The Book Thief

The Book

Markus Zusak had a genius idea when he decided to use Death as the narrator for his novel. Through him, you are able to have a bigger picture of the atrocities and deaths taking place across Germany but maintain the focus on Liesel, the book thief, and her story. He is able to provide warnings and fore-knowledge of the future in order to maintain interest and pace, because Death is the only character who we know for certain will still be around at the close of the book.

As a librarian, its hard to resist a title and story that features books! The novel is a homage to the book and the power of stories, as it is what keeps characters like Max, the Jew hidden in Liesel's basement, and all the Germans sheltering together from bombs, sane and distracted from the terrible situation. Stories are able to transport you to another place, where your interest focuses on others and away from your own troubles.

John Dies at the End

The Book

The book is a 400+ page mix of sci-fi hokum, schlock horror and Farrelly brothers type humor. Certainly easy to read but frustrating in that much of it seemed so random and disjointed. For example - John and David are in a deserted Mall. They are attacked by a large mutant deer which explodes and inside the creature was a box with a key. The key to a room. They pick it up and its never mentioned again. You'll find various exploding animals and people throughout the story.
There was an over-arching storyline (all-seeing evil god-like being that exists in other dimensions trying to invade ours) that got to a sort of conclusion, but by the end it seemed that even the main characters didn't care about what would happen next, let alone the reader.
There were some neat ideas and premises within the hotchpotch - X-Box and Playstation games training children to be cold-hearted killers, waiting for an alien trigger - but maybe these could have been used in their own right rather than added to the brewing pot of slights of hand, misdirection and twists that left me unphased and bored.

12 Years a Slave

The Book

This is not a work of fiction but a true narrative of a free man who was kidnapped into slavery in 1841.
As such it provides a unique insight into life and conditions on Southern USA plantations. The memoirs are factual and give information on how cotton and sugar were grown, how Solomon's fellow slaves lived and how he was treated.
It had little emotional description and avoids pity and anger at his captors following his ordeal, perhaps to avoid litigation. Solomon, himself, brought legal action against his abductors, but they were never brought to court and Solomon never received any compensation for his twelve years in slavery.

The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug

The Book

The middle section of the Hobbit story is made up of a series of minor adventures whilst Bilbo and the dwarf's continue their journey towards the Lonely Mountain and Smaug the Dragon's lair.
Firstly there is a brief stay with Beorn, a Grizzly Adams sort of guy, who can metamorphose into a bear. He represents the wild and unpredictable nature of the great outdoors, for although he offers shelter and food, there is never the feeling that the visitors are completely safe or at ease. They remain locked indoors at night whilst the bear roams in the moonlight.

Catching Fire

The Book

I somehow expected something different from the second part of the Hunger Games trilogy. It was gripping and I enjoyed the story, but we have been here before. Once the 74th Hunger Games had ended and Peeta and Katniss had rebelled against the system, I expected the revolutionary movement to begin. Katniss would instigate mass protest and defeat the oppressive Capitol and President Snow.