Freedom

I get that this book is supposed to be about freedom and the consequences thereof, but seriously it just felt sloooooow and nothing happens for pages and pages.
This is like the epitome of character driven novels. Frazen goes into detail about each character and why they do the things that they do. I understand that this is central to the plot but seriously throw some action in there with it.
I stuck with it because it is supposed to be this “great novel” and I was hoping it would redeem itself in the end. I started to see beauty in the way it seemed that everyone was decaying but then Frazen had to go and tie it up in neat little ways. So even the end disappointed me.
I could not connect with any of the characters. I felt like punching each one and tell them to do thing differently. Especially the main character Patty. I was like what IS her problem? She spends most of the novel falling in love with her husbands best friend and wishing her husband was better in bed. I was like make up your damn mind. And this goes on for PAGES. There is a whole section where we are subjected to Patty’s thoughts on the two.
Then there was her son who I hated. He seemed stuck up and to think he knew best about everything. I wanted to punch him in the face and tell him to get over himself.
The parts I like about this novel was the talking about the issues. There was talk of overpopulation, environmental issues among other things. That was the one redeeming feature.
Just because I hated this novel does not mean you will. Most people at Good Reads liked it. So If you like long character driven novels that talk about important issues then this might be for you.

From The Memoirs of a Non-Enemy Combatant- A Review

From GoodReads:

High fashion and homeland security clash in a masterful debut.
Boyet Hernandez is a small man with a big American dream when he arrives in New York in 2002, fresh out of design school in Manila. With dubious financing and visions of Fashion Week runways, he sets up shop in a Brooklyn toothpick factory, pursuing his goals with monkish devotion (distractions of a voluptuous undergrad not withstanding). But mere weeks after a high-end retail order promises to catapult his (B)oy label to the big time, there's a knock on the door in the middle of the night: the flamboyant ex-Catholic Boyet is brought to Gitmo, handed a Koran, and locked away indefinitely on suspicion of being linked to a terrorist plot. Now, from his 6' x 8' cell, Boy prepares for the trial of his life with this intimate confession, even as his belief in American justice begins to erode.
With a nod to Junot Diaz and a wink to Gary Shteyngart, Alex Gilvarry's first novel explores some of the most serious issues of our time with dark eviscerating wit.

My Thoughts: This is a book that packs a political punch. We get the story from Boy perspective and we are left wondering if he is really that naïve or did he know and just did not care?

I did not agree with the whole Gitmo debacle and this book in its sometimes light sometimes dark meanderings shows why. It is easy to see how one can so easily get caught up in the wrong people and take the fall.

This book is not preachy but rather through excellent storytelling shows the reader what happens when one gets caught up in dubious circumstances. While one thinks that in America we have our freedom and protection in reality we can fall victim to circumstances.

I found myself invested in the story. I could understand that Boy wanted to realize his dreams and when the opportunity for money came along he took it. I think this is a decision that most of us can empathize with. The plot is believable. It flows effortlessly from one event to another. It gives a face to those we find ourselves criticizing.

When the story starts Boy is a strong character who proclaims his own innocence. As the story progresses we see how the system breaks someone down to the point where Boy no longer is sure of his innocence. He becomes a broken man.

This book is recommended for no other reason than this issue is one that needs to be discussed. If you like issue books without being preachy then I would recommend you read this book.

Bloggiesta Finish Line

                                      

First of all I want to thank Suey and There's a book for hosting Bloggiesta. I had tons of fun meeting new bloggers and learning a lot about blogging. The one thing I learned was how to implement SEO onto my blog. I had no idea what SEO even was. I spent 14 hours on that task alone on Friday!. I already cant wait until September for the next bloggiesta!.

Here was my tasks that I set out to do:

Add SEO to my posts

This took me 14 hours on Friday but it got done!
Update my Review Database

I will work on this on my own as time permits.
Update my Goodreads

I updated my reviews on Goodreads. Here is my profile if you want to be friends with me there.
Get Caught up on My Reviews

I will do this today ot tommorow. I have 6 books that I have read and not reviewed yet.
Figure out how to link my reviews with Pin Interest

Here is my PinInterest if you want to be friends there!
Visit other blogs

I am bad about commenting so this weekend and from here on out I am going to make a special effort to comment, comment, comment. This was alos the most fun. I loved looking at other blogs to get ideas for my own.

I did not do very many many challenges. I will next time hopefully. I read them all though and learned a lot!