By Chris Bradford, author of the Young Samurai series
Books are the emotion of life. They help you understand your feelings, share them and experience them. An author that gets under your skin, writes to the heart and makes you laugh, cry or scream is a very talented writer indeed.
Three books that have done just that are Catch 22 by Joseph Heller, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and It by Stephen King.
LAUGH!
Catch 22 by Joseph Heller
From th
e opening lines…It was love at first sight. The first time Yossarian saw the chaplain he fell madly in love with him. Yossarian was in the hospital with a pain in his liver that fell just short of being jaundice.
…Joseph Heller’s satirical novel about the absurdity and pointlessness of war had me laughing out loud (a feat very few books manage to achieve). Considered to be one of the great literary works of the twentieth century, it is also perhaps the funniest and most poignant. In an age when war is an absurd media battle as much as a tragic fact of life, it is important that people remember to laugh. Sometimes that is the greatest weapon.
Catch 22 by Joseph Heller
From th
e opening lines…It was love at first sight. The first time Yossarian saw the chaplain he fell madly in love with him. Yossarian was in the hospital with a pain in his liver that fell just short of being jaundice.…Joseph Heller’s satirical novel about the absurdity and pointlessness of war had me laughing out loud (a feat very few books manage to achieve). Considered to be one of the great literary works of the twentieth century, it is also perhaps the funniest and most poignant. In an age when war is an absurd media battle as much as a tragic fact of life, it is important that people remember to laugh. Sometimes that is the greatest weapon.
CRY!
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
With language pared to simplicity itself, like a body stripped to the bone, all that Steinberg leaves is the story – and the emotion the reader brings with them to the book. This is a heart rendering tale of George and Lennie, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California, that made me weep upon reading its tragic end. Bear in mind that I was a teenage boy when I first read this, and boys aren’t supposed to cry!
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
With language pared to simplicity itself, like a body stripped to the bone, all that Steinberg leaves is the story – and the emotion the reader brings with them to the book. This is a heart rendering tale of George and Lennie, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California, that made me weep upon reading its tragic end. Bear in mind that I was a teenage boy when I first read this, and boys aren’t supposed to cry!SCREAM!
It by Stephen King
This is the one story of his that still haunts me to this day. The book deals with childhood fears that enter the adult world. A clown, who is often the source of laughter, becomes the focus of fear. I read th
It by Stephen King
This is the one story of his that still haunts me to this day. The book deals with childhood fears that enter the adult world. A clown, who is often the source of laughter, becomes the focus of fear. I read this tome in the middle of Africa and I still had nightmares thinking that a clown was about to jump out at me from behind a bush…when I should have been far more worried about the real-life danger of a lion!
As an author myself, I now experience the whole gamut of emotions as I write my stories. I can only hope that my readers also feel they are living the adventure I’ve created. And whether they laugh, cry or scream, I don’t mind. Just as long as they are feeling something… experiencing the emotion of life.
Best,
Chris
p.s. Thanks for the opportunity to write this Books of A Lifetime blog! An honour!
Read The Way of the Dragon and follow the adventure of a lifetime!
For competitions, samurai school and more, visit www.youngsamurai.com
Read The Way of the Dragon and follow the adventure of a lifetime!
For competitions, samurai school and more, visit www.youngsamurai.com
Chris Bradford is the author of the award-winning Young Samurai series, a tale of adventure, friendship and heroism that follows an English boy as he strives to become the first foreign samurai. (www.youngsamurai.com)
Chris is a black belt in martial arts and lives in a village in West Sussex, England, with his wife. He is currently training in ninjutsu.
Books in series: The Way of the Warrior, The Way of the Sword and The Way of the Dragon.
The Way of the Dragon Synopsis
June 1613.
Japan is threatened with war and Jack Fletcher is facing his greatest battle yet.Samurai are taking sides and, as the blood begins to flow, Jack’s warrior training is put to the ultimate test. His survival – and that of his friends – depends upon him mastering the Two Heavens, the secret sword technique of the legendary samurai Masamoto Takeshi.
But first Jack must recover his father’s prize possession from the deadly ninja Dragon Eye. Can Jack defeat his ruthless enemy? Or will the ninja complete his mission to kill the young samurai...
We are happy to offer up a giveaway for Chris' new book! Contest is only open to Canada and the United States. If you are interested just leave a comment on this post. Contest closes February 23, 2011.
I haven't read the other 2, but I agree with you about OF MICE AND MEN. Steinbeck managed to pack a lot of emotion into that little book.
ReplyDeleteCatch 22 is on my list to read this year, but I have read the other two and I couldn't agree with you more!
ReplyDeleteIt is so true about the emotional connection a reader develops with a book/author. That is why we all have those certain books that never leave us because of what they gave to us.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I discovered Chris Bradford's series late last year. I hope this is the correct place to post for the giveaway of his newest book. Thank you for this opportunity!
DaSwee94(at)yahoo(dot)com
So excited, just found out that we won the next book in Chris Bradford's Young Samurai series. We just purchased his first book in the series early this week, so it was meant to be! My husband and I will both be reading this series, we both love Asian culture and history. Then we are going to loan them to our friend's 11 year old son. She is not into reading books, so she has asked us to help foster her son's love of reading and history. We take this as a serious responsibility and really feel this serious will be a good fit.
ReplyDeleteThanks again!
Dawn