Wild

Wild
by Cheryl Strayed

First published in Great Britain in 2012.

Wild is wonderful.  I saw the film trailer and knew it was one I wanted to see.  When I learnt it was based on a book I went straight out and bought it.  Then I had that annoying time when you're still reading another book and so can't start the new one yet (thankfully the other book was Life After Life - see previous blog post - and I couldn't put it down so was finished pretty quickly).

I think I read Wild in about two weeks, it was another one that I really struggled to put down and go to work.  At the same time, because I was enjoying it so much, I didn't want it to end, so I sortof read it slower than I would otherwise have done.  That probably makes very little sense but I do it a lot with books, re-reading bits and so on to extend the reading time.

The story is of Cheryl Strayed, who at 26 decided to hike 1,100 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail alone after her mother died suddenly.  Cheryl hikes through deserts, snow and forests meeting other hikers along the way but staying alone for the most part.  The story of the hike is interspersed with stories from Cheryl's childhood living with her mother and siblings, and her struggles after her mother's death when Cheryl was 23.

Cheryl is a strong, resiliant person but she doesn't realise it at first.  Her mother's death tears her apart and she turns to one night stands and drugs to try to cope.  She realises that she is damaging herself and those around her and makes the rather spontaneous decision to hike the trail.  Throughout the book she gains strength from seeing how far she has come and allowing herself to grieve for her mother properly.  A lot of people would say she is brave, and I agree but not in the sense that she is hiking this potentially dangerous trail alone.  To me, Cheryl doesn't realise the scale of potential danger and so is not afraid of this.  Her bravery comes from choosing to change her life from the depths it was sinking into.

The writing is straightforward and unapologetic, rather like Cheryl herself.  I found it very relatable as a 26 year old, even though I have definitely not hiked on my own (or much at all for that matter!).  It is so detailed in the descriptions of the trail that it is easy to imagine yourself there with Cheryl.  I laughed and cried with Cheryl.  She doesn't shy away from her emotions, especially when she is on the trail and feels safe in her grief.

There are parts which are very much about the technical side of hiking, for example when Cheryl is packing her rucksack, and when she faces snow for the first time.  These parts are detailed but because Cheryl hadn't researched or trained before the hike, the writing is understandable even if you have never worn a rucksack.  I felt as if I were learning along with Cheryl, and shared in her victories.  I so badly wanted her to reach the end of the hike that I was fully cheering her on at times.

When I first started reading it I loved that Cheryl's last name was Strayed, what with her 'straying' from her day to day life to hike and all that.  As it turned out she chose this last name herself.  At first I was disappointed to read this as I liked the idea that her name was more than just a name, that it was part of her personality that she would find as she grew up.  Looking back on it now, I admire Cheryl for carving her own identity by choosing a new name, particularly as the close bond with her mother is not one she discards with the old name.

I kept picturing Reese Witherspoon as Cheryl as I read the book, because of her looking at me from the cover every time I picked it up.  This wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but I do think it stops you from imagining a character if a casting director has decided what you should be picturing.  I was glad to see that the book's descriptions of Cheryl and photos of actual Cheryl from when she did the trail are pretty similar to Reese.  I find it so unnecessarily annoying when a characters hair colour or something equally small is changed.

This book is obviously a great one for holidays, gap years and walking weekends (if you have time to read in your tent at night).  For me, it was an escape from the daily commute to the trail in North America.  The book made me want to up and travel somewhere far away with a massive rucksack (although this feeling soon stopped once I finished reading!).  It was made even better by the fact that it was real; Cheryl exists and really did hike the trail.

If you get itchy feet easily, get this book on your bookshelf.  I take no responsibility for it making you want to leave your day job and go travelling.

Life After Life

Life After Life
by Kate Atkinson

First published in Great Britain in 2013.

Ursula is born but dies minutes later.  Ursula is born and lives.  Second chances, the ability to change the future and deja vu are all themes of this story, set between 1910 and 1967.  It concentrates mainly on the 20s and 30s and has great detailed accounts of the second World War in both London and Germany.

I was given this book as a Christmas present by a friend and it is brilliant.  If you've ever wished you could change something in your past, or wondered how your life might be different had something been changed, then give this a read.  I could write a pages long essay on this book; it is full of events, characters and places so detailed I really felt like I was there in the story.  I know that sounds incredibly cheesy but I just got lost in this book. The ideas of dreams, deja vu and second chances are explored in a way that makes you think about your actions and their consequences, without being too heavy handed.  It made me think about my place in the world (cheese again!).

The story follows Ursula from her birth to her death.  She grows up in the English countryside with her mother, Sylvie, and siblings.  When she is young, Ursula tries to stop bad things happening in rather childish ways, for example pushing the maid down the stairs in an attempt to stop her going to London where she contracts Spanish flu.  As she gets older Ursula understands more the consequences of her actions but continues to try to protect the people she loves.  We see her go though several relationships and I was hoping that one in particular wouldn't be the lasting one (no spoilers!)  The relationships were very well written, with the different men bringing out different sides to Ursula's personality.

The only characters I didn't like were Derek (no spoilers so I won't go into it) and Sylvie.  She seemed cold and distant, even towards her children.  When I finished reading I did think that perhaps she also had the ability to go back in her life and change things like Ursula.  I thought it was hinted at that she had once had a fancier life with a gentleman in a hotel, but for some reason this didn't stay as her real life, so perhaps she was bitter about this.

There were several parts of the book which hinted at pretty dark, grim things happening.  Not enough to be graphically obvious straight away but disturbing when thought about.  I felt this gave the timelines a lot more depth, especially the smaller storylines.  I think that the fact that not everyone gets their 'happy ending' shows that whatever you do to help one person may end up backfiring, even if it is not immediate.

The account of the London Blitz is one of the best I have read; it is so detailed and realistic and certainly doesn't hide from the grimness of the time.  I found it really interesting to read and compare Ursula's experiences in London and Germany during the war and the fact that her different experiences were caused by the simple act of her returning to England or not was striking.

The ending is rather vague and at first I was unsatisfied because it didn't give a roundup of each character.  Looking back on it I think that, although I'll always find it frustrating because that's just who I am as a reader, everytime I read it I'll probably interpret it differently.

I know I'll be reading this book again and again, and I definitely want to do so with a notebook so I can try to keep track of the back and forth a bit more!

Station Eleven

Station Eleven

by Emily St. John Mandel

First published in Great Britain in 2014.

A newspaper introduced me to this book.  Last year the Metro had a full page article about apocalyptic novels and how they were on the up, so I went through the article and highlighted the books it mentioned to add to my 'To Read List'.  For my birthday a friend got me one of these books - Station Eleven.  It was only out in hardback at the time but it's out in paperback now, incase you have a preference.

It's a story that goes back and forth in time, from a world readers would recognise as similar to ours to one set after a massive flu pandemic has caused the collapse of society.  There are several major characters in both the world before and the world after the collapse.  I particularly liked Jeevan, a man who's doctor friend warns him about the flu just in time.  He was the character I related to the most, as I often wonder what would happen if things like pandemics happened out of nowhere.  As I was reading this book the Ebola crisis was in the headlines every day, and was suddenly becoming a real fear that the world was having to deal with.  The book did make me think what I would do in the situation Jeevan faced.  I thought things like the news being read by cameramen because the newsreaders had died was very realistic and well written, and something I hadn't thought of.  Jeevan's story made me realise how much we take for granted in the way society is run, by so many people all playing their parts.   

Post-collapse, I found myself relating to Clark's character.  He is an older man who is stranded in Severn City airport when his flight is diverted due to the outbreak. He takes it upon himself to make a museum of sorts in the first class lounge, for items that are no longer needed but that people don't want to simply throw away.  It becomes full of everyday items, from high heels to mobile phones, and I felt I too would want to save some part of the world I had grown up in if it were me.  After sixteen years in the airport 'settlement', Clark is explaining to a sixteen year old what planes were and why airports existed.  She was born in the airport and has no knowledge of the world before the flu outbreak.  This was interesting and a bit strange to imagine, and I found myself wondering what people would think of our world if I had to try to explain everyday objects to them.

The Travelling Symphony was a brilliant little group that I felt I was travelling along with.  They are a group of survivors who have found each other wandering the country and go around performing Shakespeare to other survivors in towns as they pass through.  They do this simply to keep their love for acting and music alive, which I could very much appreciate.

This book stayed with me a long time after reading it (such a cliché I know) and I would definitely recommend it, whether or not you like post-apocalyptic fiction.  It has a good amount of time before and after the collapse, and the flu outbreak is detailed enough to make it seem worryingly realistic.  I felt the characters were well-rounded, even those who only said one line.  An example of this is a lone man who appears at the airport a hundred days after the outbreak.  He is crying.  When the other survivors ask him why, he says he thought he was the only one.  I felt his absolute relief at finding other survivors, and his few short lines made me imagine his struggle, believing that he was the last survivor on earth.

So to sum up, get Station Eleven added to your 'To Read' list right now!

New Year, New Reading List

After a bit of a longer gap in posts than I meant (the festive season kinda took over life), the arrival of 2015 has made me think about the books I want to read this year.

I decided to put together a list of  twelve books, so that I can buy one each pay day and have plenty of time to read them even when times get hectic.  I've actually ended up with eleven, as I couldn't decide between about seven others to make twelve, so I'll add to this if/when I do choose.

In no particular order, here goes...

1. Wild by Cheryl Strayed.

This memoir of a young woman's solo trek along the Pacific Crest Trail is about to be released as a film, and although I want to see it, I reckon I'll get more from the book.

2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.

This and the next on the list are simply books that I never got around to when they first came out.  They everybody was raving about them and I knew that would affect my reading, so I've waited a while to enjoy them more.

3. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

4. Thief's Magic by Trudi Canavan.

This was out last year and I was debating whether to wait until the whole trilogy was released so I could read them all in one.  I've now decided I can't wait and so will be buying this soon.

5. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

This book has been on my 'To Read' list for a long time but has somehow never come to the forefront of my mind.  This is the year.

6. Mobile Library by David Whitehouse.

This one was in a magazine in their 'new books section and the very short blurb caught my eye.  It's apparently about the way that the books we read as children inspire us, so I'm looking forward to this one a lot.

7. A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Tolz.

A friend recommended this to me after I posted for ideas on Facebook.  Let's see how it goes.  I'm always a bit afraid of reading peoples' favourite books incase I don't like them (I feel very protective over my book choices) but then that's what makes the world interesting.

8. Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk.

Another recommendation.  I liked the film and I'm interested to see how it works in a book.

9. The Library of Shadows by Mikkel Birkegaard.

This and the next book were recommended to me by www.openingthebook.com/whichbook and both sounded beautiful and magical.  I'm expecting similar to The Shadow Of The Wind and The Night Circus.

10. The Girl With Glass Feet by Ali Shaw.

11. A Lovely Way To Burn - Louise Welsh.

One from last birthday's wish list that I didn't end up receiving.  It sounds like a good bleak story of a modern plague in London with a murder mystery thread.  It's also the first in a trilogy, so I hope it'll be a good introduction.

What's on your 'To Read in 2015' list?

The Magician's Apprentice

The Magician's Apprentice
by Trudi Canavan

First published in Great Britain in 2009.

I was introduced to Trudi Canavan by my boyfriend.  He reads a lot of high fantasy and suggested Trudi Canavan to me because her main characters tend to be strong females and the stories are more to do with daily life than violent wars, for the most part.  When I got the book and saw it had a glossary at the back and maps at the front, I was pretty much sold.

The Magician's Apprentice is set one hundred years before The Black Magician Trilogy, and is a great introduction to her writing.  The main character is Tessia, a healer's daughter from peaceful Kyralia who helps her father with his work.  One day they are at the local magician's house, attending to a sick slave who belongs to a visiting Sachakan magician from the neighbouring country of Sachaka.  Whilst there, the Sachakan master attacks Tessia and she responds with magic she didn't know she possessed.  As she is a natural, the Lord (who is also a magician) takes it upon himself to train her to be a full magician.  As her training progresses tensions are rising with Sachaka, with rumours that Sachakan magicians are going to invade Kyralia.

The story is interspersed with that of Stara, a young woman who is moving to Sachaka to live with her father.  Although not a magician, Stara has learnt some magic from a friend and hopes to use this to help her father with his trade.  However when she arrives, she learns that he intends to marry her off so she will provide him with an heir.  As she struggles to adapt to Sachakan life she is taught higher magic in secret and becomes an integral part of the close circle of local women who plan to leave Sachaka.

There are also parts focusing on the Sachakan magicians as they attempt to invade Kyralia.  Their intense malice is a strong contrast to the morals of the Kyralians and gives a feeling of unease as you read.

I really like both Tessia and Stara.  They are both strong women who have to deal with difficult situations.  I find Tessia's story more interesting as she travels with the magicians and grows from a confused girl to a confident woman.  She is the only female apprentice and she copes with this with strength and humour.
Stara's story mainly focuses on her relationships - with her slave, her father, and the other women she meets in Sachaka.  Her struggle is with her family's expectations of her.  However with the invasions comes a different responsibility for her and Stara really comes into her own and seems the most sensible of the women at times.

The war is believable in that it builds slowly, with small events that have knock on effects, just like in reality.  I really cared about the characters, and felt the sadness that they felt when their villages were attacked.  The writing hints at the evilness of the Sachakans without being overly emotional.

The whole world is really well created, down to the smallest details.  There are a fair few different words for things but most are understandable just from the context (there is a short glossary at the back of the book as well).  The maps at the front of the book are a great help to see where each character is at each part of the story.  I get totally lost in the story, thanks to the detailed descriptions.  It is easy to put yourself in the rooms with the characters, which is always important to me.

The book is an excellent prequel to The Black Magician trilogy - it tells the reader how things like the wasteland and the Magician's Guild were created.  It's a bit like reading the history of the Black Magician world.  If you like high fantasy and want a book with more detail of everyday life too then add this to your bookcase.  Then get The Black Magician trilogy and The Traitor Spy trilogy.  I have yet to read Canavan's Age Of The Five but it's on the list!

Where Rainbows End - a Guest Post

Where Rainbows End
by Celia Ahern

First published in 2004.

This is a guest post by the lovely Jemma Fletcher, a friend of mine who loves a good book as much as I do.
Be sure to check out her blog as she's a brilliant writer, and if you'd like to do a guest post on this blog get in touch!


I don't often remember when and where I bought a book but as this is one of my absolute favourites, I can tell you that it in was in June 2005 at Manchester Airport on my way to Cyprus.

The combination of sun, sea, sand and another ten years of moving all over the place has resulted in my copy now looking like this...

Where Rainbows End is a story told through letters, emails and instant messages about the ever-changing relationship between the two main characters Rosie Dunne and Alex Stewart.

Rosie and Alex are close friends from childhood, but one day they are suddenly separated when Alex and his family move from Dublin to Boston.

The book guides us through their relationship as it continues to change due to distance, new relationships and circumstances which seem determined to keep them apart.

It can be frustrating to read as I know that they're meant to be together, but something always gets in the way which leaves me feeling a little deflated as perhaps there isn't a grand master plan for us all, and instead we are responsible for our own happiness. On the other hand, I can't help but maintain a bubbling optimism throughout that it will eventually go their way and that everything happens in its own time. I guess this story really divides the glass half empty people from those who believe that the glass is half full.

It's not just correspondence between Rosie and Alex either; we read conversations between them and their friends, family and colleagues. These outside sources build up a context around them which helps the storyline flow, and it's nice to read other people's perspective on what's happening in their lives.

I recently found out that there's a movie coming out next month based on this book, with a name change to Love, Rosie. I've watched the trailer and I honestly hate it; small things like Rosie and Alex are Irish yet they have British accents, and it looks like they have cut the timeline down way too much. However, I am willing to give it a chance so we shall see!

I have my own lifestyle blog coming soon at www.hercupoftea.com

Jemma

Little Women

Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott

First published in the USA in 1868.

This is a book I come back to again and again.  I can't even remember the first time I read it, but I now have the series on my bookcase, including a separate book of 'Little Women' and 'Good Wives' (I still have the two books separately as well because who can get rid of a favourite book??)  It might be an older story by now, and one a lot of people say isn't relevant nowadays, but I find it always cheers me up and I take different things from the story now than I did when I was younger.

Meg, Jo, Amy and Beth are the March sisters, who live with their mother; their father is away at war.  They are not a rich family and we meet the girls in winter as the girls ponder a Christmas without presents.  Beth says that they have 'father and mother and each other' and so should be happy, and that is a main theme of the book.  The girls make their own fun by putting on plays written by Jo and make friends with their neighbour Laurie.  The book series follows them as the grow from 'little women' to ladies with their own families.  Some of it is a bit slow going and not a lot seems to happen, but then there are moments when I always cheer or cry or want to shake the characters.

The writing is very straightforward and easy to read; there is the occasional word or phrase which is no longer used but it is easy enough to work out the meaning from the context.  With four sisters all on different journeys there is one that everyone can relate to, from Meg (the eldest), through Jo and Beth to Amy.

When I first read this I found Meg really annoying but as I have grown up I understand her more, though my favourite (along with most readers) is Jo.  Jo is confident, outgoing and wishes to be a boy but has to be content with shortening her full name 'Josephine'.  She looks after her sisters and refuses to wear her hair tied up or act 'ladylike'.  This is usually to the despair of Meg, who's main concern is how they look in society and who they will marry.  To me these two sisters show different sides of growing up, and the way they interact with the younger two is believable -  they find them annoying yet are protective at the same time.

I know this book isn't going to be one for everyone, a lot of people find it irritatingly old-fashioned, but if you do like a classic family drama then add the series to your shelf.