Book #1: Watchmen

I don’t know where to start with Watchmen. I don’t know what part of the story to start with or which characters to discuss first or which themes to really delve into because there is so much that can be talked about.

It would be easiest, I guess, to start at the beginning so start there I shall. But don’t expect any real chronology to follow. Like I said, there is so much going on, on various levels, that “beginning to end” doesn’t work.

Watchmen opens with the murder of the Comedian, one of the masked adventurers who was part of the Watchmen. Set in New York in 1985, in an alternate reality that has Richard Nixon still in the White House, these masked adventurers have been outlawed since 1977. This brings up two elements in the story that I really liked: these people were not so much superheroes as masked adventurers or costumed adventurers (they refer to themselves as such) and that, at one point in time, these adventurers were a valid and acceptable part of society. Okay, so readers don’t find this out right at the beginning but it’s important because it sets it up that this isn’t a story about Spiderman and Wonder Woman.

But back to the beginning. The Comedian is murdered (don’t worry, this is not a spoiler) and this sets the story in motion. Who killed him? Why? Is someone out to get the “masks”? Despite being admired in the past, these masked men and women have now become feared and reviled and viewed as dangerous vigilantes. It is Rorschach who discovers the murder of the Comedian and is determined to solve it. In doing this, he must visit friend and foe from the adventuring days. The story then moves between past and present, introducing the reader to the characters, explaining who they are and why they became adventurers and how the dealt with being outlawed. We meet Sally Jupiter (Silk Spectre) and her daughter Laurie (Silk Spectre II), Night Owl I and Night Owl II, Ozymandias, Dr. Manhattan and Rorschach, as well as many others. Through their interaction in the past and present, we begin to see who the Comedian was, how he lived and who he had become.

As we learn about the characters, it becomes obvious there is no “With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility” motto driving them. They are flawed. They are weak. They are selfish. They make mistakes. But all are shaped by the world around them; forget radioactive spiders or exploding planets, these are real people.

Of course, like every good fantasy story, there are fantastical elements (the least of which is Nixon as President) and this contrasts starkly against the grim real world. And, being set in 1985, this grim reality is right in the middle of the Cold War and Russia is no friend. From this, fact and fantasy mix to create a world of uncertainty, fear, disillusion and despair.

And then the climax comes in all its catastrophic glory. This is the part of the story that affected me the most. I didn’t know what to think of it at first and I’m still thinking about it. But it is how the story had to end. The entire book exists on many levels and every character and storyline, no matter how small, is multi-layered. The ending had to be the same, had to make the reader think, had to present many sides in a single event. This is a testament to the writing ability of Alan Moore, not only his imagination but his ability to execute it so well. The book is illustrated by Dave Gibbons, but the script Gibbons had to work from (by Moore) outlined in great detail what each scene looked like. And there is so much detail in each scene, any reader would be doing a disservice by not paying close attention to the smaller, finer elements.

Another interesting part is a secondary story that runs through the book, a pirate story being read by a kid who hangs out at the newsstand. This story stands on its own but also works with the events that are happening which makes for a wonderful and terrifying juxtaposition. I also find this incredibly clever and perfectly executed.

I just realized I didn’t really tell much about what happens in the book, just gave a rather vague overview of the framing elements. But to tell what happens would deprive you the joy of reading it for yourself. A blurb from Time can be found here and see the Wikipedia entry here. Really though, just go read it.

I had mentioned before that my next book would be White Noise by Don Delillo. Change of plans. I've opted instead to next read The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen. This could take a bit of time though, as the book comes in at over 700 pages. But it's on the list and I've gotta get going on this. So The Corrections, here I come!

One down, 99 to go

I finished Watchmen. And...wow. That's all I've got right now. I will post a full review next week, once I get through Thanksgiving. In the interim I will be starting book the second this weekend, White Noise by Don Delillo.

One way I know a book has really hit me is if I can't stop thinking about it after I've finished. Especially if I can't form an opinion on it right away. After only a few pages I knew I would like Watchmen and I know that I liked the book. What I'm still thinking about is what I didn't like...and if I really didn't like certain aspects or if I just need to view the book from different perspectives to properly form my opinion. And I will keep thinking about it this weekend and I likely won't know what I really thought of the book until I write my review. And, overall, THAT makes this an excellent book.

Reading pictures

Watchmen is only the second graphic novel I have read. The first, From Hell, which also happens to be by Alan Moore, was fantastic and a great read. It was also in black and white.

This is important because I've discovered something interesting in the way I'm reading Watchmen. When I read a book that is text only, the words are there to describe but it's up to me to visualize who and what is in the book. When I watch a movie, the image is there but so are the words; I just have to keep up with what is happening and make it all make sense in my head. But when I'm reading Watchmen, I've got the words telling me what's happening (the text is not all in the form of dialogue) and I've got the images showing me what's happening. But I also have the luxury of being able to study each frame, to pick up on the little things that I might miss in, say, a movie when the images are moving.

I find it interesting to have so many senses engaged but to be able to indulge those sense to really get a better understanding of the book and the story. I also find it different reading a graphic novel in colour versus one in black and white. Illustrating From Hell in black and white made sense, no doubt, but having the colours in Watchmen adds a different emphasis, particularly in the frames with lotsa blood. It will be great to see the movie and see how that adds to the story because it will be showing how the characters move and interact with each other and with their surroundings.

I'm about halfway through now and I'm definitely into this book.

It has begun

I started Watchmen last night - so far so good.

I’ve decided that I’m not going to apply any kind of rigid structure to this blog. As I read, I’ll write about the book I’m reading and the author and I’ll make every effort to post some thoughts as I make my way through each book, but I’m not going into in-depth analysis or writing detailed chapter summaries or anything like that. I do want to post regularly though because, if I don’t, this almost seems pointless. I also want to write a review after each book and compare my thoughts with Time’s. But really, this is about the reading and the more time I spend posting, the less time I spend reading and that’s just silly.

One thing I can comment on now is my reading style. It seems no matter what kind of book I read or how much I want to read it, it always takes about the first 1/3 of the book for me to really be drawn in and to want to continue to read it. This is holding true for Watchmen too. I have complete faith that I will be sucked in and will spend many nights staying up far too late. As much as I try to pace myself, to learn to savour books more, it just doesn’t happen. And if I’m not enthralled in that first 1/3, I’m not likely to continue.

Unless, of course, I have to, which I do if I’m going to read all 100 books. I can tell you right now I am not looking forward to Catch-22 or The Catcher in the Rye. Sigh.

My next literary adventure

When I started this blog, I had real intentions of updating it regularly and writing about the books I was reading, authors I liked (and disliked), reviewing books and just writing in general about the world of books. But then a combination of laziness and stagnation overtook me and I stopped. I did spend some time coming up with ideas for posts and the different books and authors I could write about but then something else came to me…all because of Batman.

For many reasons, The Dark Knight was probably the most anticipated movie of summer in 2008. Among those reasons (likely lower on the list, but still significant) was the trailer for the movie Watchmen. I’d heard of the graphic novel before but didn’t know much about it or the movie…then the trailer blew me away. Honestly, watching the trailer, I didn’t care that I only knew a brief overview of the story. I could have known nothing and still would have wanted to see the movie. In ensuing conversations about Watchmen, I learned that it is the only graphic novel to make Time Magazine’s 100 Best Novels of All Time list. (I also learned that author Alan Moore has a big hate-on for Hollywood and adaptations of his work, but I’ll save that for another time.)

In recent years, graphic novels have been gaining more respect as a literary medium, possibly because successful movie adaptations are more readily referencing the source material. But to see a graphic novel on a best-of novel list intrigued me which meant, of course, that I had to know more about Time’s list.

So, here it is.

How did they arrive at this list? There are criteria: books must be novels, originally written in English and published after 1923 (the year Time began publishing). Simple enough, but these three basic rules cut out a lot of literary giants. Gone were the Brontes, Dickens and Austen; Dostoyevsky; Flaubert, Camus and Dumas; Cervantes; and the list goes on.

But there are a lot of great authors and books on the list. Many writers I’ve heard of, even if I’m not familiar with the chosen book. To start off, I’ve decided on my first three books. The inaugural book will be (in fact, must be) the book that spurred me into this project: Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons.

Book the second will be White Noise by Don DeLillo and the third read will be Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume.

(I feel I should also note that these three books were chosen as the first three because I also happen to already own them. Minor detail.)

There are books on the list I've read and liked; books I've read and hated; books I've always wanted to read and some I had hoped to never pick up again. There are authors I recognize and some I've never heard of. Of the authors I know, there are some surprises as to which book was chosen, while other choices are almost cliche.

So on Wednesday October 1 (after Criminal Minds and CSI:NY) I will crack the cover of Watchmen and begin my adventure in literature. Let’s see where it takes me.

This will be fun.

Revamp!

When I started this blog, I had big plans for it. I wanted to post book reviews, talk about authors I love and loathe, post lists of what I like and dislike, discuss book formats and genres and just generally bookishness.

And that hasn't really happened. Yet.

I've got plans for this blog, oh yes I do. They're coming, slowly but surely. But I will get this to where I want it, mostly because I love talking about books almost as much as I love books themselves.

A very Late review

Alright, so I finally finished Late Nights on Air by Elizabeth Hay. Giller Prize winner, don'tcha know. As this is the first Giller Prize-winning book I've read, I can't say conclusively that it deserved to win. What I can say is that I can understand why it would win. It is a fantastic book.

Set in Yellowknife in 1975, Late Nights focuses on a radio station and the various people who work there, as well as the surrounding community. Harry had a failed television career and has returned to what he knows best. Dido was discovered off the street and immediately enraptures Harry, but Dido loves Eddy. Gwen drove across the country to try her hand at something she has always loved and slowly blossoms. Eleanor keeps things running smoothly as the station secretary. Ralph also works at the station and adds a debonair, educated air to the book. Mrs. Dargabble makes for an interesting neighbour, as she has her own secrets. As the characters' lives intertwine, you feel like you are watching any small town simply be.

It did take me awhile to get through this book, mainly because I never felt rushed. Even though there were plenty of times I wanted to know what would happen, I never had that sense of urgency to finish it. I find this is mainly due to Hay's way of writing and of creating a story that is calm and peaceful and almost quiet in the way it engages the reader. (Does that last part even make sense? I don't even know, but it's how I feel. So there.) Perhaps that is the main reason I like the book - by creating a story and characters that are so calm, Hay made me feel like these could be real people, real lives, real situations. Given, parts of the canoe trip felt a little far-fetched, but I've never canoed any great distance, so what do I know? Still, all the characters were flawed in real ways and all struggled to find what was right. And there was no rush to reveal all about the characters either; they continued to develop well into the book and still had a few surprises even towards the end.

Hay also managed something that quite impresses me for a Canadian author: she was able to write about small-town/wilderness life without coming across as "man vs. nature in a BATTLE TO THE DEATH" kind of way. In fact, Yellowknife became another character, moving and changing with the seasons and with the characters as they moved and changed through their lives. And when four of them set off on their canoe trip through the Barrens, the wilderness never felt oppressive or monstrous; rather, it was painted as beautiful and perhaps misunderstood, as alive and thriving and finicky as any living thing.

I think the best books are the ones that seem to be a snapshot of those involved, a slice out of their lives. You know more came before - and you may learn some or even most of it - and you know more will come after - and much could be hinted at what this will be - but what you are given stands alone as a whole, but you can still imagine it between this beginning and this end. Late Nights on Air is just like this.