First of all, Happy Thanksgiving!

Yesterday I finished Animal Farm by George Orwell. I think I may have read this one before, but because I couldn't remember for sure, I re-read it.

I love stories where animals take on human qualities. In fact, since the library is closed, I started A Lion Among Men (thanks to Danny & Liz) to continue on the talking animal journey. It's the third book in the Wicked series. But I digress...

I understood and sympathized with the maxim of the animals - 4 legs good, 2 legs bad - in their effort to overthrow the farmer and take control of the farm and their own destiny. They didn't want to be rationed too little food, they wanted relaxation, they wanted to avoid slaughter. And it started out that way, with their list of 7 commandments. But as the book went on, the pigs rose to the top and started to modify the commandments, and they became more and more like the humans they ran off the farm.

At the end of the book, there was less food for each animal than before, the pigs had literally taken on human tendencies like drinking alcohol, wearing clothes, pursuing trade, and walking on hind legs. The 7 commandments had been replaced with one: All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.

The book really drew me in, and I loved how the author used this book as a place to further describe his hatred of totalitarianism. The definition of totalitarianism is below, and I've noted in italics some of the examples of the behaviors in the book.

Form of government that subordinates all aspects of its citizens' lives to the authority of the state, with a single charismatic leader as the ultimate authority. (The pig Napoleon.) The term was coined in the early 1920s by Benito Mussolini, but totalitarianism has existed throughout history throughout the world (e.g., Qin dynasty China). It is distinguished from dictatorship and authoritarianism by its supplanting of all political institutions and all old legal and social traditions with new ones to meet the state's needs, which are usually highly focused. (Changing the commandments to support the interests/needs of the pigs, telling the other animals they were mis-remembering the tenants since most of them could not read, also changing history to make Napoleon the hero in all scenarios to make him look good to all the animals on the farm.) Large-scale, organized violence may be legitimized. (The slaughter of animals who were forced to come forward as conspiring with the enemy - I am sure most of them were put up to this as a form of kamikaze suicide, and the rest had guilty consciences because the environment had grown so desperate. I do not think any animal betrayed the farm, except the pigs.) The police operate without the constraint of laws and regulations. (The pigs.) Where pursuit of the state's goal is the only ideological foundation for such a government, achievement of the goal can never be acknowledged. (They never reached the end of the goal because Napoleon always kept shifting the finish line out of reach.)
-Answers.com

The 2 aspects for the book I didn't fully understand were the raven/crow character who seemed to represent some sort of religious authority, but the pig government didn't respect him, and the battle over the firewood and the false money. I assume the firewood episode was supposed to be reflective of how man really is bad, but that the pigs were still becoming more like man every day.

I really liked this book and would recommend it to anyone. Great quick read with a different take on society.

It has been a long 6 weeks, reading The Adventures of Augie March. I really did enjoy the book, but had a tough time following the story because it's written simply to be a novel, not to have a moral like many other stories. The book follows a guy, Augie from childhood through his mid-adult life, and describes all the great adventures he has. My favorite thing about the book was the way the author described sensations, emotions, and observations with such tactile words and colorful phrases.

This book is touted as the quintessential American novel because it's supposed to tell the story of typical Americans, pursuing the American dream. I thought it was so interesting that about half of the book was spent in Mexico... But I did think the author did a nice job portraying the wants of many Americans and the passion behind finding your path in life.

I had a hard time with all the references to adultery since that was quite commonplace in the book. But I do recognize that is a part of the American culture, so I'd imagine it was a fairly accurate representation.

Overall I did enjoy the book, and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in an epic adventure.

Next up: Animal Farm by George Orwell. I'm already 50 pages in, so hopefully I'll have another post in a week.

Thanks for reading!
Mary

One book down...

Tonite I finished All the King's Men. I was really surprised at how quickly I got through the book. I was also really impressed by the breadth of the storyline. What seemed like a story about politics, covered a wide range of topics and emotions. The basic premise is of a country bumpkin, Willie Stark, who gets put on a ballot to split the vote by the opposing party. In the end, that bumpkin becomes the governor (of Mississippi).

The narrator is a man named Jack Burden. Jack is sort of a lackey for Governor Stark (also referred to as Boss). I can't really figure out why he stays with Boss, being that Boss seems to walk the line of questionable ethics, and Jack is from a high class upbringing. However, there is a whole daddy issue, as a number of men played father to Jack. His mother spends her adult life trading up for a younger, more dashing, more interesting model... Leaving Jack feeling a bit aimless, I believe.

Boss seems to be very upstanding in public life by building a hospital and fighting to get a fair contractor... But he's quite another person in his private life, taking down political opponents and cheating on his wife. Governor Stark gets around with several prominent women characters in the book, which leads to jealousy, betrayal, and ultimately 2 deaths. These story lines are pretty interesting, because I wasn't sure the purpose of each romance. It seemed like Boss wanted to have women present in different spheres of life, rather than women who fulfilled different needs/desires.

Governor Stark's son Tom is an all-star football player who hot rods around and chases girls. I found a parallel between Tom's story line and the TV show Friday Night Lights. The all-star football player who frequents roadhouses/strip clubs gets seriously injured in a collision on the field. The balance of the story doesn't light up with FNL, but I'd like to think that our modern script writers drew some inspiration from ATKM.

If you're interested in more, a full synopsis of the novel can be found here: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/kingsmen/summary.html

That's it for now... I'm not sure how much is too much info on the books, in case someone does decide to read the book. Feedback is welcome!

Next up:
Book #2 - The Adventures of Augie March by Saul Bellow
It's nearly 100 pages longer than the last book! Hopefully I'll be posting again soon!

All the King's Men - partway done

I started reading All the King's Men in September and am continually surprised by how quickly it's going. I expected it to be sort of dry since I know that it was required reading for students years ago. But it's such a great mix of personal and political drama that it moves along really well. I am particularly engaged with the verbiage and spellings used. Like likker for liquor and the funny sayings the characters have to describe delicate situations such as pregnancy.

Looking forward to wrapping this book up and posting a more complete synopsis soon!

First Post

Hello Readers~

My name is Mary, and I'm an avid reader. I love fiction, particularly women's lit, historical fiction, memories, and some fantasies. Ever since my fiance and I moved to our new place, I have found myself with a very long bus ride into work. Riding the #6 from Edina, Minnesota to downtown Minneapolis is a 40+ minute ride each way. That's plenty of time for reading. Lots of reading.

I've always been a book worm. I remember it starting with a reading challenge from 5th grade teacher Mrs. Stolzenback (later Ms. Stillenger). I remember reading a book about a teenage ghost and the Babysitters Club. Things haven't changed so much since then, I'm still pushing myself to read lots and hit goals each year. Last year I challenged myself to read 18 books in a year, a goal which I blew out of the water. (This was inspired by my Uncle Tom and Mom, both of whom probably read 30 books a year, if not more.) I led a "ladies only" book club at work for a couple years. For a new years resolution this year, I challenged myself to read 6 Classics. (It's not looking like this will come to fruition, I'm only halfway through Classic #1 - Atlas Shrugged.)

Recently, one of my former book club ladies sent me this article from Time Magazine, and I saw it as a fantastic challenge.
http://www.time.com/time/2005/100books/the_complete_list.html

I recently watched Julie and Julia and loved the concept of cooking every Julia Child's recipe in 365 days while blogging on the success and failure. (The real blog is quite funny, take a peak: http://blogs.salon.com/0001399/.) My goal isn't time boxed, but I am intending on reading every single book on the Times 100 list.

So far, I've definitely read some of the books in school. There are several books I can't remember if I've read, so I am going to tackle those again (Animal Farm, Grapes of Wrath, the Catcher in the Rye, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe). Other than the books I read previously, I am going to try to generally read in alphabetical order. I am borrowing the books from the library, so they may not be exactly in order.

Books I have definitely already read:
Beloved - LOVE Toni Morrison, but Song of Solomon is my favorite
Gone With the Wind - one of my top 20 books and also a great movie
The Great Gatsby - I am still haunted by the eyes on the billboard
Lord of the Flies - I remember this being such a boy book, but the concept has stuck with me longer than many books I read growing up
1984 - Such a captivating concept
Slaughterhouse-Five - I wish this is one we did in book club, I still can't figure out what was reality with the main character
To Kill a Mockingbird - I know this one is influential to many, but this has never been a favorite story for me

So cosy up with your favorite glass of wine (mine is Da Vinci Chianti), a warm blanket, and a scented candle. Over the next months (more likely years), I'll keep you informed of my journey through twentieth century fiction.

Book 1:
All the King's Men By Robert Penn Warren

Happy Reading,
Mary