A sometimes-stereotypical tale of university life, but readers steeped in academia will appreciate and identify with...
A professor faces the drama of academia and the emotional demands of family life in Senturia’s debut novel about work and ambition.
Martin Quint and his wife, Jenny, are trying to conceive a child. If that weren’t stressful enough, he’s about to start another semester at the Cambridge Technology Institute—teaching the “Circuits & Electronics” class, advising grad students, and hurtling toward a deadline to submit a proposal to DARPA (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). On the same day that he tries to manage an upset colleague whose paper has been rejected, he’s invited to participate in the university’s highly confidential Personnel Committee. His first assignment is to advise the tenure application of his fellow professor Kat Rodriguez. His attention to Kat makes Jenny jealous as she juggles an interior design job, the care of her 4-year-old son from her first marriage, Martin’s absences due an intense workload, and finally, a pregnancy. Meanwhile, Kat prepares her stellar tenure record, despite grumblings from the tenure review panel that research grants more tenure than teaching experience. Just when Jenny needs Martin most, he accompanies Kat to a conference in Istanbul, fanning the flames of his wife’s resentment. The couple comes together in time to welcome a baby daughter into the world, but that joy is quickly dampened when someone steals Martin’s backpack, which contains confidential documents about Kat’s application. The novel comes to a crescendo as Kat hears the final tenure decision, Martin receives an unexpected job offer, and Jenny and Martin try to meet their family goals. The chapters move along quickly and the dialogue is true to life, particularly between Jenny and Martin as they navigate the bumpy road of marriage. The initially overwhelming amount of academic jargon (which doesn’t even define what DARPA stands for) eventually becomes less important as Senturia establishes the characters’ wants and needs. It’s a shame, though, that there are stereotypes among the players: for example, Felice, Martin’s West African assistant, is described as “coal black,” and women characters often cry, whether they’re a professor, student, wife, or sister. More nuance in these and other characterizations would have elevated this novel.
A sometimes-stereotypical tale of university life, but readers steeped in academia will appreciate and identify with Martin’s problems.Pub Date: Nov. 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4602-7468-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A love letter to the power of books and friendship.
Women become horseback librarians in 1930s Kentucky and face challenges from the landscape, the weather, and the men around them.
Alice thought marrying attractive American Bennett Van Cleve would be her ticket out of her stifling life in England. But when she and Bennett settle in Baileyville, Kentucky, she realizes that her life consists of nothing more than staying in their giant house all day and getting yelled at by his unpleasant father, who owns a coal mine. She’s just about to resign herself to a life of boredom when an opportunity presents itself in the form of a traveling horseback library—an initiative from Eleanor Roosevelt meant to counteract the devastating effects of the Depression by focusing on literacy and learning. Much to the dismay of her husband and father-in-law, Alice signs up and soon learns the ropes from the library’s leader, Margery. Margery doesn’t care what anyone thinks of her, rejects marriage, and would rather be on horseback than in a kitchen. And even though all this makes Margery a town pariah, Alice quickly grows to like her. Along with several other women (including one black woman, Sophia, whose employment causes controversy in a town that doesn’t believe black and white people should be allowed to use the same library), Margery and Alice supply magazines, Bible stories, and copies of books like Little Women to the largely poor residents who live in remote areas. Alice spends long days in terrible weather on horseback, but she finally feels happy in her new life in Kentucky, even as her marriage to Bennett is failing. But her powerful father-in-law doesn’t care for Alice’s job or Margery’s lifestyle, and he’ll stop at nothing to shut their library down. Basing her novel on the true story of the Pack Horse Library Project established by the Works Progress Administration in the 1930s, Moyes (Still Me, 2018, etc.) brings an often forgotten slice of history to life. She writes about Kentucky with lush descriptions of the landscape and tender respect for the townspeople, most of whom are poor, uneducated, and grateful for the chance to learn. Although Alice and Margery both have their own romances, the true power of the story is in the bonds between the women of the library. They may have different backgrounds, but their commitment to helping the people of Baileyville brings them together.
A love letter to the power of books and friendship.Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-399-56248-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Pamela Dorman/Viking
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A steamy, glitzy, and tender tale of college intrigue.
In this opener to Kennedy’s (Hot & Bothered, 2017, etc.) Briar U romance series, two likable students keep getting their signals crossed.
Twenty-one-year-old Summer Heyward-Di Laurentis is expelled from Brown University in the middle of her junior year because she was responsible for a fire at the Kappa Beta Nu sorority house. Fortunately, her father has connections, so she’s now enrolled in Briar University, a prestigious institution about an hour outside Boston. But as she’s about to move into Briar’s Kappa Beta Nu house, she’s asked to leave by the sisters, who don’t want her besmirching their reputation. Her older brother Dean, who’s a former Briar hockey star, comes to her rescue; his buddies, who are still on the hockey team, need a fourth roommate for their townhouse. Three good-looking hockey jocks and a very rich, gorgeous fashion major under the same roof—what could go wrong? Summer becomes quickly infatuated with one of her housemates: Dean’s best friend Colin “Fitzy” Fitzgerald. There’s a definite spark between them, and they exchange smoldering looks, but the tattooed Fitzy, who’s also a video game reviewer and designer, is an introvert who prefers no “drama” in his life. Summer, however, is a charming extrovert, although she has an inferiority complex about her flagging scholastic acumen. As the story goes on, the pair seem to misinterpret each other’s every move. Meanwhile, another roommate and potential suitor, Hunter Davenport, is waiting in the wings. Kennedy’s novel is full of sex, alcohol, and college-level profanity, but it never becomes formulaic. The author adroitly employs snappy dialogue, steady pacing, and humor, as in a scene at a runway fashion show featuring Briar jocks parading in Summer-designed swimwear. The book also manages to touch on some serious subjects, including learning disabilities and abusive behavior by faculty members. Summer and Fitzy’s repeated stumbles propel the plot through engaging twists and turns; the characters trade off narrating the story, which gives each of them a chance to reveal some substance.
A steamy, glitzy, and tender tale of college intrigue.Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-72482-199-7
Page Count: 372
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Jan. 28, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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