Heat Rises

by Richard Castle

I was dubious about these books to begin with. I thought it was brilliant that someone had actually come up with the idea of writing, publishing, and selling the book that Nathan Fillion's character, Castle, was writing during the first season of the show, but I didn't think I actually wanted to read the book.

I was wrong. Clearly, since I've now read three of them. The only reason I waited so long to read this one (I bought it as soon as it came out) was because I like to save these books for the middle of the summer, half-way between seasons of the show when my Castle withdrawal is at its peak. This helps hold me over until the next season. Although I enjoyed the first two books, I thought they'd be the type I'd read once and then give away. Yeah, ... that's not gonna happen.

This book pulled me in much the same way the show has. I started because it was light and fun, not planning on getting emotionally invested in any of the characters. The first two books were pretty typical murder mysteries (which, by the way, I never read, so extra props to them for getting me to read a genre I don't normally like). This one has managed to strike a deeper emotional core. For those of you watching the show, this book incorporates the murder of Captain Montgomery into the world of the books, making sure that, as far as characters go, the show and the books remain on the same page (no pun intended). Not only am I sad that I finished the book (I think my Castle withdrawal might actually be worse now) but I'm not sure I can wait until next summer before reading the next one. I have to find out what comes next.

I think my only quibble with the books is Rook's tendency to blurt out fantastic theories based on his imagination rather than fact. It makes sense that Castle does this - he is a mystery writer after all - but Rook is a journalist and, as a journalist, he would know to look for facts first. However, Castle's exciting, off-the-wall theories are part of what make him so endearing and a part of why we all love him and show, so I'm willing to let that one go.

I do have to mention a moment I loved more than any other. The moment when the agent tells Rook he looks like "that space captain" and Rook says "Malcolm Reynolds?" It made my night. I am so glad that, not only the writers of the show, but also the book's ghost writer appreciate the number of Firefly fans watching the show and reading the books and give us little shout-outs like that. We appreciate it.

Cutting For Stone

by Abraham Verghese

I was a little wary of reading this book. I had heard really good things about it but it looked pretty rough, so I hesitated.

I loved it. Parts of it are pretty rough, but it's still a really good book. It's beautifully written and I adore Verghese's command of the English language. It's written in first person which, normally, is not my favorite. I find that point of view to be very limiting and, normally, it shows. In this case, the narrator felt free to talk about things that happened when he either wasn't present or was unconscious. And it worked. I would have expected this to drive me crazy, but it really didn't. I'm not sure what sort of magic Verghese worked to make that happen but extra props to him!

The story is about a lot of things. I think that, at it's heart, it's about the relationships between people and the things that can drive them apart and the things that keep them together. My favorite thing here is that place really isn't an issue. We meet characters of all races and nationalities who fall in love, who form friendships, who form the tightest of bonds. I love that. It also awakened the traveler in me as the main character marvels at the differences between different places. Time to start saving up for my next trip!

Habibi

by Craig Thompson

Oh, my god, I LOVED this book! It has some rough spots (like, 99% of the book) but it has a happy ending and it is beautifully drawn. I am absolutely blown away by Thompson's artistic ability and the amount of detail that goes into each and every page. In this book in particular he uses the Arabic alphabet and art as influences and incorporates them into his drawings and the effect is just lovely.

I also admire the number of times he's able to draw naked women without making me feel like he's a pervert. There are a LOT of naked women in this book but it's almost always presented in a very matter-of-fact way. Such as in the harem when there's no one around except other women and eunuchs so they feel perfectly comfortable just lying around partially or completely naked. When the nudity is not presented in a matter-of-fact way it's there to make a very specific point and it does so effectively.

The story takes place over 15 years. Maybe more because we're never really told how much time the last few chapters cover. It's about a young girl and a young boy and how they grow up together, get separated, and find each other again as adults. It's also about slavery, race relations, sex, and religion. The two main characters are Muslim but Thompson makes a point of showing the differences and similarities between the Muslim version and the Christian version. Personally, I love that because, particularly at this time in our country's history, I love someone showing the things that make us similar rather than the things that make us different. Thompson both embraces Islam as an off-shoot of Christianity while simultaneously displaying the beliefs and practices which make it unique.

Definitely Dead

by Charlaine Harris

So after reading a George Eliot and feeling all smart and sophisticated and stuff I thought my brain deserved a vacation. So I read another Sookie book. I still love them. In general, I'm not a fan of the first person narrative. As a writer I find it too limiting and there are times when, as a reader, I find those limitations in books to be frustrating. However, I think Harris uses it pretty effectively. There's never a moment when I wish I could have seen something that happened off-screen or from another character's point of view - mostly because of Sookie's telepathic ability. Despite all of her whining about it she's always willing to use it when it comes in handy. I particularly enjoy Harris' use of first person narration in creating the tone for the books. It feels very conversational and, I might be in the minority here but, I like that.

A heads-up to those of you reading the series who haven't gotten this far yet: there's a short story called "One Word Answer" that Harris wrote about Sookie and the events in that story are relevant to what happens in this book. Harris is pretty good at recapping so I wouldn't say you have to read the short story before reading this book, but I would highly recommend it. Also Bubba reappears in the short story and who doesn't love Bubba?

Overall, I liked this book for the same reason I like all the other Sookie books. It's light and fun and easy to breeze through in a week. It's full of action and suspense (both things Harris does well) and we get a new love interest for Sookie. Personally, he's my favorite so far. I hope he sticks around for awhile. We also get a closer look at the politics of the supernatural underworld which is both fascinating and terrifying (terrifying for Sookie, fascinating for us since we're safely on the other side of the page). And we get still more of Sookie's past, which helps us to know more about her and helps her to look at a relationship in a very different way - actually two relationships but I don't want to spoil anything for people not watching the show.

Adam Bede

by George Eliot

I love George Eliot so much. Jane Austen has been my favorite author since childhood but Eliot has been giving her a run for her money for the past few years. Austen is still in the lead but not by much.

The reasons I love Eliot are because I love her characters, her dialogue, and her narrative voice, particularly her free indirect discourse. These are all things I also love about Austen but Eliot does them in slightly different ways and I can't even really put my finger on what, exactly, makes them different. Suffice to say that Eliot has her own voice and I love her for it. I particularly love the way she steps back every now and then and addresses the reader directly. It doesn't add to the story but it gives a feeling that there's a conversation going on between the reader and the author (remember, this was the day before every writer had a Twitter account). I loved this, if only because nobody does it anymore and I found it such a refreshing change of pace from what I've been reading lately (if I submitted a manuscript to an editor today that contained any passages like that, they would make me get rid of it so fast it would make my head spin).

I particularly appreciated Eliot's use of free indirect discourse to give us a look at a character suffering some serious cognitive dissonance. I loved it because this is a thing we all experience, to some extent, on a daily basis, even if we're not consciously aware of it. Giving us an inside look at this mental process makes it easy to understand the excuses the poor guy keeps making for his actions (think "I'll go on a diet tomorrow") but, at the same time, we can't feel too sorry for him when it all goes horribly wrong. He knew from the beginning that it couldn't end well and, just because we got to see that he struggled with the issue, doesn't absolve him of responsibility. I think the main lesson here is that it's not the thought that counts. Despite his actions, Arthur really did have the best intentions - but good intentions aren't enough to salvage the tragic consequences of his selfish actions and that's a lesson he has to learn the hard way.

Your Sense of Adventure

So Writer's Digest had an interesting writing prompt awhile back but I never got a chance to do anything with it until about an hour ago. When I was finished, I was pretty happy with what I had, but it's about 100 words too long to be submitted and it's probably too late to submit it now anyway. But I couldn't stand the thought of just letting it sit there on my hard drive. Then I thought "Hey, wait a minute! I have a blog! What else is a blog for if not posting stuff that I'm proud of that no one else cares about?" So, here it is, my vignette:

Your Sense of Adventure

A friend rings your doorbell way too early in the morning to be ringing doorbells. You answer the door in your PJs, and the friend says, “Pack a bag quickly. I have to get out of here now and need you to come with me.” You are intrigued.

            Instantly awake, you say, “Okay. Give me a minute.”

Obviously it takes you more than a minute. Your friend waits at your bedroom door, impatiently tapping her toe and constantly checking the door and the windows as you hastily throw anything and everything you might need into an overnight bag.

“Ready?” She asks as soon as you zip up the bag.

“Ready. Where are we going?”

            “West. As far away from here as we can get and as fast as we can get there.”

            You think fleetingly of the school, your students. You’ll miss them. But will they miss you? After all, they’re only third-graders. Once the school realizes you’re not coming in, the class will be assigned a substitute teacher. Some poor substitute who will now have a permanent, full-time job. You silently wish the unknown teacher all the best as you gladly throw away your job, your career, everything you have, and head to the garage with your friend on your heels.

            The Honda does not exactly have a reputation for making a great get-away vehicle, but it’ll have to do. As your friend heads towards the car you turn and start to lock the door behind you before asking yourself “Why bother?” You can’t come back. Whatever your friend is running from, it’s dangerous and, if it’s got her this freaked, she can’t ever return. You deciding to join her means you can’t ever return. With a shrug, you turn from your unlocked door and hop in the driver’s seat, your stomach doing massive back-flips as you turn the key in the ignition.

            Tires screech against pavement as you back out of your garage and head down the driveway, away from your beautiful townhouse.

            Behind you, the sun is rising. You feel as if you are running away from it. This feeling is enhanced by the way your friend continues to glance over her shoulder. Every car you encounter on the road makes her flinch.

            You get on the nearest ramp to get on the high way and continue heading west. The sun is already fully risen and well on its way upward by the time your friend starts giving you directions. You have no plan so, if she has one, you might as well follow it – this being her escape and all.

            By the time she tells you to get off the highway you realize you recognize this place. You’ve been here before. Frantically, you search your memory but your mind and body are still too full of the excitement of the moment to try and worry about the past.

            Then, as she instructs you to turn left onto a dirt road, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, you remember the last time you were here. You start to slow down as you wonder just what, exactly, is going on here?

            “Sheila? When have you ever been here?”

            Sheila turns to you with a sheepish grin as she admits that the game is up.

            You reach the old, familiar cabin, with that familiar figure standing on the front porch, holding his mug of coffee. You slam on the brakes and stop in the middle of the road.

            “I’m sorry, but you never would have agreed to do this, so I had to, well, appeal to your sense of adventure.”

            “Oh, you are so dead.”

Haha! And You Thought We Were Done With Harry Potter

Sorry but, apparently, J.K. Rowling just couldn't stop writing about Harry and the world of wizards. After having finished the seventh Harry Potter book and sending it off to all the printing houses, eagerly awaiting their chance to make millions and millions of copies, she appeared to have gotten Harry Potter withdrawal because she went on to write The Tales of Beedle the Bard as well as two Hogwarts schoolbooks. Honestly, I'm surprised that's all she wrote because, judging by the number of times she references them in her other books, it sounds like she could have easily written A History of Magic and Hogwarts, A History. As it is, I will use this final Harry Potter post to discuss the remaining three books, due to the fact that they are all so short.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard
I give you fair warning: for each and every one of these books I have to discuss how impressed I am by the extent to which Rowling has built her own world. That goes for the book of fairy tales as well, of course, starting with the fact that Harry and Hermione had never heard any of these tales and Ron had never heard of Cinderella. I deeply appreciate the fact that the fairy tales bear some definite similarities to our Muggle fairy tales while retaining the obvious differences. I am also in awe of the fact that Dumbledore (in his notes on the book) mentioned some of the different versions that certain fairy tales had gone through. I love this particularly because it is so true of stories which are so old that nobody can remember where they came from or how the original went. Of course, there's also the anti-Muggle factor infused into some of these stories and that, too, is typical of any stories which have lasted a considerable amount of time. Just as we have had certain books banned over the centuries, so certain wizards decided to modify stories with a moral which doesn't appeal to them in order to preach a moral more to their liking (which, I guess, defeats the purpose of the original story). I was also grateful to finally get a distinction between "wizard" and "warlock". I had been wondering about that.

Quidditch Through the Ages
Here I give Rowling enormous credit, not only for inventing an exciting and entirely original game played exclusively on broomsticks, but also for: inventing a history of the game, including a reason for the invention of the Snitch; numerous other games played on broomsticks several centuries ago, before Quidditch gained popularity; and the invention and progression of the flying broomstick. While a broomstick was supposedly chosen as a flying vessel because it was such an inconspicuous object (easily hidden or explained in a wizard's or witch's home in the days of witch hunts) I don't see how it's any less conspicuous than any piece of furniture, such as the flying carpets that the witches and wizards of the east are more fond of. However, things like that often have an arbitrary beginning and then, after centuries of doing it a certain way, it comes to appear to be the most natural solution, so I'm okay with it. 

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
I love everything about this book from the fact that she came up with, not only 75 different creatures, but also, in some instances, variations within those species. Dragons alone come in 10 different varieties and Rowling took the time to invent and describe them all. I especially appreciate the explanations provided in this book as to why Muggles are unaware of these creatures. Obviously things like dragons and unicorns maintain a presence in our folklore, but have you ever wondered why your garden isn't infested with gnomes that you need to spin around until dizzy and then throw as far away from your house as possible? I did, and this book gives a believable (as believable as a book about wizards can be) explanation for it. My favorite part of this book was the doodlings and sarcastic notes left by Harry and friends. They only help to further cement their personalities, which Rowling expertly manages to showcase, even in such a confined outlet.

And there you have it: an expertly well-crafted story, full of vivid characters that we both love and love to hate, set in an incredibly well-built world which is simultaneously fantastical and based in reality.