100 Books in 2011 [16-19]
Read: 19
To Go: 81
Book List
1. Happy Ever After - Nora Roberts
2. The Bone Cage - Angie Abdou
3. Unless - Carol Shields
4. No Rules…Just Write - C. Noelle Susice
5. All My Friends Are Dead - Avery Monsen and Jory John
6. The Best Laid Plans - Terry Fallis
7. The Case for Falling in Love - Mari Ruti, PhD
8. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
9. Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evils of Slavery - Quobna Ottobah Cugoano
10. Stig of the Dump - Clive King
11. The Conversations - Michael Ondaatje
12. The Birth House - Ami McKay
13. Essex County - Jeff Lemire
14. Mary-Anne Saves The Day - Ann M. Martin
15. The Werewolf of Fever Swamp - R.L. Stine
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - J.K. Rowling
17. The High Road - Terry Fallis
18. Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You - Peter Cameron
19. Ominous - Kate Brian
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - J.K. Rowling
Right now, reading Peter Cameron’s novel seems so far out of reach because of all the class-related reading I’m doing. However, setting that book aside temporarily in favour of J.K. Rowling’s first HP book was no chore.
In Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, 11-year-old Harry Potter discovers he’s a wizard after having lived in a cupboard under the stairs at his aunt and uncle’s Privet Drive house; transported from his ordinary (and even perhaps cruel) life into the extraordinary world of magic, Harry must come to grips with fame he never knew he had as things start to go awry at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. When he and his two mischievous friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, discover that someone is attempting to steal the Philosopher’s Stone from the depths of Hogwarts for Lord Voldemort, they do all they can to make sure that doesn’t happen.
Obviously it goes without saying that I loved the book. The story is something that can appeal to both adults and children, the narration isn’t preachy, as is typical of a children’s narrative, and the word use is sophisticated despite the fact that the book was created for a younger audience. In my opinion, those are all trademarks of a great book. The characters are wonderful and interesting and definitely three-dimensional, and to be quite honest there’s nothing about this book I can say I dislike.
Though I just spent over six hours dissecting the gender norms and trying to prove that they were outdated and perhaps a little sexist, I don’t believe there are any real issues on that front, either. Hermione, the sole female protagonist, is an incredibly strong character - arguably she’s even stronger than Harry, both intellectually and, at some points, emotionally. To deal with the constant hits that she takes to her looks and overachieving tendencies throughout the series, she would have to be.
Yes, I would recommend Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone to any and all readers. However, given its world-wide popularity, I don’t think it’s necessary.
The High Road - Terry Fallis
After interviewing the always funny Terry Fallis on Friday, I was inspired to finish his second book, The High Road…a week later. But give me some credit, I’m busy!
The High Road picks up where The Best Laid Plans left off, shortly after the fall of the Conservative minority government. Daniel, utterly naive, assumes that the coming election signals his freedom from politics - given that the MP he’s representing was never interested in running from the get go - but feels the “political noose” tighten around his neck when Angus makes it clear that he wants to run for office again. Pitted against Emerson “Flamethrower” Fox, a retired Conservative who likes to play dirty, Angus and Daniel have their work cut out for them.
It was nice to get back to my favourite group of characters again. Given that I discussed this last time, I don’t need to say how three-dimensional Fallis makes his characters; even the background ones, from Jasper the peach pimp-suit-wearing elder to the PM himself, seem like they’re real people and not works of fiction.
The High Road was light on funny on the surface but had deeply satirical undertones that hit home for me, perhaps more so than that of The Best Laid Plans. While not explicitly stated, it’s clear that Fallis is trying to get across the message that most (though not all) politicians care more about partisan practices than about doing what’s best for our nation; to me, that seems like a good reason why voter turnout is low - citizens are disillusioned by the idea of democracy, which is certainly unfortunate. Seeing Angus take the high road (pun intended) and opt for both clean-campaigning in the face of nasty opposition and total accountability was refreshing to someone who, though new to the world of voting and politics, is sick of smear campaigns and politicians who lack transparency and integrity.
On the ‘light and funny’ note, THR had me laughing out loud more often than not, from the physical comedy (i.e. getting locked outside, bare naked, in the middle of an Ottawa winter) to the witty back and forth between Angus and Daniel. However, it wasn’t completely one-sided, and there were tender moments, too: Angus’s diary entries, addressed to his late wife, Marin, add a sentimental layer to the book, as do his revelations of how they met in feminist rallies in front of Parliament Hill - and the 23 arrests that followed.
It goes without saying that I would recommend The High Road to the politically-ambivalent, the politics lovers, and those who look at the democratic process with jaded eyes; you might just catch yourself hoping that Canada might get its very own Angus McLintock.
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You - Peter Cameron
Well, it took a while but I finally got around to finishing Peter Cameron’s novel, Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You. I should note, as per my challenge rules, that this is a novel I’ve actually read before - but it’s one of those really good ones worth reading again and again.
The novel centres around antisocial, maladjusted 18-year-old James Sveck in the summer before his freshman year at Brown. And instead of getting excited for higher learning, he’s surfing real estate listings for the perfect pre-1930s farm house in rural Indiana, under the assumption that he can learn everything he needs to know through books, and that he will not enjoy attending school with people his age. While trying to convince two self-absorbed parents, a judgemental sister, increasingly vague grandmother, and painfully cryptic therapist of this realization, James is also dealing with his burgeoning infatuation with John, a handsome male colleague at his mother’s art gallery.
When asked by a friend to describe the plot of Someday, the best I could come up with was “it’s about a boy,” and then I paused awkwardly, trying to add more to my short summary. For the most part, that is really the premise of the novel; it’s very Catcher In The Rye style, in that for the most part it is James’s inner monologue with little conversation between characters, as he bumbles through the final months of his last summer at home. However, for a book that seems to do very little, it is incredibly gripping.
James, as a narrator, is incredibly relatable; he is the exemplification of the awkwardness that all young adults go through, the uncertainty, the painfulness that can be the teenage years (though, for him, the awkwardness and uncertainty don’t actually come to an end). And despite all this, everything he says is incredibly thought out and intelligent, and he’s quite funny (though most likely unintentionally). The way that he’s able to express himself - whether through complex thoughts or very simplistic ones - makes him all the more a poignant character.
Though I typically shy away from books of this kind, due to the sheer lack of eventfulness, Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You was a book that I had real trouble putting down (both times I read it). And yes, I’d recommend it.
Ominous - Kate Brian
Wow, it’s crazy what you can get done when you’re not burdened with essays and other cumbersome tasks; I was able to read two full books today. (Okay, well, I’d started them both beforehand, but who’s actually keeping track?) At any rate, after finishing Someday I started reading Ominous, the 13th book in Kate Brian’s Private series. I’ve actually been reading the series for over four years, so when I started it was risque, but now it’s just a little youngish for my tastes (coming from the girl reading the Babysitter’s Club this semester).
Ominous follows Reed Brennan as she comes to grips with the knowledge that she and her best friend, Noelle Lange, are actually sisters - and have the potential to become witches, thanks to The Book of Spells, a (you guessed it) spell book they discovered at the end of the previous book (Vanished). As Reed, a somewhat skeptical Noelle, and the other Billings girls start to investigate the history of The Book of Spells, dating back to the very first Billings Literary Society, girls start to go missing one by one, and Reed must figure out who has taken them - and why.
Okay, so it’s a bit soap opera-like in nature. I’ve long since come to terms with the unavailability of the storyline.
For a frivolous read, Ominous is great - and it would definitely be a hit with girls in that young adult demographic, especially for ones who have been following Reed’s adventures like I have. Even now I can still understand the spark that pulled me to the series over four years ago. There’s always a hitch, though.
While Kate Brian does a good job at concealing the whodunnit at the end of every book - including this one - it’s a shame that her main character doesn’t seem to be getting any smarter. Time and time again, Reed is never able to pinpoint the culprit, even though she’s been the target of some elaborate scheme in each and every book. It’s almost similar to Dora The Explorer, when Swiper is right behind Dora and you’re shouting at the television, “Come on, Dora, you idiot, just turn around!” and she’s just smiling stupidly at the viewers. It’s hard not to get frustrated with Reed when she continually pinpoints unrealistic antagonists (close friends), or impossible ones (i.e. dead girls or girls who are locked up in jail or psychiatric wards) while not considering people who, in retrospect, are the perfect suspect.
And, because it’s a YA book, Ominous does explore romance a little bit. While I love seeing Reed’s relationship with her boyfriend Josh stay strong during this book (I’ve been rooting for them since ’06), their interactions are a little too formulaic, a little cheesy. Instead of loving their back-and-forth I found myself thinking, “Okay, cheeseball, can you try for some realism instead of reaching for a cliched line out of every other romance novel in the history of fiction?” Though this is romantic fodder for teen girls, it’s hardly original and that’s a little frustrating.
Despite all that, I did enjoy the book. It was, as I said, good for a frivolous read - quick and fun, with little substance. I’d recommend it, but to a slightly younger audience.
- Kelsey
To Go: 81
Book List
1. Happy Ever After - Nora Roberts
2. The Bone Cage - Angie Abdou
3. Unless - Carol Shields
4. No Rules…Just Write - C. Noelle Susice
5. All My Friends Are Dead - Avery Monsen and Jory John
6. The Best Laid Plans - Terry Fallis
7. The Case for Falling in Love - Mari Ruti, PhD
8. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
9. Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evils of Slavery - Quobna Ottobah Cugoano
10. Stig of the Dump - Clive King
11. The Conversations - Michael Ondaatje
12. The Birth House - Ami McKay
13. Essex County - Jeff Lemire
14. Mary-Anne Saves The Day - Ann M. Martin
15. The Werewolf of Fever Swamp - R.L. Stine
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - J.K. Rowling
17. The High Road - Terry Fallis
18. Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You - Peter Cameron
19. Ominous - Kate Brian
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - J.K. Rowling
Right now, reading Peter Cameron’s novel seems so far out of reach because of all the class-related reading I’m doing. However, setting that book aside temporarily in favour of J.K. Rowling’s first HP book was no chore.
In Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, 11-year-old Harry Potter discovers he’s a wizard after having lived in a cupboard under the stairs at his aunt and uncle’s Privet Drive house; transported from his ordinary (and even perhaps cruel) life into the extraordinary world of magic, Harry must come to grips with fame he never knew he had as things start to go awry at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. When he and his two mischievous friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, discover that someone is attempting to steal the Philosopher’s Stone from the depths of Hogwarts for Lord Voldemort, they do all they can to make sure that doesn’t happen.
Obviously it goes without saying that I loved the book. The story is something that can appeal to both adults and children, the narration isn’t preachy, as is typical of a children’s narrative, and the word use is sophisticated despite the fact that the book was created for a younger audience. In my opinion, those are all trademarks of a great book. The characters are wonderful and interesting and definitely three-dimensional, and to be quite honest there’s nothing about this book I can say I dislike.
Though I just spent over six hours dissecting the gender norms and trying to prove that they were outdated and perhaps a little sexist, I don’t believe there are any real issues on that front, either. Hermione, the sole female protagonist, is an incredibly strong character - arguably she’s even stronger than Harry, both intellectually and, at some points, emotionally. To deal with the constant hits that she takes to her looks and overachieving tendencies throughout the series, she would have to be.
Yes, I would recommend Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone to any and all readers. However, given its world-wide popularity, I don’t think it’s necessary.
The High Road - Terry Fallis
After interviewing the always funny Terry Fallis on Friday, I was inspired to finish his second book, The High Road…a week later. But give me some credit, I’m busy!
The High Road picks up where The Best Laid Plans left off, shortly after the fall of the Conservative minority government. Daniel, utterly naive, assumes that the coming election signals his freedom from politics - given that the MP he’s representing was never interested in running from the get go - but feels the “political noose” tighten around his neck when Angus makes it clear that he wants to run for office again. Pitted against Emerson “Flamethrower” Fox, a retired Conservative who likes to play dirty, Angus and Daniel have their work cut out for them.
It was nice to get back to my favourite group of characters again. Given that I discussed this last time, I don’t need to say how three-dimensional Fallis makes his characters; even the background ones, from Jasper the peach pimp-suit-wearing elder to the PM himself, seem like they’re real people and not works of fiction.
The High Road was light on funny on the surface but had deeply satirical undertones that hit home for me, perhaps more so than that of The Best Laid Plans. While not explicitly stated, it’s clear that Fallis is trying to get across the message that most (though not all) politicians care more about partisan practices than about doing what’s best for our nation; to me, that seems like a good reason why voter turnout is low - citizens are disillusioned by the idea of democracy, which is certainly unfortunate. Seeing Angus take the high road (pun intended) and opt for both clean-campaigning in the face of nasty opposition and total accountability was refreshing to someone who, though new to the world of voting and politics, is sick of smear campaigns and politicians who lack transparency and integrity.
On the ‘light and funny’ note, THR had me laughing out loud more often than not, from the physical comedy (i.e. getting locked outside, bare naked, in the middle of an Ottawa winter) to the witty back and forth between Angus and Daniel. However, it wasn’t completely one-sided, and there were tender moments, too: Angus’s diary entries, addressed to his late wife, Marin, add a sentimental layer to the book, as do his revelations of how they met in feminist rallies in front of Parliament Hill - and the 23 arrests that followed.
It goes without saying that I would recommend The High Road to the politically-ambivalent, the politics lovers, and those who look at the democratic process with jaded eyes; you might just catch yourself hoping that Canada might get its very own Angus McLintock.
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You - Peter Cameron
Well, it took a while but I finally got around to finishing Peter Cameron’s novel, Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You. I should note, as per my challenge rules, that this is a novel I’ve actually read before - but it’s one of those really good ones worth reading again and again.
The novel centres around antisocial, maladjusted 18-year-old James Sveck in the summer before his freshman year at Brown. And instead of getting excited for higher learning, he’s surfing real estate listings for the perfect pre-1930s farm house in rural Indiana, under the assumption that he can learn everything he needs to know through books, and that he will not enjoy attending school with people his age. While trying to convince two self-absorbed parents, a judgemental sister, increasingly vague grandmother, and painfully cryptic therapist of this realization, James is also dealing with his burgeoning infatuation with John, a handsome male colleague at his mother’s art gallery.
When asked by a friend to describe the plot of Someday, the best I could come up with was “it’s about a boy,” and then I paused awkwardly, trying to add more to my short summary. For the most part, that is really the premise of the novel; it’s very Catcher In The Rye style, in that for the most part it is James’s inner monologue with little conversation between characters, as he bumbles through the final months of his last summer at home. However, for a book that seems to do very little, it is incredibly gripping.
James, as a narrator, is incredibly relatable; he is the exemplification of the awkwardness that all young adults go through, the uncertainty, the painfulness that can be the teenage years (though, for him, the awkwardness and uncertainty don’t actually come to an end). And despite all this, everything he says is incredibly thought out and intelligent, and he’s quite funny (though most likely unintentionally). The way that he’s able to express himself - whether through complex thoughts or very simplistic ones - makes him all the more a poignant character.
Though I typically shy away from books of this kind, due to the sheer lack of eventfulness, Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You was a book that I had real trouble putting down (both times I read it). And yes, I’d recommend it.
Ominous - Kate Brian
Wow, it’s crazy what you can get done when you’re not burdened with essays and other cumbersome tasks; I was able to read two full books today. (Okay, well, I’d started them both beforehand, but who’s actually keeping track?) At any rate, after finishing Someday I started reading Ominous, the 13th book in Kate Brian’s Private series. I’ve actually been reading the series for over four years, so when I started it was risque, but now it’s just a little youngish for my tastes (coming from the girl reading the Babysitter’s Club this semester).
Ominous follows Reed Brennan as she comes to grips with the knowledge that she and her best friend, Noelle Lange, are actually sisters - and have the potential to become witches, thanks to The Book of Spells, a (you guessed it) spell book they discovered at the end of the previous book (Vanished). As Reed, a somewhat skeptical Noelle, and the other Billings girls start to investigate the history of The Book of Spells, dating back to the very first Billings Literary Society, girls start to go missing one by one, and Reed must figure out who has taken them - and why.
Okay, so it’s a bit soap opera-like in nature. I’ve long since come to terms with the unavailability of the storyline.
For a frivolous read, Ominous is great - and it would definitely be a hit with girls in that young adult demographic, especially for ones who have been following Reed’s adventures like I have. Even now I can still understand the spark that pulled me to the series over four years ago. There’s always a hitch, though.
While Kate Brian does a good job at concealing the whodunnit at the end of every book - including this one - it’s a shame that her main character doesn’t seem to be getting any smarter. Time and time again, Reed is never able to pinpoint the culprit, even though she’s been the target of some elaborate scheme in each and every book. It’s almost similar to Dora The Explorer, when Swiper is right behind Dora and you’re shouting at the television, “Come on, Dora, you idiot, just turn around!” and she’s just smiling stupidly at the viewers. It’s hard not to get frustrated with Reed when she continually pinpoints unrealistic antagonists (close friends), or impossible ones (i.e. dead girls or girls who are locked up in jail or psychiatric wards) while not considering people who, in retrospect, are the perfect suspect.
And, because it’s a YA book, Ominous does explore romance a little bit. While I love seeing Reed’s relationship with her boyfriend Josh stay strong during this book (I’ve been rooting for them since ’06), their interactions are a little too formulaic, a little cheesy. Instead of loving their back-and-forth I found myself thinking, “Okay, cheeseball, can you try for some realism instead of reaching for a cliched line out of every other romance novel in the history of fiction?” Though this is romantic fodder for teen girls, it’s hardly original and that’s a little frustrating.
Despite all that, I did enjoy the book. It was, as I said, good for a frivolous read - quick and fun, with little substance. I’d recommend it, but to a slightly younger audience.
- Kelsey