Amanda has
1585 books
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| # | cover | title | author | isbn | isbn13 | asin | num pages | avg rating | num ratings | date pub | date pub (ed.) | rating | my rating | review | notes | recommender | comments | votes | read count | date started | date read |
date
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date purchased | owned | purchase location | condition | format | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1616550252
| 9781616550257
| 4.12
| 109
| Feb 13, 2013
| Feb 13, 2013
|
A petite, albino girl with haunting red eyes and cornsilk hair, Dancy Flammarion seems fragile and ethereal. She's certainly the last person one would...more
A petite, albino girl with haunting red eyes and cornsilk hair, Dancy Flammarion seems fragile and ethereal. She's certainly the last person one would expect to be a demon slaying bad ass, but where Dancy goes hell is sure to follow. I had never heard of Dancy Flammarion before I picked up this title by Dark Horse comics. Dancy is a modern day Joan of Arc, chosen by a fearsome seraph as a divine tool for annihilating whatever lurks in the shadows. And this angel didn't fall out of some Nativity scene--with four grimacing faces, batlike wings, and a flaming sword, this angel will not be rendered into a Hallmark figurine anytime soon. Dancy goes where and does what the angel tells her, but not without a little pushback as Dancy is certainly no shrinking violet. It's her tendency to rebel that causes her angel to abandon Dancy just when she needs it the most. Now Dancy's only allies are a talking blackbird, the ghost of a werewolf, and her trusty kitchen knife. This is a clever storyline as one is never really certain if Dancy is a religious zealot, seeing and believing in what is necessary to unapologetically hack and slash her way through the American South, or is she honestly chosen as heaven's lone soldier? Dancy herself is cognizant of this conundrum, wondering if she's crazy or perhaps the sanest person on earth. The answers in the end aren't simple and, while I can't say much for fear of giving anything away, create a challenging and complex character that is more intriguing by the final issue than she was in the first. My one complaint is that Dark Horse has chosen to continue Dancy's story, but only as part of the Dark Horse Presents anthology, a title I'm not particularly interested in following. Until Dancy returns in her own title, I think I'll check out Kiernan's Dancy novels for more of my favorite kitchen knife-wielding demon slayer. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| not set
| Jan 21, 2013
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Jan 21, 2013
| Hardcover
| |||||||||||||||
| 4.33
| 6,750
| Mar 14, 2012
| 2012
|
How to describe Saga? It's like someone took Firefly, coated it liberally in WTF, and sprinkled a little Quentin Tarantino on top. Yeah, it's some won...more
How to describe Saga? It's like someone took Firefly, coated it liberally in WTF, and sprinkled a little Quentin Tarantino on top. Yeah, it's some wonderfully messed up stuff. The planet Landfall is at war with one of its moons, known as Wreath. The indigenous people of Landfall seem reliant on technology and sport some nifty little insect-like wings, while the people of Wreath have horns (they may be my favorites, as each character in the later issues have horns varying from rhino, to antelope, to ox) and are adept at magic. The war between these cultures has become an accepted part of life, the hatred of the enemy deeply ingrained in both species. Now enter Marko and Alana, from Wreath and Landfall, respectively, who are ex-soldiers in this war. Defying their cultures, they have fallen in love and their newborn child, Hazel, has marked them for termination by basically everyone in the universe. Both have known violence and are adept at using it to protect each other and Hazel. On the run from the numerous assassins tracking them, they banter away like a married couple and slowly reveal the history that brought them to this juncture. And now for a convenient list of the absurdities that await the Saga reader, so you can gauge whether or not the "WTF" element is acceptable to you: --a planet known as Sextillion that specializes in, you guessed it, sex --prostitutes that consist of giant heads teetering on top of Rockette style legs --a forest that actually grows rocketships --a race of robots that have television screens for heads --graphic sex scene featuring the aforementioned robots --a topless assassin with the torso of a human (sans arms) and spider from the waist down --the ghost of a teenage girl who must have suffered a gruesome death as she's nothing but hanging intestines from the waist down; naturally, she tags along as Hazel's "babysitter" --and LYING CAT, my new favorite comic book character is a giant feline sidekick to The Will, one of the assassins contacted about offing Marko and Alana; Lying Cat can detect whether or not others are engaging in a bit of creative truth telling While the base storyline is one we've read before, the execution is unlike anything I've ever read. Vaughan gleefully injects new and intriguing absurdities into the premise and it's really difficult to get a fix on where this sucker is going--but that's part of the great thing. The ride is so much fun that I really don't care. The artwork by Fiona Staples has a raw and edgy quality that suits the storyline perfectly. I've been getting the monthly issues, which have the added benefit of a letters section in which Vaughan responds to reader letters. The results are often hilarious and I find myself looking forward to this section with the same anticipation I look forward to the storyline. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| not set
| Jul 2012
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Jul 21, 2012
| Paperback
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| 1401229735
| 9781401229733
| 3.80
| 86
| May 31, 2011
| May 31, 2011
|
I had never heard of DV8, which apparently had a series run before this stand-alone storyline was released. And chances are I would never have stumble...more
I had never heard of DV8, which apparently had a series run before this stand-alone storyline was released. And chances are I would never have stumbled across it if it weren't for my local comic book guru, Dave, picking it up and saying, "Here, Amanda. You're going to love this." Yet another reason to support your local comic book store--it certainly beats the shit out of a generic and often bizarrely inaccurate "Amazon Recommends" suggestion. But I digress. DV8 is about a group of genetically advanced superhumans. "But, wait, isn't this just an X-Men rip-off?" you might be tempted to query. Sure, the surface similarities are there, but DV8's team of misfits is just that--misfits. Wood isn't afraid to take them to some dark and twisted places that make the X-Men look like a bunch of goody two-shoes. And I'm not hating on the X-Men because I do so love them. The difference here is that X-Men have moral dilemmas, but you know they'll always end up on the right side. With the DV8 group, you never really know what they'll do. It's basically what you would realistically expect if people were given superpowers. Most of us spend our entire lives gaining control of our own impulses, desires, and personalities. Now complicate that by giving us powers that set us apart from "mere mortals" and you can see where it doesn't take long to find oneself in some morally grey areas. In DV8, the team (Powerhaus, Evo, Copycat, Bliss, Sublime, Frostbite, Threshold, and Freestyle) are teleported to a planet where primitive tribes fight one another for control. Having seen the DV8s fall from the sky, the indigenous people believe the gods have fallen to earth. When they witness the powers possessed by each, it only bolsters this superstitious belief. The team has no idea why they're here, but assume there must be a purpose as they've each been equipped with a voice chip that acts as a translator between them and the natives. It's not long until the group splinters along tribal lines, driven by their own issues to either help the people that worship them or abuse their power as "gods" to the point they become monsters. Each chapter follows a single member of the team and his or her specific relationship to the tribe he or she has adopted--and the war that looms in the shadow of their collective egos. While the ultimate reason for why the team was sent to the planet was a little bit of a letdown, I enjoyed these characters and the artwork so much that I just didn't care. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| not set
| May 23, 2012
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May 06, 2012
| Paperback
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| 1401229743
| 9781401229740
| 3.99
| 6,906
| May 2010
| Oct 11, 2011
|
I've always loved vampire narratives, but these days I feel as though I have to make that statement with a "but not those sparkly Meyers' bullshit vam...more
I've always loved vampire narratives, but these days I feel as though I have to make that statement with a "but not those sparkly Meyers' bullshit vamps" disclaimer because the term "vampire" now requires two definitions: 1) glittering and eternal boy band wannabe who tries to protect naive (and horny!) young women from the monster he's become while slurping up woodland critters like they're Hi-C fruit boxes, and 2) vampires who seduce and cruelly toy with their prey before ripping open a jugular and letting someone else worry about the clean up. When it comes to vampires, I'm more of a "Team Kill" than "Team Brood." I tell you all of this to say that I really enjoyed American Vampire, which returns vampires to their more horrific origins: the single-minded drive of a predator coupled with human intelligence. Nothing is more terrifying. The story is actually two intertwined narratives: the story of Skinner Sweet, a ruthless outlaw in the twilight of the Old West, and Polly, a Hollywood extra in the 1920's. Until Skinner is accidentally turned, vampires in America consist of Old World European vampires who have come to the United States to feed on the economic boom, as well as the unsuspecting populace. With Skinner's creation, a new kind of vampire is brought into being: one who can walk during the day and who is not susceptible to the weaknesses of the generation that came before him. It turns out that, with each new vampiric creation, a new and unpredictable strain of vampirism comes into being. Therefore, the European vampires jealously guard their "gift" lest they create a breed that can eventually overthrow them. This plot twist promises for rich and varied narratives as we follow these vampires into future storylines; Skinner creates Polly, a vampire whose powers mimic Skinner's but may ultimately eclipse his. Of the two storylines, I preferred the Stephen King narrative about Skinner Sweet, but I'm a sucker for the Old West. However, it was a close call as Snyder's tale is equally intriguing and Polly is definitely one badass mamma-jamma. While not quite as violent as I expected, Snyder and King have definitely given a tired genre a new life with plenty of subtext about American innovation versus European traditionalism. So keep the anemic Edwards of young adult narratives. From now on, I'll take my vampires like I take my tea--Sweet, please. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| not set
| Mar 19, 2012
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Feb 07, 2012
| Paperback
| |||||||||||||||
| 9781401230xxx
| 4.10
| 3,187
| Oct 2010
| May 31, 2011
|
I had suspected this before, but volume 2 in the American Vampire storyline confirms what has now become an inalienable truth: Scott Snyder is a bad a...more
I had suspected this before, but volume 2 in the American Vampire storyline confirms what has now become an inalienable truth: Scott Snyder is a bad ass. And so are his vampires. In volume 1, we were introduced to Skinner Sweet, the first American Vampire whose creation was an accident and proved to be a blow to the old school European vampires as Sweet is faster, stronger, and unlike any breed of vampire that came before. Clearly, there's some symbolism here about America rising out of the outmoded aristocratic societies from which its populace immigrated to become a superpower, but who cares because there are VAMPIRES who are KILLING people and ENJOYING it without turning into emo-esque tortured souls after the blood spatters have hit the wall. Volume 2 continues the story of many of the characters introduced in the first volume, but the setting is approximately a decade later (this is one of my favorite aspects of this series, the way it's not afraid to jump forward in time and explore its characters as America continues to work its way through its adolescence as a nation). The first storyline follows Las Vegas police chief Cashel McCogan as he investigates a series of murders that occur during the building of the Hoover Dam. Cashel is shocked to find out that his city harbors more than the mortal vices of gambling, drinking, and prostitution when he discovers that Sin City has more monsters hiding in its shadows than in its bright lights. The second storyline focuses on Pearl, the vampire created by Skinner Sweet in volume 1, as she tries to create an idyllic life with her human husband, Henry, and avoid the past that she knows is tracking her down. These stories continue to develop the characters of Sweet and Pearl, as well as Felicia and Abilena Book who have become vampire hunters intent on making Sweet pay for turning Jim Book. I continue to love the idea of various types of vampires (like the Gaelic Prime), each of which must be killed in a different fashion, and how the American breed proves particularly difficult to kill as no one--man or vampire--has discovered its unique weaknesses. There are also some nice plot twists (with a chilling end to the first storyline of Cashel McCogan) and questions that still have yet to be answered (such as what exactly is Felicia Book, the naturally born child of Abilena and the infected Jim Book). I suppose it's on to volume 3 to find out.(less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| Jun 18, 2012
| Jun 18, 2012
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Feb 07, 2012
| Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||||
| 1401233333
| 9781401233334
| 4.21
| 1,643
| Apr 2011
| Feb 07, 2012
|
I can distill my review of why volume 3 of American Vampire is my favorite in the series down to two words: Nazi vampires. Seriously, does anything el...more I can distill my review of why volume 3 of American Vampire is my favorite in the series down to two words: Nazi vampires. Seriously, does anything else need to be said? Probably not, but just try to shut up my enthusiasm for Snyder's series. In volume 3, we follow our American vampires and those who love to try and stake 'em into World War II. In the first storyline, Pearl's husband, Henry, is enlisted by the Vassals of the Morning Star (a society of vampire hunters who have made an uneasy pact to keep Pearl and Henry safe) to join a team being sent to the island of Taipan to wipe out an indigenous vampire. When they arrive, they find a vampire unlike any they've ever seen: these vampires retain nothing of their former humanity, can turn a human in a matter of minutes, and are particularly vicious. To complicate matters, the first American vampire, Skinner Sweet, jealous of Henry's relationship with Pearl, sneaks aboard with the intention of killing Henry. In the second storyline (which is by far my favorite), Felicia Book and Cash McCogan are sent to a remote European castle to track down a rumored cure for vampirism. What they find instead is a Nazi plan to utilize vampires as the ultimate killing machines. Felicia Book is a particularly interesting character. The daughter of a vampire and a human, Felicia has a huge chip on her shoulder as she has been raised to avenge the death of her father. She's one bad ass mamma-jamma and Snyder hasn't clearly addressed exactly what genetic side effects she may have from her supernatural parent. It will be interesting to see how she continues to develop as a character. The vampire mythology continues to be the most intriguing part of the story. So many vampire types, developing over the centuries and in varying geographical areas, have led to distinct species with particular strengths and weaknesses. The introduction of the towering ancient vampires hidden beneath the Nazi stronghold is one that I hope gets more focus in future storylines. (less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| Jun 18, 2012
| Jul 04, 2012
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Feb 07, 2012
| Hardcover
| |||||||||||||||
| 0785137297
| 9780785137290
| 3.81
| 67
| May 06, 2009
| May 06, 2009
|
Oh, hell, yes! This is just what I was looking for. Gambit is my favorite X-Men character, mainly because I like a good anti-hero. Keep your Captain A...more
Oh, hell, yes! This is just what I was looking for. Gambit is my favorite X-Men character, mainly because I like a good anti-hero. Keep your Captain America and Superman--I like a character whose morality you can't really get a bead on. Also, his Cajun heritage and life in New Orleans make for an intriguing background. The first story in the graphic novel is the comic run that introduces us to Gambit, when he steps in to save Ororo, the X-Men's Storm, who has physically and mentally regressed to her pre-teen self. Her memory of the X-Men has been obliterated as her life as a thief in Cairo, Illinois, parallels her earlier life as a thief in Egypt. Storm and Gambit unknowingly plan a heist on the same mansion, not knowing of the other's existence, and certainly not knowing that it's a trap set up by the Shadow King to catch Storm. Gambit helps Storm escape and a bond between thieves is born. This storyline is interesting, but it can be confusing for those unfamiliar with the story about Storm's regression and frustrating for those who want more resolution as it simply ends where Gambit's importance to the narrative concludes. The second storyline is the more traditional Gambit narrative, set against the backdrop of New Orleans and the Assassins' Guild and the Thieves' Guild, as Gambit, who has now joined the X-Men, returns to the Big Easy when he learns his wife, the Assassin Bella Donna, is not dead, but lies comatose in her father's mansion. Prior to this, Gambit has struck up a flirtation with Rogue, whose powers prevent any physical connection between the two. Gambit is now torn between the life and love he had in New Orleans before his banishment and the new life he has with the X-Men and the prospect of a a relationship with Rogue. This is definitely the superior story in the collection as it takes the time to focus on Gambit's background as Remy LeBeau and develops his character's Louisiana roots beyond the occasional dash of French phrasing and dialect. The star-crossed love of Gambit and Rogue is also made more poignant by Rogue stealing Bella Donna's memories as a means of having the physical intimacy she longs for with Gambit but is constantly denied. Rather than comforting Rogue, it makes her desire for Gambit all the more tragic. For those already familiar with Gambit's background, this is an excellent collection. For those not as well-acquainted, it could potentially be a confusing start, but I think ultimately rewarding as long as you don't expect too much resolution from the first storyline.(less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| Dec 23, 2011
| Dec 24, 2011
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Dec 23, 2011
| Paperback
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| 1593156596
| 9781593156596
| 4.03
| 944
| May 2011
| May 24, 2011
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In Think, Lisa Bloom asserts that society has succumbed to our narcissistic, self-indulgent, consumer driven culture. Women today are smart and have m...more
In Think, Lisa Bloom asserts that society has succumbed to our narcissistic, self-indulgent, consumer driven culture. Women today are smart and have more options available to them than ever before, yet what are most of them doing? Applying for The Bachelor, wondering what the hell is going on with Kim Kardashian's marriage or divorce or whatever it is at this point, considering a plethora of cosmetic procedures, and reading online gossip blogs (if they're reading at all). What are they not doing? Using their intellect and first world education to address serious problems, like poverty, hunger, and the repression of women in countries far less fortunate than ours. In other words, they're not thinking. Amen, amen, amen! Obviously, Lisa Bloom is preaching to the choir here and I'm probably not her target audience, but it is certainly nice to feel some affirmation for the intellectual and educational choices I make on a daily basis since they do go against the norm. For example, most women would rather lose their ability to read than their figure (oh, hell no!) or win America's Next Top Model than win the Nobel Peace Prize (my heart weeps). I'm not necessarily giving Think a 5 star based upon its writing style (although it is accessible and often funny) and there are some points that ever-so-slightly rubbed me the wrong way. For example, Bloom asserts that cleaning is not a woman's job (no complaint from me here) and we should simply outsource it to someone else so we have time to read and think. We should also have our children pitch in and do their part. These are not concepts with which I disagree, but they are easier said than done. Many women can't afford to hire a maid (even on a bimonthly basis) and even the most cooperative of teenagers will pitch a hissy fit upon occasion when asked do their part, yet Bloom makes it sound so effortless. However, I am giving it a 5 star because anyone who advocates the need to read and asserts that it's valuable and worthy of our time is someone with a message that today's culture needs to hear. Don't believe me? Check out the NEA statistics from the 2007 To Read or Not to Read report (also quoted in Bloom's book): --80% of American families did not read or buy a book last year --70% of adults have not been to a bookstore in the last 5 years --1/3 of high school graduates never read another book after graduation I've read several reviews that scoff at Bloom taking the time to talk about how to make time for reading books, how to choose books, and how to savor books, as though this is "duh" information and unnecessary. Based upon these statistics, I would argue that such information is urgently needed. I teach in a high school classroom and, when my students come to me, most of them are not readers. They don't know how to make time for reading or even how to pick out a book. Reading is not valued in their households. They don't ask for books for birthdays or Christmas. Their parents don't read. There are too many electronic diversions in their lives. I'm proud to say that, by the time they leave my classroom, most of them are readers. Why? Because I've taught them the simple things: how to create and value quiet time for reading, how to choose good books, and how to reflect upon their responses to literature. That's right--I'm bragging, and I should. Because there's nothing more valuable to leading a productive, happy life than reading. And it's a skill that has to be consistently taught and modeled--and that's what Bloom is doing in those chapters. Sure, if you're reading this review, you may not need it as you've obviously bought into a love of reading if you're on a social media site dedicated to it, but I'm willing to bet you know people who probably do. And Think is for them. I, for one, plan on pushing this book like crack-cocaine to the people in my life who need it--especially teenage girls in my classroom. Whether you agree or disagree with Bloom's liberal views, just the advocacy for thinking is worthy of the time it takes to read the book. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| Nov 17, 2011
| Nov 21, 2011
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Aug 12, 2011
| Hardcover
| |||||||||||||||
| 0307269981
| 9780307269980
| 4.17
| 320,827
| 2006
| Jul 28, 2009
|
If loving the Millennium books is wrong, baby, I don't want to be right. In scanning through the other reviews, I have to concur with many of the probl...more If loving the Millennium books is wrong, baby, I don't want to be right. In scanning through the other reviews, I have to concur with many of the problems mentioned: superfluous detail (specific IKEA furniture is mentioned several times--as if I know what any of it looks like just because I have the model number provided, sandwiches are made, coffee is brewed, Billy's Pan Pizzas are consumed); there's a real dearth of poetic or stylized language; there's a cast of hundreds (maybe not quite, but it can certainly feel like it); people whose physical injuries should kill them miraculously survive; there's suspense build-up that has all the subtlety of dramatic chipmunk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1Y73s.... And you know what? Don't care. Don't give a shit. Because all I ask of genre literature is that it tell a helluva good story and Larsson, for all of his sins against the church of high literature, can tell a helluva story. Because a book like this relies so much on plot, here's the basic summary without any spoilers: Lisbeth Salander returns to Sweden after months of living abroad on the billions she stole from Wennerstrom; Mikael Blomkvist is now a media celebrity, though he continues to doggedly search for Salander; Millennium plans to publish a book on the Swedish sex trade (and they plan to name names of police officers and politicians who are involved, as well as bring charges against them upon the date of publication); both Salander and the author of the book become obsessed (for very different reasons) with finding a man named Zala; IKEA's 2010 spring catalog is described in detail; Salander is accused of a double murder and has to go into hiding; Blomkvist doggedly attempts to prove an uncooperative Salander innocent. Of course all of these plot threads, as well as many others, are brought together in the end. What makes this novel really work is the character of Lisbeth Salander. In The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Salander is established as a bad ass you do not want to tangle with. In the movies, we have become accustomed to our female action characters as being towering Amazons with pouty lips, glamorous wardrobes, and double D's spilling out of Victoria's Secret push-up bras. The irony of strong women in film (and many books) is that they have to be model beautiful and highly sexualized femme fatales that are desired by fanboys everywhere. And in Lisbeth Salander, Larsson has created the antithesis to all of that hyper-feminine-but-I'll-kick-your-ass-and-look-good-doing-it bullshit. Salander is not tall, she is not glamorous, she is not beautiful. She's described by others as looking like a rag doll or a teenage boy. She's the last person you would expect to hand you your ass on a silver platter. But if you cross her, you can expect things in your life to go very wrong very quickly. The other genius thing Larsson has done with Salander in this novel is that she's beginning to evolve. Using her unexpected wealth, Salander has traveled the world and learned more about herself. She's begun to question her previous lifestyle and has realized that she has few true friends--and that it's her fault. Being anti-social and emotionally closed off has always been a defense mechanism for her, but it's beginning to dawn on her that the price she has paid for keeping her guard up may be too high. For the first time in her life, she has the opportunity to live a different life, but she's not quite sure how to go about it. There's an unexpectedly poignant scene in which Blomkvist looks around Salander's mansion-sized apartment and finds that she is only living out of 3 of the 21 rooms. He notes that, despite all of the new furniture, her home is soulless and completely devoid of mementos, photographs, or anything personal; it's as if she's uncertain how to make this a home and the loneliness of her life is evident. Despite this, she certainly hasn't lost her edge and she still lives a life of stringent moral standards, punishing her enemies without mercy and basically ignoring her friends. I also appreciate that Larsson does not set her up as someone who should be emulated (when Blomkvist blames Salander's mental state on her past, Holger Palmgren tells him, "I hope you understand that there really is something wrong with Lisbeth . . . Her problems go way beyond problems she had at home"). To me, Salander is a tragic figure. Sure she's MENSA-level intelligent, has a photographic memory, the ability to kick ass and take names, but who would want to be her? We also learn much more about her troubled background in this novel, which further explains some components of her behavior. As for the central mystery of the novel, I didn't find it as compelling as that of Tattoo and there's a twist at the ending worthy of a soap opera reveal, but I still enjoyed the ride enough that I've already ordered my copy of The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder (less) | Notes are private!
| none
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1
| not set
| Jun 19, 2011
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Jun 21, 2011
| Hardcover
| |||||||||||||||
| 0525952179
| 9780525952176
| 3.48
| 467
| 2011
| May 12, 2011
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Despite the fact that it combines two of my favorite obsessions--vampires and Ancient Rome/Egypt circa the lifetime of Cleopatra--I almost didn't read...more
Despite the fact that it combines two of my favorite obsessions--vampires and Ancient Rome/Egypt circa the lifetime of Cleopatra--I almost didn't read this book. I was leery that it was going to be a bodice-ripper in disguise (nothing triggers my gag reflex like the words "paranormal romance") or, worse yet, a poorly written, poorly researched historical novel with just a dash of fantasy so it could jump on the increasingly burdened Twilight bandwagon. After weeks of circling it like a vulture over highway road kill, what finally caused me to click the "Add to Cart" button on Amazon was seeing that it had Neil Gaiman's seal of approval. I live by the "WWNGR" code (What Would Neil Gaiman Read?) and so it was done. I'm pleased to say that the book exceeded my expectations and avoided all of the pitfalls I feared. In Queen of Kings, Headley has taken a unique approach to reimagining the death of Cleopatra and I was surprised to find that this isn't exactly a vampire novel and it certainly isn't a rip-off of Anne Rice's Queen of the Damned. After losing the Battle of Actium, Cleopatra becomes desperate to stop Octavius' impending conquest of Egypt. She commands her scholars to search for a solution in the form of divine intervention. What they bring her is an incomplete spell that will allow the pharaoh to call upon the gods of Ancient Egypt. As the forces of Octavius invade Egypt and a dying Mark Antony is brought to Cleopatra, she uses the spell to call upon Sekhmet, a vengeful goddess of warfare also known as the Lady of Slaughter. Sekhmet, angry over Egypt's worship of new deities as well as Ra's banishment of her, takes over the body of Cleopatra in return for bringing Mark Antony back to life. Things go awry, Mark Antony still ends up dead, and Cleopatra is now a servant to Sekhmet's bloodlust. Now immortal and possessing the powers of a goddess, Cleopatra has all of the weapons needed to wreak havoc on Rome and punish Octavius. However, she struggles to maintain her humanity as the goddess within her begins to crowd out the woman she was. The first part of the novel skillfully weaves together historical detail with parts of the vampire mythos (the reasons for why Cleopatra craves blood, can't withstand the light of the sun, is pained by exposure to silver are all cleverly tied to Egyptian mythology). After that point, the novel becomes increasingly fantasy based but still manages to bring events back to historical correctness. As Octavius begins to fear Cleopatra's vengeance, he surrounds himself with sorcerers: an African tribesman with a gift for controlling serpents and the wind, a Norse seer with the ability to reweave fate, and a high priestess of Hecate who plans to harness the power of Cleopatra/Sekhmet to free Hecate from her imprisonment in Hades. All of these characters bring a fascinating array of possibilities to the story and, through them, Mark Antony's ghost is resurrected, gods and goddesses are called upon, and we are taken through Hades. There are flaws in the novel. Another reviewer said that there's not enough violence given the elements at play here and I agree; Cleopatra often talks a lot of smack about punishing her enemies in cruel and horrible ways consistent with Sekhmet, but, to quote Shakespeare's Antony, she never truly cries "Havoc! And let slip the dogs of war that this foul deed shall smell above the earth with carrion men, groaning for burial." There is violence, but it's watered down and certainly not of the kind one would expect as being the right of ancient gods and goddesses, emperors and pharaohs. Also, it seems as though Headley doesn't want Cleopatra to come across as a villain or a monster, highlighting her true love for Antony, her children, and her country. While I respect the attempt to show Cleopatra's humanity, there's little in this character to suggest the kind of ruthless intelligence she was capable of or her hubris as a goddess on earth. It would have been nice to see Cleopatra given more of an edge--she and Sekhmet probably had more in common than is shown here. In the end, the novel is a fun take on historical events that are as likely fictionalized as the novel itself. The first part of a planned trilogy, I'm definitely looking forward to the next novel. I hope I'm not wrong when I say it seems as though perhaps Headley has set the novel up to move out of the ancient period and into more modern times--perhaps a vampiric Cleopatra causing mayhem in 2011? I'm definitely game for that. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
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| Jul 24, 2011
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May 30, 2011
| Hardcover
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| 1400068045
| 9781400068043
| 3.95
| 4,516
| Jan 01, 2011
| May 03, 2011
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A youth in the South. An education in the North. Bred for life in the East. Trying not to die in the West. This synopsis of the life of John Henry "Doc...more A youth in the South. An education in the North. Bred for life in the East. Trying not to die in the West. This synopsis of the life of John Henry "Doc" Holliday is elegant in its simplicity and perhaps holds more truth about his life than the hundreds of thousands of words that have been written about him. I will confess that my earliest exposure to Doc Holliday was Val Kilmer's excellent portrayal in Tombstone. I have probably watched that movie in its entirety no less than 15 times; however, I've always known that, as is true with so much history, it's a super-charged, testosterone fueled, balls out version of events that plays up the romanticism of the Old West and made giants of common men in uncommon circumstances. Unlike so many movies and books about him, Doc by Mary Doria Russell is not interested in perpetuating the reputation of Doc Holliday as a cold-blooded killer and a ruthless gambler, but instead focuses on trying to restore humanity to a man whose world was broken by war and sickness and shaped by the luck of the draw. Doc is not a biography, but instead a fictional account of Doc's life from birth up through his years in Dodge City, where Russell imagines the circumstances that would cement his friendship with the Earp brothers. Using the framework of Wyatt and Doc's friendship with the fictional John Horse Sanders and the mysterious circumstances of his death, Russell explores the lives of John Henry Holliday, dentist by day, gambler by night; his tempestuous and fiercely intelligent companion, Kate Harony; a reticent and doggedly honest Wyatt Earp; Mattie Blaylock, already ruined and addicted to laudanum when she enters Wyatt's life; the friendly and intelligent Morgan Earp; the vain Bat Masterson. In doing so, she brings the society of Dodge City to life and vividly paints a portrayal of a town at the edge of the American frontier where the law had no finer points other than "Don't shoot the customers." Lawmen like Wyatt Earp were expected to do little more than keep the drovers who came to Dodge at the end of a cattle drive from killing each other before they could spend the season's wages on whores, alcohol, and gambling. While Dodge prospered, there was a ruthless, mean edge to its economic principles. Born to Georgian aristocracy, classically educated, trained as a dentist, raised for the life of a gentleman, and already diagnosed with tuberculosis, a town like Dodge should have consumed a man like Doc Holliday who seemed so ill-suited to a rough-and-tumble lifestyle. Instead, Doc's recognition of life as the ultimate gamble ("Bein' born is craps . . . How we live is poker") served well in equipping him with the ability to make the most of a poor hand. Suffering from a cleft palate that his uncle repaired once the baby became healthy enough, Doc had been born struggling to cling to whatever life chance would allow. This resilience, along with a sharp tongue and an intellectual's curiosity, helped sustain him during his exile West and enabled him to make a family of friends to substitute the one he longed for back East. Russell also reminds us of the Doc Holliday that existed beneath the swagger and bravado--a man, little more than a boy, who knew he walked in death's shadow, but was determined not to allow death to claim its prize too soon. The pain of Doc's circumstances, especially in a town where young men treated life so carelessly as they courted danger, is evident: "Certain that if he were to move at all--even slightly, even to speak--everything human in him would be lost to blind, bestial, ungovernable rage, John Henry Holiday sat silently while in the coldest, most analytical part of him, he thought, If I go mad one day, it will be at a moment like this. I will put a bullet through the lung of some healthy young idiot just to watch him suffocate. There you are, I'll tell him. That's what it's like to know your last breath is in your past. You won't ever get enough air again. From this moment until you die, it will only get worse and worse." Doc is not a fast-paced book, but it is a beautiful one. Often funny, philosophical, and gritty, it honors the men and women at its core and removes them from the lofty heights of myth and returns them where they belong--firmly on the earth they walked not as titans, but as mortals. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder and at Shelf Inflicted (less) | Notes are private!
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| Jul 09, 2012
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May 06, 2011
| Hardcover
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| 0151014434
| 9780151014439
| 3.61
| 604
| 2010
| Oct 21, 2010
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This was an impulse buy at Barnes and Noble. I ignored the book at first in favor of looking at the books around it, but then I caught the words “Tim...more
This was an impulse buy at Barnes and Noble. I ignored the book at first in favor of looking at the books around it, but then I caught the words “Tim O’Brien” during a cursory glance at a book blurb on the cover. One of my rules in life is to pick up anything with Tim O’Brien’s name on it and buy it immediately, no questions asked. To date, this rule has served me well and The Wake of Forgiveness by Bruce Machart is no exception. Set in Texas at the dawn of the 20th century, the novel focuses on the Skala family, which consists of an immigrant father and his four motherless sons. Vaclav’s wife, Klara, dies while giving birth to their fourth son, Karel, and the book focuses on the physical and emotional marks these men carry as a result of her death. Despite her early death, the shadow of Klara haunts every page. In a cruel and unforgiving landscape, Klara would have served as the buffer between the physical and emotional demands of pioneer life, between the immigrant and his new homeland, between father and son, and between the sons themselves. Without her, these men throw themselves against each other, against the landscape, and against life itself with a brutal tenacity that can only be born of intense pain and loss. After the loss of his wife, Vaclav Skala, an ascetic man by nature, becomes even harder and more unforgiving in his dealings with the world. To spare his fine racing horses the detrimental effects of fieldwork, he instead hitches his four sons to the plow. Their time in the harness has left the boys with a peculiar deformity: they all have twisted necks that symbolize their skewed view of the world inflicted upon them by their father. Of all the boys, none are as warped as Karel. Having never known his mother and carrying the burden of guilt for her death, Karel is nonetheless Vaclav’s pride as Karel is a gifted horseback rider whose skills have won his father many a high-stakes gamble. As the novel goes on, the narrative moves back and forth between the story of Karel as a young boy and Karel as a grown man, now alienated from his brothers. The circumstances leading to the severing of the connection with his siblings are revealed as the book goes on and heighten the suspense as the novel moves toward its satisfying resolution. Machart has created a tragedy that is epic in scope and is often reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s best work (in particular, All the Pretty Horses comes to mind). The language is poetic and so frequently captures the heart of the moment or the quality of the landscape with such a perfect turn of phrase that I often went back and re-read certain lines just to savor them. Another point in Machart’s favor is that his characters are complex and never watered-down; these are hard, often cruel men, but that doesn’t mean they are completely devoid of kindness, poeticism, or intelligence. They are victims of a lifestyle and a landscape that naturally cripples the finest points of humanity to ensure survival in a merciless environment. That any of the characters retain even a shred of their capacity for forgiveness is the ultimate triumph. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder (less) | Notes are private!
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| Dec 25, 2010
| Jan 02, 2011
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Dec 25, 2010
| Hardcover
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| 1596436069
| 9781596436060
| 4.36
| 4,707
| Aug 10, 2010
| Aug 10, 2010
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Dear Amazon Kindle, Do you know what else is portable? Do you know what else allows me to read anywhere at any given time? Do you know what else I can...more Dear Amazon Kindle, Do you know what else is portable? Do you know what else allows me to read anywhere at any given time? Do you know what else I can read on a beach or in any light? Do you know what else has crisp black and white contrast for easy reading? Do you know what else I can fit in my purse? Do you? Do you? A book. I'm not a technology curmudgeon (although my use of the word "curmudgeon" alone probably indicates that I'm well on my doddering way into old people-ville). There have been many technological advances of which I'm quite fond--just try and pry my iPod out of my cold dead hand. However, when it comes to technology, I see two categories: 1) technology that saves time and adds to the quality of my life and 2) status technology. For the most part, I think e-readers and their ilk fall into status technology. It screams "hey, look at me and my nifty gadget." Sure you can download several books within seconds, but going to a bookstore and browsing through the selections with a cuppa joe in my hand is one of my favorite things. I like walking around, basket on my arm, adding to it any item that catches my fancy. I like agonizing over which of my carefully selected books will be going home with me as I weigh my wants against what my meager bank account will allow me to have. I love the feel of books, the smell of books, the covers of books. I love turning pages. I love seeing what others are reading. And that's why I love It's a Book. In a world of techno-abundance, it reminds the jackasses of the world that the book is already perfection. (less) | Notes are private!
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Sep 18, 2010
| Hardcover
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| 030726999X
| 9780307269997
| 4.14
| 265,027
| 2007
| May 25, 2010
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I knew the end was coming. I knew it couldn't last forever. I had braced myself for it (or so I thought), and now that it's here I don't know what to...more
I knew the end was coming. I knew it couldn't last forever. I had braced myself for it (or so I thought), and now that it's here I don't know what to say. That's probably a good thing because there's not a lot you can say about The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest without giving away spoilers or saying something new. The book opens with Lisbeth Salander in the hospital and recovering from the gunshot wounds she received in The Girl Who Played with Fire. Under perpetual guard and severely injured, Lisbeth is helpless to act on the events occurring outside of her hospital room. After quite thoroughly stirring the shit in Fire, Lisbeth has made powerful enemies that will not stop until they destroy her credibility or take her life. She's become a loose end that must be dealt with and the only person standing between her and the world that has constantly misjudged and needlessly penalized her is Mikael Blomkvist. This is not to say that Lisbeth becomes needy or dependent on Blomkvist; while her situation seems desperate, Blomkvist helps return Lisbeth's power to her and she takes an active (albeit secret) role in affecting the outcome of her upcoming trial while Blomkvist makes plans of his own to turn the vitriolic media firestorm against Salander to her favor. The problems with the novel are the usual suspects: too much detail, over the top and implausible plot twists, subplots that seemingly have nothing to do with the story, but I absolve Larsson of all these sins simply for the creation of Lisbeth Salander. Also, this novel came back around and neatly tied up some subplots that, at the time I was reading them in Tattoo and Fire, seemed trivial and inconsequential. Instead, they turned out to be key elements in affecting the outcome of Hornet's Nest. There may be subplots (such as Erica Berger's cyber-stalker) that would have come back around to play a pivotal role in later novels of the series had Larsson lived. While other reviewers bemoaned the lack of Salander in this novel, I actually enjoyed the renewed interest in Blomkvist. While he's not my favorite character in the novel, he, like Lisbeth, is a force to be reckoned with. That they both have the same inability to compromise their morals, that both seek retribution against those who have sinned, and both intelligently and precisely use the tools at their disposal to exact vengeance, reminds us of why they made such a good pair in Tattoo. In addition, both take a firm stance on the important issues of women's rights. Blomkvist says more than once that Lisbeth "hates men who hate women," and so does Blomkvist (yes, yes, he sleeps around, but he's honest about it and expects the women in his life to have the same sexual freedoms enjoyed by men, and he does not objectify the women in his life--he never loses sight of who they are as people). Lisbeth and Blomkvist have much more in common than one might initially realize. As I mentioned in my review of Fire, Lisbeth seems to be a constantly evolving character and this change realistically continues throughout this novel. As others work tirelessly to free her and protect her, Lisbeth begins to come to grips with the idea that she owes other people because they care about her--a concept that is alien to her. That's part of what makes Lisbeth so intriguing. In what direction would Larsson have taken this waif-like BAMF as she begins reaching outside of her protective shell and developing relationships that will sustain her? We, of course, will never know, but I think the final scene of the novel provides a poignant bit of closure to what fate might hold for Lisbeth Salander. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder (less) | Notes are private!
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| Jul 02, 2011
| Jul 08, 2011
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Aug 03, 2010
| Hardcover
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| 0316131612
| 9780316131612
| 3.91
| 9,596
| Aug 07, 2006
| Jun 01, 2010
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Jul 19, 2010
| Paperback
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| 0763639311
| 9780763639310
| 3.97
| 37,526
| May 05, 2008
| Sep 09, 2008
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In a world where we're bombarded with technology, our senses are often overwhelmed by the amount of noise in the world and it's becoming increasingly...more
In a world where we're bombarded with technology, our senses are often overwhelmed by the amount of noise in the world and it's becoming increasingly difficult to find true quiet anymore (especially since most of us just plug into our computer or iPod as soon as it is quiet). A constant stream of noise and images feed us information, prod us toward rampant consumerism, and entertain us. I've become increasingly aware that many of my students seem uncomfortable with simple quiet--always wanting some sort of noise to help them concentrate and focus. It's sad that our world has become one in which quiet is such a rare and undervalued commodity. And that, according to Patrick Ness, was the inspiration for The Knife of Never Letting Go. Inventive and unlike anything I've ever read, The Knife of Never Letting Go is billed as a young adult dystopian but there's very little that's young adult about it other than a 13 year old protagonist. In fact, a lot of the language is violent, graphic, and brutal by young adult standards, but it has to be to capture the world that has been created by Ness. Todd Hewitt is only days away from becoming a man by Prentisstown standards. Prentisstown is a town on New World, a planet that is being "settled" by the people of earth. What's unusual about Prentisstown, though, is that it's a town that consists entirely of men. The women were killed twelve years earlier when the Spackle, the indigenous alien race, utilized germ warfare in an attempt to win the war against the pioneers. The men, however, were not entirely immune to this germ. Instead of killing them, it made every man's inner-thoughts (both verbal and visual) visible to those around him. There are no secrets in the Noise. As a means of coping with the noise, some men turn to drink, others attempt to run away, and some kill themselves. Life here is bleak under the totalitarian rule of Mayor Prentiss and the bizarre radical teachings of the holy man, Aaron. As far as Todd knows, Prentisstown is the only place on the planet. As Todd nears his 13th birthday, he finds something in the swamp that shouldn't exist--silence. Shortly after discovering this peculiarity and unable to find its source, he's forced to flee Prentisstown and go on the run with only his dog, a knapsack of supplies, a hunting knife, and a book written to him by his mother. To tell you the how and why of all of this would be to spoil it as it's the suspense that motivates the entire novel. Todd struggles for survival and begins to unravel the lies that he's been told his entire life. During his journey, he discovers the truth about New World and about Prentisstown. The novel is told in first person stream of consciousness, which really works because it's like we as readers are able to "hear" Todd's Noise just as the other inhabitants of Prentisstown would. It also means that we learn as Todd learns and, as his mind shies away to avoid truths that he can't yet accept, information is sometimes withheld from us. In addition, some of the words are written in dialect to help better capture how Todd sounds. There are some unusual narrative techniques used throughout, such as a different font being used to indicate the Noise of different individuals and animals (that's right--even animals have Noise; I particularly enjoyed the depiction of Todd's dog Manchee) as Todd encounters them. Instead of finding them gimmicky, I thought it was a very effective way of visually demonstrating the intrusion of other people's thoughts into one's own. In some ways, the novel reminded me of the television series Firefly, but only in that these space travelers are the new pioneers. While they have a lot of new technology, the struggle for survival is a very real one and never certain. The novel ends with one hell of a cliffhanger and I find myself for the first time in a long time wanting to dive right into the second novel of the series.(less) | Notes are private!
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| Jul 07, 2010
| Jul 13, 2010
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Jul 07, 2010
| Hardcover
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| 0060082178
| 9780060082178
| 3.66
| 2,694
| 1993
| Jun 04, 2002
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Why did I love this book? Two words: Raylan Givens, my favorite kick ass modern day cowboy with a fondness for ice cream. Pronto, however, is not excl...more Why did I love this book? Two words: Raylan Givens, my favorite kick ass modern day cowboy with a fondness for ice cream. Pronto, however, is not exclusively Raylan's story, though he figures as a prominent character once he does arrive on the scene. This is actually the story of Harry Arno, a bookie who has decided that in one more year he's going to retire and go to Italy. Italy holds a special place in Harry's heart because he once shot a deserter there during World War II and it was there that he saw Ezra Pound (not once, but twice!). This leads to a peculiar obsession for a man like Harry--he's an expert on Ezra Pound (the English teacher in me loved this quirky little twist), can quote lines and reads Pound biographies despite the fact that he doesn't really understand his poetry (does anyone, really? And if you thought to yourself, "Why, yes, yes I do", then I think you're a damn liar). It's also amusing how his fixation on Pound affects those around him (his girlfriend, Joyce, memorizes all of the terrible things about ol' Ezra and even Raylan, after being assigned to escort Harry, goes to the library and checks out some of Pound's poetry, though he's puzzled by everything he reads and soon gives up). But I digress. Harry's plan seems simple and obtainable, but, in true Leonard fashion, things go caddiwompas. The police want to bring down Harry's boss, Jimmy Cap, a 350 lbs. mob boss with a penchant for butterflies and sun tanning. So what do they do? They indirectly inform Jimmy that Harry's been skimming from him. The problem is that Harry has been skimming--for years, in fact. Jimmy Cap puts out a hit on Harry and, ciao, baby, Harry decides to move up his retirement date and leave the country. Raylan Givens is the U.S. Marshal who decides to go to Italy and try to save Harry from himself and from the hitman he knows has followed Harry. I will readily admit to knowing nothing about the character of Raylan until watching Justified on FX. On the series, Raylan is a BAMF in a Stetson. That's played down a bit in the book, but I enjoyed it just the same. In the novel Raylan comes off as being a few bricks shy of a load, a good ol' boy in over his head, until you begin to realize that's the persona he's trying to project. It catches people off-guard and gives him an edge. No one knows exactly how to take him, but, make no mistake, Raylan is smarter than your average bear and is capable of extreme violence if necessary. If Raylan has a flaw it's that his sense of justice is so old school black and white that it creates a type of naiveté. In a world where words mean little, Raylan still expects a promise to mean something (after all, it's his willingness to take Harry Arno's word that allows Harry to elude Raylan's grasp twice and thwart his hopes of a promotion with the Marshals service). With his Old West code of ethics and hardscrabble Kentucky coal mining background, Raylan is a complex and entertaining character who makes for an intriguing juxtaposition with the world of Miami's crime syndicate. I'll definitely be reading Riding the Rap and tracking down the Raylan Givens' short stories to sustain me until the next season of Justified. (less) | Notes are private!
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Apr 21, 2010
| Paperback
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| 0060082186
| 9780060082185
| 3.68
| 1,803
| 1995
| Jun 04, 2002
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Oh, Raylan Givens. Life was so dark before I knew you. For those unfamiliar with the television show Justified, this novel (along with Pronto) serves a...more Oh, Raylan Givens. Life was so dark before I knew you. For those unfamiliar with the television show Justified, this novel (along with Pronto) serves as the inspiration for the story of Raylan Givens, a U. S. Marshal from Harlan, Kentucky, who has a gun on his hip, a Stetson on his head, and a chip on his shoulder. Torn between coal country's familial "code of honor" and his own desire to be an Old West cowboy meting out justice based on a black/white understanding of right and wrong, Raylan often finds himself in the questionable middle ground of moral decisions. At least, that's the tv version. In the novels, Raylan is an interesting character, but not nearly as angry or hell-bent on a path of self-destruction. I prefer the television version better, but the books are still well worth reading and it's interesting to see how Justified has molded Leonard's original concept of Raylan into the perfect anti-hero. In the novel, Raylan is not banished to Harlan, Kentucky, after shooting a local Florida mobster, so we don't get to see him interact with his past or the culture he left behind when he joined the Marshal's service. Instead, Riding the Rap picks up where Pronto left off. Raylan is still seeing Harry Arno's ex-stripper ex-girlfriend, Joyce, but is beginning to realize that their relationship has become something of habit. They're both sticking around because they have nowhere else to go. The fact that Joyce is now acting as Harry's personal chauffeur isn't helping things. A retired bookie, Harry is making final collections when a former client decides to kidnap him Middle-Eastern-terrorist-style until Harry breaks and offers to pay his own ransom. In the meantime, Joyce demands that Raylan look into Harry's mysterious disappearance and Raylan grudgingly begins piecing things together with his own peculiar investigative methods (which usually depend upon throwing people off guard with his cowboy in a suit persona). There are some twists here that aren't in the series, and I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of Reverend Dawn, a young psychic that readers suspect, despite some of her obvious scams, may be possessed of a limited psychic ability. The scenes where she and Raylan talk are full of Leonard's usual witty banter and sharp dialogue. (Suggestion for Justified producers: how 'bout let's kill Winona off and bring in Dawn? Just saying.) In addition, there are some nice surprises for fans of the show when you see how key scenes in the novel have been translated to the television version. My favorite was the opening scene of the novel in which Raylan handcuffs Dale Crowe Junior to the steering wheel and has him drive himself (with Raylan riding shotgun) to jail. This was one of my favorite scenes in the television show. There were some slight modifications, such as he's now Dewey Crowe and a white supremacist from Harlan, but, for the most part, the dialogue was lifted directly from the book, proving how brilliantly Leonard's work translates to film. (less) | Notes are private!
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| Dec 30, 2011
| Jan 03, 2012
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Apr 21, 2010
| Mass Market Paperback
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| 0743287851
| 9780743287852
| 3.74
| 532
| May 23, 2006
| May 23, 2006
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Prior to reading this novel, my experience with pulp fiction was limited to a Tarantino movie and a few stories I read as part of a Master's course in...more
Prior to reading this novel, my experience with pulp fiction was limited to a Tarantino movie and a few stories I read as part of a Master's course in crime and detective stories. I came to the book with no knowledge about Walter Gibson or Lester Dent and no real interest in pulps. How much of the novel is true? I'd say about 1/4 truth, 3/4 pulp. But truth is not the point--the story is everything in this novel and, as the narrator says, "never let the facts get in the way of a good story." Set during the height of the pulp fiction era, the novel follows Walter Gibson (author of The Shadow) and Lester Dent (author of Doc Savage), two titans of the time period. In addition, authors L. Ron Hubbard (pre-Scientology freakishness), H.P. Lovecraft, and Robert Heinlein all make appearances as characters (even Orson Welles shows up). The book is unique in that it doesn't try to serve as a biography of these characters. Instead, it pays homage to these authors by setting them in a sensationalistic pulp in which they are the protagonists--a fitting tribute to authors who thrilled so many with tales of courage and adventure, unspeakable horror, and plot twists and turns that would give the reader whiplash. The story is full of pulp hallmarks--dashing cowboys, Chinese assassins, beautiful women just bad enough to be good, a maniacal villain willing to stop at nothing to seek revenge (and maybe just rule the world while he's at it), a military secret that threatens society as we know it, zombies, and even a psychic with a chicken. There are train rides, boat rides, and plane rides. There's treasure, treachery, and romance. The book is fun, which was what the pulps were meant to be and, in some ways, isn't that more important than all the highbrow literary snobbery that purports to reflect on the human experience? The last chapter was pitch perfect and there's a nice twist concerning the narrator of the story. The narrator laments the fact that "The pulps, the pages where American myths had been born, were gone" as "decency and morality oozed across the nation like black tar and old blood" (leave it to decency and morality to ruin a good thing). By the novel's end, I, too, mourned the heyday of the pulps and was glad I got to spend some time in one. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder and Shelf Inflicted (less) | Notes are private!
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| Apr 21, 2009
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Mar 27, 2009
| Hardcover
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| 0385334141
| 9780385334143
| 4.14
| 27,022
| 1961
| May 11, 1999
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When most people think of Kurt Vonnegut, the novels Slaughterhouse-Five and Cat's Cradle immediately come to mind. It's a shame that more people aren'...more
When most people think of Kurt Vonnegut, the novels Slaughterhouse-Five and Cat's Cradle immediately come to mind. It's a shame that more people aren't familiar with Mother Night, a novel in which Vonnegut explores the nature of moral ambiguity and what high-minded ideals we sacrifice on the altar of war. It's a skillful blend of Vonnegut's trademark dark humor and philosophical musings about human morality as observed through the lens of war. To put it simply, this is some good stuff. Sitting in an Israeli jail and writing his memoirs, Howard Campbell awaits trial for war crimes as a Nazi in World War II. As Howard himself says, "I am an American by birth, a Nazi by reputation, and a nationless person by inclination" (1). And this is the root of Howard's problem: he has no true identity. As he ruminates on his past, we see how the apolitical Howard was drawn into events that eclipsed the simple life he longed to live as an artist writing plays for his muse and wife, the lovely Helga. Howard's situation is a unique one. An American who moved to Germany as a child and seamlessly assimilated into German culture prior to any rumblings of war, Howard makes the perfect candidate for an American spy. However, to remain above suspicion, Howard must align himself with the Nazi cause by pretending to be a Nazi propagandist, eventually becoming the voice of the Reich through his radio broadcasts. Through a series of coughs, sneezes, and sniffs, Howard sends coded information out to the Americans at the same time he spews vile invective against the Jewish people. So what's the problem? He was a good guy, right? That's how it would normally be perceived, but as Vonnegut cautions, "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be" (v). Maintaining this dual identity weighs heavily upon Howard in the years after the war which robbed him of everything: his family, his friends, his art, and his Helga. Howard excelled as a propagandist--so good, in fact, his father-in-law tells him that Howard, not Hitler and not Goebbels, convinced him to become a Nazi. Howard's American handler even claims Campbell "was one of the most vicious sons of bitches who ever lived" (188). Knowing that it was his words and his voice that convinced so many to hate in the name of God is a guilt that Howard can never alleviate, especially given that his communications with the Americans never took the form of words. He never knew what information he was passing on to the Americans, nor what, if any, good came from it. In the end, he can never be certain if the good he did outweighed (or at least balanced out) the evil his words inspired in the hearts of men. The question is, do pure motivations absolve heinous outcomes? As Howard's past begins to catch up with him, he must confront these questions and try to determine who Howard Campbell has become in the shadow of war. I think what is most intriguing about the novel is that Howard Campbell is the ultimate unreliable narrator. A man who is skilled with words and at shaping the perceptions of others, it's important to remember that, in this metafiction, it is Howard Campbell writing his own life's story. Even in the end we cannot be certain whether or not we come to know the real Howard Campbell as the resulting narrative may be Campbell's masterwork of propaganda--rewriting his own history with an eye to posterity. Howard Campbell may be a fiction created by the man himself, a constantly shifting personality recreating himself to fit the times in which he lives. After all, we become what we pretend to be. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
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Feb 21, 2009
| Paperback
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| 0060590319
| 9780060590314
| 3.93
| 22,724
| Feb 10, 2009
| Feb 10, 2009
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It's really hard to describe a Christopher Moore book to anyone who has never read one. Or to anyone without a sense of humor. Or to a Republican. Mai...more
It's really hard to describe a Christopher Moore book to anyone who has never read one. Or to anyone without a sense of humor. Or to a Republican. Mainly because when Moore says that "This is a bawdy tale," he certainly isn't lying. Couple that with his completely absurd sense of humor and you're guaranteed a read that will certainly never bore. This is delightfully raunchy stuff; gleefully vulgar; immensely readable. However, there's more to a Moore novel than just the humor. Moore's take on Shakespeare and King Lear pays homage to the Bard's own randy sense of comedy as he retells the tragedy through the eyes of Pocket, fool to King Lear, shagger of his daughters, and instigator of wars. This may be my favorite Moore so far. (less)
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Feb 11, 2009
| Hardcover
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| 0802142842
| 9780802142849
| 3.72
| 95,386
| Jan 01, 1994
| Aug 31, 2006
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Cold Mountain is quite possibly the most beautiful book that I've ever read. It's not for the faint of heart, however, as it's time consuming and requ...more
Cold Mountain is quite possibly the most beautiful book that I've ever read. It's not for the faint of heart, however, as it's time consuming and requires a great deal of patience as Frazier takes his time with his descriptions of the landscape and the people as Inman, a soldier broken in spirit by the futility and waste of the Civil War, decides to walk home to Ada and his beloved Cold Mountain. That is not to say that Frazier wastes the reader's time or goes off on unnecessary tangents (although for those who like quick narratives, it may seem that way), but he is in no hurry to rush the novel to its conclusion. To have done so would have stripped the novel of its power as it examines the lives of both Inman and Ada, a Southern belle woefully unprepared to exist in the harsh mountain landscape of Cold Mountain when she finds herself all alone. What may seem like lengthy transcendentalist-like descriptions of nature actually serve to reveal the inner life of each character and enrich the narrative. Of the two alternating narratives, I found Inman's the most compelling. His is a Dante-like journey through the "Inferno" of the American South (comparisons could also be made to Homer's The Odyssey). While he time and again encounters people wallowing in depravity and sin in a seemingly lawless world, he also encounters along this hellish journey acts of selflessness and kindness that serve as balm to his soul when he's on the cusp of losing all hope. Ironically, those offering the greatest kindnesses are those who are the most excluded from society (slaves and women). Inman is a man who is capable of violence, but only when necessary. After killing indiscriminately in war, he's determined to do no harm unless it's absolutely unavoidable. It may be because of the violence that is still latent within him that Inman struggles so with the world and his place in it. Of the reviews I've read, most readers disliked the novel's ending. Without giving away any spoilers, I'll only state that I thought the ending was the only possible one offered in a world consumed by war. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
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| Jan 15, 2012
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Dec 20, 2008
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| 0785123113
| 9780785123118
| 3.90
| 21,424
| 2003
| Aug 02, 2006
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I could say a lot here, but I won't. Why I loved it: Neil Gaiman, really inventive premise, beautiful artwork, and a lot of fun matching up the Elizab...more
I could say a lot here, but I won't. Why I loved it: Neil Gaiman, really inventive premise, beautiful artwork, and a lot of fun matching up the Elizabethan superheroes to their modern day counterparts. This is what a good comic book should be--draws you in and won't leave you alone until you've finished it, all the while reading with a ridiculously big, childlike smile on your face. Loved it. (less)
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Dec 03, 2008
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| 0385524943
| 9780385524940
| 3.94
| 22,086
| 2008
| Aug 05, 2008
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I read this book a week ago and I've been mulling over exactly what I want to say about it, but I'm still not sure what that is. Simply put, I really...more
I read this book a week ago and I've been mulling over exactly what I want to say about it, but I'm still not sure what that is. Simply put, I really loved the book. It was one of those wonderful books that sucked me in and I could not put it down until it was finished with me. Part of the reason I loved it was for the way there were stories within stories within stories, like some kind of literary Russian nested doll. Seeing how the stories connect together across time and cultures is a reminder of how stories have the power to connect us to one another. Also, I loved the voice of the unnamed narrator. Intelligent, sarcastic, cynical, and, toward the end, a believable change in his perspective without succumbing to maudlin sentimentality. (less)
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| Oct 25, 2008
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Aug 23, 2008
| Hardcover
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| 0765300346
| 9780765300348
| 4.05
| 4,907
| 1987
| Nov 01, 2004
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This book has been popping up on my Amazon recommendations list for probably a year now. That, combined with the fact that there's a quote on front in...more
This book has been popping up on my Amazon recommendations list for probably a year now. That, combined with the fact that there's a quote on front in which Neil Gaiman states, "Emma Bull is really good" (which may seem scant praise, but is everything to a Gaiman fan), I finally decided to just go ahead and order it. After reading it, I concur with Mr. Gaiman--Emma Bull is really good. An urban fantasy set in the 1980's, Bull takes full advantage of the time period by showcasing the music and the lavish, ridiculously wonderful over-the-top 1980's clothing (really, other than perhaps the Glam Rock period of the 1970's, there's no other time period in which a story such as this would work to such effect). Eddi is a musician chosen by the fey to be the mortal who will bring death to the battlefield in the Seelie Court's battle against the Unseelie Court (who will bring darkness and gloom to the city should they triumph). Bull draws heavily on the folktales of Ireland and Scotland and her faeries are wonderful creatures--seldom completely good or evil, but always looking to bend events to their favor with no regard to the consequences brought upon others. My favorites include Hairy Meg (a brownie from Scotland who brought her thick brogue and cantankerous temper with her) and the hilariously mischievous phouka who serves as Eddi's bodyguard. You can practically see these faeries as they may have been imagined by Jim Henson or Brian Froud. Overall, my only criticism is that the ending seemed a little anticlimatic (it did seem a little too easy to defeat the Queen of Air and Darkness) and shifts in time periods weren't always made clear. Other than that, an excellent book. (less)
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| Mar 26, 2009
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Jul 18, 2008
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| 0930289234
| 9780930289232
| 4.31
| 194,570
| 1986
| Apr 01, 1995
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Another graphic novel that makes me wish I had been introduced to comic books when I had been younger. I just know that I was meant to have spent my f...more
Another graphic novel that makes me wish I had been introduced to comic books when I had been younger. I just know that I was meant to have spent my formative years reading them, but, alas, no older brother to steal them from, no comic book store on the corner, no real knowledge of their existence. How deprived my childhood was. Some reasons I loved Watchmen: The alternative history approach; America won the Vietnam war, Nixon is still president, but the hysteria caused by the possibility of nuclear war still permeates all of society (a plot point that really hit home with me--I distinctly remember being about 7 or 8 and picking up a magazine that had an article about how movie makers were making apocalyptic movies because they feared the real nuclear holocaust was just around the corner. Scared the heck out of me--until that moment I had gone about my blissful childhood with the belief that, no matter how stupid man might be, at least he couldn't destroy the world. To find out man now possessed a power I had previously only attributed to God's domain was frightening stuff. Also, I enjoyed the inventive twist on the superhero. There's only one true superhero in the book--Dr. Manhattan. The rest are masked vigilantes who, after the advent of comic books, just decide to take up cape and hood and battle crime. They are not invincible and they are not immune to human frailties--physically or emotionally. Moore really uses this to explore the psychology behind the desire to be a superhero (one that we probably all harbor at some point and time in our lives, if only as mere fantasy) and explore America's heritage of vigilante justice. Now I shall anxiously await the movie, though I doubt it will live up to the book's impact. I'm also curious to see if they'll remain true to the book's ending . . . the one aspect with which I had a few (very few) qualms. Update: The movie was crap. Well cast, but I agree with Alan Moore that some stories can only be told in a particular medium. This is one of them. In translating it to the screen, the result was a fragmented mess. Bloated and lumbering along for nearly three hours, the movie made the mistake of trying to pack in too much. For the most part, it was well cast (although I didn't like Silk Spectre II or Ozymandias, but the actors playing Rorschach, Nite Owl II, and the Comedian are perfect). And I felt like I'd wandered into a Smurf nudist colony for a third of the movie (it's true to the book and I don't have a problem with it, but it was just weird). Just read it, savor it, and avoid the movie. (less) | Notes are private!
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Jun 14, 2008
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| 0061120065
| 9780061120060
| 3.79
| 100,007
| 1937
| May 30, 2006
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Another book that I recently re-read that stands up well to a second reading. Hurston's novel, unlike many classics, is as impressive and as relevant...more
Another book that I recently re-read that stands up well to a second reading. Hurston's novel, unlike many classics, is as impressive and as relevant today as it was when written. Hurston's story of Janie, a fair-skinned black woman caught in the time period between the end of slavery and the civil rights movement, is the first woman in her family who has the opportunity to be defined as something other than property. Despite this, Janie is unable achieve self-actualization or seek out the independence for which she longs; however, this is not due to the racism or prejudices of white society (in fact, there isn't a prominent white character in the book). Instead, Hurston takes a fascinating look at intraracial racism. Janie's obvious "whiteness" sets her apart from the black community. At first, she's envied for her pretty hand-me-down dresses and hair ribbons that she obtains from the kind white family for which her grandmother works. Coupled with her straight hair (which hangs down to her waist), her exquisite beauty, and her light skin, she defies color categorization and leaves the question of "What is black?" lacking a definite answer. Later, she's an outcast because her second husband's "big voice" and quest for power in the all black community of Eatonville comes to be identified with the white masters of days gone by, and Janie comes to be seen in the role of the Southern plantation "mistress." In addition, Hurston explores the repression of women in a patriarchal society. Janie's grandmother tells her that the black woman is the "mule of the world," the lowest of the low. Janie finds this to be true in her first two marriages, as she is treated like property by Logan Killicks and is later objectified by Jody Starks. It isn't until she meets Tea Cake, a man half her age, that Janie begins to live life on her own terms and not by the definition her man has set forth for her. Whether you like the novel or not, it's importance to African-American and feminist literature is undeniable. Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder(less) | Notes are private!
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5
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| Oct 15, 2012
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Jun 07, 2008
| Paperback
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| 0316769177
| 9780316769174
| 3.76
| 1,097,467
| 1951
| Jan 30, 2001
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Jun 07, 2008
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| 0385333481
| 9780385333481
| 4.18
| 129,408
| 1963
| 2010
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I recently reread this for book club as well and was once again blown away by the inventiveness, the absurdity, and the wit of Vonnegut. What seems on...more
I recently reread this for book club as well and was once again blown away by the inventiveness, the absurdity, and the wit of Vonnegut. What seems on the surface to be a ridiculously implausible plot reveals some deeper observations on religion, society's mores, and humanity's baser (and, occasionally, finer) qualities. Cat's Cradle is an entertaining satire that makes me want to alternately laugh out loud at the stupidity of mankind and weep when I realize how close to home Vonnegut's observations are.(less)
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Jun 07, 2008
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| 0060853980
| 9780060853983
| 4.27
| 145,932
| 1990
| Nov 28, 2006
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Jun 07, 2008
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