Kitchen Boy, by Sanford Phippen

Most of us have stories to tell. One can't live for years without having something - or, rather, many somethings - happen that make up the layers of a life. Many of these lives could make extremely interesting books; many do make for interesting reading.

Kitchen Boy, by Sanford Phippen, brings us to a simpler time. Phippen grew up on the Eastern Coast of Maine, an interesting section of New England. Kitchen Boy deals with his "crucial years from ages 16 - 22" when he worked at Frenchman's Bay Manor, "a small summer resort hotel" where he worked as kitchen help during the summer months. In the Prologue, Phippen describes the Manor "was my raft down the Mississippi, my Pency Prep, the wedding of which I became a member, and, perhaps, even my Pequod." While much of the book is, indeed, interesting, giving the reader a look into a job that helped shape a young man, I'm not sure that it is quite as gripping as he might indicate. Throughout the book, I almost had the feeling that had someone other than F. Scott Fitzgerald had been assigned the writing of The Great Gatsby, moving it to Maine's east coast with a touch of Jay Gatsby in numerous people, it might have read as a second cousin to Kitchen Boy. Indeed, parts of the book felt almost Gatsby-ish...and then, moved on.

While I was intrigued Phippen's story, and found many of his adventures humorous, tender, or great character-studies, I almost expected some flash of light, something that would profoundly change his life. Many memoirs - and fiction, for that matter - climb an emotional mountain until the life-changing moment or moments happen. Kitchen Boy came across as more a body of water, tranquil most of the time, a few rough patches, the undercurrents of interpersonal relationships, but without any hurricanes whipping up the waters.

In the end, while it was an interesting, nice memoir, one that I'll probably read again, it still didn't have the excitement of many other memoirs. Would I recommend reading it? Yes. But don't look for any huge, earth-shattering excitement. But then, life isn't always earth-shattering, and many times, it's the people we meet and work with in our earlier years that shape our lives the most, often without our realizing it. That is where Kitchen Boy takes us.

Critical Mass, by Sara Paretsky

I love a good mystery. There, I said it. Give me a mystery with believable characters, believable plot that winds its way through the story rather than taking a short-cut from point A to point B, add crisp dialogue and clean writing, and there's a good chance I'll read straight through to the last line. Add a strong female character, and I'm hooked enough to want more. For these reasons, I love Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski mysteries.

If, like me, you've read through from the first novel (Indemnity Only) through to the latest offerings, you know that Ms. Paretsky has not kept Vic as a static person: Vic ages, has relationships that last through several books, updates her cars as needed, as happens in real life. She also works for herself as a Private Investigator; the mysteries deal with these.

Critical Mass deals with Vic's friend and mentor Lottie Hershel's past.

When Lottie calls to say a childhood playmate's daughter is in trouble, V.I. springs into action. Lottie and Kitty escaped the Holocaust together as children; however, the two have drifted apart. When Kitty's daughter calls Lottie, fearing for her life, she trusts that Lottie will try to save her; the doctor responds by sending Vic. The trail leads Vic to a remote area, and nearly costs her her life as she deals with drug dealers, crooked cops, and people paranoid over industrial theft.

Interspersed are flashbacks to Lottie and Kitty's past, first in Nazi Germany, then to the U.S., giving the reader probably one of the best glimpses to Lottie's past of any of the V.I. Warshawski books.

When Vic finds Judy - Kitty's daughter - she realizes that what looks like paranoia may be caused by someone trying to kill Judy - someone who does kill Kitty. The group responsible for Kitty's death is also trying to find Judy's son Martin, a science whiz who is trying desperately trying to uncover his family's past.

This is not the first V.I. Warshawski book to bring up Lottie's escape from Nazi Germany; Total Recall also touched on this back-story. However, Critical Mass dives deeper into the past while tackling a current problem. While it becomes obvious that answers won't fall into place until Kitty's grandson, Martin, is found, Vic isn't able to find him until the last few chapters.

While Vic still lives in Chicago, much of the action takes place away from the city; in fact, the book opens away from the city, with Vic looking through a drug den in the middle of nowhere, which felt a little disconcerting. Considering the story-line, though, it fit in perfectly.

In the end, though, Critical Mass is a thoroughly good read. For those who have followed and enjoyed Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski, this is a must read. For anyone who has yet to dive into the series, this is a good book to try.