Book Four: The Tiger's Wife

“In my earliest memory, my grandfather is bald as a stone and he takes me to see the tigers.”

Rating: Tyler Hansbrough 

This is a hard book to rate, because although I thought it dragged at points, and although I was close to giving up on this book and not finishing it, I loved the ending. Obreht won me over by the end, and I'll walk away from this novel with mixed feelings, I think. It had all the pieces to be an amazing novel, a compelling story, a death, intensity, and character's who are unforgettable, but for some reason, it never connected for me. Natalia's story is cleverly woven in with the story of her grandfather's childhood and his interactions with the "deathless man" as an adult.

I'll have to say, it is masterfully written. The book seems much longer than the 340ish pages that it actually is, and although at points I didn't know if it was worth finishing, I'm glad that I stuck with the story. The interactions with the "deathless man" were my favorite parts of this novel, and I think that they're what really drew me into this story and made it impossible for me to leave. I know that these interactions weren't meant to be the part of the story on which you focused, the part that drew you in, but I loved him. Even as an adult, something about the magical idea of a man continually finding Natalia's grandfather at different junctures in his life, always at a time when he (the deathless man) should be dying, or at points where Natalia's grandfather himself is hugging the line between life and death was so appealing to me. That this man claims to have survived through a drowning, and multiple shootings (and as far as we can tell, he has), to tell the tale and to teach Natalia's grandfather a lesson about faith and about life. I was fascinated by the deathless man's character, and I could have read an entire book filled with his story.  

I wasn't nearly as taken with the episodes recounted from Natalia's grandfather's youth with the Tiger's Wife. The way that her story wove in to the episodes of the deathless man were masterful, and I truly felt for that woman, but it just didn't spark for me.

I think what I'll remember most when looking back on this novel is the deep achy sadness that settled in my chest when I was finished. I feel like I need to sit down with a friend, have a cup of tea (this book put me a bit off of coffee) and have a long talk about it. 

I don't think I'll ever read this all the way through again. It was an interesting story, but it was too long and too hard of a read for me to want to relive the entire experience. It's a rewarding read however, and it really sticks in your imagination. 

Book Three: The Sugar Queen

“She accepted it from then on. Books liked her. Books wanted to look after her.”

Rating: Bobby Frasor 

I told you guys in my last review that I'm a sucker for a sappy chick lit, which is why I read The Sugar Queen immediately after finishing The Girl Who Chased the Moon. I was hoping that it would be just as great as the first novel, but I was left disappointed by this one. I understand that some people really like magical realism, and I do, to a certain extent, but this book was just a little too much for me. I had a hard time buying in to everything that happens, and I think that's why it left me with a bit of a sour taste in my mouth.

 I didn't record any of my thoughts when I originally finished this (which was about a month ago) so I know this review is going to read a little vague. I think the ultimate problem was I disliked the main character, Josey Cirrini. She's so weak and so meek when the novel begins, and although the novel is about her stepping out of her shell and breaking free from that weakness, the idea of a grown woman being so cowed by her elderly mother that she has to eat sweets in secret in her closet was off putting to me. I felt sorry for her, and I wanted her to have a happy ending, but I just couldn't get behind her character. 

I also had problems with the friend that Josey finds as the novel progresses. Josey slowly befriends Chloe Finley, a woman close to her age, who runs a sandwich shop and has just ended a relationship with her boyfriend who cheated on her. Chloe is followed by books. They show up wherever she is and they are books that are relevant to things she needs. For example after breaking up with her boyfriend, a book titled Finding Forgiveness begins to follow her around her shop and apartment. Although I was wicked jealous of the fact that all of these books show up for Chloe to read, I thought that they send kind of the wrong message. Finding Forgiveness and other similarly titled books begin to follow Chloe immediately after breaking up with her boyfriend. This would be cute, but since he cheated on her I feel that she deserves to be angry and she deserves to think about leaving him permanently, but I think the books seem to push the message that cheating is acceptable and she should get over it and get back with Jake. It does take them the length of the novel to reconcile, but the message from the books consistently bothered me.

I liked this novel, it was a fun read for the summer, but I won't pick it up again, and I'll be left with the thought that it could have been so much better.

Book Two: The Girl Who Chased the Moon

“It took me a long time to realize this: We get to choose what defines us.”

Rating: Tyler Zeller 

 

I need to get something off my chest. I'm a complete sucker for  lighthearted chick lit. I know, I know, it's as embarrassing for me to admit as it is for you guys to read it. I usually only indulge in this type of sappy, mindless read during the summer, and The Girl Who Chased the Moon was a perfect self-indulgent choice. The book is set in a fictional North Carolina town, where most of the residents are a little extraordinary. But, Allen's writing style reminds me of real life North Carolina, and she manages to capture the essence of the South beautifully in her novels.

Allen writes about love in a way that makes you believe that one day your prince will come. There's not a whole lot of plot to this novel, but there's enough mystery to keep you reading, and enough sap and cheese to keep me coming back for more. 

I've been asleep at the wheel.

I've been asleep at the wheel on this blog, but here's my game plan. I'm going to try to catch up on the reviews I've read since my last post while working in posts about what I'm reading/finishing now. I'm hoping that I can catch up in the next few weeks, and then I'll just be able to move forward with my new bookish adventures.

-Meg