Batman: Noel/Lee Bermejo

Batman:  Noel by Lee Bermejo; graphic novel; 112 pages

This is a dark retelling of A Christmas Carol, Batman-style.  It follows the Dark Knight over one Christmas Eve, which he spends chasing a lead he hopes will result in the Joker's capture.  Along the way he encounters thee "visitors" who call on him to examine his own life.

This had the potential to be really hokey (and my blurb up there doesn't help), but I found myself really enjoying this book, Christmas-themes and all.  The narrator tells Dickens'  famous story, while we see Batman chasing his arch nemesis across Gotham, and encountering apparitions from his past, present and future along the way.  Bermajo's dark, atmospheric art fits the cold wintery scenes perfectly.  I'm not a huge fan of holiday literature, but this is unique enough that it may become a regular holiday read. 

Batman: Knightfall vol. 1

Batman. Knightfall, vol. 1 by Doug Moench, Chuck Dixon, Alan Grant, etc., 640 pages

This whopping volume has been better described quite well by Annie, so I won't go into specifics here. But basically, this is when Bane comes to town and uses every bad guy Batman's ever faced to take down the Bat. And it's the only Batman storyline that I'd ever really heard of before experiencing Batman in a non-crappy movie way (Val Kilmer, you had a lovely jawline to play Batman, but that's about it). It's been a great introduction to the villains of Batman, who each get their own storyline here.

Through reading this, I've realized that I'm definitely a bigger fan of long-form comics. There is no way I would have read, much less enjoyed, this story if I'd read it in the original serial format. I'm glad I read it, and I'm looking forward to reading volume two.

One Good Turn / Kate Atkinson 418 p.

This is the second in the Jackson Brodie series, and it's just as good as all the others I've read.  It's tempting to say that Atkinson just writes mysteries to give herself a scaffold for developing her intriguing characters.  The problem with that theory is that Atkinson doesn't 'just write' anything.  Her mysteries are so darned good: well-plotted, perfectly paced, and full of great surprises.  This one features a Scottish mystery writer who spends most of his life in a dream state which ends when he crosses paths with a psycho with a baseball bat at an Edinburgh drama festival.  Throw a marauding real estate developer and a highly dubious housecleaning service in and you have all the ingredients for a satisfying read.

Pontius Pilate / Ann Wroe 412 p.

One of my all-time favorites, this is a fascinating examination of the great equivocator as he is depicted in scripture, historical documents, and medieval myths and Passion plays.  Wroe re-visits the story of Procula, Pilate's wife, who has a frightening dream foretelling PIlate's doom if he sentences Jesus to be crucified.  An amazing work of research, and very readable.

Green Arrow: Quiver/Kevin Smith

Green Arrow:  Quiver by Kevin Smith, et al.; graphic novel; 232 pages

Ten years ago, Oliver Queen/Green Arrow sacrificed himself to save others, and his friends have never quite gotten over their grief at his loss.  But recent crime scenes have been littered with the trick arrows that are Ollie's trademark, and people have sighted a hooded figure with the classic blonde goatee.  Ollie may be back, but he's changed--plagued with amnesia, he doesn't remember anything of his recent history, much less what's been going on while he was dead.  How and why is he back?  And what doesn't he remember? 

I admit I was a little hesitant about this book, given the generally poor reception to Smith's Batman arc, Cacophony.  However, I loved his work on The Widening Gyre, and I like his movies, so I gave it a shot.  (Also, this was the last of the three Green Arrow books owned by the MLC.  We may need to work on that).  I have to say this was up there with Year One in terms of quality, and made up for the "meh" taste left over from the last GA book I read.  This is a pivotal moment in Ollie's story:  he's returned from the dead--an event which will make him vulnerable during the Blackest Night arc a few years down the road--but he's also got some introspection and self-realization to do (I could say more, but that would ruin one of the great surprises of the book).  There are a great many cameo appearances in this volume, from the rest of the Justice League (both living and dead), to some more fringe DC characters (Morpheus!  Woot!).  Smith handles it all well, and seasons it with his characteristic humor, making for a fun read.  Part of my love for this series might come from the fact that Batman plays a prominent role in the story, and seeing the Dark Knight juxtaposed against the (more normal and well-adjusted) Justice League is always entertaining. 

Now I'm out of Green Arrow books, so I need to head down to Starclipper for some suggestions! 

The Innocent

The Innocent by David Baldacci 422 pp.

Will Robie is a professional hitman who works for the Feds. He does the jobs he is given until the night he refuses to kill the target he is assigned to kill. When the target is killed in front of him by a sniper, Robie finds himself running for his life without knowing why he has become a target. He ends up saving the life of a teenage girl whose parents were murdered and things get more convoluted...and dangerous. He ends up involved in the investigation of a bus explosion and multiple murders while dodging the unknown assailants who are trying to kill him. I've found Baldacci's books to be hit and miss. This is one of the better ones. While the situation is a bit far-fetched the characters, dialogue, action, and plot twists keep the story moving at a fast pace.

Visiting Tom

Visiting Tom:  a man, a highway, and the road to roughneck grace/ Michael Perry 308 pg.

Tom is an interesting old timer in Wisconsin and a neighbor of Perry's.  This book talks about a series of visits with Tom and the times in between.  I'm still a big fan of Perry but this book was not one of my favorites, I guess mostly because I miss the EMT/fire fighter stories.  Still, very good and highly recommended but a slightly slower pace.

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The mating season

The mating season/P.G. Wodehouse 224 pgs.

Another great one featuring Bertie Wooster and Jeeves although not quite enough Jeeves in this story to suit me.  Bertie, as usual, gets himself in a crazy situation impersonating his friend Gussy Fink-Nottle since Gussy found himself in the pokey after a night of drunken dancing in a public fountain.  Things go crazy from their and Bertie has to work hard to keep it together.  He does, finally, with the help of Jeeves.  We have this on audio through Overdrive.  It is the bees knees.

Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake / Anna Quindlen 182 p.

Anna Quindlen's latest memoir has plenty of thoughtful insights into aging, work/life balance, faith, feminism and marriage and was mostly a good, solid read. I was frequently distracted by references to the 2 homes, one in the country and one in Manhattan, their divergent decors, the multiple sets of dishes, blah blah.  Not necessary, and, for 99% of us, not relatable.

The Messenger / Yannick Haenel 181 p.

A fictionalized story of the real-life Polish diplomat and resistance worker Jan Karski, who was tasked with visiting the Warsaw ghetto and a concentration camp and carrying his observations to the Allied Powers.  It was hoped that the urgency of his message in addition to his eyewitness details would persuade Churchill and Roosevelt to take direct action to liberate the Jews of Poland and beyond.  An emotional yet erudite account with interesting reflections on Polish identity.