10 posts tagged “novel”
There is really only one word to describe this novel: devastating. There are very few authors that are brave enough to write about the harshness and unpredictability that drives our lives and we all know is real. To throw it in your face so that you can barely feel you can breathe... but then pick you up by showing you there's no real 'end', there's no real 'tragedy' because time keeps moving, things keep changing, and everything will eventually take a new shape.
While you're reading this you can't help but think you have it all figured out, that you already know what will happen. Trust me, you will be wrong.
What made me HAVE TO read this book was the fact that the plot was beyond anything I could have ever imagined. You know how sometimes you thinks you've seen it all, that every new story will always be familiar one way or another. Again, you will be wrong.
Sara and Brian have two children: Jesse and Kate. When Kate is only two she is diagnosed with a very rare case of leukemia that pretty much guarantees her eventual death. Sara, as any other mother would, refuses to let go and give up. So a third child, Anna, is conceived, using the proper genetic methods to guarantee she is the perfect donor for her sister, who will provide the necessary donations to keep her alive... for as long as possible. At the age of 13 Anna decides to sue her parents for rights to her own body, she wants to stop feeling like she's alive only to save her sister.
Things are NOT as clear cut as they may seem to you right now, and the ending that is probably shaping in your head is NOT what will happen.
This is the story of a family falling apart because suddenly parents cannot be parents but rather saviors who must do whatever it takes to keep one of their children alive. While the other two can only wonder what it'd been like to have a family.
I have never struggled so much reading something... it was really tough.
Jodi is an amazing writer, let me be clear about that. I totally totally loved her style, she is concise, beautiful and the amount of research done for the novel is just IMPRESSIVE. As a reader, her words are like fine chocolate. But I have to be honest... it'll be a while before I feel brave enough to read one of her works again.
Read it if you have a brave heart and can keep your eyes on that light at the end of the tunnel. Because no matter how dark she may make it... she'll never let you forget it IS really there.
So... a lion is never gonna fall in love with a lamb, we all know that. It's totally ridiculous, impossible, unrealistic and I'm sure some will even argue (especially those emotionally unavailable ones... =P) stupid. I can't disagree with that (though I do with that very last word there) it is ridiculous to think that a predator could ever love its prey, it'd go against the 'rules of nature' because you can't fight who you are. However, if we were to put ourselves in a world where this could be possible (which is what this novel does) it WOULD indeed be quite an interesting scenario. If we were to have a predator fighting to keep the very little bit of humanity left in them, trying not to be the monster they were made to become... I personally find that to be a very interesting struggle that would give anyone A LOT to write about. That's why I enjoyed this book, it went beyond anything we've ever known and made it seem not only fascinating but also believable, and I doubt that was easy (although it may seem that way, but then again... that's what good writers do). I was hooked, and although at the very end it did get a bit corny for my taste... =P I still enjoyed it and I'm definitely gonna read the other books too now. I liked Stephenie as a writer, these are really the kind of books I can enjoy, because they are simple but still manage to go beyond just 'narrating a story'. She didn't just tell it but explained it with the use of more than one beautiful phrase. That's my kind of thing, and for a simple lazy brain like mine it was heaven =P.
It was really interesting to find the irrevocable attraction between the simple and dull girl who does not think a lot of herself and doesn't really seem to have a lot to offer... and the god-like creature whose every move is enchanting and perfect, someone who can do no wrong... So opposites attract (what a surprise... =P) and the pedrator finds himself on his knees for the one person no one would have thought deserved such an honour. Interesting... it says a lot about what's really there I guess...
"When life offers you a dream so far beyond any of your expectations, it's not reasonable to grieve when it comes to an end."
My fave line in the entire novel. Mmm <3
It’s really interesting when you read a story that you already know and you find that it’s told in such a way that it seems like a new different story, even though the storyline is pretty much the same. Usually when I really enjoy a novel is because I was able to find in it something I’d never found before. In this novel I have to say I was so pleased with how real and believable the writing was, it is not often (I think) that you find a writer capable of giving a character such a strong and steady tone and attitude throughout the entire novel you do not doubt for a second every word proves what and who they are. It is different from the film though, I could not bring myself to say I like one better than the other because each one has a different charm... I’d have to say though I definitely prefer the Barbara Covett in the movie, just because in the novel she seems a more calmed and composed (old) lady, who although is just as lonely and delusional seems more reasonable at times, and not as creepy. With Sheba... well in this case to me it felt like a different character to the one I’d seen in the movie, there were so many more details that explained her more but at the same time made her so... irritating! This was the story of a woman who was now lost because she had not been smart enough to make the right choices in her life, so then once she finds the comfort of someone else that always seems to understand her she becomes dependant on her, even after she realises this is someone she cannot really trust. It’s interesting to see how sometimes people can be so desperate to just have someone there they’d accept and hold on to someone that’s there for all the wrong reasons. It’s a good read, and a really interesting story, with a strong taste of reality that doesn’t let you think this could never really happen.
“Home is where you feel at home. I’m still looking.”
This novel was a miracle, a sweet miracle full of hope! FINALLY, after two years, I love and enjoy reading a text prescribed in one of my literature units! Finally they give us something good to read! :P (Woooo go UWS… )
For me usually
the greatest thing in a novel is the plot, the story, the message, the meaning…
characters are always important and essential (of course) but to me they were always
just another part of the lot, one of the many different pieces of the world of
the novel. This is the first time I ever see a character not only transcend the
boundaries of a written text, but also become the ONLY thing in it. Holly
Golightly is the main character in the story, and because it is HER story she
takes over it with that magnificent elegance and charm I’d never seen before.
She’s not a woman of an honest living; she’s a prostitute… but THANKFULLY
before any of the typical prejudices start intoxicating our minds she makes
sure everyone knows she’s not someone you could ever dare to offend. And
although she is a woman that is lost and can’t find her way home, that doesn’t
really have any friends, and whose true character you doubt until the end… she
IS a woman that walks around holding her head up, that feels no shame
whatsoever to show how much she respects herself, and that has a lot more class
and pride than any ‘honest’ woman out there. You will have to read it though, if you really want to get it... I don't think I could say in a couple of words exactly why Holly is so amazing, you have to hear her speak, and then if you're lucky... you'll get it :).
The novel is well written, has a good story, a transcending message and many different meanings… but (to me) Holly was the one and only diamond in the mine.
I definitely
recommend it, it’s a great read and definitely worth it :)
I have to say this is the first time I ever read such a bittersweet novel, the first time I ever find a novel that manages to deal so well with both the pain and the humour of this story, to the point that there’s never any awkwardness or conflict felt because of either, and to do that with such a difficult topic like widowhood throws a lot of complimentary roses to the writer. It is a great book because it’s really easy to read and quite enjoyable (though if I was to be honest and picky I could point out a few things here and there… but I won’t :P cos that’s just me you know :P), but at the same time it can be difficult (though always interesting at the same time) because just the thought of ever going through something like that… is unnerving.
Holly is a woman who believed to be happily married to the love of her life: Gerry, but when he falls sick and passes away… she is left to face a new life without the one person she lived for, and though she believed she was going to have to do it alone, she was wrong. It was all supposed to be a joke, no one actually ever thought that ‘The List’ Gerry always said he’d give his wife so that she could survive if she ever had to live without him, would actually become Holly’s only guidance and strength to get through losing him. He leaves her ten envelopes, one for every resting month of the year, each one with different ‘commandments’ she MUST do but not so that she can survive, but so that she learns to live again, so that she finally finds who she is when she starts to live for herself. It is a long and painful journey, and quite honestly it’s exhausting to live it with her… because you just see her going round and round in the same circle… and getting nowhere. Because it’s not only after she understands she has to change the way she lives that she can actually begin to find her way.
This IS a romance that wants to show true love never dies and the best thing about it is that it’s not corny or cheesy… it’s actually quite believable, because every one of the characters is loyal and honest, so there’s nothing that you can question. It’s a really good read, and REALLY funny at times! So yes I definitely recommend it! :)
It was really cool to go back to the genre of crime and suspense again, hadn’t read something like this in a while and I enjoyed it. It’s just really exciting and intriguing to find out the truth little by little, to get confused and then get back on track again all the time wondering and needing to know what really is going on and why. Not my favourite style but it wasn’t difficult to read or follow, the worse comment I have is that there were some parts and descriptions that I thought were completely unnecessary and irrelevant to the main plot, just a waste of ink if you ask me… ha :P. But overall yeah it was a really interesting book.
For the second time in a year a sixteen year old girl has disappeared in the town of Duluth, first it was Kerry McGrath, and now it’s Rachel Deese. The town is horrified and panicking with the idea of a serial killer in the loose that threatens the lives of every other young girl in town. Lieutenant Jonathan Stride is in charge of finding Rachel and solving her disappearance (because Kerry’s case was never resolved), and his investigation leads him to the difficult task of finding the truth among the many lies and twists that have been drawn around it. You never really know what really happened and who is responsible for what until the very end, and although I have to admit the final truth was not as shocking and dark as I expected it to be… it’s an enjoyable ride to get there. I recommend it yes, it will keep you hooked just because you WANT to find out the truth and although you may want to run to it this book only lets you take one step at the time, which in all makes it more painful… in a good way! :P
I was a bit nervous when I started reading this book, because being such a HUGE Evanovich fan reading something completely NEW was a bit scary because she’s gotten me used to having such high expectations... I was afraid of being disappointed, but thankfully… I was NOT, at all. Soon enough she made me feel at home again, lost in that amazing and refreshing style of hers that amuses me like nothing else can. Although the story was completely new and so were the characters she kept her magic. Though I have to admit it’s not AS funny as the ones from the Plum series… it’s still really good, I just loved it… loved loved loved it, I have NO complains :D.
I’m gonna be completely honest… I HATE doing plot summaries… honestly, believe it or not for some reason I just can’t do it, it’s like trying to put thousands of words in a couple of sentences… ugh NO! Lol, it’s just such an injustice! There’s no need for me to do it anyway if you are really interested in the book google it and I’m sure you’ll find plenty of reviews and summaries! Or you know what? I’ll make it easier for you, go HERE there you go! My job is done! :D But well yes I do definitely recommend it if you want to read something funny and refreshing, I swear to God there’s just NOTHING like Evanovich <3
If there is something REALLY scary… is to not know if you can truly trust those you love the most, those who mean the most to you. To have you consider (even for a second) that everything you loved and admired about a person… could be a lie. (*shivers*).
You know how usually there’s a book that then is made into a movie? Well apparently now they are doing it the other way around (movie made book), this is the first time I ever read something like that and to be honest I wasn’t sure about it just because a movie is such a different text from a novel, and quite shamefully I must admit I didn’t think a novel could properly be made from a movie. Gladly though I was wrong (DAMN WRONG) and I am SO glad I was! Because Chiel made a DAMN GOOD job with this novel! Beautifully written, I was completely hooked; I kept coming back to it and just couldn’t put it down! (I hadn’t felt that rush in a while! <3), it was just SO beautiful to again be able to enjoy a novel without having any issues! (<3), see THAT is what makes a great book!
‘Music Box’ is the story of a Hungarian man, Mike Laszlo, who since the very first pages of the book appears as a dedicated, kind, warm and loving single father who takes care of his children and raises them up to be good and kind people. He’s an amazing father, the best grandfather and a wonderful friend. A good and respectable citizen who has never, in his time in America, done something wrong. Suddenly though he is accused of being a Nazi war criminal guilty of horrible and hideous acts of violence and cruelty. His American citizenship is threatened to be taken away and he will be sent back to Hungary be tried and hanged. His daughter, Ann Talbot, is a criminal lawyer who straight away knows this is just an absurd mistake, because she knows her father and in her heart she knows he’s the wonderful man that has always been her inspiration. So she takes the tasks of defending her father in court to prove to the world how wrong they are to accuse her father of such horrible allegation. However, as the lawsuit develops… Ann’s certainties become doubts and she is left with nothing but an unfulfilled question. Although she won’t admit it, what she was sure of before… she can’t help but doubt now.
You are hooked aren’t you? It is quite an interesting plot, the entire way through you will probably wonder (like I did) whether Mike is really guilty or not. And like me, you may think you know it already, but (maybe like me… maybe not…) you may be wrong (or right).
I can’t say anything else without giving away the ending (awww pity…) but I will say that it was a very good read, and I enjoyed it, and suffered through it too…
Pdta- I am DYING to see the movie now but I haven’t been able to find it on the net (SNIF!) If someone (somehow) knows how to find it PLEASE let me know!
You know when you see everyone else around you agree with something you REALLY don’t agree with?
Don’t you start to wonder what it is that you are missing? Or what it is that is not letting you see what everyone else can see? Or well even, what is wrong with everyone else? Lol. This novel put me through this in class, and though I don’t regret my understanding of it or think that I am wrong and everyone else is right (or vice versa), it put me in a place I had never been before, and though I didn’t like it… I’m thankful for that.
Despair is the recollection of Hermann’s writings (the main character); a man who is seen to be SO lost in his own egocentric world he only cares, believes and trusts what he sees, thinks and believes. Anything else is rubbish, stupidity, a joke, not worth considering. So he lives sitting on his own mental throne where he judges, condemns and laughs at anyone that doesn’t agree with him, pitying them and abusing them. He walks with shadows all around him, doubting everything and not believing in anything else but himself. The novel shows the horrible consequences of all of this as he slowly loses touch with reality and drowns in his own ideas and beliefs. He is so consumed by them his eyes only show him a reflection of them, so when he meets Felix he believes to have found someone that looks exactly like him (though to everyone else they don’t look anything alike), and this ‘marvelous’ event makes him elaborate a plan that to him is a work of art, his perfect work of art, a perfect crime, a murder.
Apparently this novel is funny… my teacher said (and the critics agree with him) that Hermann was a likeable character to the point that the consequences of his actions do not cause outrage…, and I… well, I don’t agree (AT ALL). I didn’t laugh once (I must have not picked up the sarcasm) and I was outraged by what he did (he killed someone HELLO?), so it seems I just didn’t get it… and that’s OK, this kind of stuff must simply not be for me (or maybe I did get it but was just too offended by it… apparently I’m very moral). I understand the author’s attempt to show reality is what’s inside one’s head and that morality changes in every person, but I found it really hard to enjoy it… just because I couldn’t stand Hermann, as soon as I saw his attitude… I was bothered and disinterested. What I did admire was the author’s sense of sacrifice, how he sacrificed his own writing style to portray his character… wow, just wow… now that’s love for art! <3
I recommend it if you want to try something different, maybe you will like it! One day I will probably read it again… just to see if I find what I seem to have missed, it’s not that I am sure I have… but I think it’s important to take on things you don’t enjoy too sometimes, cos after all you do learn from them.
