It's been a long time since I've been able to read an entire book, but having a long plane ride across the Atlantic helps. When I first checked out Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides a list had just come out, The Best Fiction of the Millennium (So Far), that included this book (and many others in our Popular Reading Collection).
I was excited to dive into this hefty book and I was indeed carried away by this Greek Epic. I thought of the stories and trials of my own ancestors who passed through Ellis Island hoping for a better life in America. I was blessed to be born into middle class America in the late 1960s. The narrator Cal was blessed and cursed by his/her bloodlines. Growing up in the same era I recognized the aftermath of race riots that convinced our parents to flee to the suburbs, yet I was also easily transported to Asia Minor and Prohibition era Detroit through Eugenides' skillfull writing. His candid and unemotional treatment of hermaphroditism bordered on clinical but also made the story seem true. I half-wanted to use the library resources to see if Cal's case is indeed documented in medical accounts. The human story of Cal's family is what truly engaged me though and made the book an engrossing read.
Kristen
Showing posts with label Review Adult Fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Review Adult Fiction. Show all posts
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves
Have you ever felt like an outsider? Has that feeling been so extreme that you don't even feel like a member of the human race?
Have you ever wanted to curl up and disappear from the world for awhile? Has that happened and you get a panicky feeling that you can't rejoin the world because you'd done such a good job of disappearing?
Karen Russell in St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves plays with themes to an extreme. This is her first publication -- a collection of 10 short stories -- and she will be coming to UND in a few weeks as part of the Writer's Conference. I'm excited.
In her publisher's page she tells of being influenced by many writers, including Stephen King and Ray Bradbury, and I could see that. Her style is called "magical realism" and I love stories that mix the real and the fantastic. An author can get away with a lot -- push the envelope -- to get the reader out of their comfort zone, and maybe even elicit a gasp from them. David Sedaris did that during his reading in Fargo several years ago. I encourage you to check out Russell's book. These stories will stay with you and they're perfect for a quick "time-out" from studying.
Kristen
Have you ever wanted to curl up and disappear from the world for awhile? Has that happened and you get a panicky feeling that you can't rejoin the world because you'd done such a good job of disappearing?
Karen Russell in St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves plays with themes to an extreme. This is her first publication -- a collection of 10 short stories -- and she will be coming to UND in a few weeks as part of the Writer's Conference. I'm excited.
In her publisher's page she tells of being influenced by many writers, including Stephen King and Ray Bradbury, and I could see that. Her style is called "magical realism" and I love stories that mix the real and the fantastic. An author can get away with a lot -- push the envelope -- to get the reader out of their comfort zone, and maybe even elicit a gasp from them. David Sedaris did that during his reading in Fargo several years ago. I encourage you to check out Russell's book. These stories will stay with you and they're perfect for a quick "time-out" from studying.
Kristen
Monday, February 23, 2009
Wicked
What is it about Frank L. Baum's Wizard of Oz that engages people year after year? After watching the classic movie with my kids, I checked out the original book. I was surprised at the differences, most notably how Dorothy is a much stronger, more self-reliant character who has to use her wits to get out of many more troubles than the movie character.
I also picked up The Wizard of Oz: Shaping an Imaginary World and discovered that after the success of his book, Mr. Baum lost money in several theatrical/film ventures and wound up having to write 14 sequels to the Oz books (usually coming out right before Christmas time). The sequels continued after Baum's death and some librarians/children's literature scholars dismissed the entire series as having any value to children 30 years after the Wizard of Oz was first written. However, the 1939 film version kept Oz and its characters part of the American landscape.
I'd heard of the broadway show, Wicked and knew songs such as "Popular" were from it. I didn't realize the 2004 musical was based on another book about that magical kingdom written in 1995. Author Gregory Maguire created a story for the grownups in Wicked: the life and times of the wicked witch of the West. Just as you may be surprised when Lady Chatterley's lover reads more like a political manifesto than a juicy romance, so does Wicked explore weighty issues such as the nature of evil, while exploring political and religious holds on people who live under the dictatorship of the Wizard. I found myself slogging through the story of Elphaba (also known as the Wicked Witch of the West), her sister, friends (including Glinda) as they grew up in Oz during the earlier years of Oz's rule. I was enchanted with the story, though, and found the parallels to the book really interesting -- a talking lion makes perfect sense, the power of the glass prism shoes (not Ruby red) is explored, even the flying monkeys are explained. Elphaba is a complex, meaningful character in this book who seems to wreck havoc in the lives of those close to her-- without meaning to. Throughout her life she seems blessed and cursed at the same time. Because she didn't survive to give her side of the story and happened to be born with green skin, she became a nightmare character for generations of children.
Kristen
I also picked up The Wizard of Oz: Shaping an Imaginary World and discovered that after the success of his book, Mr. Baum lost money in several theatrical/film ventures and wound up having to write 14 sequels to the Oz books (usually coming out right before Christmas time). The sequels continued after Baum's death and some librarians/children's literature scholars dismissed the entire series as having any value to children 30 years after the Wizard of Oz was first written. However, the 1939 film version kept Oz and its characters part of the American landscape.
I'd heard of the broadway show, Wicked and knew songs such as "Popular" were from it. I didn't realize the 2004 musical was based on another book about that magical kingdom written in 1995. Author Gregory Maguire created a story for the grownups in Wicked: the life and times of the wicked witch of the West. Just as you may be surprised when Lady Chatterley's lover reads more like a political manifesto than a juicy romance, so does Wicked explore weighty issues such as the nature of evil, while exploring political and religious holds on people who live under the dictatorship of the Wizard. I found myself slogging through the story of Elphaba (also known as the Wicked Witch of the West), her sister, friends (including Glinda) as they grew up in Oz during the earlier years of Oz's rule. I was enchanted with the story, though, and found the parallels to the book really interesting -- a talking lion makes perfect sense, the power of the glass prism shoes (not Ruby red) is explored, even the flying monkeys are explained. Elphaba is a complex, meaningful character in this book who seems to wreck havoc in the lives of those close to her-- without meaning to. Throughout her life she seems blessed and cursed at the same time. Because she didn't survive to give her side of the story and happened to be born with green skin, she became a nightmare character for generations of children.
Kristen
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Review: The Hour I First Believed
As mentioned previously, I visited with author Wally Lamb while on his book tour promoting The Hour I First Believed. I just finished reading the signed copy donated by Harper Collins Publishers to the Popular Reading Collection and I encourage you to check it out.
Even though the large size of the book looks intimidating, I read through it quite quickly because I was immediately drawn into the characters and the story. The main fictional characters experience the real life tragedy of the April 20th 1999 shooting at Columbine High School. Lamb recreated that day and its aftermath through extensive research and his experience as a high school English teacher. He drew from his knowledge of teens, classical mythology, and female prison inmates to draw realistic characters who are stumbling through mazes and slaying monsters--sometimes victorious and sometimes not. In an author essay Wally writes, "A fiction writer weaves a fabric of lies in hopes of revealing deeper human truths." He weaves "lies" and facts to create an engaging story that does reveal many truths about the human condition.
In the book's afterward, Wally said he "had a terrible time starting this story." It took him nine years to get past everyone's expectations of him and "discover a story" to tell. Last time I checked, it was number nine on the New York Times Bestseller list. It also had a high rank on the bestseller for college campus list I saw at the bookstore. I will share more insights from Wally throughout the month but the Harper Collins website is great--full of information including a Q & A about this book.
Also, you can visit the reference area at the library to see a display on researching an author, the inspirations for this book, and the influence of popular fiction/nonfiction in general.
Kristen
Even though the large size of the book looks intimidating, I read through it quite quickly because I was immediately drawn into the characters and the story. The main fictional characters experience the real life tragedy of the April 20th 1999 shooting at Columbine High School. Lamb recreated that day and its aftermath through extensive research and his experience as a high school English teacher. He drew from his knowledge of teens, classical mythology, and female prison inmates to draw realistic characters who are stumbling through mazes and slaying monsters--sometimes victorious and sometimes not. In an author essay Wally writes, "A fiction writer weaves a fabric of lies in hopes of revealing deeper human truths." He weaves "lies" and facts to create an engaging story that does reveal many truths about the human condition.
In the book's afterward, Wally said he "had a terrible time starting this story." It took him nine years to get past everyone's expectations of him and "discover a story" to tell. Last time I checked, it was number nine on the New York Times Bestseller list. It also had a high rank on the bestseller for college campus list I saw at the bookstore. I will share more insights from Wally throughout the month but the Harper Collins website is great--full of information including a Q & A about this book.
Also, you can visit the reference area at the library to see a display on researching an author, the inspirations for this book, and the influence of popular fiction/nonfiction in general.
Kristen
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
The Learners
Author:Chip Kidd
Genre: Fiction/Tiny Tid-Bits of Design Theory
Genre: Fiction/Tiny Tid-Bits of Design Theory
I reviewed Chip Kidd’s The Cheese Monkeys last Spring, and once again, Kidd masters the importance of design literally from cover to cover. Although I am always hesitant to read sequels this one is distant enough that it is not like you should have hopped off the book three chapters ago. I would call this sequel more of a companion—they are in the same species, but genetically engineered a little differently. Where The Cheese Monkeys has a strong narrative The Learners functions as a subtle dissection of design and its impact on the human condition.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
The Nimrod Flipout/The Girl on the Fridge
Fiction/Short Story Collections by Etgar Keret
Kristen's note: The Popular Reading Collection has The Nimrod Flipout and we can purchase The Girl of the Fridge. Steph, submit an Interlibrary Loan request for the Jellyfish--it's worth a shot.
I have grouped these two collections together because I devoured both of these and think that they work well as a pairing. Keret is a master of the short story. In addition, as I tend to judge books by their cover (Okay, so, aesthetics differ between humans and books, and my judgements are never intended toward the book’s character, so don’t make me feel bad to judge a book by its cover.) Keret’s design choices are spot on. The Girl on the Fridge is definitely most memorable for me and the short stories Girl on the Fridge and Nothing are the most precise and calculated bits of short fiction that I have read in some time. They are refreshing and crisp. I have been meaning to see the feature film he directed called Jellyfish, but need to find out how to obtain it…
Kristen's note: The Popular Reading Collection has The Nimrod Flipout and we can purchase The Girl of the Fridge. Steph, submit an Interlibrary Loan request for the Jellyfish--it's worth a shot.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Fowler
Are you reading Jane Austen for your classes? Have you seen A&E or Masterpiece Theatre productions of these classics? If so, don't stop there -- try to remember to pick these books up several times throughout your life. You will enjoy them and be amazed at the staying power of these stories.
In the Jane Austen Book Club, a group of 5 women and 1 man decide to read every major Jane Austen novel over the course of a year. I have not accomplished that -- I just keep returning to Pride and Prejudice. I'm in a book club with fellow moms, many associated with UND, however I can't say I tremendously enjoyed reading a fictional account of a book club. I wasn't really hooked into the story and I had a hard time keeping the characters clear in my mind. Our book club had a good discussion though and we were glad to brainstorm which author we'd like to delve into if we had that luxury -- Barbara Kingsolver, Louise Erdrich, Charles Dickens, Graham Greene...
So --a recommended read? Jane Austen-a resounding yes, this book not so much.
Kristen
P.S. Students, we need to hear from you to keep this blog going. Please send us a short review--any book is good. Details are on the blog. We'll all appreciate it!
In the Jane Austen Book Club, a group of 5 women and 1 man decide to read every major Jane Austen novel over the course of a year. I have not accomplished that -- I just keep returning to Pride and Prejudice. I'm in a book club with fellow moms, many associated with UND, however I can't say I tremendously enjoyed reading a fictional account of a book club. I wasn't really hooked into the story and I had a hard time keeping the characters clear in my mind. Our book club had a good discussion though and we were glad to brainstorm which author we'd like to delve into if we had that luxury -- Barbara Kingsolver, Louise Erdrich, Charles Dickens, Graham Greene...
So --a recommended read? Jane Austen-a resounding yes, this book not so much.
Kristen
P.S. Students, we need to hear from you to keep this blog going. Please send us a short review--any book is good. Details are on the blog. We'll all appreciate it!
Monday, September 8, 2008
Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
I was going to put out a plea for student reviews but Steph came to the rescue! Here's her posting:
Hello to all of the awesome and knowledgeable librarians at library pop!!!!
Here is one review that I have been able to write up thus far into the fall semester! Stay cool!!!!
Now, I know that I have already written a review on Palahniuk’s work, however, I couldn’t resist Choke. Inevitably, I found myself reading it this summer---especially since the movie is due out this fall. I figured I would read it before the movie’s images were engrained in my mind, thus, automatically tainting my own interpretation of the characters and dialogue. Overall, I enjoyed the novel—heavy with Palahniuk’s ability to analyze and reveal a seedier side of the realities of our world, he once again portrays America as a society gone mad. However, it was not until the conclusion that I thought this novel was remarkable. The final chapter is one that marinates the mind and stays with you for days making you think about addiction, excess, and the delusions that we adhere to within each of our pasts and presents. In the end, Choke is about grasping onto the past. Palahniuk shows us how we evolve through learning to live with the past and attempting to escape it while needing it whether or not we want it to coincide with the present or the futures we create.
Steph C.
Hello to all of the awesome and knowledgeable librarians at library pop!!!!
Here is one review that I have been able to write up thus far into the fall semester! Stay cool!!!!
Now, I know that I have already written a review on Palahniuk’s work, however, I couldn’t resist Choke. Inevitably, I found myself reading it this summer---especially since the movie is due out this fall. I figured I would read it before the movie’s images were engrained in my mind, thus, automatically tainting my own interpretation of the characters and dialogue. Overall, I enjoyed the novel—heavy with Palahniuk’s ability to analyze and reveal a seedier side of the realities of our world, he once again portrays America as a society gone mad. However, it was not until the conclusion that I thought this novel was remarkable. The final chapter is one that marinates the mind and stays with you for days making you think about addiction, excess, and the delusions that we adhere to within each of our pasts and presents. In the end, Choke is about grasping onto the past. Palahniuk shows us how we evolve through learning to live with the past and attempting to escape it while needing it whether or not we want it to coincide with the present or the futures we create.
Steph C.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Twenty Wishes by Debbie Macomber
From Patty:
Patricia Reed
I should inform you first that I am a little biased as far as Debbie Macomber is concerned. I love her books and wait breathlessly for the next one to come out. I am especially partial to her Cedar Cove series, the Blossom street series and her angel series. But this book, Twenty Wishes, probably hit home a little more than her others. It centers on a group of widowers who patronize the shops on Blossom Street, be it the bookstore or the kntting store. One Valentine's Day, this group of women get together and they are inspired to create lists of wishes, ultimately twenty, of things they have always wanted to do but have not done. Some of the wishes end up being very broad in translation and some are very specific. But once they start to make their wishes come true, they change. Their thinking and attitudes. Some even find romance and love. But mostly hope. I read the book in one sitting as I was drawn into the characters and what wishes they listed. I was interested in what they felt was important to put on their lists. And of course fascinated as to how they achieved their goals.
So I was motivated by this book to create my own list of Twenty wishes. Now, I will tell you it isn't easy. You start to question the reasons for things on your list. Whether they are conceivable financially or logically. Like putting "World Peace" on there is probably a waste of a wish. Nice but really unrealistic. I haven't completed my list yet, but I have ideas. At the least the list is opening up possibilities for things that were missing in my life and things that I quit enjoying for one reason or another. And experiences that I would really like to have before I am too old to enjoy them.
This was a very worthy and fun read , as most of her books are. And I highly recommend all her books to everyone. I just wish since she writes a lot of Dakota books, oh yeah, I liked that series too, she would come for book signings here.
Acquisitions Specialist
Chester Fritz Library
University of North Dakota
3051 University Ave Stop 9000
Grand Forks, ND 58202-9000
Chester Fritz Library
University of North Dakota
3051 University Ave Stop 9000
Grand Forks, ND 58202-9000
Monday, May 5, 2008
Review: A Clockwork Orange
Book: A Clockwork Orange
Author: Anthony Burgess
Author: Anthony Burgess
Fiction/Dystopian Fiction
This novel is a must read and exposes the fragility of the human condition within the strict dichotomy of good and evil. Burgess’ linguistic exploration is beautiful in his utilization of cadence and rhythm. Through this specified rhythm he dissects and creates a fantastic and jarring portrait of violence. In the end, Burgess leaves me to wonder how far we each have placated ourselves in order for any one of us to transform into a clockwork orange. The Chester Fritz Library has a few publications of A Clockwork Orange and each one offers a glimpse into the alterations that occur when an author’s work is published. I would suggest reading the most recent publication because it is fully restored whereas the early versions have a missing chapter and may include a glossary of terms; both of which I believe reduces the integrity of the novel in its entirety.
Stephanie Clark
Sophomore
Monday, April 21, 2008
Review: Book: The Cheese Monkeys
Book: The Cheese Monkeys
Author: Chip Kidd
Author: Chip Kidd
“Do you see? Good is Dead.” These words permeate Chip Kidd’s first novel, The Cheese Monkeys. A mash-up of non-fiction autobiography and fictional narrative, the novel is a dark comedy of sorts exposing the reasons why a person becomes an artist and how one survives it throughout college. Read this for a good laugh and the next time you say a piece of art is “good”, you might reconsider your choice of adjective. For those interested, The Learners follows this novel as Kidd’s second novel.
Stephanie Clark
Sophomore
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Review: Fight Club
Book: Fight Club
Author Chuck Palahniuk writes stark and often times gruesome portrayals of American society. Within Fight Club, Palahniuk references male socialization and the human condition within urban and cosmopolitan cultures. Since its 1996 publishing date, Fight Club has most definitely morphed into a pop-culture icon, even-more-so, the piece exposes the flaws and detriments of American society’s confines and stipulations of the human psyche.
Stephanie Clark
Sophomore
Friday, April 11, 2008
Review: Water for Elephants
Reanne Eichele
Unaffiliated member of the library
Adult Fiction
The premise behind Water for Elephants is simple: using flashbacks, an elderly man narrates his glory days as a member of a traveling circus. The reader will easily be enthralled by the young man's daring adventures, including quitting college right before graduation, falling in love with a mercurial man's wife, and becoming a veterinarian for the circus. The other story is just as riveting; although his memories are clear, the narrator struggles with his failing mind and body thereby creating a poignant juxtaposition between reality and fantasy. The book tends to drag along in parts but the ending far makes up for the lull.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Review: Beloved
I don't believe that Beloved by Toni Morrison is in the popular reading collection, but I just finished reading it and really enjoyed it.
Beloved is the story of an African American family's struggles after escaping from slavery in rural Kentucky all before the civil war. The novel is based mainly around the life and trials of (Sethe) the mother within the slave family. Occasionally, the novel takes the reader back to the protagonist's (Sethe) younger years of enslavement--which, in my opinion are the most compelling parts of the book. Morrison wrote the novel in a style similar to poetry, with expression and description that I found to be both captivating and brilliant. The novel is similar to other slavery-themed stories, but considers issues that go deeper such as sexual abuse and violence. Despite the complex ideas within the text, the novel was very easy to understand. I would say it is one of the most memorable reads of my college career so far.
--Stephanie Liden
Beloved is the story of an African American family's struggles after escaping from slavery in rural Kentucky all before the civil war. The novel is based mainly around the life and trials of (Sethe) the mother within the slave family. Occasionally, the novel takes the reader back to the protagonist's (Sethe) younger years of enslavement--which, in my opinion are the most compelling parts of the book. Morrison wrote the novel in a style similar to poetry, with expression and description that I found to be both captivating and brilliant. The novel is similar to other slavery-themed stories, but considers issues that go deeper such as sexual abuse and violence. Despite the complex ideas within the text, the novel was very easy to understand. I would say it is one of the most memorable reads of my college career so far.
--Stephanie Liden
UND Sophomore
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