Val Muller

This was one of my favorite books when I was younger, so I thought I’d re-read it. The book was not as good as I remember it, mostly because of the outdated writing style, but I enjoyed the plot and remember why I loved it so much as a kid.

The premise: the world has just experienced its worst plague ever, and all adults are killed off—only those approximately twelve and under are spared. Lisa, the protagonist, is determined to build up civilization again rather than live like a frightened animal. She and her brother, and some kids from the neighborhood, first try to reinforce their homes in the Chicago suburbs, but after too many gang attacks, they move to the high school, which becomes their city.

Lisa thrives by using her brain when others resort to animalistic or mob mentalities. For instance, when she arrives at a grocery store, she notes that the items most appealing to children are gone—soda, candy—but the items children don’t like—canned asparagus and spinach—are still there. She takes these items because they are more healthy. Later, she and her brother are healthy while other kids, who have survived on just candy, are sick. She also thinks through the situation to find a warehouse in the city filled with over a year’s worth of food–most kids only thought to go after grocery stores. When she still lived in her neighborhood, she organized the children into a militia. They created alarm systems and booby traps to help fight the gangs. She’s also the first one to realize that kids should learn how to drive cars and find gasoline for generators. Throughout the entire novel, Lisa emphasizes that they can only persevere through hard work. As a kid, I loved her toughness, her work ethic, and her use of rationality to solve problems.

I learned, only when searching for a copy, that O.T. Nelson wrote the book to illustrate Ayn Rand’s principles of objectivism in a simple way that kids could understand. As a kid, I didn’t pick up on the fact that there was a “lesson” to be learned. I’ll admit, though, I am a fan of Rand’s philosophy, so the book must have naturally resonated with me as a kid.

Now, as a “grown up” and a writer, I picked up on some of the writing issues in the book. Some of the “lessons” were told through a series of bedtime stories Lisa told her younger brother to keep him confident. Others, though, were told directly rather than shown, giving it the “feel” of a lesson rather than an illustration. The book was a quick and easy read—I read it in two sittings—and could have benefited from added details to illustrate elements of Rand’s philosophy, such as pride in ownership and happiness from accomplishment. There were times when Lisa would say something Randish, and it seemed to come out of the blue. Sometimes Lisa even notes that most kids don’t understand her philosophy yet, but she just moves on from there. At one point, the littlest kids are all grumpy and whining. Lisa points out that they’re grumpy because they all have to share everything—they don’t have their own possessions, and they also are being sheltered and not asked to work for anything. While I like and agree with the idea behind this, it was not illustrated in the book, so someone with whom this idea does not naturally resonate might be left scratching his head. The author even shows how someone who simply follows Rand’s philosophy is seen as unlikeable in society. This is true, but the issue isn’t really addressed much beyond that point.

Part of the issue here is that the book was first published in 1975. Books from earlier eras are different stylistically. A lot more was told rather than shown, and books tended to be shorter. (Harry Potter helped to break that rule). This meant less could be illustrated. The idea for the novel is fun—I remember imagining how I would survive if all the adults died of a plague—and if rewritten today, I think it would be written in a more enjoyable style. I would have liked to see more details that might be more acceptable to add today, such as what the kids did when they encountered dead bodies (it’s a glossed-over subject, and it seems mostly they avoided going into houses where they thought there were dead people, or it was explained that most adults went to hospitals to die, but still, I would have like to see at least one dead body to see what the kids had to deal with. Again, books like The Hunger Games, written more recently, seem to have pushed the envelope on what is acceptable to write in a story meant for children.

Still, the novel contains a strong female protagonist who offers a useful philosophy for living life: fear (of failure, of others, etc.) leads one to act irrationally. Having confidence and seeing each obstacle as a challenge to solve rationally can be “fun” because it leads to accomplishments and ownership (and, thus, pride and satisfaction).

In my kids’ mystery series, the protagonist’s mother is crazy about correcting grammar—to the extent that she gets distracted and lost, runs late, or loses track of all else in her life. The character, Mrs. Hollinger, is based loosely on a combination of me, my mother, and every grammar guru I know. But she was always meant to be a hyperbole. I never imagined anyone would really do such things beyond allowing a bit of internal musing about the world’s bad grammar.

A colleague of mine proved me wrong. She recommended The Great Typo Hunt because it’s about a recent college graduate who decides to take a cross-country quest, ridding the nation of bad grammar and typos along the way. I greatly enjoyed the premise of this novel. Reading it, it felt a little long at times, but I tend to be less patient when it comes to reading non-fiction (you’ll notice I review mostly fiction here).

Deck’s style made the novel enjoyable. He subtitles each chapter with an over-the-top subheading taking advantage of the mock-heroic style. He also fills his chapters with allusions, metaphors, and references that reflect his high level of education. If a reader doesn’t “get” the allusion, it’s not a big deal to move on, but the references help to add depth and enjoyment to the novel. I must admit, however, that even the clever mock-heroic style got old for me after a while. Again, I think I’m just being grumpy here because I have less patience for non-fiction.

Deck has the tools that any epic hero needs: Callie (his car), Authority (his GPS), and his “weapon,” a typo correction kit. This kit contains Wite-Out, various shades of chalk, permanent and dry-erase, and anything else Deck and his buddies need and acquire along the way. Deck’s personality also emerges through the novel. He takes a handful of companions—one at a time—on his journey with him, and each person he interacts with serves in some ways as a foil to his own character. For instance, he is much less outgoing than his main companion, Ben. When the two of them are together, Ben pushes Deck to correct more and more typos. Deck’s girlfriend, on the other hand, is much less enthusiastic about the mission, especially since it means Deck is on the road for months at a time. When she joins him for a leg of the journey, she is not as adamant about correcting typos, and Deck doubts his journey.

Through the journey, Deck also asks himself a larger question: why is this quest so important? Is it about communication? Standards? He muses on these issues as he travels. The book is copyrighted 2010 (it took place in the years prior), and Deck also expresses lots of hope for the election of Obama, making connections to an idea for increased communication as part of his typo-correcting mission. I must say here, though, that our country’s communication problem goes far beyond superficial typos and grammar errors, so I found his musings slightly superficial here–to the tune of unicorns and rainbows.

What I found most fascinating about the book were the few chapters at the end dealing with Deck’s run-in with the Federal Government. He and his buddy inadvertently vandalized a historic sign at the Grand Canyon—they thought they were simply correcting a grammatical error—and were charged and forced to appear in Federal Court, costing a total of $10,000 and accepting one year of probation during which time they waived their First Amendment, taking down their website and promising not to encourage other people to correct grammar or typos on federal or government property. The ridiculousness of that interaction, to me, reinforces my distaste for the government (mindless bureaucracy at its best—this chapter is full of irony!).

It’s a decent read, but to fully appreciate it, I think one should truly care about grammar and have a college education to understand the various references made.

• Being Henry David by Cal Armistead
• Bomb by Steve Sheinkin
• Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
• Hannah’s Dream by Diane Hammond
• Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach
• The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams
• The Great Typo Hunt by Jeff Deck and Benjamin Herson
• The Lady of Steinbrekka by Kristi Strong
• The Raft by S. A. Bodeen
• The Scarred Letter by Val Muller

I’m reviewing this book as part of a blog tour run by Juniper Grove Book Solutions, receiving a copy of the novel in exchange for my honest review. What follows is an excerpt and synopsis provided by the blog tour, and a review—written by me. This book is rated “17+” because of mild adult content.

Synopsis:

Mia Langdon—tomb raider and adventure-seeker—has everything she wants. Freedom. Independence. No chains (a.k.a. a man). Her troubles begin when she’s attacked on a dig in Peru. Soon, she’s forced to use her tomb raiding talents to find the flaming arrows of an Egyptian goddess. In the wrong hands, this weapon could destroy the human race—and nearly had.

Used to doing things her own way, it isn’t long before she figures out that she needs the help of Harrison Braden Stanton, her stuffy, but so yummy, Egyptologist and ex-lover. There’s one problem. He despises what she does. As Mia and Harrison find themselves in the middle of a battle between the Egyptian gods and goddess, there’s no choice for the woman with a Grand Canyon-sized independence streak and the man working for the Egyptian god, Osiris, but to work together to prevent the destruction of all they love.

Excerpt from Blood on the Moon by Cassiel Knight:

Harrison sighed and leaned back in the chair. He stretched one arm over the back of Eleanor’s chair. She turned and smiled at him, lavender eyes sparkling nearly as much as the diamonds she wore at her neck and in the delicate pink lobes of her ears. He smiled back and she returned to telling their tablemates a story about her last trip to France.

His girlfriend was in rare form tonight, bubbling and officious and impeccably attired in a blue dress the color of Egyptian lapis lazuli hugging every curve and swell of her body. Pure feminine delight, a feast for the eyes.

He sighed again. For some reason, the banquet set before him left him full. After nine months of dating exclusively, he knew Eleanor expected him to pop the question, as the Yanks would say. A week ago, he considered doing just that. But now, a sense of restlessness and anticipation left his feet tapping and not from a desire to dance.

His gaze swept the crowd again. Where was Sophie? He hadn’t seen her since she and Sebastian left to see the tomb mock up. His niece hadn’t wanted to wait until his duties as exhibition curator were discharged before going off and exploring. Fortunately, his friend surprised him with a visit and now ran watch over Sophie.

Harrison rubbed his chin, feeling the slight scrape of his morning shave wearing off. Time for him to go find his wayward, high-spirited niece. The last thing he needed was for her to find her way into a part of the museum she wasn’t supposed to be. And it wasn’t like his best friend from childhood would be any sort of detriment. In fact, Sebastian was just as likely to lead the way.

As if towed toward her by a fishing line, his gaze found and locked onto a tall woman in a sleek gown of scarlet. It wasn’t just the color that got his attention, or made his mouth suddenly dry. It was the long, naked line of her spine revealed by the nearly backless dress, a smooth expanse of flawless skin that begged to be touched. To be caressed. To run his lips along the indentation of her spine.

Unlike most of the other women with hair pulled into tight knots, the exotic woman’s black hair fell in a loose braid down to the middle of her back. Some hair escaped, defying any attempts at control.

She carried herself confidently, her strides smooth and slinky as if she were aware of the appreciative gazes following her every move. Pure animal sexuality screamed from every bump and swivel of her hips. Harrison clenched his jaw. Fingers gripped the back of the chair as he fought the urge to adjust the tightness in his crotch.

Holy hell.

The woman’s whose body language fairly shouted take me now turned her head and looked him straight in the eye. God almighty. The full lines of her lips curved into a mischievous smile. Familiar tawny eyes glowed with humor.

Mia.

He should have bloody well known. Indeed, the most primitive part of him had known. Scarlet dress, red, the color of warning. The color of danger. Everything Mia Langdon was. Dangerously exotic, dangerously sensual.

The only woman who had the power to take his breath away. The woman who he once thought would be at his side for the rest of his life. Until he discovered, unlike the perfect relationships in romance novels, love did not conquer all. It failed to conquer the insurmountable, deep within their soul, differences each had about their passions. The passion for history. While he worked to protect the past for the future; Mia salvaged the past’s treasures for the glory. For the excitement. For the money. That he could not get past.

Hovering at the beautiful woman’s side was the sun-kissed sable waves of his recalcitrant niece. And just a little further away, a tall man with dark hair. Bloody hell. Sebastian. Harrison’s stomach twisted. The only way this situation could get worse is if—

“Harrison!”

Review

I chose to review this book because I love reading about the culture of ancient Egypt. My absolute favorite part of this book was the research done about Egypt. I loved getting to see and hear the gods and goddesses and experience their interactions. I especially enjoyed the flashbacks Mia got to experience about ancient Egypt. For instance, at one point she “wakes up” in ancient Egypt and finds herself wrapped in a dress of the time period. She’s not used to such attire, and she has trouble walking in it. I love being transported into such a world. I also enjoyed how Mia, a descendent of ancient blood, was so fiery. She reminded me of Lara Croft—strong, independent, and able to defend herself.

The plot was strong—lots of character conflict (kidnapping, former relationships, sexual tension) to keep it interesting, not to mention an archeology adventure. My one wish is that the pace was a bit faster, especially at first. I really got “hooked” around 35% into the book—when the ancient Egyptian elements picked up. Some of the words and phrases could have been condensed a bit—at times, I felt like the author did a superb job “showing” us details with indirect characterization but then felt compelled to “tell” the reader what we’re supposed to take away, anyway. Knight is clearly a skilled writer and should trust the readers to pick up on her indirect characterization 🙂

I recommend this book for anyone who loves ancient Egyptian culture, history, and romance.