I, Lucifer – Glen Duncan

I, Lucifer

The prince of darkness is a gentleman….William Shakespeare

A friend of mine works in a bookstore and recommended I,Lucifer a couple of years ago. He knows my taste in books so I thought I’d give it a try. Saying that it’s a page-turner, that I couldn’t put it down even after I had read it twice over, is a huge understatement. Truth is, the reader is immediately drawn into witnessing a series of events and afterthoughts that are unbelievably funny, cheeky, wicked and dark at the same time. Before long, I found myself empathising with Lucifer….at which point, having been a sad soul entrapped in a catholic convent school for many years, I felt compelled to put the book down and tell myself “It’s Lucifer, for God’s sake! You’re feeling sorry for THE DEVIL”. Well…it is at this stage that Duncan’s work should be appreciated beyond it’s literary value….because despite the nuns’ influence and years of daily doses of guilt tripping, I picked the book back up and said “Yeah…so what?!”

Read it.

Wasted – Marya Hornbacher

Chilling…and unbearably true

Wasted

Chilling…and unbearably true

Are there any words to describe the accuracy and factuality of this book?

As an ex-anorectic myself, I have had to start reading this book many times before plucking up the courage to read it all. It is so painfully true, and so down to earth, that I sometimes felt as though Hornbacher was writing MY biography. Unlike most other eating disorder memoirs, this book isn’t an attempt at portraying eating disorders as a glamorous phase, or textbook condition. It presents to the reader the harsh day-to-day reality that anorexic people (and their close friends or relatives) are faced with both during and after the disorder while also giving truthful insight into what goes on in an anorectic’s mind. The conflict, pain, satisfaction, despair, loneliness, anguish, and liberation…..all beautifully summed up in 289 pages of well-crafted modern literature.

Taming the Beast – Emily Maguire

Neither here nor there….

Don’t be mislead by my subtitle. It’s not a terrible book. But for those of you who read the reviews thinking it’s the new Nabokov or Scott Fitzgerald….look elsewhere. It is an entertaining piece, with fresh takes on promiscuity and adultery. What I fail to understand, though, is why the author started off by portraying the main characters very vividly, but then lost their dynamism about two-thirds into the book. Many of the middle scenes, though interesting in their own right, contribute little to the main story, and I am left with the impression that the book would have survived perfectly well with 100 or so pages less.

It is an enjoyable read though, and I will definitely read more books by this author.

The Little Prince

The Little Prince

Simple, accurate, and at times heart-rending….A Masterpiece!!!

When we think of books we read as children, they often bring a smile to our face because we remember how enjoyable and possibly enchanting simple stories were to us at that age, and how different things are now. Although I know I had enjoyed these books, I also know that reading them again would not be as magical as it was back in those days.

The Little Prince is not one of those books.

The smile that’s brought to my face when I think of this book isn’t one of nostalgia. It’s a different smile – a child’s smile, almost. How great it is to be excited about reading a book (for the umpteenth time), knowing it will evoke the same emotions as it did the first time round (and perhaps even more)!!!!

To say that this book suits all ages is an understatement. Harry Potter books suit all ages. This book grows WITH you. Each time I’ve read it, and whatever period of life I was in, The Little Prince had something new and relevant to tell me. How many books have this attribute? Not many, as far as I’m aware.

The Little Prince is a book that will never be phased out. It’s a book everyone should own, and keep reading….because not only is it not a children’s book…it is a life reference book in its simplicity.