Book Reviews
Prozac Nation Defines a Nation's Youth
Reviewed By: Marissa Mark "Young and Depressed in America" reads the cover of the book that holds more emotion in words than most movies do with two hours of film. Depression is an illness that is well known, however, without actually suffering from the disease, it is impossible to understand. In Prozac Nation, author Elizabeth Wurtzel shocks the country with her raw emotion and rich, dark prose. The author is a young woman that has suffered from depression all of her life. Her memoirs are important, alluring, and dangerous to overlook.
Wurtzel has a way of going beyond traditional story-telling straight to locking the reader inside a room with her where she both whispers and screams at the same time. The reader will step onto her emotional roller coaster and right into her head as she bluntly shows the country what itUs like to be "Young and Depressed in America".
She's Come Undone
By: Wally Lamb
Reviewed By: Brandi Schenkelberg "Mine is a story of craving, an unreliable account of lusts and troubles that began, somehow, in 1956 on the day our first television was delivered . . ."
This quote is an excerpt spoken by the main character Dolores Price in the novel; SheUs Come Undone. It is a perfect representation of the true-life plot found in this novel, by Wally Lamb.
This novel follows Dolores, who receives her first television at age 4. By 14, her whole life has been changed by the ideals she has seen on television. She has let the new- found world of technology get the best of her. When away from her television, DoloresU relationships are modeled after the traits and values she has learned from it.
After being hurt and let down severely, she is helped by important and influential characters in her life. This gives her a renewed sense of belonging and comfort in the world around her.
This 465-page book makes you laugh while crying and shows a true similarity to life today.
The Letter of the Law
By: Tim Green
Reviewed By: Lisa Morinelli
Former professional football player, Tim Green, a practicing attorney in upstate New York, has turned recently from writing sports novels to legal thrillers. His most recent novel, The Letter of the Law released September 2000, proves to be a suspenseful read and a new, fresh style for devoted Grisham fans.
In The Letter of the Law, law professor Eric Lipton hires his former student, Casey Jordan, to defend him on charges for the murder of his current student Marcia Sales. Casey works vigorously to acquit Lipton, only to have her view of the case turned upside down as Lipton whispers something to her just as the jury reads the verdict. This whisper transforms the reading of the verdict from a concluding effect, to an event that only begins the conflict of this 341 page novel.
This book will appeal to all legal thriller fans and especially aspiring women lawyers. Green has done a respectable job in writing one of his first law related novels. The Letter of the Law also appeals to those who have not read this genre in the past.
The Poisonwood BibleBy: Barbara Kingsolver
Reviewd By: Ashely Klavins
Countless fascinating turning events keep the 560 pages turning in Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible.
In this novel, Nathan Price, a Baptist preacher, takes his wife and four daughters to the African Belgium Congo on a missionary project.
Capturing the events that took place in Africa 1959, the novel reveals the country's violent history and the captivating Congo culture. Because the story is told through the eyes of outsiders, it becomes easier to understand the charactersU points of view and feelings. Kingsolver does a remarkable job luring the reader into the story, making them feel as if they themselves were in the Congo experiencing everything that happens in the plot. It opens readers' minds into a new world and is a refreshing read.
Left Behind
Reviewed By: Jen Nish
The novel's protagonist is Rayford Steele, a regular man going about his life. HeUs a commercial pilot with a wife and two children. He was raised a Christian but doesnUt practice his faith much anymore.
Cameron "Buck" Williams is one of the top journalists in the country. A senior writer for Global Weekly at age 30, he is very successful for a writer of his age. This is evident through his coverage of the most important news stories.
One day, the unthinkable happens. Millions of people all over the world disappear. Rayford is flying a plane with Williams on it when this phenomenal disaster occurs. Every single child vanishes, along with many adults, all of whom are good Christians. God has taken those who are worthy of heaven, and everyone else, including Rayford and Williams, has been left behind.
Left Behind is the first in a series of eight books by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. The series has topped bestseller lists of the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today. From the very beginning, there isnUt a dull moment. It provides a unique, thought-provoking look on what "Judgement Day" will be like.
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