9.29.2008

...and a couple more book reviews

I really have been reading and not blogging the last several weeks. Here are two more reviews!

The Witch of Blackbird Pond
I have no idea why I have waited so long to read this book. It was wonderful! This book actually felt like it was written for an older audience than the usual Newberry book. It was written about younger people, but definitely very adult concepts - Puritans, marriage, love, loyalty, witchcraft, etc. I felt like I was reading a book, not that would appeal to younger people that I just enjoyed reading, but a book I just liked to read.

After reading it, I understand why Cindy enjoys it so much. It's one of those books with a good lesson you don't even know you're reading (unless you're looking for it). People are all a little different. It's okay to be different and to not completely 'fit in' with everyone else. But, at the same time, being different is hard - it's stressful and can lead to complications and feeling isolated.

Set in Puritan society at the brink of the Revolutionary war, The Witch of Blackbird Pond asks the reader to consider, just for a moment, that everything isn't quite as it may seem - That instead of black and white, there are more and more shades of gray every moment.

The Red Tent
I picked up this book not knowing what to expect at all. Mostly, I was looking for a book with a color in the title to fulfill the reading challenge requirement. The Red Tent is about Dinah, daughter of Jacob and Leah. The story takes a relatively short Biblical passage with little known history and writes an entire book about Dinah, her family, the women in her life, and the end-result of her life.

As a work of fiction, I enjoyed the book well enough. However, I have always had a small issue with fictional works about Biblical characters, especially ones that take a small story and invent and entire life for them. Removing the Biblical account of Dinah (which I was not too familiar with) and reading it as fiction was enjoyable. Had I thought too much about what the characters were saying and their stand on God, I would maybe have felt differently about the book. Sometimes a little too graphic and sometimes a little too...feminist...The Red Tent is a book I enjoyed, but not one that made a lasting impact on my life.

1 comment:

  1. I tried reading The Red Tent, but I couldn't get into it. But I know people LOVE it. Maybe I should try again. Who knows. I love when you do book reviews. :)

    And YES! I love ...Blackbird Pond! I'm so glad you did, too! We'll have to compare all our favorite lit someday!

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