Literary Destinations

Barnes & Noble Closes in Forest Hills

2:03 PM

5 Books to Read If You Can't Stand Reading

10:55 AM

This is a post for those unfortunate souls who can't find the mental grit to get past the first page.

1. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline

If you don't like to read I am sure you like video games and/or movies. Ready Player One references some of the most amazing 80s video games and movies ever created. While reading this book you will hope for the dystopian world to both, happen right now and never occur in your lifetime. Fun fact, Ernest Cline was inspired to write this book by Steven Spielberg. And who doesn't love Ol' Mr. Spielberg.

2. The Martian - Andy Weir

The Martian reads like a movie. You are immediately drawn in by the first line, "I'm pretty much f*cked." Maybe it's the curse that gets you going or the fact that, that curse is repeated 2 lines down once again, but either way Andy Weir knows what he is doing. You'll finish the novel feeling like an expert on the subjects of Mars, Chemistry, Botany and Survival because the main character Mark Watney utilizes his knowledge in all of those subjects to make sure he doesn't die. Oh, and where is he stranded all on his lonesome? Mars!

3. The Circle - Dave Eggers

Do you wonder what our world will come to now that social media and companies like Google and Apple have taken over THE WORLD... *cough* I mean our lives? Well, The Circle will make you stop wondering because Dave Eggers has created that world for you. While it may be a slightly exaggerated depiction of what could happen, it is still an accurate depiction of how willing our society is to try anything that has been branded by a big company name. Many elements in this book will ring a bell to experiences in your real life. You will want to see how it ends. You will want to see how Eggers predicts we, as a society, will handle the technology empire.

4. The Tourist - Olen Steinhauer

Do you not like reading because you find books really predictable? Well The Tourist is just like every other spy novel/movie except that it is not predictable. When you finish the book you will be forced to think, "How could I have been so stupid?" All of the clues are lined up throughout the book but are hidden by suspenseful writing that will keep you hooked. And it's a trilogy so maybe it will get you going to read some more!

5. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald

If you don't like to read you probably havn't read enough classics in your lifetime (shame on you). But The Great Gastby is one you definitely should read and will be able to get through without feeling like you want to kill your English teacher. It has a guy who is really rich, throws a lot of parties and is trying to get the girl. But most importantly, it is short and gets to the point.

Dystopias

#1: What should I read if...

10:05 AM

...I loved The Hunger Games.

Yesterday I was at dinner with two of my friends and was inspired to start a new segment of my blog. "What Should I Read If..." will be me recommending books based on popular books that everyone can't get enough of. Its for those of us who have serious book hangovers and need new books with similar themes to fill the new void in our lives.

My first segment will be books to read based on your love for The Hunger Games:

1. Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu

Marie Lu's trilogy called Legend includes all books, Legend, Prodigy, and Champion. Like The Hunger Games the United States has crumbled and fallen under the control of the Republic. However, unlike The Hunger Games there is both a female and male protagonist, June and Day respectively. June comes from a wealthy family and Day from the slums. But circumstances have caused their lives to cross and the rest is history. Definitely check this trilogy out if you want to stay and the edge of your seat, or bed, or wherever you like to read!

2. The Queen of the Tearling Trilogy - Erika Johansen

Just like The Hunger Games, The Queen of the Tearling trilogy follows a strong, young, female protagonist attempting to overcome difficult odds. However, unlike Katniss who came from the slums of her District, Kelsea was born a Queen. Despite this and other differences both novels depict an amazing woman ready to risk everything for what is right. The Queen of the Tearling & The Invasion of the Tearling take place in the future but in a land without any modern technology. It feels as though we have gone back in time to the Medieval era. The third book has not yet come out but I am sure it will be just as great as its predecessors.

3. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood

Before dystopian novels were popular, Margaret Atwood wrote this amazing novel in 1985. The main character is a woman who has had enough with the society her peers have become accustomed to. She is in the caste of handmaids, one of the lower castes whose only job it is, is to get pregnant by the man who owns her. This is both a classic and suspenseful novel that will make you have respect for a woman that is not great with a bow and arrow. but with her mind.

4. The Divergent Trilogy - Veronica Roth

I am sure many of you have either read these books, have seen the movies or have heard of them. However, they are so like The Hunger Games that they needed to be on this list. The Divergent series follows the main character Tris on her journey from being invisible to completely destroying the system. It is a great series that will keep you wanting for more. Unfortunately the last book falls short of a big finish and you are left feeling empty. However, it is still a good series to get into and is exactly what a Hunger Games fan would want in a book.

Bethpage

First Time

8:09 AM

Dystopian

Review: The Circle

7:11 AM

Title: The Circle
Author: Dave Eggers
Genres: Dystopian
Destinations: Silicon Valley, California, The World in the Years to Come

I have been wanting to write a review / comment piece about this book for awhile. I read this book a couple months back and it really resonated with me. But now I work at a tech company and some of intricacies have been striking a lot more chords.

While many would say that Dave Eggers's The Circle is an extreme look at what technology and social media will do with our society, I believe that it is a warning as to how ridiculous we, as a society, have become. Some of the events described in the novel will probably never happen; politicians starting to wear cameras 24/7 to promote transparency and the fact that they have nothing to hide. We are, however, creating a world that will become just as ridiculous. We are living in a world where "if you didn't share a picture, it never happened". It's sad because I too have fallen into the trap of must-share, must-like and must-comment in order to feel validated and recognized by my peers.

Privacy and the increasing lack of it is the at the center of Eggers's predictive novel. Privacy used to be something so cherished. What has happened to the times when our deepest emotions were written in a 7x7 fuzzy pink notebook with a plastic lock that we hoped kept our siblings at bay. (Come on, those things never worked.) Those days are gone and now most of us will use Twitter and Facebook status updates as outlets in the hopes that some follower will notice and offer a virtual shoulder to cry on. I do, however, believe that social media and the Internet have provided an amazing place for lonely & misunderstood individuals to find friends and more importantly find happiness. But we are moving to an age where face to face interactions are becoming a thing of the past. This, is what the Circle is trying to warn us against. We shouldn't care how many "zings" (likes / comments at The Circle) we get, we need to care about how many smiles we can give, create and receive out in the real world.

With that being said, I have been a proponent of using books to escape the real world. However, books are not real people that you are avoiding in real life, they do not have quotes you can like on the spot. They are temporary reliefs from our day to day stresses, not an omnipresent world that you can escape to from a phone, tablet and computer (yes I know ebooks, but I hate those things so I pretend they don't exist). Books do not train us to become emotionally dependent on status updates and 160 character posts through fiber cords at the bottom of an ocean. Are there extreme cases on both ends, yes, but as a society we have not all become obsessed with dragons and awkward teenagers. We are obsessed with having our Facebook pages a click distance away.

The Circle is a great book that uses some extremes to warn us of the monster we are creating. Read it and form an opinion for yourself!

(A great book to read as a follow up to this is Ready Player One, it could possibly be the world Dave predicted)