alexiacambaling's reviews
442 reviews

Candide by Lauren Walsh, Voltaire

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adventurous challenging informative reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin

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challenging mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

The Lathe of Heaven is about George Orr, an addict dependent on drugs that suppress dreams because his dreams could change reality. It's short, just below 200 pages but very thought-provoking. I like how in this book, it stays focused on one city, Portland, Oregon, despite the fact that George's dreams changes a lot about how the world works. It helps the book stay grounded and focused. All throughout, we see how the book talks about hubris. George doesn't want to change reality through his dreams. He talks about how he has no right to do so, reality is the way it is for a reason. Meanwhile, his ambitious doctor, Dr. Haber uses him to change reality. He thinks he can eliminate most of what plagues humanity through George. I think that the unintended consequences shows that not only do you have to be careful what you wish for, but you also have to think about the hubris of thinking that you alone know what's best for everybody and can make these changes. The prose is also excellent, simple and not overwrought, but also not dry and boring to read. 

Overall, I think it's a good book and it also explores concepts relating to things that we're facing today like epidemics, war, and climate change. As far as classic sci-fi goes, I think that I'll definitely be reading more books by Ursula K. Le Guin.
The Song of Roland by Unknown

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adventurous fast-paced

3.0

Sanctuary by William Faulkner

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challenging dark slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

Sanctuary is my second Faulkner novel after As I Lay Dying. It's darker, but easier to read. I've heard it said that Faulkner wrote this to earn money and while more sensationalist than As I Lay Dying, being more crime focused, I think Sanctuary remains well-written and still has that interiority present. It's a very gritty and dark book, but while it's characters are unlikeable, they are complex and interesting to read about. I'm also interested in reading the sequel, Requiem for a Nun.
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

I originally dnfed this book a few months ago then decided to give it another shot. I'm really glad I did because this book was more of a meditative reflection on love, loss, grief, and healing. But more than that, it also explores the characters' relationships with the ones they have left, the ones who also experienced loss but are still here. I actually enjoyed the second story more than the first one and I liked the perspective it gives towards loss and moving on after that loss. Overall, the book was really beautiful and moving, melancholy yes, but with a quiet sincerity.
Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie

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3.0

Fun mystery. Not Agatha Christie's best, the solution was a little unsatisfying but the characters and their relationships are compelling enough. Still, I think Agatha Christie is great for when you're about to slide into a reading slump.
Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

Demian by Hermann Hesse

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informative reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Contains spoilers. 

I picked up Demian because I wanted to get into German literature and Hermann Hesse's works but didn't want to read Siddharta. I know that it's a very famous and acclaimed book but something about it didn't sit right with me after a few pages. It seemed too orientalist for my liking so I decided to read Demian instead which from the description alone already seems to be more up my alley. 

Demian follows a young man named Emil Sinclair and his journey towards self-actualization and making peace with his inner self. When we first meet Emil, there's a lot of anxiety within him. He was just a child and being bullied which is when the character of Demian, a boy his age but seemingly mysterious and mature, appears. Throughout the novel, Demian appears at various times when Emil appears to be troubled or riddled with anxiety. More on this later. 

In the beginning of the book, Emil talks about how there's two worlds. One is the bright world his parents and sisters live in which is an orderly world, and the other a dark world riddled with anxiety and chaos. He describes himself as moving between these two worlds, at times firmly in the bright world, at other times in the dark world. I think this represents the turmoil that Emil feels. Outwardly, his life should appear to be set. He's born from a well-to-do family, he has loving parents and siblings, and all he has to do is do reasonably well in school. He's very privileged and has a bright future. However, his inner life isn't so settled. There are times where he seemed content to be alone and times where he desperately craved validation from others- especially in his boarding school days. 

The conflict in the story is mostly about Emil wrestling with himself. Demian, Pistorius, Frau Eva, Beatrice...all of these characters were secondary to Emil's journey, or rather serve as guides to him reaching his destination. Demian is a book that's more about the inner life of its main character. The things that happen to him serve more as a catalyst or a way for him to achieve self-actualization. It doesn't concern itself with a plot but with a character's journey. 

Let's go back to Demian. I really do believe that it's either Demian doesn't exist at all and is more a manifestation of Emil's inner self/subconscious or Demian does exist but he's not exactly as Emil makes him out to be. That is, he is both a real character and someone Emil knows but he's projecting his inner self on him as someone that Emil himself wants to be like. Whenever Demian shows up, it always seems to be at a time when Emil is troubled or riddled with anxiety. He's always in a place where he needs guidance or solace. When Frau Eva showed up, it was also at a time when Emil was realizing his desires or his idea of his ideal partner. I think that she too, is a manifestation of his ideals. There are several passages in the book which led me to this theory but I think that it's also possible that they do exist in the story but Emil is projecting on them a lot. 

I don't want to comment too much on the psychology as I view it to be a little dodgy, more based on philosophy than science, and would get in the way of the story which I enjoyed. However, I will say that the influence of Carl Jung and psychoanalysis is very present in the story and there is an Oedipal element to Frau Eva as the object of Emil's affection. I find psychoanalysis to be a little pseudoscientific and unconvincing but as a storytelling element, it does hook you in and help guide you into the mind of the character.
 
Overall, Demian is an excellent coming-of-age story or a story about a character's journey and education from childhood to adulthood. You really feel like you've accompanied Emil on his journey to self-actualization throughout the book and it's just so well-executed. It's a short book but very meaningful and there's a lot you can take from it. 

I read the 1923 N.H. Priday translation which I found to be an enjoyable read. It's smooth and has a lyricism to it that makes it a pleasure to read. Although, I would still probably try to read the original once my German is good enough. I found it to be a good introduction to Hesse and made me want to read more of his books like The Glass Bead Game and Steppenwolf. Overall, I highly enjoyed this book and recommend it. 
The Awakening by Kate Chopin

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emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

2.0

Beloved by Toni Morrison

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challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Beloved is one of the most beautiful books I've read. It's beautiful and harrowing, a ghost story but not in the way we think of ghost stories. It tells a story of intergenerational trauma felt not just by a family haunted by a ghost, but also a country scarred by the sins of the past. Sethe's sins is directly because the sins of the United States, sins that haunted her and haunted her country. 

Beloved is a book that shows the brutality and dehumanization of slavery. In Beloved, past traumas continue to shape former slaves' psyche years on, even after they've escape, even after slavery has been abolished. It forms an inescapable truth that continues to scar them and leaves a wound that wouldn't heal. In Beloved, characters are given an enormous capacity to love, limited only by their freedom to love. It is a book about love, but not healing. Sethe's actions are because she loved her children so much, she couldn't bear to see them treated as cattle, as property.

This is a book that touches on many dark subjects. It is complex and weaves timelines and perspectives to create a picture of this family's past and present. It shows how the past bleeds into the present and the future. It is difficult to read in both style and subject matter but very worthwhile. I'd say it's a book I can see myself rereading in order to analyze it further. Highly recommended.