Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

This novel was definitely not what I was expecting... not that I had any expectations. I still found myself pleasantly surprised with what this novel turned out to be.

The summary itself is intriguing enough (see this post for a summary and quote). The idea of a modern black woman traveling back to a slave plantation is one that I had never even thought of... it's such an interesting concept, and I'm really interested in looking into more novels like this one.

One thing about this book is that from the very beginning, it keeps you wanting to know more. I can guarantee that anyone who reads the prologue will want to read the rest, if only to figure out "how did this happen?!" And if you aren't pulled in by the prologue, I know that the first couple of pages will definitely get your attention. This book doesn't waste time in getting to the point: it goes right into the story, and the action doesn't stop until the very end. Once you pick this up, you will not want to stop reading... there are very few points in the novel where you can set it aside without wanting to pick it right back up again. In fact, two nights in a row I stayed up much later than I should have, just because I had to know what happened right then... it couldn't wait.

The other part of this novel that I absolutely loved is the characters. The thing about a novel like this is that the characters have to play their part. And damn, did Octavia Butler deliver. The MC, Dana, was true to who she was: a modern black woman who didn't belong on a plantation. She didn't suddenly develop superhuman strength and overthrow her white "masters". It was apparent that she didn't fit in from the very moment she arrived: she was educated, dressed differently, and had endured none of the abuse and suffering that black people in slavery had to endure. While her experiences on the plantation changed that for her, she never did fit in.

Her (white) husband also was a very believable character. Due to events in the novel, he was forced to spend an amount of time living in the early 1800s... and it affected him. If he would have come out of it unaffected, I would have laughed at the ridiculousness of this novel. However, he showed change, and I doubt that he or Dana ever truly recovered from their experiences.

I also loved that this novel didn't have what you might call a "happy" ending. Dana didn't go back in time to change the world... she went back in time to change a person. And this was all done in a very believable way.

Overall, this book was COMPLETELY AMAZING. It has been on my mind since I finished it, and I will definitely look out for more Octavia Butler books.

Required Reading: Mini Reviews

rMost of the reading I've been doing lately is for school, but I figured I might as well post my thoughts on those books as well. Just maybe someone else will have read these books and be able to relate to my thoughts.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
This book was fairly decent, but it didn't blow my mind. I enjoyed hearing the story told from the maid's point of view, and I liked how it didn't have a perfect happy ending like I was expecting. I think this was just a little easier for me to get through than Pride and Prejudice, so if you're someone who is looking for some classic romance and doesn't know where to start, this is definitely a good one to try. However, this book was blown out of the water as soon as the teacher had us watch a movie adaptation of Jane Eyre. Based on the movie, Jane Eyre is better than Wuthering Heights by a longshot.

I also read on Elizabeth Scott's blog that another adaptation of Jane Eyre will be released next year. Which I'm excited for.

Which reminds me that the copy of Jane Eyre that I ordered should be here... *checks email*... yep, right now. I just have to go downstairs and get it :)

Anyways onto the next review...

Wieland, or the Transformation by Charles Brockden Brown
I was quite excited to start reading this book, actually. I sneaked a peak at some reviews and got a general idea of the plot before I started, and I was instantly intrigued.

The book started out really slow. Since it was written so long ago, it was hard to understand the writing style. It got easier around halfway through, where the plot really picked up and it got really exciting. I actually didn't want to stop reading after about the halfway point. The ending was a bit of a letdown... I was hoping for some sort of explosion or something, I guess, since that's how the book starts out, but it was satisfying enough. However, I'm not looking forward to writing a paper about the theme... I'd rather just set this aside and start reading something else!

Which leads to...

Kindred by Octavia Butler

Review to come as soon as I finish :) This is the first contemporary book we're reading in English 105, and I'm about 30 pages in and I am dying to learn more about what's going on. It is definitely a page-turner so far!

That's all for my mini-reviews. :) Hope that makes up for the lack of reviews.

Expect an IMM post tomorrow, it'll cover the books I've gotten for the past two weeks. Also, lots of WoW posts, because there are A LOT of books I'm looking forward to!

Jane

As an added thought, does anyone else have any required reading that you would like to discuss?? I'm happy to hear about anything, because chances are I'll either want to or be forced to read it sometime in the future :)