Steven Levine, in his comment to my review of P. G. Wodehouse’s “Honeysuckle Cottage,” recommended “Greaves, This is Serious” by William Mingin. The story was originally published in Tales of the Unanticipated and then reprinted in David G. Hartwell’s anthology, Year’s Best Fantasy #3. And, as Steven warned, “Greaves, This is Serious” is short: only six pages. This pastiche of Wodehouse’s Bertie and Jeeves stories is clever. But, even a talented writer like Mingin can only capture Wodehouse’s signature style for a few pages. If you’re a Wodehouse completest, “Greaves, This is Serious” belongs in your collection.

Some writers can write great fantasy, but most can’t. Diana Wynne Jones is one of the former. J. K. Rowling may have the money and the fame, but I consider Diana Wynne Jones to be the greater fantasy writer. Her body of work maintains a high standard of quality. If you haven’t read any Diane Wynne Jones, here is a good place to start. In Deep Secret the “Multiverse” is in danger of becoming unbalanced and only the efforts of the Magids–powerful magicians who can move among dimensions–can prevent disaster. The battle continues in The Merlin Conspiracy as a page, Arianrhod Hyde (Roddy), finds herself in the middle of a conspiracy that could destroy worlds. Strong writing, plenty of action, intricate plotting, and deft characterizations blend into compulsive reading at its best. Sometimes, Diana Wynne Jones’ books are shelved in the YA section of the library or bookstore. Don’t be fooled! There’s plenty of delight here for precocious teenagers and discerning adults alike.

Little Dorrit seeps sentimentality on every one of its nearly 700 pages. Dickens is critiquing the British system of debtors’ prisons by showing how a family becomes undone, first by debt and later by riches. William Dorrit is imprisoned as a debtor. Amy (aka, Little Dorrit) is his saintly daughter. Fanny, his snobbish daughter, is a constant burden. Edward (aka, Tip) is a worthless idler. Someone bursts into tears on a regular basis. Arthur Clennam, returns to England after 20 years in the East, and befriends the Dorrits. Through Clennam’s efforts at the Circumlocution Office (aka, the British Treasury), Dorrit is released from debtors’ prison, becomes rich, and more disasters befall him. I slogged page by page, tear-jerker scene by tear-jerker scene, through Little Dorrit. I finished it, but if had been one page longer I might have bailed. The BBC version of Little Dorrit sits on my stack of Watch Real Soon DVDs so you’ll be seeing a review of that performance soon. As for the book, it is far from Dickens’ best. GRADE: C

There must be someone else besides me in America who hasn’t read Dan Brown’s Angels & Demons before now. I read Brown’s The Da Vinci Code before the movie version appeared and wondered what all the fuss was about. The Da Vinci Code seemed to me like a run-of-the-mill thriller with a series of puzzles thrown in. The movie was so-so. But now the buzz about the new movie version of Angels & Demons tempted me to read the book before I see the movie this weekend. First, Angels & Demons is a better book that The Da Vinci Code. In fact, it reminded me of 24 with non-stop action crammed into one day. Once again, Harvard professor and symbologist Robert Langdon is called on to solve a series of baffling puzzles starting with the branded body of a particle physicist. And, once again, Brown provides a sexy sidekick in the form of Vittoria Vetra, daughter of the murdered physicist. Together, they take on the sinister forces of the Illuminati, sworn enemies of the Catholic Church. There are grand chase scenes all round Rome as the clock ticks down to an explosive conclusion. Great fun here! GRADE: B+

Lisa Genova’s Still Alice is the story of a 50 year old Harvard psychology professor named Alice Howland who discovers she has early onset Alzheimer’s disease. In a matter of months, despite medication, Alice finds herself forgetting how to get home, where she put her Blackberry, and what she’s supposed to lecture about to those pesky Harvard students. The author, like her main character, is a Ph.D. in psychology so she knows her stuff. And Lisa Genova’s mother suffered from Alzheimer’s which makes many of the painful family scenes in this book ring true. However, Genova is more of a psychologist than a novelist. If you really want to read about the loss of cognition and identity, read Daniel Keyes’ classic “Flowers for Algernon.” GRADE: B.