Feeling Better

Thanks everyone for the kind comments! I'll be answering them all individually a bit later (computer troubles). I pushed through the feeling this morning by turning to Jane Austen for comfort. :) Then, this afternoon I went to the library!

I realised I was in a YA mood, so that's the majority of this trip's stash: The Looking Glass Wars, Twilight, Ironside, The Wee Free Men, and Wicked Lovely. I also grabbed some challenge read: Sandman, Vol. I for the Reading the Author Challenge, The Master and Commander and The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle for the upcoming Nautical Challenge. :)

I plan to just bury myself in books for a little while, hehe. Panic attacks are silly!

Feeling Overwhelmed

You know those moments when you suddenly realise how many great books there are out there? And that there's no way you'll ever be able to read all of them?

That realisation just came crashing down on me.

How do y'all deal with that?

The Good, the Bad, and...

I'm too tired to write in real paragraphs, so here's what's going on in my head this Friday:

The Good: inspired by Chris' mention of the book review siteCurled Up with a Good Book, that offers free books in exchange for reviews, I submitted a sample. Today, I received an e-mail asking me to pick out a few books that they'll send my way!

The Bad: just a few books? The list was really, really long, and there were a ton of good ones on there. Finally, I narrowed it down to six (3 fic, 3 non-fic) that all sound enjoyable.

The Ugly: now, I have to (im)patiently wait for the books to arrive.

Well, that one's mainly good I suppose. :)

The Good: since the weather is more fall-like, I've been drinking lots of hot tea and making soup!

The Bad: since the weather is more fall-like, I have an icky cold.

The Ugly: I got my nose pierced two weeks ago. And now I have a cold. I'll leave the rest up to you!

And with that, I'm off to finish the last twenty pages of So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson. I received in the mail today after bookmooching it, and I've simply devoured it. Good book + hot tea + comfy bed = the cold isn't as bad as it could be.

Playing Catch-Up

These last few days have been pure craziness; barely any time for me to drink a cup of tea and read a book, much less time to flop into my armchair here and write a post. So, here's what I would have posted about in the last few days, if I'd had the time.

+The latest edition of Estella's Revenge is up! My favourites this time were the interview with the owner of The Sleuth of Bakerstreet, "The Unknown" (about one woman's realisation that she should pursue an MLIS-something I've been thinking about a lot lately), "Sure I Know the Queen" (which discusses first lines, and offers some for the reader's enjoyment), and "From the Bookshop" (a review). All of the articles were a lot of fun, and my TBR list is ever-longer from the great books discussed. Hop on over!

+Danielle pointed out in a comment on my previous post that Perez-Reverte didn't write The Shadow of the Wind. I was thinking of The Club Dumas and mixed up the titles! I'll be fixing this in the original post as well, but thought I'd point it out here. Poor Carlos Ruiz Zafon got short thrift-he's the truth author of The Shadow of the Wind.

+Submissions are open for the latest Book Carnival. As this one is all about spooky books, I'm sure most of us can find a post to submit! Dewey has the indepth info up over at her blog.

+Finally, Banned Books Week! I'm only half way through The House on Mango Street, as it has disappeared (don't tell the library). However, I did read The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier. I must say, I didn't enjoy it all that much. I found it to be an incredibly depressing view of human nature. But that's ok-I still read a banned book! The writing itself was good at least, and I didn't want to put it down while I was reading it. I was enjoying The House on Mango Street quite a bit until it disappeared, so I hope I can finish that one up.

Short Story Sunday (and two book giveaways)

Wow-trying to visit all of the sites in the R.I.P. II challenge has been interesting; I have a feeling my blogroll's going to grow. I already try to read all of the reviews posted (of course, now I'm woefully behind), but there turned out to be quite a few blogs that hadn't posted reviews to the list. It was fun getting to see so many different styles of book blogging! Yes, I visited all the sites today; I was pretty much stuck in bed, so I alternately watched that documentary on the spelling bee (I was supposed to be watching a great Gregory Peck movie, but Blockbuster got confused), visited blogs, tried not to touch my nose (I got it pierced! not why I was bed-ridden), and read. I'm happy to report that I finished all my goals for September! Coming soon will a review of the summer quarter and a pile of books for October. :)

Before I get to the short stories, I'd just like to point out that there are a couple book giveaways going on right now. Superfastreader is giving away a copy of Auralia's Colors by Jeffrey Overstreet. All you have to do is fill out a simple form (name, e-mail, website) to be entered, and it's open to the whole world until Oct 5. :) Then, Gentle Reader over at Shelf Life is generously offering an extra copy of The World Without Us by Alan Weisman. For this one, just leave a comment by October 2nd.

And now, without further adieu, this week I read "The Idol of the Flies" by Jane Rice and "Judgement Day" by Flannery O'Connor. They were both on the longish side, and I have no idea why the second one was included in a horror anthology.

"The Idol of the Flies" by Jane Rice

I've never heard of Jane Rice (one of only two in the anthology), but her story was very disturbing. Basically, this little brat named Pruitt makes the lives of all the adults around him miserable for no apparent reason other than evil. He finds out their weaknesses and then shamelessly uses them to bring about hurt and sadness. He has this odd relationship with flies as well. I won't tell you the ending, but this story was quite difficult for me to read. I don't like stories about people who deliberately hurt others; it makes me just too sad. It was well-written, however. My favourite passage in this one gives away the ending, so I won't share it here.

"Judgement Day" by Flannery O'Connor

As I said before, this one didn't really seem like a horror story at all. The weirdest it gets is a dream, but it's not like the dream comes true or anything! This was my first story by O'Connor, and I was very distracted by the constant use of the n-word. I know that this is an issue for a lot of people in her writing, and I expect that if I were to read a collection of her short stories I'd grow used to it, but as it was it felt like I got a little shock each time I read one. When I read, I hear my inner voice reading aloud in my head, which was what made it so difficult. Honestly, I can't say that I got a very strong impression of what the story was about with that constant distraction. Nevertheless, the writing style itself was quite strong, and I definitely plan on reading more of O'Connor one day.

Ok-I'm being a bit rambly tonight: probably the pain killers. Hope everyone had a good weekend!

Non-Fiction 2-for-1

First of all, did anyone else watch The Office season premier this night? Oh. My. God. I expected it to be good. But it just blew me away. I laughed hysterically at times. I almost grinned my face off in happiness at others; at a certain point, I actually pumped the air with elation. I don't do things like that. But, seriously, The Office is just getting better and better every season.

Ok, gush over. Time to talk about books! (I'm so behind on reviews)

Recently, I've read both Reason for Hope by Jane Goodall and Stiff by Mary Roach. They aren't really connected, but since I'm never going to catch up unless I combine books, there you go.

First, the Goodall book. It's a memoir that grew out of an extended interview discussing Goodall's continued optimism in the face of so much tragedy. I found it a very nice read; rather like talking with an intelligent, caring person who has seen a lot more of life than I have and has some good advice. I recommend it. :)

Favourite Passages

I lay there, part of the forest, and experienced again that magical enhancement of sound, that added richness of perception. I was keenly aware of secret movements in the trees. A small striped squirrel climbed, spiral fashion in the way of squirrels, poking into crevices in the bark, bright eyes and rounded ears alert. A great velvet black bumblebee visited tiny purple flowers, the end section of his abdomen glowing rich orange red each time he flew through one of the patches of sunlight that dappled the forest. It is all but impossible to describe the new awareness that comes when words are abandoned. One is transported back, perhaps, to the world of early childhood when everything is fresh and so much of it is wonderful. Words can enhance the experiment, but they can also take so much away. (79)

One thing I had learned from watching chimpanzees with their infants is that having a child should be fun. (87)

So here we are, the human ape, half sinner, half saint, with two opposing tendencies inherited from our ancient past pulling us now toward violence, now toward compassion and love. Are we, forever, to be torn in two different directions, cruel in one instance, kind the next? Or do we have the ability to control these tendencies, choosing the direction we wish to go? (143)

I thought, as I have thought throughout my life, how lucky I had been in my own childhood. Because I had grown up during World War II, the luxuries now taken for granted by middle-class Westerners were, quite simply, unavailable-except at exorbitant prices on the black market. I had learned the true value of food, clothing, shelter-and life itself. Along with my contemporaries I had moved into a postwar world in which self-reliance was a necessary quality. We did not feel it was our right to have a bicycle, a television, a dishwasher, and so on; those were things you saved up for, and were proud of because they were earned by the sweat of your brow. (197)

Even if we only suspect that other living beings have feelings that may be similar to our own, or not too dissimilar to our own, we should have doubts about the ethics of treating those beings as mere "things" or "tools" for our own human purposes. Even if all animals used are bred especially for our use-in the labratory, or for food, or for entertainment-does this make them, somehow, less pig? less monkey? less dog? Does this deprive them of feelings and the capacity to suffer? If we raised humans for medical experiments, would they be less human and suffer less and matter less than other humans? Were human slaves less able to feel pain, grief, and despair simply because they were born into slavery? (224)


Now, for Stiff. Some of you may recall my disappointment with Roach's other book, Spook. I didn't have high expectations going in. In fact, if I hadn't mooched it before I read Spook, I wouldn't have read it at all. And I would have missed out on a great book.

I don't know if Roach had a different editor or what, but all of the problems in Spook were missing from Stiff. Instead, Stiff was a compulsively readable exploration of what happens to bodies once their owners have left them behind. There were some slower chapters, and I did have a problem with Roach's callousness towards animal testing (esp. after reading Goodall, which had reaffirmed my utter abhorence of it).

Another group tried putting a new type of protective boot onto the hind leg of a mule deer dor testing. Given that deer lack toes and heels and people lack hooves, and that no country I know of employs mule deer in land mine clearance, it is hard-though mildly entertaining-to try to imagine what the value of such a study could have been. (152)

Nevertheless, I found Roach very caring of her human subjects, and the topics were all interesting. Those are you who are squeamish might want to avoid this one; Roach visits the Tennessee body farm to learn about decomp and isn't afraid about sharing all the disgusting details. She also made an unfortunate comparison between human brains and one of my favourite foods (not going to share to spare y'all) that I really wish I could forget. With that caveat, though, I highly recommend this to anyone curious about death.

Favourite Passages

I ask Dennis whether he has any advice for the people who'll read this book and never again board a plane without wondering if they're going to wind up in a heap of bodies at the emergency exit door. He says it's mostly common sense. Sit near an emergency exit. Get down low, below the heat and smoke. Hold your breath as long as you can, so you don't cook your lungs and inhale poisonous fumes. Shanahan prefers window seats because people seated on the aisle are more likely to get beaned with the suitcases that can come crushing through the overhead bin doors in even a fairly mild impact. (127)


There is her heart. I've never seen one beating. I had no idea they moved so much. You put your hand on your heart and you picture something pulsing slightly but basically still, like a hand on a desktop tapping Morse code. This thing is going wild in there. It's a mixing-machine part, a stoat squirming in its burrow, and alien life form that's just won a Pontiac on The Price is Right. (179)

She explains the difference between rotting and composting, that the needs of humans and the needs of compost are similar: oxygen, water, air temperature that does not stray far from 37 degrees centigrade. Her point: We are all nature, all made of the same basic materials, with the same basic needs. We are no different, on a very basic level, from the ducks and the mussels and last week's coleslaw. Thus we should respect Nature, and when we die, we should give ourselves back to the earth. (263)

Kimbooktu's Bookish Meme

I was actually going to post a meme I found over at Bookeywookey's (the reading one, not the blogging one), but then I checked my e-mail and the lovely Bybee has tagged me for a different meme all the way over in South Korea. :) So, I'll publish the other one next week!

Hardcover or paperback? Why? Trade paperback, for several reasons. I love the texture of the covers, they stay open the best, and they don't aggravate my fibro (muscle condition). Best of all, they don't have dust jackets! (my book nemesis...I seem to lose them or rip them just by looking at them)

If I were to own a book shop I would call it... I'd probably name it after a tarot card. I'd love to have a coffee shop/book store combo called The Hanged Man with a picture of that tarot card. The Hanged Man represents taking a voluntary break from the craziness of life, so I think it'd be appropriate. In the tarot card, he's hanging upside (from his ankle) looking quite happy. :)

My favourite quote from a book (name it) is... This is a tough one. I like a lot of quotes. I'll just pick one at random. "How much do you love me?" she asked. "Enough to melt all the tigers in the world to butter." From Murakami's Norwegian Wood. Isn't that just adorable?

The author (alive or deceased) I would love to have lunch with would be...I think Neil Gaiman. I love mythology as well, so it'd be a great conversation. But I'd love to have lunch with a bunch of authors!

If I was going to a deserted island and could only bring one book, except from the SAS survival guide, it would be...what an awful idea. One book forever? Probably War and Peace, since I haven't read it yet, so there'd be a fresh reading, and it has enough characters to keep me occupied. Plus, it takes place in cold Russia, which might serve as a nice contrast to a deserted island. And I'm positive I'm going to love it, since I just adored Anna Karenina. (the only reason I haven't read it is that I'm saving it for the Peace Corps)

I would love someone to invent a bookish gadget that hmmm...oh! I know! that froze time so that I could read in peace for as long as I wanted before work. And chores.

The smell of an old book reminds me of...reading? peace? I mean, it just smells like heaven to me!

If I could be the lead character in a book (mention the title), it would be...Elizabeth Darcy, nee Bennet. She's smart and pretty, but a bit of a spitfire, and she ends up with a rich, handsome, loving husband living in a great part of England. Pretty happy life, I'd say. :)

The most overestimated book of all time is...I can't think of one.

I hate it when a book... is written by an author that doesn't trust the reader. You know, the kind of author that whallops you over the head with the information, because s/he isn't sure that you'll pick up on it on your own. These authors tend to use too many adverbs.

And now for tagging five people....let's see....
Eloise of Eloise by the Book Piles
Sarah of Loose Baggy Monster
Poodlerat of But what these unobservant birds
Petunia of Educating Petunia and
J.S. Peyton of BiblioAddict

Have fun! (of course, if anyone I didn't tag wants to do this one, leave me a comment and I'll add you to the list!)

Poppets!

My Saturday morning became considerably brighter when I found a package from SlaughterHouse Studios in my mail box. Yes, that's right, I've adopted two poppets.

As mentioned earlier, I ordered a Little Purple poppet and a Little Black poppet from Lisa Snellings Clark (the artist). This was quite an event for me: I had to sign up on eBay and everything! Right off, I wasn't sure how to take advantage of the cheaper shipping with multiple purchases; so, hesitantly, I sent an e-mail off to Lisa. She responded incredibly quickly and explained what I needed to do. Very nice of her! Then, I opened my beautiful package this morning (look at the little Poppet houses! and the super-cool ceramic hand! and there was a personalised thank you note from Lisa!), and imagine my surprise...
I found a Little Blue poppet had snuck in instead of a Little Black one! Once again, I was a little hesitant about e-mailing Lisa, but I've been coveting the black poppets for awhile now; so, I sent off a message offering to send the Little Blue one back in exchange for a Little Black (although it really hurt my heart to 'reject' the Little Blue one). She responded in a couple of hours, and with such a kind offer. Not only will she send out a little black poppet on Monday, but the little blue poppet is mine as well! From our brief e-mail exchange, she seems like a very cool person; I encourage everyone to run over and buy a poppet (they're very reasonably priced-$10 for the purples, blues and reds, $13 for the black).

Obviously, after the new poppets arrived, I had to figure out names for them. At first, I focused on the purple; I knew that she was a girl, but I had no idea how to name her. I went to a couple name sites, but nothing was really jumping at me. Then, inspiration struck. May I introduce you to...

Coraline Jane. Here she is with her namesakes: a spunky little girl created by Neil Gaiman and the amazing Jane Austen. Coraline came first; I realised that I could finally write my review of it, and then I realised that Coraline was the perfect name-elegant yet unusual-for my little poppet. Plus, I could honour one of my favourite authors! While looking at her, Jane popped into my head, and Coraline Jane just has an irrestible ring to it.

And here is the Little Blue Poppet, whose fate hung in the balance for a few hours...

While I immediately knew that Coraline Jane was a girl, I'm still not sure about Little Blue Poppet's gender. Therefore, its name is Wilkie Eliot. Wilkie for Wilkie Collins, who I thought was a girl until earlier this year. Eliot for George Eliot, a woman who write as a man. Both are also great authors, and Eliot especially captures a bit of the melancholy that the Little Blue seems to have, while Collins' gothic imaginings seems possible in Little Blue's life. After all, its very arrival here was a mistake! Wilkie Eliot is definitely a bit older than Coraline Jane and very indulgent of its little sister. :)

I certainly plan to post about Neil Gaiman later today, but for now, I think Coraline and Eliot say it best:

Randomness

+I'm so sad that I missed Short Story Sunday. :( So I might have to go read a couple stories, come back, and post about them. I ended up crashing at about 8.30 last night, after a very full day, so that explains that.

+When did this blog suddenly become an almost daily thing?! For a long time, I just posted a few times a week, but now I feel bereft if I miss a day. And I have less free time than I have had since June. Weird.

+The new Book Carnival is up: the Classics. Book Nut did an adorable organisational job. And just to remind everyone, I'll be hosting the December one with the very broad theme of "non-fiction." It's not for awhile, but keep it in the back of your heads. ;) Don't know what I'm talking about? Well, go check out Dewey's description already!

+It got really cold here. But I'm actually very excited about it, because it gives me the excuse to wear tights! And drink a ton of hot tea! Plus, the weather feels very R.I.P.-y.

+Speaking of which, I really need to go read those short stories already.

+Oh! And I'm really sorry if some of you read my blog via a blog feed; I've accidently published a post that's planned for tomorrow twice now. :( Both times it happened because I didn't notice the cursor disappeared and hit the enter button. Sorry again.

Death at the Priory and Misc.

First of all, Stephanie is having a book giveaway! Aren't they just the best? (note to self: have a book giveaway on one-year anniversary) This one is for a copy of Veil of Roses by Laura Fitzgerald, who is signing the copy.

And speaking of book giveaways, my prize for SQT's book giveaway came in today.

Whoot! It's a short story collection based on vampires and birthdays. Yet another addition to the R.I.P. II book pool! Thanks so much SQT. If y'all haven't visited her site, it centers on sci-fi and fantasy, so it's given me a bunch of new reading ideas.

And speaking of vampires (gosh, this post is going quite smoothly), I finished The Rest Falls Away. I also have a review typed up. However, I'm kind of nervous about publishing it. I enjoyed the book, but I also had some issues with the writing style. And it seems like everyone else doesn't have a bad word to say about it, and I don't want to be a wet blanket!

And on that note, I'm going to clunkily transition into tonight's review: Death at the Priory by James Ruddick. I read this for my ongoing non-fic challenge (also known as: Eva decides to torture herself for the rest of 2007). It was a short read, ending at page 189. I chose this book mainly because of its subtitle: Sex, Love, and Murder in Victorian England. And let me tell you, there was quite a bit of the first and last of those but not so much love.

First of all, I thought that a priory was where a member of the clergy lived. Apparently not. The priory in question was owned Florence and Charles Bravo, a newly wed couple whose *cough* marital bliss was ended by the fatal poisoning of Charles. The author, Ruddick, spends the first half of the book on the background of Florence and the events surrounding Charles' death; the second is devoted to Ruddick attempting to solve the crime. As much as I wanted to enjoy this book, about a crime that Agatha Christie called "one of the most mysterious poisoning cases ever created," I just didn't.

I felt that Ruddick went in a little too much for the sensational bits of the story, and he made wild generalisations about Victorian women that weren't backed up by any footnotes. I'm beginning to realise that an easy way to tell if I'm going to enjoy a non-fiction work is the length of the bibliography and the presence of footnotes or endnotes; this one is only three pages long, and it doesn't include *any* general works about Victorian history. That absence is definitely felt throughout the book. I also felt he was rather lurid; in the middle of a discussion about the power struggle between Florence and Charles, he suddenly tells the reader that

Florence made 'grave charges' against her husband over their sexual relationship, claiming that he 'engaged in a persistant line of conduct'. The conduct, it was convincingly alleged, was an*l intercourse.

What?! I mean, I don't think of myself as a prude, but I feel that Ruddick could have found a more tactful way to introduce the topic. He also discussed it quite a bit; while I understand that he finds in it an important motive for murder, since he never tells the reader *how* the conclusion that it even took place was drawn, I found his dwelling on it pretty excessive.

The other problem I had with it centered on part two: when Ruddick decides to figure out who did it via a close examination of the evidence. From the selective way he presents the evidence and, even worse, interprets them, the reader instantly sees his bias. He often defends his assumptions by calling them 'self-evident,' when I found an equally plausible alternative that was never discussed. Let me show you what I mean. When discussing the possibility that Florence's former lover, a doctor who gave the housekeeper a mysterious bottle of poison a bit before the murder, could have done it, Ruddick examines the trial transcript of the lover's testimony.

"Did you put tartar emetic [the poison] into the bottle which you gave Mrs. Cox [the housekeeper]?"
"I had no tartar emetic to place in the bottle. And any suggestion that I did so, from whatever quarter it may come, is a wicked and infamous falsehood."
"Have you ever sed antimony, in your professional capacity?"
"Not for thirty years, not since I went to Malvern. I have not had a grain of it in my possession since 1842."
"Did you have anything to do with Mr. Bravo's death, either directly or indirectly?"
"Upon my solemn oath I declare I had nothing to do with Mr. Bravo's death, either directly or indirectly."
It was a convincing rebuke, firm and forensic.

That last sentence is Ruddick's. I didn't see anything particularly stunning in that testimony; I mean, how many guilty men on the stand are like, "Oh, now that you mention it, I did murder him!"? Ruddick then goes on to offer the definitive evidence of the doctor's innocence:

I discovered that Gully [the doctor] had founded Worcestershire's first Co-Operative Society. He also donated to the poor. He had set up medical charities. I also discovered that he had become chairman of the local council. Everywhere I looked, I found public memorials enshrining his philanthropic character. Cora Weaver, a local historian, told me that when Gully had recovered from a serious illness in 1863, the entire population of the town threw a party to celebrate, parading through the streets, and finishing with an address at his front door. Under these cirumcstances it seemed ridiculous to believe that he was behind Bravo's death.

Because someone who donates to charity is incapable of killing a man? Especially a man abusing a former lover? Really? To me, that seems quite plausible.

That kind of fallacious argumentation made reading this book quite painful; I was internally shouting at Ruddick much of the time. I can't really recommend this book, either as a portrait into Victorian life (since Ruddick didn't do his research) or as a good true crime story. However, it has inspired me to look into the case a little more, in the hopes that a better treatment of it exists.

A Good Day

Today was one of those days that just leaves you smiling.

First, my amazon order arrived...

Although, seriously, look at how awful a packing job they did! They just tossed the books in and added some brown paper. Poor books. :( Now they'll be loved. (the books are: The Rest Falls Away and Rises the Night by Colleen Gleason, The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio, Marked by P.C. and Kristin Cast, and Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrless; I'll talk more about them later).

Then, I finally broke and bought a poppet! Actually, two poppets: I wanted the Little Purple Poppet to have a friend, so I also got a Little Black Poppet. (if you have no idea what I'm talking about, go here, and if you know what I'm talking about and want to get one, go here.

Now, I've decided to wait to review Coraline until the poppets come in, so I can take a picture! Yay!

Then, I spent seven hours with a good friend who I hadn't really seen for a couple a weeks. Good day. :)

Simple Question and The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon

Question time first (and then an actual review!).

The deadline for the next bookworms carnival is fast approaching. Book Nut's theme is classics, and she's told me that the submissions can be from the beginning of July on. Since I read nine classics for the Summer Reading Challenge, this leaves me with a bit of a dilemma:
should I choose
my post on Emma, which is more personal, but talks about an author everyone knows of,
my post on Cousin Bette and Les Liasons Dangereuses, which is more literary (I use that term broadly), but perhaps a bit dull,
or my post on Candide, The Eustace Diamonds, and The Scarlet Pimpernel, which is quite superficial, but includes two awesome classics that don't get discussed that much?

I just don't know, and I have to decide by Friday. Input would be welcome! (and yes, I'm aware I'm probably taking this too seriously, but I have an indecisive streak as wide as an interstate running through me)

And now, on to a discussion of a real, live book.

I read The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon by Richard Zimler as part of my personal Reading Across Borders challenge, the sequel. I finished it some time ago, but I wasn't really sure how I felt about it, so I decided to give it time to settle.

Low and behold, I still don't know how I feel about it.

I first heard of it at the Amazon "Grownup School" feature, which asks famous authors for ten book recommendations in a field related to their own. (btw, if you've never checked it out, you ought to fix that. run on over. I'll be waiting) It was recommended as "a murder mystery set in the 16th century during a Christian purge of the Jewish faithful in Lisbon. It's absorbing, full of suspense, and not a little gory in parts but it is also well researched and you can learn a lot whilst being entertained."

Let's examine those claims. First of all, the gore. It's definitely there; Zimler doesn't pull his punches when describing the massacre that occurred. Let me offer a representation of the graphic passages in the first half of this book :

I stared at the [severed] woman's head. Her eyes were not vacant. What then? Recoiling from the world? Taking back the cask now offered me, a shiver twisted through my chest as if made by a fleeing spirit. The bearded man held the dangling head up, licked her cheek twice as if savoring the sweat of a lover. Opening the draw string of his pants, he allowed the filth of his uncircumcised pen*s to unsheathe into the air. The woman's black mouth was pried open by fingers cracked with dirt. To his waist she was held. He began to do something unspeakable. The other watched while pressing himself with the palm of his hand. I dated not close my eyes, but I turned away. When his grunting had finished, he laced his pants together and said, "Be careful where you go. People are being mistaken for Jews!"

Definitely not for the squeamish. Oddly, perhaps, I found this graphic writing to be one of the book's strengths; the reader isn't allowed to politely look away from the atrocities. Zimler really brings the horror and terror and profound evil of it all to the forefront.

So, the book was gorey. But was it also "suspenceful" and "absorbing"? Honestly, not really. Reading this and The Book Thief at the same time was interesting; they both deal with genocides against Jews but in very different ways. I think that the stunning brilliance of The Book Thief has quite a bit to do with my hesitations about The Last Kabbalist: almost any book would pall in comparison. Zusak spends the book making the reader fall in love with both the actual narrator (go Death!) and the pseudo-narrator (Liesl); this empathy is essential to the story. Zimler, on the other hand, makes an adolescent boy the first-person narrator of his tale. And the kid is so self-important and whiny (although perhaps the whining may be excused since he's facing genocide), it really alienates the reader. At least, it alienated this reader. So, while I wanted the murder mystery to be solved, I also couldn't bring myself to pick the book up for long stretches of time. This made it slow going.

On the other hand, I truly enjoyed the way that Zimler incorporated Kabbala into the book; I know the bare outline of the philosophy, and it was fascinating to see how the narrator (when his Kabbala overtook his whining) viewed the world through it. Of course, I can't find any passages now that I want to share them with you. However, I think that it's the incorporation of Kabbala into the book that makes some compare this to Eco's The Name of the Rose. While I can see a general similarity, I would call them second cousins more than long-lost brothers. Eco's control of language, which allows him to just play in his novels, certainly isn't present in Zimler's work. At least, not in this, his first novel.

In the end, I'm still torn about whether to give The Last Kabbalist two stars or four. In terms of themes, and descriptions, it's above average. However, its readability and characters are below. I compromised and gave it three, but that's not really accurate. This book is anything but average.

Favourite Passages:
It was the first time either of us had signalled the verb "to kill" in the first person. We realized our language of gestures had to change to keep up with this new, Old Christian century. (87)

Do you know what it means to look at a headless baby sitting in a shovel? It is as if all thelnaguages in the world have been forgotten, as if all the books ever written have been given up to dust. ANd that you are glad of it. Because such people as we have no right to speak or write or leave any trace for history. (87-8)

Distractions

I haven't read at all yesterday or today! That almost never happens. But, yesterday, I got my amazon order in...

Based on my previously mentioned obssession with The Office, then I had to have a marathon viewing session. I've now finished it (I only saw a few-maybe four-episodes while it was being aired), and I was very, very impressed. I am so excited for season four!

And then, I went to see this movie tonight-you guys probably haven't even heard of it-but it's based on a novel, apparently by some author called Ned? No..Neil. ;) Yep-I just got back from Stardust!!! I was kind of nervous going in, because I really liked the book, but I haven't read the book in quite a while (going to reread it soon), so I figured I was safe. And it was so much fun. :D Especially how Tristan suddenly becomes super-hot half way through. I'm thinking Stardust will be on the list of Swoonworthy Reads now! Come on...take a look (note my shameless cropping of as much of the girls as possible)...

It's amazing what some hair texture and a kickass coat can do! Of course, the knee high boots + pantaloons certainly don't hurt. ;)

Well, I was just checking in. I promise there's bookish talk to come soon! And for now...well, I'll be basking the afterglow of Stardust. Hope everyone's having a good weekend!

Edited to add: in the preview, all of the pictures of Tristan were lined up, but in the actual blog, they're taking up more space. *pout*

The Fatal Flaw

When I signed up for all of these challenges, I knew my own limits. After all, I thought to myself, I've been averaging 14 books a month this year, so I should be able to handle it. Ah, hubris. Because here's what I failed to consider: if all of the books I'm reading are for challenges, then I have to review them all. Oy. Currently, I'm two books behind, and the month is five days old. We'll see how this goes, shall we? Especially since I like writing non-review posts as well!

On the plus side, I've been very impressed with the blogosphere lately (not that I'm not always impressed). And I have some thoughts and links to share. :)

+First off, there's a Jane Austen reading schedule up at Brooklyn Arden. I've read all of Austen's works, most multiple times, and this calendar seems spot it; it has a book every two months and is mainly based on seasons.

+The new Estella's Revenge is out, and I very much enjoyed it. My favourite articles? "The Seven Deadly Reading Sins," "Confessions of a Closet Reader," "Confessions of a Hopeless Book Addict (Photo Essay)" (go bookfool!), and "Confessing a Literary Crush."

+Oh, and there was an interview with Mark Zusak (the author of the book that wrung my heart recently). Who knew how cute he was?! Good looking, reads, writes...I'm thinking I might have to move to Australia. ;)


+On an almost-unrelated topic, that last Estella article I mentioned segues nicely into an idea I've been toying with for awhile now. I even have a draft post to prove it. :) It's an idea for a challenge, but for sometime in 2008 (definitely including February), based on literary crushes. Something like "Swoonworthy Reads" (yep, corny, I know). I think it would be a lot of fun to compile a list of everyone's favourite crushes and then pick however many books to read. And of course I'd have to do something special for Valentine's Day. And I'm thinking at least one of the buttons would involve a certain wet-shirted gentleman we all know and love. ;) So, begin brainstorming all of your crushes! (of course, crushes on girl characters are welcome as well!)

+I guess I'll start with my first literary crush ever. That would be Gilbert from the Anne of Green Gables series. He was tall, intelligent, kind, but also mischevious. How could I resist the twinkle in his eye? I reread most of the series several times as a kid, and in the early ones I would get very, very upset with Anne for her treatment of him. But it all comes together in the end. :) Oh, that night when he was at death's door...I was afraid to get to the end of the chapter. What if L.M. Montgomery does the unthinkable? How awful would that be?! And relief flooded me as fully as it flooded Anne at sunrise. Whew. I might have to make this a regular feature leading up to the challenge; crush of the month. lol

+It's almost time for the next edition of the Bookworms Carnival. It's hosted at Book Nut, and its theme is classics. The deadline is September 14th; I'm not sure if the submitted posts have to be recent or not. As a shameless plug, I'll be hosting the December carnival with the theme of "non-fiction." (hmmm-I wonder why that could be?)

+Watch this space for: why Coraline confirms that Neil Gaiman is one of my favourite-est authors, my mixed feelings on The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon and how it might be connected to The Book Thief, and a pile of my latest bookmooches.

+Oh! And check out my thoughts on The Ghost Writer below this. I have the sneaking suspicion a lot of y'all would like it. :)

Potpourri of Thoughts

+I really need to do a review of Books on Books: I've recently completed both A Gentle Madness and How Reading Changed My Life. They were very different, in both length (80 pages v. 500+) and content. But both interesting.

+I'm trying to figure out how I feel about The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon by Richard Zimler. I just finished it after a marathon session; I realised that if I didn't force myself to read it to the end, I'd never finish. I think I'm going to let the story ferment in my mind for awhile.

+I'm putting together a pile of September's books, inspired by Danielle over at A Work in Progress. It should be a fun stack, considering all of the challenges that begin!

+I've thought of a supplement to the R.I.P. II challenge: marathon scary-story reading on October 31st. I have a list of short story collections available at my library that I'll post. Somehow, I think SS work a little better than novels for a marathon!

+I've decided to modify my personal non-fic challenge: instead of seven books/month, I'll read six books/month and completely read The Economist every week. I love it, and I've been neglecting it lately! Also, and this is super-cool, they're providing a free audio version of the complete magazine every week. So I can listen to it while I do yoga! (side note: I know that a lot of people do yoga for the meditative benefits, and listening to the news during Downward Dog sounds sacreligious, but I do yoga to help my muscles, and sometimes I get bored)

That about sums up what's going through my head right now. That, and when did August slip away?!

The Book Thief (thoughts)

Let me preface this: I try to avoid the Holocaust. I mean, I'm aware that it happened, and I find it inexpressibly sad, but I refuse to watch movies about it. Inevitably, I start crying so hard that I can't see the screen, so it's pointless anyway. I also avoid war movies for the same reason; I can cry at anything involving soldiers. I cried at Pirates of the Caribbean (when the British soldiers are valiantly, hopelessly fighting the immortal pirates): obviously, I have a bit of a problem. It's taken me almost an entire year to read Samantha Power's Pulitzer-winning A Problem From Hell: America in an Age of Genocide. Each chapter chronicles a different genocide, and I can only handle one every month or so. So, although I've read numerous rave reviews about The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, I had no intention of reading it. Much as I loved the idea of Death as a narrator, I just didn't think I could bring myself to read a book set in Nazi Germany.

And then, as I was browsing the shelves of my library, I saw it sitting there.

And it had a super-cool cover.

And no one else had checked it out.

And that just seemed wrong.

Long story short, I checked it out on Thursday, and started reading it yesterday. I got up to around page 400, then this morning I woke up and finished the rest. As expected, this morning was a tearfest. I was sobbing and shaking and whimpering into a blanket. Needless to say, I was very glad to be alone. I was also very glad that I had read it.

A lot of you have already read this book, or at least heard about it. For those of you who may not, a one-sentence summary. Liesel is a pre-teen in Nazi Germany, whose life Death became interested in, so he's now sharing with us the formative years, from when she was 11 to when she was 14.

When you pick up a book like this, you know it's going to be tragic. I mean, there will be light points, and some characters might end well, but you know that for the majority of characters, something bad will happen. Furthermore, Death foreshadows throughout the book, so the reader knows the ending by about half way through. But the ending isn't the point: it's the getting there that matters.

First of all, I loved the way this book was published. It uses several type scripts, including a special bold centered one with astericks for Death's asides. It makes the book all the more interesting. Also, a certain character within the book ends up making his own book. He paints white over the pages of Mein Kampf and then draws and writes his own stories. Several of these pages are included within the book, and it's just so cool to look at. When I got to the first of these selections, I knew that I was in the hands of an incredible author.

Also, Zusak freely mixes German in with the English. He does it in a way that the reader always knows what the words mean, but the little sprinklings provide a lot of authenticity. The setting is essential to this book, and the author really brings it alive. You know that you're in Germany, and that you couldn't possibly be anywhere else.

This is the kind of book that gets under your skin: at first, you know you're enjoying it, then slowly you realise you don't want to put it down, and finally, even though you know it's going to be horrible, you have to keep reading until the bitter end. And trust me, Zusak delivers.

For me, the real magic of the book is that part of it is simply a coming of age story. Liesel learns more about herself, more about others, and experiences the ups and downs of puberty. The way that Zusak mixes this in with insights into Nazi Germany makes this much more than a WWII/Holocaust book. It's a book that explores how people hate, and how people love, and, ultimately, the incredible power of words over peoples' lives. It's triumphant, tragic, heartrending, and all of those other adjectives whose use has become hackneyed. This book breathes fresh life into all of them.

All in all, I'd say that this is the kind of book that everyone should read, since it's essentially about humanity. However, I'd also caution readers to make sure they don't have company when they're reading the end; Zusak knows just how to bring out emotions. This isn't a beach book by any means, but it's an important book.

I'm not going to share favourite passages yet; the book is still too raw for me to go back and find them. Perhaps I'll add them eventually.

Booking Through Thursday (err..Friday)

I always enjoy reading people's Booking Through Thursday entries, but I've never felt an overwhelming desire to answer one of the questions. Until I saw this week's question.

When growing up did your family share your love of books? If so, did one person get you into reading? And, do you have any family-oriented memories with books and reading? (Family trips to bookstore, reading the same book as a sibling or parent, etc.)

My mom is a huge book reader as well, and she and I definitely bonded over books. When my sister was little, she read quite a bit as well (though never with the all-consuming passion I experienced), but now she doesn't read all that much. My dad read a little but not like my mom did. Here're my favourite family book-loving memories

+My mom and I read classics together before bedtime. Two most memorable? Little Women, which I took camping with us; the first night in the cabin is when a major character dies (I don't want to spoil it). Will always remember where I was. The other one is Phantom of the Opera-I tried to read it by myself in 6th grade. I got to the chapter where Christine disappears behind the mirrors, and chucked it across the room in frustration. So, Mom and I read it together. Then, for me 12th birthday (the next year, when we had moved to England), we went and saw the musical at Her Majesty's Theatre. I still have my sweatshirt, with the Phantom's mask that glows in the dark.

+Every other week (in elementary school), my sister and I received a $4 allowance. However, if we wanted to buy a book with it, Mom would pay for half of the book (meaning, I could get two books!). My 2nd grade teacher had retired and opened a bookstore, so we'd all bike there (small town) and pick out our books.

+On a visit to my maternal grandparents when I was 10, Mom emerged from the basement with an old suitcase. Inside it were her Nancy Drew books (she had around 25 of them). She gave them all to me; I read The Secret of the Old Clock that day. After that, every Christmas for a long time I received 3-6 Nancy Drew books to add to the collection. I plan on bequething it my children.

+One of my earliest memories is a book memory. When I was 4, we took a family trip to Wales (we lived in England then). We stayed at this awesome bed and breakfast, and I found The Magic Far-Away Tree by Enid Blyton. I started reading it, but (obviously) didn't finish before the end of the vacation. The nice B&B proprietress let me keep the book! I still have it, and I'm waiting for my niece to get a little older so that I can read it to her.

+Edited to add one last memory: when I was in third or fourth grade, we were only allowed to check one book out of the school library at a time. So, I picked the biggest one: an encyclopedia of North American mammals. And guess what? Mom and I read it as nighttime reading! That incident became a legend at my elementary school. :)

Well, those are just a few of my childhood book-family memories. As you can tell, I have an awesome mom who did everything possible to encourage my love of reading. We still trade book suggestions a lot; I got her addicted to Laurie King's Mary Russell series, and while I was at college this past year, I would receive care packages with brownies or banana nut bread and the next one in the series. :) Sometimes, we'll both just hang out quietly reading, and we like to go on trips to B&N together. Yep-reading has always been a family affair!

Book Pile and One Last Challenge...

I took a much-needed break from reading, blogging, etc. over the past few days. I don't think I've picked up a book since Friday. The slump was my most extreme yet: I couldn't work up an interest in anything. However, if there's anything that can get you out of a slump, it's a ton of new book mooches!


From the lovely booklogged, Bethlehem Road by Anne Perry (I enjoy her historical mysteries), Deep South by Nevada Barr (since Maggie's challenge, I've been looking for more Southern reading), Find a Stranger, Say Goodbye by Lois Lowry (I love The Giver), and The Modular Brain by Restak (for my ongoing non-fic effort). In addition, Fast Food Nation, Stiff, and Reason for Hope by Jane Goodall are part of my non-fic reading. The Chesterton, Sarton, and Bowen are for the Outmoded Challenge. The War of the Saints by Jorge Amado is for my Reading Across Borders seqeul challenge, as is Train to Pakistan (inspired by a highly praising post on Lotus Reads). Finally, Tipping the Velvet, based on Danielle's reviews of Fingersmith by the same author over at A Work in Progress. Whew-that's a lot of books!

Along with books, I also need to catch up on all the blogs, so I'll be doing that over the next few days. :)

Speaking of which, Carl has the R.I.P II challenge up! I'm so excited; I wasn't around for the challenge last year, but it seems like I've been reading about it forever. And I adore the button. I'm doing Peril the First, and I'll be reading:
The House Next Door by Anne Rivers Siddons, which superfastreader recommended earlier this year,
Seven Gothic Tales by Isak Dinesen, because I loved Out of Africa,
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury, which some of the other participants are reading, and which sounds really interesting,
and The Ghost Writer by John Harwood, which I saw recommended on a blog (I'm blanking on which one). I'm mooching all of them. Very excited.

Anyway, I'm glad that I'm out of my reading slump, and I'm counting down the days until September, when most of these challenges begin!

Jumping on the Band Wagon

Having read the meme on Dewey's, Imani's, and Ted's sites, I had to answer. :) I came on to the blog to gush about how much I love The Office, enough that I just bought the second season, am going to buy the third season the day it comes out (Sept 3), and can't wait for the fourth season to begin (Sept 27). But, since this is a book blog, seems like a better idea to just do a meme. While watching The Office; I'm already on the second DVD. I'm in love with Jim.

What are you reading right now?
See that side bar called Currently Reading? That pretty much covers it!

Do you have any idea what you’ll read when you’re done with that?
See the obscene number of challenges, also in the sidebar.

What magazines do you have in your bathroom right now?
I don't really do that. It actually kinda grosses me out.

What’s the worst thing you were ever forced to read?
Fiction: A Seperate Peace. Non-Fiction: The World is Flat (followed v closely by Russia and Soul)

What’s the one book you always recommend to just about everyone?
I tend to shy away from recommending books; I do recommend authors, though. Rushdie, Gaiman, Austen, Bulgakov...just go to my "About Me" section and see my favourites.

Admit it, the librarians at your library know you on a first name basis, don’t they?
I just moved, so I only know one librarian. She's one of those super-hip young librarians, too, so I secretly want to be her.

Is there a book you absolutely love, but for some reason, people never think it sounds interesting, or maybe they read it and don’t like it at all?
Probably Anna Karenina, at least for people I know in real life. Specifically, I love the Levin plotline more than Anna's, which no one seems to agree with. :)

Do you read books while you eat? While you bathe? While you watch movies or TV? While you listen to music? While you’re on the computer? While you’re having sex? While you’re driving?
Eat? Sometimes. Bathe? Yes-in fact, if I'm really into a book, I'll take a bath instead of a shower, lol. Movies/TV? Depends...if I'm hanging out w/ friends/rommates/family in the living room and a movie or tv is on, yes. If I've chosen the movie/tv, no. Music? Yes. Computer? No-how do you read two things at once? Sex? Wow-that one seems really random. And suddenly personal. But the answer is no. Driving? I listen to audiobooks on road trips, but not while normally driving.

When you were little, did other children tease you about your reading habits?
No-I was actually super cool when I was in elementary school. The rest of my life has been spent trying to reobtain this. ;)

What’s the last thing you stayed up half the night reading because it was so good you couldn’t put it down?
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson.

Focus? What focus?

I've been going through a reading slump since my baby niece got back in town. She's eighteen months old, and I love her to death, which is good since I'm going to be her nanny for the next few months. However, her craziness has definitely distracted me from reading; even when she's napping or down for the night, I seem geared up to run around the house again. Reading seems so stationary!

I think that part of the problem is that I picked up An Instance of the Fingerpost again. I finally finished the second part, which leaves two parts to go. This book is killing me-it's so depressing and frustrating. And yet, I've already invested 400 pages in it, so it's difficult to just walk away! I'm enjoying The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon, but it hasn't sucked me in.

I've decided to modify my non-fiction challenge. Instead of reading seven non-fic books a month, I'm going to read six books and The Economist weekly cover-to-cover. I love The Economist, but it's gotten short shrift as I try to wade through so much non-fiction! I am, however, enjoying the change in my reading habits; now, half the books I'm reading at any given time are non-fic. It slows me down, but it really enriches my reading.

I cannot believe that August is half over. What happened?

And with that, I think I'm going to go read. The Persian Puzzle is calling my name!