Glory O'Brien's History of the Future

Glory O'Brien's History of the Future A. S. King 4/5	Expected Publication: October 14th 2014 First Sentence "So we drank it - the two of us."
Publisher's Description: In this masterpiece about freedom, feminism, and destiny, Printz Honor author A.S. King tells the epic story of a girl coping with devastating loss at long last--a girl who has no idea that the future needs her, and that the present needs her even more. Graduating from high school is a time of limitless possibilities--but not for Glory, who has no plan for what's next. Her mother committed suicide when Glory was only four years old, and she's never stopped wondering if she will eventually go the same way...until a transformative night when she begins to experience an astonishing new power to see a person's infinite past and future. From ancient ancestors to many generations forward, Glory is bombarded with visions--and what she sees ahead of her is terrifying: A tyrannical new leader raises an army. Women's rights disappear. A violent second civil war breaks out. And young girls vanish daily, sold off or interned in camps. Glory makes it her mission to record everything she sees, hoping her notes will somehow make a difference. She may not see a future for herself, but she'll do anything to make sure this one doesn't come to pass.
Dear Reader, Okay, can I first just gush about how beautiful that cover is!!! I'm adding A.S. King to the list of "must read the day the book comes out" Authors. She is excellent! I don't read very much YA but I'd fit her somewhere between the boundaries of contemporary literature and young adult. This book won't be published until October but after reading the blurb, I knew I needed to start this one right away. Glory O'Brien is a reclusive girl with a "convenient" best friend who lives on a commune across the street. Glory lives with her father and they both seem to be trapped/stuck in this small bubble, Glory's mother passed away (suicide) when she was five and both of them haven't taken the appropriate grieving steps (they haven't taken ANY grieving steps). To make matters worse, Glory's "best friend", term used very loosely, is so self centered that she she can't see anything going on in her friend's life. Glory even made up a [laugh track] for whenever her friend says something selfish, which had me giggling throughout the book. There is a dark humor here, and that is my FAVORITE kind of humor. The Author took this really, really strange concept (another thing I love) and created a beautifully sad story that opens up to the bigger picture of growing up under dark circumstances. Let's talk about the strange concept, I think it's worth mentioning that the story revolves around Glory and her friend deciding to drink a petrified bat which leads to giving them the power to see people's history and future. I think that needed to be said, mostly because I know a few people wouldn't want to get past that and try to see the bigger picture and the beauty behind her writing. I love that King uses this strange premise, but I'm not everyone. I adored the chapter titles, each one named after something insignificant that happens in that particular short chapter. The titles are truly that, titles. Glory names the photos she takes similarly and each one has this glimmer of brilliancy that shines beneath it's boring facade. Titles such as: Am I Making Any Sense?, Ripping Meat From the Bone, Everything Tasted Like Radiation, It Was the Nineties. After Glory gets powers to see the past/future, the Author adds a chapter from the journal Glory starts making, this sheds a little light into what she sees. This part of the book isn't the important part, or even the truly good part. The side of Glory recognizing the things she needs to move on into adulthood, that is what makes this story amazing. The realizations Glory comes across, those pieces we learn along the way of life... things like, "I don't HAVE to be friends with that person", "I don't HAVE to be boy obsessed", "I don't HAVE to take the same path as everyone else". That is where the beauty lies in Glory O'Brien's History of the Future. Happy Reading, AmberBug

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The Snow Queen

The Snow Queen Michael Cunningham 4.5 / 5	Published 2014 First Sentence "A celestial light appeared to Barrett Meeks in the sky over Central Park, four days after Barrett had been mauled, once again, by love."
Publisher's Description: Michael Cunningham’s luminous novel begins with a vision. It’s November 2004. Barrett Meeks, having lost love yet again, is walking through Central Park when he is inspired to look up at the sky; there he sees a pale, translucent light that seems to regard him in a distinctly godlike way. Barrett doesn’t believe in visions—or in God—but he can’t deny what he’s seen. At the same time, in the not-quite-gentrified Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn, Tyler, Barrett’s older brother, a struggling musician, is trying—and failing—to write a wedding song for Beth, his wife-to-be, who is seriously ill. Tyler is determined to write a song that will not be merely a sentimental ballad but an enduring expression of love.  Barrett, haunted by the light, turns unexpectedly to religion. Tyler grows increasingly convinced that only drugs can release his creative powers. Beth tries to face mortality with as much courage as she can summon. Cunningham follows the Meeks brothers as each travels down a different path in his search for transcendence. In subtle, lucid prose, he demonstrates a profound empathy for his conflicted characters and a singular understanding of what lies at the core of the human soul. The Snow Queen, beautiful and heartbreaking, comic and tragic, proves again that Cunningham is one of the great novelists of his generation.
Dear Reader, I don't know why this book didn't review very well on Goodreads; I really loved it. And it was gorgeously written. I have not read anything else by Cunningham, despite having The Hours on my to-read list since I don't know when, but I am okay that I started with this one - it makes me eager to want to read more. He is an amazing writer. His word choices, his imagery, and his characters all really drew me into this book. The premise is interesting enough - two brothers who couldn't be more different, both in the thrall of "the snow queen", who materializes in the form of Tyler's sickly wife, Beth. The brothers' lives dance around Beth while her illness waxes and wanes, and the whole story is tied, ultimately, to this fragile creature. However, there is so much more to this book: Barrett's embracing of religion (in a very detached way) because he experiences a vision after having been dumped unceremoniously by his latest boyfriend; his boss' own complicated love stories with younger men; and the way Tyler comes to terms with his wife's illness and how he sees himself in relation to her. Tyler, especially, intrigued me: he had spent so long being Beth's caretaker that he could use that as his excuse not to create the music that he was born to make, and couldn't define himself as anything other than Beth's husband. I enjoyed watching his evolution through the book. There's really not much to tell that won't ruin what little story there is (that wasn't meant to be a disparaging remark; it's just that this book is more of a character study than a plot!). I loved the Snow Queen's constant presence in the book - either as a bright light experienced in a blizzard, a flake falling on a lonely man's tongue, a frail and terminal angel, or even as the strong and determined woman you see at the end of the book. Would Barrett even have considered himself a "Snow Queen," as a gay man who experienced a vision on a snowy night? Perhaps even his inability to maintain a relationship would lead some to accuse him of being distant, "snowy."  Ah, that's probably a stretch. I'll just say that I'd definitely recommend this one. Reminds me in a lot of ways of the feel of books & movies that came out in the 1990s: I have to admit I was recalling Reality Bites and Our Noise and Angels in America after reading this. Perhaps it was that tragically lonely feel of a group of twenty-somethings. Whatever it was, I really loved it. Yours, Arianna

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