Book Recommendations

Title: Ender’s Game Author: Orson Scott Card Pages: 324 Book Size: Small Notes: This, by far, has been the best science fiction novel I have read. The main character, Ender, has been VERY well developed. In fact, the story centers more on character than the defeat of the aliens. Even more impressive, Ender is a child.  To be honest, most- if not all- the main characters are children or pre-teens. I LOVE the story. The relationships from person to person, morality, psychology of mankind, and theme are all incredibly defined in this piece. I recommended this book to several friends of mine, and they couldn’t put the book down at all. I don’t blame them; I finished this book in one day myself. Title: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass Author: Lewis Carroll Pages: 238 Book Size: Medium Notes: My all-time favorite classic- very intriguing book. I simply adore the way Carroll plays with the usage of words. The little puzzles and mind-teasers interwoven into the story are exceedingly fun to break down. Be forewarned, this book was written in the Victorian Era, so the jokes may be a little hard to conceive (I admit, sometimes not funny at all). Also, language is spoken through perfect English. So, ‘can’t’ is written as ‘ca’n’t’. Other than that, DON’T expect this to be ANYTHING like the Disney version. This is MUCH better. Title: The Catcher in the Rye Author: J.D. Salinger Pages: 214 Book Size: Small Notes: My mom said this is too much of a morbid book. I like it :P. It’s different- in it’s own way. The story is told through first perspective, so it’s pretty believable. Now, considering my school recommended this book, I am AMAZED. Everyone in the story is so close to regular human beings that it’s unbelievable. The plot focuses on your regular school delinquent- a guy with no hope, care, or conception of self-esteem. An outsider, if you will. The scary thing is, the way he mentally criticizes people and judges them is nothing, but the harsh truth. Through this novel, we see our stupidities, idiocies, hypocriticalness, and so on and so forth. Fortunately, however, we see the brighter side of people too. Title: The Poe Reader Author: Edgar Allan Poe Pages: 598 Book Size: Medium Notes: Obviously, all the works were written in the Romantic Period. I have to admit, some of his writings get repetitive in style, but all writers do that (me especially). Poe’s works impress me. It’s not so much the imagination, but the intelligence spoken WITH the imagination. The thrillers are thrilling, and the mysteries are mysterious. One of my favorite pieces is “The Pit and the Pendulum”. As for poetry, naturally “The Raven” is my prime choice. I am still VERY grateful my cousin bought me this for Christmas. She knows me so well… Salmat, Ate Nina! Title: Girl, Interrupted Author: Susana Kaysen Pages: Can’t say. Load my book to my cousin, and she didn’t give it back to me yet. Oh well, if she likes it that much, she can have it :P Book Size: Medium Notes: The very same cousin, who gave me Poe, also has my book. It’s all right- fair exchange. Anyhow, this is a biography. The writing is very modern, so there are cuss words by- oh say, the second or third page? Still, I enjoy the way Susana explains the ways of the human mind- not to mention the wonderful way she tells about her experiences in the asylum. Wonderful book! It’s crudely witty, and quite heart rendering. I finished it in a night, and I’m beyond satisfied. Title: Falling Leaves (Luo Ye Gui Gen) Author: Adeline Yen Mah Pages: 274 Book Size: Medium Notes: Another book I finished in a night, and yet another biography. This one is a bit more tear-jerking though. It’s almost like a post-modern Cinderella story placed in China. Adeline was a gifted young girl who lost her mother as a baby, and suffers love-starvation within her own family. Over and over, she is treated as unwanted and is consistently abused by her manipulative stepmother. Through all her experiences, however, she remains strong and good hearted to the end, and later finds true happiness as a writer. Hm… I should warn you that the beginning is a bit slow, but once you get passed the introductory paragraphs, this book should be glued to your hands if you’re the ‘sensitive’ reader type. Title: Dragons Dawn Author: Anne McCaffrey Pages: 363 Book Size: Small Notes: This novel is fairly old, but the plot and imagination is quite remarkable. The way McCaffrey mixes science with fantasy is outstanding. Scientists from earth settle into the newly discovered planet called Pern. There, they discover small flying lizards that breathe fire- thus the story ensues. The story contains a LOT of characters, each with his or her own story to tell. There is romance, there is action, there is science, and fantasy. This would have been- and still is- a great blueprint for an anime. The only thing that bothers me is the slow in pace every few chapters. Some side plots are a little irrelevant. Time sequence is a challenge too. Months skips to years, and years to decades. All the same, this structure only makes the book more interesting to read. Oh, and there are four kinds of dragons: gold, bronze, green, and blue. Later in the book, a scientist alters the dragons’ DNA to make them larger and ‘ride-able’. Why? You have to read. Title: The Girl Who Heard Dragons Author: Anne McCaffrey Pages: 402 Book Size: Small Notes: This one is actually a collection of stories in McCaffery’s early stages of writing. Not all the stories deal with fantasy or dragons, etc. Some stories are more realistic than others, and others more creative. It’s a good book, but I can’t say I haven’t read better. This is probably a good thing to read when riding on a plane or something like that. Title: The Things They Carried Author: Tim O’Brien Pages:246 Book Size: Medium Notes: Another biography… Sort of. O’Brien mixes his memories with story telling, and I admire this technique. Every chapter he tells of his experiences in the Vietnam War in a storytelling tone. Every chapter there is an exposure of emotions and personal insights. What’s more, O’Brien explains the power of writing memories and stories. This book, as stated on the cover, is not only for lovers of war stories, but for those interested in writing too. I agree completely. The way O’Brien describes the scenery; the pain, emotion, smells, and sounds are so convincing you can see picture-clear images. My only qualm is that O’Brien tends to get repetitive in what he says. No, really! I’m being honest! I swear I saw the same paragraph at least three times… All in all, however, this book is worth reading. Again, finished this one in a night.

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