Beastmomma

I am very slow with completing books as I am consumed with preparing to take the bar exam in MA. I thought it would be fun to track my reading progress each week. The Sunday Salon is  an online reading group where all the participants set aside time to read every Sunday and blog about the experience. To learn more or to join, click on the picture above.

I finally finished the dreaded bar exam which felt like it had typed up my whole life for the past six weeks!  To celebrate, Partner and I are heading to Puerto Rico next week. I am looking forward to being warm.  The weather has really got me down.  Plus, it will be so nice to get away from everything.  To devote myself to reading, I dove back into Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston.  I am also looking forward to reading lots of stuff while on vacation.

Since my last Sunday Salon post, I wrote two reviews.

From goodreads:

The Blind Assassin is a tale of two sisters, one of whom dies under ambiguous circumstances in the opening pages. The survivor, Iris Chase Griffen, initially seems a little cold-blooded about this death in the family. But as Margaret Atwood's most ambitious work unfolds--a tricky process, in fact, with several nested narratives and even an entire novel-within-a-novel--we're reminded of just how complicated the familial game of hide-and-seek can be.

Meanwhile, Atwood immediately launches into an excerpt from Laura Chase's novel, The Blind Assassin, posthumously published in 1947. In this double-decker concoction, a wealthy woman dabbles in blue-collar passion, even as her lover regales her with a series of science-fictional parables. Complicated? You bet. But the author puts all this variegation to good use, taking expert measure of our capacity for self-delusion and complicity, not to mention desolation. Almost everybody in her sprawling narrative manages to--or prefers to--overlook what's in plain sight. And memory isn't much of a salve either. Yet Atwood never succumbs to postmodern cynicism, or modish contempt for her characters. On the contrary, she's capable of great tenderness, and as we immerse ourselves in Iris's spliced-in memoir, it's clear that this buttoned-up socialite has been anything but blind to the chaos surrounding her.

Pages: 521 (paperback)

Rating: 10 out of 10

Source: Purchased from bookstore (name escapes me) located in South Station, Boston

 I have been reading Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood since August.  I kept having to put the book on the back burner, so that I could finish the selection for a book club meeting. Fortunately, the book is divided into easy to read chapters.  While it was tricky to keep track of the story within the story, I found Atwood's writing really accessible.   Towards the end of the book, there are a few plot twists.  While many of them are unexpected, I did not find them unrealistic.  Instead, I thought "Atwood is a genius" and "I cannot believe I have not read any of her other novels." 

Memoir and science fiction are both present in the book and are connected to each other.  I, especially, enjoyed the perspective of Iris.  She reminds me of a stereotypical older sibling-- who sacrifices, tries to be good, and protect her younger sibling.  Through her memoir, a big part of the story unfolds.  The hindsight with which she makes sense of her past is (for lack of a more profound word) lovely.   Iris discusses the complications of being connected with a man to have status and power; however, she finds strength and courage to venture off on her own. 

Another reason I enjoyed the book is the way both Iris and Laura find ways to be independent in the midst of having so many societal restrictions.  As cheesy as it sounds, this is one of the best books I have read in a long time!!

I am counting Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood for the following challenges:

• Orbis Terrarum: The author is Canadian.
• 2010 Global Challenge: I am counting it for the continent of North America and the country of Canada.
•  Chunkster Reading Challenge: The book is well over 450 pages.
• Women Unbound: Iris, the main female narrator, explores societal norms for women and pushes the envelope of what is expected of her.
• What's in a Name Two: It fulfills the profession category

From goodreads:

A spellbinding amalgam of murder mystery, family saga, love story, and financial intrigue.

It’s about the disappearance forty years ago of Harriet Vanger, a young scion of one of the wealthiest families in Sweden . . . and about her octogenarian uncle, determined to know the truth about what he believes was her murder.

It’s about Mikael Blomkvist, a crusading journalist recently at the wrong end of a libel case, hired to get to the bottom of Harriet’s disappearance . . . and about Lisbeth Salander, a twenty-four-year-old pierced and tattooed genius hacker possessed of the hard-earned wisdom of someone twice her age—and a terrifying capacity for ruthlessness to go with it—who assists Blomkvist with the investigation. This unlikely team discovers a vein of nearly unfathomable iniquity running through the Vanger family, astonishing corruption in the highest echelons of Swedish industrialism—and an unexpected connection between themselves.

Pages: 590 (paperback)

Rating: 7 out of 10

Source: Checked out from public library

I began The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson for a book club meeting that was held in January.  One of the members recommended the book; I had not heard much about it.  As soon as I got my copy, I felt like the book was everywhere.  Almost all of my reading was conducted on the commuter rail going to and from Boston.  On every ride, I saw at least three other people reading it.  Unfortunately, I did not finish the book in time for our book club discussion.  With limited spoilers from the meeting, I found myself eager to finish.  After the first 100 pages, the book started to get scarier and became more of a page turner.

From the internet, I learned that the Swedish title of the book is "Men Who Hate Women."  While the title sounds unsavory, I think it is a more accurate description of the mistreatment of women in the book.  At several points, I was startled and disturbed by the amount of and graphic detail of sexually violent scenes.  I was also bothered by the treatment of marriage in the book.  At the risk of sounding like a prude, I was troubled that none of the marriages were monogamous.  I also found myself confused with why so many women were throwing themselves at one of the characters.

Lisbeth, the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, was the character that tugged at my heart strings the most.  It is clear that she has a troubled past, but we did not find out much about her history. I also thought that her character did not have much resolution.  There was such a contrast between her professional brilliance and her inability to have healthy real life relationships. Maybe there is more resolution in the other books in the series.  As an aspiring esquire (please please send good thoughts my way on February 24th and 25th that I pass the bar), I was especially sad to learn that she felt that the legal system had failed her.  From her previous experiences, I can understand why.  However, I wish that she had had at least one experience to renew her faith in the legal system.  On a positive and very selfish note, it made me feel more motivated to work towards passing the bar, so that I can try to help people like Lisbeth's character.

The book was an odd, but strangely satisfying way to start off my reading in 2010.  I wrote about the book for one Sunday Salon post. You can read my entry here. The book is also helping to make some progress towards challenges.  I am counting The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson for the following challenges:

Orbis Terrarum: The author was Swedish.

2010 Global Challenge: I am counting it for the continent of Europe and the country of Sweden.

 Chunkster Reading Challenge: The book is well over 450 pages. Actually, this challenge does not officially begin until February 1st.  I cannot believe I finished a book early for it!

I think that I may have an addiction to challenges, but I also feel determined to expand my reading horizons.  Anyway, here is a challenge that promises to take me around the world through the pages of a book.  Because I am feeling crazy, I decided to sign up for the Medium Level.  More information can be found on the challenge blog. Here are the details:

The Medium Challenge
Read two novels from each of these continents in the course of 2010:
Africa: (1) This Child Will be Great:Memoir of a Remarkable Life by Africa's First Woman President written by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (Liberia). I completed the book in December 10th. You can find my review here.
Asia:(1) Shanghai Girls by Lisa See (China). I completed the book in March 2010. My review is here. (2)Two Souls Indivisible by James Hirsch (Vietnam). I completed the book in April 2010. My review is here. (3) Everything is Broken by Emma Larkin (Burma). I completed the book on May 19, 2010. It is a bonus read for this continent. My review is here. (4) The Geometry of God by Uzsma Aslam Khan (Pakistan). I completed the book on August 26th. My review is here. I realized that if this challenge was all about Asia and Europe, I would be finished already. (5) A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. I finished the book at the end of October. Even though I am WAY over on the Asia, I still think the books are worth sharing. You can find my review here.
Australasia: (1) The Book Thief by Mark Zusak (Australia). I completed the book on December 27th. You can find my review here.
Europe: (1) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (Sweden). I completed the book in January 2010.  My review is here. (2) Chocolat by Joanne Harris (France). I finished the book on April 14th.  My review is here.

North America (incl Central America): (1)  Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood (Canada).  I completed the book in February and you can find my review here.  (2) A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick (United States) I complete the book on April 30th. You can find my review here.
South America
Try to find novels from twelve different countries or states.

**Turns out that I am not quite the world traveller that I hoped.  Looking at my reading pattern, I would have aced this challenge if I could have spent almost all the time in Asia.  I am going to try again in the hopes that I will have a better outcome in 2011**

I am very slow with completing books as I am consumed with preparing to take the bar exam in MA. I thought it would be fun to track my reading progress each week. The Sunday Salon is  an online reading group where all the participants set aside time to read every Sunday and blog about the experience. To learn more or to join, click on the picture above.

 Purse Book

During my commute to and from my bar prep course, I have been enjoying The Girl with the Dragon Tattooby Stieg Larsson.  Unfortunately, I am not going to be able to finish the book before the book club meeting on Thursday.  However, I am really taken with the story and want to see what happens with the characters.  Plus, the story is set in Sweden and I like learning about another country through a novel.  One thing I wish is that I was not so exhausted on the train, so that I could read more of the book no a daily basis.

Nightstand Book

Even though I had vowed that Blind Assassinby Margaret Atwood would remain my purse book, I could not keep that promise.  Unfortunately, the Atwood masterpiece is on my night stand.  As much as I am sleepy on the train, I am even more exhausted by the time I climb into bed.  I snuck a chapter of reading in this morning before I began studying.  I am getting more and more curious about what is going to happen with the characters; the story is intricate, detail oriented, and really engaging.  Again, I wish that I had more energy to put into absorbing the story.

Other Book and Life Related Events

My energy and time is pretty consumed with preparing for (and hopefully) passing the MA bar.   I find myself longing to get lost in books.  I was telling a friend of mine that one thing I find particularly challenging about the bar prep process is that I am missing the refuge and joy I get from good novels.  She reminded me that bar prep is a limited time and that I need to think of quality, not quantity.  I am trying to keep that in mind and feel glad that I am able to get in at least a few pages of reading. 

On Thursday, I am really excited to attend a book club meeting with the partners and professors book club that I started.  It is our first meeting of the New Year and I think it will be a good break from the stress of studying.