Station Eleven

I had been on the wait-list for this book for over 3 months. I have a fascination with dystopian/post-apocalypse novels like World War Z and The Stand. I was even more intrigued by this book when I was talking to a fellow teacher at my school who said she had just finished it and really liked it. Additionally, when I went to my school's library last week, it was one of the featured books. We also had two snow days last week, giving me a 4-day weekend and a lot of free time trying not to watch House of Cards.

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Genre: science fiction, post-apocalypse 

Publication Date: September 2014

Setting: 20 years after Night 0, coastal region of Michigan, Lake Huron + flashbacks

The story begins on Night 0 during a Toronto production of King Leer. The actor playing Leer, Arthur Leander, dies of a heart attack, and the next day the Georgia Flu begins wiping out 99% of the world's population.... The story is told through flashbacks, including random characters who were also involved with Arthur - his first wife Miranda, his former paparazzo Jeervan (who performed CPR on him). To me, the flashbacks past Night 0 are unnecessary. I am far more fascinated with the time after the flu, but the author decides to develop characters and examine relationships when all was normal.

Kristen, who played a daughter of Leer in the Toronto play, has joined the Traveling Symphony that performs along coastal Michigan. She remains intrigued/obsessed with the kind older actor who died in front of her eyes, and collects old tabloids and news clippings pertaining to him. She was a child before the Flu and has some memories of life with technology and light switches, but she has changed significantly in the 20 years since - her parents are gone, her brother died of a minor infection, and two tattoos on her wrist are in rememberence of the two lives she took.

Clark, Arthur's best friend, becomes stranded in an airport with several other flights and these delayed passengers educate the young, hunt, farm, and survive together. Clark creates the Museum of Civilization, where he displays artifacts from the time before the flu: iPhone, stilettos, laptop, passports, etc. All the artifacts have become extinct, along with electricity, the Internet, borders. Clark and the others who are older, struggle with the past - to remember and thus live in sorrow of a time long-gone, or to forget and acceptance the present state of the world. 

This book reminded me of Walking Dead, but without the zombies. Kristen is Maggie, her beau August is Glenn. The crazed prophet is the Governor. The characters struggle with the new morals and ethics of a changed world - how to keep your humanity when humans have been all but wiped out?

Finished reading Monday, March 9, 2014

DD's rating: A-/B+ 

This book is a solid 89.5%. It was too cliche and predictable (finding out who the prophet is, Clark and Kristen) so I can't give it an A rating. I enjoyed the 20 years later (instead of immediately after) aspect of the story and the overarching question of whether it is happier to remember the past or move on to present. And i enjoyed the Traveling Symphony's motto "Survival is insufficient" - there needs to be joy and passion and creative expression, those wonderous parts that make up our soul.

Next read: The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters

Battle of the Books

The high school I teach at is having a Battle of the Books, Classics versus Contemporary. Since several of my homeroom students hadn't read nearly any of the books, they left some brackets (which I took the joyful liberty of filling out).

Here is my bracket:

Classics win! I had the most difficulty figuring out the left (Classics) side and feel like some great works were left out (Faulkner, Tolstoy, Stephen King). I could breeze through the contemporary - Kite Runner, Glass Castle, and Lord of the Rings were the only meaningful books on their side. Of course I read this from a book-lover, adult, and teacher perspective and less from an teenage-entertainment viewpoint. 

Perhaps I will make my own bracket...  

Yes Please

I was able to finish this book fairly quickly. My boyfriend, who is my primary source of entertainment, is traveling for three weeks and I am left to my own devices (Kindle device, get it). Due to my lack of cable TV, a promise that to wait to watch House of Cards, and the conclusion of graduate classes, I am able to quickly continue my literature endeavors.

Yes Please by Amy Poehler

Genre: Non-fiction, autobiography, memoir, humor
Publication Date: October 2014

Another amusing celebrity memoirish book. But I absolutely love Amy Poehler, more than her brunette counterpart Tina. Parks & Rec is the best and I still credit the show for making Andy Dwyer (aka Chris Pratt) famous, for introducing America to Nick Offerman and Ron Swanson, and putting Aziz Ansari on camera weekly (because everybody loves RAAAAAAAANDY). And don't even get me started about Jean-Ralphio. Okay, that's enough gushing.

Amy's book is more comedy story than memoir. The story line follows her life, but the narration is from a blonde stoned peppy theater geek. She does break the humor at some points, like when she talks about divorce and childbirth, but the book is very good-natured and jovial. I don't know, it's hard to critique someone's memoir, because it's the author's life. I read the first half of the book in 32 hours, but the rest took some time. I think this would be a great read for aspiring comedians or anyone in Hollywood/show business. But I still enjoyed it.

Poehler name-dropped a lot, on purpose. There were a few sections where she told ridiculous stories that happened with famous people she is friends with. While funny, sometimes these stories seemed unnecessary and braggy. The only name I really cared about were Seth Meyers and Tina Fey (and one pranking involving Julie Louis-Dreyfus). This memoir actually made me want to read Seth and Julie's potential future memoirs.

Finished reading Wednesday, March 4th

DD's rating: A
Very entertaining. I love Amy Poehler, Parks & Rec, and SNL so this was a behind the scenes look into a comedy genius and female superstar. In my opinion, this book was better than Tina Fey's Bossypants because of its style - Poehler had friends and family author some parts of her book, like her mother and my megacrush Seth Meyers.

Next read: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. I got excited when I first saw the author's name, Mandel is similar to Mendel, the king of genetics, science nerd is happy... and I'm it's a book by another female!