Book Blogger Hop (4)

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly meme hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, to help book bloggers and readers interact, and to find new blogs. Every week, a question is posted for participants to answer.

Question:

"How many books are currently in your To-Be-Read (TBR) Pile?"

Answer:

The exact answer is four hundred sixty-five, though by now it might be a bit less. The only reason I know this is because I have recently cataloged all my books in an attempt to create a new method for picking books to read from the existing pile. Because I've already finished some of those books and was too lazy to cross them off the list...I'll go with four hundred fifty-five. Unfortunately, that number just seems to grow every year.

Hoppy happing!

Going After Cacciato

Warning: This review contains mild to severe plot spoilers.

Paul Berlin is a member of the United States Army during the Vietnam War. While he is in Vietnam, a fellow member of his squad, Cacciato, goes AWOL. This is what happens after, or what could have happened, or maybe happened and maybe not. Because sometimes the hardest thing to see is the truth.

Let’s talk about internal conflict.

This book was rife with it: the conflict between freedom and obligation, between a sense of duty and a sense of self, between the glory of possibility and the harshness of reality. And that was just the beginning—by the end the book has explored so much more.

It's unfortunate that I can't say much more without getting into spoilers, however slight.

--SPOILER WARNING--

I will admit that there were hints of the exact nature of the internal conflict throughout the book. Strange people and actions, items that should have been accounted for and yet were not—all of it combined to create a hallucinogenic effect. The brief spots of confusion do resolve by the end, but the long irresolution of strange events serve to make the story much more effective.

The buildup of conflict within the book is partly due to the fact that the suspension of belief used by O’Brien is amazingly powerful. With the use of short, powerful phrases, and brief transitions from past tense to present, O’Brien creates an image of the Vietnam War that is both powerful and real. From the first sentence, he captures the reader’s attention and holds it until the end, exploring the deeper issues of war along the way: what is war? What is it to say that the war is over? And is it really over? What does it mean to go after Cacciato? Is it a dream, or is it something else?

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Notes: Going After Cacciato is Tim O’Brien’s second novel, and was originally published in 1978 by Delacorte Press. The version I read was paperback, published in 1999 by Broadway Books, a division of Random House, by arrangement with Delacorte Press. The cover art was designed by Nicola Ferguson. For more information about Tim O’Brien and his works, please visit his website.

Realistic historical fiction, 336 pages, close third person point of view (bordering on omniscient third in places)

Topics: The definitions of war and peace, reality versus possibility, freedom and happiness versus duty and obligation, fear

Warnings: Profanity scattered throughout. Violence and death, though it is stated as a fact, and is not explicitly condoned (please note that this is a novel about the Vietnam War, and that violence and death are inherently a part of that). Some non-detailed references to sexual acts and fantasies, and a few non-detailed references to kissing.

Five out of Five.

Life, the Universe, and Everything

Arthur Dent is stuck in the past. Literally--he’s been marooned on a prehistoric Earth that isn’t due to be destroyed for another two million years. Then Ford Prefect shows up, and naturally, all hope of normalcy disappears. A floating sofa is explained by eddies in the space-time continuum (whoever he is), and in no time Arthur and Ford are two million years in the future, on the day a cricket game is interrupted by white robots from the planet Krikkit. These robots, it turns out, are out to destroy the world, and it is up to Arthur, Ford, and Slartibartfast to stop them.

This was by far my favorite of Adams’ Hitchhiker’s books. I’ve cited his brand of humor far too many times, so I suppose I’ll begin with what made this book so much different from the others.

No detail is wasted. While attention is brought to random details in other books for no other reason than to highlight the absurdity of the situation, the seemingly random details in Life, the Universe, and Everything are, well, not so random. Or rather, they are just as random—if more so—but they are also central to the plot. This in turn leads to some inadvertent foreshadowing to the end of the series.

I also noticed that by the beginning of this book, Arthur seems to have accepted the fact that nothing is ever going to be normal again. He seems to take everything in stride; this is helpful in reinforcing the absurdist nature of the piece. The matter-of-fact nature with which he takes everything that happens to him is certainly refreshing after his unending confusion in the first two books. The result is an increased sense of hilarity when he does become bewildered by little details. In a way, I guess it’s this trait that pulls the rest of the story out of proportion: Arthur’s struggle to find normalcy in the details seems absolutely ridiculous in the face of such huge issues as the impending end of the universe.

That’s pretty much it. It was sufficiently absurd to keep me turning pages. I’d recommend it to those who liked the first two books.

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Notes: Life, the Universe, and Everything was Douglas Adams’ third novel, and is part three of the Hitchhiker’s Trilogy. It was first published in 1982 by Harmony Books, a division of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House. The version I read was softcover, published in 1995 by Del Ray Books.

Adult comedial science fiction, 240 pages, omniscient third person point of view

Topics: The meaning of life, reality (numerous parallels), absurdism, fate

Publisher’s age recommendation: N/A

Warnings: Brief innuendo. Some violence. Talk of alcohol and brief insinuation of alcohol abuse. Indirect descriptions of depression.

Five out of five.

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

Zaphod Beeblebrox just wants something to eat. Unfortunately, the Universe just doesn’t seem to agree. Someone always seems to want his undivided attention, whether it’s Vogons intent on destroying the last of the Earthlings (and therefore everyone else on the Heart of Gold), or his great-grandfather/grandson, he just can’t ever seem to get where he wants to go. So when he finally finds himself at Milliways, the Restaurant at the End of the Universe, chaos naturally ensues.

What more is there to say that hasn’t already been said? I’ve already written an essay on Adams’ absurdist humor and its complexities. Once again, the sort of organized chaos that he puts into his work is very difficult to generalize upon (and that particular brand of chaos will be discussed in a later post). So I suppose I should get straight to the point.

I liked this book. Why? Because it’s got everything I love about Adams--the wit, the humor, the organized chaos. But I didn’t like it nearly as much as the first book in the trilogy. Don’t get me wrong--I found some of my favorite quotes while reading it. There was just something that slowed me down so much that it took me forever to finish. And by the time I did finish, I didn’t know what to do next.

So anyway, my suggestion: fans of the first book might like this second book. This particular series should probably be read in order for maximum comprehension--some of the jokes are built solely upon the first book, and won’t make much sense otherwise.

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Notes: The Restaurant at the End of the Galaxy was Douglas Adams’ second novel, and is part two of the Hitchhiker’s Trilogy. It was first published in 1980 by Serious Productions. The version I read was hardcover, published in 1982 by Pocket Books, a division of Simon & Shuster, by arrangement with Crown Publishers.

Adult comedial science fiction, 250 pages, omniscient third person point of view

Topics: The meaning of life, reality (numerous parallels), absurdism

Publisher’s age recommendation: N/A

Warnings: Brief innuendo. Some violence. Talk of alcohol and brief insinuation of alcohol abuse.

Three out of five.

2011 Challenges

I will be participating in several challenges this year. They are as follows:

The Dystopia Challenge

(hosted by Dutchie at Bookish Ardour)

I'll be signing up for the first level for this one (Asocial), though the level I end up on may be higher. This is because I already own a rather large handful of dystopian novels, and have a tendency to gravitate towards the genre on a regular basis.

I've thought of some possible book choices, and I've come up with:

1. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
   
2. Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins
3. Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins
   
4. Feed, by M.T. Anderson
   
5. Incarceron, by Catherine Fisher

What I end up reading might be different, so I'll be adding the actual titles I complete, with links to reviews, as I go along.

2011 Page to Screen Reading Challenge
(hosted by Christina at Reading Extensively)

I'm signing up under level one right now. This one should be fun, because I'll have an excuse to look for movies.

Possible choices include:

1. The Phantom of The Opera, by Gaston Leroux
   
2. Because of Winn-Dixie, by Kate DiCamillo
   
3. Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane
   
4. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, by C.S. Lewis
   
5. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, by J.K. Rowling

Again, this is just a brainstorming list. I'll be adding the actual titles I complete, with links to reviews, as I go along.

Morbid Romantica Challenge 2011
(hosted by the Mad Scientist at Steampunkery & Book Reviews)

Because I'm not certain as to how well I can fit my reading list into each theme, I'll be signing up for level one (Lost Romantica).

Book Blogger Hop (3)

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly meme hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, to help book bloggers and readers interact, and to find new blogs. Every week, a question is posted for participants to answer.

Question:

"What book influenced or changed your life? How did it influence/change you?"

Answer:

This is an especially difficult question for me to answer, as every book has some impact on my life. For the purposes of the Hop, though, I'll focus on a book allowed me to see something in a different light. Even though I had already received the message I got out of this book before, this particular book, A Rumor of War by Philip Caputo, gave me new insight into what that message actually meant.

The book is Caputo's account of his experiences as a United States Marine in the Vietnam War. Prior to reading this book, I'd had little to no knowledge of the war in question. What little I knew consisted of atrocities committed by United States soldiers sent overseas. But upon reading this book, I discovered that when it came to war, nothing was ever as black and white as it seemed. When the guilty and the innocent looked exactly alike, everything became complicated.

That made me realize that war in general is much more complicated than everyone says. It's not just "this is the enemy." Because the enemy is a person, too, and as long as the enemy stays invisible, a person is safe, because the enemy cannot possibly be a person.

So along with solidifying my views on the nature of war and its psychological value, I also learned to criticize every article of information I came across. Every point of view is going to be different, and it's important to know what that point of view is--and to whom it belongs to--before making any decisions regarding the issue at hand.

It also gave me inspiration for a story I'm writing, but that's another story.

Hoppy happing!

Book Blogger Hop (2)

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly meme hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books, to help book bloggers and readers interact, and to find new blogs. Every week, a question is posted for participants to answer.

Question:

"What do you consider the most important in a story: the plot or the characters?"

Answer:

As a writer, the best answer I can give is that both are essential to a good story. You can have the best plot in the world, but if the characters are too weak, the story will fall flat on its face. On the other hand, you can have the best, most dynamic characters in the world, but if the plot isn't interesting, then it's a good bet few people would want to read it.

Personally, though, I might say that character wins, if only by a very small margin. I've finished a book on the merit of a character more than once before, and I've often found it rewarding. It's the characters, after all, who tell the stories; we as readers experience their lives as our own. If a character is dull, then it so follows that the story will also be dull. On the other hand, if a character has some interesting qualities, then the story will be that much better because of it. I'll also say this: it's much more difficult, at least for me, to come up with strong characters than with a strong plot.

Hoppy happing!