Cross George Orwell’s 1984 with modern-day America. Brings up some controversial issues on the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. It keeps you wondering what is right, what is constitutional, and what is going too far.
Availability: COSMOS
Review Submitted by: Lisa Williams
Rating: Highly Recommended
I highly anticipated the final book of the Hunger Games series. I have enjoyed the other two books and looked forward to enjoying the third. It is not that the 3rd book is not well written, since it is. It is just that the story was not what I expected. I don’t want to give anything away for those that haven’t read the series yet but the characters lost a little of the edge I had come to enjoy in the first two installments. It was still a good book just not exactly what I was hoping for.
Availability: SMCM Library and COSMOS
Review Submitted by: Mandy Reinig
Rating: Recommended
Read Mandy Reinig’s reviews of The Hunger Games and Catching Fire.
I have seen the movie and was looking forward to reading the book since movies tend to leave out some of the most exciting parts. I was not disappointed. I think this book took on special meaning for me since I read it just as I was arriving to work with elephants in Sri Lanka. For me, this book became not just a love story but also a story about the emotions and feelings of the animals themselves. I also enjoyed how the author moved back and forth between the present Jacob and how the present Jacob came to be.
Availability: COSMOS
Review Submitted by: Mandy Reinig
Rating: Highly Recommended
See Jordan Gaines’ review of Water for Elephants.
I’d heard that the movie adaptation of this book was “so-so,” which led me to believe that the book was incredible and the movie did no justice. After reading the review on this site several weeks ago, I was excited to buy the book, since my library hadn’t had the book on the shelves for weeks. I wish I’d saved my money.
My frustrations with the book are two-fold. Firstly, I never felt drawn into the book at ANY point. The book switches between 3rd-person narration and entries from Lincoln’s “secret journals,” oftentimes changing with every other paragraph. Grahame-Smith’s style, while unique, never allowed me to feel like I was experiencing the story. I felt like an observer, and I desperately wanted to feel included.
Secondly, while the vampire twist was a unique idea, Grahame-Smith’s storytelling ability was lacking. The book reads like a history lesson, and basically every hardship in Lincoln’s life (i.e. deaths in the family) was blamed on vampires. When the vampires aren’t playing a role in the book, the author seems to get lost in his research and ramble. (And when they ARE playing a role, there is a severe deficit of description). Grahame-Smith lacks the ability of many historical biographers to draw readers in to peoples’ lives—he simply recounts anything I could have Googled and adds in some vampire-killing. Indeed, he acknowledges Google and Wikipedia at the end for the “help” he had with writing his book. He doesn’t cite one historian, Lincoln biography, or primary source.
I did enjoy reading about Lincoln’s life, but was frustrated by its execution. The best takeaway from my reading was that Lincoln had a life that doesn’t require vampires for it to be incredible. It has inspired me to go read a real Lincoln biography now. I have yet to see the movie (and may only see it when it comes out on DVD), but this may be one instance where the movie may actually be better than the book.
Availability: USMAI and COSMOS
Review Submitted by: Jordan Gaines, SMCM Alum ’11
Rating: Not recommended
Read Samantha Schwartz’s review of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.
You now have enhanced access to the Chronicle of Higher Education. The domain smcm.edu has been added to the CHE authentication database so that anyone with a college email address can create a free account and access the CHE from anywhere, anytime, without using Research Port!
Ways to access the Chronicle online:
You don’t want this kitten to know more about higher education than you do. Trust me.
Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross is the story of a woman, who, disguised as a man, rises to highest position in the Catholic Church. It is a novel, since the existence of Pope Joan is denied by the Catholic Church. However, this serves to make the book more interesting, since the author can fill in dramatic details. Joan’s downfall is sort of obvious and disappointing, but is apparently found in historical sources. The misogyny and brutality of the time (ninth century) is rather horrifying, but is accurate to the time period. Recommended.
Availability: USMAI
Review Submitted by: Rebecca Thayer
Rating: Recommended.
Join the College’s first-year students and read Julie Otsuka’s, When the Emperor Was Divine. Earn two points in July by posting your review on the Library Summer Reading blog.
See Tiko Mason’s review of Julie Otsuka’s The Buddha in the Attic.
Lauren Grey has won the monthly prize drawing for June.
Submit a review in July to be eligible for the our next drawing. Don’t forget prizes are available for all participants who submit a review between June 4 and August 17.
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie is the story of two young men who are sent to the countryside to be “re-educated” during China’s Cultural Revolution. There, they discover Chinese translations of forbidden Western books. The book’s description of the re-education of the two men is interesting, and the wonder that they feel upon reading these forbidden books is familiar to anyone with a love of reading. However, the last third of the book really falls off in quality, with a strange narrative change. I found the end to be confusing. The end of the book seems to have a deep meaning, but I could not figure out what it was.
Availability: SMCM Library
Review Submitted by: Rebecca Thayer
Rating: Recommended with Reservations.
This is the 12th book in “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” series, which I love. Smith’s books are such a breath of fresh air—charming and interesting. And, in a strange way, calming. I find myself physically reading these books more slowly, savoring them.
The series takes place in Botswana and features Precious Ramotswe, the proprietor of the detective agency, and the people and events surrounding her life in and out of the business. I recommend the books if you want a quick, peaceful read!
Availability: USMAI
Review Submitted by: Jordan Gaines, Alum ’11
Rating: Highly recommended
See reviews of Tea Time for the Traditionally Built and The Double Comfort Safari Club by Alexander McCall Smith.
