Death & Dying | Book Chatter

The Raising
By Laura Kasischke
(Harper Perennial, Paperback, 9780062004789, March 2011, 496pp.)

The Short of It:

I found myself eagerly picking it up although I felt absolutely no affection for any of the characters.

The Rest of It:

I can’t say too much about the plot or I’ll give something away but this was an odd, little book. It was odd in the way it made me feel. The Raising is about the death of a sorority girl and how she continues to live on in the hearts of those who knew her. Except there are details of her death that are beginning to come out and all is not what it’s cracked up to be.

Essentially, the story is simple but it’s about so much more than what you see on the surface. It’s about obsession and the power of memory. How much are we willing to admit when perfection is at stake? It’s also very much a book about death and dying, but not in the traditional sense. The sense of mourning you feel while reading this novel is not what a grieving parent would feel. It’s different. Part of that is due to the story itself, but some of it has to do with the tone of the novel. If I had to describe it artfully I’d say that it was like a B&W snapshot with torn edges. Stark. Blemished.

I think if I were to focus on plot alone, I’d be rolling my eyes. It was a bit “out there” in places and not terribly realistic in others but I tend to focus on characters and although these characters would never be my friends, I found them wildly amusing. No, I can’t say that I ever felt sorry for any of them or that I could even relate to their particular circumstance, but I could easily relate to the sorority life that Kasischke created. This coming from a “sister” who was blackballed from hers. Seriously, Kasischke nailed that aspect of it.

I also liked the fact that these characters were not who they appeared to be. The human condition is often not what we expect it to be once you carve away gender, race and class. I was often frustrated with these characters but fascinated with them, too. I think this is why the story worked for me. I’ve been reading some other reviews and many have not liked the book. I suspect that those folks had issues with the plot. I can certainly see where they are coming from, but because I enjoy reading about characters who are less than desirable I was willing to let go of reality for a short while.

If any of you’ve read Kasischke’s In a Perfect World, and recall it taking quite awhile to get a feel for the main characters, you will experience the same thing here. The character development is not handled as delicately as In a Perfect World, but The Raising is its grittier sister. The stories were completely different in each but there are some similarities as far as the writing goes.

Overall, I actually liked this one a lot more than I thought I would.

If you’d like a chance to win a copy, check out the details below.

Source: Review and giveaway copy provided by the publisher.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

GIVEAWAY INFORMATION

This giveaway is for one copy of The Raising and is open to the US and Canada. A winner will be chosen randomly by me. The book will come directly from me. Only one entry per person. Giveaway closes on April 29, 2011 (pacific). I will contact the winner for his/her mailing address.

To enter the giveaway, please click here. (This giveaway is now closed!)

Wither
Book #1 of The Chemical Garden Trilogy
By Lauren DeStefano
(Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, Hardcover, 9781442409057, March 2011, 368pp.)

The Short of It:

As fun as a book about death and dying can be!

The Rest Of It:

In the not too distant future, women are dying at the age of 20 and males by the age of 25. Only the First Generation can outlive them, and although many have tried to come up with an antidote for the virus that takes their young, so far…no one has been successful. In an effort to save the human race, young girls are abducted and forced to be sister wives who share one husband. Their goal? To produce as many children as possible before dying.

After her parents are killed in a lab explosion, sixteen-year-old Rhine is abducted and forced to marry Governor Linden, who is twenty-years-old and approaching his twilight years. Rhine is a beauty with very unusual eyes. It’s because of her eyes, and her likeness to another girl named Rose, that she is chosen as a bride. However, when she arrives at the house she realizes that she is only one of three new wives and that a fourth is on her deathbed.

Although Governor Linden is actually quite likable, his father, Housemaster Vaughn is anything but! His presence in the house makes Rhine very uncomfortable and when one of her sister wives has a baby, Rhine becomes concerned over what is being done to the baby. Add to that her attraction to a handsome attendant by the name of Gabriel and Rhine finds herself conflicted over what she needs to do.

Polygamy is a loaded topic and DeStefano tackles it successfully. At times, the idea of young, pregnant brides is disturbing, but with the human race dying out as it is, somehow the idea isn’t so bad. The topic is handled delicately and there is nothing overly graphic or violent contained within these pages. I’d say that the target age range of 14+ is accurate.

From an adult perspective, I found the book utterly readable and fun. There’s the whole class struggle thing going on, as well as the conflict that being a sister-wife creates. It was a quick read, and the pages flew by and at the end I found myself looking forward to book #2. If you like to delve into YA now and then and like dystopian fiction but not necessarily the violence, then this might be a good book for you.

Source: Sent to me by the publisher.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

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