Format: Paperback

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

Posted October 8, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Science Fiction, Young Adult / 0 Comments

Title: The Age of Miracles (Goodreads)
Author: Karen Thompson Walker
Published: Simon & Schuster, 2012
Pages: 373
Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult
My Copy: Paperback

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

I know everyone seems to be reading this novel and I try not to follow the crowd, but this book sounded too good to pass up. The Age of Miracles tells the story of eleven year old Julia and her experience in a drastic change to the world that could be the start of the apocalypse. The world is slowing down and the days are getting longer, first by a few minutes and then by hours. Julia is trying to recount the events of this difficult time; both the end of the world and being a teenager.

This is a wonderful blend of a coming of age story with a back drop of a speculative novel. Amongst the chaos and people not knowing what to do, you have a Julia talking about her journey into adulthood. But does it work? Personally I would have liked to know more about the world slowing and the speculative fiction elements, but I think the blend between young adult and genre fiction was masterfully done.

My biggest problem with this book and it’s one of my literary bête noires in post apocalypse and dystopian fiction is that Karen Thompson Walker writes this book in first person past tense. This gives me a sense of knowing what will happen in the end and there is no way to build tension. But this is only a minor issue in a book like this because this more a beautiful novel of self discovery and growing up.

Karen Thompson Walker writes with such elegance and beauty that I was surprised to find this was a debut novel. Her skill of mixing YA with speculative fiction and then making it into something that I would consider literature was just done brilliantly. She has such skill of not overshadowing the coming of age elements with the chaos of the world around her. I was surprised at how fast I read this book, I was fully immersed in this book and the beauty of what I was reading I was a little sad to see it end.

I can’t recommend this book enough; Julia was a wonderful protagonist and her journey was delightful. The Age of Miracle doesn’t give you any answers but cleverly revels what is going on without forcing anything on the reader. It’s a fascination novel with really needs to be experienced firsthand. Sure the science of the slowing would be interesting to read about but it would never work in a book like this. I must admit I look forward to see what Karen Thompson Walker does next and would be interested to find a book similar to this gem.

The Twelve by Justin Cronin

Posted October 6, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Horror / 0 Comments

Title: The Twelve (Goodreads)
Author: Justin Cronin
Series: The Passage #2
Published: Hachette, 2012
Pages: 75
Genres: Horror
My Copy: ARC from Publisher

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

I recently read The Passage this year so I was lucky I didn’t have to wait as long as everyone else for book two; The Twelve. I was privileged to win an advanced review copy so I need to be careful in reviewing this book without any spoilers. As many people would already know The Twelve continues on with the epic tale that The Passage built. This time we have a whole lot of new characters to read about as they struggle to survive in this nightmarish world of virals.

One of my biggest issues with The Passage is the same issue I’ve had with this book; which is the fact that I really struggled to keep the characters in order. Granted all the characters had a wonderful amount of depth to them but because there are so many characters, it sometimes becomes a struggle keeping up with them. I had to write a list of each character and a bit of information about them just to refer back to and remember key aspects of their story arcs. While in The Twelve the characters seem to travel more as a big group so I didn’t feel like I needed a map and little figures to move around like a war map just to keep track of everyone.

I love the post apocalyptic world the Justin Cronin has created and I found so much joy in returning to the world. He has created this wonderful world full of great characters, tension and action. But he has written these books in such literary way, which sets it apart from most Post-Apocalyptic survival novels. Although these books are bricks and too heavy to hold; they are still well worth reading.

I’m a little worried that I now have to wait till 2014 for the final book in the trilogy, The City of Mirrors. Fans of The Passage, you are in for a treat with The Twelve; just for the joy of going back to the world and continuing the story but also because there are new characters to meet. While I think this book will stand out as a standalone read, I highly recommend you start this book from the beginning. But maybe wait till 2014 so you don’t have to suffer with waiting two years for the next instalment. I hope I haven’t given anything away about the plot away, but if you have read this book already I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Guest Review: No Sex in the City

Posted September 27, 2012 by jus_de_fruit in Chick Lit, Guest Posts / 0 Comments

Title: No Sex in the City (Goodreads)
Author: Randa Abdel-Fattah
Published: Pan Macmillan, 2012
Pages: 400
Genres: Chick Lit
My Copy: ARC from Publisher

Buy: Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

I read a bit of chick-lit in my early to late twenties. It was fun to read and didn’t require much brainpower. It was easy to relate to, as a young woman experiencing a similar, yet more toned down, sort of life. My tastes may have changed in recent years. Apart from Stephanie Plum, I’m not sure the last time I read a book that fell into the chick-lit genre. Now I seem to go after historical time travelling romances. I think I lost the ability to relate with those young women trying to find Mr Right and it started to get a bit mundane, although I suppose I could still enjoy it. My husband’s taste in books may have also redirected my attentions.

I heard about No Sex in the City when I heard an interview with Randa Abdel-Fattah on the radio. I was fascinated by her stories of parent arranged dating and was intrigued. It’s something completely different to my own life experience. I did once ask my dad who he would pick if arranged marriages were a thing of our culture, and after hearing his choice, I was pretty glad that wasn’t a thing.

Randa Abdel-Fattah is an Australian born Muslim of Palestinian and Egyptian heritage who seems to have achieved quite a bit in her life working as a human rights advocate and has an interest in interfaith dialogue. These interests come through in this book, as the characters are a mix of faiths. The main character Esma is a Muslim and her best friends who form the No Sex in the City club are a Greek Orthodox, a Jew and a Hindu. An interesting combination.

Esma is trying to find the right man to settle down with, but at 28 her family are feeling a bit desperate, but Esma knows what she wants and doesn’t feel the need to settle for anything less. Pressure from work colleagues tell her that perhaps she should just give up, play the field a bit and see what she likes but she’s pretty set on sharing her first kiss with her husband on their wedding day.

As a young Christian woman who was reading chick-lit back in the day, there was quite a bit of falling into bed with strangers that may or may not be Mr Right. I suppose it is a reflection of the society that we live in, and quite a few young women are able to relate, but I found this book so refreshing for not being afraid to illustrate the life of a young woman living a life of chastity. The book isn’t completely prudish, as other characters choose different paths, but this is who Esma is, and she isn’t going to apologise for that. Even though the main character is a Muslim, I’d probably recommend this to Christian women as well, as they probably get disillusioned by the way certain media portrays sex.

The book is quite easy to read and completes the check list usually found in all the others of this genre. There are problems at work and within her family that she needs to overcome, and there is a bit of a love triangle that is developed. We also get to follow the stories of her three friends as they also have their own experience of dating.

It doesn’t finish with a typical happily ever after for all the characters but you can’t help but feel that it’s all for the best. I really enjoyed journeying with this group of young women who all seemed to know what they wanted out of life and never felt the need to settle for less. I’d probably even read more if this book was turned into a series, as I found the characters to be very likeable.

This is a guest post by Mary; not only is she my wonderful wife, she is also my editor and helps moderate the Literary Exploration group on Goodreads. Big thanks to her for this post and everything she does to help me with this blog.

Fifty Shames of Earl Grey by Andrew Shaffer

Posted September 26, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Humour / 0 Comments

Title: Fifty Shames of Earl Grey (Goodreads)
Author: Andrew Shaffer
Series: Fifty Shames #1
Published: Da Capo Press, 2012
Pages: 224
Genres: Humour
My Copy: Paperback

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

I’ve not read many parodies before but Andrew Shaffer is mildly amusing on twitter so I thought I’d give his book a go. Fifty Shames of Earl Grey is an obvious dig at Fifty Shades of Grey but it also has fun with the Twilight fanfic elements as well; clearly pointing out the similarities of the two books with lines like; “I’m Edward Cullen. I mean, ‘Earl Grey.’ Have a seat?” This novel reminds me of a Leslie Nielsen style parody with the farfetched and over done humour, but that’s what makes it so much fun to read. Earl Grey is a billionaire with fifty secret shames; some of them involve his love of BDSM (Bards, Dragons, Sorcery, and Magick) while others are even worse, like his love of Nickelback.

Obviously this is never going to be high literature with lines like “Moan,” I moan. “Moan, moan, moooooooan.” but is this book supposed to reflect the literary flaws of 50 Shades and Twilight or is this just meant to be a fun read? I’m not going to think too much about it, I went into this book for a fun read and that is how I will review it. I’ve heard people claim that Edward Cullen and Christian Grey are hot but none come close to Earl Grey because “HOLY MOTHER EFFING SPARKLY VAMPIRES IS HE HOT”.

Let’s face it Andrew Shaffer had a lot of fun with this book, from the pseudonym (Fanny Merkin) to the cover and everything in between. It was awkward and unexpected; I had so much fun reading this book. I don’t normally highlight but my kindle version of this book has over thirty different highlighted passages in it. I really enjoyed what Shaffer did with this book; highlights for me included the Spanking scene with the Count from Sesame Street and the Cleo sex quiz (which I really want to read the other 200 pages of). They are making a movie of Fifty Shades, and if they ever decided to make a parody I really hope they consult Andrew Shaffer. This was a fun read and I’m looking forward to Fifty Shames in Space but right now I need a sandwich.

If you don’t believe me check out what Tiffany Reisz, author of the BDSM erotica series, The Original Sinners says about this book; “I’m not telling you to buy Fifty Shames of Earl Grey because I’m banging the author. I’m telling you to buy Fifty Shames of Earl Grey AND I’m banging the author.”

Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain

Posted September 22, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (Goodreads)
Author: Ben Fountain
Published: Canongate, 2012
Pages: 308
Genres: Literary Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Billy Lynn is a 19 year old Iraq War hero on a P.R. tour for the Army. The team “the Bravos” are on a two week “Victory Tour” stateside that was filmed and widely viewed on TV due to acts of valour in Iraq. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk is a satirical look at Americans and how they treat and view the war on terror.

I’ve often heard that this book is a satirical book in the vein of Slaughterhouse-Five and Catch 22 and this was the primary reason I read this book. While there were some satirical elements in the book, I found this book a little heartbreaking; in the sense that these soldiers fight for their country and the Americans love them for it, as long as it doesn’t interrupt their football or cost them anything. This was the overall message I got from this book; people will support their troops as long as it takes no effort and doesn’t interrupt their lives.

I wanted to like this book and sure there is a lot to think about in this book but I think leaving me so feeling so bad doesn’t really help with the enjoyment element of this book. There were some literary issues I had, but they could be narrowed down to the fact I’m not an American and I don’t fully understand the American lifestyle.

The entire book really showed the disconnection between the military and civil life in this modern day. Americans wants revenge for 9/11 but they are not willing to sacrifice their Thanksgiving football game. This was a powerful book and while it’s not as funny as Catch 22 it does leave you pondering life like Slaughterhouse-Five did for me. As I’ve stated I’m not expert in American life or politics but this did leave me pondering many aspects of this War on Terror.

Guest Review: A Lady Cyclist’s Guide to Kashgar

Posted September 21, 2012 by jus_de_fruit in Contemporary, Guest Posts / 0 Comments

Title: A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar (Goodreads)
Author: Suzanne Joinson
Published: Bloomsbury, 2012
Pages: 384
Genres: Contemporary
My Copy: ARC from Publisher

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Last month, I was walking past our local indie bookshop, and outside they had a blackboard that listed some of the new releases they had in stock. A Lady Cyclist’s Guide to Kashgar was one of those, and the title drew me in. I had no idea what it was about and had heard nothing about it leading up to the release, but perhaps it was the mention of some foreign city that I’ll never likely experience myself. I went in to try and find a copy to learn more about it, but I couldn’t find it, and then got distracted looking at other things. Then it showed up at our house in one of those parcels of books my husband regularly receives, so I knew I had to read it.

A Lady Cyclist’s Guide to Kashgar tells the story of a couple of people. In 1923, it tells the story of Evangeline English who arrives in Kashgar in disguise as a Christian missionary, as a way to protect her sister who had decided to become an evangelist. Inspired by the travels of Richard Burton, she decides to write a similar book, of which the title of this book comes from. With her bicycle as her own real sense of freedom, the reality of living in Kashgar never seems to meet the romanticised adventure in her mind. Her relationship with her sister changes, as Evangline tries to guard her from things that Lizzie doesn’t want to avoid.

In the present day, we have Frieda, who is at her crossroads in her life. Her job working with Islamic youth in various Middle Eastern countries causes her to be out of town a lot so her friendships have withered. She’s in a dead end relationship with a married man. She then gets a letter saying an old woman has died and she’s the next of kin and she should come clear the house. Tayab is a refugee from Yemen, living in England with an expired visa and is on the run. Their encounter of each other lead their lives on a new course, both having to confront some major issues in their lives.

Suzanne Joinson’s debut novel alternates between 1923 and the present day. Each time, I felt like I was longing to find out what was happening in the other story. As the story comes together, you realise that both the stories are connected and it left me thinking about how the actions of people in generations before mine have affected the choices I may make now without me even knowing. There is no real way to know how the lives of people we’ve never met unconsciously affect our decision making today.

As a Christian, I found the missionary aspect interesting. Full of people filled with faults, which I suppose is an accurate reflection of any church. Some trying to do the right thing, some trying to make amends for their own wrongs, and some on power trips trying to control others, whatever the risk. It seemed to be written very matter-of-factly and I don’t think it was in a pro- or anti-Christian way. I appreciated that.

I enjoyed this book; the story was beautifully written and can take you to a time and place not normally experienced by us.

The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers

Posted September 20, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction / 8 Comments

Title: The Yellow Birds (Goodreads)
Author: Kevin Powers
Published: Hachette, 2012
Pages: 226
Genres: Literary Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Haunted by Murph, The Yellow Birds follows the story of Private Bartle and his time served in Al Tafar, Iraq, the loss of a friend and the aftermath. Every war there seems to be one powerful book that is so heartbreaking but helps readers get an idea of the tragic nature of war; I’m thinking All Quiet on the Western Front, The Diary of a Young Girl, The Things They Carried, and now The Yellow Birds could quite possibly be the one to reflect the harsh reality of the Iraq War.

This is a book of friendship and loss; the novel is broken into two parts which are woven together. First there is the story of the friendship and serving together in the war and the other is of Private Bartle struggling to deal with the loss of his friend and returning from the war. There is a real beauty in the way Kevin Powers has melded the two together and the way he tries to help the reader understand the psychological mindset of a soldier turning from war. There is a wonderful part in the book where a bartender refers to Bartle as a hero and his reaction was basically ‘how can I be considered a hero if all I did was survive.’

I don’t want to sound to cliched with using words like beautiful, stunning, haunting and heart breaking but these words do seem very appropriate for this book. This is a debut novel for Kevin Powers and with his experience serving in the Iraq War and his poetry background, The Yellow Birds comes together for an emotional sensation. The proses of this novel are just wonderful and the characters really do seem to be well developed without showing too much.

I will admit I don’t read many war books but I’ve recently read two wonderful books on the Iraq war; this one and Billy Lynn’s Halftime Walk (review up in two days). While both books were wonderfully thought provoking they were in two very different ways. If The Yellow Birds doesn’t become the stand out book for the Iraq war; like All Quiet on the Western Front, The Diary of a Young Girl or The Things They Carried I have a feeling it might be compared to the psychological mindset of war along with Catch 22 or Slaughterhouse-Five. This truly is a stunning book that made me tear up and feel for the soldiers fight in Iraq. Everyone should read this book.

The Geneva Trap by Stella Rimington

Posted September 18, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Thriller / 0 Comments

Title: The Geneva Trap (Goodreads)
Author: Stella Rimington
Series: Liz Carlyle #7
Published: Bloomsbury, 2012
Pages: 328
Genres: Thriller
My Copy: ARC from Publisher

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

The Geneva Trap by Stella Rimington is my first real look into the Liz Carlyle series but this is book seven. So be warned that I’ve not read the other six books so my opinions of this book are only based as a standalone book. Liz Carlyle is a counter terrorism agent for MI5 who is approached by a Russian intelligence officer with some vital information of a cyber-sabotage plot on an American defence program. Liz now has to determine if this is the Russians sabotaging the West’s defences or if this is something much worse.

Stella Rimmington brings all her knowledge to this book as a former MI5 agent and she tries to tangle a story of intrigue and suspense in this novel. But does it work as well as it should? For me I haven’t had much experience with espionage novels so I don’t know what most people would expect from one. For me I often think of James Bond or George Smiley when looking for an espionage novel. The Geneva Trap isn’t as far fetched as an Ian Fleming book and is not as complex as a John le Carré novel, it sits somewhere in the middle which is where I’m lacking in experience with these types of books. I often look for a light high-energy read or something that will make my head hurt when I read spy thrillers. So I’m not too sure I like having a book that falls in the middle.

The Geneva Trap has its fair share of moles and shady intelligence practices but in the end I found the book to feel a little too clichéd and predictable. I also felt like most of the characters in the book were too flat and I never really got to see any dimension in them; this could be a simple fact that this is book seven in the series but I still expect a book to be able to be read as a standalone as well so I would of liked more character development within this one.

Rimmington has put together a good mix of intrigue and action in this spy thriller, I would like to see less predictability and more character development in the future but The Geneva Trap was still an enjoyable book to read. I will definitely be looking to read another one of her books, maybe even in the same series because I did enjoy reading this book even if this review sounds like my issues with the novel outweighed my enjoyment of it. It might have been just my lack of experience or that I should have read the other six first.

The Dinner by Herman Koch

Posted September 13, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Crime, Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Dinner (Goodreads)
Author: Herman Koch
Translator: Sam Garrett
Published: Text, 2012
Pages: 309
Genres: Crime, Literary Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Paul and Claire are going out to dinner with Paul’s brother and his wife. The reason for this isn’t the usual family get together, this time they have something important to discuss; their children. The characters, the overpriced restaurant and the secret is what makes The Dinner by Herman Koch this novel live up to the hype. This satirical book was already a best seller but until only recently this book was never available in English.

I have to admit I was really looking forward to reading this book for my local book club; but what I was getting into, I really didn’t know. The Dinner is dark elegant book that takes you on a journey with some very unexpected twists. At first glance this book felt like a very light and easy read and you will plow through this book so quickly that when something unexpected happens you won’t see it coming. The characters in the book seem very real and Paul’s brother and his wife remind me a lot of characters from a Bret Easton Ellis book; they are charismatic and ambitious but feel very shallow nihilists.

The restaurant was a brilliant backdrop for this book; it was one of those places you need to book months in advance and Paul’s brother Serge thought it sport to try and book a table for the same day. Fine dining at a pretentious restaurant really felt like the perfect location for the explosive events in this book, you get the sense that everyone should act calm and composed in a place like this but what’s happened doesn’t really go hand in hand with calm or composed.

I was really pleased with this book, I love the dark and satirical nature of the plot mixed with the fine dining experience, they come together to make a thrilling read. The Dinner is full of mayhem and you will be shocked with every course been served but there is so much more in this book, the characters are real and it will question your thoughts of the best way to raise your children. The thought provoking elements remind me of Christos Tsiolkas’ The Slap and this book finds the balance between mystery and family drama. A well developed novel that I highly recommend people read

The Informers by Bret Easton Ellis

Posted August 22, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Informers (Goodreads)
Author: Bret Easton Ellis
Published: Knopf Doubleday, 1994
Pages: 272
Genres: Literary Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

I don’t know why I keep coming back to Bret Easton Ellis; I never seem to overly enjoy his vacuous characters but something keeps drawing me back. The Informers is my forth Ellis book and this one is a collection of short stories that ultimately link together to make an overall story. Think Crash (the movie) but with shallow characters. The Informers follow the lives of several interconnected characters, they all eat at the same places, sleep with the same people and pretty much act like each other.

Each chapter is told from a different character in a first person perspective and in the end each point of view come together to make a very loosely connected story. The characters remind me a lot of Less than Zero but most of the characters in The Informers are supposed to be adults. There are a lot of conversations in this book between different characters and this is the part of the book that Bret Easton Ellis does best. He seems to be able to have a lot of conversations and still drive the plot without adding to much more and the interactions between the people seem to feel very natural.

The book feels shallow and cynical; it tries to spotlight a moral decline of Californian life. Most of Bret Easton Ellis novels feel the same, he is often called a moral satirist but I often feel like he is just a nihilist. But I still feel the need to read his books even if I don’t enjoy them (except for Imperial Bedrooms). Ellis has an interesting style and if I rate his books from worst to best, it looks like he is improving as a writer with age. This might be the fact that his books are more and more metafictional and that seems to help add depth into a book a shallow annoying characters.