I am reading some Jung, the Harvard Dictionary of Music, Grove (of course!), Clive Brown's Performance Practice book and still muddling through Nietzsche. This page is in flux. When my comps are over, I might be able to start reading again.. for now nothing here that I can describe, summarize, or have an opinion about.




Titles:

The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry

What would happen to the world if the bones of Jesus were discovered? What would happen to all religion, even the non-Christian religions? The very thought of everything the Resurrection stands for would make such a discovery the most terrible thing that has happened since the Crucifiction.
Or maybe it wouldn't. To some it would mean the end of faith. It might definitely lead to more wars and religion would change forever. But to me the point is not that he died. The point is that he lived, and even if he was not the Son of God resurrected, he was a man of God, a good man, a teacher of all things love, peace and faith. The world that killed him turned him into a God after his death.
If the book had focused more on the spiritual aspect of its core idea, it would have worked better. The story is dull at times, and Berry spends too much time with trivial nonsense, and conversations between the characters about places that the reader really cannot care for. It is very "Da Vinci Code"-ish and it doesnt' hide it. Not that it's a bad thing but Berry is not a very captivating author. I almost didn't finish the book and I am glad I did because the end was the best part of the book by far. There are simply too many books about templars and I was scorning myself for reading another one. But the end was worth it, and it left me with a point of view that was really thought provoking.

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks
One of the most wonderful, touching, human books I've read in a while. It is seamless, so well narrated that the story never loses its potency and its sense of reality. It really feels like a memoir, not like a fiction novel, and the characters are so well done, so believable with all their characteristics. It is truly an amazing account of what human beings go through - the many possible transformations the spirit goes through when faced with a catastrophy that is so overwhelming, and devastating. The many faucets of religion and belief, the many outlets and ways to madness that each of us is on - or are they really that different? This book will stay with me for a while..

The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
This is a really good book. I have not completely finished it because I haven't had much time to read, but it is a great book all the same. It deals with life and death, loss and love. It is like a memoir, only it is about one year - the year when the author's husband dies while having dinner, while her (and his) only daughter is in a septic shock in ICU for unknown reasons. It is well written but very pensive. It has a certain dry power - the writing style reminds me a little of that of William Wharton, although he is a much more powerful, tour de force writer. Joan Didion's style is pensive, exact, and somehow still detached. With William Wharton the reader gets the facts, the dry, sometimes trivial facts, while the powerful, sweeping feelings of the author are still transparent. I have never known myself to cry from so very few words. In "The year of magical thinking", the emotional aspect of the book is veiled, almost as if the author still hasn't completely realized or admitted the extent of her loss, as though some of it (or most of it) is still hidden and private. The "cool customer" through and through.
The book flips back and forth through time, like recollections do, and is sometimes scattered - like recollections are - a detail here and there, a poem, a picture, a memory. It seems done on purpose, and it does contribute to a feeling of a random memory that just appears and then dissolves.
The "magical" aspect of the book is not as convincing. It is not that it's not believable - it is very believable, but I had a hard time connecting to it. I have dealt with loss, and I have had some magical thoughts but not all people who experience loss have a hard time accepting it, or believing it. Maybe I need to reread some parts of it, but it doesn't seem to quite fit - was she losing her grip on reality? Did she really believe he could come back? I think it is more likely that she could not deal with the reality of him being gone. If the shoes were gone, he was gone, and that was a reality she couldn't quite face, especially in the light of everything that had happened.
I don't think anyone should criticize a story of mourning and loss, and this is a wonderful book. I wish that there was more about the author, and less about everyone else and their feelings, and their dealings. The book should be about her, and about her journey to acceptance and peace. 6/06

Night by Elie Wiesel
I read this novel last night, in about an hour and a half. I don't know how people review it, in the face of a read like this I can hardly think of anything to say. I went in my daughter's room and laid on the floor next to her bed, because I wanted to be close to her and the thought of all the children that die, even now, in wars, earthquakes, accidents, made me want to hold her close every night and never let her sleep away from me, or be away from me. There are some things that can never be expressed or understood, and the author's grief and pain was like something huge that even the most sensitive reader could only feel/read the tip of, and could never comprehend the magnitude and devastating influence of what happened to him. There is no safe place to be, nothing is ever safe for anyone and as paranoid as this statement is, it is the unfortunate truth. A wonderful, heartbreaking book, powerful and terrifying. 5/06

Cell by Stephen King
I read this latest Stephen King novel in about 5 hours, started it one evening and finished it the next day. It was a very interesting and smooth read, nothing like "Black House" "Dreamcatcher" or "The girl who loved Tom Gordon" which are his other latest books, and in which I found almost no traces of the King who wrote "Insomnia" "Rose Madder" and "The green mile". So he's back in style and that was great to see, I had almost given up hope that he would go back to writing the way he used to. "Cell" is definitely not his greatest novel, but it is very good. I liked the atmosphere that it creates, the feeling of reality and reason in this zombie plot. I liked the main character, Clay, although truth be told I agree with some of the reviews that called him shallow. Not enough depth to him, and in a 350 page book, there could have been more of why he was, and who he was and why the reader should care about him.
But he is a father and his desperate need to find his wife and child are what made him more believable to me. The other characters are even more vague, although that might have been on purpose. It kind of fit with the feeling of chaos the book was trying to portray, and the fact that in a situation like "the pulse" nobody knows much about anybody else; as reader, I was a part of that too. Then again, in novels like "the Stand" all the main characters are sculpted three-dimentonally, and are much more alive. It would have made the novel better to have developed Tom, or even the Ragged Man ("Trashcan man and black man combined, anyone?) more.
The ending didn't bother me very much, a lot of rage over the ending from Stephen King fans. It is true, I felt a little sense of being tricked and left high and dry but at the same time, so many of his other novels end that way ("Christine" "The Stand" "The fog" and even "Storm of the century") The strife never ends and does it really matter whether Johnny recovers anyway? It is not necessary at all for that to resolve for the main point of the book. I'm glad I goe this book - I almost didn't but it was great to be inside Stephen King's world again.4/06


Music of the Spheres by Elizabeth Redfern

This book didn't get many good reviews but I am absolutely smitten with it. It took me longer to read it than it would have, had I not discovered sudoku at the same time. But it is an amazing read, very vivid and colorful. It is a story of almost Jack-the-Ripper proportions, similar situation - a killer preying on prostitutes in late 18th century London. But the story is much richer than that, and Redfern successfully incorporates some of everything in there - the War between Royalists and Republicans following the French Revolution, the network of spies and informants that undoubtedly existed at the time, the preoccupation and fascination with stars which was also at its peak in this particular time frame - it is all very well done, very masterful and believable. The characters are almost 4-dimensional - I love that about this book - they are very well developed and have a lot of depth even when they are not central to the story. Some of my favorites were Jonathan Absey, a clerk whose daughter was the first victim of the serial killer, who in his quest for vengeance loses everything in his life, and his brother - Alexander, who is gay and an excellent astronomer. Another interesting bit is the information on homosexuality in the 19th century and its legal threats to people. I guess I just didn't realize that it was still punishable by death that late in history. Of course, there have been many people who have died because of their sexual orientation, but I just didn't think it was legal.
The historical aspects of the book also impressed me, but I think I am in the minority here - I don't know many people whose hobby for 7 years was French History, so I loved all the parts that had to do with the Revolution, and the politics following and surrounding it.
Even though the story of the lost star, Selene, seems central to the plot, it is al ost shadowed by the incredible sense of atmosphere - it was like the story was enveloped in its time, and the streets, conversations, clothing, even smells were so present that the plot seemed almost secondary. I thought that was one of the best qualities of the book.The only thing I had an issue was the actual title- Music of the Spheres. I might have to read the book again and try to discover a connection, but after reading it once, I don't think there is one. The title doesn't have much to do with the book.. but what an excellent book, anyway! 2/06

Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
Beautiful, beautiful book. I loved it, every moment, and even though i am sometimes rather impatient with writers, this one was captivating from beginning to end. I am not a fan of war books (except Midnight Clear by William Wharton) so I didn't like the parts that had to do with the war, but everything else was just exquisite. I loved the characters, I loved the plot, I loved the finality, reality and hopelessness/hope of the end. I think I will give East of the Mountains another chance now.

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown
This was another page turner by Dan Brown. I read "The Da Vinci Code" about a week after it came out, I think, in two sittings. I loved it. This one I also read in two sittings, and I kind of liked it, but part of me resisted it a lot. I don't know if I can explain why, I just thought some of it was a bit over the top. Dan Brown certainly has a flair for dramatic surprises. He is brilliant, there is no doubt about that, and much like Jk Rowling, his talent is not in his writing style, but rather in his ideas. He is not afraid to tackle huge, huge issues that most other authors tend to shy away from. Religion, science, and matter - it doesn't get much bigger than that. In the middle of these wonderful, colossal ideas, the characters are oddly artificial. The attraction between the two main characters is not believable, their feelings are left in the background, and the human aspect of the book is lost. It would be ok if it was intentional. Had the agenda of the book been; "humans aside, this is about God and Earth, and science" - it might have made more sense. But through and through, he makes the argument for the humanness of it all - the humanity of the idea about God, the humanity of love, of transcending pain, of revelations and ultimate growth.

The character of the chamberlain did not make sense. I think as an author, Dan Brown meant for him to be a tormented, peaceless martyr-murderer, a fanatic whose blindness cost him his life, and the life of the four cardinals. But even as a fanatic, he fails, his actions are mindless and unconvincing.
All in all, a good story, badly messed up by a lot of inaccuracies and some really sloppy writing. Brown should have taken more time to refine his characters and work out the facts better.
[On another note, isn't it interesting how composers can revise their works, change notes, accidentals, markings etc. Writers, on the other hand, don't have that luxury. I think it is a pity; I am positive the second edition of this book, or any of the Harry Potter books, or science fiction books would be so much better than the first. Oh, the performance practices of modern writing..]

Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
[This book is not actually Anonymous. It was "edited" and added to by Beatrice Sparks, and its credibility and influence have been greatly undermined in the past 10 years. Still the issues within it are real, alive, and very, very relevant.]
Go Ask Alice filled me with dread of being a parent. I read it in one sitting, hardly being able to tear myself away from it (needless to say, it was one late night). There was no hope for her, there was never any life for her, and just thinking that it can happen to my daughter took any sleepiness away from me and the residual waves of that horrible feeling are still with me now. What can anyone do if a human being is determined to go down a cerain path? What can you say, where can you go for help, if you are a parent? Where do you go if you are the child?
This has got to be one of the most disturbing books I've read, I guess because I have always feared addiction, knowing full well how succeptible to it I am. Because I fear exactly what happened to her - the inability to find your way back once you slip into the abyss, the complete inability to cope with what comes because of it, the knowledge that once a child has been down there they will never be the same, the knowledge that some things are beyond healing or help, the certainty that after a certain point, a human being and her soul are mutilated and destroyed beyond repair, and that death is not only an inevitable and necessary end, but also a merciful end.
This book will stay with me for a while.

Atonement by Ian Mcewan
I found this book a little difficult to get through.It was not because of the writing style - Ian McEwan's style and elegance are undeniable - but rather because of the slow unraveling of the plot. It is true that a lot of books require attention and patience from their readers, but this one, despite its brilliant style, fell short from being captivating and was definitely NOT a page turner for me. For me, a book is best if I forget I am reading. The writing focuses too much on its author and I was consistently aware of the style, which commands attention and could be condescending at times. I wished for a more readable book, without the occasional unnecessary, pretentious words, phrases and paragraphs. The characters were very realistic and well thought out, but I still did not care much for any of them. They lacked compassion and humanity and left me cold and unmoved. If you enjoy long, (LONG!)beautifully constructed descriptions of landscape, fountains, places and events, you will like this book. If, however, you are seeking a plot with movement and intensity, this book is not for you.

The Circus in Winter by Cathy Day
August 2005
[Revised Note]
I wasn't happy with my thoughts on this book so I read it again. My first impression was intuitively correct, but my ideas were malformed :) After reading it again, I've decided this book is about time, hopelessness and freedom. The implications are much deeper than I originally thought. I started thinking about the animals in the circus and what I had said earlier - namely, that at least their owners have a choice which they are never given. Which is true and not true. Part of the reason this book is so unusual is that it presents life as it is - hopes and dreams do not come true, death can be as pointless and dull as life without hope, people change, they break and wither under the pressure of their lives. People are , in that sense, just as imprisoned as the elephants in the cages - the only difference is the matter the cage is made of. It is very hard for me to explain the sense of freedom the circus performers have, and the complete lack of it at the same time. This book is a perfect paradox, an oxymoron of freedom.
Another aspect of it - time. Time doesn't exist. The characters of 2000 have the same black-and-white color, the same faded transparence as the characters of 1913. Does time really move, or does it stand still? In Lima, Indiana, time is just wearing down, rather than moving ahead, yet the circus and all its performers never leave. Memories are ghosts, painted on the walls in the Colonel Ford's house. And the circus - I don't know why the very notion of circus is so sad. It is completely tragic, and every story in the book is a tragedy in its own way. The pinhead, the dwarf, the elephant trainer, the queen of Sheba, Jennie Dixianna and her father - they are all tragic characters, coming from different places but with the same doom and hopelessnes. [End Addendum]

[Old] I had a hard time finishing the book - not because I didn't like it, but because it was difficult to read the stories on an emotional level. It is very well written, the characters are alive, graphic and very well researched. One of the most amazing things about this is the seamless merging of the known historical facts with the details and imagination of the author. The book works really well, and gives each story plausibility, character and vividity, which was really captivating to me as a reader. I also loved all the photographs preceding each story, they depicted the mood and somehow made the characters even more alive and present.
I said I had a hard time finishing it - one of the reasons I picked this book was because I hate circus. It is now very different from what it was at the turn of the century, but some things remain the same. Actually, there is a strong resemblance between the circus of the early 20th century with the zoo of the early 21st century - all that is missing are the freaks. As a description of a freak show, some of the characters were painful to see, very tumultuous and pitiful at the same time.
Even more tragic than the human freaks (if possible) are the animals described in the book. The injustice, mistreatment and agony of the animals were just unbearable to me, because, unlike their human proprietors, they have no hope of escape, change, choice or mercy. It is a wonderful book, although I don't know that I will be re-reading it anytime soon. (still, I do go by the rule that if a book is not worth reading twice, it is not reading once, so I will probably read it again eventually.)

Lost Horizon by James Hilton

May 2005.
I finally read it - I had heard so much about the book and just the concept of Shangri-La in general. It was definitely a page turner and it took me about 6 hours to read.
I loved the idea of it, of course, it is an idea sort of book, but I wished there was more depth to it. The surroundings of the temple are mentioned but that's about it, the life of the people down in the valley could be a terrific novel in itself. Hilton mainly focuses on the human aspect of the concept, of how the four travelers react to their captivity and struggle to adjust. I really wished the characters to have been more developed - they are mostly two-dimensional and flat. Hilton also can't make up his mind about the main character, he is a paradox and is not always believable. I am definitely going to read it again, and read more James Hilton.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
June 2005
One of the BEST books I have read in a long, long time. It is so raw, and passionate, and sensitive and powerful. It is also sometimes excruciating to read. Not your average light read. It is also hopeless in a way, although the redemption of Amir is achieved at the end, but the rest of the world of the book remains in Afghanistan as opposed to him coming to America, it is an outcry which is not mollified and his salvation is possible only because of his escape. Very disturbing, I had to put it down so many times simply because I couldn't keep on. It made me appreciate the world I live in, and realize how little, miniscule my life is, and how it could never ever compare with the significance and stupendousness of those events, of the fact that there are so many people who suffer every day, and that there is no hope for them, and no healing.
I don't know if I will be reading it again soon, but I will think about it. It is the kind of book that will stay with me for a long, long time.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

July 2005
Details, Details, Details. Not cutting it at all. I hate to say it, but I was slightly disappointed in the book. I had read it twice by Sunday night (2 days after it came out), and I have to grudgingly agree with all the reviews that were lukewarm at best. There were a lot of empty conversations, unnecessary characters that contributed very little to the storyline, and not enough character change or shift of focus. None of the characters "grew" or deepened, and while we like them as they are, they should change, I think, to reflect the tremendous changes a human being undergoes in that time of life.
There were two ideas that JK introduced, but didn't back up, explain sufficiently, or explore enough. First, the idea of non-verbal spells. It is agood idea, but it comes too late in the series. Why would Voldemort (or anyone else for that matter) bother with verbal spells that can be deflected or resisted, or at the very least, seen, when they can just curse someone and never get caught or prosecuted? Doesn't make sense with the first five books. The other idea, which I like, but was unexplained and underdeveloped, was the idea of creating spells. It's a great idea, but it doesn't fit. In the first three books, JK Rowling focuses on how to pronounce a spell with focusing the mind on a certain emotion, or mood. Now all of a sudden, Harry is practicing spells that he doesn't know how to pronounce, or approach? Not sound at all. Loose ends all over the place.
Then the plot.It is basically non-existent. I hate to say it, but it doesn't really do anything. For 652 pages we wait for Harry to become a wizard worthy of facing Voldemort. But even at the end of the book, Snape alone can break into his mind, and fight him off without even a struggle. Which brings me to my pet peeve about this book: Harry is not ready. He is continuously failing to cast spells, even in class. Why is he the chosen one, and how is he ever going to defeat the darkest wizard of all if he can't even pass potions without cheating? Come on, JK!
And another thing, JK Rowling spends page after page on useless, stupid fillers (like Luna's commentary, or Slughorn's little parties (???!!) when Dumbledore doesn't even teach Harry anything that could help him in his struggle! I liked the idea of the horcruxes, and of the glimpse in Voldemort's past. The series needed that kind of explanation - it unifies the series. But still, the next book is supposed to be the last and in my opinion, there is just too much ground to cover for one book, especially since this one didn't cover any ground at all. It is unbalanced and I am afraid it might be a huge disappointment. That having said, I really do hope it comes out soon - regardless of what happened in books 6, we love Harry and hope that book 7 will bring a more satisfying, convincing development.

East of the Mountains by David Guterson