The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu: And Their Race to Save the World's Most Precious Manuscripts

Simon & Schuster

The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu:  And Their Race to Save the World's Most Precious Manuscripts
Joshua Hammer
2016

The Summary
"To save precious centuries-old Arabic texts from Al Qaeda, a band of librarians in Timbuktu pulls off a brazen heist worthy of Ocean's Eleven.

"In the 1980s, a young adventurer and collector for a government library, Abdel Kader Haidara, journeyed across the Sahara and along the Niger River, tracking down and salvaging tens of thousands of ancient Islamic and secular manuscripts that were crumbling in the trunks of desert farmers.  His goal was to preserve this crucial part of the world's patrimony in a gorgeous library.  But then Al Qaeda showed up at the door.

"The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu tells the incredible story of how Haidara, a mild mannered activist and historian from the legendary city of Timbuktu, became one of the world's greatest and most brazen smugglers by saving the texts from destruction.  With bravery and patience, he organized a dangerous operation to sneak all 350,000 volumes out of the city to the safety of southern Mali.  This real-life thriller is a reminder that ordinary citizens often do the most to protect the beauty and imagination of their culture.  It is also the story of a man who, through extreme circumstances, discovered his higher calling and was changed forever by it."

The Good
I enjoyed reading The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu.  First and foremost, I had the chance to learn about some amazing librarians who did extraordinary things (I always like learning about librarians); second, I learned so much about Timbuktu and Mali, which I enjoyed.  I love learning about different regions and locales, and I was positively enchanted by Mali and the beautiful manuscripts Abdel Kader Haidara uncovers.

I love books.  I especially love old books.  They're beautiful and precious, and I was enthralled by the simple history and content of the hundreds of manuscripts that Haidara saved.  Joshua Hammer had a way of describing the manuscripts that made me want to reach out and hold them, to run my fingers over the pages and see the full-colored details painstakingly drawn upon their pages.

I was dying to view one for myself and feel the weight of history in my hands.

It's a consistent feeling throughout the book.  Hammer gives these manuscripts--and the men and women who saved them--a great significance.  They feel important, crucial to the preservation of history and culture and memory.

You get the feeling that Hammer is passionate about this story.  He wants to tell readers about the incredible librarians who preserved history against all odds, about the city and country that suffered under Al Qaeda, about the small community that banded together to survive unspeakable tragedy.  Truly, it's awe-inspiring to read.

The Bad
No complaints.

It's a bit slow on the build up, but it's a fascinating and thoughtful inspection on a region of the world with which I'm unfamiliar.  I was excited to learn more about Mali's wonderful and colorful history, to hear more about Haidara's unprecedented rescue mission of more than 350,000 books and manuscripts.

The Ugly
The violence this region endured is staggering.

Mali, particularly Timbuktu, was a thriving haven for artists, musicians, tourists, religious leaders, educators, and historians.  Regular festivals were held in honor of local music and musicians, and museums sprang up to celebrate the social, scholarly, medical, and cultural history of Mali.  And yet almost over night everything changed with the arrival of Al Qaeda.

Strict religious and social laws, appalling punishments, brutal behavior, cruelty, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.  They killed and maimed those they believed broke their laws; they restricted local businesses and workers, imposing harsh strictures, and all but killed Mali's economy; they defaced monuments and burned books, art, and more, destroying anything they saw as challenging their leadership.  They effectively tried to erase Mali's history and impose their own.

It's horrifying to witness these things.  I mean, I found it heartbreaking to see Timbuktu have its entire culture and history reworked through a lens of bigotry and hate, to witness innocent people lose their homes, their businesses, their limbs and their very lives for a philosophy of violence.  It's painful, and it's what makes The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu such a hard book to read and discuss.

The Night Bookmobile

Abrams

The Night Bookmobile
Audrey Niffenegger
2010

The Summary
"The New York Times bestselling author of The Time Traveler's Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry, Audrey Niffenegger, has crafted her first graphic novel after the success of her two previous critically acclaimed novels-in-pictures, The Three Incestuous Sisters and The Adventuress.

"The Night Bookmobile tells the story of a wistful young woman who one night encounters a mysterious disappearing library on wheels.  This library includes everything, and only everything, she has ever read.  Seeing her history and most intimate self in this library, she embarks on a search for the bookmobile.  But over time her search turns into an obsession she longs to be reunited with her own collection and therefore, her memories.

"The Night Bookmobile is a haunting tale both of transcendence and the passion for books, and features the evocative full-color pen-and-ink work of one of the world's most beloved storytellers."

The Good
I read The Night Bookmobile at the suggestion of a coworker, and I found I was fascinated by the notion of a library existing that contains every single item that you have ever read.  It reminded me a bit of the Archive in Jim Butcher's Dresden Files, and I couldn't help but be intrigued by the premise of Niffenegger's graphic novel.

Truthfully, I love the idea that every piece of information ever written is collected somewhere, tucked away in some supernatural library that can only be accessed by the right people.  It's something that has enchanted me for years, and I was glad to see it enacted in another story.  However, I'm not sure what to make of the way The Night Bookmobile handled the matter.  I'm still trying to figure out how it makes me feel.

Overall, The Night Bookmobile is a curious story.  It's not a tragedy, per se, but it isn't exactly a happy little story about a woman and her library.  It makes you think, it makes you feel things you might rather not feel, and it makes you question your own mortality...and wonder, what exactly, you will leave behind.

The Bad
I'm really not sure what to make of The Night Bookmobile.

It's intriguing, but it leaves me feeling slightly squeamish.  I mean, as a reader, I love books.  I must have 400 books in my house alone, not counting the bag I keep packed full of library books or the random copies I keep squirreled away in my desk for a rainy day; however, I don't believe my adoration of books has ever turned into something unhealthy.

The narrator of The Night Bookmobile is a young woman who encounters a mysterious library, a collection of books in the back of a Winnebago that reflect each and every book she's ever read, and it sparks an obsession.  It's based on a similar tale by H.G. Wells, "The Door in the Wall," in which a young man becomes consumed by rediscovering the verdant paradise he found behind a mysterious green door.  They have many of the same undertones:  obsession, desperation, an all-consuming (read:  deadly) need to go back to a time and place that was, in a word, happier.

I was really bothered by the way The Night Bookmobile ended.  I know I'm going to ruin the ending, I'm sorry, but I just can't adequately express how I feel about the story without telling you how it ends and how it made me feel after all is said and done.  You see, The Night Bookmobile ends when the narrator commits suicide and becomes a night librarian.  Shortly thereafter, she discovers her collection has been decommissioned, because, and I quote, "only the living have libraries."

Truthfully, I couldn't decide if I was bothered more by the fact the narrator committed suicide in her desperate attempt to reconnect with her library or the fact that her library--in essence, her collective knowledge, her entire sense of being and self--simply disappears.  The entire story raises questions about mortality and what really matters in life...and what's leftover for the next generation.

It's haunting, and it makes me squirm.  I can't decide whether I like it or whether I hate it.  Part of me dislikes it, dislikes the narrator's suicide and the disappearance of her library (her knowledge); however, another part of me is intrigued by the entire thing, by the notion that all books written or read are available somewhere--and that something, however small, is left for the next generation, some semblance of knowledge is passed down and never really lost.

Like I said, I'm conflicted.  As a coworker noted, The Night Bookmobile is not a book that anyone can read without feeling something, good or bad, and forming an opinion about it.

The Ugly
Suicide.

Read Harder Challenge (Part Six)

I'm working on my Read Harder Challenge again, and this time I decided to:

1. Read a book out loud to someone else
2. Read a book that is by an author from Southeast Asia
3. Read a book about politics, in your country or another (fiction or nonfiction)

Putnam

First off, I read Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson out loud to my boyfriend.  At first, I read a few pages to my dog, but she didn't seem particularly interested and, moreover, she apparently had better things to do.  My boyfriend, on the other hand, was a little more receptive and seemed to enjoy Lawson's crazy (figuratively speaking) memoir.

He and I both enjoyed reading Let's Pretend This Never Happened, because it was just so funny.  After reading Furiously Happy, which is fueled by Lawson's frenetic energy and her off-kilter sense of humor, Let's Pretend This Never Happened was familiar ground--and equally hilarious.  I loved hearing about Lawson's childhood, her struggle to become an author, and her struggle to acclimate to her various disorders.

It's really quite funny, and it's hard not to laugh at the seemingly random and entirely crazy things that have happened to the author.  But, be warned, some of her stories may be jarring or, more accurately, scarring.  I mean, the incident with Stanley the Magical, Talking Squirrel left me with a feeling of revulsion and horror that's hard to beat.  But the embarrassing (and traumatizing) experience involving Jenny and a particular cow does its best to rival it.

William Morrow

Next, I read Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo, a Malaysian author.  Set during the British colonization of Malay, Ghost Bride is an intricate and beautiful novel full of Chinese folklore and regional myths and Malaysian history.  The story revolves around Li Lan, a young woman from a poor aristocratic family, who finds herself confronted with an unusual proposal:  a spirit marriage to a young noble who recently perished.  But Li Lan has no interest in becoming a bride for a ghost.  In this haunting debut novel, Li Lan must fight for her freedom--and possibly her very soul--if she ever hopes to escape the clutches of the dead and marry the man she truly loves.

Li Lan was a lovely, dynamic narrator.  I found it interesting to see how she changed as a person from her experiences in the underworld and through her relationship with the mysterious, enigmatic Er Lang.  Li Lan did a wonderful job of explaining much of the customs and beliefs in Malay without overwhelming you by offering too much information or leaving you lost, unable to discern what is happening in the narrative.  It strikes a perfect balance, which I greatly appreciated.

Ghost Bride is a bit of an unusual story, yes, but it's absolutely fascinating.  I was enchanted by Choo's descriptions of the spirit world and the rules which govern them, by the intriguing (and, sometimes, terrifying), full-bodied characters she created, by the history of the Pacific nation.  In short, it's a wonderful book--and I absolutely loved it.

Last, I read The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli.  I was not impressed, let me say so now.  I know part of that is because I purchased a translation that was--well, let's say less than spectacular.  While I was reading, I noticed little mistakes.  Some were simple typos, but a few were glaring grammar mistakes.  It's almost like the original Italian text was just fed through Google and published even with the transcription mistakes.

Dante University 

Plus I was so bored ALL THE TIME.  (Sorry for the capitals, I just feel that statement needed extra emphasis.)  It took me literal weeks to finish reading The Prince, even though it was only 114 pages.  I just couldn't keep up with it.  I was bored by it after only a few pages, and I couldn't stand reading it after I realized I couldn't consider the text reliable.

It was terrible.

I finished the book only because I needed a book on politics as one of the requirements for my Read Harder Challenge.  But, honestly, I wouldn't subject anyone to my copy of The Prince.  I would read it again for a college course, if necessary; otherwise, I don't think I'd ever read it again if I didn't have to read it.

The Moment of Everything

Grand Central Publishing

The Moment of Everything
Shelly King
2014

The Summary
"Maggie Dupres has been 'involuntarily separated from payroll' at a Silicon Valley start-up.  Now she's whiling away her days in Dragonfly Used Books, a Mountain View institution, waiting for the Next Big Thing to come along.  When the opportunity arises for her to network at a Bay Area book club, she jumps at the chance - even if it means having to read Lady Chatterly's Lover, a book she hasn't encountered since college, in an evening.  But the edition she finds at the bookstore is no Penguin Classics Chatterly - it's an ancient hardcover with notes in the margins between two besotted lovers of long ago.  What Maggie finds in her search for the lovers and their fate, and what she learns about herself in the process, will surprise and move readers of this witty and tender novel."

The Good
I loved reading The Moment of Everything.  Maggie Dupres is a witty, vibrant narrator among a cast of funny and eccentric characters.  She's clever, but she's also capable.  Along with Dizzy, her best friend, she basically starts a company from the ground up--and then, when she suddenly finds herself in an economic rut, she eventually manages to make the best of it and befriends one of the most powerful ladies in the Silicon Valley.

Maggie is a strong, capable person, and she's a wonderful narrator to boot.  Her story isn't particularly extraordinary--heck, it's the story that a good portion of my entire generation was suddenly facing with the economic recession--but she tells it so well.  It's a sweet, romantic story, but it has a punch of reality to it that makes it worth reading.

I mean, you could probably characterize it as a romance novel; however, I think it's best to read it as a personal narrative, as Maggie's personal narrative.  Her story can't simply be quantified as a romance, that's too constricting, rather it encompasses a broad range of human experiences from love to heartbreak and financial uncertainty to job security.

It's a good story that I feel can appeal to a lot of people who have found themselves in her shoes, jobless and searching for what's missing in her life.  I find I enjoyed it from cover to cover, and not just because it's based in a bookstore.

Furthermore, I loved the other characters involved, especially Hugo.  Oh, I liked Jason--and Dizzy was a charmer, being both fabulous and wonderfully funny--but there was just something particularly special about Hugo.  He's full of strange wisdom and unusual life experiences.  He's a kind-hearted person with an eccentric streak and a (probably unhealthy) love for books.

And, okay, I adored Hugo for it.  I can see why Maggie loved and respected him as both employer and friend.  He seems a bit nutty, but beneath that veneer of eccentricity, he's incredibly intelligent and, like Maggie, quick-witted.  Their friendship is rich and wonderful, and their dialog is an unusual kind of perfection that I just can't even describe.  Their verbal exchanges had me cracking up at every opportunity.

I feel like I get the best of both worlds with The Moment of Everything:  a good story and good, solid characters.  Could I ask for anything more?

The Bad
Honestly, I have no complaints about The Moment of Everything.  It's one of those unusual novels that the more I dwell on it, the more I seem to like it.

The Ugly
Love is complicated.  Maybe even more so when two lovers are speaking to one another through a battered old copy of Lady Chatterly's Lover, and then their love letters are subsequently shared online.

Perhaps not the most conducive environment to starting a relationship.

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

Farrar, Straus & Giroux

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
Robin Sloan
2012

The Summary
"The Great Recession has shuffled Clay Jannon away from his life as a San Francisco web-design drone and into the aisles of Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore.  But after a few days on the job, Clay discovers that the store is more curious than its name or its gnomic owner might suggest.  The customers are few, and they never seem to buy anything--instead, they "check out" large, obscure volumes from strange corners of the store.  Suspicious, Clay engineers an analysis of the clientele's behavior, seeking help from his variously talented friends.  But when they bring their findings to Mr. Penumbra, they discover the bookstore's secrets extend far beyond its walls.  Rendered with irresistible brio and dazzling intelligence, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore is exactly what it sounds like:  an establishment you have to enter and will never want to leave."

The Good
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore was an exciting novel for me.  Although you might not think it at first, Mr. Penumbra's Bookstore is a mystery--a mystery that must be solved to proceed into an unlikely adventure, a mystery which the narrator finds himself inexplicably following.  It's fascinating to see new aspects of the bookstore come to light as Clay Jannon discovers new secrets and learns new things.

Speaking of Clay, I found I absolutely loved all the characters Robin Sloan introduced.  Clay was an excellent narrator.  Witty, bright, and unexpectedly creative, he put his mind to the test and set out for answers on a grand scale.  I loved his sense of humor and his adoration of fantasy, and I loved all of his friends:  kind, contemplative Penumbra; brilliant and boisterous Matt; friendly, loyal Neel; and, finally, smart and sassy Kat.

They helped make the novel everything it was.

I spent much of my time curious, wondering where the story would lead.  It's a strange story, meandering between the nearly archaic world of Mr. Penumbra's bookstore and the modern interconnected universe of Google, but I wasn't disappointed.  I found the connections between characters, between the mysterious society behind the bookstore and the modern world, between history and the present made sense without being overwhelming.

Granted, I might consider it a touch over the top--fantastical adventures criss-crossing the United States, delving into medieval history--but I enjoyed the element of fantasy involved.  It intrigued me, invited me to read more.  And while I may have been slightly disappointed by how the story ended, another part of me was relieved and exhilarated by the unexpected changes.

The Bad
Honestly, I don't have any complaints.  The story was a little wild, a little unbelievable, but I, nevertheless, enjoyed it and had a fun time reading Sloan's novel.

Clay has a few internal monologues that I belatedly realized were said aloud, which tripped me up a bit; however, I thought it was clever and funny rather than annoying.  It made me wonder if Clay sometimes had moments when he thought, "Did I really just say that out loud?", and I couldn't help but giggle.

The Ugly
Even the best things can't continue indefinitely.

Bonus: Austenland

Bloomsbury

Austenland
Shannon Hale
2007

The Summary
"Jane is a young New York woman who can never seem to find the right man - perhaps because her secret obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.  But when a wealthy relative bequeaths to her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-obsessed women, Jane's fantasies of meeting the perfect regency-era gentleman suddenly become more real than she could ever have imagined.  Is this total immersion in a fake Austenland enough to make Jane kick the Austen obsession for good, or could all her dreams actually culminate in a Mr. Darcy of her own?"

The Good
I like that the novel begins, like all novels involving Jane Austen and her famed Pride and Prejudice, with a familiar (if altered) refrain:

"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a thirty-something woman in possession of a satisfying career and fabulous hairdo must be in want of very little, and Jane Hayes, pretty enough and clever enough, was certainly thought to have little to distress her.  There was no husband, but those weren't necessary anymore.  There were boyfriends, and if they came and went in a regular stream of mutual dissatisfaction - well, that was the way of things, wasn't it?"

I also like that Jane - of course her name is Jane - is an average, relatable heroine.  She's smart, she's charming and quirky, she's dynamic, and she's self-sufficient, and she has a secret:  she loves Pride and Prejudice.  (She's also a ninja, but that's neither here nor there.)

Austenland is a fun novel, and Jane is an endearing heroine.  The characters are enjoyable, worth loving or hating alternately, and the story is captivating.  It's easy to become embroiled in Jane's story, wondering whether she's going to find the man of her dreams or discover something worth knowing about herself.

Oh, and then there's the dedication.  I laughed more than I probably should have.

The Bad
I hate to say it, but I actually enjoyed the movie better than the book.  (I know, I know - how dare you, blasphemer!)  I really liked the book, and I really like Shannon Hale as an author, but I just didn't enjoy the book as much as I enjoyed the movie.  The book has its own merits and the book is pretty great, and I would definitely recommend reading it; however, I cannot deny that I really, really enjoyed the movie.

The Ugly
Romance can be tricky - and, sometimes, it can get ugly.

Especially betrayals.

How to be a Heroine: Or, What I Learned from Reading Too Much

Vintage Books

How to be a Heroine:  Or, What I Learned from Reading Too Much
Samantha Ellis
2014

The Summary
"While debating literature's greatest heroines with her best friend, thirtysomething playwright Samantha Ellis has a revelation - her whole life, she's been trying to be Cathy Earnshaw of Wuthering Heights when she should have been trying to be Jane Eyre.

"With this discovery, she embarks on a retrospective look at the literary ladies - the characters and the writers - whom she has loved since childhood.  From early obsessions with the March sisters to her later idolization of Sylvia Plath, Ellis evaluates how her heroines stack up today.  And, just as she excavates the stories of her favorite characters, Ellis also shares a frank, often humorous account of her own life growing up in a tight-knit Iraqi Jewish community in London

"Here a life-long reader explores how heroines shape all our lives."

The Good
As an English major and lover of literature, I thoroughly enjoyed Samantha Ellis' memoir.  Clever, clear, and comical, How to be a Heroine is an absolute gem if you love reading - or, basically, if you just love the idea of a strong, female protagonists who can hold their own in a story.

I especially loved the insights that Ellis had to offer on her favorite heroines, her hopes and fears in taking to heart the lessons of these amazing ladies of literature.  She's candid about her reservations, insightful in her exploration of literature, and just plain fun.  She's a wonderful writer, an excellent storyteller, and a fantastic scholar.

I mean, even if you aren't a fan of literature, Ellis makes her book - and, subsequently, the books she reads - accessible to a larger audience.  She succeeds in making literature, even the dry and boring parts, truly fun.  (Of course, I may be biased.  I was an English major in college and this book is kind of perfect for me.)

The Bad
Honestly, I have no complaints.  Ellis is an excellent writer:  candid, vivid, descriptive, and otherwise fun and intriguing.  I might not have always had a background in the books she read, such as Wuthering Heights, which makes her writing a little less accessible.  But I believe that's mostly my fault as opposed to an actual problem with the book.

The Ugly
Spoilers.

If you don't want to spoil the ending of classic novels for yourself, don't read this book.  Ellis takes a long hard look at some of the most important and dynamic pieces of literature and, in her exploration, she examines everything from characters, plot, writing devices, and more.  Which means she will tell you how a story ends - which means if you were hoping to be kept in suspense a little longer, there's a very good chance you will find the ending spoiled.