Ender Who?

It seems Ender's name has been on the lips of many as of late. My friend 'Applesauce' first suggested I read the book "Ender's Game". When he told me it is a young adult Sci-Fi book, I wasn't interested! But like a good friend, I added it to my to-read list. After three or four others randomly mentioned it as a good read, I determined to give it a shot.

What an engaging book! As a person typically not a fan of the sci-fi genre, I'm telling you now that this book is worth it. It is about a boy named Ender who quickly advances in his classes as he has the potential to save the human race. He starts off as a five-year-old. It's hard to remember that this book is about children...little kids even. They speak like adults. They are smarter than many adults on our planet. And the "game" mentioned in the title? I don't think it's a game at all.

It looks like there are four books in "Ender's Saga". My experience with trilogies is that the first is always phenomenal, the second less so, and the third not really worth the time. But I always read them all anyway; hoping I'll be pleasantly surprised someday :) Ender is no different. I don't doubt that I'll give the others a shot as well...especially if I don't feel like the first book ends. Know what I mean?

Confused Elephants

It is done. YesterdayI finished Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. I gave a fairly harsh review when I was in the midst of reading. It's hard for me to decide what rating to give this book. I think I'll go with this:

I gave it two and a half elephants. The half is the top half because it would've been a full elephant if not for the two things previously mentioned that I did not like about the book.

The book is about a man who used to be part of a circus. It starts with him as an old man and constantly switches between him now and the story of him as a young man. It's not a romance but the story line does include a romance.

The story is excellent! The author does a nice job of seamlessly switching from past to present, present to past. She also assumes the reader is smart enough to know what is happening without actually telling you. I appreciate a writer assuming my intelligence is high :)

I also liked how the prologue and the end match...yet the extra details given at the end make so much clear. My final opinion is I liked the story but I hesitate to recommend it if you are easily offended by language and sexual content; I very much disliked that the author felt those were necessary to include in her book. It would not have affected the story line in any way if it had been left out. If you can get past those two (major) flaws, it's a good read!

Water for Elephants

I'm reading Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. It came highly recommended from several sources. 'Ma-na-na' liked it; 'Jalopy' did not. Each left it up to me to form my own opinion. I'll do the same for you; but I do say, read it at your own risk.

It seems I neglected to read a full synopsis before diving into the book. It just seemed a plethora of people had read it recently and were instant fans. I began reading it with the mindset that I too would love it. I don't love it.

I'm just over halfway through the book and I give it a rating above PG-13. Some of my complaints with the book include more swearing than I'm comfortable with and definitely more...how shall I put this delicately...issues of gross morality (than I'm comfortable with). The author could have left those out and the book would have been just as effective. Better in my opinion.

So you're not left with a bad taste in your mouth about the book (let's face it, I haven't finished the book yet and I can't give a full recommendation one way or the other...yet), there are good qualities.

I like the way the book is told in the first-person and he's an old guy when it begins. 90 or 93-years-old in fact. The story about him and the circus is told in flashbacks as long as a few chapters at a time. The author uses great transitions between the past and the present as the man tells it. I like that.

The characters are alive and believable. Though I have qualms, I am sucked in enough to want to finish the book before delivering a final opinion.

I Survived on Spam

I finished The Road this morning. In the spirit of the book I will not use quotations marks, apostrophes, or names of people when writing this post.

If I rate this book using Spam cans (because cans of food were a main food source for the man and the boy in the book), this is what I give it:

Three Spam cans means I quite liked the book, but I dont think its for every reader. For instance, I am a sucker for happy endings. I didnt feel like this book quite ended. I wanted to know what happened with a nice neat wrap-up. There was nothing nice or neat about it. Actually, I take that back. It wasnt a bad ending...if you dont mind endings that dont tell you anything :)

Overall it was interesting and thought-provoking. It makes a reader consider what s/he would do if presented with the situation the man and the boy found themselves in. I will let you decide to check it out or not.

A final note...I dont know how a writer can write without correct punctuation! Its killing me to leave out apostrophes :)

Demon in the Freezer by Richard Preston

This is a nonfiction work recommended by my good friend 'Britches'. It is a nonfiction thriller about smallpox and other deadly diseases. Britches paced the floor as she read it. I found myself riding a stationary bike at the gym last week as I read. Two days later, I had a nightmare about an extremely hairy baby who was staying at my house and ended up with smallpox. It was truly a nightmare as I had sat on the floor and tickled his feet before I knew about his disease. Thanks to that, I haven't picked up the book since!

My opinion so far is this: the topic is scary and interesting. I skim over some of the historical detail. I don't like thinking about the smallpox virus (among others) sitting in a freezer somewhere; I know the point is to create a vaccine...but it still freaks me out.

The book details a new brand of smallpox that terrorists are concocting to wipe out hordes of the human population. Are we in the Twilight Zone or what??

As with The Road, I'm not far enough along to tell much more than that. Stay tuned!

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

My friend 'Muppet' suggested this book to me - it's one of his favorites. As he is well-read, I was eager to accept the invitation to read it and love it. I'm currently half-way through the book and this is what I notice:

• There are no chapters to divide up the story - how am I supposed to choose a stopping point when I read late into the night?

• None of the characters have names. The dad is "the man" and the son is referred to as "the boy". I can live with that. Typically I understand who is what.

• The author neglects to use punctuation like we learn in school - things like apostrophes and quotation marks when someone speaks. Now and again I have to re-read something to know who is speaking, the man or the boy.

• Every so often the book slips into first-person; I believe this is because it is a flashback, though I can't be entirely certain. Maybe when I finish I'll have a better idea.
  

Now, lest you think I don't like the book, I must interject with my original opinion. The book is about a father and son wandering through burned America with nothing but a pistol and a cart of their belongings and a bit of food. I wondered at the ability of an author to produce a good piece of literature based on that. Sound depressing? I thought so too!

However, the other night as I read, I admit my reluctance to put the book down. Every adventure the father and son go through will keep a reader intrigued. I also admit that after what I just read, I am more determined then ever to keep my food storage current - it may come in handy someday.

Last night I had the opportunity to discuss my thoughts and impressions about this book with Muppet. Unfortunately we were interrupted and didn't get to continue the discussion. I'll have to share my blog address with him. I'm sure I'll have more to add when I finish the book.

P.S. The author is Irish. I like the book even better just knowing that. Not that I'm biased :)

Welcome readers!

I've never blogged before. I am an avid reader of blogs...however, I didn't seriously consider having one myself until about a week ago. The story goes like this. I love to read. I don't just enjoy it occasionally, I actually love it! I check out a stack of library books at one time, keep them piled on my nightstand, and squeeze in time during my hectic schedule to read several books each month. It's pure bliss.

When I earned gift cards to Bookman's, I immediately spent my hard-earned reward on books. Just books. As my collection grows, so does my need to share the love with everyone I meet. And now we get to the heart of the matter - why I have a blog.

A friend (who we'll call Jelly) said to me the other day, "Serity, you ought to have a book blog! I wish I could get online and see immediately what you're reading, read your recommendations based on past and current reads, and basically become a more well-rounded reading individual!" (Those probably weren't his exact words, but you get the point.) Jelly is a smart guy - but I wasn't yet completely convinced...

Imagine my surprise when two other people said the same thing, each within two days of each other! It didn't take much arm twisting for me to succumb to this addiction called blogging. We'll see how it goes :)