Book Review: Blake Crouch – “Dark Matter”

“Are you happy with your life?” 
Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious. 
Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits. 
Before a man Jason’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.”

In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible.

Is it this world or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could’ve imagined—one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe. (Source: amazon.com)

 

It’s been a long time since it felt right to do another book review on here, but this book captured me so much that I feel like I have to, to share my opinion of this exceptional piece of literature with the world.

So…Yes. Yes. Yes. And Yes again.

This book is the one I enjoyed the most from all the books I’ve read recently, and the one I had the most difficulties with putting it down. Plus, it was SO much better than the first book of Blake Crouch’s “Wayward Pines” series (which was the only one of the trilogy I read).

First of all – the main character. Jason Dessen is, despite working in a profession I was a loser in at school – physics – one of the most sympathetic characters I had the pleasure to read about. You’re thrown right into the story from the beginning, and you get to know everthing about Jason and his family that you need to know. I love the banter between him and his wife, and with his old college friend Ryan Holder only hours before things change for him. It’s all described in such a normalcy that it’s easy for the reader to picture every single situation in their own head, because it could be easily you or me finding themselves in that scene. What I especially liked so much about Jason is his integrity; his one and only aim keeps being his wife at all times, no matter what people or problems he’s confronted with, or in what situations he’s being pushed, deliberately or not. Jason’s the kind of person one like me would love to be one day.

All the other characters have their very own charm, too, as I mentioned before, and that’s the only tiny thing that I didn’t like about the book: the fate of one of them, someone a reader like me might come to like at a certain point, is being kept in the open. Maybe it’s exactly what Crouch intended, to have his readers’ minds still alert after finishing the book, wondering what happened to that one character. It certainly left me with that thought, and there’s a part inside of me, that, despite all the satisfaction this book left me with, that would love to know what happens to him/her (no spoilers here!)

Blake Crouch manages to find just the right balance between the technical side of his story, with all the physics stuff, and the suspense he’s building up with every single sentence. The short sentences in general really catch the reader – you read them down, a feeling inside your gut building that something big is going to happen, something scene-changing…and even if it may not, it doesn’t kill any of its overall suspense. If anything, it raises said suspense even more. And although the chapters are quite long, it doesn’t diminish any of the effects they have on the reader; they are enjoyable to the fullest, and reading them, with everything that happens, it seems like it’s just a blink of an eye when you finished another one.

The overall message of the book is amazing, though I am not able to find the right words to explain why.

Just the thought that somewhere in existence, with some “branch” that builds itself with every single decision we make/made in our life, there are hundreds, thousands, millions of other “us” who live in a complete different way, place, circumstance, and that with the right technical knowledge and abilities, these millions of versions of us could clash with each other in some way – it’s as much frightening as interesting as nothing else I ever thought about. It’s such a deceptive way of thinking that anything that Blake Crouch has thought up in his mind can be possible, and at the same time, it just gets more scaring when you think it about in this way: 30 years ago, nobody would have thought about a device like a Smartphone being possible, or artificial intelligence, or robots walking, working, somewhat “living” on their own, and nowadays, we view these things as normal, as “just the way it’s supposed to be”. The fact that the story revolves around the possibility for someone with the right – or wrong – motives to change his own life without changing the timeline of the world, to just simply step into a complete different dimension where one could be more successful, more satisfied, happier – even if it might be at the expense of your loved one’s or friends’ lives, – is strangely intriguing, and leaves the reader with the thought: “What if I had those possibilities? Would I go for it or am I satisfied with the way my “branch” reaches out?” And of course, one other, more important thought:

Will that technology one day be possible in our dimension?

So all in all, “Dark Matter” is one of the most exceptional books I had the honor and pleasure to read during the past year, and knowing that it’s going to be made into a movie in 2018 is just another sign of HOW exceptionally good it is. For people who love books having the theme of “What if…?”, this one is the perfect choice.

 

Book Review: Jay Asher – “Thirteen Reasons Why”

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker – his classmate and crush – who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah’s voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out why. Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah’s pain, and learns the truth about himself-a truth he never wanted to face. (Source: amazon.com)

Can you personally feel sad and sorry in a physical way for a fictional character? After this book, I’d say yes. A hundred times yes.

If I was to do my review in a conversation with someone, using words, then I’d first have to find the ability to speak again. Because this book left me absolutely speechless. It’s about ignorance, about ignorant people who rather turn their backs on other people and their problems instead of trying to help them to prevent them from doing something stupid. And after having read it, I have to admit that I totally get why Hannah killed herself and I could easily picture myself in her place in the past and even today.

I loved the way Jay Asher wrote this book – it changes from Hannah’s narration through her tapes with the first person narration done by Clay. It gives the story speed, but not too much to be confusing. And in some parts, him speaking and Hannah speaking mixes after only a word or a few words, and the reader can basically hear the desperation in Clay’s words, see his from sadness distorted face in front of them. Asher makes the reader feel sorry for Clay, and me, personally, I felt like hugging him through the entire book, even if he’s nothing but a fictional character – but you really just have to love Clay. He’s one of the most likeable characters I’ve ever read about, and learning about Hannah’s story partly from his point of view makes him even more likeable, because it’s like the reader himself is experiencing what Clay is going through. It’s a total different kind of narration than what most authors do, but for this kind of story, there couldn’t have been a better one. It gives it an even deeper meaning and leaves the reader with a bad aftertaste after each chapter, because I bet there are a lot of readers who can empathize with either Clay or Hannah, or maybe even both.

Bullying itself is the most horrible thing in the world. I know what I’m talking about, because it happened to myself during schooltime. But what happens with Hannah’s story is – in my opinion – way worse. Due to rumors being spread about her because she does not behave the way her schoolmates – mostly boys, but there are also girls doing her wrong – a snowball effect kicks in. One rumor leads to someone’s action, that leads to another action, to another, and so on. And all the while, Hannah is misunderstood, seen as someone she just isn’t. She is never given the chance to explain things, to show people who she really is. And at one point, after more and more bad things happen to her – betrayal, utilisation, sexual harassment, abuse – she just gives up.

The most horrible thing is that there were changes about her that were there, for everybody to see and notice, and still, nobody did ANYTHING about it. Which pretty much sums up the kind of society we all live in. Why bother with other people’s problems when we have enough of our own? Why realize that maybe there’s more to someone who used to be extroverted and suddenly stops connecting with anybody around him/her? And even when Hannah turns to a classmate who’s done her wrong, saying out loud for the first time that she needs someone to appreciate her, to notice her, he ignores it.

The end was absolutely devastating, and I rushed through it despite the fact that I already knew the end, all with tears in my eyes. For the one and only, the last time, Hannah decides she wants to live after all. That she does want to give someone the last chance to help her, to rescue her from giving herself up. She turns to someone who knowingly deals with problems, who knows about inner struggles and who’s job it is to help.

And she’s let down again.

At the end, Hannah says “I am sorry.” But in my opinion, someone who has committed suicide should not apologize to anybody they’ve left behind. Maybe that’s harsh towards those people. But to be honest, if those people were really connected to the person who killed himself/herself, if they cared enough, in my opinion, they should notice at least some changes, or signs that something isn’t right. And if they know that that person might not be the most stable in the world, the alarm bells should at least slowly start ringing in their heads. And if they didn’t…well, for me, these people then don’t even deserve any explanation or an apology. And for all the people out there who’ll shout “Damn hypocrite!” at me now: I’m not taking myself out of this. I do not see myself as a good friend, and personally, I have a problem with not only dealing with my own problems, no matter how they pile up, but also with other people’s. I have never learned real empathy when someone tells me their grandma died, or someone in their family is sick, or even not big things, like them losing their job or being dumped/dumping somebody. But nevertheless – at least that’s how I feel it is – I try to be there for them. I assure them that I’ll leave them alone if that’s what they need/want, but that whenever they need something/someone to vent, I’ll be there to listen to them ranting. I may be the worst giver of advises, but I see myself at least as someone who, even if she struggles with what’s thrown at her through other people’s problems, does NOT turn her back on these people. Of course, in reality, only my friends can really estimate if what I just said is total crap or not. But fact is, despite my flaws and helplessness with other people’s struggles, I am not a bad person. Different to all the young teenagers in this book who make me massively angry and horribly sad at the same time.

I don’t even know, nor do I want to know, the dark figure of how many young people kill themselves every year due to similar things that were described by Jay Asher. Or due to ignorant friends in someone’s life. Because it’s a heartbreaking thing to think about, that there is enough ignorance, backstabbing & loneliness in this society that people still have reasons to end their own lives.

And the most scaring thing?

That it can happen to everyone of us.

Because that’s our society.

And that’s the saddest thing to think about.

Thank you, Jay Asher, for your phenomenal, heartwrenching and emotional book, for a real insight into the depths of the world we live in. And here’s to the hope that one day, your book will make a difference for all the people who struggle with their lives, and make them see that one way or another, there CAN be a light at the end of the tunnel, even if it’s just someone calling their name in an empty hallway.

 

Book Review: Adi Alsaid – “Let’s Get Lost”

Five strangers. Countless adventures.One epic way to get lost.
Four teens across the country have only one thing in common: a girl named LEILA. She crashes into their lives in her absurdly red car at the moment they need someone the most.  
There’s HUDSON, a small-town mechanic who is willing to throw away his dreams for true love. And BREE, a runaway who seizes every Tuesday—and a few stolen goods along the way. ELLIOT believes in happy endings…until his own life goes off-script. And SONIA worries that when she lost her boyfriend, she also lost the ability to love. 
Hudson, Bree, Elliot and Sonia find a friend in Leila. And when Leila leaves them, their lives are forever changed. But it is during Leila’s own 4,268-mile journey that she discovers the most important truth— sometimes, what you need most is right where you started. And maybe the only way to find what you’re looking for is to get lost along the way. (Source: amazon.com)

I got this book quite a while ago and finally read it – and I am more than glad that I did so. It may “only” been Alsaid’s debut novel, but to be honest, he did a pretty damn good job on it, and I am looking forward to read more of him in the future.

The story itself is segmented into 4 completely different storylines – Hudson, Bree, Elliot & Sonia – but they all have one thing in common: despite the fact that they are the main characters, the girl named Leila has been written so amazingly well by Alsaid that she really (at least for me) is what captures the reader when reading each of the chapters.

Hudson
Hudson works at his father’s garage, fixing cars, and when Leila shows up in his life, she turns it upside down in a way that everyone has probably seen at least once in movies or read about in other books – some kind of Hollywood-like love story-thing. It was easy for me to warm up to Hudson, because I could relate to a person who falls helplessly for someone at first sight (don’t let me get started about how much it has happened to myself!). I loved how Leila came crashing into his little, normal life, its path predestined, his future all laid out in front of him by his father, and makes Hudson question his life choices, thinking deeply about his dreams and fears. And she’s doing it with such an easy-going attitude that might make the reader, when being in a dark chapter in their life, wish, that kind of person would crash into it and help them turning it around, changing it forever. And when that first storyline ends, I found myself thinking “That can’t just be it, can it?”, wishing for the entire rest of the book that there will be more of it. And is there? Well, to know that, you should probably go and read it 🙂

Bree
Bree’s storyline is the one I didn’t really like at all. Bree is a runaway girl who left her home to hitchhike across the country, due to her older sister babying her all the time after their parents died of cancer. Just to get away from facing her worries and fears. I didn’t like that part that much, because with all that happens inside of it – Bree convincing Leila of shoplifting, both of them ending up in jail, all the teenage-like fighting with Bree’s sister when she comes bailing them out, – is too…”forced” for me. It’s like Alsaid tries to stretch out every single one of teenage clichés, and the only thing missing would be Bree stomping with her feet, screaming “I hate you, you ruined my life!” at her sister. It was too predictable for me what would come next on Bree’s road trip, to be fair. The only thing that made up for the lack of surprise – once again – was Leila. Her role in the storyline was a beautiful one, what with her being the thing that makes Bree do the right life choice for herself after such a long time of running away from it.

Elliot
I have nothing else than praise for this storyline, and it was by far my absolute favourite. Of course, if I talked about teenage clichés in the “Bree” part, I have to speak about them in this one, too. Elliot, on his prom night, having the worst moment of his life when he confessed his love to his best friend and is clearly rejected (she runs away), is the picture perfect example of a lot of young teenage boys in any Hollywood movie anybody could possibly ever think of. The story itself reeks of “Happy Ending”. And yet, Alsaid understands how to play it out, throwing obstacle after obstacle inbetween Elliot’s feet, and every single time you think that now, he’ll give up. I loved it. I loved that Leila made Elliot go on, no matter what, how she keeps him strong. During that chapter, the positive energy that the reader gets from Leila is inspiring to feel, making me, personally, wish again that there was someone like that in my life, someone who lifts you up like that even if you can’t fight anymore, and who changes your life forever in a heartbeat without expecting anything back. And maybe, the fact that I could picture every single scene of their story in my head, as if it was my own, or that every station Leila & Elliot reach on their way reminded me alot of the relationship between Margo & Quentin in John Green’s book “Paper Towns”, captured me even more in this particular chapter that as soon as I had finished it, I wanted to go back and read it all over again.

Sonia
This storyline was a bit hard for me to grasp, as it is said that Sonia and Leila are about the same age, but from the style of writing, it seems as if Sonia is at least 5 or 6 years older – she has lost her boyfriend to a heart failure 7 months back, leaving her with a constant hate for herself because she has fallen in love with somebody else just shortly after said boyfriend died, struggling with going public with it, scared of hurting and disappointing his family who have taken her in with open arms. The problems Sonia is facing are probably the most grown-up throughout the entire book, and maybe the ones I can relate the least to. Not because I am not grown-up myself, but because I have never been in a situation like she is. And the connection Leila and she made seemed somewhat “misplaced” to me, because it felt more like two sisters – Sonia the older, settled one, Leila the younger, wild one, – than two total strangers meeting, with one of them changing the other one’s life forever. And somehow, that storyline didn’t fit in with the other three for me. I loved the outcome of it, nevertheless – I even shed one or two tears, so that has to count for something.

And then, there is…Leila
I have to admit, I was a bit surprised when I reached the book at about 85% (I read it on my Kindle), and the last chapter was all about her. I was wondering what exactly would come up now except the fact that Leila had, in fact, finally gotten to see the Northern Lights. But I was pleasantly surprised with one last, very touching storyline, maybe the one some readers waited for ever since they started this book. Leila’s does one last “road trip”, encounters total strangers one last time, is greeted by the same amount of kindness that she seemed to have dedicated her life to herself, and during it, finally finds herself, where she truly belongs to. And Alsaid saved up to solve the mystery about her until that last storyline/chapter – which is probably one of the smartest things he could have done, and one of the things that made his debut novel such an amazing one. And once again – a few tears wanted to escape my eyes at the end.

All in all, this book (to me) was totally riveting, thrilling, absolutely touching and above all, a very very enjoyable piece of literature.

Book Review: James Dashner – “The Maze Runner” Trilogy

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone. Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive. Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying.

Remember. Survive. Run. (Source: amazon.com)

It took me a hell of a long time until I finally decided to give the series a shot – mostly due to the fact that in a few days, the 1st movie is going to be released here in Germany and I was intrigued (which has absolutely nothing to due with Dylan O’Brien playing the lead role, of course not…), so I figured starting with the book first would be a good thing. However, I had heard and read very different opinions; people being disappointed of the 2nd and 3rd book, complaining about the main character’s attitude and the multiple deaths of characters they had grown close to. But after all, it was announced as something between “The Hunger Games”, “Divergent” & “Lord Of The Flies” – three of the things I love to pieces, so curiosity got the better of me and I finally started the series 6 days ago.

And hello, am I glad I did. This series is a GEM.

#1 The Maze Runner

As probably everybody who has read this book, I was into the story right away. Of course, the choice of words was weird at first, words I had never heard before, but I soon grew used to “shuckface”, “slinthead” and all the likes. After all, it was easy to imagine what the characters were saying. Plus, I clicked with Thomas right away, despite the fact that I’m female. His insecurity, yet his curiosity, and his will to find out the truth were very intriguing. Moreover, each of his characteristics made me like him the instant he showed up. He’s a character that people can identify with – I myself can imagine being taken completely aback if I’d ever been thrown in a situation that he’s been thrown in, with all my memories and past being wiped out. And also all the other characters were so well-written that you can’t help but feel with them – even with Gally.
The fact that the truth behind the “Maze” is only revealed in the last pages of this first book might be something that annoyed people – I, however, liked that way of approach done by James Dashner, because it somewhat reminded me of the series “Prison Break” and its 1st season. Everyone had a feeling they’d break out, and they had to wait until the very last episode of Season 1 to see it happen. And after it was clear that the “Maze” wouldn’t hold the kids’ future any longer, it was clear for me that they’d leave, and from that point on it was impossible for me to put the book away. The way it was written was highly entertaining and just the way I like my books to be.

#2 The Scorch Trials

The 2nd book thankfully picked up exactly where the 1st one left off – something I thought was a good move. With what the kids had to face, it would’ve been highly illogical to let time pass between the escape and the “new start”. For me, it was also very interesting as to how the characters would develop from now on. We have Thomas, who had regained some of his memories due to one very stupid deed in the 1st book, and who grew more and more confident of himself and the place he starts to take over in the small group of kids. The reader feels how he gets stronger, how he knows what he wants, despite the fact his past still is a mystery to him. And the reader also feels with him as his thoughts about who to trust and who to mistrust keep him in a constant inner agony. To some people (according to the reviews on amazon and from a friend of mine), that was somewhat annoying – the constant reminder of the horror Thomas had to go through at the end of the 1st book, and the whining over and over, his seeming inability to let things go, to move on; but I, personally, liked it. It made him very human to me, struggling with himself and the people he’s closest to – something I can very well relate to (although not in that exact way as he experienced it, of course).
But the character I grew the closest with, the character I started to like more than anyone else, about who’s life I was in constant fear – that was Minho. I utterly loved his development since the 1st book, I absolutely enjoyed the change James Dashner has put him through – willingly or not. The snippy comments, the “Dude!” outbursts, the constant sarcastic/wry remarks – it was the thing I mostly enjoyed about “The Scorch Trials” over everything else, over the story, the chills and the suspense. Had James Dashner only broached in very small glimpses what kind of boy Minho is, he played it out very well from the moment that he took over a bigger role in the whole story in this 2nd book. And I have nothing but praise for that.

#3 The Death Cure

All in all, that might be the weakest book of the three, up until a certain point closer to the end. I understand why people kept complaining about the “downfall” of the series with every book, and I have to admit, partly, it annoyed me, too, how the characters of Thomas and Teresa behaved. I understand a lot of the younger readers thought of them as maybe some kind of Katniss & Peeta from the “Hunger Games” series – what with them ending up happily ever after at the end of the series, – and that constant discussions and fights were nothing they wanted to have. The whining and moaning of Thomas didn’t stop in this book (I’m not gonna lie about that), and without bringing in more spoilers than I already have, they are increased with every new shock, terror and task that Thomas and his friends have to face. But let’s be honest: this is the last book of the series, and every reader who expects it to sugarcoat things, to go down easily just doesn’t understand book series like that. Because at the end, “The Death Cure” surely does everything else but sugarcoat, and somewhat even exaggerates with using brutality. The long journey of Thomas, Minho, Teresa, Newt and everyone else is finally coming to an end, and I, personally, wouldn’t have wanted it any other way than how it was done by James Dashner. It was the right way, and I loved it.

Resumé: Of course (especially in the 2nd and 3rd book) there have been turns in the destiny of Thomas and the other Gladers that were so numerous that they hovered at the edge of illogicality for me (the countless times they are able to escape certain captures or deaths are mostly to be named here). But in the end, when I think about it, they kept the story going, kept it flowing – just when the reader thinks “Now it’s over for them, definitely!”, they come out of it, almost unfazed, only to be thrown into the next mess when the same thoughts come back.
Of course there have been deaths throughout all three books that shook me hard – and I won’t be shy to admit I shed the one or other tear over the people dying; that’s how close I personally grew to the characters. But in the end, if I am honest, they were needed to put the characters through a development that was credible and entertaining (minus the whining), to keep them interesting enough that the reader wants to know how they deal with it. Especially the last death in the final book was hard – although part of me kind of knew what would happen, because I’m just that kind of a realist – and sometimes, things are just too good to be true.
Of course not everything in this series was perfect. There are barely perfect books out there.

But all in all, to me, James Dashner came VERY close to “perfect” with his “Maze Runner” series.

Well done.

 

Book Review: Donna Tartt – “The Secret History”

Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality their lives are changed profoundly and forever, and they discover how hard it can be to truly live and how easy it is to kill. (Source: amazon.com)

I am glad I gave this book a shot after reading a very tedious excerpt of “The Goldfinch” before. Of course, this book tended to be quite tedious in parts, too – something that makes me understand why people say that Tartt is hard to digest, that after reading one of her books, they had to take a break before starting other books written by her. And that is the only reason why I “only” gave it 4 instead of 5 stars. And tedious for me in this regard means sometimes too long trains of thoughts from Richard, the narrator, filled with mentions of Greek mythology, philosophy – but really, that is just my personal opinion/problem, and not a reproach to the author herself or her writing skills – on the contrary, because after all, I totally knew what I was getting myself into when I started this book.

The story is different from other murder stories – you know right at the beginning who’s the murderer and the rest of the book is an explanation WHY the murder happens – something that some books sometimes are lacking. And I am not talking about the “normal” reasons for a murder – the person being killed was rude to the others, slept with someone’s wife, betrayed the protagonist in other ways – Tartt goes way deeper into the psyche of 5 college kids who try everything to maintain their normal life, to pretend everything’s fine, and she takes the reader on the constant journey how 4 of them after the murder keep on living after that life-changing experience. She never stops opening up the psychological problems in the college kids’ “new” life, in their minds, she draws the reader in, makes him/her part of her story.

One thing I loved most about this book is the long conversation about a quarter into the book where Henry and Francis, two of the main characters, are telling Richard – the narrator – everything they’ve been keeping secret from him. I loved that conversation, the way it was written, the way Tartt used her words. She made me somewhat feel like I was part of that story-telling, like I was sitting in the same room with them, listening to everything they revealed. And that is a talent that nowadays not many authors have (at least for me and my taste in books and authors). Overall, for me, ALL of the conversation between the 5 young people are highly entertaining, so that it was very hard for me to putting that book away – they are compelling in a way that is too difficult to explain.

Plus, Tartt never gets tired to reveal even the deepest depths of her characters. The further you get into the story, the more you find out about Henry, Camilla, Charles and Francis, and just when you think you know all there is to know about them – something else is revealed. The only two people who really kind of stay mysterious to the reader are Henry and Julian, their teacher. To some people, it might not be satisfying, but to me, it gives the story and its end a bit of extra spice. Everybody can make up their own mind if and how everyone found their peace eventually or not. I like this way of approaching readers.

It’s going to take some time until I’ll approach another of Tartt’s books now – maybe even “The Goldfinch”, after all, – but I definitely do not regret taking this one onto my book shelf. It’s an amazing piece of modern literature, and the best thing about it: it’s a book you will not forget that easily.

And that is – in my opinion – the greatest gift an author can make and get.

Book Review: E. Lockhart – “We Were Liars”

Cadence Sinclair Eastman comes from an old-money family, headed by a patriarch who owns a private island off of Cape Cod. Each summer, the extended family gathers at the various houses on the island, and Cadence, her cousins Johnny and Mirren, and friend Gat (the four “Liars”), have been inseparable since age eight. During their fifteenth summer however, Cadence suffers a mysterious accident. She spends the next two years—and the course of the book—in a haze of amnesia, debilitating migraines, and painkillers, trying to piece together just what happened. (Source: amazon.com)

I am probably the only person who did not read this book because she wanted to know what all the fuzz was about, but because it was suggested to me on amazon and the mixed reviews got me curious.

And it only took me less than 6 hours to finish it because I just couldn’t put it away for a minute.

At first, I was not sure what to make of it. All the different characters, the way that the narrator – Cadence, – is explaining all the different family members, the living circumstances on the island was somewhat really confusing for me at the beginning. It reminded me a lot of “A Casual Vacancy” by Joanne K. Rowling, which is the worst book I’ve read in my entire life. But then, all things fell into place.

The lovestory between Cady and Gat, her Aunt’s boyfriend’s nephew, is somewhat just like how teenage lovestories are: they meet in their holidays, fall in love, and when they’re back home, they forget about that summer fling. Not Cadence. While Gat seemingly has moved on with a girlfriend in New York, she realizes how far she has fallen for him. To me, it made her more human; a human with flaws who has no saying about who she loves, who cannot control her feelings and who, despite the circumstances, never give up on hoping for her Happy End. Cady takes the reader on her journey to not only find herself, but also, find out who her family is.

After the accident, which E. Lockhart described a bit hazy (in my personal opinion), so that I had to read it twice to actually understand what happened, the reader is constantly confronted with the fact that Cady suffers from a severe amnesia that goes along with constant migraine attacks that knock her out for days at times. That is probably the only thing that bugged me about the book: over and over, the reader is told how bad her condition is, how bad her headaches and sickness is, and it can become somewhat annoying. Because I think it’s enough if you get introduced to a problem ONCE, it doesn’t need to be slapped into your face over and over again. She’s sick, she suffers, WE GET IT.

The reason I read this book in such a short amount of time was that as soon as I knew something was off about Cady’s “accident”, I was dying to know what it was; I am just that sort of very curious person. Plus, the love story between her and Gat becomes even more complicated, and although they seem to fall back into what they were two summers ago, they’re not really back to where they’ve left off, if that makes any sense at all. Gat behaves oddly enough to cause a distance between them that Cady desperately tries to overcome. The more clues the reader gets throughout the part of the book (after the accident) – little hints by her aunt Carrie’s strange behaviour at night, her cousin’s nightmares and slip of tongue once,  her hovering mother, – the more curious he/she gets. At least that’s what happened to me.

And just when you think that you have found out what happened, when it seems crystal clear and you start thinking “That’s it? That’s the huge mystery?”, E. Lockhart presents the shocking truth. Which, I have to admit, hit me right in the stomach, because I did not expect it. And although the reader is a bit…left out in the open about how, after Cady comes back to the island two years after the “accident”, things worked out with the “Liars”, without further explanations (not going into details about these “explanations”, as I don’t want to give away anything; people who might read this will understand once they read the book themselves), I, personally, felt content with the ending. I still felt that there was a closure for me to all the secrets, the strange behaviours, the gaps that opened up between Cady, her family and especially the “Liars”, whom she spent every single summer with, being as close as you can be with friends. I didn’t need any more descriptions. And the fact that I read this book without any expectations, as so many others did, helped me to not being disappointed by the ending. Because in my opinion, there really is NOTHING to be disappointed about.

The book shows the abysses of a very patriarchic family, driven by love, envy, lies, racism, money and expectations that all seem to lose their meaning as soon everybody is confronted with a shocking incident. All that matters then is to stick together and keep what’s left of that family together as good as possible – no matter the consequences.

Blood is thicker than water. And apparently, a family tree is stronger than even the most shocking events.

Book Review: Jenny Lawson – “Let’s Pretend This Never Happened”

Jenny Lawson realized that the most mortifying moments of our lives—the ones we’d like to pretend never happened—are in fact the ones that define us.
In the #1 New York Times bestseller, “Let’s Pretend This Never Happened”, Lawson takes readers on a hilarious journey recalling her bizarre upbringing in rural Texas, her devastatingly awkward high school years, and her relationship with her long-suffering husband, Victor. Chapters include: “Stanley the Magical, Talking Squirrel”; “A Series of Angry Post-It Notes to My Husband”; “My Vagina Is Fine. Thanks for Asking”; “And Then I Snuck a Dead Cuban Alligator on an Airplane.” Pictures with captions (no one would believe these things without proof) accompany the text. (Source: goodreads.com)

How do you explain this book to anybody who has neither heard of it nor read it themselves? Answer: you can’t, which will make this blog post a lot of fun. Two things that are for sure about it, though: 1. I have never read a better and more entertaining book than this one, having me more than once in stitches including stupid grinning on the bus home and, as a result of that, weird looks from my felllow bus companions. And 2., never in my life have I used so many bookmarks in a book before (thank God I have it as a Kindle version, I guess. Would be funny to look at if on my bookshelf otherwise). There’s not one page in this book that will not make your fingers wanting to switch over to the “Put to bookmarks” button, I guarantee you.

For starters, Jenny Lawson didn’t have the best and wealthiest childhood in the world, if you think about money. With what she grew up were experiences. Weird experiences. Loads of them. For example, one day, her father, who was a taxidermist and always brought dead (or almost dead, that is) animals home for Jenny and her sister to play with. One of those lovely things was a little racoon called Rambo who attacked Jenny’s sister when they were little and Jenny described it as “…and it was totally awesome.” Or the part where she says that if the reader can’t take a book as disturbing as hers (with talking about standing in a dead animal in her father’s taxidermy shop), they should “get another book that’s less disturbing than this one. Like one about kittens. Or genocide.” Sadly, I am not making this up, this is exactly how it’s described in the book.

I know that mostly all of the experiences Jenny makes in this book, throughout her life, with a gang of turkeys (or, according to her father, “big quails”) following her around school, wild animals like racoons, cougars or goats showing up right next to your head all of a sudden, being an outcast at school, having more than one miscarriage, experiencing drugs, are not the stuff you should usually laugh about (except for the first two things, maybe). But the thing I personally love about this book is that there is no sugarcoating whatsoever in it. Jenny Lawson describes it as it has happened, as she has experienced and suffered through it, and she does it in the most entertaining way the reader could ever imagine. Her life hasn’t been kind to her all the time, but she got through it, she straightened her back, directed her gaze into the future and never looked back in pity. In fact, she embraced every single episode in her life, no matter how weird and unbelievable it has been. This is an ability I admire more than anything else, because it makes the story itself so vivid, and transfers the book into a complete pageturner, and, also, grabs you by the hand and doesn’t let you go until you’ve finished.

I have read critics about this book where people said they found Jenny Lawson “annoying”, “unbelievable” and “unsympathetic”. I, however, do not understand such an opinion. For me, even during the introduction of the book, she became one of the most sympathetic writers that are out in the world. Maybe it’s the fact that she is exactly like one of my friends, Laura, is, who’s got her own blog on here (mysticmonkey.wordpress.com), and who is the most entertaining writer/person for me. While I was reading, it was like I was reading a book of a friend like Laura. I instantly bonded with Jenny when I read about how her parents once kicked her out a driving car (which was totally an accident, don’t be shocked, you’ll understand it if you read it) in the introduction, and the way she writes and tells her life story…I can’t explain it, it just got to me, and was the foundation for me admiring this author to no end.

The ability to grab a reader by the hand, pulling them in and making them feel like a part of the book, like they can’t put the book down for even a second because they’d feel like a part of them is being put down – that is an ability that is the one that I, myself, strive for one day. Jenny Lawson’s writing talent is absolutely out of this world, she describes simple, normal, yet sometimes horrible facts of life in such a hilarious way that the reader can’t help but enjoy every single word of it. And me, personally, she got to the point where even just a few sentences into the introduction, I wished I wouldn’t have started the book because I knew I would have finished it just far too soon, and that I could read this book for the 1st time again.

There is no way I can give her only 5 out of 5 stars in my rating, so I’ll just say: go, buy this book. It’s worth every penny, and it will make your life brighter and is a true enrichment to every bookshelf.

Simply the BEST. BOOK. EVER. Thank you, Jenny Lawson. Well done. Very well done.

Book Review: Markus Zusak – “The Book Thief”

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.
Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. (Source: amazon.com)

I took quite a while for me to read this book. Since the movie came out in the theatres,  I was really interested in reading it, but once I read its description, standing in my local bookstore, I put it down again.

Because it was written by “death”.

Of course I know it’s not really written by “death”, he’s only the narrator, but still, I felt controversal to give it a shot, although the story behind the life of Liesel Meminger – The Third Reich, World War II, the Holocaust – are the three history subjects that I’d never refuse to read about, no matter what. So by pure accident I got hold of a free version of it on my Kindle and decided I had nothing to lose. One thing led to another and I only needed less than two days to finish it (I’m really craving for books recently!).

My conclusion: it was worth it. At first, I had real difficulties to find my own way into the kind of narration that I faced in this book, and halfway through the first 5 pages, I wanted to give up again. But my will to find out if the narration changes, if maybe “death” gives it into the hands of Liesel Meminger, the main character, kept me going. And I’m glad it did.

I love how the reader follows Liesel from scratch; from the moment she can’t even read a single word, to the end, where she writes an entire book about herself. It’s interesting to see her learning new words and expressions every day, just by sitting with her foster-father during every night (that she can’t sleep because nightmares of her dead brother are haunting her), reading with her. It’s like the story holds up some kind of mirror to every reader that follows it, because who can’t remember themselves starting to read in (or in my case, before) school? And who doesn’t look back to it with a shy smile on their faces when they remember their first few tries, sometimes failing miserably, but never giving up? Well, I do remember my first steps, and even if mine never have happened in such a difficult environment as Liesel’s first steps, I can somewhat relate to her. Reading becomes her escape, and the wish to write becomes kind of her lifegoal, the thing that keeps her going. It seems like the narrator (“death”, remember?) draws the reader in, and while Liesel forgets all the horrors of the Nazi-Regime whenever she feels the kick after having stolen a book or reading in the dark basement to Max, the Jew she and her foster-parents have hidden, it almost seems like the reader of “The Book Thief” can himself forget the outside world. A book all about the love to books. Brilliant.

One of the most loveable characters in this book for me was definitely Liesel’s best friend, Rudi Steiner. He is a crazy young boy who’s desperately and (not so) secretly in love with Liesel, and tries to get her to kiss him whenever there is an opportunity (mostly, when he has done something heroic for her or for himself, something he can be admired for). I actually admire him for his attitude, because although he probably knows that Liesel will never kiss him (when you’re 11/12, boys are generally “Ugh” to every girl, I guess, at least in the old days), he never loses his spirit. Plus, he stands by her side through good and bad times, even accompanies her on more than just one “Book Thief” trip. For me, he sums up what a best friend is all about, no matter what. And I think in the dark times of 1939 until 1943, a best friend like him was even more needed than in any peaceful time before or after.

What the book does with Hans Hubermann, Liesel’s foster-father, is simply described as beautiful. He’s an opponent of the Nazi-Regime, but he does his best to keep his family, and – especially, – Liesel safe. With his neverending will to play his accordion to her, to stay up every night to read for and with her, he not only keeps her alive in some way (by making her fall in love with words, reading and at last, writing, with the latter one literally saving her life), but also lets her being the happy girl she should be. With him being the positive spirit in her life, apart from Rudi, the reader never feels that Liesel ever loses faith in life and all it has to give. Even when “death” creeps into her life more and more and in the end, takes everything she believes in.

The way Zusak has written the book has – as I said at the beginning of this blog, – first made it weird to find my way into it and its story, no matter how interesting the history behind it is. Now that I have finished, I almost feel like Liesel during her first steps in learning to read: everything seems confusing, words make no sense, and you just can’t get your head around things and words. But as the story goes on, you find your own way right into it, and that is what makes it impossible to put this book away for long. Especially with the hints that “death” throws in every now and then, that spoilers you but also makes you want to go on, to know how these “spoilers” happen and turn out in the end. And I have to admit, while reading, quite a few times I even forgot that the narrator was “death”, because I breathed the story in, and I stopped reading between the lines. Of course, there are a lot of times where “death” mentions his work, what he does and has to do, and how he goes on and on with what he does. But it almost makes him human, it makes you think of him like someone like you and me, and you actually can feel some kind of empathy for him, for the struggle that goes on behind his own mind.

My resumé: Markus Zusak has done a stroke of genius here, with approaching a storyline from a completely different angle than other authors, from the view of a person that isn’t even a person, but, in some way, is a person, after all. I say it again:

Brilliant.

Book Review: John Green – “An Abundance Of Katherines”

When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton’s type is girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact. On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy–loving best friend riding shotgun—but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl. Love, friendship, and a dead Austro-Hungarian archduke add up to surprising and heart-changing conclusions in this ingeniously layered comic novel about reinventing oneself. (Source: amazon.com)

Alright, so my first thought about this book: “WHAT THE HELL DID I JUST READ?!” I found it pretty hard to read myself into this story, way more difficult than into any other book I’ve ever read. First of all, this is the only book of all the ones I’ve read of John Green that does NOT have a first-person narrator – which was weird at first, if you are used to it after 4 books. The second thing that bugged me from the beginning to the end is split up in two parts:

1. Footnotes. I had no idea this book would be built up like that. For instance, Colin’s best friend is an arabian guy called Hassan. Now, it can’t be avoided to throw in the one or other arabic word, which, of course, has to be explained. That was not my personal problem, because I have to admit, it’s nice to have them explained, to learn some words of a language that is so foreign to you. The thing is: throughout the story there are at least three footnotes in each chapter, mostly mathematical, and the moment you see them, you have the actual intention to memorize them until the end…but when you reached said end of the chapter, you have basically forgotten what the footnote is explaining (and turning back the pages is already annoying when I’m reading a normal book, but as a matter of fact, I read this particular one on my Kindle, so turning back was no option for me).

2. Math. Urgh. I mean, I am not at all into math. In fact, I absolutely despise it. That may be because I have no clue whatsoever about any of that subject matter, never have and never will, but I also think it’s one of the most annoying things human kind has ever invented. And the fact that John Green himself only had a C- in Pre-Calc makes me wondering even more what the hell he was thinking putting all these mathematical parts into the story (not to mention the author’s note at the end of the book that I skipped after 4 pages because I understood Jack Squad).

If you leave these two factors out, there’s still potential in the book. It’s nice to accompany nerdy, not self-conscious Colin on his road trip to find himself and the answer to all his problems – which of course, you’ll never find. What I learned throughout reading is that no matter how much you try to find answers to your current problems, on your way to find those answers, there will be more problems/questions that you want to solve; therefor, it’s an endless journey during which it’s easy to forget who you are, and what really matters. Maybe with this story, John Green has sent out a moral to everyone who has ever had their heart broken (which, basically, everyone has, hands down). And for the first time in all the 4 books I’ve read of him so far, I got a Happy End, which was nice for a change.

I have to admit, the characters did not leave me in so much awe as all the other characters in John Green’s stories, except for Lindsey Lee Wells, the female “heroine”. Once again, a girl is the star, a fierce, funny and “She’s-going-to-suck-you-in-no-matter-what-you-do”-kind of person who I, personally, warmed up to instantly. Just as I did with Hassan, Colin’s best friend, although to me, he seemed a bit flat compared to earlier best friend characters, like Ben Starling in “Paper Towns” or even Isaac, Augustus Waters’ best friend in “The Fault In Our Stars”. He was funny, no question, but for me, something was missing about his character, a certain edge that I admire so much about every other of John Green’s best friend characters.

All in all, from all the novels by John Green I know so far, this is the weakest one, although not a bad one. I would still recommend it for the sake of the reader maybe finding some things out about themselves, especially if they’re currently on a journey through a break-up or just a simple “breaking-heart-syndrome”. And for all the fans of his novels, I think it is a must-read.

Book Review: John Green – “Looking For Alaska”

Before. Miles “Pudge” Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave “the Great Perhaps” even more (Francois Rabelais, poet). He heads off to the sometimes crazy and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young. She is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. Then. . . .

After. Nothing is ever the same. (Source: amazon.com)

ATTENTION: This post might contain spoilers.

Just WOW. Once again.

It has been a long time since I read a book in less than a day. But this particular one’s structure  made it inevitable for me to read slowly, due to the simple fact that it contains only two parts: “Before” and “After”. And while reading the “Before” part, you just go on and on, because you get this weird feeling that there is a reason behind the “After” part, that there is something bad going to happen, and in my opinion, it’s a primary instinct that you just need to know what it is – if it hurts your feelings or not.

Once again, the main female character in John Green’s book is a fierce, energetic, young woman who mostly lives in a little bubble of her own, which shows itself in the way she behaves around the ones closest to her – like Alaska Young. She’s described as someone who is easy to be around, who draws you in, lets you have a positive look on the world despite all the bad things in it. And then there is Miles Halter, the other protagonist. Miles is everything a boy/girl these days probably doesn’t want to be: nerdy, quiet, unpopular. But in my opinion, that is what makes him loveable to the reader, what makes someone warm up to him (I hope it’s not just me!). It’s funny how Green manages it with just a few words, right at the beginning, to draw his readers in – it’s an ability not many writers have nowadays, sadly. And I have to admit, these kind of characters he writes about slowly  become my favourite kind of characters, because personally, it has never been so easy for me to empathize with characters as it is when I read his books.

One of the most interesting things about the story is maybe the character development that runs from the beginning right to the end. Miles, at first a shy, quiet person who only leaves his home to find his “Great Perhaps”, turns more and more into a more self-confident young man, and it’s funny how at the end you imagine him right infront of your eyes, being all grown-up as if years have passed since he came to Boarding School – though it’s actually hardly 12 months.

Alaska Young, on the other hand, keeps being a mystery from the first page, when she’s introduced, until the very end, when Miles finally gives up on understanding her for the sake of his own happiness. Throughout the book, she’s described in ways that makes the reader almost scream with frustration (e.g. one moment she and Miles spent a “date-like” evening all alone together, the next day she pretty rudely blocks him off for no particular reason); and still, it doesn’t change how the reader (or me, personally) thinks of her. Even more, I think that all the mysterious and inexplicable mood swings keep the storyline going – you practically wait for an explanation for all this, because…well, because there just has to be one, right?

The other thing that made being glued to the pages: the subject of the book. Miles, Alaska and her friends have religion classes, and they are talking about different religions and their view on the world, including their different thoughts on Afterlife. Now this may be a touch subject, because, obviously, it contains conversations about death, and moreover, it forces the reader to think about death, afterlife and his/her own opinion on that matter – especially in the “After” part.

Now, I’ll try to not give away too much, but in my opinion, what John Green did with that part – it was a stroke of genius, and maybe even a slightly psychological trick. Of course it’s kind of unsatisfying that the reader never really finds out what really happened to Alaska, because hands down, who doesn’t wish for Happy Ends in books / ends where everything is cleared up? Then again, I’ve come to the conclusion that the maybe unsatisfying events in that second part of the book were intended; are a way to make the reader think about themselves. If you personally think that what happens to Alaska was self-inflicted, then it might throw a kind of disturbing light on yourself, maybe even up to the point where you question your own life. And if you are that kind of reader that just thinks “A lot of things happen for no reason, you can’t stop the inevitable.”, then it seems you’re happy with yourself, your life and everything and everyone in it, which is – obviously -, the better of the two trains of thought.

I guess what I’m trying to say here is, I love how John Green kind of plays with his readers. He lets them make up their own mind, he doesn’t just put answers inside of their heads to satisfy them, no, he gives everyone the possibility to find their own solution, and, in doing so, their own satisfaction with how the story turned out. The book doesn’t even let you go as soon as you’ve finished it (an ability that all of Green’s books carry with them), because due to the end that has been chosen, it may pop back into your head every now and then. And isn’t that the best thing about good books?

Yet another masterpiece of modern literature by John Green, highly recommended.