This book is a thinly veiled and well-subplotted twist on the Columbine High School incident. It explores school culture and satellite characters (parThis book is a thinly veiled and well-subplotted twist on the Columbine High School incident. It explores school culture and satellite characters (parents, law enforcement, school teachers and administrators) and webs them all together believably, although not as shockingly as the dust-jacket text might imply.
Plenty of things recommend this book. For one thing, happily, the author resists the temptation to give a pass to characters who defend their kids even when the kids themselves have been jerks (i.e., the mass-murderer's dad doesn't rush to his son's defense right away; several of the self-righteous parents of murdered bullies are depicted in a none too flattering light). In that respect, the parent/child relationships are dealt with honestly. Also, the flashbacking works really well, stitching in the foreshadowing in a way that never feels forced.
The victim letter that really changes Peter, toward the end, is excellent. I believed utterly that reading such a thing could have an impact on him. But I was buying it somewhat less that Josie, who had lived all her life with That Mother, wouldn't understand the ramifications of telling the truth in open court. Also, her motivations were a little too much show-not-tell. Sometimes it's nice to have the moment of decision pondered a tad more than "So she did." (I might have misquoted that, but it's the pivotal moment for Josie, in the flashback near the end.) All us readers can assume her whys and wherefores, but not comfortably. I guess I didn't get Josie all that much.
Which brings me to the negatives. First, as an expose of the public school culture itself, this book isn't really that hard-hitting. It takes itself too seriously to have the visceral impact of something like "Heathers," for instance. Plus there are all those scenes from adults' points of view. Blegh. If I have to hear from Josie's mom one more time, I think I'll scream. Of course, once she got her head out of her tookus and decided that maybe her kid was a mite more important than her career, she was somewhat more palatable. But just for reference: Picoult has a frustrating tendency to write mothers who have their priorities all out of whack. I have no sympathy for these characters, which makes it hard for me to enjoy the novels as much as I would like.
Also, and this is a total nitpick: you can't program a 3D first-person-shooter using HTML. Picoult might have done a boatload of research on high-school shootings and legalese, but her technical research was lacking mightily. Pretty much everything she has to say about Peter's computer life (which, for him, is supposed to be important) is bunk. Just know that going in.
For all that, though, I did enjoy the book. It was well crafted and plotted; it built to some powerful and/or intriguing bits (the aforementioned letter that Peter receives in jail; the grotesque subplot involving the homecoming queen; the gay math teacher subplot; the defense attorney's believable and amusing relationship with his wife and infant son). I read it all and liked about 85 percent of it, so that's definitely saying something....more
I read this book because I'd just finished American Gods and was temporarily in love with Gaiman. Happily, this book couldn't have been more differentI read this book because I'd just finished American Gods and was temporarily in love with Gaiman. Happily, this book couldn't have been more different.
There are too many excellent things about this book to list. Suffice to say, I never wanted a hell hound of my very own until I read about this one.
In the whole genre of speculative fiction -- and I've read a metric shitload of it -- this is the first book I recommend to others, followed by Stephenson's Diamond Age. I think that reading those two books pretty much sums up modern speculative fiction (apologies to Murakami and Garcia Marquez and Tolkien and the other literati faves)....more
**spoiler alert** I wept. Stayed up until 2 a.m. and cried my eyes out. And I typically don't do that. Reading this book hurt such that I can't in goo**spoiler alert** I wept. Stayed up until 2 a.m. and cried my eyes out. And I typically don't do that. Reading this book hurt such that I can't in good conscience recommend it for any parent.
I never developed the sympathy for the mother, Sara, not even at the end, when the author tried to wrest it from me. Picoult had done such a good job of making me hate Sara early on that when she tried to lure me into loving her, I didn't bite. And that's about all I can come up with in terms of criticism. It's a significant criticism, but it fades in importance beside all the wows of this novel.
At its core, this was not a philosophical novel; it was a character piece. And of all the characters, I loved Jesse most. I just wanted to put my arms around him and hold on tight until he stopped complaining about it. And when Brian finally did, well, that was the high point for me.
I hope they never make a movie of this book, because it wouldn't translate across media. See, the genius here, for me at least, is not the plot or the philosophical themes or even the characters (though they were strong). It's the scene-level writing. This book contains no wasted words, no metaphors that aren't also foreshadows. Every scenelet is layered and sparklingly in-voice, every mini-tragedy is excruciating. Point of view is deep and intimate.
I want to write like this when I grow up. (I should qualify that by saying that I'm 33 now, so I have a lot of ground to cover in a somewhat shorter time, eh?) Color me impressed....more
**spoiler alert** This book was excellent. I'm not saying it changed my life, but I'll put it this way: I will never again scrub my face with manmade **spoiler alert** This book was excellent. I'm not saying it changed my life, but I'll put it this way: I will never again scrub my face with manmade teeny-plastic exfoliants. It'll be nutshells all the way for me, baby.
I think what sets this book apart from the earnest-environmentalist subgenre is its wholesome lack of preaching. The author basically says, "Look, this is how it's gonna be. The entire Gulf Coast will, within so many years, turn into postnuclear slag." And he leaves it at that. No addendum like, "But we can stop this now if only we use energy-efficient light bulbs!" Nope, he just gives the eventualities and lets us fill in the here-and-now ramifications. I like that.
Plus, he has a way of writing postnuclear slagnation kind of poetically.
And yeah, although his ultimate conclusion is that the best thing for the Earth would be a massive reduction in People, he doesn't make me feel bad just 'cause I happen to be one of them People. He took me on a trip to the future and brought me back nice and safe and with a lot to think about....more
**spoiler alert** The first half is pretty freakin hilarious. (Katz, although based on a real person, is whoa funny. I'd totally take him hiking with **spoiler alert** The first half is pretty freakin hilarious. (Katz, although based on a real person, is whoa funny. I'd totally take him hiking with me, Snickers bars and laundromat-panty jokes, and all.) The narrative stalls a bit after Katz departs (temporarily, thank goodness), but it picks back up for the last push. Interspersed throughout are these poignant little bits about how human beings have mucked up the Environment. It does give one pangs of eek, but it didn't make me want to flagellate myself. As a preachy environmental book, this one is fairly low-impact. You take what you get from it.
It's true that Bryson, the narrator, is a little hoity and condescending. At some points, he's even a bit of a jerk (the whole incident with the security guard was sort of uncomfortable, made more so by the fact that he obviously thought himself terribly superior and clever). However, that doesn't often distract from the charm. Besides, I thought Katz was the real hero of this romance.
In sum: It didn't make me want to go hiking, but it did make me actually read multiple-hundreds of pages about someone else hiking, and that was quite a feat....more
In the introduction, the author spends a few paragraphs trying to suss out the difference between passionate and maudlin. Too bad he didn't come to a In the introduction, the author spends a few paragraphs trying to suss out the difference between passionate and maudlin. Too bad he didn't come to a conclusion there.
The story is simple: disaffected woman who already thinks her husband is a bore (which begs one to wonder why the hell she married him in the first place) meets up with a hip artiste photographer whilst her husband and children are away and proceeds to boink said artiste on the family kitchen table (and other places). He goes away. She stays with her family and lies to them for twenty-odd years. The end.
I think the author was trying to make these two, the unfaithful wife and the roving photographer, into heroes. Well, he failed as far as I am concerned. Yes, Francesca's life seems a little boring. Fine. She could have changed that without resorting to an affair. And Robert could have exerted a shred of control and not fucked the farmer's wife the second day he knew her. But neither of these characters was interested in doing the right thing. They were both interested in doing the high-passion poetic thing. And then at the end, Francesca tells her children what she did. Gah. She even defends her raunchy behavior and tells them, "If you love me you must love what I have done." Great job, lady; I'm sure that would make real adult children respect their parents all the more.
I think the thing about this book that most disappointed me was the fanfare that accompanied it. It came out when I was working in a book store many years ago, and I can't tell you how many copies of this thing I sold, mostly to middle-aged women (and men!) with dewy romantic stars in their eyes. I heard people say how moving and eternal this story was, now noble the characters were for not abandoning Francesca's family. So after all these years of hearing the book (and later the movie, which I haven't seen) talked up, I bought it and read it. Now I wish I could have those three hours back to invest in a real romance with real compelling characters.
Pros: It's short. It's simple. It doesn't use too many big words....more
I loved the world and the daemons and the visuals and the magic items. I was annoyed with the author's heavy-handed antireligiosity and preachiness thI loved the world and the daemons and the visuals and the magic items. I was annoyed with the author's heavy-handed antireligiosity and preachiness thereof. I guess this is meant to counter pro-religious juvenile fantasies, like C. S. Lewis? Well, consider this the opposite end of the philosophical teeter-totter: similarly magical and interesting, similarly whack-ya-over-the-head-with-message.
Characters were vapid, for the most part, and not entirely likable. Despite being able to imagine Lord Asriel's lines delivered by a scowling Daniel Craig (rowr), I never believed the character. I think he was just a plot device. Having said that, however, I have to mention how compelling the human/daemon interactions were. The Alamo scene with Lee and Hester was, I think, my favorite scene in the whole series.
The super-special items were interesting enough that I didn't mind reading another go-find-the-magical-doodad fantasy. Details like cold-weather (and warm weather) preparation, finding food in strange worlds, and the subtle discussion of free will throughout were handled well, I thought.
Overall, well, I read it. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it, but I think the movies will be very, very pretty....more
I finished it; I loved it. Yes, there were slow spots. Yes, she missed a few oppotunities, I thought, to really ram some emotion down my throat. I wonI finished it; I loved it. Yes, there were slow spots. Yes, she missed a few oppotunities, I thought, to really ram some emotion down my throat. I won't fault Ms. Rowling on that, though, because she did tie up all the loose ends I was thinkin' she'd forget about, esp. Petunia, Percy, and Neville's family. I loved how she worked through the Big Problem (spoiler for Half-Blood Prince: i.e., only one of them can survive). I'm elated that my theory of the Last Horcrux, which I developed shortly after reading Half-Blood Prince, turned out to be correct, even though so many people told me I was barking to think it. Ha! Go me. At any rate, that scene toward the end where Harry is all alone, but not really, marching toward certain destruction... beautifully done, Ms. Rowling. Thank you for this intricate but simple story, for these complicated but easy to understand characters. And after going into the Pensieve this last time, I think a little part of me is Severus Snape....more
So I stayed up until 2 this morning finishing this book. I haven't done that in a long time. I even got choked up a bit toward the end, and I haven't So I stayed up until 2 this morning finishing this book. I haven't done that in a long time. I even got choked up a bit toward the end, and I haven't done that in a really long time.
Highs: Pacing, visuals, foreshadowing are all excellent. I couldn't put this book down for the last third of it. All the teases in the first half are totally mind-blowing in the second.
Lows: I still am not all that fond of these characters. They're snooty, to put it mildly. I don't understand them, and I certainly wouldn't want to be friends with them. They'd look down their long ecclectically-tasteful noses at me. I'm positive they'd be searching for a Texas accent every time I spoke. Whatever. I can still peek in at their lives, voyeur fashion, and find their struggles moving.
Observation: If Steven Gould had just given his characters interesting musical tastes and let them talk a few times about free will, his regular-guy-has-a-super-power books could have been shelved in the Literature section, too!
---- PRE-FINISHED-READING REVIEW-IN-PROCESS (will incorporate into the final review sometime):
Reading this now, a bit at a time. I am totally digging the POV change, even with those dialogue lead-ins ("CLARE: I was..."), which usually strike me as very 10th-grade, writing-wise. I guess it is possible to pull off nearly anything, if the story/premise is as compelling as this one. The main criticism I have so far -- and it could be negated later on in the novel -- is the characters themselves: they're kind of hoity. I got the sense, during their first-date scene, that everybody must have famous parents and/or a well-known childhood home. Neither of 'em came from the third street from the back in some random 'burb, which is far more typical, I think. I guess I've read and edited too much newbie writing to swallow such speshulness without a wince....more
Kate Chopin wrote this story of female self-actualization back in the late 19th century, but it's as applicable today as it was then. I think we all fKate Chopin wrote this story of female self-actualization back in the late 19th century, but it's as applicable today as it was then. I think we all feel trapped by decisions we've made capriciously, and we all consider, even briefly, escape. The main character in this novel not only realizes that she has trapped herself, but she actively seeks to free herself. Her action, rather than just emotion and despair (a la Goethe), is what separates her from the herd.
Here's the low-down: Edna is a woman, probably in her 30s or so, married to a successful financier and mother to two charming children. She summers on an island, probably to escape summer diseases in the city, New Orleans. One summer she acquires a friend, Robert. Although married women in this society frequently have male friends, Edna is an outsider, and she takes Robert's attentions far too seriously. Apparently, he is similarly infatuated. Basking in Robert's attention, Edna understands at last that she has discarded her youthful dreams and hopes and that her current life is unfulfilling. She takes small steps toward freeing herself, and Robert seems a willing accomplice for a while.
But Robert sees the hopelessness of such an infatuation: Edna is married, after all. Abruptly, Robert leaves the island and heads off to Mexico, presumably to seek his fortune. Edna is devastated. Even after she returns to town, her emotions are in turmoil. But loneliness actually proves helpful. She relearns who she is, reclaims the dreams of her youth, and abandons her husband and children. The author is careful with this last, making it seem tragic and irresponsible, yet ultimately unavoidable. By the last 20 pages, Edna is free.
And then Robert returns. Edna says that she does not feel obligated by their mutual love; she says that she is an independent woman now who is not the property of any other person. But she's lying. Her actions show that she is dependent on Robert, needy for his love and attention. I still can't decide if the author created this break between words and behavior on purpose, or if she really intended us to believe that Edna was wholly independent.
In fact, the only weak part of the story, in my opinion, is that Edna does not take responsibility for her own awakening. She claims that Robert "awoke" her.
Edna does in the end devise a solution that proves her ultimate freedom and independence, and it is the only solution that works. But I won't spoil it by writing it here.
The thing that makes this book so lovely is that it isn't preachy. So many modern girl-power novels just sort of slam you over the head with the girls-first-and-men-suck mantra. This book is about Edna; it doesn't purport to be about all women. It's a very personal work, and the narrative hand is light. It leaves us, the readers, free to recognize the little bits of Edna in us all, and although the rest of us may not ultimately choose Edna's course, it gives us hope that such freedom is possible, even after the fact. ...more
I confess to being a little hesitant going into this book. It is, after all, that most cliched and irritating of literati faves: a coming-of-age storyI confess to being a little hesitant going into this book. It is, after all, that most cliched and irritating of literati faves: a coming-of-age story set in the American South. Lily, a motherless 14-year-old girl lives with her bigoted abusive father on a peach farm in South Carolina. Her goals involve befriending black people and finding information about her long-dead mother. Just summarizing this thing inspires the eye-rolling.
But the book does have some saving graces. First, the writing is incredible. Voice, pacing, transition, and word choice are all stellar. On a micro level, Ms Kidd is magnificent. For instance, despite the predictability of telling such a tale from the young girl's point of view, I thought the decision worked here. Lily herself is absolutely charming. She is completely honest with the reader, often to her own detriment. If the story had been written from anyone else's point of view, Lily would have been pathetic: abused motherless little girl who harbors way too much guilt and angst. This book could have gone off the deep end real easy. But Lily is a survivor and an optimist, and her naive faith drives this book.
Mostly. As you might expect in a story of this sort, there was plenty of menstruation angst, boyfriend nervousness, junior cheerleader tryouts, and the requisite abusive father. All of these things were painful to read. However, something that made this book somewhat fresh was the strong theme of race. For a nice chunk of the book, Lily is on the lam with her black housekeeper Rosaleen, traipsing through 1960s South Carolina after busting Rosaleen out of jail for offending some white guys. I was struck with the parallels to Mark Twain, only here the adventure was overlaid -- sometimes heavy handedly -- with a female sensibility. Nice. In fact, all of the embedded feminism was well done. Recurrent natural images of moonlight and water were beautiful and deliciously pagan. The author went to a lot of trouble to create a new religion just for girls: part Catholicism, part goddess-centered paganism, part ancestor worship. The religious aspect was interesting, but not as compelling as the author wanted it to be. I could tell she was trying to impress me with the notion of Mary as a goddess protector. But I didn't buy it. Lily bought it, though, and that was enough to keep me reading.
The whole book was a quest for independence, I think. To find confidence and drive within, without always needing that crutch of others' acceptance. The book almost achieved that. But it gave in at the last, to deliver a happy ending.
Now that I think about it, much of the book was cliche. But it was also a good read. The strength of the narrative voice saved it, and it had some absolutely gut-twisting parts. The line beginning "She was all I ever wanted" .... both painful and breathtaking. ...more
This book rode the wave of magical realism's popularity, and it certainly wasn't the worst of the lot. It just isn't Gabriel Garcia-Marquez or Juan RuThis book rode the wave of magical realism's popularity, and it certainly wasn't the worst of the lot. It just isn't Gabriel Garcia-Marquez or Juan Rulfo. It's poetic and kind of epic in a Danielle Steele sort of way. However, I much preferred Isabel Allende's Eva Luna books. Her short fiction is very tight, whereas this novel was kind of mushy, and not in the cute way....more
I can still remember my thought when I saw this on the shelf at a mall book store when I was a teen: there's more! And this book, choppy and strung toI can still remember my thought when I saw this on the shelf at a mall book store when I was a teen: there's more! And this book, choppy and strung together with far too many editorial asides by Chris T, was exactly what I hoped it would be. It was like going back to a favorite beach and finding it just as perfect and warm as it was the first time. ...more
I read Lord of the Rings first when I was about eleven or so, and then stayed up all night at a hip boy/girl party in the bathroom with Nathan O. ... I read Lord of the Rings first when I was about eleven or so, and then stayed up all night at a hip boy/girl party in the bathroom with Nathan O. ... talking about ents and elves and whether Tom Bombadil was God. Yes, I was a geeky child. However, all these years later, the story has stuck with me.
First a warning: Don't read Tolkien if you don't appreciate true-omnicient-narrator-style epics. Tolkienisn't a master character builder: he leaves all that to the reader's imagination. The agony in the Aragorn/Arwen romance -- so blatant and operatic in the movies -- was a longing look on Strider's face at Rivendell, an odd comment from Bilbo, and a short no-nonsense Appendix. As with many of the themes in this work, the romance and deep character relationships must be picked from between the lines.
And there is so much between the lines here. The world of Middle-earth lives, utterly lives. Instead of tugging on what-ifs, this fantasy forces readers to imagine. Tolkien's work is the fullest realization of literary world building ever penned.
It is also sophisticated writing, drawing on older forms (epic, romance, tragedy). Tolkien doesn't waste time writing snappy dialogue: the story is too epic to dwindle to individual persons. However, voice shifts subtly depending on point of view: chapters dealing with hobbits contain much more dialogue and detail; chapters dealing with Rohirrim have a poetic rhythm reminiscent of extant Middle English works; chapters dealing with elves are magic and blurry and hard to wrap a mind around. These shifts in style, far from being a novice writer's oops, are intentional and serve as mass characterisation of races and groups. So, what Tolkien foregoes in terms of dialogue he replaces with style and action: a classic example of show not tell.
Having just spouted all that praise, I have to admit that all the criticisms are true: the story does resound with Luddite anti-industrial metaphors, overt Christian themes of salvation and spirit, a structural decision to include songs that doesn't quite work, and fantasy tropes that are now cliche ... now that everyone else has copied them, that is. The thing to remember is that this book started the genre: everything fantasy, from Philip Pullman to George RR Martin, exists in the shadow of this opus.
So, no, it isn't a popcorn read. Get over it. If you invest the time and spirit to read this work, you will be glad you did....more
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