November Book Reviews

Changes:
December 16, 2008
After writing the review of all the November Books Read, the feedback I was getting was mainly "WOW, that was way too long to read". I think the general feeling was I was writing a book about the books..!! So, I've decided to pare down, and do a Cliff Notes version of the books instead, which is what anyone else from today on will read.

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I thought I would end the month with a review of the books I've read. It's quite a cross-section of genres, from "teenage chick lit" to scary short stories and lots of stuff in between. I'll start from the bottom of the list, with the book I read first and work my way to Stephen King, which I just finished.

MATT RUFF

Fool On The Hill
The story is about a student named Stephen Titus George, who goes to Cornell University. The book takes place mostly at Cornell, and particularly on The Hill overlooking the campus. There is a surreal, hidden world of fairies, a meddling mythological being named Mr Sunshine, a wonderful dog named Luther who is looking for heaven, along with his long-suffering traveling companion, a Manx cat named Blackjack. It's a strange, bizarre, lovable book that I enjoyed immensely.

Set This House In Order
The most convoluted novel I've read in ages. Andrew Gage has a Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD), though has it under control by consigning all his personalities to a "house" in his mind. They all live in the house, which is their world really, with their own rooms, communal dining, group meetings; everything you would expect from an actual large family. There were some shock revelations along the way, an evil personality trying to escape the "house" and psychological discourse about the proper treatment for MPD. I can't imagine having my head filled with a bunch of other personalities, opinions, and/or behaviors, though after reading this book, at least I feel I have a better understanding of people who might.

Sewer, Gas and Electric: The Public Works Trilogy
This book was a funny, thriller/mystery/sci-fi story set in New York in 2023. The NY sewer crew is battling a mutant great white shark, a mega-billionaire is building his version of the Tower of Babel, Ayn Rand is a ghost in a hurricane lamp, constantly harping in biting commentary about the merits of capitalism, there are eco-terrorists, and a murder mystery to solve. I'm hard pressed to explain this book, other than to say, it's well worth the read, if totally unconventional.

Bad Monkeys
This story is about a girl named Jane Charlotte, who has been arrested in Las Vegas for murder. She claims she works for a secret organization called the "Department for the Final Disposition of Irredeemable Persons", or Bad Monkeys; people who for whatever reason have managed to get away with murder and mayhem. She's really a secret government assassin, she says, and the story is about how she got involved with the organization, what she does, and how she does it. The ending was a surprise, in a Matt Ruff way: twisted, bizarre and very...well...surprising.

What I find the most amazing about Matt Ruff's four books: All these stories were in his head..!! The twists and turns, the disparity of plot, the fun, the serious, the weird. Wow.


STEVEN HALL

The Raw Shark Texts
This novel is Steven Hall's first. I read a review on Amazon where someone said this book was like Marmite: you either loved it or hated it. I can't begin to describe what an odd, totally original book this was. Ultimately it was a love story, though that seems too trite when I sit and think of the whole plot. It's very wacky as a story, though it's also compelling. I have to say, the ending floored me. Honestly, I might be missing a few brain cells or something, but the end really made me think: What...?? Still, it was worth reading, for no other reason than to stretch my mind.


STEPHENIE MEYER

After several books requiring major participation of my brain, I thought it was time to lighten the load. I saw a large display at Waterstones for Stephenie Meyer's Twilight saga, and though I figured it was "teen lit" thought I would read the first book in the series until something better caught my eye. Maybe a story about a teenage vampire would at the very least be diverting. What a shock to get totally hooked..!! I mean seriously, I couldn't believe it. I'm not sure if this is because I was reading about a place where I've actually been, or if once a teenage girl it's so easy to be one again in my imagination, or if it's just simply that I could fall into the plot and not have to dissect meanings or concepts.

Twilight
This is the first book of four. Bella Swan, 17, the main character, moves to Forks, WA to live with her father, the sheriff. She meets Edward Cullen at the local high school. She's intrigued by him, and his five "siblings", though initially he seems to have a real aversion to her. She meets a friend of the family, a Quileute named Jacob, who tells her some Native American folklore, which includes vampires. She eventually puts two and two together, and confronts Edward. One thing leads to another and the whole story comes out: he is a vampire as are his five siblings, and his foster parents. They are not vampires who prey on humans, but rather have a more civilized approach. There is a interesting plot to this book involving Quileute legends and their purpose in protecting humans from vampires; there are rogue vampires who come to Forks and want to have Bella for lunch, a father with feelings that Edward is not who he seems, and a very interesting family of vampires: the Cullens. The relationship, building against all the odds, between Edward and Bella is really good, and by the end of Twilight, I truly had to find out what happened next.

New Dawn
The story picks up in Bella and Edward's senior year in high school. She has become friends with Alice, one of Edward's "sisters". Alice is planning a big 18th birthday party for Bella. Of course, things go terribly wrong. Most of this book is about dealing with love and loss and pain. Bella eventually finds a true friend in Jacob, and spends a great deal of time with him, and other Quileutes. This book is full of suspense, bittersweet romance, rescues and reunions, and the continuing difficulties of a human girl in love with a vampire.

Eclipse
Bella is torn between her love for Edward and her love for her best friend, Jacob. The two guys are bitter enemies, but both want what's best for her. A character from the first book returns, bringing danger and death to Seattle, Forks, Bella, and the Cullens' way of life.

Breaking Dawn
The last book was the biggest: a great 754-page, wonderfully thick book...my favorite kind. The conclusion of the series begins with Bella and Edward graduating from high school. She is now adamant to become a vampire (for various reasons), but Edward has placed one major condition before he will grudgingly agree to this, one which Bella is hard-pressed to comply with, and a chain of events begun in Twilight comes to a thrilling finale. It was a tremendous finish, though parts were pretty graphic. On the cover of my book there was a large sticker which said "Not suitable for young readers" and boy, did they mean that..!!

I really loved this whole saga. If I have any complaint at all, it would have to be Bella's constant appraisal of Edward's beauty. She just couldn't fathom why he would want to be with her, a plain ol' human, and brought it up on a regular basis. She couldn't understand that for Edward, she was the beautiful one. Still, I suppose sometimes that's part and parcel of being in love. I read all four books in little over a week, and when I finally raised my head, I was stunned to realize I wasn't in Forks, WA. Regardless of the books being written for teenagers, I found myself totally captivated.


STEPHEN KING

It took me at least a week, after reading the Twilight series, to get back into another book. I had pre-ordered the new Stephen King, Just After Sunset, so when it arrived at my door unexpectedly, I was very happy to have found something new to read.

Way back in the day, when Jan (BFF) and I worked at the same publishing company, we used to read Stephen King and compare notes. Since I was not totally into scary novels, Jan would read the books first, then tell me if they were too creepy for me. The only two I've never read are Misery and The Dark Half, which Jan said would NOT work for me at all. I also lost track of the Dark Tower series, having read three then losing interest when the remaining books in the series were taking years to be published. I love Stephen King's writing style, hence why, when he's being truly scary, he can totally creep me out. I was anticipating, with relish, his new book of short stories.

Just After Sunset
All the stories didn't grab me, though each had something. The Gingerbread Girl would definitely have been the one, of all of them, that Jan would have said: don't read..!! I think Stationary Bike was my favorite. Imagine a work crew in your body, taking care of the culverts and drains and various washed out roads, and what would happen if you got healthy and didn't need them so much anymore. It was a great story. The Things They Left Behind was sad and poignant; Harvey's Dream, Rest Stop, Mute, all good stories. The last one, A Very Tight Place was a story Stephen King wrote because, as he says in his Notes at the end of the book: "...I wrote this story, for the same reason I have written so many rather unpleasant tales, Constant Reader: to pass on what frightens me to you." All I will say is: I will never go into a portapotty again...!!!

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So, there ends my reading for November. It was a strange, eclectic bunch of books, but that suits me just fine. I don't know what I would do without my books, and how odd I find it that e-books are becoming so popular. There's nothing like opening a new book, the feel of turning pages, the smell of paper and ink. You can't begin to feel the heft of worlds in your hands with a computer book. No thanks, I'll keep doing things the old-fashioned way...that's part of the joy after all. And, as I already have a pile stacked up for my December reading, I will finish this now and go get started.