Princess in the spotlight, Princess in love, et. al.

 

I don't know what possessed me to read the rest of the Princess Diaries series - well, what my library has. I think I wanted to see if the second Princess Diaries movie had any relation to the books. The answer is a most definite no. I had to read these books to get my answer - though I could have stopped at Princess in Waiting and known the answer.

Princess in waiting
Princess in pink
Princess in training
Party princess

The books only spiral downward with each successive edition. There are books which take place between each of the above listed books. You don't need to read them. My previous comments stand with these as with the first. There is one or two more volumes out there. I can safely say, I don't really enjoy Meg Cabot's writing.

At least the movies were cute.



The books I select for review are books which I personally select from my local library. I do not receive any reimbursement from authors or publishers or free books. I do provide links to Amazon as a convenience to the readers of this blog. I do earn a small referral pittance which is not even enough to buy a soda.

Valiant: A Modern Tale of Faerie

I can't tell you what Valiant is about. I only got about 7 pages into it. There is so much trash in those seven pages that I had to put it down. In those few pages I could tell this book is a teen soap with lots adult content. Think Secret Lives or Pretty Little Liars. Moving on.

Book Rating: Trash can.

The Lonely Polygamist

This book came highly recommended by a member of my community. He said it was laugh out funny. The title alone implies comedy. How could a polygamist be lonely?

I should have known better. I had tried to read another novel by Brady Udall, The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint, and didn't read very much of it. It was just unpleasant.

The Lonely Polygamist was not much different. I read the first 5 chapters and then simply looked up and asked myself why I was wasting my time. The story is about a polygamist man who is having an affair. Mind you he has 4 wives already. His actions lead to all kinds of complications to his already complicated life. Of course, I didn't read very far into the book, so I don't know what happens. I think the reason I gave up was the author has to explore the ugly side of each character. So typical of contemporary fiction authors. I hate getting dragged through the mud - so not worth my time or peace of mind.

Book Rating: 1 star

The Lost Years of Merlin by T. A. Barron

The library has most of the Lost Years of Merlin series, so I figured I should give T. A. Barron another chance. I had previously read Barron's first young adult novel Heartlight and didn't like it. But a publisher would not publish an entire series if they didn't have some interest.

This story suffers from the same problems I noticed in Heartlight. The transitions from one part of the story to the next were less awkward but still odd. Both stories start in ordinary life that we can relate too. Merlin's story takes place in the distant past, but there is nothing too unusual. As the story builds Merlin (aka Emrys) determines he must discover his true origins and takes off on his own. Just as in Heartlight, the story begins to build on the fantastical with fantastical creatures and events. Merlin meets an unusual child, a human-tree hybrid, and a talking spider. Crystals also show up again.

The story kept getting stranger and stranger and I just couldn't make myself finish it.

I'm also getting tired of young adult writers relying on the poor, misunderstood orphan child trope. Somehow Rowling managed to extend her story over several books - an orphan trying to understand himself and his past. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. It doesn't work for me here. This is a series I would probably not recommend to today's teen. Moving on.

Book rating: 1 star

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing

I often hear about new or award winning young adult books at library conferences. Octavian Nothing is one of those books. The reviewer told us how wonderful this book is and to stick with it despite how dark it is. And it is very, very dark.

A pregnant slave girl, who eventually delivers a boy, is bought by the leader of a philosophic/science group. The girl is treated like a princess and the young boy is raised in a life of privilege. The story is told from the perspective of the young boy who tells his story through a series of memories and letters. Each chapter recounts some act of torture or experiment upon himself. We soon learn that the group of men raising him had their own evil intentions on why they performed these experiments. At some point the American Revolution enters the story and a discussion of the meaning of freedom sort of concludes the story.

I read the first 5 chapters of the book and was depressed. It is so dark and disturbing that I couldn't imagine what the pay off was. Was there any hope? I skipped through the book reading various pages and found that the ENTIRE book was this way. The end of the book has Octavian saying something like, "I don't know what freedom is, but at least I will have the freedom to die." Apparently there is a sequel that further explores issues of slavery and freedom.

I know that historically people did horrible and despicable things. But the set-up for this story is unbelievable and evil. The author mixes ideas of the Enlightenment and transposes it to Boston, giving it a sinister twist. He incorrectly throws in ideas of Darwinism, a point of view not known till much later. While it may be good for young adult readers to explore themes about slavery vs. freedom, the author takes the reader to unknown depths to make his point. This is one book to toss in the trash. It is not appropriate for young adult readers due to explicit descriptions of torture, rape, adultery and requires an advanced reading level to understand.

Book Rating: Yuck, just toss it.

Julie and Julia

In high school I went on a field trip to a downtown theater. We saw a play that was loosely based on The Marriage of Figaro. I was thoroughly charmed by the play and the lead actress. So much so that I was willing to tell people of this great little play down at the "Hamburger*" theater**. Anyway, as part of the field trip the actors did a question and answer seminar after the performance. Perhaps it was stupid on the part of the theater to allow 16 year olds to ask questions, I don't know, but some of the questions were not the most intelligent. Even so, the actress whose performance I had thoroughly enjoyed turned out to be the most obnoxious diva. She tore down a 16 year old for asking what I thought was an innocent question. My high appraisal of the play and the actress completely changed and I wanted nothing more to do with it.

Reading the book versus watching the movie of Julie and Julia was exactly the same experience.

I was thoroughly charmed by the movie and Julie, the main character. I caught Julie's blog at the end of her original blog project and was disappointed that I couldn't read along with her journey. The movie captured something that allowed me to connect and relate to Julie and Julia. It was very well done.

So, I picked up the book at the library. I guess I expected Julie's actual blog postings. I expected the same charm as the movie. I was sorely disappointed. There is a scene in the movie where Julie learns of Julia's reaction to her project. Julia's response, as told by a reporter over the phone, was that she felt Julie didn't have a lot of respect (or something, I can't recall exactly and I am not looking in the book to find it). I didn't understand the response in the movie. Why wouldn't Julia be impressed that someone would use her book to learn the art of French cooking? Julia wasn't. Why?

Reading the book it became perfectly clear. The book is full of profanity. Not just a little, but A LOT. So much so that I wondered why I was reading the book. I persevered to the next chapter hoping the profanity would lessen. Instead the profanity was joined with explicit descriptions of sex. I had the same reaction as I did way back in high school. No longer charmed, I cannot recommend the book and I really don't want anything more to do with the author. The only reason to write this review is to warn those who watch the movie and decide to read the book.***

Julie Powell just recently released her second book, Cleaving. I am not reading it because it is more of the same. I wonder how her family tolerates her writing so many intimate details of their lives. It makes me wonder how much of the book is truly factual? How many memoirs do we need on Julie's infatuation with food and all things food related?

Book Rating: Yuck, don't go there

* This is a beloved nickname of locals because the name is Herberger and the theater architecture resembles a hamburger.

** I am not sure how much influence a 16 year old would have had on selling theater tickets.

*** Maybe you will like the book. I am not sure what your tolerance level is for reading this kind of trash, but go for it if you choose. I think there is a thoroughly charming story underneath. Sure wish the editor has found it.

Three books I couldn't read

I had intended not to mention these books, but maybe you will come across them and my comments will be helpful.

Errands by Judith Guest.

Editors gushed over this one, which is why I picked it up. "Guest deals with the death of a loved one in a very real way" kind of garbage. I guess I was in the mood for an emotional, thoughtful book. How does a family deal with the death of a loved one? In this one, the author writes in an exploitative, sensational way where the characters reveal all their sins. I could see that the characters were destined to each lose their minds after the death of the one character. There was no humanity, IMO. It was just a story that dealt with the worst of humanity, swimming in the muck where there is little hope. I couldn't get passed the third chapter.

Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall.

In this story a man wakes up with absolutely no memory of his past. He finds a note that tells him to call a Dr. Randall immediately who explains this is not the first time this has happened to him. I have to admit I liked this story. I liked the quality of the writing. It was intriguing, albeit derivative of other stories. Even so, it had potential. I was getting into it until I hit the chapter in which the character describes his girlfriend. I couldn't get passed the objectification of women in that one chapter. The book slammed shut and went back to the library.


The Truth Machine by James L. Halperin

I never did figure out what the truth machine is exactly. The first chapter is an explanation of how the story is told by a machine, emotionless and factual. It begins by discussing a Dr. Carter, a psychologist, and one of his cases working with a violent criminal. This criminal describes being raped as a child. The book immediately slammed shut there. I don't like reading details of such a crime.

The book has lots of praise on Amazon - equating it to 1984 and Atlas Shrugged with its political commentary and positions. Wasn't worth wading through the muck to get to it.

Bee Season

Bee Season by Myla Goldberg had a lot of potential. The story follows Eliza, a young girl who is rather indifferent to school, except for spelling. She has an exceptional talent at spelling. The story also deals with a dysfunctional family who is at odds with their heritage and religion (Judaism) and various personal struggles. The story is rather dark and depressing. I must admit I gave up after three chapters. I didn't want to wade through the dark side of a family barely able to hold it together after something good happens in Eliza's new found talent. The story has mostly positive reviews at Amazon, so it may be worth reading. I just didn't have the patience of reading about another depressing, dysfunctional family.

Book Rating: 2 stars.

The Monk Downstairs

I don't know what I was expecting from The Monk Downstairs by Tim Farrington. The story follows a divorced mom, Rebecca, and a former monk that rents an apartment from her. I guess I was hoping for a "gentle" romance and that is not what it is. Rebecca hates men and treats them horribly. The monk has lost his faith in God and consequently his moral center.

I didn't like it almost immediately. It wasn't the writing. It was the story. I only got to page 20 and I gave up. Nothing good here. Moving on.

Three Duds in a Row

First up, Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. I was actually excited to read this story because it was recommended by dozens of patrons at the library. When a book can't stay on the shelf for many months, it has to be good, right? I was so disappointed. One person makes a bad choice which affects everyone else in the story. Such a concept is within the realm of reality. It happens all the time. In this story that one bad choice leads everyone else in the story to also make bad choices. And were not talking little bad choices, but rather really, really bad choices.

The story starts with an interesting concept. A doctor delivers his own twins. His son comes out perfectly healthy, but his daughter has Downs Syndrome. Rather than deal with a baby with Downs Syndrome, he tells his wife that the second twin has died. He then pawns off his daughter to the nurse that assisted with instructions to deliver her at an institution. One thing follows another and the nurse ends up adopting the baby girl as her own and leaving town. What could have turned into a story with some kind of redemption or hope turns into a story of depression and horror. Adultery, alcoholism, drugs...... I couldn't finish it and it went back to the library.

Next up was Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. I really should have known better. I liked the idea of basing a romance around recipes and cooking. But the book is entirely about sex, adultery, etc. Nothing wholesome here, so back to the library (I only got to the third chapter when I gave up on it).

You would assume a classic like a Light in August by William Faulkner would be safe to read. Even though his characters also make bad choices there is the idea of hope and redemption (I read up on it at Wikipedia before starting the novel). Perhaps it was the writing style (partially stream of consciousness). I became thoroughly confused with the story line of Joe Christmas. I couldn't quite figure out what was going on in the story. Faulkner gives you just enough details to understand what is going on without going into gory details like so many modern writers. Even so, Christmas is a really, really bad guy and Faulkner leaves a lot up to your imagination. The character moves from one scene to the next and I couldn't figure out why. I didn't like reading about him when other parts of the story interested me more.

Anyway, I became frustrated and it goes back to the library.

Twilight - the other one

Twilight by Meg Cabot is volume #6 in her Mediator series. I picked this to listen to on audio because Cabot is a popular Young Adult writer. I have not read any other books in the series and I don't know that it is necessary. The plot is fairly simple.

Suze Simon is a "mediator" and she assists deceased individuals transition into the afterlife (sounds a lot like a popular tv show starring Jennifer Love Hewitt). The problem is she has fallen in love with a long deceased teen Jesse. Things are complicated by a fellow mediator, Paul, who wants Suze for himself.

The story is a typical teen soap. The story was so annoying that I only got an hour into it.

The story was annoying in so many ways, especially with how little supervision these young teens have. What parents allow their young teen girls to run around in the middle of the night? I don't know, maybe this is normal for today's teens?

What kind of example is Suze setting when she has amorous feelings for a violent "friend"? One who has threatened and shown violence to the object of his affection? Yikes, I don't want my daughter to get the idea that this is acceptable...

I haven't read any other of Meg Cabot's books so I can't say one should avoid all her books. This series may be worth skipping.

The Expected One

The Expected One is a feminist version of the Da Vinci code. Kathleen McGowan throws every possible religious conspiracy theory regarding Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ into her book. I don't know why I picked this book to listen to, but I guess I didn't read the abstract close enough. The story starts with the modern Maureen Paschal and later evolves to a rewriting of the New Testament story.

I won't dispute the idea of Mary Magdalene being married to Jesus Christ. Who knows, it may be possible? The first half of the story with Maureen was ok enough, but the re-writing of the life of Christ was just too much for me. I know the story is fiction but it is the trivializing of a sacred figure(s) and re-writing them as seriously flawed, almost evil, individuals that I had to draw the line.

Perhaps some Christians may like this book. I don't know. Serious students of the Bible and other sacred scripture will not only find fault with the portrayal, but also offense. This book can stay on the shelf or even find its way to the trash for all I care. Some Amazon reviewers disagree with me, but most find serious flaws with the book.

Book Rating: Yuck.