The Bronze Horseman

I try to pride myself on my ability to finish any book no matter how bad it is and for the second time in my life I have failed. Ironically both books were set in Russia. The first was Tolstoy's  War and Peace. I just couldn't get myself to finish a 1000 pages on Russian imperialism and what amounted to really bad characters. I will give tolstoy this, the writing has some literary merit, unfortunately the same cannot be said of the Bronze Horseman.

I started off reading the book and thinking wow this has potential. I actually couldn't put it down for the first 160 pages then I just started to get mad. Tania, who I felt for at first, started to severely grate on my nerves. The mysterious Alexander turned out to be nothing, but a douchebag. He wouldn't know chivalry if it smacked him in the face. There is so much abuse going on in this novel that I just couldn't bring myself to continue.

I didn't even finish the book. I got to page 275 and quit. I no longer care what happens to Alexandra, Tania, her sister Dasha and those poor excuse for parents. If this is romance than no one should ever fall in love. Tania takes self-sacrifice to another level. Alexander is emotionally manipulative. He doesn't have to string either Dasha or Tania along. He could be honest and merely takes Tania's rejection as an excuse to punish her by forcing her to endure the knowledge that he has sex with her sister. The very sister with whom she shares a bed.
The writing style does suck you in, but the characters are so awful that it takes away from whatever else the book has to offer which isn't very much.

The Alchemist

I have been meaning to read this book for awhile now, but only recently got around to it. It's not a very long read, but it's rich with language, symbolism and enough metaphors to make your literature profs foam at the mouth. The story follows a young shepard Santiago who has a dream about going to Egypt. He basically decides to follow the signs that are telling him to go there and comes across a number of different figures. The story is at best confusing, but it doesn't really matter. The language is fluid and almost magical in and of itself. The author takes you on a lyrical journey that harkens back to a different time. In this age of consumption for the masses, it's difficult to find such a beautifully written novel. It's not that long, so one does not get bored, but it does require more than one read to fully understand the story. It's basically a coming of age and focuses on following one's dreams no matter the cost. It's a bit optimistic considering our time and the setting is almost other-wordly. It's hard to picture a Shepard boy who willingly visits a fortune teller and then decides to put everything at risk based on a dream. I do like that Santiago always yearned for travel and the dreams serve more as a catalyst rather than the reason for his journey.

It's definitely a book I would recommend.

Year in Review

It's that time of year when we go over the best of 2011. I had made a vow to read more, but I haven't kept to my promise. There are a few gems I came across this year that captured my heart.

The Hunger Games Trilogy

I kept hearing about this trilogy and I even tried to read it in February, but was not in the appropriate head space. I borrowed the books from a friend and was instantly hooked. The love story is beautiful, but more than that is the frightening world that Collins creates. It's definite must-read.

Persuasion-Jane Austen

Persuasion was the one Jane Austen novel I hadn't read yet and I'm glad that I finally picked it up. Anne is very likeable and it fills me with the warm and fuzzies. Austen's wit is spot on as usual and its definitely a book that everyone should read.

The Help

I really loved this novel. The movie was good, but it lacked the emotional punch that the book could deliver. I loved how it portrayed such delicate issues of race with tenderness and subtlelty.

My apologies

I'd like to apologize to all of my readers because I apparently suck at read-alongs. But, in my defense life got in the way especially school. I will be doing my review of each part starting next week. I promise.

Winter's Tale Read Along

Welcome to Week 1 of the Read-along for Mark Helprin's "Winter's Tale"

One thing that struck me while reading this first chapter was the writing style. This book is so beautifully written. I feel like Helprin's sentence structure is almost musical in its quality. It takes me back to the fairytales and the feeling I get when I read my favorite poem. He also creates beautiful imagery with the White horse in the backdrop of a city covered by snow. I also loved how he had the first chapter being told from the perspective of the horse. Yes, it's a little strange, but this is no Mr. Ed. It's like the horse sees the world much like we humans do. He is very aware of his surroundings and is as curious about what's going on as we are. This first chapter definately kept me engaged and interested.

Questions for my readers:

1. What was your favorite thing about the first chapter?
2. What images popped into your head as you read it?
3. What do you think of that final scene when Peter jumps on the horse's back and they escape together?

Readalong-Winter's Tale

I'll be co-hosting my first read-along with a friend of mine. myfriendamy who introduced me to the world of book-blogging. We'll be reading the book, "Winter's Tale" by Mark Helprin. Each week we'll write up a summary/review and pose some questions for our followers. I hope everyone gets involved.

Read-along Schedule

November 7th

Part I--A White Horse Escapes-Beverly

November 14th 

The rest of Part I

November 21st

Part II

November 28th

Part III

December 5th

Part IV and Epilogue

Memoirs are made of This

Book: Memoirs are made of this
Author: Swan Adamson

I picked this book up in the under 10$ bin at chapters a few weeks ago since I was looking for a light read to keep me company on the bus rid to and from class. I found that it was really good and finished it in less than a week. The book basically talks about Venus's Gilroy attempt to put her life together after 3 marriages and divorces before the age of 25. She gets the opportunity to work as an assistant to this crazy Editor of Aura magazine. This is a sort of Devil-Wears-Prada on crack. She spends most of the novel trying to just keep her head above water and figure out who she is. She has no real desire to become some maven of the fashion world nor does she aspire to do so. The most telling aspect of this novel is how the writer depicts how people in positions of power abuse those who work for them. She details the abuse she basically gets from her boss and how she is so willing to take it until one day she cracks and can't handle it anymore. Much of the plot is ludicrous and highly unlikely to occur, but its the perspective of the relatable heroine that makes it well worth the read.

On a Scale of 1-10, I give this a solid 7.