All the Light We Cannot See

Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they close forever.

I'm stingy with my 5-star ratings.  Sometimes I regret that and try to change, but then a book like All the Light We Cannot See comes along and simply deserves to stand above the rest.  If I weren't stingy with my 5, I'd have to break the rules and give this a 6 or 10 or 100 and that's a spiral I'm not ready to slide down.

Doerr's new book came to me in a Powell's Indiespensable shipment.  I didn't know much about it, except that it told the story of a blind French girl and an orphaned German boy as their lives converged during World War II. (And that it has short chapters.  I love short chapters.  Makes me feel so accomplished.)

From the start, the mood is magic.  Doerr illuminates the small thoughts and actions that create how a person or a place feels. It was familiar, and yet completely new.  The settings were vivid, and the characters were whole, genuine people. Themes run through the book so seamlessly that you can give them as little or as much attention as you want.  The writing is poetic but not heavy (nor too sparse). There is family and love, action and mystery, good and evil. There is literature, science, art, history and technology. The story switched back and forth between different times, yet remained organized and easy to follow.

It seems big enough to contain everything anyone could ever feel.

Looking back at World War II, it is easy to wonder how it was possible.  How did the Germans go along with this plan? How did people let this happen? Why didn't people stand up and object? When this question is taken out of the philosophical, however, it is easy to see how human nature compartmentalizes actions and events in order to cope with reality. From the way Marie-Laure adjusts to being blind in a city the size of Paris with only her father to help her, to Werner's ambitions to escape the fate of the coal mines that claimed his father's life, we see very real examples of how difficult it is to accurately assess the big picture and apply it to your life.

I recommend this book heartily! It's been a long time since I've read a novel as complete and filling as this.

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

Can you believe I'm reviewing a Hot Off The Shelves New Release??  Maybe this occurrence isn't as crazy-rare as it feels, but it does feel to me like this is the first new release I've read in a while (pls excuse my exuberance).

Even if you've had your head buried in the sand (like me) you've likely heard of this book.  Which explains my disappointment when I heard it was going to be featured in the next Indiespensable shipment (ugh, hype and all that jazz.)  Fortunately, those kind folks did an incredible job putting together a fun package - the best one recently - beautiful hardback, purty dust jacket, lovely slipcase, "survival" goodies.  Okay, maybe I wasn't miffed after all.

And now, on with the book, right? The premise is interesting: a California girl and her family try to adjust to the one global calamity they had never considered, as the earth's rotation begins to slow.  Sounds science-fictiony, yet - as my husband declared - The Book Is Way Too Short To Explain Everything...it's really more about the people, how they adjust and react.  Sounds like my sort of thing after all!

There was a lot that I enjoyed about this book.  I found the writing to be enjoyable, the premise piqued my interest throughout the book.  However, there were a lot of little things that bugged me, making this more of an "enjoyable reading experience" rather than a "wonderful book".   Let's bullet-point this:

• The ages of the kids seemed incompatible with their behavior.  These were 11 year-old kids acting like 14 year-olds (parties & other behavior) and I had to keep reminding myself of their ages. (And before you say that's how it is now and declare me out of touch with reality, keep in mind that I have an 8, 11, 13, and 16 year old and we live Southern California.  I should be able to identify.)
• As if California didn't already have enough stereotypes...luckily the "We Californians..." sentences began to thin out as the book went on because they were about to ruin the book for me.   Really.  As a native Californian who has felt only 2 real earthquakes and rarely eats outside, I could rant about this for pages.  It's a big, diverse state, making generalities a little silly.
• "We were Californians and thus accustomed to the motions of the earth. [...] But we Californians were no more prepared for this particular calamity than those who had built their homes on more stable ground." 
• "This was California--almost everyone had migrated here from someplace else." 
• "This was California--we ate outside in every season."
• People's motivations seemed non-existent or unimportant.  Julia didn't seem all too upset when upsetting things happened, and why the "clock-time" people despised the "real-time" people was never really shown.  So, not only did people react differently than I would have thought, but there wasn't any real explanation showing why this might be.
• Way too many blatant foreshadowing sentences for such a mellow ending.  Tons of "I would learn later" and "We didn't know then" or "It was the last time" sorts of comments that ended up not really pointing to anything in particular.

Despite all those complaints, I really did enjoy reading the book.  I liked that it didn't have a super tidy ending.  I can't help thinking that the hype is do more to the politically-correct timing of the global disaster theme than anything else, but the ease of reading and the interesting story were enough to overshadow the lack of character development and other minor irritations for me.  And besides, it's a treat to look at.  That's got to count for something, right?

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Do you ever feel the need to make a detailed disclaimer before spouting an opinion?  Or is that just my middle-child-pacifist sneaking up on me again?  Let's just get this over with:

  - I'm not a fan of the circus. Clowns? Side shows? Scary. A pretty circus? It's just hiding the scary.

  - Fantasy settings & suspension of disbelief? Difficult for me. They aren't even pretending to be real, so why should I care?

  - Atmospheric and descriptive are all well and good...if it's a sideline to a rocking plot or amazing character development.  Otherwise? Yawn.

  - And Now We Must Speak of HYPE.  Typically, I turn away from things that are All The Rage (be it a book or something else entirely) but I knew I'd be reading this sooner or later when I found out that it was an Indiespensable selection.  Then this massively publicized book made the Indie Lit Awards short list (along with four minimally hyped books) and I can tell you that it made for an interesting comparison.  The hype ended up affecting me much less than my other reservations.  Contrary to my seemingly negative observations, I actually enjoyed this book - certainly more than I thought I would.

You all know the premise (or you won't have to look far to find it) so the question is What Did I Think?

Right off the bat it was apparent that there had been more money put into the production of this book.  The book itself was gorgeous, with the magical black and white theme carried throughout the design of the pages.  My copy had a black velvet[ish] slipcase, which further enhanced the richness of the production.  This sense went farther than the art design and typesetting - when compared to the other books on the short list, the writing glowed with the polished shine that evokes hard work and a dedicated editing process rather than raw talent.

Don't get me wrong - the descriptions are beautiful.  Morgenstern has an imagination, no doubt about it, but that really is where her talent lies.  There wasn't enough plot to keep me invested, and the main characters don't have a lot of depth.  There came a point in the book where I almost wanted to skip over the descriptions because I wanted to get on to something meatier.

In the end, when comparing it to the other short list books, this book fell in the middle for me.  It was more polished and enjoyable than Cross Currents and The Last Time I Saw Paris (reviewed here) but lacking the depth in characters and themes that Silver Sparrow and Dance Lessons had.  I'd recommend The Night Circus to readers attracted to the magical circus setting as well as those in the mood to get their imaginations spinning.

     The ground beneath her feet shifts, suddenly unsteady, but Marco puts a hand on her waist to keep her upright.
     When she opens her eyes, they are standing on the quarterdeck of a ship in the middle of the ocean.
     Only the ship is made of books, its sails thousands of overlapping pages, and the sea it floats upon is dark black ink.

The world of The Night Circus remains mysterious and magical from the beginning of the book to the end.  It isn't a world with well-defined rules.  Like the characters, we never find out exactly how things work or why.  This ties in with the high level of imagination and creativity, but made for a somewhat detached reading experience.  It is a showcase of creativity: magical, mysterious, elusive, atmospheric.


(By the way...I don't recommend reading this book on an e-reader, simply because I had to look back at previous chapter headings all the time - what a pain on an e-reader!  The reason it was necessary to flip around was the chapter heading details, which indicate time and location.  Especially in the beginning, when I was still trying to figure out who everyone was and where/when they were, it was frustrating.  This book convinced me that any information at the beginning of a chapter should enhance the text, not take the place of it.)

Bookish Gifts, and How Amazing is Powell's Books?!

Before I get to posting all my year-end lists, I have to show you all the books I've given and received over the holidays!  Too much goodness to pass up!  I decided this year that I was going to get a book for everybody, even the ones that don't read.  Too bad, tough cookies, you're getting a book.  In addition to other gifties, of course, but still.

Books Given: (click on the pics to find out more about each title)
For those to whom reading is Hard Work: (my father-in-law, brother-in-law, and 11 year-old daughter)


For those preferring NonFiction: (my father and a sister-in-law)


For the Deep Thinkers: (my brother and 12 year-old son)


For the Lit Lovers: (my other brother, step-mother-in-law, and grandmother-in-law)


All right, so there were (admittedly) some friends and family that didn't get books.  My other sister-in-law, my other mother-in-law and father-in-law...but since we haven't had our gift exchanges as of yet, I've still got time to decide for them!  Also, I didn't include the picture books for my little one or my nieces...rest assured that the little ones weren't neglected!

and...Why Powell's Books is Amazing:

I try to buy my books not-on-Amazon, which means I typically patronize my local Barnes&Noble, or my new flame: Powell's Books.  I stumbled upon Powell's, an independent bookstore based in Portland, Oregon, when I found (and subscribed) to their Indiespensable program at the beginning of the year--I've been nothing but happy with them since.

Recently my "happy" status got boosted up a few notches when Powell's went above and beyond for me in the crazy few days before Christmas.  I had placed an order with them towards the beginning of December, and had my books shipped to our vacation home (500 miles away) where we are spending the holidays.  I somehow forgot that the USPS won't deliver there, however, so when we arrived at the house a week before Christmas, my Powell's package was nowhere to be found.  (*cue utter despair, wailing, gnashing of teeth--Christmas without books??  Nooo!!!)

First thing, I checked their website, which led me to a very thorough package-tracking-log.  Sure enough, my package had been returned to them.  I called them first thing the next morning, and was completely impressed with the lengths they (er, Mike, actually--hi Mike!) went for me.  I'd been dreading having my husband suggest canceling my Powell's order and placing an Amazon Prime order instead...fortunately it didn't come to that (I like to use my Prime shipping for larger items...like chipper shredders.  True story.)  First, they attempted to locate my package.  When it looked like the post office had mixed it in with the masses of incoming books [from publishers etc.] I was about to accept my fate, but Mike had other tricks up his sleeve.  It ended up being a most-of-the-day ordeal on his end (I'm guessing), including him searching for additional copies of the books I'd ordered, and looking for my package multiple times.  The result? My package was ultimately found and sent out via UPS, arriving in 2 days at no extra charge to me.  All of my stuff, before Christmas, even though it was my goof-up, not theirs.

my favorite mug   :)

I'm blown away.  I can't imagine many shopping experiences having such a personal, fulfilling result.  These guys rock.  Thank you Powell's Books!  You made this Christmas a fabulous one.

Oh! and Wait!  the Books I Received for Christmas!
It isn't every year that there are books under the tree, you know?  So often my family thinks I've got plenty of books already, or they look at my wishlist and get overwhelmed.  This year I lucked out--so much fun!  My parents got me a BookBook for my iphone (*swoon) and my darling dear husband got me some actual books--that's because he knows that when I say "I already have too many books," he's supposed to laugh.  That's my idea of a good joke.  So, here's the goodies (including a zombie treat from my brother):

Also over the last week, since I'm around my other set of TBR books, I've been doing some massive culling and reorganizing.  I'm getting rid of quite a few books, which somehow--in combination with the end of the Christmas Craziness--leaves me with incredible urge to go on a book-buying-spree.  Shopping carts in a book store sounds like just the thing right now, don't you think?  Half of me hopes I'll resist, half of my wants to fill up my Powell's shopping cart before I have the opportunity to change my mind.  Either way, hope you all are having a happy week.  I may not be getting mountains of reading done this month, but it's filled with some bookish happiness all the same.  I hope that goes for all of you as well--thanks for being such grand literary company!

I Suppose I Should Talk About THE MARRIAGE PLOT

Reading the new & buzzworthy, up & coming, anticipated, hyped literary fiction releases is a relatively new experience for me this year.  Actually, because of the Indie Lit Awards, it was a special focus of mine for 2011.  I wanted to be more aware of what the "big" titles were.  I subscribed to Powell's Indiespensable program, the Shelf Awareness newsletters, and I was on my way.

Now, I've never been too thrilled about doing what everyone else is doing.  

- At 12, I ditched my friends because it bothered me that we all did what one girl felt like doing.
- At 17, I got engaged and spent my senior year planning for the rest of my life instead of having fun with friends.
- At 19, I had my first child instead of working towards a college degree.

I may be a good 15 years younger than most parents at my kiddos' schools, I may occasionally find myself with fewer people to relate to than I'd like, but although it's been different, it has also been fun.

This itch to be different relates to The Marriage Plot in a couple ways.  First, I'm having a hard time talking about a book that everybody else is currently talking about (but I'm getting past that, see?)  Second, I had a hard time relating to the characters who were very "college track" --opposite of my alternate route.

The Marriage Plot is about three students in (and out of) their college years: academia circa early 1980s.  It is about Literature, Science, and Religion (very Capital Letter subjects) as well as about mental illness, soul searching, and [a little too much] about sexual thoughts/experiences [for my taste] [which, I'm finding, doesn't take much].

I decided to read it because, having no experience with Eugenides (no, none), it showed up on my doorstep inside my Indiespensable shipment and I was curious what the buzz was about.  I opened it to read the first paragraph and accidentally read the first 20-30 pages instead.

Reading this book was somewhat of an odd experience for me.  I wasn't really "sucked in" to it, I had no problem putting it down and doing something else, the writing didn't strike me as incredible [readable but not quite remarkable], I couldn't relate to the characters or the setting, the story-line wasn't gripping, and yet I was interested.  It was one of those strange times when I was reading the book and concurrently thinking that I wasn't enjoying it so much, and yet something kept me going (and I don't think it was only the fact that I was on a cross-country flight.  I did have other books to choose from!)

It was the ending that made the book for me.  It really brought the whole book together in a way that made it say much more than I thought it was going to.  It made me think, which is something I appreciate.  It made me feel, which is something I'd been missing in the story up until that point.

And so,  reading a currently-very-popular book has turned out to be a pretty good experience after all. I must say that I think the trick is to get it read before reviews are swarming, otherwise I seem to put it aside (like poor State of Wonder and Night Circus--other Indiespensable selections) until a later date.  And as far as Eugenides goes, though I've heard that his books are all very different in style, I'm looking forward to pulling Middlesex off my shelf and experiencing another angle of this intriguing author.

Title: The Marriage Plot
Author: Jeffrey Eugenides
Pages: 416
Published: Farrar, Straus & Giroux 2011
Read for: Powell's Indiespensable
My Rating: 4 stars

ELIGIBLE TO BE NOMINATED!