The Cellist of Sarajevo

My book group this past month has been reading the "The Cellist of Sarajevo" by Steven Galloway. This is a shorter novel following three protagonists in the city of Sarajevo during the Bosnian war when snipers daily killed people in the streets.

I liked this book. Recently I have found that my taste in novels has changed dramatically and I have been searching for stories that have meaning. This book is a historical fiction. I liked that it was meaningful without having to be ridiculously long. I realized while reading that I didn't know about the Bosnian War. How come I do not know anything about this 8 year long "armed conflict" that occurred during my own lifetime? Why didn't I ever learn about this in school? Maybe I did, or maybe I was too young to remember. I guess the overall thought that has been in my head is how easy it is that we forget the past, and importance of books like these to remind us.

The three main characters in this book were Arrow, Kellan and Dragan. I think that we can learn a lesson from each of their stories. Yet, let me first talk about the cellist. Outside of his apartment during the war, there was a line of people waiting for bread. A bomb was dropped and 22 people were killed. He had seen so much death already and is deeply moved by the massacre. The only thing that he has to offer is his music. He decides that for the next 22 days he will go into the middle of the street where the massacre occurred, directly in eyesight of the many snipers surrounding the city, and play a song for each of the dead. He is at the center of the novel; he connects the three protagonists of the story. I will now talk about each of them.

ARROW
She was probably my favorite character. I always have a weak spot for strong female characters. What most impressed me about Arrow was her determination not to let the war change her any more than it already had. She was experience sniper shooter for the resistance. It is through her eyes that we actually see the enemy; through her scope. She convinces herself that she only takes the lives of those who would kill, the enemy that killed her father and family. She is told to protect the cellist. It is a difficult task, and he can't know that she is there. She finds the enemy sniper that is meant to kill the cellist. She notices the small detail that his finger is not on the trigger. Instead he is listening to the music. I think that this is a turning point for Arrow as she realizes that this man is a lot like her. He has received orders and he is following through with them. I love the fact when the resistance leader changes in the end of the book, she won't allow herself to lose all of her humanity. And it is all because of the cellist.

KELLAN
I think Kellan was a necessary character in the story because he was a father and faced the challenge of protecting his wife and children through a difficult time. I think that he is the most contemplative of the characters. His main trial throughout the story is when he goes to the watering hole to collect for his family and neighbor. I think that it is interesting that his grand internal trial is not with the enemy per se, but more with his pushy and aging neighbor. At the end he almost leaves her water behind because she refuses to give him bottles containing handles to makes the trip easier. But he does go back. Like Arrow, he ultimatley decides that the war will not deprive him of his humanity. He decides that at the end, there will still be good people left in the city to help build it up and he will be one of them.

I also liked the event that happened at the watering hole. While getting water, the enemy attacked and threw in bombs that killed people. Kellan describes three different types of people. First, there are those that run to the rescue of fallen comrades, and press down on their wounds and try to save their lives. Second, there are those that flee and try to save themselves. Third, there are those that can neither help nor flee, but just stand there. Kellan finds himself in the third group, grateful he did not flee but disappointed that he did not help. When Kellan heard the cellist, I think that this is when he decided to switch groups, when he decided to go back for his neighbor's water. He decided to help even if it meant he was inconvenienced, or possibly death.

DRAGAN
What members of my book group pointed out and I had not thought of while reading the book in Dragan's account of the war was his use of color. He is on his way to the bakery for bread when we are first introduced to his character. He describes the grey buildings and lifeless faces. At this point there is no color in the world. Then he sees an old friend; someone from before the war. He describes how generally he would not talk to someone like this because you didn't want to remember emotional connections with people that could possibly die the next day. It was understood among the citizens of Sarajevo. This woman however did stop and talk to Dragan. She had a strange sense of optimism that he had not heard in a long time. He kept on describing her lovely blue coat. It was a bright spot of color in his very grey world.

She was the first one to tell him about the cellist. He gave her hope, and now she gave Dragan hope. When he visits the cellist and listens to the music, the city that he loves gets its color back. He starts to recognize hope in the faces of the people and remember what Sarajevo once was.

I love how the cellist connects all three strangers in the war. I would definitely recommend this book to others. It is a short yet significant read.

Atlas Shrugged

This was my grandmother's favorite book. When I was a senior in high school my mom bought me a nice edition and said, "you can keep this copy but you have to read the book by the end of college." At the time I very much enjoyed reading but my tastes were very different and I had not yet tackled a book as long or detailed as Atlas Shrugged. I started reading it before I left to Arizona for two years and was only able to get through about 500 pages. Last summer, I started once again, and this time I finished.

Don't let the 1200 pages of pure brilliance intimidate you. This book is absolutely amazing. I think it should be required high school reading. Every student should know the answer to the question "Who is John Galt?" With the growing socialist attitude in the United States at the moment, I actually would not be surprised if they banned this book instead of required it.

Actually this book scared me a little bit. It was easy to draw parallels between the fictional story and real life occurrences in the American government at the moment. Let me first give a brief synopsis. The story follows the life of a Dagny Taggart and Hank Rearden; two powerhouse business people during the slow change of capitalism to communism. During the story, good people, those who own big businesses, or those that simply have morals and work hard, those that contribute the most to the economy, slowly start to disappear as the government imposes more laws and restrictions on their success. The only question left when each disappears is "Who is John Galt?"

There are a lot of things that I could say about this book. I actually love the fact that she took 1200 pages to write this story. At the beginning of the novel, society is suffering but there is still some prosperity, and there is still hope. The government does not yet have complete control over all the industry and capitalism is still apparent. The progression from capitalism to communism is slow, and the reader can hardly recognize when the switch and mentality really occurs. Yet, by the end of the book, when Dagny finally makes up her mind to go on strike as well, and the socialist attitude is prominent, society has fallen. The poor, who supposedly the system is supposed to help, are worse off, and those that once contributed to society have been forced more or less to leave society all together. As the attitudes are pacified more and more to socialism, the government allows itself to take more and more control until laws are passed that force people to stay in their jobs, work for nothing, and employers no longer have control over their own business. All of a sudden the people no longer have rights or free will.This is communism.

The following is an interesting quote from the book about governments and their roles:
"The only proper purpose of a government is to protect man's rights, which means: to protect him from physical violence. A proper government is only a policeman, acting as an agent of mans self-defense, and, as such, may resort to force only against those who start the use of force. The only proper functions of a government are: the police, to protect you from criminals; the army, to protect you against foreign invaders; and the courts, to protect your property and contracts from breaches or fraud by the others, to settle disputes by rational rules, according to objective law. But a government that initiates the employment of force against men who had forced no one, the employment of armed compulsion against disarmed victims, is a nightmare infernal machine designed to annihilate morality: such a government reverses its only moral purpose and switches from role of protector to the role of man's deadliest enemy, from the role of policeman to the role of criminal vested with the right to the wielding of violence against the victims deprived of the right of self-defense. Such a government substitutes for morality the following rule of social conduct: you may do whatever you please to your neighbor, provided your gang is bigger than his."

I also loved the role of the media in this novel. From the very beginning it has a very powerful influence over the attitudes of the people. For example, when Dagny decides to use Rearden metal for the John Galt line, the government uses the media, and its influence to teach the public lies about its safety. The government is even able, through its control of the State Science Institute, to gather false opinions from "reliable sources." Really the sole purpose of this media storm was to prevent positive public opinion concerning the metal, knowing that Hank Rearden would gain more power and control over the metal industry. I also love how the media is used to make bad men look good. For example, James Taggart, the brother of Dagny, time and again took credit for the great accomplishments of his sister. Or how the "boys in Washington" used the media for their own political agendas. I loved this aspect of the book because it is so applicable to life in the real world. Politicians use the media in so many ways to sway public opinion. They are more concerned with how they look instead of who they are and what they stand for.

I also loved the flashbacks to a "better world." I specifically loved the flashbacks to the childhoods of Dagny Taggart and Fransisco D'Anconia. Both were heirs to great empires and both had great dreams. Frisco and Slug, as they were nicknamed were perfect examples of children with the vision of their own "American Dream." They both knew that they could achieve whatever they want as long as they worked hard for it-that is capitalism. They started small and learned the trades, working in the mines and on the railroads, so that one day when they took over their empire, they would know how to run and improve the business. They received good educations, and they loved their work. Capitalism is the American Dream. As the country becomes pacified more and more towards the idea of communism, those dreams are no longer possible. You no longer are successful based on how hard you work for it, instead the government requires you to work hard, so that they can take all of your success. Again, there are many parallels to our own society today.

The most emotional part of the entire book is probably the train crash. At this point in the story, Dagny abandoned her post at Taggart Transcontinental after a horrendous law passed by the government. And no one knew what to do without her. It was during this time, that a train on the John Galt line got stalled, and inside was an "important political man." There was eight miles of tunnel that the train needed to get through and the only spare engine was a steam engine. There was also another "government train" coming from the other direction. No one wanted to make a decision about what to do. No one wanted to disappoint the politician on the train and delay him more so they attached a steam engine and went through the tunnel. No one wanted to take the responsibility.

This is what Ayn Rand says on the subject.
"The man who refuses to judge, who neither agrees nor disagrees, who declares that there are no absolutes and believes that he escapes responsibility, is the man responsible for all the blood that is now spilled in the world. Reality is an absolute, existence is an absolute, a speck of dust is an absolute and so is human life. Whether you live or die is an absolute. Whether you have a piece of bread or not, is an absolute. Whether you eat your bread or see it vanish into the looter's stomach, is an absolute.

There are two sides to every issue: one side is right and the other is wrong, but the middle is always evil. The man who is wrong still retains some respect for truth, if only by accepting the responsibility of choice. But the man in the middle is the knave who blanks out the truth in order to pretend that no choice or values exist, who is willing to sit out the course of any battle, willing to cash in on the blood of the innocent or to crawl on his belly to the guilty, who dispenses justice by condemning both the robber and the robbed to jail, who solves conflicts by ordering the thinker and the fool to meet each other halfway. In any compromise between food and poison, it is only death that can win. In compromise between good and evil, it is only evil that can profit. In that transfusion of blood which drains the good to feed the evil, the compromise is the transmitting rubber tube."

I don't have too much else to say about the book. It is excellent. If any reader ever chooses to read the book, I would have one more comment to mention. I found that two of the most interesting characters in the book, although not the protagonists of the story, were Lilian Rearden (Hank Rearden's wife) and Cherryl Brooks (James Taggart's wife). 

Fifty Shades of Grey Series

I HAVE NOT READ THIS SERIES. But I would like to express my opinions anyways. This book has become popularized in the past few years. Generally if a book is becoming popular I become interested and want to read it. Luckily, I am smart enough to look at the summaries of the novels first so I don't start reading another novel about vampires or werewolves and angst ridden teenage girls. This is what I read on Amazon about this book.

"When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana's quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too-but on his own terms. 

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey's singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success-his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family-Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey's secrets and explores her own dark desires. 

Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess and stay with you forever. The book is intended for mature audiences."


This was all I needed to convince myself that this would be an absolutely horrible book to read, and that this book is a pornographic novel masked as good fiction. It is actually sad to think how popular it has become.

I will never read this book and I would never allow a teenage girl to read it either. Grey seems like the anti-prince that beats Edward Cullen in creepiness. The book will "obsess, possess and stay with you forever." I guess the question you have to ask yourself is, "do you really want a book like this to stay in your thoughts forever?" I choose no.

Twilight Series

I am sad to say that I have read all four books of twilight. For future reference, if my children ever happen across this blog, the Twilight book series became a popular phenomenon in 2005 when the first novel came out. It follows a young girl, 17 years of age, named Bella Swan who falls in love with a vampire named Edward Cullen. It was one of those iconic novels that changed the face of young adult novels for the next ten years following.

The author of this novel is Stephanie Meyer. I am not wholeheartedly impressed with her work. I do not like the message that is portrayed to the younger demographic that primarily reads this novel. Okay... I guess that is a lie. Supposedly the Twilight series has been popular among older women as well.

Lets first take a look a Bella Swan, the protagonist of the story whose thoughts we are intimately connected with. This character is not a strong character. I really dislike stories that are essentially the "ugly duckling turned beautiful swan (or Bella Swan) story." The story did not follow that same plot but the same concept applies. Bella comes to a new town and is unhappy with who she is. She doesn't like the way she looks, and throughout the entire series she wants to be someone different (a vampire). I am anxious for books in this genre that have women who are happy to be themselves and do not see a need to change. I guess you could argue the point that that would be unrealistic because teenage girls are undergoing a lot of changes in their lives, and trying to determine who they really are, and what they stand for, blah blah blah. Wouldn't that suggest a need for stronger role models? Because unfortunately...Bella Swan is a role model for young girls. Aside from the ugly duckling story, this novel also portrayed the "Prince Charming will rescue me story." This concept is displayed throughout the entire series which brings me to the next protagonist: Edward Cullen.

Allow me to first say that this character, in my opinion, is not Prince Charming riding in a white horse to save the day. Yet, for some reason he has become the iconic symbol of a "perfect man." He is the anti-prince. But it makes sense, as the world confuses good from evil, and we become more sympathetic towards anti-heroes, that women across the globe would fall in love with the anti-prince. I guess that is really a story for another time though. Edward Cullen:

Number one: is extremely dangerous
Number two: becomes obsessive with Bella, to the point of sneaking into her room while she is sleeping to watch her. This is stalker 101 and a huge red flag for a serious creeper. But no no... Bella thinks that is sweet. And because the reader is connected with her thoughts, the reader too becomes sympathetic towards a very creepy man.
Number three: calls Bella is "own brand of heroine." I don't know about anyone else, but I think we just went from stalker 101 to graduate courses in "stalkerism." Specifically he can hardly stand to be around the smell of her blood. Once a month, Bella must really have needed to be careful around her beau...if you catch my meaning.
Number four: In book two, New Moon, when Edward finds out that Bella might have died. He decides he wants to kill himself then live without her. Needless to say, I never found "Romeo and Juliet" to be very romantic. When a man says, "I will kill myself without you" that certainly does not mean that he is romantic, it means you should probably contact a psychologist/therapist. This is because he is severely disturbed.
Number five: He is 107 years old. Despite the fact that he is immortal, the maturity levels are surely distinct and different.

There are so many other points that I could make about the anti-prince. I will be the first to state that I do not want a man like Edward Cullen. He is not my idea of a good man. He is not a prince charming. He is a like a wolf in sheep's clothing. Yet, since the books publishing in 2005 there have been a lot of interesting related occurrences. Now I had previously heard a lot of rumors about women divorcing their husbands after reading the series, or groups wanting to get together and drink blood, etc. etc. Of course I recognize that there are people who will take any story too literally and cross thick moral lines. Basically confusing reality with fiction, but I wanted to research the veracity of all of these stories surrounding the novel.

Laura M. Brotherson, an expert on Marital Intimacy writes, "What may begin as harmless fun or a little escapism from the rigors of real life can easily become an obsession--especially if there is a void in ones life that is hankering to be filled. If the connection in marriage is already weak, and there is little happening to nourish it, filling the void with a fantasy is an easy snare to slip into." She goes on to talk about how women get caught up in the fantasy, and this destroys marriages. It is sad really that we have become so confused with reality.

I actually found a website that is dedicated to mothers who love the twilight series. I am not going to write much on the topic except to say that I think that is a little weird. I am glad my mother is not a twilight fan, or obsessive over any specific novel or genre. She was more interested in being my mom than a fantasy novel. Thanks for that mom.

I guess that there is a lot that I could write about this series. I could go on and on. It has been about 8 years since the first novel was released, and we now have 4 novels and 5 movies about the "epic (ANTI) love story." I love to read, and I have always enjoyed the fantasy novels. Ever since the release of Twilight, the quality of writing has diminished. I now walk into Barnes and Noble, and half the novels in the young adult section are about vampires or werewolves. I have read a few of the novels, and I feel I have lost a lot of brain cells while doing so. The stories are all the same, and the writing keeps getting worse and worse. There is no depth to the story. But...they have got vampires and adventure and love triangles, so while all these novels become best sellers, the real writers and the good/meaningful stories of our time are being passed up.

This is why I have started to read more non-fiction.