Another World by Pat Barker

Synopsis

Another World by Pat Barker is based on a man named Nick, who lives with his very pregnant wife, the young rambunctious son that they share, his angry teenage stepson, and his quiet teenage daughter who spends a few weeks with them. He also takes care of his dying grandfather, Geordie, a war veteran who has frequent flashbacks and unsettling guilt about his older brother who died in the war. Nick juggles his ever increasingly tense family, his grandfather, and uncovers a dark, haunting secret about the home where his family resides - where a family parallel to his lived (and died) in the distant past. This novel is one of many different emotions, most being horrible, gut-wrenching emotions. Guilt, fear, knowledge of impending doom, sacrifice, and loss play key roles in this novel. Read on for a review!

Review

Another World was, quite literally, a book that I closed my eyes and picked off my bookshelf. This novel by Pat Barker is one that rides almost solely on heartbreaking emotion, with a little bit of love sprinkled in. Another World is almost a ghost story, almost a war story, almost a murder mystery - but it's most certainly a story about family and how the past can come back to haunt you. I thought that the characters in this story resembled real people - Nick, a struggling family man who is trying to find some sort of balance with his family; his miserable, pregnant wife who has to stay home to take care of herself and unborn child as well as a hard to handle toddler, her own son who is coming into his own and is beginning to rebel, and Nick's daughter, who is staying with their family while her mother recovers from a mental illness. Mix that Nick's sick and dying guilt drenched grandfather, whom he helps his elderly aunt tend to because his flashbacks and wandering are getting to be too much for her. There are many different levels of emotion from each character in this story. 

I'm almost inclined to read this novel again, just in case I missed anything. I thought it was beautifully written. I breezed right though it, and it kept me on the edge of my seat. I would give this book FOUR STARS. It's great for just about any adult. If you've ever felt guilt, burden, loss, fear, or overwhelmed, read this book! Only one phrase can describe this story - organized chaos!

Yay for USPS!

I got my ARC copy of I, Robot yesterday, and I'm very excited to read it!!! I've been slacking on my reading, and I'm only halfway through my Jimmy Buffett book, A Salty Piece of Land. I've got some reading to do!!!

Whew!

I just finished Another World by Pat Barker, and now I'm working on A Salty Piece of Sand by Jimmy Buffett!  I don't know what it is, but I keep picking up books written by British writers (Barker, not Buffett), and I can't understand half of their lingo! Alas, I'll be reviewing soon... but it's going to be a nice day, and I'm going outside and reading about beaches, boats, and cheeseburgers in paradise!!!

Whispers by Dean Koontz - Review

Synopsis

Whispers, by Dean Koontz, is a psychological thriller that centers around Bruno, a psychopathic rapist/killer who thinks that just about every pretty brunette is his dead mother come back to life. Are you hooked yet? Good. Upon attempting to rape and kill Hilary Thomas, an up and coming director in L.A., she ends up fending him off. But Bruno, who has to kill his "dead mother" so that he could finally be at peace, keeps coming at her. The detective who responds to Hilary's case, Tony Clemenza, falls in love with her and makes it his mission to stop Bruno from attacking her, even after Hilary has stabbed him to death.

Review

I'm not going to lie when I say that this wasn't the best book I've ever read. On the other hand, it certainly wasn't the worst. There were some parts of this story that seemed to drone on and on and on and.... well, you get the idea. Toward the end, there was a lot of dialogue in the lawyer's private airplane that was like pulling teeth. And, a lot of it didn't make much sense. How could these three people have figured out exactly what Bruno was thinking and feeling with the little bit of evidence that they had? It was like they were taking a shot in the dark, but they got everything completely right on. That part bothered me more than anything. Up until that point in the book (and it's really in the last 50 pages or so), this was a fabulous psychological thriller that kept me on my toes. I loved not knowing how Bruno could be dead - and alive - at the same time. I loved learning about his life and his past little by little. Whispers is a very deep, very tragic novel that will have you cheering for the "good guys" one minute, and feeling heartbroken for the "bad guys" the next minute. However, I was incredibly disappointed in the ending. I give this book 3 stars. I really with this story held its value to the end.

Books About Poo / Dean Koontz

Obviously, I love to read. But, I was surprised to be in a church tag sale scouring the bookshelves and finding How To Shit In The Woods by Kathleen Meyer. It's a book completely dedicated to pooping in the woods!!! Fabulous! Finally, a book that teaches outdoor challenged people such as myself how to utilize nature's latrine! I began reading it and didn't get very far. Dean Koontz books caught my eye. I've never read a Koontz book in my life, so I'm working on Whispers right now. The action began early and has had me hooked since. In fact, I kind of want to finish this blog so I can read some more.

I'll get back to the poo book at some point... I'm a hundred pages into Whispers, and I can't very well stop now! It's just getting good!

Requiem, Mass by John Dufresne - Review

I just finished reading Requiem, Mass by John Dufresne yesterday, and I have to say that the ending of the book surprised me! I know I wrote up a little mini-review yesterday, but I really thought that the rest of the book was going to be the same way. Oh well... on with the review!

Synopsis

Requiem, Mass takes place in a small town that happens to be the name of the title. This book is posted as a fiction piece, but has the feel of a memoir. Johnny and his sister, Audrey are growing up with their not so sane mother, Frances. Their father, an over the road truck driver, takes off for weeks and months at a time, only coming home for a week stretch and leaving when Frances starts acting up again, even though Johnny begs him to stay with the family. Johnny and Audrey are cared for by their neighbors, but the nuns who teach their school begin to get suspicious. As suspicion grows, so do Johnny and Audrey's chances of being taken by the Welfare Department. After Frances has a particularly horrific episode, she is shipped off to the hospital, and the children are to spend the holidays with their father - with his secret family in Louisiana. I really don't want to give the rest of the book away - you'll have to read it when it hits bookshelves in July!!!

Review

In the beginning of Requiem, Mass, I felt that the story jumped around from past to present a lot without very much warning. I don't know if it's because I got the feel for Dufresne's writing style or if the content actually changed, but the second half of the book seemed to flow much better than the first half. Either way, if you can keep up, this is a very emotional read. John Dufresne captures the heartbreaking dysfunction of a family in serious crisis and turns it into something that we can all relate to. I'm sure we all know someone who resembles at least one of the characters in this story, and that's one of the aspects that makes Requiem, Mass such a fascinating read. I felt very heavy hearted throughout most of the book because of the obstacles that Johnny and Audrey had to go through with their own parents just to get attention that they never really seemed to get.

This story reminded me a little bit of Augusten Burrough's memoirs, with the nutty mother, absent father, and strange sibling, growing up in small town Massachusetts. What sets the two authors apart is that Dufresne's story has a little more normalcy and a little less comedy in it. Requiem, Mass is a heartfelt story of psychological disorder, abandonment, family, and overcoming the obstacles that may come. I give this heartbreaking read FOUR stars!

Check out John Dufresne's website or his blog for more information!

Requiem, Mass by John Dufresne

I received Requiem, Mass as an Advanced Copy, and I'm about halfway through it. I figured I'd give some of my thoughts on it now, and write up a full review when I've finished the book.

Requiem, Mass takes place in a small town that happens to be the name of the title. This book is posted as a fiction piece, but has the feel of a memoir. Johnny and his sister, Audrey are growing up with their crazy mom, Frances. Their father, an over the road truck driver, takes off for weeks and months at a time, only coming home for a week stretch and leaving when Frances starts to get crazy again. Johnny and Audrey are taken care of by their neighbors, but (the point where I am now), they are being found out by the nuns who teach at the school they attend.

Requiem, Mass, in my humble opinion, jumps around a lot without too much warning. In some chapters, we begin in the past, travel to the present (or semi-present), and back to the past all in the matter of a few paragraphs. And the reader isn't told that we're jumping - it just kind of happens. But, if you can keep up with the author's traveling mind, this is a very emotional read. John Dufresne captures the heartbreaking disfunction of a family in serious crisis and turns it into something that we can all relate to. I'm sure we all know someone who resembles at least one of the characters in this story, and that's one of the aspects that makes Requiem, Mass such a fascinating read. So far, this has been a very enjoyable book. Keep your eye out for my final review!!!

The Exorcist - William Peter Blatty

After reading 3 or 4 horrible books that just couldn't keep my attention, I decided to go with a classic that everyone seems to love that I haven't read yet. I scoured a book sale for the perfect book, and found it in the form of the 1971 gem, The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty. And it helped that I snagged an old-as-dirt copy. As someone whose never read the book or seen the movie (I still won't see the movie, it'll take away from my love of the book, I'm sure of it), I bring you a completely fresh opinion.

Synopsis

The story begins with a small family of an actress mother, Chris, and her pretty little 12 year old girl, Regan. Regan began hearing things and talking to her imaginary friend, Captain Howdy, through a Ouija board. Strange things begin to happen to Regan - she begins cursing and lashing out, and strange banging noises are heard in her room. Chris knows that Regan isn't quite herself, and seeks opinions from doctors who try to lock Regan up in mental hospitals to get the psychiatric help that they feel she needs. But when Regan's condition gets worse (she killed one of her mother's friends while no one else was home), and Chris is at wit's end, she desperately turns to the church for help - in the form of an exorcism. Will the great exorcist Father Merrin be able to team up with Father Karras - a local psychiatrist/priest who is seriously questioning his faith - to rid Regan of her demon? 

Review

This story was a two-day read for me. I couldn't put it down! William Peter Blatty's descriptions of Regan's changes into the demon were crystal clear, and they painted the image of her perfectly in my mind. My heart broke for Chris, a soon to be divorcee who just wanted to make her daughter better. And I felt for Regan as well, because she was obviously in pain and couldn't control the things that were happening to her mind or body. The book was beautifully structured, and I couldn't think of anything that would possibly improve it. 

There are a lot of references to religion - most of which are explained within the text, but you've been forewarned. I'm personally not into religious reads, and this book isn't particularly religious, but the story was so scary and flowed so well that it kept me on my toes and made me want to keep reading. I think what made it so scary was a combination of items - such as the Ouija board and straps to hold Regan down, people such as Captain Howdy (Dee Snyder in the movie Strangeland? Anyone?) and Karl (Karl was the strange housekeeper), and the unknown of death and spirits that no living person - even a seasoned exorcist - can truly understand. Another point that makes this story scary is that it's almost a true story. The Exorcist was actually based on the story of a boy in Maryland, who ended up going on to college and becoming a scientist at NASA!

This book got a little raunchy/graphic/gory at times, so I wouldn't recommend it for a younger audience. But for most of the adult population (particularly the part of the population who doesn't get easily offended), I would give this wonderfully frightening read four and a half stars. 

Cheers!

The Lit Chick

Hi! I'm The Lit Chick! I read a lot (averaging about 10 books a month) and like to voice my opinion, hence, The Lit Chick Book Blog!!! I read just about anything from fiction to non fiction, horror to chick lit. I even receive advanced copy books from publishers from time to time to read and voice my opinion. Enjoy my reviews, try some of the books I like (or even don't like). Heck, shoot me a line with your input on my review, or my blog, or whatever! Questions, comments, whatever are always welcome.