Hyenas, Tigers, and Man, OH MY!

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

In an attempt to find my own voice and to create an innovative and more personable review of the material I look at and analyze, I think it would be best to reformat and incorporate first person point of view. Without further ado, “Life of Pi” by Yann Martel.

What can I say? The storyline and events of this novel are quite addictive and more importantly, fluid. Young Piscine, “Pi”, Patel details the shortcomings of his own name and his childhood in India with numerous curiosities and triumphs that set his childhood apart from the average kid. His father runs and owns a zoo which becomes a critical piece in Pi’s growth and later survival while stranded at sea for over half a year with only a few surviving zoo animals as companions on a small rescue boat.

I found myself continually bemused and emotionally attached to Pi’s antics and cleverness in survival which speaks especially to Mr. Martel’s ingenuity and creativity in the development of this fantasy adventure. I was, and readers most likely feel the same, continuously considering how well Mr. Martel was able to relay and inspire feelings.

My best example of this comes towards the end of the second portion of the book when Pi has become blind with hunger and suddenly another castaway appears who is French and blind as well. I found myself utterly bewildered attempting to ascertain what was going on. However, this confusion is likely due to Martel’s hand and displays the confusion and blindness that Pi himself must have felt being blind and suddenly meeting another person after tens of days with no companion but a Bengal tiger. It was almost kafka-esque.

I would be detracting from my job and obligation if I did not mention the spiritual undertones and discussion in this novel. Pi is a practicing Hindu, Christian, and Muslim who makes compelling arguments and points about loyalty to one religion and ultimately the larger picture of what belief and piety truly is.

I was, overall, very impressed with “Life of Pi” and consider it something that should be put on anyone’s list to read if your interests lay in adventure, survival, and the new. My only criticism lay in wanting to know the true occurrences and events that surround the plot!

SEND A CARD PLEASE!!!!

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com//dpp/news/local/cards-wanted-for-boy-with-leukemia-20111205-ms

2012 Challenges: My First Challenge!

This will be my first book challenge of 2012 and my first one ever! War through the Generation's blog is hosting a WWI-themed book challenge. I am entering at the dip level which is 1-3 books, but I am hoping that it will end up being many more!

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Seigfried Sassoon and Otto Dix, this is for you. I look forward to Ernest Hemingway's, "A Farewell to Arms"

Thanks for the theme and opportunity WarThroughTheGenerations!

Divinity and Imprisonment

Right to the nitty gritty, “When the Emperor was Divine”, by Julie Otsuka (Anchor Books, ISBN 978-0-385-72181-3), was a unique and entertaining perspective of Japanese-American internment during WWII in the U.S. The detail and imagery is compelling and vivid. The material is inviting, easy-to-read, and condensed into a novel that can be read in only a few hours.

The novel follows a Japanese-American family who receives notice that they must travel from their home in California to an internment camp due to open war with Japan. This imprisonment has been one of the most controversial subjects in American history due to the subjugation and overt policy of removal.

The novel records and portrays the lifestyle of internment and later the return of internees to their homes. That is, if their homes were still there. Ms. Otsuka’s depiction is deep and shows the ostracization of an entire people. The remarkability of the event is how arguments can honestly be made that the subjugation was brutal and unethical, but that it may also have been justified due to spying and the possibility of violence without intervention. However others want to call it or tell themselves so they can sleep at night, Japanese-Americans were imprisoned due to their heritage. There is no ifs ands or buts about it.

At times the structure of the novel is somewhat unfamiliar and lacking. The flow of the plot through different characters is innovative, but also interruptive; especially when some characters are given a much greater amount of attention.

The lack of names for the family was at times distracting, but did not detract from the purpose or depth of Otsuka’s writing. This novel is a true glimpse into the life of a Japanese-American internee and the uncertainty felt when freedom and livelihood depends on the outcome of conflict thousands of miles away.

“When the Emperor was Divine” is a must read for those who enjoy contemplating the themes of morality and justice or simply to enlighten oneself concerning a forgotten aspect to American history.

Hail, Hail to Adrian

The following review and blurb is intended to display my own personal interests, activities, and reflection on my time in a previous life.

Dr. Stephanie Jass’, No Victory without Work: A Pictorial History of Adrian College (The Donning Company Publishers, ISBN 978-1-57864-571-8) bears a special place in my affections. The book celebrates the sesquicentennial anniversary of my alma mater and the writer is one whom I consider a friend and mentor.

Categorized into various themes and topics ranging from the schools conception, building history, student life, and athletics, at times some transitions appear seamless and others a bit clunky. This quite possibly could be due to constraints on the author regarding material and/or participation of her voice. The succinct nature of the book would suggest these constraints as well as her admonition in the preface.

Despite these limitations, the read accomplishes its purpose precisely. A common theme reverberates throughout, “No Victory without work”, or in this writer’s words, success through adversity. The depth of the research is evident just looking at the vast array of pictures included. It is hard to imagine how many were not added!

Truly enlightening and refreshing, No Victory without Work represents, to me, a perfect method to celebrate a school’s anniversary. The content was forthcoming and despite minor instances of a lack of fluidity and some redundancies, Dr. Jass creates an accurate and incredible narrative of the fruition and determination of a small liberal arts school in southeast Michigan.

(Please note: this work is a special piece intended for an audience predominately comprised of AC alumni, students, and faculty)

Remembering Robert Browning

On this day in 1889, Robert Browning passed away at the age of 77. Mr. Browning had a massive impact on the literary world during the Victorian Era. His wife, Elizabeth Barret Browning, has made her own impact in literature as well. I would reccomend many of his works, including, "My Last Duchess". Here is a link to look at his various works and life.

http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/rb/rbov.html

Thank you for your contributions Mr. Browning!

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Banishment

The banning of books will always be a controversial and touchy subject in today’s society and world. American citizens pride themselves on the freedoms, liberties, and rights that remain prevalent in their homes, but there have been topics and material deemed unworthy for publication, distribution, or the youth of America. What does it take to join the ranks of those who are or were sanctioned? The elements below are methods and topics used to become a banned author. Then again, they might also be attributed for writing bestsellers.

1.       Write about something society can’t decide on- Topics can range from homosexuality, race, religion, abortion, pregnancy, masturbation, to other sexually suggestive material. Better yet, combine them all and there stands Maya Angelou’s, “I Know why the Caged Bird Sings”.

2.       Defamation of government currently in power- Governments have a knack for glorifying current regimes, vilifying the past, and striking down opposition. Aleksander Solzhenitsyn was on both ends in the Soviet Union when he was hailed a hero for his contributions during WWII as a soldier and was later ostracized and banned due to anti-Soviet and Stalin elements in his writings like “The Gulag Archipelago” and “One day in the life of Ivan Denisovitch”.

3.       How-to’s on violence- This may be common sense, but good luck attempting to find a publisher or avoid being banned by numerous organizations and governments when the content depicts ways to inflict violence on others. For example, Eliezer Flores writes and illustrates how to make use of all sorts of readily available objects such as water bottles and window screens in, “How to make Disposable Silencers”.

4.       PROFANITY- Adults (specifically parents and up-tight townsfolk) cannot stand profanity. That is especially the case when the innocent ears of their children who may have never sworn a day in their life could possibly be taking in every word. Mark Twain’s, “Huckleberry Finn”, is an excellent example and was banned by a vast amount of schools and libraries due to use of the ‘n’ word.

5.       Blur the line between fiction and reality- There seems to be a constant and real fear of people (particularly children) being persuaded, influenced, and brainwashed to believe in fantastical illusions. Just ask J.K. Rowling how many angry letters and e-mails she gets for causing children to believe in witchcraft and sorcery.

THE NEW YORK TIMES lists top 100 books of 2011

The New York Times recently released a podcast listing it's choices for the 100 most notable non-fiction books of 2011. Click on the link below to view the article and hear the podcast!

Book Review Podcast: 100 Best Non-Fiction Books of 2011

Tim O'Brien creates a fictional Vietnam that makes me a Believer

Tim O’Brien has done it again in The Things They Carried. The complexity and depth of this factual/fictional memoir is astonishing. Whether O’Brien is attempting to dodge the draft on the Canadian border or waist-deep in a manure field within the heart of war-torn, rural Vietnam, he brings humanity and humility to the controversial and prolonged war far away from American hearths. It is hard to believe the war ended only 36 years ago, but this compelling read has assuredly and vividly reawakened old nightmares, opened old wounds, and enlightened many readers who were unaware or not even born at the time of the brutal conflict.

The psychological account of various stories could only come from a man who experienced them and that is what makes the memoir truly compelling. Readers are aware of the truth and sincerity from his imagery, detail, and ironically, the sporadic accounts of what happened. The devices he uses such as doubting his own depiction, admitting the mixture of fact and fiction, as well as that of others stories synthesizing with his own, create the perception of true thought process and recollecting memories; especially traumatic ones. This account is superb and a must-read when attempting to understand the psychology of war, Vietnam, soldiers, and how they cope with the men they saw die and the lives they attempt to live afterward. The things they carried weigh on their shoulders long after the war is over.

This collection of ficticious historical stories is truly believable in content and unbelievable when it comes to style, structure, and significance. Do not shy away from this compelling depiction of war. A true masterpiece.

Up and Running!

This is my first post in the blog! How exciting!

My first post will be a quick look at the relatively new Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen that was adapted into a movie now on DVD. The novel was quite the story and I most definitely could not stop myself from finishing it in one sitting!

Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen is a compelling read that is fast-paced and difficult to put down. At times the plot ran so quickly I found myself trying to search for a way to slow down the course of the story, but to no avail. The quick pace, however, does seem to fit and reaches a broader audience that seems to want rapid conclusion and catharsis. Reversions to the present time are a nice break from circus life and I believe are Gruen’s most vivid and compelling depictions of the novel. Her illustration of life at the nursing home and perspective of the ‘patients’ which Jacob catches a nurse stating when the correct political term is ‘residents’ provides an accurate and refreshing look at assisted elderly homes. The circus lifestyle is portrayed truthfully, but is often overshadowed by the dynamics and major plot-line concerned with the Romantic relationship and triangle of Jacob, August, and Marlena.

Gruen’s, Water for Elephants, is an easy read with relatively simple themes and motifs to comprehend including: animal cruelty, abusive relationships, circus life in the 30’s, life during the Great Depression, coming of age, and older age/aging. It truly encapsulates a broad range of topics, but the overlaying plot and issues are prevalent and riveting, if a bit rushed. Overall, Gruen shows brilliance, a great aptitude for stylistic flair, and there is no doubt that the novel has and will appeal to a wide audience.

Fantastic Book!