A Wandering Eyre

The Smart Bitches are celebrating Banned Books Week with reviews from readers. All of the reviews are wonderful, but I laughed the hardest over the Harry Potter review.

Be a smart bitch and go read some reviews. A ton of my personal favorites made the list.

–Jane, the word bitch would get her banned in many schools

Sometimes, once in a great while, you come across that book that you can not put down. I can remember most of the books that have made me feverish to finish them. The kind you stay up reading, long past your eyes and head have given up trying to get you to sleep. I have never been the person for whom a book works as a sleep agent. I might as well drink espresso in bed if I am going to read a good book propped up by pillows.

Last night I stayed up reading Castle of the Wolf, which SB Sarah reviewed a couple weeks ago. I love classic gothic romance. What is there not to lurve about crumbling castle walls in a dark setting, a broody hero, and a determined, but innocent lady?

The writing is fun, with enough humor, intelligence, romance, and gargoyles to please anyone. I definitely recommend it if you always wanted there to be a little more heat in your version of Wuthering Heights or a few less puppies dying.

Unfortunately, all I can think of now is finishing the damn thing and I really need to work. I love it when a book consumes you, but I wish it would abate during business hours.

–Jane, may go “look for something in the stacks” later

His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik

It has been awhile since I have been quite so sucked into a book. Novik writes an alternate historical fiction, centering on a British naval Captain during the Napoleonic War. The alternate part of this history is the presence of dragons in the world. Upon capturing a French ship, William Laurence finds a dragon egg in the hold, a dragon egg that is ready to hatch at any moment.

There were three reasons that I really enjoyed this book. Novik tried, successfully I believe, to write in a style that befitted the era represented. The main character, Laurence is very concerned about the politeness rules of society, though as the novel goes on, he becomes slightly more liberal in his views. the diction that Novik had chosen helps authenticate the world she has created.

Most of the dragons in the story are intellegent and have a very delightful sense of humor (that is #2, for those counting). The turn of phrase and dialog between the dragons and their handlers is very diverting. i found myself giggling aloud many times.

The last thing I appreciated was the way Novik wove the dragons into a history that already exists. This is a very rich period in Naval warefare, and history in general. The days of Nelson were glory days for the British and I liked the nods to this period in the novel.

Highly Recommended - for all! Fantasy or historical fiction lovers alike.

Glass Houses by Rachel Caine

My friend, also being a lover of vampire books, lent me Rachel Caine’s new YA offering this week. It is a good YA novel with some of the usual teen problems and, of course, some vampires. Claire is young genius who graduated from high school early and is attending a university in dusty west Texas. She is not well liked, but eventually finds some friends and they have subsequent adventures in which they get in trouble with some vampires. It is a very fast, very fun read.

However, and boy is this a big however. I have a huge bone to pick with Ms. Caine. This is the first book of hers I have read and apparently she likes to end her books with huge cliff hangers. Knife-arching-down-to-kill-a-character kind of ending. The previous sentence is exactly how the book ended. Dear readers, would I joke about this? I think not.
It left me feeling dirty, taken advantage of. I do not mind loose ends, the way Rowling leaves loose ends, but this is over the top for me. Was it so hard to figure out what was going to happen next that Ms. Caine just had to stop or is this a ploy to get people to buy more books?

Regardless, I liked the book but will only finish reading the series if I can borrow it from the library or my friend, whom I already chastised. It is good, but I did not need the cheap ploy to get me interested in the series. The story would have been enough.

Recommended: Good Story, fun for all (for parents, it does have some very light cussing, but nothing that would make your wee one’s eyes spin and nothing they can not already hear on TV).

***Warning: Spoilers for Eragon and Eldest ahead. You have been warned!***

Mr. Rochester recently finished reading the first two books of the Inheritance Trilogy and he remarked how much they mirror Star Wars and LoTR.

Below is a guest posting by Mr. R which lays out the similarities of the original Star Wars and Eragon & Co. The comparisons do give away plot points of the books so please stop reading if spoilers make you cry.

Episode IV: A New Hope – vs. – Book 1: Eragon

Ben Kenobi – vs. – Brom
Old man with mysterious background takes up quiet residence within a farming town and we find out in the second installment that he is keeping an eye on the son of his best friend turned enemy.

Luke Skywalker – vs. – Eragon
Simple, young, farm boy barely out of adolescence who has no knowledge of his parents and has been raised by his uncle and aunt. Something the evil empire wants falls into his backyard and, when the empire comes looking for it and can’t find it, they kill his uncle and burn his home to the ground. The boy then leaves his home and follows the mysterious man through the empire as the old man trains him in the ways of a mysterious power.

The mentor dies. Boy meets up with loner who plays by own rules (Han Solo – Murtagh). The boy saves the princess (Arya) who had been captured by the empire. Boy joins the rebel forces. Boy is involved in huge battle in which he gives the killing blow that decides the outcome of the battle.

Episode V: Empire Strikes Back – vs. – Book 2: Eldest

Yoda – vs. – Oromis

Boy journeys to hidden place where an old teacher exists unbeknown to the empire.

Side story about a “sibling” and their struggle to escape the empire while the rebellion tries to regroup. In the end, the boy battles with another of his kind who reveals to the boy that his unknown father was the man who betrayed the old order and helped the emperor gain control.

The second in command, the right-hand man and the executor for the empire, turns out to be a blood relative of the boy. The boy is wanted captured alive to take before the Emperor but is allowed to escape the clutches of the second-in-command.

Episode VI: Return of the Jedi – vs. – Book 3: ???

Farm boy and “sibling” work together to recover the “sibling’s” loved one.
Defeat the empire.
Teacher dies?
Turn the second in command to the good side?

–Mr. Rochester, now do you see why I married him?

The Illustrated Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Illustrations by Dame Darcy

This book has been sitting on my desk for about two and a half weeks waiting to be reviewed, so Slate beat me to the punch. Their review is quite nice, so feel free to go read it as well.

This volume belongs in the library of any Bronte aficionado. There are many things which will endear this book to its readers. After the title page of this volume, a replica of the title page from the original first edition appears with the author appearing as Currer Bell, the name under which Charlotte Bronte wrote Jane Eyre. The original foreword by the author to the second edition is also included and was a joy to read. The pages are rough cut, like folio pages. All of this would have been enough to make this bibliophile swoon, but then there are also illustrations.

The illustrations, of course, are what make this a truly lovely volume. Dame Darcy, of whom I had not previously heard, has created drawings that are gothic, dark, and playful. They reminded me a bit of Edward Gorey, though Dame Darcy has a style all her own. Most of the illustrations are in black and white, but there are some very wonderful ones in color. Some of the drawings are full page depictions of the novel’s events and others grace the margins. Dame Darcy is able to show both the bleakness of the human condition always present in Bronte’s work while also including the notion of hope that the characters hold for the future.

It has been a few years since I delved into Jane Eyre and this beautiful rendition of a much loved book, makes me want to romp on the hills of the Rochester Estate once more.

Highly Recommended – Great for Charlotte Bronte newbies and essential for lovers of the original

Midnighters #1: The Secret Hour by Scott Westerfeld

This book was recommended to me by a friend who is a fan of Westerfeld author of Peeps, Uglies, Pretties, The Risen Empire, and many more.

The Midnighters are a group of high school kids in Bixby, OK who are the only ones awake during the 25th hour of the day. Well, the only humans anyway. There are a fair share of baddies, called slithers and darklings, that become increasingly more active and the Midnighters are wondering if it has anything to do with the new girl in town. This book focuses a lot on action with enough character development to satisfy but leaves you wanting just a little bit more.

Westerfeld has created a very interesting world in which an even more interesting troupe of characters tries, a bit unsuccessfully, to be a team. Each of the Midnighters has a unique ability which helps them to fend of the darklings and survive the secret hour, but their flaws keep them from being a team. It is these flaws that make the story interesting. If only 5 people were “alive” for an hour, who would assume the leadership role? Who would be the muscle? What if self preservation is more important than the whole to one or more members?

These are the questions that Westerfeld poses through the characters. As the first book in a series, this novel merely sets up a larger struggle and many of the questions above are left unanswered. The second book in the series, Touching Darkness, promises to reveal more and is sitting on my dining room table right now.

Highly Recommended – fantasy-esque so not necessarily for everyone

Gifts by Ursula K. Le Guin

This was not my first Le Guin novel, though I think that it is thus far (out of two mind you) my favorite. It is classified as a juvenile fiction book at my library, but it read more like a YA book to me.

The story is centered around Orrec, a young man who is waiting for his gift, the undoing, which causes things to be unmade, to appear. Orrec lives in the Uplands, a place in the hills where each family has a gift that helps them protect their land and their people. His best friend, Gry, has the gift of calling animals to the hunt. Le Guin’s story is one of tragedy, deceptions, love, and growing up. Do not let the fantasy label deter you from reading this book. The fantasy touch is light and the themes are transcendent.

Gifts is a great read. At 288 pages, juvenile pages mind you, it is also a quick read. The thing I like most about reading Le Guin is that you can be right in the middle of a perfectly ordinary, but good, description of something and suddenly you will stumble upon a beautiful sentence. A sentence whose very craftsmanship causes you to go back and reread it over again, to prolong the taste of it on your tongue. Gifts is a delightful book full of robust themes for such a small novel.

Recommended, even for those who are not already fans of Le Guin or fantasy

Wow. I just realized I am very behind in my book reviews. Yikes. I am going to try to spend the next couple days catching up.

–Jane, has been reading, just not writing about it

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

This is a good book in classic Gaiman style with lots of references to literature, cultural icons, myths, and, of course, Anansi himself. I did not, however, finish the book due to a combination of my being unable to renew the copy I took from the library and that the novel itself is too easy to put down. I did not feel compelled to stay up, wringing my hands as the main character, Charlie, learns the true nature of his origins and then must deal with the consequences. I am a fickle reader and that is the way it is.
This book is good for people who do not have a ton of time to read. It is easy to put down and pick back up a few days later. If you have a small child, like my boss who loved the book does, it is also easy to read in small snippets. You know, in between the kid eating dirt and then playing in the street, so I will give this book a somewhat recommended rating.

Somewhat recommended - not suggested reading if you are looking for something to carry you away