Poatcards From a Dead Girl

by Kirk Farber

Here is a guy who can't come to terms with the loss (accidental death) of his girlfriend. Sid has actually suffered two deaths in a short time frame and is struggling to make it over the hump and get on with life. Part of what keeps him clinging to memories are these random Postcards From a Dead Girl he seems to be receiving.

While the concept is good, the result doesn't cut it. The book is very repetitive and for that reason really dragged for me, despite extremely short chapters that made it a fast read. In the final five or so chapters the book picks up pace and interest. Maybe if you knew someone suffering from depression it might give you some perspective on their mindset, but not so sure it was really that insightful, and not sure I'd say was worth reading. This is a chance challenge selection from a Barnes and Noble staff member.

Another Challenge

I'm considering joining another reading challenge that I happened across the other day: http://www.blogher.com/frame.php?url=http://www.lifewithbooks.com/2010/12/its-back-take-a-chance-challenge-3/

It's called Take a Chance Challenge and entails reading 10 books each selected in a particular random way. I know I have yet to read one more book to complete my previous challenge, but I'm having some trouble locating a book to read with a size in the title (any suggestions?).

Another reason I hesitate is because my reading becomes more limited once school begins so I hate to be bogged down to the challenge when I find other books I really want to read. One advantage is that I have already read a few books this year that would meet the requirements of a few of the selections so I'm starting ahead of the game.

The Bells

by Richard Harvell

Just as Girl with a Pearl Earring brought Vermeer's paintings to life, The Bells gives life to the music of opera and life. Harvell magically uses words which allow the reader to experience sound from deep within, the sounds of song and the sounds that surround us every day. Harvell is a gifted writer and his use of language carries the story.

The main character, Moses, is hyper-sensitive to sound having been raised in a bell tower by a deaf-mute mother. When his mother dies, the young boy is taken in by a monk and introduced to a choir where his extraordinary voice is discovered. At this time in history the Catholic church preserved these angelic voices using castration and thus begins the tragedy of Moses: love, revenge, opera, fame and fatherhood.

I was so caught-up in the writing and idea of this story that I didn't mind its predictability, which generally turns me off, but in this case seemed to fit the operatic theme. This is a book worth reading.