Dr. Bookworm

gonzo book reviews

These are my riffs on books: old and new, fiction and non- fiction. Enjoy and let me know what you think!
Cathy Luh

Role Models: In Books and in Life

Scooch over, Lizzie Bennet and Jo March. Make room for Becky Paulson. For decades, my favorite literary role models have been Lizzie from Pride and Prejudice and Jo of Little Women. Both lived in the 19th century, Lizzie in England and Jo in New England. I admire them for their smarts, independence, and if the term is not too old-fashioned, “goodness.” […]

Does the Universe Make Sense? Should We Care?

She held tight to the slowly rising rope. When it had hoisted her far enough, she bent her knees to lift herself off the ground. Everyone – family and servants – took a turn. Holding up the rope, and below it, the round scale, was the family cook, and the strongest man in the compound, Shi […]

Natural World Musings

I feel like a voyeur. On the pond down the hill, Canadian geese have paired off for mating. I watch them from my kitchen window. Couples circle around each other, splashing and bobbing their heads in and out of the water. I do not avert my eyes when he pounces on her back, his beak […]

Black and White and Yellow

“Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.” Debate continues about this line from the 1974 noir movie Chinatown. Interpretations include: You are in over your head. Things don’t make sense. You can’t win. In Chinatown. How should Chinese people consider this comment? Are we different? Charles Yu explores the question of being Asian in America in his National Book Award-winning novel Interior […]

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