This rating is for the audiobook edition rather than the story itself - for my review of Twilight, please see the book edition.
The audiobook of TwiligThis rating is for the audiobook edition rather than the story itself - for my review of Twilight, please see the book edition.
The audiobook of Twilight is unabridged, fills 11 discs and is read by Ilyana Kadushin, a singer and narrator. She has a pleasant, slightly husky voice but some of her pronunciations jolted me a bit. She has a really interesting way of saying "Bella", with a meaningful, slightly exaggerated emphasis on the "b" followed by a throaty, deep "ella". Intimate-sounding but nice.
She also makes a lot of Edward's dialogue sound very confrontational, a bit aggressive, and sometimes mean, too. I think it was her way of capturing that adolescent voice but neither character was depicted as very adolescent, so it was weird, and made Edward less likeable and emphasised his frustration. It's not the way I heard him speak in my head when I read the book, that's for sure.
That said, I did enjoy listening to the book, it was read a much slower pace than I read so I had a chance to focus on things that I might not have picked up so well in the book. Also, and maybe this is the way she read it, but I was surprised at how much of the dialogue sounded frankly erotic. Very personal and intimate, anyway.
I'm surprised and disappointed that it didn't come with one of those "sleeves" that show which chapters on are on which discs etc. Most of the time a chapter is cut in half and you have to change discs, which doesn't bother me, but when I have to stop the disc and come back to it another time, it's hard to remember where you were up to.
This is the first audiobook I've ever listened to, and it was overall a good experience, as long as you have something to do while you listen - I'm working on a jigsaw puzzle :)...more
I have never had any interest in the Arthurian Legend, and have avoided the many books about it since reading The Sword in the Stone in grade 6 (and wI have never had any interest in the Arthurian Legend, and have avoided the many books about it since reading The Sword in the Stone in grade 6 (and winning the school library's book jacket competition with a new cover for it), and struggling through the first fifty pages of The Mists of Avalon. There was even a course at uni that was solely about the legend of King Arthur - which I ran a mile to avoid. I can't really explain what I don't like about the myth, except to say that I don't get the attraction or why so many people feel the need to write their own versions of it. They also clutter up the fantasy shelves - since it is a myth, a legend, the books wind up there instead of the regular fiction section. I do love Monty Python's The Holy Grail though. Lovely a good piss-take.
This book is different, though. It is the story of Elaine of Ascolat, otherwise known as the Lady of Shallot, and it's a reinvigorated, emancipated story. Elaine has always got the short-shrift, suffering under a curse and early death, or dying of a broken heart. In Song of the Sparrow, Sandell tells the story of sixteen year old Elaine, raised since her mother was killed by Picts in the war camp of Arthur, living with her two brothers and her father.
The only female there, aside from Arthur's mysterious and wise sister Morgan who sometimes appears, she is friend, nurse and confidant to many of Arthur's men. Her hero is Lancelot, who has been her friend and playmate since she was 12, and whom she loves.
But when Arthur takes command of the Britons and Lancelot goes to fetch a nobleman who had at first refused Arthur's leadership, he brings back with him a beautiful young bride for Arthur, Gwynivere - and no one can miss the look of complete adoration on Lancelot's face when he gazes at her.
Gwynivere is cold and bitchy and spurns Elaine's offers of friendship while encouraging Lancelot's love. The enmity between them becomes hatred, and only the friendship of one of Arthur's knights, Tristan, can help soothe Elaine's pain. When the army marches to Mount Badon for an offensive attack on the invading Saxons, Elaine resolutely follows them, only to be caught by Saxons when she had nearly reached them - along with Gwynivere, who had followed her in turn.
Written in verse, I at first found it a bit weird - it didn't rhyme or even seem to have much of a rhythm, and it could easily have been laid out in regular prose format. However, after a few pages I slipped into the gentle cadences of Elaine's voice, found that there was a rhythm, a song to the words, that they glided through me gracefully and conveyed Elaine's story better than bald prose would have. Narrated in the present tense by Elaine, it carries a sense of immediacy, the language vivid and immersed in nature. The verse has deep roots with the earth, as Elaine is tied to it, as well as the honest emotions of herself and those around her.
Elaine is a strong, resourceful character with a decisive will. She is also very endearing and sympathetic and a great Young Adult heroine. No damsel in distress, here. Some fans of the Legend may feel it sacrilegious and too modern a version in its perspective and plotting, but since other stories of Elaine are also products of their times - and written by men - it's only fair. I guess this is why, to answer my own question, so many people feel a need to write their own versions of the legend. Plus, this is a really lovely story, and I can see it making a great film. I may have fallen in love with Tristan a bit.
Has it made me want to read more books about King Arthur and his knights? Not really. It has made me more curious about a period of British and European - and Roman - history that I'm hazy on. I studied European history from 1100 onwards, and only dealt with Roman history while studying Ancient Civilisations, so it's a bit of a blank spot for me. I wouldn't mind reading a really good history book on ancient Briton, if I could find one....more
Prince George is an only child and heir to the throne of Kendel; as a little boy he spends time with his mother with the horses in the stable, the houPrince George is an only child and heir to the throne of Kendel; as a little boy he spends time with his mother with the horses in the stable, the hounds in the kennels, or the wild animals in the forest. From her he learns the languages of animals, and slowly learns to hide his gift of animal magic as his mother does, and to live in fear of it being discovered - anyone caught using animal magic is burned.
At seventeen, many years after his mother died, George travels to a neighbouring kingdom that his own country had been at war for for many years, to meet his betrothed, Princess Beatrice. It is an arranged marriage, and he doesn't expect to feel anything for her. But the princess is not what he expected. With a wild hound always at her side, he finds himself drawn to her cold aloofness, and feels angered at the way she is treated by her father the King and his courtiers.
Yet even with his great gift of animal magic, he doesn't see the princess and her hound clearly, and the secret, when it is revealed, stuns him.
Written in the style of an old-fashioned fairy-tale but with contemporary leanings, The Princess and the Hound is supposedly loosely based on "Beauty and the Beast" - but I confess I never noticed. There is a wild quality to the story that is quite dark, with superstitions, revenge, wild beasts and daunting forests. The fairy-tale style works until the end, which drifts off lazily and seems to lose focus: it would have been more satisfying had it had a headier climax.
I loved the princess though, Beatrice, and the hound, Marit. Theirs was a mystery I worried at and almost had figured out by the time it was revealed - a book I read recently inspired my imagination to look in the right direction, so it wasn't as big a reveal as it might otherwise have been. She's a unique character, Beatrice, and well written, totally believable.
George too is well developed - the story is told from his perspective and so we get insights into his way of thinking which we don't get with anyone else. He grows and matures and is a likeable lad, but not terribly inspiring. Despite his magical gift, he's quite ordinary, more human, than you might expect of a hero. That should make me like him more but I guess I was hoping for something a bit more dramatic.
The thing I enjoyed the most was the animal magic, and the close twining of animals and people. Like fantasy stories that depict a hidden consciousness and even a single-minded cruelty in nature - a human vs. nature dichotomy - stories about the hidden talents of animals are equally as fascinating to me. While this book didn't make as great a connection as The Shape-Changer's Wife, it did quite well at bridging the gap and exploring possibilities. There's to be a sequel as well, The Princess and the Bear....more
Kimber, daughter of a Colonel, looks up a man, Deke, who used to work for her father, whom she hasn't seen since she was 17, and asks him to teach herKimber, daughter of a Colonel, looks up a man, Deke, who used to work for her father, whom she hasn't seen since she was 17, and asks him to teach her about "sex his way": menage. He shares women with his second cousin, the sexy chef Luc, and is hung up over the fate of the last woman he had sex with alone, Heather, back when he was a teenager. Kimber wants to learn about menage because of Jesse McCall, a sexy pin-up boy and pop star who she's known for five years, who she's been saving her virginity for, and who all the tabloids say leads a very wild life.
This book is set at least three months after Wicked Ties, because Jack and Morgan have been married three months in this book. Deke, you will remember, is Jack's business partner in the bodyguard business. My one issue with this book is that the Deke we met in the first book is not the same Deke we get here. In Wicked Ties he was charming, teasing, flirtatious - strong and sexy, definitely, but also nice, a good counter to Jack. In Decadent, he's moody, mean, aggressive, harsh and seems depressed. I missed the Deke we met in the first book. If you forget all about him, than this brooding Deke is plenty fine: I just can't reconcile the two, and it bothers me.
The premise was also a bit sketchy, not as solid as the first book: a bit weak. The first half was quite different, but soon enough Kimber's running from a stalker who's bombed her father's house and is threatening her, and the two men take her to Jack's cottage in the swamp. Been there, done that. Because Kimber's very willing, there's a great deal of sex, but while in the first book it was Morgan with all the hang-ups, here it's Deke, and it gets a bit tiring.
Despite that, I did enjoy the book - and I'd love to read books about Kimber's brothers, Logan and Hunter. ...more
Morgan is host of a racy late-night cable TV show called Turn Me On; just about to start the second season, she goes to meet and interview Master J, aMorgan is host of a racy late-night cable TV show called Turn Me On; just about to start the second season, she goes to meet and interview Master J, a man who runs a security company but who is also a Dominant. Fleeing from her obsessed stalker who has violated her home, she makes use of her half-brother Brandon's offer of a place to stay before meeting Master J. Her stalker has followed her though, and opens fire on her while she has coffee outside a cafe with the tall, muscular and very attractive and arrogant Master J - Jack.
An ex-soldier, Jack now works as a bodyguard but it's more than a job to save Morgan. He has it all planned, seducing Morgan to get back at Brandon whom everyone thinks is her fiancé (she's the bastard daughter of a Texan senator, so her real relationship to Brandon is a closed secret). He won't be able to get his revenge if her stalker kills her first.
He takes her to his cabin in the swamps of Louisiana to protect her, and seduce her. He recognises the submissive in her, but she refuses to acknowledge her desires. All he needs is time though, and he now has plenty of that.
This is an exciting, steamy ride, with great chemistry between Jack and Morgan and a sensual, growing bond of trust and love. I can't really relate to Morgan's innate prudishness and humiliation, but the character was so well developed that it was believable and understandable. With Jack, I had to look up "Cajun", a word used to describe him and his smile several times, but I still have no clear visual image of what that makes him, which is mildly frustrating. The plot was well constructed and tightly paced, never lagging, and the sexual tension was revved up high. Looking forward to reading the sequel, about Jack's partner Deke, Decadent....more
Originally published as a short-story in Collier's magazine's "Tales of the Jazz Age" in 1922, Fitzgerald's quirky, fairy-tale-like story of a man borOriginally published as a short-story in Collier's magazine's "Tales of the Jazz Age" in 1922, Fitzgerald's quirky, fairy-tale-like story of a man born at age seventy who gets younger has been widely available as a novella for many years. This collector's edition has been released to coincide with the movie: it's a lovely little black hardcover with glossy pages and wonderful colour illustrations by Calef Brown.
Benjamin Button was born in 1860 at age 70: bald, shrunken, with a long beard and a querulous voice. His parents are horrified. His father, Roger, refuses to think of him as anything but a baby, even though he has to go out and buy a man's suit for him. He also gets him toys that his son isn't interested in and makes him play with the other little boys on the street.
The story in brief (skip for spoilers; read if the movie preview made no sense to you) As he grows "older", he actually gets younger. At five, he's 65. At 18 he is accepted at Yale but on meeting the registrar is thrown out because of his apparent age. At 50 (or 20, depending on how you look at it), he falls in love with pretty young Hildegarde Moncrief (who likes older men) and marries her. As she ages and he gets younger he loses interest in her and goes to fight in the Spanish Civil War. He has a son called Roscoe. He continues to get younger at the same rate a normal person would age. Finally his wife moves to Italy and he lives with his son. At the age of 20 he goes to Harvard but each year the work gets harder. His own son treats him like a teenager, is impatient and embarrassed with him. At fifteen he gets a letter wanting him to join the Great War as a General - he goes off to the base and is laughed at, until Roscoe comes to take him home. And so it goes, until he's back at kindergarten with Roscoe's son, and then he's too young for that and he spends his time with his nanny until, finally, even the smells and sensations he knows slip away. -------
It's a sad story, especially because from the very beginning we know what will happen to Benjamin Button. There's no escape for him, fate rides heavily on him. He has seventy years in which to live and that's it. So what the hell is this story trying to say? What's the point of it? Is it fantasy, a fairy-tale, a fable, a parable?
I read this yesterday and have had some time to think it over. It could be saying many things, among them: the inevitability of our existence, our death, or how when you're old you're very much like a baby - there's some cute joke about that. It also brought to mind that song, Cats in the Cradle, you know the one, about the father who was too busy and impatient to spend time with his son until he was old, but by then his son was too busy and impatient to spend time with him. So sad. This story is a lot like that. Benjamin just never seems to be the right age, to appreciate things or to be appreciated. The way his own son treats him is especially sad, far sadder than how Roger Button treated him.
Because of the style - and it's written like a fairy-tale, not in Fitzgerald's usual style (which makes it more readable, in my opinion) - it doesn't read as sad, but it does have that tone of inevitability. It has comical moments which are tinged with this tragic inevitability, which certainly makes it sad, yet it's not depressing. I'm no fan of Fitzgerald as you know, but he was capable of writing some truly stunning sentences. You won't find that here. It's sparse, stripped down and lacking embellishment - because none is needed. It is, at times, tongue-in-cheek, but softly so and easily missed.
A quick 10 minute read at most (plus some extra time to study the lovely illustrations), you could easily read this standing in the aisle in the bookshop. But I'm glad I brought it home with me. Yes, this is the first time I've been pleased to read something by Fitzgerald. Fans should at least be able to appreciate this little book as sign of his wide repertoire even if they don't like the story itself....more
This book is completely consuming and addictive, incredibly steamy and vivid and real. I was impressed by the quality of the writing - for the genre, This book is completely consuming and addictive, incredibly steamy and vivid and real. I was impressed by the quality of the writing - for the genre, it was very good - and the character development. There were moments of laughter, of sadness, of desire and love. It's a heady mix and you get sucked in there with them. There just aren't enough adjectives to describe the passion and headiness of this book.
Niall Chandler is frozen - three years after her little boy is killed, she's still dealing with the mental breakdown of her husband Stephen, who's confined to a institution, her parent's judgement and her own guilt. An unexpected and incredibly steamy encounter with her neighbour Vic Savian thaws her to a new world of desire and heat.
Vic can't get enough of her, but he's been burnt in the past and doesn't want to get too involved. When he sees signs of Niall's inner torment - the nightmares, the sadness in her eyes, the fear - he doesn't ask, and she's too guilt-ridden and afraid of being judged to open up to him. But the past works its way between them and destroys what they have, until they both wake up to the truth of their feelings and are honest with themselves, and each other.
If you're not a fan of graphic sex scenes, this isn't the book for you. If you are, though, then this should be the next book in your hands. It's a quick read mostly because you simply can't put it down. Four hours, I'd give it. Vic is incredibly sexy and has just the right balance of being demanding and tender. Both of them were very believable people, and because the prose wasn't syrupy or trying too hard at any time, it carried the story along nicely.
At first I was a bit worried about incorporating such a raw, horrible thing as a school shooting and the loss of a four-year-old into such a lust-filled story, but it worked. The trauma was very real, and made Niall a sympathetic character - instead of an annoying one, as the heroines of romance books often are. The chemistry between Vic and Niall is so thick you can taste it - again aided by the lack of cheesy prose and dialogue. It's raw, vulnerable, tense and insanely passionate: it's a real keeper....more
This is a weird book. The premise is peculiar but I can go along with it: a reclusive genius physicist, BG Grantham, and his best friend and lover, ErThis is a weird book. The premise is peculiar but I can go along with it: a reclusive genius physicist, BG Grantham, and his best friend and lover, Eric, put together a game whereby they carefully screen a couple of candidates, choose one, proposition them and invite them to BG's mansion for a month of sexual games, after which the candidate will be fully funded to go to university. Eric chooses lovely Charity, who turns their games on their head and falls for both men, while learning about physics and electrons and time loops.
Let's be honest, the premise is bizarre and not entirely successful. I wouldn't care, except that the physics stuff really dampens it and the side-plot of mystery, ghosts and espionage is confusing and distracting. Shame there isn't much to be distracted from. I've read a couple of Emma Holly's books and they were really good, with great chemistry and steamy sex scenes and simple but believable plots. I didn't find the sex scenes particularly enthralling or even very passionate, so there wasn't anything for the book to hang on.
There's nothing wrong with Holly's writing or character construction, it's the content that's the failure. A dismal, disappointing, boring read. But the men were interesting and hot ;)...more
There's something decidedly off, combining erotic romance with a serial rapist-killer. Just putting those words in the same sentence together makes meThere's something decidedly off, combining erotic romance with a serial rapist-killer. Just putting those words in the same sentence together makes me cringe. It seemed ... tasteless, to me.
It's a suspense-thriller with so-called erotic sex and it fails miserably. Nikki is a surgeon with a high-stress career and secretly wants to be dominated in bed; her search for fulfilment leads her to exchange emails with a man who likes to dominate, Richard. After a few weeks of exchanging emails that get more and more explicit, she agrees to meet him. There's something wrong though, and before anything happens she's rescued by Detective Thomas Cavanagh, who's after a serial killer who rapes and tortures women before removing their hearts.
Thomas has read all Nikki's correspondence with Richard and wants to be the man to dominate her - forced to live together for her protection at a safe house, he gets his wish but does she really mean it? And who is the Amy he talks to in his sleep, saying he loves her, that makes Nikki jealous? There's plenty of miscommunication or lack of entirely that strings out their relationship, but ultimately the juxtaposition of sexual play alongside grisly murders just turned me off. I confess I skimmed a lot of it, something I very rarely do. I've read one short story by Black and liked her style, and hoped this would be good. But I should have looked more closely into it before picking it up, because if I'd known it would have been about this I wouldn't have bothered....more
Rebecca Bloomwood is a compulsive shopper. She can't go past a sale sign without taking advantage of it. She has run up all her credit cards and gone Rebecca Bloomwood is a compulsive shopper. She can't go past a sale sign without taking advantage of it. She has run up all her credit cards and gone over her overdraft, but she really must have that coat from Whistles. She works as a finance journalist but knows next to nothing about mutual funds, investments or even how to manage your own money. She just types up articles from press releases - yet she understands more than she realises.
Hounded by letters from her bank and the credit card company, she tries to Cut Back but ends up spending more than usual. Her plans to Make More Money have even less success - a new Saturday job at a clothing boutique lasts just a few hours, after she's fired for fighting over a pair of zebra-print jeans with a customer. She spends most of her time dodging Mr Derek Smeath from the bank and going to conferences where she drinks all the champagne.
Her personal life isn't any less messy: her flatmate's cousin from Scotland has a crush on her but she thinks he looks like a stoat - even when she discovers he's Britain's 15th millionaire bachelor, she can barely make herself fake an interest in Wagner. She has a great time picking out an expensive suitcase with the genius millionaire head of Brandon Communications, Luke Brandon - until she finds out it's for his girlfriend.
She's brought even lower when her quasi expert opinion sees her parents' neighbours lose a lot of money in their investments, but an investigative journalism piece to uncover the firm's sneaky move lands her a spot on morning television - debating the issue against a furious Luke.
I was extremely surprised to genuinely enjoy this book. I don't read chick-lit much - I find a lot of it to be too simplistic, stereotypical and frivolous - and I couldn't even finish Kinsella's The Undomestic Goddess because it was so in-your-face obvious, obnoxious and the laughs were pitifully weak. But Confessions dealt with some real concerns, and through Rebecca's naive yet hopeful outlook, the ills of our society are undressed and up for scrutiny.
My biggest worry, when I picked up this book, was sympathising with the narrator. I'm not a shopaholic. I hate buying shoes. I've been to a hairdresser once in the last 15 years. I turn down the carry bag and shove my purchases into my backpack, or another shop's bag, rather than carry more than one and do some free advertising for them. But then, I do have that hopeless addiction to buying books - like people who buy new clothes all the time, you buy them even when you don't you don't have time/a chance to read them/wear them. So I had that, at least. And Rebecca spends so much time justifying all her purchases, that you get a strong sense of her emotional and mental state - and even though you don't agree with her excuses and you cringe every time she buys something, you can still understand the compulsion.
Becca is a mix of infuriating stupidity and endearing perseverance. She has delusions of grandeur that I think we can all empathise with, and her insights and reactions to tricky situations often had me laughing. When she learned she was going up against Luke on live TV, I felt as nervous as she was - especially since I'd already seen her reactions to other difficult situations, which left me little hope she'd handle this one well. And she does screw up, quite a bit. She's not very grounded - but she does mature.
The prose was smooth and carried Becca's distinctive voice very well. After the sheer awfulness of The Undomestic Goddess, which is more recent, I had very low expectations for this, her debut - maybe that helped, but it had great flow, lots of suspense and tension at the right times, some satisfying confrontations, and because it was first-person narrated in the present tense, you never know what's going to happen next. It's actually a really good example of present tense used wonderfully well. Also, this is probably more in Kinsella's comfort zone than the other book I mentioned, which is about a high-powered lawyer; Kinsella used to be a financial journalist, and you certainly get the feeling that she's writing from experience.
All in all, it was fast, enjoyable read and I find myself wanting to read the next book in the series. It could go downhill from here, but I hope not. I'll just add that, if you've seen the ad for the movie (starring Isla Fisher), and you haven't read this, you'll be greatly surprised at how non-fluffy the book is. I was. I was expecting something very fluffy. The ad is all bright colours and shopping bags and Isla looking a bit like Reese Witherspoon in Legally Blonde, and tells you nothing about the actual story. Might make a good rental movie, the book is great to curl up with on the couch....more
This wonderful tale of adventure, self-discovery and love is marketed to the 9-12 year-old age group (like Anne of Green Gables - always a surprise, sThis wonderful tale of adventure, self-discovery and love is marketed to the 9-12 year-old age group (like Anne of Green Gables - always a surprise, since when I finally got around to reading it at 14 I really struggled with it), but is highly enjoyable for any age group.
Sixteen year old Taoshira, Fourth Crown Princess of the Crescent Islands, was elected at 12, plucked from her goat herd on Kai Island and has been immersed in formality, ritual and rigmarole ever since. The other three Crown Princesses are all much older and only one, the Second Crown Princess, Safilen, shows any kind of emotion. With their fair hair, elaborate robes, veils and white face paint, the four princesses perform constant rituals to the Mother Goddess. Their land is prosperous and protected by a formidable navy; they alone hold the secret to cannon shot and rifle. Taoshira, or "Tashi" as she used to be known, submits to the formalities and rituals but a part of her is never entirely comfortable with them.
On the mainland, the Spearthrower is expanding his empire from Holt and Kandar to Brigard and now has his eyes on Gerfal to the north. In order to cement an alliance between the Crescent Islands and Gerfal, a marriage is arranged between the Fourth Crown Princess and King Lagan of Gerfal's son, Ramil. The Gerfalans are ignorant of Blue Crescent practice and procedure and on arriving at their capital, Tashi is insulted constantly by their ill-mannered rudeness - and eighteen-year-old Ramil himself, who doesn't want to marry Tashi and makes no effort to hide his derision.
A last-ditch attempt to mend the rift between the two royals results in them being kidnapped by circus performers working for the Spearthrower, who has great plans for both Ramil and Tashi. And so the real adventure begins.
One of the things I loved about this story was the Blue Crescent culture - with governance that reminded me somewhat of Queen Amidala of Star Wars fame (the elected royal, the formal stiffness of posture, the white face paint and elaborate clothing), the people are also matriarchal and sophisticated. While they have their fair share of prejudice and the formalities make things excruciating, they have that hint of Asian perfection and exotic allure that always make a fantasy story exciting. It's nice to have this culture juxtaposed against the more cliched "medieval" culture of the Holtish Empire and Gerfal: patriarchal, superstitious, warmongering, poorly educated. Niether type of culture is held up as a model; all have their faults as well as their benefits.
Tashi is an interesting heroine: while protected by her role, she is regal and composed and older than her years. Stripped of it by her kidnappers, she's again just a girl with no real skills and few resources. She's strong of will but passive by upbringing: an interesting mix - and she does have her wits, which are a resource that serves her well. Despite what the cover implies, she does not learn any fighting skills except for some self-defence that she never gets a chance to use. She does learn to ride a horse, however.
Ramil likewise is a well-developed and well-drawn character. Even at his most insolent, in the beginning, he's still endearing and likeable, probably because his predicament is understandable and sympathetic. And he really grows and matures and becomes more open to other cultures.
I'd say the story is inspired by The Princess Bride - you have a princess kidnapped by a dwarf and a giant, rescued by a prince, and the giant becomes her good friend and protector. There are sword fights and a bad man bent on marrying the princess. It's a rollicking good tale from start to finish, very well-written, and my one complaint is the outcome for the Empire - though, given the setting and characters, they probably couldn't even conceive of a different way of governing. Shame though....more
In this brilliant, insightful, revealing study British-born novelist, historian and essayist Ronald Wright (who participated in the 2004 CBC Massey LeIn this brilliant, insightful, revealing study British-born novelist, historian and essayist Ronald Wright (who participated in the 2004 CBC Massey Lectures series with A Short History of Progress) explains "how America is more truly American than we know: a uniquely vigorous and rapacious organism arising from the conquest that began with Columbus and begot the modern age ... Although the United States regards itself as the most advanced country on Earth, Ronald Wright reveals how it is also deeply archaic: a stronghold of religious extremism, militarism, and so-called modern beliefs - in limitless growth, endless progress, unfettered capitalism, and a universal mission - that have fallen under suspicion elsewhere, following two World Wars and the reckless looting of our planet." (from the blurb)
I don't want you to think, first of all, that this is an America-bashing book. It's not. What it is is a comprehensive history not just of the formation of modern America (as in, Columbus and afterwards) but of what came before Columbus, as well as the horrendous acts of the Spanish Empire on South America and southern United States; the effect of religions, nations (cultures and attitudes) and the importance of the frontier experience on the creation of the new American people (as separate from the British); the true state of affairs regarding the first Americans (natives, Indians, indigenous peoples - whichever word you want to use); and draws very important connections between history and the current situation.
Wright gives an incredibly readable, accessible and informative overview of American history, both political, religious and cultural, and what this means for everyone else. It is so readable and so well written and researched that almost every second sentence is quotable.
The premise of the book is a response to how America, since 2000 and 2001 in particular, has "squandered solidarity at home and goodwill abroad, provoking a re-examination of the nation's essence: Is America what it thinks it is? Is America what the world has long believed it to be?" (p11) Wright continues: "I hold that the recent difficulties run much deeper than a stolen election and an overreaction to a terrorist assault. The political culture and identity crisis of the United States are best understood as products of the country's past - the real past, not the imaginary one of national myth."
Wright continues:
The new republic was ... a bold and worthy experiment, an attempt to remake western civilization along utopian ideals of freedom, democracy and opportunity - "the world's best hope" as Thomas Jefferson, its third president, famously said. But the practice of those ideals relied on a unique historical circumstance: the opening up of a new territory, with new means, in which to try them. Seen from inside by free citizens, the young United States was indeed a thriving democracy in a land of plenty; seen from below by slaves, it was a cruel tyranny; and seen from outside by free Indians, it was a ruthlessly expanding empire. All these stories are true, but if we know only one without the others, what we know is not history by myth. And such myths are dangerous. (p13)
There is so much precedent in US history (there is everywhere - but the book is about the US), and in world affairs, and Wright adeptly draws in the present while discussing the past, to highlight those connections. Wright discusses treaties and ideologies, the creation and transformation of religions, manifest destiny and the Industrial Revolution, slavery and civil war, the military-industrial complex and imperialism. In all of it, you can see the past working in the present and the present a fateful result of the past.
One of the most shocking, for me, revelations concerns the original Americans: the Iroquois and Cherokee and Creek and Mohawks and so on. I have never studied American history, and have only touched on the creation of British-America through studying European history, so my pitiful knowledge comes mainly from the very myths put out by the US entertainment industry and general propaganda. I had no idea that the first Americans (as Wright says they should be called - I'm adding the adjective "first" in order to distinguish them from the new), had built villages and towns and temples, and had a democratic system of government (which Benjamin Franklin tried to have adopted by white America), as well as an extensive agricultural knowledge and farming ability, complete with elaborate irrigation systems that the white invaders merely took over.
In fact, Wright quotes from many documents that show quite clearly that the invaders preferred to simply remove the Indians and take over their homes and farms, wherever they possibly could, rather than strike out on their own. Also, that the early settlers were all starving and stealing from the Indians, because they didn't know how to grow the food native to the area: potatoes, sweet potatoes, maize, and cassava. The Indians gave them food, taught them how to grow it and bless the land in the ceremony of Thanksgiving (since converted into blessing God), and helped them in many other ways. Over several centuries, every treaty that the whites made with the Indians, the whites broke.
Two groups of ancient peoples stand out: the Iroquois Five Nations, or the Iroquois Confederacy; and the Five Civilized Tribes. The Iroquois Five Nations used a democratic system of government which the whites loosely adopted, as well as the eagle for their emblem - which the whites took too. "The Five (later Six) Nations Confederacy may well have been the oldest and most structured democracy in North America. ... In later years its workings would make a deep impression on Marx, Engels and Victorian feminists." (p98) Benjamin Franklin "promoted the Iroquois model at the Albany Congress of 1754 ... [but:] the scheme was thrown out by their assemblies and the British government." (p99)
The Five Civilized Tribes played the white's game better than they could: in their territory, the Cherokees had better literacy and education than amongst the white communities, their own newspaper, investments in industry and livestock, and a thriving, prosperous population. They were recognised, in the 1770s, as having "the refinements of true civilization, which cannot, in the least degree be attributed to the good examples of the white people" (p113) and "the Indians' genial character, orderly towns, lack of domestic violence and strict laws against alcohol" were also noted. Wright adds: "The leap to civilization was therefore not nearly as fundamental a change as most whites imagined: it was more like adding a new storey in European style to an existing structure." But Georgia wanted the land, and despite a Supreme Court verdict that it was against the constitution to evict the Cherokees from their land, President Jackson went ahead with his Indian Removal plan anyway.
The deep irony - that the whites came with civilisation and were better people with a higher moral ground - is never clearer than in the complete sham that was the rhetoric of the day - and continues to be used. It was a political shift to change the Indians from settled people with government, religion and agriculture into nomadic savages (the word "savage" comes from the Latin word for "woodland dweller", now bastardised - similar to how "barbarian" simply means "foreigner" - it's all in the context), and is directly linked to the expansionist etc. mentality that persists to this day. Also highlighted is how often the early white Americans talked about "selfishness", as a good thing, but something the Indians lacked.
That's just a small portion of what Wright covers in this book regarding the first Americans. Wright also discusses economics, and the change from Keynes' economics, which helped the world recover after the Great Wars (and which most countries still employ today) to Milton Friedman's model, which the US adopted after the Vietnam war, of letting the stock market run the world. "Predictably, the slashing of regulation brought fraud, speculation and crisis." (p203)
Also interesting is Wright's persistence in using the word "terrorism" to describe past events, such as the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, which "started" the First World War (an infamous overreaction that he likens to the "war on terror") - it's interesting how words are, by necessity or propaganda, re-appropriated by governments, the media, historians etc. for various reasons: here, with "terrorism", Wright is determined to show that this isn't a new thing, that the US has its own fair share of terrorism and terrorists, that it's not restricted to hardline fundamentalists from countries suffering from decades of US interference. (I also found it fascinating how Wright shows that America must always have someone to fight, that they have never gone without conflict. I never noticed before but look at a timeline: it's right in front of you!) This word wasn't used, before, in describing historical events, but now, in the search for context and perspective, it needs to be. Just shows that we are living in history.
It does answer the question "What is America?" It offers some hard truths to swallow, and some refreshing insight into the cloud of myth, and all in just 226 pages (just under half the book consists of notes, an extensive bibliography and the index). Published just prior to the outcome of the Democratic leadership race, it's highly current and relevant, as well as sympathetic and - important in this day and age - calm. There's a lot that isn't covered, of course, and plenty that Wright assumes some former knowledge of. This isn't a history text, though it does deal with history. It's a must-read for everyone, Americans included, especially as we try to understand the world we live in and where the hell it's going. ...more
Julia Frant is plain, prim and poor. Born in the colonies, she moves to London to live with her aunt and cousin after her parents die. At 27, she's onJulia Frant is plain, prim and poor. Born in the colonies, she moves to London to live with her aunt and cousin after her parents die. At 27, she's on the shelf and with no prospects, dividing her time between chaperoning her flighty, beautiful cousin Therese and working for a charitable society working with destitute women. When she steps into what she thinks is a hack, one night, only to find herself swept off on an elopement with the man she's been in love with for the last four years, Alec "Devil" Hunterston, her whole world changes.
Thinking he's got Therese in the carriage, Alec is confounded to find that he's got the wrong woman, and with only two hours left before he must marry or lose the impressive fortune he's due to inherit. If he doesn't marry by midnight and live without scandal for a year, his cousin Nick will get the money, but he must marry the daughter of the Earl of Covington, and Therese had agreed to it only to betray him. Until he learns that Julia's father was the Earl for two days before he died, and he's ready to make any promises to "the Frant Dragon" in order to keep his promise to his grandfather: not to let Nick have the money.
What he doesn't bargain for is his attraction to plain, spectacled Julia, or how more unbearable it becomes to live with her as she blossoms into a woman of style, grace and elegance. Their marriage of convenience becomes a marriage of torture for Alec, who promised to give up his mistresses. Meanwhile Nick and Therese are plotting to create scandal for the Hunterstons, and Julia must content with her own desires for Alec.
This book was a lot of fun, often funny, with great pacing and truckloads of chemistry. While pretty much the entire book is one steaming pile of sexual tension, there's plenty of action, scheming, misunderstandings along the way to keep the reader from getting impatient. I've read a few of these kinds of historical romances and generally find the writing to be awkward and constrained - not so here, it was very well written actually. Her grasp of the time period (Regency London) was good, with just a few minor liberties taken, none of which bothered me....more
This is Shinn's first novel, and a beautifully crafted one at that. The story is simple and simply told, which makes it that much more forceful: a youThis is Shinn's first novel, and a beautifully crafted one at that. The story is simple and simply told, which makes it that much more forceful: a young apprentice magician, Aubrey, is sent to a new tutor, the famous shape-changer Glyrendon, to learn transmogrification. Gifted and with great promise, Aubrey's ambitions to learn all he can from the master magician, who lives in a dark stone fortress overrun with dust and vines in the middle of the forest, clouds his eyes to the truth of Glyrendon and his wife and servants: for they are not what they seem.
Aubrey's growing love for Glyrendon's wife Lilith leads him to realise the truth, but freeing Lilith from Glyrendon would mean losing her forever.
This book reminded me a lot of Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock - a wonderful fantasy classic if you can get hold of it. Nature is very much a living thing, a reactive thing that can sense the evil in Glyrendon. The ivy creeping into Lilith's bedroom that can't be cut back, that she loves but her husband hates; the dust ankle-deep on the floor that can't be conquered; the bizarre servants, Arachne and Orion, whose real natures are easy to guess - indeed, for all his genius, Aubrey is a little slow in figuring it all out. Though, to be fair, one tends to believe what's in front of one's eyes - and Aubrey hasn't read all the fantasy books I've read!
It's a short book but very packed. Glimpses of the true nature of people are caught here and there, like the sun suddenly and briefly peeking out from behind the clouds, lighting on some small patch of ground before vanishing again. Lilith is very much like that: brief flashes of something more, something other in her eyes give Aubrey some idea that all is not as it seems, and that Glyrendon is a horrible, horrible man.
It's also an old-fashioned kind of fantasy story, told as if from the mouth of a bard: sparse and bald but with embellishment here and there. Aubrey's moral and ethical choice at the end is handled delicately, and it's amazing how much you come to care for a woman who doesn't care for anything.
The book doesn't have the natural grace and ease of Shinn's later works, but is a great addition to the fantasy cannon. For serious fantasy fans, it's well worth the read. ...more
This is one of the more original storylines for a Carpathian book: Destiny, a strong psychic, let a vampire into her home when she was six and was forThis is one of the more original storylines for a Carpathian book: Destiny, a strong psychic, let a vampire into her home when she was six and was forced to watch him brutally murder her parents - and then he converted her. In her panic she connected with an ancient Carpathian hunter, Nikolae, but wouldn't speak to him. Even though he was continents away, he taught her everything he could to help here survive and, after eight hellish years, defeat the vampire. Nikolae is tracking her and getting closer, while Destiny becomes a vampire hunter with no knowledge about the true nature of Carpathians, and believing herself as evil as the vampires she kills.
When Nikolae finally catches up to her in Seattle it's to find some strange goings-ons in the neighbourhood where Destiny feels drawn to the people. People are acting out of character and suffering memory loss, and it doesn't seem to be the work of a vampire. While they strive to uncover that mystery, Nikolae tries to convince Destiny that there's a difference between Carpathians and vampires, and that their healers can rid her body of the vampire blood - and the strange parasites living in it that seem to draw vampires to Destiny, vampires who speak of a plan of domination, and a master, and try to get her to join them.
This book starts a three-book plotline (Dark Secret and Dark Demon) so you won't get all the answers here or in the next book. The crime-solving side of this novel is new to the formula and adds an extra level of mystery - and Velda, oh that actually brought tears to my eyes it was so sad!
I had all the usual problems with this one as I do with all the others, but I really liked Nikolae and Destiny is the first woman to be a vampire hunter in this series - very refreshing. Natalya, the woman in the photograph Vikirnoff goes hunting for, is also a vampire hunter with some very cool tricks up her sleeve, so it's nice to see Feehan moving away from the more timid, lip-nibbling heroines.
Still, my big complaints remain, among which are: Why are the women always white and American? I know, it's a comfort zone for Feehan, but really, what are the odds of that? Realistically, there should be Asian and black and hispanic etc. women in there too. Not to mention that, essentially, all the men are the same character and the women, for the most part, are too. It's no wonder I sometimes get confused!...more
Vikirnoff finally catches up to Natalya, the woman in the photo, as she's facing off a couple of vampires and some crazed wolves in the Carpathian mouVikirnoff finally catches up to Natalya, the woman in the photo, as she's facing off a couple of vampires and some crazed wolves in the Carpathian mountains. He's met his match in Natalya though - she's mouthy, capable, independent and powerful in her own right: she's of the Dragonseeker line, and part Mage, part Carpathian and part human. Led to believe that the hunters killed her brother and would kill her if they find her, it's a bit strange that she doesn't attack Vikirnoff beyond a moment of startlement - apparently seeing him face off the vampires is enough for her.
This could have been a good addition to the series, and certainly has some good scenes - notably the battle against Maxim towards the end - but had me terribly confused most of the time. I liked Natalya and her tiger, and I liked Vikirnoff too and the teasing that went on between them. But glaring oversights common to the series (and Feehan's writing) were really hard to ignore here - like the fact that these women never eat. Seriously, when you give blood, you must eat. Poor Corrine, in Dark Melody, was dying of a heart problem and never got to eat, even though Dayan took her blood. "Oh you're so pale" he says after - FEED HER DAMN YOU!! It's a little thing, but it nags at me every time I read these books. It's not that I want Feehan to describe every meal or anything, but she needs to give some indication that they are taking care of themselves, because they're still human.
There are many inconsistencies in her books - another is the impossible positions and gestures the characters get into, which lead me to believe the men must have a second pair of arms for all the things they do while they are carrying the women around (which they do a lot) - and they really get in the way of me suspending my disbelief. It's fantasy, yes, but it still needs to be grounded in reality! Another is that, before the men find their lifemates they're always going on about how they can't feel emotions - fair enough, I like that bit - but in this book Vikirnoff is lamenting the fact that he feels nothing "but loneliness" (well that's something!) and then Natalya sends a telepathic message that his emotions are distracting her from her fight with the vampires - and lo and behold he feels emotions and sees colours again because she's his lifemate! I'm sorry, but I don't get how someone who can't feel emotions can feel emotions!!! Does that make sense to anyone else? ...more
Centuries ago, nine viking warriors were cursed by the sorceress Cwenfor for killing her son when they raided Britain. Now they live as shadow beasts Centuries ago, nine viking warriors were cursed by the sorceress Cwenfor for killing her son when they raided Britain. Now they live as shadow beasts with animal halves, doomed to live during the night as men and the day as their fylgja - their spirit companion: animal or bird - or vice versa. Each took the form of the animal or bird on their amulet, which Cwen gathered and scattered.
Now, two hundred years later, it is 1096. The first of them to try to live as a normal human being is Ivar, the handsome blond warrior who spies for King William and is given land as a reward. An estate on the Scottish border and a bride: Alaida, daughter of the rebellious former lord of the estate at Alnwick ("Ah-nik"). He must marry Alaida and build a castle at Alnwick to please William, but since he lives the days as an eagle he fully expects to enjoy himself for little more than a month.
Taking his war captain, Brand - who turns into a bear by day - and Ari - who becomes a raven by night - Ivar, known as Ivo de Vassey amongst the Normans, takes the manor easily into his possession but has a great deal more trouble with the beautiful, spirited Alaida. He's so taken with her that he'll do anything to keep up the pretence and stay longer at Alnwick, even when Ari has a vision that Alaida will have a baby that will change into an eagle, forcing Ivo to keep his hands off her.
Desire, passion, intrigue, magic, witches, plotting rivals, an ancient foe - Immortal Warrior kept me on tenterhooks because I wasn't sure where it was going to go - and the ending (in the epilogue) surprised me a little, mostly because it's not the usual format of paranormal romance. I enjoyed the writing style, the character development and premise for the story, and that the character of Ivo de Vassey is based on a real person, as is the castle at Alnwick (where a bit of Harry Potter was filmed).
It's not a time period that features often in books, perhaps because it takes a great deal of research to get the facts and details right - and I can't vouch for them here, I'm no expert. I can imagine that the next books in the series take place in different time periods, which would be interesting, though that's just a guess.
I really liked Ivo, and felt for him too. Alaida I liked too - resourceful, with an independent streak that doesn't clash too much with the period, and sharp-tongued but passionate. They had a lot of chemistry and that really kept the story going. One thing I do wish for, in any book that uses Gaelic or Saxon or Welsh names - even Norman - is a glossary with pronunciation guide. I don't know how names like Alaida are supposed to be pronounced, so I have no choice but to say them phonetically. A name like her nursemaid's, Bôte, I have no idea how to say. Some help would be appreciated. I only knew how to say "Alnwick" because she gave that pronunciation at the back in her "Historical Notes"....more
Picking up a few weeks after the big climax of Grimspace, the Conglomerate is trying to pick up the pieces after the fall ** SPOILERS FOR GRIMSPACE **
Picking up a few weeks after the big climax of Grimspace, the Conglomerate is trying to pick up the pieces after the fall of Farwan (the Corps) in a power vacuum that the human-hungry Morgut are taking advantage. Roped into being an ambassador for New Earth, Jax is sent to the planet of Ithiss-Tor, home of the Sliders, taking with her March, Dina and a Bred (genetically engineered and almost impossible to kill) mercenary called Jael who takes it upon himself to be Jax's bodyguard.
They never make it to Ithiss-Tor in Wanderlust - not until the very end, that is. They're nearly eaten alive by Morgut, the Syndicate is blackmailing Jax to fuck it all up, and they're caught up in a clan war on Lachion that all but destroys Jax's relationship with March.
I mentioned in my review of Grimspace that Jax reads very young for a 33-year-old: in Wanderlust she's matured a great deal, though still with room for more growth, and there are definitely moments where she sounds more grown-up. Part of it is that she now cares more about other people than herself. I love character development like this and it's successfully done here.
But poor March. He puts up with so much shit and then essentially sacrifices all his own progress, reverting back to the dangerous merc he was before Mair helped him. I've got to hand it to Aguirre, she knows how to keep a relationship on its toes! There's just so much chemistry between the two. It's wonderful.
It's also fast-paced and action-packed, like it's predecessor. There are moments of calm and reflection and getting-to-know the supporting cast, but it's never boring. Even when March gets left behind, it only seems to add to the tension. I couldn't help but think of New Moon, which also did that....more
Because this is a graphic novel, it is heavily abridged - and because I've never read Tom Sawyer, the book, I can't compare it. It reads as a very effBecause this is a graphic novel, it is heavily abridged - and because I've never read Tom Sawyer, the book, I can't compare it. It reads as a very effective story in and of itself, though - funny, entertaining, exciting. Keeping the colloquial dialogue, the characters and the main situations, this graphic novel has lovely stylised drawings, very colourful, and with some subtle details. I'm sure it's left out a lot of details of the novel but it would be a fun read for kids to whom the book would be a chore....more
**spoiler alert** This is a book I've been meaning to read for ages but never got around to - last week I not only read it but gave a lesson on the hi**spoiler alert** This is a book I've been meaning to read for ages but never got around to - last week I not only read it but gave a lesson on the historical context for the grade 8 class, who will be reading this book and The Wave. As I found, out of the class of 24, about 20 of them had already read the book, and at least one kid knew it was an allegory of the Russian Revolution. Still, my lesson wasn't totally redundant :)
For anyone who isn't familiar with the story, Animal Farm is about the animals on a farm in England rising up against the incompetent, cruel farmer (Mr Jones, who represents the deposed Tsar, Nicholas II) and taking over the farm, renaming it Animal Farm (USSR) and - so the glorious vision intended - running it for themselves, so their lives would be better.
The vision is given to them by a pig, Old Major, who dies not long afterwards. Old Major probably represents Vladimir Lenin and Karl Marx, and it's not the socialist ideal put forward that is critiqued by this book but how that vision is corrupted by certain other characters, namely another pig called Napoleon, who represents Joseph Stalin. Napoleon chases a pig called Snowball (Leon Trotsky) off the farm with his personally trained dogs (while still just the General Secretary of the Party, Stalin recruited people who would follow him blindly, so that when Lenin died in 1924 he was able to defeat Trotsky for the leadership position and his "dogs" kept everyone else in line).
The pigs then take charge, and with their literacy skills keep changing the rules the animals established in order to suit themselves, using a pig called Squealer to convince the other animals that their memories are faulty. After all, as the drafthorse Boxer keeps saying, "Comrade Napoleon is always right".
Boxer is - for me - the most heartbreaking character in the novel. He represents the peasants, and is the most hardworking animal on the farm. He has utter faith in the leadership of Napoleon and works himself to the bone - literally. His reward is very telling, though I don't want to give it away. Most of the characters represent either a person, several people or groups of people, and for the complete list you can check it out on Wikipedia.
Orwell, while a socialist, was very cynical about Stalin's communist USSR - and for good reason! Animal Farm is a very well-written critique of how socialist ideals are corrupted by powerful people, how the uneducated masses are taken advantage of, and how the dictator or communist leaders turn into capitalists (just look at China). It's a wonderful example of how effective the allegorical style/format can be, and a well-deserved classic....more
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