A few years ago, Marshmallow reviewed The One and Only Ivan, a beautiful book by Katherine Applegate. At that time the whole book bunny family watched the accompanying movie. A year or so later, Caramel was able to read the same book himself and enjoyed it a lot. This week, he was able to get his paws on the sequel, The One and Only Bob, published in 2020. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.
Caramel reviews The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate.
Sprinkles: So Caramel, I know you liked The One and Only Ivan. If I recall correctly, that one ended with gorilla Ivan’s dog friend Bob all alone, because most of the other animal friends went to a new zoo. So does this book start there?
Caramel: More or less. We see Ivan and Ruby in this book too, because Bob keeps visiting the zoo they are living in, even though probably he is not supposed to. But apparently the zoo keepers don’t care, so he manages to sneak in whenever he wants, with Julia.
S: So he is still hanging out with Julia then? This was the girl who gave Ivan the crayons, right?
C: Yes and yes.
S: Oh then Bob is not that alone after all if he sees Julia all the time.
C: No he is not really alone. He is actually living with Julia and her dad.
S: I see. That is cool too. So what is the main problem in this book? Bob is not completely alone then. And Ivan and Ruby are safe and happy, right? And Ruby was the baby elephant, right?
C: Yup. They are happy, but Bob is not completely happy. Because he is not used to living with humans because he had gotten very used to being a stray. And because he wants to find his sister Boss.
S: We did not hear about Boss in the first book, did we?
C: I don’t think so, but she is Bob’s main goal in this book. And as he looks for her, he has a lot of adventures. A hurricane hits the town and the zoo that Ivan and Ruby were at is destroyed and Bob is separated from his humans. And a lot of other things happen too. It is a very adventure-full book.
S: I can see that.
Caramel is reading The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate.
S: So One and Only Ivan was written in first person, through the eyes of the gorilla Ivan. Is this written in Bob’s voice?
C: Yes. And Bob’s voice is very different from Ivan’s. I mean, he is a dog, but also he is not very trusting. He is different.
S: I see. It is neat that the author was able to create another fully alive animal voice. So overall, did you like the book?
C: Yes. I don’t think I could say it is better than the story of Ivan, but it is just as good, I think.
S: So maybe they should make a movie out of this one, too?
C: Yes! I loved the Ivan movie! That was cool. It would be good to have a Bob movie too!
S: Well, maybe there will be one. Did you know that the author has written a third book, about the elephant Ruby this time?
C: I didn’t know that! I have to read it too! And soon! Please!
S: Well, it won’t come out till May, it seems like, but sure, we can read it when it comes out.
C: Yes, that will be great! I really like Ruby too!
S: Okay, so let us start wrapping things up then. How would you describe this book in three words?
C: Adventurous Animal Fun, but it is not always fun, because sometimes sad things happen too.
S: Still, I think your description works well Caramel. Okay, what do you want to tell our readers as we wrap this up?
C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!
Caramel enjoyed reading The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate and thinks it would make a good movie!
As many young bunnies her age do, Marshmallow has been reading some dystopian novels. In these past few months, she has read and reviewed the recent Shatter Me and Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi, as well as the classic Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. Today she reviews another classic dystopian novel: Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, first published in 1932. Sprinkles is asking questions and taking notes.
Marshmallow reviews Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.
Sprinkles: So Marshmallow, I’m so glad you have read this book. It was one of my favorites when I read it, and I was only a bit older than you I think.
Marshmallow: I enjoyed reading it too! I found it fascinating.
S: That’s big endorsement from you! Okay, tell us a bit about the book.
M: Okay, let me set the stage: The year is AF (After Ford) 632. Technology is so advanced that humans who are citizens of the World State reproduce solely in artificial wombs, and everyone is conditioned to perfection. That is, if you’re in the right caste. Even before you are born, you are assigned a caste. If you are an Alpha or Alpha Plus, you will receive the most attention and care while in the incubator machines. If you are of a lower caste, say a Delta or an Epsilon, you will get less space, and your growth will be intentionally stunted by alcohol infusions. No matter how hard you work, you will always be working the job you were assigned at birth. Despite this inequality, no one ever complains because complacency and contentment with the system are essentially brainwashed into citizens while they are children. In this sea of conformity, individuality is diluted. On the one hand, everyone is happy, but on the other, this happiness is attained only at the cost of their humanity.
S: Okay, that is pretty dismal as a setting. Go on.
M: So in short, when the story begins, the society is in harmony, but a couple people start to realize that the things that make us human are being lost. Two citizens, Bernard Marx, an Alpha Plus, and Lenina Crowne, a Beta, are vacationing in a reservation where humans still reproduce the natural way. Such societies are rare, and their residents are regarded by basically everyone else as savages. Here they meet John, a man whose mother Linda came from the “brave new world”. When they bring him back to their world, he is horrified by what he sees.
S: That is a good summary of the plot, Marshmallow. I know you thought a lot about this book and even prepared a report of sorts for your English class. So maybe you can tell us a bit more about the three main characters.
M: Sure. Bernard is an Alpha Plus who is at the top of the society. But he is different from others because he isn’t very cheery whereas everyone else is always happy. This is probably because he doesn’t take soma, the drug that everyone else does. Soma gives people a sense of euphoria and makes them unconcerned and joyful. Bernard’s refusal to take it is one example of his peculiarity. Bernard is a bit shorter than other Alpha Plus males, and he feels a bit bad about this.
Then there is Lenina, a very typical member of the World State. An average Beta, she is content with her status and is very disturbed by the comments made by Bernard and John that vilify the World State.
Finally there is John. John’s mother Linda came from the World State, or the “developed” world. Linda actually got pregnant at some point and gave birth to John. This is highly unusual in the World State, as biological reproduction is regarded as a taboo in the brave new world. However, in the reservation, natural birth is just natural. Still, the tribe does not completely accept Linda and John, and so they feel like outcasts. When Bernard gets the permission to bring John to “the civilized world”, he is called the Savage, and people treat him almost like a celebrity. However, as an outsider with beliefs completely orthogonal to those of others, he finds this brave new world repulsive.
Marshmallow is reading Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.
S: Thank you Marshmallow. I think you summarized the main features of these characters well. So I can see that Bernard might not be too happy because he does not feel confident about his stature, and I can see John finding it difficult to adjust. But tell me more about what is wrong with this world. Why do you think this book is so important? What is its main message?
M: I think that the main problem is that everything is supposedly perfect, and the fundamental struggles that make people human are long gone. John the Savage argues that people need to have problems to live properly like humans. Without them, they are not fully human. They become passive, complacent, and no longer crave for progress, creativity, new ideas.
S: When I was in school, we read this book in tandem with Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four. You read and reviewed that book, too. Did you see any parallels or significant differences between the two books?
M: Well, I did like both books a lot. But both books had a little bit of adult content, a bit more than I like to engage with in the books I read. Other than that, they are both dystopian, telling us about a possible future where life as we know it is replaced by some very unpleasant and almost hopeless system. But when I was reading about Huxley and Brave New World for my class report, I found a very insightful quote by Neil Postman, who wrote in a 1985 book titled Amusing Ourselves to Death the following:
Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture […] In 1984, Huxley added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we love will ruin us.
Neil Postman
The Wikipedia article on Brave New World has this quote, in its context, and the full quote is also very good. But this part is enough for me here. I especially like the last two sentences. Aldous Huxley delves into the psyche of humans to look at how easily they can be reduced to passivity and complacency.
S: Are there other themes that show up in the book?
M: According to Britannica, Huxley was always preoccupied “with the negative and positive impacts of science and technology on 20th-century life”. So there is that of course.
S: I see. The technology that allows the World State to govern one of the most fundamental processes of human life is awesome and scary, and the government, or any other entity, having such a power is bound to be dangerous.
M: Yes.
S: Any other themes that you would like to bring up?
M: Yes, the book is really rich. In Brave New World, humans have become passive and complacent under the eye of the World State. Brave New World presents a different type among the many terrifying futures that could occur. Most dystopian books have governments that are feared, but in this book the government rules by giving citizens everything that they could ever want.
S: What could be wrong with that?
M: As I said before, I think one of the central messages of the book is that people are not fully human if they are not striving to be better; they are not fully human if they are completely satisfied and complacent.
S: How about bunnies? Would you not be a happy bunny if you got all the nice food and all the books and friends you wanted and so on and never needed anything?
M: Given all the terrible things happening in our world today, this kind of a possible world actually sounds nice initially, but I think I’d eventually get bored. I’d probably want to do something different, something new. I’d want a purpose in my life.
S: I can see that.
M: I do wonder if a lot of people would be better off or happier in that world. But they would all be pawns of the establishment. They would not have a purpose or even a choice in this way of living. I don’t think either of those is good.
S: I agree. So what would your rating be for this book?
M: I think I’d rate it 97%. I think this is a very provocative book, made me think a lot, but again, I don’t like too much adult stuff in a book.
S: I agree that there is some of that stuff in the book and some of it is truly disturbing. There is even a scene where they expect children as young as seven to engage in what they call “erotic play”.
M: Those kinds of things make me think that younger bunnies should probably not read this book.
S: Agreed. So a very good book, very thought-provoking, but definitely for older bunnies.
M: Yep.
S: Then we are done. Let us wrap this up. What would you like to tell our readers Marshmallow?
M: Stay tuned for more amazing book reviews from the book bunnies!
Marshmallow rates Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 97%.
Caramel has gone through almost all the books written by Tui T. Sutherland, including all fifteen books of her Wings of Fire series. Today he is talking about The Winglets Quartet: The First Four Stories (2020). As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.
Caramel reviews The Winglets Quartet: The First Four Stories by Tui T. Sutherland.
Sprinkles: So Caramel, you managed to find yet another Wings of Fire book to review.
Caramel: Yup! Heh heh heh!
S: So this looks like a collection of four stories. Right?
C: Yes. There is one about a NightWing named Fierceteeth (“Prisoners”), another about the NightWing assassin named Deathbringer (“Assassin”), another about a SandWing named Six-Claws (“Deserter”) and another about an IceWing named Arctic (“Runaway”).
S: I remember Deathbringer! We met him in the third book, The Hidden Kingdom, right?
C: Yep. But in the story about him, we learn more about Deathbringer’s life, how he became an assassin and so on. It is called “Assassin” after all.
S: I see. So are all four stories about characters that show up somewhere in the fifteen main books of the series then?
C: Yep. Fierceteeth shows up in the fourth book already. That is The Dark Secret. Six-Claws shows up in the fifth book, The Brightest Night. And we first hear about Arctic in the sixth book, Moon Rising. Though Arctic’s story is more like the story of Darkstalker, because he lived many many years ago. In fact he is Darkstalker’s father. But Moonwatcher starts to learn about Arctic from Darkstalker when he communicates with her through her mind. So that happens in the sixth book.
S: So let me get this straight. Three of the main characters of these stories are contemporary characters that we meet in the main series, but we learn a lot more about their backstories. And the fourth, Arctic, is a significant character mentioned in the books, but one who lived many many years before the events of those books took place. Right?
C: Yup, I think you got it.
Caramel is reading The Winglets Quartet: The First Four Stories by Tui T. Sutherland.
S: So tell me more. I do not remember you reading too many short stories. How did it feel to read these ones?
C: They are fun! I loved to learn more about these characters and their stories. And you know, anything more Tui T. Sutherland can tell me about the world of these dragons, I’m eager to read.
S: I know. So since we are listening to The Hidden Kingdom at the moment, and we have met Deathbringer already, I am curious about that story myself. Would you say that reading that story (“Assassin”) would help me understand The Hidden Kingdom better? Or maybe at least understand Deathbringer’s motivations?
C: Yes I guess. But the stories are just fun no matter what.
S: From what I can gather looking at the dates when these stories were written, or at least published, the author seems to have already gotten all of the first arc done and was more or less in the middle of the second arc. So it is kind of neat to think about how she was knitting this world up all together, but along the way, she went back and told us a nit more about some of the incidental characters, and made the world a lot richer.
C: Yes. I guess. So for example you can understand Deathbringer’s psyche much better after reading “Assassin”.
S: Wow, Caramel, psyche is a big word!
C: But it is the right word here. So you understand him a lot better because you learn that his mom died when he was very young and that is one of the reasons why he does not like Blister —
S: Wait, don’t give away too much! I think I want to read that story myself!
C: You should. I think it might be one of my favorites among the four. Then again they are all pretty awesome!
S: So are they as funny and violent as the main books?
C: They are funny but maybe not as violent. They are a little less bloody.
S: Okay, I think I might borrow the book for a bit then.
C: Sure. But we should probably wrap up this review before then.
S: I agree. So describe the book to me in three words then.
C: Descriptive, funny, and biographical. Because the stories are kind of like little biographies of the four dragons.
S: Makes sense to me. So what would you like to tell our readers next?
C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!
Caramel enjoyed reading The Winglets Quartet: The First Four Stories by Tui T. Sutherland, and hopes that there will eventually be more stories about this world.
One of the last books Marshmallow reviewed for 2022 was Tahereh Mafi’s novel Shatter Me. As her first book for 2023, she chose the second book in the series: Unravel Me, published first in 2013. As Sprinkles is curious to hear more about this book, she is asking questions and taking notes.
Marshmallow reviews Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi.
Sprinkles: So Marshmallow, here we are; it’s a new year, and there are lots of new books to read and write and talk about. Today we are talking about the second book in Tahereh Mafi’s Shatter Me series: Unravel Me. Your review of the first book made me so curious that I went ahead and read it myself. And I enjoyed it a lot. So now I want to ask you about this second book. Should I read it?
Marshmallow: It depends. The plot of the second book is very interesting. Just like the plot of the first book.
S: That sounds enticing.
M: Yes, the plot is really neat.
S: Tell me a bit about that.
M: Well, maybe I should first summarize the first book a bit. There is this girl named Juliette, whose touch is fatal to most people. She has been living in solitary confinement for many years because many people, including her parents, are scared of her. Then we learn that there are some people who can actually touch her and not die. And one of these is a rebel, and he helps her run away, and we end the first book on a high note, with Juliette and her new friends ready to fight an oppressive regime.
S: Yes, I remember all this. And the world is pretty dismal, right? There are no birds, there is a total environmental collapse, and people are living under the control of a faceless dystopian government.
M: Well, not quite faceless, because we meet one of its faces, Warner, in the first book, and he is one of the leaders of this new regime.
S: True. Do we see Warner in this second book as well?
M: Yes, and he is attracted to Juliette, and somehow Juliette is very confused, and she is not sure if she is attracted right back, even though Warner is a pretty terrible human being.
S: Hmm, here we are getting too close to the mushy stuff you didn’t like in the first book. I’m assuming that there is a lot of mushy stuff in this one, too?
M: Yes, this one has more actually.
S: Hmm, okay, I know it bothers you, so let us move on and talk about the actual plot a bit.
M: Sure. First off, we learned at the end of the last book that Juliette’s killing touch is kind of like a superpower, and she is not the only one with these kinds of powers. There are many others who have superpowers, and they are living together, working to bring down the oppressive regime. And in this book, they are continuing to do that, with Juliette and Adam, the person who saved her, joining them.
S: I see.
Marshmallow is reading Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi.
S: So would you say, at this point, that the book becomes more like a typical heroic adventure book where our heroes are fighting an evil empire and will surely overcome against all odds?
M: Well, not quite. For two reasons. One is the mushy part, the book is more romance than adventure. And two, the “surely they will overcome” is definitely not a sure thing. Things are pretty desperate, I mean, they make some progress in this book, but the world is still a terrible place.
S: Do we ever see a bird?
M: I don’t think so. The world is still pretty bad, as I said. And there is still very little hope.
S: So I am guessing you might just have to read the next book?
M: I just might.
S: And from what you are telling me, I guess I do have to read this second book myself.
M: Yup. I think you have a higher tolerance for mushy stuff.
S: Well, they call me a grownup. I guess I can handle a little bit of that.
M: I guess.
S: So how would you rate the book then?
M: 93% I think. The plot is still very original and engrossing, but the mushiness is still not terribly exciting to me.
S: Alright, given what you told us already, this makes sense. So what do you want to tell our readers as we are wrapping things up?
M: Stay tuned for more amazing reviews from the book bunnies!
BookBunnies 