Girl Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

Title: Girl Interrupted
Author: Susanna Kaysen
Pages: 168
Genre: Mental Health, Psychology, Autobiography
Book Description:
In 1967, after a session with a psychiatrist she'd never seen before, eighteen-year-old Susanna Kaysen was put in a taxi and sent to McLean Hospital. She spent most of the next two years on the ward for teenage girls in a psychiatric hospital as renowned for its famous clientele -- Sylvia Plath, Robert Lowell, James Taylor, and Ray Charles -- as for its progressive methods of treating those who could afford its sanctuary. 

Get it here | Good reads

My Opinion:
This is a true story about an 18 year old girl's experience in a mental hospital for two years after being diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. It's a short memoir about her thoughts/ feelings and the people she learns to become friends with.

When I ordered this book online, I didn't realise how short it was, meaning I was able to whiz through it in one sitting. This was really great because I was able to immerse myself in the late 1960s and learn about what life was like for the mentally ill in this time. It was a lot different to today and I learned a lot from this book just about treatment and hospitalisation.

The characters brought the story alive I felt. There were so many different people with different mental illnesses so it was really fascinating to hear about their stories as well as the main protagonist's. I liked how they became close friends and explored together which was nice to read, since the topic can be quite morbid and low, yet there are some entertaining parts include.

Something unusual about this novel that I didn't expect were the snippets of Kaysen's mental records from McLean Hospital. There were some notes about her experiences written by doctors and psychiatrists and records from when she was admitted to her release. I enjoyed reading these and felt that they were a nice touch to the memoir.

Overall I did enjoy reading this however it was very short and (since I watched the film first) I expected a lot more than I received. The film is actually set out quite differently whilst the book seems to jump around a bit more. Nevertheless I did enjoy this and felt like I learned a lot about mental health.

Favourite Quotes:

The only way to stay sane is to go a little crazy

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Suicide is a form of murder - premeditated murder. It isn't something you do the first time you think of doing it. It takes getting used to. And you need the means, the opportunity, the motive. A successful suicide demands good organization and a cool head, both of which are usually incompatible with the suicidal state of mind

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I told her once I wasn’t good at anything. She told me survival is a talent

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Was insanity just a matter of dropping the act?

Rating ★★★

3 out of 5 stars 

Before reading this memoir, I actually watched the film, which I really enjoyed. It had a great cast and a really strong message. I was surprised at how different the book was to the film and visa versa, however I still felt that it was an accurate reflection of Kaysen's life.

Here is the trailer!

 Next book I'm going to review:
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Title: A Thousand Splendid Suns
Author: Khaled Hosseini
Pages: 372
Genre: Contemporary, Historical, War
Book Description:
Born a generation apart and with very different ideas about love and family, Mariam and Laila are two women brought jarringly together by war, by loss and by fate. As they endure the ever escalating dangers around them—in their home as well as in the streets of Kabul—they come to form a bond that makes them both sisters and mother-daughter to each other, and that will ultimately alter the course not just of their own lives but of the next generation

Get it here | Good reads

My Opinion:
This magical yet horrific novel takes us on a journey through three generations of families, as they are torn apart and meet new people whom they may or may not bond with. Through heartache and pain, joy and birth, we see the strength of women during this time of war in Kabul.

After reading The Kite Runner (check out my review here) I couldn't wait to get my hands on another one of these culturally fascinating books written by Hosseini. As mentioned in my review for the Kite Runner, once again I found it so interesting that he chose to write on a topic he knows about because this makes everything so much more real. The author grew up in the places that he writes these stories so he knows what they're like, for the good and bad, which is exactly what he includes in his writing. This novel really opened my eyes to how different people are treated in different cultures and religions around the world, which isn't something I've explored as much as I'd like to in novels.

Another unique twist was that this novel follows the lives of two people that come together unexpectedly. At the beginning it's in the perspective of Mariam, who is only a child, but as the novel goes on we watch her grow up into a strong and intelligent woman, despite her hardships in the beginning. In the second part the perspective changes to Laila and we see her life as a child to woman. This was so interesting to read about because we got to see hoe their two lives, although completely separate and different, came together with more in common than first perceived. The final section has a split narrative of both Mariam and Laila which was really unique and something I enjoy in novels just to see the differing opinions between characters.

Despite the brutal honesty in the plot and the pain the two protagonists and their families face, this was a profoundly written novel with a surprising happy ending (of some sorts). My favourite technique was moving through almost 3 generations with these characters and watching them grow and develop into their own identities.

I would definitely recommend this to readers of historical fiction or those who want to be enlightened about another culture. This really reminded me how lucky I am and reminded me not to take things for granted - a very important message in life that most people forget (including me!) Hosseini only seems to have 3 novels, and since these first 2 have been astounding, I will definitely be getting my hands on the last one!

Favourite Quotes:

Marriage can wait, education cannot

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One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs,
Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls

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A society has no chance of success if its women are uneducated

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Learn this now and learn it well. Like a compass facing north, a man’s accusing finger always finds a woman. Always. You remember that, Mariam

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The past held only this wisdom: that love was a damaging mistake, and its accomplice, hope, a treacherous illusion

Rating ★★★★★

5 out of 5 stars 

 Next book I'm going to review:
Girl Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

Title: Woman in White

Author: Wilkie Collins

Pages: 672

Genre: Mystery, Gothic, Classic

Book Description:

The Woman in White famously opens with Walter Hartright's eerie encounter on a moonlit London road. Engaged as a drawing master to the beautiful Laura Fairlie, Walter becomes embroiled in the sinister intrigues of Sir Percival Glyde and his 'charming' friend Count Fosco, who has a taste for white mice, vanilla bonbons, and poison. Pursuing questions of identity and insanity along the paths and corridors of English country houses and the madhouse, The Woman in White is the first and most influential of the Victorian genre that combined Gothic horror with psychological realism.

Get it here | Good reads

My Opinion:

In this timeless classic, Walter meets a lovely painter whom he falls in love with. This leads him to stumble across many strange and peculiar occurances, including the meeting of mysterious Count Fosco.

This character was on of my favourites. He was very captivating and had many unusual qualities that just enticed me to discover more about him. There were many twists surrounding him and I found him to be quite humerous although slightly creepy!

Due to the classical form of the novel, written in the 19th century, I was expecting it to be quite slow and dull with lots of detail, as a stereotypical classic would portray. This was quite different however in that there were a lot more twists than I expected, which was a pleasant surprise. At many times I was eager to read on and was unsure of what was going to happen next, making reading very enjoyable.

The 'woman in white' was an intriguing concept and from her first appearance in the beginning I was hooked to discover more about her. This is a fantastically gothic theme of the novel and worked really well to add depth.

Altogether this was a wonderfully mysterious novel with many gothic elements and twists in the story line similar to the what we see today in modern novels. The characters were so imaginative and creative, really well written and I loved seeing their development. I would certainly recommend this to lovers of classic novels as well as those who are intrigued by works that created the mystery and twists evident in today's fiction.

Favourite Quotes:

In one moment, every drop of blood in my body was brought to a stop... There, as if it had that moment sprung out of the earth, stood the figure of a solitary Woman, dressed from head to foot in white

~~~~

No sensible man ever engages, unprepared, in a fencing match of words with a woman

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The fool's crime is the crime that is found out and the wise man's crime is the crime that is not found out

~~~~

Silence is safe

Rating ★★★

3 out of 5 stars 

 Next book I'm going to review:
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

The Apprentice by Tess Gerritsen | Rizzoli and Isles #2

Title: The Apprentice
Author: Tess Gerritsen
Pages: 376
Genre: Crime, Thriller, Mystery
Book Description: 
It is a boiling hot Boston summer. Adding to the city's woes is a series of shocking crimes, in which wealthy men are made to watch while their wives are brutalized. A sadistic demand that ends in abduction and death.

The pattern suggests one man: serial killer Warren Hoyt, recently removed from the city's streets. Police can only assume an acolyte is at large, a maniac basing his attacks on the twisted medical techniques of the madman he so admires. At least that's what Detective Jane Rizzoli thinks. Forced again to confront the killer who scarred her - literally and figuratively - she is determined to finally end Hoyt's awful influence . . . even if it means receiving more resistance from her all-male homicide squad.

But Rizzoli isn't counting on the U.S. government's sudden interest. Or on meeting Special Agent Gabriel Dean, who knows more than he will tell. Most of all, she isn't counting on becoming a target herself, once Hoyt is suddenly free, joining his mysterious blood brother in a vicious vendetta. . . .

Get it here | Good Reads

My Opinion:

After reading The Surgeon (you can find my review for the first novel in this series here) I was straight onto this sequel. From my experience with Gerritsen's first novel, I expected the same from this, and I was not disappointed!

Whilst this isn't the sort of series that you can just pick any book up and read it, you do have to read them in order since there are characters and messages that get carried through, This is something I do like because characters we got to know in the first book aren't completely left out and forgotten and although they don't have such a main part, they are still referenced.

Once again with this novel, it began and ended with the perpetrators voice. This was something I only realised from reading the first book in this series and really enjoy this feature as it gives another edge to the perspectives. We see this opinion at random points throughout the novel which is thrilling and the ending with his voice really enticed me to grab the third book.

Speaking of the ending, this was really, really great. It was just as unexpected and gripping as I had hoped from reading The Surgeon, however in comparison to that ending, it wasn't as good. I did still enjoy it very much and still feel encouraged to read one.

One different feature this book had that the previous one lacked was some romance. As I've mentioned before, I'm not a huge fan of romance as I find them to be too cliched, however this was just an extra feature the author weaved in between the main plot line of the killings. It was unexpected which is fantastic since many romances are predictable, however this one wasn't and it was interesting to see this side of the character.

Overall this sequel was just as gripping as the first one and, once again, I'll be jumping straight onto the third one in the series! As I said in my first review, this series is targeted at a much older audience in which there are some graphic scenes and very academic language about biology which may be difficult to understand from younger audiences. Despite this it was thoroughly action packed with unexpected twists and a hint of romance!

Favourite Quotes:

Rizzoli wanted to be heard, and so she sat shoulder to shoulder with the boys in the trumpet section

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Is this all we are? A necklace of chemicals? Where, in the double helix, does the soul lie?

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Some people make choices hoping for the best; Korsak had made a choice simply to avoid the worst

Rating ★★★★ 

 4 out of 5 stars 

 Next book I'm going to review:
Woman in White by Wilkie Collins