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Subtitled: Murder, Betrayal, and the Lost Dream of Jonestown. I’ve read just about everything on this subject, but this nonfiction book for teens does an excellent job of conveying the nightmare of a mesmerizing, crazed leader. (Sound familiar?) Through Jones’s laudatory goals of equality, coupled with his incredible skills at manipulation, we can see how he got so far so fast. And then witness his slide into demagoguery, addiction, and mental illness. So many wanted to believe and look where it got them! Still shocking and sobering. Lest we forget…
In this novel, eponymous Chicky has been shepherding denizens in and out of a grand old apartment building on the west side of NYC for years. They’re very rich and often arrogant. Chicky’s wife has recently died, and he has money troubles, but he’s unfailingly polite and helpful. Emily, in apartment 11C, is stunning and married to Whit, who is heavily loaded and increasingly mean. She has some connections to the art world, and volunteers in a soup kitchen trying to do good. Julian, a gallerist in apartment 2A, is also married, but when he and Emily cross paths, whoo boy! Tensions ramp up in the streets as racist killings escalate. In the midst of all this, the building is subject to a bizarre invasion with tragic results. It’s weirdly fun to read about these entitled people whose wealth is sometimes based on dubious schemes and who aren’t immune to troubles despite their financial padding. Hah!
Shelby is haunted by guilt. She and best friend Helene were in a crash two years ago. Shelby had her seat belt on, but Helene, unbelted, was left in a perpetual coma; visitors come to Helene’s home in Long Island to experience her supposed healing powers. Shelby flees to NYC, hacks off her hair and is subject to self-harm. She ends up working in a pet store where a fellow worker, Maravelle, enlists her to watch her teenage children, and Shelby gets drawn into their lives. Uneasy relationships with men occur but none stick. Shelby is fiercely resistant to human connection, but she has a big heart, especially when it comes to animals. It turns out someone special has been watching out for her since the accident, though we don't discover who and why until deep into the book. I love thorny characters like Shelby. The author is known for her touches of magic realism (not necessarily my thing), but a good story is a good story, and I was ready to get caught up in one.
Olivia is a dynamite coder who got fired from her last job at a nonprofit because the too-powerful AI she created leaked employees’ personal information on the company's website. She needs money and turns to Eustachian, an audio enterprise with big ambitions. It's a very intrusive firm, using every aspect of workers' lives to constantly measure their efficiency. Only a few Black workers are hired, primarily to look good on the DEI front. Olivia and Walcott, who has Jamaican roots like her, team in a last-ditch effort to save Eustachian from its primary rival, the humongous MeeCorps. It doesn't work—no surprise—but frees her and Walcott to (hopefully) use their considerable talents for good. Snarky humor (she nicknames an Aussie boss Wombat), literary and philosophical references (her mother was a professor), and a chilling glimpse into AI's destructive uses.
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