CLOUD ATLAS is shady

Mitchell, David. Cloud Atlas. Toronto: Vintage Canada, 2004. ISBN 978067697494-2

Oh, my word! I thought I would never finish this book. I really enjoyed Mitchell's book The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet. There are turns of phrase in that book that I would give my left hand to have written. That's why I was sure I would heap the same amounts of praise on Cloud Atlas. As with Thousand Autumns, Mitchell deftly delivers masterful turns of phrase, such as - "a half-read book is a half-finished love affair", "implausible truth can serve one better than plausible fiction". In Cloud Atlas, these two phrases are insider clues to the reader. The book contains 6 narratives, 5 of which are started only to be interrupted in mid-stride, creating a cliffhanger for the reader. The central kernel of the story are the ruminations of a questionable storyteller living in a post-apocalyptic, primitive state. It is in this story that the idea of CLOUD ATLAS becomes a unifying theme that expresses the commonalities of human existence over aeons. After the central narrative, each of the stories picks up where it left off. What's particularly tricky is trying to remember the details of a story/passage read in the past. The stories almost demand that you go back through and read each as a whole, which is the way Mitchell first wrote them. My favourite voice was Robert Frobisher, an English musician living in Belgium in the 1930s. The wry wit and self-depricating humor of Frobisher's narrative was comical but rang true. I connected with this character more than any other. This book definitely has great literary merit (finalist for the Man Booker), as its awards and movie deal would indicate. However, I'm giving it a 3 because I had to flip back and forth too many times, it gets preachy in some places-too esoteric. And I felt like some of the dialogue was unnecessary. I'm glad I read it. I feel like anyone who gets through it has earned some literary chops; however, I'm also glad I've finished reading it. Insider tip: if you are a fan of fictional expositions of Neitzsche, you won't be disappointed in this book.  All six narratives deal with the will to power in their own unique ways.  Likewise, if you are particularly adept at matching musical themes and motifs to plot and subplot, you will find quite a few elements of the stories appealing.  I'm not really good at either of the above, but I did catch what Mitchell had going on.  Like I said, just getting through this book gives a reader her chops. Awards and further information: Short-listed for the 2004 Man Booker Prize The Guardian Book Club, 2010: read a wonderful series of interviews and insights into the novel from The Guardian.  Start here. Other novels by David Mitchell: Ghostwritten (1999) number9dream (2001) Black Swan Green (2006) The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet (2010) The Bone Clocks (2014) Slade House (2015) From Me Flows What You Call Time (2016, to be published 2114-yes, that's right) More about the Future Library Project Author Website: http://www.davidmitchellbooks.com/

The Heart Goes Last: a Novel

Atwood, M. (2015). THE HEART GOES LAST: A NOVEL. Nan A. Talese. ISBN: 9780385540353.

Stan and Charmaine have no money. Signing up to live in an experimental society is better than living in their car, even if they do spend every other month in jail.

Pretty soon, however, things take a strange turn. The POSITRON/CONCILIANCE experiment begins to go awry. The reader realizes this dystopian novel is about the definition of marriage. What is it? Sex, romance, dominance, dependency, any, all or none of the above?

Atwood's tells the story in the voices of Charmaine, a perky optimist, and Stan, her somewhat resentful husband. How far are they willing to go to be comfortable, to have "the good life"?

Based on Advanced Review Copy. Release Date September 29,  2015. Doubleday/Nan A. Talese.

Publisher's Summary:
Margaret Atwood puts the human heart to the ultimate test in an utterly brilliant new novel that is as visionary as The Handmaid’s Tale and as richly imagined as The Blind Assassin.

Stan and Charmaine are a married couple trying to stay afloat in the midst of an economic and social collapse. Job loss has forced them to live in their car, leaving them vulnerable to roving gangs. They desperately need to turn their situation around—and fast. The Positron Project in the town of Consilience seems to be the answer to their prayers. No one is unemployed and everyone gets a comfortable, clean house to live in…for six months out of the year. On alternating months, residents of Consilience must leave their homes and function as inmates in the Positron prison system. Once their month of service in the prison is completed, they can return to their “civilian” homes.
At first, this doesn’t seem like too much of a sacrifice to make in order to have a roof over one’s head and food to eat. But when Charmaine becomes romantically involved with the man who lives in their house during the months when she and Stan are in the prison, a series of troubling events unfolds, putting Stan’s life in danger. With each passing day, Positron looks less like a prayer answered and more like a chilling prophecy fulfilled.

MARGARET ATWOOD, whose work has been published in thirty-five countries, is the author of more than forty books of fiction, poetry, and critical essays. In addition to The Handmaid’s Tale, her novels include Cat’s Eye, short-listed for the 1989 Booker Prize; Alias Grace, which won the Giller Prize in Canada and the Premio Mondello in Italy; The Blind Assassin, winner of the 2000 Booker Prize; Oryx and Crake, short-listed for the 2003 Man Booker Prize; The Year of the Flood; and her most recent, MaddAddam. She is the recipient of the Los Angeles Times Innovator’s Award, and lives in Toronto with the writer Graeme Gibson.

Author Website:http://www.margaretatwood.ca

Author Social Media: Twitter @MargaretAtwood; FB MargaretAtwoodAuthor

Where Is the Love?--a review of MATCHED by Ally Condie

Life is perfect for Cassia.  Her government gives her everything she needs to be happy and healthy: meals, a job, recreational activities, and school.  Now, she’s 17 and ready to be matched.  Who will her future husband be?

Matched by Ally Condie

Cassia floats in light green silk, and her mood is as light. She has just been publicly matched to her best friend, Xander. But then, a blip, another boy’s face appears on her screen at home. She knows Ky, too, but has she ever really seen him? After the death of her grandfather, and a sudden realization that not everything is what it seems, Cassia begins to question what she has always believed was true.

There comes a time, toward the end of adolescence, when most young adults begin to realize that not everything is perfect. Condie does a great job of picking up on this angst through the protagonist Cassia. The minute she asks one question, hundreds more appear, and can’t be easily answered. A definite nod to Ray Bradbury appears when we discover that poetry and books are no longer allowed, besides the 100 that were deemed worthy. Cassia and Ky share a love of forbidden pleasures, writing and poems. But, Cassia has been matched. Ky is an aberration. They can never be together. Or can they fight the odds?

Reviews
“The stunning clarity and attention to detail in Condie’s Big Brother-like world is a feat. The author just as easily tears this world apart while deftly exploring the individual cost of societal perfection and the sacrifices inherent in freedom of choice.”
–Booklist

“In a story that is at once evocative of Lois Lowry’s The Giver, George Orwell’s 1984, and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, Condie introduces readers to the ‘perfect’ Society. Her awakening and developments are realistically portrayed, and supporting characters like Cassia’s parents and her grandfather add depth to the story. Fans of The Giver will devour this book and impatiently demand the next installment.”
–School Library Journal

Official Website

One Choice Can Transform You--a review of DIVERGENT by Veronica Roth

Would you be able to leave your home and all you knew behind to start a new life with strangers?  That’s what 16 year old Beatrice does.  After taking her aptitude test “Tris” leaves Abnegation for the Dauntless faction in future dystopian Chicago, to prove to herself that she is fearless.  During her brutal initiation, she discovers that the Dauntless, as well as her former faction, Abnegation, have enemies among the 5 factions, primarily Erudite.  Will Tris be able to survive her Dauntless initiation?  Can a 16 year old girl save the world as she knows it?

For all my young ladies who liked Twilight, this book is for you (Roth’s writing is a bit better than Meyer’s—less schmaltzy). For all my guys who liked the Hunger Games, this book is for you (Collins is a bit of a better writer, but Roth’s story is still interesting). I’m not going to give you any spoilers, but I will tell you that this book has just the right blend of action and romance to keep you reading. I got lost in the vaguely familiar world of the book , and I only put it down when I was so sleepy my eyes wouldn’t stay open. A few warnings, though. There is some pretty graphic violence involved, as the Dauntless must face fears of all kind—physical and psychological—so don’t read this if you’re squeamish or emotionally troubled.

The series itself is part of a genius marketing scheme. I scanned the QR code on the back of the book, and found book trailers and an interview with the author (who is, by the way, a new author). The Bonus Materials in the back of the book include a Divergent play list (nice!) and a Cosmo-like quiz on “What Faction Are You?” which was lots of fun.

This is another one I won’t be able to put in the library because it’s too hot to handle here in Kuwait (and that’s saying a lot because it’s very hot here), but I’m sure going to read the rest of them. Divergent was a great choice for my first summer read. The sequel, Insurgent, is definitely going on my summer list.

Awards and Reviews

Best Book of the Year—School Library Journal

Best Fiction for Young Adults—YALSA

Best Children’s Books—Publisher’s Weekly

Black Eyed Susan Book Award

“There is no doubt readers will respond to the gutsy action and romance of this umpteenth spin on Brave New World”—Daniel Kraus, Booklist, March 2011

“For those who loved The Hunger Games and are willing to brave the sometimes sadistic tests of strength and courage Tris must endure, the reward is a memorable, unpredictable journey from which it is nearly impossible to turn away.”—Publisher’s Weekly, February 2011

Vital Stats 

Roth, Veronica (2011). Divergent. New York: Katherine Tegen Books. ISBN 0062024027.