I knew Zeitoun was about post-Katrina New Orleans, and knew I liked Dave Eggers' writing, and that was enough for me to read it. I had no inkling of anything else to do with the book.

That said, it was a truly devastating read, and one that I'm still thinking about a week after finishing it. I read it in one day, and was unable to put it down. The writing is, in places, not Eggers' strongest work, in my opinion. I was too aware of his presence as a narrator, and was taken out of the story by his voice a few times in the beginning, but eventually he hit his stride and I became engrossed.

It's a terrifying story, made moreso by the fact that it's true, and it happened, and very recently. The book made clear that our society, with its heat, hot water, light, relative security...is extremely precarious, and held together by a series of important factors that, once missing, cause the collapse of the system. The flood waters made driving impossible. They killed phone lines, electricity. The worst people in society took immediate advantage, looting, stealing, victimizing, and the best people in society, like Zeitoun, were lumped in with them when the powers that be - military, government, police - panicked, realized they were losing control, and with no plan in place, began randomly imprisoning people.

It's a terrible story, in that those in power abused their power so thoroughly, partially through fear, I'm sure, as to destroy so much faith. But it's a beautiful story, too, in the simple acts of kindness that those without any real power at all, Zeitoun especially, chose to stay and bestow. People do help each other. There is good.

I had occasion to read an Advance Reading Copy of Michael Crummey's third novel, Galore. It's the first Michael Crummey I've read, and I now know I need to read anything else by him I can get my hands on.

A multi-generational tale of community, Galore is set in a small fishing village in Newfoundland - exactly when and exactly where are not revealed. The story begins with the death of a whale, and a shocking discovery inside its belly.

It tracks generations of two families, the Sellers and the Devines, and their rivalries, grudging inter-dependence, secret romances and superstitions.

The village is entirely dependent on the mercy of the ocean - to provide their food, to return their sailors home safe, to not wash away their homes. Year after year, babies are born, people die, people marry, hopes are raised and dashed, and the ocean is there for it all, along with the mystery the dead whale brought.

I enjoyed this book tremendously. Galore is a treat to read, by turns dark and slippery, funny and quirky, heartbreaking and tragic, and the people feel real enough to touch. Their stories can't be put down. I recommend it highly.