Book Review: The Well and the Mine

The Well and the Mine is centered around an ungodly event that a young girl, Tessa, witnesses one day in her backyard. The story takes around the time of the Great Depression in a small southern mining town. One day, Tessa witnesses a woman dumping a baby in her family's well. She convinces her parents, brother, and sister and what she saw and takes it upon herself to find the woman.

Though this "mystery" is what first moves the plot, it soon becomes inconsequential as the purpose of the book becomes clear: coming of age is painful but you always have your family. This seems like a cliched topic, but Phillips is able to make it seem fresh and new. Also it should be noted, that this is not a "feel good" coming of age tale. The language is raw and at times unpolished; it is difficult to tell at times if the characters are likable; and there is enough hardship described in the novel that makes it far from an after-school special.

Phillips is also unique in that she creates a mystery that is about people's lives and characters as opposed to about cheap thrills and chills. The hideous event is as catalyst that changes people's lives in surprising ways and allows the characters to explore themselves and the entire community.

The story is told through various narrators throughout the novel. In other novels this technique is used but each person's segment is a chapter or a significant amount of pages. However, Phillips makes each "viewpoint" short and range from a paragraph to a couple of pages. This works in the novel because the reader is able to experience each family member's perceptions without any separation. The finished product is a chorus of voices, each with their own solo, that are not contained by chapters but instead sing throughout the novel. It creates an extremely well developed story.

-DLP

Book Review: The Museum Guard

In an effort to make way for my Christmas presents, which are almost entirely books, I have decided to go through my "to be read" pile and start picking off some that I haven't gotten to this past year. I started with The Museum Guard which tells the story of an uncle and nephew who work as security guards at a small museum in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The nephew, DeFoe, lost his parents in a zeppelin accident when he was eight and has since been raised by his uncle. DeFoe grew up living in a hotel with his uncle and when he finally moved out of his uncle's room, it was only to relocate down the hall in the same hotel. DeFoe's uncle, Russett, is a crotchety man in his forties who lives a fast life filled with women, alcohol and gambling. Trouble arises when DeFoe falls in love with an eccentric woman who is the caretaker at the local Jewish cemetery. When a new piece of artwork comes into the museum, DeFoe’s girlfriend becomes infatuated with it to the point of endangering her own life and sanity as well as that of the other characters in the novel.

This novel was a good read but it was very odd. The book seemed to start off with a very different story than the one that it ended up with. About halfway through the novel, the plot too an extremely unexpected turn that really changed the entire direction and theme of the novel. I greatly enjoyed the relationship between the nephew and his uncle but was not enthralled with the other characters. Furthermore, the events in the final 100 pages of the book seemed extremely far-fetched and completely out of context. Additionally, the last fifty pages are written as a series of letters which come off as being stilted. It feels as if the author wanted to the reader to have information that was outside of the narrator's purview and therefore decided to tell the final chapter through correspondence. Despite my knowledge that the book had peaked halfway through, I was still drawn to finish it.

-DLP

Book Review: Penelope Ayers

In November I review our thoughts about a book reading by Amy Julia Becker from her first work, Penelope Ayers: a memoir. Today, I read her book. Penelope Ayers: a memoir is Amy Julia's story as much as it is her mother-in-law's. Penelope Ayers was the matriarch of a native and broken New Orleans family. After a lifetime of disappointment, estranged relationships and depression, Penny learns she has liver cancer. Told through the eyes of her daughter-in-law, Penny finds her way back home to many previously long lost friends and family members. For Amy Julia, Penny's story is one of healing and hope. While the cancer is terminal, Penny rediscovers life.

Many of our first assumptions about the book were accurate - this is a work in progress. More importantly, this book serves as a catharsis for the writer, which helps and hinders it as a work to be read widely. As a writer, Amy Julia has a lot of heart and I admit, I feel a few tears spring to my eyes while reading this book because I felt the presence of strong, complicated love of family. To an extent, we all have families with broken histories and the process of healing (or in some cases, lack of healing) is powerful. For Becker, healing is inextricably connected to her Christian faith, which plays a large role in her book. While I appreciate that this book is a personal history, I felt disconnected from the prevalence of The Church, but this is Becker's story. Some parts of the story drag as Becker meticulously includes every detail and development of the journey. I have not read enough Christian literature or literature about terminal patients (though I have read Tuesdays with Morrie which I found trite with life lessons too neatly packaged) to know where this book fits into either genre. I think this book has the potential to be similar to Joan Didion's The Magical Year of Thinking in that it explores the messy relationships of family and life. Penelope Ayers needs work and more distance from the grief associated with its writing, but as Amy Julia hones her craft, this book could become much more powerful.
http://amyjuliabecker.com/

- KER

Just for fun: I love You, Beth Cooper

In order to take a quick breather from the Joyce Carol Oates reading challenge, I picked up Larry Doyle's "I Love You, Beth Cooper." It a hilarious teen comedy exploring and magnifying everything that makes high school terrifying for a nerd. This book was riddled with pop culture references and filled with laughs. It was a quick, easy read, but I love a book that makes me belly laugh while riding the train. If you cringe when you look back on high school, this will make you smile. Denis Cooverman definitely had it worse than you.

- KER

Fine Feature Films (or Not)

"Four Seasons Lodge" - about a summer colony in the Catskills formed by Holocaust survivors as a safe haven that in 2006 began breaking apart. All those who visit the lodge in recent years are aging survivors, many with a myriad of health issues. As their health declines, so do the number of attendees. Filmed with care and thoughtfulness, this film focuses on what happens many years after tragedy strikes. How do people move on? How does one build community when all family members are gone? "Four Seasons Lodge" tells the story of one group of survivors many years after the Holocaust. How will they be remembered? At times touching and humorous, it is a film worth checking out.
http://www.fourseasonsmovie.org/

"The Princess & the Frog" - Disney is back in action with a twist on a classic fairy tale in 2-D animation. Certainly a throwback for those who remember the glory days of such classics like "Cinderella" and "Sleeping Beauty." While Disney is still several decades behind the times, this film features an African American heroine who helps save the day, but still marries a prince in order to achieve her dream. I was a little underwhelmed by the formulaic nature of the film (she and her prince make instant animal friends! who save their lives on multiple occasions! they find true love! love conquers all!) and I found the villain to be scarier than I thought a G-rating would allow. The villain is a "voo-doo" man who peddles in dark magic and trickery, making him part Jafar and part Cruella de Vil (such very pointy bones!). It's a fun romp though if you aren't too tired of fairy tale cliches.
http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/princessandthefrog/

"Angels and Demons" - Dan Brown book turned film. Tom Hanks reprises his role as the "silver fox" (Dan Brown's description, not mine) from the first film in essentially "National Treasure: Vatican Edition." To sum up: the long dormant anti-Catholic secret society formed by learned men like Galileo and Raphael has reared its vengeful head just before the Catholic world selects a new Pope. They've done so by kidnapping a dangerous substance called anti-matter, that, when it touches matter, will cause a huge explosion. The Catholic Church brought down by science -- clearly Robert Langdon is the man for the job! Hijinks ensue and changes were made from the book (yes, I read it) in order to streamline the story. I read that Ron Howard felt this was much more of an action story than The Da Vinci Code, but I found it just as boring. While I do not understand the casting choice of Tom Hanks, I must say I was delighted by Stellan Skarsgård as the disdainful head of the Swiss Guard. The rompers flipped through "1001 Books to Read Before You Die" in preparation for a 2010 year long reading challenge and still managed to catch the plot, like the book, it's a light story.
http://www.angelsanddemonsmovie.org/

 "The Ugly Truth" - An ugly story indeed. I am a fan of light "chick-flicks" or "rom-coms" and love the genre across the board; from "Sleepless in Seattle" to "Ten Things I Hate About You," yet I found this movie to be disappointing. Ready for a formula film where opposites attract and eventually love abounds, I found "The Ugly Truth" to be filled with unnecessary sexual innuedos and a lackluster plot. It was part "Someone Like You..." mixed with "He's Just Not That Into You" trying to live up to "When Harry Met Sally." It failed on all three fronts. This movie is not funny, Gerard Butler and Katherine Heigl have no chemistry and the characters are flat, generating no sympathy. This 96 minute movie felt long. The pay off kiss at the end is not worth it. If you are looking for a fun chick flick, look elsewhere or to a tried and true film with a truly adorable leading man. Sorry, Gerard Butler does not do it for me, particularly when he's trying to mask his Scottish brogue, which emphasizes his chipmunk cheeks.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1142988/  


- KER

Joyce Carol Oates Reading Challenge: BLONDE

Part one of my take on the Joyce Carol Oates challenge is complete! I recently finished reading her gripping novel Blonde, a fictional account of the life of Norma Jean Baker. Oates chronicles Baker's devastating upbringing with her mentally unstable mother to her foster family, early marriage and rise to fame. Throughout Blonde Oates traces Baker's evolution from an under-educated, small town orphan to the American sex symbol Marilyn Monroe. Oates's narrative is gripping on two levels - Norma Jean's crippling self esteem issues and deep seated desire to be loved, at any cost and Marilyn's sexual exploitation by the Hollywood men who create and loathe her.

Blonde is a story that is doomed from the first sentence and pulls the reader into Norma's downward spiral of self doubt and frustration. As a child, Norma's mentally unstable mother sets her up for a lifetime of doubting love - that it will be conditional and circumstantial. Furthermore, after Norma's mother is committed to a mental institution, she refuses to relinquish her rights as a parent, preventing the pretty young blonde girl from being adopted, leaving her to fend for herself in an orphanage. Eventually Norma Jean lands in a stable and caring foster home, only to be pushed into marriage at 16 because her foster mother fears Norma Jean's developing body and sexuality that follows. At this young age, Norma Jean's body as a source of male desire takes center stage. Norma Jean becomes a woman defined by how men view her.

Marilyn Monroe is the voluptous, sexy, blonde woman all American men desire, stitched into a form fitting dress displaying all her curves, full of witticisms and easy sex. However, the woman behind the Marilyn mask remains uncertain of her true identity and desires, sinking deeper and deeper into depression. During her childhood in the orphanage, Norma Jean's mentor preached Christian Scientism, which Norma Jean followed in her youth, but as the pressures of Hollywood increased, she found herself turning to drugs - for nerves, sleep, confidence, etc. As Marilyn becomes a box office hit, Norma Jean's confidence decreases, still uncertain of her role in the world.

Oates emphasizes the identities the public creates for famous figures by referring to Monroe's famous lovers as "The Ex-Athlete," "The Playwright" and "The President." Furthermore, Monroe shys away from referring to herself as Marilyn - keeping her "true self" separate from the icon Hollywood executives created. When taking a new lover, she tells men those close to her call her Norma Jean. Additionally, with each role Marilyn Monroe performs, her selfhood splits another time and gains another facet. Monroe is referred to as Rose or The Girl Upstairs or Sugar, as the situation requires. All these psydonems remain within Monroe's inner thoughts.

Part of what makes Oates's novel so compelling is the third person narrative. While she recreates conversations, it is always from a third party perspective. Occasionally the reader is privy to the inner thoughts of a character, but remains an observer, trying to piece together the truth about the scene. The reader is constantly trying to determine what is true. Which perspective represents the truth. Oates often refrains from explicit descriptions, yet her language is rich. That is, Oates implies the sexual favors required of Marilyn Monroe, without presenting graphic sex scenes. It is enough to know the degradation Monroe suffered.

I knew very little about Marilyn Monroe before I read Blonde other than basics like - married to Joe DiMaggio, Arthur Miller; may have been JFK's mistress; definitely sang "Happy Birthday Mr. President" to JFK; and of course, the iconic image of Monroe in the white dress with her skirt billowing. As a work of fiction, Oates's text works extremely well. I had the pleasure of googling Monroe when I wanted to verify a fact, but it was not essential to my understanding of the story - Monroe is a woman doomed by her circumstances as a flawed and desparate human being. Truly this novel made me appreciate that I do not have to make my way as a woman in the mid twentieth century. It was truly a man's world and Monroe was the victim of their whims. This is a fascinating read on so many levels. Oates complies a complex woman's story and distills the most compelling and tragic parts in an epic novel.

- KER

Book Review: The Escape Artist

The novel The Escape Artist by Judith Katz takes place over 17 years and travels from Eastern Europe to Argentina. Sofia Teitelbaum is a young Jewish girl when her poor parents decide to marry her off to a wealthy Jewish businessman who boasts of taking Sofia to Argentina where she will be treated as a princess. The wealthy businessman, Tutsik Goldenberg, is clearly not who he says he is but Sofia’s family can not offer her a better life in their Polish town so they agree to the marriage. Before Tutsik and Sofia can be wed, Tutsik takes Sofia to another village where she meets “tante Sara” who pretends to be Tutsik’s aunt. Tante Sara, Sofia, and Tutsik board a boat for Argentina on which Tutsik promises to marry Sofia. Of course the marriage does not take place, and instead Sara teaches Sofia about the art of seduction. When they arrive at the dock in Argentina, Sofia is brought to Tutsik’s sister’s brothel where Sofia will work as a prostitute for three years until she meets Hankus. Hankus, formerly Hannah, has a story of his own which Sofia tells the reader. When Sofia meets Hankus he is already working as a magician and about to take his talent to the big stage. The love between Hankus and Sofia is the crux of the story that leads to betrayal, secrets, and magic.

Katz is simply an excellent writer. She is able to describe a scene with such precision and detail that the reader can almost feel it. In addition, she peppers the text with Yiddish words which deepens the issue of Jewish identity in the novel. However, readers who do not know Yiddish will still understand the text and might even pick up some Yiddish verbiage. The story is written in sections that each have denoted years. One of the sections is specifically Hankus’ section. Yet, it is not told by Hankus but instead by Sofia as it was told to her by Hankus. Therefore, she uses the second person when writing this section which is a fantastic technique and works very well in this book.

Overall, the novel was a very good read. Still, I only have it 3.5 stars because I could not sympathize with the characters. Though they certainly developed throughout the novel, they were not likable and at times I could not even understand the love between Sofia and Hankus. However, Katz proves herself to be an excellent writer and I look forward to more works by her in the future.


-DLP

Joyce Carol Oates Challenge: Haunted

Joyce Carol Oates' Haunted is an excellent collection of stories that, for the lack of a better word, are "scary". However, these are not "scary" in the sense that Edgar Allan Poe or H.P Lovecraft are. These tales are much more like the plot of an episode of Twilight Zone with a twist at the end. As other reviewers have stated, her stories range from traditional scary stories that could to told on Halloween, to creepy tales with psychological implications, to horrific passages of violence.

The majority of the tales center around the relationship between a woman/girl and an abusive man. In most of the stories, the man and woman are related to each other though sometimes it takes a while to figure out their relationship. Though when reading these stories for the first time, the plots and characters may seem harmless. The terrifying elements lay just below the surface. Unlike in other scary story collections, Oates rarely shows the reader what is exactly to be feared. Instead, she describes and fear and panic surrounding the event and lets the reader infer. This technique makes the tales even more grotesque and horrific because there is no defined conclusion and it is up to the reader's imagination.

Oates also uses a variety of techniques that have become familiar to her readers. In one story, she begins each sentence with the word "because" which makes the tale almost seem like a free verse poem. Another story is segmented with each passage numbered as if the entire story is a list of some sort.

Though descriptions of the tales may sound interesting, the majority of the stories are incredibly upsetting. Instead of murderous hitchhikers or clawed murderers, these are stories that burrow deep into the reader's psyche and wreck havoc. These are not for readings around a campfire or for someone who wants chills on Halloween. The kinds of chills that these stories give are far deeper and are not easily ignored.

-DLP

Book Review: The Squirrel Mother

The Squirrel Mother by Megan Kelso is a graphic novel that is told in short stories or panels that give a snapshot into the lives of various girls of approximately the same age. The majority of the sections are about five to six pages with simplistic drawings that are humorous while also melancholic. Such "short stories" range from a girl learning how to dance to another adolescent girl who sadistically cleans her room. Another story is of a girl who judges her neighbors on the music that they play on Halloween. The concluding section is about the founding fathers in which Kelso mixes historical truths with modern-day romance. Overall, the collection is quite interesting, enduring, and spunky.

As other reviewers have stated, I very much enjoyed the short sections that depicted various girl and their "coming-of-age" moments. Each story was completely unique while also connecting to the overall theme of the book. If the graphic novel was comprised of only these stories, I would surely have given it four stars. However, the final section was a bit odd. Kelso's art was perfect, as is typical of her, but the storyline was a bit too bizarre for me. Had that section been left out, it would have been worthy of four stars!

-DLP

Book Review: The Wives of Henry Oades

As Johanna Moran's debut novel, The Wives of Henry Oades is wonderful! The novel begins in 1890 with Henry, his wife Margaret and their two children leaving England to go to New Zealand. The country is still considered the wilderness and the Oades find themselves in an undesirably living arrangement. Soon after they move out to the country, Margaret Oades and her children are kidnapped by a Maori tribe. After years of endless searching and mourning, Henry decides to move to California. Eventually, Margaret and her surviving children escape the Maori, discover where Henry is living, and go to join him. When they arrive, they find that Henry has remarried. To make matters worse, the whole family is brought to court on charges of bigamy.

One of the perks of the novel is that it is told from various viewpoints without being confusing. The writing is also beautiful and the characters are wonderfully developed. The first two sections of the book flew by so quickly the I wanted to re-read them immediately. It reads with the pace of a thriller but with the depth of an incredibly thoughtful and insightful historical novel. The reason why I had to give this book 3 stars is because the final section seemed to pale in comparison to the first two. It felt rushed but at the same time a bit boring. Being that it was the final section, it left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. Still, I would completely recommend it to any lover of historical fiction or just fiction in general!

-DLP

Book Review: House

In this wordless graphic novel, House by Josh Simmons, three friends decide to investigate an old abandoned mansion that has suffered great disrepair. Things quickly go from interesting, to creepy, to downright terrifying. It becomes clear that the house is actually a malicious character in the novel that begins to take over the human characters. Elements of fantasy come into play as tragedy strikes and the three friends realize that they must fight alone in order to survive.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this graphic novel is the way that it makes the reader feel as trapped as the characters. The graphics begin with a lot of white space and intricate drawings of the house. As the friends venture further into the house and are met with greater darkness, both literal and figurative, the pictures become blacker and blacker. In addition, the pictures that were once sprawling become smaller and smaller until they are only a tiny circle enveloping the characters. Similar to how the house becomes a character, the blackness becomes the text and it tells the story of the friend's descent into darkness.

However, I can only give this story two stars because the tale became a bit too odd for me. The premise was fascinating and I would love to see it polished and have a bit more depth added to it. It is possible that my complaints are merely because the novel to a turn towards science-fiction (not one of my favorite genres). It should also be stated that this is Simmons' first graphic novel and his craft may not be completely formed yet. Still, I think he will be an interesting author to follow and has great potential for the future.

-DLP

Book Review: Let the Great World Spin

At first glance (or read) Colum McCann's Let the Great World Spin seems to be a collection of short stories that take place in New York City around the time that a tightrope walker walked across a rope between the Twin Towers as they were being built in the 1970s. However, the reader soon realizes that these stories are intertwined and are beautifully woven together into one overlying story told in a cacophony of voices.

McCann has chosen New York City as the setting for this novel and the diverse peoples of the city are his characters. His first character is Corrie who was originally from Ireland but moved to America and has taken up residence in the projects of the Bronx where he helps the elderly and prostitutes alike. The next series of stories involve a group of women who have lost son's in the Vietnam War. Lastly, are a couple of stories involving a young married couple who have chosen to abandon their reckless drug-riddled life and start anew in the countryside. Interspersed between these stories are vignettes about the tightrope walker and his great mission to cross between the Twin Towers. When tragedy strikes, these independent series of stories come together into one powerful overriding tale.

This is by far one of my favorite books of 2009. Each story is written beautifully and can easily stand on its own. Yet the connection between all of the stories brings together so many different voices and narrators that the overall story is overwhelmingly powerful. McCann's  descriptions of poverty, grief, love, and compassion can not go with praise. Though he is originally from Ireland, he is able to tell of life in New York City better than most actual residents would be able.

-DLP

JCO Update: First Love

As Karen previously stated, we have decided to make December the month of Joyce Carol Oates. In order to try to understand her fully as an author, we are both reading different forms of Oates' writings and discussing them here for you to see! First, I read Oates' novella First Love and will then continue with two of her short story collections and finish with her novel Foxfire. Hopefully, from reading these various forms, we can come to between understand her overall style and themes.

First Love is a disturbing novella that tells the story of an eleven year of girl named Josie whose mother leaves her father and decides to take Josie away to upstate New York where the two will live with her aunt. Josie soon realizes, that she has never met this aunt before and that the aunt is infact her GREAT aunt whom her mother has not seen for decades. Josie is an inquisitive girl, which her mother finds troubling at times, who finds it difficult to settle into her great aunt's house where there are so many unexplained rules. The majority of these rules revolve around Josie's second cousin Jared Jr. who is currently taking time off from studying theology at the local seminary and has taken up residence in the house. Josie is fascinated by Jared Jr if only for the fact that she is perplexed by Jesus Christ and his purpose/meaning in Josie's life as well as that of her cousin's. However, Jared takes advantage of Josie's interest in him by using her as a test of his celibacy. He begins to physically abuse her and often strips her naked as a way to make him stronger by not acting on his lust for her.

Though Oates' writing is as prolific and moving as always, the subject matter seems a bit too heavy even for her. Of course she has written other books with troubling themes, this novella seemed to be even more disturbing than her usual writings. First, it was written in the gothic tradition and contained numerous allusions to Satan and the devil. In many ways, the writing of the story was reminiscent of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter yet with even darker underlying themes. Perhaps, it was the form of the novella and its shortened length that gave the reader the feeling of being almost assaulted by the story. Lastly, Oates wrote this story in the second person (for the most part) making the reader feel as if these events and acts were being done to his/herself.

Overall, I did not like this work. I found it too disturbing but without much depth. The themes were, at times, insipid and the characters were one-dimensional. Clearly, Oates wanted to address hypocrisy in religion and  the hazards of naivete. Yet, this did not seem like the appropriate story to illustrate those points. The troubling plot was so overwhelming that Oates' message and theme were, for the most part, lost.

-DLP

Book Review: Skim

Skim is a graphic novel that centers around the main character whose nickname is Skim. Skim is an overweight, Japanese-Canadian, gothic, Wiccan, and high school social outcast. However, none of these descriptions are actually truthgul. As the reader becomes familiar with Skim, he/she soon discovers that she is just another misunderstood high school student who is trying to find her niche will still retaining some of her identity. The plot begins to roll when the boyfriend of the most popular girl at school commits suicide and the other popular girls decide to create various vigils and clubs in honor of this boy that none of them actually knew. Skim sees through the popular girls' false sorrow and realizes that this boy's death is just an excuse for the popular girls to alienate others and draw attention to themselves. However, this death eventually created tension and forever changes Skim's relationship with her best friend. In hopes of finding help and guidance, Skim reaches out to her English teacher with whom she falls in love. Instead of finding solace in this relationship, she only becomes more confused about herself. Companionship and understanding comes in the most surprising of places: the girlfriend of the boy who committed suicide. Skim  notices that the girl is actually suffering and yet her popular friends are doing nothing to come to her aid. An unspoken kinship is fostered between the two girls as they both struggle with trying to fit into their own skin.

The art in this graphic novel is exceptional. The detail is incredibly intricate and should be examined with as much interest as the text. Many of the drawings are not contained in boxes as other graphic novels and comics have used. Instead, pictures flow over the pages and blend into one another. It is possibly some of the most beautiful art that has ever been published in a graphic novel. Jillian Tamaki, the cousin of the author, is able to create unbelievable tones and depth to the gray sketches that remind the reader of Japanese watercolors.

This is an exceptional book. Lover's of graphic novels and traditional novels alike will find something beautiful and touching in this story. Skim is a wonderful character who is incredibly insightful while also being humorous and honest. Though the plot is simplistic and revolves around an event that most people have experienced while in high school, it is its everyday-ness that is so charming and at times compelling.

-DLP

Book Review: Shortcomings

I discovered Adrian Tomine's Shortcomings when I went to the library to get a different graphic novel. However, there was a pamphlet on "suggested" readings and Shortcomings was listed in this pamphlet. I believe that the purpose of the pamphlet was to be used for outreach to those who have never read a graphic novel but are interested in finding something new. I had read almost all of the other books in the booklet and thought that I would try Shortcomings. Personally, I was disappointed. I thought that this graphic novel might actually turn other reader's away from the genre because it upholds some people's stereotypes that graphic novels are slow-moving and do not have a cohesive purpose.

Shortcomings tells the story of a 30 year old Japanese-American man who is in a relationship with a Japanese-American woman. Though they have been together for years, their relationship is now on the rock as the two people try to understand the role of their ethnicity in their lives and relationships. The main male character finds Caucasian women to be more attractive than Japanese women, which his girlfriend believes is racist. The couple decides to separate when Ben's girlfriend goes away to NYC. After some failed relationships and one-night stands, Ben decides to follow her only to find that she is hiding her own secret (though it is an extremely anti-climatic secret). Ben discusses all of her personal issues with his Korean best friend who is a lesbian with a revolving door of girlfriends.

Though issues surrounding identity and the role of ethnicity in a person's life are certainly worthy of exploration, this graphic novel does not handle the material as well as other novels (graphic and otherwise). The characters appear insipid and shallow. Ben's best friend is portrayed as a stereotypical lesbian character with a new girlfriend each night. Ben himself is depicted as a "typical" male who tries to find himself by sleeping with and drooling over other women besides his girlfriend. His girlfriend is also a two-dimensional character who flees the relationship by literally moving away. The graphics are interesting and all in sepia which adds a melancholic mood.  Still, the pictures are not that interesting and do not add much to the text.

Overall, I was disappointed by this selection and found both the text and pictures to be lacking. The theme of the story was quite interesting and in a different context would be a thrilling read.

-DLP

Joyce Carol Oates Reading Challenge

Now that both rompers have successfully completed the Once Upon a Time Reading Challenge (and a whole month early!), we have selected a very different challenge and it will last for the month of December.

We have each choosen works by Joyce Carol Oates to read during the month of December. While Dani has selected a novella, short stories and one novel, Karen choose two novels. Both rompers will read approximately 1400 pages of Oates' prolific writing.

After the genre challenge that touched on genres, neither of us read very frequently, we decided to work on texts by the same author.

Karen will be reading Blonde and What I Lived For, beginning with Blonde.

We hope to have a discussion posted about similar themes in the texts we read along with reviews.

So, 1400 pages by Joyce Carol Oates read December 1 - December 31, 2009. Join us if you can!

Now Playing: New Moon

On November 20th, thousands of teenage girls flooded into theaters to see the next installment of the Twilight Sage...New Moon. In case some of our readers have been under a rock for the past 2 years, the Twilight saga is a novel series (and now film) that has swept the nation. The saga is about an average girl who moves to Forks, Oregon where she falls in love with a vampire. Originally from Arizona, Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) decides to move to Oregon to live with the father that she barely knows in the town that still remembers her as a little girl before her parents divorced. It is there that she meet Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), a student at Bella's high school. Edward to arrogant, stand-offish, and has made it a point to not date anyone in Forks...until now. Edward is captivated by Bella and the two fall in love, though they must keep Edward's vampire identity a secret.

In New Moon, Edward dumps Bella and flees to Italy with his vampire family. Bella mourns for months until she rekindles her friendship with Jacob, a Native American boy who lives on the local reservation. Jacob is smitten with Bella and the two seem to have some sexual tension that is only exacerbated by Jacob's confession to Bella that he is a werewolf. Conflict arises when Edward's sister, Alice, returns to Forks to find Bella and bring her back to Italy where Edward has decided to kill himself.

The film is filled with as much angst and poor acting as a Dawson's Creek marathon. The tension between Bella Swan and Edward Cullen pales in comparison to that between Bella and Jacob. However, the irony lays in the fact that Stewart and Pattison are in a relationship with each other in "real life". The film is filled with everything that is bad in a chick-flick such as poor acting, a bad script, and sparkly vampires. Yet, it lacks everything that is good about chick flicks such as corny love scenes, stereotypical confessions of longing, and the upholding of actual vampire folklore. Overall, save your money and time and wait for it to come out on DVD so you can make fun of it in your own home.

-DLP

Now Playing: The Blindside

Last week, The Blindside opened in theaters across the country heralding a superstar cast including Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, and Kathy Bates (among others). The movie was advertised as a feel-good movie about a young homeless boy who finds love and family in a white southern family. However, the movie is much more than that! The story is really about a young African-American boy, Michael Oher, who lived in the Memphis projects with his drug-addicted mother. At a young age, he was taken from his mother and placed in various foster families from which he always escaped. By coincidence, he was enrolled in a preppy, white, christian school where he was considered an outcast by both students and parents. At this time, Oher was homeless and found food by collecting alreayd eaten popcorn leftover after athletic games at the school. One day, Leigh Ann Tuney (Sandra Bullock) finds Michael walking down the street in the cold and welcomes him to sleep on her family's couch. Within months, Michael becomes part of the family and is accepted by Leigh Ann's husband, and two children. Of course there are difficulties that arise, but Michael is soon placed on the football team. With the help of a tutor (Kathy Bates), Michael becomes eligible to attend college.

The aspect that makes this feel-good movie more than just a stereotypical tearjerker is that it is a true story with as much pain as it has happiness. The first 45 minutes of the movie has the audience clutching their guts in hopes that the sorrow experienced by Michael will hopefully subside. Though his circumstances improve a great deal, the film never lets the audience forget Michael's past and therefore keeps it ever looming in the back of the audience's mind. The characters are real, and they should be, because they are based on real people.

Overall, it is the perfect holiday movie! It makes everyone want to jump up from their seats and give back to those less fortunate. I was not a fan of Sandra Bullock before this movie, but I now have to say that she did an excellent job. I often find tearjerker movies to be annoying and shallow, which this movie is neither. The autenticity of the story is further bolstered by the ending of the movie in which actual photographs of Michael Oher and the Tuney family are projected on the screen alongside the credits. There is even footage of Oher being drafted for the Ravens by the NFL in which Oher and the Tuney's are shown together. The sentiments and values that this film embodied touched my heart and I am sure that it did the same to the other viewers in the theater. It may even get me interested in football! (though...probably not)

-DLP

Once Upon a Time Update: We're Done!

The Once Upon a Time challenge was the first reading challenge that I have ever done and I have to say that it truly was a challenge in the best and worst sense of the word. I found myself reading in genres that I had previously been completely uninterested in. I read titles that I would never have thought of touching before this challenge and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with what I found. Fantasy is not that scary and (at least in the case of The City of Ember) not that fantastical. I was pleased to discover that contemporary fairy tales no longer reek of sexism. I was excited that modern-day fairy tales have been made into graphic novels and comics, two forms that can truly express the visual and textual elements of fairy tales. I was most impressed by the non-fiction selection that I chose for the folktale reading. Previous to this challenge, I had sworn off Zora Neale Hurston and her writings. However, this challenge actually brought me back to her and I am proud to say that I will be reading more of her works. The only selection that disappointed me was the reading I chose for mythology. Still, it made me read outside of my comfort zone which is rare for me.

Overall, I found the experiece to be a good one. Looking forward, I will not cast aside young adult novels as irrelevant to my life; I will not continue to view fairy tales as inappropriately sexist; I will agreed to read authors that I have previously removed from my library; and I will never again read a Tom Stoppard play!

On to the next challenge!

-DLP

Once Upon a Time Reading Challenge: Happily Ever After?

After finishing Robert Coover's Pinocchio in Venice I felt disappointed. Though the plot frequently nods to the original tale, Coover offers a complicated, meandering and repetitive plot that never serves to further the story of Pinocchio or clarify the lessons he should learn. Coover's references to the original story are often lost or twisted within the complex story as Pinocchio meets old friends and enemies, revisiting the city of his birth. As I read I continually hoped that this book would offer clarity as to why and how Pinocchio became a boy, wondering the secret to unlock the magic of his transformation. However, Coover offers none of this, scattering his text with unlikeable and characters lacking any redeeming qualities. All the characters Pinocchio encounters are selfish, greedy and guileful. Additionally, Coover muddies the timeline of Pinocchio's life, refers to events from centuries ago, making it unclear how long Pinocchio existed as a puppet and a then as a boy. Coover created a dark world where Gepetto was an abusive alcoholic, depressed by his life and uncaring for Pinocchio. The Blue Fairy emerges as female figure who desperately wanted to fit into the human world by any means necessary and mothering Pinocchio became on of her strategies. Coover's work is twisted and depressing and became a chore to read.

The Once Upon a Time Reading Challenge introduced me to some new texts and left me curious to read more. Though reading some traditionally told fairy tales may make me feel nostalgic about my youth, works that re-envision the fairy tale interest me more. I am curious how to reconcile progressive feminist views about women with the females represented in fairy tales. Every little girl loves the idea of a princess, but how do we empower them with these stories? I know I loved the princesses in fairy tales because they are pretty and wear beautiful dresses, therefore I wanted to be like them in some way. That is not a message I want to perpetuate, yet fairy tales are a part of our culture. I want to share the fun of fairy tales as many texts build on these tropes and weave images into new stories, but I want to show young children that the girl can rescue the guy, or that one can take charge of her own life instead of blithely complying with the masses. Yet, I know some concepts I'd like to reinvent are beyond the comprehension of a young child (like explaining why some gals think "someday my princess will come" instead of prince). The role of fairy tales in modern storytelling will certainly evolve and I'd like to find a way to maintain the fun of traditional fairy tales while presenting more realistic world views. Though the Once Upon a Time Reading Challenge has come to an end for the rompers, I've got a few more books on my wish list to check out.

- KER

Book Review: Isis

For the months of October and November, I try to read as many gothic novels, novellas, and short stories as possible. It is for this reason that I put Isis by Douglas Clegg on my list for this year. The story is of a young girl, Iris, and her two brothers who live in a house with their cloistered mother and mentally ill grandfather. Iris finds solace in her friendship with her brother, Horace, and the gothic tales that the gardner tells her. Tragedy strikes when Harvey dies in a horrific accident that causes her to create a bargin with Death that will allow Harvey to come back to her. Of course, the deal is not what she expected and Iris must choose between her brother's happiness and her own.

Perhaps the most interesting and likeable aspect of the book, are illustrations that are interspered throughout the novella. They beautiful black and white sketches that correspond with the current action, however, they add even more to the novel than the text does. Though there are gotthic aspects in the novella, I felt that the pictures are what gave the novel its eerie tone and creepy atmosphere.

Overall, I was disappointed by this selection. After doing some background reading on the novella, I found that this is in fact the prequel to one of Clegg's series. Yet, having read this book first, it is doubful that I will pick up another one of his works. Perhaps it would have been better if Clegg merely worked the background of these characters into the rest of his series and not created an entire novella dedicated to this story because it does not seem to be able to stand alone as a novella.

-DLP

DystopYA Challenge: Armageddon Summer

For my final young adult novel in the DystopYA challenge with Books on the Nightstand, I read Armageddon Summer by Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville. The plot follows two teenagers, Jed and Marina, as their parents drag them into a millennium cult known as The Believers as they prepare for the world to end on July 27th. The Believers, led by a reverand from Boston, decide to camp on a mountaintop in western Massachusetts where they believe they will be saved from the end of the world. The story is told in alternating voices between Jed and Marina who meet on the mountain and consequently fall in love. Neither teenager believes in the mission of The Believers but they both follow their parents in order to protect them and their siblings.

Many may not view this work as a distopian novel because it is set in present day and does not have any fantasy or science fiction elements. However, it is perhaps scarier than the "traditional" distopian works because it is set in the present day and concerns a social issue that could easily arise within our lifetime. What makes this book a distopian novel are The Believers who remove themselves from conventional society in order to build their own distopian civilization at the top of the mountain. As is with all distopian societies, The Believers come to a tragic and brutal end. Though the reader can see something horrific apporaching on the horizon, the ending is still a surprise.

Many adult readers may disregard this book because it is marketed to young adults. However, I found the novel to be an excellent read for all ages. There is, of course, a young romance between the two main characters that can be annoying at times but the majority of the book focuses on The Believers' rise and fall as a society which is extremely fascinating. I would recommend this work to any person interested in distopian literature regardless of age.

-DLP

Reading Challenge Update: the home stretch

I finished Margart Atwood's Bluebeard's Egg earlier this week, for which I wrote an initial reaction here. The remaining stories were very different in tone than the first few that I had read. While I enjoyed them all and have a deep respect for Margart Atwood, I was somewhat disappointed. Many of the other stories focus on relationships between men and women that are complicated by the woman's struggle for an independent identity from the marriage and home life. Several of the stories explore unhappy marriages or women who remain unmarried for fear of the impact of marriage on their identity. In "The Sunrise" a female artist stalks men who she finds interesting looking, draws them and occasionally becomes briefly romantically involved with them. She never remains with one man for very long and often expresses dissatisfaction when the man becomes too attached to her or the relationship. In the title story, "Bluebeard's Egg," the female protagonist feels her husband is incredibly stupid about everyday life, even though she implies he is a brilliant brain surgeon. Because of his stupidity regarding life's banalities, she assumes he is faithful and loves her blindly, but suddenly doubts everything at a dinner party when she witnesses her husband with his hand on a friend's backside. In these stories Atwood explores the complications when couples do not communicate or refuse to be clear about their needs and wants. Atwood's female characters strive to define themselves in their own terms, only to reveal in the narrative that their identities are truly outlined by the male figures in their lives.

I consider Bluebeard's Egg as a folklore/folktale example in the reading challenge because it really addressed the folklore of modern life. In "Loulou," the title character is a successful potter who is exploited by several poets who live off her generosity and earnings. Loulou describes the ways in which these poets define her, relating the folklore of Loulou that these men imagine. The poets see Loulou a certain way and only want to relate to her in that manner, so that she must adjust her mood to present the folklore of Loulou's identity. This idea continues in "Bluebeard's Egg" when the narrator de-emphasizes her interest in her adult education classes so as to create a certain image of herself - the wife of a brain surgeon. Furthermore, the class in which she is enrolled is a storytelling class, focusing on various styles, particularly the oral tradition. I enjoyed that this text extended the idea of oral tradition and folklore into a modern setting because we all do create a kind of folklore about ourselves - the funny guy, the serious girl - and struggle to find how this lore and legend of selfhood reflect our true selves. However, I was disappointed by the change in tone from the first two stories because they played on the idea of modern folklore of families, with humor and heart. Many of the ensuing stories felt more analytical about the politics of sex, which I did not expect. Any collection of stories will feature pieces with different tone, but I loved the first direction of Bluebeard's Egg and thus was disappointed by the change. Overall I do recommend Bluebeard's Egg for its intelligently creative examination of how men and women interact and engage.

In other reading challenge news, I started my final book in the challenge, Robert Coover's Pinocchio in Venice, for the fairytale section. In college I was first introduced to Robert Coover's style in a class on Postmodern American Short Stories, so I knew before I started that this book is a complex read. In Pinocchio in Venice, Pinocchio is a grown man, a world renown scholar who returns to his birthplace and finds he is turning back into wood. Throughout the text there are several references to the original story of Pinocchio, by Carlo Collodi, which I strongly recommend reviewing first. My only reference prior to picking up Coover's book was the 1940s Disney film, which strays a great deal from the original (when doesn't a Disney version?) I read the summary of Collodi's text on wikipedia and it aided my understanding greatly. I've read about 100 pages of Coover's text thus far, which serves as an introduction to the adult Pinocchio and his present circumstances. Pinocchio spends a few chapters recounting parts of his life story to two of his long lost friends and a basic knowledge of the plot in Collodi's text served as a great reference. Coover's language is rich in metaphor and paradoxical descriptions, juxtaposed with harsh and often violent imagery. The Venice Coover builds for Pinocchio is cold and filled with trickery - of the eye and by others. The world is mean and unforgiving as Pinocchio makes his life's journey come full circle. The back cover describes Coover's work as a "discussion on what is means to be human," which perfectly echos the original story of Pinocchio as well. Pinocchio wants to be a real boy, but he must first learn what it means to be a respectful human being, by bargaining before granting his wish, the fairy with blue hair teaches him valuable life lessons. More later when I finish the book!

- KER

Book Review: Embroideries

Marjane Satrapi has done it again! I have no idea how she can keep using the same family characters over and over again and yet they never get boring and they always seem to have more to give to the reader. Unlike her other memoirs, Embroideries focuses entirely on the women in her family.

The "story" begins with an explanation on how Iranian tea is made and its ability to bring people together in order to talk and share experiences. It is the sharing of these women's experiences that drives this book. Satrapi's mother, grandmother, cousins, aunts, and various other relatives discuss losing their virginity, the hazards of marriage, and the pleasures of being a mistress. Some women even discuss the liberation and sexual freedom that is felt from divorceThough little is told about each character's life, outside of her sexual experiences, it gives more than a glimpse into the sex lives of women in Tehran. Many of the women have had similar sexual histories, but each has her own interpretation and tells it with her own specific flair.

Though the subject matter is obviously sexual, Satrapi is able to discuss these issues without using any profanity or excessively crude language. Despite the fact that sex is the focus of the graphic novel, it is actually about sexuality in general and how is changes throughout a woman's life.

Unlike many other graphic novels, this story is not told in boxes of strips. Instead, it is drawn more like a sketch of a conversation in which there are drawings of many people on one page with speech bubbles going back and forth without being confined to a box. I previously referred to it as a "story" because there is no driving plot and really not much action at all. As shown through the artwork, the driving force of the novel is a conversation or discussion about sexaulity. Therefore, there is no need to have an explicit beginning, middle of end. Instead, each character's story merges into another to make a cacophony of voices.

I found this to be one of Satrapi's greatest works. Readers of hers will remember the characters from her other works, but they appear to be completely different in this book. Though they are not out of character, the reader certainly gets a different view that is not seen in any of her previous works. It is refreshing, interestings, enlightening, enjoyable, and most of all very endearing.

-DLP

Book Review: Bookhunter

I have to say that as a graduate student in the Library Science field, I am extremely disappointed in the lack of books about librarians. Personally, I think that we're some of the most avid readers and yet there are so few good books about libraries and their librarians. Fortunately, Bookhunter by Jason Shiga has stepped up to the plate to write a graphic novel about libraries and books and he has done an excellent job!

The main character is a special agent who only takes cases that involve books and libraries. He is like the old tv show "Dragnet" but for the literary world. His team is made up for a male scientist who is the stereotpical nerd and a quirky female scientist whose speciality is fingerprints. Similar to the current tv show "CSI" the Bookhunter and his staff hace a lab that is specifically for the investigation of book forgeries, fraud, and theft.

The plot is simple but humorous. The Bookhunter is called to the Oakland Public Library to investigate a theft of John Quincy Adams' bible. The bible was said to have been given to Adams by the Mendi tribe as a thanks for helping them with the Amistad trial. It is believed that the book in the display case is a forgery and that the authentic bible was stolen by a book dealer or seller. The team goes on a crazy chase to find the culprit and investigates using records of libary cards, old microfilm and the Dewey Decimal system.

This graphic novel is not deep or introspective but it is a alot of fun! I was able to finish it in one sitting and laughed most of the time. Though the Bookhunter is not a superhero, it is great to see how he uses his "super powers" (aka knowledge about libraries) to find the criminal. It is light-hearted and the perfect read for any libarian, library lover, or book enthusiast.

-DLP

Book Review: Miss Don't Touch Me

Originally published in France, Miss Don't Touch Me by Hubert & Kerascoet is a graphic novel about two sisters who work as the maids to an aristocratic woman until the murder of one of the sisters causes the remaining sibling to go on a hunt for her sister's killer. This graphic novel is a classic who-dunnit but is for mature audiences ONLY for it includes a great deal of violence and sexual content.

Set in the 1903s, Agnes is a carefree girl who spends her nights dancing with various men out in the suburbs of Paris. Even when everyone in the city becomes alarmed by a serial killer known as "The Butcher of the Dances", Agnes refuses to give up her wayward ways. Agnes' sister, Blanche, is a worrywart who keeps herself sheltered from the seedy side of society. One night, the sisters hear two people killing a woman in the room next to theirs. When Agnes goes to investigate, one of the killers shoots her. While Blanche runs to her employer to get the police, the murder plants a gun on Agnes' body making it look like suicide. No one believes Blanche that her sister was murdered and did not commit suicide, so Blanche takes it upon herself to find her sister's killer. In order to find out more about "The Butcher of the Dances" and get closer to discovering her sister's killer, Blanche becomes a dominatrix at the most prestigious brothel in Paris.

Though the characters in the brothel are interesting, the sexual content alienates the reader to the point of feeling uncomfortable. Of course some "R" rated sexuality is to be expected in a graphic novel in which prostitutes are the main characters, however, this graphic novel seems to be more GRAPHIC and less novel. The plot is the typical murder mystery with the killer revealed at the end but to little applause because of the cliched characters and commonplace storyline. One feature that is nice is the printing which was done on glossy paper with full color pictures. This is rare with graphic novels and thus was a treat! However, the beautiful and colorful graphics could not hold up the limp storyline and characters.

I think it's clear from this review that anyone who enjoys a good thriller or murder mystery would find this piece to be interesting. For those who want a fast read without much heavy lifting, this is the graphic novel for you! If you are looking for deep characters, complex plots, and a book that challenges your intellect...then leave this one on the shelf and try for some of the other graphic novels reviewed on this blog.

-DLP

Book Review: Chicken and Plums

Author Marjane Satrapi is known for the best selling Persepolis and its film adaptation. However, her excellence as an author and artist does not end there. Last year she wrote another memoir-esque book titled Chicken and Plums which follows the last week of her uncle's life. The graphic novel tells the story of her uncle Naser Aki Khan whose wife breaks his favorite instrument. After searching for a new instrument of the same quality, he realizes that there is none that will satisfy him. Having some to this realization, he decides that he will die and locks himself in his room for eight days before he finally passes. The graphic novel illustrates these last several days which include flashbacks to his troubled childhood, lost love, and marriage. These flashbacks give a helpful backstory to his current relationships with his wife, brother, sister, and children all of whom come to his bedside and try to persuade him to live. Overall, the novel can be summarized by the statement that one of his friends makes "to live, it's not enough to be alive". Though Nasser Aki Khan has lived a life, his flashbacks and reflections show that he may never have been alive.

Though the story is simplistic and the ending is told within the first few pages, it is truly a musing on life and the importance of living. The drawings are equally simplistic but are beautiful and typical of Satrapi's style. Similar to her other books, with the exception of Persepolis, few events actually occur. Yet, the drama is within the characters and their relationships with each other. Perhaps what is most astonishing, is that all of the characters in her novels are not only factual but they are all within her own family. Though her characters are uniquely her own, one can easily identify with certain people and recognize themselves or loved ones in her characterizations. At only 96 pages this is the shortest of her books, readers should not disregard it. In fact, it is just as powerful and moving as her longer novels and resonates with the reader weeks after one has finished reading. Satrapi is able to give the reader a snapshot of only a few days in a person's life and yet make the reader feel as if he/she has been the witness to his entire life and corresponding relationships. Thus by reflecting on Nasser's life, the reader is also reflecting on his/er own.

Obviously, I would recommend this to an Satrapi fan. Consequently, I would also recommend it to those who were a bit put off by the political issues in Persepolis but still enjoyed her graphic style and her way of storytelling. In many ways, it is hard to recommend Satrapi's work to others because it is so unique in art and text. However, I do believe that any philosophy fans or readers who enjoy psychologically twisted characters would find this work to be a wonderful piece to discuss and debate with like-minded friends (or even just to contemplate with yourself).

-DLP

Once Upon a Time Update: Fairy Tales

The last genre in the Once Upon a Time challenge is Fairy Tales. Being that I have already read one novel, one play, and one non-fiction books, I decided that I would choose a graphic novel. By reading all different kinds of books as was as different genres, I have explored deeper into this "Once Upon a Time" theme and have been able to witness it from various literary positions. Therefore, I chose the graphic novel Castle Waiting by Linda Medley.

Castle Waiting brings together a diverse collection of fairy tales from all of the traditional authors such as the Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Anderson, etc. The story centers around the traditional tale of Sleeping Beauty, however, the reader soon experiences some twists that leads the reader into other fairy tales and their characters. When Sleeping Beauty arises from her hundred year slumber, she finds her prince and runs away with him instead of staying in her own kingdom. Her parents died the same day in a carriage accident which leaves the entire kingdom without a ruler and causes it to fall into disrepair. When a young pregnant woman flees her own kingdom, she decides to seek refuge in Castle Waiting (the dilapidated kingdom from Sleeping Beauty). On the way she meets fighting horses, talking bears, dwarfs, gypsies, thieves, evil witches, and magical badgers.

As a graphic novel, it reads more like a comic book. The drawings are interesting, but not as intricate or meaningful as those of other graphic novels. The inter connectivity of the traditional fairy tales and their characters make for a great story. However, at over 450 pages, the novel is about twice as long as it should be. The reason for this could be because it was originally published in serials and was recently reprinted in one bound collection. Still, the story begins to lag at times and the enchantment of the fairy tale is not as captivating as it could be. Of course, this is no reason to abandon the graphic novel. It still sheds a unique light on fairy tales and the comedy of some of the graphics make for a humorous twist.

I would recommend this to any fairy tale "junkie" who loves anthologies of the great fairy tales. I, personally, found it interesting to see traditional characters pop up in various places. In addition, the story is geared more towards young adults and adults and not children. For this reason, some of the characters that are one-sided in the traditional tales (such as the wicked witch) are given a bit more development. If you are a fan of retelling of fairy and folk tales, then you will be pleased with what Medley has done

-DLP

Murder and Mayhem in Boston

Last Thursday, the Rompers attended a lecture that was given by Brookline Adult Education titled "Murder and Mayhem in Boston". The speaker was from Boston By Foot, a non-profit organization that was founded in 1976 with the mission to "to promote public awareness of Boston's rich architectural and historical heritage through its guided tours, lecture series, and other activities". They have a plethora of tours that are given all across Boston from the North End, to Beacon Hill, and Back Bay. All of the docents are volunteers who have completed a six week course that includes writing four papers and passing an exam, making each volunteer much more than just your average tour guide. Even when the guides are brought off of the walking trails, such was the case with this lecture, they are still extremely engaging and incredibly knowledgable.

The woman who gave the lecture at Brookline Adult Education told various stories that even those who were born and raised in Boston were unfamiliar with. To being with, she told of Boston's "Hanging Elm Tree" which was located in the Boston Common. When someone committed an act that was punishable by death, the police would escort the perpetrated to the Commons where hundreds of people would be gathered to watch the public hanging. Many would come with a picnic lunch and bring their children along for the "entertainment".

In Boston, there were very few witch trials or hangings. However, she did tell of one "witch" from the North End named Goody Glover who was a maid for a wealthy family. Glover was a maid to a wealthy family and when her employer accused Glover's daughter of stealing linens, Glover revealed that it was in fact her employer's daughter who commited the crime. The employer's daughter went into a fit and Glover was charged with witchcraft and hanged.

Fast forwarding about two hundred years, brought us to Parkman Murder in which a Boston real estate giant was murdered by a Harvard University professor. For days, Mr. Parkman's murder went unsolved until a Harvard University janitor discovered Mr. Parkman's jaw in an incenorator. The professor was brought to trial which created a huge sensation. The Boston Police even sold tickets to the trial and changed the audience every ten minutes in order for the police to make a greater revenue.

More recently, in the 1960s, was the "Debutante Murder" in which a young hieress living on Beacon Hill murdered her boyfriend. The girl, a niece of Montgomery Cliff, was living with her grandmother on Beacon Hill when she discovered that her Brazilian boyfriend had impregnanted her and refused to be wed. When her grandmother left to vacation on Cape Cod, the girl invited her boyfriend over and killed him. She then took off pieces of his body, packed them in seven pieces of luggage, and brought with her to Brazil where she buried the body parts that she had harvested from her boyfriend. When she returned to the United States, she went to her general practitioner and declared herself insane. She was able to carry the baby to term, was eventually released from the mental hospital and now lives in Texas with her husband.

Of course, the lecture included old Boston favorites such as "The Great Fire", "The Great Molasses Flood", and "The Boston Strangler".

The entire lecture was fantastic. The stories were perfect for the Halloween spirit and told with great enthusiasm. Forutnately, the speaker was excited about the subject matter which made the lecture even more entertaining. She was equally interested in answering questions as she was in hearing other people's interpretations of these much loved tales. Overall, she was an excellent speaker and the stories that she chose to include were perfect!

-DLP

Book Review: George Sprott by Seth

George Sprott by Seth is an oversized graphic novel that was first serialized in the New York Times Magazine and tells of Sprott's life as seen through the eyes of his colleagues, family members, friends, and foes. Sprott was a local televison showhost in Canada who was once a sensation but has since become dull and overstayed his welcome at the network. Within the first few pages of the novel, the reader discovers that Sprott is going to die of old age.

This graphic novel moves a lot slower than some of his other works and is not as interesting. Though the story may not be that interesting, the graphics and arrangement of pictures are incredibly intriguing. The novel is presented almost like a scrapbook with each page detailing a different day or time in his life. Some of the segments are memories from his past as a poor boy in a dysfunctional family. Others are memories from his journey to Antarctica and the film that he shot while there. Interspersed with his own memories, are those of his colorful friends, family members, and co-workers.

Personally, I thought that this work was a bit disappointing. The narrator is extremly informal which is comical at times and irritating at others. Though the art is wonderful, there is little action and no plot that fuels the art. Being that I am a fan of Seth, I found this work more telling about him than about the actual characters. Still, it was not autobigraphical in the way that It's a Good Life if You Don't Weaken is. Though it is not his best, it is still interesting.

-DLP

Book Review: Thirteenth Tale

Over a year ago, I tried to read The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. Yet, I only made it through two chapters before I gave up. I found the tale to be too boring and neither the characters nor the plot drew me into the story. I had read numerous reviews that praised the novel for being a contemporary Gothic tale and so I found the audiobook for this novel and decided to give it another shot!

This is a tale about woman who works with her father in an antiquarian book store until she has sent a letter from a famous English writer asking the woman to write the writer's autobiography. The writer, Vera Winter, is an elusive woman who has hidden her personal life and history from her thousands and thousands of fans. However, Winter is now terminally ill and wants to have her entire story told. Winter's story is intertwined with that of the woman writing the biography and the two stories expose the hidden truths, in both of their lives, that have laid dormant for decades. Issues surrounding illegitimate children, incestuous desires, "twinness", and other gothic elements are woven into these parallel plots.

It is written within the Gothic tradition with overly rich writing that is reminiscent of Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights (if even includes the burning down of a house!). While the writing and word choice is extremely discriminating and resonates throughout the pages, the characters fall flat and uninteresting. The most interesting characters in the story are only present in the first fourth of the novel. For the rest of the story, the characters are stereotypical and the plot turns can be seen a hundred pages away. While many reviews praised the novel for being reminiscent of the classic Gothic tales, I found that the book had more or less stolen the Gothic elements from other tales and had not developed them into the author's own story or craft.

In regards to the audiobook, I found the narrators to be exceptional. Though the story was dull and quickly became boring, it was the narrators who kept me listening. Their voices were enchanting and their reading of the story added more to the book than the actual text. However, not even the narrators could save me from the disappointment I felt when I reached the cliched ending. Overall, if you love Gothic fiction, you may be interested to read this book for the language and the allusions to Gothic classics. Yet, if you are looking for something comparable to Jane Eyre or other captivating classics, you have more luck just rereading the classics.



-DLP

DystopYA Update: Messenger

As a young adult I read Lowis Lowry's The Giver and fell in love with the story and dystopian fiction. However, it was not until I joined this challenge that I discovered that The Giver is actually part of a trilogy that continues the story into two other books. Unlike other series, "The Giver Trilogy" consists of three separate books that tell three very different stories. They only commonality is that characters from one novel appear in the other two. However, you do not need to read all three in order to understand the dystopian society that is being protrayed or to understand the characters and their development.

 For the challenge, I decided to read the third book in the series titled The Messenger. In this story, a young boy is living in a place called Village which is led by the main character from The Giver (do not worry, I won't spoil either of these books!). The town appears to be a utopian society, much like a commune, in which each person is given a job that fits their personality and life goals while also benefiting the entire community. Matty, the main character, came to Village when he was a young boy and was taken in by a man named Seer who teaches Matty how to act and tames his unruly ways. Though when Matty first arrived Village was welcoming, it is now becoming hostile and many villagers have decided to close Village to any newcomers. Before this decree can be issued, Matty must traverse Forest, find Seer's daughter and bring her back to Village. Throughout the book, the reader is given hints to why the villagers have changed and how dangerous Village and Forest are becoming due to this change.

There is also an element of science fiction in which the characters have magical traits. For example, Matty is able to heal the sick, Leader is able to see events that are occurring far away, and Kira can see into the future. Fortunately, unlike other science fiction books, these magical traits do not make the tale unrealistic. Instead, they are presented as common traits that are merely fine tuned or embellished a bit. In other words, they add to the story without taking anything away from the powerful plot and moral.

This is far more than a young adult book. While the characters are intriguing, Village and Forest are perhaps the most important "characters" in the novel. Their development is what truly makes this a dystopian novel. In many ways, it reminded me of the Lord of the Rings trilogy in which the forest becomes an active character that responds to the evil that is occurring in the world. The structure of this trilogy reminded me a great deal of William Faulkner's Snopes family trilogy, in which the books can be read separately but also share characters. Many reviewers have stated that this book is the darkest in the triogy and I found that assessment to be valid. However, I found the solemn tone of the novel to be one of its greatest features. In many dystopian novels, the main characters are able to escape the dystopian society or help to change the society back to a more friendly environment. Yet, I have always wondered about those societys that do not or can not be changed. This book deals with this issue and does so in a wonderful and touchy way.

-DLP

Challenge Update: Folklore

For my folklore selection, I chose to read a nonfiction book by Zora Neale Hurston titled Go Gator and Muddy the Water. The book is a collection of writings that Hurston did while working in Florida for the Federal Writers' Project. Perhaps one of the bset features of the book is that the entire first half is a biographical essay on Hurston's time working for the FWP. Pamela Bordelon, the edited of the book and author of the essay, came upon Hurston's writing by accident when she was looking to write a book about Floridian folklore. When she came across the FWP papers she noticed that the majority of the stories and interviews were in a familiar hand and written in a manner that she recognized to be Hurston's writing. After confirming that it was Hurston's notes and essays, she went to Hurston's niece and the two worked together to write an essay about Hurston's time working for the Federal Writer's Project.

The second half of the book are a sampling of Hurston's writings from the FWP. This collection only includes folklore and tales from Florida and the West Indies. However, Hurston does not limit herself to merely the stories but also includes songs and art. Each folktale is preceeded an essay by Hurston explaining the history of the folktale and the importance of it in this specific culture. Preceeding Hurston's essay, is a short paragraph written by Bordelon explaining the biographical period in which Hurston wrote each of these essays.

In regards to folktales, the stories in this collection are rare and most people have probably not heard of them. That is to say, they are not Cinderella or Beauty in the Beast. Instead, they are much more "gritty" folktales that take place on inhumane plantations or in southern prisons. All of the tales are laden with superstitions that run the gamit from enormous animals to the hazards of not exhibiting proper behavior. Also included, are variations of certain tales such as "Uncle Monday" and "Daddy Mention". This is a great assesst because the reader can see how folktales have grown and been shaped over time as well as understand how each region has its own variation that caters to its own beliefs and superstitions.

Overall, I thought that this was a fantastic book (certainly one that I will be asking for for Christmas)! At  times the text seemed to be light on the folktales and heavy on the essays. Such as the chapter on the "Citrus Industry" and the essay on "Turpentine". However, I did not find these essays to be a hinderance to the overall book. Instead, I thought that they added a context that the average reader would be lacking had the essays not been provided. As previously stated, there was also a large range of mediums that were included in this collection. Bordelon included Hurston's essays and stories as well as transcripts from interviews and even lyrics to traditional songs. This helped to spice up the book a great deal and showed the importance of folktales and how it permeated almost all art forms. Still, clocking in at 200 pages (with 20 of those being footnotes and an index) this book is an incredibly compact collection. Fortuately, Hurston has a few books on folklore and the FWP. If you enjoyed this book, be sure to read Mules and Men as well as Tell My Horse. Both of these books are about the religion of Hoodoo and Voodoo and the folklore and superstitions that go along with that religion. The only issue that readers may encounter is that, unlike Go Gator and Muddy the Water, both of these works are written in dialect and therefore may take some more time to understand.

-DLP