The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkein -- Classic Fantasy Annotation

Synopsis –

This is the story of a reluctant hero, Bilbo Baggins.  Bilbo is a hobbit, a type of creature that is about half the size of a human and much hairier, but otherwise is very similar in actions and motivations.  They are a peaceful people, and they are generally content to live out their days at Bag End, and enjoy eating and drinking alcohol.  Bilbo is living such a life when a wizard, Gandalf, comes to visit with a very specific request.  He wants Bilbo to help out with a certain caper that he promises will be an adventure.  He’s to accompany a group of dwarves to get their treasure back from an evil dragon.  He is designated as the one to actually take their property back from the dragon; he’s their “burglar.”  Along the way, Bilbo collects a sword, which he names “Sting,” and a magic ring that he innocently finds lying in a cave, but the owner feels that he stole it and is tormented by the loss of his “precious” ring.  The ring turns the wearer invisible, which enables Bilbo to escape from the caves he is stranded in and catch up with the rest of the group.  Shortly after reconnecting to his group, Bilbo saves them all from giant spiders with the help of his sword and ring.  Soon, they arrive at a human village near Smaug’s lair, and Bilbo takes a cup that was part of the treasure.  The dragon becomes angry and kills innocent people and destroys a human village named Lake Town.  At this point, the humans, elves, dwarves, and one hobbit group together to battle Smaug.  Beorn and the eagles join in, and the Dragon is finally defeated.  The Hobbit is the epitome of Fantasy, which is why I chose it for Classic Fantasy.  Many of the elements that make up the Fantasy designation probably came from Tolkein and his books.

Appeal – Characteristics of Classic Fantasy

Characterization – The protagonists in Fantasy are usually on a “journey of discovery” of some type.  Like Bilbo in The Hobbit, this can be an internal journey or an external journey or both.  For Bilbo, it’s both.  This character also usually has “special gifts or magical powers.”  Bilbo discovers these as he travels on this journey during the course of the novel.  He discovers his own potential, and he discovers the magic ring. (Saricks 272)

Story Line – The story of The Hobbit stands alone but also continues in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  It can be looked at as one long adventure, which is a characteristic of Fantasy, and in the end, good triumphs over evil – even if the reader has to wait until the last book to see that come to light. (Saricks 269)

Frame/Setting – “The presence of magic or enchantment is the element that most clearly distinguishes Fantasy from other genres” (Saricks 266).  The reader immediately encounters this element of Fantasy.  The fact that Hobbits don’t even exist, and right off the bat, a wizard is paying him a visit.  The setting of this Fantasy is a part of the Earth that doesn’t really exist: Middle Earth. There are maps showing it as a continent, but even the continents surrounding it don’t have names that exist in real life.

Read-alikes:

The Chronicles of Narnia – C.S. Lewis

The Harry Potter series – J.K. Rowling

The Sword of Shannara – Terry Brooks

Work Cited

Saricks, Joyce G. The Readers' Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction. 2nd ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 2009. Print.

The Shining by Stephen King -- Horror Annotation

Synopsis:

The Shining is a Stephen King classic that’s getting some new attention in recent weeks because of the release of a sequel, Doctor Sleep, 2014.  The Shining was originally released thirty-seven years ago, but it has been popular ever since.  A film version came out in 1980, directed by Stanley Kubrik, and quickly became a classic in its own right.  As the story goes, a man named Jack Torrence accepts a job as a caretaker of the Overlook Hotel.  The hotel is not used during the snowy months of the winter, so a caretaker is needed to watch over the hotel during these months.  Since no one is able to drive to or from the hotel after the snow comes, the caretaker is stranded for the season.  Jack takes his wife, Wendy, and his son, Danny, with him for the season.  Jack is a recovering alcoholic and has trouble controlling his temper, but he has quit drinking, and things are looking up with this new job.  Danny is described as having some ability to see visions, which seem to be visions of what may be coming.  When they arrive at the hotel, the chef, Dick Holloran, shows them around and recognizes Danny’s ability to see/hear what others are thinking.  He calls it the “shining” and explains to Danny privately that he has it too.  He tells Danny that if he needs help, he should give him a mental message so that he can help.

As the winter goes, things begin to go wrong, as any reader would predict.  Jack is either being tormented by ghosts, or he is slipping into insanity, or both.  The ghosts turn him against his family, and things go horribly wrong.  Horror ensues.  To avoid spoiling the suspense and the remaining story, this would be a good place to stop.

Appeal -- Characteristics of Horror:

Pacing – The Shining has unpredictable scary moments for Jack, Danny, and the reader.  Danny may just be looking at a wall when suddenly he gets the image of blood or dead bodies.  Jack will be going about his business when a ghost will spark up a conversation.  The pacing for these events is erratic; there is no subtle build up like a reader may find in a suspense novel (Sarick 119).

Characterization – Jack Torrence fits the bill for the typical character of the horror novel: “They are usually haunted, shattered individuals or in some way vulnerable; these are people who are out of control.  There are not many happy-go-lucky characters in Horror fiction” (Sarick 118).  Jack is a character that is vulnerable because of his alcoholism, and that is used by the evil spirits/influences to manipulate him.  He is haunted both literally and figuratively by his past and his own relationship with ish father, and he becomes “out of control” as the story goes on.

Story Line – Like most horror novels, The Shining does not follow a traditional or predictable plot line.  This specifically refers to the ending where things are left someone unresolved, unlike romances and mysteries, where the endings are always predictable.  Horror fans understand that they may be left with the horror not being completely eliminated.  The Shining ends with a main character’s death but with some hope for the others.  Horror books leave things unresolved as if the author is planning a sequel, but horror authors don’t traditionally write sequels; that’s a relatively new trend (Shmoop).

Tone/Mood – The atmosphere of the abandoned hotel added to the fact that there is no way out until spring, is one of isolation and terror.  Leaving the building would result in freezing to death.  Staying http://www.shmoop.com/shining-stephen-king/ending.htmlcould result in much more horrific events, also ending in death.  It’s a no-win situation.

Frame/Setting – As stated on p. 115 of Sarick, “… Horror is populated by monsters of some kind, and they are usually supernatural.”  That holds true in The Shining, with the supernatural influence being the prevalence of ghosts and ghostly images throughout.  The book also contains “graphic images” that Sarick includes as an essential element of the frame/setting of a horror story.

Style/Language – The Shining uses profanity and violent descriptions like most horror novels, but not near as prevalent as many.  Horror novels are “rich in adjectives and descriptions” (Sarick 117), and The Shining is no exception.  Even though Stephen King is known for using many contemporary references to pop culture (rock music, for example), this is very limited in The Shining, giving the readers the sense that they are experiencing the world that the characters are living in, which includes frequent flashbacks to the past.

Read-alikes:

Ghost Story – Peter Straub

Interview With the Vampire – Anne Rice

Intensity – Dean Koontz

Works Cited

Sarick, Joyce G. The Readers' Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction. 2nd ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 2009. Print.

Shmoop Editorial Team. "The Shining Ending Page 1." Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 28 June 2014.

Secret Shopper

I wasn’t sure what to expect upon approaching the librarian with this type of request.  For one, I’m not the type to ask for this kind of help; I feel like I would be troubling a librarian who had better things to do.  I never realized that these were things that they were expected to do for the public.  I assumed that they would just point a patron in the right direction.  Through the classes I’ve taken over the last two years, I’ve come to realize much more of what the job entails, of course, and what those expectations are.

I approached the reference desk at one of the many branches of the local library system, asking the only person waiting there whether she could help me find a good book.  Even though I felt a little silly asking for something I could easily figure out myself, she didn’t bat an eye – I’m sure she gets similar questions frequently.  She asked if I had a favorite author.  I told her that for fiction I enjoy reading Dan Brown but that I’ve read all of his books, and for nonfiction, I enjoy reading Wayne Dyer but I’ve also read most of his.  She typed a couple things into her computer, and suggested that I try an author by the name of Daniel Silva.  She said that he is quite similar to Dan Brown and that she has heard that Silva is pretty good.  She typed a couple more things into the computer, and said that I might want to try a writer who is similar to Wayne Dyer by the name of Dan Millman.  She walked me over to the 128-291 sections in the nonfiction area that cover the body, the mind, religions, etc., to give me an idea of where to find his books. 
 

I asked her how long she had been a librarian, and she said that she was not a librarian.  She explained that she was some type of hourly paraprofessional.  She said that they usually have one librarian on duty, and he was in the back at the moment.  I thanked her, and she went back to the desk.  I looked around a little bit and picked Way of the Peaceful Warrior: A Book That Changes Lives by Dan Millman.  Then, I walked over to fiction, looking for Daniel Silva.  After looking at a few different options, I chose The Secret Servant.  I checked them both out; now, I just hope I have time to read them.
 

She didn’t ask many questions at all, but the question she did ask was key, “What authors do you usually enjoy?”  With that information, she was able to get me two books that look pretty interesting.  She obviously used some type of program to find similar authors, but she didn’t share with me what she was doing.  She could have been using some function of the catalog system or something like NoveList or Literature-Map.  I think she did a great job helping me find what I needed in the most efficient way possible.