" 'I wanted love and goodness in this which is living death,' I said. 'It was impossible from the beginning, because you cannot have love and goodness when you do what you know to be evil, what you know to be wrong. You can only have the desperate confusion and longing and the chasing of phantom goodness in its human form...' "
I've always been afraid to read this book or watch the movie. I don't do well with the horror/supernatural genre in general, but since I liked
Twilight
and LOVED
Dracula
, I thought I might as well try Anne Rice's book for the R.I.P. Challenge. I read it in a period of only two days. It was sufficiently creepy, much creepier than
Twilight
of course, but not nearly as bad as I feared it would be. I actually enjoyed the book much more than I thought I would, as I am a complete wimp when it comes to this genre.
Minor spoilers ahead....
First of all, I'm surprised that this was Anne Rice's first book. It's very well written, and from everything I've heard and read online, it's probably her best novel. The main characters - Lestat, Louis, and Claudia - really do come 'alive' on the page (hee hee - little vampire joke there). I found Claudia to be especially creepy and am looking forward to seeing how well she is portrayed by Kirsten Dunst in the movie. I hated Lestat at first, but I did feel sympathy for him in the end. It did seem that he cared more for Louis than he let on, and vice versa. Louis does seem to be a mystery, always wanting good and hating himself for the evil he does. I am glad that we're left wondering a bit if the 'love' he has with Armand, though, is erotic or simple companionship. If it's the former, I'm glad Rice wasn't explicit in this regard. I'm very curious to see how these relationships play out on screen with Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, and Antonio Banderas. Interesting casting choices there! I've read that Rice was pleased with the movie so that's encouraging.
I'm not sure if I'll continue to read any of Rice's other novels in the Vampire Chronicles, but I am interested in her latest religious books and her memoir. I'm intrigued by her turning from atheism to Christianity and do want to find out more about that aspect of her life.
Recommended for
Twilight
fans and fans of vampire fiction.
If you haven't been in a war and are wondering how long it takes to get used to losing everything you think you need or love, I can tell you the answer is No time at all.
How I Live Now
by Meg Rosoff won the Printz Award and was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for New Writers. I really enjoy 'end of the world as we know it' books and this was no exception. However, I did take exception with Daisy's relationship with her cousin Edmond. Although relationships between cousins used to be acceptable, it just isn't today. At least by my standards.
Daisy's father has remarried and she is shipped off to England to stay with her cousins. When her Aunt Penn is away on business, war breaks out and the children are left to fend for themselves, and they survive for awhile admirably. As the war goes on, though, it becomes increasingly difficult for the family to stay together and find the supplies they need. The goal of survival begins to take its toll.
I did enjoy this story, except for the situation noted above. I normally don't like books written in a run-on, free-form style as this one was, but as it was narrated by a teenager, it didn't bother me as much as it usually does. I really empathized with Daisy and her situation, and I admired how she was able to see one of her problems in a new light toward the end of the book.
But why did they have to be cousins? The answer isn't 'because of the war' as they began their relationship before it started. I just wish it could have been a friend of the cousins instead.
I really enjoyed this small companion book the the
Harry Potter
series. The tales were wonderful, and so were the illustrations, which were also done by J.K. Rowling. There are five tales:
The Wizard and the Hopping Pot
The Fountain of Fair Fortune
The Warlock's Hairy Heart
Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump
The Tale of the Three Brothers
After each tale, we are privileged to get Dumbledore's commentary about the story. I loved this. Not only did it bring some extra insight into the stories, but it was great to hear Dumbledore's voice again. In "The Wizard and the Hopping Pot," a son inherits his father's pot and rethinks how he will act among the villagers. In the commentary, Dumbledore tells of a woman who tried to sweeten the story up by rewording the ending with the following results:
Mrs. Bloxam's tale has met the same response from generations of Wizarding children: uncontrollable retching, followed by an immediate demand to have the book taken from them and mashed into pulp.
In "The Fountain of Fair Fortune," three witches seek to "fight their way to the Fountain, bathe in its waters, and receive Fair Fortune forevermore." This story was my favorite of the five. It is also interesting to note that in the commentary, Dumbledore states that Lucius Malfoy's objection to the book
...marked the beginning of Mr. Malfoy's long campaign to have me removed from my post as headmaster of Hogwarts, and of mine to have him removed from his position as Lord Voldemort's Favorite Death Eater.
"The Warlock's Hairy Heart" is by far the darkest tale. In this one, a Warlock is determined to never fall in love; "Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump" tells the reason why "no witch or wizard was ever persecuted in the kingdom again."; and in "The Tale of the Three Brothers," the siblings each meet up with Death and strike up a bargain with him.
I thoroughly enjoyed these tales, and I would love it if there were more at some point.
On or about his fiftieth birthday, Ambrose Zephyr failed his annual medical exam. An illness of inexplicable origin with neither known nor foreseeable cure was discovered. It would kill him within the month. Give or take a day.
It was suggested he might want to make arrangements concerning his remaining time
. -- p. 5 of
The End of the Alphabet
Ambrose Zephryr and Zappora "Zipper' Ashkenazi are a married couple with very little time remaining. After hearing the news of his impending death, Ambrose decides he wants to travel. The couple begin their journey with place names starting with the letter 'A,' then 'B,' and so on.
This very small book (only 119 pages) was meant to be little. It is indeed indicative of the fleeting amount of time the couple have left to spend together.
I appreciated this novella for its poignancy and tenderness, and its sad portrait of the utter helplessness of its characters. It is a book that can be read in one sitting and/or re-read again and again.
Commonwealth Writers' Prize Best First Book
2007, 119 pages
Poor Mr. Dinglebat was in a state. He had, he told Jacob Two-Two, recently invested a good deal of money in buying Canadian military secrets, and now he was stuck with them. "No customers," he said
.
This clever children's book by Mordecai Richler was written for his children and modeled after the same, and it was just simply a delight to read. Featuring not only Jacob Two-Two, but also I.M. Greedyguts, Miss Sour Pickle, and Perfectly Loathsome Leo Louse, this third installment of the Jacob Two-Two series made me laugh out loud at several points. I really, really enjoyed it. (It's also a good short book for the Canadian Challenge -- or if you need a 'J' title!)
I have always thought that the human heart is a little like the ocean, subject to tides, that joy rises in it in a steady flow, singing of waves, good fortune, and bliss; but afterward, when the high sea withdraws, it leaves an utter desolation in our sight. So it was with me that day.
Written in French by Gabrielle Roy and translated by Joyce Marshall,
The Road Past Altamont
captures a sweet young girl's thoughts and feelings perfectly. I also enjoyed Roy's descriptions of the vastness of the Manitoba prairie.
The book is really four interconnected stories more than a novel. The first story, "My Almighty Grandmother," tells of Christine's love and awe of her matriarch. The second story, "The Old Man and the Child," is about Christine's relationship with an elderly neighbor and their visit to Lake Winnipeg. This one was my favorite as I found so much sweetness in the pair's friendship. In "The Move," Christine discovers that not everyone lives as she does, and in "The Road Past Altamont," an adult Christine deals with her mother's increasing age and unrealized dreams.
I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy Willa Cather or L.M. Montgomery. I would definitely read another book by Gabrielle Roy.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (
John 13:34-35
,
ESV
)
" 'I wanted love and goodness in this which is living death,' I said. 'It was impossible from the beginning, because you cannot have love and goodness when you do what you know to be evil, what you know to be wrong. You can only have the desperate confusion and longing and the chasing of phantom goodness in its human form...' "
I have always thought that the human heart is a little like the ocean, subject to tides, that joy rises in it in a steady flow, singing of waves, good fortune, and bliss; but afterward, when the high sea withdraws, it leaves an utter desolation in our sight. So it was with me that day.
