Hard Core Logo

Michael Turner's Hard Core Logo was the only book of the class I didn't really enjoy. I mostly didn't enjoy it because it didn't engage me. There was nothing that caught my attention, no big anticipated part, and I didn't really understand the point of it.
This novel consists of only one hundred and thirty some pages, and each page only has a few lines or a paragraph at most. This struck me strang, but being a novel about punk rock I guess Turner did this for a reason. Rock music is always quick and short and to the point, as was Hard Core Logo the novel, and band. The band explains that it ended quickly and in the novel there was no time wasted in explaining "Joe Dick contemplated whether or not to call Billy Talent", it just showed a phone call, then another phone call, then a song, then a sign, then it was over. I just did not enjoy it. Had it of been a band I liked or knew about, I think i would feel different. Also the fact that I thought 'Billy Talent' in the novel was Billy Talent from the band really didn't help either, ooops.
I was also led to believe (from a friend) there was going to be a *gasp* ending, which there wasn't. But my friend actually had the Hard Core Logo DVD which I am going to watch, and hopefully find a better appreciation for the novel.
Aside from not really liking the novel, I did enjoy the songs that were in there. I found them clever, witty and funny! Also, I found other obvious parts funny such as Billy Talents answering machine. So even though I didn't like the novel as a whole, It was an OK read.

Lullabies

Lullabies for little criminals was definitely my favorite read of this class. I LOVED this book. From it's pretty green cover just until before the ending I was obsessed. I didn't enjoy the ending so much as I had been anticipating a more drastic ending. Although Jules turning on Baby was unexpected, so was the rest of the novel, and such a simple ending did not suffice. What 12 year old knows about heroine, takes mushrooms and has a pimp?? I think i was expecting Jules to die or Baby to become an addict herself, and was let down when they simply drove away. I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I was let down that someones father didn't die and that a child wasn't a heroine addict--*Good story ending purposes only*

Lullabies is the type of book that makes you appreciate your own life because of how depressing the story is. It helps you appreciate how good your life is, and how lucky you are to have good parents and friends. For a young Canadian like myself to read about a child so close to where I am dealing with such hardships is very eye-opening. Often times during the novel I found myself telling my friends "Oh my god Baby did this and she is only twelve years old!" Sometimes I had to stop myself and Remember that Baby was only a child because everything she does seems so adult like, as she is just as mature as her father. It is so sad to read about a man who loves his child more than anything, yet is unable to treat her well enough due to his addiction.

I did however find this book comical. I feel that Baby had only partially lost her innocence, her 'street innocence' so to speak. She knew about all the 'bad' things kids are not suppose to know about until some other kid fills them in in elementary like sex for instance; and even worse things children shouldn't know about like drugs, pimps and dirty sayings. The fact that this twelve year old would play with her doll, and love it like a little girl would, then call it a bitch was funny to me. It was almost like Baby was a twenty-six year old child, much like Jules.

I really enjoyed reading Baby's search for love, truth and acceptance and will likely read this book again and recommend it to others!

JPod*

Douglas Coupland's JPod actually made me laugh out loud. It is without doubt the first book I was excited to read that wasn't voluntary. I mean sure, I was excited to find out if Boo Radley would ever make a physical appearance in To Kill A Mocking Bird, but I didn't want to read it in the first place. It was nice to be able to enjoy a book you had to study. Yeeyee Canadian Lit!
The first couple of pages were different, that's for sure. At first I thought they were supposed to be like a commercial, then I soon realized they were e-mails, or internet adds, or spam. It was also relieving to know that you weren't going to have to read about twenty pages every so often, or at least five. This really took a damper off the five hundred-some page book. Even within the novel there were little breaks within' the story line. For instance the cartoon profiles or the letters to Ronald MacDonald (CREEPY). It was a really good way to introduce the characters and present their personalities.
The plot of the novel was a clever way of to let somebody see what drastic changes have occurred in the world. It shows how technology has changed the social world so much. You don’t have to face a person to talk to them, you don’t even have to meet them, you don’t have to go to a store to buy something, and you don’t even have to leave your house if you don’t want to, or in this case the office. Also people are much more open as a lot of issues are much more acceptable these days. Like marijuana, Ethan’s mother has a growth op in her basement and doesn’t mind discussing it. Ethan’s father is dating a girl Ethan graduated high school with and doesn’t see a problem with it. It is just in recent years that people are more accepting, which I think is a good healthy world choice.
I really enjoyed this novel, i especially enjoyed the sarcastic humour and intend to read Coupland’s new novel The Gum Theif.

Welcome to my first blog

This is my first blog.