The Book We're Talking About This Week

Monday, July 9, 2012 The Book We're Talking About This Week "Mountains of the Moon" by I.J. Kay Viking, $26.95 Published on July 5, 2012 What is it about? The story is told in a series of flashbacks as protagonist Lulu ventures to the Mountains of the Moon, a stark African mountain range she fantasized about as a child. She's just been released from a 10-year stay in prison, but her troubles didn't begin there: Growing up with violent parents, Lulu's youth was plagued by psychiatric visits and crime. Throughout the novel, she attempts to rebuild herself under a new alias. Why are we talking about it? Although the topic is grim, the prose is imaginative, playful and fresh. The book begins uniquely by listing a cast of characters, and that piqued our interest. Who wrote it? This is I.J. Kay's first novel. She was born in Suffolk, but currently lives in Bristol and The Gambia, West Africa. Who will read it? Because of the book's theme of overcoming a tragic past, it may appeal to fans of Stieg Larsson. It will also be of interest to those who enjoy experimental fiction, unique voices and prose that intertwines with a story's landscape. What do the reviewers say? Read more about "Mountains of the Moon" here. More on HuffPost Books: 11 Best Summer Books Of 2012 Walmart Abandoned In Texas Renovated Into Chic New McAllen Public Library (PHOTOS) William Faulkner House Gives Peek Into Writer's Life What's YOUR Favorite Independent Bookstore? (VOTE) New JK Rowling Book Cover, Page Count Revealed For 'The Casual Vacancy' BLOG POSTS James Franco: Girls and Gatz I know I am very late to be talking about the second half of the first season of Girls, and that the second season has already been shot, but I need to follow up my initial post about the show. Rozanne Gold: Food for Thought: Two Lovely Books for Summer Here are two wonderful summer reads about food and family from exotic climes: One is a memoir, the other, a cookbook. Don Winslow: The Worst Bad Solution The solution isn't the military model, a "War on Drugs" that has no clear definition of victory, no exit strategy, no coherent strategy at all except the fatalistic acceptance of a seemingly endless stalemate. It hasn't worked, it cannot work, and it will not work. Michael Buerk: Bewildered, Elderly Male Considers the Sensation of 'Fifty Shades of Grey' It's sad, but undeniably true, that our rubbish tells more about us than our art. Take the literary sensation of our times - you must have heard about it. It's called Fifty Shades of Grey, a poorly written, passingly pornographic novel that has become the fastest selling book of all time. Its puerile plot and kinky sex has sold 10 million paperbacks in America, a million E-books on Amazon; Hollywood stars are fighting to appear in the movie. The author, a British woman going under the name of E.L. James, is a squillionaire having already outpaced J.K. Rowling, Dan Brown (an even worse writer), the Koran and the Bible. Lex Paulson: The Citizen's Book Club: A New Idea for 2012 The goal: present to you, between now and Election Day, single-sitting passages from the classic texts of American democracy. Substantial enough to spark ideas and prod debate; short enough to read on a coffee break.

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