You Know What They Say...

You Can't Judge a Book by it's Cover!

It was a phrase I heard countless times when I was growing up.  Almost as often as:

If You Can't Say Something Nice, Don't Say Anything at All!

Somehow, I became indoctrinated with the second phrase much easier than the first.  I don't know if it's my personality, but I still struggle to Not judge a book by it's cover.  They're just so...pretty!  Which goes to prove another popular phrase:

The Eye Buys!

I'm pretty much doomed if I walk into a book store.  I'd love to be one of those people that can go into a book store, order a coffee, sit down with something new or old, borrowed or bought, and just...read.  Doesn't that sound so peaceful?  I've never been that person, however.  I am the kid in the candy store, my husband in the electronics store: every book is Wonderful!  I'm going to read everysingleonerightnow!  And really, my willpower isn't strong enough to get me out of that bookstore without buying something.

I went into Barnes & Noble Booksellers today (I really like the booksellers part, makes them sound old and kind and honest) to buy a cheap copy of Persuasion to tear up (gasp!) and decoupage some wall art and jewelry so I can literally surround myself with Jane Austen.  That was the only thing I was going to buy--honest!  But then a book caught my eye, sitting unassumingly beside the Jane Austen books.  A book that had caught my eye months ago and almost came home with me...it was [thisclose] to sitting on my bookshelf.  Well, today it did come home with me.  I couldn't resist.  Even if I never read it, it was worth the money--just as art is worth the money.

And I justified it by the fact that the copy of Persuasion I bought had a dumb, uninspiring cover--though I know it to be an amazing book--as well as the fact that I resisted buy TWO books earlier this week whose covers tempted me sorely.  I didn't buy Brooklyn, and I didn't buy Little Bee, though the cover art is great. I did buy Keeping the House; even if the story isn't great, the cover art is: a little vintage '50s in one tidy package.  Am I the only one with this problem?  Have you ever succumbed to the evil/amazing cover artists?

          

Black Potatoes: The Story of the Great Irish Famine

Title: Black Potatoes: The Story of the Great Irish Famine, 1845-1850
Author: Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Pages: 175
Genre: Junior Nonfiction
Read For: Personal Education
My Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

The Irish Potato Famine has long interested me, and recently I've really been wanting to know more about it.  Though I have a more in-depth book on my wishlist, I thought that a good Junior Nonfiction book might whet my appetite a little.

When I read Junior Nonfiction, I am hoping for a quick, engaging overview of the topic, as well as certain other things that would make it easy to recommend to kids.  One of those things is pictures.  I think that a good assortment of good pictures goes far in making the topic interesting and memorable.  Be they illustrated or photographed, ideally there will be enough to prevent boredom, and of high enough quality that they are not merely entertaining, but educational as well.  Another thing I think is important is a simple, logical organization of topics, written in succinct, effective language.  If the book is not organized well, in thoughts and typesetting, it is much more difficult to understand and remember.

Black Potatoes certainly does a great job in these areas.  There are many illustrations, similar to the one on the cover, that come directly from the period and location discussed--gathered from newspapers, libraries, and personal collections.  The author does a good job at relating the information, and the horrible statistics, in a clear manner, weaving personal stories into the facts.  She relates what other people and governments did (and did not do) to help, and seems to remain as unbiased as possible.  During the five years discussed in the book, one million Irish people died from starvation and disease and two million more emigrated.  Yet despite all the sad stories this book must tell, it also tells one of hope and courage.

One of the saddest things about the Famine years is that for each horrible story, there is always another more tragic and dreadful.  Yet for every tragic story, you will also meet people who held on to hope, who committed heroic acts of self-sacrifice, and who fought to survive and to preserve their dignity.

Book Blogger Hop

Every weekend, Jennifer at Crazy-For-Books hosts the Book Blogger Hop, which is a great way to get connected with some other book lovers out there.  I've found some great blogs through the hop; it's been a lot of fun to explore and get connected.  Thank you, Jennifer, for hosting the Hop!  I'm off to find new blogs...

On My Wishlist

June has brought more books into my home than most months do, yet I still must resist buying books, believe it or not.  I still have a lengthy wishlist, mostly non-fiction right now.  These are a few that are on it:


The House at Riverton  From the author of The Forgotten Garden.  I haven't read anything by Kate Morton, but The Forgotten Garden caught my interest when it was released, and since then I've heard from a couple of people that they liked The House at Riverton better, so I might just start out with that one.

The Elements of Style is just something that should be on every English lover's bookshelf.  And yes, I would actually read the thing too.





The Elephants of Style : A Trunkload of Tips on the Big Issues and Gray Areas of Contemporary American English  because I just can't resist non-fiction books that combine education with humor.







The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks just because of the great things I've heard about it.  It is a non-fiction book about science, medical research, cancer, and who owns our genetic material.






Paddy's Lament, Ireland 1846-1847: Prelude to Hatred  I've been really wanting to know more about the Great Irish Famine, partly because of the importance in general history, partly because of the importance in my personal family's history.




Cold Comfort Farm  I didn't know anything about this book until I read Precious Bane by Mary Webb, and found out through some research that Cold Comfort Farm was written partly as a parody of Mary Webb's work.  I still don't know much about it, but it does look interesting.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Title: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Author: Betty Smith

Pages: 493

Published: HarperPerennial 2005
Read For: Monday Night Book Club
Chosen By: Me (June 2010)

My Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is one of the few books that I actually recall reading in high school.  It is also one of the few books that I remember enjoying (which is most likely directly linked to the fact that I remember it.)  It was written by Betty Smith and originally published in 1943.  Much more than a coming of age story, it also portrays a well remembered childhood at a transitional point in American history: the years before the Great War when wagons gave way to automobiles, illiteracy to college graduates.

Francie Nolan is eleven at the beginning of the book, and she is so much more than just a character.  Francie Nolan is a person so real that at times I felt as if I were her.  The way Francie would process information and experiences, the way she would describe her heart breaking or her life changing were put into words so beautifully that they resonated deeply within me.  I have read many books with two dimensional characters--flatter than a pancake with no possibility of convincing you they are real people.  I have read many more books with three dimensional characters--you may not know them inside out but they are fleshed out enough to be believable.  But this book, for me, is so much more than that.  It was as if, instead of merely experiencing life with Francie, I was remembering--with Francie--things that I myself had experienced: the fear, confusion, pain.

Many themes ran throughout the book, including determination and perseverance, family legacy and social class, love and the struggle to define good and bad.  Like the people of Brooklyn, "The tree whose leaf umbrellas had curled around," found a way to grow and flourish despite the surroundings.  

"Some people called it the Tree of Heaven.  No matter where its seed fell, it made a tree which struggled to reach the sky.  It grew in boarded-up lots and out of neglected rubbish heaps and it was the only tree that grew out of cement.  It grew lushly, but only in the tenements districts."

The immigrant's struggle with providing more for the next generation in order to overcome social class restrictions is beautifully put when Francie's grandmother, Mary Rommely, visits her daughter, Katie Nolan, after the birth of little Francie.

"She picked up the baby and held it high in her arms.  'This child was born of parents who can read and write,' she said simply. 'To me, this is a great wonder.'"

Francie's experiences with the library, with school, with trying to earn money and buy food, demonstrate what an uphill climb a childhood in Brooklyn was.  Her relationships (and ponderings about her relationships) with her parents, aunts, and others around her show how grey the lines are between right and wrong, good and bad.  The incredible resourcefulness and pride, ambition and despair are calls to determine what is most important in life.

More than some of Francie's other disappointments, sorrows, and challenges, her English teacher's reaction to Francie's writing talent made me mourn.  When Francie's father died, she poured her emotions into her papers, telling stories about her father, showing  that "in spite of his shortcomings, he had been a good father and a kindly man,"  a practice her teacher--who much preferred Francie's bits about birds and trees--disliked.  Miss Garnder keeps Francie after school to talk about this unfortunate change in subject matter. Francie, confused, responds with:

"You said we could choose our own subjects."

"But poverty, starvation and drunkenness are ugly subjects to choose.  We all admit these things exist.  But one doesn't write about them."

"What does one write about?" Unconsciously, Francie picked up the teacher's phraseology.

"One delves into the imagination and finds beauty there.  The writer, like the artist, must strive for beauty always."

"What is beauty?" asked the child.

"I can think of no better definition than Keats': 'Beauty is truth, truth beauty.'"

Francie took her courage into her two hands and said, "Those stories are the truth."

"Nonsense!" exploded Miss Garnder.

Thus continues a painfully beautiful scene, where Francie's creativity and artistic expression gets demeaned and trampled on.  The entire chapter is quotable, but the part that had me in tears, my heart pounding, was when her teacher finished her lecture by demanding:

"When you get home, burn these in the stove.  Apply the match to them yourself.  And as the flames rise, keep saying: 'I am burning ugliness.  I am burning ugliness.'"

 A Tree Grows in Brooklyn has you rooting for Francie as you would root for the child inside yourself, fighting against injustice for those who are unable to do it for themselves.  In the end, it is a story of hope and finding joy in the journey.  A quote near the end of the book sums up the bittersweet memories such a childhood provides.

"She'll never have the hard times we had, will she?"

"No.  And she'll never have the fun we had, either."

I can't recommend this book enough.  What amazing characterization and writing.  More than a story, this is an experience that will stick with you.

Stardust

Title: Stardust
Author: Neil Gaiman
Pages: 288
Published: HarperTeen 2008
My Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5)

I wasn't planning on reading this book, but I do enjoy being sidetracked from books that take a longer amount of time to read, and Stardust fit the bill.  I am not a reader of fantasy by any means--that job goes to my husband--but I do enjoy a good fairytale now and then.  Stardust is a fast paced story that includes fairies and unicorns, witches, quests, and the moon and stars all intermixed with a bit of historical reality.

If you have seen or heard of the movie, you might enjoy knowing that they are quite similar.  In fact, it is quite possible that the movie provides more detail.  The story was told at such a quick pace in the book that I was left little time to imagine all the amazing scenes with the splendor and detail they deserved.

If you have NOT seen or heard of the movie, you might enjoy knowing a bit of the synopsis. A young man, Tristran Thorn, has his heart set on a young lady who laughs him off--even as she promises him his hearts desire should he manage to retrieve for her a fallen star.  Tristran, somehow deciding it is an attainable goal, sets out for the world beyond the wall that borders his town (of Wall) where the supernatural is sure to happen.

Apart from a couple of relatively mild passionate scenes, the book is simply a lot of fun.  The writing is quick witted and enjoyable, the themes universal.  If you miss being able to get lost in a fairytale like you did as a child, there is hope--thanks to Neil Gaiman and Stardust.

It begins like this:
          (In Which We Learn of the Village of Wall, and of the Curious Thing That Occurs There Every Nine Years)
          There was once a young man who wished to gain his Heart's Desire.
          And while that is, as beginnings go, not entirely novel (for every tale about every young man there ever was or will be could start in a similar manner) there was much about this young man and what happened to him that was unusual, although even he never knew the whole of it.
          The tale started, as many tales have started, in Wall.

Book Blogger Appreciation Week

I wasn't planning on registering for Book Blogger Appreciation Week, but I've had such fun browsing all the book blogs that have won past awards that I decided I might as well.  The following 5 blog posts should give a fairly even representation of what I've been up to so far this year:

For consideration as Best Eclectic Book Blog (niche category):

• A Book Review: Random Harvest by James Hilton
• A Book Review: The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver
• A Book Review: Gentlemen of the Road by Michael Chabon
• Random Book Talk: Hello, My Name Is...
• A Month in Review: Books Read in April

And then again, for consideration as Best Written Book Blog (featured category):

• A Book Review: Random Harvest by James Hilton
• A Book Review: The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver
• A Book Review: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
• Random Book Talk: Hello, My Name Is...
• More Book Thoughts: Keeper of Books

Do you blog about the books in your life?  You should register too!

Random Harvest

Title: Random Harvest
Author: James Hilton
Pages: 327
Published: Little, Brown and Company, 1941
Read For: Thursday Night Book Club
Chosen by: Joy, June 2010
My Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)

I was first introduced to the novel Random Harvest when I was helping to sort through my husband's great-grandmother's home many years ago.  She had piles of books that she kept, mostly from the 1940s-1960s, and I pulled several aside to read.  Random Harvest was one of them.  I really enjoyed it when I read it over a decade ago, and I enjoyed it just as much when I re-read it for our first Thursday Night Book Club meeting.

Random Harvest was written in 1941, and was so popular that it ranked #2 on the New York Times Bestsellers of the Year list and was immediately adapted to film.  Contrary to what you may think, the fact that it was written more than 60 years ago doesn't make it difficult to read or hard to understand.  The language is quite understandable, though the writing style is perhaps a bit different than we are accustomed to finding in current novels.  If you have ever read Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca, an immensely popular book published a few short years before Random Harvest, I think that you'll find some similarities in the approach to novel making.

Random Harvest is divided into 5 parts, and is one of those stories that does not begin at the beginning.  You first meet Charles Ranier on a train, through the eyes of the man who will eventually become his secretary, and soon discover that Charles struggles with major memory loss.  Memory loss is putting it mildly, in fact.  The truth is that after his injuries in World War I, there are a few years together of which he has no recollection, but feels the lack none the less.  Taking place in the years between World War I and World War II in London and its surrounding areas, this is a story of love and war, of shell-shock and amnesia, of responsibilities and pleasures, and the mystery that is the human mind.