Books I Read August 21, 2022

Wisconsin Death Trip by Michael Lesy --  Collections of horror stories and loosely related pictures from a small town Wisconsin paper, intermixed with snippets of writing from the time. Felix Feneon did the first part better and Frederic Tuten the second. Unoriginal and uninspired. 

South Wind Through the Kitchen: The Best of Elizabeth David by Elizabeth David – Recipes and food writing from the grand madam of midcentury English cooking. Charming.  

The Widow by Simenon – A murderer takes up with a hard-bitten widow with a large house. Horror ensues, though never quite in the fashion one suspects. As usual, Simenon’s little noirs are masterclasses in sketching characters and developing tension—this one was really strong even by the standards, however.  

The Love Parade by Sergio Pitol – A historian investigates a 30 year old murder via interviews with a mottled cast of Mexico City literati, with the running joke being they’re all so self-obsessed as to be incapable of viewing the thing except through their own narrow prism—the historian included. I enjoyed it but I couldn’t say it was the first time I read something like it.

The Jungle is Neutral by F. Spencer Chapman – History’s most phlegmatic Englishman recounts his history as a guerilla in WW2 Malaysia. Engaging stories of daring-do.