Back into Shakespeare!

As a Shakespeare fanatic and dedicated literature student, I absolutely could not resist picking up the modern day take on Merchant of Venice when I saw it was coming out. I was not disappointed, either. If you recall, I did a review on A Gap in Time a few months ago, the modernized version of Winter's Tale. While is was not the same author writing, it was the same series and idea, and of course, had a captivating title that would make any Shakespearean pick it up. Shylock is my Name.

This one started a little slower than the other one, and it was definitely more literature to swallow than I was used to by far, being only a high school student, but I persisted and I don't regret it. I loved this book.

The blurb:  Winter, a cemetery, Shylock. In this provocative and profound interpretation of “The Merchant of Venice,” Shylock is juxtaposed against his present-day counterpart in the character of art dealer and conflicted father Simon Strulovitch. With characteristic irony, Jacobson presents Shylock as a man of incisive wit and passion, concerned still with questions of identity, parenthood, anti-Semitism and revenge. While Strulovich struggles to reconcile himself to his daughter Beatrice's “betrayal” of her family and heritage – as she is carried away by the excitement of Manchester high society, and into the arms of a footballer notorious for giving a Nazi salute on the field – Shylock alternates grief for his beloved wife with rage against his own daughter's rejection of her Jewish upbringing. Culminating in a shocking twist on Shylock’s demand for the infamous pound of flesh, Jacobson’s insightful retelling examines contemporary, acutely relevant questions of Jewish identity while maintaining a poignant sympathy for its characters and a genuine spiritual kinship with its antecedent—a drama which Jacobson himself considers to be “the most troubling of Shakespeare’s plays for anyone, but, for an English novelist who happens to be Jewish, also the most challenging

Naturally, this was another one I couldn't put down. The idea of juxtaposing the characters felt very strong compared to the (as a loose term) attack of Shylock in the play. Shylock, being one of my favorite villains, always had my sympathies as the attack on an entire religion was completely unnecessary, let alone on Shylock himself. I did not cheer for him to cut out Anotnio's heart or "pound of flesh" really but for him to win, unlike what happens in the play. In the books it seems the juxtaposed Shylock is much more obsessive and less likable to me. I didn't like nor understand Simon throughout the book. Maybe because I'm not Jewish nor male, this may seem biased, but as far as both of those go, I am very tolerant of all religions and a feminist so it does not matter to me that he is either.

Overall, the book was a very good representation but I wasn't a fan of Shylock not really being Shylock. I wanted my evil villain to be in his full evil-villainess. But that's just me. I much preferred The Gap of Time as a modern representation of Shakespeare to this one but Shylock is my name wasn't bad by any means. Give a read and let me know what you thought!

In All Eloquence Is Eleanor

Books often send us on an emotional roller coaster of tears (both of happiness and of pure sadness) pain, like that one you get in your gut when something major happens, and that great urge to throw the darn thing across the room. Eleanor by Jason Gurly did all of these things to me.

The synopsis of Eleanor is as follows: 1985. The death of Eleanor's twin sister tears her family apart. Her father blames her mother for the accident. When Eleanor's mother looks at her, she sees only the daughter she lost. Their wounded family crumbles under the weight of their shared grief. 1993. Eleanor is fourteen years old when it happens for the first time... when she walks through an ordinary door at school and finds herself in another world. It happens again and again, but it's only a curiosity until that day at the cliffs. The day when Eleanor dives... and something rips her out of time itself. (Source: Goodreads)

Needless to say, this was a book I absolutely couldn't put down. I am not often a sci-fi fanatic, but this book would put that to the test. It touches on important and controversial subjects such as PTSD, alcoholism, and depression, and follows a unique process of healing. It shows you that what we are born into doesn't necessarily define us, but presents us with choices, and then slaps a ton of emotions in your face (in a good way).

The story is well written, timeless (literally), and full of the love and compassion and struggles of normal life while also pulling you into a enriching magical fantasia. The combination is anything but overwhelming, but definitely like a drug you can't get enough of. (Hey, it's better than being addicted to Cocaine, right?) Needless to say, I highly recommend this book the anyone looking for a getaway. Who knows, maybe we all have potentials like Eleanor's within us?

Shakespeare Modernized

As a high school student, I very much understand the effect an English teacher handing out a stack of books can have on a classroom. The dramatic increase in the amount of groans is as evident as the people who will straight out skip every class where there is a discussion just to avoid even hearing about such a thing. Shakespeare, as it was written a couple centuries back, is especially hard to interpret without help. I've spent hours of my life trying to interpret classics assigned to my English class such as The Odyssey and The Merchant of Venice, and actually need up enjoying them once I gained an understanding.

Recently, I picked up a book written by Jeannette Winterson meant to be a modernized version of Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale called The Gap of Time. I picked up this book upon an interest point to read more classics, and while this wouldn't technically be categorized as a classic and I have never read A Winter's Tale, I really found this to be a great re-telling.

The Winter’s Tale is one of Shakespeare’s “late plays.” It tells the story of a king whose jealousy results in the banishment of his baby daughter and the death of his beautiful wife. His daughter is found and brought up by a shepherd on the Bohemian coast, but through a series of extraordinary events, father and daughter, and eventually mother too, are reunited. (Source: Goodreads)

Throughout the book, I was able to see the points that were both modernized and re-told. The names, for one, were very obvious. King Leontes of Sicilla is now Leo, the owner of famous gaming company Sicilla. His friend, Polixenes, is now Xeno, and his wife, Hermione, is now MiMi, the famous singer. The story-line is especially the same as paranoid Leo is convinced is wife has cheated on him with his friend Xeno, so when the child is born he rejects her and sends her off to Bohemia, where she is found and raised by a Shepherd.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and would recommend it to anyone, not just all you Shakespeareans out there. It's an enriching tale, as it has been for centuries, and I urge anyone looking for something refreshing to read to pick up The Gap of Time. The characters are flawed and relatable. The story-line reflects both modern day and past times, and don't get me started on the angel metaphors (I fell in love with them). 

Chick Flick Central: Literature Edition

Book: The Divorce Papers by Susan Rieger

I very much respect every form of written literature, but chick-flicky novels are not my cup of tea. I originally picked this book up thinking it would appeal to my more fast-paced-with-strong-female-character obsessed side. Sad to say it didn't. There was nothing wrong with the book inherently. It's actually very well written in a appreciativly unique way, using solely documents, emails, and handwritten notes to develop the plot.

Given this, it's difficult to decipher what exactly is going on at times. I've read books like this before, and found them a nice change from the ordinary narrative structure scene. However, here, it seemed like the story could have been easier followed through an ordinary narrative structure. The plot wasn't my thing to begin with, as I said earlier, but it's not a bad one. 

The plot is as follows (source: Goodreads):

Witty and wonderful, sparkling and sophisticated, this debut romantic comedy brilliantly tells the story of one very messy, very high-profile divorce, and the endearingly cynical young lawyer dragooned into handling it.
Twenty-nine-year-old Sophie Diehl is happy toiling away as a criminal law associate at an old line New England firm where she very much appreciates that most of her clients are behind bars. Everyone at Traynor, Hand knows she abhors face-to-face contact, but one weekend, with all the big partners away, Sophie must handle the intake interview for the daughter of the firm's most important client. After eighteen years of marriage, Mayflower descendant Mia Meiklejohn Durkheim has just been served divorce papers in a humiliating scene at the popular local restaurant, Golightly's. She is locked and loaded to fight her eminent and ambitious husband, Dr. Daniel Durkheim, Chief of the Department of Pediatric Oncology, for custody of their ten-year-old daughter Jane--and she also burns to take him down a peg. Sophie warns Mia that she's never handled a divorce case before, but Mia can't be put off. As she so disarmingly puts it: It's her first divorce, too.
Debut novelist Susan Rieger doesn't leave a word out of place in this hilarious and expertly crafted debut that shines with the power and pleasure of storytelling. Told through personal correspondence, office memos, emails, articles, and legal papers, this playful reinvention of the epistolary form races along with humor and heartache, exploring the complicated family dynamic that results when marriage fails. For Sophie, the whole affair sparks a hard look at her own relationships--not only with her parents, but with colleagues, friends, lovers, and most importantly, herself. Much like "Where'd You Go, Bernadette," "The Divorce Papers "will have you laughing aloud and thanking the literature gods for this incredible, fresh new voice in fiction.

So not awful. It's definitely something for most people. Just not me. Overall, I personally didn't enjoy the cheesy love stories and adult-themed drama that came with the book. However, who knows. You could enjoy it. Give it a try.

If I Fall, If I Die

There comes a time when I read books that are significantly impactful. I mean, all books come with impact, of course, but some hit me harder than others. If I Fall, If I Die by Michael Christie had been one of those. From the title, the book is enchanting. Calling one's name with the prospect of the word "If". Possibilities come with that word. Infinite ones. If I take this chance... If I'm brave just once... If by some chance I fall or die... The prospect of possibilities called to me, so I picked the book up.

Let me just say, I didn't expect what came to me when I opened the book (who does, really?) I was thrown into an unknown world filled with unconditioned fear and newer chances. The book starts with a eleven year old boy named Will stepping outside for the first time. No, really, for the first time. Upon entering the outside world, he manages to get a rock thrown at his head and some random kid his age is stealing the hose from his house. During this occurrence, Will is showing his strange coloring in language. It's bland, choppy, confused dialogue whereas the other kid's is more to the everyday person's speed. It leaves you asking why, though doesn't it?

Put simply, his mom's agoraphobic. Agoraphobia is the fear of places and situations that may cause panic, helplessness, or embarrassment. It was spawned when her brother and father died in an elevator accident at a grain factory and progressed so full blown she won't touch a door handle. It's described as a "Black Lagoon" by Will, as rooms are described as places he knows he'll never see because of the unsaid rule of staying inside.

But, you see, routine is boring. Especially for a boy who finally manages a taste of what he thought he could never have, or never even really wanted. He decides to go to school (he was previously "home schooled") and starts to grow. I won't go into depth because I would end up revealing too much, but I will comment on the great job Christie did with character development. Will grows from this confused sort of introvert to a true friend and an unrecognizable person, then manages to find a happy middle between both.

What the book is truly about is taking chances. Not worrying about the what-if's and not letting ourselves be ruled with fear. Will's mother even manages to break out alongside her son, in her own way. The book also touches on how we need to keep ourselves from going too far. How finding the middle man in everything is what truly leads us to happiness and contentment.

Overall, I would rate this book highly. I also highly suggest piking it up because it is a page turner you won't be able to put down. Seriously, try it. What if you like it?

Real Life Things That Touch Me: Depression

I think we forget sometimes that we're all different. That different things touch us in different ways and we react differently given how we've grown up or been taught too. I want to start this segment because it's a real thing. Every hardship is real and it shouldn't be sugarcoated or ignored. There are many hardships that surround me in life, and I'm lucky, really lucky, because I have the privilege of growing up the way I have. All the same, I want to recognize that my friends may not be as lucky as I am. In fact, almost none of them are. I know I have only a simple, outside view, but that doesn't take away from what I know and what I see. The names of everyone I write about will be changed to keep their privacy just that: theirs, but the stories are real and they start here, where I am and they are all around me. Here is the first of many, my friend with Chronic Depression.

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I start here because, although I have many other stories to share, I just found out about my friend Zylar's today. We met last year in Spanish class, and had a love-hate relationship of sorts (he teased me, I teased him. He stole my bookmark, and I threw a marker at his face). Since then, we've become friends, we call each other as such and we were drawn together again by having the same off-hours and both being in DECA, a marketing and business club that you are required to take a marketing class for.

We have a trip this weekend, and we sat together on the bus on the way up. He claimed it was because I'm quiet and he can rely on the fact I'll probably read the whole time. (He can.) We sat together for orientation and he followed me to the workshops of my choice and, slowly, things were revealed. Things he hadn't told me before.

A car accident that rendered him color blind (blue's and green's), and with metal in his leg, and fake skin on his arm.

Someone joked about depression. I don't even remember the context, but he commented "Actually I have Chronic Depression." Then, later, we were huddling by the fire because we were cold. He started dancing his fingers side by side with the flames. I scolded him and told him not to do that. He later brought out a lighter and lit it under his arm. I yelled again.
"Do I scare you?" he asked.
"Not as much as you think," I said. "I'm more scared for people than of them."

This is true. I never forgive myself when things happen to other people when I knew what was going on. I always think I could have stopped it. People scare me, but not in the way they think. I'm scared for their fears and their hardships. I care too much, and not enough. I know too much, and never enough. I care too much and know too little.

More and more was revealed throughout the night. How he tries to commit suicide. How he wishes he could through himself into the fire we're huddled around. Others were with us, but they seemed to miss the seriousness of it. It hit me hard. He had this phone call with his mother where he seemed near tears. I hate myself for not knowing how to help. Not knowing what to say.

But you know what I wish I said and I still want too?
"Zylar, please, promise me you won't kill yourself. Because, if you do, I won't forgive myself."
Because, as selfish as it sounds, I won't. I never will. Not if he happens to commit suicide. Never.

Just a Small Introduction

Not really all that social, but a lot on my mind. Compulsively enhanced by the world of books, but educated in the hardships of the real world. Cares about education, but procrastinates on a regular basis. Wants to be strong, but has no idea what that even means. Dreams of being a hero, but feels a coward. Has potential, just like anyone else, but doesn't know how to reach it.

Just a few things about me, I guess. Of course, there's much more too me than you'll ever know. The same goes for you. We don't know who we are, just that we are. 

Why have I created this blog? Good question, I'd sure like an answer. Either way, it's here now, so might as well write, right? 

Simply put: I love reading, I aspire to be a writer, and I'm pretty much a loner; hence, the name of this blog. I thought it fit my personality, my interests. If you care enough, you can suggest a better name, and I'll definitely consider it. You can even send in a picture you think matches this blog; any sort of suggestions. I'm pretty open to all that.

Anyway, just wanted to give a small introduction. Once I figure it out, I'm going to add a widget with a bunch of my social media so you can check it out. I have a fandom account on instagram, a tumblr, and a goodreads I use regularly. Anyways, enjoy things as they go on and have fun today!