Placebo - Every You Every Me
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Book 58: Mystic River
Mystic River by Denis Lehane
Considering how much I enjoyed Shutter Island, I decided to order another book by Lehane, and as much as I want to read The Given Day, I'm not willing to pay for the hardcover. Mystic River is probably his most famous due to the movie which I never saw (not big on Eastwood, what can I say?).
Actually, now that I've read the book I'm really curious to see the movie. However, I couldn't quite remember who all was cast in the film, so I thought Penn was Sean Devine, the cop, not the former thief and father of the victim. Also after seeing which actresses portray the wives, I almost think I would have put them in the opposite roles - of course, I haven't seen their portrayals and they are both very talented actresses (Laura Linney and Rebecca Gay Harden).
All three men, Sean Devine, Jimmy Markum and Dave Boyle were rather well-developed, though the focus definitely seemed to be more on Sean and Jimmy. Lehane threw in a few red herrings but while I've never seen the movie I vaguely remembered hearing about certain aspects of the ending so they didn't generally throw me off too much.
Even though I vaguely knew what was going to happen, the book was still riveting enough where I wanted to know what was going to happen and couldn't put it down. I haven't really gone into too much detail about the story, possibly because I just assume that the movie came out recently enough for everyone to know the basics. Even with that, however, I was surprised: I knew that all these childhood friends are brought together by Jimmy's daughter's murder but I'd thought his daughter was much younger than the nineteen years she actually was in the novel.
Considering how much I enjoyed Shutter Island, I decided to order another book by Lehane, and as much as I want to read The Given Day, I'm not willing to pay for the hardcover. Mystic River is probably his most famous due to the movie which I never saw (not big on Eastwood, what can I say?).
Actually, now that I've read the book I'm really curious to see the movie. However, I couldn't quite remember who all was cast in the film, so I thought Penn was Sean Devine, the cop, not the former thief and father of the victim. Also after seeing which actresses portray the wives, I almost think I would have put them in the opposite roles - of course, I haven't seen their portrayals and they are both very talented actresses (Laura Linney and Rebecca Gay Harden).
All three men, Sean Devine, Jimmy Markum and Dave Boyle were rather well-developed, though the focus definitely seemed to be more on Sean and Jimmy. Lehane threw in a few red herrings but while I've never seen the movie I vaguely remembered hearing about certain aspects of the ending so they didn't generally throw me off too much.
Even though I vaguely knew what was going to happen, the book was still riveting enough where I wanted to know what was going to happen and couldn't put it down. I haven't really gone into too much detail about the story, possibly because I just assume that the movie came out recently enough for everyone to know the basics. Even with that, however, I was surprised: I knew that all these childhood friends are brought together by Jimmy's daughter's murder but I'd thought his daughter was much younger than the nineteen years she actually was in the novel.
Book 57: Of Love and Shadows
Of Love and Shadows by Isabel Allende
In ways, this book was a little different from what I'm used to from Allende: most of her novels I've read tend to be set in slightly more historical times or they are sweeping stories spanning over several generations, beginning in the past and ending in the present (or close to the present). This novel, however, took place in a much more modern era in its entirety: the mid to late '70s or possibly early '80s. The other main difference is that while most of Allende's novels have political views and commentary in them, they are also mostly character driven with a certain amount of romance. This one tends to be driven mainly by the political event and action with the characters and love story taking second place rather than center stage.
Of course this doesn't mean that Allende doesn't develop a variety of strong characters as usual, just that they seem more driven by political events than usual perhaps - and simply that the main focus of the story is the uncovering of a political scandal.
Her main characters Irene and Francisco, a journalist and photographer from very different backgrounds, stumble into the middle of a story while out for a common interest story about a newly found saint. The girl disappears, and Irene and Francisco are trying to find out what exactly happened to her. Francisco who is middle class and has a Marxist father is already aware of some of the outrages committed by his government and already secretly helps people escape the country. Irene on the other hand has been sheltered coming from a well-to-do background and especially in the beginning of the book she has an innocence and naivete about her that seems almost frail and obnoxious. As they investigate the case of the missing saint, Irene's eyes are opened, and she and Francisco discover something far more horrific.
Allende also refers to the desaparecidos, or all the disappeared, people that went missing after going into police custody during the regime of Pinochet. Once I saw the term, I vaguely remembered learning about them in 9th grade history class although for some reason I'd confused Chile and Argentina.
In ways, this book was a little different from what I'm used to from Allende: most of her novels I've read tend to be set in slightly more historical times or they are sweeping stories spanning over several generations, beginning in the past and ending in the present (or close to the present). This novel, however, took place in a much more modern era in its entirety: the mid to late '70s or possibly early '80s. The other main difference is that while most of Allende's novels have political views and commentary in them, they are also mostly character driven with a certain amount of romance. This one tends to be driven mainly by the political event and action with the characters and love story taking second place rather than center stage.
Of course this doesn't mean that Allende doesn't develop a variety of strong characters as usual, just that they seem more driven by political events than usual perhaps - and simply that the main focus of the story is the uncovering of a political scandal.
Her main characters Irene and Francisco, a journalist and photographer from very different backgrounds, stumble into the middle of a story while out for a common interest story about a newly found saint. The girl disappears, and Irene and Francisco are trying to find out what exactly happened to her. Francisco who is middle class and has a Marxist father is already aware of some of the outrages committed by his government and already secretly helps people escape the country. Irene on the other hand has been sheltered coming from a well-to-do background and especially in the beginning of the book she has an innocence and naivete about her that seems almost frail and obnoxious. As they investigate the case of the missing saint, Irene's eyes are opened, and she and Francisco discover something far more horrific.
Allende also refers to the desaparecidos, or all the disappeared, people that went missing after going into police custody during the regime of Pinochet. Once I saw the term, I vaguely remembered learning about them in 9th grade history class although for some reason I'd confused Chile and Argentina.
Book 56: The Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation by Rupert Thomson
Eh. I'd read a review of this over at Bibliolatry and I thought the premise sounded very interesting. The main character, a dancer, is kidnapped by three women for eighteen days and held against his will. While in their captivity, he both hates them and sometimes questions himself, wondering if he is too cooperative with them, asking himself what that says about him. Obviously, he doesn't have a choice but to cooperate but he still blames himself to an extent. After they release him, he returns to his old life, but can't deal with it and ends up leaving Amsterdam behind for three years.
Once he comes back, he becomes obsessed with finding his old captors. Since he only ever saw their bodies but not their faces, he believes the only way to do this is to sleep with a bunch of women and see them naked. Of course, given that his captors know this, why he would think he'd ever be able to seduce a single one of them is beyond me. Despite that stupidity on his part, I actually liked this part of the novel, especially once he begins to reach his senses and begins putting his life back together.
And then the ending happened, and just made me angry. I was rather impartial to the first half of the book, and then I really disliked the way it ended. Since the narrator never shares his story with anyone except for his ex-girlfriend right when he is released and trying to convince her he hadn't left her, it eats at him and no one understands his change in behavior. He is obsessed and even when it looks like he is beginning to let go of that obsession, it still takes control of him. Since he doesn't explain his motivations, he looks like a monster; however, even with his motivations, his behavior has become despicable. He realizes this but can't stop himself, comparing what happened to him to vampirism.
Eh. I'd read a review of this over at Bibliolatry and I thought the premise sounded very interesting. The main character, a dancer, is kidnapped by three women for eighteen days and held against his will. While in their captivity, he both hates them and sometimes questions himself, wondering if he is too cooperative with them, asking himself what that says about him. Obviously, he doesn't have a choice but to cooperate but he still blames himself to an extent. After they release him, he returns to his old life, but can't deal with it and ends up leaving Amsterdam behind for three years.
Once he comes back, he becomes obsessed with finding his old captors. Since he only ever saw their bodies but not their faces, he believes the only way to do this is to sleep with a bunch of women and see them naked. Of course, given that his captors know this, why he would think he'd ever be able to seduce a single one of them is beyond me. Despite that stupidity on his part, I actually liked this part of the novel, especially once he begins to reach his senses and begins putting his life back together.
And then the ending happened, and just made me angry. I was rather impartial to the first half of the book, and then I really disliked the way it ended. Since the narrator never shares his story with anyone except for his ex-girlfriend right when he is released and trying to convince her he hadn't left her, it eats at him and no one understands his change in behavior. He is obsessed and even when it looks like he is beginning to let go of that obsession, it still takes control of him. Since he doesn't explain his motivations, he looks like a monster; however, even with his motivations, his behavior has become despicable. He realizes this but can't stop himself, comparing what happened to him to vampirism.
Book 55: The Feast of Roses
The Feast of Roses by Indu Sundaresan
This is the follow up to the novel The Twentieth Wife that I recently read. In this book, Sundaresan takes up where she left off in the first novel, and tells the story of Mehrunnisa and Jahangir's marriage. She quickly gained political power and say, and became the most important of Jahangir's wives. She was definitely rather astute politically but her presence as a woman of course raised quite a few eye brows and made some men at the court rather unhappy and uncomfortable. While Mehrunissa usually made smart decisions, she also realized that all her power came from her husband, and both he and she realized that with his death, she would be on her own unless she could somehow bind herself to his successor. It is in this case where Mehurnissa makes a few political misjudgments and gambles on the wrong people, and makes a few enemies she shouldn't have.
When it comes to money and power, family loyalty plays little role in this novel. The novel also talks about some of the Portugese and English visiting India and attempting to make alliances, some more and some less successfully. Mostly, however it is focused on internal politics and Mehrunissa's partnership with her husband.
This is the follow up to the novel The Twentieth Wife that I recently read. In this book, Sundaresan takes up where she left off in the first novel, and tells the story of Mehrunnisa and Jahangir's marriage. She quickly gained political power and say, and became the most important of Jahangir's wives. She was definitely rather astute politically but her presence as a woman of course raised quite a few eye brows and made some men at the court rather unhappy and uncomfortable. While Mehrunissa usually made smart decisions, she also realized that all her power came from her husband, and both he and she realized that with his death, she would be on her own unless she could somehow bind herself to his successor. It is in this case where Mehurnissa makes a few political misjudgments and gambles on the wrong people, and makes a few enemies she shouldn't have.
When it comes to money and power, family loyalty plays little role in this novel. The novel also talks about some of the Portugese and English visiting India and attempting to make alliances, some more and some less successfully. Mostly, however it is focused on internal politics and Mehrunissa's partnership with her husband.
Book 54: Affinity
Affinity by Sarah Waters
As the novel begins, the narrator, Margaret, makes a few references to an event that had happened two years ago around the time of her father's death. As a result, for most of the book, I doubted how reliable she was as the narrator since I felt like she was hiding something from the reader and merely hinting at "her illness."
It takes place in Victorian England, in the 1860s, and Margaret, coming from a rather well to do family, decides to give up some of her time to volunteer and visit inmates at the women's wing of a local prison. While there, she quickly becomes fascinated with one particular inmate, Selena Dawes, whose short journal entries are interspersed with Margaret's writings. Selena is in prison for fraud and assault, the event having been described in the first few pages of the novel. Before going to prison, Selena worked as a spiritualist, holding seances and so forth for some bored rich people. Margaret, who generally seems to be very rational, quickly begins to believe Selena's story and in the existence of spirits.
Since I had my doubts in the narrator, I kept looking for the logical explanation, and waiting for the mystery to finally explain itself, and the ending definitely didn't disappoint. Margaret is very smart and educated but given her restrictions as a female in her society, it is no surprise that she feels isolated and disconnected from her surroundings. Her loneliness thus makes her even more susceptible to any interest others might express in her.
As the novel begins, the narrator, Margaret, makes a few references to an event that had happened two years ago around the time of her father's death. As a result, for most of the book, I doubted how reliable she was as the narrator since I felt like she was hiding something from the reader and merely hinting at "her illness."
It takes place in Victorian England, in the 1860s, and Margaret, coming from a rather well to do family, decides to give up some of her time to volunteer and visit inmates at the women's wing of a local prison. While there, she quickly becomes fascinated with one particular inmate, Selena Dawes, whose short journal entries are interspersed with Margaret's writings. Selena is in prison for fraud and assault, the event having been described in the first few pages of the novel. Before going to prison, Selena worked as a spiritualist, holding seances and so forth for some bored rich people. Margaret, who generally seems to be very rational, quickly begins to believe Selena's story and in the existence of spirits.
Since I had my doubts in the narrator, I kept looking for the logical explanation, and waiting for the mystery to finally explain itself, and the ending definitely didn't disappoint. Margaret is very smart and educated but given her restrictions as a female in her society, it is no surprise that she feels isolated and disconnected from her surroundings. Her loneliness thus makes her even more susceptible to any interest others might express in her.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Travel Advice
If you ever find yourself in Rome, you might think it's a good idea to hit up all the ancient Roman stuff in one day, and then do the Vatican stuff the next - especially since the Vatican is closed on Sundays and the other museums tend to be closed on Mondays.
Guess what is actually a really bad idea? Seeing all the ancient Roman stuff in one day. While it is relatively close together with a few exceptions, it still involves a lot of walking - no big deal, I'm used to my feet hurting by the end of the day when I'm traveling. More importantly, however, a lot of that stuff is outdoors, or at least has large outdoor sections, such as the Colosseum, the Forum/Palatine area, Trajan's Market etc. In other words, I'm in serious pain right now. I didn't expect Rome to be as hot as it is, I didn't even think to pack sun screen, and I'm rather fair skinned and avoid the sun. I can't remember the last time I had a sunburn but I've definitely got one now. (In Iraq, I tended to be rather more fully clothed, and for some reason, even the parts of me that were revealed to the sun just got darker - granted, I usually burn on my back and chest area, not my forearms.)
Besides that, Rome is gorgeous and I haven't even needed to use a bus or a subway to get anywhere yet, though given the condition I'm in right now, I'm seriously considering calling a cab in the morning to get to the Vatican. Not really. I also can't decide if I should be sightseeing or shopping because they have so many stores. I had dinner at the Piazza Navona last night, and a midafternoon snack there this afternoon when my feet couldn't take it anymore - so pretty.
Guess what is actually a really bad idea? Seeing all the ancient Roman stuff in one day. While it is relatively close together with a few exceptions, it still involves a lot of walking - no big deal, I'm used to my feet hurting by the end of the day when I'm traveling. More importantly, however, a lot of that stuff is outdoors, or at least has large outdoor sections, such as the Colosseum, the Forum/Palatine area, Trajan's Market etc. In other words, I'm in serious pain right now. I didn't expect Rome to be as hot as it is, I didn't even think to pack sun screen, and I'm rather fair skinned and avoid the sun. I can't remember the last time I had a sunburn but I've definitely got one now. (In Iraq, I tended to be rather more fully clothed, and for some reason, even the parts of me that were revealed to the sun just got darker - granted, I usually burn on my back and chest area, not my forearms.)
Besides that, Rome is gorgeous and I haven't even needed to use a bus or a subway to get anywhere yet, though given the condition I'm in right now, I'm seriously considering calling a cab in the morning to get to the Vatican. Not really. I also can't decide if I should be sightseeing or shopping because they have so many stores. I had dinner at the Piazza Navona last night, and a midafternoon snack there this afternoon when my feet couldn't take it anymore - so pretty.
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