‘52 Books in 52 Weeks’ Category

  1. The Awakening by Kate Chopin

    February 10, 2009 by sassenach

    #13 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

    Many times while reading this book, I drew comparisons between it and one of my favorite books, The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton. The themes are similar: dissatisfaction with the mundane, defiance of social convention, and the entrapment of marriage. Specifically, Edna reminds me, in many ways, of Newland Archer in The Age of Innocence. They feel similarly trapped, and slightly hopeless. I guess I relate to these stories because I found myself in a comparable situation years ago.

    There is little that can console someone who is in that situation. The numbness, the empty ache, cannot be ignored or wished away. Either you float from day to day, putting on pretense–or you do everything you can to break free from it.

    Having said that, I identified with Chopin’s Edna more than I expected to. Coincidentally, her character is the same age that I am now. Her need to have a life of her own, to find some small joy in a world of nothingness, made sense to me. I also found her husband coincidental (bitterly so). I had no trouble identifying with Edna, especially when she first attempts to think for herself. Her husband, noticing the change, immediately thinks she is becoming mentally unstable. Though she is becoming more herself than ever before, he thinks she is going mad.

    Her husband seemed to her now like a person whom she had married without love as an excuse.
    –The Awakening, Chapter 25

    I can’t say that I was happy with the ending of the story, but it felt appropriate. As always, I wondered about the other characters–where their stories might have gone. This ending, though sad, was fitting. I didn’t cry because, somehow, it felt right.

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  2. Coraline by Neil Gaiman

    February 7, 2009 by sassenach

    #12 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

    I enjoyed this book very much. If I had read it as a child, though, I think it would have scared me quite a bit. I found the overall tone to be rather creepy and dark at times, much like many of the stories in Gaiman’s Smoke and Mirrors. There’s one part in particular that has to do with beetles that creeped me out way more than it probably should have. I won’t say much more about it, so as not to spoil you in case you are planning on reading it.

    Last night I went to see the stop-motion film in 3D with my friends from SnB. It was really fantastic! This may have been the first 3D movie that I’ve seen–I vaguely think I might have seen one as a child, but I can’t remember what it was. We got to wear some really snazzy glasses, which I’m keeping as a souvenir. I especially enjoyed seeing the tiny knit creations such as Coraline’s sweater and gloves, as well as the detail in all of the characters.

    In both the book and film, I like Coraline, but I think my favorite character is the cat. I kind of wish the film hadn’t taken the story out of England, as I would have liked to hear Coraline as a wee English girl. And the cat would have sounded really neat as an Englishman (Englishcat?). But all in all, both the book and film were very enjoyable. I definitely recommend the book, and if you get to see the movie, watch it in 3D because it’s simply amazing.

    Category: 52 Books in 52 Weeks, Reading | Tags: | 4 Comments

  3. Sleepover Friends 1-3 by Susan Saunders

    January 28, 2009 by sassenach

    #9, #10, #11 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

    I debated posting these as part of 52 in 52, but then I figured–well, they are books and I did read them a few days ago, so I’m counting them anyway!

    When I was younger, I LOVED this series. When all the cool girls were reading The Baby-Sitters Club, I was reading Sleepover Friends. It’s a series about four best friends who have weekly sleepovers, and all the crazy situations they get into.

    I’ve always remembered how obsessed I used to be with this series! (The Twilight series of my youth, if you will.) I took these books everywhere I went–in the car, to bed before I went to sleep, even once to church on Sunday. My sister caught me reading it and scolded me, saying she didn’t think I should be reading it right then, lol. I put it away, but promptly started reading it again in the car on the way home.

    When I was young, I was extremely introverted–way more than I am now–and I spent a lot of time at home, usually by myself. Summers were the hardest, though I found ways to pass the time. Some days I would be in the den, playing on the ancient hand-me-down Atari system until my hands were sore from the crazy joystick. Other days, I would be in my room, reading book after book and feeling perfectly content to do so.

    Reading these books again, as an adult, is kind of like stepping into the past–into the shoes of myself as a child, maybe. I’m surprised at the parts I had forgotten, and the parts that have been stuck in my memory all these years gone by. I’m thinking about rereading the rest of the series eventually, if I can get my hands on the rest of the books. After I moved out of my parents’ house, my mom asked me what I wanted to do with all my old books, and I told her that she could give them away. I’m pretty sure these are gone, but I’m going to look the next time I’m over at their house, just in case she held onto them for me.

    Category: 52 Books in 52 Weeks, Reading | Tags: | 5 Comments

  4. Animal Farm by George Orwell

    January 25, 2009 by sassenach

    #8 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

    I’ve just read this novel for the first time. We never studied it in my school, owing largely to the fact that the school was focused on circulating its own propaganda–but I digress. I didn’t read it in college either, so I didn’t know much about it, other than it’s a classic allegory of some kind. After reading it, and after a visit to Wikipedia, I’ve learned that it’s a fable based on Stalinist Russia. I read it as Orwell described–as a “fairy story.” Grimm’s fairy tale, if you will. Knowing now what the story represents, I wish I had been able to study the novel in school. I think I could have written an interesting paper on it. But I’m glad to have read it now. Better late than never, and all.

    I guess the whole book can be summarized with the phrase, “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” I felt saddest for the fate of Boxer the horse, who I now know represents the working class. I suppose it makes sense, then, that I would identify with his character the most. So what does it all mean? I think the point is that there has to be a balance of power, a system in which no single group has absolute control over every facet of its government. The only hope the people have, to live somewhat peacefully among themselves, is to keep their leaders in that system of checks and balances.

    Category: 52 Books in 52 Weeks, Reading | Tags: | 3 Comments

  5. The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman

    January 18, 2009 by sassenach

    #7 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

    I’ve read a couple other novels by Alice Hoffman, and typically enjoy them. What I remember of her other books is that they’re beautifully written, but always have some dark element. Relationships are complicated (that’s just realistic, I suppose)–sometimes twisted, in a way.

    The Ice Queen is about a woman, a librarian, who is struck by lightning and lives to tell about it. That’s the most basic premise of the story. Interestingly, we never learn her name–she could be anyone, or nobody. She is an expert on the subject of death, and she also has something of a guilt complex. Because of this, she wants to be punished, not redeemed. That’s how the story begins.

    I spent the first part of the book not feeling any type of connection to her character. She seemed rather whiny, actually. When she meets another lightning strike survivor called Lazarus Jones, that’s when the story picks up pace.

    It didn’t end the way I thought it would, which is something I usually appreciate from writers. I wanted something very specific to happen, but it didn’t, and I think I see why the author took another route. The final chapter brought tears, another unexpected thing. In the end, I was left wondering about the fate of a certain character–that’s the story I’d really like to read. The Ice Queen’s story is ultimately resolved, but I was left wanting to know more about what happens to everyone else.

    Category: 52 Books in 52 Weeks, Reading | Tags: | 2 Comments

  6. Smoke and Mirrors by Neil Gaiman

    January 15, 2009 by sassenach

    #6 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

    This was my introduction into the Gaiman universe, and for once, the book lived up to all the hype. I was immediately drawn in by his storytelling style. (I also really liked how he put a story in the introduction, thereby waking me up instantly, as I normally snore through introductions, if not skip them entirely.)

    My favorite stories:
    “Chivalry”
    “The Wedding Present”
    “Snow, Glass, Apples”

    I was kind of surprised that I didn’t like his poetry as much as his stories–normally I love poetry in general. I think that his poems could have read better if they had been written as prose, that’s all.

    There is kind of a disturbing quality to much of his writings; somewhat haunting, and also mythical. I found myself uncomfortable during reading at times, but I felt compelled to continue, which I did. Many of the characters (most, perhaps) are ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances. I think that’s part of the magic of Gaiman’s writing. And now, with my interest thoroughly peaked, I’m looking forward to reading much more from him.

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  7. The Music of the Night by Lydia Joyce

    January 11, 2009 by sassenach

    #5 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

    If you don’t like romance novels, you may wish to stop reading now.

    So, I have an on-again, off-again relationship with romance novels. They are a type of mindless entertainment, I suppose; and on occasion, I like a book I don’t have to dissect in order to understand the plot. Other times, I just need a quick fix of some kind; hence, this novel.

    It’s ok, as romance novels go, though the characters aren’t as developed as I would have liked for them to be. What I found funny is that, about three-fourths of the way through this read, I realized that I had read the book before and totally forgotten about it. I picked it up again thinking that I had abandoned it about halfway through and never finished it. But no…the book just wasn’t memorable. I figured this out when I read the ending, because while it was familiar, it certainly wasn’t memorable, if that makes sense.

    It was a disappointing read because I really liked Joyce’s first novel, The Veil of Night, so much that I emailed the author after I read it, to tell her how much I did like it. This was a couple years ago. She actually emailed me back, which I thought was really nice of her, and which is why I continue to read her novels. I think I have one more of her books on my shelf, which I will read but which I hope is better than this one.

    Category: 52 Books in 52 Weeks, Reading | Tags: | No Comments

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