Sci-Fi book # 19 The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells

After a bit of thought I've decided to read the top 25 books on the list at http://scifilists.sffjazz.com/lists_books_rank1.html. Maybe I'll read more than just the top 25 but in the year before we started this project I read books #26 and #27 (The Left Hand of Darkness and Speaker for the Dead) on the list and neither would be books I'd want to re-read so soon. I had also read books #74 and # 76 (A Princess of Mars and The Puppet Masters) and neither are ones that I'd ever want to re-read. Of the top 25 books, I've already read 15 of them and each are ones I'd want to re-read (5 of which are on out top 100 list so I'm going to be rereading them anyway). I've always been curious if I'd enjoy or 'get' Neuromancer more now than when I read it as a teenager.

The first time I read The War of the Worlds was right before the big giant Spielberg movie version came out in 2005. The story is pretty simple. On the outskirts of London in the 1890's an alien invasion takes place. The aliens arrive in 'rockets' from Mars and once they put together their tripod machines they go about using their heat ray and spreading black smoke that kills everything in the English countryside. The English don't have much defense against this so it is a good thing that *spoiler* that the Martians are vulnerable to bacteria and die after a week or so.

I enjoyed the book back then and enjoyed it again this time. In fact, I think I'll have to put this one in my top 50. There are quite a few alien invasion books and movies now, but The War of the Worlds was one of the very first and it is fair to say that most of these types of stories have taken something from The War of the Worlds. The story is told through a narrator that continually escapes the aliens out of luck and is able to give a first hand account of what the aliens do throughout their attack. It is never really a fair fight between the humans and the Martians, and given that the characters have absolutely no frame of reference for an alien invasion the book comes off almost more as a horror story rather than either science fiction or action. I also really liked H. G. Wells' style. It is very descriptive of the Martians and their machines and also of the narrator's emotions and has a nice balance of plot with emotion. I'll have to give it an A+.

If He Hollers Let Him Go by Chester Himes

A few weeks ago the L.A. Weekly had a really good article about deciding which book is the best ever "L.A. novel".  You can read the article at http://blogs.laweekly.com/arts/2013/07/best_la_novel_ever_if_he_hollers.php. After reading the article I knew that I'd have to read the book that won their contest, If He Hollers Let Him Go by Chester Himes. The only thing that made me skeptical was that The Black Echo by Michael Connelly ranked higher somehow than The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler.

So, If He Hollers Let Him Go was published in 1947 and is set a few years earlier. To quote the summary on the back of the book "the novel spans four days in the life of Bob Jones, a black man relentlessly plagues by the effects of World War II racism." I really enjoyed the book, it presented an insightful take on racism in Los Angeles and how it can really take its toll on someone. I'm not sure though that I'd call it the best L.A. novel ever though... just because I felt like Los Angeles wasn't really a major part of the novel. Sure it takes place here but it almost seems like this story could have been told in any major city. I'll give it an A.

Some other thoughts:
- The cover of the edition I bought is horribly boring... an extreme close up of some fingers. It is further evidence to me the "art" on modern book covers is just getting worse. When I write up these posts I always look at all of the different covers a book has had and I almost always like some really old cover over whatever is on the most current edition.
Just compare this...

to the original cover (which actually shows a scene from the book)

-One part of the book that did make it seem like an "L.A." novel is that the author frequently would give detailed directions of what streets he'd take to get around the city. Yes, the totally reminded me of the SNL skit "The Californians"



-Even though this book isn't on our Top 100 list, it does mention a Native Son which is.

Book # 68 The Portrait Of A Lady by Henry James

Progress Book # 25 of 100

This book went on and on and on and on. A lot happens, but it doesn’t happen quickly.  Everything takes time.  It follows the story of young American woman Isabel Archer.   She is adopted by an Aunt and leaves her life in New York to go and tour Europe.  While there she is loved by all.  She quickly gets a marriage proposal from Lord Warbourton, and although she likes Lord Warbourton, Isabel is not ready to get married.  She wants to be an independent woman and marriage isn't in her future, at least that is what she thinks.  Her cousin in charmed by Isabel.  He likes her attitude and wants for her to be happy and live unmarried if she chooses.  He convinces his father to leave Isabel half of their family fortune.  So Isabel becomes a rich heiress.

Just as Bleak House had Mr. Skimpole, this novel had Madame Merle.  She is  friend of Isabel's aunt that has no money and seems to depend on her friends for support.  Madame Merle sees Isabel as a wife for Mr. Gilbert Osmond.  Once this is decided Isabel's future is decided.  She marries Mr. Osmond, devastating her cousin and Lord Warbourton.  She falls into a trap and doesn't realize until it's too late.  I wanted a happier Jane Austen type of story, but didn't really get it here.  That with the fact that the story goes on and on and on just didn't make this the best novel.

I'll give it 84% a B

 

With this review, I’ve completed 25% of the novels, only 75 titles to go!  I’m definitely enjoying this little project, but sometimes find writing these blogs a little challenging.  If I wasn’t doing this with Daniel I’m not sure I would be able to finish everything.  I know for sure I wouldn’t be reading them as fast as I am.  I think we are pushing each other to keep up the pace.   As for the blogs,   I’m usually at least two blogs behind the current book I’m reading.  In the next 25 I’ll tackle a few that I’m not looking forward to reading (Tolstoy and maybe another Faulkner and/or Woolf).    

Ok, so I wrote the above note 3 months ago and never actually posted this.  Right now I am 7 reviews behind, 5 books from the list and 2 fun ones.  I'll try and get them up soon so I can be caught up. 

Book # 50 Harry Potter (Book 4 of 7) - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

Another Harry Potter book... This is the third time I've read Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and once again it was a pretty fun read. However the thing that comes to mind for me first about this book was the circumstances in which I read it for the second time back in 2007. I probably got through at least half of it while waiting in line an entire day in Hollywood for a chance to get a ticket to see The White Stripes play in a tiny room. The deal was that the first two hundred people to buy the cd would get a ticket to see them play the next day in a small shop that they had set up and called Icky Thump Records. Of course the CD didn't go on sale until midnight and I got in line at 6 AM. Even though I was there 18 hours early I was nowhere near the front of the line. Anyway, I sat in the sun all day reading The Goblet of Fire and stressing out that I wouldn't be one of the first two hundred. Luckily I barely made it and got my ticket so that I could wait in line again the next day for the actual show. And the show was awesome... it was the last time The White Stripes ever played in Los Angeles.

Thinking of this story got me thinking about some parallels between Harry Potter and The White Stripes. Both started and ended at the same time; the first Stripes performance was July 14th, 1997 and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was released on June 26th, 1997. The final Stripes concert was July 31st, 2007 (just a month after my story) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released July 21st, 2007. So both existed as something current during the same time. Personally I discovered both at pretty much the same time also in 2001.  Both also started out really good and continually got better and I'd say both came to very satisfying conclusions.  While the middle White Stripes albums (White Blood Cells and Elephant) will go down as classics, Icky Thump was also a great album and only added to their legacy.... just like how most people love Prisoner of Azkaban, Goblet of Fire and The Order of the Phoenix most... but are still satisfied with The Deathly Hallows. I'm guessing Get Behind Me Satan is analogous to The Half-Blood Prince then.

Anyway, what I thought about most was how both Harry Potter and The White Stripes are supposedly finished. J.K. Rowling has said that she's done with Harry Potter forever now... just like Jack White said that the Stripes are a thing of the past.  And a part of me really hopes this is true and another conflicting part disagrees. My heart wants more of both... but my brain knows that it is pretty likely that if either continued they wouldn't be nearly as good as what came before. Kind of like the Star Wars prequels or that final Who record. I guess I hope we never see more Harry Potter books or White Stripes CDs, but you know if either one announced something new I'd have to admit I would be super excited for either one and be the first to pre-order it. And yes,  I'd be willing to wait in line an entire day once again to see Jack and Meg back together even if I knew deep down that it wouldn't be the same as seeing them back in 2007.

So, about Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire...  stuff happens with dragons, mer-people, and Voldemort gets a body. Harry survives it all. It gets an A.

Foundation by Isaac Asimov

The books that I've most been looking forward to reading on our list are the science fiction books. Unfortunately there aren't that many sci-fi books on the list so I've decided to also read (or re-read) the top 25 or so science fiction books of all time. The problem is that I can't decide on which list to use. NPR published a nice list at http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/139085843/your-picks-top-100-science-fiction-fantasy-books but that list contains a bunch of series titles. Another good list is at http://scifilists.sffjazz.com/lists_books_rank1.html.  And yet another one is at http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/12325.S_L_Top_100_Science_Fiction_Fantasy_Titles. Either way, near the top of each of these lists is Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy. I had found a used copy that contained all three books at a library book sale shortly before we started this project, so it has been staring at me from the bookshelf for the last year just waiting to be picked up. I was looking forward to it because I really had no clue what it was about since this is one of the few classic science fiction books that haven't been made into a movie.

This first book is really a set of five short stories set in the far future, so far in fact that mankind is spread out across the galaxy and they don't even remember that Earth was the birthplace of humans. The first story sets the foundation for what the series is about. A scientist, Hari Seldon, creates a new science 'psychohistory' which basically allows him to predict the future of society in very general terms. He comes to the conclusion that the current Empire will fall in a few hundred years and this will be followed by thirty thousand years of unrest, destruction and chaos. He believes it is already too late to save the Empire from collapse, but he sets in motion a plan that will help society make it through the collapse in only one thousand years. One the outside it appears this plan is to create a giant type of encyclopedia and library that will contain all knowledge and keep it safe through any type of destruction. Each of the next four short stories jump ahead generations at a time to see how this plan progresses and the obstacles it faces.

Overall I really enjoyed the book. The set up is really good and I enjoyed the jumping ahead in time in each new story. I'll have to read the second book in the trilogy pretty soon because the first book doesn't really offer much of a conclusion. The only difficulty in reading it was that there were so many characters with weird names, and once you learn them all they get replaced with another set of new characters. I also found it funny that in the far future people still read print newspapers and rely on microfilm. I'll give Foundation an A.

Should you read the book or see the movie? Part 2

Now it is time for another installment of "Should you read the book or see the movie?"



The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925) vs. The Great Gatsby (the 2013 film)
I didn't get around to watching the 70's Great Gatsby film yet, but I did see the new shiny Baz Luhrmann version. I enjoyed both the novel and the film, but the book is an all time classic while the film is just a good adaptation. I'll say that the cast was pretty good and going through the story again made me appreciate the depth of the book and made me think a bit more about what really makes Gatsby tick. Decision: Read the book then see the movie

Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis (1951) vs. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008 film)
While Prince Caspian was probably my least favorite of the books in the Narnia series, I still enjoyed it. The film however was totally forgettable. Decision: Read the book.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis (1952) vs. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010 film)
Since I didn't think very highly of the Prince Caspian movie, I had pretty low expectations for the third movie and didn't see it until it was on DVD. Imagine my surprise when I found that I enjoyed it quite a bit, probably because Eustace was such a bratty kid. I was even more surprised that the book was almost as good as The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Decision: Both, read the book and see the movie.


A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway (1929) vs. A Farewell to Arms (1932 film)
This one isn't even close. I loved the book, it is perfect in so many ways. The movie however has many many flaws. The roles are miscast, there are unnecessary story changes and everything just seems off. The book is written in such a way that it does not add extra emotion and the narrator gives us just the facts up until the very emotional ending. The film on the other hand has a montage of war scenes set to highly emotional music and tries to manipulate the viewer way too hard. Decision. Read the book.

The first three Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling vs. the first three Harry Potter films.
Both are great. Decision: Both.


Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (1861) vs. Great Expectations (2011 BBC miniseries)
The book of course is great. The 2011 miniseries is fairly faithful to the book plot wise but isn't as enjoyable. The cast is okay but the whole thing felt way more serious and depressing than the book and lacked the humor found throughout the novel. Decision: Read the book.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey (1962) vs. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975 film)
Both the book and the movie are classics. The plot is pretty much the same but the two feel really different because the book gives the story from Chief Bromden's point of view (complete with hallucinations) while the film centers clearly on Jack Nicholson's McMurphy and is told with a more objective eye. Decision: Both.

Possession by A.S. Byatt (1990) vs. Possession (2002 film)
I'd give a lukewarm recommendation of the book. Good but not a classic. The film however is just bad. Aaron Eckhard is horribly miscast, the characters are given little depth or motivation, the viewer gets no sense at all of the types of works that Ash and LaMotte were supposed to have created, and. the characters in the flashback are very underwritten. Decision: Read
the book.

Emma by Jane Austen (1815) vs. Emma  (1996 film)
I had a bit of a hard time really getting into Emma the book. The same pretty much goes for the film. It was fairly faithful to the novel and did seem to capture its spirit, though both Gwyneth Paltrow and Toni Collette were a bit too old (by about 8 years) to be playing teenagers. Decision: Either one.


Notes- I found it interesting that both Gwyneth Paltrow and Jeremy Northam are both in Possession and Emma. This lead me to trying to find out what actors appear in the most movies/adaptations of books on our list. So far I've found that John Malkovich is in six movies based on these book and Helena Bonham Carter five (that is if all those Harry Potter films count as only 1). Ian McKellan is also in five if you count two different versions of David Copperfield that he is in.