My Thoughts on "The Casual Vacancy" by J. K. Rowling

After much anticipation, I finally acquired a copy of “The Casual Vacancy” by J. K.Rowling.  During my wait, I avoided reading any reviews or comments about the book, as I did not want to have any outside influence cloud my view or spoil my reading. Having read Rowling’s Harry Potter series, I expected to get lost in the story and to meet and connect to new characters.  However, that was not the case. This is not to say that the book was not good, rather it was not what I expected.

I would not label it as an epic novel, per-say.  Instead, I would label this book more as a social/political view of a small community, which falls into social and political chaos after the sudden death of Councillor Barry Fairbrother. At first, it is difficult to keep the characters in the story straight as to who’s who. In fact, I was tempted to make a list of the characters with notes as to how each relates to the other. As well, I found it difficult to connect to the characters as I would in most novels, as there is no real individual background story told for any of them. All of the characters are depicted within the context of a short time period, beginning with the death of Barry Fairbrother and ending with the election of a new Councillor. However, that is not to say that the characters are not brutally realistic in their actions and the outcomes of their actions.

Overall, this book is an intelligent, artful, creative, and sometimes comical read. I would expect to see it listed academically as assigned reading, particularly in a class dealing with the Social Sciences.  Now that I have read the novel once through, I know what to expect.   It is worth reading, and worth reading again.

Thanks for stopping by. ~Yvonne~

My Thoughts on “The Magicians” by Lev Grossman

TheMagicians (2009) and its sequel The Magician King (2011) by Lev Grossman are novels of the Urban Fantasy genre.  (Viking Press)

The first of the two books, “The Magicians” follows the adventures of Quentin Coldwater, a young man living in Brooklyn, NY who is rather disillusioned and unsatisfied with life in general.  Quentin has completed high school and is about to enter college, but with no real idea of where he will fit into either the academic or real world.  He is in love with his childhood friend Julia Wicker who considers Quentin only a friend. He sees himself as a third wheel as he accompanies Julia and his best friend, whom Julia is dating, as they head out to apply to University.  

As the day progresses, Quentin finds himself in Brakebills Academy, a school located somewhere in Upstate New York within a parallel universe where he is tested and accepted on his magical abilities. During his testing, he sees Julia in a classroom taking a test as well, but as he does not see her again at Brakebills, he believes he is mistaken.

While attending Brakebills, Quentin meets and makes a few friends that are of his own like and falls in love with Alice Quinn, a magician with natural talents who takes her magical training and study seriously. Quentin finds his studies more difficult than he expected, sometimes grueling, though there are times when excitement does ensue.

Upon graduation, Quentin and his friends return to the real world and live together in an apartment in NYC. Once again, Quentin finds he is bored with life finding only monotony. Once again disillusioned, he wishes for adventure. He spends much of his life partying, while Alice continues to study magic beyond the walls of Brakebills. Quentin simply cannot find meaning in his life until one of his friends confirms something that Quentin always suspected was true.

Throughout the book, Quentin is obsessed with a series of children’s books titled “Filory and Further” written by a fictional author Christopher Plover.  The series follows the five Chatwin children as they discover and venture into the magical world of Filory.  (The description of the Filory books very much resembles the “Narnia” series written by the very real author C. S. Lewis).  Quentin, fed by rumors, always secretly held the belief that the Chatwin children and the land of Filory were real and through a friend finds that he is correct in his thinking.  It is with this discovery that the lives of Quentin and his friends take on new meaning as they set off to explore the world of Filory.

Quentin and his friends soon discover that something has gone terribly wrong in Filory, and it is not the world of their expectations. They set off on an adventure to set things right, but find many harmful and confusing barriers along the way. Unfortunate tragedy strikes the group as they battle the evil that has disrupted the magical world.  At the conclusion of the adventure, Quentin decides he is better off in the real world and leaves his friends Filory and forsakes magic altogether. Until one night…

For the week it took me to read these two books, I traveled in worlds that I wish existed.  I found myself laughing aloud and even voicing warnings to the characters such as, “No, don’t do that.” If you are a fan of Urban Fantasy and Adventure genre books, I highly recommend this book and its sequel. You will not be disappointed.

Quentin’s story continues in the sequel “The Magician King” by Lev Grossman.  My thoughts on the sequel are forthcoming, so stay tuned.

Thanks for reading… ~Yvonne~

My Thoughts on “11/22/63” by Stephen King

Last evening I finished reading “11/22/63“ by Stephen King.  This is a book that I was excited to read since its publication, because not am I a fan of the author, but as well because I have an unusually clear memory of this incident in history.  Additionally, I was aware of our country’s confrontation with Cuba and the threat of nuclear attack on American soil and of the Civil Rights Movement, of which both Mr. King refers to in this novel.  

With this story, Mr. King does a fine job of combining the genres of Science Fiction, Horror, and Historical Fiction.  His research for the story was obviously extensive and his description was thorough.  He takes into account not only the monetary and technological differences between the late 1950s and early 1960s, he additionally takes into account the social and political climate of those years along with the differences of these aspects between the Northern and Southern areas of the United States.  He also delves into other historical events and even profiles Lee Harvey Oswald life and personality years before his ultimate and horrific act that stunned our country and dissolved our young people’s innocence and complacency.  I cannot speak, of course, for everyone of my generation; however, for me that one act of violence and subsequent killing of Lee Harvey Oswald by Jack Ruby forever changed my view of the world, and in turn influenced who I am as a person.  Ultimately, not only did this incident in history change my view but also many individual’s view and as well as our country and the world.  In his very riveting story, Mr. King through the lives and experiences of his characters addresses the question of how not only the world would change but also, how individual lives would change without certain incidents and experiences taking place. 

In his novel, Mr. King’s main character Jake Ebbing alias George Amberson, travels back in time through a time portal that only he and the owner of a local diner Al Templeton, have knowledge.   The portal takes the time Jake/George to an exact point in time September 9, 1958 at 11:58 a. m. No matter the amount of time he spends in the past whether an hour or five years, when he returns through the portal only two minutes pass in present time.  Whatever changes he makes in the past, whether a major incident or anything that seems inconsequential, remains as a change in the past and impacts the future, either on an accordingly micro or macro scale, or changes an individual’s life or the entire universe.  Jake/George learns from Al that if he never again takes another trip through the portal then history remains fixed to whatever changes the he make to the past.  However, if he uses the portal again, all the changes on previous excursions void out and the future and is the same as it was originally.  Another drawback Jake/George experiences is his aging process in that while only two minutes pass in real time, he ages for time he spent in the past.

Additionally, Jake/George soon learns that changing the past does not always produce the intended outcome and that every time he attempts to change something he experiences dangerous, and sometimes life-threatening, obstacles.  Jake/George recognizes this as a foe and as a living entity referring to it as the “obdurate” past.  His adventures span five years in which he not only focuses on stopping the President’s assassin he also comes to make many friends and finds his true love, Sadie Dunhill.  At one point, in Jake/George’s travels he comes to the fictional town of Derry, Maine where he meets two characters, Richie Tozier and Beverly Marsh from King’s previous novel “It”.  The two teenagers seem to realize that Jake/George is not of their world and in turn, Jake/George feels the evil cloud that seems to cover the town.  I liked this reference and as Stephen King fan, I am inclined to want to read “It” again.

I will not say anymore about the story here in this review, as I do not want to give away too much information to those who have not and wish to read the book.  I do highly recommend this book to both those who are fans of Stephen King and those who are not.  It does have its horror and well-described bloody violence, yet this is expected as referenced by the date in history for which the book is titled. 

Thanks for reading… ~Yvonne~

My Thoughts on All Things “The Stand” by Stephen King

My mind is a boggle of thoughts these days, which is preventing me from writing much that is coherent.  For me, this is a form of writer’s block.  It’s not that I can’t write, in fact I have plenty of ideas and continue to write them down in order that I won’t forget them when the time comes to write more than a page or two without wandering to some other far off unrelated subject other than the one at hand.  This blog is an attempt, of sorts, to focus on the culprit of my wandering thoughts.

I am blaming Stephen King for this dive into self-absorption as a couple of days ago I finished reading his novel TheStand.   This is not the first time I read this novel, in fact I believe it is the forth.  However, this time, having found it in audio format at the library, Grover Gardner (an excellent narrative reader) read it to me over the course of 37 CD's  Whether or not I was a fan (or Constant Reader as Mr. King refers) of Mr. King’s work, I would have to dub The Stand as the best apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic story ever published. 

The Book

As per always, Mr. King fleshes out his characters in such a way that the reader knows them on an intimate basis.  He delves into their experiences, both past and present, and gives a clear explanation of the affect those experiences have on their psyches.  We know how they think both of themselves and of the people and the world that they presently inhabit.  As readers, if we were to meet these characters in the real world, we would know them well enough to have a sit-down conversation with them.  Once we have this grasp on the characters Mr. King then goes further to take these characters to very unusual, frightening, and horrific predicaments and circumstances. While Mr. King’s stories are in the genre of Horror, the horror does not always spring from a purely supernatural force but combines with the horrible acts of human beings upon one another. Hence, Mr. King evens out his stories to bring them into both character and plot driven supernatural adventures.  

However, in The Stand, Mr. King goes even further by touching on subjects and rounding them out as well as he does his characters. This novel forces the reader to look at the human condition in the face of an apocalyptic occurrence. The reader begins to consider what resources are important to the survival of the human race and to weed out the items that are not required for survival.  As well, the reader reflects on not only the psychology of an individual, but also the psychology of individual groups.  Other subjects come into play as will such as Sociology, Theology, Spirituality and the importance of the individual within the group.  These subjects then combine with mysticism and paranormal experiences that in some ways bring about an almost evolutionary advance in human brain development.

Three of the most important individuals to the group’s survival are those that society would pass or judge insignificant in normal circumstances – Nick Andros, a deaf/mute, Tom Cullen, a high functioning mentally challenged man, and Abigail Freemantle, an extremely elderly woman.   Even with their very different belief structures—Nick as an atheist, Abigail as a bible/religion based Christian, and Tom as a man who has the simple concept of right and wrong—all three join forces and work well as a whole.  Some characters, such as Stu Redman, Larry Underwood, Frances Goldsmith, Harold Lauder, Nadine Cross, and Ralph Bretner, each battle their own personal demons, and in turn, question their own abilities and make life altering decisions in either facing or  joining the very real demon that threatens not only the group’s but their own personal survival.  

On the evil side of the story, a group of characters forms their own community under the rule of a demon, Randall Flagg, who takes many forms including human.  Again, some individual characters question their choices and their abilities in their importance to the group’s survival.  Others in the group find that as outcasts in the world before the apocalyptic event, they have found their place in this post-apocalyptic society.  However, as time and events go on, some find that they might be on the wrong side of the fence.

As the story ends, more questions arise as to what form the new world should take.  Do the survivors wish to go back to the old ways of government and economic structure, or should they reform to a new society, a more advanced and equal society? Is it even possible to regroup? And, what of the dangers that still lurk both within and beyond their borders?  These questions and others Mr. King leaves for the reader’s imagination to ponder.

The Mini Series

After completing the novel, I watched the four part made-for-TV miniseries.  Again, this was not for the first time.  The mini-series does not live up to the novel and I feel it is in many ways disappointing.  The series focuses on plot more than characterization, even though it is through the characters who in the book tell the story.  In fact, the characters as portrayed in the series are mere shells of their true selves.  The story is there, however, it is more of an outline of details rather than an in-depth portrayal of the horrors that occur in the written version.  The combination of the characters of Nadine Cross and Rita (the woman who Larry Underwood meets in NYC) fails to portray Nadine’s personality and her difficulty in making her ultimate decision.  The series version of Harold Lauder does not show his superior intelligence or the changes of his physical appearance over time spent on the road.  As well, the characters look in too good condition as they take their perilous journey half way across the United States.

There is talk periodically of producing a theatrical movie version of The Stand, consisting of three or even for parts.  I hope that this comes to fusion in the future as I think this epic novel deserves an epic film.  If you have not read the book, I highly recommend that you do either in print of audio format.  Don’t depend on the mini-series to tell you the story.  However, I warn you, that whether you read the print version or listen to the audio version of the book, the story will cause you to have very deep thoughts that occupy both your waking and even sleeping moments.

Thanks for stopping by… ~Yvonne~