Synopsis:
It’s 2020, and no babies have been born since 1995.
Review:
I really thought I had read The Children of Men before, but must have just really loved the movie or something. I certainly approved of all the changes made for the screen version, because I was bored silly by this book. Oh well.
Synopsis:
A compendium of trivia, history, biology, and references to art, mythology, poetry, and literature for 19 different birds.
Review:
Winged Wonders is a real rara avis of a book. Basically, it’s a collection of all sorts of information related to a bunch of different birds, like the raven, the heron, the cuckoo, the falcon, and many more. There are poems, myths, historical references, and basic biological facts, all of them really compelling and quirky and fun.
What I really love about this book is how well it’s curated. Sure, you could Google any of these birds and learn a few things, but it takes real discipline and passion to put together a book that’s so readable, fascinating and valuable. I will definitely be keeping this one for the homeschooling library.
Many, many, many thanks to BlueBridge for the review copy.
Synopsis:
Three Cambridge students working with the blind daughter of a famous novelist have their lives disrupted when one of them disappears.
Review:
In her other life, Emily Winslow is a well-respected crafter of puzzles, and that expertise shines through in the intricate plotting of The Whole World. Through the use of multiple points-of-view, Winslow creates a layered mystery where it’s nearly impossible to figure out what really happened–but when you learn the truth, it all makes perfect sense.
I loved the Cambridge setting and the way Winslow made it such a strong part of the story. Her characterizations were really well done, thoughtfully created with subtlety and depth. Psychologically the book had a lot going on, much like the works of Ruth Rendell and Tana French, though with far less forensics.
Despite the tightness of the narrative, I’m not sure I was completely satisfied at the end–but I think that’s because I was wishing that there were more book to read!
Many thanks to Hachette Book Group for the review copy.
Synopsis:
The saga of a Welsh family haunted by submerged passions and unfulfilled desire.
Review:
I was hooked on The Wheel of Fortune from the first pages. It’s juicy, lush, psychologically complex, and keenly observed.
The story opens with Robert, scion of the Godwin family, heir to Oxmoon, lusting after his second cousin Ginevra, on the night that she elopes with an Irish rake, Connor Kinsella. When, in pure tragic form, Robert is able to consummate his desire, a chain of events unfolds that scars the family for generations.
Like I said, I was really, really enjoying this book, until I hit Tragedy Fatigue. Now, I adore long books–the longer the better, I often say–but I just couldn’t find it in me to move on to point of view #4 of 6. The story structure started to feel tediously cyclical, and I gave up on page 313. I will give Howatch another try because she’s been so highly recommended, but this is the second of her books that hasn’t really done it for me.
Synopsis:
A retelling of Pride and Prejudice with a crucial plot element changed.
Review:
I tried to read Longbourn’s Unexpected Matchmaker, I really did, but from the first sentence the writing was so clumsy and prosaic that I just couldn’t go on past the first few pages. And I admire Pride and Prejudice as much as the next person, but it’s not such a beloved of mine that I feel like I need some fan fiction. Come to think of it, fan fiction isn’t really my cup of tea at all.
Many thanks to Rhemalda Publishing for the review copy.
Synopsis:
One Ring to rule them all,
One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all
and in the darkness bind them.
Review:
This is my third time reading JRR Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, and I can’t say I’ve ever enjoyed it more. I’ve been following along with The Tolkien Professor’s podcasted course, and the background I got from finally reading and actually comprehending The Silmarillion really enhanced the depth of pleasure I received once diving back into Frodo’s familiar world.
Now, I’m not going to attempt to do justice to this massive work in just a short posting. Call these impressions, and I hope they inspire you to as satisfying a re-read (or first read) as I have just had.
The darkness
I hadn’t remembered such an abundance of scenes of pure horror. I think my mind sanitized Tolkien, since my last read was almost 7 years ago. But there is so much darkness in here. Tolkien doesn’t shy away from giving us evil in all its ugliness. It’s not graphic, in that it doesn’t wallow in scenes of torture or depravity. But it’s pretty darn scary, particularly in scenes such as Shelob’s lair and the Mouth of Sauron.
The goodness
Even so, I found myself far more drawn in by the courage, and bravery of the characters. Sam’s unabashed loyalty to his master, where his innate servanthood is the only means by which he has to resist the power of the Ring. Eowyn’s courage on the battlefield. Frodo’s suffering and perseverance. Aragorn’s majesty. All these qualities were so compelling, so beautiful, and so riveting that I craved more and more. I think that’s the hardest thing for a writer to do–to make goodness compelling and attractive.
The complexity
The struggle that various characters have with the Ring shows the depth and complexity of Tolkien’s moral vision. There is no black and white here–just human beings whose individuality brings a multitude of reactions to the temptations of the Ring. Tolkien deftly shows how we justify our misdeeds, call evil good, and fall prey to our own desires–even when those desires have goodness in them. The Silmarillion contains a more expansive treatment of Tolkien’s conception of evil, showing always how evil begins within and leads to its own destruction. “Love not too well the works of your hands,” indeed.
The influencesI’ve always loved the two noticeable references to Macbeth (the forest on the move, Eowyn’s defiance of a foretelling), and the podcast has helped me understand some of Tolkien’s medieval influences. But this time around, I felt keenly the influence of the biblical book of Isaiah. I have no idea whether or not I’m right in believing that Tolkien studied Isaiah in depth, but my hunch is that he did. I’m studying Isaiah right now with my moms’ group, and I see echoes of Isaiah everywhere in Tolkien, most particularly in the way both treat the temptation of power. Now, Tolkien’s theology for Middle Earth doesn’t involve a God who intercedes directly, or even really speaks to his people, but the sense of retaining hope when all else fails, “here at the end of all things” is the kind of thing that Isaiah kept reminding the beleaguered Israelites. I think Isaiah and Gandalf would’ve really liked each other.
The poetry
I read it this time–well, most of it. Again, the podcast deepened my appreciation for what Tolkien achieved in the verse he created for various characters to speak. It’s not filler or excess. It actually moves the story along and offers more facets to the interplay between characters and to the story at large. I always thought it indulgent and even somewhat embarrassing, but the poetry is a key part of the story he’s telling and well worth slowing down to absorb and ponder.
The end
I’m so sad it’s over. I always feel this way about beloved books, but perhaps most keenly with The Lord of the Rings. Has a better story ever been told? The richness of imagination, the range of emotion, the fullness of drama, and the completeness of conception–I mean, there’s nothing like it. Reading number 3 may just have cemented its position as my favorite book of all time. I get more and more out of it each time I read it, and I can’t wait until Superfast Toddler is old enough to enjoy it with me.
Synopsis:
The tragic tale of Túrin Túrambar, master of doom by doom mastered, who sought to fight evil but was undone by his own impetuousness and self-aggrandizement.
Review:
The Children of Húrin is a retelling in novel form of the chapter in Tolkien’s Silmarillion called Túrin Túrambar. I should’ve waited to read this for a year or two, because about halfway through I burned out on all the epic language and tragic plotting.
My experience aside, it’s a fantastic story, one of the best ever devised, filled with treachery and nobility and fate and will and foretelling and hindsight–everything you want from a tragedy that has both Greek and Norse flavors.
And did I mention the dragon?
Synopsis:
An account of the history of the origins of Middle Earth during the First Age.
Review:
I have tried and failed to read The Silmarillion on several occasions, and I can only credit my success this go-round to the podcast lecture series given by The Tolkien Professor. The early chapters are so dense with information that his interpretation and analysis helped lay the groundwork for me to be able to enjoy later chapters such as “Beren and Luthien” and “Turin Turambar,” to name two of my favorites.
Much to my delight, the bulk of The Silmarillion is action-packed, dark with evil treachery against all the things of the light. Tolkien’s universe is not a Christian one, yet his conception of how evil pervades, taints, corrupts, and persists is thoroughly orthodox. I love how these stories resist any allegorical interpretation, standing on their own and feeling as real as the deepest mythology.
Perhaps now I’ll finally pick up that copy of The Children of Hurin I bought 18 months ago!
Synopsis:
A collection of DIY patterns for sewing projects using found objects.
Review:
The projects in Recycling is Chic were born out of Alchemy Arts, an arts group that began in Edinburgh and now exists worldwide.
The book is filled with tons of fun and funky projects, most of which aren’t made with a pattern. There’s everything from jewelry made out of toys (like Monopoly game pieces) to a huipil (Mayan shirt) made from an old t-shirt and fabric scraps to skirts made from curtains to a bracelet made from cut-up inner tubes.
I think that if you are the kind of person who can come up with this kind of thing on your own, you’ll get a lot of inspiration from these pages. For me, I am more the kind of crafter who likes to follow a pattern. I’m a worker more than a creator, if that makes sense. So I’m not sure if I’d actually make any of these things because I’m pretty sure they’d never look as cute as they do here. I just don’t really have the eye. But I am inspired to cut up and embellish some fleece mittens!
Many thanks to Marion Boyars for the review copy.
Synopsis:
A tongue-in-cheek tale of Queen Victoria’s rule of a demon-infested England.
Review:
Capitalizing on the unexpected success of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Queen Victoria: Demon Hunter is wittily written and a breezy read, even if the concept feels a bit stale.
Many thanks to Hodder for the review copy.
