Orchid Fever by Eric Hansen

Overall rating- B: The Orchid World is fascinating but Hansen's storytelling needs some work.

“You can get off alcohol, drugs, women, food, and cars but once you’re hooked on orchids, you’re finished. You never get off orchids...never.” And so begins Orchid Fever (both the book and the ‘illness’ itself) and how Orchids have seduced the horticultural industry for the past two centuries with their beauty, delicate nature, pollination process, seductive scents, and in some cases, their rarity.

Catasetum denticulatum

Because of those reasons (and probably more), Orchids also tend to give people ‘orchid fever,’ which is not so much a sickness as much as it is a name for the obsession.  Travel writer and author Eric Hanen explains it best by stating, “in the same way orchids attract specific insects to help them pollinate by producing signature scents, people are also attracted to these scents, which then induces ‘orchid fever’ in many. They soon find they have no choice but to collect orchids, feed them, love them, and stay entranced by their beauty for the rest of time…these orchid people are referred to as hobbyists but they cater to the needs of their beloved orchids with a single minded devotion that blurs between love and lunacy.”

Vanda dearii

This becomes truer than Henson could have ever imagined as he explores everywhere from the Borneo rainforest to study the rarest of orchids, to the Orchid shows where fat judges with chubby fingers handle these delicate flowers and criticize them on the smallest of details.  Although the Orchid judges seemed a little ridiculous, Hansen met an interesting man, Joe Kunish, who really gave perspective as to where their obsession landed on the crazy scale, “…the only people that are weirder than us are the dog show people…and we are not a distant second by any means.”

Oncidium papilio

Everywhere he went, Hansen met an amazing array of people who were involved in the orchid world, for better or for worse: there were the scientists who just wanted to study, observe, and understand them; the appreciators who were entranced by their beauty and/or scent; the growers who doted on them like their own lived depended on it; and then the politicians, making so many ridiculous regulations and restrictions that people had to choice but to break the rules in order to follow them.  

Paphiopedilum malipoense

I found so much of what he was saying fascinating; getting an insider’s look at this amazing world of people who treat the orchids like their children and the effects these flowers had on their followers. However, there were a couple huge problems that really hurt the way the story could be interpreted. (Fiction or non-fiction, your story has to flow and have a point, or else the reader will become bored and all will be for nothing.)

Tolumnia scandens

For one thing, the structure of the book was all wrong.  He had all of the right material; it just wasn’t arranged in the right order.  Remember in the beginning of this review where I gave Hansen’s description of Orchid fever? Yeah, well, a quarter of the way through the book, he says that along with a description of that makes an orchid so different from other flowers. That is something you say in the beginning; to not only pull the reader in but also to set them up for what the book will be focusing on.  But no…instead, he places important information in random spots of the book, making parts of his book dry and stagnant. 

Ansellia africana

If that wasn’t bad enough, he makes one of the worst mistakes an author can make: he extended the ending. The second to last chapter would have been the perfect ending; everything has come full circle and I felt a sigh of relief.  But once again, no…I turn the page and see what so many authors before him have done and it rarely turns out well: they get the ‘one more thing’ syndrome.  What that means is they drag the story out by adding ‘one more thing’ to make the story even better, when instead they overcompensate and make the reader want to scream. And he didn’t just add ANY chapter…he added one that was TRIPLE the length of the other chapters. That’s like hiking up a mountain, thinking you’ve reached the top only to see that you still have a long ways to go and you’re exhausted, ready to be done already.

Maxillaria huebschii

Despite its flaws, Hansen’s journey was not made in vain. He brought awareness to this amazing and intricate world of Orchids and how such beauty can help the world. Orchids have more uses than we know of and if Hansen and others who have Orchid Fever stray away from the politics and focus on the orchids themselves, then they may be able to start a revolution toward a better planet and better future for us all.

~Shelly-Beans

Newspaper Blackout by Austin Kleon

Overall- A+ : Newspaper Blackout is like highlighting in reverse; instead of brightening what he  wants to see, Austin Kleon blacks out what he doesn't and makes art of what is left.

Although this style of poetry has been around since the 1760’s, Austin Kleon had the accidental fortune of bringing this to the mainstream market.  To best describe what Newspaper Blackout is, NPR’s Morning Edition explains, “Instead of starting with a blank page, Poet Austin Kleon grabs The New York Times and a permanent marker and eliminates the words he doesn’t need.”  (Eliminates the words he doesn’t need…I love the way that sounds.)

There are over 150 poems but I only talk about 3 for one big reason: finding the Newspaper Blackout poems from this collection wasn't easy. (I know that sounds hard to believe but because this style of poetry has exploded, there are a lot of Newspaper Blackouts out there not by Austin Kleon so I had to try and remember which ones were his...) 

The poems range from hilarious to sentimental and since poetry is as visual as it is auditory, I’ll show you some examples of his amazing Newspaper Blackout Poetry and give a brief interpretation of each. (And in case the poems are hard to read, I wrote the words normally below the poems.)

"His Wife Appears"

"His wife appears, nude in the moonlight, then they have a hot-fudge sundae and do The twist."

First off, I love how the background is not 100% blackened out;  you can see some traces of the previous story, which makes this poetry seem that much more raw and impressive.  This poem itself is fantastic and makes me think of a couple doing exactly what the poem describes! (I can't believe he found THAT in a boring newspaper article!)

"Catching Fireflies"

"Catching fireflies saves everything for one fleeting night. 2 thin circus freaks with unrelenting grins. I remember floating-the play so full of potential, you and me out after the lights."

Gorgeous. This poem is absolutely gorgeous.  I'm not sure if this was his interpretation but having the white spots in the blackness as fireflies really gives the poem dimension and life. It also plays into our childhood memories of the darkness and the fireflies flashing their little lights on warm summer nights; just wonderful in general.

"All You Can Do"

"In love, all you can do is fail so badly the first time the rest you don't mind at all."

Another amazing poem. I'm sure this rings true with all of us; With our first boyfriend/girlfriend, we make the most mistakes but all we can do is learn from them and move on. (That's my interpretation, at least.)

Here's the big question that I couldn't help but wonder while reading this beautiful poetry collection: What the heck were the articles he took the poems from? I'd love to see what the original source was next to each one so I could REALLY appreciate what he extracted from them.  Was it something about politics? An animal rescue story?  Maybe that's Kleon's intention; have the reader guessing and laughing at how he found this poetry embedded in a plain old newspaper article. 

It will never cease to amaze me how the most profound statements in life are hidden between the lines, and thanks to Austin Kleon, he's rediscovered the secret to bringing them back to the surface.

~Shelly-Beans

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris

Overall- A: Sedaris' true stories of growing up with his crazy family in Raleigh, NC is one not to miss!

There are so many things to love about Me Talk Pretty One Day: the honesty in the stories, the simplicity in the writing, and the realistic characters that are so extraordinary they seem fictional. Above all else, though, I loved that this non-fictional collection stemmed away from the typical memoir: Sedaris doesn't start off by saying, "I was born on a cold November night," instead, he starts with, "In 5th grade, I had a sadistic speech therapist," which immediately made me wonder what happened to him in a previous life to make that his fortune.

Let’s start with the first story, Go Carolina.  5^th grader David Therarith had a lisp (Clever, huh?) and speech therapist Miss Chrissy Samson (It’s oddly appropriate, if you think about it) had been put in charge of helping David with his speech impediment.  There’s a problem though…she took more pleasure in making him and other boys self-conscious of their speech impediments than she did actually helping them.  So, to avoid the bullying, David expanded his vocabulary so he didn’t have to say anything with an ‘s’ sound in it. Example: Yes became correct, please became with your kind permission, and forget about plurals.   When Miss Samson noticed this, she began to play games, trying to trip him up.  Eventually, she gets him to say “I’m thorry,” which ruins everything. And his mother? How does she take this ‘harassment?’ She says, “You’ve got to admit that you really are a sucker.”  Nice mom, huh?

His childhood wasn’t the only one in his family who seemed to have unrealistic moments… all of his siblings did, especially his sister, Amy. In the short story, Shiner like a Diamond, David explains how Amy liked to impersonate others by dressing up in costume, wearing prosthetics, makeup, etc. and she did all of this simply out of amusement.   In contrast to her free-spirited lifestyle, their father was so insecure about his daughter's appearances (especially Amy's) that his "concerns" bordered on verbal abuse, saying things like, "Look at you, you’re the size of a house. Two more pounds and you won’t be able to cross state lines without a trucking license.” Admirably, Amy never took his comments to heart (unlike her sisters who, understandably, cried when told such horrible things). In fact, (out of humor, not malice) she played a practical joke on him by wearing a fat suit for the week she came home to visit; his veins popping with how upset he was over her ‘weight gain.’ On her last day, she took the fat suit off and let him breathe again.   Amy's qualities match those of endless heroines and characters in fictitious stories I’ve read over the years but reading of a real-life ordinary woman, like herself, who fearlessly rides above society's expectations, serves to be an inspiration to us all.

After reading several of these stories, I really thought these stories were fictional with his family members as characters because of how crazy these scenarios were.  As I ventured on, however, I realized they border the line between fiction and nonfiction with the stories being so crazy and ridiculous that they have to be true, even if we don't believe it.

All in all, Sedaris’ stories were honest and addicting.  He managed to show that inside everyone lies the peculiar idiosyncrasies that makes each of us individuals. Growing up is tough, but figuring out who we are as individuals is even tougher, so don’t focus on the big picture; focus on the moments that will eventually create the big picture.

~Shelly-Beans

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Overall Rating: B. Great as a novel, underwhelming as a thriller.

Book titles are more important than people realize.  Their mission is to evoke intrigue, attract the reader, and make them wonder what the story is about all within a word or a sentence. The Girl on the Train is a great example of that; when I first scanned the title, I thought, “Who is this girl?  What happens on the train?”  So my imagination began to shape different scenarios of what could be held within these pages…and I should have stopped there, because this novel that held such great hope turned out to be just another ‘wannabe’ thriller. 

The story of The Girl on the Train is simple enough: English commuter and alcoholic Rachel Watson’s life has gone to shambles, and she has done nothing to make it better.  Her husband divorced her because of her alcoholism (the causes behind it don’t make it more justifiable but a bit more understandable), his mistress moved into their home after she was kicked out, and now she spends her free time pretending to go to work by riding the train to and from London.  As she looks out the window, she makes careful observations of the scenery and takes a special interest in the new neighbors a couple of doors down from her old house; giving them fake names, (Jason and Jess) and an imaginary life that placates her own fantasies.

One morning on the train, Rachel noticed  Megan (aka Jess) outside with another man, which becomes the catalyst to a string of terrible events. (Hence the name, The Girl on the Train…) Soon there's a disappearance, and Rachel gets in over her head by not understanding the difference between being helpful and being a pest, especially in an investigation where she may be a suspect.

What saved this novel was the writing and the pace.  Hawkins knew how to get you sucked into the story, (which may come from her 15 years’ experience as a journalist) and relate to the characters on some pretty deep levels. She’s so good with conjuring emotion that I found myself steaming with frustration toward Rachel’s character.  If the story was centered on her, why not make her a strong heroine?  Why make her a pathetic alcoholic who, granted was a good person, lets her poor judgement affect her decisions?  If she was to have started off this way and then grow into a stronger, more confident person, then I would feel differently, but there was no growth in Rachel.  Yes, she was able to take down her own demons by the end but I don’t give her credit for doing so. She didn’t go searching for them to become a better person, she took them down because they were right there in her face and had no choice.

            It may not sound like it but The Girl on the Train was honestly a good, solid novel.  As I said, there are great characters (despite Rachel’s shortcomings) that are extremely real and complex, a great pace that will keep you reading to the end, and a decent twist that will leave you momentarily satisfied.  Unfortunately, compared to other thrillers I’ve read, this did not stand up to them and made me wonder if this novel should have been about a different girl on a different train.

~Shelly-Beans

I'm BACK!

Hello lovely readers!

As most of you may know, almost a year ago I stopped writing in the blog because of some really negative feedback I received and at the time, it took the fire out of me to write my reviews.

My father wouldn't let me give up, though.  For the past year, he gently insisted that I try again, that I am a great writer and I shouldn't stop because some jerk was rude to me.  I can't thank my dad enough, because now I'M BACK and ready to start cranking out those reviews!

Things are going to change, though.  As you can tell, I changed the background and I'm also going to change the way I write the reviews.  I don't want to break down and analyze different categories before the actual review like I did before.  There will still be a picture of the book and an overall 'grade' with a small description after it, but that's it.

I'm going to start writing for me and if you like it, that's fantastic and I appreciate your support.  If you don't, oh well.  Nothing is going to stop me now, so I hope you enjoy my reviews as much as I enjoy doing this!

If there are any books you'd like me to review, let me know and I'll mention you in the review!

Thank you again everyone. Enjoy!

~Shelly-Beans

**In Need of Support from my Readers**

Hi everyone,

A lot has been going on recently so unfortunately, my blog has been neglected.

It's a long story but after some soul-searching and a painfully honest comment, I see now that these reviews do not show the passion for books like I thought they did; they only show a boring, cut-and-dry, black-and-white book review with no love infused into it.

I am still reading and always will be but until further notice, I will not be writing any book reviews for my blog.  However, those same reviews have been more successful on Amazon or GoodReads so keep an eye out for them there.

If anyone enjoys my book reviews, PLEASE leave a comment below.  If enough people enjoy my reviews, I will write more on here.  If that doesn't happen, then you'll have to be patient for when I post them on my own.

To wrap things up, I'm not closing my blog; I'm just warning you that my reviews may become even more sporadic than usual.

If I ever needed love/support from you guys, my readers, it would be now; I just need a little reassurance that all of the time I have poured into Shelly-Bean's Book Reviews has been put to good use.

Happy reading and I hope to hear from you all soon.

~Shelly-Beans

Follow Your Heart: 21 Days to a Happier, More Fulfilling Life by Henri Junttila

Genre: Self-Help

Date of Publication: December 3, 2013

Memorable Quotation: “Fear can keep you from joy, or it can be the door to it.  It’s a door with a lot of special effects, but once you walk through it, you’ll see that it was all for show.” (pg. 20)

Lasting Impression: One of the most important books you’ll read this year.  With Junttila’s simple steps, you can follow your heart with more courage and less fear; helping you live a better life overall.

Similar Titles: How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie

Accessibility: A+

Content: A+

Creativity: A-

Layout: A-

Overall Grade: A

For those of you who feel lost and need a guiding light, this book definitely provides that sense of guidance and hope that we all so desperately need at times.   Through 21 chapters, Juntitila shows his readers how to let go of their fears and follow their hearts.   He covers quite an array of topics, including, “Notice Your Reactions,” where he helps you not to be so quick to anger or irritation, “Open Your Heart,” where he reminds you that everyone could use a smile in their direction, “Make Right Decisions,” where he shows you how to make the right decisions thoughtfully, not on impulse, etc.

The chapters are very short and easy to relate to (only 3 pages each), which made reading a breeze.  It was also refreshing that the author spoke directly to the reader, not in the lecture fashion that would have turned this book sour.  I definitely feel a major difference within myself after reading Follow Your Heart.  I feel calmer and think more rationally about feelings when processing certain situations and if you are someone who, like me, felt lost and needed reassurance that you’re not alone, read this book.  It just may give you the epiphany you’ve been searching for, because after all, what is a happy life without following your heart?

~Shelly-Beans

Touch by Alexi Zentner

Genre: Fiction

Date of Publication: April 4, 2011

Memorable Quotation: “There is something about clear nights in the winter, the perfection of snow and ice in the light from the stars and the moon that always reminds me of the existence of God.” (pg. 163)

Similar Titles: The Blackbird House by Alice Hoffman and The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman

Lasting Impression: Love the writing style, hate the lack of premise.

Storyline: B-

Pace of Story: B-

Characters: B

Ending: B-

Overall: B-

I almost didn't finish this book.  The story REALLY began to drag about half way through but my rule for reading is if I can get half way through it, I can finish it. This time it was tough because normally, books speed up toward the end but for Touch, it only seemed to slow down.   

The village of Sawgamet is one that has seen much tragedy and hardship in its days, and our narrator Stephen takes us through it all.  The town was originally founded by his grandfather, Jeannot, and with his bare hands he created a house that eventually flourished into a village due to the Gold Rush.  We meet Stephen’s other relatives both from his childhood and adult perspective which gets confusing after a while because Zentner doesn't do much to differentiate the two narrative voices. 

Throughout the entire book, it is unclear as to what the plot of the story was; the only thing keeping my interest is the vivid imagery and the quiet nature of Sawgamet that draws the reader in.  The other thing that frustrated me about this novel was that there was no summary of the novel’s premise, only raving reviews declaring the book as being “haunting” and “full of ghosts haunting the wood,” which lead to me to a false vision of what the novel contained. The prose was beautiful and the characters were eloquent and simple but when there were mentions of ghosts, I was disappointed. 

Although I say a lot of negative comments about Touch, this is a great winter read so if you are looking for something to curl up with and watch the snow fall, this would be a great companion for you.

~Shelly-Beans

Bloody Mary by J.A. Konrath

Genre:  Murder Mystery/ Fiction
Date of Publication: February 4th, 2013                                                                            
Memorable Quotation: "Life, she said, "isn't a race that can be won.  The end is the same for all of us- we die...it's not about winning the race, Jacqueine. It's about how well you run." (pg. 227-228)
Similar Titles: Whiskey Sour by J.A. Konrath and The Big Bad Wolf by James Patterson

Lasting Impression:  Although Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels is as sensational as ever, the title “Bloody Mary” certainly lives up to it’s name by having an unnecessary amount gore and violence that may turn a lot of readers away.

Storyline: B-
Pace: A
Characters: A+
Ending: C-
Overall: B  

*NOTE:* Even though this review received a B, this novel’s negatives outway the positives. The only reason this novel received such a high grade was because I liked the story; it was a comment the author said that really made the novel worse but I will explain that in a minute.

Let’s start with the storyline, which was great, especially because the characters were the same one’s from Konrath’s first novel, Whiskey Sour. The story opens with Lieutenant Daniels working on another spine tingling case, with a killer leaving random body parts with a piece of Daniels’ belongings in various places around the Chicago area. You find out early that this time, the murderer is a fellow cop and things get even more complicated when the cop blames his poor actions on a brain tumor that was recently found, but Daniel’s gut tells her otherwise.  As she tries to prove the truth, things become messier as the corrupted cop comes after her with a bloodthirsty vengeance, which means Daniels must dig deep to fight off not only the killer but also her personal demons that could lead her to her demise.

Konrath’s characters are painfully realistic and the dual narratives between the cop and the killer, once again, give the novel a great, full bodied feel. BUT, as I said before, the negatives REALLY outway the positives in this one.  

It’s always a bad sign when you turn the page toward the end of a novel and realize the book is over, and you think, “That’s it? That’s the ending?” Similar to The Big Bad Wolf by James Patterson, the ending is rushed and sloppy; no closure brought to anything, including the whereabouts of the characters or an idea of what will occur in the novel to come.  Now usually, a novel that has a poor ending can get away with a good rating, but this novel has a bigger problem. 

I’m not a big fan of gore, but I can deal with it better in novels than I can in film. I say this because in the introduction of this novel, Konrath writes, “…a word on graphic violence. These books have none. Though Jack chases some very nasty villains, the violence happens off the page. It’s horrible, but not gratuitous. So if you think the books are too descriptive, it’s actually your imagination filling in the nasty parts.” So as a reader, I take that as fair warning that there may be references to the killings, and I appreciate the forewarning.  

So, I go on to reading and soon see that Konrath was WRONG.  The scene that I learned how deceitful Konrath was is on pg. 41. Please, dear reader, please let me know if this scene sounds like a piece of graphic violence that “happens off the page." 

The killer had taken an escort into his private "plastic" room and described how, "Severing her head is harder than he'd have guessed.  He has to prop his knee up against her back for leverage, and then use a sawing motion with the garrote to get through the spine."

HOW CAN YOU JUST ‘IMAGINE’ THAT?! Those are some pretty DIRECT images, and even though I know I would have been disturbed by them either way, I am even more disturbed at the fact that the Konrath says that he is not putting those images into his reader’s heads; their IMAGINATION is! 

It pains me to give Bloody Mary such a bad review when I liked Whiskey Sour so much more, but it isn’t the novel’s fault; the characters did what they were told.  Konrath needs to get back on his game and stop giving false evidence of what his books contain, or else his readers are going to start dropping like the poor victim’s of his killers.

-Shelly-Beans

Night Film by Marisha Pessl

Genre: Mystery/Literature

Date of Publication: August 20th, 2013

Memorable Quote: "...Cordova could no more be held responsible for Any Andrews gruesome death than the beef industry giving Americans fate heart attacks.  As much as some people would like to believe, for their own peace of mind that the appearance of evil in this world had a clean cause, the truth was never that simple." (pg. 29)

If you liked these, you'll like this: Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder and Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane

Lasting Impression:  Pessl displays an emotion in her writing and characters that is so life like, so easy to connect with, that by the end I swore I had seen all of Cordova's films and he was a real director. 

Storyline: A+

Pace: A

Characters: A+

Ending: A
Overall: A

This is the most visual novel I have ever read. Literally! The evidence, articles, and pictures Pessl displays through the story gives the book a credibility that really made me second guess if this was a work of fiction or not.

The story is centered around Scott McGrath, an interrogative reporter who questions the sudden suicide of cult film director Stanislas Cordova's daughter, Ashley.  With two unlikely companions, McGrath scours New York City for answers but as things get out of control, he realizes that some mysteries are best left unsolved.

Scott's first person narrative was very easy to follow and even though every character was fantastic, Scott McGrath was extremely interesting because of the transformation he makes through the events that happen over the course of the book.  You could say that about any "coming of age" story, but the richness in detail and the way Scott's perspective and narrative changes as the story progresses is quite an accomplishment.

The only problem I had with the story was that all of the evidence McGrath and his comrades find is never collectively put together; like jigsaw pieces that never fit altogether perfectly to display the whole picture.

Besides that small piece of negativity, I am truly amazed with what Pessl has created, especially with the creativity behind creating Cordova and his beautiful yet horrifying films that can only be properly described by "Cordovites" as sovereign. deadly. perfect.

-Shelly-Beans

Calling You by Otsuichi

Genre: Short Stories/Japanese Fiction

Date of Publication: May 31, 2001

Memorable Quotation: “Hello?” “Please don’t hang up. I swear this isn’t a prank call…” For some reason, the idea of a prank call on an imaginary phone amused me.” (pg.20)

If you liked these, you’ll like this: Twentieth Century Ghosts by Joe Hill.

Lasting Impression: The three stories story in this wonderful collection are touching in their own way; each exploring the power of human relationships and what it means to feel love in its purest form.

Storyline: A+

Pace: A

Characters: A

Ending: A

Overall: A

Unlike Otsuichi’s other short story collections that include more gruesome, graphic detail, the three stories in Calling You are more lighthearted, although death is a reoccurring theme in them too. When you think about the title of this collection (which is also the title of the 1^st short story), I not only think of Celine Dion’s Song “Calling You” but also the image and emotions I feel.  I can imagine someone calling  to a lover or a friend either in happiness or in shock, the syllables of the name never sounding like poetry until that moment, and to have a title make me emotionally invested into the book before reading it is pretty good reason to think this will be a home run.

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The first short story is Calling You, which was my favorite one.  Ryo is a quiet girl who is so lonely that she creates a cell phone in her mind, wishing she had friends to call. After a while, she can see the phone clearly in her mind, as if it is real.  One day, she hears a phone ringing, and it turns out it is her imaginary one.  The caller is a boy around her age, Shinya, who doesn’t have any friends and made an imaginary phone too. 

The way they find each other and help each other cope in a world that initially rejected them is beautiful, and although the ending is heartbreaking, the twists that come out of such a short story is incredible.

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The second short story is Kiz/Kids.  The narrator, who we never learn the name of, belongs to the “special” class in school because of violent outbursts and while there, he meets a boy names Asato who has a very special gift; he takes scars, bruises, burns, and injuries from people and puts them on his so they won’t feel pain.  He is used for his gift, unfortunately, and it nearly kills him. As this happens, the young narrator gets a first hand look at why it is rare that the pure do not stay that way forever.

At first I thought it was just a “cute” story but as the characters develop and back stories come to light, I realized this was a much deeper, more painful, plot than I had first realized. I was very impressed with the story overall, especially with the ending, and how the two boys learned that with love comes sacrifice and with sacrifice comes a bond that is unbreakable.

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The final story is called The Flower Song.  The story centers around a man who was in a horrible train accident (which is only mentioned) and how he is in a hospital, recovering from emotional scarring from losing his lover in the crash.  As he wanders the hospital grounds, he comes across a clearing and sees a giant tree has fallen. Underneath it is a flower that appears to be humming.  The rest of the story centers around the narrator and his relationship to the flower.  What the narrator learns about family and reincarnation is extremely profound, and the imagery Otsuichi gives the reader when it came to the flower is amazing.

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All of Otsuichi’s stories in this collection are based around family, love, and the pain that comes when we open our hearts to love.  What makes his stories so exceptional is that he takes the pain that love can bring and transforms it into personal growth through his characters.

~Shelly-Beans

Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

Genre: Inspirational/Non Fiction

Date of Publication: 1997 (No specific date could be found.)

Memorable Quotation: “I don’t want to leave the world in a state of fright. I want to know what’s happening, accept it, get to a peaceful place, and let go. Do you understand?”  I nodded. Don’t let go yet, I added quickly.  Morrie forced a smile. “No. Not yet. We still have work to do.” (pg. 107)

If you liked these, you’ll like this: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

Lasting Impression: Flavia Weedn once said, “The world knows little of it’s greatest heroes,” and in the case of Mitch Albom’s college professor/friend Morrie Schwartz, that’s exactly what he is: a hero; a man with a message about life, love, and death that should be required reading to fully understand the human experience.

Subject: A+

Delivery: A+

Pace: A+

Ending: A+

Overall: A+

NOTE:  I just realized this is the first Non-Fiction book I will be reviewing! (I’m not talking about a guide or a collection of work; I mean a true story.)  SO, my rating system will be different.  Here are the explanations for the two new rating criteria:

Subject: Was the person or event the book is about interesting?

Delivery: Was it written in a conversational tone? Was the author/subject relatable?

Thank you and enjoy the review!

If everyone could be so lucky to have such a beautiful memoir written about them, the world may be a different place.  Fortunately, Best-Selling Author/Sports Journalist Mitch Albom was able to record the legacy of Morrie, a man who continues to inspire hope even after his death.  Morrie was diagnosed with ALS in his late seventies and through his strong spirit and high hopes against the merciless disease, Mitch wind up learning about Morrie’s condition and began visiting every Tuesday; where the two talked about some of life’s most important subjects, including marriage, emotions, death, etc.

I have always been a fan of Mitch Albom but this book made me love him and his work even more because on every page, I could feel the love and admiration he had for his old professor; describing Morrie in such a way that everyone feels they had known him as long as Albom did. 

The more I read about Morrie, the more I wished I could have hugged him, thanked him for such inspirational words, told him that I wanted to be a better person because of him.  

I can almost guarantee that I will read this book again and again; when I need my faith restored in humanity or just a little hope about life, and when that time comes, Morrie will come back to life for a little longer and he will repeat to Mitch, to me, the lessons that will help us create better tomorrow for ourselves.

~Shelly-Beans

The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt and Jeff Cox

Genre: Business/Fiction

Date of Publication: 1984 (No specific date could be found.)

Memorable quotation:  “If I were to just tell you the answers I know, all you would get is an earful of advice.  But if you discover the answers for yourself, then you own those answers.  They’ll be yours to keep, and you’ll believe in them so much more because you found them yourself.” (pg. 269)                                

If you liked these, you’ll like this: Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson and The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield                                          

Lasting Impression:  This is a must read for anyone interested in/involved with economics, business, or management for the business strategies that are discussed. For everyone else, the growth and problems of Al Rogo are things that anyone can relate to.

Storyline: A

Pace of Story: B+

Characters: A

Ending: A+

Overall Grade: A

   

I recently changed careers and started a new job, in advertising (Hooray!) so my new boss recommended I read this novel to understand more about the business and how to succeed, so although this wouldn’t have been my first choice of a novel, I definitely gained perspective from it.

Here’s the premise: What would you do if your manager told you one morning that your division of a manufacturing plant has not been making money for so long time that if things didn’t pick up in three months time, your division will be shut down?  This is the situation Al Rogo is faced with, and if that isn’t hard enough to deal with, his marriage is crumbling as well.  With the help of his old physics teacher, Jonah, Rogo begins a journey of not only a re-evaluation of everything he thought he knew about business but also how to manage his time better with his family.

The book focuses on the ideas of throughput, bottlenecks, and ROI (just to name a few) and for those who feel daunted by those terms (like I did), Goldratt writes in a way that is easy to understand, even though at times I was bored by the amount of business terminology used in certain scenarios.

What annoyed me the most about the novel was how it was described on the jacket. It was stated that this would be a “thriller” and it was a “compulsive” read. For a reader like me, these words made me think of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code (maybe for business people, this is a thriller) but when I read it, I had to push myself at times to get through the sections that went deep into the ethics of business.

When I was done with the book, my boss asked me what I got out of it, and I told him some of the terms I remembered and how the goal of The Goal is to make money. He nodded in agreement with everything I said but stated when I was done, “Einstein.  Albert Einstein said a very important quotation that Rogo followed unknowingly and I want you to remember it. If you do, you will be successful here.  The quote is, ‘I don’t need to know everything; I just to know where to find it when I need it.’ ” 

That's exactly what Rogo did; when he didn’t know the answer, he went to Jonah for help and soon realized that the goal of any business is what the book said, to make money, but it really is more than that. The goal is to admit you can't know everything so it is important to have the resources that can lead you to the answer.

N0S4A2 by Joe Hill

Genre: Horror/Fiction

Date of Publication: October 15, 2013

Memorable Quotation: “You look at birds all of your life without ever knowing what was a Sparrow and what was a Blackbird, but we all know a Swan when we see it. So it was with cars. Maybe you could not tell a Firebird from a Fiero but when you saw a Rolls- Royce, you knew it.” (pg.52)

If you liked these, you’ll like this: The film 'Wanted', Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, and Coraline by Neil Gaiman.

Lasting Impression: As Vic McQueen takes you on a wild ride in this fast-paced story, full of secret bridges, unique characters, and the illusive Christmasland, N0S4A2 may have you look at the holiday season differently for a long, long time!

Storyline: A+

Pace of Story: A-

Characters: A+

Ending: A

Overall Grade: A

*NOTE* I am adding a new section to my reviews, “If you liked these, you’ll like this.” I say in my reviews (or at least, I write a lot in my notes) how this book reminds me of this film, that book, etc. SO, to help peak your interest more, I will be putting in a section of what the book reminds me of (if anything). Give me your feedback! In the meantime, enjoy N0S4A2’s review!

This is probably one of the most visually-stimulating books I have read in a LONG time. What I mean by that is throughout the entire book, I could see everything that was happening, like a movie in my head. Although some aspects were a bit disturbing (which is expected from Hill) and other parts heartbreaking, the story overall packs a great punch and kept me glued to the pages as I rode along with Victoria McQueen through her journey.

The story centers around Vic “The Brat” McQueen and her Raleigh Tuff Burner bicycle (later on, her Triumph) and how she can cross the “Shorter Bridge” to find lost objects.  Eventually, she meets a warm-hearted junkie/librarian/champion scrabble player, Margaret Leigh, who warns her of Charles Manx, a child kidnapper and creator of Christmasland, and his 1938 Rolls Royce through the help of her scrabble pieces that can predict various things.

Eventually, as Leigh’s scrabble pieces predicted, fate leads Vic to Manx and the trouble only begins there.  Following the travels of Vic, Leigh, Manx, and other unforgettable characters, Vic is lead to Christmasland on a rescue mission. To become victorious, Vic will need the help of those who love her most, and only then will she find the strength to face Manx directly and give him what he deserves.

Hill does a great job with this novel on so many levels. The pace was good, although it is became too fast at times, reminding me of Vic on her bikes; at times going too fast, making things feel out of control, but once they slowed down, everything evened out.  I was also very impressed by the subtle, clever elements Hill integrated into the novel, especially the title (which I won’t spoil for you, you’ll have to read the book to understand, unless you wanted to say the title quickly *cough cough*).

Everything really fell into place with this novel. There were some structural and grammatical issues that bothered me and at first, I thought the ending was going to be a disappointment but after giving the ending more time to develop, it flourished and really tied everything up nicely, like a newly wrapped gift for Christmas.  

~Shelly-Beans

October Books That "Did Not Make the Grade"

As this month comes to a close, I am sad that I was not able to review as many books as I would have liked, but I am reading one now that is sure to please for next month!

In the mean time, here are the two novels that unfortunately "did not make the grade:"

Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight: I liked the concept and how the character's could easily be seen with individual personalities, but there were a few problems that left me uninterested in continuing to read.  The biggest problem was that the storyline did not hold my interest; it reminded me of the film, "Mean Girls"  but with a sadder twist.  I was hoping my mind would be changed but some of the characters irritated me and I didn't care to learn more about what really happened.

The Translator by Nina Schuyler:  To be honest, I fell out of reading this novel because I wasn't sure where the plot was going, although it was written very well.  I can definately say that I would try reading this book again, maybe when I have a little more patience in finding out where the plot leads us.

Happy Halloween (for tomorrow) and I look forward to writing more next month!

~Shelly-Beans

Relative Identity by Holly Patrone

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Date of Publication: January 15^th, 2013

Memorable Quotation: “It was Saturday night and people were jammed so closely that it would take a crowbar and a vat of petroleum jelly to navigate the crowd, and from the looks of it, half of them would have enjoyed the combo way too much.” (pg. 63)

Lasting Impression: Great humor, good characters, but sometimes a little corny, Relative Identity is an easy, enjoyable read for anyone who can relate with the curveballs life throws at the most inconvenient of moments!

Storyline: A-

Pace: B+

Characters: A+

Ending: B-

Overall: A-

When a spouse passes away, it is always hard for the survivor to live everyday to the fullest without thinking about their late significant other.  However, what if they never really left, and were always watching, for better or for worse?  That is the conundrum that April Serao faces everyday as she deals with her deceased husband Sal, now an angel after dying from a vigorous round of birthday sex six years ago. 

Not spiteful in the least, Sal watches over April, which is sweet and all but since she is the only one who can see him when he visits her, most would think she worries that her new boyfriend, Jack, and her three sons consider her crazy for talking to herself.  Things get a bit crazier, though, when April is told that her deceased husband’s identity has been stolen and only through numerous haphazard events and humorous occurrences does April find the culprit behind the theft and the real reason why Sal continues to watch over her.

The pace of the novel is nice and easy, so much so that you feel like April is one of your friends, telling you a crazy story.  The other characters are also relatable, each having their own quirk and identity to set them apart from everyone.  What I loved most about Relative Identity was the way you could really engross yourself into the Serao’s family life and relate to them as if they were your own.

Although I loved the storyline and the characters, I had two problems with the other aspects of the novel.  First, the dialogue does not always flow naturally and second, the ending is not the big bang the characters try to make it out to be.  Instead, the ending seemed forced compared to the easy flow most of the novel held.

This is a nice novel, overall; there are no deep topics to sit and contemplate, no confusing plot twists, but its simplicity is what gives it such depth.  Although some parts are overly-exaggerated for stock value, Relative Identity is a fun novel based around humor and how family should always stick together, especially in the strange, amusing circumstances the Serao family faces.

~Shelly-Beans

The Other Face: Experiencing the Mask edited by Wendy Klein and Brent Robinson

Genre: Psychology/Literature

Date of Publication: January 1, 2003

Memorable Quotation: “The mask’s purpose is not necessarily to hide the individual but to allow a particular aspect of the individual; to be communicated with greater focus and intensity.” (pg. 19, A Humanist Critique of the Mask by Sophie Rogers-Gessert)

Lasting Impression: The concept of the mask is brought to new light in this amazing collection that explains how the mask is not only a physical, but also something that wear psychologically without ever realizing it.

Accessibility: B

Content: A-

Creativity: A+

Layout: B-

Overall Grade: B+

If I have anything negative to say about this book, it is instantly lessened by the sheer fact that this book exists! It has been almost impossible for me to find anything about the mask and it’s history, meanings, and origins but while attending the NY Renaissance Faire a month ago, I was visiting my favorite booth, the Wendy Drolhma mask booth, and found this book.

This collection includes short stories, poetry, essays, and quotes about the physical mask we see at Mardi Gras, the mask that some say can be being a second skin that transforms you into a completely different person, or even a rouge for authenticity. Some of the sections about the mask are analyzations of what the mask means while others do not mention the mask at all, other than the title of the piece, but if you look unto the deeper meaning of the story, the mask does present itself.  For instance, one of my favorite stories was The Mask by Mark Sherman, in which he describes the sensation of putting on a mask and experiencing yourself as a different individual, although you have only put a mask on yourself. 

What confused me most about this collection was the layout.  The stories were not in one section while the poems were in another; everything was scattered around, making it difficult to find a rhythm throughout the book.  There were pictures of masks that seemed to be randomly inserted in places and I didn’t like how disorganized it felt. 

I must say that overall I was pleasantly surprised with this collection because I honestly was not sure what to expect.  The fact that there are so many different viewpoints of the mask is fascinating and even if there were a few things that bothered me, as I said before I am so happy that this book exists and hopefully this review can get the popularity for this book that it deserves.  

~Shelly-Beans

The Wall of the Sky, The Wall of the Eye by Jonathan Lethem

Genre: Short Stories/Science Fiction

Date of Publication: March 5, 2007

Memorable Quotation: “Hell doesn’t have a ‘before.’ Hell is stuck in time, repeating endlessly. Hell doesn’t have a past. It just is.” (From Happy Man, pg. 19)

Lasting Impression: Lethem had some very creative ideas strung throughout his stories but his decision to not give more attention to them made his work suffer. 

Overall, over the seven short stories:

Storyline: C

Pace: B-

Characters: B-

Ending: C-

Overall: C+

This was another piece of literature that was highly recommended to me that I, honestly, could not appreciate as much as my friend did.  As I said earlier, the ‘gimmicks’ Lethem strung through the stories were extremely creative but he did not focus on them like he should have, so his stories just came out being out of balance and confusing, leaving holes for the reader to fill themselves. 

There were seven short stories and only one of them I thought was successful in executing a story that was cohesive, rich with detail, and had an unusual circumstance that was consistent throughout the story.  The rest, unfortunately, each had a fatal flaw that made it difficult to read.

Before I give the brief story descriptions, you may be wondering why I read the entire collection when I said I did not enjoy most of them in the first place.  The reason is because once I get halfway through a book, there is no turning back for me (unless the story becomes excruciating).  Honestly, there was promise of real creativity in these stories, but I felt that Lethem did not let the ideas mature so he only gave the reader the scraps of what he had thought of, not giving any real dimension or originality to them. 

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To start, the first short story is The Happy Man, my friend’s favorite out of the collection.   The narrator is a man whose soul is torn between his own personal Hell and Earth and when he is in Hell, his body on Earth is a zombie; able to keep his job and bring in income for his wife but do nothing else of interest.   The man’s Hell is very creative, the characters in it are unique but the details as to how he died and why his soul is divided between the two worlds is never told.  The twist at the end is mediocre, and only brings more questions than answers so overall, I liked the story but I could not understand the hype about it.

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The next story is Vanilla Dunk.  The idea is that all of the great basketball players skills, including Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain, are passed down by imbuing them into exosuits, which are given to players in the beginning of each season but each suit is only used once.  A white player, who gives himself the nickname Vanilla Dunk, gets the coveted Michael Jordan exosuit, which causes racial tension among the players. If you are a fan of basketball, you will love and appreciate the idea behind this story but I only know the basics of the sport so I could only get into it so much as much.  The pace is slow, the story is pretty good, but the focus on the exosuits are only really discussed in the beginning and end, leaving me to read about all of these games and strategies I could care less about instead of the interesting twist that is left on the back burner. 

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Light and the Sufferer is the third story.  Two brothers are involved in a robbery over drugs, one an innocent bystander, Paul, the other a drug dealer, Don.  A Sufferer, a harmless alien that reminded me of Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon, has one purpose: to follow those that are troubled and protect them, so one begins following Don after the robbery occurs.  (That may not be right but that is what I understand their purpose to be.) Everyone can see the Sufferer, but not much more detail is given about them, for the story circles around Paul’s insistance on leaving for California before things get worse.  Of course, they do, and the story just becomes violent and pointless.  Honestly, this really wasn’t much of a story, and the only reason I finished it was because the Sufferer is rather amusing and created light in this dark world.

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Next is Forever, Said the Duck, the shortest and most confusing of the seven stories, also my least favorite. From what I could understand, a couple invites their lovers from their past to a huge party as means of saying goodbye to their past the night before their wedding.  The pace is very fast and with so many characters, it is pointless to try and remember anything about anyone.  I have no idea where they were or what happened in the story because of how strange everything gets, so this is a story only those with an appreciation for the artistic and abstract can handle.

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The fifth story is Five Fucks, which I loved at first but towards the middle, everything twists into a completely different story, throwing me for a loop.  The first storyline, the one I loved and understood, followed a girl who meets a guy at a bar and spends the night with him.  The next day, when she gets home, she finds there is a Missing Persons report about her because she had allegedly been gone for two weeks, when she had only thought was one night.  After staying with him a second time and losing more of her sense of time, she files a missing persons report on herself and then things just get messy…a girl and guy wake up in dumpsters, then there are monsters and a village and I can’t even tell you what happens because I just don’t get it.  This would have been my favorite story, if it didn’t take a turn for the worst.

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Hardened Criminals is the sixth story, and definitely my favorite one.  The narrator, Nick, is sent to prison after being an accomplice in a robbery but not any prison. What makes this prison different is the prisoners that died there are put into cement and used as building blocks for the prison.  Only their backs, feet, and back ends are seen on the outside but on the inside, their heads pop out of the cement, and with chips in their brains, they can still speak.  Nick is first sentenced to the hole, a dark tower where all around are talking heads but after a week, he is taken into the regular prison where only one wall has the heads, one of them being his father’s.  The pace was good, Lethem kept with the concept of the heads, and the story was great; even the ending wrapped up everything nicely; I definately give him kudos for this one.

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The last story, Sleepy People, had an interesting concept but Lethem, once again, barely touched upon it. A woman comes home from work to find a man sleeping on her front porch to find out from a coworker that he is a ‘sleepy person’ and they are very warm individuals who help plants grow. (Yeah, that’s all of a description I got about them.) There is a military and dinosaurs and once again, I have no idea what is going on.  The plot has no direction, the characters are one dimensional, and the ending comes out of left field so sadly, I was not a fan.

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As I said before in one of the mini summaries, this is a collection for those of you who welcome a surreal landscape with the plot ready to twist at any moment. I saw what Lethem was trying to do with his concepts, and I can definitely appreciate his work, but his style and train of thought are a little much for me to handle.

~Shelly-Beans