Tag: Literary Fiction

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides

Posted December 12, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Marriage Plot (Goodreads)
Author: Jeffrey Eugenides
Published: Harper Collins, 2011
Pages: 406
Genres: Literary Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

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The Marriage Plot is a coming of age novel that explores the pains that comes with life experience. The novel follows three Brown University friends beginning their senior year and then life after graduation. Madeleine Hanna is an English major with an interest in the Victorian novel and the importance of the marriage plot within all the greatest English novels. Leonard Morten a biologist, who is charismatic and intelligent, but constantly dealing with either unlimited energy or sinking moods. Mitchell Grammaticus studied religion and, while acts strange, has a fascination with Christian mysticism and the idea of Madeleine.

The Marriage Plot finally shows just how a love triangle plot should work. The book shifts between the three protagonists to show the inner thoughts and desires. This is a modern romance; but not in the way you expect. The Marriage Plot asks the reader the question; are the great love stories dead? Did they die off in the nineteenth century? Or does the new world of feminism and sexual freedom offer something completely different. Jeffrey Eugenides explores the ideas of contemporary relationships with such love and care that you feel like you truly know these characters.

As the love triangle between Madeleine, Leonard and Mitchell slowly unfolds, I find myself thinking that maybe Mitchell is the better choice but her attraction to Leonard just seems to get stronger. Mitchell is stuck in the friend’s zone but on reflection he never really pursued Madeleine the way she wanted and lost his chance when he had it. When she discovers Leonard’s mental illness I felt that really cemented their relationship. Sure it was going to be hard, but I think Madeleine’s guilt and the feeling of being needed really shaped their relationship.

The whole novel played around with a whole lot of different literary devices, mixing that with all the themes throughout this book really made this book stand out for me. The ideas of love were really explored well here, helping the characters to discover the difference between their fantasies and reality as well as the need for physical, intellectual and emotional satisfaction. Even Mitchell facing the discernment between the seminary and the possibility of romance has an aspect of love that often isn’t explored; do you give up your passion for a chance at romance?

The characters are so real and I feel like I know them so well; this is what made this book at time frustrating but then it was what made this book so great. While there are a lot of ideas of love throughout the book, the one that really worked for me was Jeffrey Eugenides and Madeleine’s love of literature. I finished this book and wanted to go and read A Lover’s Discourse by Roland Barthes just because Madeleine speaks so fondly of it, the kind of fondness that must truly come from the author.

This really feels like a labour of love by the author, I felt such a connection with the characters and the ideas within this book. Even the effort Eugenides put into bring out the beauty of the situations really was awe inspiring. Eugenides writes beautiful prose; well he did in this book, I’m not sure if it is the love he has for the book, or if he has that for all his novels but I’m keen to dive into Middlesex or The Virgin Suicides sometime soon.

Let’s face it, it is rare to find a book that affects you and you feel so passionately about, so finding The Marriage Plot has really made my reading journey feel worth it. I do have a few books that I hold in such high regard; Frankenstein, Crime and Punishment and I would like to welcome The Marriage Plot to join them. It just feels different with this novel, I feel like I’ve discovered my softer side. I would love to know if people know of other books similar to this that I might enjoy and I also want to hear about the books that effect you in a deep and wonderful way.

The Prague Cemetery by Umberto Eco

Posted November 26, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Prague Cemetery (Goodreads)
Author: Umberto Eco
Translator: Richard Dixon
Published: Vintage, 2010
Pages: 566
Genres: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

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Every nation has its own secret service, perpetrating forgeries, plots, and massacres. Simone Simonini is called upon to help create a political conspiracy by forging a document known as The Protocols of the Elders of Zion. Simone is an adventurer, forger and secret agent working for a powerful secret organisation or is he working for himself? Is he playing both sides against each other or will he end up being a scapegoat?

I love Umberto Eco; every time I read a book by him, I get a mind crush; how can one man have so much knowledge on Catholicism, Freemasons, the Knights Templar and even the Rosicrucians? First book I ever read of his was Foucault’s Pendulum and will always remain my favourite because I did not know what to expect. I was so surprised with his knowledge that when he started building the conspiracy behind this book I even started to feel convinced by it too. I had to remind myself that it was fiction and that they were trying to create a conspiracy theory that others would believe.

Umberto Eco is not the easiest author to read; he jams his books full of facts and in The Prague Cemetery it’s all about Nineteenth-century Europe and conspiracies both real and imagined. You certainly have to have an interest in history of secret societies to enjoy the mystery that Eco creates. Luckily for me, I have that interest and feel like Eco is just encouraging me to learn more about these Secret societies; I still have not worked out how to join the Illuminati yet.

The protagonist Simone Simonini is slimy, manipulative and almost an evil genius. This makes him perfect for the role he plays. While it is hard to keep up with all his thoughts and trying to think that many moves ahead, I just enjoyed where this novel took me.

They call Umberto Eco the Dan Brown for the intellects, and while I do try to be pretentious and act like an intellectual, I have a lot more to learn. I love this title for Eco because he takes the conspiracy thriller elements and certainly adds his knowledge of history to it, making a truly intelligent novel. There is so much to learn and so much to enjoy from a book like this. This is my third Eco novel (Foucault’s Pendulum & The Name of the Rose) and I’m already looking forward to my forth. While I will need a break from his brilliance, I would love to know which Eco book I should read next?

The Teleportation Accident by Ned Beauman

Posted November 16, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Teleportation Accident (Goodreads)
Author: Ned Beauman
Published: Sceptre, 2012
Pages: 357
Genres: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

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Egon Loeser is an avant garde theatre set designer on a quest to recreate the perfect stage trick. A trick the great Lavacini’s called the Almost Instantaneous Transport of Persons from Place to Place or to the masses, the Teleportation Device. Aside from his obsessive quest, there are his very dull friends and over course there is the girl who he is equally obsessed with. This is a hard book to sum up in one paragraph so I think I’ll borrow the blurb on the back of the book;

A historical novel that doesn’t know what year it is; a noir novel that turns all the lights on; a romance novel that arrives drunk to dinner; a science fiction novel that can’t remember what ‘isotope’ means; a stunningly inventive, exceptionally funny, dangerously unsteady and (largely) coherent novel about sex, violence, space, time, and how the best way to deal with history is to ignore it.

Let’s face it; Egon Loeser is a complete obsessed prick who you are probably going to hate; you’ll most likely hate his friends as well. They are all obsessed with sex and feel like they are sex staved and spend most of them time talking about getting laid. Something most guys often do but something I’ve never really seen done to this degree in a book set in the 1930’s. I’m kind of reminded of the Picture of Dorian Gray; Lord Wotton in particular. They are extremely witty, but they are lustful, egotistical pricks.

But hating the characters is actually part of the enjoyment of this book; I wanted to rage so many times but that just added to the experience. You can’t help but feel invested in the story when you want to slap some sense into the main protagonist. I don’t know what was so special about Adele Hitler, sure she was beautiful but Loeser was really obsessed with sleeping with her.

This is not just a novel about lust and time travel; this is more a novel about the disconnection between imagination and reality. Part of the beauty with in the book is the way Ned Beauman takes you in one direction and then unexpectedly you find yourself somewhere else; reading historical fiction turns into realism, science fiction and some other genres.

This is a book you can’t really predict and this is why I didn’t focus on the plot too much. You are taken on a journey of the unexpected and I don’t want to ruin that trip for any of the people planning on reading this book. You will hate this book and you will adore this book; it will leave you with very mixed emotions but there is a certain elegance and beauty within this book that will stay with you well after you’ve finished hating the characters.

The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie

Posted October 30, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Book of the Month, Literary Fiction, Magical Realism / 0 Comments

Title: The Satanic Verses (Goodreads)
Author: Salman Rushdie
Published: Picador, 1988
Pages: 561
Genres: Literary Fiction, Magical Realism
My Copy: Personal Copy

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To celebrate Banned Book Week, the book club decided to read The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie. For those who don’t know, the book tells the story of two Indian actors falling to earth, transformed into living symbols of angelic and evil. Both actors struggle to piece their lives together and this novel tries to put it all together from the terrorist hijacking that leads to them falling to earth and surviving to their live their struggles. Farishta is a Bollywood superstar and Chamcha is a voiceover artist in England but The Satanic Verses is a clash between Eastern and Western culture and the effects it has on their Hindu faith.

I started off really enjoying this book; it was bizarre and I had no idea where this book would take me but after the millionth dream sequence I did feel very lost. I don’t begin to understand the religious aspects of this book or the life of Muhammad so I felt like I was missing a lot from this novel. I did end up asking a friend about life as a Muslim and the issues she faced with religion in western society which did lead to her fully venting and while it was great to get her opinion, I was left with more questions than answers. I finally had to try and accept that Rushdie is just trying to vent his own issues about his personal dilemmas about faith and being disillusioned with both cultures.

While this book is considered to be both controversial and acclaimed, I found it hard to see this book as either. Of course I understand if people take issues with this book but for me it felt more like Salman Rushdie needed to express his concerns and it was more a personal problem than a stab at the entire religion. As for the critically acclaimed aspect, sure the books was beautifully written but the magical realism was probably turned up to the extreme in this novel and it was difficult to piece together. Also if you want to understand this book fully you may need to study theology and migrate to a place that clashes with your cultural ideals.

Overall this book was confusing and made my brain feel like it was melting; there is so much weirdness and depth to the book I have a feeling I will never grasp it in a way I would like to. The amount of dream sequences didn’t help this book as made it a lot harder to keep up with. I would love to know what someone that has a similar issue with religion and culture butting heads thinks of this book.

I would be interested in reading this book again, maybe when I have a degree in literature and have the tools to fully analyse everything in this book. But for now it was too intense for me to get full enjoyment out of it. I’ve heard Salman Rushdie is not an easy author to read and I can see why. This book’s final rating is not a reflection of my enjoyment of the book but more of the proses and the fact that it has stuck with me well after I’ve finished it. I don’t fully understand it but I now appreciate what he did with The Satanic Verse.

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

Posted October 18, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction, Science Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Cloud Atlas (Goodreads)
Author: David Mitchell
Published: Random House, 2004
Pages: 529
Genres: Literary Fiction, Science Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

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Cloud Atlas is a really difficult book to review; it starts off as a Journal circa 1850 documenting a voyage home from the Chatham Islands, then it’s a series of letters from a 1930’s English musician to a Belgian composer, then a journalist from 1975 investigating for a novel that will blow the whistle on a new nuclear power plant , a 21st century publisher is fleeing from gangsters in a movie dramatization, a dystopian future story told from genetically-engineered clone’s perspective and finally the post-apocalyptic future where technology is all wiped out. Confusing? Well this book does all come together to make Cloud Atlas a truly interesting book to read but I don’t think it worked as intended.

I think author David Mitchell is too clever for his own good in this book. The stories do all come together and he really shows off by writing each section in the best genre style to suit what is happening but he is just doing too much in this book. I feel like I’m just starting to get invested in the story of one protagonist and then Mitchell jumps to the next one without any sense of resolution. Sure he does return to each story a second time around but by then I feel like it’s too late for me.

David Mitchell really flexes his literary muscles in the book and he is a wonderful writer but there is so much happening and I never felt like he achieved what he was hoping for. I’m not sure cutting from six to three or four story arcs would have helped the book but it might have helped the reader become more invested. I particularly liked the thriller style of the investigative journalist and that gangster story line of the publisher but when their story is just getting exciting it’s all over and we have to move on to the next one.

Cloud Atlas is an interesting, clever book but this doesn’t make it a good book; I enjoyed parts of it and other parts infuriated me. I will say I’m glad to have read it before the movie adaptation is released but it’s not something I ever want to revisit again. I get that he is trying to do a novel about evolution or reincarnation; as each protagonist bares the same birth mark but that element of the book never really went anywhere. I know some people really love this book but I felt like it was too much of a show off. I’d like to read a David Mitchell book where he sticks to one genre instead of all of them.

Swimming Home by Deborah Levy

Posted October 16, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Swimming Home (Goodreads)
Author: Deborah Levy
Published: Bloomsbury, 2012
Pages: 178
Genres: Literary Fiction
My Copy: ARC from Publisher

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A group of tourists holidaying in the French Riviera arrive at their summer villa only to find something floating in the swimming pool. One of them thinks it’s a bear, but it turns out to be a very naked stranger. The woman Kitty, having nowhere else to go, joins the group and ends up being a big disruption to the group in this deeply psychology dark novel.

Ok, I’ll admit that the main reason I decided to read this book was because it was short listed for the Man Booker award but let’s face it, after reading what the book was about, I thought it was my type of book. These characters are rich and the addition of a very explosive character made for a fascinating read. At times during the book I felt reminded of that 90’s psychological thriller Wild Things; there was so many unanswered questions that really helped drive this story along. Sure, it is not as twisted as that movie but the psychological aspects are there; at times there are even shades of noir coming through.

Deborah Levy does so much with such a small book; the joy of reading the book is seeing what she doesn’t say. In this aspect I think I would compare her to someone like Kafka, where what she says has so much depth and meaning that it’s really what makes this book so great. Womanising and depression maybe the catalyst but my joy came from the dark and witty elements found throughout this writing.

I’ve not read any of the other books shortlisted for this year Man Booker but I’m hoping this book wins; it has so much in it and I think winning this award would give it the exposure that this book deserves. I’m sure there are many elements of this book I might have missed but I enjoyed the book so much that I’ve already started reading through it again. A literary highlight for my reading journey this year; Swimming Home is well worth picking up.

Tigers in Red Weather by Liza Klaussman

Posted October 11, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Tigers in Red Weather (Goodreads)
Author: Liza Klaussman
Published: Picador, 2012
Pages: 353
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: Paperback

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

Tigers in Red Weather is a unforgettable novel of life with all its complexity and mystery. Nick and her cousin Helena grow up together in Tiger house an old family estate on an island. As they grew the world changed with them; World War II has ended and it felt like a world of possibilities. Helena leaves for Hollywood and Nick reunites with her husband after serving in the war, but everything has changed and on their trips back to Tiger house they find out just how complex life can be.

This is no ordinary story of family and growing up; apart from the emotions of life and family there is a sense of dark and sinister secrets. With the back drop of the forties to the sixties you can watch the family grow and the hidden be revealed. Brilliantly told from five perspectives, Tigers in Red Weather slowly shows you the true colours of every member of this family, building a beautiful but fragile picture of these characters.

I really loved the characters in this book; all of them had their own secrets and flaws and while they may not have the best intentions they all felt very real and oddly portrayed. The dark and underlying secrets of this family is what really stood out for me in the book; it made the characters come alive but kept a sense of mystery as I continued reading. I am reminded in part of The Great Gatsby as the characters all feel shallow and selfish but there is so much depth and beauty in each of them as the story progresses.

While on the surface this feels very much like a typical novel of family, the dark secrets really kept me engrossed and the reveal of the darkest secret was both surprising and pleasing; that little curve ball at the end really cemented my feelings towards this book. This is a debut novel by Liza Klaussman but she really shows that she is a master at her craft; especially with the literary idea of ‘show don’t tell’. Klaussman is the great-great-great granddaughter of Herman Melville but I hope that doesn’t become a label for her, because I expect to see great things from the author in the future.

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

Posted September 28, 2012 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Book of the Month, Classic / 0 Comments

Title: As I Lay Dying (Goodreads)
Author: William Faulkner
Published: Vintage, 1930
Pages: 267
Genres: Classic
My Copy: eBook

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As I Lay Dying is a classic American novel that was written by William Faulkner. This book follows the journey of fifteen different characters as they set out to fulfil the wishes of the recently deceased Addie Bundren who is to be buried in Jefferson. Faulkner shifts between the fifteen narrators throughout book, one of them is even the deceased, who is expressing her thoughts from the coffin. As the book continues you can see the characters develop with each narrator’s perceptions and opinions.

This book is best known for its stream of consciousness writing technique which can be one of the biggest struggles with this book. It’s a dense read and if you don’t pay enough attention and try to delve deep into this book you will struggle to enjoy it. I made the mistake of starting reading book out as like a novel and it took me a while to pull myself up and approach this novel in the right mindset. But eventually I did start enjoying this book for what it is; and that is as a piece of literature that helped pioneer the stream of consciousness narrative and the interior monologue.

Faulkner was never an easy author to read but I hear this is his most accessible novel so I’m worried about reading anything else of his. I did enjoy exploring his literary style and just seeing the techniques he used for this novel but this really isn’t everyone’s idea of a fun read. There are some interesting characters in As I Lay Dying and some very ironic and dark elements to the story. As for the plot and scenery I did find it lacking but that really wasn’t what Faulkner was trying to achieve.

William Faulkner has famously said that he wrote the novel in six weeks and that he did not change a word of it. This in itself is a pretty impressive statement but if you look at the techniques and the novel as an overall piece of high literature, this statement is more impressive that I originally thought; it makes me feel like a failure. As I Lay Dying is not going to be for everyone, it is a dense novel but for lovers of literature it is interesting to dive into something that has been analysed deeply. I’m not going to go into this side of the book because I doubt I could really do it justice. The style of this book is interesting, the prose is worth a deeper look and overall this book is just fascinating.

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.

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.