Vanished (Gone Baby Gone by Dennis Lehane)

I watched the fantastic Ben Affleck-directed adaptation of this book when it was released in 2007, and Dennis Lehane's novel Gone Baby Gone has been on my list since. I'm a HUGE fan of crime/noir fiction, and this hearkens back to the days when Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett were best sellers.

Lehane weaves a chilling tale of sadness, destruction, and betrayal. Private Detectives Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro investigate the disappearance of four-year-old Amanda McCready. Kenzie and Gennaro seem to work just barely within the confines of the law, all the while cultivating their relationships with known criminals as well as with their cop friends.

Lehane masterfully portrays the dark underworld of Boston and its inhabitants, and he always seems to inject a healthy dose of humanity into each character. It makes the novel complicated and layered. All of Lehane's twists and turns lead up to a heartbreaking, no-win climax that devastates everyone involved. It's a powerful, vivid, horrifying book that I found hard to put down. I'm looking forward to reading more of Lehane's work.

Until next time, happy reading!

The Art of Learning (The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Lee and The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta)

I happened to read two books with the word "teacher" in the title back to back, so I think I'll make this a theme post and write about them both.

In all honesty, though, these books couldn't be more different.

The Piano Teacher, which I read first and liked immensely, is a historical novel. It's set in Hong Kong during World War II and 1952 (I'm not sure that makes sense. It's two stories weaved into one book). It focuses on an English wallflower named Claire who is brought to Hong Kong by her husband to work following the war- she's the titular piano teacher to a young Chinese girl named Locket. Locket's family, the Chens, are very wealthy, and while working there Claire falls in love with a man named Will, also a British expat.

Lee juxtaposes Will and Claire's romance with the tale of the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during WWII. Will is swept into a world of intrigue by the vivacious Trudy Liang. It's a story full of twists and turns, and seamlessly weaves the past into the present and effortlessly shows that each action and choice can have myriad repercussions. It's also a bit surprising, in the end.

The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta, while interesting, felt a bit stilted to me. Perrotta weaves a story of liberals v. evangelicals, a very real problem in this day and age. Single mom Ruth is the local health teacher, and she is forced into a ridiculous abstinence only sex education. Standing in opposition to her is born-again Tim, who coaches Ruth's daughter in soccer. Tim is struggling with his own internal demons, which make him question his faith numerous times, particularly after Ruth (the harlot!) introduces herself. The whole book feels a bit cliched and overwrought. Tim is completely unlikable, and Ruth is unsympathetic.

What did I learn from these books? Not much, overall....maybe I learned that the Chinese are much more interesting than suburban evangelicals.

Until next time, happy reading!

They Things They Took (The Book Thief by Markus Zusak)

It took me a few days to pick up another book after Edgar Sawtelle, and, although I searched for something with a happy ending, I had a really hard time. So I chose The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I had recommended it to my friend David before the holidays, and I thought I better read it again and refresh my memory. Unfortunately, my copy had disappeared! So I went to Target and bought another one. I first read this book a little over a year and a half ago, and I haven't been able to get it out of my head. It's technically a young adult novel, but I can enjoy a little YA every now and then. And, in my opinion, the themes in this book are very mature and only suitable for almost-adults.

Anyway, the story takes place during World War II and centers around a young German girl, Liesel, who has safe hair but not safe eyes, and who is sent to live with foster parents. It's a rather complicated plot, and it involves the thieving of several books (which, in Liesel's case, I approve of wholeheartedly), and it is simply a wonderful book.

I do enjoy historical fiction immensely (I did grow up reading the American Girl books), and this is a very well done historical novel. After a second reading, I definitely recommend it to anyone who has an interest in WWII, like historical fiction, or simply likes to read.

I know that was a short post, particularly after my loooooong ones about Edgar Sawtelle, but there will be more soon. Until then, Happy Reading!

A Second Look (The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by Dave Wroblewski)

Before I begin my infinite praise of my latest book, I want to take another moment to talk about The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. It's a book that certainly stays with you, since it finished it over two weeks ago and can't stop thinking about it. I want to make a few main points:

---Edgar Sawtelle is a book for readers. I want to emphasize that because it's most definitely not a book that non-readers would enjoy. What do I mean by "readers"? I am a reader. I read books because they are enriching, and they are entertaining, and, yes, sometimes they are sad. But books make me feel something inside, something that cannot be gotten from a movie or television. Perhaps it is due to the actual physical connection that a reader has with the book; one holds the actual book in hand and enters another world, to grow and change and learn along with the characters that have been brought to life between the two covers. I have a voracious appetite for books and words and, above all, learning. Because readers are, ultimately, learners, and books should always, always, always teach the reader something.

I said that non-readers would not enjoy Edgar Sawtelle. There are so many reasons for this, but ultimately it comes down to the fact that this is a book that one has to invest time and energy and thought into, and, in general, when a non-reader chooses a book it is for light-hearted escapism. So please, don't read this book.

---I want to point out that it has been a terribly long time since I have read Hamlet, and I really don't remember much of it- although I do remember, in AP English 12, that we had to read it out loud and I believe I was Ophelia for a couple of acts. However, I did not truly connect this story to Hamlet until well into the book. I feel a bit dumb for that; Trudy (Gertrude) and Claude (Claudius) should have been dead giveaways from the beginning.

---And so brings me to my final point. I mentioned in the last post that by the end of the book I wanted to throw myself off the roof of my house after I read the ending. After much thought, I've come to the conclusion that the ending of the book simply felt wrong. I don't want to give away too much in this post, on the off chance that someone might want to read the book after all my chatter, but it seems that the entire story the reader was led to believe one thing, and then that view was completely shattered. Everyone (human and canine, with the notable exceptions being Edgar and his beloved dog Almondine) behaved contrary to expectations.

I feel Wroblewski's downfall came in relying too much on the story of Hamlet. From what I remember of that tragedy, most of the characters were demented anyway....but that's not the way these characters were drawn. They were lively and thoughtful and beautiful and so real, which is not something that can be said for Shakespeare's overwrought play (I don't have much love for Hamlet, obviously). The ending of Edgar Sawtelle was so dissatisfying and disheartening that I still haven't been able decide how I truly feel about the book overall.

---Ok, maybe that wasn't my final point. I've been reading some reviews on Amazon, and it seems that many people agree with me. The book was complex and well written, but the ending was wrong for the tone of the book. I truly enjoyed the time I spend immersed in Edgar's world, and I simply felt the need to properly mourn for the characters (I promise I'm not crazy- I know they're not real, but sometimes books just hit you that hard).

I have a few more books that I've read since Edgar Sawtelle, so I'll try to post about them soon. Until then, Happy Reading!

Just a Boy and his Dog (The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski)

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is much more complicated than the title of this post suggests; I'm not even sure I have the words to describe my feelings for this novel.

The hype behind this novel when it was released in 2008 was incredible--it's been on my list ever since. But, I do not like to pay $26.95 for hardback books, so I wait patiently for the paperbacks or for them to appear at a much reduced price at my favorite used bookstores (McKay's FTW). So when I ran across a hardback copy at Books-A-Million on the clearance shelf, I jumped on it.

Simply put, Edgar Sawtelle is about a mute boy and his dog, Almondine. Edgar's family raises a unique (and unfortunately fictional) breed of dog unimaginatively named Sawtelle Dogs. Tragedy befalls the Sawtelles, and Edgar runs away from home with three of his dogs in tow, though Almondine stays behind.

The book is fairly long (570 pages), so it took me a few days to get through it. I'm certainly glad that I didn't sit down and read it in one day, because it made me want to hurl myself off the roof of our house (and since it's a ranch, that probably would have only earned me a broken leg or something).

Don't get me wrong, the book was wonderful. It was beautifully written, and the Edgar's world was detailed and lovely and fully realized. The book has a few problems--it does not tie up all of the loose ends and does not always give a reason for the actions that the main characters take.

I realize that not all books have to have perfect resolutions, and that often makes for a better story. It gets people talking about the book--and Edgar Sawtelle is worth talking about--but there's so much development in the book, and at 570 pages there should be a little more resolution.

I won't say too much for the fear of ruining the book for anyone who wants to read it. It does rely on the story of Hamlet quite a bit, and I saw shades of the Russians (which I passionately hate) in the writing, but it is an American novel through and through, and it was compelling enough to hold my attention.

I'm going to find a book with a not-so-unhappy ending, and until next time, Happy Reading everyone!

Searching for a Soul (Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro)

I'm not sure if it's just end-of-2010-blues or what, but I have certainly been reading some depressing books lately. I read Never Let Me Go right after Christmas, and it took me several days to get over it.

The book, written by Kazuo Ishiguro, takes place in a kind of alternate universe England in the late 1990's. Science has perfected the art of keeping people alive--although they make clones, raise them, and then harvest their organs once they reach their mid to late 20's, in a process called "completion." It's an interesting concept, and not as sci-fi as it sounds. The book unfolds slowly, only allowing the readers bits and pieces of the story, just as the children learn it as they grow up.

The book is told from the perspective of Kathy H., a clone raised at Hailsham, and focuses on her relationship with her friends Ruth and Tommy. Kathy's voice throughout the book is measured, stoic, and very to the point, and it lends a bluntness to the quietly disturbing story. It's an interesting book and raises questions about self-sacrifice and true personal freedoms, while also questioning the ethics of science without ever truly raising the question.

...And I also went to the movies! Never Let Me Go was playing at Cine in Athens before I left for break, and I took a break from writing papers to go see it with a friend. It was a beautiful movie, wonderfully acted by Carey Mulligan as Kathy and Keira Knightly and Andrew Garfield as Ruth and Tommy. For once, I enjoyed the movie just as much as the book. It was depressing, as I mentioned earlier, and David was very thankful I didn't cry (though I wanted to- particularly in the last scene, it's so desolate).

On a side note, one of the actors in the movie played Bill Weasley in HP and the Deathly Hallows. David and I were afraid to stereotype the actor (who is British and a redhead) as a Weasley simply because he's British and a redhead. It's probably funnier if you were there.

Thank Goodness for Winter Break (lots of reading)

So I have a lot of reading to talk about--so much that I'm going to do a quick summary and give my thoughts on each in one post. I'm on Winter Break (yay!) so all I've been doing is sleeping, eating, and reading- my three favorite things. Anyway, here's the rundown:

1. The Hunger Games Trilogy by Susanne Collins: a bleak young adult series that I thoroughly enjoyed. I'm a big fan of YA- it's easy to read, and most of the time it's fun and entertaining. This is certainly much better than Twilight, although not quite as awesome as Harry Potter. The themes are quite mature, however. I would definitely recommend- and Target has the entire series for a reasonable price.

2. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer: continuing in the bleak reading theme, this nonfiction follows the story of Chris McCandless as he gives up a comfortable life, disappears off the grid, and journeys across America, eventually ending up heading into the bush near Denali National Park in Alaska. It's an interesting read, if a bit graphic and gut wrenching at times.

3. Songbook by Nick Hornby: I started this blog with a post about Nick Hornby's book about reading; this book follows in the same tradition, though it's focus is on music and how it relates to life and the memories a particular song can hold. It's a nice read, though if you don't know the songs, it can seem a bit tedious.

4. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Steig Larsson: I'll spare you another long winded post about my love for Larsson's Millennium trilogy and simply say: I LOVE THESE BOOKS. I finally got to finish the last one, and it was great. Just like the others, it was suspenseful, well written, and the details were amazing.

I hope everyone is having a lovely holiday! I'll be back soon with another combo movie/book post. Until then, Happy Reading!