Tag: plot

Book Review, YA Romance

Geekerella by A.P.

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Image result for geekerella

3.5 Stars. A tasty morsel of modern Cinderella steeped heavily in all that is the sci-fi cult television. Holy what does all that mean, Batman?!

Honestly, a quick read and something to make me appreciate the finer novels I’m struggling through currently. I’m a sucker for a new take on the classic folktale (which are my favorite retellings; see ATU index 510A). And true to form I ate this 300-ish pages up like I’d never have another meal again.

The prose was simple enough, but I’m pretty sure actual “geeks” don’t make fandom references to their own actions as they do them (well, not with this kind of frequency). Like, I don’t do something and think “I did that exactly like Mowgli when he brought fire to the jungle to scare off Shere Khan;” if you catch my drift. Sure, I make the occasional reference, but just because the book’s basis is geekdom doesn’t mean everything needs to be related. That kinda ruined the realism/believability for me. So, you live in the “impossible universe,” but every time you compare someone to daleks or say “holy [insert hilarious as well as relatable quip here], Batman,” I lose 10 years from my life-span.

Granted, this book is quirky af and likable in its adorable-ness. But there are some things I’m unwilling to overlook. I mean, glaring! I’m a “geek”, your typical fan girl, but I’m not ridiculous.

With such flat characters, I really can’t give this book more than 3.5 stars. C’mon Poston, you had so many chances to make these folks really shine! Like Cal’s redemption arc!! Tropey, and so Disney’s Cinderella 2&3–but at least Anastasia’s story was more fleshed out in those sequels.

Why do I keep reading YA Romance novels, when I clearly have so many negative things to say about them? Well, I’ll tell you. Because they’re sappy, easy to read, and I love them. I just wish they were literarily better.

Book Review, Memoirs/Autobiography, Non-Fiction

Funny in Farsi by F.D.

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5 Stars. I laugh out loud every time I read this book. Dumas builds her world in such a way that even people who have never been outsiders can relate. The characters are gorgeously written, capturing the imperfections of humanity while remaining humorous and kind. It’s a short easy read, delicious, and creative.

Book Review, Fiction, Philosophy

L’Etranger by A.C.

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Image result for l'etranger albert camus

4.5 Stars. This is a book everyone loves to hate.

Reasons to Hate The Stranger:

1- Apathy. Like what the heck is Meursault’s problem?

2- Not the most interesting. It’s basically a day in the life until part two, and sometimes that gets a little boring.

3- Sometimes it seems like there’s no point. This guy doesn’t care, why should I, why did Camus?

Reasons to Love The Stranger:

1- Characters. The players in this short story are purposeful and steeped in meaning (including their names).

2- Setting. The imagery of the funeral, the sun, the restaurant, the sun, the beach, the sun, the prison is beautiful and likewise steeped in meaning.

3- Writing. The word choice, the journalistic style, the simplicity, the depth are all wonderfully laid out for the reader.

4- Absurdism. Meaning is individual but also forced.

Why I Love to Hate The Stranger:

It’s a literary classic.  That means it was forced upon me in high school and several times throughout college in both English and French (this latest time was French).  Absurdism is difficult to understand with just the feeling of “ok, it combines existentialism and nihilism, which I always thought were opposites”.  Meursault’s predicament and life in general are a perfect exposition for the tensions between the two.  Meursault finds more meaning within himself and his carnal desires (sex, food, etc) than in what the other characters deem important (marriage, lost dog, etc).  Entering the cycle of the absurd with no prior knowledge of this particular philosophy leads many to hate Camus and his literature (but there’s a reason why he won the Nobel Prize for Literature, people).

I love how the first part reads as though it is a statement made to the police during his interrogations which commence in chapter one of part two.  The story starts with the death of his mother, but the beginning is lacking.  We don’t know much about the Meursault of the past, this fact is brilliantly relevant (and brilliantly revealed) when he  finds the article about the wealthy Czech man in his cell.  There are so many things that make this story more meaningful if we are willing to force the meaning upon it.  I imagine Camus wrote it thus for the express purpose of being ambiguous.

The Stranger invokes reflection and self-awareness through methodical text and thought provoking plot.  That being said, I’m not a huge fan of the story, but it does serve its purpose and in that I marvel.

Book Review, Historical Fiction, Romance

The Nightingale by K.H.

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3.5 Stars. I didn’t hate it and I didn’t love it, but I’d probably recommend it.
I have a lot of thoughts about this book. Sometimes beautifully written and heart wrenching, sometimes disappointingly modern for historical fiction.

The romance between Gaëtan and Isabelle was tacky and unrealistic. The romance between Antoine and Vianne was wholesome and real. The character development of Julien (father) and Vianne was relatable and interesting; it was so thrilling to watch them BECOME! Whereas Isabelle was a impetuous little brat one day and a national hero the next, all on a whim (?).

Ok, it’s becoming obvious that I disliked Isabelle’s character, not because of her hubris but because of how terribly she was written. It was like Hannah was trying too hard to avoid the ‘Mary Sue’ trope. C’mon really? There were so many opportunities to make this a wonderful piece of literature (aka not so wishy-washy). Isabelle, as a Mary Sue, undermines the real life accomplishments that brave, talented, hard working men and women strove for during this point in history. Andrée de Jongh, the inspiration for Isabelle’s character, was a selfless, humble, serviceable woman keen on aiding the Allies, I doubt she grew up a rash youth like Isabelle.

Excellent research Hannah, but some of the interpretation was lacking. The supporting characters were amazing and beautifully developed, they could have easily been written to help Isabelle become more of an Andrée-like character. It would have been easy to capitalize on more of Isabelle’s flaws and how, through team work, she overcame them.

The way the characters spoke just wasn’t…FRENCH… They used modern American colloquialisms and sentence structure was not reflective of how the French speak (there’s a lot of passive voice in French AND it’s totally acceptable). The only dialogue that comes close to French mannerisms is whenever Sophie opened her wise, childish mouth, and she just sounded pretentious compared to all the other characters (also how did she go from 6-14 during the war but Ari/Dan went from newborn to 5????? And he was still a little baby at 3 and wearing diapers? I have a niece who is 3 and carries on conversations in full comprehensible sentences and hasn’t worn a diaper for at least a year, does Hannah not know how children work?).

The historical aspects of the war etc are dead on for this genre and very well researched. BUT I cannot get over the fact that the author had never even been to France before her first draft was completed.
As I said before, I go back and forth with this book. I don’t regret the read, but I saw a potential that wasn’t grasped.