Friday, May 31, 2013
I have been scanning Tor for the past few weeks -- I have to admit here that my patience for this type of book has begun to wear thin, how I can be tired with paranormal lore , hybrid monster characters who all look like ravishing 18 year old humans ( except they are immortal and usually scantily clothed) , and marathon sexual escapades, don't ask me, but I have been reading outside my genre lately ( and really enjoying it). Nonetheless, for afficionados of these books, Tor fulfills it's purpose -- to keep fans informed about new releases in paranormal romance, paranormal fiction, science fiction and genre benders -- all minor works in what I consider minor genres. There is also a place for new cover art, which is important to this particular type of book (some of the art is quite striking, especially the science fiction art), there is a place for blogging, and there is a message board containing conversations different events, art and books. Both the blogs and the message boards are up to date indicating that this is an active site. Current fan events, relevant television, movies are also present. It serves a very useful purpose to its participants.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
The Prezi chart is certainly ambitious ( I would never think to come up with something like this unbidden). I have lots of issues with it, however, I respect the author for his efforts. My first issue lies with the science fiction area. Personally I think that both science fiction and fantasy should stem from a new category, Speculative Fiction which is a broader term encompassing any works which are fantastic, supernatural or futuristic. Science fiction should be just that, books based on science or technology - real possibilities not leaps into the fantastic. I don't think that fantastic, superhero, strange monster fiction should be included in this category. Nor should dystopian fiction which is not based on technology be included. Fantasy and science fiction are equal and distinct categories.Next,most magical realism is literary fiction, not fantasy. Many works of contemporary fiction contain elements of magical realism.John Fowles, John Barth, Salmon Rushdie, Lionel Shriver are not fantasy authors, they convey complex human conditions in realistic terms including fantastical elements. They border on the crazy and the surreal, sometimes because of the narrator's unique point of view. By and large they transcend most sci fi and fantasy. Personally, I think that some of the southern gothic writers , Faulkner, Carson McCullers, Flannery O'Connor fall into the magical realism category -- certainly not as a subset of fantasy. Perhaps this particular type of fiction should be considered coequal with sci fi and fantasy under speculative fiction. Or, perhaps it needs its own free standing category under a new category of literary fiction. Finally, I disagree with classifying animal mysteries, culinary mysteries as subgenres of mystery -- they are all cozies and that is where they belong -- there is an endless list of special audience mysteries--plus size, antique store, scrapbooking -- and they all belong under the cozy category. These criticisms are easy to make, it is always easier to criticize than to create so I commend the author for his efforts, it has given me lots of insight into the world of fiction reading.
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
My first subgenre is Tart Noir, a new detective genre derived from the hard boiled or noir stories which began in the early twentieth centuries with Dashiell Hammett's Sam Spade, and Raymond Chandler's Phillip Marlowe and continues to this day in the works of Michael Connolly ( Harry Bosch) and James Lee Burke (Dave Robichaux). Like their male counterparts, tart noir heroines are tough and tender, possessed of fierce morality and a deep sense of compassion for the underdog. These stories also contain a fair amount of violence, sex and deep cynicism. One of the major authors is Lauren Henderson who wrote Dead White Female , Too Many Blondes and a host of other mysteries featuring tough lady Sam Jones. Probably the most well-known tart noir heroine is Steig Larsson's Lisbeth Salander, although his work could not be classified as tart noir -- it is just too complex and well written.I also think Janet Evanovich's number series is humorous tart noir.I did not find a website completely dedicated to this genre but I found a great description and history at this site http://www.crimeculture.com/21stC/TartNoir.html. The appeal of this fiction is self-evident -particularly for the female reader- fast moving plots featuring powerful women caught up in the action of pursuing criminals and dishing out justice..
My second subgenre is Paranormal Romance, a wild and sexy plunge into the intimate relationships of vampires, werewolves, succubi, you name it -- if it is immortal and feeds upon strange food then it can be included here. These works are basically romances ( as born out by the cover art -- young men with bared chests, some in kilts -- because paranormal men look basically like very young men with fabulous physiques). They pursue various ladies of the paranormal persuasion -- strong young ladies who take a whole lot of persuasion in the form of terrific sex before they can finally be claimed as mates . Sometimes the ladies are physically stronger than the men, sometimes weaker, but the paranormal heros are completely subjugated by them because of genetic predestination. Everybody has his own true and eternal mate and once you find her, you'd better corral her because there will not be another.Kresley Cole is one of the major writers of this genre -- her Immortals after Dark series presents the adventures of any number of immortal lovers chasing each other throughout the major cities of the world only to find endless passion in each other's arms (or whatever passes for arms)-- sometimes, the possibility of offspring is introduced ( naturally born offspring are hard come by in this world since most of these lovers are mismatched by species -- for some reason vampires keep falling in love with amazons and werewolves with fairies - opposites attract very strongly here and that makes conception a little tricky -- sort of like mating cats and dogs.) Conventional morality also reigns supreme despite the violence and hanky pank that occurs in the books. J. R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood is also a popular choice. Cynthia Eden also writes hot paranormal romance. Some of her books include a little mystery and detective work but that plot element never threatens to overwhelm the lovin'. The website http://www.vampiresrealm.com/ contains some excellent information and recommendations for lovers of this creepy romance.
My final subgenre is Urban Fantasy, there are paranormals here but the plot lines are a little stronger -- less smooching and more storyline. The setting is contemporary urban environment. Probably the best example of this type of story is the Twilight series -- girl meets and loves and ultimately bears child for vampire but in the meantime,important choices are made, friends and relatives are saved from destruction, anti-abortion and pro-marriage messages are sent, etc, etc. So lots and lots goes on before during and after the highly anticipated virgin bedding. Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series and Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse are more current examples of this subgenre. It is interesting to note that these books, as well as the other subgenre books I have written about, are usually produced in series -- which leads me to suspect that they are not all that difficult to write -- the authors absolutely produce masses of them -- chock full of strange creatures coexisting with us pitiable humans, living by dark and mysterious laws of the lore and finding solutions to some of our most difficult problems. Shall we say, then, that they all provide adolescents and over-stressed ladies escape from the dreariness, routine and obligations of our mundane lives. http://urbanfantasyland.net/about-u/ looks like an excellent fansite with lists of books and authors and some reviews.
I found sites for these books via google -- none of them had blogs, but I noticed that for both Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance there were active groups, recommendatiosn,etc. on Goodreads and Amazon both of which offer excited and breathless five star reviews as well as a plethora of criticism and snarking on these types of books.
My first cross genre book is Veil of Lies by Jeri Westernson which is described as a medieval noir - a cross between historical fiction and noir mystery which is shelved in the mystery area of our system. Her protagonist is Crispin Guest, a detective with the personality and methods of the noir heroes of Chandler and Hammett, in a detailed and authentic medieval setting.
My second suggestion are the Sister Fidelma mysteries of Peter Tremayne, again historical mysteries set in medieval Ireland. These are complex and scholarly mysteries, drawing deeply on Irish history and folklore and the Catholic religion. We go back in to the time when women were extremely powerful in society -- Sister Fidelma is a judge who is called to solve crimes and pass judgement on the criminals. A lot of Gaelic is used in these books and the mysteries being solved are historical and complex -- they are challenging.
My second subgenre is Paranormal Romance, a wild and sexy plunge into the intimate relationships of vampires, werewolves, succubi, you name it -- if it is immortal and feeds upon strange food then it can be included here. These works are basically romances ( as born out by the cover art -- young men with bared chests, some in kilts -- because paranormal men look basically like very young men with fabulous physiques). They pursue various ladies of the paranormal persuasion -- strong young ladies who take a whole lot of persuasion in the form of terrific sex before they can finally be claimed as mates . Sometimes the ladies are physically stronger than the men, sometimes weaker, but the paranormal heros are completely subjugated by them because of genetic predestination. Everybody has his own true and eternal mate and once you find her, you'd better corral her because there will not be another.Kresley Cole is one of the major writers of this genre -- her Immortals after Dark series presents the adventures of any number of immortal lovers chasing each other throughout the major cities of the world only to find endless passion in each other's arms (or whatever passes for arms)-- sometimes, the possibility of offspring is introduced ( naturally born offspring are hard come by in this world since most of these lovers are mismatched by species -- for some reason vampires keep falling in love with amazons and werewolves with fairies - opposites attract very strongly here and that makes conception a little tricky -- sort of like mating cats and dogs.) Conventional morality also reigns supreme despite the violence and hanky pank that occurs in the books. J. R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood is also a popular choice. Cynthia Eden also writes hot paranormal romance. Some of her books include a little mystery and detective work but that plot element never threatens to overwhelm the lovin'. The website http://www.vampiresrealm.com/ contains some excellent information and recommendations for lovers of this creepy romance.
My final subgenre is Urban Fantasy, there are paranormals here but the plot lines are a little stronger -- less smooching and more storyline. The setting is contemporary urban environment. Probably the best example of this type of story is the Twilight series -- girl meets and loves and ultimately bears child for vampire but in the meantime,important choices are made, friends and relatives are saved from destruction, anti-abortion and pro-marriage messages are sent, etc, etc. So lots and lots goes on before during and after the highly anticipated virgin bedding. Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series and Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse are more current examples of this subgenre. It is interesting to note that these books, as well as the other subgenre books I have written about, are usually produced in series -- which leads me to suspect that they are not all that difficult to write -- the authors absolutely produce masses of them -- chock full of strange creatures coexisting with us pitiable humans, living by dark and mysterious laws of the lore and finding solutions to some of our most difficult problems. Shall we say, then, that they all provide adolescents and over-stressed ladies escape from the dreariness, routine and obligations of our mundane lives. http://urbanfantasyland.net/about-u/ looks like an excellent fansite with lists of books and authors and some reviews.
I found sites for these books via google -- none of them had blogs, but I noticed that for both Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance there were active groups, recommendatiosn,etc. on Goodreads and Amazon both of which offer excited and breathless five star reviews as well as a plethora of criticism and snarking on these types of books.
My first cross genre book is Veil of Lies by Jeri Westernson which is described as a medieval noir - a cross between historical fiction and noir mystery which is shelved in the mystery area of our system. Her protagonist is Crispin Guest, a detective with the personality and methods of the noir heroes of Chandler and Hammett, in a detailed and authentic medieval setting.
My second suggestion are the Sister Fidelma mysteries of Peter Tremayne, again historical mysteries set in medieval Ireland. These are complex and scholarly mysteries, drawing deeply on Irish history and folklore and the Catholic religion. We go back in to the time when women were extremely powerful in society -- Sister Fidelma is a judge who is called to solve crimes and pass judgement on the criminals. A lot of Gaelic is used in these books and the mysteries being solved are historical and complex -- they are challenging.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
I love Lionel Shriver -- I love her compromised and vunerable characters, beset by inner demons, selfish desires, dark, dark motives that the best of them overcome. Few of her characters are good, virtuous, exemplary, -- They are very,very human, exhausted, unattractive, insecure, hiding their inner turmoil. They are literally given trial by fire, incrementally and inexorably tortured by unbearable situations that anybody in real life may find themselves in, terminal cancer, bankruptcy, endless care of a damaged child,profound fear of the future. Some of them thrive and some of them fail -- not through any special attributes or help from God- but by a strange mixture of chance, choice and determination and a healthy dollop of character acquired through suffering. Her people remind me of myself and constantly make me count my blessings that I have not been tested so severely . The book which brought her to my attention was, of course, the famous We need to talk about Kevin -- Kevin is a true monster, but his genetic propensity can be traced to the narrator of the book itself, his mother, whose destructive intelligence and lack of insight interfere with her ability to save her family -- and whose lack of empathy is reflected in the dead eyes of her damaged son. She is a jumble of good intentions, sly condescension,shallow and self serving cover my butt excuses -- and, she knows it, which is what makes most of the main characters in Shriver's books so appealing, they know what they are, they do try, but so often they just fail to control all that dreck inside. Shriver has a new book coming out in June, Big Brother- dealing with morbid obesity which, unfortunately touches her and my family history .
I am looking forward to it and am rereading another one of her books So Much for That -- a book which received both criticism and praise for insight into the failure of the American medical insurance system. I really don't think it is about the medical insurance system at all -- at most peripherally -- it is about the strength of love and obligation in families- member to member- in the face of horrifying disease and potential bankruptcy. How each member of the two families fulfills these obligations, despite their dark despair, immature impulses and insane feelings brought on by stress , is the crux of the plot. Two families are confronted with death sentences, one wife faced with incurable mesothelioma, another child suffers minute by minute with a horrifying condition, familial dysautonomia, which shrinks and twists her body and soul-- a genetic disease for which her parents are ultimately and innocently responsible. Those of us who have been lucky enough to escape these circumstances, cannot conceive of the pain and guilt and horrible anger these people may feel inside, just brimming over yet not spilling out -- and yet we all probably sit back and think about how we would react-- Shriver lets her characters react -- and their reactions are scary and powerful , not virtuous, not touched by angels, just very, very human. Some of them rise to the situation, despite their frailties, others fall by the wayside, but everybody is emptied and refilled. Shriver reminds me very much of Patricia Highsmith-- she writes about our worst nightmares made real -- gives her characters choices, rationalizations, good and bad intentions and lets them tell their own stories. Her books are not for the faint of heart -- but not for the despairing either. There is hope - compromised, damaged, in shreds just like so much of human endeavour.
I am looking forward to it and am rereading another one of her books So Much for That -- a book which received both criticism and praise for insight into the failure of the American medical insurance system. I really don't think it is about the medical insurance system at all -- at most peripherally -- it is about the strength of love and obligation in families- member to member- in the face of horrifying disease and potential bankruptcy. How each member of the two families fulfills these obligations, despite their dark despair, immature impulses and insane feelings brought on by stress , is the crux of the plot. Two families are confronted with death sentences, one wife faced with incurable mesothelioma, another child suffers minute by minute with a horrifying condition, familial dysautonomia, which shrinks and twists her body and soul-- a genetic disease for which her parents are ultimately and innocently responsible. Those of us who have been lucky enough to escape these circumstances, cannot conceive of the pain and guilt and horrible anger these people may feel inside, just brimming over yet not spilling out -- and yet we all probably sit back and think about how we would react-- Shriver lets her characters react -- and their reactions are scary and powerful , not virtuous, not touched by angels, just very, very human. Some of them rise to the situation, despite their frailties, others fall by the wayside, but everybody is emptied and refilled. Shriver reminds me very much of Patricia Highsmith-- she writes about our worst nightmares made real -- gives her characters choices, rationalizations, good and bad intentions and lets them tell their own stories. Her books are not for the faint of heart -- but not for the despairing either. There is hope - compromised, damaged, in shreds just like so much of human endeavour.
Friday, May 24, 2013
Today I went to Early Word and put two Y books on reserve which may be of interest to me, the first is Wild Awake by Hilary Smith which has been compared to Catcher in the Rye ( with a girl as major character) and the next is Code Name Verity. I am looking forward to reading them, especially the former which is not yet out. As far as my urban fantasy addiction, I went to the Tor site and chose Tarnished by Rhiannon Held.
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
I have been following Tor -- Fiction Affliction. I have used it to get a few titles to read for this summer -- escape reading, urban fantasy, written from a very youthful viewpoint. This fiction could also be described as mindless, semi-pornographic, fantasies for people who are in serious need of stress relief. It depends on your purpose and viewpoint. I like to think of them more positively since there is some excellent writing style and imagination presented albeit in a rather sensational, sexy and sometimes shameless package ( it is a little cheesy,too, but that didn't start with an S). What I have learned by briefly perusing this site is that there is an endless amount of fiction and an enormous number of authors that I have never experienced and will probably never experience again. We are all very caught up in our warm little reading worlds dictated by our comfort zones, habits, obsessions, which grow narrower and narrower by the year. Now, I could have broken out of my comfort zone by starting to read lady literary fiction-- but, really, I am in serious need of relaxation and just in no mood to read anything remotely intellectual or challenging (or pretentious), so here I am at the urban fantasy page of Tor -- and it's not such a bad place to be right now.
It is more difficult now for me to track reading tastes at Catonsville since a lot of the reserves are made online. Most reserves I make are for New York Times best sellers, from authors that I have been placing on reserve for years. I am also asked a lot about women's literary fiction and popular Y fiction. Of course this is just the surface --most Sci Fi, Romance and Mystery readers go straight to the shelves -- as do a lot of the Y readers and graphic novel afficionados. We have had fewer juvenile and classic reserves lately -- perhaps the schools just aren't requiring as many specific titles as before -- or perhaps the titles have changed altogether and people are finding them without our help. My Early Word discovery of the day was a mention of a relatively new phenomenon -- fiction for young people between the ages of 17-25 called New Adult fiction. It is contemporary and sexy -- oriented toward the challenges of becoming a fully functioning adult. ( oh, if they only knew how boring fully functioning adulthood is, they wouldn't even bother) A lot of it is the result of internet self- publishing and shows up in downloadable form before book form. ( sort of like Fifty Shades which was originally on the Fanfiction website -- lots of fanfiction is now becoming downloadable from Amazon). I am now engaged in reading a title of this NewAdult fic , Hopeless, by Colleen Hoover. So far, it is palatable and rather astonishing ( high school sure has changed!) and I have only read a couple of chapters -- We shelve it with Fiction. Apparently there is a lot more explicisity ( a new word which I have coined to go with the NA fiction -- pick your category here, sex, violence, emotion, ) than in Y fic. It has been written about in the New York Times and is included in their Y book best sellers. Sometimes the books are offered in two forms --unabashedly sexy internet downloads and censored paper copies. As if our Y kids cannot figure out how to download -- Well, this stuff doesn't stimulate brain cells but could do the job on some other parts -- and that is all well and good. Safe to say, that this is the new gold mine for publishing and more established authors who have kind of run out of steam in other endeavours. It will be interesting to follow the completely downloadable trend here, to see if established authors begin to offer their works exclusively in this format.
The first book I have chosen for this assignment is Lauren Oliver's Requiem which is the final entry to her Delirium trilogy. This very fact will make it a highly anticipated book -- the common Y threads are all present - first loves, first choices, teen rebellion against repressive government, strong and highly desireable female central character, extremely youthful viewpoint. Oliver's books, in general, are not as action packed and fast paced as others of the same genre, Hunger Games, Matched Trilogy, Divergent -- she writes more for young girls, she is a slower, more contemplative read, more consumed by relationships and feelings. I believe that Shusterman's Unwind series is better suited to both boys and girls ( it is also superior to any of the other offerings, broad and deep, offering plenty of adult conundrums which ultimately are unsolveable). The Delirium trilogy is also going to be made into a movie which will further increase customer interest.
My second selection is Elizabeth Winder's Pain, Parties,Work...Sylvia Plath's New York Summer, 1953, that short slice of Plath's life on which the Bell Jar was based. As painful as Plath's later life was to be, this was a relatively carefree and joyous period - a time of firsts, first time away from home in the big and vibrant city, first opportunity to stretch her wings as a writer and critic, first exciting dip into the mysterious sea of sex and relationships. It draws on interviews with the people surrounding her at the time. Plath is a very appealing figure among young women ( forgive me, I know not why -- she committed suicide by gas with her two toddler children in the next room. She wrote a book in which she ragged on the mediocrity of her mother and her values- her mother being the lady who had to get up every morning to go to work to support Sylvia's brilliant creativity -- but I digress) and most biographies written about her are extremely popular. Even I intend to read this book and, as you can see, I am not a fan. Booming, stylish, creative, crazy New York during the fifties-- that is just where I would have wanted to be at Sylvia's age> I think I could have made better use of the experience though.
My second selection is Elizabeth Winder's Pain, Parties,Work...Sylvia Plath's New York Summer, 1953, that short slice of Plath's life on which the Bell Jar was based. As painful as Plath's later life was to be, this was a relatively carefree and joyous period - a time of firsts, first time away from home in the big and vibrant city, first opportunity to stretch her wings as a writer and critic, first exciting dip into the mysterious sea of sex and relationships. It draws on interviews with the people surrounding her at the time. Plath is a very appealing figure among young women ( forgive me, I know not why -- she committed suicide by gas with her two toddler children in the next room. She wrote a book in which she ragged on the mediocrity of her mother and her values- her mother being the lady who had to get up every morning to go to work to support Sylvia's brilliant creativity -- but I digress) and most biographies written about her are extremely popular. Even I intend to read this book and, as you can see, I am not a fan. Booming, stylish, creative, crazy New York during the fifties-- that is just where I would have wanted to be at Sylvia's age> I think I could have made better use of the experience though.
Friday, May 17, 2013
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
I just explored Goodreads again. I have used it, minimally, for quite some time. I find the lists useful for customer recommendations. -- and, to some degree, for recommendation for personal reading. I sometimes read reviews to choose books to read or to elucidate my own opinions about specific books. I actually prefer Amazon for browsing and review reading because I can easily sort there by favorable and unfavorable reviews and I tend to read the negative reviews before the positive ones. I find Goodreads extremely hard to negotiate and, for this reason, do not use it as much as Amazon, it seems extremely awkward and unwieldy to me. I also usually choose books for reasons other than what my colleagues or friends are reading, occasionally I will take suggestions, but I have extremely specific interests in both fiction and non-fiction and usually can find what I need directly without going to a huge recommendation site. I also don't particularly need to divide my books or reading desires into some kind of detailed virtual shelving arrangement -- I just don't like fooling around on the site enough to do this. I do not write written reviews for each book either, although I do mark with stars but most of my books are either 4 or 5 star books because I don't bother including books which I consider terrible. I prefer to write longer, more thoughtful reviews and reviews which deal with my own impressions of books based on life experience -- In general, I don't like this site, it is massive, hard to negotiate. I did recommend a book to Bryce Rumbles as per the assignment -- one that he had not listed as read, but I could have just told him about the book a lot more easily than going on this site and writing out the rec.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
I am just finishing up on my first ever book of Urban Fantasy, the genre I chose to read for this exercise. It is called Generation V by M.L. Brennan and contains a hefty serving of modern vampires, both American and European, garnished with a few elves, witches, strange little fox shape shifters from Japan called kitsumes. I have to emphasize that in general I hate fantasy, even as a child I preferred the realistic Little House books to anything that EB White wrote, I literally start falling asleep the minute an animal starts talking, but I thought that the placement of fantasy in a modern city may be of interest to me -- so here I am reading about American vampires in Providence Rhode Island. I am having a bit of a problem figuring out which demographic this book would appeal to, certainly not to mine since I did not know what Generation V was until I looked it up ( it is the vegan generation and this is about a literally vegan young vampire who works in a run down coffee shop) -- so, therefore, it must appeal to a very much younger reader. It is categorized as Science fiction fantasy, although there is nothing science about it and I cannot understand how anyone browsing the science fiction
collection would even bother to pick it up at all. It may appeal a bit
to romance readers -- that mainly because of the cover, a hot, handsome young vampire man in a tight black tee and blue jeans ( that certainly is what originally drew me to it), but there is no romance in it whatsover,
in fact the opposite of romance, so I am still wondering how people who
might like this type of fiction ( whoever they may be ) would ever find
it or identify it as likeable. The vampire legend goes back a long time both historically and in literature -- but it is important to note that vampires and their habits of feeding off of young ladies originate in basic sources of terror for older generations -- those being sex and the power of sexual feelings and, most importantly, the loss of the soul via the all too human's tendency to forget God amidst
the various pleasures that the earth provides us with, be that sex,
food, money, anything else. As that legend has been written about again
and again, this profound meaning has been replaced by silly stuff, adolescent first times, the depiction of vampires as teenagers and babies, and on and on because we have culturally journeyed away from profound ideas and have basically pulled God and vampires down to our own rather infantile level. We no longer fear sex ( although perhaps we should think about the deep emotions and ties that sexual feelings can bring, particularly in teenagers) and we either no longer believe in God or we think of him as some kind of neighbor that we can go couponing with every week. ( I am no better than anybody else in this regard -- here I am reading vampire literature instead of Pilgrim's Progress) This book is, to some degree, the very furthest away from the original vampire legend. Our
almost vampire hero is a 26 year old film major who can only find a job
in a run down coffee house, who is alienated from his extremely
powerful vampire family because he objects to their savage indifference to the suffering they may cause human beings, and is basically an attractive, loser pushover -- cheated on by his girlfriend and used by his roommate as a source of cheap accomodation. The vampire mythology in this book is, to some degree, unique-- older vamps are soulless and horrible and commit unspeakable crimes against innocents. This is one thing that makes me extremely uncomfortable about this book -- it juxtaposes relaxed humor and raucous banter against pedophilia and child murder -- the tone is light but the crimes are profoundly horrific. I don't know if the author intended the
bouts of stomach churning that jokes and implied child rape within one
paragraph can cause, but I don't think I would be unique in judging this particular quality of the book as unsettling. There is no graphic violence or explicit sex in the book -- everything is implied, but anybody with even a second rate imagination can kind of grasp what is going on. Our young vampire hero pals up with a wise cracking fox shape shifter ( her alternate shape is a beautiful young lady who likes to wear thongs) in order to stop the unspeakable crimes to which I have just referred. As the book progresses, he matures a bit and starts taking the lead in both attaining and using his vampiric powers for good ( sort of a new vampire super-hero -- I mean how far away from the original legend can we go?) Surprisingly, apart from the repugnancy of the humor and one liners mixed with the reality of the rape of innocents, I really do not have to hold my nose to read this book and I did not fall asleep. It is kind of like watching television and switching from one station to the next every five seconds - something I am very proficient at. The vampire legend presented is detailed and original and there is a lot of clever banter -- new to me because being old I don't banter anymore and I am not able to discern what is old, new, original or used insofar as modern banter is concerned -- so it all sounds clever to me. So, this exploration into
this genre has not been too horrible and I may even read the second
part of this American Vampire series, just to check up on the hero and see how he progresses -- who knows maybe he will progress in the right direction toward the original intent of vampire literature -- something which terrifies us onto the straight and narrow path toward heaven -- talk about strange juxtapositions, that -- vampires and heaven. Oh well, we shall see.
Monday, May 6, 2013
The age of this patron is very important since vampire sagas are written for both teens and adults. I am assuming that this customer is an adult who does not like Bella's relatively immature first person narrative and wants adult vampire books with more meat, energy and passion. I may first suggest Ann Rice's Vampire Diaries. She is basically the creator of contemporary vampire legend. Her books are rich in every sense of the word - they also made her very rich -- her characters complex and setting luxuriant. If her books pose too much of an angst issue with the patron, I would suggest the quirky, erotic, violent and surprisingly humorous Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris, lots of meat in those books and so, so many for the Sookie fan to read. Combined with the True Blood tv series, this may prove successful. Another great read is the Anita Blake series by Laurell Hamilton with a true female heroine vampire slayer and lots of adult action. For a truly dark and apocalyptic view of vampires -- and this viewpoint is currently a popular one as illustrated by AMC's Zombie apocalypse Walking Dead, I would recommend the Strain trilogy by Guillermo del Toro which narrates the end of the world via vampire virus in New York City. This series is more scientific in nature dealing with the biology and development of the vampire.
There have been some fascinating contemporary books written about previously obscure historical events recently which may be of interest to this reader. I would probably first recommend Caroline Hamilton's book Endurance about Shackleton's adventures in the Antarctic and his crew's subsequent stranding on Elephant Island. This book combines a detailed and absorbing narrative with pictures taken by the icebound ship's photographer. Shackleton himself is a really real superhero, so obsessed with and desperate to save his crew members that he embarks on a suicidal journey in a small boat to escape the island and, at last, bring help. The portrait of a true leader and exemplary human being. I would also recommend the deeply researched and finely detailed books of Erick Larson, Devil in the White City and Isaac's Storm. Although both books describe real events, they are not mere recitations of fact, -- They are exciting narratives with animated
and powerful characters -- they represent the quintessential spirit of
the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the United States. The first, of course, deals with the coincidence of the Columbian Exposition in Chicago with the machinations of a serial killer and the second deals with the single most horrific weather event to date, the Galveston hurricane of 1900 and the inception of the U.S. Weather Service.I might also recommend Drennan's Death in a Prairie House which recounts the shocking massacre
of Frank Lloyd Wright's mistress and children at Taliesin -- a little know event
in the life of this universal genius (and badboy). All these books are exciting, fast
paced, highly informative, absorbing -- and revelatory of events which are easily forgotten amidst the clamour of war and politics.
I am not good at women's contemplative fiction and non-fiction because I have really only started to read it, but here goes. I am going to assume that this reader's needs do not just encompass travel fiction but also include revelatory and confessional fiction which contains multiple topics for book club discussion. My first suggestions would include classic, contemporary travel fiction. Travel and residence in countries not our own throws us into a cultural childhood combined with adult perception. We are open to experiences because they are totally new to us, we transcend habit and preconception and our minds literally begin to churn and change and grow. Travel books, while not a substitute for real travel, provide us with the same opportunities for spiritual growth. Such books as the Caliph's House by Tahir Shah, Nothing to Declare, by Mary Morris, Under the Tuscan Sun by Mayes, or a Year in Provence by Mayle, would be logical suggestions. Nonfiction books which provide insight into daily life of other cultures are also relevant. One of the best of these is Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo, a stark and disturbing look at the underclass of Mumbai which reads like fiction and reveals the astonishingly complex lives and thoughts of people who barely have clothes to wear and often live in cardboard boxes. Another would be a classic, Spirit Catches You Fall Down by Fadiman, an examination of family, tradition and values and how they conflict with our own in the death of a child.
This patron may also want some fiction which provides food for thought
for a book group -- since she mentioned Oprah's books. Two outstanding examples of this type of book is Moyes' Me before You and Erdrich's The Round House. The latter may be an ideal choice for a book group because it presents a coming of age story overlaid by complex cultural conflicts.
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