Room: A Novel by Emma Donoghue

I first picked up this book in a Barnes and Noble and was not impressed.  I could not imagine reading a novel narrated by a five-year-old.  I forgot about this initial encounter and downloaded it to my Kindle after reading what seemed like an interesting description.  It took a few pages to get used to the child's lingo.  Then, I was captivated.  I was so captivated that I could hardly stop reading and began to shake with anxiety at the intensity of it all!
It is about a boy and his mother living in captivity under the mother's abductor.    He has never been or seen outside the small room that they live in besides the blue sky through Skylight.  When his ma begins to tell him about the rest of the world and her escape plan, he becomes fearful and skeptical. 
Everyone has heard about escaped abductees in the news.  I have thought, " Oh, how awful!" and "Oh, how happy they must be to have gotten out."  I never considered that these people were actually LIVING and might be happy or used to living this way.  The outside world can be very shocking and threatening once used to Room.
I was interested that Donoghue was able to capture the views and voice of Jack, the narrator, so well.  So, I looked into it.  Even though she put the entire book together in only six months, she did quite a bit of research.  She looked into cases similar to her idea, births in concentration camps, lives of abused children, outdoor sheds and sound proofing measures, and also created her own dictionary based on her son's vocabulary.  I was also floored by a true revelation from Donoghue; 25,000 Americans are imprisoned at any one time (not in the same circumstances, of course).  Amazing!!
Emma Donoghue is very creative.  She made her own website dedicated to room where you can read interviews and view a digital 'Room.'  It is very interesting.  Check it out here.  Make sure your computer volume is on.

This is one of the few books that I may actually go out and buy to keep in my library.  Not only would I read it again, I plan to read parts of it to my daughter.  I really enjoyed it!

Food: slimy green beans and 100 pieces of cereal

Reading: Anna Karina

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

I can see why this is such a popular book.  It is the southern 1960's version of Desperate Housewives.  Secrets, betrayal, death, life...what's not to like?
It is the stories of three women who come together to write about rich white women and the relationships with their black domestics.  The book lets loose hidden anger, guilt, joy, and sorrow, but ultimately teaches the women that they are "just two people.  Not that much separates us.  Not nearly as much as I'd thought.
Stockett took five years to write this book and it was declined for publishing several times before it came out in 2009.  She got the idea to write the book because of her relationship with her own beloved black maid who made caramel cake just like Minny (one of the book's narrators).  If you would like to see the recipe go to Stockett's site.  I was interested to see the the recipe actually was published in “The Memphis Cookbook” by The Junior League of Memphis, Inc.
I look forward to seeing the movie which will come out next August.

I recommend this book, but I will not read it again.

Food: Iced tea, toast points, and coffee

Reading: Room

Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkein

WOW!!  What a GREAT book! 

This is the tale of the battle at Gondor, the rise of Aragorn or King Elfstone, and the final destruction of the ring.  I was enraptured by the story and would have called it the best book that I have ever read, except the end was quite dull.  Although interesting, I could have done without reading about the hobbits’ journey back home.  I found parts of the appendix quite interesting, as well.  I have to wonder though…the book is already so long, why no just include those things in the original story? 

Anyhow, this will always be a favorite!  I will look forward to reading it again with my children.

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkein

The Two Towers describes the adventures of the fellowship after it is broken.  First we find Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli saying farwell to their fallen friend Boromir.  He single handedly defended Merry and Pippin from an army of Orcs, but he is overtaken and the hobbits are captured.  After their good-byes, they begin to track the group of Orcs in search of their friends. 

Merry and Pippin are being swiftly dragged toward Isengard when Merry smartly frees his hands and drops his Elven pin as a signal of life.  Once they reach Fanghorn Forest, the orcs stop and are overcome by the Riders of Rohan.  During the battle, they are able to stealthly escape into the forest using their elven cloaks. Once inside, they are discovered by Treebeard, an Ent.  They tell him their story and he is prompted to go to war with Sauroman for his previous unjusteses.  They gather and march toward Isengard trumpeting.

Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli eventually meet the Rohan Riders who are riding back after slaying the orcs.  They tell the group that there was no sign of hobbits, but lend them horses to aid  their search.  Once they reach the scene of the battle, they discover hobbit tracks and lembas, which indicate that they stole away into Fanhorn.  While in the forest, they run into Galdalf the White who they mistake for Sauroman.  After they realize their folly, they join him in riding to Minas Tirith.

There they find that the king is under the influence of Wormtongue—one of Sauroman’s spies.  Wormtongue flees and the men of Elendil accompany the riders to war in Helm’s Deep.  The war is successful for those against Saufoman because of help from Fanghorn and Gandolf.  They ride to Isengard and find Merry and Pippin at the gate.

The Ents had broken through the surrounding wall of Isengard and were flooding the area with water.  Sauroman and Wormtongue hid in Orthnac in despair and cowardice.  Gandolf asks him to come out, but he will not.  He breaks Sauroman’s staff and obtains the Palantir which is the means for communication with Sauron.  It forces an immediate departure of the group when Pippin interest allows Sauron to see him, a hobbit.

Finally, we meet again Frodo and Sam who are scouring over mountains and cliffs in attempts to reach Mordor.  They find themselves unable to go further because of the terrain when they capture a persuing Gollum.  Frodo decides to take Gandalf’s advise that help may be in unusual places and makes Smeagol swear on ‘The Precious’ to help them.  Smeagol leads them out of the mountains, through the marshes, and to the Black Gates.  They realize that there is no way through without being seen and aske Smeagol to guide them through another entry.  One which is less guarded.  They journey on and are captured by Faramir, Boromir’s brother, who is watching the Anduin land.  He listens to Frodo’s story, but decides to leave the ring and Gollum in the hands of Frodo.  Finallly, they reach the stairs at Cirith Ungol and begin climbing.  While their, they see an army lead by the Wraith-king coming out of the gates of Minas Morgul and leading them toward Osgiliath.  They continue their assent.  Upon reaching the top, they are abandoned by Gollum in Shelob’s Lair.  Sam heroically fights off Gollum and Shelob, but only after Frodo has been bit.  He makes the decision to go forward with the ring because he believes Frodo to be dead.  He slips it on to conceal himself from Orcs and finds out through them that Frodo is only asleep.

Recommendation:  Definitely!  I liked this book better than the first.  It is very interesting to read such an interwoven tale.  I do find it difficult to keep some of the cities straight, though.

Food:  Beef stew

Specials by Scott Westerfeld

Specials, the third book in The Uglies series is about a new young group of Specials called The Cutters.  Their job in maintaining city order is to patrol for Uglies and Pretties exchanging the brain lesion cure and to ultimately discover The New Smoke (the source of the cure) and stop it.  It turns out that The Smoke is even bigger than The Cutters imagined and they unintentionally start a war between The Smoke and their home city.

This book was a bit more predictable than the previous two and a bit more ridiculous.  The Cutters are made out to be very strange in appearance and have most of the traits of a superhero.  I would love to see what Westerfeld envisioned when he created this breed of post-operative humans.

Recommended you read the previous two

Would I read it again? No

Recommended Food: anything but spag bowl

Now reading: The Lord of the Rings, Two Towers by Tolkein

Now reading:  Factory Girls by Leslie Chang

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld

The Uglies Series continues with Pretties.  The life of a pretty is good.  An endless supply of tasty food is always available complete with purge pills to keep you skinny, clothing can be designed and recycled by your closet, and there is an unlimited amount of fun to be had.  The only problem is choosing which party to attend.  And, if you stay bubbly enough, you might get an invitation to one of the most popular cliques.

Problem is, on clique is breaking all the rules.  The Crims do not want to be bubbly.  They want to think clearly like they did before the operation.  When they discover brain lesions are the cause of their bubbliness and that there may be a cure, they make up their minds to escape Pretty Town and find The New Smoke for a chance to get their old selves back.

Pretties is just as action packed as Uglies.  It kept me up reading late into the night to see what new surprises were in store. 

There were a few things that bothered me, though.  For example, the cure for the lesions supposedly ate at the lesions.  How would ‘nanos’ repair the brain by eating away at it?  Also, why in this futuristic society do they still use plastic?  They also think that people that lived during our current time were backwards because we used so much metal.  However, they use lots of metal too—metal grid under the city, metal bracelets, metal on their cars and hoverboards.  These things just don’t make sense.  It seems like the details were not thought through.

So, I looked up Westerfeld and found out that he has written at least sixteen books since 2003!  That is two per year!  I guess when you are cranking out books that quickly, all you care about is a decent plot for a decent income.  It is not wrong, just a strong contrast to the Lord of the Rings were details may be a bit much.  Westerfeld’s books are delightful, but will definitely not be legends.

Recommended

Would I read it again? Maybe

Food equivalent: cotton candy

Now reading: The Lord of the Rings, Two Towers by Tolkein

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Uglies is a science fiction coming of age book about an adolescent named Tally Youngblood.  She lives at a time where sixteen-year-olds undergo a beautifying operation in order to reduce jealousy, racism, conflict, individuality, etc.  Tally cannot wait to become beautiful and join her best friend Peris in Pretty Town until she meets Shay who does not want to have the operation.  But it is not a choice.  Shay has to run away to escape the knife.  This blows Tally’s mind and she is faced with a decision of her own.

Although, this book is appropriate for young adults, it sent my mind spinning!  It is fast paced and always surprising!  (I love reading books where I cannot guess what is going to happen next).  I had a difficult time putting it down (alright, I downloaded an audiobook, but same difference).  It also made me wonder where our looks-eccentric culture is headed.  We can now decide what we want to look like with modern dentistry, hair dye, piercings, tattoos, and plastic surgery.  How far will we go?  I hardly believe that we will embrace our government making these decisions for us.  However, what if WWII had gone a little differently?  All in all, Uglies is a very fun read.  Thanks to the coworker who recommended it!

I recommend this for those who like a fun, interesting, and surprising novel.  Beware!  If you read this before going to bed, you might find that you are up a little later than expected!

Would I read it again? Probably

Food equivalent: peppermint

Now reading: The Lord of the Rings, Book II

Now reading:  Specials by Scott Westerfeld

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkein

The Lord of the Rings is one of those rare instances where I was glad that I watched the movie before reading the book.  Tolkein’s work is seriously intense.  It is amazing that he was able to create such a vivid account of a totally made-up world.  This could be why he is called ‘The Father of Modern Fantasy’ and is one of the most read authors of all time. 

The book is so detailed and dense that I believe that I would have had trouble coming up with all of the images myself.  My memories from the film allowed my imagination to just fill in the extra details—which there were a lot of.  For example, I had never heard of Tom Bombadil, the master of the woods, who was a major part of Book I.  I was also able to concentrate on the numerous songs that are incorporated throughout.  They are beautiful poems that must have taken more than a bit of creativity.

Book I denotes the acquisition of The Ring by Frodo and the beginning of his journey to Mordor.  His quest begins with friends and relatives, Merry, Pippin, and Sam Gamgee.  Along the way, he meets more friends that help him escape The Black Riders and Gollum.  Eventually, the fellowship is formed in Rivendell and they begin their journey south meeting more friend and foe along the way.  Unfortunately, the fellowship is broken in part by Gondalf The Grey’s fall in Moria and Boromir’s lust for The Ring, but also because Frodo desires to go forward without risking his friends’ lives.  Upon his quiet departure, Sam discovers him and they row off together.

Everyone should read The Lord of the Rings at least once.
Did I like it? Yes.  I am really happy that I read one of the most loved novels of all time.
Would I read it again? Maybe to my kids.

Food Equivalent: a stick of butter

Reading: Pretties by Scott Westerfeld

The Magicians

This is an odd book for me to begin this blog with.  I do not usually read fantasy novels.  This one caught my eye for three reasons:

1. It was on the racks of three stores that I went to during one week.
2. It has a beautiful cover.
3. It was written by Lev Grossman, which reminded me of Les Grossman and made me laugh.

So, I bought it…and read it. 

It was easy to read.  The fluidity of Grossman’s words easily paints images in your mind.  In fact, it is more like watching the book, than actually reading it.  Wonderful! 

The book is about Quentin., a genius high school student who discovers he is magic when he is accepted into a very elite college for magicians.   Sound like another book series to anyone???  That is because Grossman loved the Harry Potter series (and other fantasy novels which he refers to in The Magicians), but he wanted to take ‘Harry’ a step further.  Put him into an adult setting where there is no omnipresent adversary out to destroy humankind.  Then, what?  What would a young adult magician do with his knowledge and power?  As Grossman says, “(Quentin is) trying to figure out…what the %#&$ magic is for.”  (View interview here).

Quentin, like so many other young people, is always looking for the next best thing.  He is disillusioned into believing that his school acceptance will make him happy, then his eventual graduation, and his playtime in New   York.  But, everything loses it’s newness and he is just as disappointed as ever.   When an opportunity for an adventure to his favorite ‘fictional’ universe comes up, he believes that he will truly and finally be happy. 

Good premise, right? 

So, good premise and good writing=good book.

Not always. 

The character development was just not there.  Grossman would begin to delve into what made Character X CHARACTER X and then stop short.  He would describe parts of the book in high detail, yet Quentin’s last year of school took up only a couple of paragraphs.   Maybe Grossman got bored writing this section or that section and cut it off.  I don’t know, but it was like reading short summaries instead of a novel.   I hope Grossman fixes this in future novels.  This is his first, but not his last.  He is a really great writer, now he needs to become a really great storyteller. 

This is not recommended for those who dislike reading about drugs and sex as Grossman went a little over the top—so much over the top, that even I felt a bit uncomfortable.

This is recommended for those who really love Rowling, Lewis, Tolkein, and Waugh and for those who wish to be magic.

Did I like it? Yes

Would I read it again? No.

Food Equivalent:  gluten free, dairy free chocolate chip cookies--looks good, but no substance.

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READING: J.R.R. Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings, Part I