Comments on: A Good Read http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/ Sat, 04 Feb 2012 04:03:42 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Ziff http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34432 Ziff Tue, 04 Sep 2007 03:59:48 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34432 <blockquote>I know most of us love Margaret Atwood. (Any dissenters besides Ziff who I know doesn’t read fiction much?)</blockquote> I don't mean to shock you, Eve, but I've actually read three of Margaret Atwood's books. I loved <em>The Handmaid's Tale</em> but I really didn't get <em>Surfacing</em> or <em>Lady Oracle</em>. I think maybe I just liked <em>The Handmaid's Tale</em> because I tend to like dystopic and apocalyptic fiction maybe more than I liked Margaret Atwood specifically. You may now commence to throwing things. :) Oh, wait, but before you do, should I try <em>Oryx and Crake</em>?

I know most of us love Margaret Atwood. (Any dissenters besides Ziff who I know doesn’t read fiction much?)

I don’t mean to shock you, Eve, but I’ve actually read three of Margaret Atwood’s books. I loved The Handmaid’s Tale but I really didn’t get Surfacing or Lady Oracle. I think maybe I just liked The Handmaid’s Tale because I tend to like dystopic and apocalyptic fiction maybe more than I liked Margaret Atwood specifically. You may now commence to throwing things. :) Oh, wait, but before you do, should I try Oryx and Crake?

]]> By: Heather O. http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34431 Heather O. Tue, 04 Sep 2007 03:36:32 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34431 Of course, that said, her books have sold more than Harry Potter in Orem. Oh, that I could write such bad prose.... Of course, that said, her books have sold more than Harry Potter in Orem. Oh, that I could write such bad prose….

]]> By: Heather O. http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34430 Heather O. Tue, 04 Sep 2007 03:33:25 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34430 It's interesting that you say that the prose doesn't matter, as long as it doesn't get in the way. I actually feel the same way, and one of the reasons that I was annoyed with Twilight was because the prose WAS distracting to me. Her overuse of adjectives was killing me, and it just seemed like she was trying too hard. Interesting that you found the opposite. I do applaud Meyer for finding some new twists with what could be tired ground--inventing new myths about vampires--the super speed, and why they stay in doors, etc. And I didn't say I wasn't entertained. I got sucked in like everybody else, and went ahead and bought the sequel, too, just to see what happens. But I have to say I'm actually tired of her prose, and probably will not pick up another one of her books. Her story in the second book I found was actually even better and more intriguing than the vampire/human love story, but even her good story wasn't enough to overcome her distracting prose. It’s interesting that you say that the prose doesn’t matter, as long as it doesn’t get in the way. I actually feel the same way, and one of the reasons that I was annoyed with Twilight was because the prose WAS distracting to me. Her overuse of adjectives was killing me, and it just seemed like she was trying too hard. Interesting that you found the opposite.

I do applaud Meyer for finding some new twists with what could be tired ground–inventing new myths about vampires–the super speed, and why they stay in doors, etc.

And I didn’t say I wasn’t entertained. I got sucked in like everybody else, and went ahead and bought the sequel, too, just to see what happens. But I have to say I’m actually tired of her prose, and probably will not pick up another one of her books. Her story in the second book I found was actually even better and more intriguing than the vampire/human love story, but even her good story wasn’t enough to overcome her distracting prose.

]]> By: Lynnette http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34359 Lynnette Mon, 03 Sep 2007 18:36:43 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34359 It's an interesting question. I find that a lot of the time when I'm reading for pleasure, I'm feeling lazy, and I want something that draws me in right away; I don't have the patience to make it through a couple of slow first chapters before things get going. The books I've read that have really impacted me, though, and which I've re-read multiple times have tended to be more character-driven than plot-driven. And sometimes they have been slow at the beginning (and not only at the beginning!) So I think it must also have to do with the mood I'm in. I'm not at all into vampire stuff--I like Buffy and Angel despite the vampire aspects, not because of them. But this has gotten me curious about Stephanie Meyers; I'll probably give her a try. It’s an interesting question. I find that a lot of the time when I’m reading for pleasure, I’m feeling lazy, and I want something that draws me in right away; I don’t have the patience to make it through a couple of slow first chapters before things get going.

The books I’ve read that have really impacted me, though, and which I’ve re-read multiple times have tended to be more character-driven than plot-driven. And sometimes they have been slow at the beginning (and not only at the beginning!) So I think it must also have to do with the mood I’m in.

I’m not at all into vampire stuff–I like Buffy and Angel despite the vampire aspects, not because of them. But this has gotten me curious about Stephanie Meyers; I’ll probably give her a try.

]]> By: jessawhy http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34278 jessawhy Mon, 03 Sep 2007 03:15:33 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34278 Although I am certainly not the reader I used to be, I have found a few great books in the last few years. I'm a big fan of Chaim Potok, and have just started A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini’s (although I'm not sure I'll finish it, it's too depressing). Like Ziff, I'm more likely to read non-fiction than fiction, but when I do, I agree that character is a big part of what draws me in. Also, I don't like too much emotional manipulation. I get sucked into the story so easily and if I'm crying by page 30, I know it's going to be a miserable experience. But with some books it's worth it (like The Chosen) and with other books, it's not. The author has to really give something back if they ask you to commit so much emotionally. How's that for criteria for liking a book? Don't make me cry, but if you do, it had better darn well be for a good reason. Although I am certainly not the reader I used to be, I have found a few great books in the last few years. I’m a big fan of Chaim Potok, and have just started A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini’s (although I’m not sure I’ll finish it, it’s too depressing). Like Ziff, I’m more likely to read non-fiction than fiction, but when I do, I agree that character is a big part of what draws me in. Also, I don’t like too much emotional manipulation. I get sucked into the story so easily and if I’m crying by page 30, I know it’s going to be a miserable experience. But with some books it’s worth it (like The Chosen) and with other books, it’s not. The author has to really give something back if they ask you to commit so much emotionally.
How’s that for criteria for liking a book? Don’t make me cry, but if you do, it had better darn well be for a good reason.

]]> By: Eve http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34241 Eve Sun, 02 Sep 2007 18:01:58 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34241 <p>Great questions, Vada.</p> <p>I'm intrigued by the question of what it is that opens and closes books to us, of what draws us to some and repels us from others. I always like to know what books other people like, and why, and what books they don't, and why not. It's a great way to get to know someone and to understand something about her.</p> <p>I find (as I'm guessing most of us do) that different books offer different pleasures, and that sometimes books that were previously inaccessible suddenly open to me in the light of greater experience and expanded understanding, or that I come to appreciate books I already love on more levels. A few years ago I started to find an immense, almost wholly new in nineteenth-century novels, for the simplest of all possible reasons--they're long. They sustain their pleasures over time, and they offer more and more and more of their characters, more and more stories, more and more narrative reflections and interlocking lives. There's something so satisfying about a really long and engaging book, about knowing a short way in that there's so much to follow. There's even something satisfying about holding a thick novel in your hands and feeling the thickness of it, the weight.</p> <p>It's fascinating too how books meet individual character. When I first encountered Donald Barthelme's brilliant short stories in college, I thought immediately of my siblings Ziff and Kiskilili. The incisive, manic perfection of Barthelme's tone reminded me of the endless smart-alecky remarks they used to reel off as Lynnette and I, the serious sibs, tried (bossily, in my case) to get everyone to get something done. </p> <p>This summer I've been reading Dickens and now A.S. Byatt's quartet of novels about Frederica Potter. I love the way her novels are both so intellectually engaging, full of ideas and reflections, and so socially astute in their renderings of all the subtleties of character and motive and human interaction. (I'm fascinated too by how dislikeable her main character is, and yet sympathetic in her very dislikeability. That's an enormous achievement, I think.)<br /> But neither Lynnette nor Kiskilili likes Byatt much. Kiskilili loves Rosellen Brown; I like her quite well but not as much as Kiskilili does. I know most of us love Margaret Atwood. (Any dissenters besides Ziff who I know doesn't read fiction much?) And my absent sister Melyngoch and I may be the only ones in the family who like either Shakespeare or Billy Collins.</p> <p>Questions of taste and pleasure in art are just endlessly engaging. (And just for the record, vampire fiction has never particularly appealed to me, either.)</p> Great questions, Vada.

I’m intrigued by the question of what it is that opens and closes books to us, of what draws us to some and repels us from others. I always like to know what books other people like, and why, and what books they don’t, and why not. It’s a great way to get to know someone and to understand something about her.

I find (as I’m guessing most of us do) that different books offer different pleasures, and that sometimes books that were previously inaccessible suddenly open to me in the light of greater experience and expanded understanding, or that I come to appreciate books I already love on more levels. A few years ago I started to find an immense, almost wholly new in nineteenth-century novels, for the simplest of all possible reasons–they’re long. They sustain their pleasures over time, and they offer more and more and more of their characters, more and more stories, more and more narrative reflections and interlocking lives. There’s something so satisfying about a really long and engaging book, about knowing a short way in that there’s so much to follow. There’s even something satisfying about holding a thick novel in your hands and feeling the thickness of it, the weight.

It’s fascinating too how books meet individual character. When I first encountered Donald Barthelme’s brilliant short stories in college, I thought immediately of my siblings Ziff and Kiskilili. The incisive, manic perfection of Barthelme’s tone reminded me of the endless smart-alecky remarks they used to reel off as Lynnette and I, the serious sibs, tried (bossily, in my case) to get everyone to get something done.

This summer I’ve been reading Dickens and now A.S. Byatt’s quartet of novels about Frederica Potter. I love the way her novels are both so intellectually engaging, full of ideas and reflections, and so socially astute in their renderings of all the subtleties of character and motive and human interaction. (I’m fascinated too by how dislikeable her main character is, and yet sympathetic in her very dislikeability. That’s an enormous achievement, I think.)
But neither Lynnette nor Kiskilili likes Byatt much. Kiskilili loves Rosellen Brown; I like her quite well but not as much as Kiskilili does. I know most of us love Margaret Atwood. (Any dissenters besides Ziff who I know doesn’t read fiction much?) And my absent sister Melyngoch and I may be the only ones in the family who like either Shakespeare or Billy Collins.

Questions of taste and pleasure in art are just endlessly engaging. (And just for the record, vampire fiction has never particularly appealed to me, either.)

]]> By: Vada http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34180 Vada Sun, 02 Sep 2007 01:37:00 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34180 Just as a point of information for those of you who are not fans of vampire fiction -- I'm generally not, either. Twilight and its sequels are, in fact, the only vampire fiction I have ever read (though I have watched Buffy and Angel). But I definitely recommend it, especially if you're someone who likes character stories. Just as a point of information for those of you who are not fans of vampire fiction — I’m generally not, either. Twilight and its sequels are, in fact, the only vampire fiction I have ever read (though I have watched Buffy and Angel). But I definitely recommend it, especially if you’re someone who likes character stories.

]]> By: Sue http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34165 Sue Sat, 01 Sep 2007 22:40:12 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34165 And I thought I was the only woman alive who disliked vampire fiction. And I thought I was the only woman alive who disliked vampire fiction.

]]> By: Proud Daughter of Eve http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34150 Proud Daughter of Eve Sat, 01 Sep 2007 18:40:14 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34150 I'm not very much into vampire romance either but all this discussion of "Twilight" is really piquing my curiosity. I have to add this though: <blockquote>Meyer adds an eerie new twist to the mismatched, star-crossed lovers theme: predator falls for prey, human falls for vampire. </blockquote> It's hardly a new twist. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" did this 10 years ago. A book called "The Silver Kiss" -- another YA book -- did it 15 years ago. The "Anita Blake" books have been doing it for 14 years and have 15 books in the series. Robin McKinley jumped on the vampire romance bandwagon four years ago with "Sunshine." I don't know about the Anne Rice books; I don't know if they're vampire romance or just vampire sex. None of this means "Twilight" isn't a good book. It's just not a new concept. Now, show me a book where the vulnerable human is the guy and the noble, tortured supernatural creature is the girl and THAT I will consider a new twist! :) I’m not very much into vampire romance either but all this discussion of “Twilight” is really piquing my curiosity.

I have to add this though:

Meyer adds an eerie new twist to the mismatched, star-crossed lovers theme: predator falls for prey, human falls for vampire.

It’s hardly a new twist. “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” did this 10 years ago. A book called “The Silver Kiss” — another YA book — did it 15 years ago. The “Anita Blake” books have been doing it for 14 years and have 15 books in the series.
Robin McKinley jumped on the vampire romance bandwagon four years ago with “Sunshine.” I don’t know about the Anne Rice books; I don’t know if they’re vampire romance or just vampire sex. None of this means “Twilight” isn’t a good book. It’s just not a new concept.

Now, show me a book where the vulnerable human is the guy and the noble, tortured supernatural creature is the girl and THAT I will consider a new twist! :)

]]> By: Stephen M (Ethesis) http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34053 Stephen M (Ethesis) Fri, 31 Aug 2007 21:49:32 +0000 http://zelophehadsdaughters.com/2007/08/31/a-good-read/#comment-34053 <blockquote> Editorial Reviews From School Library Journal Starred Review. Grade 9 Up–Headstrong, sun-loving, 17-year-old Bella declines her mom's invitation to move to Florida, and instead reluctantly opts to move to her dad's cabin in the dreary, rainy town of Forks, WA. She becomes intrigued with Edward Cullen, a distant, stylish, and disarmingly handsome senior, who is also a vampire. When he reveals that his specific clan hunts wildlife instead of humans, Bella deduces that she is safe from his blood-sucking instincts and therefore free to fall hopelessly in love with him. The feeling is mutual, and the resulting volatile romance smolders as they attempt to hide Edward's identity from her family and the rest of the school. Meyer adds an eerie new twist to the mismatched, star-crossed lovers theme: predator falls for prey, human falls for vampire. This tension strips away any pretense readers may have about the everyday teen romance novel, and kissing, touching, and talking take on an entirely new meaning when one small mistake could be life-threatening. Bella and Edward's struggle to make their relationship work becomes a struggle for survival, especially when vampires from an outside clan infiltrate the Cullen territory and head straight for her. As a result, the novel's danger-factor skyrockets as the excitement of secret love and hushed affection morphs into a terrifying race to stay alive. Realistic, subtle, succinct, and easy to follow, Twilight will have readers dying to sink their teeth into it.–Hillias J. Martin, New York Public Library Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition. See all Editorial Reviews </blockquote> Hmm, I have to confess I'm not big on vampire romance novels.

Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Starred Review. Grade 9 Up–Headstrong, sun-loving, 17-year-old Bella declines her mom’s invitation to move to Florida, and instead reluctantly opts to move to her dad’s cabin in the dreary, rainy town of Forks, WA. She becomes intrigued with Edward Cullen, a distant, stylish, and disarmingly handsome senior, who is also a vampire. When he reveals that his specific clan hunts wildlife instead of humans, Bella deduces that she is safe from his blood-sucking instincts and therefore free to fall hopelessly in love with him. The feeling is mutual, and the resulting volatile romance smolders as they attempt to hide Edward’s identity from her family and the rest of the school. Meyer adds an eerie new twist to the mismatched, star-crossed lovers theme: predator falls for prey, human falls for vampire. This tension strips away any pretense readers may have about the everyday teen romance novel, and kissing, touching, and talking take on an entirely new meaning when one small mistake could be life-threatening. Bella and Edward’s struggle to make their relationship work becomes a struggle for survival, especially when vampires from an outside clan infiltrate the Cullen territory and head straight for her. As a result, the novel’s danger-factor skyrockets as the excitement of secret love and hushed affection morphs into a terrifying race to stay alive. Realistic, subtle, succinct, and easy to follow, Twilight will have readers dying to sink their teeth into it.–Hillias J. Martin, New York Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. –This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Hmm, I have to confess I’m not big on vampire romance novels.

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