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Title: Exodus
Author: Leon Uris
Publication date: 1958
Book's setting: 1940's
Random facts: I wanted to know more about the formation of Israel but of course I didn't want to read a 600 page nonfiction political debrief so I settled for this.
Plot summary: American widow and journalist friend get involved in the smuggling of Jewish POV/refugees out of Greece post WWII and into Palestine. The book then breaks off into several historical recounts of Jewish oppression based around a particular character in the book, wrapping it all together by the second half with an intense play-by-play of the United Nation's decision to see Israel as its own nation, and finishing emotionally with lots of people dying.
Favorite aspects: Epic. I mean, I was enthralled. Historical fiction is so amazing because you learn and you can be emotionally involved and your knowledge of history at the outset helps you become much more engrossed than you might have been. I had absolutely no clue that half the stuff in this book happened, so I think it was good for me to read it, but at the same time my knowledge of the historical context totally enhanced the experience. And like, on a totally personal level, DOV AND KAREN. I'm a sucker for those sorts of romances.
Least favorite aspects: I was surprised that there wasn't more about the Spanish Inquisition. The book went back to retell stories of of Jewish oppression in multiple countries as far back as the early 1800's, but I think it would have been really awesome for that to be included.
Other works it reminded me of: Maggie-Now by Betty Smith, The House of Spirits, Isabel Allende
Sadie's merciless break-down:
Fact: I read this on the plane on my way home from Switzerland and it was like 3 flights and a layover and a few amazing meals and lots of white wine and this book. Reading it was intense. It's an intense book. The writing is a little "of the times" but not in a bad way. I dunno. It was awesome.
Recommendation rate: Any historical fiction fan should read this.
Title: On Chesil Beach
Author: Ian McEwan
Publication date: 2008
Book's setting: 1960's
Random facts: I bought this for 99 cents in a used bookstore because it was so tiny I could bring it home in my purse.
Plot summary: A young couple (virgins) on the eve of their wedding, in a society on the cusp of a sexual revolution (that they're like a tad to old to catch) and what happens that night. The middle of the book is a recount of the courtship but the first 50 pages or so, and last 50 pages or so is purely moment-by-moment recount of their evening.
Favorite aspects: Beautifully written. I mean, insanely amazing prose. This is the man who wrote Atonement, so I expected nothing less. So quotable, so emotional. I felt like I was in the skin of both characters as they took in their environment, tried to swallow their fears. The book is quite grounded in its historical period as well. Some very funny quips about England at the time, politically. Interesting insight into the society through this microscopic story.
Least favorite aspects: I think that I was expecting something a little more driven by the end. I'm not sure what the core was. McEwan used two very separate voices sharing their own experiences, but it wasn't much more than experiences. The epilogue-type part at the end was weird. I think that the book didn't really need it. Or, if McEwan was going to give us a glimpse of the future (after the wedding night events) than he really should have hit us in the gut. Instead I felt like I was reading the five page version of One Day by David Nicholls.
Other works it reminded me of: One Day by David Nicholls.
Sadie's merciless break-down: I enjoyed it more reading it than I did in retroscept. It was one of those novels where the prose, the insensity of the reading process, the emotional insensity- that's what made it so good. Now... looking back, I don't really care much what happened in the book. (Unlike Atonement, where I think I'll take that trauma to the grave.)
Recommendation rate: Only if you don't mind sad books. Or if you are a sucker for perfect prose.
Title: Brooklyn
Author: Colm Toibin
Publication date: 2009
Book's setting: 1950's
Random facts: Recommended to me by my friend Rachel, who read it in a college class.
Plot summary: Eilis is a young women living in her home country, Ireland, in the 1950's, unable to find work and dragging her family down. Her sister Rose, the more profitable sister, recommends she goes to America for work. Brooklyn is a very small story about a very short period of time in Eilis' life. Unlike many immigrant stories, Brooklyn is less about the immigrant plight and more about Eilis as a person, as she meets and falls for a Italian boy and has to make hard choices.
Favorite aspects: It was just beautifully written. Flooring. I was reading it so slowly, just savoring every word. Like I said before, it's a delicate story about one girl's adventure. It all felt so real and crisp.
Least favorite aspects: I don't know. It's rare, but I don't think if I was God I'd rush in and change anything about it. It's a gem.
Other works it reminded me of: Maggie-Now by Betty Smith
Sadie's merciless break-down: The book ends poising a little question of: was she maybe taken advantage of? Did she make the right choice? I don't know. I think she did. The romance was very harsh and realistic. Beautiful, exciting, but still laced with
the sexism of the time. I spent a lot of the book worried about Eilis,
for even though she was not courting a bad man, her naivety kept me
feeling protective of her. I don't know. You read it and tell me.
Recommendation rate: I think everyone who likes to read should read this. If you love history you need to run out right now and buy it.
Apparently I'm insane because I think I'll try and bring this blog back. I don't have time to review every book I've read, so I'm gonna review my favorites since I last blogged, and then will be (every now and then) reviewing books I particularly loved.
So yeah.
This is your fault Brittany. You blogged and I was all like, damn, it's been a while since I've seen the written word. Tumblr is fun, but so freaking condensed, I feel guilty writing more than two complete sentences together.
So yeah. I am obviously insane.
Also although I try like mad to find my errors, I am notoriously a bad speller. So, apologies in advance. Hopefully, at the very least, I can spell the titles of the books correctly.
Lastly, the font I previously used seems to no longer be an option, so I guess I'm going with something different now? Ok.
Peace,
Sarah D (Sadie)
I'm back and I'm going to continue writing a review about every book I read. However, even though I am about six months behind I intend to review them all in order of how I read them. It might take me a few months to catch up, maybe I never will.
But I read 80 incredibly good books this year, and I think they deserve to be written about. Enjoy!
Title: Perks of Being a Wallflower
Author: Stephen Chbosky
Publication date: 1999
Book's setting: 1991
Random facts: Percy Jackson and Hermione Granger are leading in the movie, out next year.
Plot summary: Middle-class suburban Charlie starts high school, and needs a way to vent his emotions, fears, and secrets if he's going to survive. Instead of a diary, he writes letters to an anonymous friend whose name the reader is never given. These letters make up the book. Charlie accidentally finds himself on the fringes of a crowd of amazingly cool seniors. The book deals with issues all teens face with sincerity and grace.
Favorite aspects: Oh, was it perhaps a bit too fraught with emotion? A tad too sincere? Yeah. But somehow that excess of incredible emotion was what made it so relate-able and real and sorrowful. Charlie himself was such a sympathetic character. He was a bit much at times... but the surprising ending made sense of that. Actually I think the characters in general made it so strong. Anyone can write a book about dysfunctional teenagers- substance abuse, drunken riots, closeted homosexuals, pregnancy scares, college application terrors. Not everyone can make you care that these kids are experiencing any of this stuff. I even genuinely cared for Sam, who is the stereotypical crazy beautiful bitch. however, is characters are the strongest point of the book, the characters I was most drawn to were Mary Elizabeth and Brad. Bravo, Chbosky. It takes a lot for me to love a teenager.
Least favorite aspects: I was (and still am) a bit confused as to how writing the novel in letter form helped the structure. I don't know if it symbolizes something I'm missing... or if it's just a clever way making it autobiographical without being a diary... But it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I often caught myself wondering more about what the hell was going on on the other side of the correspondence than about Charlie's own life. If someone was writing me letters like Charlie's, I'd want to respond and help. Maybe no one was receiving the letters. I'm not sure.
Other works it reminded me of: Criss-Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins.
Sadie's merciless break-down: It's one of those really famous books, so I was hesitant. It's a hipster classic right up there with The Bell Jar, On the Road, and Oscar Wao. So I was hesitant. But it was one of those books that really deserve the excessive hype they get. To be quite honest, I think it unfortunate that it fell into the hands of the hip booklisters and ended up on the shelves in Urban Outfitters next to Dirty Italian and The Quoteable Stoner. It doesn't belong there. Was it the best book ever? No, probably not. But it was a beautiful, heartfelt, and sincere book that deserves more than its overly ironic fanbase of the grown-up teen scene of the 90's. As excited as I am for the movie, and as excellent as the casting is, I once again don't know if it's actually going to do the novel any favors. Oh well. At least people are reading it.
Recommendation rate: It's a teen book. It's about teenage problems. If you're okay with that, it's one of the best teen books I've read.
Title: Hard to Admit and Harder to Escape
Author: Sarah Manguso
Publication date: 2007
Book's setting: Modern America
Random facts: This book is one in a set of three short stories call One-Hundred and Forty-Five Stories in a Small Box.
Plot summary: This is a collection of eighty-one short stories. Really short stories. Each one is limited to the length of a page, some are ever smaller. Although many of them stand alone, if you read them carefully enough you'll find that many of them seems to be about the same people, or child. Many of them sound incredible real, perhaps even autobiographical.
Favorite aspects: I cried over some of these, they were so delicate and perfect. Manguso's writing is so seamless and easy to sink into. It's a tiny little book, only eighty-one pages, and you could totally read it in a single sitting. But that's one of the coolest things about it. It's an experience to read. It's theatrical. It's spell-bounding. You want to read it all at once.
Least favorite aspects: You can only buy it in a set of three books, for about $27. I choked and bought it... so what? Money is meant to be spent.
Other works it reminded me of: No One Belongs Here More than You by Miranda July.
Sadie's merciless break-down: Let me quote one of the stories to you:
"There's one girl in the nursery that I decide to love. I stare at her and try to think of what I should call her. I decide I will call her Benny, and I approach her. "Hi, Benny," I say. Another girl pipes up. "It's Becky, not Benny," she informs me. But what she doesn't know is that I got within one constanant of the girl's name just by looking at her."
Recommendation rate: A must-read. All Manguso is a must, must, must read.
