fan

Again (and again), when a dear friend offers you a book to read, you read it, especially when said friend says, "This book reminds me of us."

I, unfortunately, left this book in my reading pile too long, and Moazam bought himself another copy. Or maybe fortunately, because I now have my own copy.

The book is the tale of Iyer's adventure in Japan to learn about Zen Buddhism "from the inside" while living in a monastery, along with his meeting Sachiko and their subsequent friendship. It is also about seeing a world the way you wish it to be, innocent and unmarred by pain, instead of grounded in a perhaps ugly reality.

Iyer's writing evokes the mood of his surroundings, of his experience, of the world around him, in a way that pulls the reader in. One can almost smell the cherry blossoms, feel the weight of the air heavy with water before the rain, the sounds of the city sleeping but not quite, the silence of the monastery, the disquiet energy of his companions seeking quiet in a place it can't be found.

I enjoyed the book. It wasn't a book I would have chosen for myself, which makes it a good choice by Moazam.

Many of them, he said, had wearied of the worldly aspects of the monastic life - the politicking, the emphasis on sheer willpower, the need for subservience, the stress on hierarchy: all the quallities, in short, that could make temples seem just like any other affluent, rule-bound Japanese company.
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This is book two of the Withern Rise series.

I enjoyed the first book in the series about Alaric and Naia enough to continue reading. This one continues their story, with Naia adjusting to her new world, but never really giving up what she had, and Alaric loving the restoration of his world, but wracked with guilt.

However, instead of having pretty much parallel lives, with Alaric trying to dodge responsibility and his need to make things right, we are introduced to not another, or another, but FOUR alternative timelines, all of which could make one's head spin. Talk about a kid who keeps making mistakes.

And miscommunication. How easy it is for people to be unable to talk with each other, to assume the worst, and act upon those assumptions.

I'll read the last book, this one was good enough. If you're a fan of the first book, definitely keep reading.

Okay, again, when a friend strongly suggests a book, then hands you a copy of the book, then recommends another book about said book, you need to read both the original book, and the follow up book. Really need to read them.

Which is what I did with this book, when Moazam handed me a copy. He handed me HIS copy, which is also saying something (mostly that I needed to return it, but let's go with saying something).

Where Kim was a work of fiction based upon stories, incidents, and the world Kipling knew, The Quest for Kim is the author's journey of discovering what, if any, of that world still exists.

I enjoyed reading the book, learning more of the history of the area, and learning about what still exists and what was, as far as the author or anyone else can tell, pure Kipling fiction.

If Kim fascinates you in any way, I recommend this book as follow up reading.

Hey! What do you know? A new selection of books from Mom! I know! I thought I had finished that stack of books, too! To be honest, I have another stack of books from Bob Diller, too. That'll take me only a bit outside of my comfort zone.

I don't know how this book ended up on Mom's reading list. It's an 8 year old book. (Oh, I just looked it up, it was the 2008 Pulitzer Prize winner - ha! and whoops. There we go.)

The book is about Oscar de León, a Dominican Republic kid raised in New Jersey (Hey! Just like the author! Write about what you know!). Oscar is overweight (based on the author's picture, maybe not about what you know) and cursed. Well, his family is cursed.

Being overweight and a nerd makes for a poor social life, so Oscar is pretty much an oddball. He loves writing, science fiction, fantasy, and, oh boy, can I relate to being unable to relate with women. I can't figure them out, either, and I am one.

The book tells the story about Oscar's family, heading backward, so we learn the histories of Oscar, Oscar's mother, his grandparents, along with the history of the Dominican Republic. I rather liked the history lessons, and looked up a bit more of it to understand the context of the storyline.

The title rather gives away the ending, being brief and all, but the story is engaging. Even knowing the ending that's coming, it still hurts a bit.

My favorite line of the book was when Oscar's sister, Lola, meets La Inca, his mother's cousin who raised Oscar and Lola's mom:

"She stood like she was her own best thing."

I want that. I want to be my own best thing. I want to know and feel this to my core.

I enjoyed the book. I'm glad Mom picked it out for us.