Jeanette Winterson: "...like all children, adopted or not, I have had to live out some of her unlived life."

So, I know I haven't written in awhile. Since the last time (October, apparently) I've read quite a few books. I just haven't found the time to write about them. Hopefully I'll start making time to post a bit more! However, I say that almost every time I start again, and I usually get too busy. We'll see.

Anyway, onto the book! Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? (Amazon) by Jeanette Winterson is a memoir, which is a change of pace from my usual books. Jeanette Winterson was adopted by a Pentecoastal family. Her story is not a very happy one-her adoptive mother was a religious zealot whose behavior became worse once Jeanette revealed she was a lesbian. Jeanette Winterson also wrote Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, which the inside cover of Why Be Happy When You Could be Normal? claims is "considered one of the most important books of contemporary fiction." However, I've never read or heard of Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit (oops).

Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal is a very interesting read. It can get a bit intense at points, but I think the overall journey is worth it. It's definitely interesting to see a different take on adoption-often adoptive parents are glorified as amazing, perfect people. It rarely occurs to people that an abusive person might want to adopt a child.

Jeanette Winterson has a small feedback form on her site, so I left her a note:

"I just wanted to let you know that I recently read Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? and I really enjoyed it. You have a wonderful writing style and your story is very inspirational. Thank you for sharing it with the world!"

Anyway, that's all for now. We'll see if I manage to post more consistently.

Martin Millar: "Fairy vomit is no doubt sweet-smelling to humans."

I discovered The Good Fairies of New York (Amazon) while aimlessly wandering around an airport bookstore. Honestly, the first thing that caught my eye was Neil Gaiman's name on the cover. A book endorsed by Neil Gaiman? How could I resist? (Actually, I think the first thing that caught my eye may have been the really nice cover art. Then Neil Gaiman's name.)

This book was actually a delightful surprise. I was expecting something similar to Neil Gaiman's usual work-but instead I got something much closer to Terry Pratchett. The Good Fairies of New York is irreverent, light hearted, and refreshingly original. Definitely a great read.

I wrote Martin Millar a quick email:

"I just read The Good Fairies of New York, and I wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that I absolutely adored it. It was really unlike anything I've ever read before. I'll definitely have to check out some of your other books!"

I actually have another book to write about, and am in the process of reading a couple of more, so in theory, there should be more posts soon.

Jasper Fforde: "Sorcerers are easily distracted, and letting them drive is about as safe as as waving around a chainsaw at full throttle in a crowded disco."

Well! It's been awhile. I was on a bit of a reading drought, but I'm back! The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde (Amazon) was the perfect book to pull me out of my slump. Now, this isn't the first time I've written about Jasper Fforde's work. Check out my very first post, about his book Shades of Grey. He also replied to me, and you can read that here.

Anyway, onto discussion of The Last Dragonslayer! This book is, in true Jasper Fforde style, hilarious and original. It combines traditional fantasy-dragons, magic-with modern living. The main character, Jennifer Strange, runs an employment agency for Sorcerers and drives a Volkswagon. Magic is struggling to find a place in the modern world, where modern conveniences have taken over.

If you are a fan of satire, fantasy, Jasper Fforde or dragons, you should definitely check this book out. There is also a sequel, The Song of the Quarkbeast, which I will probably check out soon.

Because I've already written to Jasper Fforde and gotten a reply, I decided not to this time. However, he will be on tour in the US soon, so if you're interested in perhaps meeting the man yourself, check out his tour dates here.

Have a great day!

Author Reply: Alethea Kontis

It's always nice when authors take the time to respond to what I send them. Alethea Kontis somehow managed to find this blog and comment on it! I thought that was pretty cool. So, if you're interested, just check out this post.

Next book: Nothing Daunted by Dorothy Wickenden.

Alethea Kontis: "Then quit dwelling on other people's stories and make up some of your own."

I described this book to one of my friends as "The Frog Prince on steroids." Interestingly, it could also be described as "Cinderella on steroids" or "Jack & the Beanstalk on steroids" or many other fairy tales on steroids. You see, Enchanted by Alethea Kontis (Amazon) is one of those books that is the result of taking a bunch of fairy tales and mashing them together until a brand new story comes out. I tend to like those sorts of books. If you don't, then stay away!

The story is about Sunday Woodcutter, youngest of seven sisters (yes, they're all named after days of the week), daughter to the youngest of seven sisters and youngest of seven sons. Such a huge amount of sevens can only mean one thing: Sunday is magical and fated to greatness. However, all she knows is that she's fated to be "blithe and bonny and good and gay," for all of her sisters have followed the Monday's Child nursery rhyme predictions (Wikipedia, for if you're unaware of the rhyme). One day, Sunday meets a frog in the woods, and from then on her life is never quite the same.

Definitely a fun little tale, though not especially complex. There were a few parts I found confusing-it seemed like characters found out the same information twice, needlessly. However, overall I completely enjoyed myself. Plus, it's a another book with a pretty dress on the cover (my second in two posts!). Who could resist?

Alethea Kontis has a small form available on her website, so I wrote her a quick note:

"I just finished reading "Enchanted" and I wanted to let you know that I really enjoyed it! I have a soft spot for reinvented fairy tales, making your book a really fun read for me.

Good luck with your future writing!"

I have lots more books to read, so hopefully there will be another post soon!

Kiera Cass: "But I guessed she would never stop wanting more for me, more from me. Maybe that's what mothers did."

I am infatuated with The Selection by Kiera Cass (Amazon). I'm not even joking. I stayed up super late to read it, and then I immediately got online to check when the sequel is coming out. Unfortunately, it won't be coming out until Spring of 2013 BUT there is also a TV show in the works. So, needless to say, I'm pretty excited.

So, what is The Selection? Think America's Next Top Model meets The Hunger Games. The book is set in a dystopian future, where a caste system and royalty exist. Each time a prince needs to find a princess, a contest is set up. 35 girls are chosen to live in the palace and compete for the Prince's affections. I suppose it's actually more like The Bachelor, but I've never seen that show, so I'm going to stick with my America's Next Top Model analogy. EDIT: After my initial post, I found an article referring to the proposed TV series as "The Hunger Games Meets The Bachelor." So, I guess my analogy isn't as original as I had hoped. Oh well!

The main character is America Singer, a member of the 5th caste (the artist caste, and rather low on the totem pole). She happens to be one of the only girls in the country who doesn't want to be a princess. You see, she's already in love with somebody else-and to make matters worse, he's in a lower caste than her. However, at the urging of everyone around her, she still enters the competition.

It's hard to explain why I loved The Selection so much. To me, it really did feel like an original idea, and that is always wonderful to experience. I think it's also because the book dances on the edge of cliche, but usually manages to avoid it. Kiera Cass did a great job at characterizing the girls being selected, and America Singer's telling of her experience is believable and endearing.

To my pleasant surprise, Kiera Cass has both a regular mailing address and a web form available. I decided to send her something in the web form. Here it is:

"I just finished reading The Selection. I stayed up all night reading it (and was pleased to find my reading-style referenced in your Acknowledgments). Honestly, I completely fell in love with it. Confession: I immediately got on my computer to find out when the sequel is coming out. Imagine my disappointment when I found I had to wait another year! But, seeing the news about the TV show definitely helped to ease the blow. 

Good luck with your writing & with your pregnancy."

If you want to see more information about The Selection series, definitely check out Kiera Cass' website, kieracass.com.

Extra Reading

Sometimes I stumble across interesting book-related articles or blogs, and so I figured it might be cool to highlight some of them here. Here we go!

Have you noticed a trend among book covers lately? This article discusses some book cover trends and the reasoning behind them.

Searching for the perfect beach book, but not interested in the stereotypical "trashy" beach novel? Check out the suggestions in this article.

Glee lover? Make sure you pick of Chris Colfer's new novel. Check out a short article about it here.

Read any good articles (or books) lately? Feel free to post below.