Book Extravaganza

The Zahir, Unbearable Lightness of Being, Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, The Little Prince, God's Debris, Memoirs of a Geisha, All Harry Potters, The Fountainhead, Illusions, A Wrinkle in Time, A Secret Garden, Lord of the Rings trilogy, Good in Bed, The Little Princess, Catch Me if You Can, The Mistress of Spices, The Prophet, Eleven Minutes, Jurassic Park, Mists of Avalon, Ishmael, The Other Boleyn Girl, Where the Heart Is, The Scarpetta Series by Patricia Cornwell

Welcome to a partial list of some books that pop into my head as great reads. I reserve the right to review some or all of these in the future, hehe. These are in no particular order. Enjoy!!

Powerful Undertones

Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro, follows a recent span of books I have read that deal with more emotion than plot. What I mean by that is that this book is not a suspensful one. It is not one that will keep you up all hours of the night. No, it is not that kind of book. Instead, it is a slow to start book that builds up a very silent but very powerful momentum. It is a book that must take it's readers through the lives of the three central characters; Kathy, Ruth and Tommy. The book opens in the present centering around Kathy. We are quickly pulled into a flashback of how she, Ruth and Tommy became acquainted at the Hailsham school. All of the students at this school have been raised to know they were different. It is not until the truth is revealed about their differences that the truly haunting idea behind the book comes to light. The whole scene around Hailsham and the guardians (those who watched over the students) proved very dark to me, if not a bit cold. There is a sorrowful undertone that surrounded the theme of Never Let Me Go.

I felt mostly that this book was a short, decent read. It is a summer book that will provide a break from the monotonous reads that are out there. I would recommend reading it, if only to offer up something different and unable to predict. Ishiguro provides an intense backdrop for an unsettling story.

I had no idea

...that baby wallabies were this cute

can you pass this test?

Bret Easton Ellis is an extremely talented and fanatically twisted author. His works include: American Psycho, Lunar Park, The Rules of Attraction, Less Than Zero. I am most interested in American Psycho. I can honestly say it was the most intense and impactful book that I have ever read. I say that it is the most intense because the story line completely blew me away. I find the impactfullness to lie in Ellis' ability to completely focus on the most obscure and fantastic items: business cards, and Phil Collins. This book is full of terror and utter violence. I have never had to put a book down and walk away due to the horrible visualization that I was experiencing from the fluidity of Ellis' words. Though it was a hard read, it is an important read. The publishers cancelled the printing of the book awhile back. It has been republished as a heavily edited version. I read the first printing. Either you will appreciate the allure of this book or you will quit halfway through. But if you quit, ask yourself why you did. This book is not supposed to make you comfortable. Remember that not all books were meant to be feel good stories; there are some created to challenge its reader and put them to a test. This is one such test.

Wallflowers cover

One question.
I want to know who doesn't judge a book by its cover? I certainly do; and thankfully so. Some of the best books I have ever read I picked up simply because the cover of the particular story was alluring. The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky was one such book. It is a book filled with letters to an anonymous person. Charlie the writer of these letters proves to have a keen knack for writing; as well as delivering scenes built upon gripping imagery and an awesome soundtrack. I recall while reading this book Chbosky inserted a few "classics" into the book. I immediately made sure I had read the recommended materials at some point. If not I have read all of them at this point. Again, this is one of the books that I read somewhere around 3 years ago. I am still haunted by some of the painful memories that Charlie experiences and recalls. The book is great; I had to remind myself that it was fiction and not my own story or any of my peers' autobiographies. I recommend this book be read when your nostalgia is so strong, and high school memories beckon you back. Chbosky will remind you that those happy memories are only happy because they are equally as impactful as the bad memories we all strive to push away and forget. Enjoy Charlie and his world, and then enjoy the fact that you never have to go back where Charlie lives on... High School.

Who is John Galt?

Supposedly a lot of controversy surrounds Ayn Rand’s, Atlas Shrugged. I have yet to meet the people who find this book to do more harm than good. Yet, I believe that if I am to stumble across one of these people it would not be a long friendship. Yes, this book can be used to judge others against. It is a book that requires thinking and exploring one's own thoughts regarding the theme. In this novel Rand plunks us down in the middle of a world not so different from our own. Small minded people are running big corporations; while their counterparts, the selfish ones, work to fulfill their own desires. As the novel progresses I expect the reader to become aware of the parallels within today’s society. I certainly did. Ultimately this book will have changed the course of my life. I read it about once a year to remind myself about myself. I suggest you do the same. We may not fall on the same side of the road but we will not be left untouched. Ayn Rand offers us a passionate novel about humanity; the good and the bad. It was hard for me to come off of it and not feel like an elitist. Honesty is a must; I do not think the book was controversial, I think Rand gave me a world in which I could only dream about. There are rumors that this book is to be made into a movie. Could there really be any two better people to play Dagny Taggart and John Galt?

Please read this book, I ask you for your sake, not mine.

Beautiful Suspense

Elizabeth Kostova wrote a beautiful novel sweeping between the past and present; fathers and daughters; lovers and beloveds. One would expect from that formula an epic romance novel. Instead we embark on an adventure to find Dracula: one journey in the present day and another that would seem a previous lifetime.

I read this book almost a year ago after I heard an article with Elizabeth Kostova on NPR. (Here have a listen) I thought she had me spellbound. And then I read her book. I did not leave my house for two days. I don't even remember putting the book down. For those of you that know me it's a strong possibility that I may have sat in one position until the book was finished. It not only was that kind of good; it was that kind of suspenseful.

From a readers standpoint this book takes a commitment. It is not a short book, nor is it an "easy read". Kostova did her research; she had to in order to lay the appropriate foundation. I appreciated the slow moments, it was only then that I could take a breath. It was as if Kustova wrote this book for me. Within The Historian she provided such vivid imagery that I could feel the temperature in the room drop. It is an expansive book that meets very high standards. I have a great respect for Elizabeth Kostova and her craft. It really was a marvelous read.