Belated Blogoversary

I've had about a dozen false starts writing this post, so I’m super late with it, but that silly thing called “life” got in my way again. Anyway, this is my belated six-month blogoversary post! Yay! To start out, congratulations to the anonymous winner of the comment contest whose favourite books are the Charlaine Harris “Sookie Stackhouse” series – you’ve won a hard cover copy of J.G. Farrell’s “Troubles” & “The Siege of Krishnapur”! I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

I had intended to give you a recap of the titles I've already read, but every time I started thinking about a book I didn't enjoy, I got frustrated and discouraged. So I've given up on that idea. Instead I'm going to list my top 5 favourite titles, so far, and why I think you should read them.

5) The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch (1978)
A surreal novel about lost love and obsession, I really enjoyed the paranoia and suspense of this character driven novel.

4) Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner (1984)
A bittersweet drama, this one is about not "settling" in love and becoming independently happy.

3) Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally (1981)
Based on a true story, this haunting novel about risking everything to do the right thing is truly a masterpiece of humanity.

2) The Bone People by Keri Hulme (1985)
If you want a novel that will make you look at the world differently, this one could be what your looking for. It's an emotionally difficult read dealing with abuse, but also about the different kinds of love in the world. It's a really brilliant novel.

1) Troubles by J.G. Farrell (Lost Man Booker Prize)
The first book in Farrell's "Empire Trilogy", this is a humorous drama set in Ireland. I loved the style of this novel. The narrative is interspersed with 'news reports' which emphasize the distance between the characters and the action of the revolution. I can't wait to reread this one!

I’m about ¾ through Peter Carey’s “Oscar and Lucinda” and ‘God-willing and the creek don’t rise’ I should be finished it and have a new post up for you by Monday. I am enjoying this novel, it's a bit silly but endearingly so. I'm getting a bit anxious that it will have a 'literary' conclusion rather than a happy one (oops, are my genre prejudices showing?) but hope springs eternal. Depending on the conclusion, this novel may worm it's way onto my top five list - the protagonists are so charmingly odd, I find myself grinning like a loon on the bus and reading while I walk. They are adorable, I really can't help rooting for them to have a lovely story book ending! Please, Mr Carey, don't break my heart on this one!!

I also thought I'd share a picture of my book list. Some days I feel like this sheet of paper is the only thing keeping me sane!




Happy Reading!

A Mosquito Coil By Any Other Name?

I finished reading Penelope Lively's "Moon Tiger" last night, which took a bit longer than I'd hoped but only because I spent most of the past week knitting. It wasn't lost time, a struggle to read, boredom, or anything else nefarious. It was just time spent on a cuter, and currently more important, project. My life outside of reading could fill another blog, or three, but "let's not go there"!

Anyway, the book! I have no strong feelings about this novel. I don't love it, I don't hate it, it was just a week of reading. The characters are interesting, the situations are intriguing, the tone and pacing are good. This novel is about Claudia, a writer of popular history books, writing a history of the world and herself during her final days. It's an interesting device, however the breadth of the story meant that the depth was limited. That may be a reflection of the idea of 'history', though, in which you usually only see the broad sweeps, harldy ever the minutiae. In this case it just meant that I never really developed an emotional attatchment to the story.

My only real issue with the novel was its tendency to be predictable. I kept waiting to be surprised by this novel, but was only really suprised in the second last chapter, and if I had been a bit more emotionally involved I probably wouldn't have even been surprised by that as there were plenty of hints that it was coming. Also, I found the late addition of a character unneccessary, and his relationship with Claudia seemed out of character for her. I'm still a bit puzzled by his inclusion in the story - perhaps he was just intended to add more to the humanity of history, I'm not sure. It was a bit strange, though.

I'm adding Moon Tiger to my "re-read" pile, and hopefully I'll find more of a connection with more familiarity. For now I'll be moving on to the first of Peter Carey's Booker prize winning novels, "Oscar and Lucinda", which sounds like it should be fun.

There's still a week to be entered in my draw to win a book - just comment on the blog and tell me your favourite book and why you love it!

Happy reading!

Disappointing Devils

I finished reading "The Old Devils" by Kingsley Amis late last night. It took me ten days, which is not too bad, especially when you consider how much I disliked reading this book. Which is kind of sad, because I was really looking forward to it, having been told that Amis is a "fun" writer. Perhaps I am just not the target audience, but I found it a torturous read, often forcing myself to sit still for even an hour of reading. The more I've reflected on it the better I've thought of it, but that doesn't alter the fact that I didn't enjoy it while I was reading it.

The story is of a group of old friends, mostly recently retired, trying to fill their days and ease their worries through excessive drinking and occasionally lusting after each others spouses. It's set in Wales in the mid 1980's and the identity crisis of the country is reflected in the lives of the characters, which added much needed depth and interest. Without it, the general carousing and whining of the characters would have bored me to tears. The narrative was often quite amusing, although I'm willing to admit I probably missed a few of the jokes. There are language, cultural and ageist references that just went over my head - not really a fault with a book, just evidence of me not being the target audience.

I was particularly interested in Charlie as a character - he probably could have sustained an entire novel himself. However, he was also a major part of why I didn't enjoy the novel. Charlie seems to be a master of the double negative, and every time the story switched to his point of view I was irritated by that. Yes, it's part of building the character profile for the reader, helping to develop the character voice, blah blah blah. It's really irritating to read a paragraph full of double negatives, especially when you're already struggling to decipher the cultural references. Having to work really hard to figure out what's meant takes me completely out of the story, which is probably why I struggled so much to get emotionally involved with this story. It's really unfortunate, too, because as I said the story itself was interesting. I can see how people would love this book, and I'll probably try some other novels by Amis, but this novel didn't work for me.

So, moving on to the next novel. I'll be reading Penelope Lively's "Moon Tiger". Just a quick reminder, there's still lots of time to be entered in my draw to win a book. All you have to do to enter is comment on the blog and let me know what your favourite book is, and why you love it. I'm kind of dying of curiosity here!

Happy reading!

My New Favourite Booker

Honestly, I meandered my way through Keri Hulme's "The Bone People" over the past eleven days, not even trying to finish it 'on time'. It was simply that exquisite.
Delicious.
Heart-breaking.
Superb.
I didn't want to let go of these characters, and now that I've finished the book I want to start it again. It's my new favourite Booker book, and it's probably broken into my all-time top ten list, as well. Except that I don't actually have such a list, so please don't ask for the other titles!

This novel centers around three deeply damaged people, a Maori widower trying to raise his mute foster son and an artistic hermit who has lost her muse, delving into what makes a family and what love is. There are lots of really tough issues, such as child abuse, alcoholism, death, spirituality, and sexuality, but it is devoid of the usual preachy tone that comes with such heavy fare. Nothing is really black and white, but they seem to have a live and let live mentality. The child abuse is slightly more contentious, but it's very much a 'none of my business'-type attitude, which I did find difficult to read. If you are deeply sensitive to these matters, you may not enjoy this book. I was able to compartmentalize, saying to myself, "it's just fiction". That may not work for you, so please consider yourself warned.

Hulme's writing is divine. She is a poet, and it absolutely comes through in this novel. There is an obvious love for words and also rhythm, and the overall flow of the prose is hypnotic. In the introduction she speaks about the manuscript being rejected by publishers who wanted to edit her word use, and I'm so glad she was able to find one who would print it as written. It is a work of art, in the best possible way! I loved that she used so much Maori language, and it's fantastic that there is a Maori phrase section at the end of the text! I wish all the Booker prize winners that utilize languages other than English in their text were so thoughtful - after all, it's a prize for novels written in English. I wish she were a more prolific writer, and I'm trying to get my hands on some of her other work, but so far with very little luck.

Anyway, I don't want to spoil the beauty of the story in case you decide to read it, so there isn't much I can say about the novel other than I found it deeply engaging, and I loved it. It has thrown a wrench into my contest plans, however! I intended to give a hardcover copy of my favourite Booker book from the first 6 months of my reading to the winner of my draw next month, and I was 98% certain that book would be J.G. Farrell's "Troubles" - which is being released in a special edition with "The Siege of Krishnapur". Now, the prize may have to be "The Bone People"! By the way, if you haven't entered yet, there's still plenty of time to get in the draw. Just leave a comment telling me what your favourite book is and why you love it, and I'll enter you in the draw.

My next Booker book is "The Old Devils" by Kingsley Amis, who I've heard is quite an entertaining author, so I'm excited to start that one this evening.

Happy reading!

I Want To Give You A Book

I finished reading Thomas Keneally's "Schindler's Ark" late last night, having taken 12 days to read it. Slightly longer than my allotted time but I'm pretty pleased, actually. I admitted before that I was a bit apprehensive about reading this novel, and I was mostly concerned about the emotional intensity being too much for me to 'digest' in a short period of time. My apprehension was unfounded, however, and I found the story well-paced and engaging.

Most people are familiar with the story of Oskar Schindler, if not from the novel or Spielberg's masterpiece film "Schindler's List" then simply through pop-culture osmosis. It's an inspiring story about an industrial capitalist German who risks everything and spends millions to save the lives of over a thousand, mostly Polish, Jews during the Holocaust. It's a story that would be almost beyond belief as fiction, but it's true, and all the more amazing for all of Schindler's moral shortfalls. A war profiteer, an adulterer, a drinker, a charming briber who could seemingly get anything from anyone - all this, and also one of the greatest humanitarians of the twentieth century. I admit, even though I'd seen the movie, this novel kinda blew my mind. The humanity, compassion, dignity of this story was more inspiring than I ever thought it would be.

I loved this novel.

That having been said, much like Schindler, it's not perfect. Although it was well-paced, organized and easy to read, there were some stylistic decisions I disagreed with and some character arcs left unresolved. Because it is a historically true story I was able to research the unresolved stories to my own satisfaction, so that was alright. Also, the story was strong enough to over-come the minor stylistic flaws, but they are there. Overall, it did not negatively affect my enjoyment of the book.

So, I've now finished the two novels I was most worried about when I started my challenge. Neither book deserved the fear I held for them, and I'm really glad that I read them. In particular I feel that "Schindler's Ark" has deepened my belief in humanity, which is often a shaky deal (I work in retail, remember!) and therefore no small matter. For a book to actually make me believe that it is possible to make a positive impact on the world is no mean feat, and for that I am extremely grateful. It's one of the things I was hoping for when I started this crazy quest, so that's pretty awesome. Challenging fears, improving my life - books are so worth it.

On that note, I'd like to give you a book! March 12th will be the six-month mark of my Booker challenge and to celebrate I'm running a little contest. To enter, just comment on the blog between now and March 11th telling me what your favourite book is and why, and I'll enter your name in a draw to win a hard cover novel. The title is a surprise, but I will mail anywhere in the world - so, please share your favourite book with me!

My next read is Keri Hulme's "The Bone People". I've no idea what to expect from it, so I'm pretty excited!

Happy reading!

Halfway Through and a Non-Booker Book

Just a quick mid-book blog for "Schindler's Ark" because I promised I would. Caveat - I am tired, and may be slightly incoherent.

I'm very relieved by how clear and concise Keneally's prose is, considering how dark the subject matter is. I'm not closing the book puzzling over what the author is trying to say, although I am shaking my head (and maybe wiping some tears) over the state of humanity. Which, for me, is much better! I understand that some people really enjoy the intellectual challenge of deciphering an author's meanings - but I would rather just be engaged by the story, thank you very much!

Even factoring in the emotional brutality, and the unfamiliar German/Polish/Jewish words and names, I've been pleasantly surprised by how easily it flows. I'm finding the short chapters are helping me to set reading goals, which means I'm reading more than I would in a novel without chapter breaks. For example, I know two chapters will take me approximately thirty-minutes, so if I'm going to read for an hour before bed I'll be reading four chapters, instead of just reading until the most convenient story break arrives.

So, I am engaging emotionally with the story (really, how could you not?) and I am enjoying the writing style. Again, I'm only half-way through the book, but I think I'm going to be especially fond of it.

This week I also finished 'reading' a non-Booker book, Christopher Farnsworth's "Blood Oath", which was a lot of fun! When I'm knitting I usually watch TV, but I tend to miss most of the action on account of watching my hands. So I've been trying audio books while knitting, the theory being I won't miss anything and I'll be able to quench my thirst for genre fiction without taking reading time away from the Booker's. Because, let's be honest, Twitter already gets a quarter of my daily reading time. At least. Even though this audio book was only 10 hours long, it took me 42 days to get through it. Obviously I don't knit often enough!

So, yes, "Blood Oath" was fun - a spy thriller with a vampire hero, totally new concept for me! Most vampires I encounter are of the sexy variety, and even though Cade isn't as blood thirsty as one would hope for, he also is not 'touchy feely'. I enjoyed the back story especially - I happened to be listening to that portion while reading "Rites of Passage", so my brain created some lovely nocturnal crossed wires. I kept hoping Golding's parson would turn out to be a vampire, but no such luck. Anyway, if you enjoy your vampires with snarky yet lovable sidekicks, check out "Blood Oath" - I'm certainly looking forward to getting my ear buds on Farnsworth's next two volumes!

Happy reading!

Beautiful Heartbreak

I seem to be underestimating the shorter novels, much to my detriment. Although I finished reading my last book on the 19th, and I was carrying "Hotel du Lac" in my bag from the 20th on, I didn't start reading it until Monday morning! Three whole days of lost reading because I looked at the page count and thought, 'I can knock that out in one evening'! I just finished it on the bus home to tonight, so I'm feeling a little disappointed with myself.

That having been said, I did enjoy this novel and I'm already planning to read a few more titles by Anita Brookner. I struggled a bit getting into the story the first couple chapters, as I found her choice of language more refined than what I am accustomed with, to the point of being challenging. I was feeling very uneducated, which was compounded by the dialogue exchanges en francais - even though I am Canadian and took 6 years of French, my French is very weak. By the third chapter I had relaxed enough to accept that even though I wasn't familiar with some of the words, I still understood the general meaning, and the magic of story-telling took over.

I saw a lot of myself in the character of Edith Hope, and I find that a bit depressing. She's a romantic (in addition to writing romance novels) who has been disappointed in love although she seems very content with her life. After an out-of-character scandal, her friends have packed her off for a holiday of undetermined length at the eponymous hotel. It's the end of the holiday season so the hotel is nearly deserted, although there are a handful of equally depressing women still in residence who make good use of Edith as an audience. In less skilled hands this might have been a very depressing story, as it's mainly about broken hearts. As it is, I found it beautiful, empowering (there's a bit of a feminist vibe), and endearing. Yes, still heartbreaking, but that's life outside a romance novel!

I took a look at the descriptions of a few other titles by Brookner, and it seems she often uses 'exile and return' in her stories of individuals maturing. Even though Edith almost makes the same error during her exile which led to it, as she returns she seems to have gained acceptance for herself as she is, which gives her more strength and conviction. She's a very modern female hero, and I quite like her. In fact, I can think of a few girlfriends I am going to recommend this novel to!

Next up, I'm going to back-track and read Thomas Keneally's "Schindler's Ark" - hopefully I will have the fortitude to give you a mid-book blog!

Happy Reading!