Tournament of Books 2015 Predictions (AmberBug)

My Tournament Of Books Predictions:

I don't have a list of reviews yet since they'll be publishing right up until the tournament, but look out for them! As you can see... I broke it down to make it even MORE confusing by adding what I WANT to make it with what I THINK will make it. Can't wait until next week! Bring it on!

All the Birds, Singing

All the Birds, Singing Evie Wyld 4/5	Published 2014 First Sentence "Another sheep, mangled and bled out, her innards not yet crusting and the vapours rising from her like a steamed pudding."
Publisher's Description: From one of Granta's Best Young British Novelists, a stunningly insightful, emotionally powerful new novel about an outsider haunted by an inescapable past: a story of loneliness and survival, guilt and loss, and the power of forgiveness. Jake Whyte is living on her own in an old farmhouse on a craggy British island, a place of ceaseless rains and battering winds. Her disobedient collie, Dog, and a flock of sheep are her sole companions, which is how she wanted it to be. But every few nights something—or someone—picks off one of the sheep and sets off a new deep pulse of terror. There are foxes in the woods, a strange boy and a strange man, rumors of an obscure, formidable beast. But there is also Jake's past—hidden thousands of miles away and years ago, held in the silences about her family and the scars that stripe her back—a past that threatens to break into the present. With exceptional artistry and empathy, All the Birds, Singing reveals an isolated life in all its struggles and stubborn hopes, unexpected beauty, and hard-won redemption.
Dear Reader, I decided to audiobook this one, which turned out to be pretty good. The narrator isn't that great with the male voices, but overall she fit pretty perfectly for the main character Jake Whyte (Jake is a female). This was another book that came across my lap because of the Tournament of Books, I highly suggest you check out this really cool event. This year I've decided to read as many TOB selections as possible. I'm glad this one landed into my hands because I really enjoyed it. Jake Whyte is a tortured sheep farmer with a tragic past, the story is told in two parts - following her present life and rewinding a tape into her past. Presently, she is taking care of her own sheep on a remote farm while she tries to figure out why her sheep keep dying. Each chapter is followed by one reflecting on her journey up until that point but played backward, the style is really interesting but takes a little time getting used to. The beauty of All the Birds, Singing is how the story unfolds. At first I was very taken aback by the story because we only see glimpses of the whole picture but as things rewind, we start to get the bigger picture and you can sit back and fully enjoy the ride. I was intrigued as to why Jake wanted to be isolated on this farm, what she had against men, and how she came to be the hardened woman we are first introduced to. Our first trip back into her past starts directly before her escape to the farm, and we already know she is running away from something. Little by little we see who and what she is running from and why her past is more complicated than you'd think. This story has many twists and turns, but the best part is you get scrambled because we have to ride backward to understand how things go forward. The writing is beautiful, the setting is new and interesting and you can't help but love Jake's unwelcomed companion Lloyd. Surprisingly, All the Birds, Singing has a large amount of comedic relief to the dark and meaty topics that come up. One minute you feel yourself pulling the covers up because Jake is facing something dark and menacing, and then Lloyd comes galloping in and changes the entire feel of the situation. I might not have loved this book as much as I did without Lloyd and ESPECIALLY not without Dog (yes, the dog's name is Dog). My favorite bits had everything to do with Lloyd interacting with Dog by trying to teach him tricks. There was something so charming about Lloyd and his nonchalant way of "sticking" around the farm, like a flea you couldn't get rid of. I'm really glad I was forced to pick up this book because I know I wouldn't have done otherwise, it's not a topic that screams out to me, "READ ME!", but maybe this review will help you decide to pick it up too. I think it deserves attention and more readers because this Author is one to watch, not many can switch tones at the drop of a pin, and she does it so darn well. I highly recommend this to anyone who loves a unique style but can also take or leave the mystery for good prose, if so... you won't be disappointed. Happy Reading, AmberBug

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Adam

Adam Ariel Schrag 2/5	Published 2014 First Sentence "Adam stared up at the tree leading to Kelsey Winslow's bedroom window."
Publisher's Description: When Adam Freedman -- a skinny, awkward, inexperienced teenager from Piedmont, California -- goes to stay with his older sister Casey in New York City, he is hopeful that his life is about to change. And it sure does. It is the Summer of 2006. Gay marriage and transgender rights are in the air, and Casey has thrust herself into a wild lesbian subculture. Soon Adam is tagging along to underground clubs, where there are hot older women everywhere he turns. It takes some time for him to realize that many in this new crowd assume he is trans -- a boy who was born a girl. Why else would this baby-faced guy always be around? Then Adam meets Gillian, the girl of his dreams -- but she couldn't possibly be interested in him. Unless passing as a trans guy might actually work in his favor... Ariel Schrag's scathingly funny and poignant debut novel puts a fresh spin on questions of love, attraction, self-definition, and what it takes to be at home in your own skin.
Dear Reader, Gah! This book is so frustrating. I'm really mad at it. Maybe that was the point? Adam is a typical teen boy with no real knowledge of the world around him. He travels to NYC to stay with his college-age sister for the summer, during which time he becomes enlightened to the LGBT community. His sister, lesbian dating transgender, brings him to parties and introduces him to a whole new world. The potential to be something great was here, and the Author did a great job (in my opinion as a cis-female) giving a nice overview and facts surrounding what someone transgender has to go through. While the beginning of the book started impressing me, the lies start stacking up... and if there is one thing I hate more than anything is the kind of lies that can destroy someone. Adam stacked his lies SO high that you knew it would crumble before the end. I don't want to give much away but it's hard for me because the majority of my gripes come from that awful ending. I'm going to make this review very brief because of spoilers BUT I will say the message the Author was heading towards was extremely thoughtful and intriguing. However, the ending unraveled everything the Author worked towards in one fell swoop. The audacity to write something so well researched and informative but then wipe all that away with a terribly offensive ending, was heartbreaking. Maybe this is what makes the book controversial but I'd rather have not read it at all. I threw the book at the wall in anguish at how terrible this made me feel, I was angry at everything it represented and I guess that might be why I should have rated it higher, it made me feel something, right? I just can't get past it... For those of you who know the ending, I'd gladly discuss this in the comments (those who don't want spoilers, avoid the comments please). Happy Reading, AmberBug

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Everything I Never Told You (Review by AmberBug)

Everything I Never Told You Celeste Ng 4.5 / 5	Published 2014 First Sentences "Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet."
Publisher's Description: A haunting debut novel about a mixed-race family living in 1970s Ohio and the tragedy that will either be their undoing or their salvation. Lydia is dead. But they don’t know this yet . . . So begins the story of this exquisite debut novel, about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee; their middle daughter, a girl who inherited her mother’s bright blue eyes and her father’s jet-black hair. Her parents are determined that Lydia will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue—in Marilyn’s case that her daughter become a doctor rather than a homemaker, in James’s case that Lydia be popular at school, a girl with a busy social life and the center of every party. When Lydia’s body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together tumbles into chaos, forcing them to confront the long-kept secrets that have been slowly pulling them apart. James, consumed by guilt, sets out on a reckless path that may destroy his marriage. Marilyn, devastated and vengeful, is determined to find a responsible party, no matter what the cost. Lydia’s older brother, Nathan, is certain that the neighborhood bad boy Jack is somehow involved. But it’s the youngest of the family—Hannah—who observes far more than anyone realizes and who may be the only one who knows the truth about what happened. A profoundly moving story of family, history, and the meaning of home, Everything I Never Told You is both a gripping page-turner and a sensitive family portrait, exploring the divisions between cultures and the rifts within a family, and uncovering the ways in which mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives struggle, all their lives, to understand one another.
Dear Reader, I was pleasantly surprised how much i liked this book. It wasn't on my radar at all but Arianna and her sister Bethany gave it such high reviews, I had to jump on the bandwagon (Check our what Arianna thought). It helped that this book was selected for the short list of the Tournament of Books this year AND was a free audiobook from Ford. I usually don't like to audiobook literary fiction, I don't like to miss a word and I know that when listening that tends to happen sometimes. However, this was a pleasant book to listen to, not sure exactly what made it so effortless, the narrator maybe? EINTY is beautifully written, the characters develop in deep and profound ways and the Author keeps you glued to the page right to the end. There was quite a bit of thoughtful topics brought about a fairly normal story of family struggle. The story starts with a tragedy and goes back and forth from past recollections and memories to how the family copes with that tragedy. The interesting thing is that the story isn't really about the missing daughter, that is more background noise. I liked how the Author tossed in a plot device (missing girl) but didn't focus on that as much as the family dynamic and the character development, this gave a little bit of mystery with a fantastic human touch. This might have been a five star favorite of mine but I'm not sure how memorable this will be for me. As touched as I was about the struggle the family had to go through and the tug and pull of the sibling love/hate, I didn't connect personally. I enjoyed getting that glimpse into a mixed racial family daily struggle, especially in that time period, but I wasn't too impressed with the cliche love affair the professor/father was having with his student assistant, I rolled my eyes but continued reading since everything else fit so nicely. EINTY is bold and beautiful but also dirty, we get to see the inner thoughts of each character and the truth behind it is startling but understandable. I was completely enraptured by the mother, who pushes her daughter to do what she had always wanted, which I guess could be prevalent in many mother/daughter relationships. If I had to compare this family to one thing, it would be an avalanche. The family standing on many loose rocks, a few trips over those rocks and everything starts to crumble. The mother leaving, the affair, the hardships of being mixed race, lydia wanting to please her mother so much that she sacrifices her own childhood - worried her mother will leave again. Truly heartbreaking. I would read/listen to this with the knowledge that this might bring a little rain cloud to follow you around, maybe even suggest carrying around some tissues and a puppy?! Yeah, a puppy. Happy Reading, AmberBug

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