Read More: Bluebeard

One day I was at Cat's, preparing for the arduous journey home, when I remembered I needed a book to read on the subway, so I asked to borrow one. She handed me a book named after a child rapist and murderer and with a sparkle in her eye told me, "It's one of my favorites." Did Cat have a secret side of her that she was just now ready to reveal after all of these years? I didn't want to get on the wrong side of this new Cat, so I took Bluebeard and in my most genuine fake voice thanked her profusely.

Once the book was in my hands I saw that it was by Kurt Vonnegut, which made the selection a little less troubling. I hadn't read anything by him since high school, so it was definitely time for a re-visit. I remember liking him a lot, but can only vaguely remember one short story, maybe about Einstein's dog? Or maybe it was Edison. I think the dog told him how to invent the light bulb. (I choose to look at this story as a historical account.)

A few pages into the book I sighed with relief, realizing this was not a book about Bluebeard the horrid. Cat was transformed from a sadistic psychopath back to the girl next door. I feel a little guilty about jumping to conclusions about the blackness of her soul so quickly, but they always say about serial killers, "They seemed so harmless!", so you can never be too wary of your best friends and family members.

Instead, this book is about an old, crotchety, lonely, reclusive, cyclopean ex-artist who suddenly finds his life again when two house guests come to stay. One convinces him to write his memoirs, resulting in Bluebeard. It's an intermingling of his past and his present, so we see how he came to be who he is today and how he's changing with his two housemates around to pester him back into existence. And like every good book, there is a mystery. The mystery of what he has locked in the old potato barn out back. Everyone is just dying to know.

Although perhaps not a masterpiece, this was a nice, light and entertaining read. It went by quickly and I wasn't bored for a moment! And yes, I do know what's in the potato barn, but I'm not telling.

- Megan Leigh