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Book Discussions
This lovely section is dedicated to discussing books as a whole, not worrying about things that one would normally have to consider in reviews, like spoilers or objectivity.
Book Discussions: Event
The Beauty Of Macbeth's Fall From Grace
By Quite
Macbeth is without a doubt a complex character. His bloody path to becoming king has changed him in a very real and believable way. In the beginning of the play, he is portrayed as a hero and someone the king trusts and admires. He is ambitious, but still within reason. Everyone loves Macbeth. But then, his wife manipulates him into killing King Duncan after hearing what the witches prophesied for the two of them. His wife is not bothered by the crime, but we see for several scenes that Macbeth is still very affected by killing the king so he could become king himself. He describes his head feeling like it’s full of scorpions and how remorseful he is for the death of somebody who was only ever kind to him and his family. In contrast, the second time he is responsible for murder, he initially does not have a problem with the death of Banquo, somebody who was once a friend. He is excited about the death of him initially, but once he sees the ghost of his murdered companion, he has a full on breakdown. The death of Macduff’s family is a completely different story. The rage in Macbeth’s dialogue when he is discussing the attack on Macduff’s castle is a stark contrast to that of when he was first talking about murdering King Duncan. This shows Macbeth is growing accustomed to using homicide as a solution to opposition. But, then there is a sharp transition in Macbeth, specifically, right before England is spotted moving towards Dunsinane and right after the king learns his wife has committed suicide. The iconic speech about the pointlessness of life at the end of Macbeth is the nail in the coffin of Macbeth’s Lucifer-esque, doomed to fall by nature, fallen hero arc. It is important to note that Macbeth has gone from dreading the thought of murder, to being approving of it, to being apathetic. Apathy and nihilism are huge defining characteristics of Macbeth towards the end of the play, because then, and only then, when he holds such contempt towards life does he make certain decisions that lead to his ultimate demise. Macbeth is a textbook example of a fallen hero. His transformation from an ambitious war hero to a tyrannical king is a heartbreaking rise and fall. Whether it’s death itself and him becoming numb to it, or if it’s the fact that he did not commit the crime himself, Macbeth has definitely changed throughout the course of the story.
-Quite
Book Discussions: Inner_about
The Weight of Water
So, Mrs. Kelly is a librarian at our public library. Every third week of each month she comes and talks about books she has read. And so this month for April she brought in a book called The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossman.
This book is a really great coming of age book. It is about this twelve year old Polish girl named Kasienka (Cassie) who is uprooted from her birthplace to England by her mother because she decides she need to find her father/husband who up and left them with only a note late one night. We watch how she struggles with being an immigrant and outcast to a new world.
This book is also written in poetic form so if you like short books this is the book for you. There is also great advice from this book and I could see a lot of people relate to what Cassie has to go through. I even found myself relating to her, even when it didn’t pertain to an experience relevant to me.
Here are examples from the book. I won’t be using any spoilers, but if you don’t want to read this below cause you want to read it yourself, go ahead.
“The teachers who do let us choose
Make the mistake of thinking
Everyone will find a place.
But there are always
one or two of us,
Left sitting,[...]
Before the teacher turns
Detects the exclusion
She says
‘You work with them’
[...] As we shuffle forward
Unwanted and misused,
Like old boots dragged
From a river.”
And an inspiring quote from this book.
“‘Happiness should be your revenge, Kasienka, Happiness’”
Book Discussions: Inner_about
Book Discussion: Twilight
This book is both despised and loved, like almost everything popular. Readers across the world have dashed to the nearest keyboard, ranting about it. This hotly debated book has shaped the modern image of romance, for better or worse. Today, I would like to talk about what is probably Stephenie Meyer's most famous novel. It's never too late to hop on the bandwagon!
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Positive
She understood her target audience (tweens and middle-aged women). She wrote about a girl who got to experience a world unlike our own, one where she met the love of her life. This sounds good on paper, but it's been done so much that books tend to have problems standing out.
She created her own version of the timeless vampire. With super strength, speed, and senses, Edward has it all! Not to mention his skin. It's like diamonds (or so I hear). Whether you like her version or not is up to you, but she still had the courage to make a change to the beloved monster.
She managed to create a main character that shows moments of brilliance and courage. Believe or not, Bella is meant to be intelligent. She takes advanced classes and manages to uncover a family's deadliest secret after a few strange interactions. She also shows a selflessness when endangering herself to protect the people she cares about.
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Negative
She created more characters than she knew what to do with, each as bland and underdeveloped as the last. Meyer claims that this isn't a problem because book characters aren't supposed to be role models. Even if this is the case, she failed to create interesting and likable characters, despite having four books to do so.
The main character is often portrayed as clueless, clumsy, and is extremely reliant on her boyfriend. While you can argue that this is because she was appealing to her audience, it doesn't excuse the Mary Sue qualities. And, her audience isn't clueless. They've read masterpieces like Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, which involve highly complex worlds and characters. Stephanie Meyer neglected to do this.
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Overall, I think this book is only mediocre. It's not the worst or the best romance, simply one of the lucky ones that gained the people's attention. Who really cares if it was good or not? People enjoy these books, and isn't that all that matters? If it really bothers you so much, pick up a pen and write something better!
This brief analysis is brought to you by Reveur.
Book Discussions: OpeningHours
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