This Week in Our Year

...was pretty quiet on the reading front.  Not so quiet on other fronts.  Should we read All Quiet on the Western Front soon? 

But I digress.  We only got around to reviewing one (count it) book this week.  And it wasn't all that great (not the review, the book).  Check the review for Gilead here.  We also begged you to tell us something funny to read and got some interesting responses.  I think I settled on something different.  Tune in next week about this time, to find out what it was. 

We promise to read more this week and let you know about it.  -D is almost done with his current read and -L is woefully behind on reading.

The question for this week's Book Blog Hop is do you listen to music whilst reading and if so, what do you listen to?  Well, why don't you open Pandora's box (not a promotion for Pandora, though it is currently on station Ryan Adams)?  How long do you have to discuss this particular topic?  We could start with -D's obsessive need to have "background noise" on.  Then move onto -L's love of peace and quiet, but on her own terms.  Then we could discuss the multitude of musical influences for our reading.  The discussion would end sometime next week, after we play all our favorite songs for you.

Let's just say, we do listen to background noise whilst reading and it is so varied we could not go into it here.  That and most people have never heard of the musicians we appreciate most. 

Have a great read this week!

The Crossroads of Gilead

I have much to say regarding the Pulitzer Prize judging panel from a few years back, especially in comparison to the panel from 1940.  The standards must have changed quite a bit during the intervening years.  That is not to say that Marilynne Robinson's Gilead was not a good book.  It is more a statement that John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath was on a whole other level (Rachel Zoe would say, "It is everything!").   The persistence of great prose throughout a novel is the standard by which I choose to judge a book.  Steinbeck had the consistency Ms. Robinson lacked. 

Why am I being so hard on Ms. Robinson's acclaimed work?  And why the comparison of two seemingly disparate books written over a half century apart?  Well, because I can.  And because they discuss some of the same events (i.e. the Dust Bowl era).  That, and The Grapes of Wrath shares an accolade with Gilead: the Pulitzer.

But enough of my rant.  Here's my analysis of Gilead:

Take a look at the cover of the book.  That tells you everything.  In a world where people say, "You can't judge a book by it's cover," this book is defined by it's cover.  It should have gotten the award for Best Explanatory Book Cover or Most Matchy to the Plot Book Cover (I obviously should  not be in charge of naming book awards). 

At first glance, the cover art seems to depict a cross.  Similarly, at first glance, the book is about a Congregationalist preacher in a town called Gilead (a Biblical reference).  Then, as the story unfolds, one discovers that the themes of the book are about the juxtaposition of opposites.  Another look at the front cover reveals the "cross" is not a "cross" but a crossroads, a place where roads going in divergent directions meet (in case you didn't know).  Thus, the reader discovers the meeting place, the common ground, even the Golden Mean (if you like Aristotle) where opposites do not attract, but rather find they follow the same path, if only for a moment.

The book is less a novel and more a meditation journal of the preacher, John Ames, initially written to his son.  His original intent of writing is quickly abandoned through Ames's constant attentions to the theological and emotional issues he spends his days exploring.  The meditations (I chose not to call them ramblings) show a old dog can come upon new epiphanies, even as he comes to the end of his life.  He sees the curses of the past bleeding into the blessings of the present.  He discusses walking the path of ruin in the chance of coming along hope.  He looks back on searing loneliness in the face of  current companionship.  He grants perceived sinners grace and forgiveness from a once bitter heart.  He explores the heartbreaking reality of raising a young son even as he, as a father, is not long for this world. 

Sounds pretty good, right? The problem with the book is the mode of writing.  I found the fiction journal a hard format to really get into.  After reading memoirs and journals in the past, I thought the fiction journal lacked weight and depth.  Also, the meandering thought process is tedious.  The author put a hint in the book that she may have felt that way too: "I think I'll put an end to all this writing.  I've read it over, more or less, and I've found some things of interest in it, mainly the way I have been drawn back into this world in the course of it."  I mean the "guy" who "wrote" the journal only found some of it interesting.  I feel the same.  There were some moments of greatness, but for the most part it just: was.

Rating: 3 out of 7

-L

Note: I know some of you are thinking the name John Ames sounds familiar.  That's because it is!  The "Tom Ames' Prayer" by Steve Earle is a captivating story that does not ramble at all.  Each word is perfect and the plot, succinct as it is, explores some of the same ground as Gilead.  My Rating for the "Tom Ames' Prayer": 6.9 out of 7.

Help! I need to Laugh

My current reading schedule has been a little on the dull side.  So I was thinking last night: I need to laugh.  I need one of those laugh-out loud, chortle, chortle, chortle, guffaw, guffaw, guffaw kind of reads.  The problem is, I am at a loss. 

Any suggestions? 

Oh, and something to make you smile (laugh? chortle?):



-L

This Week in Our Year

Hello, there readers.  Welcome to Our Year in Books.  In today's edition of This Week in Our Year, we are hopping!  The weekly book blog party is hosted by Jennifer over at Crazy for Books.  Thanks to our hostess!  This week's question is what is your favorite new-to-you author of this year.  Our answers are:

-D: Brandon Sanderson - I've only read his additions to the Wheel of Time series, but that's enough to be happy with him.
-L: Cormac McCarthy - we both read the Road earlier this year and loved it.  We loved it so much we wrote a review together (if you could call it that).

So, this week's goings on around here include:

Review of Metro 2033
Review of The Awakening, followed by a lively discussion (dominated by women) in the comments...any guys out there wish to comment?
Review of A Homemade Life
Review of The Magic of Recluce

Thanks for stopping by!  Feel free to stalk us here or on twitter.  We will at least pay you back by glancing in your general direction. 

The Magic of Recluce

 Before I start off on the book review, I have to say that I just finally noticed that Modesitt has been spelling Recluse wrong this entire time. I've had his books laying around for over a decade and never noticed this! I'm assuming that I've missed how he spells Recluse as Recluce just for the sake that my brain couldn't fathom it being misspelled. It makes you wonder if it got printed this way on the first run, but they decided to run with it. Is it supposed to be said in the same way as recluse, or does it have some other pronunciation? re-kloo-k? It's just a mind scramble to me! I even verified on his own website to make sure it wasn't a problem with Amazon. =\

The Magic of Recluce throws the reader into a slightly different fantasy realm than normal. Sure, the world is full  of medieval age technology - swords, crappy hotels, poor food - but they also have guns and some steam technology to boot. The drastic change from your typical Dragonquest or D&D style fantasy is the magic system. You're two competing schools of thought are Order and Chaos. In some ways, you can attribute some Eastern mythology to the way this works. While they compete, they must also be balanced. It's intriguing how Modesitt brings the two forces together within the individual and through the world. That would be enough to pick up this first book and try it out. The book mostly follows one protagonist with a few minor characters touched on throughout. It's mostly a journey of discovery.... don't want to say much more.

I really enjoyed my re-read. I've read a couple of his books before and he's done a good job at keeping your interest through the three hundred to four hundred pages. But it's not all perfect. I'm not a big fan of how he incorporates noises through the book. You'll get a few whees, yehaws, wooshes, and others. They also don't always mean the same thing. It's not enough to put down the book for me, but some folks might just pass after the first novel.

Rating: 7 CBs - I've read it three times so it has to have something going for it. I'm also excited about having the other books of the series. I can finally finish up an entire set!

-D

Is too much of a good thing bad?

My list of "books I plan on reading" continues to grow by leaps and bounds. This isn't all my fault either! Let's look at what I'm dealing with.

Currently Reading:
The Magic of Recluce (Recluce series, Book 1) - So I'm re-reading a great book from my high school years. It's a great start to a series that I never had time to finish. I've read only the first couple books because L.E. Modesitt Jr. never made it easy to figure out which book was which in the series. With the onset of Internet popularity it's been easier and easier to find out what I need to read next. Expect this review shortly.

Read a little of, and will finish:
The Stand: Expanded Edition: For the First Time Complete and Uncut (Signet) - I will finish this! I am really enjoying the book but didn't want to tackle a 1000 page book in a week. I'm halfway tempted to see this as my next review, but 900 pages to go. =\ And on my Nook that is about 2700 next clicks.

Blacklisted by History: The Untold Story of Senator Joe McCarthy and His Fight Against America's Enemies - I'm incredibly slow on historical books. They aren't always as exciting. Your imagination isn't used as much, and I like using that part of my brain. I'll probably start over since it's sorta applicable to our current situation - I'm not calling anyone communist, but it's being thrown around like crazy. No political stuff until I post a review, please. =)

The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression - Same thing as above! I'm slow to read, but applicable to today.

Books I own(will own shortly) that are on my list:
Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, Book 5) - Got at Borders a couple weeks ago. Been trying to do new authors instead of reading all seven books like I did with the Robert Jordan.

The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure - Been waiting to purchase this one for a long time, and suddenly it appears on our doorstep! My wife decided to join a book club and purchased six new books. A couple of those ended up being books for me!

The Passage - This is the second book that Leah picked up for me. I don't know much about it, and I'm not sure I want to read any of the reviews. The one praise that Leah mentioned was, "If you loved the Stand, you'll love The Passage". We'll see if it's any good.

Best Served Cold - My wife has gotten better at picking Fantasy than I am. She found a Joe Abercrombie book for me at BN and picked it up. He has since moved into my list of elite authors that deserve to be read more than once. Best Served Cold is one of his books that I haven't read. It's another long one so I didn't want to start and be attempting 3 600+ page books at the same time.

The Neverending Story - I found a BN gift card from Christmas that I totally forgot about! Exciting day! So instead of purchasing Blu-Rays I'll finally pick up the novel that one of my favourite childhood movies was based on. w00t! I even had a cat named Falcore..... sure, it's great to name your cat after a flying dog.

Rest of the recluse series - I think there's nine books for the series and I'm finishing up book one.

Books that I can't see myself finishing, or picking up again, but might:
The Dragon Factory - 24 meets CSI meets NYPD meets meh.... zombies, Nazis and weapons should make a great story, but this one was found a little lacking. I might try again, as I said in a previous post, but am not sure.

Graceling - I don't have anything against the book, but I have so many others that are more engaging than the first hundred pages were for this.

Aspire Higher: Winning On and Off the Court with Determination, Discipline, and Decisions - I enjoyed Avery Johnson as a coach, and as a player, but as an author? not so much. No offense, but his desire, as shown in this book, seems a little more self-serving than motivational.

:rolling dice: come on good times!

-D

Homemade Goodness

When I am not reading or napping, I spend a lot of time in my kitchen.  My first foray into blogging was encouraged by my husband because I do something a little different in the kitchen than most others:  I cook through cookbooks.  I don't mean I try out a few of the ideas and then declare the book's merits based on two recipes.  Rather, I spend time with a cookbook and get to know it's writter.  Most nights, we try a completely new recipe.  By now, I have tried well over 1,000 recipes in a matter of less than 6 years. 

I like cooking.

So when I was at Costco a couple months ago, I came across our location's last copy of A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg.  I was immediately drawn to the cover and the mention of homemade.  The book is basically a biography of her recipes.  Wizenberg tells the story of the recipes as she knows them.  She first tells the background, shares how she relates to it, and then, unveils the recipe for the reader to replicate it.  Each recipe has an origin, a feeling, a mood, a memory. For Molly, food is deeply personal.  This is what food is to me.  I found myself comparing my life in the kitchen to hers and saw much common ground.   I always tell people that food is love to me (this is not just something obese people say).  When I was growing up, I was surrounded by a lot of bakers, cooks, and generally great homemakers.  Molly had the benefit of that as a well.  As a result, she has a love of food preparation that has truly guided her life.  Her recipes are a way a of introducing others to her family members, and her family members are the providers of  many recipes.  Perhaps this quote will say it better than I can:

Food is never just food.  It's a way of getting at something else: who we are, who we have been, who we want to be. 

If you are a culinary omnivore, this is the book for you.  It is chock-full of touching stories and anecdotes to demonstrate Molly's passion for food and food preparation. 

Rating: 4.5 out of 7

-L

Note: If you are interested in my take on the recipes, consider following my cooking blog, SeldomMade.  I will be "cooking through"  this book, leaving a few of the more shi-shi recipes.  Sorry, my palate just refuses some food items.