Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (Dai Sijie)

I finished reading this book a couple of weeks ago. It's an interesting plot, set against the China and the Cultural Revolution. It kept me interested enough to read through it in one sitting but the ending left something to be desired.

The book is about two boys, who stumble upon Western books (forbidden, of course) in Chinese translations. They do what they can to try to obtain more books from their friend, who refuses to acknowledge that he has them in hiding. They also flirt with the little seamstress who devours retold tales of Western classics.

The two boys become master story tellers, re-enacting for the villagers, movies and stories they read. The villagers, who would advocate destroying Western art, of all forms, are mesmerized by the stories that these boys tell. At heart, it's the story of cherishing all forms of art/literature for the beauty that it holds, even if political climate compels a society to condemn art/literature of another society.

It's a quick read, and very short. Would I buy it or re-read it? Probably not.

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Shroud and Their Eyes were Watching God

I finished reading "Shroud" by John Banville and "Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston.

Shroud left me a little unsatisfied. The writing is beautifully crafted, but the plot was not much. It begins with an old man who apparently has lived a life of lies. The buildup of the book is toward the mystery behind his lies. My discovery of what that mystery was didn't exactly knock me off my feet. I didn't think it was such a terrible lie compared to the build-up. But the writing itself is lyrical and descriptive, if not sometimes slow. If you can appreciate the writing, I would recommend borrowing the book from the library. Otherwise, there are probably other books that hopefully are beautifully crafted and with better plots.

I have wanted to read Their Eyes Were Watching God for some time now. The author has certain radiant passages (including the beginning and the ending). In between, she tells the story of a woman's life with dialogues in the dialect of that time and region. I was personally curious about what the title referred to. Towards the end of the book, readers run across a sentence that actually contains the title of the book. I found it curious that the author chose a title that refers to more than one person ("their" eyes, not "her" eyes) when the main story of the book really is about Janie.

Janie tells the story of her life. She chronicles her three marriages and her search for happiness. Janie finds that she cannot make herself love a man in her first marriage, even though her husband tries his best to be good to her. Janie runs off to be with her second husband for 20 years. Although the second marriage begins with love, Janie finds that she is not happy because her second husband confines her to a role he determines for her. It is only in her third marriage that Janie finds both love and happiness. It is in the unconventional third marriage (the man is more than 10 years younger than her) that Janie finds love and happiness. The key is that her third husband loves her and is happy to let her be who she is. The book is well written, and I think it is worth borrowing from the library.

Waiting for Love: Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis De Bernieres and The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

I finished reading Corelli’s Mandolin earlier this week. And I just finished The Time Traveler’s Wife. I would do 2 separate entries, but I realized they both had similar themes and I am lazy. Both are engrossing and well-written, but Corelli’s Mandolin will probably last as a literature. The Time Traveler’s Wife will probably be remembered as creatively well-written novel, but on par with The Da Vinci Code.

Both are love stories. Both involve a female character, who are in love with someone they must wait for. Because both are completely in love with those that are taken away from them involuntarily, they are patiently, faithfully waiting.

While I am struck by this similarity of the theme, one cannot overlook the differences. The difference lies primarily in the complexities that De Bernieres introduces in his book. In Corelli’s Mandolin, De Bernieres uses first voices and omniscient third voice. He paints an interweaving tale, allowing reader to understand the historical background in which the main story unfolds. The tale also skillfully includes different types of love – unfulfillable, homosexual love; forbidden love; paternal love; maternal love; unconditional, one-sided love; and cowardly love. Complex, flawed, and sympathetic characters present different type of love. The author achieves telling a poignantly beautiful tale (with moments of humor) by the masterful use of first and omniscient third voices and vivid descriptions. Although at times the different first voices can be confusing, the author achieves his goal in presenting an epic story.

The Time Traveler’s Wife stems from a creative idea that a woman can be in love with a time traveler. The story centers on two people’s love (although there is a hint of unfulfilled love by a minor character) even if one is an involuntary time traveler. Niffenegger uses first voices of these two main characters. The main complexity of the story lies in various shifts in time as the story unfolds because of the time travel. As the husband shifts back and forth in time, the reader fits the puzzle of the overarching story. Beyond the creative idea and the time shifts, however, the story lacks the dense level of complex characters, emotions, and flaws that Corelli’s Mandolin contains. It’s a skillfully written novel that begs the reader to turn to the next page, but I do not believe it will last beyond the lifetime of popular culture. I just don’t think I would ever pick this book up to read again… having digested everything in 2-3 days.

I would give Corelli’s Mandolin a “buy” rating and The Time Traveler’s Wife a “must borrow from the library” rating.

Demian and Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse and The Immoralist by Andre Gide

I’ve been neglecting my entries of the books I have been reading. Partly because I’m too busy reading the next book to sit down and write. Partly because I’ve returned the books I read and forgot about writing. In any case, I want to keep a record of what I read, if not for the sake of checking them off of my endless list of books to read, then for the sake of remembering the books I read.

I finished 2 books by Hermann Hesse -- Demian and Siddhartha -- and a book by Andre Gide – The Immoralist. All of three books are similar in that the authors explore, question, and/or challenge moral values held by society. I am using the term “moral” loosely because Hesse explores religious beliefs, not just moral values.

Hesse’s books follow inner, spiritual journeys taken by the main characters. In the case of Demian, Hesse questions Biblical meanings, perceptions held by Christians, and what really is right and wrong. Siddhartha, on the other hand, is an exploration of Buddhism. Main characters in both books take physical journeys, and those physical journeys mirrors their search for spiritual search. Along the way, Hesse masterfully incorporates his thoughtful inquiries that probe a reader to also think deeper about the spiritual search.

In The Immoralist, the search for moral right and wrong is taken by a man who battles for his health. To be honest, this book hasn’t left as deep an impression as Hesse’s books. Thus, I cannot cogently articulate beyond the first sentence.

So, in my rating of buy, borrow, or don’t read, I would rate Hesse’s books as a “buy.” They are both rather dense – not physically (both short novels). Denseness comes from the concentration of issues raised by the author. But they are well written and probably will last beyond my lifetime. Since I can’t really recall The Immoralist, I would sadly have to say it gets “a borrow from the library.” If a book hasn’t left me with a big impression, it’s probably not worth buying.

Amsterdam by Ian Mcewan – ENDING SPOILER

This is a story about two friends. Or were they friends?

After finishing the novel, I wondered what lesson I was supposed to take from the story.

The basic premise of the story revolves around two “friends.” Both are all too human – deeply flawed in their own ways. Both are too passionate about their own lives, or too self-centered, to reflect upon their flaws. One lives for journalism, and the other a musical genius. As close “friends” and removed from self, they can observe flaws about each other – they DWELL on each other’s flaws. So much so that, eventually, flaws defined each other. Believing that each has lost sanity, both end up killing each other in Amsterdam.

It’s a well-written novel. The author’s gift for writing is reflected in word choices and flow. The writing draws readers into the world of both characters’ thoughts and actions.

I wonder, however, what we should take away from this story. The story examines our darker psyches and our inability to see past beyond the flaws of each other. Our inability to see past each other’s flaws would lead to our own destruction in the end. That leads me to think that there are few alternative lessons to learn from this story.

One, we can reflect more about ourselves and try to “fix” our flaws. The problem with this approach is that what one person would perceive as a “flaw” may not be a “flaw” to someone else. But perhaps some flaws are deeper and reprehensible enough for majority of reasonably minded folks to be identified. So should these flaws be found by polling? If the self cannot see the flaws as being reprehensible, then how could self-reflection pinpoint them?

Second, we can accept each other’s flaws as they are and not judge each other for what we perceive to be “flaws.” Unfortunately, some flaws should justifiably be reproachable. After all, the reader is justifiably horrified by an alleged musical genius’s refusal to help a woman because of his own deadlines. Some moral boundaries dictate that we don’t accept all flaws without judgment.

Third, we can accept some of our flaws in each other and find appropriate punishment for flaws that exceed our moral boundaries. This what the two main characters did – they punished each other because they believed that each other’s flaws exceeded reasonable moral boundaries. They took matters into their own hands to appropriate the harshest punishment possible – death. One wonders, however, who should be the punisher? In this story, the deeds that each other saw as reprehensible did not rise to legally reprehensible deeds. I wonder, too, whether true “friends” shouldn’t have first exhausted all other means to help each other realize why their actions are reprehensible. After all, I would want a true friend to help each other grow and to take steps to rectify deeds that could be deemed reprehensible.

In all, it is a well-written novel that pushes readers to think about our human nature. However, I am still unsure what lesson I should have learned. I suppose I was hoping for an uplifting resolution, with inspiration to learn from or overcome our darker natures.

In my recommendation, it’s a book I would borrow again from the library but not necessarily buy (but then again, I seem to have a very high standard for “buying” a book).

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Most book reviews focus on the haunting story that transports a reader to a different reality -- Afghanistan.

What I found interesting is that the author juxtaposes two main characters in this story. The story focuses on Amir's internal conflicts while his brother, Hassan, faces external conflicts. The book is told from Amir's point of view, thus, the reader does not fully perceive Hassan's internal conflicts. Even from Amir's point of view, how Hassan suffered at the hands of others around him, to the end, is heart-wrenching. Yet, Hassan was able to achieve small measurements of happiness by honoring and treasuring his friendship with Amir and building a family. Hassan is able to find inner peace despite the hardships he faced. Perhaps because he is more secure about his self and inner peace, he is able to create and build his own family even in times of chaos. Although he is unable to always fight successfully against those around him (child abuse, execution), his conflict is resolved by maintaining his inner self.

By contrast, Amir is chased by his own conscience of what he is unable to do. His inner battles spill out to his actions against the one person he couldn't help. He fights against his demons by physically pelting Hassan and chasing away Hassan in hopes that the physical removal of the object of his inner battle would resolve his inner battle. Unlike Hassan, Amir is unable to create a family of his own despite his efforts. Amir finds external stability, much stable physical environment than Hassan, for building a family. Yet, Amir and his wife is unable to successfully have children. Amir is able to overcome his conflict only by taking steps to help Hassan's son and facing his childhood enemy again, albeit with the help of Hassan's son.

Obviously, there is more to explore in this book than what I state above -- the poignancy of the plot itself. But I make no attempt to analyze any books fully in my postings, so I will stop here... because, I don't have the book with me anymore to refer back to it!

Would I buy this book? Probably not. I would probably borrow again from the library if I run out of things to read. I would consider buying a book if (1) the author is an extraordinarily gifted writer (Shakespeare) and (2) the substance is worth sustaining over time. This book probably merits high marks in plot, but I don't know that I would put the writing as extraordinarily talented. What can I say? I have limited resources. =)

The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

I've wanted to start keeping journal/thoughts/essays about books I read. So what better way than a blog? I recently finished reading "The Maltese Falcon" by Dashiell Hammett. I got curious because of all the recent publicity about this "classic." I have never heard of the book and yet it was considered a classic. So I borrowed it from the library to see what all the fuss was about.

Why is this a classic? According to the newspaper review that got me intrigued, this book is still being read even though the Pulitzer prize winner from the same year is all but forgotten. I was determined to find out.

My initial reaction after reading it, is I am not as impressed as I thought I would be. It's a good read and contains essential elements for being a book of bestseller. The plot moves along, the pages turn quickly, and the story is not hard to understand. This is not Faulkner. Maybe I'm just lame and didn't see the symbolism/literary tools that I should have caught, but I didn't.

Did I like the story? Yes. The writing style struck me as something that could have made this book last longer than its own generation. As I said, this is not Faulkner. Hammett's writing is crisp and economical. He also fluidly introduces and describes characters and scenes without tripping himself withverbose description, where you have to re-read because the sentence just keeps running on and on (not like this sentence ;).

In reflection of the simple, crisp writing, the plot in this book is linear, singular, and moves swiftly. The characters, for the most part, are well defined. The main characters, the detective and the femme fatale, do not necessarily grow substantially. They all play their role within their boundaries so that the plot can flow.

The combination of economical, simple plot, writing, and characters appears to be the key to this book's longevity and in classifying it as a classic.

Would I read it over and over again? Probably not. I liked the book; but I would not put it on my list as one of the books I would re-read. From my test of borrow from library or buy from bookstore to keep, I would put this as one I would borrow once from the library.