Nothing: An Articulate Book About Meaning

As mentioned in the previous post, I recently finished reading a 2011 Michael L. Printz Award Honor book (try saying that three times fast), Nothing by Janne Teller. Originally published in Danish, this short novel explores the surprisingly fine line between meaning and nothing. Many critics have called this book The Lord of the Flies of the 21st century. I suppose I can see why it seems so similar to the provocative 20th century book. No, it doesn't tell a story about a group of boys on an adult-less deserted island, but it does have that feeling of being un-realistic realistic fiction. Much, like The Lord of the Flies, it explores life-altering topics and has deep undertones, but also, just like LOTF, it doesn't have much character depth. Which adds to the un-realisic aspect; the events that occur in this book could happen, but the absence of emotion and detail give it a surreal tone.

The book begins with the start of a seventh grade school year in a Danish school. Agnes, the narrator, recalls how one of her fellow classmates, Pierre Anthon, stood up and announced to the class, Nothing matters. I have known that for a long time. So nothing is worth doing. I just realized that. This leads to Pierre Anthon to begin living in a plum tee, shouting about how life means nothing to everyone who passes by. Annoyed by Pierre Anthon's behavior, Agnes and the other seventh graders begin to create a pile of things that have meaning. However, they quickly realize that they enjoy their most meaningful possessions too much to give away. This revelation causes the classmates to decide for each other what to add to the pile of meaning. Each classmate, after being forced to give something up, chooses another person and what they must add to the pile. What begins with a favorite pair of shoes or a beloved pet hamster, quickly turns into other, terrible, horrid things. A coffin with a dead body, a detached finger, and other unspeakable things are forced into the pile of meaning. Ultimately, this book leads to a shocking surprise ending, that leaves you thinking about it long after you have finished reading.

This novel creates many questions in one's mind. In the very end, Agnes reveals, while revisiting her memories from that year, that she doesn't know what the meaning of everything is, just that she knows it has a meaning. Which is the theme of the story; just because you don't know the meaning of something, doesn't mean it's not there.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Tom Sawyer: An American Classic

There's something about a book that has mischievous, adventurous, neighborhood kids, that gets you hooked. I'm not sure what it is, but I know that I really enjoyed The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. Throughout the story, the readers follow the life of twelve-year-old Tom, as he becomes pals with Huckleberry Finn, falls in love with Becky Thatcher, and deals with his family: his aunt Polly, brother Sid, and cousin Mary. Tom is great at persuading people to do things. Whether it's his attitude, personality, or ability to make something so dull, look so pleasing, Tom always seems to get what he wants.

When this book was first published, it was considered to be only a children's book; an adult wouldn't dare read it. However, this book is more than just a tale about kids getting into trouble and cracking jokes. This book has much more meaning. Here's an excerpt from Tom Sawyer's famous fence painting scene:

Tom said to himself that it was not such a hollow world, after all. He had discovered a great law of human action, without knowing it-namely, that in order to make a man or boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain. ...
Work consists of whatever a body is obliged to do, and that Play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do.

-Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

What can we get from this excerpt? The answer: that Mark Twain was an intelligent man, and that Tom Sawyer is no ordinary children's book. How many times have you opened a children's book, and found a quote like that? A quote that challenges how we look at the world, and alters our thoughts.

Thank you Mark Twain for writing such a great book for people of all ages.

Rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars

Silent Spring: A Book That Changed America

I recently had to read a book, Silent Spring by Rachel Carson, for my Science class. When my teacher first gave me the book, I was unsure whether I was going to enjoy it. I was afraid that it would be too boring, because it is a nonfiction book about an insecticide, DDT. And don’t forget it was published in 1962-almost fifty years ago! What I didn’t know was that this book would change my thoughts of nature completely. What I didn’t know was that this book inspired the U.S. government to outlaw the use of DDT, a dangerous insecticide. What I didn’t know was that I would truly enjoy this book.

Silent Spring talks about every organism that was affected by DDT. It talks about the fish in the rivers, bleeding to death, about the birds in the sky, their wings paralyzed leaving them flightless. It talks about cattle, geese, honeybees, dogs, pigs, and the worst, humans. Yes, DDT, an insecticide that’s meant to kill only insects, affects humans, too. DDT had left thousands of humans with nerve damage, blood clots, blurred vision, and kidney and liver failure.

Ten years following the release of Silent Spring, the U.S. Congress banned the use of DDT. Without Rachel Carson’s writing and extensive research, DDT would probably still be used today. Since finishing this book, I have a great respect for Rachel Carson, and a new way of looking at insecticides.

"To a large extent, the physical form and the habits of the earth's vegetation and its animal life have been molded by the environment. Considering the whole span of earthly time, the opposite effect, in which life actually modifies its surroundings, has been relatively slight. Only within the moment of time represented by the present century has one species-man-acquired significant power to alter the nature of his world."

- Rachel Carson, Silent Spring

Rating: 4.2 out of 5 stars