Reading, Writing, and Me

Service  by Sarah Gilmartin Overview: Chef Daniel Costello is on top of the world, his name on the restaurant that he's built to be a long-running two Michelin star spot. After coming this far, he's confident that nothing can slow him down. But then the online letter comes out accusing Costello of sexual assault, signed by four of his former employees. The trial that follows dredges up long buried memories and reshapes Costello's family forever. Told from the perspective of Hannah, a former employee, Julie, Costello's wife, and Daniel himself, this novel takes a fascinating, human look at a sexual assault trial and the restaurant industry. Overall: 4.5 Characters: 5 The characters' different voices come through with such clarity in this novel. It's infamously difficult to write a multi-POV novel (especially in first person) that's truly well balanced, but Gilmartin executes this effortlessly. Hannah opens the novel and acts as the guide through the restauran...

Monsters: What Do We Do With Great Art By Bad People by Claire Dederer Overview: Monsters is part memoir, part criticism, part almost history of artistic monsters that society grapples with. The thesis of the book comes in the subtitle. What are we meant to do with the great, acclaimed, beloved works by artists who turn out to be horrible people in their private lives (which are public by virtue of their celebrity). In the wake of "cancel culture" and the great debate about the validity of all of that, Dederer attempts to look at the question through a variety of angles and through the lens of a number of "monsters." Dederer also offers chapters on the validity of the term and idea of a monster, thoughts on art critics and who gets to hold that title, and the place that women artists have in this conversation and in society in general. This is a captivating read that truly does meld beautifully written memoir and reflection with pieces of art history you might learn...