34 - 38 + Audio
34. Switching Time: A Doctor's Harrowing Story of Treating a Woman with 17 Personalities - (8/24) - Richard Baer 368p
4/5
Since Sybil I have been fascinated by the idea of MPD, therefore it was no surprise that I found this book enthralling.
It's a pretty detailed account of 18 years of therapy identifying, diagnosing, and re-integrating 17 alternate personalities. It is disturbing, unfathomable, the kind of abuse suffered by this woman. Her parents make Jeanette Walls's parents look like Mike and Carole Brady.
The level of mental illness both in the child and the parents is staggering.
(GRAPHIC)
I find it all a little hard to believe. There were groups of people, the father, the grandfather, a priest, a policeman, etc involved in the abuse of this child. Not just sexual (and at a sickeningly young age) but mental and physical pain infliction. How does a dad decide to stick a pin through his daughters nipple? Or shove a plastic cross up inside her? How does a grandfather rape a child with a garden hose? How does a priest make kiddie porn? How does the mom ignore it all? How does this go on year after year after year with nobody intervening?
(END GRAPHIC)
It's heartbreaking. Heart-rending.
All of it seems so extreme that it just doesn't seem possible. It seems fictional. And yet , who would make that up? Who would spend 18-years in therapy with a made up disease? Only somebody really mentally ill. Ultimately, I have to believe it's true. Believing that means I have to believe that people are capable are doing this to their children.
The writing isn't fantastic, and parts got really repetitive. Like 17 times everything. But it was gripping and fascinating. When the first few alters integrated, I cried because it really was like a death or a character, but you know, but like number 8 I was over it.
If this subject interests you at all, I really recommend a fictional take on this topic, Set This House in Order by Matt Ruff. I plan to re-read it (I had to buy it again ... never lend a book to a boyfriend in rocky relationship.) After reading this, it was clear to me how much research Ruff did, and what a terrific job he did with the subject.
35. Mockingjay - (8/28) - Suzanne Collins 400p
3/5
I wasn't disappointed, per se, but I wasn't enthralled either. There was nothing about this book that grabbed me and wouldn't let go. Often, I was flat out bored, and sometime about the mid-point of the story, Collins started writing random fragment sentences. They were so jarring to me.
No idea if this is a spoiler or not, but I am proceeding with extreme caution:
The Hunger Games, without the games? Just not the same. I knew there was no possibility of games, but I didn't realize how much it would change the dynamic of the story and virtually remove all the excitement from it.
Bella, I mean, Katniss wasn't really herself. And how many near-death-experiences was that? She spent most of the book in the hospital.
Speaking of death, Collins hasn't been shy about killing off characters, but this seemed like overkill (ha!). And GRAPHIC. Holy cow! Extremely violent. Unnecessarily so.
End what probably wasn't at all a spoiler
So, I don't know. It sounds like I disliked the book, and I didn't. But it holds none of the allure of the first two, and I personally didn't find it a particularly satisfying ending to what was a great series. I know that the final outcome was, in a sense, pre-determined, but I think there could have been a better way to get there. Collins got a little wrapped up in finding creative ways for people to die. For the age group this is intended for, I found it too much, too harsh and frankly, too sad.
36. C - (9/5) - Tom McCarthy 320p
4/5
(review behind the link, no spoilers)
37. Gone with the Wind - (9/26) - Margaret Mitchell 860p
5/5
(My first time reading it!)
It became clear to me very early on in my reading that I thankfully remembered very little of the movie. What a great book! In my younger days this would have been a book which would have kept me up all night reading until I finished.
What was so phenomenal about this book was the characters. Wow, they were so brilliantly messed up. Aside from Rhett (who I adore), Melanie was my second favorite, which sort of surprised me.
I laughed, I cried. I rooted for Scarlett and Rhett the whole way through, even though I knew the ending.
It was so well done and I'm so glad I read it.
38. Little Bee - (9/30) - Chris Cleave 304p
5/5
I loved this book. It was getting a lot of buzz (ha! bee? get it?) so naturally I was skeptical.
At a very high level, a Nigerian girl ends up in the UK as a refugee. This is her story and the story of a British couple she met on a beach when they were vacationing in Nigeria.
The writing was lovely; at times poignant and beautiful. There were passages which reminded me of The Book Thief. A carving out of something beautiful in the midst of something horrific. It was fast-paced, engaging, sometimes funny, sometimes sad. The characters were unique, flawed, interesting. It could have been depressing, but it wasn't.
It alternates both points of view, and timelines. I felt like that worked really well for the story.
It wasn't a perfect book. In fact, for my taste, I found it a bit timid and some parts felt a bit like filler. This was a book that could have punched me in the gut, but the only time I felt "punched in the gut" was in the Q and A section where the author told the true story of what inspired the book. I think it's important to say, though, it takes a lot to punch me in the gut, so while I found it a bit timid, others may not feel that. It definitely is an intense subject matter.
It's an important topic, to be sure. I would encourage anybody on the fence about reading the book: Pick it up. If you've never thought of reading it: Pick it up.
It's absolutely one of my favorites of the year.
Audio 13 and 14
13. The Elegance of the Hedgehog - Muriel Barbery 3/5 stars
There were things I liked about this book, and things I didn't. The writing was pretty good, and I loved the humor. I liked the characters, Paloma most of all. But there were too many references I didn't get, and it was a bit too intellectual and philosophical for me.
Ultimately, had I been reading it instead of listening to the audio I don't think I would have finished. When Rene started her rambles, I sort of tuned it out.
I didn't dislike it by any means, and the audio was very well done.
14. Beatrice and Virgil - Yann Martel 2/5 stars
(review behind the link, no spoilers)
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