Book It 2006 - P&P to Brokeback Mountain
[Book Three]
Book Title: Pride and Prejudice
Author: Jane Austen
Genre: Classics
# of pages: 367
Quote: To Elizabeth it appeared, that had her family made an agreement to expose themselves as much as they could during the evening, it would have been impossible for them to play their parts with more spirit, or finer success; and happy did she think it for Bingley and her sister that some of the exhibition had escaped his notice, and that his feelings were not of a sort to be much distressed by the folly which he must have witnessed. That his two sisters and Mr. Darcy, however, should have such an opportunity of ridiculing her relations was bad enough, and she could not determine whether the silent contempt of the gentleman, or the insolent smiles of the ladies, were more intolerable.
Personal Grade: A+
Plot: The story of Elizabeth Bennet.
Review: Albeit exceedingly descriptive, the story is well written. I'm a bit of a romantic at heart, so seeing their relationship develope was pretty entertaining. Their moments were pretty amusing since both characters are intelligent and witty. Jane and Bingley's were sweet, and I couldn't help but feel sorry about Bingley's sisters. The BBC series was wonderful, a good adaptation that removed a lot of the unnecessary details in the book. The 2005 movie starring Keira Knightley removed a lot of the plot, which was sad. Darcy wasn't as impressive in the movie, unlike Firth's Darcy. Keira was beautiful, but Elizabeth was suppose to be average and smart. Book is highly recommended.
Currently Reading: Korea
On the List: Jane Austen’s Persuasion
*****
[Book Four]
Book Title: Northanger Abbey
Author: Jane Austen
Genre: Classics
# of pages: 216
Quote: "She was heartily ashamed of her ignorance-- a misplaced shame. Where people wish to attach, they should always be ignorant. To come with a well-informed mind is to come with an inability of administering to the vanity of others, with a sensible person would always wish to avoid. A woman, especially, if she have the misfortune of knowing anything, should conceal it as well as she can."
Personal Grade: C+
Plot: From the back of the book, "Northanger Abbey is the story of Catherine Morland, a well-to-do clergyman's daughter whose imagination runs away with her during her visit to the medieval home of the Tilney's a family she met while vacationing at Bath. Increasingly convinced that the General Tilney, the father of her soon-to-be bethrothed, is a brutal criminal, Catherine is chagrined when her suspicions-- which owes more to her love of fantastical novels than to her gifts for sleuthings-- are discovered by her hosts."
Review: Not one of her better books. I had already read earlier, that P&P would be one of her best books and didn't really think the other ones would come even close to P&P, but personally, I was really disappointed. The blurb on the back made it sound really interesting, but in fact, it spoiled the suggested "most interesting" part. Truth is, the suggested "most interesting" part was not in fact important at all. It covered less than 1/4 of the storyline, and wasn't embellished at all within the story. In fact, I would say there are two storylines; the first is the relationship between the Thorpes and the Morlands, and the second is Catherine's relationship with the Tilney's.
Regarding the weak points in the novel, the most evident is the ending. From the time that she was asked to leave Northanger Abbey, the story declined so much, and so fast, it felt like I was rolling downhill uncontrollably. Too much conclusion going too, too fast. The explanation Henry gives does sum up the story well, in bringing the readers back to the start (the relationship between the Thorpes and the Morlands), but everything else is done very poorly. Eleanor's suddenly married to a guy we were never introduced to, and suddenly, everything is alright. We are not told of what happens to Isabella or John Thorpes, when more than half the book covers them. I wish she could have concluded it better. Overall an OK read, but I wish I hadn't been spoilt by P&P first.
Currently Reading: Korea
On the List: Jane Austen’s Persuasion, DWJ's Castle in the Sky
Adding a few more books that I might enjoy. Found a list at an Exhibition of Auto/biographies:
, Audrey Hepburn: An Elegant Spirit: A Son Remembers by Sean Hepburn Ferrer
, Rosalind Franklin, The Dark Lady of DNA by Brenda Maddox (Her life always seem so sad to me. She worked with radiation, and helped to discover DNA's double helix. But due to her frequent exposure to radiation, she developed cancer and died. It wasn't until after she died, that they rewarded her for her work.)
, Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
, Albert Camus by Olivier Todd (He was the author of L'etranger, a book I was forced to read in high school with so much difficulty...)
*****
[Book Five]
Book Title: Hero's Quest
Author: Dennis O'Neil
Genre: Science Fiction
# of pages: 330
Quote: He paused. "I hate to say this, but you might be the only person able to save the League." I closed the pad and dropped the pencil on an end table. "Are you sure? I mean, there must be others, government agencies or--" "You aren't listening." The utter lack of emotion in Batman's words made them deeply scary. "I'll say it one more time: You might be the only person able to save the League. Surely I don't have to tell you how important that is?"
Personal Grade: D+
Plot: Novelization of Justice League's Green Lantern, Kyle Rayner. Justice League disappears, and Kyle is given his first assignment to prove his loyalty to the team by traveling to the ends of the universe.
Review: When I borrowed this, I didn't realize it was a novel. General thought of series? Tales with superheros are best left in well told visual media. I felt like I was giving it a D+ just because I was bias. I don't really like reading or watching SciFi all that much, but I happen to enjoy DC's animated version of the Justice League. Then again, 5 years ago, I never thought I would like Fantasy either.
Currently Reading: Diana Wynne Jones' Witch Week
On the List: Diana Wynne Jones' Conrad's Fate & Castle in the Sky
*****
[Book Six]
Book Title: Witch Week
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Genre: Fantasy
# of pages: 287
Quote: (Nothing noteworthy.)
Grade: B
Plot: (Obtained from book blurb at the back.) When the note, written in ordinary blue ballpoint, appears between two of the homework books Mr. Crossley is marking, he is very upset. For this is Larwood House, a school for witch-orphans, where witchcraft is utterly forbidden. And yet, suddenly magic is breaking out all over the place-like measles!
Review: Not bad for a children book, somewhat entertaining. Much better than most children books I’ve read, but I think I will try and stick to books she’s written for older readers, like Fire and Hemlock. There’s a sort of mystery that I like about them.
Currently Reading: Conrad’s Fate
On the List: Bunch of them.
*****
[Book Seven]
Book Title: Conrad’s Fate
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Genre: Fantasy
# of pages: 393
Quote: "What is this?" Christopher said as the maid brought his slice. "Steak pie, sir," the girl said. She was about Christopher’s age and you could see she thought he was ever so handsome. "No, I mean the way there are Staff to wait on Staff," Christopher said. "When do you get to eat?" "We have high tea at six-thirty, sir," the girl said, "but…" "What a lot of meals!" Christopher said. "Doesn’t that take another whole kitchen and a whole lot more Staff to wait on you?" "Well, only sort of," the girl said. Her eyes went nervously to Mrs. Baldock. "Please, sir, we’re not suppose to hold conversations while we’re serving." "Then I’ll ask you," Christopher said to Andrew. "Do you see any reason why this serving-business should ever stop? We have supper now, so as to wait on the Family, and these charming young ladies have theirs at six-thirty in ordre to wait on us. And when they are waited on, those people must have to eat at six, and before that some other people must have to eat earlier still in order to wait on them. There must be some Staff who have supper at breakfast time in order to fit all this serving in."
Grade: A+
Plot: Conrad is told of his bad Karma and sent to Stallery Mansion in disguise, to infiltrate and find out who this Person is, who is responsible for his Fate. He meets a rival.
Review: Better than Witch Week, lots of magicking, Christopher can almost rival Howl if he was any more of a prince. The fact that he grew up in high society surrounded by people who waited on him, Christopher made an amusing character as a help of the Mansion.
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[SPOILER FOR WITCH WEEK]
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If he was the same Christopher as seen in Witch Week, as most people suspected, I like him much more as a teenager, than I do as a Nine-Lifed Enchanter.
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[/END SPOILER]
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I like Conrad, even though his character is so innocent and a bit clueless at times. You can’t help but feel sorry for him. His sister is more of a mother to him, than his real mother is. I wonder how Anthea managed to grow up into a normal person when surrounded by her mother and an uncle like that. It must be her father. He was probably the normal one.
Currently Reading: C.S. Lewis’ The Silver Chair.
On the List: I borrowed a couple of reading materials this summer. Michael Ende’s Momo, and The Never Ending Story, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Superheroes and Philosophy, and DWJ’s Castle in the Sky.
*****
[Book Eight]
Book Title: Chronicles of Narnia - The Silver Chair
Author: C.S. Lewis
Genre: Fantasy
# of pages: 257
Quote: (Nothing noteworthy.)
Grade: B+
Plot: Eustace (Pevensies’ cousin) and Jill Pole, a classmate, are sent to Narnia to rescue Rilian, son of Caspian (in the previous book).
Review: I expected more about the Silver Chair, especially when it’s Right. In. The title. :/ Huh. The story is more or less the same as the other series in the book. Children from our world travel to Narnia and do Aslan’s bidding. Rescue requires travel and fighting, until all is well again.
Currently Reading: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
On the List: Same as above.
*****
[Book Nine]
Book Title: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Author: Douglas Adams
Genre: Science Fiction
# of pages: 180
Quote: (Spoiler-ish, but you won’t know unless you know the context. So it’s not entirely spoiler in a way. It can stand on it’s own.)
‘I got very bored and depressed, so I went and plugged myself in to its exeternal computer feed. I talked to the computer at great length and explained my view of the Universe to it,’ said Marvin.
‘And then what happened?’ pressed Ford.
‘It committed suicide,’ said Marvin.
Grade: B-
Plot: (Obtained from book blurb at the back.) One Thursday lunchtime, the Earth gets unexpectedly demolished to make way for a new hyperspace bypass. For Arthur Dent, who has only just had his house demolished that morning, this seems already to be more than he can cope with. Sadly, however, the weekend has only just begun, and the galaxy is a very strange and startling place.
Review: Not much of a SciFi fan at all, but decided to read this due to possible cute depressive robot who looked interesting. The book gets pretty technical in many places, and since I wanted to finish it in one night, I skipped a lot of the technical explanations. For a non-scifi fan like myself, the story never grabbed my interest. However, there were still a few moments (such as the quote above) that grabbed my attention. When it jumped out at me, it was pretty funny.
Currently Reading: The Never Ending story.
On the List: Same as above.
*****
[Book Ten]
Book Title: Fodor’s Guide to The Da Vinci Code
Author: Editors Jennifer Paull and Christopher Culwell
Genre: Travel guide
# of pages: Read to 201, the rest were maps and restaurant info.
Quote: n/a
Grade: Not bad for a travel guide.
Plot: Travel guide to the places mentioned in The Da Vinci Code with loads more info, clarifications on facts and "facts" used in the novel, along with maps, restaurant and hotel info, and lots of pictures.
Review: I really did read it in "almost" entirety. A lot of history is in this book. Think of it as a very condensed summary of the history of each site in the original novel, as well as the infamous Leonardo Da Vinci. Although it’s a travel guide, it doesn’t convince me to visit the cities and buildings, as much as it makes me want to learn about the history. The pictures are really pretty, with lots of references to Da Vinci’s works. There were also some very interesting facts; for example, I had no idea Bill Gates owned the Codex Leicester for $30.8 million. I had no idea a computer gazillionaire would be remotely interested in Leonardo’s writing and drawings. I suppose, an investment’s an investment.
Currently Reading: The Neverending Story and Castle in the Sky, at the same time.
On the List: Superheroes and Philosophy.
*****
[Book Eleven]
Book Title: The Neverending Story
Author: Michael Ende
Genre: Fantasy
# of pages: 445
Quote: --
Grade: A
Plot: Bastian steals a book, reads the book, and enters the book. Fantastica is the world in the book, doomed to disappear forever if it is not saved.
Review: The story dragged on. I enjoyed the first half with Atreyu, but once Bastian entered, it really seemed to never end. But it was well written and translated, and the characters are likeable. My reviews seem to get shorter and shorter…
Currently Reading: None.
On the List: Um. The last Narnia book, The Ring and other horror novels & short stories, Brokeback Mountain…
*****
[Book Twelve]
Book Title: Castle in the Air
Author: DWJ
Genre: Fantasy
# of pages: ?
Quote: n/a
Grade: A
Plot: We follow Abdullah’s travels, as he finds a way to save Flower-in-the-Night.
Review: Howl’s was better, although this was just pretty good too. The story is very sweet, and I highly recommend it. …I write bad reviews when I’m watching TV at the same time. *sweat*
*****
[Book Thirteen]
Book Title: Dark Water
Author: Koji Suzuki
Genre: Horror, Short stories
# of pages: ?
Quote: n/a
Grade: B
Plot: Collection of horror stories with water as the theme of each.
Review: The first story is the one the movie is based on. Most of the stories were pretty creepy, because they aren’t exactly out-of-this-world kind of tales. I was freaked out for weeks. The last couple of stories weren’t as scary as I thought they’d be, which kind of disappointed me. Recommended to any horror story fan.
*****
[Book Fourteen]
Book Title: Chronicles of Narnia - The Last Battle
Author: C.S. Lewis
Genre: Fantasy
# of pages: ?
Quote: n/a
Grade: A
Review: The last book of the series. I was a bit disappointed since I thought the series would go out with a "bang." The mood was similar to the other books. I guess in general, I expected the series to be a bit more exciting. I liked the way it’s so well written, and it wasn’t hard to understand what the author was trying to create, unlike many other fantasy books. Of course, the setting of Narnia isn’t too far off from our current world, which is probably why it’s not that difficult to understand. In addition, since the creatures presented are so well known (fauns, dwarfs) by now, it wasn’t difficult to follow. I’m not sure if Lewis’ fiction popularized these kinds of fantasy creatures, but it helps a lot, to be able to picture them in our heads. No favourite character, although I was a bit sad Susan turned out the way she did.
*****
[Book Fifteen]
Book Title: Brokeback Mountain
Author: Annie Proulx
Genre: ? Short stories
# of pages: ?
Quote: n/a
Review: Read it in a couple of hours, I can see why the storyline was so riveting. The plot is fresh and original, and the characters are unique. Jack and Ennis aren’t described with a lot of details, but the readers feel like they know a lot about them. The ending was a bit sad.