to recite (or in my case, sing) the whole verse. You know what I’m getting at. We need each other. And sometimes we need someone to just give us a chance. An opportunity to reveal our true potential.Continue reading “Book Review Time: The Editor”

Book Review Time: Ordinary People

Insightful realism collides with moments of the supernatural in this tale of relationships on the brink. In Ordinary People by Diana Evans, we are introduced to two couples: city-dwelling Londoners, Melissa and Michael; and long-time suburbanites, Stephanie and Damian. Each relationship has years of investment behind it, as well as, children in tow. And theContinue reading “Book Review Time: Ordinary People”

A Brief Reflection and A Short Book Review Time: Heavy

Losing a loved one cuts deeply. But if you’re fortunate as I have been in my life, what is left behind is a wealth of beautiful memories. If you haven’t already, please read my review of News Of The World by Paulette Jiles, which was published on December 25, 2020. Separate from the review ofContinue reading “A Brief Reflection and A Short Book Review Time: Heavy”

Ever-So-Slightly Condensed Book Review Time (because not everything needs to be written in 500 or more words): The Long Call

In the marshlands of North Devon, along a neighboring beach, the body of a man has been found. The cause of death is a stab wound to the chest. There’s little on his carriage for positive identification, except for one unique physical marker: a tattoo of an albatross on his neck. This was a manContinue reading “Ever-So-Slightly Condensed Book Review Time (because not everything needs to be written in 500 or more words): The Long Call”

Book Review Time: Aftershocks

As we find ourselves firmly planted in the 21st century, our ideas about how we identify ourselves, and concepts concerning interpersonal relationships have evolved and diversified. Nowhere can this evolution be seen better than in the model of the nuclear family. In spite of resistance from darker, more sinister sources, what makes a “real” familyContinue reading “Book Review Time: Aftershocks”

Book Review Time: Friday Black

Hello, my fellow bibliophiles. You may have noticed I took a brief hiatus. No need for concern. Reading is ingrained in me. I read every day. Yet for whatever reason, the writing wasn’t coming along as easily. I’m still trying to uncover the “why” behind that. Maybe the exhaustion and frustration of 2020 finally caughtContinue reading “Book Review Time: Friday Black”

Book Review Time: A Confederacy of Dunces

A Confederacy of Dunces is a full-on comedic assault in the best possible sense. It bursts from the seams with the most absurdly uproarious episodes of complete ridiculousness and it never lets up. Not even for a second. With intersecting plots that criss-cross each other through New Orleans’ French Quarter, ACD follows a cast ofContinue reading “Book Review Time: A Confederacy of Dunces”