Week 11 Prompt

I think those who don’t have time to read or have never enjoyed leisure reading can benefit from audio books.  In fact I know a librarian who cannot stand to pick up a book and read it but she thoroughly enjoys audio books.  I’m one of those people that love to hold a book and feel the pages, so I have not been prone to pick up an audio book.  However, I have a huge list of want-to-reads that are not getting accomplished.  Mostly because I don’t have any time to sit down and read for leisure.  So I’m starting to think audio books might come in handy when I’m driving to and from work or the hour I’m on the treadmill at the gym.  Think about how many books I could get done in a year!  It doesn’t beat the tangible book, but it’s a second best.  I think I have only listened to one audio book in my life, and it was on a road trip where my husband was driving.  It was great for passing the time as I cannot read in the car.  It gives me motion sickness.  Hopefully the narrators for my want-to-read list are decent; otherwise, it may be a no go if I get one that has an annoying voice.  As far as ebooks go, I have a Kindle and have read a few books on it.  I find that I do this when I’m on vacation because I don’t want to haul four or five books along with me.  I really do not like reading on a Kindle.  Sometimes I want to go back to a specific area of the book because I may have missed something, and this is cumbersome using a Kindle.  I just have never gotten used to this gadget.  I do think it appeals to electronic junkies who have to have the latest and greatest on the market, and maybe some like it because of its portability.  It could have more appeal if it had a different font and maybe a soft colored background, but it still is a last choice for me, and I’ll stick to just taking it on vacations.  

Historical Fiction Annotation

The Nightingale

By

Kristin Hannah

Synopsis

   In 1995 an unnamed widow, who is dying from cancer and soon moving to nursing care by request of her surgeon son Julien, narrates a passionate story of survival centered around the lives of two sisters living in France during World War II.  The story begins with the older sister in her twenties and the other in her late teens.   The older sister, Viann, lives in a generational family home near a French village with her husband Antoine and her young daughter Sophie.  The younger sister, Isabelle, is rebellious and continuously runs away from boarding and finishing schools returning to her father who lives in Paris.  Although the personalities of these two sisters are like night and day, they both share the grief of losing their mother at a young age and the rejection of a father who suffers from a form of post-traumatic stress disorder from his service in the Great War.   As World War II breaks out, each of the family members are drawn into the war torn years and are forced to fight for survival.  Antoine is called to duty holding the Maginot line against invading Germans leaving Viann alone with Sophie.  Isabelle is biting at the bit to serve in some way and can’t stand just sitting and doing nothing.  As the Germans take over the small village where Viann lives, she is forced to billet German officers in her home and stand in ration lines each day for the little food that she and her daughter receive.  Isabelle joins the Resistance which is an underground group who is risking its’ neck to smuggle downed Allied pilots to safety.  It is during this time that Isabelle is given the code name ‘The Nightingale’.  As the war trudges on through the years, timid Viann finds herself giving up her dignity at times to save herself and her daughter, but she also finds bravery she never knew she had in order to save others.  On the other hand, Isabelle is going through heroic and sometimes reckless measures to save Allied soldiers.   Through the pain and suffering the family members are drawn back together toward the end of the war to heal from wounds that are not only physical but emotional.  It’s not until 1995, that the massive impact the sisters’ actions had during war are revealed.  It’s also at the end of the story when the mysterious narrator is unveiled to the reader.

Elements of an Historical Fiction

Pacing –This novel is unhurried with moments where the pacing picks up allowing the reader to get drawn into the characters’ lives.

Characterization – Although the characters are not true historical figures, the fashion, language, and mannerisms of these characters molds them into real people that readers feel they get to know on a personal level. 

Story line – The story is not based on famous historical figures, but common people of the World War II era caught up in the event of the war.  It tells of the everyday actions that take place alternating chapters or sequences of the story from one sister to the other. 

  

Frame/Tone – The frame work for this story is steeped in historical accuracy concerning the culture, custom, and beliefs of World War II French citizens as well as their Nazi German counterparts.  The tone is anxious and foreboding with a sense of danger around every corner. 

Style – This book has an anonymous narrator (until the end) that tells the story of the sisters from their eyes and alternating chapters or sequences of the story between the two.  The language is accurate for the 1940s with no unexpected modern day slang or idioms popping up.

Read-A-Likes

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

The Plum Tree by Ellen Marie Wiseman

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

Book club discussion

     I went with one of my friends to her book club meeting on February 15^th.  This is a book club that meets on every third Monday of the month where the attendees take turns opening their home up and leading the meeting.  On this particular night, my friend and I went to the designated home for the meeting, and I’ll call her the leader,  greeted us at the door as she lead us back to the kitchen and family room where she had a huge spread of food and wine for the book club members.  It started out with everyone showing up one by one and conversations revolved around what had been going on with them over the past month.  So conversations about husbands, children, and work took place for about fifteen minutes while the members got their food and wine. 

     Eventually we all settled in the family room, where the leader began to speak about the read of the month:  Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf.  The story line of the book is about an elderly widow who lives close to an elderly widower.  They knew of each other in past years but never on a personal level.  The widow is toying with the idea of having the widower stay at her place in the evenings and sleep with her at night.  It’s not a sexual proposal, but one of consoling each other and dealing with the loneliness they have both experienced by losing their spouses.  Of course there are the meddlers and the gossips that are woven into the story, but it is a very bittersweet story of how this relationship between the widow and widower evolves.  

     A few broad open-ended questions were asked such as “What did you think of this book?”, and then the question of “Would you ever consider doing this if you were in the situation of the widow?” popped up.    It’s a Yes/No question, but it opened a whole can of worms that derailed the conversation away from the book.  This was my first book club experience, so I wasn’t sure if this was the norm for an informal book club or not.  The question led to members divulging personal information, and also veered into topics of sex.  I have to mention that this book club consisted of about ten women who were between the ages 40 – 55.  This topic of marriage or committed relationships in the latter years of women’s lives comes up quite often in conversations, and isn’t something new that was the result of reading this book.  Outside of the five minutes that the book was actually being discussed, the women all took turns talking.  There wasn’t just a person or two dominating the conversation, and everyone had a chance to speak.  But the conversation wasn’t around the book.  Instead it was about personal feelings on the topic of what would you do if your spouse passed away?  Would you get involved in another serious relationship or would you prefer a “friends with benefits” type situation?  Since I hadn’t read the book, and all the participants knew I was there to observe, I didn’t share in the conversation.  Thank God because I was a little embarrassed by what some of the member were revealing.

     I’m always up for a girl’s night of intimate conversation, and these women all seemed to know each other very well.  Apparently this club reads books from a variety of genres, and March’s read is The Martian, but I was a little disappointed that the February read, Our Souls at Night, didn’t get much discussion.  I would have liked to have known more about the book’s appeal and the different characters that were involved with the story.  This book club seemed more like an excuse to get out of the house to eat, drink, and visit with friends.  I may go back just for the fellowship, but I definitely wouldn’t call this a book club. 

The Attraction and Promotion of Graphic Novels

For young readers, I think the draw to graphic novels stems from their struggles to stay focused on topics as well as their struggles to read text-based books.  To elaborate further, young readers who have learning disabilities and attention-deficit disorders would more than likely be drawn to this type of book.  Some children are very visual and tactile, and benefit with a picture that is tied to minimal text.  Additionally, this format is a quick read, and reluctant young readers achieve a sense of accomplishment when they finish a graphic novel.  As more graphic novels are read, this could possibly launch the young reader into text-based novels.  On another note, many teens these days require instant gratification.  This is recognized with the popularity of video games and obtaining information within seconds on their laptops.  It seems logical that a teen would want a read that is more visual in nature and one that they could finish quickly.  In addition, many graphic novels correlate directly to video games making this book format even more popular among teens.  So what about the appeal of this format for adults?  As mentioned previously, the graphic novel is just a format and not a genre.  Therefore, the same genres exist as there are for text-based books.  I could say that this format might be preferred by adults who have carried learning disabilities into adulthood or the graphic novel format could be used for adults with literacy problems.  However, I think this is selling the format short.  It may be used for these purposes, but many adults appreciate this format for its art work, while others may like the art work but also the fact that it is laid out much like a film.  Many adults do not like to read in their leisure time, but they are movie buffs.  They love cinematography.  Therefore, graphic novels would fit into the scope of this preference.  Personally I would like to know more about history or government, but I detest reading non-fiction text-based books about these topics.  I would prefer to be able to pick up a graphic novel that I could get this information quickly in a fun manner with an artistic layout. 

     During an RA interview, I don’t think the graphic novel should be segregated out from the genre in which it belongs.  This format can be promoted along with other text-based novels that are geared towards the reader’s book appeal preferences.  If the reader is an avid graphic novel reader, then the RA can steer the interviewee toward this format along with the reader’s other appeal preferences for a good read (e.g. fast-paced, deep character development).  If an interviewee is required to read about a certain topic of which that reader does not care for the topic, the RA could recommend a graphic novel on the topic.  This way the reader can gain the needed knowledge in an expedited and possibly enjoyable manner.  Whatever the reader’s advisory interview entails, graphic novels should be incorporated with their appropriate genres. 

     By integrating graphic novels into an RA interview, this is an inconspicuous way of promoting graphic novels to readers.  This is especially important with adult readers since many times the stigma attached to graphic novels makes them hesitant to what to ask about this format.  Additionally for adult readers it would be beneficial to have some of the latest graphic novels on display in the library, so the fans of graphic novels will not feel intimidated to ask about them.  In the past several years, it seems that this format has been more accepted in school libraries; however, the format could always use a boost by having a colorful and inviting display to promote graphic novels in the library.  Whatever promotional method used, the main purpose is to encourage reluctant readers or graphic novel fans to feel comfortable about continuing to read books in this format.