First Line: Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
Feb 4th
I think that far too often the first line of a book gets wasted on the reader (myself included). How often do we, when first cracking open a brand new book, stop to appreciate everything the author is trying to tell us right at the very beginning? Sure there are times when we are immediately captivated by some good writing, or by a novel that jumps right into the action, but do we really give enough time to what is literally setting the stage for everything to come?
With that in mind, I’d like to start a reoccurring feature on the blog: First Line. In these posts I will provide the first line of a book I have read (and hopefully many of you have as well) and discuss what it does right and wrong in context of the book as whole. Don’t worry, I won’t be spoiling anything specific. Instead, I’ll be focusing on the tone, themes, etc. of the novel. It’s not exactly a review, either, because as we all know a book can start great and end terribly or start terribly and end great. This is still in its infancy, so I’m open to suggestions as well.
For our first First I’ve chosen Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. This novel introduces itself to us with the following:
“Some years ago there was in the city of York a society of magicians.”
There is so much contained within this little sentence, it’s unbelievable. The first thing that stands out to me is the straightforwardness of the claim that there were magicians. There’s no attempt to justify the claim or to convince the reader with flowery language. It is merely a statement of fact that there was a society of magicians in York some years ago.
This may seem insignificant at first considering many books assume the lore they are based on, but it is a cornerstone for this book. Strange is written as though it were a history book – a “true” account of the Napoleonic wars where magicians played a critical role. We can see immediately that this book takes the idea of magicians, and their place in history, seriously.
In many ways it is what is left out of this first sentence that makes it so interesting. It does not start with “Once upon a time in York there was a society of magicians.” No, this is no fairy tale, and we as the reader now know that we should not treat it as such.
There is a certain dryness of voice that is evident in this first sentence as well. No embellishment is necessary when the facts themselves are interesting, an idea clear in this opener, and one which continues throughout the book. Furthermore, it is this same dry tone that will be responsible for so much of the humor in the book. History it may be, but that doesn’t mean that it will be any less entertaining.
Ultimately, without even moving beyond the first sentence, Clarke has set us up for a book that, while humorous and entertaining, is meant to be taken seriously. The footnotes, characters, and plot are only interesting if we allow ourselves to read them as though they are real. If we look at this book and think “fantasy” it’s merely a clever diversion. If it’s seen as “history”, then it becomes a near masterpiece of writing. Clarke obviously knew this, and she was preparing us as best she could from the very beginning.
So there you have it. Let me know what you think – both about the first line of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell and of the First Line concept as a whole.
Atherton Series (Audio)
Feb 1st
I absolutely hate not having an audio book to listen to in the car. For over 2 years now I have exclusively listened to books while driving. About a month ago, however, I found myself on the way to the grocery store just as I was finishing the last book I had in the car. Desperate, I decided to stop at the nearest library to pick something up (typically I reserve books beforehand to ensure I get something of high quality).
I normally stop at a library near my office, so this was not one I had ever been to before. While searching, I came across the book you see to the left – The House of Power by Patrick Carman. This caught my eye because I have read and enjoyed The Land of Elyon which was also written by Carman. It turned out to be a pretty good decision.
At this point I have finished all three books in the series (The House of Power, The Rivers of Fire, and The Dark Planet), and I enjoyed them all quite a bit. The Atherton series follows the adventures of an orphan boy named Edgar who loves to climb. He spends his nights climbing, and his days tending to the fig trees in the grove where he grew up. Soon, however, life becomes extremely interesting for Edgar as he discovers the truth about the world he’s grown up on.
What makes the Atherton books better than the Land of Elyon books is the adventure. It starts sooner in Atherton, and is generally more exciting throughout. The only major problem in all three books is the narrator is merely sufficient to get the job done. He doesn’t bring the characters or the setting to life the way many narrators do and as a result, I would recommend reading them before listening to them. At least it is the same narrator throughout, unlike the Land of Elyon, which went through 3 different narrators in 4 books.
If you enjoy books for younger readers (10-12?) definitely give these a shot. Especially if you enjoy unique worlds that, while narrow in scope, have a depth that allows for a pleasantly manageable thoroughness. (This can be said for both series by Carman, and is a clever writing technique that I’m surprised we don’t see more often. You may also enjoy reading them just to see how he does a good job of creating small worlds that are efficiently well-realized).
Botchan
Jan 29th
An introduction to a book can be a double-edged sword. Sometimes it can be extremely useful and informative – as is the case with Botchan. Here we have an introduction that reveals some of the subtleties of the translation that would not have been evident from the text itself. For example the word Botchan, which is the nickname of the main character and narrator, can mean any of the following: “a younger son; inexperienced or naïve; easygoing in a way that can either be mildly endearing or distressingly irresponsible” (5).
Clearly this is important information that is necessary to approach the text in a more fulfilling, meaningful way. This introduction continues such usefulness as it gives clarification to the nicknames Botchan gives to his fellow teachers as well as some insight into why the book is so popular among Japanese readers. All of this was interesting, without spoiling the content of the book.
On the other hand, sometimes introductions go a little overboard. My favorite book to recommend, I Am a Cat is a perfect example. At first the introduction seems to just offer clarification on translation issues but suddenly it gives away the ending of the book, and offers an explanation for why it happened. Why do this? Why ruin an emotionally powerful moment of the book in the introduction without warning? Does the translator assume only those who have read the book already will peruse the intro?
These days, I avoid introductions whenever possible, and in the case of a translated book, I read it (literally) out of the corner of my eye so I can turn away before anything gets spoiled. Well, with my rant out of the way, let’s move on to Botchan proper.
Botchan is the tale of a young man who moves to rural Japan to become a teacher. He encounters a wide array of characters, all of whom he brings to life through bizarre nicknames and colorful commentary. Of all the characters, however, Botchan is by far the most interesting. His unwavering commitment to honesty and upright behavior is both commendable and hilarious. His discussions of those around him are unrestrained and riddled with sarcasm. It is not a stretch to compare his accusations of weakness to Holden Caulfield’s outcries of “phoniness”.
I found Botchan to be funny and engaging. The translation is excellent, and the work did not feel foreign or unapproachable. Far from it. In fact, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fiction, but those who have a special place in their book-loving souls for The Catcher in the Rye will find it particularly enjoyable.
“Now that I thought about it, though, I realized that most people actually encourage you to turn bad. They seem to think that if you don’t you’ll never get anywhere in the world. And then on those rare occasions when they encounter somebody who’s honest and pure-hearted, they look down on him and say he’s nothing but a kid, a Botchan. If that’s the way it is, it would be better if they didn’t have those ethics classes in elementary school and middle school where the teacher is always telling you to be honest and not to lie. The schools might as well just go ahead and teach you how to tell lies, how to mistrust everybody, and how to take advantage of people. Wouldn’t their students, and the world at large, be better off that way?” (72).
Up Next: Stranger in a Strange Land
Jan 28th
First of all, thank you to everyone who helped me pick the next book I’m going to read. If, somehow, you weren’t riveted to the comment section of the last post, Robert Heinlen’s Stranger in a Strange Land topped the charts with 3 votes. This is only fitting, too, considering I’ve had this book for years, ever since Nathan let me borrow it, but have never been able to bring myself to start it. Maybe this is the motivation I needed to finally sit down and read it. Not sure what my hesitation was, since I’ve heard good things about it.
Second, so you realize I appreciated everyone’s participation, I’ll go ahead and read through my to-read stack in order of votes. So that means after Stranger it will be Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, In Harm’s Way, and The World of Pooh, then on to The Gunslinger Born and A Brief History of Time. I’ll be posting my thoughts on each of these books here as I finish them, so keep an eye out for that if you’ve read any of them. And if you haven’t, hopefully I can offer some insight on if they are worth reading. As for the books that received no votes, they will be destroyed by fire and their ashes flushed down a toilet.
Third, I don’t plan on doing this again anytime soon (since it would pretty much just be the same books over and over again, and that doesn’t sound all that exciting), but I have an idea for something similar – so if you enjoyed this, make sure you check back in a couple weeks for that. Thanks again!
(P.S. I am, of course, kidding. I promise I’m not going to destroy any books. I love books. Sometimes I think they love me, too.)
Choose your own adventure (and by yours, I mean mine)
Jan 24th
The tower of books you see to the left is my to-read stack. When I finish with what I’m currently reading (Botchan by Natsume Soseki – the author of I Am a Cat) I will be picking something from this list. However, instead of using some arbitrary criteria that I’ll come up with moments before I choose – I’m going to let you be the arbiter of arbitrariness for me. That’s right, you get to choose my next reading adventure.
All I ask is that you post a comment with the book you want me to read next. You can give reasons, or just the title. Or, if you want to pretend like you are ordering Chinese food, just the number from the list below. Hopefully there will be an overwhelming majority, otherwise I’ll have to come up with some other criteria to choose by, which would defeat the whole purpose of doing this!
I will be finishing my current book in the next 3 or 4 days, so you have until then to respond.
Here’s the list in a format that is a little easier to read than squinting at the picture above:
- Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
- The Inferno of Dante (translation by Robert Pinsky)
- A Personal Matter by Kenzaburo Oe
- Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
- Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
- Everything Bad is Good For You by Stephen Johnson
- In Harm’s Way by Doug Stanton
- A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
- A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (this is just the first book in The Complete Sherlock Holmes Vol. I)
- The World of Pooh by A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard
- The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born by Stephen King, Peter David, Robin Furth, and Jae Lee (this is a graphic novel).
Thanks for your help!
Update: I’ve finished Botchan (post incoming shortly) so the voting is closed. Up next: Stranger in a Strange Land.
Half Moon Investigations (Audio)
Jan 22nd
Before we headed to Pennsylvania for Christmas vacation, Vanessa and I picked up the audio book versions of the first Artemis Fowl, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows from our local library. These were meant to be safe, guaranteed good listens for the many hours of driving we were going to have to do up north. Unfortunately, I left them at home and when we arrived in PA, with a four hour drive looming on the horizon, we were feeling a little nervous.
Vanessa’s mom, and her trusty library card, came to the rescue, however, and while we prepared for the drive she went to her library to pick up “any Artemis Fowl book you can find” (we have read and enjoyed them all, so we weren’t going to be picky at this point). While she did find the first Artemis book, she accidentally grabbed the book you see to the left as well – Half Moon Investigations. Since we had not ever read this one before, and we were feeling adventurous, we decided to give Half Moon a go. We made the right decision.
Half Moon Investigations is the story of a young private detective, Fletcher Moon, who is accused of committing multiple crimes and thereby forced to clear his own name. What really makes the book great is Colfer’s ability to flawlessly combine the interests and vocabulary of a teenager with the wit and tone of classic private eye literature. Within moments of starting the book we were blown away by how strong a character Colfer had created in Moon, and were laughing hysterically as Fletcher, with complete earnestness, reveals the rough and tumble life of a teenage detective.
All of this is enhanced even further by the narration of Sean Patrick Reilly. This Irishman brings Fletcher and his world to life so vividly that I have to wonder if actually reading the book would have been half as enjoyable. After all, would I have had the presence of mind to read Fletcher’s inner dialogue in the classic private detective style? If not, I would have missed out on a huge aspect of the book. My descriptions so far have been pretty insufficient, so I recommend listening to the sample of the audio production available on Amazon (there’s a play button just under the image of the book).
This one is definitely recommended. In fact, if I hadn’t finished it in 2010, it would have been extremely difficult to decide between this and The House of the Scorpion for the best audio book of the year. Fortunately, I won’t have to make any hard decisions like that for at least 11 months.
“It was shiny. He was eight.”
Oh Fine – Ten on Tuesday on Wednesday (Book Edition)
Jan 20th
Yeah, yeah, it’s Wednesday and I’m doing a Ten on Tuesday. I got in trouble for not doing this yesterday, even though it was about books. (Courtesy roots and rings via Kathleen and Megan).
1. Favorite book(s) as a child and why?
This might not come as a surprise to anyone, but the earliest book I remember reading for fun was Encyclopedia Brown. I always enjoyed trying to solve the mystery, and never seemed to mind the fact that I never could. I always wonder, if I read them again now, would I still be surprised by the endings? Are they logical and reasonable, or just outrageously ridiculous? I plan to find out when Lucas is old enough to enjoy them.
2. First “grown-up” book you remember reading?
For starters, I’m not even sure what this question means. Grown-up is in quotes, which might imply that it isn’t meant to be serious. If that’s the case, then it would have to be the expanded universe Star Wars novels I read in junior high. These are “grown-up” in the sense that their target audience is people (like me) who haven’t ever grown up.
3. Favorite movie that came from a book?
It’s a tie, but to be fair it’s two movies based on books by the same author (Nick Hornby): High Fidelity and About a Boy. I chose these because, first, both are great movies. Second, they treat the source material with respect. Third, you can either watch the movies first, then read the books or go books then movies and still really enjoy both. They are more supplemental and complimentary than most book/move relationships and I appreciate that.
4. Movie that you loved so much that you WISHED there was a book out so that you could find out more about the movie.
Donnie Darko. If you’ve seen the movie, you understand.
5. Worst book you’ve ever read?
Unlike some of my other friends I, unfortunately, have a really hard time putting a book down no matter how bad it is. It happens, but not often. At the top of the list is The Once and Future King by T.H. White. I remember hating this book in high school. I even wanted to enjoy it, but it simply wasn’t happening. Sorry Merlin.
6. Book that everyone raves about that you either a) haven’t read and feel slightly dumb for not having read it or b) have tried to read and hated and so feel slightly dumb that everyone is getting something you don’t?
Little Women. But I don’t feel particularly dumb about it since I’m clearly not in the target audience.
7. If you were forced to choose only 3 books that you could read for the rest of your life, which ones would they be?
I’m going to steal an idea from Megan, and go with Aristotle’s Complete Works. In addition, it would probably be Lord of the Rings, and The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead.
8. Name one book that you would recommend everyone you know read.
Other than East of Eden and The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, the only other book I’ve been recommending to everyone is I Am A Cat by Nastume Soseki. It’s funny, clever, and surprisingly approachable for a book about 19th Century Japan. Plus, it’s not the type of book most people would come across on their own, so it needs as much recommending as it can get.
9. What is your guilty pleasure reading?
Definitely juvenile fiction. It’s the perfect light reading between more mature books and most of them are just so fun to read. In the past year, it has been Percy Jackson and The Olympians, Fablehaven and just recently The Hunger Games. I also highly recommend Artemis Fowl, or pretty much anything by Eoin Colfer.
10. What book (excepting the Bible or other major document of your religion/faith) has changed your outlook on life the most?
Honestly, I don’t know. Is that terrible? That I don’t let books impact me in that way (or that I don’t read books that should?) It’s not as though books to speak to me in profound ways (The Catcher in the Rye certainly did), but it’s more often that they reach me as I am now, and not that they change me. Maybe I’m not just not aware of the change?
Catching Fire
Jan 19th
My friend Raina (a librarian) recently mentioned in a book review on Goodreads that the first book in a series has to be extremely good if she is going to read any sequels. I found this interesting because this is absolutely not the case for me. A book only has to be moderately enjoyable if I’m going to continue on in a series. If I like even a single character, or if the plot is remotely interesting, I feel compelled to find out what happens next.
Is this a bad thing? Sometimes, like when it results in reading terrible novels (His Dark Materials 2 & 3 come to mind), but for the most part I prefer it. Sometimes it takes more than one book to really appreciate the depth of a character, or the subtleties of a plot. Plus, I hate to think that I might miss out on a great sequel because of a bad first novel.
Regardless, this is all a moot point when it comes to Catching Fire. The first volume in the series (The Hunger Games) is excellent. No doubt if you read the first book, you’ve either finished the second already, or are already planning on it, and don’t need me to convince you.
Then again, perhaps you are the type of reader who doesn’t just need the first book to be excellent, but you need to know that all the volumes of a series are worth it before you even start with the first. If that’s you, rest assured that the first two (# 3 isn’t out yet) are worth your time. Full of action, adventure, realistic characters, and exciting plot twists, both are flat out fun to read. I highly recommend giving this series a shot. For more information on both books, see below:
Spoiler free discussion on book 1 – The Hunger Games.
2009 Reading Year in Review
Jan 13th
I’m posting this later than I originally hoped, but oh well. You’ll forgive me, won’t you internet?
I think it’s safe to say that I read more in 2009 than any year before. It was both fulfilling and motivating to record my thoughts on books after I finished them, and so I don’t have any intention of stopping in the future. To recap the year, though, I’d like to provide you with my top books of the year, and leverage the database to provide you with some fun stats!
This “Best books list” is obviously the best books I read in 2009, not the best published in 2009. I am aware of the flaws of working this way, but I can’t imagine any other way of dealing with it!
In 2009 I read…
- 33 books
- 11298 pages
- 1 Comedy (255)
- 3 Fantasy (889)
- 5 Nonfiction (1348)
- 5 Juvenile Fiction (2015)
- 8 Science Fiction (3061)
- 11 Fiction (3730)
Now on to my favorite books of the year:
Favorite Audio Book:
This is an easy category. Of the 30+ audio books I listened to this year none came close to The House of The Scorpion. This young-adult fiction book tells the story of a young clone who is forced to come to terms with his understanding of self as well as avoid the isolation and danger that comes with being the illegal clone of a powerful drug lord. It is well-written, unexpectedly broad in its scope, and it handles difficult subjects with grace and maturity. The narration is also excellent, and the numerous Spanish names and words are pronounced flawlessly, adding greatly to the immersion of the tale.
Favorite Book:
This was, easily, the best book I read all year. Hands down, no questions asked. I read a lot of great books, but none were as epic, as beautifully written, or as enthralling as East of Eden. If you are dying to read even more of my thoughts on this fantastic work, check out the links below. Beware, though, the database entry spoils the entire book! Only check it out if you’ve already finished this wonderful book (and if you haven’t, read it as soon as possible!):
Click here for my spoiler free thoughts on East of Eden.
Click here for the full database entry on East of Eden (including spoilers).
Feel free to post your favorite books of 2009 in the comments below.
And Another Thing…
Jan 12th
Eoin Colfer is an excellent author. I don’t know how to pronounce his name, but that hasn’t stopped me from reading 9 of his books now. My first introduction to Colfer was the Artemis Fowl series, which as of book 6, is still immensely entertaining. I was afraid to pick up anything else by him, assuming it couldn’t live up to the high expectations I had from the Artemis books. Eventually I gave in and listened to Airman. It was, quite possibly, even better than any and all of the Artemis books.
Even with Airman surpassing my wildest expectations I was shocked with how much I enjoyed Half Moon Investigations (more on this later – I just finished listening to this on cd). With all that said, when I learned that Colfer was writing the sixth book in the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy trilogy, I was probably more excited than most Hitchhiker’s fans. I was confident that Colfer could pull it off. He is, without a doubt, a talented, funny author.
I didn’t like And Another Thing, and that makes me sad. As I read through it, I wanted to like it. I really did. And it definitely made me laugh, numerous times and not infrequently or out of pity. It really had its moments. But in spite of that, it just wasn’t very good. It was middling, and not nearly of the quality of his other books. There are many possible reasons for this, and I explore them in more detail in the database entry, but I simply can’t recommend this to anyone. Colfer has much better books out there, and the original Hitchhiker’s books are plentiful if you need a fix.
(On a side note, I think there is a good chance that I wouldn’t even enjoy the original series at this point, for whatever reason, and that Colfer in fact did a fantastic job of upholding the tradition established by Adams. Maybe it’s not just for me anymore.)