Tagged: symbolism
Messenger by Lois Lowry
(Cover picture courtesy of Tower Books.)
For the past six years, Matty has lived in Village and flourished under the guidance of Seer, a blind man known for his special sight. Village was once a place that welcomed newcomers, but something sinister has seeped into Village and the people have voted to close it to outsiders. Matty has been invaluable as a messenger. Now he must make one last journey through the treacherous Forest with his only weapon, a power he unexpectedly discovers within himself.
Messenger is another one of those favourite novel study books, or at least it was in my school. After reading The Giver and discovering that the boys in my class (I was the only girl) didn’t completely hate it, our English teacher decided to do a Messenger novel study. True, Messenger is the third book in what used to be a trilogy, but reading the second book, Gathering Blue isn’t necessary for understanding the story. It does enhance your enjoyment, but you won’t be in the dark if you haven’t read it.
Messenger isn’t a bad book, but what annoys me is that there is no explanation for any of the fantastic elements in it like Seer’s ability to See Beyond, Forest’s transformation from good to evil and even Matty’s special power. I like it in books where the author has figured out an explanation for magic, but Lois Lowry never, in any of her books, explains the fantastic elements she includes. I suppose it’s not necessary to have an explanation, but it would be nice.
With that said, to me it seemed like Lois Lowry was guilty of beating-you-over-the-head-with-a-stick-obvious symbolism. Forest, which is friendly toward Matty before the people in Village become selfish, grows ever more hostile, dark and tangled as selfishness takes over. Obviously, Forest symbolizes the growing web of selfishness that is engulfing Village; it’s basically a mirror. Yes, it’s great to include it because you need to analyze literary devices in novel study, but does it have to be so glaringly obvious?
Other than the symbolism that seems ridiculously obvious, Messenger is a pretty good novel. Matty isn’t a great character, but he’s not a bad one either and the plot is interesting enough that we don’t get bored out of our minds. Up until October of this year, Messenger was supposed to be the last ‘Giver’ novel, so we see the protagonists of the first two novels, Jonas and Kira and most plot lines are tied up. I didn’t really like the ending (it wrapped things up a bit too nicely), but it truly was inevitable and there was a lot of foreshadowing throughout the novel that hinted at it.
I give this book 3.5/5 stars.
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
(Cover picture courtesy of Small Review.)
Not every thirteen-year-old girl is accused of murder, brought to trial, and found guilty. But I was just such a girl, and my story is worth relating even if it did happen years ago. Be warned, however: If strong ideas and action offend you, read no more. Find another companion to share your idle hours. For my part I intend to tell the truth as I lived it.
Not every thirteen-year-old girl narrator is a Mary Sue who annoys me. But Charlotte Doyle was just such a girl, and my opinions are worth relating even if I doubt people will listen. Be warned, however: If strong ideas and action interest you, read no more. Find a different companion that doesn’t waste precious hours of your life. For my part I intend to tell the boring, disappointing truth as I see it.
You may begin writing your hate mail now.
I was bored out of my mind while I read this book because I could predict every single plot ‘twist’. Even in truly bad books, there are some surprises, but there were none in The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle. Perhaps this is because every single ‘girl empowerment’ book I’ve ever read is the same. Charlotte Doyle starts out innocent, then is hardened a bit and works to make the people who mock her respect her, which she does. Real life isn’t like that, believe me, especially when it comes to men.
Charlotte is a boring, predictable character who changes very little throughout the novel. I could sort of identify with her in the end, but other than that I pretty much loathed her. She is uninteresting, so at times I was cheering for the villain, Captain Jaggery, who isn’t all that evil as ship captains go. Looking back on it, pretty much all of the characters in this novel have no depth whatsoever. This world is so populated with Mary Sues and Gary Stus that it’s sickening. Speaking of sickening, it is obvious that Avi was trying to shove symbolism into the novel, especially when Captain Jaggery snaps and his formerly immaculate cabin is all broken and poorly prepared. That just screams “I want to win a literary award” to me.
The only good thing about this book was the wonderful research. Avi put effort into it. You can just picture the Seahawk and all of the clothes the characters wear. But historical accuracy isn’t everything and nothing can redeem The True Confessions of Charlote Doyle, not even its status as a classic YA novel.
I give this book 0.5/5 stars.