R.I.P. J.D. Salinger

It is with great sadness that I am posting to inform you of the death of a literary great; J.D. Salinger. He died yesterday of natural causes in his home in New Hampshire at the age of 91.  He is mostly known for his very famous book, "The Catcher in the Rye".  He has spent most of his life quietly hidden away from the press and people, hating his own fame. 

R.I.P. J.D. Salinger 

Good to a Fault by Marina Endicott

I was so happy to finally read a book I enjoyed so much. Good to a Fault is an honest look at people, stereotypes, and as its title suggests, what it really means to be good.

Good to a Fault is about an impressively (and annoyingly) kind but lonely middle-aged woman named Clara Purdy. At the very beginning of the book Clara’s car, and her life, collide with the Gage family (3 kids, 2 parents, and a hostile grandmother). The book is set in motion not only by the car crash but also by the discovery that the family’s matriarch, Lorraine, has cancer. Clara very kindly welcomes the struggling Gage family into her own home while Lorraine spends what is presumed to be her final days in the hospital seeking treatment for her illness. Clara is subjected to countless ungrateful acts by certain members of the Gage family but embraces her new life. Clara quickly falls in love with the children and treats them as though they were her own, mending her personal wounds from her missed chance of having a family. When there is a shocking turn of events closer to the end of the book, the reader is faced with a lot of questions about personal values and stereotypes. The reader is also faced with the bigger question about the difference between what is good and what is right, and how to decide the difference and similarities between the two in tough situations.

This book engaged my emotions in a way no book has in a while. At times it infuriated me (as I am not nearly as patient or understanding as Clara). At times it made me sad. But also, it made me laugh-out-loud and put a smile on my face. Also, being the OCD neat-and-tidy freak that I am, this book made me realize that spilled milk is, well, just spilled milk. Life is messy, and incidentally, that’s what makes it more interesting and memorable. My dad bought me a mug that says “A Clean House is the Sign of a Wasted Life” and this book proves that (nothing like taking life wisdom from a novelty mug).

This book taught me a lesson about how easy it is to unknowingly stereotype people from different walks of life without acknowledging it. It is easy to convince yourself that you couldn’t possibly think that way, but this book slaps you with a great big “YES YOU DO THINK THAT WAY – NOW DEAL WITH IT!”. The part in the book that comes to mind for this **SPOILER ALERT** is when Clara goes to the hospital to find Lorraine better and ready to go home to reclaim her family and resume her life. Lorraine tells Clara that she isn’t entitled to raising the children just because she dresses better, has more money, is well spoken, etc. After reading this part in the book, the reader realizes that it’s easy to root for Clara because of these things, but that it isn’t right. I thought about how I assessed the situation with the children in the book and realized that these were the reasons I used to legitimize my feelings that Clara should keep the kids as well.

The only thing I didn’t buy into was the religious aspect of the book. I know in her interview for Canada Reads, Marina Endicott mentioned that this book has a lot to do with God, but I didn’t feel that way at all. Aside from religious poems/passages throughout the book and the fact that Clara and her peers are all churchgoers, I didn’t see anything in this book that made me think about God or his existence.

I couldn’t finish this post without saying how much I enjoyed the dynamic characters in this book. Endicott has a phenomenal ability to sculpt characters make them feel so real that you know them personally. All of the characters are perfect pictures of regular people in everyday life. However, if I had to pick a favourite character then it would be Darwin. He was so important to this story. He kept everything balanced. Without Darwin, this story would not have been the same; there would have been a lot more hostility and a lot less warmth. I also think an honourable mention is in order for the Bunts for their impeccable hypocrisy. Everyone has a couple of these people in their neighbourhood (I hope it’s not you) and in a story about domestic life and its imperfections, nasty neighbours fit in perfectly.

I think Good to a Fault is a fantastic pick for Canada Reads 2010, and although I have only read one other book on the panel so far, I think this will be a difficult read to top. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good read, no pun intended.


Book Information
Title: Good to a Fault
Author: Marina Endicott
Year of publication: June 2009
Publisher: Broadview Press
Pages: 416
Awards: 2009 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize Best Book Award -- Canada and the Caribbean
Purchased at: Chapters Queensway
Rating: 4/5

The Breakwater House by Pascale Quiviger

The Breakwater House by Pascale Quiviger is a story about female relationships with a strong emphasis on the maternal. It’s about Claire and Lucie, childhood best friends, and their relationships to each other as well as to other women in both their lives. Sometimes happy, sometimes sad, and sometimes psychotic, this book explores the psyches and lives of women who are intertwined by love, blood, and heartbreak.

The Breakwater House is a series of smaller stories all linked together, and it jumps through time and space. This book was originally published in French, and as always I think I should read the French version and compare. Without reading the original language there is no way to be sure, but I feel like something has been lost in translation; that there is something I’m missing from this story. Also, it always freaks me out when the characters are clearly meant to speak a certain language (based on their location, their written surroundings, their names, etc.) but speak English in the story like its some freaky alternate reality. But that’s beside the point.

I think an issue I have with this story is the amount of experiences that I can’t relate to. I think this book would probably resonate more with readers who feel that their lives are reflected in it. I also found the emotions in this book to be pretty extreme all the time; meaning the emotions and actions of the characters when faced with life challenges were a little unrealistic. Life has its ups and downs, but this book is an emotionally charged roller coaster that doesn’t coincide with real life. I hate to say the story was overly dramatic, but it was. The girls live in a romanticized world that doesn’t jive well with the realities of life they are dealing with. This makes the story seem exaggerated. This story is about women, but in my opinion isn’t an accurate depiction of (most) real female relationships.

I don’t love this book, but it isn’t terrible either. I am certainly not disappointed I read it. One of the things I like most about it is how touching the relationship between Claire and Lucie is. Most little girls have that one best friend when they are kids with whom they feel a strong bond. Some remain friends for life, but sadly most en up drifting apart. It’s a sad truth that comes with growing up. But this book steers away from reality. The bond between Claire and Lucie transforms as the girls grow up and the two girls become so obsessed with their friendship that they aren’t even able to have romantic relationships with men (and unless I missed the cue, both girls are heterosexual). I have a hard time believing this.

The ending of this book doesn’t feel complete. This book is supposed to be a tragedy of sorts, with redemption and growth at the end. You are supposed to feel the transformation and healing of a character, but because it doesn’t feel realistic from the start it’s difficult to appreciate the growth and change in the characters.

I probably wouldn’t recommend this book to friends, unless I feel that somehow they could relate to it. The imagery was beautiful, and I’m sure there are people out there that find this story deeply touching, but it’s just not for me.

Book Information
Title: The Breakwater House
Author: Pascale Quiviger
Year of publication: 2010
Publisher: Anasi
Pages: 198
Rating: 3.5/5
** Please note this book is an ARC, and may vary greatly on final publication. **

Quirk Classics

So I was looking around the web for upcoming book releases when I found out the newest Quirk Classic has been announced.  I must admit that I haven't read any of these yet but it seems like everyone I know has.  To be honest, to me these books are talent piggy backing, but what do I know... (I'm sure Zombies will come after me for saying that!)  So here is the info on all of the Quirk Books (and other) for those of you who are interested... 

UPCOMING QUIRK CLASSICS:

                                    Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls
by Jane Austen and Steve Hockensmith
Releasing: Feb 5th, 2010

In this terrifying and hilarious prequel, we witness the genesis of the zombie plague in early-nineteenth-century England. We watch Elizabeth Bennet evolve from a naive young teenager into a savage slayer of the undead. We laugh as she begins her first clumsy training with nunchucks and katana swords and cry when her first blush with romance goes tragically awry. Written by acclaimed novelist (and Edgar Award nominee) Steve Hockensmith, Dawn of the Dreadfuls invites Austen fans to step back into Regency England, Land of the Undead.


                                Android Karenina
by Leo Tolstoy and Ben H. Winters
Releasing: June 8th, 2010

Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters co-author Ben H. Winters is back with an all-new collaborator, legendary Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy, and the result is Android Karenina—an enhanced edition of the classic love story set in a dystopian world of robots, cyborgs, and interstellar space travel. As in the original novel, our story follows two relationships: The tragic adulterous love affair of Anna Karenina and Count Alexei Vronsky, and the more hopeful marriage of Nikolai Levin and Princess Kitty Shcherbatskaya. These characters live in a steampunk-inspired world of robotic butlers, clumsy automatons, and rudimentary mechanical devices. But when these copper-plated machines begin to revolt against their human masters, our characters must fight back using state-of-the-art 19th-century technology—and a sleek new model of ultra-human cyborgs like nothing the world has ever seen. Filled with the same blend of romance, drama, and fantasy that made the first two Quirk Classics New York Times best sellers, Android Karenina brings this celebrated series into the exciting world of science fiction.


AVAILABLE NOW:
                                      Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies -- "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains." So begins Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, an expanded edition of the beloved Jane Austen novel featuring all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem. As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton-and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she's soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers-and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield as Elizabeth wages war against hordes of flesh-eating undead. Can she vanquish the spawn of Satan? And overcome the social prejudices of the class-conscious landed gentry? Complete with romance, heartbreak, swordfights, cannibalism, and thousands of rotting corpses, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies transforms a masterpiece of world literature into something you'd actually want to read.


                                    Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters
by Jane Austen and Ben H. Winters

"Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters" expands the original text of the beloved Jane Austen novel with all-new scenes of giant lobersters, rampaging octopi, two-headed sea serpents, and other biological monstrosities. As our story opens, the Dashwood sisters are evicted from their childhood home and sent to live on a mysterious island full of savage creatures and dark secrets. While sensible Elinor falls in love with the Edward Ferrars, her romantic sister Marianne is courted by both the handsome Willoughby and the hideous man-monster Colonel Brandon. Can the Dashwood sisters triumph over meddlesome matriarchs and unscrupulous rouges to find true love? Or will they fall prey to the tentacles that are forever snapping at their heels? It's survival - and only the swiftest swimmers will find true love!


YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
                                    Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
by Seth Grahame-Smith
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Releasing: March 2nd, 2010

Indiana, 1818. Moonlight falls through the dense woods that surround a one-room cabin, where a nine-year-old Abraham Lincoln kneels at his suffering mother's bedside. She's been stricken with something the old-timers call "Milk Sickness.""My baby boy..." she whispers before dying. Only later will the grieving Abe learn that his mother's fatal affliction was actually the work of a vampire. When the truth becomes known to young Lincoln, he writes in his journal, ""henceforth my life shall be one of rigorous study and devotion. I shall become a master of mind and body. And this mastery shall have but one purpose.".." Gifted with his legendary height, strength, and skill with an ax, Abe sets out on a path of vengeance that will lead him all the way to the White House. While Abraham Lincoln is widely lauded for saving a Union and freeing millions of slaves, his valiant fight against the forces of the undead has remained in the shadows for hundreds of years. That is, until Seth Grahame-Smith stumbled upon "The Secret Journal of Abraham Lincoln," and became the first living person to lay eyes on it in more than 140 years. Using the journal as his guide and writing in the grand biographical style of Doris Kearns Goodwin and David McCullough, Seth has reconstructed the "true" life story of our greatest president for the first time-all while revealing the hidden history behind the Civil War and uncovering the role vampires played in the birth, growth, and near-death of our nation.


BUT WAIT... THERE'S MORE:
It has also been announced that the movie adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" will be produced by Natalie Portman, who will also star in the film.  According to IMDB, the movie is set to be released in 2011.

For more information on Quirk Classics, go to their site: http://www.quirkclassics.com/

My book goal for 2010...

So, being the New Year and all I figured I would share my book goal with all of you.

I plan to read 55 books this year, which translates to just over a book a week.  When I say this out loud it sounds like so few books for an entire year. In the book information for each review I am going to include a countdown.  Also, if I can figure out how to make a thermometer thing for the page then you might get to see one of those too. 

How many book do you read a year?  Leave a comment and let me know!

The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse by Robert Rankin

Well, I am on a winter vacation (I know, 1 week after the holiday break, yeesh)… I have the wonderful opportunity of being able to write my posts from a beautiful cottage kitchen looking out at a spectacular winter view. So peaceful… Here, have a look:

So, I’m going to take this moment of peace between snowshoeing and Mario Bros. to tell you about The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse by Robert Rankin. Let me say, I don’t know what it is with me and not being able to choose good books lately. That doesn’t start this of very well for the book, I, but I’m feeling sort of discouraged with the books I have been reading recently.

Hollow Chocolate Bunnies is a twisted, perverse, and violent, interpretation of the “real” lives of toys and nursery rhyme characters in the city where they cohabitate, rightly named “Toy City”. I decided to read it when it was recommended by someone in our office.

The book is about a young boy named Jack who travels a long way to find the big city, where he hopes to make his fortune and start a new life. To his surprise, the city is actually “Toy City” and its citizens are nothing like him or anything he expected. Toy City’s population is made up of toys, nursery rhyme characters, and a few humans affectionately called “gormsters”. Immediately after his arrival in the city he meets Eddie Bear; a walking, talking, drunken teddy bear that is also the assistant to a famous detective named Bill Winkie (who has gone missing). Jack is thrown into a murder case involving the rich elite of the city; the nursery rhyme characters. One by one a mysterious killer is plucking them off in grotesque, ironic, and funny (I must admit) ways. It’s up to Eddie and Jack to find and stop the killer before it’s too late (and before the offer of reward money is retracted of course!).

The first ¼ of the book was fantastic. There is action right away and you feel like you’re in for a wild ride. It’s dirty and disturbing, but also hilarious. I wouldn’t normally pick up sci-fi for fear that I have to immerse myself in a world that goes way beyond the story in the book. You know, the ones that leave you feeling inadequate to discuss because there are enough supplements and online communities to write a seven part series on the types of toilet paper the characters use. But I digress… (Grey Poupon anyone?) Truthfully, I thought this book would be a good choice because of its incorporation of the classic nursery rhyme characters that most people are already familiar with. It’s just a perverted, adult nursery rhyme.

To say this book wasn’t good isn’t fair, because I found it to be extremely creative and also appealing to the sinful side we all have. But beyond that, it was kind of boring. The middle of the story drags on, which I find incredibly irritating when I’m reading. I feel like my time is being wasted and a story that could have been good is watered down with empty content. Give me a shorter book, not filler. Honestly, after you get past the initial shock value of the story, you aren’t left with much. Even the title is a letdown. Hollow Chocolate Bunnies are only a small part of the story, and not in the way you expect. I personally was looking forward to the idea of some punk chocolate bunnies with a bone to pick. The cover sort of leads you to believe this with the cute chocolate bunnies with piercings and wearing motorcycle jackets. (I know, I know… don’t judge a book by its cover!) I suppose I will have write “Badass Chocolate Bunnies” myself… Just kidding (maybe)…
This book was just OK. I found myself hating it as soon as I finished it, but now that I am taking a step back and thinking about it, it had some good moments and certainly wasn’t the worst thing I have ever read. I probably wouldn’t recommend this to anyone, but I’m not sorry that I read it.

Book Information
Title: The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse
Author: Robert Rankin
Year of publication: 2003
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Pages: 352
Awards: SFX Magazine Best Novel Award (2003)
Purchased at: Barnes & Noble (Prudential Center, Boston, MA)
Rating: 3.5/5

The Book of Chameleons by Jose Eduardo Agualusa

I read The Book of Chameleons by Jose Eduardo Agualusa because it happened to be on a staff pics shelf and my fiancé (Doug) suggested it. It sounded like the kind of book I would normally enjoy. It was a quick read, but at the end of it, I felt that having no knowledge in Angolan culture prevented me from understanding a lot of the components of the story.

The book circles around revolutions that I have no knowledge of, as well as a history and culture that I know nothing about. Also, the talking lizard is supposed to be the reincarnated Argentinean writer Jorge Luis Borges, who I had never heard of until reading this book. Since my blog isn’t a scholarly article by any stretch, I looked Borges up on Wikipedia, trying to figure out if I could get any more from the story by learning more about him. It added a bit of understanding to the lizard’s personality; his fears, his pleasures, and the strange bits he shares about his past. But it didn’t offer much more understanding for the story as a whole.

The book’s main character is Felix Ventura, an albino black man (you have to read it to understand how that works) who makes a living selling fabricated pasts. He falls in love with a kind and beautiful woman (according to the lizard) and gets a shady new client; complications ensue. Because the book’s plot has a few twists and not much in between (it’s very short), it’s difficult to talk about without giving it all away, so I won’t go into any further details. From what I did understand, it was an okay story. But it felt kind of empty because most of it (I think) went over my head.

I don’t know how I would feel about recommending this book to anyone with no knowledge of Angolan culture or of Jorge Luis Borges. I didn’t hate reading this book, but I also feel like my time could have been better spent reading something else. If you do have knowledge in the subject matter, then I say try it out and let me know what I missed. Otherwise, I say skip it. Even though it has a talking lizard…

Book Information
Title: The Book of Chameleons
Author: Jose Eduardo Agualusa
Translated by: Daniel Hahn
Year of publication: English Translation, June 2008
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 192
Awards: The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2007
Purchased at: Indigo Bay & Bloor
Rating: 3/5

Happy New Year!

Hey folks! It’s a brand new year, so let’s begin with what’s appropriate:

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Now that that’s out of the way, let me apologize for the delay in posting reviews. Like most of you (I hope!), I took some time over the holidays for some R&R, which means I read more and reviewed less…

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy reviewing very much and am deeply thankful to anyone who takes even a moment of their day to read my blog. It’s just that writing reviews takes slightly more mental capacity than sitting on my butt in front of a fire with a strong delicious coffee, tonnes of junk food, and some good books (and also a bit of Supernatural… love those Winchester boys! I can’t believe I told you that…). But I’m back, ready to review, and looking forward to this year with plenty of new books to read and review.

Happy 2010 everyone!