Dark Places (3.5)

DARK PLACES by Gillian Flynn

At (semi-)long last; a new book! Two days ago my computer (only a year old) crashed and I was unable to write my new blog. It has been very frustrating and I had to wait for David to come over so I could steal his computer.

Here I am!

RATING SYSTEM

1 – I did not like the book at all.

2 – It was decent, but I would not recommend it.
3 – It was an enjoyable read. Recommendation could go either way.
4 – It was a very good book. I would recommend it.
5 – It was an excellent book! Must read!
6 – I will buy this book for my personal collection. Must read.

BOOK RATING

I give this book a 3.5.

“DARK PLACES” SYNOPSIS

This is a murder mystery book of sorts. Back in 1985, Libby Day’s family – her Mom and two sisters – were murdered in their home in the middle of the night. Libby (age 7) escaped through a window without seeing the murderer and the only ones left alive were her never-present, alcoholic father and her n’er-do-well, goth, 15-year old brother. In the flurry of panic surrounding the murders in the very small Kansas town, her brother was pegged (by the public AND Libby) as the murder and put in jail for life.

Over twenty-five years later, Libby is a self-obsessed, manipulative, 31-year old brat living off the last of the money raised for her after the tragic event. She has never given another thought as to whether or not her brother was actually the murderer and she doesn’t care to… until… a strange underground group of murder-mystery fans contacts her and offers her money to interview people from her past who might know more about the murder than they first let on.

Libby then goes on an adventure to find out what truly happened that night so many years ago.

STATS

Pages:                         345

Published Year:        2009        
Personal Rating:         3.5 (of 6)
Type:                          Personal Collection, Xmas Gift, Paperback

THOUGHTS

This is a really good, really well written book and I struggled between giving it a 3.5 or 4. I’m still not sure. Maybe it’s more of a 3.75, but either way, I really enjoyed it! I would definitely recommend it.

The book starts out a bit morbidly, which I suppose is fitting because ultimately it’s a book with a gory murder at its core. If you can push through the first couple of chapters (that will capture you anyway), the gore and the creepiness fade away and what we are left with is one really good murder mystery with a great ending.

I really love the way Gillian Flynn writes. She is so detailed – and not in the way where you describe a leaf for five-pages, but she just adds in so many little things to her writing that make the story feel very full. I don’t know how really to describe it, but she is a talented writer.

Like I said, I would definitely recommend this book and the pay off is worth it.

PERSONAL: GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS

Okay, I will give you the bad news first. Just yesterday I was told by my landlord that I have one month to vacate my apartment. In March, the leasing company had refused to renew my lease for another year and instead offered me a month-to-month lease without a rent raise. It was either accept the offer or move out, so I accepted. Now I have to be out of here by Aug 1^st. I suspect they are doing this to renovate the building in time for the Second Avenue subway and higher-paying renters. I am devastated though. I’ve been living here for four years and this apartment and my neighborhood have become my home. I wonder where I’ll live next. Perhaps this will be a blessing in disguise.

The good news? David and I are leaving for our Disney vacation on Tuesday!! We are spending seven-nights in a one-bedroom villa out in Orlando! Our villa even has a living room, full kitchen, Jacuzzi & washer/dryer! We are going to spend two days at Disney & two at Universal; the rest we will spend lounging in the sun! So excited – I needed this break!

Orphan Train (4)

ORPHAN TRAIN by Christina Baker Kline

Since this is my first official post, I feel that I should set up a sort of system. Besides giving you a small synopsis of the book (without spoilers or endings of course!) and my personal opinion about it, I also need to have some sort of a rating system.

I thought about it and decided to give each book a rating between 1 and 6. This may adapt over time, but I think it will work for now.

RATING SYSTEM

1 – I did not like the book at all.

2 – It was decent, but I would not recommend it.
3 – It was an enjoyable read.
4 – It was a very good book. I would recommend it.
5 – It was an excellent book! Must read!
6 – I will buy this book for my personal collection. Must read.

Now, I know six might seem a bit redundant, but like I said in my last post, I don’t buy books unless I love them. If I can’t picture myself reading the book more than once, I will not buy it for my collection. That is not to say that a “5” rating is anything to sneeze at. (The only exception to the “buying” rule is that I do allow myself to buy each of my Book Club books, which is once a month. It’s a special treat.)

Also, you will probably not see many 1s or 2s because, as I also said earlier, in most cases I give myself permission to quit a book if I am not enjoying it.

Now for the good stuff…

“ORPHAN TRAIN” SYNOPSIS

This book is about two women, Molly and Vivian, and how their lives interweave. Molly is a 17-year old orphan and Vivian is a 90-year old former orphan. The book goes back and forth focusing on their lives one at a time, chapter by chapter. Most chapters focus on Vivian and her life growing up as an orphan back during the Great Depression. Molly’s chapters are kind of in place to knit the story together and, of course, finally in the end we see how their lives ultimately come to impact one another. Quite a few surprises along the way and, though sad at times, overall an uplifting read.

STATS

Pages:                       273

Published Year:      2013 
Personal Rating:     4 (of 6)
Type:                         Library, Paperback

THOUGHTS

During the course of this book, I was sure I was going to give it a 3, then a 3.5 and finally I decided on a 4. I will not go so far as to say it is a must-read, but I would highly recommend it. I enjoyed it very much and it was a book I was sad to put down.

First of all I have to say that, while this is a fictional story, it is based on historical events. From 1854 to 1929 (75 years) the government ran a program called The Children’s Aid Society that gathered young New York City orphans, put them all on a train and drove them off to the countryside for an auction (of sorts). These children would stand in line on a small, make-shift stage and men and women would come to choose the children they wanted. There were no background checks and very little paperwork. While a few children were adopted into loving homes, mostly the infants, the majority of the children were taken only for labor – boys for hard farm work and girls for child care and household work. Many of these children were not properly cared for and were not treated as “part of the family.” Some were beaten and abused. The character of Vivian is one of these children. They call themselves “train riders” and you can find out tons more information by Googling them. They even have annual reunions, although, of the more than 200,000 orphans involved in this program, there are very few still alive today and all of them are over ninety-years old.

Vivian’s story was so captivating and, although sad, you really root for her the whole book. I don’t want to say Molly’s story is weaker, but Vivian is definitely the star of the book. The way things come together in the end, both of Vivian’s history and of the entire book, is very satisfying and ultimately uplifting. I very much enjoyed this book.

PERSONAL NOTE

Today was my last day of my first year of interpreting school! It has been a hard year, but I have survived! Only one year to go!

I’ve already started my new book and will write again soon. Looking forward to a bit of rest and no homework.

ADDITIONALLY

Please feel free to leave comments and please share my blog with all your book-lover friends!

Thank you for reading!

About Me

Are you a book addict? I am. I can’t get enough. Reading is my favorite thing to do.

I typically read one book a week, every week – on the subway, on the bus, walking down the street, in the shower (yes)! Okay, so first, a little about me…

ABOUT ME

Hi! I’m Erin. I am a young “professional” (?) working and living in New York City. I actually sing for a living at a popular NYC tourist location and attend night school to fulfill (one of) my dream(s) to become a sign language interpreter. Random! I know.

I live with my roommate, my Chihuahua and my talking parakeet (yes, she talks; no, it’s not typical; yes, it’s possible). I have a boyfriend – let’s call him David, to maintain the complete privacy that we already possess on this obscure and so-far-neglected website. He used to sing at the same place I do – that’s how we met – and now he is trying to get into the same school I go to for the same thing – sign language is one of the things that brought us together.

Anyway, I’d like to have a place to write about the books I read and share my recommendations with other book addicts. School hinders how many books I am able to complete, but…

 
SO FAR THIS YEAR
(I HAVE READ):

1. SHARP OBJECTS by Gillian Flynn / 252 pages

2. DEFENDING JACOB by William Landay / 421 pages*
3. THE END OF YOUR LIFE BOOK CLUB by Will Schwalbe / 326 pages*
4. WHERE WE BELONG by Emily Giffin / 372 pages
5. THE CHILD'S CHILD by Barbara Vine / 302 pages*
6. THE GLASS CASTLE by Jeannette Walls / 288 pages*
7. PROOF OF HEAVEN by Eben Alexander, M.D. / 172 pages*
8. RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA by Kimberly McCreight / 380 pages*
9. THE DINNER by Herman Koch / 292 pages*
10. THE LOVE SONG OF JONNY VALENTINE by Teddy Wayne / 285 pages*
11. THE PARIS WIFE by Paula McClain / 314 pages*
12. UNSINKABLE by Debbie Reynolds / 283 pages*
13. ACCELERATED by Bronwen Hruska / 288 pages*
14. WAITING TO BE HEARD by Amanda Knox / 457 pages*
15. THE HAPPINESS PROJECT by Gretchen Rubin / 292 pages

This list does not include any of the books that I began reading, but decided to quit 50-100 pages in. The stars mark the ones I would recommend.

Right now I am reading Orphan Train by Chrisina Baker Kline. Perhaps in the future I will keep my current book a secret until the big reveal, but being that this is the first blog I have little else to talk about.

I didn’t really expect to like it and I almost quit about 30 pages in. I’ve made it a rule that if I am not enjoying a book – if it is a burden to pick up – I will allow myself to quit. I used to forbid myself from ever quitting any book ever, but I felt that I was just suffering my way through books that I wasn’t enjoying and what’s the point of that??

I’m glad I pushed myself to read just a little further through Orphan Train though because I actually really started liking it and it is now pulsating next to me, asking to be picked up again. That sounds gross, but you know what I mean.

BRIEF REVIEW

Ok, I am now going to give you the briefest review possible for all fifteen of the books I’ve read so far this year….

SHARP OBJECTS – Don’t bother. Gone Girl was amazing, but this… not so much.

DEFENDING JACOB – Fantastic! You must read this!

THE END OF YOUR LIFE BOOK CLUB – A very good read. Kinda sad. Duh.

WHERE WE BELONG – I normally don’t read “chick lit,” but I don’t care. Emily Giffin is great!

THE CHILD'S CHILD – Loved this! Give it a minute to get into it. It’s worth it.

THE GLASS CASTLE – Very good read.

PROOF OF HEAVEN – I’m always very interested in this real-life-went-to-heaven stuff. If you’re into that too, then this is for you. Ew, that rhymed.

RECONSTRUCTING AMELIA – I enjoyed this a lot. Not as good as Gone Girl, but a worthy read.

THE DINNER – A good read. Yes.

THE LOVE SONG OF JONNY VALENTINE – Ok, I know it’s a take-off on Justin Bieber’s life, but it’s not lame and you will probably enjoy it. It’s not about him at all.

THE PARIS WIFE – Interesting. Worth the read if you can get through it, but hard to keep your attention sometimes.

UNSINKABLE – First half of the book – fantastic! Second half – crap!

ACCELERATED - Very good read!

WAITING TO BE HEARD – Must read!!

THE HAPPINESS PROJECT – A good book. It definitely makes you think about your life and perhaps even in a different way. Gets a bit repetitive as it goes on, but I enjoyed it.

Also, I tried reading THE PASSAGE by Justin Cronin and I loved the first 250 pages, but when the story switched over I kind of lost interest. I think this is maybe the kind of book I am going to have to slowly push myself though because I think it’ll be worth it in the end. There are still almost 800 pages to go – yikes.

I originally got it at the library – where I get all my books (I don’t buy books unless I love them) – but then I decided to get it on my Kindle app (on my iPhone) because it was too heavy to carry back and forth between work, school and home and while I think that was the smartest choice, it might also have been what damned me. Without being able to flip through and see how many different “stories” there are, I think I got too sad that the first story was over and gave up. Must push through! I feel that all the stories will eventually intersect.

CONCLUSION

Well, that’s it for today. Sorry to talk your ear off, but I have a lot to say about books.

See you next time when I finish Orphan Train.