Book Reviews: Fall 2020

The following reviews were compiled from my Goodreads account.

“Chronicle of a Death Foretold” by Gabriel García Márquez

In this mystery (but not a murder mystery per se), García Márquez moves his readers to think about the atrocities that they’ve known but haven’t done anything about. This is all through the murder of Santiago Nasar, which the whole town knows is going to happen, yet no one warns him. While it’s such a short read, it felt like it did take me quite a while to really get into it, but as soon as I read “They didn’t hear the shouts of the whole town, frightened by its own crime,” I knew I loved the book. Characters have different reasons for not warning Santiago or stopping the Vicario brothers — whether it’s their own denial, not wanting to bother Santiago in case it’s a fluke, or just thinking the brothers are all talk. Throughout the book, and especially toward the end, there’s the question of the truth to Angela’s accusation of Santiago. The question tugged me along the whole time, only for it to be the mystery we’re left with. Somehow, it felt frustrating and satisfying at the same time and added to my wonder of the novella. Will revisit in the future.

“The Color Purple” by Alice Walker

Mandatory reading right here! Beautiful and thought provoking, “The Color Purple” is told in a series of letters between Celie and Nettie, black sisters from Georgia in the early 1900s. The main thing I love about the book is that there are many aspects to this that beg to be discussed. There’s Celie’s constant tragedies — rape, child pregnancies, abuse, lost love, loss of education from an early age. This is to foil Nettie’s life, which appears to be free of a lot of these (except for having the same abusive stepfather). The most noticeable difference about the sisters is their respective use of language. Nettie uses proper grammar taught in schools while Celie strays from it. I love when this is addressed by a character; Celie responds saying that she is happy with the way she speaks and it doesn’t matter how people view her. And it’s true! It doesn’t matter! As a copy editor, that was one of my favorite scenes in the novel.

Another aspect I loved is the difference between America and Africa. I didn’t realize the book took place in an African village too, and the inclusion of it was very interesting. Nettie, for instance, tells Celie about how men have multiple wives who are friends with each other. Ironically, Celie develops an interest, friendship, and eventual relationship with her husband’s mistress. Obviously there are huge differences between these situations, but it was interesting to read into.

All in all, beautiful book (with a beautiful ending!), and it deserves to be read.

“The Halloween Tree” by Ray Bradbury

A great example of children’s literature sharing the same kind of quality one would see in adult fiction. Ray Bradbury was and still is one of the greatest English writers; his vivid description with the most original metaphors and imagery is unmatched. (My favorite line: “The day Joe Pipkin was born all the Orange Crush and Nehi soda bottles in the world fizzed over.”) “The Halloween Tree” is so fun and captures the spirit of the holiday in every sense. I read it in about two hours, so anyone could get through it even if you don’t have a lot of time. This holds up well for adults, trust me.

“The Haunting of Hill House” by Shirley Jackson

Perfect read to start off my spooky season — and perfect read for my first horror novel! This has that classic supernatural-versus-insanity question, and I loved it (mostly because it’s a both-and, not an either-or, situation here). My one issue with the book is that it took a while for it to get spooky (I think around pages 60–70 of 182 we were still getting to know the cast of characters and the background of Hill House). But, honestly, it’s worth it, and getting to know the characters’ relationships (especially Eleanor and Theodora) just enhances the plot more. My favorite part may be the novel’s narration: Jackson perfectly goes in and out of Eleanor’s head, and her writing flows in such a way that the readers may truly feel and believe Eleanor’s position, even as an unreliable narrator. I could also get into the different applications of “journeys end in lovers meeting” — is it about Eleanor and Theodora? Eleanor and Hill House? There are layers to this psychological horror that are worthy of delving into, and with only 182 pages, it won’t take up too much of your Halloween season.

“The Martian Chronicles” by Ray Bradbury

I don’t normally like books written in a series of vignettes, but this was amazing (and a little creepy at points, if you’re looking for a spooky read). Ray Bradbury demonstrated his world-building skills immensely in “The Martian Chronicles,” and seeing several perspectives — from Martian housewives to Earth Men criminals — added to this dynamic sci-fi fantasy. The book also presents very human experiences — disease, bureaucracy, fascism, etc. — in a new, Martian setting; this is as entertaining as it is thought provoking. Lastly, it’s a quick read that can be consumed within just a couple days!

“Mr Salary” by Sally Rooney

What I love about Sally Rooney is her ability to tell us the stories and romances of her characters in as few words as possible. Being a short story, “Mr Salary” is a great example of this. It’s simple yet beautiful, and it makes for a good intro to her work if you don’t feel like committing to a whole book yet (though her books are quick reads). What I find most interesting is the idea of maturity in this story and how it might have played out had this been longer. Nathan is a 40-year-old man, and yet the ending questions his maturity level. It made me wonder: What is maturity if adults with 20 years of adulthood experience still don’t have it? It isn’t simply a matter of age.

Another great part of the story is its place in the timeline of Sukie’s and Nathan’s lives. I read an interview where Sally Rooney said that she had written drafts taking place earlier; those were probably entirely different stories with different tones. Having it take place when Sukie and Nathan have known each other for six years just adds to the maturity question posed earlier: How can these characters still dance around their feelings? Which way will they move after the story’s end? Like all good short stories, it makes for a good discussion.

“Piranesi” by Susanna Clarke

Going into “Piranesi,” I had no idea what it was about, and perhaps many other readers felt the same. All I knew was that it had a pretty, Greek-inspired cover, a Madeline Miller recommendation, and a seemingly abstract flap copy about a man in a labyrinthine world.

For the first 50 pages, I still felt similarly. I wasn’t quite sure where the book was going, and I couldn’t tell if Piranesi’s world had anything to do with our world. However, Susanna Clarke dropped hints along the way — hints that would clue the reader in even if Piranesi himself couldn’t understand what was happening.

I realized once I got to Part 3 of the book why I didn’t — or, rather, couldn’t — go into this book understanding what it’s really about: It would spoil the mystery. Clarke wants us to be in Piranesi’s spot the whole time, and leaving readers in the dark is necessary for that.

I will say that this book is probably much creepier and more disturbing than you think it will be (which I loved; I need more spooky reads). Clarke has crafted wonderful villains and an in-depth, open-ended case study of a victim in “Piranesi.” The only reason it gets 4 and not 5 stars is that the buildup is so long, but I’m excited to read this again and check for details I might have missed the first time.

“The Silence of the Girls” by Pat Barker

This is the story of Briseis, captive of Achilles, told in three parts. The first part was great, and we learn about some other women from before the fall of Lyrnessus and at the Greek camp. However, in part two, we see chapters that fluctuate between a third-person narrator and the original first-person Briseis narrative. This was what bothered me the rest of the novel. What should have been a developed narrative about Briseis and the other enslaved women ended up being more about Achilles’s feelings and Patroclus. Yes, (slight spoiler) Briseis later admits to her audience that this isn’t “her story,” but Achilles’s, but the Achilles-focused chapters felt disconnected from the rest of the novel and, frankly, unnecessary. Why hear more about a man we already know about? A man who raped Briseis and killed her family? I found myself skimming through those chapters, not only because they didn’t sit well with me, but because they were a bit boring in the context of the narrative. If I want to know more about Achilles’s and Patroclus’s story, I’ll read “The Song of Achilles” (which I am dying to read at some point). This story set itself up to be about Briseis and Trojan women ... and then it wasn’t. I will say that the good parts of this book were great, and I love the historical detail (like the goose-fat jar and the detail of women’s clothing). I would recommend it to those who like Greek mythology, but keep the uncomfortable Achilles narrative in mind.

“Women & Power: A Manifesto” by Mary Beard

This is well done, and every girl should read it. Of course, given Mary Beard’s classical background, the manifesto is based upon such, so keep that in mind while reading (not that you’d have to remind yourself because classical references thread the piece together). The book is also small — the manifesto itself is only 80 pages and the margins are big. It’s a fairly easy read.

What I loved about “Women & Power” — Beard’s definition of power and explanation of how women have historically had to masculinize themselves in order to be taken seriously (or, men historically masculinize women to explain how they have power). While Mary Norris’s “Greek to Me” found a role model in the virgin Athena, Mary Beard describes how the goddess was not, “in the Greek sense ... a woman at all.” Athena had betrayed women, specifically Medusa, whose head she carries. While Beard critiques the donning of pantsuits, an effort for women to be taken seriously, she also encourages that women are not only meant for power positions because of stereotypical womanhood (e.g., childcare issues). Indeed, women can have the same ideas as men and ought to be in on the discussion.

Some quotes I liked:

“If women are not perceived to be fully within the structures of power, surely it is power that we need to redefine rather than women?”

“We simply cannot afford to do without women’s expertise, whether is is in technology, the economy or social care.”

“You cannot easily fit women into a structure that is already coded as male; you have to change the structure.”