This is a Pulitzer Prize winner. That doesn't always mean that it will be a book I think was worth reading. This one is definitely worth reading.
The book follows our protagonist from the age thirteen until twenty seven. His life is full of upheaval and tragedy and really bad choices by him and the adults in his life. It is the story of a boy and a painting called The Goldfinch.
The language of the book is that kind of poetic prose where you finish a page and feel like it was poetry when really it was nothing but a very well-described and beautifully rendered couple of paragraphs. Quite often I had to re-read a passage because the chaos described was translated so well that I wasn't certain I'd caught everything in the scene. On the same vein, one character was a very chaotic, wild and fast person and I found myself reading his dialogue at a faster rate than the rest.
In order to avoid spoilers I won't give anything more away except to say that if you aren't freaked out by the idea of reading 775 pages, you should definitely read this. If you are freaked out by 775 pages, you should work on that because there are so many big books to love.
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Sunday, February 15, 2015
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty
This book reminds me of the shows that play on Lifetime "television for women". I'm not saying it was bad but it was meh.
This book was a bit over dramatic and her characters were rather stereotypical in many ways. The book follows three main women and their relationships. One woman has a husband, a son and a cousin whose life is horribly enmeshed with hers and her families. This woman was quite self-centered and seemingly not very reflective until her husband announces he is in love with someone else. This starts a period of finally reflecting and looking at the people in her life as individuals rather than how they affect her. She makes a couple colossal mistakes but is able to swallow pride and make an effort to mend the problem.
The second woman is the widowed mother of a man, married with one child, and a girl who was killed at seventeen. This woman wears her grief like a heavy blanket. The blanket of grief diminishes her capacity to enjoy anything in life except her grandson. She has spent the years so wrapped in her grief she has largely ignored her living son. She has no concept of his grief, she has not made any effort to get to know him or his wife.
The third woman is married with three daughters. She is a super organized "get it done" kind of woman. While her husband is traveling on business, she finds a letter addressed to her from her husband "to be read in the event of his death." The existence of this letter throws her for a loop as it is very unlike her husband to do something like this. When she asks him about it on the phone later, he tries to brush it off as no big deal, he wrote it right after their first child was born and he was feeling the enormity of parenthood. This was a pretty good answer but she knew he was lying.
In thinking about it, this was an okay book but it was just a little more feminine drama than I like.
This book was a bit over dramatic and her characters were rather stereotypical in many ways. The book follows three main women and their relationships. One woman has a husband, a son and a cousin whose life is horribly enmeshed with hers and her families. This woman was quite self-centered and seemingly not very reflective until her husband announces he is in love with someone else. This starts a period of finally reflecting and looking at the people in her life as individuals rather than how they affect her. She makes a couple colossal mistakes but is able to swallow pride and make an effort to mend the problem.
The second woman is the widowed mother of a man, married with one child, and a girl who was killed at seventeen. This woman wears her grief like a heavy blanket. The blanket of grief diminishes her capacity to enjoy anything in life except her grandson. She has spent the years so wrapped in her grief she has largely ignored her living son. She has no concept of his grief, she has not made any effort to get to know him or his wife.
The third woman is married with three daughters. She is a super organized "get it done" kind of woman. While her husband is traveling on business, she finds a letter addressed to her from her husband "to be read in the event of his death." The existence of this letter throws her for a loop as it is very unlike her husband to do something like this. When she asks him about it on the phone later, he tries to brush it off as no big deal, he wrote it right after their first child was born and he was feeling the enormity of parenthood. This was a pretty good answer but she knew he was lying.
In thinking about it, this was an okay book but it was just a little more feminine drama than I like.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown
Admittedly I got totally bogged down last year and just gave up blogging. I have decided to turn over a new leaf and try, once again, to blog all the books I read. To get caught up for the month I am not going to blog them in the order I read them or any other specific order other than the one that is sticking most in my mind.
The other day I read The Weird Sisters driving from Reno to Salt Lake. I wasn't driving, by the way, my husband was. Okay I had actually read about 2 chapters the day before but the rest I read on the drive home.
I really enjoyed this book. Maybe I enjoyed it so much because it is about three sisters and I am one of three sisters myself (of course we have a brother too but I am looking at the sister relationships). The book family had a father who spoke largely in Shakespearian verse, really. It was kind of awesome to consider that instead of using quoted from say The Princess Bride, a family might throw out quotes from A Midsummer's Nights Dream or Othello. Weird but awesome.
Of course the characters all had traits that bugged me and did things that I was inwardly screaming "no, don't do that! You'll regret it!". I think that is just a sign that the characters are written well, like real people.
I enjoyed different aspects of each of the characters so if you amalgamated them into one, you may end up with a really great character or a really crappy one depending on which batch if traits are used. The supporting characters (parents) were ethereal in a way. They floated on the edges and occasionally through the story but they were less tangible as people. I liked the contrast of this. There were also a couple of supporting male roles but they had a different quality to them. It was as though the men were only whole when they were with a sister but otherwise they were, not ethereal but, not real or substantial either.
Anyway, it's a fast and fun read. You should check it out.
The other day I read The Weird Sisters driving from Reno to Salt Lake. I wasn't driving, by the way, my husband was. Okay I had actually read about 2 chapters the day before but the rest I read on the drive home.
I really enjoyed this book. Maybe I enjoyed it so much because it is about three sisters and I am one of three sisters myself (of course we have a brother too but I am looking at the sister relationships). The book family had a father who spoke largely in Shakespearian verse, really. It was kind of awesome to consider that instead of using quoted from say The Princess Bride, a family might throw out quotes from A Midsummer's Nights Dream or Othello. Weird but awesome.
Of course the characters all had traits that bugged me and did things that I was inwardly screaming "no, don't do that! You'll regret it!". I think that is just a sign that the characters are written well, like real people.
I enjoyed different aspects of each of the characters so if you amalgamated them into one, you may end up with a really great character or a really crappy one depending on which batch if traits are used. The supporting characters (parents) were ethereal in a way. They floated on the edges and occasionally through the story but they were less tangible as people. I liked the contrast of this. There were also a couple of supporting male roles but they had a different quality to them. It was as though the men were only whole when they were with a sister but otherwise they were, not ethereal but, not real or substantial either.
Anyway, it's a fast and fun read. You should check it out.
Friday, August 1, 2014
The Poisoned Pilgrim
The Poisoned Pilgrim by Oliver Potzsch
This is the latest book in the Hangman's Daughter series.
I think this is a great series of historical fiction and Potzsch ends his books with a tour guide of the town (or locale) where the book takes place. He points out the buildings that still stand that were featured in his novel and gives you good insight into the historical events that transpired.
This book takes place in 1666 at and around the monastery at Andechs. As always, he covers what passed for medicine at the time but also gives us insight as to the advancements in science and the experiments that were being done at the time. We also get to meet an automaton which were apparently all the rage in the more cosmopolitan areas of the era.
I highly recommend this series but start at the beginning so you get the full benefit of the character development over the course of the four books.
This is the latest book in the Hangman's Daughter series.
I think this is a great series of historical fiction and Potzsch ends his books with a tour guide of the town (or locale) where the book takes place. He points out the buildings that still stand that were featured in his novel and gives you good insight into the historical events that transpired.
This book takes place in 1666 at and around the monastery at Andechs. As always, he covers what passed for medicine at the time but also gives us insight as to the advancements in science and the experiments that were being done at the time. We also get to meet an automaton which were apparently all the rage in the more cosmopolitan areas of the era.
I highly recommend this series but start at the beginning so you get the full benefit of the character development over the course of the four books.
The Seventh Child
The Seventh Child by Erik Valeur
What is it about the Swedes, Danes and Norwegians that they can write about horrific deaths as they were commonplace fender benders in life?
This book is part mystery, part murder mystery. Being an adoptive parent, there were aspects of this book that were difficult. The author, himself and adoptive child, wrote often of how many adoptive children felt like they didn't belong and how they were broken or discarded. Granted, in this book the children were pretty much all told about their adoption around the age of 13 or 14 which made them feel as though they had been lied to by their parents all this time. This made them question what else had been a lie, their love for the child? Anything else they were lying about? In one situation, the child was an adult and had never been told and only just learned as he helped solve a mystery involving these other people.
This was a pretty good book although a bit on the creepy side. If you like creepy murder mysteries, I think you might like this.
What is it about the Swedes, Danes and Norwegians that they can write about horrific deaths as they were commonplace fender benders in life?
This book is part mystery, part murder mystery. Being an adoptive parent, there were aspects of this book that were difficult. The author, himself and adoptive child, wrote often of how many adoptive children felt like they didn't belong and how they were broken or discarded. Granted, in this book the children were pretty much all told about their adoption around the age of 13 or 14 which made them feel as though they had been lied to by their parents all this time. This made them question what else had been a lie, their love for the child? Anything else they were lying about? In one situation, the child was an adult and had never been told and only just learned as he helped solve a mystery involving these other people.
This was a pretty good book although a bit on the creepy side. If you like creepy murder mysteries, I think you might like this.
The Fracking King
The Fracking King by James Browning
This was a free book on my Kindle as a Kindle Single. I have a hard time saying no to free.
This was a pretty good book although it was clearly an environmental message from the very beginning. I liked how the author melded the world of boarding schools an scrabble in order to demonstrate the repercussions of fracking.
This was worth reading if you are at a loss as to what else to read. I wouldn't say this was an absolute MUST READ book and if you don't read often or read slowly, there are plenty other books that would be higher on the list.
This was a free book on my Kindle as a Kindle Single. I have a hard time saying no to free.
This was a pretty good book although it was clearly an environmental message from the very beginning. I liked how the author melded the world of boarding schools an scrabble in order to demonstrate the repercussions of fracking.
This was worth reading if you are at a loss as to what else to read. I wouldn't say this was an absolute MUST READ book and if you don't read often or read slowly, there are plenty other books that would be higher on the list.
Written in My Own Heart's Blood
Written in My Own Heart's Blood by Diana Gabaldon
This is the latest installment in the Outlander series. If you haven't read the other books, don't start with this one. This is definitely a series that needs to be read from the beginning.
I loved it so much I read it twice in a row. The second time I picked up on several things that I had missed the first time around because I was reading so fast the first time around.
For anyone who isn't sure if they would like this series, the television channel Starz is premiering the Outlander series on August 9. Watch it and see if you like it. That's what got me to finally read the Game of Thrones books.
This is the latest installment in the Outlander series. If you haven't read the other books, don't start with this one. This is definitely a series that needs to be read from the beginning.
I loved it so much I read it twice in a row. The second time I picked up on several things that I had missed the first time around because I was reading so fast the first time around.
For anyone who isn't sure if they would like this series, the television channel Starz is premiering the Outlander series on August 9. Watch it and see if you like it. That's what got me to finally read the Game of Thrones books.
What Alice Forgot
What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty
Imagine losing the last 10 years of your life. You pass out and when you come to, you think it's 10 years ago. What were you doing then? Who were you? What do you feel and how did you live your daily life? Was it the same as it is now?
This was an engaging book that forced a younger mind to reconcile with the person that she had become. What or who had changed her so dramatically from the person she had been to who she had become? Who will she be when this is all over and she remembers again?
I really liked this book and it started a bit of self-examination of my own. I recommend it to busy moms everywhere as well as anyone else who is interested.
Imagine losing the last 10 years of your life. You pass out and when you come to, you think it's 10 years ago. What were you doing then? Who were you? What do you feel and how did you live your daily life? Was it the same as it is now?
This was an engaging book that forced a younger mind to reconcile with the person that she had become. What or who had changed her so dramatically from the person she had been to who she had become? Who will she be when this is all over and she remembers again?
I really liked this book and it started a bit of self-examination of my own. I recommend it to busy moms everywhere as well as anyone else who is interested.
Thursday, June 5, 2014
The Bridge
The Bridge by Kay Bratt
There is a bridge in China and the legend says that children left at the bridge will have eternal luck. This means that people who cannot take care of their children, infants even, might leave their children on this bridge with the hope that the child will have eternal luck.
Across the street from the bridge lives a solitary old woman. Over the years she has rescued many children left at the bridge and has taken them to the orphanage across town. Today, a mother has left a four-year old boy who is blind.
This is a short story, a novella. It was a super deal because I bought another book on my kindle. It was a good story but I was dismayed to learn how short it was. I would have liked her to continue the story.
There is a bridge in China and the legend says that children left at the bridge will have eternal luck. This means that people who cannot take care of their children, infants even, might leave their children on this bridge with the hope that the child will have eternal luck.
Across the street from the bridge lives a solitary old woman. Over the years she has rescued many children left at the bridge and has taken them to the orphanage across town. Today, a mother has left a four-year old boy who is blind.
This is a short story, a novella. It was a super deal because I bought another book on my kindle. It was a good story but I was dismayed to learn how short it was. I would have liked her to continue the story.
The Beggar King
The Beggar King by Oliver Potzsch
This is the third book in the Hangman's Daughter series and it does not disappoint.
I really enjoy this series. There is intrigue and mystery as well as the peek into life in a historical world. I'm not sure if I'll ever need to know about various forms of torture or the implements used in torture but it is interesting nonetheless. Also interesting is that the hangman would need to be able to heal his victims so that they could endure more torture the next day. Just proves what sick creatures humans are to come up with that idea.
The hangman's daughter, Magdalena, and her secret lover, Simon, get themselves into trouble as usual but this time they are also having to save Magdalena's father, the hangman. Complete with politics, medicines, poisons and social commentary, this book offers it all.
At the end of the book, just like the last, the author provides a modern guide through the city of the story. He takes you through the streets of the novel and gives you information on the main buildings that you can see if you were to travel to Regensburg Germany.
I highly recommend this book but if you haven't read the others, start with The Hangman's Daughter and then read them in order.
This is the third book in the Hangman's Daughter series and it does not disappoint.
I really enjoy this series. There is intrigue and mystery as well as the peek into life in a historical world. I'm not sure if I'll ever need to know about various forms of torture or the implements used in torture but it is interesting nonetheless. Also interesting is that the hangman would need to be able to heal his victims so that they could endure more torture the next day. Just proves what sick creatures humans are to come up with that idea.
The hangman's daughter, Magdalena, and her secret lover, Simon, get themselves into trouble as usual but this time they are also having to save Magdalena's father, the hangman. Complete with politics, medicines, poisons and social commentary, this book offers it all.
At the end of the book, just like the last, the author provides a modern guide through the city of the story. He takes you through the streets of the novel and gives you information on the main buildings that you can see if you were to travel to Regensburg Germany.
I highly recommend this book but if you haven't read the others, start with The Hangman's Daughter and then read them in order.
Midnight Crossing
Midnight Crossing by Charlaine Harris
This is the first book in a new series by Harris.
Our main character appeared briefly in the Harper Connelly series, I believe. Manfred Bernardo was born with psychic powers like his grandmother. Since his grandmother has passed away, Manfred has decided it is time to buckle down and focus on work. Work being his many internet psychic sites. Manfred has decided that moving to the extremely small, back-water town of Midnight, Texas will allow him to focus on his work. He is partly right.
Midnight apparently attracts those who are trying to disappear a bit and live a quiet life. Unfortunately, a missing person becomes a murder mystery and only Manfred is safe from suspect.
I am looking forward to the rest of this series as well as anything else Ms. Harris writes. Her writing style is fun and easy and her characters are quirky but believable.
This is the first book in a new series by Harris.
Our main character appeared briefly in the Harper Connelly series, I believe. Manfred Bernardo was born with psychic powers like his grandmother. Since his grandmother has passed away, Manfred has decided it is time to buckle down and focus on work. Work being his many internet psychic sites. Manfred has decided that moving to the extremely small, back-water town of Midnight, Texas will allow him to focus on his work. He is partly right.
Midnight apparently attracts those who are trying to disappear a bit and live a quiet life. Unfortunately, a missing person becomes a murder mystery and only Manfred is safe from suspect.
I am looking forward to the rest of this series as well as anything else Ms. Harris writes. Her writing style is fun and easy and her characters are quirky but believable.
The Space Between
The Space Between by Diana Gabaldon
Gabaldon is appeasing her many Outlander fans with this short novella. This is about neither Claire nor Jamie. It is, instead about Laoghaire's daughter Joan, Jaime's other step daughter and Jaime's nephew Michael and their trip to Paris.
Michael has been working for his great uncle's wine distribution company, Fraser et Cie, in Paris. Shortly after the death of his wife, he returned to Scotland for his father's death and funeral. When he returns to Paris, he is asked to escort Joan to a convent in Paris where Joan is hoping to take her orders after being a novice for at least a year.
The whispers of Joan's father Jaime, cause a case of mistaken identity and intrigue since Joan's lack of French keeps her from clarifying that he was her step-father.
This was a fun, quick read and it keeps up the anticipation of the next novel due out soon as well as the Stars series Outlander that airs in August, I believe.
Gabaldon is appeasing her many Outlander fans with this short novella. This is about neither Claire nor Jamie. It is, instead about Laoghaire's daughter Joan, Jaime's other step daughter and Jaime's nephew Michael and their trip to Paris.
Michael has been working for his great uncle's wine distribution company, Fraser et Cie, in Paris. Shortly after the death of his wife, he returned to Scotland for his father's death and funeral. When he returns to Paris, he is asked to escort Joan to a convent in Paris where Joan is hoping to take her orders after being a novice for at least a year.
The whispers of Joan's father Jaime, cause a case of mistaken identity and intrigue since Joan's lack of French keeps her from clarifying that he was her step-father.
This was a fun, quick read and it keeps up the anticipation of the next novel due out soon as well as the Stars series Outlander that airs in August, I believe.
Dragon's Triangle
Dragon's Triangle by Christine Kling
This book brought me back the The Garden of Evening Mists. The plot centers around the legend of the Golden Lily. This being that Japan had plundered the riches of every country it had invaded over the years. During WWII, it became physically prohibitive for the Japanese ships to carry all the riches back to Japan so they decided to hide the booty in caves all around the Philippines and only the members of the royal family would know where the caves were. Of course they were killed and/or their maps were lost and the treasure has never been found.
In the Dragon's Triangle, our heroine happily sails wherever she wants and pays the bills by designing home security systems. She is a former member of the military with family secrets that trickle out as the story goes on. Some of these secrets were easy to deduce but a few others were a bit obscure.
This may be the first in a series and I'd be willing to read the next installment or another book by Kling. It was a fun, quick read that was entertaining and exotic thanks to the locations covered.
This book brought me back the The Garden of Evening Mists. The plot centers around the legend of the Golden Lily. This being that Japan had plundered the riches of every country it had invaded over the years. During WWII, it became physically prohibitive for the Japanese ships to carry all the riches back to Japan so they decided to hide the booty in caves all around the Philippines and only the members of the royal family would know where the caves were. Of course they were killed and/or their maps were lost and the treasure has never been found.
In the Dragon's Triangle, our heroine happily sails wherever she wants and pays the bills by designing home security systems. She is a former member of the military with family secrets that trickle out as the story goes on. Some of these secrets were easy to deduce but a few others were a bit obscure.
This may be the first in a series and I'd be willing to read the next installment or another book by Kling. It was a fun, quick read that was entertaining and exotic thanks to the locations covered.
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
The Becoming
The Becoming by Jessica Meigs
This was a Kindle First. It is the first in series.
A fast moving virus has managed to escape the CDC in Atlanta. No one is clear on what has happened but here are riots in Atlanta and the riots seem to be spreading.
This is the zombie apocalypse. How would you react? Would you survive.
This was a Kindle First. It is the first in series.
A fast moving virus has managed to escape the CDC in Atlanta. No one is clear on what has happened but here are riots in Atlanta and the riots seem to be spreading.
This is the zombie apocalypse. How would you react? Would you survive.
Killing Ruby Rose
Killing Ruby Rose by Jessie Humphries
One of the benefits of having Amazon Prime is a thing called Kindle First. Once a month you can choose from 4 books and get one for free. I am all for free.
This is a Young Adult novel that is pretty much a girl power book.
Ruby Rose is a girl whose dad, a SWAT officer, was killed in the line of duty and her mom, the DA, works too much. Ruby was trained in self defense by her dad but sometimes has problems with a lack of control.
Ruby Rose finds herself in a bit of a pickle but with the support of her new boyfriend and the help of some unlikely sources, everything turns out alright.
I would be interested in reading another book in this series. This book was fun, had some unexpected twists and the characters didn't bug the crap out of me.
One of the benefits of having Amazon Prime is a thing called Kindle First. Once a month you can choose from 4 books and get one for free. I am all for free.
This is a Young Adult novel that is pretty much a girl power book.
Ruby Rose is a girl whose dad, a SWAT officer, was killed in the line of duty and her mom, the DA, works too much. Ruby was trained in self defense by her dad but sometimes has problems with a lack of control.
Ruby Rose finds herself in a bit of a pickle but with the support of her new boyfriend and the help of some unlikely sources, everything turns out alright.
I would be interested in reading another book in this series. This book was fun, had some unexpected twists and the characters didn't bug the crap out of me.
Saturday, April 5, 2014
The Silence of Trees
The Silence of Trees by Valya Dudycz Lupescu
This is the tale of a woman who loses herself and then finds herself again.
In the backdrop of the drama that was the beginning of World War II, Nadya is a teen girl in Ukraine. The clash of German and Russian soldiers tear her world apart. In an attempt to protect her family, if they survived, she changed her last name. This was the beginning of the many secrets she would hold in her heart.
This book wove Ukrainian folklore into a beautiful fabric of Nadya's life. Her family, often like a whirlwind around her, also grounded her and supported her. Nadya struggles with her past, her secrets and regrets. Eventually she is able to release the binding around her heart and tell her story to those she loves.
This was an endearing story of a woman who one day realizes that the life she has lived isn't quite the life she had hoped for. The questions is "is it a life enough and can there be more?"
This is the tale of a woman who loses herself and then finds herself again.
In the backdrop of the drama that was the beginning of World War II, Nadya is a teen girl in Ukraine. The clash of German and Russian soldiers tear her world apart. In an attempt to protect her family, if they survived, she changed her last name. This was the beginning of the many secrets she would hold in her heart.
This book wove Ukrainian folklore into a beautiful fabric of Nadya's life. Her family, often like a whirlwind around her, also grounded her and supported her. Nadya struggles with her past, her secrets and regrets. Eventually she is able to release the binding around her heart and tell her story to those she loves.
This was an endearing story of a woman who one day realizes that the life she has lived isn't quite the life she had hoped for. The questions is "is it a life enough and can there be more?"
The 100 Year Old Man Who Crawled Out a Window and Disappeared
The 100 year old man who crawled out a window and disappeared by Jonas Johansson
This was an entertaining book. I highly recommend it.
The Swedes seem to have a knack for telling stories of violence with such nonchalance that it seems quite commonplace to kill another person because they are bothering you. Also, the protagonist has lived a Forest Gump-like life in that he was strategically in important places at important times with important people.
Set aside your disbelief and allow yourself to eavesdrop on the fantastic life of a very matter of fact man.
This was an entertaining book. I highly recommend it.
The Swedes seem to have a knack for telling stories of violence with such nonchalance that it seems quite commonplace to kill another person because they are bothering you. Also, the protagonist has lived a Forest Gump-like life in that he was strategically in important places at important times with important people.
Set aside your disbelief and allow yourself to eavesdrop on the fantastic life of a very matter of fact man.
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Ajax Penumbra 1969
Ajax Penumbra 1969 by Robin Sloan
I bought this as a Kindle Single but I think it is available as a book as well.
This is the prequel to Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. In it we meet Ajax Penumbra and learn of his upbringing and college years. We travel with Ajax to San Francisco and see how and why he stumbled into the 24-Hour Bookstore.
This was a short read but fun and entertaining and I think it is worth reading especially if you have read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore.
I bought this as a Kindle Single but I think it is available as a book as well.
This is the prequel to Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. In it we meet Ajax Penumbra and learn of his upbringing and college years. We travel with Ajax to San Francisco and see how and why he stumbled into the 24-Hour Bookstore.
This was a short read but fun and entertaining and I think it is worth reading especially if you have read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore.
Bel Canto
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
This was a hard book to get through. I had to put it down and then go back to it (part of my new year's resolution is to finish all those books I didn't finish last year). It was worth finishing.
Bel Canto is set somewhere in South America. A lavish birthday party is being thrown at the home of the Vice President. The guest of honor is the president of a company being wooed by the nebulous South American country. They would very much like him to build a factory in their company which would bring much needed jobs and revenues to their country. The president of the company has no intention of doing any such thing. He agrees to this party because the country has arranged to have his favorite opera singer perform at his party.
Unfortunately, the terrorists planning to kidnap the President of the country don't get the message that the President will not be attending the birthday party after all. This book is about what happens when a rather poorly planned kidnapping fails to occur but now way too many people are hostage and the terrorists see no way out.
Much of the story surrounds Mr Hosokawa and his interpreter, Gen Watanabe. We also get to know Roxane Coss the opera singer. Several of the terrorists are featured as well as a few of the hostages including the Vice President. The people within the Vice Presidential residence live in a bubble until they don't. The ending is predictable but it's quite lovely in how swift and silent it seems to occur.
I hated the Epilogue. I think this book was a beautifully written tragic love story. There were so many people who became wrapped in different kinds of love, love of music, love of a friend, love of an un-reachable woman, love of a man or a woman within a bubble. The Epilogue seemed to diminish the relationships and feelings that occurred in the book by trying to tie it all up in a nice bow of resolution. I didn't want the resolution. I wanted to feel like I was left hanging and deflated. That felt genuine.
This was a hard book to get through. I had to put it down and then go back to it (part of my new year's resolution is to finish all those books I didn't finish last year). It was worth finishing.
Bel Canto is set somewhere in South America. A lavish birthday party is being thrown at the home of the Vice President. The guest of honor is the president of a company being wooed by the nebulous South American country. They would very much like him to build a factory in their company which would bring much needed jobs and revenues to their country. The president of the company has no intention of doing any such thing. He agrees to this party because the country has arranged to have his favorite opera singer perform at his party.
Unfortunately, the terrorists planning to kidnap the President of the country don't get the message that the President will not be attending the birthday party after all. This book is about what happens when a rather poorly planned kidnapping fails to occur but now way too many people are hostage and the terrorists see no way out.
Much of the story surrounds Mr Hosokawa and his interpreter, Gen Watanabe. We also get to know Roxane Coss the opera singer. Several of the terrorists are featured as well as a few of the hostages including the Vice President. The people within the Vice Presidential residence live in a bubble until they don't. The ending is predictable but it's quite lovely in how swift and silent it seems to occur.
I hated the Epilogue. I think this book was a beautifully written tragic love story. There were so many people who became wrapped in different kinds of love, love of music, love of a friend, love of an un-reachable woman, love of a man or a woman within a bubble. The Epilogue seemed to diminish the relationships and feelings that occurred in the book by trying to tie it all up in a nice bow of resolution. I didn't want the resolution. I wanted to feel like I was left hanging and deflated. That felt genuine.
Friday, February 21, 2014
Insurgent
Insurgent by Veronica Roth
Tris, formerly known as Beatrice, and her boyfriend Four are at the heart of the second book in the Divergent series. They join forces with members of Abegnation and later some of their Dauntless family in order to battle the mind-control invasion of Erudite.
A war has begun within the walls. Other than the woman who orchestrated the whole thing, only one man is certain why it happened, everyone else is speculating. That one man has proven himself to be cruel and untrustworthy. Four will absolutely not listen but Tris thinks that despite his flaws, he may just be telling the truth. In the meantime, they must try to stay alive and save as many others as they can.
While they stay with the Amity group outside the walls, Tris realizes why she could never be part of their faction. Their happy peacefulness is so contrary to her nature that she must leave before she explodes. When they seek refuge with Cantor, their black and white way of seeing the world is both refreshing and painful. Revelations of truth cause a strain in the relationship between Tris and Four. Being young in a young relationship, they aren't quite sure how to handle absolute honesty.
Four decides to ally himself with his estranged mother and her group of Factionless. Tris is increasingly weary of her agenda and finds herself an ally with Four's cruel father in attempt to reveal what the leader of Erudite started a war to keep hidden. As Four and Tris grow more familiar with the attributes and flaws of each faction, they become more certain that a world of factions is no way to live. The way they each seek a new world could tear them apart forever or the truth of it all could bind them like nothing else could.
Tris, formerly known as Beatrice, and her boyfriend Four are at the heart of the second book in the Divergent series. They join forces with members of Abegnation and later some of their Dauntless family in order to battle the mind-control invasion of Erudite.
A war has begun within the walls. Other than the woman who orchestrated the whole thing, only one man is certain why it happened, everyone else is speculating. That one man has proven himself to be cruel and untrustworthy. Four will absolutely not listen but Tris thinks that despite his flaws, he may just be telling the truth. In the meantime, they must try to stay alive and save as many others as they can.
While they stay with the Amity group outside the walls, Tris realizes why she could never be part of their faction. Their happy peacefulness is so contrary to her nature that she must leave before she explodes. When they seek refuge with Cantor, their black and white way of seeing the world is both refreshing and painful. Revelations of truth cause a strain in the relationship between Tris and Four. Being young in a young relationship, they aren't quite sure how to handle absolute honesty.
Four decides to ally himself with his estranged mother and her group of Factionless. Tris is increasingly weary of her agenda and finds herself an ally with Four's cruel father in attempt to reveal what the leader of Erudite started a war to keep hidden. As Four and Tris grow more familiar with the attributes and flaws of each faction, they become more certain that a world of factions is no way to live. The way they each seek a new world could tear them apart forever or the truth of it all could bind them like nothing else could.
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