Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

My review

rating: 2 of 5 stars
I so wanted to love Holden Caulfield, in all his teenage angst glory. Somehow in school I avoided this classic, perhaps there was a negative connotation to teaching it in school since it's been declared a banned book. (Which is pretty laughable considering how tame the story is).



The story takes place in just a couple of days, where Holden decides to spend a few days in New York on his own, before his parents can find out he's been expelled from ANOTHER school. In his emo, teenage angst that's the undercurrent of the novel, he describes why he won't tell his life story, "If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth. In the first place, that stuff bores me, and in the second place, my parents would have about two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them."




Holden's biggest hatred is reserved for "phonies", which could be either his teacher or anyone he happens to run into that feels the least insincere. The best thing this novel does is capture the alienation due to conflicting feelings when a teenager has trouble relating to adults.


I found it difficult to relate to Holden, even though I was once an emotional teenager filled with angst. Other than his commitment to not be a phony, I found little to like about him - his self-loathing and confusion about life just reinforced that I didn't like him as much as he didn't like himself.And if he said "I'm not kidding, I'm really not" one more time, I think I would have thrown the book across the room. Overall, I'm confused as to why this is such a beloved book. It's an original story, probably the first of it's kind written from the point of view of a teenager. But I don't want to be a teenager again, or be friends with them. I couldn't put this book down fast enough.

Catcher in the Rye in 6 words or less: Expelled, angsty teenager visits New York.


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Water for Elephants

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Upon the suggestions of many of my fellow book lovers, this book has been on my TBR list (to be read) for quite some time. I’m not sure what prevented me from picking it up before; perhaps it was the circus theme which instinctively led me to think of clowns. (Yes, having a fear of clowns as an adult is completely irrational, but there are much worse things to be afraid of and besides, it hasn’t inhibited my lifestyle so far.) Luckily for me, there are no clown subplots in this story. But I digress - onto the story.



The characters

The story is told from the point of view of Jacob at ages 23 and 90 (or 93). Present day Jacob is a resident in a nursing home who reminisces on the time he joined the circus. Young Jacob is an Ivy League veterinary student who leaves college abruptly during his final exams following a tragic accident that leaves him an orphan. Wandering aimlessly, homeless and without money, family or a place to go, he jumps onto a train and is unexpectedly met by circus workers. Luckily, an older worker befriends him and allows him to work alongside him for the day in hopes that he can secure a job with the circus. During his first day at the job he sees a horse trainer that reminds him of his college girlfriend. Later, older worker brings Paul to meet the circus owner, Uncle Al.



The story

During the “interview” Al asks Jacob if he’s ever seen a circus, and if he’s seen their show, the Benzini Brothers. Prompted by his friend to the answer-Al-wants-to-hear, Jacob lies and says he’s seen Ringling Brothers but they were nothing compared to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. This does not interest Al, and just about the time Al is ready to dismiss Jacob, he finds out Jacob is a last year veterinary student. This intrigues Al, because Ringling Brothers has a vet on staff, and more than anything else in the world, Al wants to be Ringling Brothers. Jacob is brought on with the direction that he can stay as long as he keeps the sick horse alive.



The horse has an incurable ailment and ends up dying. Jacob ends up staying on, befriending both the “elite” group of performers and the respect of the working staff. Love begins, first for the animals, and then for the wife of the ill-tempered masterofanimals. August and Al shows their evil natures, both toward people and animals. Marlena, the beautiful horse trainer, grows deeply attached to Jacob. Relationships grow and become more complicated, both in the present day and as Jacob reminisces about the past. Filled with suspense, the end of the book takes a somewhat predictable turn which is no less gratifying even though it was expected.



Why you should read this book

I enjoy stories with a lot of character development and can empathize with the protagonist. A circus vet is an unlikely hero, but not in the least unlikeable. The book has something for almost everyone – empathetic characters, vivid scenery, a sprinkling of romance and plenty of suspense. Another surprising plot device is the animals themselves, in particular one very charismatic elephant.



Totally off topic to a book review but interesting anyway

This bestselling novel was written in a month! NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, is to writers what a marathon is to runners. Participants in NaNoWriMo pledge to write 50,000 words in the month of November. It's sometimes incomplete, and rarely published so it's a real jem to find a writing project written with such fervor that turned into a bestseller. Also, it's also one of my goals to participate in NaNoWriMo this year after a year of reading a book a week.



Water for elephants in 6 words or less

Not quite Ringling, love without clowns.




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Rebecca

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again."


Something about this book seemed eerily familiar from the first chapter. The opening line is famous, and with good reason. I don't recall another book whose opening is quite so immediately enchanting with DuMaurier's gothic style.


Perhaps the familiarity stems from the main character, an insecure and timid young girl who falls madly in love with a handsome, rich, complicated older man while employed as a companion to a boorish American woman, Mrs. Van der Horne.


I know Stephanie Meyers SAYS she got inspiration from Wuthering Heights, but honestly, there are SO MANY parallels between Twilight and Rebecca.


The (unnamed) narrator in Rebecca was self-depreciating, clumsy, insecure, had a vivid imagination and was in a different class than her love interest. I actually called her Bella in my head. :)


Maxium was handsome, rich and mysterious. He had a dark secret and was a bit elusive with the 2nd Mrs. de Winter. She was constantly haunted by Rebecca's memory, the incredibly beautiful person who was so well suited to Maxium's world. (coughTanyacough)


This book was written so much better than Twilight, but it was impossible for me not to see the parallels.


But onto the story...


Supposedly Maxim was a dashingly handsome romantic interest that ladies of the time were swooning over, but I think he sounded like kind of an ass. When the 2nd Mrs DeWinter was spending time with him in Monte Carlo, it was difficult to see why she was falling in love with him. Other than that he was handsome and rich, he didn't seem all that interesting. The distant moodiness and the constant brooding was just kind of...eh. Where was the passion? Granted, this was in a time when feelings were repressed in Britan - perhaps feelings were a bit more muted.


I was thoroughly annoyed with Maxim when he was telling Mrs DeWinter that she could either stay as a companion or come and live with him at Manderly and the duties would be the same. Uhh...ok? No thanks...


He then said that it wasn't exactly the proposal that she dreamed of, that she should be in a white dress and he should be making love to her violently behind a palm tree. Much better but still - not exactly swoon worthy.


Meanwhile, the incredibly romantic narrator sees Maxim like this:

"His face was arresting, sensitive, medieval in some strange inexplicable way, and I was reminded of a portrait seen in a gallery I had forgotten where, of a certain Gentleman Unknown."


And like this:
"Could one but rob him of his English tweeds, and put him in black, with lace at this throat and wrists, he would stare down at us in our new world from a long distant past—a past where men walked cloaked at night, and stood in the shadow of old doorways, a past of narrow stairways and dim dungeons, a past of whispers in the dark, of shimmering rapier blades, of silent, exquisite courtesy."


It's as if the word "dashing" was invented just for him. Though the book didn't cause me to fall in love with Mr. DeWinter, I did fall in love with Manderley, and with Daphne Du Maurier. Soon I will be going back to Manderley again, to wrap myself in the enchanting tale of a gothic romance I'll never forget.



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Along Came A Spider

Along Came a Spider by James Patterson

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
Ah the lure of mass market fiction... I often refer to Patterson novels as "TV for your brain". Page turning, edge of your seat excitement? Yes. Intellectually challenging? Not particularly.


This is the first introduction to character Alex Cross, a DC detective whose differentiating characteristic is his intrinsic morality, love of his children and his doctorate in psychology. A failed attempt in private practice leads him to policework.


Cross lives with his grandmother Nana and 2 young children. There is occasional mention of his late wife, who was killed in a drive by shooting a few years before the start of the book. Cross' partner Sampson and Nana are two likeable characters in the book. Cross himself is a worthy hero for the series, with an interesting character and southern charm.


The major theme of the book opens with a kidnapping of 2 famous children by their teacher. Consequently, a brutal murder of a family in a poor neighborhood remains unsolved. Cross manages to tie both cases together, for an interesting plot change toward the middle of the book.


The book frequently alludes to racial themes, but doesn't really dig deep into them. They exist more as a setting in the story than an actual developed part of the plot. (For example, Cross begins an interracial romantic relationship with an FBI agent. During one scene, Cross gets into a heated confrontation with a bystander who makes racial slurs regarding toward the agent. What was the conclusion to that? He goes home angry. There was a lot of opportunity for plot development with this scene, but wasn't central to the action of the book, so it was left alone.)


Perhaps I have been getting spoiled with my choices of reading lately, but I didn't feel like I got a lot out of this book. For pure entertainment value, this book was excellent. However, if you're looking for something a little deeper or something worth having an intellectual discussion about, keep looking.





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The Book Thief

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars

I am haunted by you humans.

So ends one of the most captivating books I’ve read in years, and I am similarly haunted by the trance of this book. In fact, I’ve been unable (or unwilling, perhaps) to pick up another book since.


Overview


The Book Thief is set in Nazi wartime Germany. In an interesting twist, Death (of Grim Reaper fame) is the narrator of the story. Captivated by a young girl, Death follows the events in her bittersweet life story, from the time she is given up from her birth until her death. It’s a story built of love and humanity in the most unlikely of places.


The Story Unfolds


Intertwined throughout the book is a passion for both books and human life. Liesel is an enduring, unlikely heroine - a school aged illiterate girl who loses her brother at the time of her separation from her mother and steals a book from his graveside. She quickly befriends a neighbor boy (Rudy) and together they commit small acts of defiance (from book and apple thievery to giving stale bread to starving Jews walking to Dafur) in an attempt to settle the score between the unfairness of the time.


As Liesel’s love grows for her foster father and her best friend, so does everyone around her fall in love with her. Her reading improves to the point where she reads books in the shelter to keep everyone calm during air raids. She sits in the enchanting library of the mayor’s home. She brings gifts to the ailing Jew hiding in their basement. She is a worth opponent in soccer tournaments in the streets with the boys.


Zusak touches on difficult times in history with a novel approach. From Death’s eyes, we see both virtue and malevolence in humanity. "So much good, so much evil. Just add water." Death occasionally interjects personal opinions into the book, which breaks the flow of the story. I found these anecdotal interruptions added to the depth of Death as a character, but some readers found this style distracting.


The end (spoilers)


After an air raid flattens the neighborhood unexpectedly at night, no one survives but Liesel. Death alludes to the possibility many times, which made me believe that when my favorite characters finally were ripped from the story, it wouldn’t be so painful. I was wrong. After you have fallen in love with Rudy, Hans and even warmed up to Rosa Hubermann, you miss them terribly. The tears on Liesel’s cheeks become your own.


Zusak literally put the mayor’s home on a hill – the rich were quite literally put on a pedestal. Liesel chastises the mayor’s wife for living in such affluence while others were living in poverty. One of her acts of defiance is to steal books from the mayor’s library. As the story evolves, it’s clear that the mayor’s wife has intentionally let Liesel steal the books, and shares her love of literature. In an interesting twist of fate after the air raid, the mayor’s wife comes to find Liesel and brings her to her home. While visiting Rudy’s father’s store, Max walks in and the two find a happy and tearful reunion.


There are happy and sad times in life, as there are opportunities for great heroism in times of tragic adversity. Zusak has captured them beautifully, and captured my heart as well.



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Bel Canto

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Because I just returned from a trip to Machu Picchu, it was obvious to me that the "anonymous" South American country was modeled after Peru. The references to the terrorists who lived in the jungle, their desire to eat guinea pigs (which are really not all that tasty - not recommended) and the prayers to Saint Rose of Lima made it obvious the book was loosely based on actual history.

In a nutshell

The back cover names this book a "tragicomedy". I honestly didn't see much humor in this book. In fact, the first 150 pages or so were so hopelessly dry that I'm amazed I actually made it through the book. Patchett spends a bit too much time developing her characters (which truly, I didn't believe was possible) but when the plot starts getting going you won't be able to put it down. Relationships that would have only been possible during extreme circumstances emerge, and characters develop believably in ways far beyond what is possible.


The endless character development and lack of comedic relief didn't make Bel Canto any less appealing. The book was written in language almost like poetry. Not exactly poetry - more like music. (I'm sure this was also intentional, as "bel canto" translates to beautiful music in Italian). The characters were setup so it was obvious that Patchett loved her characters and her story line. She didn't do it in a way that some authors do (cough, Stephanie Meyer, cough) which would compromise the story.


The end result was so very worthwhile. I don't remember the exact moment when I started to enjoy the book more than wonder when it was going to get interesting. The characters - terrorists and hostages alike - made you fall in love with them in a way that was completely unexpected. It might be intuitive that over the period of 6 months the lines between hostages and captors might be blurred, relationships would emerge, and even the most unlikeable of Generals could become someone you wanted to see pull through. Gen, the brilliant translator who weaves his way through seemingly impossible relationships, said it best - that after months, there was not one person (of the terrorists) he was willing to sacrifice.

The End (spoilers)


At first, I was disturbed by the shockingly abrupt ending. Then I realized that the plot turn mirrors that of an actual Opera - blindingly quick with a bang. How I managed to be surprised by the ending, even though it was obvious from the start how it might unfold, was yet another way Patchett showed her literary talent. An educated man and a girl from the jungle could only meet under these circumstances. A lover of Opera and the worlds greatest opera singer, neither of whom could speak one another's language, could only fall in love here. Or could they? Just before the end I started to believe that happily ever after might be possible for the seemingly mismatched couples. My heart broke when not only Carmen, but also Katsumi, were gone with one bullet, and the hope of both couples disappeared.

One of the frequent criticisms of this book is the epilogue - Gen and Roxanne get married. There was nothing in the book to that point that showed either had any romantic feelings for one another, and after all the time Patchett spent on character development, that motivation seemed contrived to keep the characters together. The only possibility that brought these two together is the knowledge that they were the only ones in the world who could understand what they went through. I didn't buy it though, and the book would have been better without the confusing epilogue.

For any of it's shortcomings, though, the book was excellent. The title of the book couldn't be more fitting with a subtle irony about life and music - Bel Canto is truly beautiful music.



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