Box or Bookshelf: July 2012

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Blue is for Bookshelved: Blue is for Nightmares (whole series)

I’m very picky about the scary movies and books I like. I don’t like it in horror when you know right from the beginning who the villain is—when you already know who the villain is as soon as the movie starts, that’s a pretty good sign that what you’re watching is more of a slasher movie, where the gore and violence takes center stage abruptly pushing aside (or skipping altogether) the mystery aspect. They don’t give the audience a chance to wonder what evil lies just around the corner, waiting to strike—essentially letting the audience scare themselves more than the actual scenes and events ever could. Suspense, in my opinion, is what makes a movie or a book scary. For me, not knowing what’s haunting the main characters and snatching them one by one is way scarier than any masked serial killer.

And that’s why Laurie Faria Stolarz’s series (Blue is for Nightmares, White is for Magic, Silver is for Secrets, Red is for Remembrance) is one of my favorites. Though I haven’t had a chance to check out the fifth book, a graphic novel called Black is for Beginnings, the first four have been a permanent, and frequently revisited installment on my bookshelf for quite some time now. This is the kind of book where if you’re reading it alone, especially if it’s dark, and someone unexpectedly knocks on your door or sneaks up on you, you may just pee your pants (seriously, it happened to a friend of mine when I lent her the book…well, she didn’t actually pee her pants, but she did jump and scream).

The main character in this book, Stacey Brown, has nightmares (I know, I totally wasn’t expecting that either with a title like Blue is for Nightmares). What makes her nightmares particularly scary is that they come true. Stacy has terrifying premonitions about people who are going to die and if she doesn’t do anything to stop these premonitions she knows, from experience, that they’ll come true. Talk about a lot of pressure for a 16 year old.

I will admit, now that I'm older(and I’ve read the books almost fifty times) the books aren’t as scary as they once were to me--and they may not really satisfy older readers who have more experience with the horror genre. They’re more gateway books into horror—the stories are tame enough that readers less keen on being scared will still enjoy them, but they give you that taste of scary so you can see if you want more. These books will definitely have the right readers on the edge of their seats. And even if they may not have you as jumpy as I was if reading them for the first time, I’d still say they’ll probably have anyone's heart going a little faster than usual.

Plus, like I said earlier, what I like about these books is that they’re frightening because the writer knows how to set up that mysteriousness. You don’t know what’s going on—you only know enough to be afraid. Like Stacey, you’re just trying to figure out what and who you should be afraid of. Not only do you feel the fear of being chased, but you have the anticipation of that fear from the riddles in Stacey’s dreams.

What I also love about these books (especially Blue is for Nightmares) is that they don’t ignore the teenager drama and development while they’re setting up the scariness. Though Stacy isn’t exactly your average teenage girl, she does deal with things that many girls deal with at her age. She has crushes, best friend drama, relationship drama, and on top of that she’s a Wiccan who has nightmares about the future…And did I mention those nightmares are often accompanied by embarrassing bodily functions like bedwetting? Yeah, Stacey’s got a lot going on.

To top it off Stolarz is a pretty solid writer. Her characters, though maybe not the first of their kind, have enough originality and character flaws to make them interesting (though I might actually say the supporting characters are a little more original than Stacey—she’s reminiscent of your typical shy-girl-with-a-secret main character). And Stolarz adds drama, as only teenage characters can deliver. There’s that constant emotional breakdown brewing beneath the surface, waiting to blow things out of proportion and make everything into more than it is.

Stolarz lets you in on the lives of these characters as they try to deal with growing older, forging identities, and maintaining friendships and romantic relationships (especially when those friendships and romances overlap). It’s just an added bonus that Stacey happens to be solving murder mysteries before they happen. And, it’s great to be able to follow those characters throughout the series—all of the books are solid and worth reading. Stolarz doesn’t let her writing fall apart after the first one or two books.

So, I could talk about Blue is for Nightmares until I’m blue in the face, but I don’t want to give anything away—more than most other books, it’s important with these to leave the mystery intact. Just know that this is definitely a series for the bookshelf.

T-Shirts!

Hey Guys!
So I actually have to go to my real job today (yuck!) and my post for today will be a little later than usual. So I just thought I'd hold you guys over by showing you what I've been up to in the name of Box or Bookshelf.

I'm making T-shirts! This idea was born of boredom, creative frustration, and a need for advertising. The two I've done so far were inspired by The Great Gatsby (that's the one in white), for my sister, and Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" (the black shirt, obviously), which is for a friend of mine.

I hope to make more soon and I promise to keep you posted. If you want to see more pictures and be the first to know about new t-shirts check out our Facebook page! (the link's on the sidebar).

Hope you like 'em!
Kelly

Monday, July 23, 2012

A "Textbook" That Won't Push Your Buttons: Napoleon's Buttons

One of my biggest pet peeves in the U.S. education system is the reliance on textbooks. Weird coming from a girl who loves books and reading, huh? But most textbooks, in my opinion, are not worthy of the title "book." They are torture devices invented, not to help students learn, but to make money and make people hate school. Though the level of premeditation in manufacturing boredom on the part of textbook companies is questionable, what isn't in question is the fact that they suck. The writers take whole chapters to explain things that could have been said in a few pages and they often use huge confusing words (I think on purpose) that aren't relevant at all and merely serve to perpetuate confusion. (Actually, the only exceptions to this rule are Communication Studies Textbooks. Not all of them, but some, are remarkably efficient--they're the textbooks that cued me in to the fact that textbooks don't have to be so bad).

So, if you feel the way I do about textbooks, why on earth would you choose to read one? Well #1 I didn't originally choose to read Napoleon's Buttons: 17 Molecules That Changed History (by Penny LeCouteur & Jay Burreson). I was assigned to read a chapter of it for a Chemistry class in college and I ended up liking it so much that I read many of the other chapters on my own. and #2 I might not call this book a textbook in a traditional sense (though I did learn WAY more than I would have learned from any textbook). It's not one of those heavy, hardcover books that they make in sizes and shapes that hardly ever fit right in your bag and that are probably the cause of premature back pain everywhere. It's regular paperback size (thank goodness) and with fewer useless diagrams, appendices, indexes, and general space-wasting garbage.

If you're interested in Chemistry or History at all, or you're like me and you just have a thirst for random knowledge, this book is going to be your new best friend. After reading it, you'll have a bunch of cool new facts on hand to wow people with in conversation. 'Cause nothing gets the party started like you educating your guests on the part played by Ergot Alkaloids in the Salem Witch Trials. And if you're trying to score points with the ladies, what better way than than to explain why the properties of tin (in addition to all the other reasons no army should ever invade Russia), led to Napoleon's ultimate defeat. In all seriousness though, if you sometimes just have the urge to know more about the way the world works and historical events, this book will help you do that in a way that doesn't bore your pants off.

One of the best things about it is the manageable sections. This isn't a book I would recommend sitting down with and reading all at once--it's one of those one's you'll have to come back to over time. And the authors did a great job recognizing that fact and organizing the book in a way that fits with this type of reading. Instead of chronological order, like most history books, where you're wading through decades of useless info just to get to the part you want, this book is separated by subjects. So you'll learn about one of the seventeen molecules and it's continued influence throughout history all in one chapter.

The other great thing is that the writing is accessible--though I will admit, only up until a certain point. Yes the writers did a great job making sense of difficult subject matter for the reader. But this is still a book primarily dealing with chemicals and chemical processes. It's not something you'd read to your kid as a bedtime story (unless he/she's a genius) and it's not something I'd recommend for younger readers, even young adults, unless they read a lot and have an interest in Chemistry and/or History. It can get a little technical at times when explaining why certain chemicals react in the ways that they do. That being said I do think it's a great teaching tool for colleges, and maybe even high school classes (in smaller doses--for example, reading a few chapters at intervals when they're relevant to the chemicals and processes talked about in class).

Napoleon's Buttons is a perfect book for independent adult learning. Like I said earlier, if you're the type of person who just feels like knowing more about... (for lack of a better word) stuff, this is your book. So if your bookshelf is like mine, where you mix a good deal of educational/nonfiction with books about zombies, faeries, mystery and magic, then this book will fit right in on the shelf.

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Betrayed by Pretty Colors: Betwixt

So, for writers out there who want me to read their books, you better spend a good deal of time on the title and your cover. Because I'll tell you right now, I do judge a book by its cover. I'm not ashamed of that; I don't want to be reading a book in public with a cover that looks like a nine-year-old designed it and have people looking at it like "What cheap nonsense is this girl reading—she’s probably barely literate." No, sir—I am quite literate and I want people to know it. So writers, don't skimp on your book covers and/or spend practically no time considering your title thinking "Oh people will read it anyway," because I certainly won't. And if I have to see another poem titled "Untitled" I will burn it, and quite possibly the author as well.

Of course, that vain little habit of mine, like most vain little habits, sometimes gets me into trouble. For example, Tara Bray Smith's Betwixt. Yellow cover, mysterious butterfly lady-face, lovely word choice for a title (I love a good random word title)--feels a little outdated but almost classic in its minimalistic design. It catches my eye in the bookstore and I'm immediately intrigued. I barely even read the back of it because I'm thinking "Oooo, bright yellow! How pretty. This book is going to be awesome."

This book is NOT awesome. It is quite possibly the worst book I’ve ever read. Okay, that may be an exaggeration, but I will tell you I couldn’t even finish this book. And I’m really not someone who makes a decision like that lightly—I feel that in order to have a comprehensive opinion of a book you have to see it through to the end so that even if its merits are few, you are aware of all of them. But this book is just so terrible I got fed up with it and tossed it.

And the saddest part about it is that it shouldn’t be as bad as it is. The idea behind the book is actually very intriguing, verging on original even. The story is a (very) little bit like Tithe. There’s this group of teenagers who are basically changelings (kids who were replaced with fey/faerie creatures as children). They’ve never known it and yet somehow they’ve always felt it—they’ve always been a little off and a little magical. So basically they’re stalked by this guy named Moth who is also a changeling, but he already knows it. And he’s very mysterious and beats around the bush about what they really are for a while before having them come to this ceremony, that seems like a concert to humans, called the Ring of Fire. And there all is revealed. These kids are told they’re meant to accept their fey spirits and once they do they’ll ascend to basically the heaven/paradise of the fey.

As for the characters, they’re actually very interesting. They’re conflicted and dynamic. They aren’t inherently evil or good characters and their personalities are as unusual as real human personalities. One character is even almost incestuous—how’s that for edgy. Plus, the fey are the creepy, twisted magical creatures I’m such a fan of. And all of this is why I kept reading it hoping it would get better—I really wanted to follow the story and the characters.

Unfortunately, the writing almost completely blotted out all the books other redeeming qualities. There is just something wrong with it. It’s so frustrating. It’s not that there are a lot of grammatical errors or anything, it’s just that it doesn’t make sense. And not in a good way like “Oh this book is going to be confusing but it’s a masterpiece,” but in a “What? That doesn’t make any sense!” *toss book across the room and glare at it* way. The writing reads like no one else read it before she published it. Like it just came out of her head and no one bothered to tell her, “So, um, yeah I have no clue what you’re saying here.” I mean, I was a writing tutor—I’m all for maintaining a writer’s voice while you’re editing. But you can’t just leave everything the way it is if the writer is incoherent. The plot is complicated enough without the writer’s inability to describe things in a consistent way that makes sense.

And the dialogue is atrocious. Sometimes you can’t figure out who’s talking to whom and sometimes it just sucks altogether. Smith didn’t spend enough time working on emulating real, teenage conversation. The dialogue is forced, confusing, and sometimes it’s trying way too hard to sound young and hip. In defense of the dialogue (though I really don’t know why I’m defending something I hated so much), it’s possible the writer is just from a completely different dialectic area where people really talk like that. But, as a long time resident of the Northeast, I have to say she’s not from around here.

So, you may be tempted (as I was) to read this book because of its intriguing title and cover, but I'm telling you, don't drink the Kool-Aid! In all seriousness, you can certainly try to read this book. And more power to you if you like it more than I did. But in my opinion this is definitely one for the box.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

New and Improved

Hey guys!

I just wanted to keep you updated on a few new things on the site. I'm a little tech-slow, so bear with me. There may be further improvements in the future.

As of right now, Box or Bookshelf is proud to introduce these new features:

Follow by Email

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Monday, July 16, 2012

More filling than The Hunger Games: Wither (Book 1, The Chemical Garden Trilogy)

As with any trending book, The Hunger Games has encouraged a wealth of like-minded writing—shelves that used to overflow with the vampire themed remnants of the Twilight craze, are now welcoming a multitude of post-apocalyptic fiction.

*Side Note* Just for the record, I am endlessly frustrated that bookstores always try to jump on whatever bandwagon comes their way—by that I mean, do they really think just because people enjoyed one book that they want to read a hundred other books about the same exact thing? Can’t a girl just browse through a bunch of different themes and pick for herself? Next we’ll have a bunch of bondage-sex-books following up this Fifty Shades of Grey nonsense.

In any case, the one good thing about the theme-selling-overkill is that sometimes it reveals other books of the same type that are even better than the one getting all the attention. Case in point: Lauren DeStefano’s Wither, the first book of the Chemical Garden Trilogy.

This book, though not exactly “post-apocalyptic” in its truest sense, takes a look at a world falling prey to a disease that robs the world of youth. As the back cover explains “In the not-too-distant future, genetic engineering has turned every newborn into a ticking time bomb: Males die at age twenty-five, and females die at age twenty. While scientists seek a miracle antidote, young girls are routinely kidnapped and sold as polygamous brides to bear more children.”

Though the writing was nothing particularly special, I found the story compelling. This book, like many of the young adult books I enjoy and find worth reading, exacerbates human flaws. It take the things that are wrong with our world and puts them under intense fictional pressure—by showing the reader the worst-case scenario, the book reveals the problems with the current scenario. The premise of the book—the genetic engineering of a previous generation leading to the destruction of future ones—is very current (though maybe not completely original—viruses decimating the population are nothing new—zombies anyone?). While we, today, have concerns that our actions pertaining to social security, the environment, and science could lead to issues for those who come later, this book actually shows us a world where future generations are screwed over by specific actions of their predecessors. Because of their experiments, the older members of this world lead long, healthy lives completely devoid of illness. Meanwhile their children, and their children’s children, die long before their time of a painful, wasting, and terrifying sickness.

Furthermore, this sickness brings up interesting questions about the way in which we covet youth and constantly try to recapture it. In Wither, this concept is turned on its head—reminding the reader that growing old is, in fact, the privilege. When the only thing a person will ever know is youth, it’s not the blessing most forty-something women think it is, it’s a curse.

DeStefano comments on our world further, tackling the issue of young pregnancy and motherhood. In a world with TV shows like Teen Mom or 16 & Pregnant, and role models like Miley Cyrus, who’s already married and talking about having kids at 19, we almost seem to be reverting back to a previous time. DeStefano, especially through the character Cecily, examines the complications of children having sex and bearing children. In a world where young people are forced to have kids, it becomes all the more clear why it may not be wise for them to choose to—playing house isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, especially post-apocalypse.

Last, but not least, DeStefano makes perhaps the subtlest and most important commentary with the main character, Rhine. Rhine’s captivity and her attempt to seduce her way out of it reveals to the reader the confusion that comes along with romantically using someone—especially at a young age where you’re just figuring out what love is. It can be easy to assume that natural chemistry and that stereotypical “love-at-first-sight” kind of love are the only ones that matter—but as Rhine discovers, pretending to love someone and having them give you their love can be almost as intoxicating as the real thing. Contrary to popular belief, DeStefano points about the ability to learn to love someone, even in arranged marriages. Rhine of all people should not love her captor, Linden, but she often finds herself falling for her own ruse—wanting to stay with him and love him like he wants her to.

On a higher level, Rhine shows us the importance of remembering not to simply accept things as they are—even if they are incredibly pleasant. Even if your life is perfect and always has been (maybe even especially in this case) you have to see things not only from your own, sheltered perspective. It is important to at least try to consider how your lifestyle choices may affect others. Wither reminds the reader that no matter how unpleasant, you have to overturn the rock of complacency—you can’t just make bad things go away by not thinking about them. Even Rhine, who knows what it’s like living in the harsh outside world, is almost seduced by the glamor and ease of her new life—even though she knows it’s just an illusion! But she reminds us we can’t stay that way, no matter how tempting. Our world is full of problems (Maybe not as bad as Wither’s millions of orphans, decimating diseases, and child slavery…oh wait, I guess we have all of that now too…). And we could probably solve those problems if the majority of people didn’t just consciously or subconsciously ignore them.

So, this book is worth reading, and I'll be keeping it on my bookshelf at least until I get a chance to read the rest of the Trilogy (though I may box it after that). Depending on your reading level it may be worth rereading—it is a little slower going because it lacks action. But I encourage especially readers of The Hunger Games to read this book—though it lacks Katniss’s fast paced fight for life, it makes up for it with Rhine’s determination to preserve her sanity and figure out what matters in a life constantly shadowed by the eventuality of death.

(P.S. If you haven't already, check out my review of The Hunger Games)

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Fifty Shades of Don't Waste Your Money: Fifty Shades of Grey

I feel like literally everyone has been talking about E.L. James’ Fifty Shades of Grey. And when I say everyone, I mean everyone—even my grandmother mentioned it to me (yeah…scary). Anyway, not one to back down from a book labeled “controversial” I decided to pick it up at B&N and let you guys know whether it was worth it for you to do the same.

It's not. And actually, it’s not even because it’s all about sex. Well, I guess it kind of is, but not for the reason you might suspect. I wasn’t offended by the sex in this book. What I was offended by was the fact that it’s just a romance novel! I mean here everyone’s talking about it like it’s some big deal—it’s on the NY Times Bestseller list and everything—and it’s just a smutty erotic novel. And it’s sixteen stinkin’ bucks! I hate to break it to all you ladies who think this is some kind of new controversial subject, but you could have gotten basically the same thing (with a slightly less classy cover) for under $5. I mean, I understand the urge to read something a little risqué sometimes (even I like a good romance novel now and then), but this book is definitely a rip-off.

And now I will tell you in great detail why it’s a rip-off:

1. The writing is unimpressive. The raw desire and passion for writing is there but it feels as though James hasn’t spent enough time in the company of other (much better) writers. To clarify, her writing reminds me a little of my writing before I went to college--the basic ability to write, and write fairly well, is there but she hasn’t had her work extensively critiqued. It’s completely unchecked—the kind of writing that comes right out of your head but needs a lot of fine tuning to be really worth reading.

2. These are the same boring characters you’ll find in any other romance novel. All you ladies swooning over the beautiful but twisted Christian Grey—he’s not the first, and he won’t be the last inhumanly handsome rogue with a dark past and a soft side he only lets one woman (conveniently the main character) see. And Anastasia is, again, the same old female romance novel heroine—naïve, breathless, shy, with a few brave, cheeky qualities and a ridiculous, unfounded sense of insecurity. She thinks she’s ugly but really she’s beautiful, she’s oblivious to all the gorgeous other men who have a thing for her, and she falls for Christian after barely even a conversation (someone stop me before I puke). The few conversations they do have are completely underwhelming—usually just a bunch of sexual innuendo with hardly any substance at all. Certainly nothing to fall in love over.

3. The side characters are really no more interesting. Kate fills the stereotypical best friend role, hardly appearing as a character of her own. Anastasia’s parents are also completely generic (though someone should tell James that having such a scatterbrained mother who bounces from man to man would probably stir up some resentment in any daughter).

4. Unfortunately for James, she also hit on a pet peeve of mine by throwing completely random big words into the mix—as Anastasia says to Grey at one point “someone was playing with the thesaurus”. I mean maybe those words are really part of Jame’s vocab, but she needs to pick a side in the book. Most of it is completely mundane, repetitive, everyday language and then all of a sudden there are these random words you need a dictionary for. Nothing wrong with trying to bring it up a notch, but to be effective she needed to follow through with more writing of the same caliber—one or two words here and there isn’t going to cut it, and frankly it was just irritating.

5. And how is it that this girl has nothing more to think about besides Christian Grey. In the whole story, her overriding concern is this guy, meanwhile she has some pretty huge changes going on in her life. She’s supposedly graduating from college, but rarely do we hear about her concerns with what she’ll do afterward and the uncertainty of where her future’s headed. And I can tell you right now, from recent experience, that graduating causes a lot more anxiety than she’s demonstrating. She’d be way more worried about finding a job in this economy with an English major, trust me (and don’t even get me started on how pissed I was that after hardly any searching, and only two interviews she got a job—and don’t try to tell me it’s because of her GPA, which she keeps bringing up, ‘cause I had a 3.9 and 6 months later I still don’t have a real job).

6. Last but not least, this book is unfair to both male and female characters. I thought I’d end up hating Christian by the end of the book for his control-freak-ness. And I did. But I was actually angrier with Anastasia’s character. She doesn’t want this man to force her to be the way he wants her to be, but the whole entire time she’s trying to change him. Not only does this make her a hypocrite, but it also perpetuates the detrimental idea that when someone is in love with you they’ll change for you. Ladies and Gents, let me tell you something: most of the time, if a guy or a girl has certain personality flaws, they’re probably never going to go away. And it doesn’t mean they don’t love you if they won’t (or more likely can’t) change that for you. I mean certain things are unacceptable—like abuse. But what I disliked more than the abuse in this book was the reinforcement of that idea that people should always change for one another—an idea, which I feel, is the cause of most unhappiness in relationships. If you want to try to change for the better for someone, that’s great, but it shouldn’t just be expected. You have to learn to love and accept someone for who they are, and if you can’t without them making some huge personality change then you should move on and find someone more compatible. If you’re always waiting for your partner to change his ways and turn into prince charming some day, you’re going to be met with a lot of unhappiness

So, I’m sorry for going off on a long tangent and for being a bit harsh, but this book isn’t even worthy of the box—you just shouldn’t buy it in the first place. And, if you’re curious and you want to read it anyway, make sure you get it on sale—don’t waste $16 like I did.

Monday, July 9, 2012

Time for Some Very Scary Faeries: Tithe

So, as promised, here’s the review of Holly Black’s Tithe. Better late than never!

Right off the bat I think I should tell you guys that this is perhaps my favorite book ever. Seriously, I’ve read it almost seven times and it never gets old. I mean, the Harry Potter series is like a classic to me—they’re a set of books I will always cherish—and even they don’t give me as much pleasure to read (and reread, and reread, and reread…) as Tithe does. The story and the writing are just so enticing that I’ve even kept an eye out for any of Holly Black’s other titles (she has 4 freestanding books, 3 series, and an assortment of short fiction. Just in case you were wondering).

So what makes me such a Tithe (and Holly Black) fanatic? Well for starters this story is just so great. I mean, technically the bare bones of it is your typical, run of the mill young adult fantasy novel. You start out with a main character (Kaye in this case) who doesn’t quite fit in with the real world—she’s a little odd and a lot intriguing. Then, she discovers she’s not what she seems and she’s thrown into a whole new world of magic and adventure. What makes Tithe so much better than what I’ve read in the genre before are the characters and the world Black puts them in. Tithe is a self-proclaimed “modern fairy tale.” It takes what we expect from faeries and magic and twists them into something much more frightening. Black introduces us to vicious creatures with little regard for human life whose appearances range anywhere from the poetically grotesque to the painfully beautiful.

The “real” world from which Kaye escapes is harsh, but the world she discovers is perhaps even more so. And that’s what I like so much about modern or urban faerie tales (especially this one)—they don’t sugar coat the fantasy. It makes the reader realize that adding magic to the world wouldn’t necessarily make it all unicorns and moonbeams. Black points out that magic can, in fact, intensify the flaws that we find in the human world until we’re left with something both amazing and terrifying.

On top of her subtle commentary on the nature of magic and its effects on creatures’ conscience, Black also (as I said before) has terrific characters. She doesn’t sugar-coat them either; they can be pathetic, cruel, superficial, or some combination of that and more. They’re not the moral compass, center of the struggle heroes that run rampant in this genre. They’re just as flawed as their setting and they’re often sideline characters in a bigger struggle (though sometimes they do have their moments in the spotlight—I mean, come on, they wouldn’t be main characters if they didn’t do something of note). The main character Kaye, in particular, is an interesting character because of her dual position in both worlds—Black depicts her so well as she struggles to find her identity in the human world (which can often be foolishly cruel) and the world of fey (which can be intentionally malicious). Kaye’s confusion and evolution are even more appreciated after you’ve read Ironside and Valiant (Don’t worry, I’ll probably review both of these books in the future).

As icing on this literary cake, is Black’s solid command of written English. Not only is her writing just good in general, but her style is just perfect for this kind of story. Plus it’s the kind of writing that’s meant to be read (not meant to show off and torture English students for the next century). The dialogue flows, the descriptions are both beautiful and offbeat, and the explanation of things that might otherwise be unimaginable is so clear that you never miss a single excruciating detail.

Now, in defense against all you party-poopers out there who might feel the urge to point out that this story may not be totally original, I have this to say: no story is every going to be completely original. There are just too many books in the world—no matter what you do, chances are someone already did it. I know Tithe is not the only modern/urban faerie tale out there—it’s not even the first, and it won’t be the last. But as far as I’m concerned even if 100 other people wrote basically the same story, Tithe would probably still be my favorite. It’s just that well done.

So, in case you hadn’t guessed, this book gets its own (practically enshrined) place on my shelf.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

This 4th of July, let’s take a moment to remember how fortunate we are to have our freedom…(Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter)

…I mean, after all, Abe Lincoln had to fight off vampires so we wouldn’t all end up enslaved as food for the undead! Or…wait a minute, do I have my story straight? I do according to the book I chose to review for today—Seth Grahame-Smith’s book, recently turned blockbuster, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Now, before I get started with the reviewing I want to just mention a couple things. Number one, hope everyone had a safe and happy 4^th. Which actually brings me to my next thing—the lateness and choice of subject for this post. Two days ago I had the brilliant idea to save my review of Tithe (which I mentioned last week) to read something appropriately American for the 4^th of July. So, I ordered Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter on my Nook and I set about reading at record pace to finish it just in time. So I apologize for switching subject on you guys (I will be doing Tithe next week—really, I promise) and I apologize for the lateness of this post, but here is my review of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

I do realize that this isn’t the most festive, July 4^th appropriate book I could have chosen. However, the upcoming movie and the complete randomness of the title peaked my interest. And I’ll tell you right now, I fully expected to hate it. I mean, come on, Abe Lincoln? A vampire hunter? How absurd! And I’ve never been a real fan of Smith’s other title either (Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies). I thought it was just another hyped up, completely undeserving young adult novel and I’d have to restrain myself from either falling asleep or vomiting while reading it.

BUT, I now have to confess that Seth Grahame Smith has completely won me over. First of all, as a writer and as a Hudson Valley and Dutchess County girl he basically had me at the intro. He describes Rhinebeck and the little five-and-dime (which I’ve been in a hundred times) to a tee. I felt very self-satisfied knowing exactly where he was talking about and I also felt I could relate to his commentary on being a writer the way you can end up letting life get in the way of your writing.

But moving on to the actual story, there were quite a few things that made me keep reading after the intro (and made me want to check out Smith’s other books). For starters his writing style is better than most I’ve seen for this genre. I loved his phrasing of things (ex: “the pages would crumble if turned by anything more than a breath”) and the amusing honesty and realism he uses, especially in the intro. Also, I liked his description of violence—he used just enough detail where you could picture it without it being just excessive gore—it was brutally poetic. On top of all that he seamlessly transitions from his modern day account to the “historical” account. In the intro it reads like a modern person’s thoughts and concerns, and then all of a sudden we’re reading a history book, a biography (albeit a way more interesting biography than many I’ve read). Finally, his meticulousness in maintaining the illusion by welding fact and fiction is what helps him pull the whole thing off (going so far as to include quotes from Lincoln’s journals, in “Lincoln’s” voice, all formatted and everything).

Smith also excels at humanizing Lincoln’s losses. When professors lecture about famous historical figures and they mention relatives of those people who passed away, it always feels so nonchalant to me. We forget that it’s real people dying because it’s what we expect—we say things like “well, infant mortality rates were higher” and “doctors didn’t know the things we know now.” We see it as inevitable and I think we expect that they saw it as inevitable back then too. What Smith does, though, is reminds the reader that death affected them too—Lincoln’s grief is so compellingly portrayed it reminds you that those names in history books refer to real people and those people lose and grieve loved ones just as painfully as we do.

The one main (and pretty much only) complaint I have about this story is actually the vampires—and not because they weren’t done well. On the contrary, they were the perfect blend of all vampire myths brought to life. What I came to dislike more and more as I read was that the addition of the vampire conflict almost cheapened Lincoln’s real struggle against just plain old slavery. I mean yeah, fighting vampires—obvious evil doers and enemies—may be exciting, but I thought it took away a little bit from the subtler enemy of just plain injustice. As though Lincoln’s standing against injustice wasn’t reason enough to make him awesome.

All in all though I have to say that this book is totally worth reading. It made me more interested in Abraham Lincoln’s real life (it tricks you into being more interested in a history lesson). Plus the parallels it draws between Abe Lincoln, the Obama election, and Martin Luther King remind the reader that reaching equality was and continues to be a struggle. It also impresses upon the reader how lucky we are to have had so many people fight to further and maintain that freedom.

So, boys and girls, this one is definitely one for the shelf.

Monday, July 2, 2012

You’ll Wish Your Dad Said Sht Like This: Sht My Dad Says

So, last week I told you guys that eventually I’d review a book geared toward readers over the age of 15. What I forgot to mention was that just because it’s a “grown-up” book doesn’t mean it has to be mature (you should be happy you even got this much—I never realized before I wrote this post how few adult books I actually read). So, here’s my review of Justin Halpern’s Sh*t My Dad Says.

Now, why will you wish your dad said shit like this? Well, besides giving you the material for a hugely successful twitter feed and a book that’ll make you tons of money, your dad would also be hilarious. But what can you get out of this book besides a mild case of dad envy?

You’ll certainly get a lot of laughs. After all, Halpern wouldn’t have been able to sell so many books had the shit his dad said not been funny. I was constantly cracking up while reading this book—from just a small snicker, to laughing so hard I had to put the book down and hold my stomach until I could catch my breath. Seriously, if you read this book in front of people who haven’t they’re going to think you’re a crazy person—I can almost promise that you will be turning pages, completely engrossed and periodically breaking into fits of giggles.

But still, why should you buy and read the book instead of the twitter feed? What makes it any better than cruising the web for funny quotes and pictures? For starters, the book is a nice casual read. Halpern isn’t the next Shakespeare, but then again for a book like this you wouldn’t want him to be. The writing is comfortable, and the book is a casual read. Plus, the funny gene didn’t stop with Halpern senior—Justin’s picked up a knack for funny from his dad.

And honestly this is a lot more than just amusing quotes. It’s a memoir that chronicles the relationship between a father and a son. What makes it such a great and memorable relationship to read about is the fact that it’s not some horrible negative relationship (because really, I’ve read and lived enough of those) but it’s not dad-of-the-year picture-perfect. Sam Halpern doesn’t personify the perfect “dad” character. But he does love his son—and this reminds the reader how important a parent’s love is even when it doesn’t come in a pretty package.

On another note the book is relatable for younger adults because it shows Halpern’s own experience with becoming an adult. He deals with a struggle for success both in his personal and professional life and his story is punctuated by cracks from his dad. And, even while his dad is being hysterical, his words also hold grains (and pebbles, and boulders) of truth.

Through the funny remarks that Halpern shares with us, we learn, as he did from his father, important things about life. When he says something like, "That woman was sexy. . . . Out of your league? Son, let women figure out why they won't screw you. Don't do it for them," he points out the importance of confidence and going after what you want without second guessing yourself—if you always judge yourself negatively you don’t give others the chance to judge you positively. When he utters the words, “You sure do like to tailgate people…Right because it’s real important you show up to the nothing you have to do on time,” he tells us the importance of patience, especially while driving. And when he says, “Do people your age not know how to comb their hair? It looks like two squirrels crawled on their heads and started fucking,” well…it’s just plain funny.

So what’s the verdict? Well, you should definitely read Sh*t My Dad Says, if you haven’t already (yes, I know I’m a little late in reviewing it, but cut me some slack—I just started this blog). It’s a fun read and it’s great to reread or even just flip through for a pick-me-up now and then. So I, personally, will be keeping this book on my shelf.

About Me

Hi, and thanks for reading Box or Bookshelf. I'm Kelly, a recent graduate with a degree in English and Writing and a voracious appetite for reading. Since, for the most part, there aren't a lot of jobs where you get paid to read, I started Box or Bookshelf (for the full story, check out "The Story Behind it All" below). Through it, I hope keep my reading skills sharp, share my love for books, and give my personal opinions of the books I'm reading. I'll tell you which ones I think are worthy of my bookshelf and which ones I'm going to box. Hope you enjoy!