I really wanted to write about how my favorite work form this year was
Othello, since I knew hardly anyone else would choose it and I wanted to feel *original* and special. But that would be such a lie, since I didn't like
Othello that much and even if I did, I would still probably like
Everything Matters! way more. Yep. Everything. Matters. I could've chosen the winner of this contest based purely on book covers. Black man strangling surprisingly peaceful woman vs Oscar Wilde looking uncomfortable vs colorful comets of blue and pink converging on a title with an exclamation point!
Everything Matters!, clear winner. In addition the the awesome cover, there are several other, legitimate reasons I like this book for much. I've always liked books that are on a grand scale because when you finish them, you are kinda taken aback since you managed to get through an outer space war or the Great Depression or the rise and decline of Voldemort. But I also like books that focus down on the tiny people in all those conflicts and reading the story they have in the mess of everything.
Everything Matters! combines both of these things, in a beautiful and memorable way so the novel was "Beautiful and doomed and thus terrible" (Currie). But not terrible, in the sense I did not want to read it, but terrible since I knew that at the end all the characters I had come to know and relate to were going to die. Although some say, "Irony is a luxury the doomed can't afford," Currie wove irony throughout his novel, and although it was often deeply saddening (like in John Sr.'s death), it helped establish his message-- that life is precious, and unfortunately life is limited, as Ms. Serensky often informed us, "Yeah, everyone dies" (Currie). I also really liked the book since it addressed a topic I find particularly fascinating, which is the existence of a Multiverse. Although I'm certainly not sold completely on the concept, I find the notion that "an infinite number of variations of this world exist concurrently, complete with an infinite number of variations of you" at the least, an interesting perspective to consider (Currie). In short, Currie's novel was amazing, I loved it, and I will be thinking about its lessons for a long time.
Mariel, I love the picture you chose for this blog, too funny. I also thoroughly enjoyed Everything Matters, but could not write about it for my blog since I did not select it as one of my books for the test, sad day. Like you, I find the whole multiverse thing fascinating. However, I had never really given it a lot of thought before reading Currie's novel. Now I often wonder if multiple variations of this world could actually exist, who knows! Everything Matters has come back to haunt me more than any other book we have read this year. I am constantly thinking about how my life could be different if instead of doing one thing, I made a different decision and did something else. It is kind of scary to think about. I think Currie did a great job forcing the reader to contemplate numerous lessons regarding life.
ReplyDeleteEverything Matters! is also my favorite book. I believe we have actually discussed our similar tastes in books, like this one and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Anyway, I also find the idea of a Multiverse so interesting. I definitely think about this book often and feel very impacted by it.
ReplyDeleteI chose this as my favorite, too! Your title alone is funny and it just gets better with the cat picture. But you are right, I think that this book has had a large impact on all of us. We like it so much, we've been recommending it to others to read, even Mr. Maas! I feel like Everything Matters! is a book that I would read on my own while you would never catch me reading Othello for some light summer reading.
ReplyDeleteNot surprisingly, I too choose Everything Matters as my favorite. I was also enticed by the colorful cover from the beginning. In fact i distinctly remember thinking to myself the moment that I saw this book "a book with a cover this awesome has to be good". But aside from the cover, I really liked this book because it forced you to think and basically live through all of the obstacles the characters faced.
ReplyDeleteWow Mariel! You're popular. Like everyone else, I chose Everything Matters! as my favorite book of the year. I also considered trying to be "special" by picking something other than this book, but really, how could I choose anything else? I remember I loved the cover because of all the funny, straightforward reviews in each comet. That set my expectations really high, and they were definitely met. I agree with Jillian when she says that this is a book you can read again, and this actually could've been a book I would pick out at a store and choose to read on my own. The exclamation point was also one of my favorite parts! My favorite band, Against Me! ends their name with an exclamation point too (as you can see) so I was instantly drawn to the title. Love the cat pic, also. And cake.
ReplyDelete