Category Archives: book reviews

Embroideries by Marjane Satrapi

Posted by melydia on September 27, 2010 None comments

Embroideries by Marjane Satrapi: This was my first graphic novel in quite a while. The art style was very simple, like it had been drawn with black Sharpie, yet amazingly expressive. The framework is of a group of women (the author and her relatives) sharing tales of past relationships. Some of them are funny, some are sad, but all are memorable. It’s also a very quick read; I finished it in a single sitting. I’m not sure so sure it needed to be a graphic novel – most of the drawings are just of women’s faces speaking – but it worked well in this format all the same. I’ll be on the lookout for Satrapi’s more famous work, Persepolis.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Time of the Twins by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

Posted by melydia on September 15, 2010 None comments

Time of the Twins (Dragonlance Legends #1) by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman: It’s been years since I read the Chronicles trilogy, but I managed not to stay lost for too much of this book. (I do, however, strongly recommend one reads that trilogy before starting this one.) Basically this is Weis and Hickman accepting that Raistlin is the only truly interesting character in Chronicles and throwing in the second-most interesting, Tasslehoff, for good measure. Raistlin is hungry for power, and believes he can get it by traveling back in time to before the Cataclysm. His twin brother, Caramon, is sent after him, along with religious nut cleric Crysania, who finds herself strangely drawn to Raistlin. Tasslehoff joins them, much to the horror of everyone, because kender are nothing but Trouble. All in all, I rather liked this book. I doubt I would have if I didn’t like Raistlin so much, as I spent most of the book wanting to punch Caramon in the face. As has been noted by many, this is unquestionably written for young adults. If you know that going in, you’ll probably enjoy it more. I look forward to reading the rest of the trilogy.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

The Immortal Ones by John F. Ferrer

Posted by melydia on September 13, 2010 None comments

The Immortal Ones by John F. Ferrer: Derek lives a life of horror-movie fantasies until he meets a girl at a club and those horror movie monsters turn out to be real. Overnight his life is turned upside-down. Though there is a fair bit of action, the love polygon is the backbone of the story. Werewolves love vampires; vampires love humans; humans love werewolves; it’s all just a mess. There are definitely echoes of Twilight here, but with more sex and less angst. The vampire and werewolf mythos are a little different from the traditional as well. Like in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, vampires look like ordinary (though beautiful) humans until they get angry or hungry, at which point their faces “crack” and the fangs come out. Werewolves are pretty much hairy vampires: they also wolf out under stress, live forever, and drink blood. Both species can learn to keep their respective transformations under control. Both have a preference for human blood but can survive on the less tasty blood of animals. Werewolves, however, like vampire blood best of all, and are arguably the only thing (besides the sun) that can kill a vampire. (Whether or not a werewolf can be killed remains to be seen.) The other twists are more subtle: gold (not silver) hurts werewolves, and vampires (but not werewolves) are weakened by wolfsbane. (To be fair, Dracula was kept out by wolfsbane.)

Like many self-published books, this one is in desperate need of a good editor. The author clearly has a basic misunderstanding of punctuation. For most of the story I felt less like I was reading a story than having one described to me. The main characters were all fairly interchangeable in terms of personality, but I did enjoy a couple of the minor walk-ons, like Hank from the jazz club and Emma from the bookstore. I could easily see and hear them in my mind. So would I recommend this particular book? Well, no, but I do see promise in Ferrer. He has good ideas, and proper execution can be taught. I look forward to seeing what he can do with time, training, and a really good editor.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Posted by melydia on September 7, 2010 2 comments

Foundation by Isaac Asimov (unabridged audiobook read by Scott Brick): It is rare that I read a story set so far in the future that Earth is practically a myth. This basically means that you can set up human society to be whatever you wish, without the burdens of the history known by the reader. In this case, the human race has grown into a massive galactic empire. Hari Seldon is a prominent psychohistorian, who uses his studies of the past to predict the future. Specifically, he predicts the collapse of the empire, and claims to be creating a great Encyclopedia Galactica to save all the knowledge of man in order to ease the transition after the fall. Frightened by the idea of civil unrest in response to this foretelling, Seldon and his people are exiled to Terminus, a planet far out on the rim of the galaxy. The rest of the book chronicles the next two centuries or so. Much of it was a little slow, since I’m not much for politics, but I very much enjoyed Mayor Hardin. I have the second book in the trilogy on my shelf, but I’m not sure when I’ll get to it. On the one hand, I’m not in any hurry to return to the universe of Foundation, but on the other, the longer I wait the less I’ll remember about Foundation, which will probably make Foundation and Empire more difficult to follow. Heh.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Ishmael by Daniel Quinn

Posted by melydia on August 31, 2010 None comments

Ishmael by Daniel Quinn: I picked this up because a friend highly recommended it, saying it was one of her favorite books of all time. Basically, the narrator comes across a classified ad in the newspaper advertising a teacher in search of a student with an interest in saving the world. The narrator, who was too young to join the hippie movement but was nonetheless enchanted by their ideals, looks up this teacher out of curiosity. From then on the book is almost entirely their sessions together, learning about the mythology of the “Taker” and “Leaver” cultures, respectively, and how to “save the world”. I alternated between interest in the story and exasperation at the preaching. The ending was too predictable and too convenient, but I’m not sure how else it could have ended. As for the philosophy, well, it certainly wasn’t a life-changing experience for me. I was left with too many questions. Living in harmony with the planet is certainly a worthy endeavor, but never are issues addressed like, for example, travel. Transportation requires a disruption of the natural order: trees and animal habitats must be swept away to lay roads, runways, and rails. Sure, it’s easier to adapt to your surroundings if you never go anywhere, but such isolation also sows xenophobia and superstition. This is not to say we shouldn’t strive to coexist peacefully with the rest of nature, or that it is our right and duty to reshape the world to suit our purposes. Not at all. I just felt that the arguments presented here were incomplete. They also propose that we who have plenty should not aid those suffering from famine and drought. I understand the idea behind it – it will just lead to overpopulation and more famine in the future – but I am not comfortable with the lack of compassion.

All that said, I must give this book high marks for giving me quite a lot to think about. Its insufficient arguments and somewhat ham-fisted narrative style aside, it made me ponder things I’d never even considered in the past. It instilled in me a desire to research the ideas presented in order to form my own opinions on subjects I never knew were up for debate. I certainly recommend it to anyone in search of a thought-provoking read.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Holes by Louis Sachar

Posted by melydia on August 26, 2010 1 comments

Holes by Louis Sachar: Stanley Yelnats is wrongfully convicted of shoe theft and sent to a juvenile detention camp to dig holes in a dry lake bed. Little does he realize, but he is about to be caught up on intertwining stories spanning several generations of his family and friends. Though I figured out how it would end early on, I still had lots of fun getting there. I loved how neatly everything tied together and how realistic most of the characters were, despite their rather silly names, like Armpit and Mr. Sir. I’m not surprised this won so many awards – it does a good job of storytelling without unnecessary conflict or controversy. Thumbs up.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson

Posted by melydia on August 25, 2010 None comments

Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson: I love Moomins. Let me say that up front. They’re sweet and adorable and funny. In this tale, a comet is speeding toward the earth, so Moomintroll and Sniff have to journey to the observatory in the mountains to find out what can be done about it. Along the way they make many friends, and though there is a chronological order to these stories, you don’t need to read them in order. If something’s not explained, it’s probably not important (or purposely mysterious, like the Hattifatteners). The illustrations are darling and I enjoyed every moment of the journey. I love how all the Moomins are so accepting of everyone, no matter how bizarre or unfriendly. One day I hope to read the original comics, but for now I’m plenty happy with the books.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

Posted by melydia on August 24, 2010 1 comments

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry: It’s interesting how many novels about the Nazis are written from the point of view of a child. This is no exception: Annemarie is a 10-year-old girl living in 1943 Copenhagen, which Germany invaded years before. Her best friend Ellen is a Jew, and one day her parents flee to avoid “relocation.” Annemarie’s parents take in Ellen and have her pose as their daughter. There’s quite a bit of tension every time the Nazis show up; I doubt I could have been that calm in the face of such danger at that age. Don’t skip the afterword, which explains what parts of the book were based in fact; a surprising amount of details and twists turn out not to be just clever literary devices. It’s a good glimpse of history, and unlike most books written about this time period, I didn’t cry even once. Which was a nice change.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

Posted by melydia on August 23, 2010 4 comments

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt: Winnie Foster meets the Tucks, a family accidentally made immortal by a strange spring in the forest. I’m always interested in stories about immortality. Many of the common motifs involve the ability to be killed (Highlander, vampires) or stipulate that the immortality is only as long as the individual is rejuvenated with some sort of elixir of life. Here, the Tucks not only don’t age or get sick, they cannot be killed. Drinking from the spring is completely irreversible, and they will be around until the end of time. Which is a pretty scary prospect, if you think about it, and the dilemma is handled well here. The ending is bittersweet and satisfying. Now I want to go find a toad of my own.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Posted by melydia on August 18, 2010 None comments

Looking for Alaska by John Green: Miles is the new kid at Culver Creek boarding school where he meets the alluring, mysterious, and infuriating Alaska Young and instantly falls for her. The story follows his junior year, with each chapter titled “[such-and-such] Days Before.” This is actually a good technique, because it prepares the reader for The Pivotal Event. I actually predicted it during the second chapter, but knowing what was coming did not detract from its impact. And even with the sad bits, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Miles and his friends drink, swear, smoke, have sex, and pull pranks – in other words, they’re real teenagers. I loved them all, but had a bit of a crush on The Colonel. Part of me wishes I’d read this when I was a teenager (though of course it wasn’t written yet), but the rest of me is glad I got to read it at all. I’m so glad a friend of mine recommended Green (read: shoved the book into my hands). I’ll definitely be seeking out his other works. His characters are so funny, likable, and most importantly real that I just don’t want to let them go, and I’m always ready to meet more of them.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

© 2010-2026 kate weber All Rights Reserved -- Copyright notice by Blog Copyright