4 Stars for Alice in Wonderland

 Lewis Carrol's book, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is about growing up and finding meaning in the trivial and larger scope of what we do as adults. The line from the king, "If there's no meaning in it," said the King, "that saves a world of trouble, you know, as we didn't need to try and find any." Alice realizes soon after this statement that without meaning, truth and logic are irrelevant. Soon after she awakes to reality rather than the fantasy of Wonderland. I reread this story because I felt I missed some epiphany that the rest of society seemed to get with phrases like: "Off with your head", and "Down the rabbit hole." After this second read, I am still am at a loss for the Zen of Alice in Wonderland, but I did find her journey into adulthood a bit more fascinating and philosophical. For example, "What does happen to the flame of a candle?" Do you go out all together. This is is a child's first grabble at morality, but also one that often stumps all of humanity. I also found it interesting that time ran backwards and you could run as fast as you can but you only stay in one place and you run twice as fast to get anywhere else. This brings in explorative ideas of parallel universes as explored by researchers and of course, Phillip K. Dick. Madness is another question in this story as The Mad Hatter points out by not knowing the answer to his own riddle and asking if he is mad. It is a curious story that could be analyzed to death, but in the end we all grow up but hopefully we all get our moments to run backwards to chase a rabbit in a world where we can drink something and hold onto the magic of the imagination of our childhood. Alice in Wonderland is a classic and a story to help us hold onto our dreams. 

5 Stars for The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde complex look at youth corrupted by its own debauchery. Influence, and youth itself only add to the fallen angel - Dorian Gray. Gray seems to be at the center of the ideas of two men in the book that act as absolute foils. One, Basil believes in love, beauty and the reputation. Lord Henry, well he could be considered the devil, he certainly plays the part and his wit and obscene ideas unfortunately kept me intrigued throughout the book. I dare say, he was my favorite character. Despite, Henry's ideas he seemed to balance his own actions between dark and light keeping his own reputation intact. It is unfortunate Gray did not follow. No spoilers, but I loved the ending of this story. I had cooked up an entirely different one before this one came into play. I also loved the supernatural element in this. This book pleasantly surprised me. I am wild about Wilde and will have to read more.

5 Stars for The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt is a great novel. The basic premise is about young 13-year-old Theo Decker, who loses his mother and the journey he takes to discover some semblance of happiness, but this book is so much more. Thematically it weaves fate, coincidence, choice and grief into a message of light and hope found in a painting: The Goldfinch. Stolen and trapped in darkness, this painting in need of so much light is very similar to Theo's sadness and very dismal view of the world. Theo seems to always walk through certain half deserted streets, but he he's certain to make choices that appear to have insidious intent ending in murder both physically and psychological. This is Theo's love song written in Tartt's clear but poetic voice leaving the reader feeling every cut and bruise felt by Theo, but we also totally feel when Theo finds shimmers of happiness on his off days when he's not being totally self-destructive. You see it in his friendship with Borris, a terribly flawed friend who offers him compassion when he needs it most. You see it his friendship with Hobbie, a man of honor and respect and something Theo's own father seems very absent of. You see it in the father-son relationship when Theo absolutely hates his dad contrasting his absolute love of his mom. You see in his love of Pippa. You see it finally in Theo, a boy who journeyed to manhood though the dark hand of fate and the consequences of his impulsive actions. This is a book that will rip your soul out chaining it right next to the Goldfinch in the painting until the very end. This makes you question coincidence alongside the possibilities of choice. Theo's friend, Borris does an excellent job of explaining the short lived possibilities of life and how important it is to hold on to a single light from a chained up bird. I highly recommend this book. If you've never loved, you will after reading this book.  

5 Stars for Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre

 After reading Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, I turned my china cabinet into a bookshelf. I can't help but think this is a Jane Eyre move that reflects the practical and the individual. It is a small thing, and certainly can't be compared to the choices Miss Eyre made in the novel, but it is a starting point to becoming my own personal heroine. This book is thick with the Victorian Era emphasising the limitations of women during this time which is why Jane is so heroic. She makes honest choices of  spirit, and heart within her strong moral code of ethics. Her choices often deny her happiness, love, and family, but she stands by her choices. She is a lady deserving of great admiration and happiness. I strongly recommend this book to both men and women who wrestle with spirit and love under the scrutiny of ethics. Perhaps you will find yourself Eyre-like. 

5 Stars for The Patient by Jasper DeWitt

 

The Patient by Jasper DeWitt will make you sleep with the light on ...if you sleep at all after reading it. It is a slow boil of psychological horror that will rip your soul from the blanket of illusion that blinds us to the supernatural. Retelling this story is Parker, a young psychologist with real compassion and an insatiable curiosity. He tells the story of The Patient with a mysterious, sadistic history. Out of respect for privacy, Parker doesn't use real names of the people in the story and often people are only referred to with an initial. The authenticity of his tale begins rather ludicrous, but as he unravels the mystery of the patient, it becomes every bit real ending with thick ambiguity questioning the fabric of reality. I am left thinking of my own ghosts. At 11, I swore to my mother a ghost came out of the wall of my bedroom. DeWitt now makes me wonder if it might have really happened. I highly recommend The Patient by Jasper DeWitt. It will scare you back to childhood. 

Four Stars for Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye

 

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison is beautifully written with imagery bent on heartbreak lingering in your mind long after you read it. I read it years ago, but revisited it recently because I plan to teach it. At 21, I would have easily rated this book a 5, but now I found the POV jumps jarring. I also found the writing gorgeous, yes but a little disjointed. The premise of the book is about Pecola, a young black girl who thinks blue eyes can make her loveable. Pecola defines herself as ugly and this is as far as her characterization goes. She is every girl, white or black, who desires to be something they are not. Of course, at a younger age I related more to her. I hadn't yet accepted my flaws as part of what makes me unique. Funny, at one point growing up, I wished for blue eyes. So, naturally I wanted Pecola to find her inner beauty and accept her flaws as truth and with grace. Pecola doesn't really tell her own story, instead we understand her through well-developed characters existing in her world. Her mother and father's stories were lined with fear, desire, abandonment, and cruelty so much so they failed to love Pecola. Here you start to see why Pecola wants the blue eyes. Towards the end of the story, Morrison throws in a random character, Soapchurch, a sham mystic. Soap is suppose to grant Pecola her blue eyes, and you have to read several pages of Soap's history before you find out whether or not The Bluest Eye will go all mystic and give Pecola her blue eyes or not. Soap was really a creepy character and I wish Morrison could have left his history out. This is the biggest place this story went sideways for me. The Bluest Eye is a journey of self-discovery, but not only Pecola's journey. Everyone in the story is searching for self-acceptance, too many in fact. In the end, Morrison still deserves the notoriety. Her writing makes you examine, analysis, and accept or not the deeper questions about who we think we are. The Bluest Eye is her first book. Since, she wrote other great novels. Her book, Tar Baby is my absolute favorite, but I wonder if I read it now would it have less allure for me because thematically Tar Baby is about a young woman breaking out of the shackles the world often places on women and their stereotypical roles in society, at least that is how I saw it in my early twenties studying art and religion and searching for my place in the world defining my femininity with a new definition with every new nugget of knowledge. Thinking back now, I think Morrison helped me accept myself without Blue Eyes and the Tar Baby within my white shell. So, despite the disjointed nature of her first book, The Bluest Eye, I still highly recommend her novels. As far as Oprah goes, I don't really care. I was reading Morrison long before I even knew Oprah.

Five Stars for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey is a frightening book about alleged insanity and abuse of power. Told by Chief Bromden, the silent Indian in an insanity institution, the reader gets the inside scoop on conman Randall McMurphy and Ice Queen Nurse Ratched. Written in 1859, this book rails against the rules of modern society particularly WASP - White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, or really any kind of institution that cripples the individual. Randall McMurphy is the hero of this book, flawed, yes, and maybe even insane, but his character is so beautifully written one can't help but root for him. However, Nurse Ratched, Big Nurse (Big Brother) is the villain. We are not suppose to root for her, but reading this book for a second time, I found pity for her. She is oppressed by the rules governed by order and routine. She is not an individual but a society stiff in its own oppression. I even found myself not feeling sorry for Mr. McMurphy because part of me found him to be insane and worse in a forever state of despair which is largely worse. In the end, I found Chief Bromden as my personal hero. Yes, great book and one that is not forgotten.