The Greatest Thing...

I just finished The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread by Don Robertson.  Rarely have I loved a book this much!  I want everyone I know to read it and everyone I don't know to find out about it and share it with a friend.   It is heroic, beautiful, tragic, uplifting, etc.  AHHH! 

Side note to explain why I picked the book: I had a love affair with a magazine.  We broke it off a couple months ago because I found out it was a whore, as I was paying way too much for it a year.  I am currently trying to figure out how we can work things out (i.e. I can get the subscription for much cheaper).  In said magazine, Stephen King writes a semi-regular column.  I have never read a Stephen King book and find it unlikely I ever will; but I feel a kinship with him.  I trust him and his opinions on just about everything (culture related).  So, I was browsing the clearance rack at Borders a couple weeks ago when I found a book highly recommended by Mr. King.  Right there on the front cover, no less.  It was cheap and it looked interesting (the blurb, I mean.  I rarely read the summaries of novels, they are rife with spoilers); so I bought it.

The story is a wheel story (like Seinfeld was) where there is a central character and all the other characters relate to the protaganist in some way (Even the lady in the above picture).  The central in this one is Morris Bird III, a Cleveland-born, smarter than the average 9 year-old boy (in the head, as well as the heart).  The book is part bildungsroman, part odessey, part adventure novel.  It is utterly unmissable.   All the other characters, named and unnammed, known and unknown to Morris Bird III have lives affected by this young boy. 

I am loathe to tell you any of the details of this book other than the 4 pieces of advice given to Morris Bird III in the book.  They are good:
1.  If you love a thing or person you should not hold back.
2.  There's nothing wrong with doing something you think is right even though nobody wants to help you, even though people actually try to stop you.
3. Don't put comfort ahead of duty.
4. Remember to look at the sky at least once a day, it helps to keep your perspective.

Supplied with these simple truths and a tender heart, Morris Bird III sets out to follow the advice of those he respects.  The resulting story is not so much a surprise of circumstances (I guessed most of it before the 50th page), as it is a marvel of humanity.  The fact that there is much foreshadowing here does not detract from the tale.  Instead it lends an air of mystery; a shock at the turn of events, even. 

The device Roberston employed best in this novel was repetition.  The kind that is subtle, but reinforces attributes of characters: like tenderness or movement or precision.  Rarely do authors get repetition right.  Often it is so heavy handed, it borders on annoying (see: Let the Great World Spin).  Robertson punctuates his story through repetition, giving the reader ways to mark time, take note of foreshadowing, and simply get to know the characters. 

I told -D I would like to create a list of Exposure Musts for our future (hopeful) children.  The things they must read, hear, see, etc. before they leave the nest.  As of yesterday, when I was halfway through this book, The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread made it to this list.  Someday we will write a post letting you know what else is on the list, but in the meantime: Go. Purchase. Read this book.

Rating: 6.8 out of 7

-L

Shootin' Traitors, Findin' Love, Clickin' Heels, Hopin' for Home

We were left hanging at the end of the last Dark Tower book. Stephen King wanted to bring a little suspense to that last novel and give some expectation to book four of the series. In Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, Book 4) we're thrust in right where we left off with Roland and Company aboard Blaine the Choo-Choo. It didn't start as a luxury trip and certainly didn't continue that way as the sped across the wastes. Where the ka-tet(the Gunslinger and his group) ends up is far from their intended destination. They're thrust into an alternate world that no one would be happy to call home.

It's in this alternate universe that Stephen King decides to take the readers back in time to one of the shaping moments in the Gunslingers past. Up until this point, the Dark Tower series has mentioned a few names and a few other tid-bits about the world before it passed on. We're now taken back to a young Roland with his original ka-tet of Alain and Cuthbert. It was a fresh look at Roland and how he became the Gunslinger he is today - even if it's just a small part of a big story. This flashback covers Roland's first love as well and the tragedy that befell them. In a lot of ways, knowing the background helps to strengthen the story going forward. Once you know the reason one acts they way they do you can build that character in a stronger way.

As for writing, Stephen King continues to write an incredible story. He does step off the deep end when it comes to sexuality and coarseness. I guess that I should have known that it would go there at some point, but three books in gave me a false sense of security. I'm assuming that some of this could have been transplanted into a harlequin novel and been right at home. For me, that didn't add much to the story. I could have used less of that and more explanation of the world and it's characters. Perhaps it's a little like the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal. The American public didn't need to know any details other than that he had an affair and lied under oath about it. Anyhow, It's at this book that I don't know if I can fully recommend this series of books to other readers. I have thoroughly enjoyed the series and will finish it, but 50 pages or so could be eliminated. This is not a book series for every person.

Rating: 7 - excellent progression; equal action and suspense; can't recommend, but will finish the story

Mini Review: Stephen King

Reading long series makes it a little tough to give in-depth reviews every time I read the next book. Unfortunately, I think we'll have a little bit of that on here with Jordan, King, Williams, Cook, and Abercrombie. In the next few reviews, I'm going to try to read some out of series books - Defoe, Melville, and maybe some Lovecraft.

Back to the review, The Waste Lands (The Dark Tower, Book 3) takes up where we left off with Roland and the others. It was a very intense read for the series. Of the first three, this one has had the best pace and the greatest desire to read through the entire book without putting it down to do all the normal stuff in life - bathroom, eating, talking. King writes out his characters well.

I do have a couple gripes. Close to the end, the story seems to just leap forward without telling what happens. One moment, the group is split up and the next they're at their destination. And that's right at the moment where some heavy stuff is happening. It felt incomplete. Leah thinks that he'll just tell that story in one of the next books, but it could be a little out of place. My other gripe is how the book ends. I'm all for having a cliffhanger, but this one was way too abrupt. At least give us a little conclusion. I would be beside myself if I was reading these when he was writing them!

Rating: 8 - can't get enough. I'm sad that I have to put it down for a while and read some other books.

-D

The Drawing of the King

Late last year I decided that I'd try out an author that I had no real desire to ever really try out. Stephen King ended up surprising me with The Dark Tower series and Gunslinger, the first book in the series. I'm sure I'll have some *bonus* books near the end of the year so I'll save that review for then. This year I finally picked up book two of that series: The Drawing of the Three.

A little backgound is going to be in order. Roland, the gunslinger, has finished the first part of his quest for the Dark Tower. While he has traversed his world to the very ends of it, he's still without the clarity to know his next move. All he knows is that he must reach his goal. At the onset of this book, things are not going well for him. Let's just say that Roland and Lobsters do not mix. Fortunately for the gunslinger, the man in black(neither Johnny Cash or the gunslinger) knew that life was going to get really strange..... in the form of a door in the middle of a beach.

Now, this was definitely not what I was expecting from a fantasy novel. You have the gunslinger which feels like it's out of a western. In fact, the first book is about 90% western w/ 10% fantasy. The characters that join Roland end up being a junkie, a woman with a dual personality, and a killer. And that's not even the weirdest part!

Stephen King does an excellent job at keeping the pace up in the book compared to the last. He made interesting characters, furthered the story, and presented a story with incredible depth. King doesn't create a book that's terribly difficult to read. You get what he's trying to say, and his humor is pretty enjoyable in this series(tooter fish!). This isn't a book for one who's sensibilities are offended by crude language. The aforementioned characters are as gritty as they sound. If you don't mind, then you'd probably enjoy it.

-D

Rating: 8 CBs! It's a great read - great book two... and it's not scary!