Book Of The Week: Atonement

  4 1/2 Stars

 

  Loved this novel. Absolutely loved it. Everything was very well done, developed, and things were just so well written overall. Ian McEwan knows his stuff when it comes to writing. 

  Every line has something to it, the prose..ah! It’s a lovely, lovely novel that will stick in my head for a long time to come. Brilliant, brilliant.

  I meant to read this over the summer, but instead ended up putting it away for a wile after getting a little bogged down by the start, and with little time to read it between Memoirs of Cleopatra, and this novel. Memoirs won, but I’m glad I ended up reading this one. It is a gem, and I think I will end up watching this movie pretty soon to see if the movie comes close to the novel. It has Kiera Knightly in it, so I believe it could work out well.

  Anyways, the good, the bad, the ugly.

  The good; loved it. The plot is beautiful, the narrative just brilliant, and the simplicity of it great. Loved the subtle twist at the end that changes everything.

  The bad; not much of ‘the bad’ to it, but, like all novels I read that there is not a first-person narrative, I found it hard to get into. Especially with a slower start, and a slightly confusing pace with the twirling plot at the start, it was difficult to keep going.

  And the ugly; this does bug me, personally, but be warned, there is some strong language and descriptions in this novel. I felt that it added to it rather than subtracted from it, but just so you know.

  Overall, thought it was a great read worth the time it took to get into it, and I recommend it. I will have to get back to you on the movie, and see how that works out. Fingers crossed, as it was a most excellent novel.

  Briony Tallis is a thirteen year old girl with a passion for writing. Innocent, protected, and living what seems a simple life in light of the war, she misinterprets a moment’s heated passion and crushes her sister’s newly-fledged dreams in mere minutes.

Her innocence tears the family apart at the seams, ripping a chain of events that alters’ the family forever.

In a novel that makes a distinct point, and tells of love, war, and forgiveness, this is sure to sweep you off your feet and make you think if innocence is really what it seems to be.

Author: Ian McEwan

Published: November 27, 2007

Page Count: 496

ISBN: 0307388840    (isbn13: 978-0307388841)

Book of the Week: Charlotte’s Web

4 Stars

Now here is a novel that is just as great as A Little Princess or The Secret Garden. Beautifully written for children, and overall just gorgeous, this is probably the best of E.B White’s works, though some may argue with me. However, I feel like this is a classic for our times.

It’s a tale of friendship, loss, and quirky animals. This is a tale that strikes any child, because of the identifiable characters, the fact that some of the characters are animals, and the touch of sadness that introduces a taste of reality.

That is what I love about this book. Yes, it’s written for children, but the writing has a quality to it that is classic, and at the same time, very new. The characters are well-developed for a children’s novel, and at the same time have a complex shape to them that an older audience can enjoy.

The story line is the best part of the book, as many books should be. The cleverly written dialogue, and snappy pace is great. The idea behind the novel is great for kids and adults alike, and it explores subjects that they will experience or hear about later in life. The ideas that E.B White explores are great, comical, and yet manage to remain realistic to a point.

And, as strange as it is, I also highly enjoyed the illustrations. Call me weird, but I did; tey add to this story rather than take away from it.

What I did not like about this novel was when Wilbur went on and on and on, and is constantly whining. That is a irritation to me, even if I understand the why. There has to be a point though where the character develops into more than a whinny pig; thank goodness that happened.

I also did not like the way that the author would sometimes – sometimes – talk down to his audience.  It irritated me. However, more often than not, in a grade four’s perspective, you learned new words to broaden your vocabulary.

Overall, a good children’s novel that will be loved for years to come, and be deemed as classic as The Secret Garden someday, I think.

Wilbur is a pig. Fern is a human girl who has been taking care of him ever since he was born. If not, then he would have been killed; after all Wilbur was a runt.

But with plenty of love and tender loving care, Wilbur grows too big to be a family pet any longer. Wilbur is then sent to Fern’s uncle’s farm, which is unfamiliar and strange to an innocent, bashful pig.

After many tears are shed, Wilbur finds himself with one friend of strange proportions; Charlotte, who is a spider. Little does Wilbur know that Charlotte will be the one who can save him when he learns of a devastating fate that will befall him.

In a children’s novel that is beloved around the world, Charlotte’s web will inspire as well as make you see things in a different perspective.

Author: E.B White

Published: June 15th 1952 by HarperCollins

Page Count: 192

ISBN: 0060263857    (isbn13: 9780060263850)

Mulling on Monday #12

   3 Stars 

   So, here we are again, at another week. As of tomorrow, it will be three weeks until the official start of summer. The crowd cheers…yay. 

  Anyways, so for my ‘Monday Mulling’ moment, I have chosen to go a little outside of the box and go with a play, rather than an actual novel. Still. It is a classic, and is part of a few school English curriculum. 

  No, not Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (though that could be a valid option), rather, it is The Merchant of Venice. 

  A classic in any means, with a beautiful story line and marvelous speeches (The quality of mercy is not strain’d,/ It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven/Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest…) that are inspiring, and, once you can get past the Shakespearian wording and phrasing, then it is quite the story. 

  What I like about it is the dramatics. My, oh, my, how they go on and on in the most entertaining way, the sighing and everything that you have come to expect from a classic Shakespearian piece. The characters are not necessarily relatable, but they do represent somewhat of the population in that era. 

  The commentary! The presentation! (See? Dramatic.)And Shakespeare’s nerve to publish such a work is great.   

  What I did not like about this work was the fact that none of the characters are the sharpest tool in thy tool shed. Not really like-able, and they have the tendency to actually make you really upset, like the girl in the horror film that you scream at to not open the door. But what does she do? Open the door. This can be increasingly frustrating, especially when you just know what is being door number one. 

  I know that I had little to no issues reading the regular script, but I do know that many people struggle with the dialogue and the hidden meanings. 

  I realize that this was written hundreds of years ago, when racist and sexist were not words, but I did struggle with the way some of the characters were treated. This is also part of why the characters were not likable. 

  I also did not like the ending. I wish that it could have been a little more twisted, a little more un-predictable. But no, I did not get what I wanted. 

  Overall, a good work, but lacking in some essential areas. 

A classic work from Shakespeare.   

This is the tale of what friends will do for friends, what enemies will do to their enemies, and what lovers will do to their heart’s desires.

This is the battle for love, for allies, for enemies. It tells us how bitterness will lead us nowhere but ruin, and love will bring a smile to one’s eyes.  

It was a simple deal that was supposed to result in love and happiness, but instead triggered a landslide of anguish and dashed hopes. A debt to be paid. A pound of flesh. The chain of events that lead up to the moment in court when the deal must be followed through, and a friend must save another.  

 

  

Author: William Shakespeare

Published: January 1st 2004 by Washington Square Press (first published 1600)

Page Count: 228

ISBN: 0743477561    (isbn13: 9780743477567)

Quick Series Review: Earth’s Children

4-5 Stars

Alright, so I have finished this series for the second time, and I have decided that this series is a keeper, and absolutely magical, even if it is really for adult only, due to the adult content.

It is the series that started in the 80′s, by Jean M. Auel, and continues through to now, with another book, possibly two, coming out soon.Thus far, the novels that have come out are

They are an epic series (yes,I used the word epic) of great magnitude full of beautiful landscapes, people and problems. It is a very unique series in the way that it is presented, even if the idea of cavemen and people in prehistoric time has been used before. However, the information is apparently very accurate, and these novels are considered to be very informative.

What I love about this series is that information. The way it is applied, and the way that when it is put together, it makes up for a great series that you can learn from.

But it is just not the information that makes it; it is the lovely descriptions that encapture you and you can almost see wherever they are around you, and you are in the story. It is beautiful, and I applaud any author that can accomplish this feat.

It is the characters that top this tall totem pole of compliments. They are the head of it, and they control the story with such command that it is hard to believe that they were not actually people, becuase they are so rounded out, so defined that they are a constant that makes the story flow with ease. They control the reader’s emotions without flaw.  Especially the two lead characters, that have the most control over a reader that I have trouble finding in other novels.

I also love how they can make emotions run so high, so quickly, and ultimately make you want to jump right in the story with them.

What I do not like about parts of this series is that it can lull a little in some parts, lagging and dragging, but this is not a huge issue, and other factors soon make up for this. I also do not like that sometimes I want to throw the book across the room when emotions run high and I hate what the characters are doing, but again, this is contradictory to what I have liked. The emotions are part of it, and it is a love/hate thing.

Overall, a very, very good series. However, this is not for anybody under sixteen I think, becuase it is a very mature series.

The Clan of the Cave Bear

Ayla is five when the devastating earthquake hits home and kills her family. Not that she remembers any of that. When the same earthquake hits the Clan, a different type of people, they have to find a new home, and they just happen to find Ayla.

She seems like a strange child, with noises coming out of her mouth, and she cannot ‘talk’ properly; that is, with her hands.

Ayla struggles to fit in with the Clan, but they have trouble accepting her and her powerful, male totem of the cave lion. But acceptation of her is almost all she asks.

Can Ayla survive the trials that are given to her, including the Clan accepting her tall frame and blonde hair? Or will she always be on the fringe?

Published: June 25th 2002 by Bantam (first published 1980)

Page Count: 480

ISBN: 0553381679    (isbn13: 9780553381672)

The Valley Or Horses

Ayla is alone, and desperate. With everything she knows gone, she struggles to move on, and survive, though the ways of the Clan still nip at her.

On her quest to find people like her, the ‘Others’, Ayla finds a valley of horses where she decides to winter. Using her skills and forbidden prowess of a hunter, Ayla is able to fend for herself. In doing that, she ends up living with a horse, and strangest of all, a cave lion.

But when a stranger man is injured Ayla has to overcome barriers…and the shock of meeting one of the ‘Others’.

Can Ayla break down the walls of language and differences?

Published: June 25th 2002 by Bantam (first published 1980)

Page Count: 512

ISBN: 0553381660    (isbn13: 9780553381665)

The Mammoth Hunters

Ayla has now completed her quest of finding one of the ‘Others’. But how will she cope will a whole cave of them? With new people, customs, and ways, the Mamutoi hold a whole new challenge in the way of meeting people like her.

Customs are not the only thing that Ayla has to struggle against. Between her worries once renewed about acceptance, and her strange ways that are hard to understand, Ayla is an outsider once more.

Will Ayla ever find a place to fit in? Or is she destined to always be on the fringe?

Published: June 25th 2002 by Bantam (first published 1985)

Page Count: 656

ISBN: 0553381644    (isbn13: 9780553381641)

The Plains of Passage

Ayla’s journey continues, and she has made her choice. Leaving the culture that she was beginning to understand behind, she travels into the unknown, and the unknown is starting to take it’s toll, as is the constant strain of travel.

Worn by the unforgiving journey, Ayla is beginning to question all that she knows, as well as the unknown.

Ayla soon learns that the vast and unknown world can be difficult and treacherous, but breathtakingly beautiful and enlightening as well. The people she meets, both enemy and friend are different, but nothing has yet shown to be somewhere to stay forever.

The long journey for a home is a strain. Will Ayla ever find that place she can call her own? And will the man she loves ever settle?

Published: June 25th 2002 by Bantam (first published 1990)

Page Count: 768

ISBN: 0553381652    (isbn13: 9780553381658)

The Shelters of Stone

With a home in the horizon, the dangers of travel are also overlooked. But Ayla soon learns that perhaps the most frightening part of the end of the journey is just that…the end.

With a place to stay forever, and the chance to meet the man she loves parents, she is once again worried about acceptance and her strange ways.

With plenty of danger and thrill, any step towards home could soon be their last, with the dangers that llay between her and their final destination.

Will Ayla finally find a home and a place where she belongs?

Published: April 27th 2004 by Bantam (first published 2002)

Page Count: 789

ISBN: 0553382616    (isbn13: 9780553382617)

I highly recommend this book to people who love historical fiction, or any adult who has the time to sit down for lenghly periods of time to enjoy such an immense novel.

Alright, so that is it for that so called quick review. Enjoy.

Book of the Week: The Stone Angel

4 Stars

For the book of the week, I had to go through my shelves and find something different. This is what I unearthed. The Stone Angel, by Margaret Laurence.

I remembered reading this a while ago, and I found myself liking it again. So, here it is, this week’s novel. 7

What I like is that the characters are strong, and stay very consistent. There are no weird changes in them that make you wonder where they whipped that out from, so I have no complaints there whatsoever.

The story line is good, the flashbacks essential, even if the tone of the story was a little…heavy.

What I did not like was the strangeness of who Hagar was, is and how she treats others. I mean, at times it was really confusing. I did not like it. I also found the ending to be disappointing, and awfully a buzz kill.

I also did not like that the story was violent, and the way that everything was tied up. But that was just me, and trying to put certain feelings to paper (keyboard) is a little tricky.

Overall? A good, read, but not one to take lightly.

Hagar Shipley has lived through hell, and now her life is drawing to an end. It’s the late 1960′s and Hagar finds herself being drawn back into the past, replaying over the events that made her the bitter woman that she finds herself to be today.

With that, comes the sad consequences and questions that cannot be answered. But there is one last grope at freedom before her ninety years plus years are up.

In a novel that it questioning and deep, The Stone Angel is a book for those who have their own lives to question, and what the consequences might be.

Author: Margaret Laurence

Published: January 1st 2004 by McClelland & Stewart (first published 1964)

Page Count: 344

ISBN: 0771047088    (isbn13: 9780771047084)

Mulling on Monday #11

2 Stars

Late, I know, but here it is, another Monday.

And while I know that I banned myself from any Nicholas Sparks, this is from a while ago, and I just forgot to put it up. So there. Yet another reason as to why I should go on a Sparks boycott for the time being.

Alright, so I am back and have just finished yet another Nicolas Sparks novel, one that I was unsure if I wanted to read because of who it was half inspired by; yes that would be Miley Cyrus.
So this novel gave me mixed emotions. It was overall written well, as in the Nicholas Sparks brand, but it seemed to slug through certain parts, and yet in some chapters you were bewildered as to where the time went.

Then there was the story line itself.

I am not 100% sure of what story Sparks was trying to tell here. The different elements of the story could have been good plot lines themselves. However, they were all put together in a giant, emotional mixing bowl. It felt at times like you were reading three different stories, and you just happened to know the characters.

What was most disappointing for me was the fact that I was able to put down the novel after, and just read another book. It was a “yeah, okay, that books done.” moment, which is something no author should be looking for.

I also found it awfully predictable. I knew what was going to happen chapters in advance.
Overall, it was an okay novel, though I am glad that I only borrowed it and did not buy it as I had originally planned.

Ronnie’s life is a mess, and it just keeps getting worse.

A shop-lifter in New-York, with slipping grades and a blind hate towards her father, things cannot get any worse when she is condemned to spend the summer with him, in a small town. It’s her own personal hell, come to life.

Things don’t get better fast. That is, until she meets a guy. And from there, everything changes into a different angle.

From the award-winning author Nicholas Sparks, comes a novel that tell of the power of summer love.

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Published: September 8th 2009 by Grand Central Publishing

Page Count: 405

ISBN: 0446547565    (isbn13: 9780446547567)

Mulling on Monday #10

3 Stars

It’s double digits for Monday Mulling now! Crazy how far this little project of mine has come, and the dimensions I have added to it. Sure, it’s only been a couple of months, but it’s still really, really neat.

Alright, so I read this a while ago and decided that it was high time I reviewed it.  It’s Girl With a Pearl Earring, by Tracy Chevalier, a novel that has been acclaimed, and even added into some schools as part of the English curriculum. It’s a simple and unique read, with the topic being about art and the behind the scenes of how the piece was made; after all, everybody recognizes it, even if nobody really knows the why behind it.

This book was on my ‘to read’ list before I started it. I think that I wanted to read it because of the topic; it sounded different, historic, and sounded like a novel that I might enjoy because of the ‘behind the scenes of history’ aspect.

However, by the end, I was a little disappointed.

It is not as compelling as I had hoped when I started the novel; as a matter of fact, it is sort of dull, in a sad way. For a novel that I had been waiting to read for a while, it was a very big let down.

For one, it was slow. It was also very much predictable, which made me angry at some points. When I read a novel, I do not want to read to the end just to see if what I thought was going to happen was right. I want to be kept guessing at every turn, and have all of my ideas about what is going to happen proved wrong. Sadly, this did not happen for me.

I also found some of the book to be vague and blotchy. I felt like I was missing pages sometimes, only to flip back & realize that no, it was not just me.

And, of course, my always-there-nitpick: the ending.  Random.  Strange. Just not good. Could have been done way better than it was, but sadly, was not.

What I did like, however, was the easy pace of the story, with the tension just in the right places. I also really liked Griet, other than her weird thing about her hair. But even then, she is relatable.  She is real. She is a normal sixteen year old in the 17^th century, struggling with life. It is something that any teen girl can relate with, even with the different day and age.

Overall, disappointing for me, but for others interested in the story behind the paining, it offers a pretty good look behind the curtain.

Griet’s life is changing faster than she thought would ever happen. After her father’s accident, she finds herself the family rock, and the only source of income. There is but one problem; she is a maid in a catholic household, in a town that is mostly protestant. Forced to live with her clever and pinching mistresses, and her secretitive painter master, Griet has a hard time adjusting. But this is only the beginning of a hard and strange life that will lead into decisions that might cost Griet everything she’s worked for.

Author: Tracy Chevalier

Published: August 30th 2005 by Plume (first published January 200)

Page Count:256

ISBN: 0452287022    (isbn13: 9780452287020)

Book of the Week: The Secret Garden

4 Stars

Oh, but it’s such a classic! To all of you who are protesting, too bad. This is the book of the week, as it is a classic, and I have not been able to visit my lovely local library or the book store to get anything I really, really, super badly wanted to read.

I like this book anyway. It has a beautiful story, and even if I like A Little Princess better, this one remains close to my heart as one of those children’s novels that you remember for years to come.

What I love about it is the era; the writing is so classic as is the story. An orphan. A mysterious and depressed uncle. A strange secret boy. A forbidden garden. Honestly, it’s something that you can’t forget, and it has that pull to it that makes it so unique.

What I did not like was not due to anything but my age. It is written for children, so reading it again now made it a simple and light read. that’s okay.

Overall, I think that this is a great novel for any children to read, and if you have never read it, I think now would be the time to at least attempt this novel. It is interwoven into our history, and is as classic as any Jane Austen or Leo Tolstoy. It’s just for a younger audience.

“Mistress Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow? With silver bells, and cockle shells and marigolds all in a row.”

Mary Lennox is a sullen, spoiled child raised in India by her rich and fabulous parents. Her world is rocked though, when a disease rampages through the household, and Mary is suddenly an orphan.

She is sent away to London, then to her uncle’s house out on the cold, rainy moor. The house used to be luxurious, but all the rooms are locked, the household staff quiet, and the gardens tended by a old and cranky gardener. And Mistress Mary has nothing to do.

Slowly though, she starts to learn of the secrets of the house, what it means to grow up, and how much nicer people look when they smile.



Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett

Published: August 1st 1999 by Aladdin (first published 1909)

Page Count: 416

ISBN: 0689831412    (isbn13: 9780689831416)

Quick Review: Dear John

  2 ½ Stars

So I sat down with this novel after being promised that it was an amazing novel and that the movie was superb and that it had everything Nicholas Sparks had offered before.

  I should not have been surprised that after reading The Last Song, that I would not enjoy it.

  Sparks has veered off into a different realm, it seems, than the great novels like A Walk to Remember, and The Notebook.  Those were heart-wrenching romances.

  This was just…dull.

  I admit, the first part of the novel was promising, if not familiar to The Last Song. It seemed like it could work up to a steady, heart-pounding climax.

  Dull.

  Also, the novel promises a ‘life-changing decision’. Okay. Waited for that, and it was not untill I passed a few pages that I had to flip back and realize ‘oh. That was it’. See? So well hidden I missed it.

  And the ending. That was awfully dull too. And so easily foreseen. I guess, though that it was realistic, and therefore, it made the ending a little more down-played than a big shablam ending, but, I wished for a twist. Some sad twist of fate. A long lost-something-or-other. No. Just what he had and what he did. The end.

  This novel really, really let me down. One of my first thoughts after finishing was ‘I’m done with Nicholas Sparks for a while’. Sadly, this remains true, and will for a while. Though I suppose I could visit his old stuff, when it was actually good. But for now, I am going on a Nicholas Sparks ban.

  I liked the characters though. thoughtfully developed, and rounded out by the end, but they can only do so much in a story such as this.

  I think that everything just needs to be re-worked. A bigger climax (eh-ehm.  How about a more noticable one?), and a story that is way more deep than this.

John Tyree is an angry rebel wanthing nothing to do with school, planning or his Dad. And he is half-sick to death with the only thing his father will share with him in his boring, everyday routine; coins.

 So when he gets out of high-school, out of the party zone and into the real world, surfing and drinking is about the most he can see himself doing in this life.

Until two marines jog by.

Without much of a thought, John enlists in the army, with very little regrets. He is fit, he has good buddies, and he gets to see the world.

 But when he returns home from Germany on leave, all that changes when a girl drops her purse in the ocean.

The two young people soon find themselves falling for each other, their lives tangling, and love forming. But that all changes when John’s leave is up, and it’s time to go back to to Germany.

 However, the two write letters back and forth, love sealed into each of them, scalding, hurting, and John and Savannah are counting down the days untill John comes home.

That changes on 9/11.

In a story that is truthful and realastic, Dear John is a novel that seems heart-felt.

 

 

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Published: October 30th 2006 by Warner Books (first published 2006)

Page Count: 276

ISBN: 0446528056    (isbn13: 9780446528054)

Book of the Week: The Outsiders

4 Stars

So I have decided on a semi-classic novel (in my opinion, anyways,), The Outsiders by S.E Hinton, to be the book of the week.  Great novel, great story, and a topic that still pertains to us, even in this day and age. I love this novel, mostly because of that. Also, considering the author put this together in High School (sound familiar?), and that it remains a classic today is amazing.

What I really, really find appealing in this novel is purely the honesty and the way that the story could easily be true; it’s heartfelt, and hits close to home for some people who are stuck in gangs and/or are stuck in a situation that is hard to get out of.

I also like that it is so real. Think about it. Think about some of the newer YA novels that you have read lately. They can be really fluffy and not have much substance to them. It’s true.

What I did not like was the length! It was so short, especially when you have such a good read. It was heard to put down. Also, the writing was a little shabby, but in this case, it hardly mattered with a story such as this.

This novel is about life, reality, and about how difficult it can be. That;s the overall factor that will continue to drive people towards this book. It’s good. It’s real. It has a story that makes you look within.

What would you do if you were just a young kid with no parents, two tough brothers, and prejudiced against…and you had no other options?

This is the type of question that Ponyboy Curtis asks himself. Life is tough when you are just a kid with a hard life, and your most dominant trait is that you are a greaser. Ponyboy hears that call everywhere, and it’s just part of who he is. His family is his friends and his brothers friends.

But things change when it gets tense at home, and when girls stroll into Ponyboy’s life…Soc girls, the enemy of all greasers with their fancy cars and rich lifestyle.

Soon, Ponyboy has to face hard choices and even tougher enemies that might just include himself.

Author: S.E Hinton

Published: November 1st 1997 by Puffin (first published 1967)

Page Count: 180

ISBN: 014038572X    (isbn13: 9780140385724)