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!

Angel Headed Hipsters (Howl by Allen Ginsberg)

A few weeks ago I went to see a film with a friend of mine entitled "Howl." Obviously, being a good bookworm, I had heard of the poem by Allen Ginsberg, but I had never read it--my beat reading was cut short after On the Road because I got distracted by Hemingway, which is much more to my tastes.

The film focused on the obscenity trial surrounding the publication of the poem "Howl." Jon Hamm was in it! I do love me some Don Draper...and also, James Franco played Ginsberg. Those of you that know me know that I'm slightly obsessed with James Franco; he can do pretty much anything. He was excellent and almost unrecognizable as Allen Ginsberg. The film was interesting; it juxtaposed the trial with a reading of Howl (which Franco did, it was easily the best part of the film) and with episodes out of Ginsberg's life. The only parts I didn't like were the cartoon interpretations of the poem--it was much too literal and it kind of took me out of the film.

Anyway, I watched the movie, and still hadn't read the poem. So my friend lent me his copy, and I finally got to sit down and read it today. I turned on some music, and sat in my papasan reading and feeling a bit like a hippie (the music definitely helped with that--it was kind of a sixties soul type thing). Although I liked Howl, I liked some of the other poems in the book much better- for example, "Transcription of Organ Music" and "Song."

I'm not a huge fan of poetry, but I can stand a little. I'm not going to recommend this, per se, but I know I have some friends that would enjoy it.

I'm almost done with my semester, so I'll have plenty of posts during the winter holidays. Until next time, Happy Reading!

The Beginning of the End (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I)

The bookworm went to the movies!

Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE Harry Potter. I've been reading HP since I was 11 (half my life) and I feel that I grew up with Harry, Hermione, and Ron. I was at the midnight releases for the last three books, and most of the midnight releases for the movies. So obviously I had to go last night when Deathly Hallows was released.

In my opinion (and we all know I have one), this was the best of the films. I have a few minor critiques that I'm not even sure are worth mentioning. My only real problem was with the handling of the way Harry was moved from Privet Drive to the Burrow. In the book, it was a huge deal that they would be breaking Lily's protective charm when Harry and the Dursley's parted ways. The emphasis in the movie was instead on the way the six decoys transformed into Harry. Although funny, I would have liked more emphasis on the actual fighting. Furthermore, they didn't go to any of the safe houses before taking portkeys to the Burrow (that's one of my minor critiques- it didn't bother me quite so much).

The film was as bleak as the book, and in many ways, a lot more shocking; seeing Charity Burbage suspended above Voldemort's table, then avada kedavra'd was intense. The other most shocking moment was seeing "mudblood" carved into Hermione's arm, and, of course, Dobby's death and Hedwig's death. And when Ron had to kill the horcrux...it was slightly disturbing.

Overall, this was a perfect way to start the end of Harry Potter. The last film comes out in June...it seems like a long wait, doesn't it?

Until next time, everyone go watch HP, Happy Thanksgiving, and Happy Reading!

I get by with a little help from...the help? (The Help by Kathryn Stockett)

I was recommended The Help by Kathryn Stockett several months ago by a lady I sat next to at a training class for my after-school tutoring job. She said it was the best book she had read in several years, which I doubted I would say since I read a lot of great books. But I decided to give this book a chance, and I was not disappointed. It was a fantastic book.

I love historical fiction, despite the fact that most of it is terrible. The Help focuses on one of my favorite periods of American History, the Civil Rights Movement. It takes place in Mississippi, a hot bed of civil rights activities, in 1964. The story revolves around a young Ole Miss graduate named Eugenia but called Skeeter, who was too tall and too immersed in her education at Ole Miss to catch a husband, which was her mother's greatest desire (my mother's too, I suppose). Skeeter wants to be a journalist, so she starts out by writing the weekly housekeeping column in the Jackson newspaper. Unfortunately, Skeeter knows nothing about keeping house, since she grew up with Help.

So Skeeter asks her friend Elizabeth's maid, Aibileen, to help her write the column. From there, Skeeter gets the idea to write a book about what it is like to be The Help in Mississippi. She asks Aibileen to tell her stories, and it takes a lot of convincing. 1964 Mississippi did not look highly upon those stirring up the status quo, particularly white women.

It's hard to imagine a world where segregation and racism so pervades the daily lives of everyone. I did grow up in the South, and vestiges of that racism still exist. People down here still call it "The War of Southern Independence," after all. This book, however, gives a different look to the impact of the Civil Rights movement. You hear in school and in American History classes about all the important civil rights leaders- Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, Medgar Evers...you can list as many as you want. What you don't hear in history class is the impact of the civil rights movement on those who had to go to work everyday for white women or white men. The hotter the civil rights movement got, the worse they were treated, at least in the Deep South.

Stockett provides an interesting perspective, by telling her story from the points of view of Skeeter, Aibileen, and another maid named Minny. From the very beginning, the consequences of breaking the status quo is clear, and by the end of the book those consequences are made real.

Go read this book. RIGHT NOW.

Until next time, Happy Reading!

I should be tired of Swedish Fish by Now (The Girl Who Played with Fire)

I went to the redbox again!

If you haven't figured it out by now, I adore the Millennium trilogy by Steig Larsson (although I haven't read The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest yet). I outlined the plot of this in my post about the book The Girl Who Played with Fire, so I won't do that again, but I finally got to see the Swedish film this weekend.

I, obviously, loved it. The movie had an excellent pace, and despite being in Swedish (and thus having to read subtitles), it was a fun movie to watch. If I didn't know what was going to happen, it would have been suspenseful, and Noomi Rapace plays Lisbeth Salander perfectly.

I can't wait to both read and watch Hornet's Nest. And I really hope that the American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is not completely screwed up. Go watch these movies if you have a few spare hours, it's an excellent way to spend an afternoon.

Next time, I'll have a post about Allen Ginsburg's Howl, and the film Howl, based on the poem and the obscenity trial surrounding its publication. Until then, Happy Reading!

Attraction and Alienation (Prep by Curtis Sittenfield)

This was another re-read for me. I went home for the weekend and left without any for-fun reading materials, so I had to pick something from my extensive collection of already read books.

Prep follows the experiences of an Indiana high schooler by the name of Lee Fiora who decides to attend the prestigious Ault School in Massachusetts. It is Lee's first experience away from home, and she soon finds herself as a fish out of water. The classes are hard, and she had trouble making friends. Furthermore, she finds herself nursing a crush on the star basketball player, Cross Sugarman, and desperately wishing that she could be one of the popular kids.

Prep chronicles all four years of Lee's experiences at Ault, and the reader witnesses her grow from an awkward 14 year old to an awkward 18 year old. At times, Lee can be tiresome, constantly worrying and doubting herself, and I see bits of Holden Caulfield in her. The first time I read this book, after I had been away from home at college, I identified a bit with Lee. Now, several years later, I have a hard time relating to her and I found myself annoyed by the end of the book. Teenage angst is harder to understand the older you get, I suppose.

Filling in a Hole (Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut)

So I've been told recently that there are some holes in my reading since I had never read a Vonnegut...so I decided to correct that. I picket Vonnegut's most famous novel, Slaughterhouse Five. Looking back, I really am not sure how I made it through two years of AP English in high school without reading this novel.

I'm sure most of you have read this, so I won't spend much time rehashing the plot. It's an absurdist classic that relies on autobiographical details from Vonnegut's experiences in WWII. I rather enjoyed reading it, best of all, it was fairly short and I read it it in a couple of nights.

I'll repeat what I was told: if you haven't read Vonnegut, GO DO IT. You have holes in your literary experience.

Where Have All the Cowboys Gone? (So Brave, Young, and Handsome by Leif Enger)

It's definitely been a while since I've posted! I've read a few books, and watched a few movies, so I'm going to try to update my readers on all of that...

First up is a book I read a couple of months back, So Brave, Young, and Handsome by Leif Enger. Anyone who knows my reading habits knows that I love Enger's freshman novel Peace Like a River- I recommend it to pretty much everyone. His sophomore effort, while it doesn't have the same magic quality at the first, is still an excellent read.

The story follows an ex-train robber, outlaw, and boat craftsman by the name of Glendon Hale, as told by his friend and companion Monte Becket. It hearkens back to the westerns that were popular in the 1950's, and it has a pleasant, lyrical quality to the writing that makes it a pure pleasure to read. The book is about suffering, loss, love, and in the end, redemption, as all good cowboys stories are. It made me long for the days where you could hop on a horse, ride west, and have an adventure.

The book also incorporates Charles Siringo, a non-fictional Pinkerton agent who has been on the trail of Hale for years. I actually didn't know that until I looked the book up on Amazon (which offers it on Kindle, if you have one of those or the iPad app). I definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good adventure novel, or anyone who enjoys a poetic, light touch to prose that Enger employs with great success:

"You can't explain grace, anyway, especially when it arrives almost despite yourself. I didn't ask for it, yet somehow it breached and began to work. I suppose grace was pouring over Glendon, who had sought it so hard, and some spilled down on me."

Until next time, Happy Reading!

Swedish Fish...again. (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)T

The Bookworm went to the redbox again!

So yesterday I was faced with a weekend of rain and plenty of reading to accomplish, and after my trip to Kroger to stock up on groceries, I made a detour to the redbox and checked out a couple of movies, one of which was the Swedish version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. You'll remember I read the first two books in the series over the summer, and I recently found out that a version of the film had been made in Sweden already. I found it at redbox, yay!

So this afternoon, after I cleaned my apartment and finished reading The American Voter, I curled up in my papasan with some raspberry lemonade, hummus, and a toasty bagel to watch the movie. As it was rainy outside, and I was slightly sleepy, I turned off the subtitles and instead put the English dubbing on the movie. That was a bit disconcerting; none of the words matched the lips of the actors when they spoke.

Otherwise, the movie was awesome! I definitely wouldn't watch it without reading the books first, because obviously the books are just so much better and you wouldn't want to ruin it. But it was a great film, and did follow the events of the book fairly closely. Obviously there is more exposition in the books so it's a bit easier to follow, and not as much emphasis is placed on the Wennerstrom affair in the movie. Other than those minor quibbles, I would say rent it.

Until next time, Happy Reading (and movie watching)!

A Journey to the Top of the World (Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer)

So this may be the last post I make for a while (about books, anyway, unless you all would like to hear about lovely things like The Supreme Court and the Attitudinal Model Revisted or The American Voter. I'm sure you don't). I'm just beginning my Master's in American Politics at UGA, and while I'm very excited, all the required reading leaves little time for reading for fun.

Anyway, I did manage to finish Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer before I started my grad classes yesterday. It's about the 1996 Everest season, in which 11 climbers were killed in just one day (more died that season, actually) by a terrible storm that hit as the climbers were reaching the summit and beginning the descent.

Krakauer gives a compelling portrait of the personalities of the climbers that decide to summit Mt. Everest- one trait that ties them all together is their determination to reach the top. At over 29,000 feet, it definitely takes determination and reaching the top is not easy. To be denied the summit when one has worked so hard to get there is difficult to deal with.

In the years previous to 1996, commercial expeditions had started going to the top of Everest. Krakauer climbs with one of these expeditions; they are considerably easier because a climber does not have to deal with getting permits from the Nepalese government, organize sherpas, and set up their own camps at various points on the mountain.

Although commercial expeditions have taken a lot of heat for guiding people to the top of Everest that otherwise would not have been able to do it, these expeditions also make it possible for more people to summit. It's a two way street, I suppose, and Krakauer reserves his judgment on whether or not they are actually a good thing.

It takes a while for Krakauer to build up to the actual summit bid; once he does, the reader can tell that writing about that fateful day is very difficult. Many of the climbers that were killed were personal friends of Krakauer, and he writes with an emotion and an intensity that makes it difficult to read the book. It's heartbreaking to read these personal portraits of people that existed, and died in a terrible way on the highest and one of the most cruel mountains in the world.

It's an interesting and compelling book, and one that I'm glad I read. I'd like to read more of Krakauer's books (he also wrote Into the Wild). I would also definitely recommend this book if you, like me, enjoy a good adventure every once in a while (I prefer ones that you don't have to suffer frostbite for).

Up next for me on the required front is The American Voter by Angus Campbell et al. On the just-for-fun front, I've got several, but I think I'm going to try So Brave, Young, and Handsome by Leif Enger. Anyone read his previous book, Peace Like a River? If you haven't, please do. It's a fantastic, beautiful work.

Until next time, Happy Reading, bookworms!

A Journey to Find One's Self (Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert)

I think I may have said before that sometimes a book just comes along that is absolutely perfect for that moment in your life, and for me, Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert has been that book. I started reading it last week, and finally finished it (mostly laying by the pool at my new apartment). It's been a tumultuous week, one in which I had to start acting like an adult (even though I don't feel like one) and moved away from my family.

Life is a journey, and Eat Pray Love explores that journey in a most interesting way. It begins with Eating in Italy- "no carb left behind." It continues in India with Prayer at an ashram, where Gilbert learns meditation and yoga. Finally, it concludes in Bali, where Gilbert falls in Love once again.

It really is a beautiful story, one that explores pleasure, devotion, and finally finds a balance between the two. That's what life is about, isn't it?

This is a beautifully written memoir of a journey into a new beginning, one that has been perfect for me as I begin again as well.

Until next time, find some balance, and Happy Reading!

Oh frabjous day! (Alice in Wonderland)

This bookworm has been in the midst of a move, and although I have been also reading my next book diligently, I was feeling a movie tonight. So I went to the redbox just down the street, and what did I find? Alice in Wonderland (not the Disney version, the new one that came out this year).

So since Alice was technically based on Lewis Carroll's stories (I say stories here, because there were elements pulled from both Alice in Wonderland and the following book, Through the Looking Glass), I decided I would blog about it. I read both a few years ago; I actually found an excellent edition called "The Annotated Alice" and if you're interested at all in reading Carroll's stories this one gives a lot of backstory and information that makes reading it way more fun.

I'm just going to throw it out there that I liked the Disney version of Alice way more than this one...Tim Burton makes everything a little bit creepy for me. And Johnny Depp's weird little dance at the end of the movie just kinda freaked me out.

So this has been the first edition of The Bookworm goes to the Movies...I may post more as I watch more movies based on books. Until next time, Happy Reading (and Watching!)

Revisiting the Joys of Childhood (Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt)

The best first paragraph ever written:

"The first week of August hangs at the very top of the summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning. The weeks that come before are only a climb from balmy spring, and those that follow a drop to the chill of autumn, but the first week of August is motionless, and hot. It is curiously silent, too, with blank which dawns and glaring noons, and sunsets smeared with too much color. Often at night there is lightning, but it quivers all alone. There is no thunder, no relieving rain. These are strange and breathless days, the dog days, when people are led to do things they are sure to be sorry for after."

(from Tuck Everlasting, by Natalie Babbitt. Published 1975, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux)

I read Tuck Everlasting every single year during the first week of August. It is a perfect book; and, for me at least, it can't be read any other time. It is a children's book, but the writing is eloquent and beautiful and the story resonates long into adulthood.

The book centers around the Tuck Family, who drank water from a magic spring and now do not age. Winnie Foster is a young girl, almost a teenager, who wanders into her family's wood and comes across Jesse Tuck drinking from the spring. What follows is a tale of kidnapping, loss, heartbreak, and a moral to always enjoy what life brings you.

List time! My favorite children's books (besides Tuck Everlasting):

1. The BFG by Roald Dahl

2. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

3. The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

4. Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

5. Holes by Louis Sachar

6. The Silver Crown by Robert O'Brien

7. Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne

8. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery

9. Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie

10. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

It may be a while before I can post again (the impending move to Georgia and all), but until next time, Happy Reading!

This is your Brain on Books. (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith)

I am a terrible blogger! I want to apologize for the delay, I have been incredibly busy going to Zac Brown Band concerts, balloon races, and getting ready for my impending move to Georgia for graduate school. But somehow, in between all of that, I managed to read a couple of books.

First up: a satirical take on Jane Austen's masterpiece, Pride and Prejudice. A few years ago, a non-fiction writer named Seth Grahame-Smith decided to take his life into his own hands (those Austen fans can be a rabid bunch) and write a rather different take on Austen's book. The result? Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

For the record, I hate zombies. They're rather stupid, aren't they? And not at all hard to kill, like say, vampires. Or werewolves. Or Lord Voldemort.

But back to the book at hand. It's definitely funny! And this coming from a girl who has read P&P several times, notably on the L going into downtown Chicago when I was in 7th grade...but I digress. I love Austen, but this is a really fun and interesting take on her book. Lizzy and Darcy are both badass, and Jane is not quite so annoying with all her "oh, I'm so in love with Bingley" stuff that she throws out every few pages. It's like a feminist take on Austen, where the ladies in the book are not such ladies that they can't kill a few zombies (and ninjas too. Did I mention that? Lady Catherine de Bourgh has a squad of ninjas as protectors.)

But it is a really fun book to read, it just took me a few days. The basic plot of the book hasn't changed much, but the characters do read a little differently and there's much more action. Check it out if you have some free time, and you like Jane Austen, or Zombies, or both.

Until next time (later today), Happy Reading!