It's hard for me to speak ill of any book my favorite author has written. Fortunately for me, I genuinely have only good things to say about this lesser-known Zusak novel. At least, I had never heard of it before. Perhaps it has been overlooked sitting in the shadows behind The Book Thief. One of my fellow reader friends gifted I Am the Messenger to me for my birthday and, while that was back in October, I finally found myself in the perfect mood to pick up and finish this novel during the long, hot, and quiet days of this summer. I will always be inspired by and admire Zusak's writing style, which is difficult to put exactly into words, but consists of incredibly accurate figurative language and Hemingway-esque dialogue that never fails to move me as a reader and challenge me as a writer. This story follows a pretty ordinary guy, Ed Kennedy, who finds himself in the throes of a pretty extraordinary situation. After intercepting a bank robbery and being claimed a local hero, this common taxi driver begins to find Aces from a playing card deck left at his house with addresses and other illusive riddles written on them. From these strange deliveries follow messages Ed successfully delivers despite continually believing himself inadequate to do the jobs set before him. I think this story holds several messages (oh the irony) within its main plot which preaches the idea that anyone can become anyone they want to be and make the kind of change they want to see in themselves by first stepping out of their comfort zones and showing up in the lives of the people around them. I never knew what to expect as the addresses and riddles continued to be sent and Ed continued to deliver, seeing slow but mighty change within how he viewed himself and his place in the world. It made for a very intriguing and fulfilling novel with an even more shocking and surreal ending. There is also a bittersweet romance that runs throughout the entire landscape of this story, becoming more and more prevalent to Ed's life as he reaches the end of his messenger duties. I will remind you once again that I'm endowed to enjoy all of my favorite author's novels, but I really do recommend this one very highly. :)



Some of my favorite quotes from I Am the Messenger:

"... my voice is like a rumor. I'm not quite sure if it came out or not or if it's true."

"She soon says, 'You're my best friend, Ed.'
'I know.'
You can kill a man with those words.
No gun. 
No bullets.
Just words and a girl."

"I've been called a lot of things many times--but nobody has ever told me it's an honor to know me."

"Sometimes people are beautiful.
Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are."

"I take a photo of her in my mind."

I haven't read a work of historical fiction quite like this novel. At times I forgot I was reading about the life and accomplishments of a woman who actually walked this earth and made literary history alongside her infamous author husband, F. Scott Fitzgerald. So many elements of Zelda's life, though, were larger than life, from her decision to marry a struggling artist determined to make the world know his name, to traipsing around New York City and Paris's party scenes. This is a beautifully laid out story told in a witty and creative voice that I'd like to believe Zelda would be happy to have portray her through this literary medium. Zelda felt perfectly human to me throughout this narrative as she experienced the ups and downs of a marriage constantly in the media's spotlight. Eventually raising a child, attempting to pursue her own callings toward literature and modernist painting, and pushing her body and mind to the limit to try her hand at professional ballet dancing only increased my inclination to offer Zelda my sympathy as well as admiration. This novel also has strong but subtle feminist messages, as Zelda fights for her right to "exist independently in the world" while also juggling her love for a husband that proved to provide her more pain than happiness as he struggled with his own vendettas and lofty dreams of becoming immortalized within the American literary tradition. I learned a great deal about this fantastic historical figure and force of a woman who, ultimately, was an incredible fighter. She fought against voices telling her she couldn't do what she wanted to do, against a society that frowned upon her exercising the wonderful facets of her imagination, and even her own mind as she struggled with incorrectly diagnosed forms of anxiety and mental illness. I reached the end of this novel with a profound sense of nostalgia and felt like I'd known Zelda for years; I definitely recommend this book to anyone searching for an excuse to read more about the sparkling, disillusioned Jazz Age through the eyes of a remarkable female figure.




Some of my favorite quotes from Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald:

"If only people could travel as easily as words. Wouldn't that be something? If only we could be so easily revised."

"He's such an extraordinarily brilliant person that it would be terrible if he let himself do nothing in the end."

"I've come to wonder whether artists in particular seek out hard times the way flowers turn their faces toward the sun."

"The scent of lavender floated up the hillside from where it grew among the rocks at the sea's edge."

"That's why novelists are so essential: we record everything we see, we dissect and analyze and reproduce the essence of what matters, for posterity."

"...if I wasn't writing, I didn't exist."

"Scott, for all his shortcomings, owned my heart."

"Women are formed for love, yes, but also for purpose..."

"Yet you've continued to write and to face down the devils, to surmount your fear. To my mind, that makes you strong and heroic and true."

"A roomful of dancing, sweating, laughing people is a beautiful thing."

"Now, I saw how a woman might sometimes want to steer her own course rather than trail her husband like a favored dog."

"'When are you going to understand that what I want is for you to get your priorities straight?'
Translation: Worshipping me should be your only desire.
I said, 'When are you going to become someone who deserves to be my priority?'"

"To right myself, I would write myself."

"I was fighting for my right to exist independently in the world, to realize myself, to steer my own boat if I felt like it." 

I can think of several series I read back in middle and high school that only further solidified my love for the fantasy genre. Soman Chainani's The School for Good and Evil series is definitely one of them, and I had no idea Chainani had written a prequel to the events of the series until it was already out on the shelves! So, just when I thought I'd read all there was to this very nostalgic series, I was overjoyed to get my hands on a copy of Rise of the School for Good and Evil. This prequel allows readers to get an even closer glimpse at the simultaneously balanced and tormented relationship between two brothers, Rhian and Rafal, one Good and one Evil, wrapped up in a prophecy that may prelude the end of their reign as twin School Masters over their beloved academy for Good and Evil souls alike. The best part about this book for me was the ability to see how the infamous school that serves as the setting for the majority of the six-book series underwent growth and change as Rhian and Rafal each set out on unique journeys, journeys that began under the false pretense of "searching for a cure to the school's imbalance" and finished with the truth of what they'd really been searching for: a source to explain why they felt a strain in their relationship. We get to see more sides of familiar characters like Aladdin and Captain Hook in the narrative which is sincerely one of my favorite parts of the world Chainani has created from the initial premises of classic fairytales. The story comments on so many human themes, like whether there should be a balance between the forces of Good and Evil in the world or just one that reigns supreme, true love, homosexuality, betrayal and trust, and what one will do when faced with the chance to rise to great power. I would definitely recommend reading at least the first book in the original series before reading this prequel (though you should also just read the entire series because I've already hyped it up)!



Some of my favorite quotes from Rise of the School for Good and Evil:

"There is always a choice between courage and cowardice."

"It doesn't matter what you are, it only matters what you do."

"Love is the key to balance."

"I can love you and still think I'm better."