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imperfectletter38. Ophelia by Lisa Klein
Another reimagining of Hamlet. Unlike Something Rotten, Lisa Klein's book takes place in the same time period as the original play. The characters and most plot remain the same as well, what's different is that the story is told from Ophelia's point of view (hence the title). As with Something Rotten, there are clichés, but I think that's just a hazard of the genre. Otherwise, the story is solid and for the most part, well written on a YA level. I really enjoyed the characterizations Klein has created, both taken from Shakespeare's original story and from Klein's imagination. The story ended the way I wanted and Klein surprised me with a few of the things she did (none of them bad). If you like Hamlet and you don't mind reinterpretation of classics, then this is a good, quick read.
39. Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
My friend B loves this book and I can see why. I, on the other hand, liked it, but I doubt I will read it again. It's a good book, well written and compelling. It reminded me of Marcus Sakey's novel, The Blade Itself. They're both very rough books about addicts of one sort or another. Choke is a much more graphic (though not disgusting or violent) type of book. Palahniuk does a good job of telling the story in two parts, we can follow Victor Mancini's life in two threads. One is the present day in the book, while the first is Victor as a child. The stories are told differently, the present day is first person while Victor's past is third person. Palahniuk does an incredible job with this, managing to keep the two story lines connected without confusion. Choke is a good book and I understand why people, my friend included, liked it. But it's not my type of book.
40. Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman
This book was fantastic. I can't remember where I heard about it, it might have been Library Journal, but I'm not sure. Basically, this is the story of what the world would be like if everything related to superheroes/villains was real. Several reviews I've read said this book is best for those who love comics, but I take exception to that. While the story is about (and told by) superheroes, it's much more than that. Really, you have to be able to appreciate superheroes, villains, and the human condition. Grossman tells multiple stories within his novel. You follow the storyline of Mr. Impossible, a villain -- not only his exploits to escape prison and take over the world (again), but also how he became a villain and why he does what he does. In alternating chapters, you read about Fatale, a cyborg superhero. Her storyline is a little bit different -- you get the views of her life, how she became a cyborg and her experiences with The Champions (a group of superheroes), but you also get to find out the history of superheroes in the world Grossman has created. I think that these multiple stories make Soon I Will Be Invincible one of the better fantasy books I've read recently.
One thing that amused me was how similar Fatale is to the main character, Lila, from Justina Robson's Quantum Gravity books. They are very different characters, of course. And Robson's book is much sexier (though both books are similar in their emotional depth), but at the same time, both Fatale and Lila are women who were changed into something both less and more than human. I throughly enjoyed this book.
40 / 80 new reads. 50% read!
Another reimagining of Hamlet. Unlike Something Rotten, Lisa Klein's book takes place in the same time period as the original play. The characters and most plot remain the same as well, what's different is that the story is told from Ophelia's point of view (hence the title). As with Something Rotten, there are clichés, but I think that's just a hazard of the genre. Otherwise, the story is solid and for the most part, well written on a YA level. I really enjoyed the characterizations Klein has created, both taken from Shakespeare's original story and from Klein's imagination. The story ended the way I wanted and Klein surprised me with a few of the things she did (none of them bad). If you like Hamlet and you don't mind reinterpretation of classics, then this is a good, quick read.
39. Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
My friend B loves this book and I can see why. I, on the other hand, liked it, but I doubt I will read it again. It's a good book, well written and compelling. It reminded me of Marcus Sakey's novel, The Blade Itself. They're both very rough books about addicts of one sort or another. Choke is a much more graphic (though not disgusting or violent) type of book. Palahniuk does a good job of telling the story in two parts, we can follow Victor Mancini's life in two threads. One is the present day in the book, while the first is Victor as a child. The stories are told differently, the present day is first person while Victor's past is third person. Palahniuk does an incredible job with this, managing to keep the two story lines connected without confusion. Choke is a good book and I understand why people, my friend included, liked it. But it's not my type of book.
40. Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman
This book was fantastic. I can't remember where I heard about it, it might have been Library Journal, but I'm not sure. Basically, this is the story of what the world would be like if everything related to superheroes/villains was real. Several reviews I've read said this book is best for those who love comics, but I take exception to that. While the story is about (and told by) superheroes, it's much more than that. Really, you have to be able to appreciate superheroes, villains, and the human condition. Grossman tells multiple stories within his novel. You follow the storyline of Mr. Impossible, a villain -- not only his exploits to escape prison and take over the world (again), but also how he became a villain and why he does what he does. In alternating chapters, you read about Fatale, a cyborg superhero. Her storyline is a little bit different -- you get the views of her life, how she became a cyborg and her experiences with The Champions (a group of superheroes), but you also get to find out the history of superheroes in the world Grossman has created. I think that these multiple stories make Soon I Will Be Invincible one of the better fantasy books I've read recently.
One thing that amused me was how similar Fatale is to the main character, Lila, from Justina Robson's Quantum Gravity books. They are very different characters, of course. And Robson's book is much sexier (though both books are similar in their emotional depth), but at the same time, both Fatale and Lila are women who were changed into something both less and more than human. I throughly enjoyed this book.
