I’m probably going to be in the minority, but I’m going to recommend Herman Koch’s The Dinner for those readers who do not require pleasant romance or drama securely tied up with satisfying endings. Not to say that there’s anything wrong with reading books like that – they are usually good fun, and often enriching. 

However, I love to look beyond the typical, and often seek out eclectic literature selections. This book will appeal most to those who enjoy thoughtful, chilling stories that don’t necessarily have likable characters and that don’t forward any truly uplifting storylines. In other words, after you finish reading The Dinner, you might feel slightly ill or walk about for a few hours in disbelief. And that, to me, is the hallmark of good writing. This book reminds me of when my middle son was reading The Kite Runner (Hosseini) when he was a high school senior. He was angry at the characters, and when he verbalized this to me I told him that he’d just read an exemplary novel in that it generated emotions in him. As another example, if you read Gone Girl (Flynn) and thought to yourself: those characters were awful people and I didn't like them at all, then you may not want to spend your valuable time reading this novel. If you got a kick out of Gone Girl and its depictions of amorality, then you may truly enjoy Koch's novel.

The Dinner takes place over a single evening, as two Dutch brothers – up and coming politician Serge and his brother Paul (dining with their respective spouses Babette and Claire) have both superficial and serious discussion over several courses of a meal served at a chi chi dining establishment. The author neatly skewers all the topical events currently discussed in today’s society (organic food, politics, preferred parenting methods, films, youth violence, racism, teaching pedagogies, etc.) while also slowly revealing the true characters that inhabit the diners.

The narrator of this novel is Paul, and I was reminded of the act of peeling an onion as he slowly revealed himself throughout the meal. Because each course of their dinner is interrupted by the overbearing, fluffy waiter who eagerly describes how every food item is carefully obtained and prepared, the reader is forced to wait for Paul’s next revelation, allowing the story to progress. This is clever writing, and it works really well for this type of storytelling.

Essentially, Paul and his brother Serge have come together to discuss a sickening crime that their 15-year-old sons are involved in, but they spend a lot of time working their way around the true events, and instead focusing on artificial matters. As the dinner unfolds, you learn much more about Paul and Claire, their strange relationship, and the love they have for their son Michel. When you come to the story’s ending, you will most likely be shocked by what has transpired, especially when you consider the initial impressions created by Paul and Claire as they prepared for their outing that night.

So, I wouldn’t call this a pleasant read. But it is gripping and intelligent, and I know that I’ll remember it for a long time. Actress Cate Blanchett is reported to be directing an American version of the novel. When it is made into a film here, I see the need for actors who can expertly emote via minute facial expressions and body language. If you check out Goodreads, you’ll see that people either seem to be fascinated by this quirky book, or to feel repelled and even angry upon finishing reading. Put me in the middle, but more closely on the “fascination” end of the continuum. If nothing else, this book is a creepy study in psychology, familial bonds, and why we make the choices we make. If you want to take your uncomfortable feelings a step further, think about your own family and neighbors and wonder for a moment about unsettling, hidden motivations that may never bubble the surface…until it is too late.

Do you like reading about complex relationships between couples? Do you enjoy digging into the twisted intricacies of how people react when their carefully created, structured lives are threatened? Are you cool with characters who aren’t necessarily appealing or nice or really even A-okay on any level?

If so, be prepared for a fun ride when you read A.S.A. Harrison’s The Silent Wife. This book is often compared to Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl, and I can see why. The story is told in alternating female and male viewpoints. But aside from that aspect, the two novels are quite different. In The Silent Wife, the author shows us how Jodi’s life, lived in a spectacularly decorated and maintained condo facing Lake Michigan, spins out of control when her common-law husband Todd takes his habitual infidelities a step too far, winding up with a much-younger, less-educated, and more-demanding girlfriend…who has somehow gotten pregnant. Todd loves his comfortable life with Jodi, but he needs frequent sexual escapades to keep things interesting, and when he realizes he’s going to be a father, he sadly decides to let Jodi go. Bad decision. Read this novel and see how far people will be pushed to the edges of their limits, and perhaps uncover even new boundaries they didn’t even know existed, when their worlds collide.

I’m sad the author will not be able to pen more novels; she died last spring from cancer. Don’t waste time comparing this book to Gone Girl. Just settle in for a terrific read, whether you find the characters likable or not, and enjoy the revelations as they unfold!

I recently finished listening to Bel Canto, by award-winning Ann Patchett, and all I can say is “Incredible!” – how did I ever miss this terrifically well-written and disarming novel? Published in 2001, this book details a hostage crisis that is similar to the Lima Crisis that occurred several years earlier in Peru. I was certain that I would find the book interesting, but not necessarily captivating. I was so wrong – Bel Canto is distinctly memorable in that it causes the reader to consider what is truly important in life beyond the superficial day-to-day events that people wrap around themselves as a kind of life armor.

In short, the book opens with a fancy dinner party being held to celebrate the birthday of a visiting Japanese CEO. The event takes place in Argentina, at the home of the country’s vice president, and party guests from around the world consider themselves fortunate to be included, as the American soprano Roxanne Coss is performing in honor of the guest of honor, Katsumi Hosokawa. Accompanying Hosokawa is his talented interpreter Gen Wantanabe, a quiet, unassuming man who confidently speaks an amazing variety of languages.

After Roxanne completes her singing that evening, thrilling Hosokawa who has come to know and love her solely through her albums and concert performances, the party abruptly ends when terrorists invade the home and all of the guests become hostages. The terrorist leader becomes frustrated when he realizes that their initial target, the president of Argentina, is not even at the fete because he had elected to stay home that evening to watch his favorite television program. Over the following days and weeks, the hostages and their captors come to know each other very well, and all of them look forward to daily concert practice by Roxanne, who uses her voice to calm and unify them. Gen is needed by everyone, as all of the hostages from different nations try to communicate with each other, and with their Spanish-speaking jailors. Relationships arise and play out among the ongoing negotiations. 

A startling ending knocks the breath out of the reader, and he or she will continue to think about the characters and their situations long after the final page is turned. Patchett’s writing is straightforward and gorgeous at the same time. I’m looking forward to reading more of her novels, because the ending of this one gave me goosebumps.