Cute and charming, Astrid Lindgren's "Pippi Longstocking" is full of clever little moments and bits that make it a kid's book that has something for aCute and charming, Astrid Lindgren's "Pippi Longstocking" is full of clever little moments and bits that make it a kid's book that has something for adults too.
The book is a series of vignetts about Pippi -- a little girl without parents who will do what she wants, when she wants when it comes to social conventions. However, she has a heart of gold and a good sense of right and wrong.
I'm not terribly sure why it is included in the list of "1,001 Books to Read Before you Die" -- but I guess I'm glad it was, since I wouldn't have read it otherwise. Overall, a fun and quick read....more
Charlotte Bronte made several unsuccessful attempts to have "The Professor," her earliest work published. I can see why it was only published after heCharlotte Bronte made several unsuccessful attempts to have "The Professor," her earliest work published. I can see why it was only published after her death (and numerous rewrites) as it really isn't a great novel.
The story follows William Crimsworth, a man (like her female characters) who is thrown to the wild and forced to find his own fortune. He becomes a teacher in Brussels and the plot moves on from there.
It really takes a long time for the book to get going -- her long blocks of descriptive passages become a grind fairly quickly. While there is an interesting story buried in the book, it just drags out at such a slow pace that it really wasn't an enjoyable read.
Also disappointing that this edition does not have a translation of the French phrases in the back. While I could follow the general gist of the conversations in French, there is a crucial scene with Frances Henri that really needed to be translated (or read by someone who knows French, which I don't.)
Overall, this is book for Charlotte Bronte completists only. ...more
"Deborah: A Wilderness Narrative" is the story of David Robert's unsuccessful attempt on Mt. Deborah in Alaska. The two-man expedition crumbled due to"Deborah: A Wilderness Narrative" is the story of David Robert's unsuccessful attempt on Mt. Deborah in Alaska. The two-man expedition crumbled due to weather and strife.
This is definitely not my favorite Roberts book... I've read (much shortened) versions of his Deborah expedition elsewhere and thought they were more interesting. Roberts comes across as easily annoyed and grating in this work... as by his description, he appears to be irritated by his companion's table manners and use of certain words. The issues between them ran much deeper than that, obviously, but his treatment of them in the book is rather limited.
I much preferred Roberts' "The Mountains of My Fear" to "Deborah."...more
While I really admired Annie Dillard's pure rapture for the natural world, I found the "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek" somewhat tedious. Dillard really knowWhile I really admired Annie Dillard's pure rapture for the natural world, I found the "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek" somewhat tedious. Dillard really knows how put together an overwrought scene... absolutely flogging and interesting moment to death.
There are lots of interesting tidbits about the natural world scattered throughout the book, but it can be tough to make it through the passages in between them. I liked that the book focused not only on the beauty of nature, but its cruelty and violence too.
Overall, I found it an interesting musing, but hard to get through due to the way it was written....more
I liked Kiran Desai's beautifully-written "The Inheritance of Loss" right from the start. In addition to the almost lyrical quality of the writing, itI liked Kiran Desai's beautifully-written "The Inheritance of Loss" right from the start. In addition to the almost lyrical quality of the writing, its setting in the Himalayan border between India and Nepal is an area of the world I'm particularly interested in reading about.
The novel centers on two people -- Sai, an Indian girl who grew up in a convent before moving to her grandfather's house. The other half of the book centers on Biju, a boy who has immigrated to the United States and who is the son of a cook. The book really showcases the divide between generations and the difficulty of immigrants in forging a cultural identity as they are all torn between different values.
Although I thought the book dragged a bit in the middle (most of the interesting plot developments are at the very beginning of the book or at the very end...) the writing really carried me through those parts. All and all I did enjoy this book....more
I found "All's Well that Ends Well" to be really uneven. Helena is in love with Bertram, who apparently hates her for no reason and treats her shabbilI found "All's Well that Ends Well" to be really uneven. Helena is in love with Bertram, who apparently hates her for no reason and treats her shabbily... apparently that's incredibly attractive. Of course, with the title the play has, you can guess it's all going to go swimmingly well for Helena even if she has to trick her way into it.
Actually, Helena was a pretty interesting character as far as Shakespeare's women go (but she was no Lady MacBeth.) However, there seemed to be a lot of filler conversations (mostly by a clown) in a bunch a dialog that perhaps just hasn't aged well.
Overall, I just found this one kind of bland....more
"The Connected Child" by Karyn Purvis, David Cross and Wendy Sunshine" is filled with tips for those who adopt children who have special behavioral an"The Connected Child" by Karyn Purvis, David Cross and Wendy Sunshine" is filled with tips for those who adopt children who have special behavioral and emotional needs. They explain that more traditional responses such as isolating time outs, only serve to further isolate a child who already has trust and loss issues.
This excellent book is easy to read and lays out its suggestions in a really informative way. I definitely plan to incorporate some of its techniques into our home....more
"Northanger Abbey" is definitely not my favorite amongst Jane Austen's novels, but nor it is my least liked either. The book succeeds on the back of i"Northanger Abbey" is definitely not my favorite amongst Jane Austen's novels, but nor it is my least liked either. The book succeeds on the back of its heroine Catherine Moreland, who despite being rather daft and silly is still fairly likeable and interesting.
Catherine, who is enthralled with the Gothic romance "Mysteries of Udolpho," travels to Bath and later to an abbey she believes is imbued with all things "Udolpho." Along the way, she meets a variety of characters, some disreputable, some not... and it is all tied up in a neat and tidy package, as you'd expect from an Austen story.
A fun story... more so if you've read "Udolpho" so you know when Austen is poking fun at the novel. I found this to be an enjoyable and quick read....more
Wow... what an amazing story! Mike Dash's "Batavia's Graveyard" tells the story of the Batavia, a ship that was dashed on a coral reef near Australia Wow... what an amazing story! Mike Dash's "Batavia's Graveyard" tells the story of the Batavia, a ship that was dashed on a coral reef near Australia in 1629. More than 200 survivors climbed onto a nearby island with limited supplies. Their leader, Jeronimus and a band of mutineers, set about systematically murdering some 115 of these survivors-- at first to keep the supplies to themselves and later to hide their crimes.
The story is absolutely fascinating and while Dash uses a great deal of conjecture to fill in the gaps between the scanty details, he does so effectively. It takes a good long while to get to the meat of the story, as he takes a lot of time talking about the history of the Dutch East India Company and conditions in Holland, yet most of the material is so interesting I really didn't mind the delay.
An utterly fascinating and well-written book....more
Martin Dugard's "Into Africa: The Epic Adventures of Stanley and Livingstone" tells the story behind what is arguably one of the most well-known quoteMartin Dugard's "Into Africa: The Epic Adventures of Stanley and Livingstone" tells the story behind what is arguably one of the most well-known quotes from an explorer: "Dr. Livingstone, I presume? (perhaps only outdone by Edmund Hilary's "Because it is there.")
The book gives a good overview of Dr. David Livingstone's efforts to find the source of the Nile and Henry Morton Stanley's efforts to find Livingstone. I've read Stanley's book on his exploration of Africa (which came after finding Livingstone) but this book really gave me a totally different view of his character. Dugard's book describes him as racist, ambitious and frankly patently unlikeable.
I enjoyed the book's story and the way Dugard wove the journeys of the two men together. The book suffers a bit from Dugard's sort of breathless, excited way of describing even mundane scenes, but it also makes it clear that Dugard clearly enjoyed all of the research that went into it. A good, solid book that made for an interesting read....more
I've read all of Shakespeare's tragedies and "Troilus and Cressida" is definitely my least favorite by far. Set during the seventh year of the Trojan I've read all of Shakespeare's tragedies and "Troilus and Cressida" is definitely my least favorite by far. Set during the seventh year of the Trojan War, the play sprinkles a little bit of everything from romance to battle, but mostly focuses on people taunting each other. Much of action happens off-stage in the fifth act, as the actors dash on stage to mutter a few taunts and then leap off to fight with their swords. (As written anyway... I've never seen it performed.)
Overall, I felt that Shakespeare took a story told so well in "The Iliad" (with the addition of a couple of star-crossed lovers) and made it boring. It didn't help that there seemed to be no motivation for Cressida's quick betrayal. Anyway, there are loads of Shakespeare's plays that feature similar set ups that are much better than this. ...more
I picked up H.G Wells' "Tono-Bungay" mainly because I grew up on a lake with a name similar to the title so I knew absolutely nothing about the story I picked up H.G Wells' "Tono-Bungay" mainly because I grew up on a lake with a name similar to the title so I knew absolutely nothing about the story or plot. I was pleasantly surprised by this story, which was really engrossing and interesting.
The novel tells the story of George Ponderevo, who becomes wrapped up in his uncle's scheme to sell some sort of cure-all tonic that, of course, they both know is all bunk. The story is more expansive than that description, basically following the events of Ponderevo's life (and little touching on his business activities.) There is a ton of social commentary ranging from religion to socialism to the English class system along the way.
On the whole I really enjoyed the book... there were some parts that dragged a little. I found the sections about Tono-Bungay (the miracle tonic) itself to be the most interesting, but Wells wanders away from that topic frequently. Overall, this was a fun book though....more
I thoroughly enjoyed Nikolai Leskov's "The Enchanted Wanderer and Other Stories," a great collection of Russian short stories. Most of the stories telI thoroughly enjoyed Nikolai Leskov's "The Enchanted Wanderer and Other Stories," a great collection of Russian short stories. Most of the stories tell tales of the working class in the time of Tsar Nicholas I -- they read almost as a collection of old folk tales. Good solid writing and interesting plots made this a quick and easy read.
I think I enjoyed the title story the least in this fine collection, which told the story of an old monk and horse handler. I particularly enjoyed "Lefty" a story of Russian ingenuity... and the "Lady MacBeth of Mtsensk," a tragic tale of a lovelorn and bored woman....more
I really enjoy Bruce Chatwin's writing style (though was a bit taken aback when I read his assessment that he writes like Hemingway or D.H. Lawrence..I really enjoy Bruce Chatwin's writing style (though was a bit taken aback when I read his assessment that he writes like Hemingway or D.H. Lawrence....) so "What am I doing here?" has that going for it, at least.
The book really pales in comparison to Chatwin's others, however. It's filled with vignettes and a few short stories about people that Chatwin has met, traveled with (or liked to imagine he knew.) Some were really fascinating... others were really tedious.
I'd really only recommend this book to Chatwin completists. If you're new to his work, you are much better off with "In Patagonia" or "Songlines for non-fiction or "On the Black Hill" for non-fiction, as all are really wonderful. ...more
Can't believe that Hermann Hesse's "The Glass Bead Game" won a Nobel Prize for literature! (Since writing this review, I've learned that it wasn't forCan't believe that Hermann Hesse's "The Glass Bead Game" won a Nobel Prize for literature! (Since writing this review, I've learned that it wasn't for this book in particular, but for Hesse's whole body of work.) I guess I just didn't get it because the whole story bored me to tears. In fact, the only part I really enjoyed was the three stories at the end, which were supposedly written by the book's main character.
The novel is a biography of Joseph Knecht, one of the elite, whose education gives him the right to sit penned up from society and basically think about the connections between things. All of these educated folks play the Glass Bead Game to show how connected things are while they themselves are completely apart from the rest of the world.
My major problem with the book was that it was very dry -- almost like a lecture and Hesse did a lot of telling rather than showing. Knecht was a thoroughly boring individual and it was hard to read more than 30 pages of this dense prose without falling asleep.
This is the only book by Hesse I've read... I'm not sure if I just started with the wrong one or he is an author that just doesn't click with me. Given that I disliked this book, which is considered his magnum opus, I'm guessing it's the latter. ...more
Let me start off by saying that horror is not generally my genre. However, I thought H.P. Lovecraft's "At the Mountains of Madness" would be up my allLet me start off by saying that horror is not generally my genre. However, I thought H.P. Lovecraft's "At the Mountains of Madness" would be up my alley due to its Antarctic setting (I am completely mad for Antarctic expedition stories.) Also, I have played and enjoyed "Arkham Horror," a board game based upon Lovecraft's writings.
That said, I was a little disappointed by the novella. It didn't really have much of a creep factor. The story is told by Dyer, the member of an expedition to Antarctica who encounters ghastly horrors after unearthing evidence of alien "Elder Things" who roamed the planet long before man.
I liked the overall story and the setting, but the storytelling itself wasn't great -- a lot of the story is a dry description of grotesque and icy mountain chambers -- it took a long time to get to the interesting bits. In the end, I didn't find the author's style of writing particularly engaging, which was sad because the story itself had so much potential....more
I've seen "Othello" performed before but never picked it up and read it through... and I'm glad I finally did. "Othello" has a reputation as one of ShI've seen "Othello" performed before but never picked it up and read it through... and I'm glad I finally did. "Othello" has a reputation as one of Shakespeare's great tragedies and it is well deserved. The story is well-paced-- full of action and great passages of dialog that move the plot a long. This is one of his plays that never drags.
In the play, the villainous Iago plots against the Moor Othello by driving a wedge into his marriage with Desdemonda by convincing Othello that his wife is cheating on him. Iago plays the other characters like chess pieces to achieve his aims and destroying them all in the process.
Overall, this tragedy was a fun read... lots of good tidbits in the dialog to pour over, interwoven in a strong and compelling story....more
My reaction to much of this book was, "Wow, this is Shakespeare?"
"Titus Andronicus" is simply brutal... and definitely the most violent play of ShakeMy reaction to much of this book was, "Wow, this is Shakespeare?"
"Titus Andronicus" is simply brutal... and definitely the most violent play of Shakespeare's that I've ever read. There is a hardly a scene that goes by that someone isn't murdered, raped or dismembered. The play, at its heart, is a tale of revenue in its most violent form.
As such, this isn't one of my favorite plays... there isn't much subtle or playful here. But it also managed to keep my attention, as I wondered how Shakespeare was going to top the prior scene with something even more horrible. Overall, I found it interesting and much darker than a typical Shakespearean tragedy. ...more
There are so many things to like about Charlotte Bronte's "Villette" and yet I can't say I truly loved this book. It's particularly interesting since There are so many things to like about Charlotte Bronte's "Villette" and yet I can't say I truly loved this book. It's particularly interesting since the book in so many ways parallels Bronte's own life while she was living in Belgium. This is probably interested me the most, having read a biography about Bronte earlier this year.
The heroine of "Villette" is Lucy Snowe, a somewhat cold, but determined woman who is left to find her own fortune in the world and travels to Villette to (eventually) become an English teacher. As a narrator, she rarely tells what she knows -- or the entirety of her thoughts-- so it's up to the reader to tease them out from what she does say. There are various instances of unrequited love woven throughout the book.
Of course, comparisons to Bronte's more famous "Jane Eyre" are inevitable. Lucy Snowe is a much more realistic character-- much more well-rounded and without that inherent goodness that causes Jane to grate a bit. However, "Villette" seems to drag on more... little happens and Lucy Snowe is generally so reserved that it is hard to connect with any of the characters, including the narrator herself.
While I liked "Villette" overall, it definitely doesn't displace "Jane Eyre" as my favorite Charlotte Bronte book....more
"Detectives on Everest" tells the story of the 2001 expedition that unsuccessfully searched for the remains of Sandy Irvine. They hoped to find a came"Detectives on Everest" tells the story of the 2001 expedition that unsuccessfully searched for the remains of Sandy Irvine. They hoped to find a camera that would prove once in for all whether in 1924 Irvine and George Mallory actually reached the summit of Mt. Everest, but the camera remains missing.
While the team didn't find what they were looking for, they did find a treasure trove of artifacts from both Mallory's expedition and several later Chinese ascents. They offer tantalizing hints that Mallory and Irvine could possibly have reached the summit before plunging to their deaths. (At least, they were the more convincing arguments along that line that I've ever read.)
Also included in the book is a great rescue story where they helped several climbers down after a night up high on the mountain. The members of the expedition gave up their summit bid on a beautiful day-- all the while other climbers marched past them and even refused to help.
Well-written and with lots of great photographs of artifacts, this is a really interesting look at Mt. Everest and the early attempts to reach its peak....more
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