Getting the Girl

Getting the Girl

by Markus Zusak

★★★★

The final book in the Underdog trilogy shows us Cameron Wolfe’s evolution from boy to man. He’s constantly trying to figure out who he is and where he fits into the world, but he’s never quite sure. He can’t help comparing himself to his brothers, but he also can’t move forward in his life until he lets go of that comparison. He begins to find himself in the words he writes, a passion he doesn’t share with either of his brothers.

I think it’s impossible not to see yourself in relation to your family. How can you separate your evaluation of yourself from the lens that you’ve frown up with? Cameron bases his success or failure in life on how he compares to his two brothers, the magnetic and charming Rube and the steady achiever Steve. They are the constant measuring stick he uses on himself.

Cam desperately wants to find a girl who will love him. He watches his older brother discard one after another and it breaks his heart. He may be tough on the outside, but his sensitive heart can’t stand to see those girls get hurt.

The whole series is written as a raw internal monologue and so we see Cameron only through his own eyes. This book provides the opportunity to see Cam through the eyes of those around him. We see how his brothers and his sister view him and these different perspectives give us a more complete picture of Cam and the journey he has to take to gain self confidence.

BOTTOM LINE: A must for any fans of Zusak’s work. This early work obviously isn’t on the same level as The Book Thief, but it is a powerful coming-of-age story. Cameron’s struggle is so honest and vulnerable; it would be hard for any teen not to relate to his struggle to figure out who he is and who he wants to become.  

“Very quickly, very suddenly, words fell through my mind. They landed on the floor of my thoughts, and in there, down there, I started to pick the words up. They were excerpts of truth gathered from inside me.”

“‘You ever hear a dog cry, Steve? You know, howling so loud, it’s almost unbearable?’ He nodded. ‘I reckon they howl like that because they’re so hungry it hurts, and that’s what I feel in my every day of my life. I’m so hungry to be somethin’ – to be somebody. You hear me?’”

“I pause a moment and thoughts of death climb onto me. They hang from my shoulders and breathe in my face, and I get to thinking about religion and heaven and hell.”

You can find my reviews of the first two books (The Underdog and Fighting Ruben Wolfe) in the Underdog trilogy here at It's All About Books. 

BOTTOM LINE: You can almost watch Zusak’s talent grow as you read this trilogy. It starts with a relatively simple story and transforms into a powerful one somewhere along the way. The seeds of his writing are there in each book, but they don’t come to fruition until the end.

SIDE NOTE: The original books are incredibly hard to find (at least for me) in the states. Then last year all three books were published in as a single omnibus “Underdogs” and now it’s everywhere.

March Classic Meme Question

Do you love Jane Austen or want to “dig her up and beat her over the skull with her own shin-bone”? (Phrase borrowed from Mark Twain).

1. Why? (for either answer)?

2. Favorite and/or least favorite Austen novel?

Yes! I definitely fall in the love category with Austen. Since reading Pride & Prejudice for the first time 10 years ago I have been a big Austen fan. I’ve read all of her novels, most of them multiple times. Her work is so clever and I gain something new every single time I read it. She manages to talk about the social customs of her time in an objective way. She pokes fun at outdated traditions and allows her characters to buck the social norms. She created some of the most memorable characters is all of literature (Mr. Darcy!). She infuses even the most serious of stories with humor. Her work has been loved for centuries. She has inspired so many film versions of her stories, including Clueless, the modern-day version of Emma and the infamous and wonderful BBC version of Pride and Prejudice. 

2) My favorite Austen novel has always been Persuasion. While I adore the others, Persuasion has a maturity that gives the romance much more depth. There is no love at first sight here, instead it’s a love that has weathered time and opposition. It’s about a woman realizing she has to stand up for herself in order to find happiness. It’s about finding the strength to say no to the people who don’t have your best interest at heart. And that letter! Oh my gosh, that’s enough to make it my favorite all by itself.

My least favorite is Mansfield Park. I’m planning to re-read this soon to see if my opinion has changed, but right now it’s definitely my least favorite. The most common complaint about the book is that the heroine is just too good. It’s hard to relate to someone who seems to have no faults. Also, I never really felt the spark between the heroine and the man she ends up with (don’t worry, no spoilers).

Image from here Classics Club here. 

Vanity Fair Readalong: Mid-way Point

We’ve made it to the halfway point! I know it’s been a struggle for some, but I hope the story has hooked you by now. Everybody can check in at Trish’s official post here.

Here are a few of my thoughts so far, there will be spoiler for the first half of the book, but nothing after the 34th chapter.

There are a ton of tedious details, but the plot has definitely made it worth while for me. I can’t believe how much Becky Sharp reminds me of Scarlett from Gone with the Wind. Mabel noted on twitter that Gone with the Wind was written before the author read Vanity Fair. If that’s true the similarities are truly amazing! 

Becky Sharp and Amelia Sedley have a very Scarlett / Melanie relationship, though I think I like GWTW's Melanie more than Amelia, she's a stronger person. Both women were certainly shaped by what they expected from the world. Becky had no one, so she became sneaky and manipulative. Her ambition made her cold to others. Amelia on the other hand grew up being loved and was promised to a man from childhood. She expected to be loved and cared for and when her father went bankrupt much of that went out the window.

I'm excited to find out the eventual fate for both characters.

Here are a few scenes that really stand out in my memory:

- That opening scene, where Amelia and Becky are leaving Miss Pinkerton's Academy for Young Ladies and Becky chucks the book out the window. I laughed so hard. In one quick motion she made it clear that she needs no one’s pity. What a spunky character! We get such a good idea of who she is with that brief introduction.

- The aftermath of Joseph Sedley’s drunken declaration of love for Becky. It showed us Joseph’s cowardice and how easily he was to manipulate. It also showed us that Captain George Osborne was an absolute snob at heart. It actually reminded me a tiny bit of Mr. Darcy’s actions with Bingley.

- When Becky turns down baronet Sir Pitt Crawley’s proposal and we find out she’s secretly married to his son, Rawdon Crawley! What!!! Becky was working as a governess for him and all of a sudden there’s this amazing opportunity for wealth and status, everything she wants… but she’s already married!

- George Osborne standing up for Amelia in front of his father and sisters. For a second we think he might be a good guy, then he marries her and quickly looses interest. He married her more out of a momentary rebellion than out of love. Then he and Becky begin their flirtation and he truly hurts Amelia.

- We learn that George Osborne died during the Battle of Waterloo and Amelia and Becky are both stuck in Brussels as the panic begins to spread.

- When Amelia confronted Becky for trying to steal her husband and ruin their marriage. Becky tried to act all sweet and innocent, but she’s not fooling anyone!

- Poor William Dobbin, he’s such a sweet character! He does whatever he thinks might make Amelia happy though she doesn’t realize it. I think that man deserves some happiness.

So onward into the second half of the book. I’m hoping Dobbin gets some love and Becky gets her just desserts. Keep reading everybody and come back here on March 15th to share your final thoughts on the book!