The Universe and the Teacup by K.C. Cole

The Universe and the Teacup by K.C. Cole

Genre: General Educational Nonfiction (mathematics)

Written in the vein of the Malcolm Gladwell and Freakonomics sort, The Universe and the Teacup tries to explain the beauty behind some fundamental mathematics in both everyday and esoteric phenomena. K.C. Cole is skilled at science writing—or, rather, science communication for us laymen. The book is stuffed with more metaphors than an Ian McEwan novel. But, rightly so, however. How else can she reduce complex functions and theorems of physics, astronomy, economics into edible and digestible tidbits? Some of my favorites: “Forty isn’t that old for a tree.” ”The twins, Zanzibar and Bambi; Grandma Agnes and her new sweetheart; Mom and Dad; teenage Abigail; testosterone-pumped Jimbob and Yadayadayadayada are fighting over which movie to watch. This example illustrates the inherent fallacies of the current American voting system of majority rule. kthxbai.”

Overall, I was interested in the material, though I wished that the book went into more detail. There was plenty of hyperbole and non-sequitur quotations but not enough fleshing out of the statistics and the math (hello! The subtitle of the book is “the math of truth and beauty”. Or something like that). I didn’t glean that much new knowledge, except for the last chapter on the importance of symmetries. Going with a rather philosophical bent, Cole maintains that life is a beautiful destruction of born symmetry. I kind of like that image.

Rating: Mind is not Blown; Could be better

Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

Genre: Adult Surreal Fiction

If writing styles could be cataloged into a pantry of aromas and tastes, there would certainly be a 'Rushdie' flavor. It would be dried plum. At once salty, sour, sweet with a little punch to add to its vaguely Old World exoticness. Rushdie's command of the lyricism of language is impeccable (and, at times, overwhelming). There are select metaphors and images that are astounding. I've only read his East, West collection of short stories, and I was fooled into thinking that Rushdie wrote in surreal yet simple parable form. No, no, he can certainly spin a tale, able to sustain a yarn (or two or twelve) for over 500 pages.

Not quite total magic realism, Midnight's Children contains undertones of meta-historical fiction. After all, the main character Saleem Sinai is one of the lucky (?) midnight children, born on the cusp of India's independence, and his life reflects the changes in the country. The reader will be introduced to a myriad of colorful characters, locales and tales. The only thing that detracts from this novel could be the double-edged literary style. When I was patient enough to focus, the story was exhilarating and unearthed hidden gems. When I wasn't, the book became a bog of quotation-less dialogue, hashes, dashes, Indian colloquialisms and strangeness.

Rating: Leaves a Lasting Impression

Jun 6th, 2011 4:43pm

The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht

The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht

Genre: Adult General/Surreal Fiction

Tea Obreht (I can never spell her name correctly on the first try) is a young newcomer. I actually read a few of her short stories before so I decided to check out her new novel.

I'd have to say about 75% of it was captivating. The more interesting parts of the novel were the magic realism--the deathless man and the bear hunter and the tiger's wife--, but Obreht sometimes gets so enveloped in the surrealism that it tugs at the narrative's shoelaces. The book is about the daughter of a country doctor, but it turns out the doctor's escapades far surpasses whatever shenanigans she finds herself in.

In the end, I can only remember the deathless man. Why do so many authors use Death as a parable for Life? Rather ironic, methinks.

Rating: Could be better

May 31st, 2011 8:30pm--transferred from ireadanything.tumblr.com

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Genre: General Historical Fiction

A beautiful book about one of the worst and darkest periods in human history, The Book Thief certainly demonstrates the power of books, of words, and, most importantly, of love. At first, I was worried about cliches, but it turns out my concerns were unfounded. The book is eloquently narrated from a personified Death's perspective of the lives of a German neighborhood. So, from the get go, the reader gets a different view of the devastation cast by Hitler during World War II. In the throes of war and human brutality, all victims are ultimately the same, whether they be Jew or German or fugitives or Nazi sympathizers--they are just simply people with fears and hopes and hearts.

Zusak said he wrote this book because he thought that words were powerful and that's how Hitler rose. He's certainly right. Words are powerful. For bad and for good.

Rating: Leaves a Lasting Impression

May 30th, 2011 5:46pm--transferred from ireadanything.tumblr.com

Shiver by Maggie Steifvater

Shiver by Maggie Steifvater

Genre: Young Adult Supernatural Romance

To be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this book, Shiver, and it certainly delivered accordingly. A teen--no, a young adult--novel, Shiver chronicles the love-- strife with trials, tribulations, distance and interspecies taboos-- between the human girl Grace and the morphing werewolf boy Sam. The main conflicts lie in Sam's shapeshifting, which is rather interesting in that he changes according to temperature, and the presence of a vicious she-wolf along with the birth of a new and particularly volatile wolf. At one point, Grace rescues Sam and tries to keep him secret by letting him into her bedroom, all the while gazing at his breathtaking amber eyes and whispering sweet nothings--"You're so beautiful and sad"--into his ear.

Hmmmm, any of this sound familiar? A silly teenage girl in love with a supernatural being? A 'emo' boy caught in between his world and hers? "You're so beautiful" and "I'm not afraid of you"?

I wish I could say the language in Shiver was better than Twilight, even if their plots are so similar, but I cannot. Even the characters are pretty much one-dimensional. But, at least Sam and Grace did the deed. Straight to the point in the first book and within a few months of knowing each other. I can give him that much.

Rating: Judge this book by its cover.

May 27th, 2011 12:22am--transferred from ireadanything.tumblr.com

One Day by David Nicholls

One Day by David Nicholls

Genre: Adult General Fiction

The premise of this book is intriguing. Beyond the cliche of yet another love story, One Day follows two people's journeys through twenty years with plain yet plaintive language and humor. Nicholls chooses to paint this couple's saga in a series of vignettes about one particularly important day in each of their lives--July 15th. From foolish college days to woes of middle age, readers grow with Emma and Dexter, both who never seem to lose their individual character along the way. At times, I was frustrated and angry at Dexter's arrogance and fickleness and Emma's poutiness and lovelorn demeanor, and I rooted for their relationship's success in a perverse manner...'surely, two such stupid people deserve to be together'. But, such is life and such are human beings--no one is without flaws. In the course of 400-or-so pages and twenty book-years, I met and bid farewell to many people in Emma and Dexter's respective lives before they realize that they are both better off together. 

Oops, that could be a spoiler. But, I think anyone who reads One Day suspects from the very beginning that Em and Dex will end up in a relationship. Twenty years are a long time, and I think One Day spans two decades to show that little coincidences and general mundaneness make up every person's life and interactions with others. July 15th could be totally arbitrary, but, under the lens of Nicholls's One Day, July 15th becomes immensely significant. 

Rating: Leaves a Lasting Impression

There is No Year by Blake Butler

There is No Year by Blake Butler

Genre: Adult Experimental Fiction

I'm not sure what to say about Butler's There is No Year. There are no words. I am speechless. But, not in the way the 'praise quotes' on the front and back covers mean. This is not a good speechless. There are times when I wonder about the state of contemporary art and literature. This book elevates style way over substance. Perhaps, I could not penetrate the true depth of Butler's prose and critique of a cracking suburban family's lifestyle, but I just felt that he relied too much on gimmicks to complete this novel...if it could even be called as such. Wildly indented lines, gray backgrounds, pixellated "hipster" photos punctuating each 'chapter', gratuitous footnotes (David Foster Wallace, anyone?). Why, why, why? I still don't understand what the general point of the book was. Maybe, the point was that there is none...who knows?

Rating: A Book or a Paperweight?