Happy Sunday! There's been plenty to 'inspire' this week, hasn't there? What with the cover controversy of Liar going on. The blog world has been anything but quiet the past few days. (I'm just glad it isn't a blog-angst frenzy this time.) What do you think of this mess?
The book, Liar, by Justine Larbalestier, is quite thought-provoking. The main character, Micah, is a compulsive liar. She challenges readers--constantly--to piece together the narrative. To weigh, to consider fact from fiction. How much of Micah's story is believable? Do you believe any part of what she says?
Personally, I did NOT like the cover. Sure it was fine before I started reading the book. But several chapters into the book, I realized how very wrong this cover is for this book. The cover portrays a white girl with very long hair. The main character of the book is black with very short hair. This cover adds to the puzzle. If the author had intended this, if she approved of it, it would be one thing. But to know that this was not the case, just makes it upsetting all the way around.
I really appreciated this post by A Chair, A Fireplace, & A Tea Cozy called Getting the Books. She mentions two things which I think are key to keep in mind: for reviewers to review a book, they have to know about it (know it exists in the first place) and they have to have access to it. Bringing it into context, for a blog to be multicultural--to have titles representing people of all races and ethnicities, to be diverse, it may require the blogger to do a bit of homework.
This week in movies:
Carefree
Move Over Darling
Prince and the Pauper
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex
Henry VIII
Some Like It Hot (second time)
What I read in a previous week, but reviewed this week:
Cart and Cwidder. Diana Wynne Jones. 1975. 214 pages.
Pet Vet: The Mare's Tale. Darrel & Sally Odgers. 2009. Kane/Miller. 88 pages.
Jack Russell: Dog Detective: The Buried Biscuits. Darrel and Sally Odgers. 2008. Kane/Miller. 80 pages.
Jack Russell: Dog Detective: The Kitnapped Creature. Darrel and Sally Odgers. 2008. Kane/Miller. 80 pages.
What I read this past week and reviewed:
Jack Russell: Dog Detective: The Blue Stealer. Darrel and Sally Odgers. 2009. Kane/Miller. 80 pages.
Family Reminders. Julie Danneberg. Illustrated by John Shelley. Charlesbridge. 2009. 105 pages.
The Last Colony. John Scalzi. 2007. 320 pages.
The Corinthian by Georgette Heyer. 1940/2009. Sourcebooks. 261 pages.
A Mirror to Nature. Jane Yolen. 2009. Wordsong.
The Enclave by Karen Hancock. Bethany House. 492 pages.
Suddenly Supernatural: Scaredy Cat by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel. 2009. Little Brown. 250 pages.
Suddenly Supernatural: The Unhappy Medium. Elizabeth Cody Kimmel. 2009. Little Brown. 277 pages.
The Emerald Tablet. P.J. Hoover. 2008. CBay Books. 288 pages.
What I read this past week and haven't reviewed yet:
Clara's War: One Girl's Story of Survival by Clara Kramer. 2009. HarperCollins. 352 pages.
Lunch Lady And the Cyborg Substitute by Jarrett J. Krosoczka. 2009. Random House.
Lunch Lady And the League of Librarians by Jarrett J. Krosoczka. 2009. Random House.
The Importance of Wings. Robin Friedman. 2009. Charlesbridge. 170 pages.
I, Lorelei. Yeardley Smith. 2009. HarperCollins. 339 pages.
What I've read and really, really need to review: none!
What I'm currently reading:
Offworld by Robin Parrish
The Navel of the World by P.J. Hoover
The Plight of the Darcy Brothers: Pride and Prejudice Continues: A Tale of The Darcys and The Bingleys by Marsha Altman
Goth Girl Rising by Barry Lyga
What I'm just fooling around that I'm reading:
Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran
She by H. Rider Haggard
What I hope to start reading soon:
Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce.
Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko.
Five Children and It by E. Nesbit.
What I've abandoned: none this week
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
5 comments:
You are completely caught up on your reviews! Good job!
Darcy brothers? I am, of course, curious. L.
Liar sounds interesting. Truthfully.
(P.S. Thanks for linking to the cover controversy, which is rather unbelievable.)
Wow, you certainly kept busy! I really need to get on reading Cleopatra by Michelle Moran; it's such a huge book though! I carry my books around a lot, so weight is an issue :/
And I've heard of the Liar's controversy. I have nothing to add that hasn't been said already, but I think Bloomsburry were wrong from the start, and their excuses are ridiculous. If a black girl sells less, then they could have at least gone for a cover more like the original! (and I won't even get on that "black girl on a cover sells less" mentality!)
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