My Brother Matt introduced me to this book and I borrowed it from him because I will be working much closer with some of the Hispanic students this next year and I thought it might give me an understanding of what some of them might be experiencing.
The House on Mango Street is a series of vignettes told from the point of view of a young girl growing up in Chicago. Each chapter is a series of thoughts and experiences of this girl almost as if they were excerpted from her diary. The writing is good and some of these vignettes I appreciated more that others. I did enjoy it for the most part but there is no plot or any kind of substantial story line that keeps you reading from chapter to chapter. If this book had been any longer than it's hundred sum odd pages I would not have even come close to finishing it.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
I have always had an appreciation for satire and find comedioc spoofs entertaining when they are done right. However, they are rarely done right. Because of the constant disappointment of these comdies over the past few years (Scary Movie, Date movie, Disaster Movie etc.), I have shied away from the genre for awhile. But when I read a review for Pride and Prejudice and Zombies I though it might be worth trying again.
Seth Grahame-Smith took the origional Jane Austen text and added to it the subplot of a Zombie plague sweeping England. Austens text (from as much as I can tell) is still in tact for the most part however Grahame-Smiths additions tend to appeal to the baser sex (as opposed the the fairer one). Grahame-Smith does play it for laughs as he uses his zombie plot to add over the top violence and gore. He also uses this to add motives to some characters behaviors.
One of the problems with this work, espcially at the begining, the additions were very obvious as writing styles changed. However as the book went on the changes became less obvious to the point where I had to ask some one who had actually read the book if certain things were included. The additions did tend to be entertaining especially the fight scenes between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy after he proposes (the first time) and then the fight between Lady Catherine de Bourgh and Elizabeth at the end. However the additions did get old after awile and I found myself only reading because I had never read Pride and Prejudice before and that was the story I wanted to read.
Seth Grahame-Smith took the origional Jane Austen text and added to it the subplot of a Zombie plague sweeping England. Austens text (from as much as I can tell) is still in tact for the most part however Grahame-Smiths additions tend to appeal to the baser sex (as opposed the the fairer one). Grahame-Smith does play it for laughs as he uses his zombie plot to add over the top violence and gore. He also uses this to add motives to some characters behaviors.
One of the problems with this work, espcially at the begining, the additions were very obvious as writing styles changed. However as the book went on the changes became less obvious to the point where I had to ask some one who had actually read the book if certain things were included. The additions did tend to be entertaining especially the fight scenes between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy after he proposes (the first time) and then the fight between Lady Catherine de Bourgh and Elizabeth at the end. However the additions did get old after awile and I found myself only reading because I had never read Pride and Prejudice before and that was the story I wanted to read.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
The Sisters Grimm: The Everafter War
It seems like I have been waiting a long time for this book to be published and now I am wondering if the series will ever end. This is the seventh book in the series and they are not difficult reads. It really only takes a day or two to get through each of them but the stories have been interesting, especially the fractured fairy tale elements. However each story introduces new plot twists and more information than you ever expect. As exciting as that is sometime in this case the story just seems to get longer and stranger. I really didn't feel this way about the series or even this book until the very end. Over all an interesting read but I am about done with this story.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Emperor: The Gates of Rome
It has been a long time since I have read a historical fiction novel though I really do enjoy them, especially the increased perspective I gain from the historical setting. I have especially enjoyed some of the series that have a more religious bent. This is however the first time that I have read a book set in Ancient Rome. Though what really peaked my interest in this book (and series) were the historical figures that it followed and the fact that I got the book for free from Good Reads.
The story of this series is very intriguing as it deals with the youth of two young men who grow up as brothers. One is the son of a noble with an estate of his own. The other is the orphaned son of a noble and his mistress who has been adopted into his friends family. The book covers their childhood friendship as they face bullies together and begin their training to enter the military at age 14. After this time the politics of Rome spills over into their lives and they are forced to go their separate ways remaining friends and pledging their support one to the other. This back story of young men who grow into their historical roles of Julius Caesar and Brutus is intriguing just in it's potential. I recall reading the Shakespeare play Julius Caesar in high school and know the end of the story, but what brings them to that point? This should be an engaging series of books that will be very enjoyable.
This first book was a good step in the right direction. The presentation of these two childhood friends and the development of their relationship is really well done. And it is a very real relationship as well. They have their difficulties and they overcome them. They fight over the same girl, there are disparities in their social status and they have different personalities. Through it all they remain close friends. The one downfall of this story is that some times the action of the story pushes the relationship portion from the forefront. Now most of this action is necessary however I wish that the author had been better at maintaining the relationship portion of the story in focus even while the action was occurring. In spite of that, this story is an excellent read.
There were a few things that bothered me about this book. Mostly it was the in depth description of the gore and violence that the characters experience. The author also did not hide the decadence and depredations of this society which I truly did appreciate but some of the experiences were described in a little too much detail. Not as awful as some others that I have read but at some points it was a little much.
I really enjoyed this novel and look forward to finding the next three (already published) in the library.
The story of this series is very intriguing as it deals with the youth of two young men who grow up as brothers. One is the son of a noble with an estate of his own. The other is the orphaned son of a noble and his mistress who has been adopted into his friends family. The book covers their childhood friendship as they face bullies together and begin their training to enter the military at age 14. After this time the politics of Rome spills over into their lives and they are forced to go their separate ways remaining friends and pledging their support one to the other. This back story of young men who grow into their historical roles of Julius Caesar and Brutus is intriguing just in it's potential. I recall reading the Shakespeare play Julius Caesar in high school and know the end of the story, but what brings them to that point? This should be an engaging series of books that will be very enjoyable.
This first book was a good step in the right direction. The presentation of these two childhood friends and the development of their relationship is really well done. And it is a very real relationship as well. They have their difficulties and they overcome them. They fight over the same girl, there are disparities in their social status and they have different personalities. Through it all they remain close friends. The one downfall of this story is that some times the action of the story pushes the relationship portion from the forefront. Now most of this action is necessary however I wish that the author had been better at maintaining the relationship portion of the story in focus even while the action was occurring. In spite of that, this story is an excellent read.
There were a few things that bothered me about this book. Mostly it was the in depth description of the gore and violence that the characters experience. The author also did not hide the decadence and depredations of this society which I truly did appreciate but some of the experiences were described in a little too much detail. Not as awful as some others that I have read but at some points it was a little much.
I really enjoyed this novel and look forward to finding the next three (already published) in the library.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
The Dragon Quintet
My second recent foray into short stories was not a successful as the first. Not only did I have the same difficulties as I did when I read Wizards but there were more difficulties as well. Basically none of the stories really seemed that worth reading. Again this time the only reason I picked up this book was because of the Orson Scott Card story but that one didn't thrill me and none of the other four were much better. It will probably be a while before I try short stories again.
Friday, May 15, 2009
The Hunger Games
Man did this book catch me off gaurd. I was recommended this by my sister in-law who seems to enjoy the same books that I do and man am I glad that she recommended it (Thanks Kate). The premise sounds interesting in the setting up of a battle to the death amongst teenagers. Though I have heard of this plot in various forms especially in movies I have never actually read anything like this.
The premise of how these games came to be seemed very far fetched (like many of the distopian societies that are created for YA books, i.e. The Uglies) and I was put off by the First person present tense styule in which the book was written. Even as I think back at the story there is nothing very catching or new about it.
What blew me away about this book was both the characterizations and dialogue presented in the writing. The main characters were real and the relationships rang true througout the story. Even the periffrial characters who were little more than characitures are entertaining and even real. The dialogue is very entertaining and also funny in many spots.
This book was very entertaining and I would highly recommend it. I also look forward to finding more of Susanne Collins books to read.
The premise of how these games came to be seemed very far fetched (like many of the distopian societies that are created for YA books, i.e. The Uglies) and I was put off by the First person present tense styule in which the book was written. Even as I think back at the story there is nothing very catching or new about it.
What blew me away about this book was both the characterizations and dialogue presented in the writing. The main characters were real and the relationships rang true througout the story. Even the periffrial characters who were little more than characitures are entertaining and even real. The dialogue is very entertaining and also funny in many spots.
This book was very entertaining and I would highly recommend it. I also look forward to finding more of Susanne Collins books to read.
Wizards
It has been a long time since I have read a short story collection and I remember why. Because there is no long term investment in the book it takes me a long time to get through. I can read one story at a time and it does not matter when I come back to it. This can be a pain especially when there are other books that I would like to read.
The only reason that I did pick this one up was because there is a story included in here by Orson Scott Card that he is using to launch a new series of books, and I wanted to get a glimpse of this world. This book also included stories from several authors that I have read as well including Neal Gaiman, Garth Nix and Eoin Colfer. Apart from Card's "Stonefather" there were a couple of other stories that stuck out to me including Colfer's "A Fowl Tale" and Nix's "Holly and Iron." I really enjoyed the latter and would have really liked to see a full novel set in this milieu. Mostly the other stories were unremarkable and the vast differences in writing style was jarring. Especially when I read several in a row.
It might be worth picking a choosing the stories that you read but not to read the whole thing.
The only reason that I did pick this one up was because there is a story included in here by Orson Scott Card that he is using to launch a new series of books, and I wanted to get a glimpse of this world. This book also included stories from several authors that I have read as well including Neal Gaiman, Garth Nix and Eoin Colfer. Apart from Card's "Stonefather" there were a couple of other stories that stuck out to me including Colfer's "A Fowl Tale" and Nix's "Holly and Iron." I really enjoyed the latter and would have really liked to see a full novel set in this milieu. Mostly the other stories were unremarkable and the vast differences in writing style was jarring. Especially when I read several in a row.
It might be worth picking a choosing the stories that you read but not to read the whole thing.
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