[In this feature, we highlight a handful of the best book reviews appearing over the weekend in major newspapers. Follow it here.]
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The Last Natural, by Roy Miech. Reviewed by Jonathan Yardley (Washington Post).
He’s been in the bigs for less than four weeks, but it’s already pretty clear that Bryce Harper, the Washington Nationals’ uber-hyped new outfielder, is on a trajectory to superstardom. Still, that doesn’t mean he deserves a biography quite yet. Yardley agrees. He’s pretty harsh: “‘The Last Natural’ is an absolutely preposterous title and Miech, a longtime sports writer, is at best a pedestrian stylist.” He does give Miech credit for doing his homework, but the writing appears to be unforgivable. Maybe when Harper’s been around long enough to mature as a player, he’ll get a biography to match.
Find it on Goodreads.
The Amateur, by Edward Klein. Reviewed by Janet Maslin (New York Times).
Man, this review is pretty awesome. Maslin lays into this guy–who actually has a fair amount of cred–pretty heavily. Even without Maslin’s commentary the book sounds like a hack-job tea party cash-in. Maslin lays on the sarcasm right from the get-go:
“The Amateur” by Edward Klein is a book about an inept, arrogant ideologue who maintains an absurdly high opinion of his own talents even as he blatantly fails to achieve his goals. Oh, and President Obama is in this book too.
I’m really excited for this election.
Find it on Goodreads.
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The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom, by Christopher Healy. Reviewed by Susan Carpenter (Los Angeles Times).
This book, which “challenges every presumption readers have ever had not only about Cinderella’s savior but about the nameless princes who brought enduring bliss to other fairy tales’ forever-young heroines,” sounds pretty cheeky, but could also be pretty charming (pardon the pun) if pulled off right. A send-up to classic fairy tales? I’m at least intrigued. And it sounds like he sneaks a little scholarship in the back door. Worth a deeper look.
Find it on Goodreads.
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Quickly: Houghton-Mifflin files for bankruptcy–now I don’t feel so bad about them not hiring me. Jonathan Franzen’s Farther Away. A brief library of libations. My Struggle is a pretty loaded title for a memoir. David Ulin on Are You My Mother, which Nico loved.
