Book 3 Review

Gabriel Garcia Marquez

 In his novel “One Hundred Years of Solitude”, G.G. Marquez makes an insightful revelation about cultural, social and political realities of the world which is difficult for the North American reader to fully recognize, understand and accept – so different it is from our world in many respects. This is the world of Colombia in the late nineteenth century – early twentieth century. This narrative about the myths and the realities of Latin American history brought its author international recognition and Nobel Prize in 1972.  Historical facts in the novel intermingle with fantastic events and abilities – some characters in the novel are able to predict the future, some live longer than it is possible to imagine – thus keeping the reader always in imaginative anticipation of what might happen to the Buendia family next. The third outstanding quality of the book is the uplifting experience that it gives to its reader through an extraordinary combination of irony, satire, and sadness. This powerful work of magic realism never loses the capacity to delight and surprise the reader through the sense of wonder at the world, which makes it impossible to put the book down.

Book Cover

The novel is the history of the founding, development, and death of a settlement called Macondo, which is the setting of the novel, and of the most important family in that town, the Buendias. At its foundation, Macondo exists in social harmony, like early Eden, when the world “was so recent that many things lacked names, and in order to indicate them it was necessary to point” (p. 11). After several civil wars and revolutions, the town moves into complete destruction. The development of the Buendia family symbolizes history of their country, in which people have no rational control over their own destiny. Metaphorically, the family history is the embodiment of the theme of solitude, fatalism and isolation, central to the novel. It is so because the members of the Buendia family, with all their vicious energy and intelligence, do not live their lives for the sake of their own goals, but actually they live their lives in the name of someone else’s values, Liberals, Conservatives, some other political parties that are unable to change life in Macondo to the better. The members of the Buendia family are isolated from historical reality by their inner withdrawal from it. As young men, they are eager to fulfill their ambitions, but become frustrated and end up withdrawing.

High literary quality of the novel comes from a very peculiar view of history as farce which is too fantastic or too cruel to be true. Experiencing history as fantasy is characteristic of magic realism of Marquez. The novel’s purpose is to give the reader this same feeling of history that the characters have: it seems that most of them sense that what is happening cannot really be happening: wars, endless rains, plagues, insects, and all kinds of disasters.  Moreover, in a fantastic way the family members tend to repeat the history of previous generations. Ursula, the mother of the family, has the feeling that the world is repeating itself: “It’s as if the world were repeating itself” (p. 276).  The sense of this tragically ironic repetition of events, combined with satirically precise characters creates the unforgettable atmosphere of the novel and is one of the novel’s strengths. 

For a sophisticated reader looking for existentially unforgettable experience, the book’s rating is undoubtedly 10/10 stars. This reader will fully appreciate the novel’s unprecedented historical setting, unexpected characters and plot full of delightful incidents. This reader will fully comprehend the book’s unforgettable magic reality, and the powerful atmosphere of tragic irony of solitary existence in an isolated and historically marginal place, such as Macondo.

My Top Fives Presentation

How true a book should be.

            The question is, how true should a non-fiction book be? Well, this is a question rather broad, for non-fiction varies, from a magazine about politics sold in a kiosk on a corner of Main Street, NY, to a memoir written by a Holocaust surviving hero who saved the devastated prisoners from their doom. But applying to books, should there even be a question of how true should non-fiction be, when the genre itself is clearly saying “Not made up!” It seems as if the writers of the new century have gone so bold, as if to call themselves writers of memoirs, whilst bending the truth, not caring for their readers’ feelings. And if you call me too critical, I may as well recommend you reading A Million Little Pieces and not be concerned about the “5% made up” as the author, James Frey, states. Yes of course the author must create a breath taking piece, and many say that a writing piece without imagination is like house without a door, but that doesn’t mean that you should make a dragon out of a kitten, it isn’t necessary to make things up in order to intrigue your readers. An element of exaggeration is not a crime in Non-Fiction stories, if that is of your concern, but what I mean is that the genre of Non-Fiction was never to be altered by imagination, for if it is, what separates it from its sister genre Fiction? Nothing.

Should School decide on what books we read?

            Personally, I do think that there should be balance between the books that the school district assigns and what kids want to read themselves. In nowadays society, the schools pressure teens to read more classic, “old school” books. But knowing teens, expecting them to actually like the books they are forced to read is about the same as expecting the sun to rise on the west. Most teenagers want to read something very common and popular, what I would call “bandwagon reading”, thus the school being what it is, wants to suppress that idea and widen the children’s view. The question is, is that right to do? Saying yes would be cruel, but saying no isn’t right either. Going deeper on what was said before, the school should balance what the kids read, with adding some independent reading to the curriculum but letting the school to pick the classics that are different from students usual choice of literature.

The ideal school would never pressure its kids into blindly following what they should read. I personally think that the US schools should apply a new technique to persuade kids to appreciate classics and widen their reading boundaries. Schools should give independent reading assignments in a particular genre from time to time, independent books being one out of four books per course. Also the three out of four books assigned by the school should be given in a new manner. Each student will be given an assignment to choose to read one out of three books during their summer before freshman year. The choice would be out of more common genres, most likely, the child will choose to read a book they are more familiar with in genre to what he/she have already read. The school then is expected to consider their reading curriculum for every student individually, assigning books in a genre that is different from what the summer reading choice was. Thus the school will lead its students in the right direction, allowing students to have their choice of read from time to time, but still teaching them to appreciate other genres and classics.

"The Hunger Games" video

Adapting Your Book

          

           Adapting a book such as “The Hunger Games” to a big screen is not as easy as it may seem. To get the movie to the state of perfection a lot of challenges must be overcome. What are the typical complaints of the audiences after a popular book has been screened? What are the typical reasons for the audience to feel befouled by the film which puts the book onto the screen? First, people may feel angry at the changes within the plot. Second, they may be dissatisfied with the actors’ interpretations of characters’ personalities. Finally, they may be unhappy with the visual effects in the film which do not coincide with the images that emerged in their imagination after reading the book. So, if ever the filmmaker wants to be successful with the book adaptation, he needs to introduce decent changes that would not destroy the atmosphere of the book. The filmmaker needs to be himself/herself a respectful and an attentive to detail reader, who will use his expertise in turning the book into the  greatest visual experience possible. All in all, there must be a balance between the things changed and the things kept.

            What exact changes can be made and what things should be done in order to perfectly adopt the book into a movie?  A question rather bold, but still answerable. There are a couple of quite obvious things that apply to every book adaptation that must be kept in mind to make the film successful. The most palpable things to keep in a movie are the main characters, the plot, the setting and the mood of the book which is typically created by the background music and by dialogues.  These four things are the root of the book adaptation. The setting of the book and the film include the social and cultural environment in which the characters live, so the filmmaker must not underestimate this aspect of the book/ the film.  The characters should be in the focus of the filmmaker’s attention, as everything depends on their ability to properly express the ideas and values that each of the characters incarnate. The main events of the plot should be preserved in the adaptation if it really considers the book in a respectful fashion. And, finally, the mood of the book can be construed through music, visual effects created by the cameramen, pace rhythm of dialogues.  

Book One Project

            “Hello, lovely reader! Would you like to experience the extraordinary feeling of living in the ‘Room’? But listen up, it’s not just a room, it’s the Room, that’s right, the one and only! Our fantastic management board allied with several writers and artists to create a fun and interactive way to get involved with popular books on a whole new level. Our new project "Room Hotels" speaks for itself, we have created 20 replicas of the famous dorm from the book "Room" by Emma Donoghue. The place can vary from Original (Small) and Medium to Large and Extra-Large sizes. Contact our ‘Room Hotels" customer service at (311-333-1357) or visit our site at www.DonoghueH.com  to sign up for the stay. Your occupation of a single room can vary between a day and two weeks, during that time, you will be provided with the same exact supplies given to Jack and his Ma (Amount of supply differs based on the number of people per Room). Visit any time of the year! Because the room is always near!"  Now this is how I would advertise my new project.

            Basically the idea is rather simple and ... weird. Imagine reading a book, the plot is intense, feels like something new and you are so thrilled about it, you wish you just were in the book! What could be better than actually experiencing what the characters feel to actually understand their position? The idea of "Room Hotel" was a smart choice of investment from the start. A large portion of nowadays readers is very impulsive and just love their experiences with good books, they want a piece of it. Something an object as small as a scarf, or some "artifact" from the book doesn’t satisfy the fandom. Actually getting the experience would be the right choice if someone wants to go big, and truly comprehend the pressure of being in the characters position. Also because this is such a brand new idea it is bound to get some attention, thus bringing a larger audience to the project and the book itself. After all, if the book really sells well, you can always expect at least some costumers.

            Financially speaking, the idea is pure gold. At start, a little investment in the idea is the best way to go, observe how popular the project goes, and the benefits earned from it. The fact that the room is rather well described in the book itself can very much be beneficial for the readers’ total experience and a simpler way for the designers to manage the rooms. The main events take place in the first half of the book, the rest is what follows up the events. During Jack’s and his mother’s stay in the room, they have experienced a lot, and had so many little things even though they lived in a small eleven square feet room. Jack often described the room, allowing the reader to visualize and feel the story better. He uses a lot of "child" language, but still manages to explain everything perfectly. These are a couple of examples of how he describes the room: "Wardrobe is wood, so I have to push the pin an extra lot. I shut her silly doors, they always squeak, even after we put corn oil on the hinges."(P.6) this quote has a perfect example of imagery, you can almost see the stains of corn oil on the hinges of an old wooden wardrobe. In the “Room Hotel” the designers should place such a huge wardrobe, to make the visitors experience the same feelings as Jack did. “We try to fill Bath but after the first bit the water comes out all icy so we just wash with cloths. It gets brighter throughout Skylight only not very. TV Doesn't work too, I miss my friends."(P.94) This quote is a perfect example of how Jack and his Ma had felt during the time Old Nick turned off their power supply and tortured them, the quote also possesses good examples of imagery. So, the Room in the “ Room Hotel” deserves an old and non-working TV. Another great example "We stand beside Table and look up, there's the most  hugest round silver face of God. So bright, shining all of Room, the faucets and Mirror and the pots and Door and Ma's cheeks even", here Jack and his Ma are up at night before the "Great Escape" and she is showing him the beauty of the moon. So, the  room in the “Hotel Room” could have different illumination at different periods of time, to make the fans feel the atmosphere of the room in the book. All of the examples shown from the book possess the attraction of this feeling of being captive, but still able to live the life at most possible, this is the feeling that the reader is most attracted to.

In a book where half the events are happening in a room there isn't much else to create for the fans than experience, the experience of being in the situation alike to that of the characters, so that’s where the idea of "Room Hotels" came from. We hope you enjoyed our all new and thrilling idea and decide to come visit sometime! Thank you for your time.