Pierre Bayard has done an amazing thing: he has created a book that renders itself superfluous as you go along. It says the same thing repeatedly, tho...morePierre Bayard has done an amazing thing: he has created a book that renders itself superfluous as you go along. It says the same thing repeatedly, though at times wittily, and talks you into putting the book down. I read half of it, and then decided that it really wasn't going anywhere, and besides, I was going to forget it anyway, and if the book is really important, other people will talk about it and I'll know what it's about anyway.
And voila! The book proved it's point, I set it down, I put it up onto Paperbackswap.com, and it will be out of my house by morning.(less)
Yes, I just read a cookbook cover to cover. Yes, it's crazy. Yeah, I don't think I have the cooking ability to do all the recipes.
But I think i can do...moreYes, I just read a cookbook cover to cover. Yes, it's crazy. Yeah, I don't think I have the cooking ability to do all the recipes.
But I think i can do some. I'm going to try, at least. The Momofuku Cookbook is three things, primarily. It's a coffeetable book, for sure. The photos are beautiful, absolutely gorgeous food porn. It's also a cookbook, which, to my eye, seems thorough and comprehensive. I have yet to try to cook out of it, but reading through a lot of recipes it seems that you need only to have the will and drive to actually try things. It's nothing compared to the Thomas Keller impossible recipes from his French Laundry cookbook. But, third, the Momofuku book is a narrative of the rise of David Chang. Chang gets the proper humble but arrogant narrative voice to drive his story forward, and, having eaten at all of his recipes, he deserves some of the arrogance.
Most importantly, this is the first time reading a cookbook has made me actually excited about the idea of cooking, rather than just challenged and nervous. I'm excited to maybe take a stab at some of the more daunting recipes, and see just how they cheat me. Who knows, maybe I'll have some edible failures.(less)
I read this after a review (I think on io9) called it essential Sci-Fi comedy, up there with The Hitchhiker's Guide Trilogy. io9 is on crack. This is...moreI read this after a review (I think on io9) called it essential Sci-Fi comedy, up there with The Hitchhiker's Guide Trilogy. io9 is on crack. This is a decent book, better when it's talking about the power of rock and roll than it is talking about aliens, or cracking jokes.
Ultimately, the actions of the main character--or any character--don't really drive the plot at all, and they all basically serve as spectators. Oliver is a hero mostly be dint of having a certain sense of wonder that we're supposed to admire (and it's admirable, as such, but it doesn't exactly amount to a Campbellian hero's quest, or much of anything at all).(less)
What was fresh and funny in the first book is now tired and hackneyed. The character of Thursday Next remains an interesting one, but Fforde seems to...moreWhat was fresh and funny in the first book is now tired and hackneyed. The character of Thursday Next remains an interesting one, but Fforde seems to be delaying the big question people want answered (i.e., how is Next going to rescue her husband, who has been erased from history, and what's going to happen to their unborn child, along with defeating the evil Goliath Corporation?) and pretending that we all want to see the "factory" where fiction is created and beamed into a writer's pen. The book is dripping with fiction in-jokes designed to do nothing more than make the reader say, "Hey! That's Anna Karenina! I recognize that too!" (seriously, there's an entire two pages devoted to two fictional characters from that book discussing the entire plot on a crossed phone line). Ridiculous asides are put in to explain the plots of all sorts of novels (Who stole all the punctuation from the last chapter of Ulysses is a recurring one) make the ending of the first novel, which seemed momentous and interesting, into a commonplace occurance that doesn't really make sense much in the reading.
Fforde seems to be trying too hard for his own good; the first book was really successful, but each subsequent one seems to have rapidly diminishing returns.(less)
Much better than the previous book, this time Thursday Next doesn't spend so much time in the bookworld (which always felt like it was setting up a ba...moreMuch better than the previous book, this time Thursday Next doesn't spend so much time in the bookworld (which always felt like it was setting up a bad joke, which is probably because that's usually what it was doing) and more in the outside Real World. This book lacks much of a real villain (one of the villains of the previous books, redone), which makes it weaker and more meandering, but still worth the time to read.
The next (and apparently last) book I've already started up, and it looks like a return to the book world, so maybe if you read these books, you should stop at four. We'll know soon enough.(less)
Once again, the stuff in the Book World is old and cliche, but luckily, this book doesn't spend too much time in it. I think my patience is starting t...moreOnce again, the stuff in the Book World is old and cliche, but luckily, this book doesn't spend too much time in it. I think my patience is starting to wear thing, but maybe a year or two before the next book's release will make this go down easier.(less)
Some great stories, including the best Cthulhu/Sherlock Holmes story I think is possible. Some okay stories, but there's nothing bad in here at all. T...moreSome great stories, including the best Cthulhu/Sherlock Holmes story I think is possible. Some okay stories, but there's nothing bad in here at all. There's even another Shadow story, continuing on the look at the character following AMERICAN GODS. Definitely worth reading, if you're a Gaiman fan. And if you're not, what's wrong with you?(less)
Hornby is growing up, and so are his characters. Or, if his characters don't grow up, characters who would have been considered charming in HIGH FIDEL...moreHornby is growing up, and so are his characters. Or, if his characters don't grow up, characters who would have been considered charming in HIGH FIDELITY are no longer such. The boyfriend of the main character of this book is basically the character of HIGH FIDELITY, ten years on, and more socially awkward.
Hornby gets some good digs in at music obsessives, the internet, and people who refuse to age. It's a better book than anything he's written since, I think, HIGH FIDELITY, but Hornby's last couple of books have been not so good, so that's faint praise. Worth a read, at least, if you like Hornby's writing.(less)
I wish there was a three and a half star option, because that's really what this is. Ken Jennings is likeable, and this is a decent overview of the hi...moreI wish there was a three and a half star option, because that's really what this is. Ken Jennings is likeable, and this is a decent overview of the history of Trivia as a passtime, along with a couple of notes on what it takes to write a good Trivia question that could really have been written by any of the better Trivia hosts at my local bar Trivia (I count myself as one of their number). Thankfully, this isn't a blow by blow of Jennings 75 game run in Jeopardy! No one really likes to hear people tell stories of all the trivia questions they got wrong and all the ones they got right, to crush their enemies.
Jennings is also funny in a really hokey sort of way; exactly the type of jokes you'd expect from a nice guy with a sense of humor who doesn't drink anything stronger than Diet Coke--like the kind of jokes you'd expect from your camp counselor at Bible camp.
If you like books about Jeopardy, Bob Harris's "Prisoner of Trebekistan" is both more in depth, and funnier, but this is a decent approachable introduction to the competitive life of the mind.(less)
Kunstler tells an apocalyptic story about what happens when civilization might be slipping away. The cause of the apocalypse is unclear--it involves b...moreKunstler tells an apocalyptic story about what happens when civilization might be slipping away. The cause of the apocalypse is unclear--it involves bombs and terrorists, but no one really knows much of anything, except that you can't get coffee or rubber or antibiotics anymore. This novel shows what happens when decent people get their lives stripped away from them, but not entirely. There's no real law, except they remember there should be one. It's an interesting companion piece to the show DEADWOOD, in fact, and as a nice antidote to unrelenting darkness and depravity of THE ROAD. Things are bad, but people aren't. Not always, at least.(less)
A surprisingly in depth run down of three dozen philosophers, touching on the basics of some of their most fundamental philosophical contributions. Ob...moreA surprisingly in depth run down of three dozen philosophers, touching on the basics of some of their most fundamental philosophical contributions. Obviously, a lot is left out, but the overview is given in such a quick and light but obviously well-read manner. J.S. Mill is done in the style of Charlie Brown, and much is made of the Ubermensch of Nietzsche being related to a certain comic character, but Van Lente gives a fairly balanced introduction to a lot of philosophers I knew, and a number that I didn't.
Pretty highly recommended, if only for the double-page spread presentation of Joseph Campbell's journey of a hero as a board game.(less)
Maybe I'd rate this book higher if I didn't know that the follow up was supposed to come out in 2006 and hasn't been finished yet, but with that knowl...moreMaybe I'd rate this book higher if I didn't know that the follow up was supposed to come out in 2006 and hasn't been finished yet, but with that knowledge in mind, an entire book of George R.R. Martin just spinning his wheels and going nowhere got more and more frustrating with each 100 page lump. And since there are about 1,000 pages, that's a lot of frustration.
Martin's series has a willingness to kill of his characters, even if you really really like him. In previous books, I expressed a fear that he'd run out of all the good ones before the series end. Perhaps in response to that, Martin seems to have decided that with this fourth book in the series to not use any of those good characters at all. He has brought new characters on to take the places of those characters we knew and loved, but by and large, they are boring or not particularly interesting. With the exception of Jaime's transformation into an interesting nad complicated character, there's no one in this book to root for at all. Instead, we spend our time in entirely new locations, watching politics that we don't care about spin out. There are four new factions that arise in this book, and I can't care about any of them.
We spend a huge amount of time with Cersei, who is pretty much the least interesting character in the entire narrative, except this time we get to see things from her perspective. Newsflash: I didn't need an entire book to find out that she is a conniving bitch who sucks at playing politics, and that without any advisers to help her out she's going to get into deep shit. Now that she finally gets into that deep shit, somewhere around page 850, I'm ready for her story to be over with.
Oh well. Martin said the original manuscript had all the characters we actually like, and he split it up into two books. So book five should be good. I see how Martin is spinning this out into seven books, but dear god, these threads have to start tying themselves up eventually, and there needs to be some sort of resolution--more than just "He got shot, and died, and they all went home."(less)
If this series continues at this rate, I'm going to run out of characters I like. George R.R. Martin proves he's completely willing to wipe out charac...moreIf this series continues at this rate, I'm going to run out of characters I like. George R.R. Martin proves he's completely willing to wipe out characters you get attached to. I don't know if he's going to add new ones, but there are serious stakes involved, and lots of plot to fill the thick book.
Hopefully, he'll finish the series before he dies...(less)
This is definitely a middle book; things just keep getting worse and worse and even the evil characters you dislike run into walls and everything just...moreThis is definitely a middle book; things just keep getting worse and worse and even the evil characters you dislike run into walls and everything just keeps getting more and more complicated.
As far as fantasy goes, this is pretty realistic. Other than some unredeemably evil villains, most characters are fairly well-rounded. Martin also gets extra points for creating a fantasy novel with very limited supernatural elements. Magic is almost never the answer, and while there are dragons and the threat of the supernatural Others (and anyone the Others kill turning into wights), the magic never feels like a deus ex machina.
At this point, I'm hooked on the series, but I'm worried about five more books of this and it's ever increasing amount of peril. Each time an army is defeated, another one arises, and the likeable characters are getting thinned out at an alarming rate. And winter is coming, and the Others are moving south...(less)
George R.R. Martin knows how to create a world. He knows how to weave an interesting story, and he knows how to create characters who are complex and...moreGeorge R.R. Martin knows how to create a world. He knows how to weave an interesting story, and he knows how to create characters who are complex and interesting. And then he kills them all, and puts their city to the sword.
This is the third book of a projected seven book series, and if the books continue at this pace, I can only imagine that the last two books will consist of the wind whistling through the trees and the contented meals of vultures as they fly across the seven kingdoms.(less)
By a happy coincidence, the Temeraire series of books sit right next to Patrick O'Brien on my shelves (alphabetical order ftw!), which seems quite app...moreBy a happy coincidence, the Temeraire series of books sit right next to Patrick O'Brien on my shelves (alphabetical order ftw!), which seems quite appropriate, since there are a lot of parallels with the Aubrey-Maturin books. Captain Laurence is a naval captain who, through luck, finds a dragon egg and becomes the captain and master of a particularly rare and powerful dragon breed. The parallel life of the dragon corp to the Navy is a recurring theme, with as much realism as possible put into figuring out how a society with dragons really would work.
Laurence is forced to become an aviator, in a society that needs but doesn't really respect aviators. His growing acceptance of his new place in society and the new society of aviators is well-done. The dragon to dragon combat isn't always believable (I, for one, do not believe that it would be possible for a crew on the back of one dragon to board another dragon in midair and take command of it), but can be quite exciting.
Also, ironically, the books seem to be following the Napoleonic Wars pretty closely. Napoleon wins all the battles he did in reality; he just wins them with dragon tactics in the mix, as well.(less)
O'Brian takes a step back from the sea (there's one aborted chase early on in the book, but nothing even involving a cannon fired in anger) and focuse...moreO'Brian takes a step back from the sea (there's one aborted chase early on in the book, but nothing even involving a cannon fired in anger) and focuses on my least favorite topic: Aubrey is really bad with money. Aubrey is given some bad advice about the stock market, and goes to trial for it. The book largely seems to set up a new status quo for the series, and might be important just for that regard, but it feels less like a game changer like Empire Strikes Back and more like something that would easily have been handled in a couple paragraphs of exposition. O'Brian has the tendency to, at times, skip over large and important details and fill in the blanks through bits of character dialogue; I wish that had been done with large portions of the book.
Regardless, the characterizations remain strong, and the characters remain likeable and interesting; I just spent a lot of the book wishing they were doing something other than what they were up to.(less)
Chris "Stu"
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Books:
2010
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