Our deepest calling is to grow into our own authentic selfhood, whether or not it conforms to some image of who we ought to be.  
Parker Palmer, Let Your Life Speak

Saturday, October 31, 2009

October Book Review

Excitedly most of the books on the list this month were bought at Shakespeare and Company in Paris though I'm sure you could find any of them in your local bookstore.

I actually finished this book in September but traveling prevented a review until now. First to say I enjoyed this book doesn't feel right at all. How can one enjoy a story this depressing! I did find the ethical dilemmas of genetic engineering and organ donation intriguing. When I finally reached the ending- a task that at times felt like a journey toward inevitability- I found the author's conclusion predictable and lamentably tidy for an otherwise challenging/frustrating text. Read one if you want to know what all the fuss is about, but don't expect to find a classic wrapped in a summer read. [read]

THE READER by BERNHARD SCHLICK
I devoured this book in little over 24 hours. Remarkably easy to read for an English translation of a foreign text. The story is excellent and made me really appreciate the movie's interpretation. Still make sure to read the book because brilliant passages need to be verbally consumed. Next time I pick it up I plan to read it aloud. [read, re-read, recommend]

A well written, short ghost story. This is definitely a classic read for October when if you are at all like me you enjoy thinking of ghost and ghouls. Not overly frightening, it reads like a conclusion to a night of ghost stories around a fire as it is intended. [read, re-read]

The final installment to THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY diverts little from the trajectory set forth by the four books previous. Still humorous, the story plays with the idea of linear time measurements which made the timeline of the first few chapter more than a bit complicated. Overall a great conclusion to a very fun series. [read, re-read, recommend]

Just, Margaret

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