September 2, 2013
Second entry today, though I wrote about The Fault in Our Stars in the wee hours of the morning before going to bed, and I spent most of my afternoon reading How I Live Now. It was necessary, since I needed to have it read for my class tomorrow. When I'm done with my post, I still have two chapters left to read from the textbook. I'm glad that my homework time will double as reading time, though I don't know how much I would recommend this particular book.
The instructor for my course vaguely explained the premise of the novel, so I went into it pretty blind. So here's the gist: Elizabeth (who is called 'Daisy' for some reason) is an anorexic American teen. She's suffering from some serious mental issues, as is revealed throughout the book. She started starving herself because she was afraid that her stepmother was going to poison her or something? Her mother, who was British (I think maybe Daisy's dad was English, too, but it doesn't say for sure), died birthing her. Daisy has always labeled herself a 'murderer.' She is a self-mutilator, too, and has seen many psychologists and specialists over the last few years. Her father and stepmother seem to have given up on her, and have shipped her away to stay with her maternal aunt in the English countryside.
So far, it would seem that the story would be another angst-driven teen adventure. I've read such books before. But there's a major twist here, that steers the whole course of the story. England is on the cusp of war, and Daisy's parents send her there with that knowledge. In fact, it seems that by the end of the story, the entire world is at war. Obviously, that would make this a sort of modern-time alternate universe, but with what's been going on in the world over the last few years, it may not be that difficult to imagine. In the first few weeks of Daisy's stay with her cousins Piper, Isaac, Edmond (with whom she has an INCESTUOUS RELATIONSHIP...uh, yeah, there's that) and Osbert, the country is invaded by "terrorists." The terrorists are not described by their nationality or by their skin tone, it's only said that they don't speak English all that well, so the author leaves it pretty open as to who, in this alternative universe, is turning on each other. The "why" isn't too far from the "reasons" for the wars going on in real life, but that's not really delved into.
Anyway, England is invaded, the borders are closed off, and Daisy's aunt, who is in Norway or something, is stuck abroad while the children are alone. The three younger cousins and Daisy bond (and obviously, Edmond and Daisy bond too much...what the hell? I don't see how these two cousins, her fifteen and him fourteen, banging each other, enhances the story, unless it's supposed to be some sort of Lord of the Flies message?). Daisy is actually happy, for the first time. But I don't understand why it couldn't be enough for her to be happy with the familial love and acceptance that she finally found with her cousins, and why the incest was necessary. But regardless, the children aren't really directly affected by the war, until British soldiers show up and sequester their farm. The kids are separated; Daisy and Piper are sent to live with an army family in another village, and the twins are sent to a farm (Osbert enlists). Much of the story is Daisy and Piper's experiences. As they witness violence and try to make their way to their family with meager supplies and a map torn out of a book, Daisy at least comes to terms with her eating disorder as she works to keep herself alive.
They arrive at the farm where the boys were staying, but find only dead bodies. Isaac and Edmond are not among them. The girls make their way back to the farm. Then, the story abruptly ends with Daisy getting a phone call (unexpected, as all of the phone lines and electricity hadn't been working) from her father. It then jumps ahead a few years, to war-torn England, when Daisy, who was brought back to the United States under an emergency medical pass or something (even though she never lapsed back to her anorexic habits) is finally able to return to England. She finally reunites with her cousins, who all survived the war, but Edmond is traumatized, and angry at her for leaving him. At the end, Daisy, who was once so broken herself, is working to help Edmond. She once felt that he could be the one to help her, I felt. Yet they were both so young...and they were cousins!
Now, the text implies (or rather, Daisy's own perspective implies) that her cousins are "magical" in some way. Like that they have powers of mind reading (she even imagines, or feels, that she and Edmond are sending each other psychic messages to each other when they are far apart); also, that Isaac and Piper have powers of nature, and can talk to the animals or understand things about the outdoors or whatever. Osbert is not possessed of these magical powers, apparently. And yet, these ideas are not developed, and ultimately, they don't seem to make a difference in the fate of the children (except that the twins' premonition about an attack on the farm at least kept them alive). I felt that way about much of the book, that it was undeveloped. Maybe if I had more, the incest between the two cousins could be justified in some way. As is, I don't buy into it all.
This book is bizarre, and not really in a good way. I could see teenage girls of certain inclinations having some interest in it. I certainly wouldn't see myself teaching it in my own classroom. The discussion over this book in class tomorrow night ought to be interesting. I'm not going to condemn it completely, as it is certainly a unique story, and that's more than can be said about much of the dreck that teens are drawn to (as previously stated, I like YA lit when it's good quality, but I've had enough book talks with teens about series that were only written to be massively produced and to rake in some quick dollars). It presents some interesting questions. It's way out there...maybe it would be a stepping stone for a sophisticated young reader to more complex literary works.
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Frank says: "Banging your cousin is perverted, Daisy!"
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