{2013 TBR Pile Challenge} The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon

ISBN #: 978-0312282998

Page Count: 636

Copyright: August 25, 2001

Publisher: Picador; Reprint

Book Summary:

(Taken from Goodreads)

Joe Kavalier, a young Jewish artist who has also been trained in the art of Houdini-esque escape, has just smuggled himself out of Nazi-invaded Prague and landed in New York City. His Brooklyn cousin Sammy Clay is looking for a partner to create heroes, stories, and art for the latest novelty to hit America - the comic book. Drawing on their own fears and dreams, Kavalier and Clay create the Escapist, the Monitor, and Luna Moth, inspired by the beautiful Rosa Saks, who will become linked by powerful ties to both men.

With exhilarating style and grace, Michael Chabon tells an unforgettable story about American romance and possibility.

Kathy's Review:

(Reprinted with Kathy's permission from her personal blog, Grown Up Book Reports)

Michael Chabon is one of my favorite authors. I always get the sense when I am reading his novels that I am in the hands of someone much smarter and wittier than me. In Kavalier & Clay, Chabon enters 1940's America, with two young men who create a comic book hero, The Escapist, and from there grow an impressive comic book empire and legacy. We follow cousins Sammy Clay and Josef Cavalier as they grow up, the nation goes to war, they grow apart and eventually come back together. And some other stuff happens too.

My interest with this book ebbed and flowed, waxed and waned. Of the Chabon books I've read it was probably somewhere in the middle of the pack in terms of my favorites. But, there are people who go absolutely GAGA over this book, and you may be one of them. If you:

a.) Love comic books;

b.) Enjoy reading about WWII and the Nazis;

c.) Have a Harvard-grad level vocab

d.) Have spare time to read a 600+ page novel

I should mention that there's an element of homosexuality in this novel as well, so if that's not your thang then you may be put off by it.

Also, as all of Chabon's novels are, this is grossly long and dense. It's not a beach read. You have to use your brain and concentrate and not skim, or you'll miss something important. Sometimes a key word is just buried in the middle of a paragraph and it can turn everything on its ear. Watch out for that.

All in all, I'm glad I read it, and I can knock it off my TBR Pile. But it's not for the Average Joe or Jane. Oh, but it did win a Pulitzer in 2001.

{Review} We Do Not Wrestle With Flesh and Blood by B.R. Smith

ASIN #: B005CD0Q4U

File Size: 249 KB

Page Count: 242

Copyright: July 11, 2011

Publisher: B. R. Smith Books; First Edition

Book Summary:

(Taken from Amazon)

This remarkable true story relates the conflicts of a young man seeking truth and freedom in central London in the early 2000s. Set against a fast-paced dialogue between wildly diverse cultures - American, English, and Russian - it tells how the subtle deceptions of evil can eventually destroy a life.

When Benjamin leaves small town Texas for college in London, he seeks only one kind of salvation: freedom from the crushing boredom of a safe life lived within the margins, and its predictable nine-to-five future. Daring to ask if there was more to existence than a report card and a resume, he sets out to join Alex, the son of a Russian oligarch, at a prestigious English business school.

The plan seems simple - Make powerful friends, and then make a ton of money. And from effortless power and money, freedom would follow. Somehow.

We Do Not Wrestle with Flesh and Blood is a witty but profound spiritual testimony about what goes wrong. Preyed upon by one of Alex's sycophantic friends, Benjamin's ambitions deteriorate into a haze of drugs and alcohol. The crisis brings him to a traumatic death experience, and a choice that will have eternal consequences.

Mandy's Review:

This review may end up being harsh. I say "may" end up because I'm not sure how I'm going to vocalize the way I feel about this book. Before I go into what I do not like or disagree with, let me start by saying that I do believe there are spiritual forces fighting for control. I believe that each person's soul is an object of interest for the two opposing spiritual forces. So, saying that, I believe that a person can have a life-and-death experience giving them clarity into how they should live their life. Now, let's get to the actual book ...

Ben lived in a small Texas town. When he was in high school, he had the urge to get out of town. His parents allowed him to go to school overseas. He winds up going back home before the school year is up and right before he gets kicked out of the school. While back in Texas, he convinces his parents to give him a second chance overseas. He winds up going to college overseas as well. While there, Ben meets Alex and, through Alex, Ivan. Both are Russians. Alex begins seeming a little aloof, so Ben starts hanging out with Ivan more. Ivan introduces Ben to drugs and Ben becomes addicted. His addictions have him concerned that he's failing college, but he doesn't stop doing drugs.

One fateful night, Ben dies ... or does he? He believes that he did. As a reader of his experience, it almost seems like it was a mind-trick and that he didn't really die. I feel as if he was made to feel like he died when he really didn't. Regardless, the experience has him crying out to God and Jesus to be saved. He then has a fortuitous event where he meets an African minister who talks to him about God and leads him into the sinner's prayer. The book ends shortly after and we're left to believe that Ben has had a major heart-change and is no longer drinking or doing drugs.

Ben is a very privileged individual. How many parents do you know that would allow their teenage child to go overseas to school? If the parents are willing to let them go, how many of them have the funds to actually facilitate the move ... not once, but twice?! Also, Ben has a Porsche!!! His parents ship his Porsche to him while he's oversees, but he's unsatisfied with it. Then he makes a comment later on in the book that his parent's financial situation has finally improved. Forgive me, but WHAT THE EFF?!!! Are you kidding me?! At the beginning of the book Ben makes it sound like he's from some podunk town full of small minds and lack of money. Apparently, it couldn't have been too bad if he was able to fly overseas several times AND have his very own Porsche. *smh*

Then, one of my major pet peeves took place time and time again in this book. Ben blamed others for his drinking, drug use, and just general overall lack of success in his life. Ben, I say this with all the love and sincerity I can muster ... Grow up. Nobody forced you to drink. Nobody forced you to have pre-marital sex. Nobody forced you to do drugs. You did those all on your own. You made the decisions to partake in those acts and you did those all out of fear. Fear of what others would think of you. Fear that you would be by yourself overseas with nobody to hang out with or talk to. What you went through was brought on by the decisions you made.

This story is a classic example of the type of people who make bad decisions then don't want to deal with the consequences of those decisions or turn around and blame others. Thankfully, God is not human and does not think as we do. He is merciful and gracious every day all day long. He even accepts those that are in the midst of problems of their own making and He will accept them as they are.

Lord, help me to be more like You.


*An ecopy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

{Meme} Book Blogger Hop

The Book Blogger Hop is now being hosted by Billy from Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer. Each Friday, a question is posed to those willing to answer it. You can visit Billy's blog (link above) to see the list of bloggers who are participating this week.

Question:

What is your favorite trilogy?

Kathy's Answer:

The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins is my favorite. Actually, it was the only trilogy that I could think of that I've read, but I love those books nonetheless!

Mandy's Answer:

I'm torn between two trilogies, which is especially surprising knowing that they're sci-fi/fantasy trilogies. The first one being The A-Men Trilogy by John Trevillian. The second is Mark Whiteway's The Lodestone Series ... only three books are available in this series at this time, which allows me to consider it a trilogy even though I strongly believe there will be a fourth book. Both trilogies are extremely well-written, engaging, and exciting to read. I adore them.

{Back to the Classics 2013 Challenge Review) Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

ISBN #: 978-0749717100

Page Count: 112

Copyright: September 1, 1993

Publisher: Penguin Books

Book Summary:

(Taken from Amazon)

They are an unlikely pair: George is "small and quick and dark of face"; Lennie, a man of tremendous size, has the mind of a young child. Yet they have formed a "family," clinging together in the face of loneliness and alienation.

Laborers in California's dusty vegetable fields, they hustle work when they can, living a hand-to-mouth existence. For George and Lennie have a plan: to own an acre of land and a shack they can call their own. When they land jobs on a ranch in the Salinas Valley, the fulfillment of their dream seems to be within their grasp. But even George cannot guard Lennie from the provocations of a flirtatious woman, nor predict the consequences of Lennie's unswerving obedience to the things George taught him.

Kathy's Review:

(Reprinted with Kathy's permission from her personal blog, Grown Up Book Reports)

This is my second time reading this book but it may as well have been my first. All I remembered about Of Mice and Men was that Lennie liked to pet bunnies and there was that one Saturday Night Live skit about it. (Check it out here.)

As the book opened with Lennie and George by the river, looking for wood for their fire, it struck me that the relationship between them is much like the relationship between me and my three year old. George is mildly tolerant of Lennie's behavior, gently scolding him, often frustrated with him, but bound to him nonetheless. "God a'mighty, if I was alone, I could live so easy," George laments in the early pages of the book. Amen, brother. Of course, I would never shoot my three year old in the back of the head like George does to Lennie (oops ... spoiler alert!), but there is a parent/child kind of vibe with them.

George and Lennie have big dreams. They talk of owning their own farm where they'd live off the land, have rabbits, have a nice house. It's the American dream of that era, where these California ranch hands have little but the clothing on their backs. But they can't hold a steady job due to the "trouble" Lennie gets himself into. The man doesn't realize his own strength.

A quick read, Of Mice and Men is a classic that everyone should read, at least once.

{Review} Beirut: An Explosive Thriller by Alexander McNabb

ASIN #: B009HPSYAC

File Size: 664 KB

Page Count: 278

Copyright: September 26, 2012

Book Summary:

(Taken from Goodreads)

Michel Freij is poised to become the next president of Lebanon. The billionaire businessman's calls for a new, strong regional role for the country take on a sinister note when European intelligence reveals Freij has bought two ageing Soviet nuclear warheads from a German arms dealer.

Maverick British intelligence officer Gerald Lynch has to find the warheads, believed to be on board super-yacht the Arabian Princess, before they can reach Lebanon. Joined by Nathalie Durand, the leader of a French online intelligence team, Lynch is pitched into a deadly clash with Freij and his violent militia as he pursues the Arabian Princess across the Mediterranean.

Beirut - An Explosive Thriller sweeps through Lebanon, Hamburg, Prague, Malta, Albania and the Greek Islands on its journey to a devastating climax.

Kathy's Review:

This is the second book in a series. I didn't read the first one, Olives, but I was able to get into the story rather easily. The author did refer back to some plot points from Olives but again, if you didn't read the first one, it shouldn't be a big deal.

What I admire most about this novel is the way it comes alive in the details and choices of words. You see the scene unfold before you with the author's expressive words. The action moves quickly, and you never know what is coming next. I got caught up in the storyline, particularly the kidnapping of Elie, the daughter of a dangerous man. However, this is all part of the larger plot surrounding Michel Freij, a Lebanese criminal masked by politics, and Gerald Lynch, a member of British intelligence, who is trying to uncover Freij's plot to smuggle nuclear warheads into Lebanon.

Toward the end, I got impatient for resolution. I could have done without the last 30-50 pages I think. But overall, this was a good, solid political intrigue type of story, with the door wide open for Lynch to come back in another installment.


*An ecopy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.