The formula for a life of adventure has been laid out by Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. At least, that is what the heroine of our novel believes. All a life of adventure requires is that the following core values are adhered to: BOLDNESS, RESOLUTION, INDEPENDENCE, and HORN-BLOWING.
The novel is told in first person, and our narrator is a 25-year-old college graduate who has been treading water at menial jobs since her graduation. When she steals her sister’s library book, Treasure Island, she is overwhelmed by the lack of adventure in her life and decides to dedicate herself to making her life more closely resemble the action she sees in the book.
Her first step is to become more assertive at work. Unfortunately, her version of assertion is refusing to carry out her duties, ignoring the pets in the shop, and borrowing cash she isn’t entitled to in order to make an impulse purchase. The hasty ending of her employment leads her quickly to the decision to be more bold in her relationships, and she declares that she will be moving in with her boyfriend.
Unemployed and ever more enamored with emulating the characters in Treasure Island, our heroine quickly begins noticing how inhibited the other people in her life are. Determined that they should follow in her footsteps, she begins finding various unwelcome ways to introduce change into the lives of those around her. After fracturing a mother-son relationship, destroying her sister’s relationship, and nearly ruining her parent’s marriage, the narrator is still set on her plan to reinvent her life. It isn’t clear how much disaster she needs to cause before she will finally start taking responsibility for her own life.
Overall Impression: I thought this book had some fun ideas. I think most can identify with feeling unsatisfied with our lives at one point or another, and I enjoyed the narrator’s determination to take charge of her life. However, I spent most of the book wishing she would somehow wake up and start to get herself together instead of using and blaming everyone else. All the same, the book was an entertaining read.
Critique:
- The main character is unbelievably selfish. I think this is intended to be a humorous rib at how often we try to change everyone around us instead of ourselves, but this character took selfishness to the extreme. It is hard to love a book when you don’t like the main character.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Only the Truth by Pat Brown
This book wasn’t quite long enough to feel like a novel but was too long to be a short story. I’m told that this in-between length is called a novella, so I suppose that’s the term we will go with.
The novella is set in Whitfield Glen, Arkansas, a small town that seems to have been bypassed by modern technology. Actually, when I started the book, the description made me think the book was set decades ago, so I was quite surprised when I found out that one of the main characters was born in 1990.
Billy Ray is the narrator, he is a middle-aged man who has lived alone about three miles outside of town for his whole adult life. He is known around the town as being harmless, though some wonder if he is all there in the head. Billie Ray led a quiet, solitary life until the day he met a mysterious woman by the railroad tracks. When she asked to come home with him, he agreed and they spent two happy years living alone in his cabin.
Trouble starts soon after a neighbor moves in across the way. When the neighbor’s house is mysteriously burned down with the neighbor inside, suspicion is quickly cast on Billy Ray. However, it doesn’t take long for the evidence to point to Charlene, Billy’s mystery woman. The more Billy Ray learns about Charlene and her past, the more confused he grows. How can the cold-hearted sociopath that everyone tells him she is be the same sweet woman he has spent two years with? Billy Ray isn’t sure what to believe and makes a long trek to Charlene’s hometown with the hope of finding answers.
Overall Impression: As a whole, I enjoyed the book. The author spent quite a bit of time piling up terrible evidence against Charlene, but it served to make a strong point of how easily truth is shadowed by perception. Billy Ray wasn’t a particularly dynamic character, but he did have my sympathy and I like that he had moments of doubt about Charlene’s character.
Critique:
• I wish that the author had given Billy Ray more depth. She chose to portray him with a childlike mental capacity, which sort of worked for the story, but seemed to sell the character short. After all, he was smart enough to piece together Charlene’s past, it seems like more of that sharpness could have been shown in the character
• The ending wrapped up a little too quickly and neatly for my taste. Most of the book is spent adding seemingly impossible obstacles and then, very quickly, everything is resolved.
The novella is set in Whitfield Glen, Arkansas, a small town that seems to have been bypassed by modern technology. Actually, when I started the book, the description made me think the book was set decades ago, so I was quite surprised when I found out that one of the main characters was born in 1990.
Billy Ray is the narrator, he is a middle-aged man who has lived alone about three miles outside of town for his whole adult life. He is known around the town as being harmless, though some wonder if he is all there in the head. Billie Ray led a quiet, solitary life until the day he met a mysterious woman by the railroad tracks. When she asked to come home with him, he agreed and they spent two happy years living alone in his cabin.
Trouble starts soon after a neighbor moves in across the way. When the neighbor’s house is mysteriously burned down with the neighbor inside, suspicion is quickly cast on Billy Ray. However, it doesn’t take long for the evidence to point to Charlene, Billy’s mystery woman. The more Billy Ray learns about Charlene and her past, the more confused he grows. How can the cold-hearted sociopath that everyone tells him she is be the same sweet woman he has spent two years with? Billy Ray isn’t sure what to believe and makes a long trek to Charlene’s hometown with the hope of finding answers.
Overall Impression: As a whole, I enjoyed the book. The author spent quite a bit of time piling up terrible evidence against Charlene, but it served to make a strong point of how easily truth is shadowed by perception. Billy Ray wasn’t a particularly dynamic character, but he did have my sympathy and I like that he had moments of doubt about Charlene’s character.
Critique:
• I wish that the author had given Billy Ray more depth. She chose to portray him with a childlike mental capacity, which sort of worked for the story, but seemed to sell the character short. After all, he was smart enough to piece together Charlene’s past, it seems like more of that sharpness could have been shown in the character
• The ending wrapped up a little too quickly and neatly for my taste. Most of the book is spent adding seemingly impossible obstacles and then, very quickly, everything is resolved.
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Into the Free by Julie Cantrell
Have you ever thought about what your life would be like if Murphy’s Law applied in every single major life event or decision you faced? I’m not referring to something going wrong as in annoying setbacks, I mean SOMETHING TERRIBLE HAPPENS at every important juncture in your life. In Into the Free we get a pretty good idea of what a life looks like when the odds have been stacked (blatantly, overwhelmingly, and impossibly stacked) against someone.
The novel is set in Mississippi and opens in the 1930s. Millie, the main character, is a child living with her depressive mother in a small cabin rented from a well-to-do farmer. Millie’s father, Jack, is often absent as he travels with the local rodeo, making a living as a bull rider. The days when Jack comes home are days of terror and anger for Millie, as he has a tendency to greet her mama with his fist instead of with a kiss.
In the beginning of the book, young Millie watches in horror as a stray dog kills its own puppies. The cruel image returns to her mind a few times throughout the novel and the author seems to use it as a metaphor for the brutality of life. As Millie ages, life in turn grows stronger in its cruelty as her mother becomes drug-dependent and more depressed, her father grows more violent, and Millie eventually finds herself in the care of strangers who have less than the best of intentions.
The novel is not entirely without joy. Millie has a few dizzyingly happy weeks with a handsome gypsy named River who has visited her town every year since she was a child. She also earns the affection of a gentle cowboy who never leaves her side as her family self-destructs. Finally, she is followed by an angel or ghost who always seems to appear just when life seems determined to do Millie in.
Overall Impression: While I didn’t love the book, there are some very good stretches of writing in it. The author’s description made the main characters very real in their rough, raw ways. I particularly liked the way that the author challenged Millie’s perception of her parents as she learned more about their past.
Critique:
• The number of bad things that happened to Millie—at just the right time to mess up some other hope or plan—was so high that it got to be comical. I know some people really do have extremely hard lives and timing can be terrible, but this was so extreme that the main character lost my sympathy. As soon as some possibility of hope arrived for Millie, I found myself trying to guess what terrible thing would mess it up and sure enough, something TERRIBLE would be delivered.
• The author had Millie wrestle with believing in God throughout the novel – which I’m fine with. Given Millie’s rough life, it makes sense that she would wonder if God exists and if he is good or cruel. However, her bursts of faith would come at very strange times. For example, she is attacked in a church and no divine intervention saves her, yet the next morning she somehow believes in God again (which is strange since before the attack she wasn’t sure she believed in God at all).
The novel is set in Mississippi and opens in the 1930s. Millie, the main character, is a child living with her depressive mother in a small cabin rented from a well-to-do farmer. Millie’s father, Jack, is often absent as he travels with the local rodeo, making a living as a bull rider. The days when Jack comes home are days of terror and anger for Millie, as he has a tendency to greet her mama with his fist instead of with a kiss.
In the beginning of the book, young Millie watches in horror as a stray dog kills its own puppies. The cruel image returns to her mind a few times throughout the novel and the author seems to use it as a metaphor for the brutality of life. As Millie ages, life in turn grows stronger in its cruelty as her mother becomes drug-dependent and more depressed, her father grows more violent, and Millie eventually finds herself in the care of strangers who have less than the best of intentions.
The novel is not entirely without joy. Millie has a few dizzyingly happy weeks with a handsome gypsy named River who has visited her town every year since she was a child. She also earns the affection of a gentle cowboy who never leaves her side as her family self-destructs. Finally, she is followed by an angel or ghost who always seems to appear just when life seems determined to do Millie in.
Overall Impression: While I didn’t love the book, there are some very good stretches of writing in it. The author’s description made the main characters very real in their rough, raw ways. I particularly liked the way that the author challenged Millie’s perception of her parents as she learned more about their past.
Critique:
• The number of bad things that happened to Millie—at just the right time to mess up some other hope or plan—was so high that it got to be comical. I know some people really do have extremely hard lives and timing can be terrible, but this was so extreme that the main character lost my sympathy. As soon as some possibility of hope arrived for Millie, I found myself trying to guess what terrible thing would mess it up and sure enough, something TERRIBLE would be delivered.
• The author had Millie wrestle with believing in God throughout the novel – which I’m fine with. Given Millie’s rough life, it makes sense that she would wonder if God exists and if he is good or cruel. However, her bursts of faith would come at very strange times. For example, she is attacked in a church and no divine intervention saves her, yet the next morning she somehow believes in God again (which is strange since before the attack she wasn’t sure she believed in God at all).
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
On Little Wings by Regina Sirois
Caution…reading this book will make you want to go to Maine, eat lots of seafood, and sit by the ocean. If you are okay with that, feel free to proceed.
The story opens as sixteen-year-old Jennifer is reeling from the shock of discovering an aunt that her parents have kept hidden from her for her entire life. Jennifer is stumbling away from her house, replaying the fight she and her parents have just had, and picturing the old photo of a face with freckles just like her own. In spite of her mother’s objections, Jennifer decides she has to go and meet her mysterious aunt and find out what caused the gaping rift in her family.
Aunt Sarah is the sister of Jennifer’s mother. She lives in an old house on the beach in Maine that has been in her family for generations. Sarah leads a quiet life and is well loved in her community, but has never been able to recover from being cut out of her sister’s life. She is thrilled to have Jennifer come and visit and to be able to share the family’s history with someone. The two strike an immediate friendship and by putting both of their experiences together are able to piece together the reasons why Jennifer’s mother cut Sarah out of her life.
During her stay, Jennifer meets Nathan, a gifted young man who Sarah has tutored since childhood. Nathan is moody, mysterious, and also happens to be brilliant. It doesn’t take long for Jennifer to find herself obsessing over Nathan’s smile and the meaning behind his strange behavior.
Overall Impression: I think that this book has some good potential, but it isn’t going to make my favorites list. While I find family secrets and dynamics to be interesting, I’m not particularly interested in teenage love stories and that particular plot line took up a good chunk of the book. However, the writing style is enjoyable, some of the characters are quirky and fun, and the description of the Maine coast is beautiful.
Critique:
• I know Nathan was supposed to be broody and mysterious, but I found him irritating. It didn’t seem like he had enough spark to make up for his inability to express emotion.
• The author spent a fair amount of time creating Jennifer’s best friend Cleo, but then Cleo barely made a splash for the rest of the book. It was strange.
The story opens as sixteen-year-old Jennifer is reeling from the shock of discovering an aunt that her parents have kept hidden from her for her entire life. Jennifer is stumbling away from her house, replaying the fight she and her parents have just had, and picturing the old photo of a face with freckles just like her own. In spite of her mother’s objections, Jennifer decides she has to go and meet her mysterious aunt and find out what caused the gaping rift in her family.
Aunt Sarah is the sister of Jennifer’s mother. She lives in an old house on the beach in Maine that has been in her family for generations. Sarah leads a quiet life and is well loved in her community, but has never been able to recover from being cut out of her sister’s life. She is thrilled to have Jennifer come and visit and to be able to share the family’s history with someone. The two strike an immediate friendship and by putting both of their experiences together are able to piece together the reasons why Jennifer’s mother cut Sarah out of her life.
During her stay, Jennifer meets Nathan, a gifted young man who Sarah has tutored since childhood. Nathan is moody, mysterious, and also happens to be brilliant. It doesn’t take long for Jennifer to find herself obsessing over Nathan’s smile and the meaning behind his strange behavior.
Overall Impression: I think that this book has some good potential, but it isn’t going to make my favorites list. While I find family secrets and dynamics to be interesting, I’m not particularly interested in teenage love stories and that particular plot line took up a good chunk of the book. However, the writing style is enjoyable, some of the characters are quirky and fun, and the description of the Maine coast is beautiful.
Critique:
• I know Nathan was supposed to be broody and mysterious, but I found him irritating. It didn’t seem like he had enough spark to make up for his inability to express emotion.
• The author spent a fair amount of time creating Jennifer’s best friend Cleo, but then Cleo barely made a splash for the rest of the book. It was strange.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin
This week has been pretty full and I haven’t had much reading time. So this week’s review is a book that I read quite a while ago and is one of my favorite discoveries in the last few years.
The novel centers around Angel, a professional cake maker in Kigali, Rwanda. Angel 's family has moved to Rwanda from Tanzania because her husband has been hired as a consultant at the local institute of science and technology. Though her husband has a good job, Angel is not the type to rest on her laurels and has quickly developed a reputation for being the best cake maker in the area.
Angel is active in the life of her community and in the lives of her customers. She lends a sympathetic ear and finds subtle ways to help without being overbearing. For example, when Angel is hired to make a cake for a baby’s christening, she learns that the little girl’s name is going to be Goodenough. After a consult with the baby’s mother (strictly cake related…), the little girl is named Perfect.
The novel doesn’t just center around sweet topics like cakes and babies, Angel and her family have seen their fair share of heartache, and of course Rwanda itself has seen plenty of heartache as well. Angel brings courage and an undeniable hope, no matter how heartbreaking the situation she is faces.
Overall Impression: This novel is one of my favorites. The author touches on difficult subjects like AIDS, genocide, and child soldiers, but the novel remains hopeful and full of life in every situation. Angel is a warm character with an open mind, and she can’t help but draw readers into her world.
Critique:
- While I love Angel as a character, I think the author may have portrayed her a little too simply. I would have liked to have seen more of the business savvy that Angel possesses portrayed in her overall character.
The novel centers around Angel, a professional cake maker in Kigali, Rwanda. Angel 's family has moved to Rwanda from Tanzania because her husband has been hired as a consultant at the local institute of science and technology. Though her husband has a good job, Angel is not the type to rest on her laurels and has quickly developed a reputation for being the best cake maker in the area.
Angel is active in the life of her community and in the lives of her customers. She lends a sympathetic ear and finds subtle ways to help without being overbearing. For example, when Angel is hired to make a cake for a baby’s christening, she learns that the little girl’s name is going to be Goodenough. After a consult with the baby’s mother (strictly cake related…), the little girl is named Perfect.
The novel doesn’t just center around sweet topics like cakes and babies, Angel and her family have seen their fair share of heartache, and of course Rwanda itself has seen plenty of heartache as well. Angel brings courage and an undeniable hope, no matter how heartbreaking the situation she is faces.
Overall Impression: This novel is one of my favorites. The author touches on difficult subjects like AIDS, genocide, and child soldiers, but the novel remains hopeful and full of life in every situation. Angel is a warm character with an open mind, and she can’t help but draw readers into her world.
Critique:
- While I love Angel as a character, I think the author may have portrayed her a little too simply. I would have liked to have seen more of the business savvy that Angel possesses portrayed in her overall character.
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