This was one of those lovely little library surprises. I'm not sure if it really deserves 4 over 3 stars, but it was much better than I thought it wouThis was one of those lovely little library surprises. I'm not sure if it really deserves 4 over 3 stars, but it was much better than I thought it would be, so maybe that bumps it up a little bit....more
Henkes really captured something here about the loneliness of being an only child that resonated especially well with me, and also something about beiHenkes really captured something here about the loneliness of being an only child that resonated especially well with me, and also something about being a kid and realizing that things can be okay even when it doesn't feel like they are at first. (Whoa, run on sentence much?) I felt this sort of bittersweet sadness throughout the book, that's hard to explain. The main character Alice is having the same feeling and for her it's partially wrapped up in turning 10, and partially because things on her annual family vacation are not as comfortable as they've always been. I remember some of those feelings at that time in my life, feeling happy and sad to be getting older, realizing for the first time that I wouldn't always live with my parents and feeling kind of happy and kind of sad about that, understanding other people's pain in a more mature way. It was all very difficult, and Henkes captures all of that. It's lovely.
I find myself thinking again of a book by this author for slightly older readers, 'Olive's Ocean.' The books have a few similarities, but one is just that I'm impressed with this author's ability to write so accurately from the point of view of a young girl....more
This book was a huge part of my life this year. All the kids in my class were either reading it, purposefully not reading it, or not allowed to read iThis book was a huge part of my life this year. All the kids in my class were either reading it, purposefully not reading it, or not allowed to read it, and it was a major topic of conversation all the time. There's one thing I can say that's definitively good about this book, kids are excited about reading it. However, I taught 8, 9 and 10 year olds this year, and most of them were way to young for this book. Some of the more mature 10 year olds could handle it, but if I were a parent I think I'd try to have my kids wait until they were in at least 5th grade. I mean, it is really violent after all, and for some younger kids that is legitimately disturbing. Also, I overheard this conversation in my class between a 9 and a ten year old.
10 year old: 'There's way too much kissing in 'The Hunger Games.' 9 year old: 'Yeah, but you really can't complain about that because that book is for teenagers, and teenagers like that stuff.'
Exactly, the book was written for young teenagers. Those are probably the people who should be reading it. It's also really high on melodrama, something else teenagers like. I would also say that Collins does a pretty good job not talking down to kids in this book. Kids, like adults, like to be treated like they're smart, and capable, and able to handle mature things. I wish Collins had given them even more credit and gone more into the politics of the society she created. Maybe that's coming in the later books.
I wish I had read this instead of listening to it as an audiobook. I would have done a lot of skimming, I think. This was a boring one, and Turrow broI wish I had read this instead of listening to it as an audiobook. I would have done a lot of skimming, I think. This was a boring one, and Turrow broke my golden rule of thrillers. He talked far too much about the characters 'feelings.' I don't care, Scott Turrow! I just don't care, even though I read 'Presumed Innocent' and had some fondness for the characters, I just don't care about their feelings as much as you want me to. Also, this book does not count as a thriller, in any way. The only reason I'm giving this 2 stars instead of 1, is because I did spend some time trying to figure out the case and it turned out that my theory was totally wrong. But the ending was terrible! It wasn't a surprise, or a twist, it was just really boring. Meh....more
I liked this book even better than "The Invention of Hugo Cabret." The story holds more water, and the characters' motivations are more clear. SelznicI liked this book even better than "The Invention of Hugo Cabret." The story holds more water, and the characters' motivations are more clear. Selznick twists his own form here, and I like what he does with it. He tells two parallel stories, that end up intertwining, one through words and the other through pictures. I would also say that this book is sort of an homage to 'The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler' by E.L. Koningsburg, and I love that about it. The wonder that a kid feels in a museum is so palpable in this book, and it adds a lot to the atmosphere. ...more
I liked my second encounter with Harlan Coben just as much as my first. Another little piece of delightful crime candy, this certainly won't be my lasI liked my second encounter with Harlan Coben just as much as my first. Another little piece of delightful crime candy, this certainly won't be my last novel by this author. ...more
A few years ago, I watched a documentary about AIM and the 1970s occupations of Wounded Knee, Alcatraz, and the BIA building in Washington D.C. At theA few years ago, I watched a documentary about AIM and the 1970s occupations of Wounded Knee, Alcatraz, and the BIA building in Washington D.C. At the time I felt completely, ragingly angry. In part because of the way that Native peoples have been treated, are still being treated, all over the world. But also because I was 28 years old and I had never learned anything about the modern Native American movement. Why had no one ever taught me about this before? Oh, because ignoring the struggle is one way to oppress people. Dammit.
After watching that documentary, I started a self education about 20th and 21st century Native American struggle and history, watching all the films and reading all the books I could get my hands on. This book was written from prison by Leonard Peltier, who was convicted of murdering two FBI agents in the 70s on the Pine Ridge Lakota Sioux reservation. It's Peltier's musings on serving 2 life sentences: what it's like to be a prisoner, the ebb and flow of hope for freedom, his take on what happened on that day.
There are lots of little pieces of the trial and incidents that Peltier doesn't cover in this book because that's not his purpose in writing it. I'd recommend watching the film 'Incident at Oglala' to really get an idea of the details. This book is more like a window into Peltier's life and mind in prison. Reading it made me feel angry, sad, and helpless. I'm glad I did though, because this man deserves to be remembered. He's innocent in my opinion, and he's been in prison for over 30 years because he is an activist, because he is an Indian....more
People have done a lot of trashing on this book for not being true. I'm sure parts of it aren't true, for the simple fact that none of us remembers hiPeople have done a lot of trashing on this book for not being true. I'm sure parts of it aren't true, for the simple fact that none of us remembers his or her childhood exactly as it was. There's no way we could. Kids interpret life differently than adults do so seeing our childhoods through adult eyes, is by definition inaccurate.
However, it does seem that there might be some outright fabrication here. For one thing, if the Finches were truly living the way that Burroughs claims they were, DHS would have been all over their asses. There's no way that they would have been able to keep their own children, let alone take in the children of other people. None of the kids ever went to school! Burroughs addresses this in the book, how he got around getting any sort of education, but I don't buy that it would have worked, even back in the 80s. (Can you tell that I'm a teacher? Sheesh.) Not that I doubt that children slip through the cracks all the time, they do, but according to this book, the family was pretty loud and proud with their dysfunction. Not exactly an under the radar situation. In any case, this is Burroughs' childhood as he sees it. Maybe he made stuff up to sell more books, but I don't think he's making up everything, that doesn't make sense.
I left this book wanting to read Burroughs' brother's book, he sounds like a cool guy. I also want to read 'Dry' to see what kind of an adulthood Burroughs thinks he had. ...more
So, the little blurb at the front of this book gives away absolutely nothing about the plot. I'm glad that it didn't, because I don't think I would haSo, the little blurb at the front of this book gives away absolutely nothing about the plot. I'm glad that it didn't, because I don't think I would have checked it out if it had. This is a disturbing book, compelling, interesting, worth reading, but seriously disturbing. I don't know if I could cut off a finger for a complete stranger, but this book made me feel like I totally should if the opportunity arises. Dear god, I hope the opportunity never arises.
This book left me thinking about the big stuff though, which is good I suppose. Stuff like, seriously Britain, get it together with your immigration stuff. (I could say the exact same thing about the USA but this book isn't set there.) I remember watching this documentary about how Britain colonized all these countries, told the people there that they were British, and then mid-20th century when they pulled out and things got bad and those people wanted to move to England, they made it ridiculously difficult to do so. We're talking people who spoke English, cared about cricket, drank tea, and grew up singing 'God Save the Queen.' Blatant racism.
This book takes place more recently than that, but it's the same sort of BS. Why should a 14 year old girl have to prove her terrible story of being a witness to the murder and rape of her entire family? Of being in danger of being raped and murdered herself? How could she prove that anyway? It's not like she could record the whole thing on her iPhone. How much trouble is she really going to cause in Britain? I realize that this sounds naieve, but I wish they could just take her word for it. She's just a kid.
The other thing that this book made me think about was the power of guilt. Usually I think that guilt is destructive and self-defeating, which it is in this book, but sometimes it has the power to make people do the right thing. And guilt coupled with a sense of responsibility can be really motivating to someone, can make her take action. Beware that this book may also leave you with the feeling of guilt over living a comfortable and safe life in a comfortable and safe country. A guilt we all need to feel once in awhile I guess....more
Well, light summer reading this is not, but if you're looking for an affecting portrait of John Brown, this is the book for you. Even if you don't thiWell, light summer reading this is not, but if you're looking for an affecting portrait of John Brown, this is the book for you. Even if you don't think you want that kind of book you might want to give this one a go.
Tony Horwitz is a masterful writer and his straightforward style is perfect for this story. I found myself near tears upon several occasions while reading this book, and that is in part because Horwitz knows how to tell it. His background as a journalist keeps him from getting flowery or boring, and my historian husband says that the book also holds water, history wise.
Upon finishing this book I'm left thinking about whether or not John Brown was insane. Lots of people speculated, still do, that he was. Is it because he put his convictions above everything, and I do mean everything, else? It's simultaneously admirable and sad that he and his family endured a life of poverty and sorrow, because he refused to compromise or stay silent in the face of slavery. His final raid on Harpers Ferry didn't prove successful, but Horwitz argues that it was the catalyst for The Civil War, so ultimately it accomplished his goal. His intensity and willingness to do anything, sacrifice anything, sounds terrifying. Frederick Douglass thought he was a crack pot, even William Lloyd Garrison, who was famous for not equivocating on the issue of slavery, was dubious. But was he crazy, or was he just the most committed abolitionist ever, and right to boot?...more
I learned about this author when I read an introduction he wrote to a collection of mystery short stories he had edited. His writing made me laugh, soI learned about this author when I read an introduction he wrote to a collection of mystery short stories he had edited. His writing made me laugh, so I decided to give him a whirl.
This is a crime novel, and I love crime novels. They don't even have to be that well written for me to like them, but I do have a few rules.
1. The author must exercise the correct balance of plot and character.
In my opinion, for this genre that means more plot, less touchy feely character crap. This ain't a tea party. I want to know enough about the main character, usually the detective, to sympathize with him or her, but I don't really care that much about a long back story. This book gets a check for number 1.
The main character in this book, who is a reporter not a detective, gets the perfect amount of character development. And there is never a chapter where the author drones on and on about her boyfriend, or her childhood without advancing the plot in some way. Also, she's been touched by personal tragedy, but not unrealistically so. A bonus.
(Another pet peeve that fits under the jurisdiction of this rule is that the author cannot spend lots of time talking about what everyone is wearing. For some reason crime novelists do that a lot and it is annoying and unnecessary. Really, why the hell do I care what the detective, or anyone else, is wearing? How is that in any way useful to me?)
2. No gratuitous torture scenes.
Nothing ruins a good mystery more than too much violence for no reason, especially of the torture variety. It ruins the fun. If I wanted to watch Saw, (which p.s. I do not, and never will), I would just do that. Keep it out of my mysteries. Coben gets a check here too. I kept worrying that it might happen, because one of the crimes being worked through in the book involves a suspected pedophile and a missing girl, but I was spared.
3. The plot must be complicated enough to keep me guessing, but not so convoluted that I roll my eyes every 5 seconds.
Another check. I'm not saying the plot is totally believable, but for the most part, it holds water. And that's even though the author has to tie together several pieces of the same large plot by the end.
4. The dialogue cannot suck.
Coben's dialogue made me laugh for the right reasons, and was pretty believable.
Which brings me to my final rule...
5. Crime novels cannot take themselves too seriously.
I don't read these books to get a gritty portrait of reality, they're supposed to be fun! I realize that in itself is kind of sick, enjoying even fictionalized crime is probably messed up in a way. But seriously, if I wanted to be up nights worrying about the state of the world, I'd watch more news programming. Coben passes with flying colors here. This book is a good time. He throws in lots of humor and sarcasm and I like it.
I will definitely read more of this dude's writing. He might be my new favorite crime writer... if the rest of his books live up to my rules. ...more
I like the idea of this book. I like the idea of a book about memory, how two people's memories of the same events can be completely different, and hoI like the idea of this book. I like the idea of a book about memory, how two people's memories of the same events can be completely different, and how that can color their lives together. There wasn't enough of that in this book. However, this book has plenty of two dimensional women. Ugh. I hate books where the author has no idea how to write female characters. I also didn't like the protagonist much, so that didn't help me feel invested in this book. I think that maybe Baldwin was trying to show us the women through the main character's point of view, and he clearly doesn't understand them or see them as three dimensional, but that doesn't actually make me like the book any more. The dialogue is clunky at its best and totally unrealistic at its worst.
Also, there's this weird Bruce Willis motif that keeps coming up over and over again that just feels comical, but not intentionally so. In fact, there are several times in the book where it seems like the author was musing on something else in some other facet of his writing life, and then he decided to plop it into this book. The Bruce Willis thing is one of those times, but also there are these poems that one of the characters writes that seem jammed in there for no good reason.
The story in this book is simple, and there are some things that I wish Selznick had addressed that he didn't, plot wise. But here's the thing, at theThe story in this book is simple, and there are some things that I wish Selznick had addressed that he didn't, plot wise. But here's the thing, at the end of the day, I don't care about that. This book is beautiful. It's unique structure is a blend of graphic novel, picture book, and novel. It made me think about the question, what is a book? What do we want out of books? How can it be delivered in a new way? Also, the emotions of the characters are real and affecting. This book got me excited about books. Who can ask for anything more?...more
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