Classics Bookclub 1st Quarter Wrap Up

Remember how I joined this challenge over at 5 Minutes for Books? It's time to wrap up my first quarter's worth of classics.

Here is what I read so far (click on the book's link to take you to my full review):

Giant by Edna Ferber: an fantastic look at Texas in the early part of last century. A famous movie with Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean was based on this book.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger: Finally, I know what everyone's talking about when they bring up this book! I really enjoyed it, honestly and our online book group had an amazing discussion about it.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl: OH, have you read this? It's so wonderful. I read it out loud to my 7 year old son and what was great is that I think I enjoyed it just as much as he did.

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin: I hadn't ever read this one either, and after being told to several times, I finally found a copy at the thrift store and tried it out. What a clever, thoughtful and intriguing read. I like mysteries that keep me going until the end.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly

genre: middle grade literature

Oh, this one is a gem. A glorious turn-of-the-century story of a precocious Texan girl who finds inside herself a passion for living things. Being of the female persuasion, and a bright one to boot, Calpurnia doesn't excel at those things a genteel mother would want her only girl out of seven children to excel at. But, slowly, the magical relationship that grows between her and one member of her family will teach her the thrill of the natural world and a longing to observe and discover.

I LOVED this piece of historical fiction. I loved her coming of age - that long for change but need for stability. I loved this picture of Texas and its 1899 culture and I appreciated how Kelly explored some of the deeper issues of womanhood and the place of women at the time. I loved that it made me excited to look out my window and remember what treasures the world has to offer us. It's hopeful and vibrant, funny and charming. Two thumbs up from me.

Giant by Edna Ferber

genre: fiction

I finished this sweeping novel of Texas while on an airplane, bound for my first visit to that great state. I had earlier sent a call out to my friends, asking what one should read before one's first trip to Texas, and when I saw that this suggestion was written by the author of So Big, a novel I loved, I knew I'd found a winner.

I was right.

Giant is absolutely a tale of Texas in the earlier part of this century, shortly after the Great War. It's a tale of ranches and cattle, dust and mesquite, Mexicans and Americans. We learn Texas history, geography and lore through the eyes of Leslie, a Virginian, the new bride of the famous rancher Bick Benedict. Leslie is a thinker, a talker, a reader - thirsty for knowledge and meaning, and constantly driving her husband crazy with her endless questioning.

I loved this book as a study of a marriage - East married to West, a thinking woman and a hard-working man and how they try to find a place of harmony in the land that he's crazy about and she's trying to fit herself into without loosing the woman that she is.

Ferber is a master at her art, the writing is of the kind that I read with a pen in hand, reading phrases and paragraphs twice to let the beauty of an idea or description really sink in. Sometimes it reminded me vaguely of Austen, some of the characters caricatures of the embittered old ranch madama, the rancher's daughter, the clucking hordes of unthinking cattle wives and the Stetson headed county commissioner. But, like in Austen, it rings true and gives and interesting offset and comparison to the main characters.

Okay, I'm gushing. I loved it. The beginning confused me a bit with lots of characters, but after a few chapters we go back in time to an earlier part of the story and I loved piecing it all together. If I wasn't already on my way to that state, I'd want to be.

The Final Battle: Tales From the Odyssey book 6 by Mary Pope Osborne

genre: children's literature

Ah, to reach the end. And when the ending is solid with everyone coming together happily, so much the better. Of course, it didn't come without some effort - blood had to be spilled and crimes revenged, but we always knew Odysseus had it in him to make it home.

I want to, again, give this series three giant cheers. What a fantastic introduction to one of the most famous stories of all time. I feel like I've given my son (and myself, really) a solid foundation so that later on, he will hear references to images, ideas and characters from the Odyssey and they will ring a bell. That's worth a lot.

congrats to my GIVEAWAY WINNERS!!

How fun to have so many people enter! Thanks to everyone that stopped by. I used random.org to pick three winners:

the winner of Angus, Thongs and Full Frontal Snogging is: melissa @ 1lbr

the winner of Sorcery and Cecelia: Julia A

the winner of My Antonia: Michelle...

CONGRATULATIONS to all of you!! I'll be contacting you shortly :)

Review: Return to Ithaca: Book 5 of Tales From the Odyssey by Mary Pope Osborne

genre: children's literature, mythology

Oh, some tender moments in this installment. Odysseus, under the watchcare of the Goddess Athena, finally makes it home to his beloved Ithaca. He finally gets a sense of the state of his kingdom and every finally sees his own, grown son with his eyes. I wish you could've seen my son smiling when this happened. After four books of the son longing for the father and the father for the son, it was a glorious thing. Now they are ready to work alongside Athena to rid their ancestral home of the suitors who have been harassing Odysseus's wife (and Telemachus' mother) Penelope. One more book!

My own 2nd Blogiversary BOOK GIVEAWAYS!!!!

Friends! On March 21st my blog will hit the two year mark. What an amazing thing! I want to celebrate by giving away books! If you want to enter, leave a comment stating which books you'd want to win for your very own self. I'll mail anywhere :) If you think to tweet about this or post it somewhere to spread the word, I'd be mighty grateful. I'll choose winners on the official day, March 21st before I go to bed :)

HERE is what you can win:

BOOK NUMBER 1

Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

Read my review here. It was so funny I nearly choked on my mouthwash. This is the actual copy that I read :)

BOOK NUMBER 2

Sorcery and Cecelia OR The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer

I read this one before I started blogging, but I really enjoyed it. This is a new copy of the book. Here's what I wrote on Shelfari:

This book was SUCH fun to read - I've recommended it to every one I know. Clever writing - all the text is letters between two cousins. The love story is just right and the magical element is clever. Loved it.

BOOK NUMBER 3

Last but not least: My Antonia by Willa Cather

This is one of my top 10 books of all time:

Such a well written book. The story is about a Czech girl who moves to Nebraska with her family and how she triumphs over the hard life they have there on the prairie. The book is really about love and loss and a connection to home and the land and is just a pleasure to read. I recommend it.

Do you like to know where your books come from? I REALLY do, so I will tell you about this copy that I am giving away. It's hardback and ILLUSTRATED with awesome 50s-ish drawings. It was probably published around 1954 or so. I bought it at a library used book sale when I was visiting my sister up in New York - it's a library just across the Hudson River from West Point, so it has a history :) There is a little bit of margin writing in it (probably from the original owner, looks like "old person" handwriting to me, hee hee) but I think it adds to the feel of this neat copy.


SO. The rules again:

1. leave a comment before the evening of March 21st and let me know which book(s) you want to be entered to win
2. make sure your EMAIL ADDRESS or a way to contact you is in the comment, or I have no way to tell you you've won
3. spread the word! I can't keep track of if you follow me or have me in your reader or tweet about it etc. etc, but if you'd pass it on, I'd be much obliged.

review: The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan

genre: middle grade fiction

In this third installment of the Percy Jackson series, we meet some interesting new characters and travel to some new and dangerous places. As an adult, I love how mythological figures who are back in my brain somewhere are suddenly brought to life in a way that I think will help them stick in a more meaningful way. Again, readers of the Odyssey will find all kinds of parallels. Percy is still a force to be reckoned with and I liked how the formula switched up a bit, with Percy traveling with new and different companions and I loved the curve ball that was thrown at the end. If you like the first two, you can't help but appreciate this one.

review: The Gray- Eyed Goddess: Book Four of the Tales From the Odyssey by Mary Pope Osborne

genre: children's literature

Ah, the Gray-Eyed Goddess, Athena. Bless her heart, taking Odysseus in her hands and finally giving him a leg up. While this story is still about Odysseus, we are often in the shoes of his son at home, Telemachus. Telemachus has had it with the suitors harassing his mother, Penelope, and he gets some help of his own from Athena as he decides what to do about his missing father.

Again, Osborne does a great job. I'm amazed my son is still interested and, frankly, I'm still loving that I regularly find references from The Odyssey in the Percy Jackson books. Reading this series is giving me a great mythological education!

Review: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

genre: young adult paranormal romance

Meet Ethan. He's on the basketball team at the only high school in the small South Carolina town of Gatlin. He's really feeling done with living in a tiny town that's still stuck on the glorious Confederate victory that happened within its city limits oh-so-long ago. Lately, bad dreams have left him waking up knowing that someone...a girl...was going to come into his life and change it completely.

Meet Lena. She's that girl and wow is she more than she seems at first. Once Ethan meets her, Gatlin will suddenly seem full of secrets -and he's is determined to figure them out.

Beautiful creatures has all the elements of a good modern fantasy story - a spooky old setting, all kinds of magical abilities, curses, true love and Civil War Reenactors. Just kidding about that last one (well, they're there but not usually in modern fantasy, right??) although the antebellum houses help add to the dark and "Romeo and Juliet" type ambiance.

Could I put this book down? No, I enjoyed reading it a lot. Is it perfect? Not really. One quibble is that Ethan is NOT what you would imagine your average 16 year old to be like - so if you're fine with jocks who read poetry in secret and spend every Saturday helping out their great-aunts as they care for baby squirrels, than you'll be good to go. It didn't bother me as much when I was reading as it bugs me in retrospect. Sometimes there were holes in the plot, or action in the plot that seem important got dropped and that was frustrating. Other times, entire chapters seemed to come and go without ever furthering the plot at all. Some things just didn't make sense and weren't explained.

The good? Ethan and his crossword puzzle-loving and card-reading housekeeper Amma have a great relationship and I liked reading their interactions. While some of the minor characters felt two dimensional, I think both Lena and Ethan really resonated as conflicted teens trying their darnedest to beat the clock (oh yes, there is a clock ticking in this story!)

I liked having this story from the male point of view - really, let's be honest, it is quite the Twilight storyline (yes, there will be four MORE books). But for some reason, this one sits better for me. The romantic storyline felt more young adult and with all the literature references and a more complex fantasy world, it also felt more intelligent. Maybe if it had been just a bit shorter and tighter (and, honestly, if I hadn't found out after finishing it that I'd really have to read 4 more books to figure out how it all plays out) it would've gotten 4 stars from me, but an enjoyable 3 will do just fine.

Review: Sugar by Bernice L. McFadden

genre: historical fiction

Who is Sugar? She's the new woman in town - and she clearly does NOT belong, what with her flashy wig and skin-tight clothes, with wickedness written all over her. The women of Bigelow, Arkansas, in 1955, decide from the start that she is not THEIR kind - and truthfully, she's not. She's a whore, plain and simple - and has a hard time seeing herself as anything else.

Torn-up from the inside out, Sugar is lost inside a well of anguish and hard-luck and arriving in a new town, full of people as black as she is (but who think they're better than her), and it takes a while for her to feel anything but bitterness. Who finally starts chipping away at Sugar's tough shell? Pearl, the woman next door, who's got some anguish of her own. And as the story progresses, these two very unlikely people begin to become friends, not that the town makes it easy for them.

Truthfully, it's hard for me to know how to judge this book. While I recognize that there is a place in literature for stories that are hard to tell - the stories of people who have had a really really hard life thrown at them - this one was harder than most. She's a prostitute, so there's that - and it's as graphic as you'd imagine. I loved when we started seeing the softer side of Sugar - but it was so rare and she fought so much against it that you really got the feeling like she was too far gone to really ever change. That part, as much as it frustrated me, felt very real - this gut feeling that you're getting what you deserve when all you've ever received and all you've ever known is the dregs of what life has to offer.

Because I'd been warned about its graphic nature, that part didn't shock me as much as it could have. Certain characters were endearing - Pearl's husband was someone I'd want to live next door to, and Pearl herself was so much stronger than she knew, willing to stand up for her friend (without ever giving Sugar the impression that her "vocation" was acceptable in any way). I liked those moments when you could tell that Sugar was being a force for change in Pearl's life (in a mostly good way) and both Sugar and Pearl's voices felt authentically conflicted and life-worn.

But I didn't love it. Maybe it's because there is essentially no redemption for any characters in this story and I find that I personally need that to be able to sort through really difficult stories. Maybe it's because the back of my book says that it's about moving to a "place of forgiveness, understanding and ultimately, grace" and I just did not find that place of forgiveness and grace, I found tragedy upon tragedy with very brief moments of less-tragic and an ending that left a sour taste in my mouth.

Want another opinion? Daisy Mom loved it :)

The Yellow House by Patricia Falvey

genre: historical fiction

For Eileen, Ireland is more than just a country. It's a home, a history - an heirloom to be defended and cherished. From the time she was a babe her Da taught her a fierce pride in her Irish-Catholic roots - and living in Ulster at the turn-of-the-century made Eileen witness to the sort of strife that was as much a part of Irish Catholic life as soda bread and music on a Saturday night. When she is still young, her family and their beloved Yellow House begin to fall apart as political unrest and sickness leave no family unaffected.

The Yellow House follows Eileen's life as she grows and finds a warrior for Ireland inside herself. Much of this book is Eileen trying to figure out what role is going to take center stage in her life. Will she be a fighter? A spinner at the mill? A wife? A mother? And all the while, deep down, what she truly wants is to just see her family all together and happy again in the Yellow House - a dream that keeps slipping away, not only because of the violence in her world and the hard things that keep happening to her, but also because of her own bad choices and inability to truly know her own mind. Add to that a love triangle with an Irish Revolutionary and a wealthy Quaker landowner and poor Eileen is a mess of emotions a lot of the time, with so many good desires and so few paths to happiness.

I really liked this, for the most part (the language was a bit much for me). I like Eileen as a strong character, despite her flaring temper and crazy choices. The truth of it is - she WAS in a hard place in a hard time and I appreciate that the author tried to show us all the different aspects of Irish life during that period - both Catholic and (in a lesser way) Protestant. It was a shade predictable for me and the men in her life were painted as a bit too "good vs evil" for it to be completely believable, but I would be lying if I said I didn't get completely wrapped up in the story. If you are a fan of Irish history and coming of age books, then you should find this one.

also: if you are interested in knowing the content (graphic language, etc.) of what I've read, I post "rated reviews" on this website, so check it out!