Books

Story in Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

June 4, 2015 by Abbigail Kriebs 5 Comments

“The Circus arrives without warning…”

Magical. Enchanting. Dreamlike.

Those are a few of the words I would use to describe The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

We needed something to do in Chicago a few years ago before meeting up with some friends, so of course we found a bookstore. I’m someone who NEVER just picks a book off a shelf and buys it without researching it thoroughly. I’m someone who NEVER looks at the New Releases but heads for the dusty shelves of used volumes first. But this book had me from the moment I walked in the store. I went directly to the new release table in the front window, plucked it off the shelf, and proceeded to read it. At least three times.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is the story of two magicians who have been bound to each other to play out a game to which they don’t know the rules. And they have to do it surrounding by everyone they love and without any help.

Against a pallet of black and white, Morgenstern has crafted in this novel a place that readers want to go – Le Cirque de Rêves. The “circus of dreams” is a place where stories can be bottled, where the clouds become part of a maze, and where the magic surrounding you is so palpable that you can’t believe it is real.

Favorite Quotes:

“He forgets that he was someone’s dream once, himself.” – p. 87

“How can I excel at a game when you refuse to tell me the rules?” – p. 117

“The scents, the music, the quality of the light. Even the weight of the velvet curtains at the entrance. They have arranged each element to appear effortless… To make the artificial feel natural.” – p. 134

“It is these aficionados, these reverse, who see the details i the bigger picture of the circus… They are enthusiasts, devotees. Addicts. Something about the circus stirs their souls, and they ache for it when it is absent.” – p. 143

“He notices that all three of them are walking at the same pace, staying easily together as a group. He is much more used to following a few steps behind.” – p. 194

“We add our own stories…” – p. 223

“They were such simple things. Knots and intent.” – p. 273

“The breaking is the easy part.” – p. 348

“Most maidens are perfectly capable of rescuing themselves in my experience, at leas the ones worth something, in any case.” – p. 375

“Good and evil are a great deal more complex than a princess and a dragon, or a wolf and a scarlet-clad girl. And is not the dragon the hero of his own story?” – p. 375

“This is not magic. This is the way the world is, only very few people take the time to stop and note it.” – p. 380

What made this a great story? Morgenstern has a way of crafting a setting that pulls you into the story, of creating a mystery even when the details are all on the table. She writes people full of quirks and heart. The supporting characters are just as alive as the protagonists. And in the end, you really do wonder if the world is made of magic after all.

What could make it better? The book flips back and forth between points of view and dates very regularly. While this lends to the story unraveling as if you were wandering around the circus itself, it can be slightly confusing as you wind yourself through your first reading. On the second reading (or third!) – it is pure magic.

Have you read The Night Circus? What did you think?.

What I Read: April & May

June 2, 2015 by Abbigail Kriebs 2 Comments

As April wound down and I finished my critique class, I also abandoned The 2015 Book Project. When we went on vacation in May, I let myself roam free in the fiction world and devoured much of what I could get my hands on. Here’s what I read in April & May.

Fiction, Fiction, Fiction!

The Name of the World by Denis Johnson

I read this for my critique class, and it was okay. Johnson has a way of writing beautifully and imbuing his images with layers of meaning, but it was not the kind of book I would recommend to read for entertainment.

You’re Not You by Michelle Wildgen – (I also watched the movie)

Michelle Wildgen was the instructor for the critique class that I took earlier this year, so I thought it about time to pick up one of her novels – I didn’t have time to read any of them before or during the class. You’re Not You tells the story of a caretaker to a woman with ALS, and while the story could have been purely depressing, Wildgen infused much of the text with quick bits of humor and wit making it an enjoyable read in addition to one that makes you think a little more about life.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

This is one of my favorite books. I’ve read it three times in three years and learn something new each time. I’m writing a full review on Thursday, but put it on your list now – it is magical. My full review of The Night Circus is here.

Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler

This book by a Wisconsin author was a beautiful read. I highly recommend it. I wrote a full review here.

Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar

A quirky Young Adult novel, Lubar’s Sleeping Freshman Never Lie was adorable, heartfelt, and a wonderful picture of what it looks like to make it through your freshman year.

The Door in the Wall by Marguerite De Angeli

We were staying with some friends in Louisiana who are also readers, and I picked this children’s book off the living room shelf one afternoon and sat down to read it. It is an endearing book about learning to work within your limits, but also to push your limits when you need to do so. Like most books for children published in the 1950s, it is highly moralistic and really drives home the lesson.

Sea Creatures by Susanna Daniel

This is a lovely novel that takes a hard look at what it means to be a parent. This novel was lyrical, full of twists, and hit all the right notes by the end. I’m excited to pick up Daniel’s Stiltsville from the library later this week. My full review of Sea Creatures is here.

The Color of Water in July by Nora Carroll

This was a re-read for me, something familiar to dive into on my iPad as we flew to Louisiana. I wrote a full review of the book (and my opinions still stand!) last year.

That Summer by Sarah Dessen

I have a friend who loves Dessen and everything she writes, so I decided I would start with her first novel, That Summer. It was okay. I was expecting more to happen, but it ended up being a very internal book about 15 year old Haven who goes through a tough summer and finds herself growing up. Other than two weddings bookend the novel, there isn’t much else to really say about it. I was disappointed that my first go with a Dessen novel wasn’t a winner, but I’m going to give a second a try later this month and see if she gets better. Maybe if I was a teenage girl I might have a different opinion?

In Progress

Non-fiction has been a bit of a struggle for me lately. I am slowly trading through these two:

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

I’ll let you know how they go!

What have you been reading lately? Anything good?

Story in Review: Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler

May 28, 2015 by Abbigail Kriebs 2 Comments

This book is a love letter to the Midwest and the people that live here.

Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler is a book that I will read again and again. Through the perspectives of four friends who grew up in Little Wing, WI, we learn what it’s like to live – and love – in a small town, and how the experience follows you to adulthood and then back home again.

Ronny’s life as a bullrider leaves him alone and a little off-kilter. Kip moved to Chicago, made his money, and came back to town a little too big for his briches. Lee became an international rock star, but comes home to recoup on a slowly moving tractor in his fields. And Henry stayed. He stayed, and married – or is it married and then stayed? – his high school sweetheart, Beth. Throughout the story, all four men – and the women they love – are forced to reflect on and make peace with their own decisions, as well as learn how to be friends again now that they are adults.

Favorite Quotes:

“Sometimes you’d even hear Kip’s voice… narrating fluctuations in numbers that dictated whether or not we could afford orthodontia for our children, winter vacations, or new boots, telling us things we didn’t exactly understand and yet already knew. Our own futures were sown into those reports of milk and corn prices, wheat and soy.” – p. 3

“His eyes were scared in a way I had only seen in horses. We wiped his forehead and did our best to hold him down to the earth.” – p. 7

“All afternoon we rode together over the links, taking our swings and encouraging each other, and he asked me the best questions: about Beth and the kids, my farm and tractors.” – p. 25

“… as I watched their approach I wondering whether the slow pace of a wedding march was for the benefit of the bride on her most beautiful day, or for the aging father preparing to give her away.” – p. 38

“Here, I can hear things, the world throbs differently, silence thrums like a chord strummed eons ago, music in the aspen trees and in the firs and burr oaks and even in the fields of drying corn.” – p. 48

“For all of our Middlewester niceness, I realized that we, that I, could be every bit as cold as our longest season.” – p. 83

“I wanted everything to be perfect… everything lined up just right. Our life arranged like a vase of flowers. Beautiful and controlled.” – p. 196

“You pour everything into a child, all your love, all your attention, all your hopes, all the promises of those kinfolk who preceded you, and you just don’t know.” p. 205

“What he could have said is, I know you better than you know yourself. And this, I think, is what marriage is all about.” – p. 276

What made this a good story? I loved that each section was told by a different person – we really got to know each character and what motivates them, even if we don’t always like what they say or do as they are narrating. I love that a fully-rendered plot plays out on a backdrop of descriptions about the Midwest: about the weather, the people, the culture. Butler knows his subject matter and isn’t afriad to say hard truths about the characters of the region.

What could have made it a better story? There are a few moments where the rich descriptions overtake the plot and you get a little lost. Where run-ons keep you from making progress in the story. It’s an interesting blend of modern writing and traditional plot trajectories, and they don’t always jive perfectly, but the moments where it doesn’t work are far fewer than the ones where it does – I still say it’s worth a read.

Have you read Shotgun Lovesongs by Nickolas Butler? Or any of his other work? Let me know what you think! I’d also love other suggestions for books that fall in a similar vein.

P.S. If you liked this, you’d probably enjoy Michael Perry’s Population 485.