bookinthroughbooks: "Memoirs of a Geisha" by Arthur Golden

bookinthroughbooks: "Memoirs of a Geisha" by Arthur Golden: Good Morning, day and evening. 10 days till Christmas. This year we have been busy doing little fun craft things with the kids. Like...

bookinthroughbooks: #14 "Dracula" by Abraham Stoker better known as Br...

bookinthroughbooks: #11 "Dracula" by Abraham Stoker better known as Br...: "A skillful reader asks themselves questions before, during and after reading" according to TeacherVision.com. Writing a blog abou...

#14 "Dracula" by Abraham Stoker better known as Bram Stoker

"A skillful reader asks themselves questions before, during and after reading" according to TeacherVision.com. Writing a blog about books has required me to respond with a little more than "Good Book" or a general summary which I can find on the back of the book or just by typing in a Google search. I have to do some homework, take notes and hone my reading skills especially for the classics such as "Dracula", "The Picture of Dorian Grey", "Crime and Punishment" and "War and Peace" which are written for more than just to entertain.

For many avid readers they are already proficient at these aforementioned skills. I, on the other hand, never enjoyed English growing up. The thought of writing brought nightmares to me. Lines through sentences, red marks everywhere, brackets covering whole paragraphs with comments, "Don't know what you mean here". When I began college it was recommend that I take a spelling class, reading class and developmental writing. The latter I didn't even get a grade but a "P" for pass. This helped my ego out immensely- receiving a grade that's given to second graders. I would quit, not withdraw, from a class when they announced a writing assignment that would be 30% of my grade. My wife was surprised to see my transcripts. I believe my GPA was a 1.5. On PROBATION. Amy you didn't know you married an idiot, did you?

At this point you are asking yourself a few questions. Well, you're learning. Asking questions while reading. I am so proud of you!! Why is this guy writing if he hates it so much? Why am I reading a blog about a guy who is clearly as smart as my 7 year old trying to read grown-up books? Believe me I ask both questions every day but I just remind myself that I enjoy reading more now, this is a fun blog for me to jot down my thoughts and feelings that these books have invoked of me and I like to share all this and a little of myself with you all.




"DRACULA" the novel is a collection of personal journals and letters written describing the details about a vampire who desired to relocate to England where he was less well known to the populace and could live his life with less hassle than in Transylvania where his exploits were more well known. By feeding off of Lucy Westernra, whom was dear to a few friends, Dracula inadvertently revealed himself via Lucy's mysterious behavior and other odd events which elicited the help of Romanian Dr. Van Helsing. Van Helsing was familiar with the stories of "Dracula" and could make sense of these unusual happenings. With the help of these friends and Van Helsing they sought to kill this monster to rid others of the burdens received by the hand, or teeth of Dracula.

Question: What was the intent of the author while writing Dracula?
I recall a time when I was unexpectedly chosen to lead a bible study, freaking out because I didn't know what to talk about. The advice given was, "talk about what you know." The author Bram Stoker did just that. Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland a very superstitious country, I can only imagine the amount of folklore he had to listen to which probably included vampires. The talk of vampires existed before his time but Bram created an icon of which the obsession continues today. What we know about vampires is all documented in a chilling story told in the novel "Dracula".

Vampires need for blood to sustain their undead state, sleeping in coffins, white fang canine teeth, the avoidance of exposure to sun, only out between dusk and dawn, fear of garlic and crosses, pallid skin with a great deal of hair on the back of the hand and temples, red eyes, ability to create mist, transfiguring to a bat, wolf, and a rat, death by severing of the head and the stake through the heart, the need to be asked to enter a place before entering, the bite to the neck to feed, YGTP (you get the point) is all due to the writing of "Dracula". Amazing right?? Without Bram we wouldn't have "Twilight", "Interview with a Vampire", "True Blood", "Fright Night", "Underworld", YGTP. A great deal of the novel is to describe these facts in a storybook fashion.


LOVE and DEVOTION
The other theme which encompasses just as much of the story as the characteristics of a vampire is the relationships between John Harker, Van Helsing, Mina Harker, Arthur Holmwood, Quincy Morris, Dr. Seward, and Lucy Westernra. What initially brought everyone together was the love and friendship of Lucy Westernra. Arthur, Quincy and Dr. Seward were all vying for her romantic love, and John Harker's wife Mina was her dear friend. (Spoiler) Lucy's death united them all in one cause. To kill whatever it was that did this to her. Assembling all the letters and journals written by each individual and the prior knowledge of Van Helsing they were able to come up with plans on how to accomplish their mission. Love and devotion to each other was what carried them through the arduous journey especially after Mina Harker herself got infected by Dracula.

STRONG FEMALE CHARACTER
I liked the change of pace from the dominance of strong male characters. Here Lucy's femininity created the connection but Mina's strong will and hard work unified the Van Helsing team. Min and John pouring over the documentation gave them the information they all needed to capture and kill Dracula. Also her slow transformation to becoming a vampire after being infected was a constant reminder of how important their job was and the limited amount of time they had to accomplish their task. In the end they all had their stakes of claim to the demise of Dracula. Pardon the pun.

To answer my question earlier question: Bram Stoker wanted to write a story about a group of people's love and friendship towards one another while telling a fascinating story about something he
was familiar with- vampires. Perhaps vampires are a symbol of the demons we encounter in life and the only way we can face them is through the love and support of close relationships. As we walk along the path of our life we run into tough terrain and there are times we make it to tops of mountains and stay there to bask in splendid view of which we came and from where we must go.

Other times we are tired and disheartened. The thought of climbing another mountain seems daunting and staying in the valley sounds so appealing. This is when we need loved ones to sling our arms over their shoulders and help carry us through those mountains. We don't need someone to tell us that they believe we can do it or to LIKE US. Sometimes when we ask for advice on how to battle the difficult roads we will take it gladly. Other times we just need someone alongside us pushing, holding, loving, cracking jokes all the way up the mountain. Does this make sense?


I know this is a classic written in a way foreign to the style we are used to but its worth reading just because this is when the obsession of vampires took root. It's history! If you find history boring think when you get older whatever you say will be historical. Talking about the old times. Anything leading up to present time is history. So if we flip the table on you anything you say about the past will be considered boring.

#13 "Memoirs of a Geisha" by Arthur Golden

Good Morning, day and evening. 10 days till Christmas. This year we have been busy doing little fun craft things with the kids. Like cutting out a tree and ornaments made out of felt, tape it to the wall and let the kids go crazy. Since my wife and I have been married our Christmas tradition is to watch a bunch of Christmas movies. Yes, besides the normal Santa Claus, snowmen, and zany comedies that take place during this holiday season we include others such as "Die Hard" 1 and 2 and "Gremlins". We are open to try other movies which take place during the Christmas Holiday if there are any suggestions. I would like to hear from others if you wish to mention your family traditions.

Argentina lamp lighting

It's interesting if you care to take time to look at http://www.whychristmas.com/ , the website is dedicated to the various Christmas traditions of other countries and cultures. For instance, in Australia Santa Claus uses kangaroos instead of reindeer and this time of the season it's actually summer so Santa is geared up in more of a summer attire. In Haiti children put their cleaned shoes filled with straw on the porch where their tree sits in hopes Santa will take the straw and replace it with presents. In Argentina on Christmas Eve they light paper objects resembling Chinese paper lanterns and decorate the sky with them. Kind of like in the Disney movie "Tangled".


G'day Mate!

If we were to travel to one of these countries we would be amazed by the diversity in our ways of living. My wife traveled to Ireland for a summer to study and she mentioned to me the contrast in the sizes of our refrigerators. Ireland's are much smaller and do not include a freezer as all of their foods are eaten fresh. Also, the pubs in Ireland are much more of a place for discussion and social interaction versus American bars which tend to be a place to "hook up" or wallow silently. When reading "Memoirs of a Geisha" I was thrust into a way of living I wasn't familiar with. The information in this somewhat fictional memoir was foreign to me so my brain immediately tried to latch onto something that would help me understand what I was reading. Our use of preconceived notions and memories can distort our attitudes to new ways of living and thinking. God calls us to be somewhat empathetic. It's ok to have opinions but if we were placed in other people's shoes how different of a person would we be?

"Memoirs of a Geisha" is a story about a young girl named Chiyo who's father gave her away along with her sister to a geisha house to become one of the most well known geisha's of all time. Possessing dazzling eyes her "Mother" saw great potential in her future. Facts about geisha's. They are employees of the house where they live and they make money by being hired to entertain men at bars, sporting events, parties, etc. Money is also made when a man becomes a Don, which means a man makes a substantial purchase of a specific geisha for her to become his very own mistress. He will lavish her with gifts, money and a better way of life. Her house, the place she lives and is trained, have invested money and time into training someone like Chiyo will get a portion of this money earned. Geisha's wear large robes to cover up a great portion of their body so that only their Don will get to see what's hidden. Whatever makes you more appealing and sell at a higher price, right? If everyone has seen the goods then your stock goes down. How different that is to living in the United States. Also, the face is painted to hide the skin- how important the eyes become.

With this said there is so much more going on in the memoir. Arthur Golden describes more about the culture they lived in during the 1940s-50s and the role of women and men in this society. He includes an entertaining story about how Chiyo initially wanted to escape back home, to embracing the benefits of being a geisha as a better way of life than the other options, and enduring the hateful manipulative "Sister" geisha named Hatsumomo and Hatsumomo's plot to prevent Chiyo from becoming a geisha. If you didn't make the connection the story takes place around the time of Japan's involvement in WWII. Not only is the content enthralling, it was difficult to put my headphones down, but Golden is well articulated in his storytelling and at the same time easy to follow.
If you enjoy reading a good story with a little history and details of a life you may not be familiar with I think this one will be worth it.

Everyone have a Merry Christmas!!(American), Feliz Navidad!!(Spanish), 'Juullimi Ukiortaassamilu Pilluarit'!(Greenlandic), 'Nollaig Shona Dhuit'(Irish)! Well you get the point.

#11 "The Hound of the Baskervilles" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and #12 "Casino Royale" by Ian Fleming

As a child I grew up around sports. Some of my earliest memories were of me and my brother playing soccer and baseball in the tropical climate of Honolulu, Hawaii. I also remember going to the Pro Bowl stadium to watch the NFL All-Star game and the minor league baseball team, THE RAINBOWS play. How would you like to tell people that you play for THE RAINBOWS? However watching these games I knew I wanted to be a professional athlete. I wanted the popularity, the fame, and most of all I wanted to be liked. I always try to be the nice guy that doesn't make waves because I don't like it if someone doesn't like me. Unfortunately this abnormality prevents me from being my true self out of fear of saying or doing something that would not be received well. I've always looked up to my younger brother because he possesses qualities that I wish I had. He is funny, intelligent, clever and likable. Perhaps it's all in my head but I felt like I was in his shadow. This isn't his fault at all but people tend to gravitate towards the more charismatic people. Whenever I spoke my words just came out sounding like Foghorn Leghorn. So annoying for my mouth to move faster than my brain. No matter how hard I tried not to be me genetics and previously learned behavior would win out eventually. Frankly it also just felt unnatural. I, like many, turned to hero's at a younger age who possessed abilities I idolized or who've battled through their handicaps to become more than what life has dealt them.

London in the 1890's

Both Sherlock Holmes and James Bond became iconic symbols. Both, for lack of a better term, were idolized for different reasons. During the time of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle there were numerous unsolved crimes deemed to be of supernatural origin. Someone you knew murdered while walking home from work. Must have been the Boogeyman or Spring-heeled Jack check this character out.
Imagine the time in the 1890s when the industrial revolution was exploding and multitudes emigrated to London in search of employment. Not enough jobs for everyone. Countless people unemployed living in slums resulted in crimes of theft and murder. I've read that New Orleans was the London of America if that gives you a better picture. At least that is what was said by the protagonist in "Interview with a Vampire". Onto the scene comes the neurotic and intelligent private investigator Sherlock Holmes who is known to solve any mystery sent his way with the assistance of Dr. Watson. Holmes popularity came at a time when Jack the Ripper was just beginning to make his mark on the prostitute population of London.

Fast forward to the 1950s less than a decade after WWII. Men have settled down to their mundane family life. BABY BOOM!! Feminism was beginning to take root since women held down the fort while the men were off protecting the country abroad which resulted in women and men working side by side. My own grandmother had to endure some harsh criticism and injuries fighting for her right to work at a Seagram's factory in Kentucky. The smooth, debonair, and clever James Bond appears to the mass bringing a chauvinistic excitement to the humdrum life of a family man who's workmates now consist of women in skirts and nylons. WOW!! I like working next to Shirley a lot more than Moe! Fancy cars, crazy gadgets, hot women, and unique villains while working as a spy to foil his foes plans. 007 is all a guy wanted to be and women desired to have.

Don't get me wrong now. I didn't know much about these novels initially. I didn't know "The Hound of the Baskervilles" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was actually a Sherlock Holmes story. I've heard about it before and have seen parodies of it on "Duck Tales" and "Chip and Dale's Rescue Rangers"; to me, the hound was no more than a sinister glow-in-the-dark dog that could give "Cujo" a fight.


Rescue Ranger episode

"The Hound of the Baskervilles" centers around multiple generations of Baskerville estate heir's and their mysterious deaths. Due to the recent unexpected death of the previous owner of the establishment and the coming in of the new inheritor, the current overseers of the estate enlisted the help of Sherlock Holmes to bring light to this presumed curse before another man falls victim to the same fate. Holmes' keen attention to detail and the masterful way he organizes all the facts to come up with a logical solution is evident from the start as he confers with Dr. Watson to find out who is the owner of a cane left at their office.
Sending Dr. Watson to the Baskerville estate alongside the new inheritor the former was to write to Holmes about his observations of people's behavior and happenings at the estate. Doyle has a Scooby Doo style of problem solving- gathering of information and at the end a long monologue reveals the truth behind the mystery. Doyle's style allows the reader to "be on the case" with Sherlock Holmes. As clues are revealed, we take part in solving the mystery as opposed to having it laid out for us.


Ian Fleming's "Casino Royale" is more action packed. Here agent 007 James Bond, works for the secret service and is assigned to bankrupt a man named Le Chiffre who works for SMERSH. A woman named Vesper Lynd and Bond are hired to work together for this task. They develop a love connection which is very James Bondish with it's own twist in the end. All in all there isn't much to say about this book. A lot of action, mind games, and Baccarat and sexually tame. This book made it on "The List" but really, you could save yourself the time and watch the fabulous Daniel Craig version on DVD or Blu-Ray. I will say, however, that reading these two books was a nice respite from the other depressing books.

#10 "The Shipping News" by Anne Proulx

I must've taken a wrong turn in Albuquerque!

Both girls are taking their late morning naps, wife in the garage attempting to clear out space that was once allotted as a scrap booking room for her. Now it's just been a collection for plastic grocery bags, garage sale items, and other decorations that need to find a new place. As I look outside at a gloomy November day, a couple weeks away from Thanksgiving, our second favorite holiday, I am not happy looking at this 15 foot long mound of earth protruding out of what is now our front yard. We
had plumbing issues and now it looks like Bugs Bunny has burrowed through our yard. Anybody still remember those cartoons?

I won't take too much time writing my thoughts on this novel.



This is a story about a man named Quoyle and his journey from his abusive home living in New York to his new home in Newfoundland, Canada where he begins to rectify his life. In the company of his 2 teenage daughters and with the assistance of his aunt and a close friend he is hired on with a local newspaper in Killick-Claw to report on traffic accidents and, you guessed it, the shipping news while helping to repair his aunt's childhood home that's been abandoned for decades which will become their new house.


I won't lie, I had a dictionary and my iPhone handy for much of my reading. The main setting is on Newfoundlands' coastal regions and I am very unaware of nautical terminology and frankly the variety of words we have in our English language to describe basically the same stuff. She liked to compare one thing I've never heard of to another thing I've

Can you see the boat?

never heard of. It was infuriating! Anyone know what an Eskimo knife looks like? She compares a ship to an Eskimo knife in appearance. Instead of calling it a ship, its a skiff or the actual names of vessels that I've never heard of. Reading this reminded me of when I was reading a "An Army at Dawn" a WWII book. It was geared towards those that know an advanced working of military terminology. It wasn't fun having to look up words in every sentence. Forget about it!!



Boats!

Boat by iceberg

Besides my ignorance of the sea life I was very surprised with the style of Anne Proulx's writing. I was led to believe in correct sentence structure as the only mode of writing. In high school and college I was hounded by my teachers to correct my punctuation and run on sentences to the point when I had to write a paper in college I would avoid it at all costs. So reading "The Shipping News" I was surprised about the amount of incomplete sentences. Sometimes just one word sentences. Besides all these unfortunate surprises I trudged along and found the novel to be slightly entertaining. If it was boring I don't think I would have finished it but put it on hold for later in hopes that someone would buy it for me in audio form. Even with her unusual writing style I enjoyed many parts of it. Her abrupt sentence structure was a quick way to describe the environment these characters were a part of. For instance, I walk outside. Trees blowing. Limbs appear to be playing a tune. Sun hidden. Gloomy. This is somewhat of what it was like to read it but much more beautifully done.

A Skiff

I think this novel is on "The List" and that it won a Pulitzer Prize for Anne Proulx's creativeness in describing life's experiences, her unusual writing style, the amount of detail of the life of a Newfoundlander living by the sea, and the intriguing story of Quoyle's life. For some people this could be a great read but for me it was long. I gather that many great books have an element of educating the reader and this one certainly had that but it lacked character development. Dialogue, relationships, and the overall story were placed on the back burner to the description of other components in the novel. The life living on the cusp of the sea in Newfoundland. Although it was interesting at times I just hoped there was more about Quoyles transformation and his job working at the newspaper. There were a few times of possible excitement such as a possible investigation into a murder on the sea but it faltered into more talk about boats. Oh well.

#9 "The Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

 I read "The Life of Pi" last spring so much of this blog is written from that time perspective...

The start of another spring. Although it's still a week away I can feel it in the air. A slightly warmer moist breeze passing over me. I take a deep breath inhaling the rejuvenating gases. It's like the air entering into my body sends messages to all the cells that a new season is near. No longer do they have to work so hard keeping me warm. The cells cheer giving me that feeling of excitement. This is the season of new beginnings.

This is what I felt stepping out of my car towards another day of work. As I trek across the long expanse of the GM parking lot, a punishment for driving a foreign car, I see the residue of a season passing away. Can't wait for shorts and tee shirts. To shed the confining garb of the bitterly cold winter. I punch in and enter my cubicle-like work space where human interaction is frowned upon. 'If you have time to talk then we have more work for you to do.' "If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball!"

Any escape from the monotony of my job is through the spoken word. Literally!! However the same stories, previously mentioned in my blog "The Black Dahlia", started to become monotonous as well. I needed something new, fresh. I tried listening to Nicholas Sparks' "Dear John" but I think I popped a blood vessel preventing the tears from gushing out. A man working on a truck on the assembly line a sobbing mess would just be embarrassing. No more of that thank you. My wife loved all the mushy love letters the book aroused though.

Yann Martel, Tom Hanks look-a-like!

My search for something different led me to "The List" as I will call it from now on. Scanning slowly
down the list with my right index finger at the title's I've never heard of by author's I've never heard of becoming a little discouraged I finally came upon a familiar title. "The Life of Pi" by Yann Martel. Never heard of the author but I, being somewhat of a movie buff, did connect the book with the new movie which won an Oscar for best picture. All I knew was it was about a boy from India in a boat with a big tiger. The Academy Awards panel choose such obscure movies to make their list. Why don't they pick something normal? Is this book going to be over my head leaving me feeling stupid? Stick with the Harry Potter books even kids have no trouble following and leave the big boy books for the intellectuals.

As this thought swirled around in my head I place my headphones over my ears, the season of new beginnings looming, about to embark on a journey that "The Life of Pi" will eventually inspire.

"The Life of Pi" by Yann Martel is about an inquisitive boy named Piscine "Pi" Molitor. Growing up in India circumstances led him and his family to be taken from his home, during his late teens, on a ship towards Canada for his dad's new job. During this voyage the ship had an accident causing it to sink abandoning Pi on a small life boat containing a zebra, an orangutan, a hyena, and a Bengal tiger until "hopefully" a rescue party or land come to save him. Are you asking yourself "Where did the animals come from?" This isn't exactly a place where you usually find these sorts of animals. Well, they were on the ship with him and his family. I like this game ask me another one. "Why were they on the ship with his family?" Because Pi's dad was a zookeeper while in India. I believe I've had too much coffee. I am starting to sound like Robin Williams. That's not good.

Moving along. Why is this novel on "The List" and why did I enjoy reading it? There were a few elements involved in the story that were easy to follow.  The spiritual element: Pi's curiosity and naivety drew him to adopt Christianity, Muslim and Hinduism as his faith at the same time. Yann's humor in spite of the controversial topic of religion made this issue a light-hearted affair. One instance in particular was an altercation between a leader of each faith who battled in a debate over the valid and absurd points of each faith. It left me desiring to see this discussion in real life. It would be like Reverend Lovejoy, Rabbi Krustofsky, the various Hindu deities of Apu's faith, God, Jesus, the Devil, and Ned Flanders all in a round-table discussion.

The educational element: Pi is in the company of a variety of animals due to his father being a zookeeper so he knew a lot about them. While living in India and his adventures on the life boat he explains to himself as well as the reader specific characteristics each animal possessed. This information would be helpful for his survival. I came to appreciate the intrinsic quality these animals possessed that I really never gave much thought to. It was delightful to read something so beautifully told by a person who seems to really take appreciation in these creations.

The story element: Yann's story telling was at times funny and captivating but always entertaining. It is a work of art how he intertwines the spiritual which all of us have some familiarity with, the educational which many times we like to shy away from these learning experiences, and the overall originality of the story, with its humorous and yet serious elements makes the "The Life of Pi" a pleasure to read. The movie was good but it mostly captures the element of the story but leaves out the other 2 that leaves you feeling just entertained. If this is all you look for then the movie will suffice but if you desire something more then read the book.