The Big Finale: The year of the book...

My thirty-fifth year has come and gone. I've surpassed my goal of twenty-five books in a year and I am very pleased with how the the Olio Scholar project went. I read a variety of material and in the process changed my lifestyle, hopefully for the better. Reading is now an important part of my routine and looks to continue that way after this project fades away.

So what does my thirty-sixth year of life hold for the Olio Scholar project?

• I plan to keep reading, although I don't have a set goal for the number of books I want to read this year. However, if don't reach at least twenty I will probably be disappointed. And please, visit the recommendations page and tell me what I should read next!
• I plan on continuing the book reports. This blog shall continue to be my reading home; these reports are a good way to keep me motivated. However, If I do miss a book report every so often, don't criticize me too much.
• I also plan to write some short stories this year to see how that works out. I have bits and pieces of inspiration laying around; a character here, a theme there, but no concrete story lines yet. I am a bit nervous about this goal actually. Considering how much work I put into these reports, constantly editing new drafts until it is satisfactory, I can only imagine how many iterations the stories will go through. And who knows if I will let anyone actually read them.

But enough about next year, it's the time we've all been waiting for: The first annual Olio Scholar Awards!

Best Novel

• Winner: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
• Other Nominees:Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Huckleberry Finn is a classic in every sense of the word, Good Omens was one of the most clever and funny books I've recently read and Jane Eyre exceeded my expectations enough to be considered as a nominee. But when it comes down to it, this wasn't much of a competition. The Book Thief was an amazing book. There wasn't a day that went by for months after reading it in which I didn't think about this book.

Best Non-Fiction

• Winner: The Forgotten 500 by Gregory A. Freeman
• Other Nominees: The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

I didn't read many non-fiction books during this year, but of the two that I did read, I enjoyed the The Forgotten 500 a bit more. I guess war stories are more engaging than stories about linguists.

Best Novella

• Winner: Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
• Other Nominees: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

In a surprising upset, Picture of Dorian Gray won out over A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. I rated the former four stars while the latter got a full five. However, in the voting, I found that A Christmas Carol has its appeal around Christmas. Reading it in July doesn't carry the same weight whereas Picture of Dorian Gray can be read all throughout the year and therefore got the nod.

Best New (to me) Author

• Winner: Neil Gaiman
• Other Nominees: Kazuo Ishiguro, M.T. Anderson, Markus Zusak, Pramoedya Ananta Toer

I thought Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett was a great book. Although the writing style is obviously Terry Pratchett, there is an edge to the story that his other stories didn't have. I was interested in seeing what Neil Gaiman's own books were like. I started to research which books I should read and found out three things: one, that his Sandman comic series got critical accolades from both the comic and non-comic critics, two, his books were wildly imaginative, with memorable characters and well written, and three, he has a very large cult following.  Well, after reading the entire Sandman series and The Graveyard book, I find myself part of the cult.  I will definitely be reading more of his books.  I also have him to thank for opening my eyes to the world of graphic novels.  I realize now that the comic book world is made up of more than just super heroes and damsels in distress.

Best Short Story

• Winner: "The Suicide Club" by Robert Louis Stevenson
• Other Nominees: "Markheim" by Robert Louis Stevenson, "Thrawn Janet" by Robert Louis Stevenson

All of the short stories I read this year were packaged as part of the Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde book. The Suicide Club was by far my favorite story line. It is actually three stories following a Prince visiting a suicide club for an adrenaline rush. All of the other stories just didn't have the entertainment value of that series and it made for an easy win in this category.  Please note, several of the individual Sandman comics could have been nominees in this category but I decided to keep each volume as an entity and not split them out.

Best Play

• Winner: "Waiting for Godot" by Samuel Beckett
• Other Nominees: None

I only read one play this year, so by default it is the winner.  Maybe next year there will be more potential nominees.

Best Graphic Novel 

• Winner: "The Sandman Vol 8: World's End" by Neil Gaiman
• Other Nominees: The Sandman Vol 3: Dream Country,The Sandman Vol 9: The Kindly Ones by Neil Gaiman

While I enjoyed most of the Sandman volumes, I really enjoyed the volumes which were collections of one-off stories.  Neil Gaiman's imagination really shined through in those particular comics. My favorite volume was World's End which was a collection inspired by Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. The World's End is a Tavern/Inn where travelers from all over, including Fairies, Pixies, Humans, Immortals, et al. have to wait for a reality storm caused by Dream's depression to clear. To pass the time, they tell absolutely fabulous stories; many of which have other stories nested within them. The whole World's End volume was a treat to read.

To wrap things up, here is a list of everything I've read for fun this year. I've ordered them by my rating and within each rating category, I've tried to sort them again.  However, it was very difficult to sort the remaining books as the criteria depends on what you are looking for in a book at any one time. For example, I have Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov rated as a four-star book, but also The Hot Rock by Donald Westlake. Would anyone say that The Hot Rock is at the same "level" as Lolita? No. But I was entertained by David Westlake's crime caper and thought that, for its genre, it deserved four stars.

Novels

1. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (5 stars)
2. Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (5 stars)
3. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (5 stars)
4. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (4.5 stars)
5. One Hundred Years of Solidtude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (4.5 stars)
6. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (4.5 stars)
7. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (4 stars)
8. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (4 stars)
9. A Long Long Way By Sebastian Barry (4 stars)
10. Feed by M.T. Anderson (4 stars)
11. The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell (4 stars)
12. This Earth of Mankind by Pramoedya Ananta Toer (4 stars)
13. The Hot Rock by Donald E. Westlake (4 stars)
14. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (3.5 stars)
15. Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut (3.5 stars)
16. Life of Pi by Yann Martel (3.5 stars)
17. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien (3.5 stars)
18. Animal Farm by George Orwell (3 stars)
19. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz By L Frank Baum (3 stars)
20. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo By Stieg Larsson (2 stars)
21. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain(2 stars)
22. At Swim-Two-Birds by Flann O'Brien (2 stars)

Novellas

1. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (5 stars)
2. The Cricket on the Hearth by Charles Dickens (4.5 stars)
3. Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (4 stars)
4. The Battle of Life by Charles Dickens (4 stars)
5. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson (3.5 stars)
6. The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain by Charles Dickens (3.5 stars)
7. The Chimes by Charles Dickens (2 stars)

Short Stories

1. Lodging for the Night by Robert Louis Stevenson
2. The Suicide Club by Robert Louis Stevenson
3. Thrawn Janet by Robert Louis Stevenson
4. The Body Snatcher by Robert Louis Stevenson
5. Markheim by Robert Louis Stevenson

Non Fiction

1. The Forgotton 500 by Gregory A. Freeman (4 stars)
2. The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester (3 stars)

Graphic Novels

1. The Sandman Vol 1: Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman
2. The Sandman Vol 2: The Doll's House by Neil Gaiman
3. The Sandman Vol 3: Dream Country by Neil Gaiman
4. The Sandman Vol 4: The Season of Mists by Neil Gaiman
5. The Sandman Vol 5: A Game of You by Neil Gaiman
6. The Sandman Vol 6: Fables and Reflections by Neil Gaiman
7. The Sandman Vol 7: Brief Lives by Neil Gaiman
8. The Sandman Vol 8: Worlds End by Neil Gaiman
9. The Sandman Vol 9: The Kindly Ones by Neil Gaiman
10. The Sandman Vol 10: The Wake by Neil Gaiman
11. The Sandman Vol 11: Endless Nights by Neil Gaiman

Plays

1. Waiting for Godot by Samual Beckett (3.5 stars)

BOOK REPORT: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Stories by Robert Louis Stevenson

Title:       The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Stories

Author:                      Robert Louis Stevenson 

Original Copyright Date:             various

Original Publishing Date:  2009 (for this collection)

My Rating:             3.5 out of 5 stars  ( good )


Back Cover Description:
Idealistic young scientist Henry Jekyll struggles to unlock the secrets of the soul. Testing chemicals in his lab, he drinks a mixture he hopes will isolate—and eliminate—human evil. Instead it unleashes the dark forces within him, transforming him into the hideous and murderous Mr. Hyde.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde dramatically brings to life a science-fiction case study of the nature of good and evil and the duality that can exist within one person. Resonant with psychological perception and ethical insight, the book has literary roots in Dostoevsky’s “The Double” and Crime and Punishment. Today Stevenson’s novella is recognized as an incisive study of Victorian morality and sexual repression, as well as a great thriller.

This collection also includes some of the author’s grimmest short fiction: “Lodging for the Night,” “The Suicide Club,” “Thrawn Janet,” “The Body Snatcher,” and “Markheim.”

My Thoughts

This was an interesting collection of stories by Robert Louis Stevenson.  I should have read this before Halloween as all of them are macabre tales. 

"Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is a novella which I've heard about all my life, but had never read.  I guess a topic so well known  can easily lead to hyped expectations.  It was a good story, although, not as good as Stevenson's other works.  I can see the parallels to Crime and Punishment alluded to in the back cover descriptions, and Stevenson even makes reference to Dostoevsky's works in the work. 

"Lodging for the Night"  tells the story of a cold night turned bad in a small hut where a game of cards leads to a stabbing and the main character venturing out into the night to get away from the scene and tries to find shelter.

"The Suicide Club" is actually three related short stories which follows Prince Florizel of Bohemia and his adventures infiltrating a suicide club.  a place, where for 40 pounds, you play russian roulette. but instead of a bullet, you pull cards.  Whomever pulls the ace of spades is the target, if you pull the ace of clubs, you must be one who kills.  I thought these stories were great.  According to the preface, Robert Louis Stevenson wanted to recreate the "Thousand and One Arabian Nights" and created a collection of short stories in that vein. The Suicide Club is part of that collection.

"Thrawn Janet" was a difficult story to read.  It is essentially a campfire horror story told by a drunk scotsman in the 1700's in his native dialect.  I never had to look so many words up, including "Thrawn" which means crooked or twisted. 

"The Body Snatcher" is a story of a young doctor's apprentice who's main task is to collect bodies for the anatomist.  Most of the bodies brought to him are in the middle of the night in suspicious circumstances.  This story did lead to a new personal goal.  Not only do I need "Gentleman Adventurer and Philanthropist" on my future business cards, but "Bon Vivant" needs to be added.  It means, "A person with refined taste, especially one who enjoys superb food and drink."

"Markheim" is a short story about a man who kills a pawn shop owner on Christmas morning to rob him and his personal crisis which comes thereafter.  This story is very similar to Crime and Punishment, on 400 pages shorter. 

All in all, it was a good set of stories, but it took me longer to read than expected.  

Now, in the style of Robert Louis Stevenson, " Let me profit my idleness, and make haste on my next verse"