HYPEMovies are fun to watch but reading is the real pleasure.
HYPE dissects 6 books that have made their way to the silver screen.
1. Choke
4. Confessions of a Shopaholic
5. The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency
CHOKE
By Chuck Palahniuk
Text by Candice Lee
ISBN: 0307388921
Chuck Palahniuk loves to leave his readers with a bad taste in their mouths, and that’s the reason his satire-loving fans love him. The acclaimed author of Fight Club, who is a master of warped subjects, has bagged the awards and movie deals to show for it. In Choke, however, it seems like Palahnuik is choking on new themes with which to unsettle his readers.
Don’t be mistaken – the prerequisite disturbing elements in the book are aplenty. Meet Victor Mancini, our antihero who takes us through the crummy existence he calls his life. Victor trawls sexual addiction workshops to meet girls who are not likely to require dinner and flowers before getting down to it. His side job as a con artist requires him to choke on his dinner every other evening at upscale restaurants. He then allows a “hero” to save him, who inadvertently feels obliged to shower him with love and money for years to come. At the core of this self-inflicted depravity is – surprise! – Victor’s monstrously bizarre childhood. In flashbacks, it’s revealed how Victor’s mum was too busy stealing school buses and abusing zoo animals to love him. All she left him with is a sense of worthlessness, as well as twisted trivia: “If you’re ever in the Hard Rock Café… and they announce ‘Elvis has left the building,’ that means all the servers need to go to the kitchen and find out what dinner special just sold out.”
To top it all off, Victor is becoming increasingly convinced that he’s a descendent of Jesus Christ, conceived via a dried piece of holy foreskin. A cult writer who lends an unhinged voice to our deranged times, Palahniuk has delivered again. But for fans who are expecting the unexpected, the formulaic shock approach here is just, well, a little expected.
Left to right: The Bourne Legacy, The Lovely Bones, Confessions of a Shopaholic
The Bourne Legacy
By Eric Van Lustbader
Text by Kristie Chiew
ISBN: 0312331759
In this fourth installment, The Bourne Legacy picks up from where Bourne series creator Robert Ludlum supposedly left off.
In an attempt to separate his identity as Bourne from his family, David Webb has taken up a job as a Linguistics professor.
But a sniper’s gunshot within the campus reawakens the Bourne persona. Soon enough, Bourne aka Webb finds himself running for his life in a race to save himself and his family.
Apart from the excitement at seeing Bourne outsmart, outwit and outplay his enemies, the book is like a rollercoaster ride that never seems to end. This Bourne legacy should have just left it at the ‘Ultimatum’.
The Lovely Bones
By Alice Sebold
Text by Lau Liang Tong
ISBN: 0316168815
What’s a girl going to do when she’s raped and dead?
Brutally chopped up by her introverted neighbour at the tender age of 14, Susie Salmon lost her chance of maturing into a woman.
With her elbow being the only notable clue in the blood-curling murder, the case seems to have been put on hiatus even before investigations began. As a spirit drifting between heaven and Earth, Susie can only narrate the changing lives of those around her, while grasping her inability to detach herself from the living.
The Lovely Bones, Sebold’s second novel, tackles realistic issues with great intensity and simplicity, spinning a tale of love, loss and isolation.
Confessions of a Shopaholic
By Sophie Kinsella
Text by Nadia Shah
ISBN: 0385395507
New York Times’ Bestselling Author Sophie Kinsella brings a Brit read that has the obvious potential to be just another boring old chick lit. Thankfully, it touches on serious matters such as obsession and finding a purpose in life, in a humorous manner.
Becky Bloomwood, a shopaholic living in London may be a journalist at Successful Saving magazine, but the truth is, Becky’s a financial mess. Her attempts at clearing her debts fail miserably, and that makes the novel even more of a guilty pleasure.
With a hilarious plot and colourful characters to boot, it’s no wonder a movie adaptation is to be released sometime this year.
The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency
By Alexander McCall Smith
Text by Daryll Nanayakara
ISBN: 1400034779
Adulterous husbands who cheat on their wives, the murder of a young boy by village witch doctors, a father who worries about his daughter dating village boys – these are some of the issues most Zimbabweans face on a daily basis.
Serious yet light, Zimbabwean-born author Alexander McCall Smith produces a work of art with this first volume from a series of nine books.This probably explains why the series has been turned into a 13-part television drama in the United Kingdom.
Smith takes you into the life of Mma Precious Ramotswe, a fictional woman from Botswana who sets up her own detective agency in the capital, Gabrone, to tackle the real issues her country faces everyday. The characters may change but the main detective, Ramotswe, remains ever the wise and intelligent protagonist.
As the author of more than 50 books of different genres, Smith gives us another reason to think about the world’s issues while enjoying a good read.
My Sister’s Keeper
By Jodi Picoult
Text by Jeremy Boo
ISBN: 0743454537
How much sacrifice would you make your child go through for the life of another?
Jodi Picoult’s My Sister’s Keeper tosses you firmly into intrigue and plunges you into a deep moral quandary, forcing you to ask questions that you fear to confront.
Like her other novels, Picoult switches between past and present, rapidly creating a heavily layered piece of prose that reveals more than the cursory glance. But when used too often, it leaves the readers confused and desperately floundering for clues.
While the story has an unconventional structure, Picoult’s characters fall into clichéd one-dimensional paper cut-outs — the rebellious and angsty brother, the understanding supportive father, the emotionally torn mother, and the independent young female protagonist.
Jodi Picoult’sMy Sister’s Keeper is vivid and visceral, with poignant nuances and sub-plots. It would’ve made a remarkable read, if its plot and character development had been handled with much more finesse.