Half of a Yellow Sun

It was time for me to revisit one of my favorite authors, Chimamanda Adichie. I'm waiting for the library to deliver my next book for the little web class I'm taking so in the interim I picked up an older Adichie book. I read her most recent book in July, and if you read my post about it then you already know I have a mild obsession. I actually thought I read Half of a Yellow Sun before, but I didn't.  I think I bought it in the past, but I may have loaned it out prior to reading or lost it in a move or donated it. Either way, I read it now and yes I enjoyed it immensely.

When I was reading this book, I was so vividly transported to Nigeria that the reading environment around me (coffee shop, my apartment, the park) would dissipate. I would look up and blink a few times and remind myself I was not currently in Nigeria or Biafra. The book also permeated my non-reading life in odd ways. For example, I made a stew the other day. While I was making it, I cut the meat for it into very small bits because I wanted to make sure there was meat in every bite.  In the book there is a lot of discussion about whether or not people have meat in their soups because there is a war going on and subsequent food rationing. Here I was cutting up meat for a stew thinking "I am glad I have meat in my soup".  That is a testament to the power of good writing. Adichie does this for me in all her writing.  She has a way of pulling you into the story and the story into your life.

The book is beautifully written. The story follows five main characters, Olanna and Kainene (sisters), Odenigbo and Richard (their significant others), and Ugwu (the houseboy) as they start off in a united Nigeria and are thrown into the Biafran war in the late 1960s.  It has all the expected drama of war; bombs, deaths, evacuations, displaced family, famine, starvation, and so on.  However, the personal experiences of each character and how they respond to their rapidly changing environment is the real story. I admit my knowledge of African civil/ethnic wars is abysmal. After reading this story, I did more research into Nigerian history and the Biafran war.  It made me appreciate the story so much more.  I am truly a fan of Adichie's work and I expect I will be a lifelong one.  If I taught a literature class I would make this required reading.  I highly recommend it.

Of note: I get very uneasy with the subject of rape and sexual exploitation and there are several descriptions of it in the book as a weapon of war. This was not unexpected, but I always like to give people a heads-up about it if you have uneasiness like me.  However, there are tender love scenes between the couples as well so the contrasting effect is helpful. 

Lolita

I've avoided this book like the plague because of its content.  I vaguely knew it was about a pedophile and I was not interested in the least. Well, of course it showed up on the syllabus for the literature class.  I could have skipped it because I'm not officially taking the class on-site for any kind of academic credit.  This self-study is only for my own edification.  I decided not to skip it. I figured if I looked at it critically I could probably digest it a little better.

I was surprised how much I actually liked the book.  You can't deny the writing is superb and for me that was the major reason I enjoyed it. The protagonist, Humbert, is a horrible person, but his articulation is divine.  His way of describing scenes and situations pulls you into the story even if you are disgusted by him as a person.  You can tell he views himself as part of the upper echelon of society, however through his prose you can also see how weak and pathetic he is.  His prey, Lolita, is probably one of the most tragic figures in literature.  We only see things from her perspective, very briefly, through Humbert's eyes.  Only towards the end does he come to the conclusions any sane person would have known from the beginning and by then it's too late for everyone involved.

I'm glad I read it now and not earlier.  Breaking it down as literature helped me enjoy it more than I would have reading it on my own with no guide.  Honestly if I read it independently, I may have put it down because the subject matter is uncomfortable.  Amazingly, though, I highly recommend it.  Read it for the writing.

A Game of Thrones

Well 22 days after starting this behemoth I am finally finished.  I heeded all the warnings and tried not to get too attached to any one character because I heard that George Martin would kill a character in a heartbeat. With that being said, sometimes I did find myself thinking "What's the point of the back story if the person is dead three pages later?"  I just let it go and let the story take me away.  You have to suspend a little bit of disbelief. For instance, apparently in this world siblings can procreate with one another and their kids have no genetic defects.  *shrug* I do love these pseudo-historical, political, adventure stories, though, so I just filed my medical knowledge in the back of my brain and kept on reading. I don't know if I will finish the entire series because it will definitely take a substantial time commitment. I may just have to read one book from the series per year because I'm not sure if I'm ready to invest that kind of time in 2013.

I'm late reading this book so I think most people already know the synopsis, but basically the title tells you what it's about.  A fight for who is the right and just king of the realm. Who should rule from the Iron Throne?  Within the battle for the throne there are a million subplots and side stories.  This story truly has it all.  Love, betrayal, war, murder, sex, child abuse, castles, mystical animals, knights, incest, kings, queens, and even zombies (although they aren't called zombies in this context). I can't even begin to discuss the intricacies in the book, but if you have some time to dedicate to the series I would recommend it.

EDIT:  Okay I just read the synopsis for the rest of the books on Wikipedia.  I just don't see myself dedicating the time needed to the seven book series.  I couldn't even get through all of the Kushiel books so who am I kidding?  The only seven book series I read in its entirety was Harry Potter. Let's keep it real.

This Is How You Lose Her

As I was reading the book I kept thinking "Wow, this guy is a jerk."  The book is a collection of stories that, more or less, discuss the cheating ways of the main character, Yunior (whom I suspect is a loose depiction of the author).  He has a string of girlfriends and isn't faithful to any of them.  There are a few other stories, as well, dealing with his brother's death from cancer, his brother's cheating ways, and his father's cheating ways. It's almost as if cheating is an autosomal dominant trait in this family. As much as I was disgusted by his behavior, the writing is very good and more than disgust, I felt sadness for the main character by the end of the book.  The devolution of Yunior into a middle-aged man who only realizes what love is as he loses it, is nothing short of depressing.  I finished the book late last night and one of my first thoughts when I woke up this morning was about the book's ending.  As you know by now, any book that makes me think a little bit and stays on my mind even after the book is closed or the Nook is turned off is one I will recommend. I can't help but think that I enjoyed it for all the wrong reasons because I wasn't happy when I finished it; just sad for Yunior and for all the women who experienced his infidelity. The storytelling and the great writing that make you feel those emotions (sad or not) are what make the book worthwhile.

The Story of O

I have debated whether or not to post about this book because I hated everything about it.  Then I thought to myself "If I don't post about it, that could be considered a form of censorship". Since I do not support censorship of books, I finally decided to post something.  I think my opinion is just my opinion and it should not keep anyone from accessing the book if they still wish to read it after I share my two cents.  

First a little background: This book was controversial when it was first published in France in 1954 because it was written by a woman using a pseudonym and it contains very violent scenes of S&M.  There was a big to-do about who was this mystery woman who wrote this book.  Eventually after she revealed herself (40 years later) it turns out she initially wrote the story as a series of love letters to her lover at the time who was an admirer of the Marquis de Sade.

Now with that being said, I think if you like the erotica genre and you want to read a little something something, hey to each his own.  I'm not so much into it, but this is one of those books that has been sitting on my shelf forever and a day.  I think I bought it used when I was in college in the late 90s.  Anyway, I always thought erotic stories were supposed to still include a little bit of love.  This story's main character, O, is beaten, raped in all orifices, gang raped, chained, burned, pierced and made to be submissive in every way.  Apparently she consents to all this, but every time something bad happens she's screaming and crying!  It's violent.  I glossed over most of those scenes.  She does all this because she supposedly loves this guy named Rene, but he just passes her off to the next guy, Sir Stephen, and he does all the same bullsh*t to her. Then she supposedly falls in love with Sir Stephen but he then hands her off to the next guy!  So essentially she is prostituted by the first boyfriend and passed along until by the end of the story she is completely objectified and is no longer really considered a person.  Nobody acknowledges her except to use her body.  It's horrible.  To top it all off, from the middle of the book onward, she is cajoled into trying to "recruit" more women into this sex slave business. If you do some research online you will find many treatises about how this book is an offense to women even though it was written by a woman.  I was disgusted by the degradation of the main character.  The fact that there was actually no real love story just made me feel like I was reading a crime novel because the things that were being done had absolutely nothing to do with love. 

A Year in the Merde

This is a supposed to be (according to the book jacket) a nearly true account about a British executive who moves to Paris to work for a company there and all the hilarity that ensues.  Well I was laughing out loud in the beginning of the book and then it turned into a never-ending quest by the author to get laid.  There was also a side story about how his boss was seemingly involved in some weird Parisian political scheme, but I never got interested in that portion of the story, nor did I really care at that point.  I thought I would be getting a funny perspective about living in Paris as a non-Parisian.  Instead it's pretty much about a man hoping he can get lucky with the ladies.  I love most things Parisian, but I think I will stick to reading books about the food of Paris and the relationship one has with the city, not with the female inhabitants of said city.  You can skip this one. Try The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry or Paris, My Sweet instead.

Unholy Night

I am the first to admit that I go to church on a regular basis.  I am also the first to admit that I am not a zealot so I can completely appreciate a story that depicts the three wise men as petty criminals.  This story was entertaining, enjoyable, adventurous and just plain FUN.  If you are easily offended by creative re-telling of religious stories then pass this book up because you will just get worked up and hypertensive.  If, however, you can appreciate someone using the imagination to create an action-packed adventure, go for it.  I enjoyed this book so much that I would put it in my top ten for 2012.  This is by the same author who wrote Pride and Prejudice and Zombies as well as Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (which I also enjoyed but it was early days for my blog so I didn't go into much detail).  Knowing that this is what Seth Grahame-Smith does, takes history and spins it, the reader should not be surprised that he tackled a religious story.  He does a fantastic job of doing it and if you have a creative and open mind, I highly recommend it.

                                    

The Art of Fielding

Once again, I've run into the problem of a book running too long.  It's 512 pages, but could have easily been wrapped up in about 350.  I don't know what is so attractive about dragging a story out to the point of apathy.  I found out after finishing the book that it took the author ten years to write.  Yikes! The basic premise of the story is that a talented kid from South Dakota gets recruited to a college baseball team and is the new wonder kid of the team.  Some things happen that shave a little bit of wonder off the kid and so the story proceeds.  It is also very much about friendships and discovering who you are and who you are not.   There is a lot of collegiate angst in this book. The uncertainty of the future is thick and appropriate for the age group of the characters.

I actually really enjoyed reading the book.  I found myself reading without a care in the world. Oblivious to what was going on around me.  The story was quite good and well written, in my opinion.  I've seen some reviews that say the author writes like he just attended a writer's workshop, but it works so why chastise him for that?  There were sentences in this book that I read and thought, "That is a perfect sentence." My only complaint is the length because I did reach a point where I didn't really care what happened anymore. Other than that, I thought it was a solid coming-of-age story.

Gone Girl

This book was really good during the first part, then the twist is introduced in the second part and it's still pretty good for about half of the second part.  Around the latter half of the second part, though, I started to think "Okay wrap it up.....let's get the story over with."  Then I started to skim-read.  I don't know if I'm just going through an impatient streak where I automatically feel like a lot of books are about 100 pages too long or if the stories are genuinely too long.  Either way, this had the makings of a great psychological thriller with the requisite "keep you guessing" twist.  However, once the twist is revealed, everything that happens after that just left me scratching my head and seriously contemplating the sanity of both main characters.  If you've ever seen the movie Secretary, you may find yourself thinking along the lines of that movie as you near the end of this book.  Some people are in the relationship they want, regardless of what it appears to be from the outside looking in.  It's a fairly quick read (2 days), so pick it up if you have a weekend to yourself to relax.

Special shout out to my colleague at work for allowing me to borrow this book since the wait at the library was ridiculous. Thanks CG!

Habibi

The book cover and the heft of this book (650+ pages) captivated me in the bookstore, but I did not want to spend the money at the time.  So I submitted my request for the book to my library and was placed somewhere around #40 on the list to receive it.  It was worth the wait. The story has way too many sub-plots to get into here on my little piece of the Internet. However, they all weave together to tell a solid story that is ultimately about love and redemption. Zam and Dodola are two orphans who have a lifetime of hardship both together and apart. The story spans the years from childhood to adulthood and intertwines their story with stories from the Bible and the Qur'an. What I loved about the story is that because the author intertwines all these stories you truly start to see the similarities between Christianity and Islam.  So why can't we all notice these similarities and connect our own stories in order to create a more peaceful existence?  Among other topics touched upon in this graphic novel are kidnapping, slavery, child abuse, ecological warfare, castration, suicide attempts, female submission and rape.  So with that being said, this is not a book for children.  Horrible and hateful things happen to both Zam and Dodola while they are children, but it is the foundation for the climax of the story, which speaks to the overwhelming power of love.  God's/Allah's love as well as love for one another.  There is a lot of mature content, but if comparative religion interests you, this is one to pick up.

Blankets

So this book is not on my 2012 list, but I saw a beautifully bound book entitled Habibi and had to stop myself from impulse-buying it. I would not normally place myself in a category of "avid graphic novel reader" (I've only read Persepolis), but if a story is good I will read it, no matter the form.  So instead of buying Habibi, I went home and did some research on the author.  I saw that Blankets was an earlier work by him and it was available at the library. I thought I should probably give him a try before spending $35.  The illustrations are beautiful and emotive. The story has moments of joy, pain, sorrow, laughter, and wonder.  It's an autobiographical account of the author's childhood and it is full of difficult situations that kids/teens face. Divorce, strict parents, first loves, sibling rivalry, bullies, spiritual crises, existentialism, family dynamics, child abuse, and more.  The story is easy to follow and has many insightful observations.  A warning though....if you are not a religious person, this book may not be for you. Many of the author's observations and conversations in the book are in relation to Jesus and Christianity. I know the topic of religion is not for everyone so that's why I mention it. There is also a small amount of adult content/nudity if you're wary of that. I fully enjoyed the book and will definitely be reading Habibi in the near future.

The Slap

If everyone in Australia is as miserable as the people in this book, then I never want to travel there.  This is one of those books where everyone has issues.  They are either depressed/angry/anxious/disillusioned/self-medicated/frustrated/disappointed or full of regret.  There really is not one likable character in the story except maybe Richie, but that's because he's a teenager and his angst is the genuine angst of youth.  Everyone else in the story is in their 40s and seems to have angst because their life sucks.  Too much sex and drugs and expletives for me to really connect with any of the characters. I just felt sorry for most of them.

The Sweet Relief of Missing Children

Skip this book!  For the first 200 pages I really hung in there hoping that the stories would somehow connect and make sense, but then for the last 159 pages I was just speed reading.  Then I got to the end and was pissed!  There is no closure, no real connection to the big picture at all and no questions answered!  The entire book, as indicated by the title, is a little disconcerting because it deals with topics such as rape, abortion, abduction, suicide and so on.  Everyone's life in this book is sad and pathetic.  If I look through my literature review glass I can come up with some grandiose philosophical ideals I'm sure the author is trying to convey (i.e. the loneliness of parenting, what makes a good parent, sacrifice of your life goals for your child's, etc...) However, I just wanted the book to end because it was depressing as hell.

The Girl Who Played With Fire

He really leaves you hanging at the end of every book! That's a good thing. I thought some parts kinda dragged and I really wanted to say "get to the point already", but overall Larsson keeps you interested.  I guess I'll have to get the "Hornet's Nest" next.

Room

This book was disturbing on so many levels....but so good!  I finished it in a day and a half.  Basically it's narrated by Jack a 5 y.o. boy who lives in a soundproof cell with his mother.  The mother was kidnapped 7 years earlier when she was 19 and trapped in this room by a crazy man.  I think the real story begins for Jack when they get free.......