BOOK: A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

50_books top 20 list self challenge Completed

I may have been hasty is creating my top ten reads of the year on December 15th. Who would have thought I would have a contender in the last sixteen two days of the year? The readers of the 50_book challenge at livejournal I guess, as they voted A Prayer for Owen Meany as the 15th best book of all time. One of my goals this year was to read all the twenty books (except Lord of the Rings). I had read six before this year, and thought it would be a long term goal to read the list, but as the year progressed, the remaining 13 seemed attainable.

Here's the list:

1. Harry Potter Series - J.K. Rowling 197

2. Pride & Prejudice - Jane Austen 133 read in 2006

3. Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien 125

4. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee 95 read in 1990s

5. The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger 77 read in 2006

6. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte 76

7. The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky 64

8. Lolita - Vladimir Nabakov 58

9. 1984 - George Orwell 52 read in 1990s

10. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde 50

11. Wuthering Heights - Emile Bronte 47 read in grade 12

12. Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card 46

13. His Dark Materials Trilogy - Philip Pullman 45

14. Good Omens - Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett 42

15. A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving 41

16. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald 41 read in 2006

17. My Sister's Keeper - Jodi Picoult 38

18. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams 37

19. American Gods - Neil Gaiman 36

20. The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupery 34

Back to Owen Meany:

I was worried I left this 600 page book too late in the year to finish, but I forgot that really good books are quick to read because they are really good books. The story is told by John Wheelwright about his best friend Owen Meany, both growing up in New Hampshire in the 1950s and '60s. Owen in small for his age and his voice is unique - everything he says in in CAPITAL LETTERS, almost as if he is screaming. People are quickly protective of Owen and also drawn to his strong and unique personality. John narrates from the present, a teacher in Canada, as he remembers Owen and his life.

The book is about faith and religion, but also some interesting commentary about American politics and the Vietnam war. Although this book was written in 1989, I found the criticisms about Reagan and the Iran-contra hearings and Gary Hart's little scandal, could have been applied today to Bush and the Iraq war and Clinton. Irving makes some almost prophetic statements about Americans and politics. Or maybe just the more things change, the more they stay the same.

The concepts of fate and faith were beautifully done, and Owen Meany was a wonderful character. At times I laughed out loud - the removal of a VW car, and others I cried - I read the last twenty pages with my hand over my mouth. Irving has written an amazing book with wonderful messages and a truly unique character in Owen Meany. The way he tied up the whole book at the end was masterful. I'm not taking any books off my top ten list, but I think this one goes on. I won't have the time to reflect and think on Owen Meany before the end of the year, but this was pretty amazing. I was looking around, but it appears not to have won any awards. How can that be?

BOOK: Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

read for Something About Me Challenge and my own 50_books top twenty challenge

While I recognize that this is an important book and very popular, it didn't do it enough for me. It took me two weeks, at least and I never had a point where I couldn't put it down. That is for me what makes a book terrific: I can't stop reading it, I have to know more, read more. And this wasn't it.

Maybe it's too important for me. I had the annotated edition, and that doubled the size of the book. I would recommend this edition, but I went in stages, of checking the notes, and then ignoring the plethora of information at the back. No doubt, Nabokov is a genius, and the book is layer upon layer of alllusions and riddles, with interesting debates about ethics and morals and insanity that could last forever.

We've all heard the phrase Lolita to describe a wanton female, but this book is all about Humbert Humbert, the narrator and Lolita's lover/abuser. Our knowledge of pedophelia has changed over time, and this book would certainly be received differently now. I think what scared me about HH is that he appears to function in society, talking to people, and yet is quite crazy in his head, and can rationalize his obsession with nymphets, or 12 year old girls. And without the notes, I don't know if I would have understood the basic plot. Parts were interesting, but as the second half builds to the climax, I missed a lot without my periodic update.

It wasn't graphic per se, no big love scenes described, but obviously it was still disturbing. Part of the problem is that HH tells you that his memory of events is not perfect, so the story is hard to decipher, wondering what really happened. We only know about Lolita from what HH tells us.

As with most classics I've read this year, I am glad I read it, but I certainly didn't love it. At least now I feel ready to read Reading Lolita in Tehran.

BOOK: The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

I really wanted to like this book. I always loved The Importance of Being Ernest when I studied it in university, twice. It's on all the 'important' lists of books to read, including the top 50_books list. I saw it could be a book for the RIP so I was expecting eerie and creepy. In truth, I liked the story, it was the execution that made me fall asleep every time I picked it up.
It's a classic story, one that I knew the gist of - Dorian Gray doesn't age, the painting of him does all the aging. There were parts I liked, such as when the characters spoke to each other, except when they began rambling on about art and the role of the artist. Lord Harry spoke in that Victorian double speak or irony, like he got lost from the comedy of manners play, The Important of Being Ernest and wandered into this novel. I wasn't expecting his more humorous comments, so it was confusing me from the atmosphere I was expecting. Lord Harry says things like "To get back my youth, I would do anything in the world, except exercise, get up early or be respectable." He's full of witticisms like this.

There are a lot of comments about beauty and art and probably some social commentary, but somewhere around the middle I began to really scan, as I realized I might never finish it if I didn't change something. Wilde was certainly making some statements about the classics with many literary allusions, as the Reader's Supplement at the back of my edition attests. I wanted to finish it but it may be a book best analysed with a professor in an English class, not me reading it for fun. Part of the problem is that I knew what the story was, and it was good a good story, just that reading how Wilde wrote it wasn't worth it to me. And knowing how Wilde lived and died, it seemed rather autobiographical, with the decadent lifestyle that Dorian Gray was allowed to live. Most of the debauchery was only hinted at, but with hindsight, and knowledge of Oscar Wilde, it could be a different book written today.

With this, I've finished off the summer classic challenge and this gets me to 13 books in 13 decades, a respectable amount.

BOOK:Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

I knew this book would be good because it was on the list of top books as recommended by the 50_book challenge, and they haven't steered me wrong yet. I'm not a huge science fiction fan, but not matter what the genre, there are good examples of books to read that you think you wouldn't like, because the story and characters and writing are too good. I present exhibit A.

Ender's Game has won the Hugo Award and is a Nebula Winner. I found this to be very interesting to read as a study of war and the how and whys of war and battle. Andrew 'Ender' Wiggin has been identified at the very young age of 6 as the hope of military genius needed to protect the Earth from the buggers. The Buggers are expected to attack the Earth again, and although Earth survived the last attack, this next one is going to be big. Ender is thus trained, rather brutally, the lead the next attack. Much of the book follows his training and isolation and mind manipulation.

Some quotes I liked from the book:
Because as long as the people are afraid of the buggers, the IF can stay in power and as long as the IF is in power, certain countries can keep their hegemony.

So the whole war is because we can't talk to each other.
If the other fellow can't tell you his story, you can never be sure he isn't trying to kill you.

Very interesting quotes in today's world. Card also used the net to show how information could come from an anonymous person, and spread throughout the world. The book was written in 1977 long before blogs and the internet were common and I thought it was very interesting how this was predicted.

My copy from the library was missing the last page, I think, as a sentence wasn't finished, but it was wrapped up pretty much so I don't think I missed anything. This is the first book in a series of books, and I'll get to them eventually, but I don't feel the need to rush out and grab it. I know some people really love this series, and Becky and Karlene both recommended it at the Something About Me challenge for different reasons. Here's a link to a post Becky wrote about Ender and why she loves him and the book.

BOOK: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

It is hard to read a most beloved book that has earned so much praise. There is such an expectation while you are reading, that the poor book doesn't stand a chance. However, Jane Eyre was a great book and I really enjoyed it. I think if I had read it earlier in my life, I would absolutely love it, because I certainly developed a huge crush on Mr Rochester, but I didn't devour it, my usual judge of books that go on my best list.

I'm not sure what I thought this book was about; I knew there was some crazy person in it, but I didn't realize how wonderful Mr Rochester was and how tremendous of a heroine Jane was. Her confidence in herself, and strength to do the right thing for her impressed me. What a survivor! And Mr Rochester, I loved how she called him that right to the end. The atmosphere was creepy and gothic, wonderfully moorish. There was a little too much of St John at the end of the book, I just wanted Jane! But that is the reflection of the religious themes in the book; I preferred the mystery and love story aspect.

So, I liked the book and the characters. It's not going to be one of my favorite books, but I can see why it is for many people. I'm glad I read it, and wish I'd read it years ago.

BOOK: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Prepare to have you heart wrenched, you feelings conflicted and to thank God for your healthy family. Anna, a thirteen year old girl sues her parents for medical emancipation. The reason: she doesn't want to be made to donate a kidney to her sister, Kate, who is dying from renal failure due to complications from a lifelong struggle with a rare form of leukemia. The catch or modern take, is that Anna was created, or designed to be a perfect match to her sister, who had leukemia at a very young age. She has been a donor to her sister their whole lives.

The family dynamics, including older brother Jesse, a verifiable delinquent crying out for attention, and the mother and dad are played out using different point of views for each chapter. Everyone, including the lawyer and a court appointed guardian tell the story. I knew from the first chapter that this would be a difficult book to read, because how do you chose between your children? How can the parents and the children ever make the 'right' decision?

Picoult tells a wonderful story, however difficult is was to read. I was sobbing by the end, always my judge of an excellent story, because I grew to care about the characters and was thinking how I would deal with a situation. I was transported into the novel. I would definately look for another Picoult novel. This was my third Chunkster for the Chunkster Challege.

BOOK: Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman

Last one for the Once Upon a Time Challenge, although I am hoping to read A Midsummer's Night Dream since I found an annoted edition in school to read.

Well, all I have to say after reading this book is Brilliant! Jolly Good! and other assorted terribly British phrases to describe a terribly wonderful book. The boys - Pratchett and Gaiman, must have had a blast writing this. And the reader comes along for the ride, all the way to Armageddon. The Nice and Accurate Prophesies of Agnes Nutter are the guideposts to witch finders, angels and demons (not by Dan Brown), the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and the Antichrist. Some of the humorous devices include footnotes, the dramatus Personnae list, and a general irreverence for all things, and making fun of much British things.

I found this book on the of top 50_books compiled at livejournal, which has become my own personal reading list. I can see why people chose this book - just a terribly good adventure, written by terribly British funny guys, and I expect I'll read it again, as I read it quickly, and I know I missed a lot of jokes. There are a lot of details, but I wanted to finish it so quickly I couldn't stop myself. Some day, I'll pick this up again. For now, it gets passed to my husband's side table.

BOOK: The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman

Finishing The Amber Spyglass completes the Spring Reading Thing 2007 Challenge for me. What was I thinking, chosing a trilogy for a challenge? This third book was hard to get through for some reason. Partly because it was over 500 pages (I think I'm counting it as a Chunkster Challenge too!) and partly because it just didn't grab me to get started, and yet I knew I really wanted to finish it. I couldn't leave a trilogy unfinished, but I was tempted at times to put it down. I was bargaining with myself - finish 150 pages, read another book - see The Little Prince, finish 150 pages, read another book. I was gritting my teeth and getting to it. And then, all of a sudden, I couldn't put the book down. I stayed up waaay too late last night to finish the book that I couldn't read two days before.

And I think that is why people rave about this series. Each of the three books have been difficult to get into, at least 150 pages before I was hooked. But the ultimate ending was worth it. It is a children's series to some degree, but with the amount of killing it seems a little intense for preteens. As a children's book, much of it was predictable and that may have led to my disinterest for a while. But the payoff was worth it in the end.

The characters of Lyra and Will were terrific and the allusions to Adam and Eve and temptation, make this book very broad. Religion and science are huge themes and as Armageddon comes, and the angels come down to fight and worlds are literally torn apart with our heroes at the center, poised to save all the worlds.

From the cover:

As war rages and Dust drains from the sky, the fate of the living and the dead - finally comes to depend on two children and the simple truth of one simple story.

There were parts of the story I enjoyed more than others - Mary Malone and the mulefa were my favorite. The mulefa were a people who evolved with a diamond skeleton instead of backbone and lived symbiotically with the pod trees. Other creatures from other worlds like the brave little spies, the Gallivespians, still the idea of daemons and souls, angels and ghosts, the imagination of Pullman and his take on the world were incredible.

So, I thought I wouldn't give this a very good rating, but the ending did it for me and I will be thinking of how he tied things up, and the consequenses and sacrifices made for a long time.

BOOK: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery

Cute little fairy tale from the top 50_books list and part of my Once Upon a Time Reading Challenge. I looked up the SparkNotes because there was certainly more to the story. I see that it is cute, I liked the moral, and after I looked up the notes it more made sense, but I don't think I would ever remember to list it as one of my favorite books.

The Little Prince leaves his tiny planet and travels through space, landing on other tiny planets, meeting caricatures of adults and all the bad qualities adults can have with all their silly rules. Eventually he lands on Earth and meets the narrator, a pilot whose plane has crashed. The Prince has a profound effect on the pilot, but the Prince also learns some lessons about love from a fox and life from a snake.

Some notes from Sparks that I liked:

The Little Prince can be read as a metaphor of the process of introspection itself, wherein two halves of the same person meet and learn from each other.

Saint-Exupéry urges his readers to participate actively in the reading process, using their imaginations to assign deeper meaning to deceptively simple prose and poetry

His constant questioning also indicates that one’s search for answers can be more important than the answers themselves.

I read this in about an hour or so, and I might read it again with the Sparks notes in mind.

BOOK: The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman

Book 2 : His Dark Materials Trilogy

Well I didn't plan to read this right away, but something made me pick it up and then I read it all day. Lyra and Will are travelling back and forth between worlds, dealing with new things, like a knife, Spectors, and mean kids. This series is fantastic, I love the physics in it, the dark matter or Dust and just confirms my view that physics and philosophy and religion are all tied up, just like this series. Great adventure, great characters and what an imaginiation to view our world like this, as part of a bigger universe. I hope to take a break before I finish this series, with The Amber Spyglass. But it may draw me to it, like the characters are drawn to their fate in these books.

OTHER: My Daemon

The site is very slow where I got this, but this was neat. I love the idea of a personal daemon. And, apparently, this book is being made into a movie, being released December 2007. I like to read a book before I see the movie.

BOOK: The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

Book 1 of His Dark Materials trilogy

Trilogies are tricky things, because there is a lot to do. The first book has to set up the plot that will last through three whole books. It can take a while to introduce all the characters and understand their motives and establish conflict. This book took a little while to get going. Also, I haven't read a lot of fantasy, and it takes a while to set up the parameters of the world the characters inhabit. I really liked the blend of our world and the slight changes that make Lyra's world different. The idea of daemons for each person, creatures that reflect their character and soul was my favorite part of this book.

Once I got to around page 100, the story picked up steam and I quite enjoyed it. I wasn't completely happy with the ending, because it didn't make me want to follow Lyra onto her next world. Again, this is a trilogy problem because this book has to feel complete, but it also has to make you want to keep going. Tying up enough loose ends, but leaving a few strings to start the next tale with. I will continue reading the series because 1) I bought them and 2) it is for the Spring Reading Thing and 3) it is recommended by the 50_books challenge readers and because 4) I am sure I will enjoy the rest of the series.

BOOK: the perks of being a wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

What a wonderful coming of age story. I devoured this last night, staying up too late in order to finish. Charlie, the narrator, has taken to writing letters of his life to an unknown friend as he goes through one year of his life at sixteen. Charlie is an intelligent, sensitive boy, trying to fit in and make friends, deal with his family and girls and school, and lots of 'home problems'. I really enjoyed this story; Charlie's voice was wonderful, and I kept hoping for him to make it through the angsty teenage years. I've seen the following quote before, but didn't realize it was from this book:

I walk around the school hallways and look at the people. I look at the teachers and wonder why they're here. If they like their jobs. Or us. And I wonder how smart they were when they were fifteen. Not in a mean way. In a curious way. It's like looking at all the students and wondering who's had their heart broken that day, and how they are able to cope with having three quizzes and a book report on top of that.

This was a book I picked because it made the top 20 books of the 50_books list and I can see why it did. I will hopefully go back and read about Charlie again. A poignant, sweet read.

BOOK: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

How have I never read this book? It was very good, very funny, a little confusing, but I just held on for the ride and enjoyed Arthur Dent and his terrible, horrible, very strange day. I am very intrigued by the Restaurant at the end of the Universe that he appears headed toward, and I don't know if I'd let Zephron and Ford lead me around space, but I imagine their adventures will be interesting.
It is so weird how you notice things once you learn about them? Deja-new. The day after I started reading this book, I heard an interview on CBC with Peter Gzowski (and how lovely his voice sounded; he is missed from the radio) and Douglas Adams from around 1986, discussing his books. Weird.
This book is from my top books to read from the 50_book challenge list.

CHALLENGE: top 50_books read

These challenges online are such an accountable way to set personal goals. I have always set some little goals for myself, but it never occured to me to write it down like this. So, I have a little challenge that I have set for myself. I don't have a deadline, but when I pick books, these list are in the back of my head.
Over at 50_books challenge on livejournal, the mod recently had a survey of the best books you've read. Now, this was filled out by a lot of readers, so you have to think that these are some kick-ass books. I certainly had read some of them, but I would like to read more, if not all of them. Then, my Challenge: read as many of the books on the top 20 reads from the 50_book challenge readers:

Top 20 Best Books According to the Readers of 50bookchallenge:

1. Harry Potter Series - J.K. Rowling 197
2. Pride & Prejudice - Jane Austen 133 read in 2006
3. Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien 125
4. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee 95 read in 1990s
5. The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger 77 read in 2006
6. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte 76
7. The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky 64
8. Lolita - Vladimir Nabakov 58
9. 1984 - George Orwell 52 read in 1990s
10. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde 50
11. Wuthering Heights - Emile Bronte 47 read in grade 12
12. Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card 46
13. His Dark Materials Trilogy - Philip Pullman 45
14. Good Omens - Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett 42
15. A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving 41
16. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald 41 read in 2006
17. My Sister's Keeper - Jodi Picoult 38
18. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams 37
19. American Gods - Neil Gaiman 36
20. The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupery 34

Before this year, I had read 6 of these books. How many can I read in 2007? I have already read The Great Gatsby (as a Classic Challenge book) and now just finished American Gods ( for the Chunkster Challenge) . I plan to read His Dark Materials Trilogy, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and Jane Eyre (15books/15decades Challenge) before the year is out. That will make the list half read. If other challenges come along that some of these books fit into, then I'll probably try to read them. I think I had My Sister's Keeper as an alternate to the Chunkster Challenge. See? I just pick books for other challenges from this list. I'm such a multi-tasker.

The rest of the list, up to 100, can be found at this link, if you scroll down a bit.

BOOK: American Gods by Neil Gaiman

This is a book I read for several reasons: it was on the top 20 reads list from the 50_book challenge at livejournal, I picked it for the Chunkster Challenge, and then it was a 2000s book for the 15books/15decades challenge. And, it was a pretty interesting read.
It reminded me of a Stephen King book in that Gaiman sets up a world that has supernatural elements, but does it in such a believable way that it all makes sense. I really liked the main character Shadow; just an ordinary man, but open to ideas, and also thinking for himself in the face of unbelievable situations. I really rooted for him. I also liked the premise about the gods we worship today and from long ago and how those long ago gods survive today. Easy to read and lots to think about, a well written book with fascinating characters and situations. What more can you ask for in a novel.