Aug 26
Book Worm is breezing through the Longlist books and will have more reviews to come soon. Next up is a book I recently finished: A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. Keep reading to find out what I thought and where it ranks among the 2015 longlist books we have read thus far. Read more
Aug 10
Native Son by Richard Wright
Published in: 1940
Reviewed by: Jen
Rating: 4.5 stars
Find it here: Native Son
There are some books that will leave a lasting impression on you and Native Son was one of those books for me. This novel put me through the emotional wringer. I cried multiple times, I was often disgusted at the description of violence, I was inspired, and now I feel emotionally drained. I have to confess that I’m writing this review with tears in my eyes.
Native Son is the story of Bigger Thomas, a young black man living in Chicago in the 1930s. When he commits a terrible crime, it throws him into a downward spiral resulting in more violence and a whole series of events and ramifications. The question at the center of the book isn’t whether Bigger committed the crime — he is clearly guilty — but why he did so. Read more
Jul 27
The Man who Loved Children by Christina Stead
Published in: 1940
Reviewed by: Jen
Rating: 4 stars
Find it here: The Man Who Loved Children: A Novel
The Man Who Loved Children is a family saga set in the 1940s. The Pollit family is a dysfunctional one on all levels. Henny and Sam Pollit are trapped in a loveless and unhappy marriage and their discord seeps down to their children. Henny appears mentally unbalanced, unloving, and unsympathetic. At first, she seems to be the villain in the family. She screams and threatens her children and generally behaves in an appalling manner but, as events unfold, we gain a clearer understanding and empathy for Henny who is powerless and trapped by her surroundings. Family patriarch Sam Pollit (who is based on the author’s own father) seems jolly and loving toward his family but, in reality, his childishly patronizing manner and lack of self-awareness reveal him to be far from the story’s hero. He talks to his family in a form of baby-talk, at times singing and rhyming and suppressing any signs of autonomy or independence in his children. Sam is an idealist who can’t see past his own ideals to recognize the squalor and unhappiness of his own family. Read more
Jul 24
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Published in: 2013
Awards: National Book Critics Award for Fiction (2013); International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award Nominee for Shortlist
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by: Jen
Find it here: Americanah
Adichie has become one of my favorite authors. I loved Half of a Yellow Sun (reviewed earlier in the year here), Purple Hibiscus, and We Should All be Feminists. Her writing is always strongly intellectual but easily accessible. Adichie doesn’t just write good stories. She writes good stories with powerful socio-political and cultural messages. So, I guess it is no surprise that I really enjoyed Americanah. Find out why Americanah makes into my list of favorite books read in 2015 (thus far)… Read more
Jul 3
First published: 1993
Awards: Newbery Medal in 1995
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by: Jen
Find it/Buy it here: The Giver
I realize that this will be an unpopular post because everyone I know loves this book with a passion. I’m fully prepared for all your comments to prove me wrong about this book!
The Giver is a young adult/children’s dystopian novel that was published in the early 1990s. It follows the story of a young boy, Jonas, who is living in what initially appears to be a utopian society. When Jonas is selected to become the new “Receiver of Memory” he has to reconcile his new knowledge of how things used to be with the current state of his surroundings. The Receiver of Memory is the one person in the community who must contain all the past memories (painful and joyous) of what life was like prior to their current community. Jonas learns that his utopian society exists exclusively because all emotion, color, memories, and individuality have been eradicated.
I find it hard to rate books that are so clearly intended toward children because the elements I dislike (simplicity of plot) are elements that are needed to appeal to, or be understandable for children. The book is probably perfect for children ages 9-12. The problem is that as an adult, I felt bored. The story was just too simplistic for my adult tastes although I think as a child I would have loved the story. There’s little in the way of emotional or character development and the whole thing is just a little too cutesy for my tastes. Although young Jonas faces some difficult and heart-wrenching decisions, those decisions never really felt genuinely difficult or heart-wrenching the way it did in other young adult books I’ve read. For example, authors can write about characters feeling pain (emotional or physical) but to truly experience the pain with the characters, the author needs to do more than just say “it was painful.”
Another thing that bothers me is that nothing is ever explained. There are no details about why things are the way they are in this “utopia” or about how the people in charge (whoever they are) are able to control everything. As readers we simply have to take the author’s word for granted many times. Half the time I was shouting “why? why? it doesn’t make sense!”
Like I said earlier, I’m sure I’ll get some push-back for this review since everyone raves about this book. Lots of adults have read it and have encouraged me to read it. Unfortunately, I can’t rave about this book. I think it is a great book for young children because it raises interesting moral issues in a way that may be easy for them to understand. But, I don’t see the appeal of this book for adults. It was entertaining enough, but the lack of complexity drove me crazy. For adults at least, there are many superior books that cover the issues raised in this book in a more interesting and complex manner.
I do highly recommend this book for children. You can find it here: The Giver
Okay, so now it’s your turn to tell me why I’m wrong! What did you think about the book? Did you love it, like it, or dislike it? Why am I wrong?
Jun 26
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
Published in: 2010
Literary Awards: Man Booker Prize Nominee for Longlist (2010)
Reviewed by Jen
Rating: 3.5 stars
Find it here: The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet
After reading Cloud Atlas, I avoided all other Mitchell books for many years for fear of being disappointed. Cloud Atlas is one of the books that made it into my list of favorite books which is no small feat. I have over 600 books on my Shelfari bookshelf and only 10 of those books have made it onto my list of favorites. Typically when I love an author, I seek out all their books but I felt differently about my first experience with Mitchell. Cloud Atlas was one of those books that was notable for me because it was unlike anything I had ever read. It was intelligent but in an unpretentious and highly accessible manner. While Cloud Atlas was a great and engaging story, it was the unique way that Mitchell played around with narrative structure, timeline, and genre that made the reading experience so wonderful for me. So when I turned to read The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, it was under the shadow of unrealistically high expectations. Read more
Jun 24
Among the Ten Thousand Things by Julia Pierpont
Release Date: July 7, 2015
Reviewed by: Jen
Rating: 4 stars
Pre-order your copy here:Among the Ten Thousand Things
Among Ten Thousand Things is about the events, big and small, that lead to the eventual breakdown of a family. When Jack Shanley’s mistress tries to expose their affair to his wife by mailing her a package with their sexually explicit correspondence, his young daughter intercepts the package and both children read it. The remainder of the book centers around what happens to all members of the family after this event. Each member of the family responds in their own way leading to the eventual breakdown of their family unit. Read more
Jun 19
Several months ago I signed up for a Book Riot quarterly box subscription and last week my first box arrived. With Father’s Day just around the corner, a book box subscription may be a perfect gift for the dad in your life.
I’ve been hesitant to sign up for any book subscription services because I don’t love the idea of someone else picking out my books. I’m picky and I generally don’t love the popular books that everyone else is reading. But the Book Riot box sounded interesting and arrives quarterly (at $50 per box). Each “Quarter” is designed around a specific theme and includes a personal letter and hand-picked items. See what I got and whether it was worth it after the jump — I don’t want to give away the items for those who have yet to receive your box so click more only if you want to see what items arrived in July. Read more
Jun 3
I finally did it! I finished Lev Grossman’s Magician’s Trilogy. Unfortunately, I feel sort of ambivalent about the series. I disliked the first book, loved the second book, and felt lukewarm about the final book. I should preface this review by making clear that I read the first book and listened to the final two books as audibles. I truly hated the audio and this may have colored my view of the entire series.
The Magicians Trilogy is one of those series that people seem to either love or hate. The critics generally love these books but if you look at goodreads or amazons, the ratings seem split. The trilogy is comprised of The Magicians (2009), The Magician King (2011), and The Magician’s Land (2014). The books follow the story of Quentin Coldwater, a young man who is accepted into an exclusive school for magicians. Over the course of the books, Quentin discovers that a magical land from a fictional series is real. He and his friends become rulers of this land, go on quests, and face the potential destruction of the land. With nods to Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and the Chronicles of Narnia, Grossman reworks the stories of these books into a fantasy series for adults that blends gritty reality and fantasy. Here are my reviews for each of the books in the series:
Read more
May 28
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa
Published in: 2003
Translated from Japanese by: Stephen Snyder
Reviewed by: Jen
Rating: 5 stars
Find it here:The Housekeeper and the Professor
Every once in a while a book comes along that takes you by surprise. The Housekeeper and the Professor was one of those books for me. At only 180 pages the novel is short, simple, but emotionally touching and beautifully rendered. I picked this up because it has started to make the rounds in some of my reading circles. It was worth the buzz.
The book tells the story of a beautiful friendship between a housekeeper, her son, and a mathematics professor. In his youth, the Professor was involved in a tragic accident that resulted in his developing a form of anterograde amnesia. While he remembers events and people from prior to his accident, he is unable to encode new information. Every morning brings new introductions with the same questions. He wears a suit covered with pieces of paper to help him remember important facts. He spends his days immersed in mathematics, solving problems and sending them to various papers. When the Housekeeper is hired to take care of the Professor and his home, she and her 10 year old son become immersed in the Professor’s world of numbers. They grew to love the Professor and they learn to work around his memory deficits.
I found this to be a wonderful book. You can’t help but love the characters, especially the quirky Professor who makes math seem like the most exciting subject in the world. There are many math equations throughout the book but they are easy to follow and understand and they are integral to the emotions and events in the story. Who knew that math could be so interesting? The writing was simple and elegant but unpretentious. Not much happens in the way of plot because this is not a book about fast-paced adventures but rather one about quiet moments and meditation. I cried a little and smiled a lot. This was a special book that makes you contemplate the importance of living in the moment and appreciating the present. I highly recommend this book!
Have you read this book? If so, what did you think? If not, does it appeal to you?
Want to try it for yourself? You can buy a copy here: The Housekeeper and the Professor
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