Book Reviews You Aspire To Read

 

Book Reviews You Aspire To Read

  Chain Gang All Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

“Like Orwell’s 1984 and Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Adjei-Brenyah’s book presents a dystopian vision so…illuminating that it should permanently shift our understanding of who we are and what we’re capable of doing.” —The Washington Post

If you enjoy reading action and mystery novels, you will find some thrilling bloodthirsty scenes of the prison inmates in the novel. The author, Adjei-Brenyah competently pens down thrilling and dramatic scenes, illustrating fighting scenes. The book uses allegory to emphasize the themes of freedom, revolt, and moral disgust in the novel. The fighting and action scenes show that the prisoners are engaged in fighting for freedom. While some viewers relate that the scenes represent the author’s sports writing. Having a strong and captivating plot and theme, the book is widely read. Many viewers consider the book as an act of protest against social discrimination and the mass incarceration system with its brutalities and injustice taking place in the present-day racial caste system.

The settings of the novel illustrate that the author does not set forth the story in the future instead, he describes the harsh realities of societies. The novel shows how a private consortium called CAPE (Criminal Action Penal Entertainment) produces contests of convicted murderers before a packed captivated audience. The novel portrays two successful and compelling women fighters known as Loretta Thurwar and Hamara Stacker. These two women are regarded as the stars of ChainGang All-Stars. They also laid the foundation of CAPE, a disputable profit-raising program in America that dominated the private prison industry. The book shows that gladiators and prisoners are competing for their ultimate prize; fighting for freedom and liberty.

In CAPE, prisoners travel as Links in ChainGangs, competing in death matches for packed arenas with righteous protestors at the gates. Thurwar and Stax, both teammates and lovers, are the fan favorites. The story explains what was the significance of her first fight, and how has her character changed since then. What was the purpose that kept her fighting? As the story builds up, it will thrill the audience. She prepared to leave her fellow links as she considered how she might help save humanity. But CAPE’s corporate owners will stop at nothing to protect their status quo and create the obstacles that lead to devastating consequences. 

The story is filled with excitement and adventure. From moving from the Links in the field to the protestors to the CAPE employees and beyond, the book condemns the American prison system based on racism, unchecked capitalism, baseless detention, and imprisonment. The book offers a clear American society voice concerning the ongoing scientific advancements that have led to the violent conditions experienced by the prisoners. The novel portrays the violent conditions faced by the prisoners in the experimental prisons.

The story is told through a fragmented narrative style. The literary choice of words highlights the impact of solitary confinement on our minds. A thorough reading of the book will help you come across the theme of truths and lies and dishonesty.  Role of capitalism in the carceral system today. Reading this novel will make you aware of the carceral system in a state. The system explains how the carceral state shapes and organizes society and culture through policies and using strong surveillance to control criminalization and help prevail the rule of law in the state. Furthermore, the carceral system improves the conditions of the prison-industrial complex and prison labor. Consequently, they aim to improve the role of law enforcement agencies to make it transparent and organized. Thus, the novel’s dramatization will allow readers to reflect on the real-life implications of this system.

 

 The Depth of Being

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The book, The Depth of Being opens with an explanatory tone, emphasizing that stillness is the key underlying part of all existence and nonexistence. The intuitive writing by Peter O’Gorman is to help people know what is real in the universe. As they contemplate deeply, they learn that stillness awaits inside each Being, subtle, and profound, and allowing each Being to grow spiritually and materially and achieve personal growth. The book is written to understand the growing need for stillness in modern society; it is the ultimate source of rejuvenation, renewal, and creation.

Readers will be inspired to know the importance of stillness and its “attainable path that leads to demonstration of absolute Truth. Peter O’Gorman believes that entering stillness enables you to learn about the cycle of existence. Absolute truth expounds that the conceptual creation is within stillness. Each new cycle is created upon the previous creation with modifications and represents a more refined creation as conceived within stillness.

The book goes into depth by explaining the absolute truth of Existence and it expounds that in existence all material beings consist of the essence and have its specific expression. The essence of existence is experienced equally by all Beings following their distinct attributes. Furthermore, every new cycle explains the Absolute Truth of God’s parameters of Being as conceived in the stillness. God is one of the absolute, God operates within nature. God is a separate entity. The forces of Nature set the parameters of Existence within which God’s Truth is materialized. The author expounds that God is not perfect. Whenever we see God's existence, we see God is reborn improved from the last time by stillness. This further explains that when God’s current potential for perfection has been achieved, God disperses into nonexistence. During this period, the quality of perfection is achieved within the Stillness. Although God is not omnipotent, God’s supremacy and consciousness extend throughout the universe. It represents a unique aspect and perfection of God’s existence.

The next chapter explains that with God’s continuous expansion, each Being is comprised of component Beings, and All Beings possess an inherent awareness of God’s Truth and represent one aspect of God’s truth. Based on their unique attributes, the Beings develop distinct strengths to attain their passions and aspirations. Having God’s direct guidance assists individual Beings in awakening to their inner Divinity and spirituality. As individuals gain divinity, Beings are awakened by revelations of Truth. the entire universe is created with life forms maturing from Beings of singularity into Beings. This shows that God’s Truth flows freely through the Stillness pervading Material beings leading to Harmony of Oneness.

While reading about love, the readers learn that love is the pure and profound emotion that shapes our Existence. Love is the foundation of all positive energy as it adds meaning to our life and develop a feeling of intense attraction and intimacy toward each other. We yearn to give them all our love and to receive all their Love in return.

Within stillness, we learn that beauty is an evoking feeling of attraction for all life forms. All Beings choose to live within their beauty and attract the beauty around them. This also explains that spiritual beauty can be appreciated in the surroundings; spiritual beauty flows from the union of individual Spirit with the presence of God, and it awakens the Spirit and develops their divine beauty. Stillness is the art of finding inner peace, and it saves us from physical, spiritual, and mental chaos. Stillness revives our soul and allows us to release our thoughts and feelings by experiencing them. Within the stillness, we learn to deal with emotions.

“Within yourself is a stillness, a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself.” -Hermann Hess

 

To feel God’s presence and love, we must bring our life to a state of stillness. By practicing stillness, you will feel the presence of God, and feel loved by God. Feeling this love creates the awareness that the Spirit of God indwells you, and it brings profound peace, and calmness to you. Eternal Bliss results from feeling close to God. It is a spiritual emotion originating from our awakening to the truth of our inherent divinity. Our Divine purpose is to become obligated to God to help God become more perfect and provide God with a full expression of developing unique aspects of Truth. As we  emphasize God’s understanding of Absolute Truth in our lives, the increased divinity physically and mentally rejuvenates our souls and fills our lives with the eternal joy and love we have been longing for

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

The mystery-thriller novel is set on an island off the coast of West Ireland. The book gathers lively and vibrant characters that play a unique part in building an atmosphere of mystery, adventure, and suspense in the story.  The story begins on a small island off the coast of West Ireland, all the guests reached the venue to attend this fabulous wedding event. Both the bride and groom are online magazine publishers. The celebrity’s relatives, fans, and followers joined the ceremony and enjoyed it with great zeal and excitement. The bride in her fancy clothes attracted all the guests. However, no one knew that the wedding scene would be ruined by a murder mystery. Suddenly, strong winds began blowing and a fierce storm appeared. A scene of confusion and disorder prevailed; the guests collided with one another. During this turmoil, the lights went and complete darkness prevailed. Amidst this bleakness, a body was found lying under a chair.

From page one, the readers got involved with the story, as the mystery intensified, the readers screamed while reading the nerve-shaking scenes. They could imagine a body with blood on the ground. As the story builds up, the author demonstrates a set amount of characters present at the event were indirectly involved with the murder. For instance, William's old boarding school friends and Jules's close friends and relatives, the story portrays many secrets and conspiracies that caused the brutal assassination.

Towards, the end of the story the old secrets are revealed, and the readers are enthused to know the real culprit who did the crime and why. The audience also did their speculation and tried to figure out who was the murderer. All the characters acted with consistency and maintained the tone of dramatic suspense and thrill in the story from the first page to the last.

If you desire to read an interesting and exciting piece of writing this weekend, you can grab an adventure and action-based novel, known as The Guest List that will draw your attention towards exhilarating scenes, thrilling plots, and stimulating characters.

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

The Notebook is a sentimental story about the enduring power of love. A true sentimental story of miracles that will stir your heart to keep scrolling the pages to read the entire book. The story is set within the somber beauty of coastal North Carolina in 1946. The romantic novel excites the readers from the first page as it shows Noah Calhoun, a rural Southerner returning home from World War II. Noah, thirty-one, remembered the images of the beautiful girl he met fourteen years back. He still had profound feelings for her. During all these years, he kept searching for her but unfortunately could not find her. He kept remembering the beautiful summertime moments they spent together. Noah made all efforts to find her, but ultimately, he lost hope and began living with the fond memories.  

The story took a sharp turn! The readers grew more excited to see the unexpected return of the protagonist, Allie Nelson in the town where Noah lives. Twenty-nine years old young and attractive girl was seen by people wandering in the streets of North Carolina.  She was engaged to another man, but could not forget her true love for Noah. Over the past years, she spent every moment remembering her intimate relationship with Noah. As she was engaged to another man, and her marriage was only weeks away, Allie’s heart sank in despondency. She desired she could end this relationship and live her dream life with her true love.

 Like a puzzle within a puzzle, the story of Noah and Allie is impactful for the readers. Their tale is a deeply moving portrait of love itself, the tender moments, and fundamental changes that affect us all. Shining with a beauty that is rarely found in current literature, The Notebook establishes Nicholas Sparks as a classic storyteller who rouses true emotions, passion, and sentiments in readers. Many romantic lovers developed an emotional bond with the book, weeping and sobbing while reading the heart-throbbing novel.

 The Girl on the Train by PAULA HAWKINS

“Hawkins’s taut story roars along at the pace of, well, a high-speed train. …Hawkins delivers a smart, searing thriller that offers readers a 360-degree view of lust, love, marriage, and divorce.”—Good Housekeeping  

 

After reading a few interesting pages of this exciting psychological thrillers book, you will feel deeply involved in the story. The captivating storyline, pace, and climax will keep you astounded and engross your mind to read the entire book.

 

The story begins with a girl named Rachel traveling on the same train to London every morning. During her brief journey, she deeply observes people and things in her surroundings. For instance, she noticed the row of gardens with blooming flowers, and their aroma stunned every passenger. She looked at the houses passed by and had an earnest desire to know the people who lived in those houses. At a particular moment when the train slows down, she becomes more obsessed with talking to the travelers and learning about their woes and life circumstances.

 

Every day, the train reduces speed at a junction, where Rachel always sees a couple named Jess and Jason sitting and enjoying their happier moments on their terrace. They lived at the house outside the train window where the train usually stopped for a few minutes on the red signal. While deeply immersed in watching them, it reminded her of the cheerful time she spent with her husband before her divorce. The houses evoked her past memories filled with intimacy, fondness, and fantasy. She became a borderline alcoholic as she couldn’t conceive, and her husband developed relations with another woman with whom he now has a baby and they are living in the same old house.

One morning when the train stopped at the same red signal, she observed something unusual. The things were not the same and she felt something strange. Her nerves began shattering as she kept thinking about Jess and Jason. The train began to move fast, however, she was determined to find the mystery. The narrative portrays that Rachel became a part of their lives. Although unsure of what exactly happened with the couple, she felt restless and went to a law enforcement agency to solve the mystery. She became involved with the investigation and helped the police to resolve the secret.

According to the author’s interpretation, when Rachel notices something unsettling from her window one morning, it leads to a chilling series of events that make her question whom she can trust in her life. Furthermore, getting involved with the life of Jess and Jason compelled her to contemplate her life. It leads her to develop a deeper understanding of her emotions, knowing who she is and her purpose of living.

The book is full of mysteries and thrilling adventures that keep the audience engaged in the story. The book comes up as a masterpiece in character development, strong storyline, action curiosity, and climax. The Girl on the Train is Hawkins’s first psychological thriller novel that is well-written and skillfully constructed. It is a thought-provoking story about the power of memory, intimate betrayals, the harsh realities of love and obsession, despair, fear, and envy.

“Gripping, enthralling—a top-notch thriller and a compulsive read.”—S. J. Watson, New York Times–bestselling author of Before I Go to Sleep