Reviews: How I Live Now, Exquisite Corpse, Arkham Asylum, Surgeons Do Not Cry

[omgaeula]

I was using Multiply to post reviews I could compile on here, but it turns out that posting over there makes me write longer reviews. Whups.

Comments

[aguadora]

excellent review, enviable ability to present simply the gist of things, i wish there were stars (in LJ, because I think there are ratings in Multiply), as am the impressionable type who would buy a book just because "hey this is the one Eula gave four/five stars to".

at malapit na suweldo. money to buuuurrrn.

[omgaeula]

Oh thank you, but I just ripped the summaries off the jacket covers. :p Myself I don't hold much stock in stars, because sometimes I know the book really sucks but I still like it! :p If you care to know, I gave all of the above reviewed at least 4 stars. Yay moneyz!

[la_sonnambula]

I think the biggest difference between Daisy and Bella is that Daisy make things happen and Bella seems to let things happen to her. Also, Daisy is a protector, whereas Bella is protected. I find it helps readers not to be put off by the specialness of the characters when the author doesn't fixate on and wax lyrical about their appearances. Rosoff's latest book is about a boy who fell in love with another boy. I haven't read it, but I've heard good things about it.

Exquisite Corpse reminds me of Dennis Cooper's Frisk (a couple of reviewers on Amazon actually mentioned EC), a nihilistic, gory book. Let me know if you want to read it, I can send it to you.

Great reviews Eula! I've always enjoyed reading your reviews.

[omgaeula]

I agree, and you put that very well. It was far more interesting reading about Daisy's thought-out plans to get back to Edmond than about Bella's cliff-diving pseudo-suicidal activities because Edward left. I still remember the imagery from Rosoff's book but I've forgotten whole characters in Meyer's.

Frisk sounds gory! Glad to read that it's not just another EC. I still have a huge backlog of books to read (both for academics and for leisure) but thank you for the offer! I might take you up on that when I have some down time.

And thank you for the recs!

[schneid]

I haaaaate Exquisite Corpse.

I bought it mainly because an officemate told me it was a pretty gory book (would you believe a professor made them read this?) (she's Atenean, by the way - ahaha). Its... gore didn't really get to me, but... but... a romance story between two psycho killers?

I quit halfway.

I am still building the courage to pick up the book again and actually finish reading it.

Btw, Surgeons Do Not Cry sounds interesting. I'll look for that.

[omgaeula]

Oh, Ateneo. Sometimes you be crazy.

Well, it's less a romance between the two than a let-me-ass-rape-you-and-then-we-can-kill-and-eat-some-sweet-young-thing going on. There's nothing really romantic about it, to me at least.

Yes, Surgeons was a great read.

re: romance

[schneid]

Oh, waaaiiiit. My mistake. I was thinking about the angst of that gay Vietnamese boy. I HATE HIM AGH.