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Vicarious Journeys by Alberto Arias

Posted on the June 18th, 2010 under Recommendations by KINGGRIMES

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
In The God of Small Things, Roy exposes India for its problems with class and society. She uses a colorful group of characters to criticize the caste system in India and all of the discrimination that comes with it. In the novel, time shifts between past and present and focuses on two twins, Rahel and Estha. They are the children of a constantly victimized Ammu, a woman outcasted by Indian society due to her having left her husband. Ammu however, begins a forbidden romance with a member of the lowest caste in society, Velutha. Probably the most likable man in the entire novel, Velutha, the untouchable handyman, gets brutally beaten by police when Baby Kochamma tells them he raped Ammu and kidnapped Estha and Rahel.
I strongly recommend this book, simply because its content is enormous. Sometimes the relationships between the characters become very complicated and the plot is extremely dramatic. Although almost every male in the novel is a disgusting pig, Roy does an excellent job of making it really easy to imagine all of these issues within India.

The Brooklyn Follies by Paul Auster
The Brooklyn Follies is told about a 60 year old cancer survivor, Nathan Glass, who has decided to return to Brooklyn to live out the rest of his few remaining years. A man of a pretty ordinary past, Nathan decides that he will write a book of folly. Sooner than later however, he runs into his nephew, Tom, and they bond very quickly, eventually becoming typical best buds. Tom and Nathan eventually enjoy a few adventures together, ultimately ending Nathan’s loneliness.
This book will eventually make you feel very good, as it captures positive transformation really well. It is based on an unlikely main character, and does a good job of showing how even a book with little conflict in it can be very captivating.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
This book, narrated by the protagonist Nick Carraway, is about a group of wealthy Long Island inhabitants that enjoy parties and and socializing. Nick’s neighbor in particular, the mysterious Jay Gatsby, throws parties in his estate every Saturday. Later in the novel, it is discovered that Gatsby, a bootlegger, became rich and threw parties just so he could win back the love of his life, Daisy Buchanan. Eventually, Gatsby is shot.
Truly a classic, this novel does a great job of commentating on the general mood of the roaring twenties. The characterization of Jay Gatsby is truly unique, and the novel really is an interesting but bizarre love story.

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Things Fall Apart potrays Okonkwo, the main character of the novel, as a fierce and powerful leader in his tribe. Born to a lazy father who amounts to nothing in the tribe, Okonkwo devotes his life to working hard and being everything his father was not. Oppressive to his three wives, Achebe uses Okonkwo and the rest of the characters to show the issues in Ibo society. Not unlike a caste system, there are the outcasts of society and the powerful class. By the end of the novel, Okonkwo must deal with Europeans, as they have come to his land to spread christianity. They disrupt society by peacefully offering Christianity, and many of the outcasts and Okonkwo’s own son decide to convert.
Achebe offers great insight into African culture, as most African culture had been tarnished up until then. He shows that their society is not much different than other oppressive societies and exposes the flaws in society with likable characters. What surprises me however, is Achebe’s favorable tone to the Europeans invading Africa. Generally, even when a culture is not necessarily efficient or practical, it still doesn’t mean it should be disrupted. This theme is the focus of the novels Things Fall Apart, Heart of Darkness, and The God of Small Things. Roy, Conrad and Achebe all depict a natural culture that is being questioned by European imperialists. All authors criticize the brutal flaws within the system even though Achebe stresses a few positives. He points out the benefit of  cultural diffusion in Things Fall Apart and explains that while culture is disrupted, often a culture needs to be disrupted to advance itself. Achebe explains this as a direct response to Heart of Darkness, as Roy and Conrad depict a more flawed system in India and Africa.

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
The novel is about Charles Marlow, a man from Europe who is to travel to Africa to work for a trading company as a ferry-boat captain. There, after observing the system in Africa, and interacting with some of the natives, he meets Kurtz. Kurtz, unlike the other characters in the novel, has fame and popularity that intrigue Marlow. When he meets Kurtz, Marlow realizes that Kurtz is no less savage than any of the other Europeans, and is in fact corrupt and savage himself. Conrad uses Kurtz and the entire imperialist enterprise to criticize imperialism and its practices. The natives, and the land of Africa itself are brutally abused throughout the entire novel.
This book, though not at all my favorite, is recommendable because it does a great job of portraying an awful time in African history. It discusses corruption with men in power, and the balance between light in darkness within man.

A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
I read this book in three days because I enjoyed it so thoroughly. It is about Lieutenant Frederic Henry, an ambulance driver in the Italian army during World War I. The entire novel shifts back and forth between the “Tenente’s” experiences on the battlefield, and his romantic relationship with Catherine Barkley. The Tenente is injured around the same time that he gets Catherine pregnant, but he returns to the battle. After fleeing the Germans, he reunites with the still pregnant Catherine and they escape to Switzerland. The novel ends when their son is a stillborn and Catherine dies because of a haemorrhage at birth.
The novel was exciting for me to read because I had always wanted to read an Ernest Hemingway book and I finally got my chance. I really enjoyed the style of the book and how it did not only focus on the romance or the war and I like how raw the entire novel is. I strongly recommend it.

It’s Kind of A Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
This very new novel is about a high school student named Craig. From Brooklyn, Craig is accepted to a very prestigious high school in New York City. However, a very simple-minded boy, he can’t handle the pressure and decides one night that he will jump off of the Brooklyn Bridge. At the last minute he decides he will check himself into a psychiatric hospital instead. The rest of the novel discusses his time spent there, his interactions with other patients and his decision to put his happiness first.
If any of the plot sounds familiar, it is because Ned Vizzini himself attended Stuyvesant High School and dealt with similar stresses as Craig. I read the book when I myself was going through confusing times and I found it amazing. I strongly recommend it.

Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
In this book, the narrator, John, is on a quest to learn about Felix Hoenikker, a physicist who helped develop the atomic bomb. On his quest, he learns of a potential weapon of mass destruction, ice-nine. He then spends his time searching for answers about the potential weapon. The novel revolves around a quirky cast that find themselves on the island of San Lorenzo. This book is somewhat crazy, but humorous and extremely entertaining. It was the first Vonnegut I ever read, and I fell in love with his style after Cat’s Cradle.

Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
This novel is innovative in that it is a fantasy novel but written so very long ago. Gulliver, a sailor, gets washed ashore an island, Lilliput, and discovers a whole other country inhabiting the island. The inhabitants however, are a twelfth the size of normal humans, and imprison the giant Gulliver. Eventually, he wins them over and involves himself with the politics of Lilliput and discovers the other country, Blefescu. The rest of the novel focuses on Gulliver’s adventures similar to his on Lilliput. The novel criticizes imperialism and Eurocentrism. Swift often alludes to how outrageous it really is for Europeans to think of themselves that way. Although the book often drags on, it does a really exceptional job of disguising satire with what appears to be silly humor.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows by JK Rowling
I know I know, it’s Harry Potter. But to be fair, I actually read this book last summer when I disguised it as “Memoirs of Fidel Castro.” The last Harry Potter book in the series is extremely mature and grim with Harry, Ron, and Hermione set on finding the remaining Horcruxes to destroy Voldemort. The book is unlike the rest in that the entire novel takes place outside the halls of Hogwarts and throughout England. Eventually, nearly every character in the book participates in a massive battle at Hogwarts and many characters, including Voldemort, die.
I don’t really understand why so many people hate Harry Potter so much. Perhaps the writing isn’t as complex as other books out there, but it is as captivating as any other book on this list. And so, I thoroughly enjoyed the book, as I think it ended appropriately. I don’t think anyone is allowed to say Harry Potter until they’ve read one book.