Stephen King for Teenagers!

I read the guardian quite a lot for it's news and reviews on books. I highly recommend it for book fans as there are often interesting articles. I usually come across one or two that I mean to post about and I somehow always forget. Not this time. I think most Stephen King fans are aware that the author is often slated by many for writing genre, selling millions and having over 30 books to his name. He isn't taken seriously in literature circles. I could go on a whole rant about that but I won't. All I will say that because of this it was refreshing to see someone writing a positive article about him but also recommending him (you can read the article here). I think I have read just about every King book and almost all of them as a teenager. I was 13 when I picked up "It" and I have fond memories of reading it although not quite in the same way as the journalist.

My first attempt at reading the book failed because it scared the hell out of me. I picked it up because I had seen the tv adaptation and since someone I very much liked was in it (Jonathan Brandis) I had to read the book. Sadly I got half way through and after a week of sleepless nights I gave up. Such a shame since I begged my parents for the book for my birthday. It didn't help that my fearless younger sister would cackle saying she saw the clown staring in our bedroom window. I was old enough to know it wasn't true and to scoff at her but it didn't stop me from sleeping with the light on that night (if I had saw Friends round about then the book would most definitely have gone in the freezer). Six months later I tried again and succeeded. I was so proud of myself and I actually enjoyed it. It then got passed on to my mum and King became another author for us to share.

The result was many visits to the library to read the rest of the books. My mum would always read them after me and she then got my aunt to read them. For birthdays and Christmas I would usually get another King book. Pocket money was spent on them too until I amassed quite a collection which got passed round my family too. Unlike the journalist reading them didn't turn my home area into Derry in my mind (thankfully, I'm not sure I could have taken it) but I discovered that I was brave enough to read horror (although not brave enough to watch it). For a change I was recommending books to my mum and aunt which also felt good.

I then happily discovered that one of my friends was a huge fan too. We spent a lot of time talking about them. Our favourite thing to do was to list the books which crossed with each other. This habit of Kings always gave his books an extra edge of creepiness in my mind but I loved it too. I am sure we missed out on quite a few. I tried to re-read them all again years later and note done the crossovers but never finished the project.

I think that as a teenager they kept my mind opened. I was reading classics too. In fact I was reading just about anything I could get my hands on back then. If it was placed in front of my and I was told it was good I would read it. I only really came across book snobbery when I started working with them. I have even been accused of it myself because there are some authors and genres I just don't like. Most book snobs I know though wouldn't touch King or any genre. To me they are missing out as thanks to my teenage reading habits I discovered an author who might be popular but to me he did have merit. I thank king for teaching me not to dismiss someone based on where their books sit on a shelf or how many they have written.

So yes, I would recommend his books to teens. Just so long as they won't scare them to death.

Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut (or more evidence of my poor memory)

The narrator of the book is preparing to write about his experiences in Dresden during WWII. He even goes as far as contacting an old army buddy but still doesn't bring himself to write it. He then visits Dresden again with his friend and he decides to write a story. Billy Pilgrim was also in Dresden. He's a time shifter. He can't control it but shifts through time to see different aspects of his life. He knows how he will die, what his children will become and he sees the plane crash that only he survives. However, it's thanks to the Tralfamadorians (aliens who kidnap him) that he learns to accept it. They can see in the fourth dimension so also know what will happen. It can't be changed so they focus on the good things and close their eyes to the bad.

I read this the first time about seven years ago. I didn't enjoy it although I didn't hate it either. I didn't understand what everyone seemed to love about it. A few days ago I read an article about the book in the guardian. It mentioned that a school in the US had banned it for it's language. I honestly couldn't remember there being much bad language. I thought if it had been so bad then surely I would have remembered it more clearly. That's the only thing I was right about (there is bad language in the book but it's fairly mild compared to a lot of other books). I read this book and it was honestly like I was reading it for the first time. I remember absolutely nothing! A good thing possibly as I absolutely loved it this time round.

Billy Pilgrim seems like such a pitiful character and yet I liked him. He's a harmless man who is just trying to get through life. He knows what will happen to him and is happy to accept that. Or maybe not happy but not completely unhappy either. He is accepting of what will happen. His time shifting is unpredictable apart from his time in Dresden. His other parts of his life are viewed forwards and backwards but Dresden is viewed in a continuous line putting it more in focus than the others which is the point I think.

I think the time shifting and being taught to accept the inevitable gives the book a hint of sadness. The character Billy and events during WWII also do that but I think his acceptance thanks to moving through time emphasises the sadness.

I am glad that I read this again. I must have been asleep when I read it the first time. It's the only explanation for being unable to remember a word of it. It's now a firm favourite and I look forward to reading more Vonnegut in the future.

Booking Through Thursday - Excited about books

Booking Through Thursday is a book meme with a weekly question.

What’s the last book you were really EXCITED to read?

And, were you excited about it in advance? Or did the excitement bloom while you were reading it?

Are there any books you’re excited about right NOW?

There are probably a number of books I've been excited about reading but there is nothing quite like the anticipation of a book you are eagerly awaiting to be released. Sure it's frustrating but once you have that book in your hands all that waiting seems worth while.

I had that with "One of Our Thursdays are Missing" by Jasper Fforde which came out earlier in the year. He's one of those authors I always look forward to even though I was less excited about the Thursday Next series than I had been. The good thing about this book was that it was better than I was expecting it to be. So all that waiting was worth it. I am now eagerly waiting the next one.

How many times have I mentioned 1Q84 by Murakami? Does anyone not know I am looking forward to that one? I also recently found out that Douglas Coupland is soon to have another book published. That's another to add to my list.

Mary Tudor - Anna Whitelock

Mary Tudor was the daughter of Henry VIII and his first wife Kathryn of Aragon. At first she was the doted daughter of Henry the next she was made illegitimate. Mary spent her life trying to clear her name and her mothers and to take her rightful place as Henry's only legitimate child. In 1553 she finally succeeds in claiming the throw as her own to become England's first Queen.

I think Mary is more well known for being the Catholic Queen. The Queen who tried to once again turn England back to Catholicism and earned the nickname Bloody Mary in the process. Actually I knew very little about her. What I did know was mainly from reading about Henry and his wives. Even then I felt a little sorry for her. How could you not? She spends her child hood being pawned off on various planned marriages only to be then told she is no longer the legitimate daughter of her beloved father. She's sent away and is forbidden to see her mother who then dies. She then has to watch her father marry again and again. When she finally feels accepted (and her hand in marriage still up for grabs) her father dies and her brother forbids her from practicing her religion. I am only surprised she didn't become more unhinged than she did.

Needless to say I learned a lot about Mary from this book and it certainly portrays her in a more sympathetic light. When she does take the throne she still doesn't have an easy time of it. My only complaint is that it didn't quite tell me enough. Her early life is glossed over a little. There were so many chapters where Mary was lucky if she was mentioned. Instead the focus was on Henry and his wives. Understandable since it had such a huge impact on Mary but it would have been nice to learn more about what her life was like estranged from her family.

There was a lot of build up to Mary gaining the throne. She was in fear for her life and then she builds up support to take her rightful place. The taking of the crown was cover in only a few pages and yet it was one of the most important things she did. It was a little disappointing.

These are the only two faults I found with the book. It was easy to read. I think anyone with little or no knowledge of history could easily pick it up and enjoy it. I would happily read another book on Mary though as I feel that there was a lot left out. It's also piqued my interest in Elizabeth whose way was paved thanks to Mary. Elizabeth's life wasn't any easier and yet she became the more successful monarch. It would be interesting to compare them.

What's Next!

Since I don't take part in quite as many memes as I did before I thought I would start something new. I have decided that once a week I would highlight some books that I'm looking forward to that are about to be released in the future. Even though I am trying to be good and I probably won't buy any of them until they are in their paperback editions I always like to see what's coming out.

1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. Published 18.10.11.

I have mentioned it more than once but Murakami is one of my favourite authors. Sadly I have read all of his books and I now have to wait with baited bread for each new one. I have been waiting on this one for what feels like years. I doubt I will have the

patience to wait for the paperback. Besides I

am sure there will be a lovely hardback edition. IQ84 is a play on George Orwells 1984 and I am sure this falls under another category that I love - dystopian.

Manhattan In Reverse by Peter F. Hamilton. Published 7.10.11

Peter F. Hamilton is another favourite author although he now has a fair few books I haven't read (at one time I had caught up with him). I really have to be in the mood for science fiction these days. Despite that I am looking forward to this one. It's a collection of short stories. Something I think Hamilton does well. These are crime stories based mainly in Hamilton's Commonwealth universe. They go as far back as an alternative 1800's.

Kill Me If You Can by Marshall Karp. Published 10.11.11

This book really has James Patterson as the main author but since he doesn't actually write any of his books I refuse to highlight him. It's also one of the reasons I am unlikely to read him (although you have to admire that he admits to what he does). In this case though it's Marshall Karp that caught my eye. I have read one of his books before and it's one of my favourite crime books. If you haven't read it already I highly recommend "The Rabbit Factory". It's a good read and is actually quite funny. Anyways, this one is about an art student who just happens to come across some diamonds and is now being hunted.

Are there any new releases you are looking forward to?

The Hidden Child - Camilla Lackberg

Erica is a crime writer working from home. Her husband Patrik is a detective currently on paternity leave. They are still trying to find a balance to their lives when Erica discovers an old Nazi medal among her mothers things. Wanting to know why her mother would have such a thing she takes it to a specialist. A few months later she discovers that the specialist has been murdered. Somehow it's linked to her mother and three friends during the last year of the war. Erica and Patrik set out to investigate with the help of local police.

I have to admit that I wouldn't have picked this up if it wasn't for my book group. Having said that I was still looking forward to it only to be completely disappointed. First of all the language itself is irritating. I don't know if the translation has something to do with it but it was far too simple. It was as almost as if a child had written it because of it's lack of complex sentences.

Like a lot of books these days the reader is inundated by lots of different characters. The trouble is that each character gets to share their point of view and they only get a couple of pages at a time. It felt like that the characters were running into one another for the first half of the book. There was so little depth to them that they were interchangeable. There were characters in there who were getting story lines that had nothing to do with the plot of the book. For example, the police boss gets a dog, meets a new woman, learns Salsa, helps with a baby and is reminded constantly of his 17 year old son. The police boss does nothing for the plot other than to tell everyone to get back to work so all of this is completely unnecessary. This is time that would have been better spent say with Patrik who came across as a very weak character.

Despite all that I did get into the mystery of the book. The language became only a minor irritant by the half way point and the important characters did get more page time. Whilst I was able to predict the end result I still enjoyed that part of it. The idea behind the book was a good one. Although it did feel that the murderer was acting a little out of character when all was revealed (out of character in the fact that he tried to cover it up).

So yes I enjoyed in the end but all was ruined by the last few pages. All these funny coincidences that make all the characters happy grated on my nerves just a little. I don't think I will be reading more by this author. I was surprised when I saw that there were other books with these characters. Nothing could entice me to read more about them. I have to be honest that if it wasn't for my book group I would have given up on it long before the mystery dragged me in.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading!

It's another week of sharing what we've read. This a book meme by Sheila of Book Journey.

This week I read;
The Burning Wire by Jeffery Deaver (not my favourite Deaver book)

A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Marting (this was a re-read and I loved it even more the second time round).

Just now I am reading;
The Hidden Child by Camilla Lackberg (this is for my book group and I'm not impressed with it at all).

Mary Tudor by Anna Whitelock (this is for the books I should have read by now challenge. Picked it up early because I'm not enjoying my current book).

Next I plan on reading;
The Bachman Books by Stephen King (again for the books I should have read by now challenge. Been a while since I read any King so looking forward to this).

What have you been reading?