Introverted Reader

Welcome to Banned Books Week 2014

The last week in September is always dedicated to bringing awareness to banned or challenged books. The American Library Association explains the difference more succinctly than I can: A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. As such, they are a threat to freedom of speech and choice. So, is it okay for you to decide that you don't want to read a book that you find objectionable? Absolutely. Is it okay for you to decide that you don't want your child to read a book that you find objectionable? You betcha. (Although the allure of the forbidden may cause that route to backfire on you.) Is it okay for you to claim that a book is unfit for anyone to read and that it should be made unavailable to the public? No. Never. If I want to read something, that is my right. If you don't want to read something, that's your right. You don't tread on my space, I don't tread on yours. Easy enough, right? One would think. Books are challenged all the time. And not just classics like The Catcher in the Rye. Current books top the lists now. Here are the top five banned/challenged books of 2013, according to the ALA website: 1. Captain Underpants (series), by Dav Pilkey Reasons: Offensive language, unsuited for age group, violence 2. The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison Reasons: Offensive language, sexually explicit, unsuited to age group, violence 3. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman…

2 Comments

September 22, 2014

Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik: Book Review

Captain Will Laurence and his dragon, Temeraire--or is it the other way around?--are in something of a bind. Temeraire was meant to be a gift from the Chinese emperor to Emperor Napoleon. The Chinese people are not happy when they find out that Temeraire is a mere captain's pet and he's being used to wage war on France. To resolve the issue, Laurence, Temeraire, their flight crew and a diplomatic delegation are sent on a journey to China. This did feel a little like filler. But it was such fun filler that I didn't really mind. The pacing was just a little off. The whole point is supposed to be resolving this conflict, but most of the book is taken up with the journey. All of that was mostly pretty interesting, but the best part was the part that takes place in China--only the last third of the book. I would have preferred more of that. It was really cool to read about how the dragons and people interact in China. It's not like Britain, that's for sure. Novik came up with this whole different dragon culture that fit in with my vague ideas of Chinese culture. All those parts were really fun to read. Temeraire's special fighting ability continues to crack me up. It's not supposed to be funny, but I find the whole idea so ludicrous that it's funny to me. Don't ask me why I'm willing to believe that a dragon can fly around with a crew of something like 15-20 men running around on his back, but I draw the line at this. I just do. But I mostly accepted it and just read this for a good yarn. Laurence has finally learned to loosen up. He was such an uptight stick in the mud that…

The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan: Book Review

Now that the immediate danger to Camp Jupiter has been averted, Percy, Jason, and friends must set out to fulfill the Prophecy of Seven. Unfortunately, there was a...misunderstanding... in the camp and the friends must also dodge the Roman soldiers who are hunting for them. Gaea is coming more fully awake and her sons are posing an even bigger threat. The gods are losing their minds as they morph between their Greek and Roman counterparts. Athena charges Annabeth with following the Mark of Athena and returning something the original Romans stole thousands of years ago. In other words, this is just another adventure for a group of demigods. I just love this series. It's got a lot of humor, a lot of heart, great characters, a little romance now that they're all older, and nonstop action--anything a reader could ask for. I listen with a huge grin on my face. Joshua Swanson's narration is absolutely perfect. I can't imagine anyone else reading these now. (Although I seem to remember that someone else did narrate The House of Hades.) My one complaint is that seven demigods is almost too many to follow in one book. Don't get me wrong--I love them all and want to know what's going on with everyone. But as far as quality time? There wasn't much of it with anyone, especially the Romans. This one is told pretty much exclusively from the Greeks' point of view. Maybe it will even out with the Romans in the next one? I can't wait to see what the next installment brings, especially since this one ended on a bit of a cliffhanger. If you enjoy Rick Riordan's books, you won't be disappointed with this one. Listen to an excerpt. Find author Rick Riordan on his website, his blog, Twitter, and…

The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka: Book Review

Chronicling the lives of Japanese brides coming to America, Buddha in the Attic is deceptively slim. Almost every sentence begins a new story that is only hinted at, yet I saw at least the broad strokes of an entire life in just those few words. There is no main character and the book is told collectively. (NOT a direct quote) "We came from Japan. We left our remote farms. We left our lives in Tokyo. We left our fishing villages. We cried as we left our families. We left happily, vowing to never look back." Listening to this on audio, the style bothered me a bit at first. It's so freaking repetitive! I do not do well with anything repetitive. Once I did settle into the narrative, I saw the beauty of it. In about four hours, I was a part of the lives of what felt like hundreds of Japanese women, each with her own story. The book starts with the young women on the boat, uncertain of their futures and their husbands. They've never even met the men they're traveling halfway around the world to marry. Then there's early married life, children, life as an immigrant, and, in the early years of WWII, life as a "traitor." It was sometimes heart-breaking but always thought-provoking. Samantha Quan narrates beautifully. I've not been a big fan of Carrington MacDuffie's straightforward narration in the past but it worked very well for her small part in this book. I might have rated this higher in print, despite the excellent narration, simply because I could have skimmed over the seemingly endless, "We came from"s and "We gave birth in"s. In whatever format you choose, this is an excellent little book and I do recommend it. Read or listen to an excerpt. Find author…

Bookish Miscellany

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Posted: Review: Season of the Dragonflies by Sarah Creech--2 Stars Review: Life After Life by Kate Atkinson--4 Stars Review: The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg--4 Stars Review: His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik--4 Stars Read: The Witches by Roald Dahl The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan, read by Joshua Swanson The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka, read by Samantha Quan and Carrington MacDuffie Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz Lonely Planet: Hawaii--OK, I didn't technically finish this but I did finish all the parts that applied to my trip. I'm counting it. Currently Reading: Blubber by Judy Blume Walden; or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau Up Next: I wrote last week that I was going to focus primarily on my Hawaii book so I could get some planning done. That happened but in a more roundabout way than I expected. On Monday, I remembered that Banned Books Week is coming up soon so I ran out to the library and grabbed a stack of shorter (primarily children's) books and got started on my reading. I'll continue with that stack this week. I also need to look for another audiobook but I don't know when I'll get around to that. I have a lot on my plate at the moment. What are you reading this week? I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent bookstore located in beautiful downtown Asheville, NC; and Better World Books. I will receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase books through links on my site. My opinions are completely my own.

11 Comments

September 15, 2014

His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik: Book Review

His Majesty's Dragon begins when Captain Will Laurence's ship has just overpowered a French ship. Napoleon is slowly conquering Europe, so any defeat of the French, no matter how small, is a big deal. As Will's crew is inventorying the French ship's cargo, they find something unusual: a dragon egg. But complications arise when they find out that the egg will hatch in a week and they're about three weeks from shore. Dragons have been tamed in this alternate world and they're used to wreak devastation on the enemy. But they must imprint on their rider within the first few minutes of hatching if they're to be put to harness. That means someone from the ship's crew must step forward and be willing to sacrifice his naval career for the good of England. What a hugely fun fantasy/adventure! There's honestly no ground-breaking literature here, but if you want a good, swashbuckling adventure tale, this is it. I loved the dragon, Temeraire. He was by far the best character overall. It was fun to watch Will grow from being this stick in the mud British sea captain to finally loosening up some and having fun. Somewhat related to that, I loved the very proper British English present throughout the book. I have no idea how accurate is, except that the author is American which probably means it isn't, but sentences like, "Celeritas tells me to ask you to show me about; will you be so good?" just tickled me for some reason. I could just hear the very plummy uppercrust British guys talking. I don't really read military books, and this did sort of cross over to that genre. But the battle scenes were well-written and exciting. I didn't have any problem following what was going on. I did have a…

The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg: Book Review

Ceony Twill has put herself through magic school in only a year when most people take two. She's a smart girl and she's hoping that her magic will be based on metal. She wants to design weapons and machines and things that matter. Instead, she gets paper. Boring old, get-it-wet-and-it-falls-apart paper. She's crushed. She hopes there's been a mistake. But the powers-that-be say that a balance must be kept so they assign a certain number of students to paper because, let's face it, no one is volunteering for it. Ceony resignedly sets out for her apprenticeship with Magician Emery Thane. Once she gets there, she settles in well enough. Thane is a kind teacher and a talented magician. So when his ex-wife shows up and literally steals the beating heart from his chest, Ceony decides she has to save him. She sets out with her few learned paper magic skills to face the ex-wife, an Excisioner whose magic is based on manipulating flesh. This sounded promising but it also sounded like it could go very wrong. One of my friends loaned it to me, saying, "You'll love it, I promise." For two people who are confirmed bibliophiles, our tastes don't overlap very much so I was still a tad worried. I should have had more faith. I enjoyed this immensely. I was a little unsure of Ceony at first. She seemed to think that she was just too good to be a paper magician. But honestly, I would feel the same way. What can you do with paper? Fold it into an airplane and hope to poke someone in the eye? It turns out there's much more to humble paper than I thought. Once Ceony settled in and set out on her quest, she slowly grew on me and I…

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson: Book Review

Ursula Todd is born on a cold winter's night in England in 1910...over and over again. Sometimes she is stillborn, other times she makes it through, only to die later and start over at the same place. Each time, something is a little different and her life takes drastically diverging paths as a result. Someone asked me what this is about and it's almost impossible to explain. "Reincarnation but...not. She lives the same life over and over but...not really." What matters is watching how minute differences in Ursula's life change her story completely. That was what I really enjoyed. I liked the whole concept of playing with a character's life like that just to see what happens. There were lives that I hated and lives that I loved. Some were depressing, some were horrific, some were odd, but they were almost all interesting. Some got a little crazy. The prelude shows us Ursula, a pretty English girl, setting out to assassinate--a Nazi official (I'm pretty sure it's not spelled out at that point). Where the heck did that come from? Once I got to that life, it did make sense but still--wow. There were a couple of drawbacks though. The book got repetitive. I don't think there was any possible way to avoid that in this kind of story but there you go. I think the author did the best anyone could have but I was still heartily sick of that snowy winter night that Ursula was born. Also, I started having trouble remembering what had happened in each life by the end. "Is this the one where this happened or was it that?" I can't say that I was always entirely sure. The characters weren't a huge draw for me but this is one instance where the story itself…

Season of the Dragonflies by Sarah Creech: Book Review

The Lenore women grow a rare flower that is the secret ingredient in their powerful perfume. Each generation, only a few women are chosen to wear their coveted scent. These women inevitably rise to the top of their professions and become the envy of the world. But Willow, Mya, and Lucia Lenore, the current generation, aren't doing so well. Willow's not as sharp as she once was, Mya would do anything to run the company, and Lucia wants no part of it. They've made a mistake with one of their chosen few and there could be some dreadful consequences to pay. Eh. I really liked the premise of the book. A family of women, the Blue Ridge Mountains (my home), a touch of magic--what's not to love? These characters. Willow and Lucia were okay, but holy cow, I could not like Mya. Not one little bit. The point of view shifts between the three women so it's not like I could really ignore her. I felt like I was getting mixed signals about her. She's the one with the great nose, the talent for mixing perfumes, the magic touch to get it right, and the one that forest animals flock to. She's a regular Snow White. Until she mixes a terrible perfume for their problem child of a crossover pop queen/actress. The actress was being a witch, no doubt about it. But Mya gets way out of line with what she does. Willow was the aging matriarch and I was mostly okay with her. Except that she let Mya have a free rein. Lucia was almost forgettable. She was the broken hearted divorcee who comes back home to the Blue Ridge from New York with her tail between her legs. And that's about all the personality she had. Well, at…

Bookish Miscellany

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. I'm still here! It's been a ridiculously busy summer so I just haven't had time to blog. I have done a lot of reading though. Here's a little bit of what's been going on. Posted: Review: Testimony: The Legacy of Schindler's List and the USC Shoah Foundation--3.5 Stars Review: Jane by April Lindner--3 Stars Read: Season of the Dragonflies by Sarah Creech The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmbert Life After Life by Kate Atkinson In the Belly of the Bloodhound: Being an Account of a Particularly Peculiar Adventure in the Life of Jacky Faber by L. A. Meyer, read by Katherine Kellgren Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris Currently Reading: Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan Walden; of, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau Lonely Planet: Hawaii Up Next: Honestly, it's getting down to vacation crunch time and I haven't read as much of my guidebook as I'd like. I love guidebooks. I'm shifting my focus to that primarily, so I think it will be a while before I pick up anything new. Well, I am listening to audiobooks, so I might actually choose a new one soon. What are you reading this week? I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent bookstore located in beautiful downtown Asheville, NC; and Better World Books. I will receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase books through links on my site. My opinions are completely my own.

10 Comments

September 8, 2014