William Goldman - The Princess Bride

Mish @ Stage And Canvas convinced me to read this book with a comment on the Great Movie Adaptations' Weekly Geeks. It sounded like a fun, light-hearted read, and that's exactly what it was. Fun. Light-hearted. Feel good. It's a book that combines the best elements of all the classic fairy tales, and exaggerates them to the point of hilarity. There's true love, poison, revenge, hatred, pride, giants, miracle men, witches, great fencers, epic duels, beasts, torture, the villain and his cronies, and the hero who has to save the day.

It's a complicated plot, where in the opening section, the most beautiful girl in the world, Buttercup, realises she's in love with the farm boy, Westley, and she professes her love, which is obviously reciprocated. However, Westley decides to go to America to seek his fortune, but he is killed by the Dread Pirate Roberts. Devastated, Buttercup says she must never love again. And she doesn't.

When Prince Humperdinck  (don't you love the name?) finds her, he asks for her hand in marriage, saying the matrimony needn't be bound by love. Buttercup agrees to the union, but, before the grand wedding, she is kidnapped by a genius Sicilian hunchback, a giant (who fears loneliness), and a wizard fencer (who is seeking revenge on the nobleman who killed his father). A man in black, better with the sword than one of the best fencers in time, stronger than the giant, and cleverer than the hunchback saves her, but ends up leading her to the nightmarish Fire Swamp, with quicksand and ROUS, or Rodents of Unusual Size. And this is there I stop telling the tale, lest I give too much away.

How can you not love a book which has lines like:

My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.

or,

"Fool!" cried the hunchback. "You fell victim to one of the classic blunders. The most famous is 'Never get involved in a land war in Asia,' but only slightly less well known is this: 'Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line.'"

He was quite cheery until the iocane powder took effect.

I was literally laughing out loud, and was thoroughly entertained. I loved the movie, and I love the book a little bit more, specially for its twisted plot, and for the obscure ending.

What, in my opinion, is truly genius though, is the fact that this is supposed to be the "good parts" version of S. Morgenstern's classic tale of true love and high adventure. However, S. Morgenstern is a figment of Goldman's imagination, and doesn't actually exist. Why is this genius? Well, only because at the beginning of the book Goldman states it's his favourite book ever, and his father read it to him while he was recovering from pneumonia. Throughout the book, Goldman adds "notes," explaining some of the cuts he has made, for the original work was apparently epically long. These notes also include some of his thoughts, like, how a children's book is bound to have a happy ending, and how, the leading lady will not be killed by sharks half-way through the book!

'Life isn't fair, Bill. We tell our children that it is, but it's a terrible thing to do. It's not only a lie, it's a cruel lie. Life is not fair, and it never has been, and it's never going to be.'

These comments from the so-called "abridger" reads completely independently, and, can easily be skipped/skim-read. But then, Goldman talks at length about the trouble he had with his fictitious book's estate, and he makes an incredibly convincing case - which, retrospectively, I attribute to being satirical as well.

It's a great book for children, and adults, and it just is a fairy tale as no other.

Rating : A+

Amy Tan - The Joy Luck Club

Amy Tan's debut novel, The Joy Luck Club, is the first book by her that I have read. It is also the first book I've read with strong Chinese references, so I wasn't quite sure as to what I should expect from this book. The Joy Luck Club is the story of four Chinese women who have immigrated to the United States of America, under different circumstances, and all four are attempting to bring up their daughters in America - daughters who think like Americans, despite their mothers best efforts to instil in them their Chinese culture and heritage.

The San Francisco version of the "Joy Luck Club" was set up by the late Suyuan Woo (June Woo's mother, whose death the reader learns of in the opening lines of the book), and it was a gathering of four women, with their husbands, as they played mah jong, and invested the "winnings" in the stock markets . Suayan Woo had started the same back in China, pre-immigration, during the time of the Japanese invasion, when hope was scarce, and joy minimal.

Each week, we would forget past wrongs done to us. We weren't allowed to think a bad thought. We feasted, we laughed, we played games, lost and won, we told the best stories. And each week, we could hope to be lucky. That hope was our only joy. And that's how we came to call our little parties Joy Luck.

While the stories of the daughters were typically American, with marital problems, single motherhoods, identity crises, and struggling between being American, with a Chinese exterior, the stories of the mothers were far more interesting (to me). Be it the escape from China during the war, to leaving babies on the road, with gold on the side, so that someone with a good heart could give the babies a good home. One of the mothers was forced to marry someone who was very rich, and everyone considered her to be lucky. Desperate not to let her family down, she lived up to the expectations, until, she managed to orchestrate an escape, with her new family's blessings. There are stories on losing children, of losing faith, and, being the fourth wife to a rich man, after the first husband had passed away... and how, being the fifth is better than being the fourth!

It was an interesting witty insight into a historical war-ridden China, but, I found that the daughters had very stereotypical characters, and nothing made them stand out. They were selfish, self-obsessed, and at times, it came across as though they were almost ashamed of their Chinese heritage - something one of the mothers pondered on as well. There was jealousy, rebellion and pettiness, that I found both, crass and cringeworthy. But, it was all very superficial as well, and I found that I couldn't care less about them - even if I tried. The writing, all in all, was good, and flowed naturally. It was funny, in pieces, and poignant in places. It was bleak, at times, but not bordering on complete despondence, thereby keeping the hyperbolism to the minimal - something I appreciated, for in books like these, occasionally, I find that the author gets carried away.

Have you read this book? Or, anything else by Amy Tan? What do you think of it, and would you recommend any of her other books?

Rating: 3.5

Neil Gaiman - Coraline

Coraline has just moved to a new house, and after acquainting herself with the neighbours, she sets about to 'explore' the place, for, you see, she is a self-acclaimed "explorer". She finds the well she's been warned to stay away from, just to know what to stay away from, and spends as much time outdoors as possible. However, one rainy day, she stumbles upon a door in the living room, which opens only to greet her with a brick wall. And apparently, nothing on the other side - or so Coraline's mother tells her.

However, surprise, surprise! One fine day, the brick wall disappears and Coraline finds herself in a parallel world, where the "flat" seems to be an exact replica of her flat - including Mother and Father, or the "other mother" and the "other father" - who look similar to Coraline's parents but...

Coraline went into the kitchen, where the voice had come from. A woman stood in the kitchen with her back to Coraline. She looked a little like Coraline's mother. Only...

Only her skin was white as paper.

Only she was taller and thinner.

Only her fingers were too long, and they never stopped moving, and her dark-red fingernails were curved and sharp.

"Coraline?" the woman said. "Is that you?"

And then she turned around. Her eyes were big black buttons.

Her "other" parents don't want much - they just want an obedient daughter to stay with them, and love them.... and when Coraline's ready to commit to that, they can sew the buttons on to her eyes as well! Creepy...

I loved this book, for its simplicity, innocence, and of course, the feel-good factor. It's a children's books, but the story is enjoyable for most people, and while there are bits and bobs which are predictable, one has to keep in mind the audience the book is meant to cater to. You have talking cats, spying rats, an unassuming heroine, and some great characters.

I haven't seen the movie, yet, but I do want to... might have to rent it on DVD or something.

This was my first book by Neil Gaiman, but I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for more of his works.

Rating: 4

Lloyd Jones - Mister Pip

Set in Papua New Guinea, in the 1990s, this book is narrated by Matilda, an adolescent, who witnesses the horrors of civil war first hand. The book opens with many people fleeing the island, and it being lost to the outside world, as the 'redskins' (the government soldies) and the 'rambos' (rebels) advances.

One white man ("the last white man on the island"), however, commonly referred to as Pop Eye, stays on in the village, despite the odds of him fleeing being far greater than some of the others. Mr. Watts is his name, and he's a massive fan of Dickens. The responsibility of teaching the children falls on him, and he reads them the epic novel, Great Expectations, which allows the children's imagination to run away to the Victorian England, and befriend Pip (the protagonist of Great Expectations).

During the blockade, we could not waste fuel or candles. But as the rebels and the redskins went on butchering one other, we had another reason for hiding under the cover of night. Mr. Watts had given us kids another world to spend the night in. We could escape to another place. It didn't matter that it was Victorian England. We found we could easily get there. It was just the blimmin' dogs and the blimmin' roosters that tried to keep us here.

The redskins mistake Pip to be an actual person, though - the result of a shrine created by Matilda on the beach - and, they initiate a horrific manhunt, which leads to the thin line between reality and fiction being erased. Houses and possessions are burnt down, makeshift roofs are created, and the children continue trying to find an escape in the world so artfully created by Dickens.

This is an amazing book, that brings in multifarious cultural thoughts and highlights the great divides. For example, Matilda's mother believes that Mr. Watts is not providing the children with proper education, due to the lack of religious education. Instead, he spends time talking of a fictional character which doesn't exist, and says that the devil is a symbol.

It's barbaric, emotional, heart-wrenching and fascinating. There's despair, which is always highlighted by hope. There are sacrifices made, nightmarish experiences, death, and the consequences of each decision render the reader awed and despondent. I cannot help but wonder what would've been, if Matilda's mother had not made that one impulsive decision...

The power of story-telling, the wonder of literature, and the importance of the imagination are themes so beautifully brought out, that they almost perfectly accentuate the diabolic war. Beauty and ugliness will always be held in the same hand.

This is the second book by Lloyd Jones that I've read in recent times, and I have to say that I found The Book Of Fame more lyrical, although the story didn't really appeal to me. However, the story of Mister Pip is amazing, but I found myself yearning for the writing present in The Book Of Fame.

Rating: 4

Ann Brashares - The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants

This book was recommended to me by a younger cousin, and I figured, it'll be a fun young adult book, which would be a pleasant distraction from most of the reading I've done this year. Also, I was planning on reading a young-adult book for the Take A Chance Challenge #9. Figured, by the challenge's name, I should try a book I wouldn't normally pick up. At the outset, I might as well say that I didn't really enjoy this book. The characters were shallow, the plot not that great, and I couldn't really sympathize or relate to any of the characters. Considering there are four characters, this is slightly depressing.

Reviewing haiku-style:

Not recommended Shallow characters, dull plot, Summer! Says it all.

Reviewing limerick-style:

Apart during the summer for the first time, Four best friends deal with this so-called crime, A pair of pants they swear to share, Through the summer, post it to one another to wear. And, in the end, it's all sublime.

Reviewing free verse-style:

'Tis the story of four friends, who spend a summer apart,

In Greece, at camp, at home, and at dad's.

They learn, they grow, they mature, make choices,

Write letters to each other, echoing their head's voices.

Lena at Greece, with her grandparents who she's never met,

They trying fixing her up with a boy - she starts to fret.

Things blow out of proportion on a misunderstanding -

Lena, filled with guilt, spends her summer repenting.

Then there's Carmen, excited to spend the summer with her father,

Unknown to her, she's about to meet her step-mother,

Anger and fury at her dad, leads her to break a window pane,

She runs away back home, on the first plane.

Bridget is away at a sports camp, where she makes new friends,

Meets an older boy, an instructor, who she wants as a boyfriend.

They're attracted to each other, but can't really date,

But an impulsive decision leads them to await their fate.

Finally, there's Tibby, who's at home, working at a store,

The manager's mean, the job a chore!

She befriends young Bailey, dying of cancer, full of life,

Turns out the relationship they form leads to strife.

As each of their summer takes a turn for the worse,

Almost as though things were cursed,

The pants are in the hands of one of the friends,

Gives them courage to make amends.

And when the friends meet each other at the end,

They remind each other of how the pants were a godsend!

Rating: 1

Terry Pratchett - A Hat Full Of Sky

Background:

This book was picked up as part of the Take A Chance Challenge - Random Word Selection. The word I picked out was 'sky', and I entered the word in Amazon. The second result I got was A Hat Full Of Sky, and it was an easy decision. I've never read a Terry Pratchett book before, but I've had wonderful things about his books, and figured, this is a golden opportunity handed over to me on a silver plate. How can I refuse? It was a great start to the challenge, for I loved the book, and am going to try reading more of Pratchett. So, if you have any recommendations, please let me know.

Review:

This is the sequel to The Wee Free Men, and it follows Tiffany Arching's adventures, this time with her being an apprentice to research witch, Miss Level. Tiffany, still relatively new to the world of witches, hopes to learn from her employer, and become a fully qualified witch, during her apprenticeship. However, things don't quite pan out that way, as she helps Miss Level take care of the needy in the village, without actually using any magic. Miss Level says a witch doesn't always need to do magic. All a witch needs to do is not 'go to the bad side'.

However, Tiffany has one trick, which she hasn't shared with anyone yet - she can step out of her body at will, leaving it an empty vessel. What she doesn't know is, an ancient and bodiless spirit (a hiver) is just waiting to inhabit her body, and take over. And so it does. What ensues is drama, as the cleverest of witches (Granny Weatherwax, Miss Level) and the Nac Mac Feegles (a wee fairy race (they are extremely tiny), who protect Tiffany, from the time she acted as their 'Kelda' - this was done in the previous book of the series) attempt to get rid of the hiver, and bring the real Tiffany back, before the hiver takes over completely, and Tiffany is lost forever, in her body. At the same time, the hiver's disregard for anything moral coupled with Tiffany's powers wreaks havoc, as she turns a man into a toad, 'borrows' Miss Level's broomstick, and goes on an expensive shopping spree which, without her powers, she'd never be able to afford... she's turning over to the 'bad side'.

This is a well-written page-turner, which has oodles of dry humor. The characters are extremely well-drawn, and one cannot help but associate with all of them, from Tiffany to the Nac Mac Feegles (who are probably the best drawn out group). Despite the Nac Mac Feegles being drunken thieves, you admire them being loyal and good=hearted, while simultaneously appreciating the lack of conscientiousness. There's a part in the book where Miss Level is horrified that they're talking about invading her body, to get the hiver out, for it would mean invading her privacy. They reply saying they've already read her diary, and if it was that personal, she wouldn't keep it in the sock drawer. And when Tiffany goes on a perilous mission, one of the Nac Mac Feegles joins her, saying he's promised his wife that he'd help her eliminate the hiver.

As you'd expect for any children/young adult book, it demarcates between good and bad, courage and cowardice, loyalty and flippancy. The obnoxious fall, and the good rise to the occasion to help. So, the feel-good affect that this book has is an added bonus.

Rating: 4

Jay Asher - 13 Reasons Why

We've all faced the wrath of high school. Either we were too fat, or too thin. Either people expected too much of us, or nothing at all. Either we were 'cool', or we were 'geeks'. Some of us made our peace with it, while some of us still hate that part of our past. Children can be cruel. Adolescents more so. And this book draws on that very attribute of teenagers, to show how harmless 'fun' resulted in a young attractive girl deciding that suicide is her only escape. Thirteen reasons. Thirteen. The Baker's Dozen. And the protagonist is called Hannah Baker.

Imagine this. You wake up one morning, and see a parcel on your front door. I don't know about you, but I love parcels, specially unexpected ones (i.e. not Amazon parcels!). You open them eagerly, to find a bunch of tapes. Tapes in the twenty-first century? Yes. Exactly. It's unheard of. But, your curiosity gets the better of you, and you remember the stereo in the garage. You pop in the first tape, and you hear the voice of a girl you used to know, a girl you liked a lot, a girl who chose to kill herself. And you start...

Or well, Clay Jensen did. At the very outset, the message the tapes carried were clear: if someone was listening to the tapes, it meant they were one of the reasons why Hannah Baker decided to end her life. She refused to inform the listener which tape was theirs, but just made the one promise: But fear not, if you received this lovely little box, your name will pop up.

The story follows Clay around the city at night, as he listens to Hannah's story, and traces her steps in sync with her narration, that spreads seven tapes/thirteen sides. Be it a cafe, an ice cream parlor, or her old house. Even to the house where they once made out... and as the thirteen reasons unfold, one thing is clear: Clay's life will never be the same again. Getting a message from the beyond can shock you to bits, but being told that you're one of the reasons why a girl committed suicide - that's much worse.

The reader can almost sense the emotions and pain that Clay is experiencing, as he listens to these stories, as he reconstructs some of the events, and as he finds himself sickened by some of the acts of gross misconduct his classmates are capable of. From the 'nicest' girl in school using Hannah, to the biggest jerks objectifying her. From her first boyfriend spreading rumors about their relationship, to a casual date with a 'goofy' guy resulting in him trying to finger her. She seeks help, in her own way, but doesn't get it.... and Clay constantly reminds us that he would've been there for her, but she didn't reach out to him. And he recalls his memories with her... be it at work, at school, or at that 'party'. Even more so, he doesn't quite fathom what he's doing on these tapes....

It's a sad story, albeit beautifully written. It doesn't focus on depression. Instead, it's a page-turner, keeping the reader in suspense; the perverse part of us wanting to know more about why someone's decided to take this humungous step... about what finally pushed them over the edge. It reminds us again (not that we need reminding) about the futility of bullying, and how we should notice people's silent pleas for help. Never know, when people are looking for one reason to cling on to life, every little helps. And how, sometimes, someone, makes up their mind to do something, and are completely calm, composed and at peace with it. And nope - it's not always a cry for attention.

Lastly, I do want to highlight that this is a work of fiction. In fact, it's Asher's debut novel, and he claims he got the idea from the audio guides used by museums. While this isn't available in most UK high street stores, if you do stumble upon it, give it a read. It'll make you smile wanly at moments, and it will bring a tear to your eye.

Overall rating: 7.5/10

Michael Morpurgo - Waiting For Anya

Twelve year old Jo, a shepherd boy, lives in a small French mountain village, during the late 1930s-early 1940s. World War II's broken out, and Jo's father is away in action, while Jo is assuming some of his father's responsibilities, and simultaneously attending school. The War is far away from this village, and to Jo it almost seems quite unreal, and he's unsure of his opinion about it. What Jo thought about the war and about the occupation seemed to depend on whether he had just talked to Maman or to Grandpere: he could never make up his mind.

His mother just wanted the War to end, and his father to come home, whereas his grandfather was eyeing victory.

However, things change drastically for Jo, when he discovers that Widow Horcada and her son in law are smuggling young Jewish children into Spain, in order to help  them escape a worse fate at the hands of the Germans. The Widow is supposed to be an unpopular woman in the village, due to her sharp tongue and dislike for children - The children in the village called her 'The Black Widow', and not just on account of the long black shawl she always wore over her head.

Bernard, the son in law, and the Widow insist that Jo keeps a secret, and Jo, albeit unhappy about lying to his mother and grandfather, agrees to do so. He even takes on the responsibility of helping the Widow with her food-shopping, as more and more children find shelter in her barn. However, when the Germans start patrolling the Spanish border, danger for the children and the adult pair seems imminent. Jo continues to stick to his convictions to help them, at all costs, and earns the trust and respect of the Widow as well, over time.

This is an adventure story, a story about the Holocaust, and World War II. More importantly, it's a story about unity, human nature, bravery, friendship and a child's innocence. It talks about the pointlessness of War, and how both parties stand to lose. It touches upon how some Germans don't understand what they're fighting for, and how they are losing their families and loved ones as well. It poignantly shows the difficulties a soldier faces on coming back home, after four years, when life has moved on for this family, despite his absence. And it is essentially a story about a few people who are ready to sacrifice everything to do the right thing.

A descriptive, eloquently written text, Waiting For Anya is one of those books that is bound to bring a tear to the eye, specially right at the end, when Jo is introduced to Anya, Bernard's daughter. Anya and Bernard left Paris together, but got separated en route to the Widow's place. They had a promise that they'd wait for each other there, and Bernard had full faith that his daughter would be back one day: Two years, ten years, however long it takes. She'll come. And when she does, we'll be waiting for her just like I promised her.

Overall, a 7 on 10 - probably a notch below the likes of The Book Thief and The Boy In The Striped Pajamas, when it comes to children's books based during the World War II era, but, a must-read anyway.

Alice Sebold - The Lovely Bones

This is Sebold’s debut novel, and while there’s lots of loopholes in the story, the premise in itself is interesting.

A 14 year old girl is raped and killed by a neighbor on her way home from school, one evening. In the story, the girl, Susie Salmon (the book does start: My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie), observes her family and her friends in the aftermath of her disappearance, from heaven, as they struggle to come to terms with it, and deal with it in a variety of ways. I say, ‘her disappearance’ as her body is not found, all the cops find is an elbow, which they identify as hers.

While the family falls apart; with the mother leaning on the cops for support, and eventually running away to California; the father correctly suspecting one of the neighbors and being hell-bent on proving his guilt; the sister swinging between missing her older sister and dealing with people staring at her and only noticing her dead sister; and her younger brother not knowing why his sister isn’t coming home. A very unlikely person takes on the role of trying to bring the family together...

The story touches on many interesting ideas, like how the dead watch their near and dear ones and want to be close to them, as much as possible; as well as, how their near and dear ones can actually sense them at times. It addresses ‘the cold chill’ that people feel when someone dies, and the soul touches them on its way to heaven, and how they’re perpetually haunted by them (imagine being a doctor in the ICU!). There are also traces of wistfulness in Susie’s narration, as she sees her friends and sister growing up, going to college, having their first love and everything else which she’ll never be able to do. Some of the detail and emotions present in the book (specially in the first chapter, when the rape and subsequent murder actually happens and the family reports her missing and later on, when her father remembers her) is well carved out (excuse the crass pun), and beautifully written. It does remind us that the author herself was a victim of sexual assault during her college days.

However, like I said, the premise is interesting, but... the book doesn’t work like a mystery story with people being intent on finding the guilty party (it only seems important to the father and sister). Then you have the whole chapter where Susie occupies her friend’s body, to kiss her crush, which, in my opinion, is pushing it. It’s not supposed to be the X-Files after all. And of course the whole idea of an ever-expanding heaven just seems like overkill.

It’s a book with potential, probably well-written for a first novel. Overall, a 6 on 10?