Rarely has a book annoyed me as much as this novel, by Yann Martel. I thoroughly enjoyed Life of Pi so I guess I had pretty high expectations. It wasn't that the book was poorly written, it just seemed very contrived. The description of a pear, a dialogue between Beatrice and Virgil, went on for pages. It appeared to me that it was a writing exercise -- something that was put into the story since it was already written.
The description of the taxidermist with the list of different animals found inside the store was of Biblical proportions and maybe that was the intent. I found it merely annoying.
Yes, I recognize that Martel is a skilled writer. I caught many of the different literary allusions, and I'm sure I missed many more. I now know more about flip books than I ever imagined I needed, and without a doubt, the publishing industry is not for the faint of heart. I get that but the fact remains that after all those pages I just didn't care that much about Henry or his plight.
So, I closed the book and feel no loss at not finishing it. Sad, as I wanted to enjoy it, and I'm in need of a good novel right now.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Insurgent, by Veronica Roth
The hype surrounding the release of this second book in the Divergent series was palpable. Teens were vibrating with excitement with the next instalment of a dystopian world featuring Tris and Tobias.
The story itself was a fast paced ride of a story filled with violence, twists, romance and comments on society and human nature. It did not have a lot of character development, so although I enjoyed the story, it seemed emotionally flat -- the characters starting to appear stock.
Here is the publisher's blurb:
One choice can transform you or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves, and herself, while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.
Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable, and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must filly embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.
The story itself was a fast paced ride of a story filled with violence, twists, romance and comments on society and human nature. It did not have a lot of character development, so although I enjoyed the story, it seemed emotionally flat -- the characters starting to appear stock.
Here is the publisher's blurb:
One choice can transform you or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves, and herself, while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.
Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable, and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must filly embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.
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