tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post6524460968744941861..comments2024-02-21T05:25:03.233-05:00Comments on Adventures in YA Publishing: Writers' Book Talk: Going Bovine by Libba BrayMartina Boonehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03358736828122139189noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-4500258364878062562011-08-25T07:51:55.361-04:002011-08-25T07:51:55.361-04:00Lisa, That is a great comment. It did have that ki...Lisa, That is a great comment. It did have that kind of strong energy, didn't it? Thanks for making me start thinking about it that way.<br /><br />Anne, I completely agree. She is among the most creative, imaginative writers working today, mind-boggling really. And she "gets" voice in a way that leaves me awed.<br /><br />libguru, it's fantastic that you have a group that can talk about a book like this. I'm jealous! :DMartina Boonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03358736828122139189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-38327319408953611162011-08-24T21:53:11.484-04:002011-08-24T21:53:11.484-04:00I run a Not-So-Young Adult Book Club at the librar...I run a Not-So-Young Adult Book Club at the library I work at, and used this book for my first meeting! We had a ton to talk about it...lots of issues are brought up in this novel, and I found it to be a great one for a book club for adults and teens.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-78246454740479148342011-08-24T10:02:09.706-04:002011-08-24T10:02:09.706-04:00I'm actually surprised by the amount of negati...I'm actually surprised by the amount of negativity in the negative reviews I've read on the book. I thought it was wonderful. I think Libba Bray has a wicked sense of humor that shines through in her characters. <br /><br />I'd never read a book quite like this one so in my review on Goodreads I compared it to a couple of movies it reminded me of, Big Fish and Oh Brother, Where Art Thou. Both of which are a bit mystical and handle some difficult subjects with humor.Lisa Pottshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11676087488599338569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-12993016423823158432011-08-22T18:04:01.609-04:002011-08-22T18:04:01.609-04:00Loved Going Bovine. Love Libba Bray. She does YA v...Loved Going Bovine. Love Libba Bray. She does YA voice like nobody's business!Anne Greenwood Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10834406766091337794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-23787657977796160662011-08-22T17:58:39.869-04:002011-08-22T17:58:39.869-04:00Ooo! I'd love to read BEAUTY QUEENS. :) What a...Ooo! I'd love to read BEAUTY QUEENS. :) What a cool opportunity!<br /><br />I hadn't read GOING BOVINE yet so Friday I ran around looking for it in local bookstores (gah! southern Oregon is a dearth of bookstores, but I digress) as well as the library. The ONLY copy for the entire county was checked out at the library, as was the e-copy. Sigh.<br /><br />So I did the next best thing--Amazon! They actually have the first 100 pages there under "Look Inside" with a page missing every 7 pages or so (not a big deal). Thus, I didn't get to read the entirety, or the end, but I read up to the point where Cameron's in the hospital and the dwarf kid is his roomie. <br /><br />Anyway, when I first started reading the book, I remembered I'd read the first 2 chapters once, and had enjoyed Libba Bray's IMMENSELY creative writing style. Ho!--so funny and what a wicked wit she has. She has an imagination and a half. But I remember not liking the language and off-color stuff; I tend to be less enthusiastic about books that constantly drop F-bombs and make references to a guy's physical reactions to seeing a hot girl. I just don't see it as necessary in YA--but then, others may argue that it makes it more realistic. *shrug* Just my personal preference. This is probably what the first Anonymous was referring too--trying to be "edgy" and hip while really just being crass. I'd rather read and create literature without being crass (tho yes, it can be humorous, along the lines of Monty Python and Austin Powers).<br /><br />Fascinating, about the journey and how it was dreamlike, and might not have happened. I don't think I would've minded that in THIS novel; I wouldn't have felt "cheated" or tricked. So Libba did that well. I still REALLY wanted to know how Cameron got the mad cow disease, even though I know it's not the point of the story! ;o)<br /><br />I'd agree that truly successful fantasies have very REAL characters. The world is ultra real, and the characters too. That's related to the skill of the writer, to bring it all to life in colorful 3D!<br /><br />Okay, I've blathered on enough. :)Carol Riggshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14092209912983783974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-89944851476044663342011-08-22T16:18:43.334-04:002011-08-22T16:18:43.334-04:00I've heard so many great things about this boo...I've heard so many great things about this book - and it's been on my wishlist for ages. I've got to get to it! :)Jemi Fraserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02214408467456320167noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-47880734634997015762011-08-22T16:16:16.716-04:002011-08-22T16:16:16.716-04:00Sarah,
That's a great point about the real el...Sarah,<br /><br />That's a great point about the real elements and fears of the characters grounding the surreal and fantastical elements of the plot. I think most truly successful fantasies have characters who are more "real" and relatable even than many contemporary characters. <br /><br />What do you all think? Is this an important element of fantasy?Martina Boonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03358736828122139189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-7488221893485463322011-08-22T11:26:17.332-04:002011-08-22T11:26:17.332-04:00Libba reminds me of a YA John Irving. The characte...Libba reminds me of a YA John Irving. The characters are off the wall but with very real elements, fears, situations. It's enough out there to be very funny and there is a deeper meaning underlying it all.<br /><br />I find the surrealism to be refreshing and engaging. Maybe not everyone's cuppa, but, then again, what is?<br /><br />I already have and read Beauty Queens. Loved it even more. It's the feminist in me, I suppose.<br /><br />Sarah Laurenson<br />(P.S. Sorry to be Anonymous. Blogger isn't liking me this morning)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-10055553466322642632011-08-22T10:39:26.619-04:002011-08-22T10:39:26.619-04:00I agree: the paragraph has the makings of a great ...I agree: the paragraph has the makings of a great query. It's hooked me into wanting to read more, which is the whole point.<br /><br />-- <a href="tommfranklin.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">Tom</a>Tom M Franklinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05168232678401202091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-24986451861932754582011-08-22T10:29:49.410-04:002011-08-22T10:29:49.410-04:00Humm sounds like a good read! Thanks.
www.rebecca...Humm sounds like a good read! Thanks.<br />www.rebeccabany.comMemoirs of Me & Minehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14366737473619508232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-54324934188484859372011-08-22T09:49:00.457-04:002011-08-22T09:49:00.457-04:00Anonymous,
Have to say I loathe anonymous comment...Anonymous,<br /><br />Have to say I loathe anonymous comments. If you don't have the courage to say what you have to say and be open about it, not sure it needs saying here. But that said (sorry, couldn't resist) I do understand your point, and I'm not ordinarily a fan of those kind of books either. But I wouldn't lump Going Bovine in with those. It's too tongue-in-cheek, and too much just plain fun. From the first line to the end of the book, there are just too many laugh-out-loud moments, too many brilliant lines pointing out the absurdity of the world around us and the things that we (humans collectively) have done to ourselves and each other. <br /><br />I will confess that I loved the first line, read the first few chapters then put it down for a LONG time. The first chapters are kind of slow, and Cameron is definitely an antihero. I kept waiting for things to happen, not realizing until later what Libba Bray was doing within those opening chapters. Once I picked it up again and settled in for the ride, I loved it. <br /><br />I didn't read this because it parallels Don Quixote, or because it's a great, wacky example of how to twist a hero's journey, or any other erudite, high-brow reasons. I loved it because Libba Bray is wickedly funny, because I can't resist the idea of a Norse god trapped in the body of a garden gnome, and Emily Dickenson's idea of angels as hope. I love the thought that we trap ourselves in snowglobe vignettes. And for so many more reasons I can't name them all. <br /><br />Sure, there are some things that make you question. One I didn't bring up earlier and I'm sure someone else will point out, was the idea that a bunch of physicists would let Cameron do what they did let him do. (Remind me to tell you all the story of my dad, the nuclear physicist, letting my then 5-year-old daughter ride her bike to her friend's house 1 mile away while he was babysitting.) Or any of the other things that Libba put in there. Are these deliberate nudges to let us know that we aren't really along on a physical journey? That's part of the fun.<br /><br />No one, least of all Libba Bray, I suspect, is suggesting that this is beyond the average reader. She wrote a story and invited us with a wink, a nudge, and a shove, to look around at where we are. Monty Python does the same thing. I think they are both brilliant. If we can't laugh at ourselves, we need to pack up our toys and go home.Martina Boonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03358736828122139189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-35350709639759113902011-08-22T09:18:14.014-04:002011-08-22T09:18:14.014-04:00Loathed the idea of the book, the execution and th...Loathed the idea of the book, the execution and the content. This is one of those books that gets a reputation for being deep or meaningful not because of its own merit, but rather because someone decided that anything this convoluted and "edgy" (as in needlessly vile) must be beyond the comprehension of your average reader. It's not.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8005062827798430682.post-44235130948420243452011-08-22T09:15:59.135-04:002011-08-22T09:15:59.135-04:00I've heard so much about this book, and I thin...I've heard so much about this book, and I think you've convinced me to move it up my TBR list. Sounds really amazing!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00273059558675234923noreply@blogger.com