The Tombs of Atuan

Title: The Tombs of Atuan

Author: Ursula K LeGuin

Publication date: 1970

Book's setting: Fantasy world of Earthsea

Random facts: Second book in a series. The fourth in the series won the Nebula Award, this one won a Newbery.

Plot summary: Tenar was born the day the First Priestess of The Nameless Ones died. That means she is the priestess, reborn. Tenar is taken from her home and raised to fullfill her place as the Eaten One, Arha, First Priestess of the Tombs. The Tombs of Atuan follows the story of her childhood and training as Arha. But the tradition of the temple and the worship of The Nameless Ones is disrupted when Arha find a strange thief in her Tombs. She pities him and lets him live. After more encounters she and becomes fascinated in him, and he plants the seeds of doubt in her as to the order and truth behind her name and behind her gods.

Favorite aspects: The Tombs of Atuan was a really short book, for a fantasy at least. Maybe short is the wrong word. It was small. Once again small is the wrong world... Maybe I mean that it was tight. There was one main character who drove the entire story. The entire book was from Tenar's point of view and focuses on her life as the First Priestess. I think because LeGuin focused in on one small part of Earthsea's civilization, that allowed her time to be as specific and detail-oriented as she pleased. I was also fond of how visual it was. I had a very hard time putting it down, not exactly because it was exciting, but because it was beautiful. The world she created was beautiful.

Least favorite aspects: I felt a bit left in the cold regarding The Nameless Ones. I wasn't sure if LeGuin was trying to say that they weren't gods worth worshiping... or if they were actually false. Equally, I wasn't quite sure if we were supposed to believe that Tenar was really The Eaten One. I don't think she was, but then I'd think that automatically discredits The Nameless Ones. It was incredibly religious... and I'd have liken a bit more closure with the gods of Atuan.

Other works it reminded me of: Wolf Star Rise by Tanith Lee; Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale.

Sadie's merciless break-down: It is a scientifically proven fact that if I am not reading some sort of fantasy I shrivel up and die. My beloved sister things most fantasy is dorky. (She is very conservative when it comes to fandom.) She generally dislikes anything that focuses on "world building." (Unless it has really hot men of course.) The Earthsea series was a favorite of my mom's growing up so I obviously felt compelled to read them. I read the first last November, The Tombs of Atuan is the second.
But back to world building. The Tombs of Atuan isn't even 200 pages long, but LeGuin manages to create one of the most visually compelling and realistic fantasy worlds I've ever read. It's always interesting when a fantasy world in very ethnic or foreign. For obvious reasons English fantasy often takes place in very European surroundings with very traditional Norse or Gaelic powers. The religion and setting in The Tombs of Atuan was deliciously foreign, and was what drove the entire book forward.
Lots of fantasy authors try so hard to communicate their entire universe to the reader that the details get lost. LeGuin focused on the details, and somehow they were powerful enough the the entire universe fell into place.

Recommendation rate: If you like fantasy then I'd put it on my list.

Little Dorrit

Title: Little Dorrit

Author: Charles Dickens

Publication date: 1857

Book's setting: 1830ish

Random facts: I read this book because of Arthur Darvill, Matthew McFayden, and Russel Tovey. I also read it because I am crazy.

Plot summary: The title character is Amy Dorrit, a girl who was born and raised in debtors prison. Before she was even born her father lost his fortune and he has spent the last 23 years there. Amy looks after her father in prison, while her older siblings, who never quite adjusted to being poor, try (and often fail) at making a living for the family. Arthur Clennam spent his entire grown life overseas, and returns home after his father's death with a message for his mother. "Never Forget." Arthur becomes suspicious that his family is somehow responsible for the misfortune that befell the Dorrit family over twenty years ago and sets out to try and save them. In typical Dickens fashion a host of characters and subplots are entangled around Arthur and Amy's story, including the French fiend Rigaud, the mysterious Ms Wade, innocent Pet and her slacker husband Gowan, and The Man of the Age. Mr. Merdle.

Favorite aspects: Why do I always like the characters you are not supposed to like? I liked Tip and Fanny and Pet and Edmund and Gowan best. Am I all there in the head? That's like reading Pride and Prejudice and liking Wickham and Caroline best. Ach! Am I a cowardly aristocrat at heart? Maybe, maybe. This was one of my favorite passages in the book, regarding Tip and Fanny. "He would have found it amply in that gallant brother and that dainty sister, so steeped in mean experiences, and so loftily conscious of the family name; so ready to beg or borrow from the poorest, to eat of anybody's bread, spend anybody's money, drink from anybody's cup and break if afterwards." Yeah, I love these people. The worst part of the whole book was that Fanny and Tip didn't get to be RICH FOREVER.

Least favorite aspects: Saying it was "too Dickens" is not an insult because it IS by Dickens. It's not his fault that his lengthy asides bore me or that his inability to be generous to rich people saddens me. I enjoy Dickens despite of his Dickensness, not because of it. But what were a few specific things I didn't like about Little Dorrit? Well, Amy had no flaws. Dickens has a habit of creating perfect poor angels who are perfect and mouse-like and whimper a lot on the moral high-ground. I'd rather hang with Mrs. Merdle to be quite honest. Also the ending was UNNECESSARILY COMPLICATED. Dickens, darling, it's not completely unheard of to bother explaining to your readers what is going on.

Other works it reminded me of: North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell; The Deans Watch by Elizabeth Goudge.

Sadie's merciless break-down: Moby-Dick and The Odyssey are among my favorite books. It's not that I dislike long books. It's just... Dickens. I've spent years making it abundantly clear that I hate Dickens. I'm still not exactly a fan, even after dedicating two weeks and a thousand pages to him. I guess I read Little Dorrit as a challenge to myself. I know I can read anything in the world if I want to. But can I also read anything in the world if I don't want to? Little Dorrit was an easy way to find out. I'd seen the eight hour BBC One production starring the aforementioned hotties, so I already was familiar with the plot and characters. How hard could it possibly be? (Hard. I'd tried this two years ago with Bleak House. Gillian Anderson! Carey Mulligan! I could DO IT! Fifty-something pages an I gave up...)
For me reading is very visual. When you read Dickens it's hard to be visualize everything because he gets very sidetracked with politics and money. Little Dorrit was funny, in an old fashioned way. And it had great characters, when you stripped down the terrifying amount of narration they were wrapped in. I'm not really sure why I read it or whether or not I technically enjoyed it...
But I finished it! This is a BIG DEAL! I finished something by Dickens longer than Oliver Twist! And you know what? I hate to say it, but I had a hell of a lot of fun.

Recommendation rate: Only if you are very brave, or for some weird reason, actually enjoy Dickens.

Good Omens

Title: Good Omens, The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch

Author: Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

Publication date: 1990

Book's setting: Present Day (ish)

Random facts: I bought Good Omens on the day that the rapture was supposedly going to happen. Looking back that is ironic.

Plot summary: I have never had such a hard time articulating a review before. It's all sentence fragments and exclamation points. But I'm trying, I really am. Here we go? Crowley is a demon and Azirphale is an angel. They have been left on earth to prepare for the Apocalypse and in the meantime have become friends and rather fond of humanity. Adam is the Antichrist, a young boy destined to be the destroyer of earth. Anathema is the descendant of Agnes Nutter, a medieval witch who wrote a book of prophecies on the end of the world. Newt is the descendant of the witch hunter who burned Agnes. Death, Famine, War, and Pollution are the four Horsemen who are preparing the world for destruction. Good Omens is the story of the end of the world, and how all the above characters manage to bring about (or attempt to resist) the Apocalypse.

Favorite aspects: The pacing and the scene changes were cinematic and hilarious and wonderfully planned. The climax of the book was so fast-paced and insane that it stopped feeling like reading and felt more like inhaling. Basically I liked everything about this book. I liked Newt and Anathema's predicted, plotted, totally unromantic relationship. I adored Crowley and Aziraphale, whose bromances negates all other bromances in the history of literature. I laughed out loud at the secondary motorcycle gang from Hell. (Most of the time I couldn't tell, but that bit had "Gaiman was here" all over it.) I liked all the crazy pop culture references that no one will understand in 200 years. I loved how it was brimming with HISTORY. I appreciated how sometimes I almost started taking it seriously, and then had to pull back and remember I was only reading. I guess most of all, I liked how it wasn't anything like reading a book. It was a multi-media cultural event. Or something.

Least favorite aspects: Where is the sequel? Can there at least be an appendix? Or a collection of short stories? Come on guys!

Other works it reminded me of: Love in the Ruins by Walker Percy; Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams; but also a little bit of everything?

Sadie's merciless breakdown: I read the first 50 pages of Good Omens very carefully in bed the night I bought it. (I went out of my way to buy it. I'd never read it before and I don't do that often, but I wanted to read it and the library didn't have it so I called up Barnes and Nobles and they put a copy aside for me and I bought it. $18 for a paperback. Shame.) Then I realized I was about 1/7 done with the funniest book I'd ever read, so I stopped.
I read the next substantial part while sitting in Coraddo on 70th street after a Lady Gaga concert. I shouldn't be allowed to read in public. There was a gay couple and their friend sitting at the table with me (it was crowded) and whenever I hit a really smashing sentence I was tempted to tell them about it. I didn't of course. I kept reading on the subway. All the way from 70th to the Junction. Then I had to stop because I had to go to work.
I got home from work at 6:30pm. Instead of reading more I watched tv with my sick sister. I woke up the next day with the flu. The next five days were spent too delirious to read. I finished the book on a Wednesday. It was 86 degrees out and felt like it could very well be the end of the world. I sat outside of my apartment building and decided it probably was. (Remember, I still have the flu.)
When I finally finished it I decided it was probably one of the best things I'd ever read. Still think so.
In light of Good Omens I could never write anything witty about it. Every possible witty thing was put into the novel. So instead I gave you my pathetic reading experience. (Well, going to a Lady Gaga concert is far from pathetic. However Coraddo's overpriced coffee is.)

Recommendation rate: Just read it. Even if you have to spend $18 on a paperback and $4.50 on the subway fare to get you to the bookstore.

Redeeming Love

Title: Redeeming Love
Author: Francine Rivers
Publication date: 1991
Book's setting: 1850
Random facts: One of my best friends recommended it to me and I have this policy in which I must read every single book my friends love.
Plot summary: Redeeming Love is a vibrant interpretation of the Book of Hosea. Set in the 1850's the novel follows the life of Angel, a bastard child sold into prostitution after her mother's dead. When California farmer Micheal Hosea feels led by the Holy Spirit to marry Angel and save her from a life of prostitution, she doesn't come willingly. Redeeming Love is a novel about sacrificial love, salvation, and following God, no matter what he asks of you. Although Angel's journey toward salvation is the core of the novel, a host of compelling minor characters weave their way in and out of the story, impacting Angel's life in unexpected ways.
Favorite aspects: The first thing I liked (which is sort of small) was how well-researched it was. Sometimes books like this are thrown together and don't feel truthful, but Rivers obviously poured a lot of time into it, and it showed. I really love the time period it was set in and Rivers captured it in all its vibrant glory. Something about the prairie. I love it. The second thing I liked (much bigger) was Angel. She was one of the most developed characters I've read in a long time. She was spectacularly plotted and really well developed and not one point in her story line seemed false. She must have been incredibly hard to write but I was drawn to her and sympathized with her throughout the entire novel. It's not often that I meet someone like her in a novel. I'm not going to forget her.
Least favorite aspects: The more I read the more sensitive I become to writing. Obviously not everyone can be Marilynne Robinson- I get that. But this book was too good for it's writing. I'm not going so far as to say Rivers is a "bad" author, but I don't think her skill matched the task at hand. Redeeming Love had no literary beauty or style. It was just a plot being conveyed sensibly. It lacked the flavor and emotional high that moving literature has. Usually I'm not picky about writing if the plot is strong... but religious fiction demands more grace in the writing.
Other works it reminded me of: Not My Will by Francena Arnold; Rodzina by Karen Cushman.
Sadie's merciless break-down: Needless to say, this was a strange follow-up to Atonement. I am a Christian. Basically what that means is that I see grace, redemption, atonement, and unconditional love everywhere. I see it in Harry Potter and Pirates of the Caribbean of all places! I can find grace in anything. If you're not religious and you don't see it it's simply because you don't know where to look.
Okay. So. I think that Redeeming Love was heavy-handed. They say show don't tell, right? Number one rule of writing. Rivers broke it. I'm not sure what tipped the scale but the heavy narration bogged down the spiritual awakening. I feel awful saying this. It was a good novel, all things considered. The story arch was consistent and the characters were round and the themes were important. It was good enough that I finished it... but something was missing. Or rather something was over-exposed until it stopped feeling precious. Does this make sense? Am I being way too hard? Should I have waited longer in order to digest McEwan's delicate prose before plunged into Redeeming Love? I don't know. It just didn't move me like I thought it would.
ON A COMPLETELY UNRELATED NOTE. I almost wrote this book a couple of times. (Without the sex and the religion.) It was going to be called Apple of the Prairie. It was going to be awesome. I never got further than the first chapter. I am seriously considering revisiting that idea.

Recommendation rate: If you really like Christian lit then give it a go, you may love it. If you're not one for religious fiction then just pass on it.

Atonement

Title: Atonement

Author: Ian McEwan

Publication date: 2001

Book's setting: 1935-1940

Random facts: My sister bought me a used copy for my birthday. On the inside she inscribed it for me. She says that the book has a lot of voting in it so I'll like it.

Plot summary: "I love you. I'll wait for you. Come back." In the summer of 1935 England is on the brink of war. 13-year-old Briony intercepts an inappropriate note from the son of a family servant to her older sister Cecilia. Too young to understand the complex relationship between the two, Briony's overactive imagination black-lists Robbie as a maniac, a man not to be trusted. That same evening Briony's 15-year-old Lola is raped by a unidentified man who Briony assumes is Robbie. The assumption evolves into fact in the young girl's mind as she is questioned by the police and eventually as a witness on trial. Robbie and Cecilia, torn apart by a crime he didn't commit, vow to stay true to each other, but prison and the impending World War II keeps pushing them apart. Can Briony ever face up to her guilt and could Robbie and her sister even forgive her? Atonement is a complex, emotional, and epic novel. It's written from several points of view, giving it depth and holding your interest, with a clutching ending that the reader will never expect.

Favorite aspects: The characters were perfect. I couldn't dislike them. They were flawed obviously, deeply flawed. And yet I rooted for each one the entire way though. Briony was a little beast who did her penance and never had the forgiveness she sought. But she was practically a baby when she did it. Robbie was moronic for sending that note, for even writing out what he did. But I've done similar things. How can you judge him for it? Cecilia should have talked to Briony right away. She probably also should not have had sex in a library. But despite her incredibly ability to hate Briony, she is an amazing Penelope and I admire her for it. And of course, the writing was flawless. Not only did McEwan seriously research his time period, he also researched his writing. It was written as if it had been written 50 years before its publication date. It tasted like Fitzgerald and Waugh and Wharton. It was beautiful.

Least favorite aspects: Oh good grief. Am I actually expected to say something negative? Okay, I'll try my very best. Lola. I wanted more of Lola. Did she know? What was her prerogative, marrying Marshall? When did Briony figure out it was him? These are questions I would liked answered but it's not like the book was missing Lola's story. Robbie's and Cee's was quite emotional by itself, thankyouverymuch.

Other works it reminded me of: Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh; Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh; Summer by Edith Wharton; Tender is the Night by F Scott Fitzgerald; All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque.

Sadie's merciless break-down: THIS BOOK THIS BOOK THIS BOOK. *breathes*
I haven't been this emotionally moved by something since The House of Mirth. While reading it I would just get so overrun with EMOTIONS that I literally had to hide the book and go get a drink or something. Words are oddly powerful like that. I've never had to pause a movie to have a good cry. Atonement left me with my heart on my sleeve.
And yet... Despite the fact that this was a DEPRESSING novel, it was also full of grace and forgiveness and hope. Hence the title, I suppose. It was an oddly religious for a novel that, correct me if I'm wrong, doesn't so much as mention God. It was cathartic. Briony's atonement didn't just immortalize Robbie and Cee, but it felt to me like Atonement immortalized an entire generation of love stories cut short by the war. In a way the novel had two villains- Briony's crime and the war. So I guess you could say that the villain was unavoidable circumstance. Hardships and sorrow getting in the way of love and what to do about it. Briony never gets to ask forgiveness and she is unable to save Robbie and Cecilia from what she did to them. They never get to be together. But they are immortalized together in the novel, which in a weird way, like Briony says in the end notes, makes it okay.
While reading Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society I found myself filled with rage because of what happened to Christian and Elizabeth. I felt the same rage while reading Atonement. I know a lot of people hated Briony... and I guess there is reason to do so. But this novel is about, well, atonement. And you're not supposed to hate her. None of the main three characters acted in anyway to make them deserve the lives they had. They were just eaten up by the war. I think the war is the villain in this book. Or rather, war and everything else powerless about life. Living is the villain. Just by existing you end up hurting people and often it's completely out of your hands. I'm sure (actually I know) a lot of people might disagree, and it's easy to blame Briony for everything, but I think that goes against the entire point of the novel.
Atonement filled me with a weird sort of peace. I guess everyone will read it a different way but I found it to be a blessing. The note at the end made it an even better book, I read a lot of reviews who said they disliked it. It's almost more remarkable if she never lost her guilt and if Robbie and Cee were never able to forgive. Somehow, it was full of light and peace regardless.
Basically Atonement fills me with feeling. Feeling I could rant about for hours if you let me. It was visual and held amazing characters and incredibly motifs and it played with words in such a powerful way. I think I need to read it again before I can really wrap my mind around how moving it actually was.

Recommendation rate: If you're over 16 and you value good literature then put it on your list. JUST READ IT BECAUSE IT MAY CHANGE YOUR LIIFFFEEEEEEEEEEEEE. Goodness, you should see me now, I'm so hyper. I should not be allowed to type when I am hyper.

Man and his Symbols

Title: Man and his Symbols

Author: Carl Jung

Publication date: 1964

Book's setting: Nonfiction psychological text sooo, you know

Random facts: So they are making a movie about Jung and Freud and it's gonna have Keria and Fassbender so basically I'm going to watch it no matter how historically incorrect it is.

Plot summary: Man and his Symbols is a collection of essays by Carl Jung and his followers that explore the subconscious mind and meaning behind dreams. It was written as an introduction to his school of though, and was meant for a general audience as opposed to psych students. Because of this it's a surprisingly easy read.

Favorite aspects: The dream descriptions were my favorite parts. I basically feel ripped off. Where are my deep and meaningful dreams, wrought with symbolism?? I dream about sexy men and getting lost in my kitchen and awesome bookstores. Make what you will of that, Jung. I dare you. Anyway. I really looked at Man and his Symbols as over-blown literary analysis with a bit of anthropology tossed in for good measure. Don't be scared because it's Jung. It was a fascinating and incredibly understandable read. It really helped me be a better reader... Jung was obsessed with universal symbols like the Old Woman. It definetly helped me see fairy tales in a new light, and all fiction in general. Actually I think it might make me a better writer. If you consider yourself an author or even just write stuff for the heck of it then I think you should read Man and his Symbols.

Least favorite aspects: The edition I have is terrible, although it seems to be the only edition in print. The type was set so tiny I had to decode it! Someone, reprint this book in Helvetica or Garamond! It deserves it! I can't fault anything Jung or his followers say because they basically invented this way of looking at the world. It's not a perfect philosophy to say the least, but it is beautiful and thought-provoking and I appreciated it greatly.

Other works it reminded me of: I have never read a psych text before... so...

Sadie's merciless break-down: I haven't been reading much. I'm watching way too much tv (although Chuck and Fringe are done now) and when I am reading I've been on an old favorites kick. Sometimes you need a little Hilary McKay or Robin McKinley in your life. Very slowly during the last two weeks I've been picking my way through Jung. I was impressed. It was very crazy and had very limited science and probably should not be called psychology at all. But then again Jung was basically one of the founders of psych so we can excuse him for that because proper psychology did not exist when he wrote it.
You know what? Jung seems like a legit nice guy. I think I have a crush on him. (Except I am not allowed to because my sister does and she says I always steal her imaginary lovers. Except for Finn Hudson. I don't want him.) He was very gracious about religion and very respectful of it. Although he never said he himself was invested in any religion he admitted how important it was in society and how much the world depended on it and how greatly it impacted human thought and the universal symbols derived from it. I greatly appreciated that. He was the anti-Freud in that matter. Thanks, Jung. You and me baby, let's go interpret some dreams.

Recommendation rate: If you are interested in basic psych ideas or literary analysis or dream interpretation or fairy-tales then you need to read it.

Siste Viator

Title: Siste Viator

Author: Sarah Manguso

Publication date: 2006

Book's setting: Written through the 90's and early 00's.

Random facts: Siste Viator means "stop traveler."

Plot summary: A volume of poetry, therefore plotless.

Favorite aspects: I don't usually read poetry. I find it often too abstract and I have a hard time grasping the bigger picture within the fragmented lines of fragmented phrases. But Manguso's poems were full of stories and vibrancy and relatable emotion. They weren't distant or abstract at all. I guess what made it even better is that I knew about Manguso's like prior to reading her poetry. Her memoir (reviewed a few months ago) gave me the basis to really appreciate the struggles she portrayed in her poetry. Of course they would have been beautiful regardless, but her thoughts and feelings were familiar, because I already knew her.

Least favorite aspects: I guess nothing? I should read more poetry.

Other works it reminded me of: The Two Kinds of Decay by Sarah Manguso.

Sadie's merciless break-down: So I don't usually read poems. Kate sometimes throws one in my face and tells me to read it, and of course I read countless anthologies as a kid... but I'm not usually a poetry person. But this volume was completely magical and heart-breaking and inspirational because Manguso's like was all those things. Instead of ranting a rant and using meaningless large words to try and portray the beauty, here is a sample of her poetry from Siste Viator.

There is No Such Thing as Skill
There is only facility and retribution
The day I woke up giggling was the day I gave up controlling my perversion.
That was one bad dream.
Why is the heart broken, and not squashed, or flattened, or wrung out?
Would you wring out an icicle?
I give up writing about twice a day, just to keep things fresh.
I write myself a citation every time I break the rule and start writing again.
Sometimes I write a citation just so I can write a citation.

Recommendation rate: If this volume of poetry was a movie it would be rated R. Even so I think you need to get your hands on it.