Categories
2010 Other Prizes

Illustrado – Miguel Syjuco

 Winner of  the 2008 Man Asian Literary Prize

Illustrado begins with the discovery of an author’s body in the Hudson river. The victim was about to publish a controversial novel exposing the corruption present in the Philippines and although the New York Police are convinced that there is no foul play, others suspect that he was murdered. The novel’s narrator, Miguel Syjuco (yes, he is named after the author!) was being mentored by the victim at the time of his death. He heads to the Philippines to try to discover the truth, writing a biography of his teacher in order to gain as much information about the man as possible.

The premise of the novel is quite basic, but the structure is complex and often difficult to understand. The book contains extracts from the fictitious controversial novel, blog posts, newspaper clippings and weird dream sequences. I can’t fault the writing quality, but there were many times when I couldn’t see the relevance of the passage I was reading and was confused about what was happening.

Regular readers of this blog will know that I have struggled with blog posts in books before, unfortunately Illustrado is not an exception to this rule. Perhaps I’m just behind the times, but I found all the blog posts, especially the comments, very irritating. The book also contained annoying sections from emails and texts:

His Nokia tring-trings. Our forlorn protagonist sits up in bed and fumbles in the  darkness. He looks at the bright screen of the cell phone. It’s a text message from his old pal Markus: Welcm bak, bro! Old skool tunes all week @ Club Coup d’Etat. Our crew will be there, with Charlie. My treat. DJ Supermodeldiva spinning phat beats. When the screen dims, the hotel room seems to get smaller.

Illustrado is clearly pushing the boundaries in novel writing, but there were many points when I thought it over-stepped the mark – being too clever/innovative for its own good. The passages may be an accurate reflection of modern life, but I often found myself cringing as I read them.

The book reminded me of 2666 by Roberto Bolaño in that both books benefit from being studied – requiring multiple re-readings to really understand what is happening and a study guide to pick up on all the subtle references. Unfortunately I didn’t have the benefit of a study guide or an informed reading partner and so I felt as though I missed out on much of the book’s depth. I recommend reading this book with several other people in the hope that you will all spot different things, as I imagine you’d have a long wait for the study guide!

I’m afraid that I was too irritated by this book to consider re-reading it, but I think it is an important book and some people will love uncovering its many literary layers.

The Picador website has some wonderful interviews with Miguel Syjuco and further information about the book.

Categories
Other

Book Drum

Book Drum is a great new website designed to bring books to life with the addition of images, historical information, videos and music.

They are initially trying to enhance 500 classic books and I decided to profile my all-time favourite: A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry 

I loved researching and explaining all the historical detail and enjoyed the challenge of trying to find appropriate maps, pictures and video clips. I wish that these details had been available when I read the book for the first time as the knowledge has given me a far greater appreciation of the book.

My A Fine Balance profile has been launched on the book drum site today, so please take a look!

Do you think you’d look at a Book Drum profile as you read a book?

Categories
2010 Chunkster

The Surrendered – Chang-Rae Lee

When I saw that The Surrendered was being marketed as a cross between A Fine Balance and The Poisonwood Bible I knew I had to read a copy. I think that the comparisons are justified, but The Surrendered is much easier to read and not quite as good.

The Surrendered begins in Korea in 1950, telling the story of how June Han escaped from the war-torn country. This initial section was easily a 5 star read for me. I was instantly drawn into the June’s world and my heart broke as I read about the things see had to endure. I had a little tear in my eye as these 30 amazing pages drew to a close.

She let go his still-warm hand, kissed his still-warm face. She stayed with him as long as she could. But when the last car of the train passed her she rose to her feet and steadied herself. And then she ran for her life.

Unfortunately the book went downhill slightly after that. The focus switched to June’s life in 1980s New York, which in comparison to her childhood in Korea was a bit dull. I was craving a return to the fascinating, roller-coaster of life I’d already been treated to. There was nothing really wrong with this modern section – it just didn’t have the atmosphere or historical insight of the first section; it was the type of story I had read many times before.

The book does flip back to Korea and we travel across to Europe with June as she searches for her son, but I never found the magic produced in the first chapter again.

I highly recommend that you read the first chapter of this book, but the remaining 400+ pages aren’t that special.

The Thoughts of Other Bloggers:

…while I recommend Lee’s writing, I feel this book is definitely for the stout of heart. Shelf Life

a very deep and thought-provoking novel. Serendipitous Readings

 Have you read any books written by Chang-Rae Lee?

 

Categories
2000 - 2007

The Republic of Trees – Sam Taylor

I loved The Island at the End of the World and so was keen to read some of Sam Taylor’s earlier books. The Republic of Trees is his debut novel, but unfortunately I didn’t love it as much as The Island at the End of the World.

The Republic of Trees is set in France and follows a group of four teenagers as they decide to run away from home and build a life for themselves in the forest.  They create their own “Republic”, surviving by hunting for their own food among the trees.

I loved this first section! I think many children dream of running away and living without adults. This book perfectly captured their emotions – the insecurity and innocence was a joy to read!

Though we never talked about being caught, I could sense our fear in the silences between the words. In the evenings nothing looked the same – the forest became ghostly, insubstantial – and when I closed my eyes at night I worried that it wouldn’t be here the next morning.

As the book progressed it slowly became darker. There was an increasing sense of foreboding and although I had no idea what would happen I knew that it wouldn’t be good.

I found that I enjoyed the book less at it progressed. The beautiful realism of those initial chapters was lost in a series of bizarre events. The actions of the teenagers didn’t seem to make sense and I had no idea what motivated the events that occurred.

Overall I’d say it was a good debut novel, but I recommend starting with one of his other books.

Thoughts of Other Bloggers:

….just didn’t do it for me.  Reading Matters

Not quite as good as The Island at the End of the World, but good all the same. Peachy Books

It’s definitely powerful, and not for everyone. The Literary Amnesiac

Sam Taylor has recently launched a creative writing course at his beautiful home in Southern France. If I was a writer I’d love to go and make use of his advice while enjoying the great food, wine and scenery of rural France.

If you are an aspiring writer then I recommend looking at his website – I’m sure you’ll be tempted!

Have you read any of Sam Taylor’s books?

Which one did you enjoy the most?

 

Categories
Uncategorized

Do Skydivers Prefer Thrillers?

I have recently been thinking about which books I should encourage my non-reading friends to try. I believe that most people would enjoy reading if they found the right book, but so many are turned off by the boring selection found in schools. The problem is deciding which book to recommend to a person without a list of favourite reads to draw from. 

One day I was browsing through some book blogs and noticed a few had posted about their hobbies. There seemed to be a link between the type of pastimes they enjoyed and their taste in books.

Slow Paced Books = Love for Crafts?

People who enjoyed knitting, sewing or painting tended to like quieter books. I don’t have the patience to sit quietly and create things and perhaps this personality trait means that I don’t have the tolerance to work through gentler books. I often find myself becoming bored with books that lack a strong plot and normally abandon them without getting very far. I once tried to knit a scarf and didn’t finish that either!! 

Fast Paced Books = Love for High Adrenaline Sports?

People who enjoyed sports with an adrenaline rush seemed to favour books with a fast pace. I’m easily scared and so would never jump out of a plane (or even go on a big rollercoaster!) Perhaps this is the reason that I often find books with non-stop action over-powering. I like things to slow down occasionally so that I can take a breath, admire the scenery and really get to know the characters. I find that I fly through some thrillers so quickly that I never feel I’m touching the ground – I end the book barely knowing the character’s names, let alone what they look like or why they react in the way that they do. This tends to leave me unsatisfied and is the reason I am very cautious when choosing a thriller to read. 

 

What about me?

I prefer more moderate hobbies – enjoying cycling, canoeing, SCUBA diving and travel to remote places of the world. This means that I tend to favour books with a medium paced plot – some action, but also sections with more depth. I like to get out and see the world without scaring myself too much.

Need to recommend a book to a non-reader?

Look at what they like to do in their time off. Pick a book that has a pace matching their need for speed. Unfortunately this doesn’t help you decide which genre to choose, but it’s a start!!

Do you agree, or are you a skydiver who enjoys Marilynne Robinson?

Does your reading pace match your hobbies?

Have you had any luck persuading a non-reader to pick up a book?

Categories
Uncategorized

Ender’s Game – Orson Scott Card

  

Winner of the 1985 Nebula Award and the Hugo Award for best novel in 1986

Ender’s Game is a science fiction classic that divides people. I have recently developed a passion for science fiction and so was keen to find out why this book is talked about so much.

The book focuses on Ender, a six-year-old boy, who was born specifically to help fight against an alien invasion. He leaves his family on Earth to attend Battle school where he is trained to become a ruthless killer.

I have to admit that the synopsis did not appeal to me at all. I have no interest in fighting, especially when it involves six-year-old children, and aliens don’t normally appeal either. I was therefore surprised by how much I enjoyed the first section of the book. I immediately connected with Ender and his conflicting emotions about leaving his family.

“I know you, Ender. I’ve been watching the monitor disks for some time. You won’t miss your mother and father, not much, not for long. And they won’t miss you for long either.”
Tears came to Ender’s eyes, in spite of himself. He turned his face away, but would not reach up to wipe them.

I found the way Ender was manipulated into hurting other people fascinating. It was thought-provoking to see how easily a gentle individual could be changed by a series of small events.

Initially I loved reading about the Battle School, but I found that the exercises became repetitive and I began to lose interest. As the book progressed the fighting intensified and I became increasingly bored. Luckily everything was changed by the ending, which I thought was fantastic.

I found this book very hard to rate. I have a feeling that in a few years time I will have forgotten about how much that middle section irritated me and will only remember the amazing beginning and end sections. They were so powerful, original and thought-provoking that I can see why this book is a classic. I’m sure I’ll remember Ender for the rest of my life and so I’m going to give it a (generous?) 4.5 stars.

This book teaches us important lessons about the fragility of our peaceful society and gives a scary prediction of the future. Recommended.

Have you read Ender’s Game?

Do you recommend I read the rest of the series?