Title: [The Family Fang]
Author: Kevin Wilson
Pages: 336
Genre: Fiction
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition:
Date Completed: October 7, 2012
Rating: ***
Not so long ago, an "artist" "preformed" the birth of her son in a gallery, and announced that his poor life would from that moment become her art. I still find every aspect of this repugnant, so my reading of The Family Fang leads me to see the novel as far too pertinent. Following the present and past "works" of the "artists" known as the Fang Family, the novel focuses on the self-absorption of the parents, and the deep psychological damage done to children who are used by their parents. (I would argue that Annie and Buster would be just as fragile if their parents pushed them in other occupations as strongly as they do their performance art.) Why just three stars? A lack of sympathy; the characters are too flawed for me to connect, leaving the narrative feeling dry and distant. In my reading, there is only one character worth saving, and her partial redemption is my only comfort in reading this novel.
64.
Title: [Feed]
Author: M.T. Anderson
Pages: 320
Genre: YA Dystopian
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition:
Date Completed: October 14, 2012
Rating: **
At a panel on Dystopian YA at the MWPCA Conference, one of speakers heralded Feed as one of the classics of dystopian fiction - specifically dystopian YA - that will stand the test of time, even when the current trend fades. As a fan of the genre, I rushed to buy this supposedly genius work (of which I had previously heard nothing).
The kindest thing I can say about this novel is that it is annoying. Attempting Burgess-like dialect and slang, Anderson's text, while demonstrating the deterioration of intellect caused by the use of the Feed and the impossibility of full communication in the present society, grows stale within just a few pages, and serves as nothing more than a hindrance to the story as a whole. The ideas are themselves unoriginal; or, if Anderson is the original creator, then his novel has not stood the test of time in keeping his original ideas fresh and interesting. I would argue that this novel is not a "classic" to remain current throughout time; this is certainly no Fahrenheit 451.
65.
Title: [Lies Beneath]
Author: Anne Greenwood Brown
Pages: 320
Genre: YA
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Borrowed from Library
Date Completed: October 17, 2012
Rating: ***1/2
The folkloric history of mermaids is far more sinister than Disney allows, and Brown's mermaids are more of a traditional cast than the animated re-imagining. I appreciate any text that continues to portray monsters as monsters, as the current trend is to romanticize anything that would really like to eat you. Brown's novel is engaging, if somewhat shallow and predictable, and manages well the expectations of the genre.
