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May 08
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Carolynn
gave
to:
Little Children (Paperback)
by Tom Perrotta
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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recommended for: most readers
read in February, 2007
Carolynn said:
"To be brief, this is a very well written piece, something I would call a dark comic drama. Not too unlike American Beauty (the movie). It deeply criticizes the suburban family in a way that is never excessive, just smart. The best asset of this tale ...more
To be brief, this is a very well written piece, something I would call a dark comic drama. Not too unlike American Beauty (the movie). It deeply criticizes the suburban family in a way that is never excessive, just smart. The best asset of this tale is that it's satire is delivered through complex and unforgettable characters. Ones who get addicted to anti-child-molester comittees, parkbench gossip, and even panty-sniffing.
Truly a great read which most people I know on here will totally love. . . I just saw the movie this month and it's really great that Tom Perotta had a big part in its adaptation. All the actors were well chosen and had especially good performances. The Academy also agreed by giving this 'under the radar', somewhat limited release flick many a nominations. Its cinematic ending was so on par with the storyline that I barely noticed one of the generous changes to the ending. After watching, I found myself reading a list on Wiki of all places, which described differences between the book and the movie. As is not always the case, the book was not necessarily better than the film. It was very well adapted in that it didn't try to imitate the book, rather just cinematically portray certain plot lines and create an opportune venue for great performance. It was a little dark and was a limited release sort of flick, so it tended to have the pace of said genre, but I'm used to that. Hooray for the film! And the book!...less
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September 24
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Carolynn
gave
to:
Lucky (Paperback)
by Alice Sebold
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my rating:
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read in September, 2007
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Carolynn
gave
to:
Los Angeles: People, Places, and the Castle on the Hill (Hardcover)
by A.M. Homes
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my rating:
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read in December, 2007
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September 21
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Carolynn
gave
to:
The Lovely Bones (Mass Market Paperback)
by Alice Sebold
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Carolynn said:
"I worked at Borders for more than a year and I worked the boring ass registers, usually at night whic was always slow. I leaned there with my chin in my hand staring at the shelves actually wishing that I could help customers in their purchase...more
I worked at Borders for more than a year and I worked the boring ass registers, usually at night whic was always slow. I leaned there with my chin in my hand staring at the shelves actually wishing that I could help customers in their purchases. It's purely insane, but I think that's what happens anytime you place someone in any kind of confinement. The thing is that if I wasn't a register girl, I would have constant actual contact with the books themselves.
All lunacy aside, one book that I stared at the entire time was this one, cuz it was literally on the number one shelf in the front of the store for a good two years or so. It sounded interesting and got good critical reviews despite its sucess with the bookish Oprah-watching housewife types. So, I REALLY didn't wanna jump on the bandwagon and read it. But at the same time I would open it and try. But I just didn't get into it.
Last week or so, I was reading a friend's blog and she talked about reading the book and how it was so affecting that she found herself driving to work in complete tears. From then on an invisible seed had been planted. I went to the library the other day to pay my fines ($2.75! Man.) and suddenly remembered the book.
I read it in three nights. Sebold's voice is entirely unique. Never seen it before ever. I think that being allowed into the vision and point of view of another person is probably one of the awesomest feelings ever. I think that's what it is to be in love, actually. Get in someone's skin, sit in a recliner in a little theatre located behind their eye sockets, and just watch. Not judge, not worry, not affect. Just experience someone who is so not you.
Sebold allows this on two levels. She sets you up in the front row seat right next to Susie the murdered and raped 14 year old while she watches her former world from Heaven. But she also delivers this language that is new, original, totally fresh and yet entirely accessible. At 3am. In bed. From a free city library borrow.
Her characters are completely amazing individuals, but not unreal or impossible. The way she wrote the book, from Suzie's viewpoint, was definitely some work on her part. And she pulls it off. What I really enjoyed is the way she would sneak in these little pieces of info - I call them " 'omg, are you serious?' mystery info nuggets". She would just be writing a scene, and at an unsuspecting moment she'd just add in a little sentence. And ofcourse, since the story revolves around the grief of the family and the Susie's unsolved case, their are moment of utter thrill as the reader joins the characters in their search for understanding, motive and the killer himself. The sentences feel like when you've been looking for something non-urgent for a while, and it's not really a big deal to find it now or later, but when you do find it your like, 'Man, now I can do this, and this and that, cuz I finally found this thing that I've been inactively searching for for a while'. So, the nuggets definitely keep you reading and sometimes they even make you say, 'omg' out loud.
As always, if you read the first few pages and hate it, then don't force the feeling. Just cuz I thought it was a total modern classic, don't mean anything if it really ain't your thing. Either way, truly a great story, even if your mom thinks so too....less
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September 11
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Carolynn
gave
to:
Oh the Glory of It All (Hardcover)
by Sean Wilsey
bookshelves:
currently-reading
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Carolynn said:
"Superb and most of all unique writing style. A memoir written by an editor at McSweeney's. Still don't know if it's all for real. I'm actually findind it reeeeally depressing and I might just bring it back to the library prematurely. I'm like a third...more
Superb and most of all unique writing style. A memoir written by an editor at McSweeney's. Still don't know if it's all for real. I'm actually findind it reeeeally depressing and I might just bring it back to the library prematurely. I'm like a third way through and it's just too real for me. Sounds dumb of me, but it's true. It's like very depressing but not like in any way I've really seen before. It means that he is a truly good writer. And just that I'm way too emotionally absorbent to read his story right now. Maybe I'll reread it some other time....less
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August 26
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Carolynn
gave
to:
Vice Dos and Don'ts: 10 Years of VICE Magazine's Street Fashion Critiques (Paperback)
by Suroosh Alvi
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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recommended for: fellow people watchers
Carolynn said:
"Probably the best coffee table book apart from any Taschen art book. If you're not familiar with the magazine then, well, you need to be. Vice is now an empire, but they are still one of the only groups of people who will, let's say, join the KKK jus...more
Probably the best coffee table book apart from any Taschen art book. If you're not familiar with the magazine then, well, you need to be. Vice is now an empire, but they are still one of the only groups of people who will, let's say, join the KKK just to write a review.
Their 'Dos and Donts' section is the most popular with its scathing captions (which are some of the best writing I've EVER read) to pictures of the most foul, beautiful, looney, impossible, etc. pictures of people walking down the street ever. I guess this is only cool to people like me who ADORE people watching. ...less
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Carolynn
gave
to:
Book (Paperback)
by Whoopi Goldberg
bookshelves:
currently-reading
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Carolynn
gave
to:
The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Hardcover)
by Milan Kundera
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Carolynn
gave
to:
Beloved (Paperback)
by Toni Morrison
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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Hey Girl. So far 12 of my friends have signed up. I was a little shocked. This is gonna be the MySpace for the small sub-section of my friends who actually read. Welcome to my sub-section.
