The Circle

Have you ever wanted to just grab someone by the shoulders and shake them awake because they seemed oblivious to the seriousness of the things going on around them—or worse, the things happening to them? If not, I would like to introduce you to Mae Holland, the naïve young protagonist Dave Eggers’ latest novel, The Circle. Trust me, you’ll want to do more than just shake her before the book’s end.

Truthfully, I really liked Mae at first, and I especially enjoyed her excitement and wide-eyed wonder at landing a dream job at a powerful tech company called—you guessed it—the Circle. Like most  new employees, Mae is eager to please her superiors (including college-friend Annie, who pulled strings to get her the job), but in doing so she seems almost as eager to give herself away in the process. For example, all Circle employees are expected to participate in various company activities (there are hundreds of them) and contribute to the company’s social-network feeds (Zing, InnerCircle, OuterCircle, etc.), all of which are taken into account when calculating an employee’s “Participation Rank.” Okay, fine: The food in the cafeteria today was excellent. Zing! Whatever. But when Mae is dressed down for spending a weekend at home (as opposed to staying on campus and “participating”) and for having the gall to go kayaking (an activity she enjoys doing alone as a means to de-stress) without documenting any of it on her social feeds, I was bothered by her acceptance of these criticisms as valid. Frankly, I wanted her to stand up and tell those pinheads to go to h—oh, wait, can’t write that here. But you get the point. Unfortunately, Mae telling them that what she does on her own time is her own business would have been useless, because at the Circle, everything you do is the Circle’s business. Rather than rebel, Mae acquiesces, and in doing so, she begins to lose herself.

By the time we reach the second act of the story, where the Orwellian slogans SECRETS ARE LIES, SHARING IS CARING, and PRIVACY IS THEFT are trotted out at a company pep-rally (seriously, didn’t any of these people read 1984?), Mae finds herself quickly ascending through the company ranks and becoming a star both inside and outside the Circle—and, of course, a rival to Annie for the attention of their social-network overlords. The price is Mae’s sense of self and any remaining scrap of privacy she might have held onto, not to mention her friendship with Annie. Admittedly, much of what happens in this half of the book is so over-the-top that I found it silly, but with the ever-growing reach of surveillance, internet and otherwise, perhaps some elements might not be beyond the realm of possibility. All in all, though, The Circle is a good and quick read, and (if digested with an open mind) it should lead to some interesting discussions on the state of privacy in our increasingly transparent world.  

Holiday Disasters Make Holiday Laughter!

Thanksgiving started gently this year.  Usually it is hectic and crazy, but...I planned ahead. I baked early since I knew the turkey would take my oven space. Yet, sometimes when everything is going well something has to go and ruin it. That is exactly what happened! Do not misunderstand me, my turkey was done and it was delicious--but getting it onto the platter this year turned out to be the funniest thing I have ever experienced.

I will remember it for years. It was almost time for dinner. I removed my beautiful turkey from the oven. It was perfectly brown. In fact it looked like a magazine cover picture.  The problems began when I tried to move it onto the platter.

The turkey was well cooked--so cooked that when I went to lift it from the pan, one of the turkey legs fell off.  Well I'll be honest, the turkey leg bone fell off in my hand and the meat fell into the bottom of the pan. Who knew that I was an inventor? I invented a self-deboning turkey! I decided to use a long fork stuck into the bird to try and move it, but I could feel the meat beginning to fall off the bones. I stopped and got a giant plastic spoon and wide spatula thinking I could lift it out. However, when I went to lift the turkey this time my spoon broke and the wing fell off. That's when I and my family laughed so hard it hurt. Three wide spatulas later and a few more deboned pieces of turkey we had it placed on two trays. My husband said it was the easiest turkey he ever carved.

You can also enjoy a relaxing laughter filled holiday without an interesting experience with your turkey.  Here are a few unusual holiday stories that will keep you laughing this holiday!

Cats' Letters to Santa by Bill Adler

The Shepherd, The Angel and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry

I'm Dreaming of a Black Christmas By Lewis Black

You Better Not Cry: Stories for Christmas By Augusten Burroughs

Skipping Christmas by John Grisham

Christmas Curiosities by John Grossman

Scared of Santa By Denise Joyce 

A Christmas Blizzard by Garrison Keillor

An Idiot's Girl's Guide to Christmas by Laurie Notaro

Christmas Letters From Hell by Michael Lent

The Onion Presents: Christmas Exposed by The Onion

Merry Christmas from-- 150 Christmas Cards You Wished You Received
by Karen Robert

Santa Responds: He's Had Enough by Santa Claus

I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence by Amy Sedaris

Holidays On Ice by David Sedaris

The Twelve Terrors of Christmas by John Updike

Sketchy Santas: A Lighter Look at the Darker Side of St. Nick by Will Zweigart

Disney Movies from Books--Can You Handle the Originals?

Many of the Disney movies are based on other books, stories, and fairy tales.  Some of the original stories were incredibly graphic.  It makes me wonder why Disney even chose such gory stories to adapt for children in the first place.  However, I cannot deny their beloved status in the world of cinema. 

For you Disney geeks like me out there, try one of these original tales in written form and let me know what you think.

I put an asterisk * by some of the more graphic ones. 

*"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" – based on Snow White by the Brothers Grimm

*"Pinocchio" – Based on Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi

"Bambi" – based on Bambi, A Life in the Woods by Felix Salten

"Cinderella" – based on Cinderella by Charles Perrault

"Alice in Wonderland" – based on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

"Peter Pan" – based on Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

"Old Yeller" – based on Old Yeller by Fred Gipson

"Sleeping Beauty" - based on Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault

 "One Hundred and One Dalmatians" – based on The Hundred and One Dalmatians by Dodie Smith

"The Sword in the Stone" – based on The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White

"The Incredible Journey" – based on The Incredible Journey by Sheila Burnford

"Mary Poppins" – based on Mary Poppins by P. L. Travers

*"The Jungle Book" – based on The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

"The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" – based on Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne

*"The Fox and the Hound" – based on The Fox and the Hound by Daniel P. Mannix

"The Black Cauldron" – based on The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander

"Oliver and Company" – based on Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

*"The Little Mermaid" –based on The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen

*"Aladdin" – a version of the story of "Aladdin and the Magic Lamp" from the book Arabian Nights: Tales from a Thousand and One Nights

"The Muppet Christmas Carol" – based on A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

"The Three Musketeers" – based on The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas.

"Muppet Treasure Island" – adaptation of Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

*"The Hunchback of Notre Dame" – based on The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo

*"Tarzan" – based upon the Tarzan of the Apes series by Edgar Rice Burroughs

"Tuck Everlasting" – based on Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

"Bridge to Terabithia" – based on Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

"The Princess and the Frog" – based on The Frog Princess by E. D. Baker

*"Tangled" – based on Rapunzel by the Brothers Grimm

 

A Year in Reading

A Year in Reading

Looking back over the books I have gone through is always an interesting experience, teetering between quite pride and the number of books I have read and despair at the sheer volume of books in my ever expanding to-be-read pile. Anyway, what follows are the highlights (that I have not already reviewed here), not the worst, not the best, but those that stuck in my mind for whatever reason.

 

Rex Libris: I Librarian (Volume 1) By James Turner
Rex Libris: Book of Monsters (Volume 2) By James Turner

Ah, Rex Libris, immortal librarian that brave any foe to the farthest reaches to retrieve overdue books. Only the TV mini-series The Librarian, starring Noah Wyle, comes close to the campy feel that Rex brings. However, the sheer volume of oddball fact and trivia and ridiculousness that Rex and hic companions brings cannot be rivaled.

 

The People of Forever Are Not Afraid by Shani Boianjiu

I picked this up as a book for consideration for a book club figuring that a novel of three young girls in their mandatory military service set in the Middle East would make for some interesting discussion.  However, the book was a slog through muddled apathy. I forced myself to push through to the end, holding out for a redeeming ending only to be disappointed.

 

Sacré Bleu by Christopher Moore

This is my 2013 book that I tell people about and all but throw at them. Well written, well researched, excellent layout, beautiful cover design. If you like art or Christopher Moore, or just odd/dark humor, just read this book.

 

The Emperor’s Soul by Brandon Sanderson

This novella won a Hugo Award and one you finish it, it is easily to understand why. Sanderson creates an amazing world, rich characters, and adds a dash of existential debate, all within 200 pages. He has been getting a good amount of buzz as of late and this might be a good way to ease into his writing, which can be a bit overwhelming in some instances.

 

The Dinner by Herman Koch

One of two books that, when done, I had the urge to chuck across the room (The other being The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake). The idea being of a story slowly unfolding and progressing just as the meal that the characters are eating does is very intriguing. It was touted as revealing a dark side of society and making the reader question how far they would go to protect their family. I more felt that it was a rambling and entirely unreliable narrator justifying criminal activity.

 

Saga (Volume 1 & 2) by Brian K Vaughan

A simply amazing story of a new family risking everything to find their place in a war torn galaxy. With heavy doses of science fiction and fantasy, these graphic novels flawlessly blends love, grit, violence, and of course hope into an award winning series.  I certainly recommend grabbing this one up if it even sounds remotely interesting. You will not regret it.

 

December's Get In the Queue

Here are a few great new releases!   If you are not already in the queue for these fantastic novels,...there's no better time to request them, than right now!

The Apartment: A Novel by Greg Baxter is a thoughtful penetrating debut novel which explores the dynamics of America's relationship with the rest of the world. As we follow  one American man through a day in his life, we learn about the impact of love, war and exile has on the human spirit.

 

The Prince of Risk: A Novel by Christopher Reich is acclaimed as a fast paced thriller. When Bobby Astor's father is murdered along with the head of the Federal Reserve on the White House lawn, Bobby's life takes a drastic turn. Bobby is a fearless New York hedge fund trouble shooter who is on the verge of his big break.   When Bobby receives a text message--a single word--from his father sent moments before he dies--Bobby vows to solve the mystery. This is a spine tingling thriller that will keep you turning pages.

Super Shred:  The Big Results Diet: 4 Weeks 20 Pounds Lose It Faster! by Ian Smith What's better than a doctor who listens? Try one who listens and then makes a plan to help you reach your goals. Doctor Smith heard what dieters needed: a quick-acting plan that is safe and easy to follow at home, at work or on the road.  This diet is a completely new way to lose weight and stay slender, and feel fantastic about your body, mind and spirit!