Wear Your Cards on Your Sleeve: Book Review of Hearts in Atlantis

 

Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King

Gratitude

Thank you to Montgomery County Public Libraries for making Stephen King’s Hearts in Atlantis readily available to the public.

Description

Hearts in Atlantis is a book of linked short stories which share some characters and most relate to the Vietnam War.

In the opening story of Hearts in Atlantis, a promising new neighbor moves into Bobby’s apartment building—and as much as Bobby likes him, his mother dislikes him.

Bobby has a complicated life. His mother is a stressed-out single mom. She speaks ill of his dead father, works long hours, and withholds her love. Bobby wants to challenge her but also knows the passive aggressive punishments that reward any battle of wills.

He has two very good friends—Carol and Sully-John. His upstairs neighbor makes three.

Soon it becomes clear that things are even more complicated than they seem, especially his neighbor.

One story in particular, the title story, seemed targeted at me—and all the other procrastinators out there. A group of boys in a dorm becomes obsessed with playing Hearts. They can do little else and soon these working class scholarship boys are all in academic trouble. And still they cannot help playing Hearts.

Believe me, the characters’ obsession with playing Hearts reminded me of my own obsessions: of every time I had to finish one more chapter, one more episode, win one more game of Spider Solitaire before I could get started on my work. And yes, it felt like an obsession. Over the years, the just one more has changed, and the feeling of desperation about having to finish just one more has diminished, but the anxiety of it is quite real. Perhaps it was a belief that if I could get a small amount of satisfaction before I started, it would be easier to complete my work. Or perhaps I needed a small amount of accomplishment before I started. Maybe it was just a combination of anxiety, obsession, and fear of failure. Maybe I just really didn’t want to do my work. Who knows. Over the years I have worked hard to come to an understanding with my procrastination and significantly beat it back into the darkness.

A few of the stories had the flavor of Firestarter—so much of the story being flashbacks, the foreboding, the pace being slow for most of the story and then quite fast.

Overall, a decent read, and easy to keep up with. I had several reading interruptions and I didn’t feel as though I lost the thread.

The stories are not short—some novella length—and perhaps they could have been edited down. A pleasure to read, all the same.

Would I Teach This Book?

Would I teach this book? As much as it was a decent read, there are better Stephen King books of short stories—Nightmares and Dreamscapes being one of them.

Still, for the doubters who have never read King and think it’s all gory horror, this would not be a bad introduction.

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The Cat's in the Bag: Book Review of Warriors: A Starless Clan: Star

 

Star by Erin Hunter

Gratitude

Thank you to HarperChildrens and Goodreads Giveaways for the review copy of Warriors: A Starless Clan: Star by Erin Hunter.

Description

I am new to the series, but it was not difficult to jump in and start reading. The book is about several clans of cats that live near each other and have a shared agreement about how the clans can interact with each other. They all believe in the StarClan, or a cat heaven where the ancestors (at the least the good ones) look down and guide them.

The cats have different roles in their clans, such as warriors and medicine cats. The warriors hunt for food but also go into battle when necessary. When Splashpaw, a very bad cat, takes false leadership of the RiverClan and manipulates them into trying to conquer the other clans whether they like it or not, the other clans must decide how to respond.

The book follows several different cats, and these are cats who feel deeply, talk, and battle. They are organized and govern over their clans. There are also dogs and “two legs” in the book, but they don’t figure prominently. I find it interesting that this is not a world ruled by cats, as there are humans and other animals, but that the cats rule their own communities.

The anthropomorphic cats and their battles have a certain appeal to younger readers, especially as this is part of a series.

Would I Teach This Book?

Would I teach this book? It is unlikely that I would teach Star. It is in the middle of a series. The descriptions of the cats speaking--they often mew their words--is funny at times. I was reminded of the old Laser Cats skits on SNL.

There is also a lot of history between the cats, details about the battles, and descriptions of the cats--their coloring, their wounds, their actions. The level of detail, which could be enjoyable to a young reader, makes it more difficult to read aloud or teach to a class.


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Don't Stop Believin' in That Soulless Heap of Metal: Book Review of Suitor Armor

 

Suitor Armor, Vol. 1 by Purpah

Gratitude

Thank you to Goodreads Giveaways and Crown Publishing for the review copy of Suitor Armor Volume 1 by Purpah, a romantasy graphic novel with knights, sorcery, and fairies.

Description

Lucia is a lady-in-waiting for Kirsi, who will soon be the queen. While she is seen at court as Kirsi’s companion, Lucia is secretly a fairy, and this is a dangerous secret to have, as fairies and humans have been at war for many years. Kirsi is generally wrapped up in her own concerns about her upcoming marriage to the king and looks to Lucia more as a diversion. Both of their lives become more interesting when the court sorcerer brings an empty but magical suit of armor to fight the king’s greatest knight.

As our story begins, Kirsi is at loose ends, not feeling like she can speak to the king, and Lucia finds empty wine bottles outside of her door in the morning. The king does seem more interested in tournaments than his fiancée, preferring to watch knights fight each other. The plot works because Kirsi is too wrapped up in her own problems and oblivious to Lucia to notice that her friend has a crush on the empty armor.

The fact that Lucia is so taken by the terrifying armor—he is not drawn to look kindly—is perplexing and something that a good friend should be cautioning against. Of course, this is not that kind of book, and the suggestion is that Lucia sees something in the enchanted metal that no one else can.

Suitor Armor was originally published on the platform Webtoon, an app on which comic writers can publish their work and comic readers can find new reading material. Comics can be searched by genre as well as by the daily publication schedule. I was unfamiliar with Webtoon before reading Suitor Armor, but it seems to be similar to Substack in that stories can be published in serial form.

The concept is intriguing, as print periodicals have been in rapid decline for the past few decades (nothing new here), but there is something to be said for having to wait for an installment and not being able to binge on media.

Would I Teach This Book?  

There would be some certain advantages to teaching a book like Suitor Armor, which was a serially published comic first. It would offer the opportunity for students to compare reading online versus in print, suggesting a discussion of publication and format. This volume is just the beginning of the romance of Lucia and the terrifying knight, so there is more online to explore.

The discussion of Lucia having a crush on a scary looking metal creature is a different story. I would be remiss not to talk about the trope of the pretty young woman falling for the monster. While I understand that this is a trope that many appreciate and enjoy, I find it troubling because the beauty and the beast pairing is so gendered—the woman must do all the hard work of appreciating the good inside while the male gets both the beauty and kindness without having to “see past” her looks. Admittedly, Lucia does not have the same horror of the knight’s appearance that everyone else has.

The volume does have charm, and the wide-eyed innocence of Lucia would be difficult to dislike. There would be much to discuss if this was part of the curriculum in a graphic literature or genre course.

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Talk to the Snake: Book Review of The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree

 

The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree by India Hayford

Gratitude

Thank you to Kensington Publishing Corps and Goodreads Giveaways for the advanced reader’s edition of The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree by India Hayford. The book, a Southern gothic, depicts extreme sects of Christianity who idolize their religious leaders, encourage domestic violence, and handle snakes–in this book, the snakes are much safer than the preachers.

Description  

While the book follows several characters, the story is really Genevieve’s. At a young age, Genevieve loses her mother, father, and grandmother. Eventually she is handed off to a distant relative and her preacher son. When the preacher abuses Genevieve, she knows she must escape, but since she is a child, she is not able to control her means of escape.

Fast forward, and Genevieve creates a life and identity for herself, choosing the name Genevieve from a tombstone. She has wandered and in her travels has often slept in cemeteries. For her, the territory is familiar, as she has ghosts that travel with her and speak to her. She also meets other people's ghosts, and ghosts attached to places.

When Genevieve meets Mercer, a recently returned Vietnam veteran, and then his family, she finds a reason to stay put for a while. In Mercer, Genevieve discovers someone who is in need of healing as much as she is.

The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree draws a clear line between good and bad people. Religion is used as a tool to wield power and encourage domestic violence. Genevieve is the quirky fighter who won’t bend under the abuse. She has a past and seems to have a future. She is easy to like and easy to root for. Genevieve’s back story is intriguing, though it gets confusing, as it is parceled out in bits and pieces. That she sees and hears ghosts has lots of potential, though the execution is not fully successful. In some ways, this is very much a first book. The author plays with structure, point of view, and has a quirky main character. Taking risks means the outcome won’t always be perfect—but in many ways, an imperfect but daring book is preferable to a safe book.

Would I Teach This Book?  

Would I teach this book? The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree would not be my first choice of novel to teach—it does not hit the notes of prose or the articulation of view points that I prefer for novels I teach. It would be a great pick for a book club to discuss. Between Genevieve’s adventures and the family dynamics, there is plenty to talk about.

The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree will be on sale March 25, 2025. 

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