The Flight of the Falcon by Daphne Du Maurier

Hey everyone...

This is the last book review of the holidays. I read The Flight of the Falcon by Daphne Du Maurier. I have heard that Daphne Du Maurier's style of writing is quite an 'acquired taste' and people I know who like all the same genres that I do, really dislike Du Maurier's way of writing. For my part, I like it. Her books are classified as classics, but they don't feel like you are reading a classic. For instance, when reading Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre, there is a particular feel to the book, in my opinion, and you know that it is a 'hard' read. However, I don't find that with Du Maurier's books. I think her most famous book is Rebecca and I have read that, but I preferred her less well known ones, The King's General, for example and My Cousin Rachel.

The Flight of the Falcon takes place in Italy, about thirty years or so after the end of WWII, in a town called Ruffano. A lot of Daphne Du Maurier's books are part of a mystery genre. Although not drastically so, the characters are always discovering things or finding out things, as well as having a different overall storyline. This particular protagonist, a man called Armino Fabbio, is a tour guide across Italy, when he hears of the murder of his childhood nurse. This murder is a reoccuring theme throughout the book however, at the same time, there is another storyline about a annual Festival held in Ruffano and incidents surrounding that. Maybe I should include the blurb here, because I am not very good at summarising stories. :/

BLURB 
Armino Fabbio leads a pleasant, if humdrum life - until he becomes circumstantially involved in the murder of an old peasant woman in Rome. The woman, he gradually learns, was his family's beloved servant many years ago, in his native town of Ruffano.
Over five hundred years before, the sinister Duke Claudio, known as The Falcon, lived his twisted, brutal life preying on the people of Ruffano. Now, in the twentieth century, the town seems to have forgotten its violent history. But have things really changed?

What I liked about the book 
As I said, Du Maurier's style of writing is one that I enjoy. Her description is not present in vast quantities but is detailed and very effective. The story nevers 'sits still', and there are loads of details that you think are insignificant but all come together at the end in a really cool way and I didn't expect the ending at all. Du Maurier is very good at making you believe something and then completely changing your mind. If you have read Rebecca, you will know what I mean. I loved the way that she developed her characters and the relationships between them, particularly the two brothers that feature heavily. I also liked the way that when thinking about the book, the storyline seems really complicated because there are so many different things happening but, when you are reading it, it is really easy to understand.

Issues discussed in the book
In this book, there is a clear theme of history repeating itself. Dictators and heroes appear throughout history, repeated whenever the time so dictates. This theme, of history repeating itself, is used often in books because it can be interpreted and written in many different ways and I, for one, like this type of theme. In this book, Duke Claudio 'reappears' in another form and there are parallels between events in the past and events in the present.
I love history, because I think that humans, in our arrogance and ignorance, don't learn from our mistakes and will continue to repeat them until the end of time. In a way, we think that because we are at the top of the food chain, we are somehow incapable of making mistakes and so refuse to see them when they happen.
People say that history is a dying subject, one that is studied simply because of interest in the past and plays no role in the future. I disagree. Look at the period of history a few years before this book, from the years 1914-1991. Three big wars during that time. WWI, WWII and the Cold War. Well, I could say from that that there will be another war some time because we obviously have not learnt our lesson. WWI was supposed to be the war to end all wars and then came WWII and the Holocaust. Although there was no actual fighting in the Cold War, directly between the Soviets and the Americans, during that period of time there was the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, the greatest threat of nuclear war this world has ever seen, and the Afghanistan War, which lasted for ten years and cost something like 1.5 million lives. I think only time will tell when another war comes but I feel sure that it will come, because we never learn.

Wow, that was a happy ramble. Quick, onto the recommendations.

Recommendations
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke - This is the first book in a trilogy. I have read all of them. They were originally written in German but have been translated into English. It is about a girl called Meggie who loves books and her dad is a bookbinder. But then, a stranger comes to their house and Meggie is taken on a journey of discovery about powers that she has only read about. Although, history does not repeat itself exactly, the past does return to haunt Meggie and her dad, Mortimer.

The King's General by Daphne Du Maurier- If you read The Flight of the Falcon and enjoy it, I recommend that you check out Daphne Du Maurier's other books. My favourite is The King's General. It is about the Civil War in England between the King and Parliament. But it is also a love story between Honor Harris and Richard Grenville, the general of the King's army. It is inspired by a horrible discovery in a house in the nineteenth century and the discovery is featured in the book. So read it and find out! :)

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BUY THE KING'S GENERAL ON AMAZON
BUY THE FLIGHT OF THE FALCON ON AMAZON

Well, that is it for this blog post. I hope you enjoyed it and I hope you check out the books I recommended.:)


Clare

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Hey Everyone...

The second book I read over my holiday was Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen. It is now also a film, starring Robert Pattinson, but I have never watched it. Water for Elephants is the story of a circus in America during the 1920s approximately. The protagonist, Jacob Jankowski loses his parents in a motorcycle accident and jumps onto a circus train travelling across the country, where he is recruited by the circus 'Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth' as a vet. During this time, the 1920s, America had Prohibition. The Prohibition Amendment and the Volstead Act of 1919 and 1920 meant that the consumption, production and selling of alcohol was illegal across America. Because people still wanted to drink alcohol, they produced their own alcohol (moonshine) or smuggled it in from Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean. Brewing your own alcohol was very dangerous, as I am sure you can imagine, and, although during the period of Prohibition, there was a decrease in the number of deaths on the road from drunk driving, doctors reported an increase in cases of blindness and poisoning due to the consumption of moonshine. 

What I liked about the book
This book is really easy to read and the plot is really easy to follow. It does not take a lot of effort to read. The book is also really accurate to the time and does not beat around the bush about the effects of Prohibition, of the illegal practices that started to become normal practice and the tragedy of the Jamaica ginger paralysis, which came from drinking poisoned alcohol. And I learnt a lot about the practices of circuses and the cruelty with which they treated their animals. It was really eye-opening. 

Issues discussed in the book 
Obviously, circus life plays a huge part in this book. Sara Gruen did extensive research into the life of the circus in America during the 1920s. I don't know whether you have seen or read the Elephant Man. A slightly different time period but the cruelty inflicted upon the 'Elephant Man' because he was what they called a 'freak' was horrendous. I don't know whether 'redlighting' was a common procedure in many circuses, but in the Benzini Brothers, if you weren't performing properly, or there was something wrong with you, they pushed you off the moving train. I think that it is incredible that people believe that they are justified in doing things to others. This for me applies to so many different areas in life, from the heinous deeds of terrorists, where they think that they are justified in killing thousands of innocent people to the smallest things, when the smallest person in the class is picked on, for example. I don't know whether this is my religious inclinations shining through (;/ Whoops) but it really is interesting. What is the thought process that allows you to do that? I don't understand it.
Similarly, in Water for Elephants, many of the animals are treated terribly. I don't know a lot about circuses now but, you know, during that time, they used every animal as a money-making machine and every person as well.  The elephant in the book is called Rosie and there is a 'problem' with her that, at the beginning, is not understood by most of the circus staff. Due to this problem, she would not perform well at the shows. And when that happened, they just beat her and beat her. At the back of the book, Sara Gruen spoke about two circus elephants, Old Mom and Topsy. If you want to know more about them, look them up. Their stories are heart-breaking. :(
Now, in a lot of these reviews, the issues discussed directly affect human life. This review is slightly different, in that it affects animal life. To me, using animals as entertainment is a cruel process. There are many ways that you can entertain yourself; animals don't need to be used. That is why I so strongly disagree with bullfighting and using animals in circuses. Unless an animal was made to do something, I disagree with making it do it.  

Recommendations 
The Dancing Bear by Michael Morpurgo - If you have read my review on Before I Die (here) and my holiday reading recommendations, then you will have seen this. If not, this is the story of a bear cub adopted by an orphan. They become very close until a film crew comes to the village and wants a dancing bear for the film that they are making. It is a very short book and very easy to read. (I know some of the books I recommend can be quite daunting) However, it completely discusses the issues that are brought up in Water for Elephants and I think that it is an amazing book. Michael Morpurgo is an author who has written some of my favourite books of all time. If I could have half the career in writing fiction that he has had, I would be extremely honoured.


Wonder by E.J. Palacio- This book is sort of a modern day version of the Elephant Man. It is the story of a boy who is severely physically disabled but lives the normal life of a teenager. It shows how cruel children can be towards one another and how unaccepting people are of each other, when others look a little different. You know that phrase, Don't judge a book by its cover. On the back of this book, it says, Don't judge a boy by his face.' And it shows that we all do, judge by physical appearance when it doesn't matter at all. I really recommend this book.

BUY WATER FOR ELEPHANTS ON AMAZON
BUY THE DANCING BEAR ON AMAZON 
BUY WONDER ON AMAZON

Well, that is it for this blog post. I hope that you enjoyed it.  

Clare 

Before I Die by Jenny Downham

Hello Everyone...
I'm back. Back from Spain. I read three books over the two weeks and this is number one. It is called Before I Die by Jenny Downham. For those who have read it, I know that it is not a very 'happy' book, in the fact it is about a girl who is dying of cancer but it is an interesting book and very uplifting at the end and it does present a series of interesting questions and situations. (Before I begin, I would like to say that when I go on holiday, probably contrary-wise to the majority of the book fanatic population, I like to take books that I don't have time to read during the non-holiday period. That means, usually, they are difficult to read or they are quite different books. I don't take 'easy' novels on holiday. So, with that in mind, if you like something simple to read while you are chilling out on holiday somewhere, I will give some recommendations below so you can skip this review and check those out.)
Before I Die is about a girl called Tessa, who is dying of cancer but she has a list of things that she wants to do before she dies. The list evolves and changes, going from being very superficial and almost crude to becoming deeper and more beautiful. 

What I liked about the book
Jenny Downham is an amazing writer, that much is clear from her style and way of writing. She is slightly ambiguous at times in her metaphors and similes but I think it is very beautiful. However, the character of Tessa annoyed me sometimes in the way that she saw the world and her actions. I also did not like the message that could have been interpreted from the book. Tessa's list of things to do included illegal things and she said that she was 'living'. I quote, 'stay wrapped in blankets and get on with dying, or get the list back together and get on with living'. I personally was not too impressed with this because I believe that it could affect readers in the wrong way. To me, the quality of life does not affect whether or not you are living truly but, nonetheless, I did enjoy the book. (I have just realised that I probably sound like a real killjoy in all of these reviews. I just have very definite and probably controversial views so...sorry about that.) 

Issues presented in the book
I suppose one of the biggest issues in the book was this idea of the quality of life and how it affects the way that you see the world and the way in which you see life. Tessa had a poor quality of life, that much was clear because she was dying of cancer but she tried to improve but doing different things and changing her attitude along the way. I guess that one of the greatest things in the book is that by the end she realised that fulfilling a list of things does not make life any worse or better. Life isn't improved by doing a list of things; that isn't how life gets better. She finds out, as I suppose the reader might as well, that life is life. People and experiences make it more enjoyable but not really better. Wow, deep. On the cover of the book, there is a quote from a reviewer that says 'a book that will make you happy to be alive.' and it really is. It did make me appreciate the things that I have and the illnesses that I don't have and, when you finish the book, you feel cathartic.  

Recommendations (for Before I Die)

Mister God, This Is Anna by Sydney Hopkins, under the pseudonym Fynn- This is one of my favourite books of all time. It is the story of a girl called Anna, of about five years old, who is found by a nineteen-year old boy called Fynn on the streets in London. Fynn takes her home to live with him and his mother because Anna doesn't seem to have a family. It is the story of Anna through Fynn's eyes, her constant outpouring of information about all the different issues in the world and her explanation of her friend and mentor, Mister God. It is an adorable story and it is so sweet.  

Eva's Story by Eva Schloss - Another great book. Eva Schloss is the step-sister of Anne Frank. When Anne, her sister and mother died in the concentration camps, Eva's brother and dad died and therefore Otto Frank and Eva's mum married after the war. I have met Eva Schloss and she signed my copy of Eva's Story. ;) It is not as well known as Anne Frank's diary but I think I prefer Eva's Story. It is so heartbreaking and so authentic that it makes me cry every time I read it. It is the story of Eva's experience in the concentration camps of the Nazis and her story of survival. Every time you read it, it makes you marvel at the things people think they are justified in doing to others. It is really, very sad.

BUY MISTER GOD, THIS IS ANNA ON AMAZON
BUY EVA'S STORY ON AMAZON
BUY BEFORE I DIE ON AMAZON

Recommendations (for holiday books)
All of these are quite short books that could be read over a short period of time and I have chosen a few different categories so you can pick and choose.
FOR THOSE THAT WANT A QUICK READ-
Cool by Michael Morpurgo - the story of a boy called Robbie in a coma after being in a car accident. It is actually really uplifting and surprisingly amusing at times.
The Dancing Bear by Michael Morpurgo - this is the story of a bear that is adopted by a  orphan girl and she raises him but then a film crew comes to the village and they want a dancing bear.
Toro! Toro! by Michael Morpurgo - Antonito lives on a bull farm in Spain. His favourite bull is called Paco but then he finds out that Paco is headed for the bullring.
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BUY THE DANCING BEAR ON AMAZON
BUY TORO! TORO! ON AMAZON

FOR THOSE THAT WANT SOME COMEDY 
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell- This is the story of a boy who moves to Corfu with his family and loves animals. He keeps trying to bring wildlife into the house and that, along with his highly eccentric family, makes it a really funny book
BUY MY FAMILY AND OTHER ANIMALS ON AMAZON

FOR THOSE THAT WANT A LITTLE ROMANCE 
Amy and Roger's EPIC Detour by Morgan Matson- This is the story of a road trip between California and the East Coast. Amy Curry hasn't been able to drive a car since her father's death and so Roger drives them. And you can guess what happens next... ;)
BUY AMY AND ROGER'S EPIC DETOUR ON AMAZON

FOR THOSE THAT WANT TO BE SCARED 
Coraline by Neil Gaiman- I wasn't scared by this book but it is classified as paranormal. It is the story of Coraline, who has moved into a new house and behind the door in her drawing room is another house where live people who have buttons for eyes. It is just really creepy. If you like that...
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Well, finally we have got to the end of this review. Wow, it has been long. I hope you enjoyed it and you like some of the books that I recommend. I have two more reviews coming out, one will probably be today and the other tomorrow morning some time.


Clare

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

Hey everyone...

So here is review number two. Yesterday, I finished Still Alice by Lisa Genova.

Before continuing, I,would like to say that this book has a movie adaptation that I would strongly recommend. Julianne Moore won Best Actress for her portrayal of Alice and it really was well deserved.

Anyway, the book... Still Alice tells the story of fifty-one year old Alice, diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia. Proteins build up in the brain to form structures called 'plaques' and 'tangles'. This leads to the loss of connections between nerve cells, and eventually to the death of nerve cells and loss of brain tissue. People with Alzheimer's also have a shortage of some important chemicals in their brain that help to transmit important signals and messages around the brain. A shortage means that the signals are not transmitted as effectively. Before reading this book, I knew very little about Alzheimer's and, although this book does not contain excessive factual information (I do not like it when books do contain a lot), I did learn a lot about Alzheimer's through the eyes of Alice, who was suffering with it. Alzheimer's is a terminal illness that breaks down the neurones in the brain that deal with memory.

However, this is not a book about Alzheimer's. It is not overly factual or dry and it does not make you feel pitiful in a negative way. This is a book about Alice and her struggle with the disease. She is a Harvard professor of psychology and she has a husband and three children, Anna, Tom and Lydia. Narrated through her eyes, it is a heart-breaking and beautifully told story of how her life unravels at the hands of this terrible disease. 

Why do I like this book?

This book is heartbreaking but in a way that made me think. Alice was very intelligent and I myself am very nerdy and love to learn new things. Lisa Genova is able to show, very realistically and sympathetically how this terrible illness is causing her to forget everything that she has learnt and, even more terribly, the faces of everyone she loved. Can you imagine waking up and not knowing who your family were? Their faces were still somewhere in your head but you couldn't access them because your neurones had been destroyed.

I think Lisa Genova makes this living with this disease which, thankfully, everyone does not have to do, relatable to everyone who reads it. The author really develops the relationships between the husband and wife and mother and children to show how the disease attacks all parts of Alice's life.

Issues discussed in this book

Obviously, Alzheimer's is one of the issues discussed. To me, before reading Still Alice, Alzheimer's meant very little to me and I knew very little about it. I knew that it was a terminal disease but I had very little knowledge of the effect it had on peoples' lives. It meant the same to me as Parkinson's or Motor Neurone Disease. I could name a few people who had these diseases but I didn't really know anything about them. When someone says, think of a terminal illness, I think of cancer. It is a much bigger issue in my family and therefore, it mattered a lot more to me. After watching the Theory of Everything, I understood the severity of Motor Neurone Disease to a much greater extent. But I think that that a problem. I was learning about these illnesses from a film, instead of being given information about them from my school or from the world in general. Everyone I know, I believe  could name a form of cancer but not everyone could tell me what these other terminal illnesses could do, or even what they are. Let's focus on Alzheimer's. I do believe awareness should be raised about these diseases, to let people know more about them and to understand the severity of what many people have to face. Because I've studied in a good school and I have had a good education and I have never heard Parkinson's, Alzheimer's or even Motor Neurone Disease mentioned in any of my lessons and that is a bad thing. (I've included these three because these I have now researched a bit more but there are lots more.) How can we expect things to change without teaching people about them? 

Recommendations

There are two books that I recommend if you enjoy reading Still Alice. One is This Star Won't Go Out by Esther Earl and her parents. This book is the story of a girl who suffers from cancer. She died but her parents published her diary of her life, living with it. It is an amazing story and what I love about it is that although it is about cancer, it isn't a cancer book.

And the second book is Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. For those who do not know, Black Beauty is a horse and this book is the story of his life. Let me explain. I think this book is so sweet, for a start but also, through the eyes of Black Beauty, a horse, he accepts all that happens in his life, all the bad owners and the horrible things that happen and I think it is very similar to how Alice accepted what was going to happen in her life.

Okay...well that's it for this post. I am now reading Mercy by Jodi Picoult so that will be my next review. I might do an overall for Jodi Picoult as well because I love her books. I hope this post was interesting and you enjoyed it. Below are the links to buy all the books and also a link I found in the back of Still Alice to donate money to raise awareness for Alzheimer's.

BUY STILL ALICE ON AMAZON

BUY BLACK BEAUTY ON AMAZON

BUY THIS STAR WON'T GO OUT ON AMAZON

DONATE MONEY TO RAISE AWARENESS 

Click on the CALL TO ACTION- Alzheimer's button and donate money.
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE HERE 

Be Awesome

Clare

Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Hello everyone...

So this is my first review. I read Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and overall, I really enjoyed it. I would recommend it to middle-ish teens and going up as it can be a little disturbing at times because there is domestic abuse. 

It tells the story of a girl called Kambili, living in Nigeria after colonisation. Because of this, there are many political and economic struggles for the people,which results in conflict throughout the novel. Kambili lives with her parents in Enugu. Her father is Catholic, but in a very oppressive and sometimes cruel way, subjecting Kambili and her mother and brother to beatings when they do something that he does not like. The novel is the story of Kambili growing up, told from Kambili's perspective and essentially breaking free from the restrictions that her father has put on her and the restrictions that she has put on herself, trying to live up to her father's expectations. Many themes are explored in the book, such as maturity, sexuality, civil unrest as well as the struggles that a girl faces growing up.

This book was the debut novel of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and it was highly acclaimed, winning the 2004 Hurston/Wright Legacy and the 2005 Commonwealth Writers' Best First Book Prize. It was also shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction in 2004. This doesn't always guarantee that a book will be enjoyable for every individual to read but it does mean that many people enjoyed the book. 

Why did I like the book?

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (the author) is extremely good at capturing Kambili's thoughts and feelings and relating her struggles to the reader. Kambili faces difficulties that are relatable to all girls and boys growing up and Chimamanda is able to really bring that across in the writing. There is a lot of beautiful description in the book and the storyline is really interesting and developed. Although the first few pages are quite slow, once the story takes off, it really picks up pace and is very gripping until the end.

Issues discussed in the book

One of the main themes running through the book was religion and how it affected the lives of many different people. Kambili's father, Eugene, for instance, is a Catholic but extremely radical, one might say, in his views and practices. He teaches his children that pagans are all going to hell, for instance and he beats them when they do not follow his will, saying that it is because they have been possessed by the devil. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie wrote a small message at the end of the book, saying that she did not want people to see Eugene as the 'villain' but simply someone who did horrible things but was not a horrible man. Eugene uses religion in the wrong way, utilising it not only to pray for himself and his family, but also to influence, in the wrong way, Kambili's ideas of religion and to judge and look down upon those who are not Catholics.

However, Kambili's grandfather, is a heathen, or traditionalist, as he calls himself, worshipping many gods and speaking to his ancestors. Needless to say, Eugene does not approve of this and will not speak to his father and will not help him in his financial distress. However, Kambili notices that her grandfather is not at all the person that Eugene makes him out to be. Although a 'pagan', he understands more about compassion and humility and also seems to be a lot freer in his religion than Eugene who follows a stricter, more accepted religion. (Catholicism).

I personally also believe that the issues of religion that are highlighted in this book are contemporary issues that we can now see in our world today. In the book, people use religion as an excuse to do wrong and today, we can see radicalists and terrorists uniting under a banner of religion in order to do wrong. I believe that there is nothing in any religion that says that killing and/or physical/mental abuse is justified and in this book, these issues are highlighted. 

Recommendations

But of course, this book is not for everyone and therefore, here are some other great books that I have read, that relate to Purple Hibiscus in some way but are also slightly different. 

The Prisoner of the Inquisition by Theresa Breslin. This novel tells of a difficult time for Spain, during the Spanish Inquisition when King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella were hunting out Muslims and Jews, whom they believed to be heretics and burning/imprisoning them if they did not convert to Christianity. The novel follows the two stories of a poor boy called Saulo and a rich merchant's daughter called Zara. It relates strongly to the oppressive theme of religion in Purple Hibiscus and is also a really great book. 

Goodnight Mister Tom by Michelle Magorian. This novels tells the story of William Beech, a young boy evacuated to the country during the Second World War. He goes to stay with Tom Oakley. I chose to include this novel because it has an underlying theme of breaking away from oppression and growing up, learning about love and the beautiful things in the world, despite the horror of the Second World War all around them. William Beech's mum is a Christian and does use religion in a similar way to Kambili's father but that is not the overall theme of the book. It has a wonderful ending and I really enjoyed reading it.  

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BUY GOODNIGHT MISTER TOM ON AMAZON

BUY PRISONER OF THE INQUISITION ON AMAZON

So that's the end of this post. I hope it interested you. I am now reading Still Alice, so hopefully I should review that soon. I
:) 
Thanks for reading,

Clare