Monday, April 18, 2011
[Book Review] GUILTY PLEASURES by Laurell K. Hamilton
Fiction/Horror The horror fiction genre was discussed March 17 as part of the library's What's Your Flavor reader's advisory series. This is a review from one of the participants.
Audrey reviews GUILTY PLEASURES: AN ANITA BLAKE, VAMPIRE HUNTER NOVEL by Laurell K. Hamilton
"…I spend most of my waking hours confronting and destroying things that I fear. A thousand-year-old master vampire was a tall order, but a girl’s got to have a goal."
Meet Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter. I am not a horror reader. But I love a smart-aleck, gutsy heroine. And Anita Blake is definitely that - sort of a grown-up Harriet the Spy in a paranormal world.
Guilty Pleasures is the first in a (to date) seventeen book series, set in St. Louis. This book is definitely plot-driven and not for the faint of heart--gore abounds, as do vampires, ghouls and were-rats (Were-rats?? Who knew?).
But through it all, Anita Blake is a captivating, believable and funny heroine, whose ruminations certainly made me chuckle while I anxiously turned the pages to see what would happen next. I was at times confused by so many characters flying in and out (pun intended) - but the plot’s the thing, and Anita triumphs to engage in many more books of vampire-hunting.
Recommended as a new adventure for open-minded non-horror readers who can tolerate some violence and gore.
From her website, laurellkhamilton.org:
"Laurell K. Hamilton is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of two series that mix mystery, fantasy, magic, horror and romance. Her Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter novels from Penguin/Putnam Books began with GUILTY PLEASURES (now a hugely successful graphic novel from Marvel - the first sexy paranormal comic ever!) and continues with SKIN TRADE, number seventeen in the series.
There are now more than 6 million copies of Anita in print worldwide, in 16 languages."
Audrey May, LINC/2-1-1
Labels: Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Reviews by Audrey May
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
[Book Review] GIOVANNI'S ROOM by James Baldwin
Fiction/African American Audrey reviews GIOVANNI'S ROOM by James Baldwin (Modern Library reprint, 2001).
This book is a classic of American literature. The second of Baldwin’s novels and published in 1956 while he lived as an expatriate in France, Giovanni’s Room recounts the tortured musings of a young American man, David, during several months in Paris. David’s primary struggle is with his sexuality. He cannot accept his identity as a gay man, and careens back and forth between a relationship with Hella, a forthright but ultimately conventional young woman, and Giovanni, a beautiful, intense and desperate young man.
Ultimately, the novel ends in tragedy – David leaves Giovanni, Hella leaves David, Giovanni is convicted and sentenced to death for murder of his former employer. David decides to return to the States, but is irrevocably changed by his experiences. The ending is ambiguous – will David learn from these tragedies, or merely continue to be haunted by them?
But while the book is certainly dark and brooding, I did not find it depressing. David’s struggle parallels that of many trying to find an authentic life, but lacking the courage to do so. Giovanni’s Room is a classic “coming of age” novel. It is written in very poetic language, and French phrases are sprinkled liberally throughout, so readers may want a French-English dictionary nearby. But at under 200 pages, it’s a quick read, and a rewarding and thought-provoking one.
Audrey May, LINC Department
Labels: African-American Fiction, Gay and Lesbian Fiction, Reviews by Audrey May
