Book Specs Author: Mario Vargas Llosa Translator: Helen R. Lane Publisher: Picador Publishing Date: August 2008 Number of Pages: 568 pages Genre: Historical Novel Synopsis Deep within the remote backlands of nineteenth-century Brazil lies Canudos, home to all the damned of the earth: prostitutes, bandits, beggars, and every kind of outcast. It is a place where history […]
Tag: Book Review
Book Review # 73: Catch-22
Book Specs Author: Joseph Heller Publisher: Vintage Publishing Date: 1994 Number of Pages: 519 pages Genre: War Novel, Satirical Novel Synopsis At the heart of Catch-22 resides the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, a hero endlessly inventive in his schemes to save his skin from the horrible chances of war. His problem is Colonel Cathcart, who […]
Book Review # 72: The Master and Margarita
Book Specs Author: Mikhail Bulgakov Translator: Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky Publisher: Penguin Books Publishing Date: 2016 Number of Pages: 396 Genre: Magical Realism, Satirical, Romance, Historical Metafiction Synopsis Nothing in the whole of literature compares with The Master and Margarita. One spring afternoon, the Devil, trailing file and chaos in his wake, weaves himself […]
Book Review # 71: The House of the Spirits
Book Specs Author: Isabel Allende Translator: Magda Bogin Publisher: Everyman’s Library Publishing Date: 2005 Number of Pages: 488 pages Genre: Family Saga, Magical Realism, South American Fiction Synopsis In the triumph of magic realism, Allende constructs a spirit-ridden world and fills it with colourful and all-too-human inhabitants. The Trueba family’s passions, struggles and secrets span three generations […]
Quotable Quotes # 19: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
Honestly, I am not much into young adult fiction for a number of reasons. However, there are still some young adult fiction books that deserve highlight and commendation. One such work is Benjamin Alire Sáenz’ Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe which is truly a gem of a read. It has earned quite […]
Book Review # 70: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
Book Specs Author: Benjamin Alire Sáenz Publisher: Simon & Schuster Publishing Date: 2012 Number of Pages: 359 pages Genre: Romance, Young Adult, Bildungsroman Synopsis Dante can swim. Ari can’t. Dante is articulate and self-assured. Ari has a hard time with words and suffers from self-doubt. Dante gets lost in poetry and art. Ari gets lost […]
Book Review # 69: My Neighbor Totoro
Book Specs Original Story and Art: Hayao Miyazaki Novel: Tsugiko Kubo Publisher: Viz Media LLC Publishing Date: 2013 Number of Pages: 244 Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Children’s Fiction, Fantasy, Coming-of-age Synopsis The beloved animation classic by legendary Studio Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki, My Neighbor Totoro, is now a novel. This edition features original illustrations by Miyazaki […]
August Book Wrap-up: Young Adult Fiction Month
In April 2018, an idea came to my mind. I thought, perhaps, that I could dedicate one month to reading a particular genre or a particular set of books which have a common denominator. It has always been my practice to not read books of the same genre consecutively to avoid getting bored. However, I […]
Quotable Quotes # 18: A Monster Calls
Patrick Ness’ A Monster Calls is a very powerful yet poignant prose that has the ability to captivate everyone. Its bittersweet story and backstory leaves one longing for more. I am no fan of young adult fiction but this laconic narrative about grief and sorrow is one that has truly won me over. I am falling in […]
Book Review # 68: Their Eyes Were Watching God
Book Specs Author: Zora Neale Hurston Publisher: Harper Perennial Modern Classics Publishing Date: 2006, first edition published on September 18, 1937 Number of Pages: 193 Genre: African-American Fiction, Classical Fiction, Classics Synopsis One of the most important works of twentieth-century American literature, Zora Neale Hurston’s beloved 1937 classic, Their Eyes Were Watching God, is an enduring […]
