The Uncommon Reader...random thoughts

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett.

I know, I know, everyone and their third cousin-twice removed has already read this book. I hate reviewing (and yes, I use that term veeeery loosely) books like that. I mean, what can I possibly say that hasn't already been said, right? But nonetheless, I must say something because this is a challenge book. So babble, I will...

This book first came to my attention on NPR. I made a mental note of it, and then as so many of my mental notes seem to do, it lost itself among the gobblety-goop which fills my brain. Luckily Dewey brought it back to my attention with her review. I mean really, how could one resist after that, right?

And still it took me a long time to actually get around to reading it. Yeah, it takes me a long time to get around to doing most things. What can I say...I don't like to rush things. ;)

But the book, Debi, what about the book?!! Yes, yes, yes...it was absolutely as delightful as Dewey and everyone else has said it was! Not that I had any doubts. But my goodness, this was such an incredibly fun little read.

In case you've just landed on Earth from a far-flung galaxy and don't know the basic premise (yes, this is why I hate these kinds of reviews...I mean do you tell what the story is about when most everyone already knows? seems horribly redundant, doesn't it? but then again, it seems lazy to skip it? this peek inside my mind is a tad scary, isn't it? and yes, I do swear that I have not been in the gin yet), the Queen of England discovers reading late in life. And it begins to consume her. She just wants to read every waking second. Sound familiar? Sound like you? Yes, but of course, you don't have the whole world (slight exaggeration) watching your every move, do you? And it is the fact that she is the Queen that leads to one amusing predicament after another.

Yes, this book is so charmingly humorous. Ever so easy to relate to, even if royal blood doesn't run through one's veins.

What she was finding also was how one book led to another, doors kept opening wherever she turned and the days weren't long enough for the reading she wanted to do.

'Pass the time?' said the Queen. 'Books are not about passing the time. They're about other lives. Other worlds. Far from wanting time to pass, Sir Kevin, on just wishes one had more of it. If one wanted to pass the time one could go to New Zealand.'

The appeal of reading, she thought, lay in its indifference: there was something undeferring about literature. Books did not care who was reading them or whether one read them or not. All readers were equal, herself included.

The Queen said: 'Yes. That is exactly what it is. A book is a device to ignite the imagination.'

*****

And now, if you'd like to read a review where something is actually said, you might want to try one of these:

Dewey at The Hidden Side of a Leaf
Nymeth at Things Mean A Lot
Chris at Stuff as Dreams Are Made On
Eva at A Striped Armchair
Grad at The Curious Reader
Robin at A Fondness for Reading
Chris at Book-a-Rama
Bermudaonion at Bermudaonion's Weblog
Jenclair at A Garden Carried in the Pocket
Serena at Savvy Verse and Wit

Okay, there's like 40,000 more of these reviews out there, I just know there are. But as I'm really not supposed to be blogging right now anyway, I'm just going to have to call my search quits for now. Please, please, please feel free to leave me a link in the comments, however, if you have a review of this book that you'd like me to add to the list. Thanks.

The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents...random thoughts

The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett.

Let me say right off the top here that there is no way I will ever do this book justice. It is simply so utterly brilliant.

Okay, so I'd been on a streak of reading rather depressing things. Good stuff, but depressing stuff. I was craving something fun and light. For the last couple years, I'd been wanting to give Discworld a try, but balked because I just didn't know where to start. Nymeth kindly put up with all my questions about where to start and whatnot, and suggested that this book was the perfect choice, being a good stand-alone. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to finally put her advice to use. And did it meet my expectations? Well, yes and no. (In the sheer awesomeness category it surpassed them by like half a gazillion miles.) But as for fun and light... Well, fun gets a yes, yes, YES! Light, well, not so much. And by that, I don't for a single minute mean that it's heavy, tedious reading, or that it's obscure or pretentious...I just mean that it really has a lot to say. And in retrospect, I have to say I was an idiot for ever imagining that it would be a light, "fluffy" story...because Nymeth has the most remarkable gift for finding books that satisfy and delight and challenge on a number of levels. And that is exactly what this book does!

So what's it about? Well, let me quote from page 1, where that very question is addressed:

Rats!
They fought the dogs and killed the cats, and--

But there was more to it that that. As the Amazing Maurice said it was just a story about people and rats. And the difficult part of it was deciding who the people were, and who were the rats.

But Malicia Grim said it was a story about stories.

Doesn't seem to tell you much, does it? Of course, after you read it, you realize just how much it says. I'm sorry. I'm really not trying to be so obtuse here. I'm just having a hard time putting this all into words.

Okay. Let's try this again.

The Amazing Maurice is a cat. A talking cat, who is sort of the unofficial leader of an odd group of con artists. The rest of this band consists of a boy named Keith and a bunch of educated rodents. Only I'm not sure "educated" is precisely the correct word. Thinking rodents. And it's not that all cats and rodents can think and talk. No, this is not the norm. (How they came to be this way, I'll leave for you to discover when you read this book. Because you should read this book.) Anyway, this little group has perfected a scam. They head into an unsuspecting town. The rats wreak havoc. And do so in ways that no ordinary rats would even dream of doing. Seriously, how would you react if a rat went tap-dancing across your table before "widdling" in your cream? Okay, so not all the rats are fabulous dancers, but Sardines is quite proud of his talent. Anyway, so the rats put the town in an uproar, and in comes Keith, a piper, and offers to lead the rats away. For a price, of course.

Now this unlikely gang makes quite a fine living at this for a while. Until they come to the town of Bad Blintz. And it is here that the story really takes place. And this is where it turns dark. I don't want to give away any more of the actual story, but I've got all these really cool things floating around in my head that I really wish I could talk about. *sigh* So, I'll just add a couple of disconnected thoughts here, and then urge you once again to go read this yourself.

*I love the names of the rats, and the story of how they got their names. I won't tell you the story. Think you can guess if I tell you some of my favorite names? Hamnpork, Bestbefore, Nourishing, Additives, Inbrine. And my very favorite of all...Dangerous Beans (though I'm dying for someone to explain the "circumstances" of that one).

*This is the PERFECT book for Once Upon a Time. It fills nearly all the categories at once. :) Fantasy--check. Fairy tale--yep, definitely a cool retelling of the Pied Piper. Folklore--again yep, rat kings. *shudder* And you know, someone more learned on such matters might be able to find a way to stick this under myth, too.

*It's loaded with humor, sometimes subtle, always smart.

*And finally, let me leave you with this question:

What is it that defines "civilized"?

Oops, sorry, I'm not really going to leave it at that. But don't worry...I've got a good reason for continuing. See, I have a copy of this wonderful little treasure to give away. NO, not mine--this is a keeper! But a brand new copy, because I accidentally bought two. Want it? Just say so...and I'll do the random draw thingie sometime Monday.

*****

Other views:

Annie at Words by Annie
Jennifer at Jennifer's Book Blog
Lara at Lara's YA Reading Log
Nate at The Chronicles of Nate-ia
Rebecca at Just One More Page
Jenclair at A Garden Carried in the Pocket

Oh, and it won the Carnegie Award...so I'm guessing the judges loved it, too. :)

I'm sure there must be other reviews out there, so if you've got one, please feel free to leave a link in the comments, and I'll add it here. Thanks.

Down to a Sunless Sea...random thoughts

Down to a Sunless Sea by Mathias B. Freese.

Hmmmm. I really don't know where to begin with this one, as I just can't seem to get my thoughts into any sensible order here. If this collection of short stories could be said to have a theme, it would have to be individual pain and struggle. Each story introduces us into the mind of a troubled character, a person battling their own personal demons in one way or another. And yet though there is this sort of thread of commonality running through the stories, they really form quite an eclectic mix. I'm sure it can be said of nearly any short story collection, that some stories will speak more to an individual reader than others. But for me, that seemed exceedingly true of this collection.

A couple of stories, "Down to a Sunless Sea" and "For a While, Here, In this Moment," did very little for me. They almost made me wonder if I was simply missing something. And honestly, that may be the case. Or it may be that I'm simply the wrong reader for those particular stories.

But then there were stories that I loved. When I read "Alabaster," I was truly grateful that I didn't give up on this collection. A little boy finally talks to an old woman who often sits on a bench along the street where he plays. The tattooed number on her wrist tells the reader what the child in his innocence doesn't understand. I also enjoyed "Little Errands," which if you've ever seen OCD in action, you'll understand the veracity of this story. And another I particularly enjoyed was "Billy's Mirrored Walls," in which we again see a child's innocence played against an adult's pain, though not nearly as intensely as in "Alabaster."

The other story that made a real impression on me was "I'll Make It, I Think." As the story begins we meet a boy with CP, and one can't help but ache for him and the difficulties he must face just living his life. But I have to say that by the end of the story, I was left deeply unsettled...I couldn't help but feel I was witnessing the making of a rapist or a serial killer. Maybe that was the intent. Or maybe I've just watched too many true crime dramas. Oh, and the kid from "Mortise and Tenon"...yeah, I'm a little worried about his future as well.

Please don't ask me to sum up my feelings of this book overall, because honestly, I just can't quite get a handle on it. But if you haven't read it yourself, I've got two suggestions: a.) read some of the reviews below, and/or b.) leave me a comment saying you'd like to try the book yourself. (If more than one person would like it, I'll do the random.org thing later this week.)

*****

Other opinions:

Trish at Trish's Reading Nook
Bookfool at Bookfoolery and Babble
Bellezza at Dolce Bellezza
Melody at Melody's Reading Corner
Steve at J.Kaye's Book Blog

If you've reviewed this, please feel free to leave a link in the comments and I'll add it here. Thanks.

House of Stone...random thoughts

House of Stone: The True Story of a Family Divided in War-Torn Zimbabwe by Christina Lamb.

What a wonderful book. Not a happy book. Easy to read, because it was very well-written. Difficult to read, because it hurt. It hurt in the way that so much of human history and human politics hurts to read about. House of Stone was written by Christina Lamb, a journalist who spent many years reporting on Zimbabwe, a woman who risked her life on many occasions because British journalists were banned from even entering the country. While I believe she was quite objective in her telling of this story, I also believe that she loves the people of this country.

The book tells the story of this southern African nation in a unique way. In alternating chapters, we hear the story of two Zimbabwean's lives. Aqui, a Shona who was born and grew up in a mud hut. Nigel, a privileged white who attended private school and spent carefree summers playing in the beautiful African landscape. We hear their stories as they grow from childhood into adulthood. Their personal stories through the times of brutal civil war, through the change from a white supremacist government to black majority rule, through the descent into tyranny by Robert Mugabe. And we eventually see their lives intersect.

I recently read a book titled Dictatorships: Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe by James R. Arnold and Roberta Wiener, so I had a background in the history and politics of this nation. But you don't need any prior knowledge, as Lamb's book brought a real richness to that background. The personal stories of Aqui and Nigel are put in the setting of fuller history of the nation.

Truly, I loved this book, and I highly recommend it. But be forewarned...your heart will break as read about Robert Mugabe's destruction of this beautiful African country. Your heart will break for the people of this country.

*****

Other opinions:

Eva of A Striped Armchair

If you've reviewed this book, feel free to leave a link in the comments and I'll add it here. Thanks.

American Born Chinese...random thoughts

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang.

To be perfectly honest, this book is so incredible that I'm pretty much at a loss for words. I really don't know how to do this book justice...and I really wish I did, because if I could convince even one person who hasn't yet read this book to do so, it would make me very happy.

The book is three stories in one, told in alternating chapters. The first story is that of the Monkey King, a Chinese legend. The Monkey King of Flower-Fruit Mountain isn't happy being a monkey, and he works very hard trying to turn himself into a god, The Great Sage, Equal of Heaven. Second, there is the story of Jin Wang, who moves from his apartment near San Francisco's Chinatown and finds himself the only Chinese-American kid at Mayflower Elementary. It's not an easy place to find oneself. And finally, there is the story of Danny, an American teenager. Each year his Chinese cousin, Chin-Kee, comes to visit for a few weeks, and Danny finds his life so ruined that he transfers schools. Chin-Kee is the epitome of a negative Chinese stereotype. Eventually the three stories mesh into one. And maybe I'm just slow on the uptake, but the way this happened took me by surprise...it was simply brilliant.

In fact, the whole book was simply brilliant. Deceptively simple to read. For it is truly so sophisticated. It contains so much depth. To be perfectly honest, I suspect that if I read it again, I would discover things I'd missed. And if I read it again after that, I would find even more. The book addresses many themes: identity, racism, friendship, self-acceptance, and how these things play off of one another, how they affect one another. It was humorous, and it was painful. Bottom line, it was amazing.

*****

Want to read what others thought?

Dewey at The Hidden Side of a Leaf
Nymeth at Things Mean A Lot
Alison at So Many Books, So Little Time
Chris at Stuff As Dreams Are Made On
Ali at Worducopia
Kailana at The Written World
Joy at Thoughts of Joy

And if you've read and reviewed this book, please feel free to leave a link in the comments, and I'll add it here. Thanks.

In the Land of Invisible Women...random thoughts

In The Land of Invisible Women: A Female Doctor's Journey in the Saudi Kingdom by Qanta A. Ahmed, MD.

I first heard of this book while listening to the Diane Rehm Show one day. Dr. Qanta Ahmed was Diane's guest, and her story fascinated me. She had completed her residency and further studies in medicine in New York. And though she had hoped remain in the U.S. after her training, she was unexpectedly denied renewal of her visa. Oh a whim, she accepts a position at the King Fahad National Guard Hospital in Saudi Arabia. Naively perhaps, she expects to feel at home there. She is after all a British-born Muslim doctor. But the world she lands in is unlike anything she's ever experienced. This book tells the story of her two years working in Saudi Arabia.

Let me say right off the top that I really loved this book. But I have to admit that I had problems with the writing. It was a bit too flowery for my tastes. Maybe flowery isn't the correct word, but each sentence seemed to contain eight adjectives and four adverbs all wrapped in a metaphor. Obviously that's an exaggeration, but I swear at first I just wanted to keep yelling, "Stop. You're trying too hard." That said, the book was never hard to understand in any way, and honestly I sort of found the writing more amusing than annoying.

So what did I love about this book? It transported me to a land that is so utterly different from anything I have ever experienced. I knew very little about Saudi Arabia before reading this book, and while I can't claim to truly understand the land now, I learned so much. A bit about the history, but much, much more about the culture. Or should I say cultures. For Saudi Arabia is a land of contradictions. And it was interesting to discover the Kingdom through the eyes of someone who was just discovering it firsthand for herself.

I would learn that Saudi Arabia was many things to many people: to the rich, a land of boundless wealth; to the poor, a prison of abject poverty; to the expatriate worker, a land of contrasts and inconsistencies, an ever moving labyrinth of contradiction, not wholly one nor wholly the other.

Abbayahs, Hajj, Mutawaeen. Dangerous, high-speed highways. Gender-segregation. Forbidden dating. Hymenoplasty. Arranged marriage. Polygamy. Divorce. Domestic violence and child abuse. And many, many strong women.

While in Saudi Arabia, Dr. Ahmed develops feelings for a colleague. And I have to admit, at first it seemed rather annoying the way she spoke about it. Here she was an extremely well-educated doctor, acting like a preteen girl in throes of a crush. But there truly was a point to her including all of this, as it showed the realities of a society where mixing of the sexes is prohibited, where dating isn't permitted at all. She didn't even realize how she was acting until she was attending a party for a friend who was about to enter an arranged marriage. The grown women at this party were all acting like schoolgirls.

They giggled coquettishly and girlishly. The atmosphere was at once innocent and deeply saddening. The women, starved for meaningful contact with the opposite sex, fell into two camps before marriage; panicked promiscuity on threat of dishonor or even worse, and adolescent, girlish fantasies that would never lead to a real relationship. I failed to see my own fantasy weaving in my daydreams about Imad. I was no more immune to the artificial climate of Riyadh myself, no matter how Westernized I thought myself to be.

Dr. Ahmed's time in the Kingdom was coming to an end at the time of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. She doesn't sugarcoat the reactions of some to horrendous events of that day. She is dazed and confused and dismayed and saddened beyond words. The chapter she devotes to this is a very difficult one to read, and yet had she not included it, the book would not have portrayed the whole of her experiences there.

Today, Dr. Ahmed is a quadrupled boarded physician practicing in South Carolina.

*****

Other viewpoints:

Sarah at Behold, The Thing That Reads A Lot

I'd love to include your two cents if you've read this book, so please feel free to leave me a link and I'll add it here. Thanks.

*****

I plan to give this book away eventually. Unfortunately I can't do it right now...I'm afraid I talked so much about it while I was reading it, that Rich now wants to read it. :) But I do have another book to give away, if anyone is interested. 50 Reasons to Buy Fair Trade by Miles Litvinoff and John Madeley, which I babble about here. (I think Annie and I have pretty much indoctrinated Rich on the whole Fair Trade issue, so he doesn't really need to read the book anymore.) It is a used book, of course. If interested, just say so and I'll draw a name in a few days (if there's more than one person interested, that is).

And speaking of giveaways, I actually remembered to draw the winners of That's Life: Finding Scrapbook Inspiration in the Everyday. Yep, I said winners, plural. It dawned on me after I wrote that post that I really don't need to keep either copy, so I drew two names instead. Wish I had a copy for everyone! Anyway, Trish and Bookworm are the winners. If you could just send your snail mail addresses to rdagmstevens at frontiernet dot net, I'll try to get the books in the mail sometime this coming week.

a mommy post with some book stuff thrown in, or vice versa

First of all, let me tell you all how very lucky you are that I was "on blog break" last week when I read this book. Seriously, it's just one of those books that you want to talk about something on darn near every page. Since I already gushed away once, I'll skip it this time around. Instead, like Nymeth and Chris, I'll share the damage this damn book (and I mean that in only the nicest way) did to my wish list:



*How to Breathe Underwater by Julie Orringer
*George and Sam: Autism in the Family by Charlotte Moore
*How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World by Francis Wheen
*True Notebooks by Mark Salzman
*Random Family by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc
*What Narcissism Means To Me by Tony Hoagland
*This is Serbia Calling by Matthew Collin
*We're in Trouble by Chris Coake
*Every Secret Thing by Laura Lippman
*Early Bird by Rodney Rothman
*How to Be Lost by Amanda Eyre Ward
*A Complicated Kindness by Miriam Toews
*Citizen Vince by Jess Walter
*Pure Pleasure by John Carey
*What Good Are the Arts by John Carey
*Death and the Penguin by Andrey Kurkov
*Running in the Family by Michael Ondaatje

Yeah, isn't that pathetic?!! He also had me wanting with greater intensity books already on my wish list, had me wanting to pull books I already owned immediately off my shelf, and had me wanting to reread books I'd already read! He's a menace, I tell you. A menace. ;)

*****

***Many thanks to our lovely hostesses, Eva and Alessandra.***










George and Sam: Two Boys, One Family, and Autism by Charlotte Moore. See above for blame on this one. :)










Fax from Sarajevo by Joe Kubert. Whim. Looks really good.











Circle of Cats by Charles de Lint and Charles Vess. Chris, you've not only earned yourself another point, but you've earned an enormous thank you from me! Oh my gosh, this book is so wonderful! And beautiful, oh so beautiful! Both to look at and to listen to. Basically, it's the story of a little girl who is bitten by a venomous snake and how she is saved by a group of cats who use magic to save her.

As if the book itself weren't special enough, the experience of reading it to Max was one of those truly cherished moments of motherhood. He's gotten so big that he rarely crawls right into my lap anymore, but he snuggled right in for this one. He was completed enchanted by this story. And after it was over, we had one of those melt-your-heart mommy moments. In fact, when he went running off right afterward, I immediately had to write down our conversation:

Max: If I was her, I'd tell Aunt that I was that kitten.

Me: Do you think Aunt would believe her?

Max: I don't know. She probably doesn't believe in magic.

Me: Do you think people stop believing in magic when they grow up?

Max: Do you believe in magic?

Me: I don't know. I think I do. Do you?

Max: Yes. And that means we both have magic in our hearts. 'Cause that's where magic lives.

*****

And I had a couple more "great mommy" moments in the last few days, too. Yesterday we received an invitation in the mail. An invitation to "the opening" of the 2009 Youth Art Month Show. Each year the school district puts on a show of student art. The art teachers from each of the eight schools in the district choose a handful of art work done by students in their particular school to be featured in the show. And the art teacher at Gray's school chose one of his pieces. I can't tell you how teary-eyed this makes me, because if ever there were a little boy who could use some self-confidence, it's Gray. Even he didn't know about it until we received this official invitation yesterday. I'm not sure if I can stand waiting these few weeks until "the exhibit" opens. :)

*****

And then there's Annie. I know I talked before about how she took her first college course last semester, and she did very well. But I'm not sure if I mentioned that she was taking another one this semester. Spanish 101. And I admit, I worried about her a little bit. It's a much bigger class, and it's not in her normal comfort zone of writing. Turns out I needn't have worried though. She just got back her first test...not only did she get an A, but the professor said she was the only one in either of his two sections of this course that did. Needless to say, she was very happy. Ummm, and yeah, I was pretty proud of her. :)

paying for my "week of lazy"

I just made myself do the dreaded deed...click the "mark as read" button. I tried so hard to catch up, but it was keeping me from getting all the things I need to be doing done. Seriously, you people are as addictive as any drug known to humankind! So, while I thoroughly enjoyed my "week of lazy," I am definitely now paying the price.

And because I have so many other things demanding my attention, I'll make today's book babble short and sweet. One of the books I managed to read last week a scrapbooking book. I used to buy just about every scrapbooking book printed, but I've been a bit better lately. Rich bought me a few for Christmas, and I thought last week was the perfect time to sit down and indulge myself with one.

That's Life: Finding Scrapbook Inspiration in the Everyday by Nic Howard.

To be perfectly honest, I was a little disappointed with this book. But not because it was a bad book or anything. Instead, it was just that Nic Howard's philosophy of what memories are worth saving is pretty much identical to mine. We both seem to be firm believers in the idea that while it's great to record the big events (holidays, birthdays, etc.) in scrapbooks, what's really even more meaningful is the everyday. Recording the personalities, the quirks, the passions, the frustrations of those we love. So like I said, it's really not that I didn't like the book, it's just that she was preaching to the choir here.

All that said, I believe this would be a great book for anyone somewhat new to scrapbooking. It would certainly be perfect for someone who tends to be an events-only scrapper, but would like to spread their wings a bit. And this book does include a lot of gorgeous layouts. And one can never have too many layouts to look at, can one?

And hey, guess what! I've got a spare copy to give away! I really shouldn't embarrass Rich by mentioning this, but he accidentally bought me two copies of this book for Christmas. And he wrapped both and put them under the tree, never realizing. :) Anyway, if you're interested, just say so. If more than one person speaks up, I'll draw a winner over the weekend. (Well, over the weekend, if I remember...hopefully shortly thereafter if I don't.)

babbling about graphic novels

Amulet: Book One The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi.

This was one of those total impulse grabs from the library. Had never heard of it before, but it looked fun. And it was fun, but certainly won't make my top ten reads of the year or anything.

The story begins with a terrible accident in which Emily's father is killed. A couple of years later, Emily's mother moves the family (herself, Emily, and Emily's brother, Navin) to an old family home. She claims that she's just still trying to give them a fresh start. But we come to wonder if, unbeknownst even to her, there's something more going on with this move. The family arrives at the home, and on the very first night, events spiral out of control. The children find an amulet, their mother is kidnapped by a strange tentacled creature, and they all find themselves in a world completely foreign to them.

The downside: The story just doesn't have a lot of depth. But I would like to hope that maybe that will come as the series continues. (And there are hints that this may well be the case.) I realize that this is a series aimed at younger children, but I don't believe that means it needs to be overly simplistic. (I'm actually hoping that I can convince Gray to read this, so I can get him opinion.)

On the positive side: I love the art! I found the "creatures," both the good ones and the bad ones, to be utterly adorable. And I don't quite know how to explain it, but I love the coloring of this novel. I hesitate to use the word "pretty," but I honestly can't think of a better word. It is both subtle and vibrant all at the same time. Oh crap...I'm making no sense at all here. Suffice it to say that I really enjoyed looking at this book.


Rose by Jeff Smith and Charles Vess.

I've actually had this on my wish list ever since I read my first graphic novel, Alice in Sunderland. (Talbot spoke of a number of books in Alice in Sunderland that got added to my wish list.) Anyway, when Rose was finally available at the library, I of course, snatched it right up.

It's a beautiful little fantasy story. Just read it's beginning words:

When the world was very, very new, and dreams had not yet receded from the waking day...

The first dragon was a queen named Mim. And Mim was the keeper of all who dreamed.

She cared for the dreaming by encircling the world and holding her tail in her mouth...

As long as Mim held her tail in this way, balance was maintained.

And balance is most important, for the dreaming is a thing of great delicacy.

I don't want to give any of the story away, but I'm sure you can easily guess that something happens to this balance. A balance is regained, but again disrupted. And it eventually falls upon Princess Rose to right things. I love Princess Rose...she's young, a bit naive, a bit impulsive...and who wants a princess that is too perfect, right? It's a story about dreams, and growing up, and hard choices. I really, really enjoyed it.

And hey, it doesn't hurt that Charles Vess created the artwork, huh? It is stunningly beautiful.

I didn't realize until after I'd finished the book that is a prequel to BONE. From the little I know about BONE, I believe this prequel is a bit darker in nature. But I plan to find out for sure...after finishing this book, I had to immediately go and order BONE: One Volume Edition.

Castle Waiting by Linda Medley.

Oh my, what can I say? This is easily my favorite of the three. I absotively, posolutely adored this book! Delightful. Beguiling. Captivating. Enchanting. (O.K., O.K., I'll stop now before I feel the need to dig out the thesaurus.) This was a book that just made me happy. The only other recent book I've read that I can remember making me feel this way is The Goose Girl. Not that the two books are alike, they just made me feel the same. I wish I was better with words so I could explain what I mean. It's just sort of a happy innocence. A being fully transported away into a land of pure magic. Of course, that's not to say that either book is all lightness and fluff. Anyway as I said, the two books really aren't all that similar, other than the fact that a review of each would likely contain the words "fairy tale" at some point. Castle Waiting has much more depth. There are layers upon layers, stories within stories. And OMGosh, is this book funny! And bottom line, it's about how anyone can come together and become a family.

Ahhh, I seriously want to read it again already!

*****

Other viewpoints:
*Nymeth at Things Mean A Lot (Castle Waiting)
*Eva at A Striped Armchair (Castle Waiting)
*Susan at You Can Never Have Too Many Books
*Kailana at The Written World (Rose)

I'd love to add your two-cents, so if you'd reviewed any of the above, please feel free to leave me a link in the comments. Thanks.

The United States Constitution: A Graphic Adaptation...random thoughts

The United States Constitution: A Graphic Adaptation by Jonathan Hennessey and Aaron McConnell.

I can't believe it's only been a little over a year since I read my first graphic novel. I am continually amazed and surprised by this new-to-me medium of expression. The variety is simply astounding.

When I happened upon this book in the store, I knew nothing about it. But as Annie and I are studying the U.S. Constitution, I figured it was worth a try. And in this instance, I was right. It's really a great read. It doesn't go into nauseating detail, but it does give a full look at the document that guides this country. It begins with some brief background on the American Revolution and on the Articles of Confederation, and then moves on to the Constitution itself. It discusses each of the seven Articles, as well as all 27 Amendments. And it doesn't just explain what each of them says, it explains the "whys" in how they came to be.

The text in this book is good, but what really struck me was the art. The way the story was portrayed in the pictures. It was not all literal; a great deal of symbolism was used, and used quite effectively in my opinion. I think this is a book that every middle school and high school library ought to carry, as I can really see visual learners gaining a lot from this little book. And let's be honest, I suspect a lot of us grown-ups could use a refresher course as well, huh?

A Bottle in the Gaza Sea...random thoughts

A Bottle in the Gaza Sea by Valerie Zenatti.

Again with the short and sweet here.

I really, really wanted to like this book. Okay, that's a dumb thing to say, because of course, I want to like every book I read. But still, do you know what I mean? I hoped this book would be simply wonderful, because it involves such important issues.

Because of this, I have to admit when I first began reading, I was a bit disappointed. It started out feeling so cliche. Tal Levine, a 17-year-old Israeli girl, begins writing after a suicide bomber blows up a cafe in her neighborhood. A diary sorts. She feels nearly compelled to write. As she says:

When the fear comes back, like now, we all seem to forget who we are. We all become potential victims, bodies that could end up lifeless and covered in blood just because someone chose to blow themselves up right next to us. I want to know who I am, what I'm made of. What would make my death any different from any other? If I said that to my parents or friends, they'd be really shocked and would tell me gently that I needed to rest. That must be why I've decided to write: so I don't frighten the others with what's going on inside my head...and don't let them declare me a raving lunatic.

Tal decides to reach out in the only way she can think of...by putting a letter in a bottle and throwing it into the Gaza Sea. She imagines that a Palestinian girl her own age will find the letter, and that they'll begin this amazing friendship through e-mails.

But it's not a girl who finds her letter. Gazaman, as he calls himself, seems angry and bitter and sarcastic. See what I mean about stereotypes--the sweet, peace-loving Israeli girl and the angry, hate-filled Palestinian boy.

Gazaman also writes in a journal of sorts. But a journal he can't keep. He explains his reasons:

I get angry very quickly if I think too much, but I don't want to stop thinking. My head is the only place where no Tsahal soldier, no guy from Hamas, and not even my father or my mother can get in. My head is my home, my only home, a bit small for everything I've got to put inside it, and that's why I started writing, several years ago now. I didn't have to wait for that spoiled little Tal from Jerusalem to get me started. I write and then I burn the paper, tear it up, soak it, and throw it down the toilet; I'm too frightened someone will find it. But at least it does me some good, it soothes me a bit. There are too many people I hate, too may people stopping me from living my life, and too many signs (which aren't actually there but I can see all over the place) that say: EVERYTHING IS BANNED.

And it is through Tal's and Gazaman's "diaries" that we read part of the story. The other part is read through their e-mails. As this "conversation" between them begins, I have to admit that I was still feeling a bit let-down. It felt too pat, too unoriginal. But guess what--I am so very grateful that I stuck with the book. Somewhere along the way, it seemed to grow in depth. I began to see these characters as more than caricatures. Tal experienced a life changing event and grew. And while she didn't lose her yearning for peace, she did lose some of her naivete. And as the book moves forward, we get to know much more about Gazaman and his life. He is, in reality, far from the stereotype we are first introduced to.

So, in the end, I found this a satisfying read. Not perfect, but well worth the time it took to read.

Bizenghast (One and Two)...random thoughts

Let me say right up front here that I feel sort of foolish even attempting to babble about these books. This was my first foray into the world of Manga, so I really have no base for comparison. Please forgive me if I sound like an idiot.

First of all, a bit about the story...

Dinah loses her parents in an auto accident as a young girl. She is sent off to live with her aunt in the unsettling little town of Bizenghast. Dinah's aunt, while not cruel, never intended to have children and frankly, doesn't seem to know what to do with Dinah. Especially since Dinah isn't quite well. They live on the grounds of the old St. Lyman's School, which was a reform school of sorts. Except for the main house, the school burned to the ground years ago under mysterious circumstances.

I'm not exactly sure how old Dinah is now, though I'm guessing in her teen years. Dinah would be completely alone were it not for her best friend Vincent. One night, as they were taking a shortcut through the woods, they stumble upon a graveyard. Dinah meets the spider-like creature, Bali-Lali, and finds herself saddled with a mission she never wanted. She is to free the tortured souls of the forty who "live" there. So every night, Dinah must return, solve a riddle, and discover a way to free another soul. To fail is to die herself.

So, what did I think of these books...

Well, first of all I was entranced by the artwork! It's beautiful, haunting, sometimes downright scary. Truly lovely.

Secondly, while I enjoyed the story itself, it felt very disjointed to me. Never so much that I didn't understand what was going on, but occasionally frustrating nonetheless. I was sometimes bothered by how much I was left to fill in on my own, if that makes sense. As I said, I am a total neophyte in the world of Manga, so I have no idea if this is the way Manga is intended to be, or if it is simply the way this series is written. But all that said, I obviously liked the first book enough to immediately pick up the second and read it as well.

Will I continue on from here? Probably, if the library has the next ones. Otherwise, who knows where the Manga Challenge will lead me next...

Green River, Running Red...random thoughts

Okay, I told myself that I was going to be better about reviewing the books I read this year. Not that I would write better reviews, just that I would review more of the books I read. And here I am, procrastinating already. I finished Ann Rule's Green River, Running Red a week ago, but just haven't been motivated to write about it. But since I'm about to finish another book (finally!), I figured I'd better just go ahead and jot down a few thoughts.

I know I've talked before about trying to figure out why I even enjoy reading true crime books, because frankly, on the surface, it just seems a rather morbid way to spend one's time. The best I've been able to figure is that it's the mixture of psychology and police work that intrigues me. Or maybe I should say "used to intrigue me." Because honestly the last couple I've read have not been particularly satisfying reads. And I don't think it's because they were poorly written books; I think it's just that my tastes have changed.

Anyway, about the book. Ann Rule, former police woman, veteran crime reporter, and author of numerous true crime books, tells the story of the Green River murders. It's a story that covered nearly twenty years, and of course, a story that has never ended for the families of the victims. One of the things I love about the way Ann Rule writes her books is the way she brings the victims to life. It's evident that it is the victims of crime that motivate her. In the case of the Green River murders, most of the victims were prostitutes, young women living on the edge of society. Many in the public choose to not think about these women, many even blame these women for their own deaths. But Rule never treats them with anything less than complete respect. She introduces us to these women, and I can't imagine anyone not caring about them after reading their stories.

Rule also greatly respects the work of the detectives involved. She chronicles the exhausting work carried out by so many. Detectives who also cared about the victims and their families. Detectives who often took a lot of abuse from the media for not solving the case for so many years. Detectives whose own lives suffered, physically and mentally, from the overwhelming strain of this case. But Rule wasn't blind to the occasion mistake made in the investigation. She kept it real.

One thing I didn't like about this book was Rule's personal involvement. Now granted, there were times when she really did have a part in something going on. But at times I felt she inserted herself into the story in places where she didn't need to. That it was simply superfluous.

And there was one very big question left hanging for me. Serial killers generally do not slow down. So why after killing nearly 50 women in just a couple years time, did things change? He did not, in fact, stop murdering innocent women, but he certainly did not follow the typical pattern of escalation. It was mentioned that he didn't feel the need to kill as often after he remarried, but that seems a superficial explanation to me. The psychology-junkie in me just wished that had been discussed in more depth.

Okay then, review done for my first read of the year. I can now cross it off my to-do list. And if anyone out there reads true crime and would like my gently used copy, just say so in the comments. (If there's more than one of you, we'll do the old random.org thing).