Son of the Morning by Joyce Carol Oates 3/5 Version française: N/A Synopsis Elsa Vickery, daughter of an agnostic small-town doctor and his pious wife, is gang-raped at the age of seventeen. Her son, Nathan, is brought up by his grandmother as a devoted Christian. At the age of seven, Nathan begins to experience visions of Christ. He becomes a boy preacher, and later the charismatic leader of a church, which is accumulating vast riches from donations. With every year, his visions become more and more grandiose. My thoughts Son of the Morning is my second Joyce Carol Oates book this year, and while I was going to give her the benefit of the doubt after disliking the first one, I have come to the realization that her novels are just not my cup of tea. SotM had a promising premise that could have brought us both interestingly twisted characters and a plot full of suspense and jump scares. Unfortunately, she only managed to deliver on the former. Indeed, we do encounter some colourful characters, especially Nathan. Oates does a good job at making demented people seem normal, almost believable. Therefore, if you are expecting a freaky kind of twisted à la Stephen King, this is not it. Instead, the “freak” aspect comes from how normal everything seems to be. Even when there were some more shocking moments (I could count two, including the ending), it was treated banally.
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Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens 3.5/5 Awards: Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Historical Fiction (2018), Edgar Award Nominee for Best First Novel by an American Author (2019) Français: Là où chantent les écrevisses *Thank you JB for the gift. Summary For years, rumours of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life–until the unthinkable happens. My thoughts Get ready for a controversial review. When When the Crawdads Sing came out, it was all everyone could talk about (thanks to Reese Witherspoon). It was on the front shelves at every bookstore for weeks, received accolades from every major newspaper, and has over 50,000 five-star ratings on Goodreads. However, to me, WCS just did not hit the spot. It was by no means a terrible book, but it definitely did not live up to the hype. The book begins as a classic tale of the outcast who struggles to make her way through society. Just to add to the drama, her family situation is remarkably tragic with a mother that left her alone with an alcoholic, violent father. To be honest, it was already all a bit too much to begin with, not to mention cliché. To interesting part begins as Kya becomes an almost complete hermit at a very young age. To see how she managed to survive despite having received no education nor any real survival skills was fascinating. Her sheer determination to make it work, from waking up earlier than all the other fishermen to get the best catch to learning how to cook while she was most likely not tall enough to reach the countertop, was the part that struck me the most. Indeed, not only is it riveting to see the resourcefulness of the human body when it simply needs to survive, but it is also inspiring to see Kya eventually creating a manageable existence out of a literal swamp. A Border Passage: From Cairo to America – A Woman’s Journey by Leila Ahmed 4/5 Version française: Aucune version publiée. *Read as part of my history of modern Egypt class. Summary Ahmed describes the political upheaval that motivated her to leave Egypt, and explains how her experiences shaped her ideas about language, nationalism, feminism, and religion My thoughts I rarely review nonfiction because I am somewhat uncomfortable with the idea of criticizing someone’s life and the way they recount it. However, when I was assigned this memoir to read for class, I knew I was going to end up writing about it because A Border Passage truly deserves to receive more widespread commendation. Ahmed’s life itself is fascinating: she grew up as an upper-class woman in British Cairo, saw the rise of Arab nationalism and suffered from the Nasserist government, then went on to become a pioneer of women’s studies in North American academia. However, she punctuates her narrative with vignettes of her childhood and adolescence, especially regarding the tenuous relationship with her mother. It is those memories that make the novel whole. Ahhhh, remember 2019? When everything seemed so hectic and stressful? You know, we were all worried about Trump's impeachment, Brexit, protests in Hong Kong and climate change? Ah well, those were the days! I was clearly too busy back then to write this compilation! Now that we are all stuck in lockdown, there is no better time than to write this or for you, yes you, to read this post for some bookish inspiration. I also recommend that you check out your university or local library's website. Many of them have cleared open access to a ton of ebooks for free! Stay safe, stay inside, read a book. P.s. 2019 was apparently the year of great Canadian novels. Go Canada! Mãn de Kim Thúy Résumé Mãn est une histoire d'amour entre une femme et celles qui l'ont, tour à tour, fait naître, allaitée, élevée. Elle a été déposée dans le potager d'un temple bouddhiste sur le bord d'un des bras du Mékong par une adolescente. Une moniale l'a recueillie et nourrie d'eau, de riz et du lait des seins d'une mère voisine, avant de la confier à une autre femme – enseignante de jour, espionne en tout temps. Mon opinion Kim Thúy a été ma découverte de l’été. Lorsque j’étais à Ottawa, j’ai emprunté Ru, Vi et Mãn à ma tante. J’ai lu chacun de ces livres en un jour seulement. Malheureusement, j’ai supprimé accidentellement mes notes de lecture avant d’avoir écrit ma chronique sur ces chefs d’œuvres. Mãn se démarque du lot par son style d’écriture qui était le plus peaufiné selon moi. En effet, dans Ru, il y avait de nombreuses répétitions qui ne faisaient qu’alourdir le texte tandis que dans Vi il manquait d’originalité par rapport aux deux autres œuvres. Mãn est simplement beau et doux. C’est une magnifique histoire, bien construite malgré le peu de pages, qui réchauffe le cœur. C’est aussi un récit parfaitement humain, avec des erreurs de parcours et des moments de solitude et de regret. Après avoir lu un roman de Thúy, on en ressort grandit non seulement parce qu’on apprend sur la condition des migrants, particulièrement de la diaspora vietnamienne au Québec, mais aussi sur l’amour, la vie, la tendresse. Bref, à lire si vous voulez une lecture enrichissante sans lire 400 pages sur les horreurs de l’histoire humaine. Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O’Neill 5/5 Awards: Governor General’s Literary Awards / Prix littéraire du Gouverneur general Nominee (2007), CBC Canda Reads (2007), Québec Writer’s Federation Award for Paragraphe Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction (2007), Orange Prize Nominee for Fiction Shortlist (2008). French: La Ballade de Baby *Thanks to JM for reminding me that I have this blog to keep me busy during quarantine. Summary At thirteen, Baby vacillates between childhood comforts and adult temptation: still young enough to drag her dolls around in a vinyl suitcase yet old enough to know more than she should about urban cruelties. Motherless, she lives with her father, Jules, who takes better care of his heroin habit than he does of his daughter. Baby's gift is a genius for spinning stories and for cherishing the small crumbs of happiness that fall into her lap. But her blossoming beauty has captured the attention of a charismatic and dangerous local pimp who runs an army of sad, slavishly devoted girls—a volatile situation even the normally oblivious Jules cannot ignore. And when an escape disguised as betrayal threatens to crush Baby's spirit, she will ultimately realize that the power of salvation rests in her hands alone. My thoughts By now, it fair to say that I am obsessed with Heather O'Neill. This is the second book of hers that I am reading in less than a year (2019). Lullabies for Little Criminals (LLC) was not as good as The Lonely Hearts Hotel though, to be fair, that would be asking O’Neill to repeat perfection twice. It just lacked a bit of the literal magic of Lonely Hearts. Instead of magic tricks, Baby has the whimsicalness of a child, a constant positive outlook towards the world. However, carelessness, like an old coin, gets duller with every page for the reader as we are faced with a character that seems more naïve than happy. The Cemetery of Forgotten Books #2 The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón 4/5 French: Le jeu de l’ange *Original language: Spanish. Read in the English translation by Lucia Graves. Summary In an abandoned mansion at the heart of Barcelona, a young man, David Martin, makes his living by writing sensationalist novels under a pseudonym. The survivor of a troubled childhood, he has taken refuge in the world of books and spends his nights spinning baroque tales about the city’s underworld. But perhaps his dark imaginings are not as strange as they seem, for in a locked room deep within the house lie photographs and letters hinting at the mysterious death of the previous owner. My thoughts Zafón is an author that I trust. I trust that he will write good stories with a captivating intrigue. I trust that he will build universes that transport me to gothic Barcelona. However, this was my least favourite novel of his that I have read thus far. First, one must say that while The Angel’s Game (TAG) is technically stated as the sequel for The Shadow of the Wind (TSotW)when it is more like a spin-off hence why I am reviewing it right now instead of as part of a bigger series review. The stories are based in the same universe, have some overlapping characters, but completely differ in plot lines. You do not need to read them in order either. As a result, nothing I will tell you today is a spoiler for TSotW. *This article is dedicated to LX, VV, EK, SB, CMD and Piccolo Grande.
Thank you to EK for helping me make this list! Moving out is hard. This may be obvious to some of you, but it was not for me. I had always imagined living away from home as this great, big, fantastic adult moment where I was now free to do everything I ever wanted. Moving away to another town where nobody (or almost nobody) knew me, was even more attractive. Oh, how wrong I was. As some of you might know, I moved over the summer to Ottawa, Canada’s capital (no, it’s not Toronto) for work. For the curiouser of you, I was a Parliamentary Tour Guide in, you guessed it, the Parliament buildings! Now, do not get me wrong. Being a tour guide was great. I got to make friends from all across the country, gain more independence and learn new skills. However, there are some things I wish I’d known before moving. For now, I am back home in Montreal. As I prepare for my move to Paris in winter, I want to make sure I write these tips down, mostly for me to remember, but also for those of you who might be going on exchange or moving for a job. Hopefully, these are helpful to you, and if you have any tips to add, comment them! The tradition is back! I will keep doing this every year so I hope you enjoy these. Anyways, the title is relatively self-explanatory so here are all the classics I’ve read over the summer with condensed reviews. P.s.: As I said last year, my definition of “classics” is pretty loose. I tend to include every book that has been part of the literary canon for around thirty years. Debatable? Yes, but I do my best here. P.s.s. This review will be bilingual depending on the language I felt like writing in. The Art of War by Sun Tzu 3/5 *Read the translation by Thomas Cleary from the original Chinese Français: L’art de la guerre Summary Twenty-Five Hundred years ago, Sun Tzu wrote this classic book of military strategy based on Chinese warfare and military thought. Since that time, all levels of military have used the teaching on Sun Tzu to warfare and civilization have adapted these teachings for use in politics, business and everyday life. The Art of War is a book which should be used to gain an advantage against opponents in the boardroom and battlefield alike. My thoughts I still have not yet found a way to write about non-fiction concretely. In this case, I find it especially hard as I know nothing of military strategy and, therefore, am severely unqualified to testify on the accuracy or the relevance of Sun Tzu's proposed plans. While some elements make seem to make common sense, I simply do not have the knowledge or the experience to grasp others. The general public was, after all, definitely not the target audience for this treaty. Nonetheless, Sun Tzu’s The Art of War is a classic that deserves to be read, especially for political fiends. The advice he gives might be strange as he does not advocate for war. Sun Tzu sounds anti-war at some point, saying that it should not be the first course of action, but that one must be prepared if it comes to it. He does not glorify war nor the soldiers that fight. Even if you are not a fan of military history, it is a short read and does have some morals that you can apply to your daily life. It has also had an incredible impact on the world as the tactics and principles in the book inspired generations of military leaders in both the East and the West. For this reason alone, it deserves to be read. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood 4.25/5 Awards: Booker Prize Nominee (1996), Scotiabank Giller Prize (1996), James Tiptree Jr. Award Nominee for Longlist (1996), Governor General’s Literary Awards / Prix littéraires du Gouverneur general Nominee for Fiction (1996), Orange Prize Nominee for Fiction Shortlist (1997), Premio Mondello (1997), Salon Magazine Best Fiction of the Year (1997), International DUBLIN Literary Award Nominee for Shortlist (1998) Français: Captive Summary It's 1843, and Grace Marks has been convicted for her involvement in the vicious murders of her employer and his housekeeper and mistress. Some believe Grace is innocent; others think her evil or insane. Now serving a life sentence, Grace claims to have no memory of the murders. An up-and-coming expert in the burgeoning field of mental illness is engaged by a group of reformers and spiritualists who seek a pardon for Grace. He listens to her story while bringing her closer and closer to the day she cannot remember. What will he find in attempting to unlock her memories? My thoughts Alias Grace was my first Atwood book, but she has been involved in my life for much longer. My mother had read every single novel or short story that this woman has written and because of that, I never picked one up. Do you know how children don't want to do the same things as their parents? Well, I didn't want to be like my mother and read those stories with boring looking covers. However, when The Handmaid’s Tale(THT) became an HBO show and suddenly Atwood who was already writer royalty became Hollywood famous, I knew I had to hop on the bandwagon. Now that it wasn’t just my mom reading her books, Atwood was cool! Ohh, the shallowness of popular culture. I searched my mom’s library up and down to find THT, but I never did and so I had to settle with her second most famous book, Alias Gracewhich was fine because Netflix now had a mini-series based on it. (Yes, I do realize how millennial that sounds. Yes, I am slightly ashamed.) The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O’Neill 4/5 Français: Hôtel Lonely Hearts OU Les enfants de cœur. Pourquoi deux titres pour le même livre en français? Excellente question à laquelle je ne peux répondre… Awards: Women’s Prize for Fiction Nominee for Longlist (2017), Reading Women Award Nominee for Fiction (2017) *Trigger warning for rape, child abuse, violence, incest, sex and much more. This is definitely not PG and I would only recommend it to 16+. Synopsis Two babies are abandoned in a Montreal orphanage in the winter of 1910. Before long, their talents emerge: Pierrot is a piano prodigy; Rose lights up even the dreariest room with her dancing and comedy. As they travel around the city performing clown routines, the children fall in love with each other and dream up a plan for the most extraordinary and seductive circus show the world has ever seen. My thoughts This is one of those books where I had to cut down the summary in half. On top of spoiling half of the book, The Lonely Hearts Hotelis one of those stories that does not require a lot of context. You should dive in with little idea of what it is going to be about and let yourself be surprised by the whimsically tragic storyline. The Lonely Hearts Hotel is a magic show and, believe me, you do not want to know the trick in advance. |
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