The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski

There is very little I can add to everything that's been said about this marvelous book. First the indie booksellers warmed to it, then the reviewers, then the chain stores and now Oprah (insert sound of heavenly choir here) so millions will read it and deservedly so. This debut novel will be read forever.

In many ways, this is Hamlet retold but set in 20th century Wisconsin and featuring a shitload of dogs; way more than I remember in Hamlet, at least, and I checked.

Wroblewski has created some real beauty on the pages though his gift for description does slow things down and you have to work to get through these 500+ pages but there's nothing wrong with that. To finish the story of Edgar, his dead father, his evil uncle, Almondine, who might be the greatest dog ever, and the many other Sawtelle dogs, is vastly rewarding and emotionally rich.

As for Oprah, it only took 61 previous tries but I knew she'd eventually come around and see things my way. You go, girl.

The Dead Father's Club by Matt Haig

This is a pretty clever re-telling of Hamlet through the eyes of an eleven year-old boy in a small English town. After Philip Noble’s father dies in a car accident, his father’s ghost appears to him to tell him that his uncle had him murdered and that if young Philip can’t avenge him, and he has only a short time to do so, he will suffer the Terrors for eternity. The beauty is putting these demands at the feet of a seemingly normal kid. Who’s going to believe him? Is this really happening? How do you kill an adult? Where do you even start? The book is being marketed to both adults and as a YA novel a la Mark Haddon’s Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime so it’ll be interesting to see how this book does and who it reaches. A good read.