http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=1224&mname=ArticleGroup Book reviews en-us 60 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} By Justin Mai Of the Frontpage Milwaukee staff July 20, 2009 Pride of October: What It Was To Be Young and a Yankee. Bill Madden. New York. Warner Books, Inc. 2003. 453 pages. $26.99. In his 2003 book the longtime New York Daily News sports columnist, Bill Madden, describes the highs and lows of playing for arguably the most successful sports franchise in history, The New York Yankees. Madden goes into great detail through interviews with current and former players about the life of a Yankee in New York City. Everything from fights between famous teammates in the team hotel to the joys of winning so many World Championships, Madden seems to hit every point about what it was like to be Young and a Yankee. Bill Madden, who covered the Yankees for nine years, sat down with 18 current or former Yankee greats in his book Pride of October: What It Was To Be Young and a Yankee. Madden molds this history of the Yankees in part story-telling and part drama. Madden knew went to great lengths to bring together the stories of so many Yankee greats. Madden always just simply asked the question to each of his subjects on what it was like to be a Yankee. He portrayed each subject and that simply question with always a high level of grace and wit. Madden stated goal of the book was just to capture as much of the team’s past as possible. It always seemed to be amazing how Madden seemed to make each story from all of his subjects flow together very smoothly and easily. No person seemed to be out of place in terms of placement in the book and no story from each person was out of order. The whole book, even though it was a combination of multiple interviews with his 18 subjects, seemed to be that of a major league’s team batting order: each story built off of each other and each new subject almost added to the previous subject’s story. As mentioned before, Madden’s goal of the book was to provide a complete history of the Yankees from the view of the players. Madden, who has also written other books about the Yankees, interviewed players from the far past including Phil Rizzuto and Yogi Berra to players of the recent generation including Don Mattingly and Paul O’Neill. In all Madden chronicles the story of 18 Yankee greats and even interviewed the wife of the deceased great Yankee catcher, Elston Howard. Madden masterfully wrote about each player with a sort of affection and class. He always knew each player’s place in Yankee history and always made sure to communicate that to the reader. Madden also skillfully characterized all of the emotions that went into to be a Major League Baseball player as well. He made sure to make the reader feel the highest of highs through the eyes of Yogi Berra when winning his ten world championships to the lowest of lows when Berra was fired years later by the unpredictable owner George Steinbrenner. Madden, as I stated before, covered the Yankees for nine years for The New York Daily News in the 1980s. He also co-wrote the book Zim – A Baseball Life with the famous player and years later manager Don Zimmer. Madden also wrote about fiery and crazy New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner in his 1991 book entitled Damned Yankees: A No-Holds-Barred Account of Life With "Boss" Steinbrenner. Madden is also a member the distinguished Baseball Writers Association of America which includes voting for players to be potentially admitted to the Baseball Hall of Fame. These credentials show that Madden is not a fluke when it comes to baseball writing. Madden knew how to portray the Yankees to outsiders of the New York area as he grew up in New Jersey and just a short car ride away from Yankee Stadium. Madden used a style that was easy to understand of the storied history of the Yankees to even novice baseball fans. Madden used a conservationist tone to his writing which worked well considering that most of the book was drawn up from interviews that he conducted with each of his subjects. Madden went even to describe most interview locations and all the issues that he had to deal with as he tried to set up these informal chats with all of his subjects. It is easy to notice throughout the book that Madden is an avid Yankee fans. Although it seemed to add to the overall affection of each player and prestige of the book, at times I believed that it may have clouded the writing for Madden. He always portrayed each Yankees player with a high level of respect and admiration but when describing when certain players left the Yankees to go play for another team. It never seemed to matter what they did in other uniforms, as if their importance in the overall Yankee history diminished because they left New York. None the less, the goal of the book was to provide a history of some current and former Yankees. Madden showed his excellence and expertise of covering the Yankees for so many years and showed the reader the importance of the New York Yankees to the baseball world. Madden knows that the Yankees are the most widely known team in baseball history and this book shows us why they are that way. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. As a huge Yankees fan and an even bigger fan of the game of baseball, I caught myself throughout the book feeling as if I were right alongside of these players during the stories of the great run of World Championships in the 1950s or when the team lost the World Series to the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001. I felt as if I were actually right there watching inside the team clubhouse and feeling the way they felt. Madden elegantly displayed the emotion of each player in every story throughout this book and always knew the importance of each player to the Yankee History. This book would be recommended to all baseball fans across the country and across the globe. Even the biggest Yankee hater would enjoy the thoughtful and emotional appeal to the book. These people may even admit to feeling the joys of the successes of the Yankees throughout even though they may be the most serious of Yankee haters. Pride of October: What It Was To Be Young and a Yankee shows us all what it is indeed to that of the title: Young and a Yankee. Bill Madden interviewed 18 current and former Yankee players to bring a story of high emotion and prestige. Madden knew what he wanted to do throughout the book and never failed once to bring out the great history of the Yankees. Mon, 20 Jul 2009 11:08:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=22956&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=22956&mname=Article Rose Davis JMC 504 Book Review March 12, 2008 “A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” Author: Ishmael Beah Sarah Crichton Books, New York Pages: 229 Price: $22.00 When most people think of their childhood they remember carefree days of smiles and laughter, when the biggest decision you had to make was grilled cheese or peanut butter and jelly. However, for many children in Sierra Leone, Africa, childhood was a much different experience, one full of violence, destruction and fear. In Ishmael Beah’s book “A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier”, Beah tells the story of how he became trapped in a world of violence during the brutal political rebellion in Sierra Leone. This work of non-fiction, which was number two on The New York Times bestseller list, tells the heart-wrenching story of how far a boy will go to survive, and his courageous journey to overcome the terror he is forced to take part in. It is a fantastic book that I would encourage everyone to read. His story begins when Beah is barely 12 years old fleeing his village after it was destroyed by rebels fighting against the Sierra Leone government. Without knowing whether his family is dead or alive, Beah and several other surviving boys wander the jungle for months searching for help and their families. They eat what little food they can find and travel in fear through the night, praying they won’t be caught by the rebels. After several months Beah is caught, not by the rebels, but by his own government’s army. The army protects him at first, but when they are surrounded by rebels, all the young men must fight with the army or leave the camp and risk being killed. Beah joins the government’s army and is quickly turned into a heartless killing machine, trained to fight to the death. At 16 Beah is removed from the fighting and brought to a rehabilitation center. There he must to learn how to shed the tough outer layer of a soldier and try to find the kind-hearted young man that remains within. The civil war in Sierra Leone began in 1991 when a group on men started the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), whose goal was to rid the country of the corrupt government. The RUF used much violence and terror to try and gain control and was faced with intense opposition. For ten years a brutal and horrifying civil war raged in Sierra Leone, until finally in 2001 a peace agreement was signed by the government and the RUF. In January 2002 the civil war is declared officially over. However, there are still other countries in Africa that are experiencing similar political rebellion today. Beah uses his story to spread awareness of what young men and boys went through during Sierra Leone’s civil war, and what many other young men and boys are still experiencing in Africa now. “A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” is Beah’s first novel. He wrote the short story, “When Good Comes from Bad” in 2000. This short story is basically a summarized version of “A Long Way Gone.” It is well written and moving even though not as detailed as the book. Like all great non-fiction books, “A Long Way Gone” uses good description and detail so the reader can really put themselves in the story and relate to the author. It takes a lot of strength to write about events as terrible as the ones Beah experienced, and he is showing his ability to face those challenges in order to spread awareness and hopefully encourage change. This non-fiction book is different than others in the fact that it does not present an argument, but rather a social issue that needs to be addressed. It is similar to a biography in the fact that it details Beah’s life. I think that it is great that he is using his story to try to help others who are or were in his situation. After the book was published there was some controversy regarding whether or not some of the events in the story actually occurred. According to a report by ABC News, a story in The Weekend Australian claimed that Beah's village was destroyed in 1995 rather than 1993, and that because of this, Beah could not have been a soldier for more than a couple of months, rather than for the two years he describes in the book. A reporter from The Weekend Australian went to Beah’s village to ask the locals about the attack and was told that it had occurred in 1995, not 1993. This discovery angered many people who felt that Beah’s book should not have been published as non-fiction. However, the publisher’s claim that they did all of the necessary fact checking and do not believe Beah’s story is false. I think that it is possible that not all of Beah’s experiences may have occurred exactly as he describes in the book. On the other hand, I don’t know why he would need to make up any of the story because it is obviously a devastating experience, whether it lasted for two years or two months. I think the important thing is the overall message of the story. Although it might not be 100 percent accurate, Beah still is getting his message out and letting the world know what many young men and boys experienced in Sierra Leone. I really liked Beah’s writing style in this book. It is simple, yet detailed and interesting enough to keep the reader’s attention, which is how a book should be written. He tells the story through the eyes of a child in a way that grabs you and makes you feel for the characters. Because it is a memoir of his life, he is able to put his personality into it, and at the end you are really rooting for him. Beah uses jargon from his African language, with words such as crapes, which is what the boys call sneakers, and brown brown, which is what the soldiers called a mix of gunpowder and cocaine that they would snort. Using this jargon adds to the relationship the reader feels with the characters. You could see how Beah’s values changed from the beginning of the book, when he was still an innocent child, to the middle of the book, when he became a soldier, and at the end of the book, when he was in the rehabilitation center. He was so innocent and honest at the beginning; it was shocking the change he went through once he became a soldier. As a soldier, he seemed to lose all feelings for others and his only goal was to kill. There is one point in the story where several rebels are taken captive by the government army and tied to posts in the camp. The head of the government army gathers several boys, Beah included, and tells them each to slit the throat of one of the captives. Beah does it without hesitation. This is when you realize that he has lost much of his childhood innocence. He has become cold and almost evil and has no mercy for the man he kills. Non-fiction books need to have good description where the writer is showing you what he is experiencing rather than just telling. In the scene described in the previous paragraph, Beah talks about his lack of emotion and how it feels to kill a man. He describes it in a way that the reader can picture the grotesque event happening. Also, when he talks about being in the jungle and having to kill or be killed he describes the sights, sounds, and his own emotions to show what a different person he had become. Beah does a great job of showing rather than telling throughout the entire book. A non-fiction book such as this should be structured in a way that makes sense. There needs to be a definite starting point and then either a major event or a series of events that lead to a definite conclusion. Beah does exactly this in “A Long Way Gone.” The book starts off with little conflict, but the trouble starts quickly and Beah goes through so many emotional and difficult things. He draws the reader in, and it is almost impossible to put the book down. This was a fantastic book. Beah’s writing style draws the reader in and holds their attention until the very end. Although the story was sad, it had a great message of strength and overcoming hardships. His story is very powerful and made me really appreciate the life I have, especially my childhood. I definitely think he accomplished what he wanted to in writing this book because spreading awareness is the first step in making a change. This is one of the best non-fiction books I have read in a long time and I definitely recommend it. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 15:45:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17801&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17801&mname=Article By Danielle Chatham April 1 2008 IT HAD TO BE YOU A Gossip Girl Prequel By Cecily von Ziegesar New York. Little, Brown and Company. October 2007. 401 pages. $17.99. Money, fashion, parties, drugs, sex…all in a day’s work for the teenagers of New York City’s prestigious Upper East Side. Nothing is denied to the young adults that live in the lap of luxury called Manhattan. Inheriting fortunes from their prominent pedigrees, spending thousands at Barney’s and Bendel’s, attending the most exclusive private schools…anything and everything goes for the fabulous kids that reign in Gossip Girl. Cecily von Ziegesar is the author of It Had To Be You: The Gossip Girl Prequel. The book, number 13 out of 12 in Ziegesars’ bestselling Gossip Girl series, is a juicy fiction novel that follows the antics of the privileged young adults that live in New York’s fanciest part of town. With the increase in popularity of gossip novels available today, the Gossip Girl series leads the pack. More importantly, with the novel being a prequel, I enjoyed it more than the other books because it brought the series to an end and wrapped up lingering questions I had about how the scandalous world of the notorious elite first began. Whether you want to read the prequel before the series, or vice versa, It Had To Be You is a book worth reading. Because the book focuses on the upper class and the way that part of society lives, it may seem as though the book is nothing more than a cheap thrill for those who take pleasure in designer fashion and dirty secrets. However, the book is so much more than that. The novel covers issues that women everywhere can relate to. Whether it’s buying your first bra because your breasts won’t stop growing, falling in love with your grade school friend you’ve had your eye since kindergarten, or losing your virginity, It Had To Be You is more than a provocative novel for the inner bad girl. It’s for every girl that goes through the same struggles growing up that all girls go through, not just for those who like spicy rumors and a laugh or two about which bikini to take to St. Tropez. It Had To Be You takes you on a journey of six adolescents dealing with the pressures of not only growing up, but growing up in a town where gossip rules and infamy is all too common. Three of the characters are best friends, having played together in their plaid Burberry diapers since before they could walk. Serena van der Woodsen is a tall, bleach blonde beauty who’s known for her wild ways and kind heart. Always the center of attention, every girl wants to be her and every guy wants to be with her. Her best gal pal, Blair Waldorf, is a short brunette who has a quick wit and a smart mouth. The last of their clique includes Nate Archibald, with his sparkling green eyes and wavy, golden tendrils. Although they may be best friends, Nate is in love with Serena, although Blair is in love with Nate. As the book continues, a serious love triangle develops when Serena finally falls in love with Nate, but is too late because he has fallen for Blair. With Serena trying to gain Nate’s affection back, Blair coping with her father leaving her mother for a French male model, to Nate going back and forth between his love for Serena and his relationship with Blair, putting the book down is simply a no-no. The other three characters also contribute to the steamy plotline as well. Dan is a scrawny poet who lives in the less than fabulous Upper West Side. Not part of Manhattan’s best, Dan enjoys his Folgers coffee and Camel cigarettes while he reads up on the works of John Keats and Tennessee Williams. Dan keeps to himself and spends time with his sister Jenny, who throughout the story obsesses about her growing bra size and what it will be like to finally have big boobs. Dan also makes time for his best friend Vanessa, a bald, black wearing film student who loves Dan. Although it seems like a match made in heaven, Vanessa is completely unaware Dan’s in love with Serena van der Woodsen, whom he has admired from afar. It Had To Be You is a great book to either end or begin the series with. Because all the Gossip Girl books have the same characters and similar drama along the way, the book fits in perfectly with the other previous novels before it. Gossip Girl also fuels excitement for other books alike. The author has started working on a piece using three triplets that appear in the eight book, allowing readers to continue with the sassy New York teens, although the series has ended. The author uses a unique tone with the book, giving it a personal appeal. When describing the events taking place, it seems as though it is taking place through the eyes of a well-educated teenager. Using cuss words and sometimes implementing French words to show cultural superiority of the upper class, Ziegesar allows you to feel like you are truly there listening to these kids speak to one another. She also uses many fashion references to particular high-end brands. With Blair making comments about her snake skin Dolce&Gabbana purse, custom-tailored Valentino suit, and blood-orange Manolo Blahnik stilettos, feeling like I was literally shopping with her weren’t the words to describe it. I felt as though I could’ve been looking at the exact pair of shoes in my own room. Another interesting style Ziegesar uses is including a website page every few chapters. This unique addition found in the book is about a person who watches what everyone does and then posts the updates of the popular characters in her own blog. The page itself includes a question and answer portion from fictitious characters that read the webpage, as well as a sightings section where we learn what the characters are going to be up to in the upcoming chapters. As soon as I reached a posting from gossipgirl.net (the name of the website), I had trouble putting the book down because I was so interested in seeing what was going to happen. The author certainly had no trouble bringing the characters to life, for she too lived the life she writes about in her book. Like the teenagers, Cecily von Ziegesar grew up in an affluent family on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. She graduated from a prestigious private school, where afterwards she went onto study creative writing at the University of Arizona. Her ideas for the book came from her wealthy friends who lived the extravagant lives her characters do, as well as her own experiences as being a gossip girl herself. With her overwhelming success of the books, Gossip Girl has evolved from being a book to being a television show on ABC. The structure of the book was also well put together. Because the book had more than one plotline, it flowed well by switching from one story to another smoothly. Because the chapters were shorter and every other chapter was dedicated to a different character, following the inner subplots was made easier. In addition, because the characters themselves had vivid personalities, it was easy to remember what was going on and with whom. If we are shopping with Serena while she mopes about Nate in one chapter, the next chapter includes how Dan sees her shopping and comes up with a plan to talk to her. That chapter then leads to Vanessa spotting Dan and discovering his love for Serena. With the fluidity of the chapters, it was simple to follow along and understand the plots a bit better. Overall, It Had To Be You is a book worth reading. Even if you can’t afford the Dior sunglasses and Stila mascara the characters wear, it’s fun to think about how these characters still go through the same things everyone else does, with or without being filthy rich. With name dropping, cuss words flaring, and a fun little webpage included, It Had To Be You is an entertaining and saucy book that allows us to live the lives of those prominent New York girls who know how to have a good time, and what to wear while they’re having it. Now you just need to decide whether you want to read it first, or last. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 15:32:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17799&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17799&mname=Article By Andrea Brouer April 1, 2008 To Destroy You Is No Loss By Joan D. Criddle and Teeda Butt Mam New York Anchor Books 1987 288 pages $9.95 Some movies are all titles and no substance. The Godfather. Part 3. Hollywood Knights. The same can be said for books. A Million Little Pieces. It is always disappointing when a book or movie (or anything for that matter), doesn’t live up to its exterior. To Destroy You Is No Loss, written by Joan D. Criddle and Teeda Butt Mam, is the unsettling real-life story of Teeda’s ordeal in Khmer Rouge controlled Cambodia. The title of this book caught my eye has a high school student and, years later as a college student, I still believe it is one of the better titles ever chosen. Does the story live up to its arresting title? Yes. Actually, probably more than you want it to. Reason Magazine explains the setting of this book succinctly, “Over 30 years ago, a murderous army of communist fanatics in Cambodia known as the Khmer Rouge took command of a nation, and tried to destroy a world. In the attempt, they murdered around 1.5 million people—maybe a million more, or maybe a few hundred thousand less.” In this book, young Teeda is forced from her home of Phnom Phenh into the countryside of Cambodia by the Khmer Rouge regime. The new regime lead by Pol Pot promises her a new land of equality. But Teeda learns that equality comes at a steep price. A price that she isn’t willing to pay. The slogan of the regime was “To keep you is no benefit, to destroy you is no loss.” The reader follows her pain and her tribulations. Her shocking experiences leave no room for negotiation. The reader knows Khmer Rouge is evil. Joan Criddle is Teeda Butt Mam’s sponsor in the United States. After hearing her story, she felt it had to be told. With her skill as a storyteller and Teeda’s permission, Criddle retold the story in first person. The reader becomes enthralled with the story, forgetting it isn’t really Teeda telling it. But that doesn’t matter. The story’s theme of hope in the face of adversity still resonates. People are still educated about the horrible tragedy in Cambodia. It doesn’t matter. The story is told in a simple tone with simple words. There is no need to over embellish with fancy language. The story speaks for itself. The reader doesn’t need paragraphs to mull over the tragedy. The unspeakable events leave the reader stopping after sentences. The reader stops on his own. The story doesn’t have to tell him to. Teeda is a character the reader grows to love. He watches her trek the long road to village after village. He watches her lose family. He watches her grow. The reader roots for Teeda. When she finally makes to America, the reader is left hoping she will make it successfully there as well. This book was the first book I read dealing with genocide. I’d read holocaust books, but nothing about tragedies outside Europe. The heartbreaking struggle the family went through struck a chord. I devoured books about similar families in Cambodia and other places like Africa. But this book stuck with me. The language used is so poignant, the story told so perfectly, that Teeda’s story is still with me five years after my first reading of it. I still reread it. It is a necessary book for anyone who wants to educate themselves about the world outside the U.S. and how to respond to foreign struggles (read: waiting isn’t always the best option). To Destroy You Is No Loss lives up to its stunning title. Its story of struggle and survival will stay with the reader for a long time. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 15:22:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17798&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17798&mname=Article Andrea Brouer March 8, 2008 After the Quake By Haruki Murakami New York Vintage Books 2002 147 pages $11.95 “Haruki Murakami,” a name not so easy to pronounce. Where to even begin, I’m not sure. I’m sure I butcher it ever time. When I have to ask a bookseller about him, it can be a struggle. “Who?” They ask, giving me a puzzled expression and trying to figure out how to spell it. Unless, of course, the bookseller has read Wind-up Bird Chronicle or Norwegian Wood. Then there’s this squeal of delight and a decision by the bookseller that the two of us must be best friends (this is only a slight exaggeration). Haruki Murakami fans are just what they sound like: fanatic. Last time I went to a bookstore with an eye for one of Murakami’s books, there was only one on the shelf I hadn’t read. A book of short stories entitled, After the Quake. Normally skeptic of short stories, I went ahead and bought it because it was written by this fantastic author who weaves the most amazing, dreamlike novels. Did he disappoint? Thank goodness, he did not. The six stories in this collection are set right after the Kobe earthquake in 1995. People’s lives all over Japan were affected by this event. But each story in this collection only has a small mention of the earthquake. It isn’t the earthquake that is the main problem to the main character in each story, but the desire to find something. Whether it is to find a part of themselves, in another person, or how exactly to save Tokyo with a frog, each character goes on a journey and learns something along the way. Reading my last sentence again, I realize how corny it all sounds, “each character goes on a journey and learns something along the way.” But there is no other way to explain Murakami. His mastery of the art can make the reader feel utterly inadequate when it comes to his own writing. He isn’t corny or elementary, the reader isn’t told how to feel. The reader is taken on a journey with the character, usually a journey of literal distance and dream distance. Characters say things like, “Those planes are too damn fast. Your mind can’t keep up with your body.” But instead of being put off, the characters are so genuine, so intriguing, the reader thinks, “yeah, you’re right! Wow.” Murakami’s past works give exactly the same feeling. His unique characters are heartfelt, his landscapes beautiful. In Norwegian Wood, the reader hopes for the safe return of the young man’s friend. In A Wild Sheep Chase, the reader feels like he is in the snowy mountains alone. These short stories are unarguably Murakami. The character the reader follows is a man. The characters take long physical journeys. There are mystifying, intriguing women. Animals talk that shouldn’t talk. As far as short stories go, Murakami is a sure choice for a purchase. His mastery of language keeps his stories from feeling short. They are absorbing and complete. Murakami’s writing style is unique and definitely his own. In the short story “Superfrog saves Tokyo,” a man arrives home to find a frog brewing tea. The story begins with the sentence “Katagiri found a giant frog waiting for him in his apartment.” First sentences that grab the reader and put him right in the action are typical of these stories. They are also sentences that make the reader wonder. “Yoshiya woke with the worst possible hangover” begins another story, and “Junko was watching television when the phone rang a few minutes before midnight” begins another. He then weaves magical stories throughout busy cityscapes and dreamlike rural towns. Sometimes Murakami’s stories blur the line of fantasy and reality. For example, did a frog really fight a worm? His characters feel things in these fantasy states, can be harmed even, and yet, they always return to the “real world” after the dreamlike experience. It is impossible to tell what should be taken as literal and what shouldn’t. The best way to read Murakami is to just follow the journey of the character. If he finds out something isn’t real, than take it as not real. But, if he takes a dream to be real, believe it is real. It probably is in the world of the story. It is part of the mystery of whatever setting the character is in: this world where things happen that shouldn’t happen. Another aspect of his style is his characters. All except “Thailand” follow a man who is searching for something, who meets an intriguing woman (or women) along the way, and who finds some sort of spiritual guide. The reader gets caught up in the journey and these people the man meets. The characters have many thoughtful comments throughout the story, along with the plane statement quoted earlier, they say things like, “We take for granted that the earth beneath our feet is solid and stationary…But suddenly one day we see that isn’t true. The earth…all of a sudden turns as mushy as liquid.” The characters are people who think, have unique views, and who express them. Murakami is proud of his Japanese culture and this is quite evident in his books. His stories are Japanese people who may take trips outside Japan, but who stay to the country for the most part. Even if he doesn’t flout Japanese symbols (one interviewer pointed out in Norwegian Wood there is only one cultural reference), the story still has an aura around it that for an American reader is unmistakably un-American. Says the author, “it's not as though I am after a sense of non-nationality. If that were really what I was after, I think maybe I would have set my novels in America. It would be easy if I were to have them take place in New York or San Francisco. You might call it the Japanese nature that remains only after you have thrown out, one after another, all those parts that are altogether too "Japanese." That is what I really want to express.” He does just what he says here in every story in this collection. Murakami is filling a space in the current literary field that is missing: beauty. The word is repeated throughout this review because it is the only one that can begin to describe his work. Writers of the past wrote beautifully, but none today have such a master of the language combined with the imagination of Murakami. It is no wonder his works have been translated into 27 languages. He is a best-selling author in his native Japan. I appreciated Murakami’s short stories in After the Quake because of the things that make Murakami’s writing so wonderful: his dreamlike worlds, characters, and journeys. He did not disappoint in these six short stories. Maybe I’m a fanatical fan, despite being unable to pronounce his name. Tell me Murakami’s your favorite author, and I’ll probably want to be your best friend. But when reading Murakami, I ignore everything else. I strain to read the next page. This is why a book of short stories is perfect for the semester. I can read, but it stops. Stopping is good because then I can do homework, satisfied with the story I’ve just finished. Sat, 08 Mar 2008 21:49:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17754&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17754&mname=Article By Kelsey Dionne Nov. 11, 2007 Sabriel By Garth Nix Australia HarperCollins Publishers 1995 491 pages $7.99 at www.amazon.com Does the walker choose the path or the path the walker? Garth Nix’s fantasy fiction novel Sabriel poses that overarching question. The main character, Sabriel, spends a good part of the book trying to discover whether she is guided by destiny or whether she creates her own fate for herself. She eventually finds the answer, although it is not as simple as the question. The many questions about life and growing up presented in Sabriel are what makes this book an astonishing reflection of the human struggle for meaning, and consequently what led Nix to win the 1995 Aurealis Award for best fantasy novel. Sabriel takes new steps forward in a genre that is clogged with repetition and decaying ideas. Nix’s detailed maps and vivid descriptions of his fantasy world, The Old Kingdom, show that Tolkien has influenced his world building. But Nix is one of those rare fantasy authors who is not trying to re-write The Lord of The Rings – Sabriel offers a very different perspective on fantasy than Tolkien’s masterpiece. The Lord of The Rings focused more on the rich setting of Middle Earth and less on the character of Frodo, whereas Sabriel does just the opposite. Nix used The Old Kingdom as a strong backdrop, which was ultimately a tool in the powerful development of his characters. The greatest strength of Sabriel is that even though the majority of the novel takes place in a world so different from our own, the characters are believable and human to the core. Nix’s characters seem as if they were taken from real history books and planted in a world of his design to play out their lives. The prologue of the novel shows the birth of the main character, Sabriel, and introduces the main villain, a powerful and evil spirit named Kerrigor. It also depicts Sabriel’s mysterious father, whom everyone fearfully addresses as “Abhorsen.” Abhorsen uses strange magic that is alien to other spell casters, and his powers seem to deal with death and dead spirits. What’s more, his main instruments of magic are a set of seven hand bells that resonate with deep power. In the first chapter, time jumps ahead 18 years, and Sabriel is seen as a typical (though academically gifted) student at Wyverly College for young women. At this point, the story is taking place in the land of Ancelstierre, a country that mirrors our own circa 1940. Nix slowly introduces the supernatural and magical elements of the world as they are encountered, adding to the verisimilitude of the story. Sabriel’s life is as close to ordinary as she can make it, despite her great talent for the spell casting classes that are considered “off the record” at Wyverly College. She knows she has a background of spell casters, an unusual heritage, but she simply views her magic as a separate part of her otherwise happy life as a young adult. However, a few short weeks before her graduation, her life changes profoundly. On a night heavy with a sense of foreboding, a messenger from the spirit world arrives at Wyverly College to deliver a package to Sabriel – her father’s bandoleer of bells. Sabriel knows that he would only pass his bells on to her if he were in mortal danger. Suddenly, her life turns upside down – she realizes she has to venture into the mysterious Old Kingdom, a land alive with ancient magic and countless dangers, to save her father’s life and discover her heritage as the only spell caster who is capable of fighting the dead – the Abhorsen. Sabriel’s story takes her to far away lands and through trials she could never have imagined. Ultimately, the novel is about growing up and combining desire with destiny to reach a happy existence. Nix communicates his story with a sense of majesty that was born in the tales of King Arthur. His language is formal but not haughty, and he is known for cutting out every word that doesn’t belong, leaving dialogue and action scenes that are loaded with meaning. These traits combine to produce a story that is an easy read, yet full of color that runs deeper than the surface of the words. Nix is careful to ease the plot along in the beginning so the reader can adjust to the world he is painting, a smart move that allows the progress of the story to accelerate without leaving anyone behind. This is particularly important for fantasy novels like Sabriel that introduce never-before-seen systems of magic that must be explained over time. However, one ill effect of an accelerating plot is that the ending can seem to happen too quickly – Nix remedies this problem by having two climatic scenes at the end of the novel to tie up the conclusion, rather than trying to force only one to do the trick. He also uses an epilogue to further cement the ending and to allow the story to come to a complete conclusion. The two most memorable characters of the novel are Sabriel for her humanity, uncertainty and bravery, and her magical companion named Mogget, who generally takes the form of a white cat. Mogget is a foil to Sabriel’s character because he is dangerous, knowledgeable about The Old Kingdom, and ill tempered. The two characters contrast sharply throughout the novel, an effect that only highlights each of them more profoundly. Sabriel is an innovative and powerful example of quality fantasy writing. Nix reaches into the deepest levels of humanity and withdraws characters that clearly reflect human struggles, doubts and triumphs. And triumph Nix did – this novel should be on any fantasy fan’s bookshelf for excellent character portrayal that is complemented by the fascinating world in which they exist. Sun, 11 Nov 2007 23:50:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17636&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17636&mname=Article By Andrea Dolnik The Perks of Being a Wallflower By Stephen Chbosky New York, NY. Simon & Schuster. 1999 213 pages. $14.00 “Because things change, and friends leave, and life doesn’t stop for anybody.” Classmates may call Charlie a freak, and his socially challenged personality does nothing to counter that, but underneath it all Charlie is just trying to figure out the meaning of life and how his friendships fit in to it. This novel is all about the painful journey called growing up and how friends can help cope with the pain. Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a brilliant fictional take on the classic coming-of-age story. Written in the form of a series of letters to “friend,” Chbosky takes readers on a journey through a year in the life of high school sophomore Charlie. The theme of the story is finding out the true meaning of love and friendships. Charlie’s life before this year was bland and somewhat friendless. This year, however, Charlie gets to learn what it is really like to have true friends and learns the meaning of love. He learns to deal with first dates, family problems and friendships all while remaining remarkably awkward and clueless. Charlie embarks on his year’s journey marked by the loss of his only friend. In an attempt to cope, he randomly introduces himself to two people at a football game. Taken back by Charlie’s innocently awkward personality, they take him under their wings. The friends introduce him to the world of partying, drugs and relationships. As their friendships progress, Charlie finds himself falling in love with Sam. When she makes it clear they are only going to be friends, Charlie accepts that role and takes it seriously. He goes on to deal with dating other people, breaking hearts and trying to remain a good friend. However, problems arise when Charlie realizes what he regards as friendship is really him passively giving in to whatever his friends want. He realizes that is not what friends do and learns to grow and strengthen his friendship skills. This novel is a perfect addition to timeless coming-of-age stories, such as The Catcher In the Rye. And much like Holden Caulfield, Charlie will be a character everyone will be able to relate to somehow and will get to know well enough they seem like a friend. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is poised to become an instant classic cherished for years to come. The, at times painful, awkwardness of the main character Charlie makes you want to fall in love with him and want to help him in his social struggles. The mistakes he makes are very relatable, which makes the character an iconic character for portraying teen angst. What really makes this book work is the writer’s voice. The book is written as a series of letters to some unknown correspondent. The only thing we know about this person is that someone told Charlie the “friend” would listen. Charlie’s voice is also an unusual one. His degree of awkwardness is enough to make you cringe at times. You cannot help but feel bad for him and want to jump into the story to help him through his struggles. Charlie is somewhat of a genius. He spends some of his time receiving extra literature from a teacher because what they are learning in class would bore him. Some other portions of his time he spends talking to a therapist. It is such a unique voice, which is why the book is so popular. Coming-of-age stores can be a dime a dozen, but Charlie’s voice is what makes this particular story interesting. What also makes the book refreshing is the use of modern day culture. Charlie is obsessed with the song Asleep by the Smiths. This song makes a cameo several times. The use of this song reference and several other cultural things make the book seem very in the present. Even though it was written quite a few years ago, the presence of those timeless teenage culture things makes the book resonate with the readers. The book starts out with Charlie telling us about his recent losses and his lack of friends. It progresses with Charlie getting advice to become more involved and his finding of friends. Then it goes on to take us through the many hardships Charlie comes to face in dealing with these new friends. Throughout the whole thing, Charlie remains the same. A loyal friend who willing to do anything to make people feel better. Whether it is family members, girlfriends or friends. Charlie is committed to making sure they are going to be okay. The one place where character development could have been more prominent is in the character of Sam. Charlie loves her more than any of his friends, yet we do not really get a good sense of who Sam is until the very end. Throughout the whole story, she mainly is hidden in the shadows of her brother Patrick’s character. It is the character of Patrick that is perhaps the most standout character other than Charlie. If Charlie’s life has hardships, Patrick’s is sure to top his. He deals with many problems that teenagers may have to deal with, and throughout those times Charlie is there to support him. His character is shocking, but he was the one who gave Charlie a chance in the first place. Without Patrick’s acceptance, Charlie would have never had the year of his life. I knew I liked this book when I would find myself smiling. There are parts of Charlie and his friends that reminded me of my friends. There are situations in this book that are totally out there, yet relatable. The stories he tells, I can picture a friend of mine telling. Charlie has such an endearing personality that you cannot help but like him. He is one of the most likeable characters I have ever read about. I think Chbosky’s purpose in telling this story was to move people to become better friends. He wants to show people through Charlie that it is okay to be a little strange and awkward as long as your heart is in the right place. This book is a book I would recommend to everyone. It is not so heavily involved in any one genre that it would turn some readers off. It appeals to all people who know what its like to have friends and family, and to know what its like to deal with those people when problems arise. Charlie is an endearing character worthy of his role in the world of classic coming-of-age stories. Sun, 04 Nov 2007 22:31:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17620&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17620&mname=Article Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman’s Guide to Why Feminism Matters By: Cortney Alexander 267 pages. Emeryville, CA: Seal Press, 2007. $15.95 I have been reading and thoroughly enjoying Jessica Valenti’s blog www.feministing.com for over a year now. When I heard that she had written a book, I was very eager to read it. Valenti’s voice on her blog is fresh, fun, relatable and easily accessible. She writes about timely issues from a feminist perspective; she brings me the news that I care about. I hoped her book would be more of the same. Jessica Valenti holds a master’s degree in Women’s and Gender Studies from Rutgers University. Her writing has been featured in The Guardian, Bitch Magazine, Guernica Magazine and Alternet. She founded the “Real Hot 100” as a reaction against Maxim Magazine’s misogynist “Hot 100” feature. Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman’s Guide to Why Feminism Matters is her first full-length book. It wasn’t until I saw the cover of Full Frontal Feminism that I became concerned about Valenti’s agenda. The cover is an image of a thin white woman’s torso with the title splashed across it. I know the old adage: do not judge a book by it’s cover. However, in a text about feminism (especially modern feminism) a cover like this diminishes nearly all of Valenti’s credibility. My faith and confidence in her authority vanished when I saw the cover of her book. When criticized for this on her blog, Valenti said that she chose the cover because she thought it would attract younger women. The cover is a decoy to dupe young women into reading about feminism. Dishonesty aside, if women need to be duped into feminism, we are in trouble. The cover immediately turned me off to the text, but I set that aside in the hopes of finding the positive in Full Frontal Feminism. It is certainly written in Valenti’s unique voice. She identifies herself as a young woman from Queens, New York and she is unapologetic about her vernacular. I am pleased with Valenti’s careful use of location politics when it comes to describing herself. She was not as cautious about locating her audience. Young American women (and young feminists, for that matter) are not a homogenous group. She writes about things like weddings, marriage, and family as if all women have the privilege of making those choices. She does not distinguish between the racial and class differences or the sexual preferences of the young women she claims to be writing for. As a feminist scholar, I am concerned about the image that she attaches to young feminists. There are eight curse words (including the dreaded ‘c-word’) on the first page alone! Now I am no prude, but that much cussing would make any reader question Valenti’s intelligence. Further, not all young women speak that way or enjoy being spoken to in that way. Because I know that Jessica Valenti is intelligent, I was reluctantly able to look past the language. Full Frontal Feminism is divided into fourteen chapters. In each chapter she takes on another tool of the patriarchy (without ever using that word). From sex toys and pop culture to reproductive rights, weddings and babies, Valenti covers a lot of ground. Feminist scholars would classify this text as a work of classic liberal feminism. Liberal feminists hope to achieve equality between men and women through legal and political reform. They tend to work within existing political and social frameworks rather than challenging them. This school of feminist thought is extremely problematic and it is precisely why the logic used in Valenti’s book fails. This framework does not question privilege or even identify weddings, babies, and reproductive choice as privileges. At one point Valenti suggests that women who flash their breasts for “Girls Gone Wild” are feminists as long as what they do is for their own pleasure, not someone else’s. She does not analyze greater social structures that put these young women in a position where they are objects for male viewing pleasure. This book would have been much better if, even once, Valenti had examined the social and political construction of gender, privilege and the problem of choice. Still, I bought this book for my eighteen-year-old sister-in-law. For a young woman with an infant who desperately needs some guidance, this book might just be the watered down, easily digestible feminism that gets her hooked. Valenti says that Full Frontal Feminism was intended for a young audience, for young women who are still terrified by the ‘f-word,’ for women just like my sister-in-law. In that way this text succeeded. My sister-in-law enjoyed all of the stories that Valenti told about sexism in her own life, particularly a story about how her ‘revealing’ shirt became the topic of debate rather than her intellect. Valenti discusses issues that young, white, middle-class, hetero women are interested in; she tells readers why their beliefs are feminist and why they should not be afraid of that label. Valenti goes for the gut with her stories about how sexism touches every woman whether they realize it or not. Unfortunately, in so doing she dumbs down feminism to an almost unrecognizable point. Full Frontal Feminism commodifies feminism by turning it into a fashion statement rather than a political one. Valenti implies that young women who like to vote and take birth control are inherently feminist; she makes it too easy! I am willing to concede that this text might get young women into feminism at which point they will discover that it is much, much more than who you vote for and what you wear, that it is an entire world view, that it will change your life. However, the bad far outweighs the good in this book. It took a lot of determination for me to get past the cover, the watered-down content and the language; I imagine many readers will not be as patient. Tue, 07 Aug 2007 15:40:00 CST http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17504&mname=Article http://www.frontpagemilwaukee.com/site/Viewer.aspx?iid=17504&mname=Article