Title: Abarat
Author/Artist: Clive Barker
Pages: 528 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: September 2002
Where I got the book: Purchased

From the back cover:

It begins in the most boring place in the world: Chickentown, U.S.A. There lives Candy Quackenbush, her heart bursting for some clue as to what her future might hold.

When the answer comes, it’s not one she expects. Out of nowhere comes a wave, and Candy, led by a man called John Mischief (whose brothers live on the horns on his head), leaps into the surging waters and is carried away.

Where? To the ABARAT: a vast archipelago where every island is a different hour of the day, from The Great Head that sits in the mysterious twilight waters of Eight in the Evening, to the sunlit wonders of Three in the Afternoon, where dragons roam, to the dark terrors of Gorgossium, the island of Midnight, ruled over by the Prince of Midnight himself, Christopher Carrion.

As Candy journeys from one amazing place to another, making fast friends and encountering treacherous foes—mechanical bugs and giant moths, miraculous cats and men made of mud, a murderous wizard and his terrified slave—she begins to realize something, She has been here before.

Candy has a place in this extraordinary world: she is here to help save the Abarat from the dark forces that are stirring at its heart. Forces older than Time itself, and more evil than anything Candy has ever encountered.

She’s a strange heroine, she knows. But this is a strange world.

And in the Abarat, all things are possible.

Review:

The first time I read this book I was in high school. This was back in 2003 when John Maxwell Coetzee won the Nobel prize for Literature and The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions hit theaters. A year later, in 2004, I would go on to read the second Abarat book, but more on that in a later post. We’re here to talk about the first book in the Abarat series. I’m normally strongly against re-reading books (why bother when there is so many unread books to read?), but this book is one I’ve read three times in the past. I re-read it the first time before reading the second Abarat book and with Abarat: Absolute Midnight coming out next month, I needed to re-read the first two books again because it’s been a couple of years. I would also like to mention that I started reading Abarat before Harry Potter. Abarat is my introduction to YA Fantasy and thus is the book I will forever compare other YA Fantasy novels to.

The story in Abarat is about a girl, Candy Quackenbush, who accidentily gets taken to the world of Abarat, a world made up of twenty-five islands with each representing a different hour of the day. Her arrival in Abarat draws some unwanted attention, particularly from Christopher Carrion, the Prince of Midnight, who has ambitions to rule over Abarat. There are a lot of “bad guys” throughout the series. If it’s not Carrion then it’s the Criss-Cross Man chasing Candy or Kaspar Wolfwinkel music magic to see her thoughts. But for every “bad guy” there are people she will befriend and will travel with her as she explores the Abarat.

The first book really does feel like an introduction to the world of Abarat. The plot really starts to pick up in Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War, the second book. This helps introduce a majority of the cast of characters that will be making frequent appearances throughout the series. It should be noted that this is a very dark book series. We’re talking Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire type dark where people die. It’s not afraid to kill off characters, both good and bad. You can’t have a war without casualties and that series does not shy away from that.

One of the things that really, REALLY makes this book stand out is Clive Barker’s original artwork featured throughout the pages. Barker painted hundreds of paintings to help illustrate the fantastical world of Abarat. I read somewhere that Barker creates the artwork first and then crafts a story around what he painted. It’s a backwards way to write a book, and surely he has some ideas about the direction of the story, but really it does show the importance of the artwork. Without the art, the book would be sorely lacking. The world of Abarat is so fantastical that the artwork might be a necessary component of the books to help the reader understand what they are reading. The art doesn’t prevent the reader from using their own imagination to picture Abarat. Instead what it does is nudge the reader’s imagination in the direction in needs to go to prevent massive amounts of confusion.

This is one of my favorite books EVER. You should pick up a copy of this book (it get’s re-released today) and get caught up before Abarat: Absolute Midnight comes out on September 27th.

Closing Thoughts: I enjoyed re-reading this book for the third time.

Question: Will I have to wait seven years for Abarat 4 to get released?

I stopped by Borders Bookstore in Eugene, OR last week. The store was closing and the signs informed me that everything must go. It was what you expected of a going out of business sale. Their giant bookshelves were being sold for $50 a pop and most of the books still in stock were ones that didn’t interesting me. However, I did find two books that have been sitting on my “to check out” list. Insignificant Others by Stephen McCauley and Million Little Mistakes by Heather McElhatton. Seeing as how fictions books were 60% off, I couldn’t resist.

I also bought a 2012 Corgi calendar, thus making it the last (and first for that matter) calendar I’ll ever purchase from Borders.

Title: Anya’s Ghost
Author/Artist: Vera Brosgol
Pages: 221
Publisher: First Second
Published: June 2011
Where I got the book: Library

From the back cover:

Of all the things Anya expected to find at the bottom of an old well, a new friend was not one of them. Especially not a new friend who’s been dead for a century.

Falling down a well is bad enough, but Anya’s normal life might actually be worse. She’s embarrassed by her family, self-conscious about her body, and she’s pretty much given up on fitting in at school. A new friend—even a ghost—is just what she needs.
Anya could really use a friend. But her new BFF isn’t kidding about the “Forever” part . . .

Review:

The story in Anya’s Ghost was not what I was expecting. Based on what I read, I went in to it thinking this was a story about a ghost helping an unpopular girl in high school. Half-way through the book it takes a weird turn which really made this book standout compared to other “fish out of water”/”unpopular in high school” stories out there.

Anya is kind of a social outcast in high school. She’s moody and has a bit of an attitude. There’s this boy she has a crush on and he might like her too if only he would notice her. When Anya falls down an abandoned well and befriends a ghost, she may have just found the help she needs to get the guy’s attention. But when the guy turns out to not be what Anya expected, the ghost doesn’t give up. Instead the ghost starts to become Anya and forces control over her life. Now, Anya must find a way to get rid of the ghost before it starts hurting her family.

I really enjoyed this book. The story became a little on the dark side near the end, but that felt like a breath of fresh air that prevented Anya’s Ghost from become just another “Casper the Friendly Ghost”-like story. I read this book a couple weeks ago and forgot to post about it (it has since been returned to the library). The author/artist apparently lives in the Portland area which would explain why suddenly everybody on facebook was talking about this book’s release party. It’s worth checking out. I was able to get it from my local library no problem.

Closing Thoughts: Anya’s Ghost’s target audience is probably teenage girls, but it was interesting enough and Anya is tough enough, that it is really a good all around read.

Question: A lot of the graphic novels I have been reading have been published by First Second. Why have I not heard of them before this month?

Title: The Griff
Author: Christopher Moore and Ian Corson
Artist: Jennyson Rosero
Pages: 160
Publisher: William Morrow
Published: July 2011
Where I got the book: Library

From the back cover:

Outrageously funny New York Times bestselling author Christopher Moore and award-winning screenwriter-director Ian Corson team up for a wacky and entertaining graphic tale of alien invasion and a motley crew of Earthlings trying to stay alive and, oh, yeah, save humankind.

The mayhem begins when an ancient alien beacon is unwittingly activated, summoning behemoth spaceships from the far reaches of the galaxy. Hovering in Earth’s atmosphere, they release a biblical stream of pods that transform into minivan-size, people-eating, flying lizardy things that look like mythological griffins. Destroying communications, emergency, and military infrastructure, they systematically kill everyone on the planet. Well, almost everyone.

A pesky trio of New Yorkers isn’t about to roll out the red carpet—or roll over and die—for these unwelcome intergalactic marauders. Unlikely heroes Mo, a snarky, Gothy game-goddess; Steve, a skateboard-punk schwag whore; and Curt, the obligatory buff commando expert in weaponry (and a genius with cosmetics), are going to take it to the aliens—and Florida is where the fight is. Armed with M-16s, a BFG (big f**king gun), and a surplus of guts, they’ll battle their way from the Big Apple to Orlando, where a downed spacecraft is the most awesome new attraction.

And in the Sunshine State another pair of courageous (and pretty damn lucky) humans who have outwitted the toothy Überlizards await: Liz, a babelicious killer whale trainer at Ocean World, and Oscar, a chain-smoking middle-aged professional squirrel (seriously—he’s paid to wear that squirrel costume).

Once united, the intrepid warriors will attempt to infiltrate the alien spacecraft, defeat the spacer invaders, and save (what’s left) of the world—and, if Steve plays his cards right, begin the fun of repopulating Earth all over again.

Review:

Christopher Moore is one of my favorite authors. All of his novels have been greatly enjoyable and hilarious. When I heard he was going to write a graphic novel, I was worried. First it was an original story instead of an adaptation of one of his other books. Second, he was writing it with Ian Corson, a screenwriter for movies I’ve never seen. Then there was the artwork. I hated it. For graphic novels the art style can easily ruin it for me, but since I heart Christopher Moore, I was willing to overlook it. However, in the end I was disappointed with The Griff on so many levels that this review will probably be the last time I mention it or acknowledge its existence.

The story in The Griff centers around an invasion of dragon-like aliens who are eating away at the human race. Survivors are forced to hide underground and be on the run constantly. It’s your typical “us versus them” scenario that can be seen in many, many movies. That’s not too surprising. Moore and Corson originally intended for The Griff to be a movie, but when that failed that eventually decided on the graphic novel format. I don’t want to say this is a problem because of the graphic novel format in general, but I think I can get away with saying that novels are a medium that allow more character development than graphic novels. Graphic novels typically only have 140 pages to get their story across and those pages share the space with art while novels can be 200+ pages of words describing and evolving the characters. The characters, one of my favorite trademarks of a Christopher Moore novel, in The Griff are sorely lacking in the development department. None of them are that interesting and in the short span of the book I never really cared for any of them. There’s the tough girl, the hapless male, the army guy, the guy you kind of want to see die, etc.

Another problem I faced with the book was that a lot of action would take place on a single page and it can sometimes be confusing how all the images fit together. Some pages seem more like a collage than a story. I know they are limited on space but jumping from point A to point C while ignoring what happens in between is not the best way to get there. This is especially noticeable in the action sequences where dialog isn’t spoken and the pictures are forced to speak for themselves. It leaves the reader to infer a lot of details about the story.

Closing Thoughts: Dismiss this book. It’s not worth your time.

Question: Maybe it’s just me, but The Griff led me to believe that everybody on the east coast own a submarine and knows how to drive them. Ture or False?

Second Opinions:
comic book newbie
Kleefeld on Comics
The Crawlspace

Title: Son of a Witch
Author: Gregory Maguire
Discs: 11
Publisher: HarperAudio
Published: September 2009
Where I got the book: Library

From the back cover:

In this captivating New York Times bestseller, beloved author Gregory Maguire returns to the land of Oz and introduces us to Liir, an adolescent boy last seen hiding in the shadows of the castle after Dorothy did in the Witch. Is he really Elphaba’s son? He has her broom and her cape—but what of her powers? In an Oz that, since the Wizard’s departure, is under new and dangerous management, can Liir keep his head down long enough to grow up?

Review:

In anticipation of the fourth book in the Wicked series, Out of OZ, I have decided to give the books another shot. The Wicked series is a little conflicting for me. I like the idea of them, but the execution often leaves me bored. When I read Wicked it was because everybody at the time was doing so. I got through it but couldn’t figure out what the big deal was. When Son of a Witch came out years later, I bought it and tried read it. That didn’t last long. I got bored and set the book down. When A Lion Among Men came out I purchased a copy but have never even cracked the spine on the book. This time around I thought about giving the audiobook versions a try and see if I could make it through the series that way. Luckily I had a road trip I needed to make so that gave me just enough time (11 hours-ish) to listen to SoaW,

The novel is broken up in to two different story lines. One follows the events immediately after Wicked (A Plot) and the other takes place many years after Wicked ends with Liir being found near death by a traveling caravan (B Plot). The book does a pretty good job balancing the two plot lines Near the end of the book, the two lines come together and you realize that the B plot is chronologically the middle of the story. Once the end of the A Plot reaches the start of the B Plot, the story unfolds in a single plot line fashion. I might have preferred to have the entire book in chronological order and have the B Plot greatly reduced. Seriously, for most of the B Plot Liir, the main character, is unconscious.

The overall story of SoaW is about people and Creatures being attacked throughout OZ. Birds are afraid to fly and people are getting their faces scraped off while traveling. The only people who seem concerned about it are the people who live outside the Emerald City. There’s also Liir’s obsession with finding a girl named Nor who he grew up with but was taken by the Wizard’s troops during the events in Wicked. Then there is ever present question: Is Liir really Elphaba’s son? People are divided on the answer to that question. Some believe he is and therefore is capable of continuing Elphaba’s work protecting Animals. Others will simply dismiss it and ignore Liir. And truly, that question is the driving force behind this book. I didn’t really care what happened to the Animals or the troubles in the Emerald City. All I really wanted was an answer. The book does answer the question (sort of) at the very end of the book but does so almost casually.

All SoaW did was remind me that I like the idea of the Wicked series but the execution of it doesn’t appeal to me. This is a very wordy book that could stand to loose a good chunk of filler.

Closing Thoughts: Even though I would simply describe this book as “meh”, i’m still going to listen to the third book in the series.

Question: Do you ever force yourself to read a book even though you don’t enjoy it?

Booking Through Thursday asks: It’s National Book Week. The rules: Grab the closest book to you. Go to page 56. Copy the 5th sentence.

“It was just somewhere to stick my thigh.” – Max Barry, Machine Man

I’m glad I got to see Laurie Notaro at Powells this evening. This is the fourth time she has come to Portland since I moved up here in 2004. This time around she was promoting her latest non-fiction book It Looked Different on the Model: Epic Tales of Impending Shame and Infamy. As always, I was still one of the few guys in attendance. At this point I’m use to that. She delighted everybody there by reading a few new stories from the book (She’s a Pill and You Must Be My Lucky Star). I remember last time I saw her, when she was promoting Spooky Little Girl, she gave a preview of a story she was working on for this book (that story would become Butcha Are, Blanche! Ch’are in That Chair!). I laughed so hard I had trouble breathing. I laughed so hard I cried. Me. Crying. Not a pretty picture. I also decided that I should never take my mother to a Laurie Notaro book reading. The phrase “died laughing” gets thrown around a lot these days, but I worry it might be possible. Anyways, tonight Laurie was fantastic. It turns out this book tour is self-funded so there are fewer stops this time around. Laurie still brought everybody Twizzlers (Cherry and Stawberry flavored) and spent time talked to everybody who wanted a signed book.

I’m a little sad that she had to pay for the book tour herself. This is her ninth book, and she is hilarious. I love recommending her to my friends and family. She’s one of those authors who you lend a copy of her book to a friend who then goes out to buy one of her older books. Or your friend will simply keep the book leaving you to buy another copy for yourself.

Booking Through Thursday asks:
What’s the last book you were really EXCITED to read? And, were you excited about it in advance? Or did the excitement bloom while you were reading it? Are there any books you’re excited about right NOW?

And I will respond with a picture.

This is the third book in Clive Barker’s Abarat series. The second book came out in 2004. Needless to say, i’ve been waiting for this book for a long while. Just today, my ARC came from Harper! Have I mentioned how much I enjoy Harper right now?