All Stories Are Love Stories - Elizabeth Percer

All Stories are Love Stories

Title: All Stories Are Love Stories

Author: Elizabeth Percer

Publication Date: 3/22/16

Pages: 368

Genre: Literary Fiction / Romance / Fiction 

How I Found It: TLC Book Tours

Date Completed: 3/24/16

Summary: Max, Vashti, and Gene all find their lives at risk when the big one finally hits San Fransisco. In the midst of the physical catastrophes and the upheaval, they seek to understand and affirm the relationships that shape them.

What I Thought: Percer's writing is unexpectedly beautiful. I never going into a book hoping for mediocrity, but it so often is there. To find, instead, such a lovely command of words and expression is always a delightful surprise.

Set against the backdrop of a massive earthquake and the ensuing fire, Percer offers up three equally engaging, equally broken protagonists. They are so different, yet so similar in their desires. Each wants happiness and reconciliation in their most cherished relationship, even though it may seem impossible for some. The details of these love stories are revealed little by little. The climax of the plot comes in tandem with the climax of understanding for the reader. For me, this parallelism played beautifully. 

Movie Monday: Ender's Game

Ender's Game

When opportunity arises, I feature Movie Monday. I recognize few people have the time or desire to read the amount I do, especially when it comes to the 100 Best Novels list. Luckily, Hollywood loves adapting a classic and I love a good story in any form.

Film Title: Ender's Game

Book Title: Ender's Game

Release Year: 2013

Summary: A young boy is put into a military training program for children with the hope he will one day lead humans to victory over an alien race.

What I Thought: Ender's Game has consistently been for me an example of how some literature appeals more to specific genders. While I have always recognized the craftsmanship and importance of the book, I have never been able to connect to it. Going into the movie, therefore, I was apprehensive about how it would resonate with me. Admittedly, my main motivators for watching were to write this review and to admire Harrison Ford. Both completely valid in my view.

The movie, however, surprised me. Thanks to both good acting, the prominent placement of a few female characters, and the elimination of a lot of the brute violence, I found myself appreciating the story more than I had in the past. I think, also, the more times you walk through this story, the more you recognize and learn from its subtle moral lessons. 

Brunelleschi's Dome - Ross King

Brunelleschi's Dome

Title: Brunelleschi's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture

Author: Ross King

Publication Date: 11/1/01

Pages: 167

Genre: Historical / Nonfiction

How I Found It: It's been on my TBR for ages

Date Completed: 2/21/16

Summary: 15th century Florence was consumed by a singular task: completing construction on Il Duomo di Firenze, also know as the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore. The cathedral had been designed with a massive, record-setting dome on top. Yet, no one knew just how to accomplish that. Enter Filippo Brunelleschi.

What I Thought: You may not know that I teach a Humanities course. I am in my sixth year now. It's a bit of art history, a bit of music history, a bit of philosophy. I love it. Upon college graduation, I knew little about visual art. Music majors really miss out on that element; some cross-medium instruction would have been nice. Through teaching the course, however, I have learned so much. I am particularly fascinated by and in awe of the cathedrals of Europe. The way their architectural and artistic elements pointed the contemporary worshiper toward an almighty God amazes me; it's such a beautiful expression and I wish modern churches offered more of that element. We Protestants sort of fell off that wagon back when John Calvin banned decoration of any sort from church buildings.

The U.S.A. Trilogy - John Dos Passos

The U.S.A. Trilogy

Title: The 42nd Parallel, 1919, and The Big Money

Author: John Dos Passos

Publication Date:1937

Pages: 1312

Genre: Classic / Historical / Fiction

How I Found It: 100 Best Novels list

Date Completed: 2/16/16

Summary: Dos Passos examines characters and events both real and fictional through vignettes, partial news reports, and "camera eye" segments. All comes together to paint a picture of a distinct era in history.

What I Thought: This tome is one of the longest books on the 100 Best Novels list. Technically, it's three books. For the sake of the list, however, I am counting it as one. Plus, I was able to pick it up from my local library with all three books published in one edition, which was quite helpful.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one. As you know if you've been around long, World War era novels do not usually do it for me. I think, however, Dos Passos really focused on characters and their personal stories rather than entrenching himself in the minutia of battles and armament. And continually hopping from one character to another kept me engaged. If there was a particularly storyline in which I was less interested, I knew I only had to hang on for a bit and it would transition into something else.

Portnoy's Complaint - Philip Roth

Portnoy's Complaint

Title: Portnoy's Complaint

Author: Philip Roth

Publication Date: 1969

Pages: 274

Genre:  Historical / Fiction

How I Found It: 100 Best Novels list

Date Completed: 2/13/16

Summary: Alexander Portnoy is relaying his troubles to his therapist. Most of them revolve around his intense sex drive and/or his stereotypical Jewish mother.

What I Thought: There's no easy way to put this. I hated this book.

Seriously. Hated. It.

Most times, when a book appears on the 100 Best list, even if I do not care for it, I can recognize the skill behind its words or the importance of its message or...or something. But this one, I simply could not stand on any level. Maybe for sex-crazed Jewish boys, it was a revelation, a recognition that they were not alone in their emotions. For me, however, it fell very, very flat.

The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho

The Alchemist

Title: The Alchemist

Author: Paulo Coelho

Publication Date: 5/1/93

Pages: 197

Genre: Fantasy / Fiction / Literary Fiction

How I Found It: It's incredibly popular

Date Completed: 2/12/16

Summary: Santiago, a shepherd boy from Andalusia, leaves his flock in search of Egyptian treasure. The resulting journey teaches him about the world, its ways, and the people living therein.

What I Thought: So many people love this book. Just looking on Goodreads, it looks like almost all of my friends there have read or want to read it. Most rate it highly. The more you read reviews there, however, the more you realize the zeitgeist is divided. Some find it a brilliant story with a beautiful message; others believe it to be philosophical drivel espousing erroneous ideals.

My take? Everything in life requires a balanced approach and this is no different. The book is undoubtedly a beautiful piece. Coelho has a lovely way with words and his story is compelling while retaining a relaxed, literary feel. Still, he gets a bit preachy at points and I did not always agree with his premises. A main message of the book is, "When you want something the whole universe will conspire together to help you get it." I disagree. Also, I did not love that the messaging seemed specifically directed at men, while women had to wait on the side to become a part of a man's journey. It would have been nice if Coelho had given women a bigger, more influential role in Santiago's journey.

The News Sorority - Shelia Weller

The News Sorority

Title: The News Sorority: Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric, Christiane Amanpour, and the (Ongoing, Imperfect, Complicated) Triumph of Women in TV News

Author: Shelia Weller

Publication Date: 9/30/14

Pages: 496

Genre: Nonfiction

How I Found It: I can't remember

Date Completed: 2/9/16

Summary: The glass ceiling in television news has not cracked easily. Weller explores the lives and careers of three women who have faced it head on and achieved more than many of their compatriots.

What I Thought: This was an absolutely fascinating book. While I knew Sawyer, Couric, and Amanpour by name and their work to a point, I had little idea of the backstories which led them to their success. Weller, in a way, offers three mini-biographies of these women. She discusses the journey each took to success in television news, including the hurdles they did and do face.

I know very little about the journalism and television industries. Obviously, we see the results of these industries on a daily basis, but I know very little about what goes on behind the scenes and what it takes to become a success therein. Weller does a good job of filling in those informational gaps for those of us unfamiliar with the process. Still, I think even those deeply involved in the fields would not find the content too simplified. It's interesting and engaging.