Andrew's profile

200 ratings | 33 reviews
avg rating: 3.90

Andrew's bookshelves

read (200)
currently-reading (2)
to-read (5)
fantasy (31)

kids (27)
scifi (21)
favorites (19)
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stupid (2)
cookbooks (2)
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cant-bring-myself-to-read-it (1)

classics (1)

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Andrew is currently reading

	09/01 Andrew gave to: A Clash of Kings (A Song of Ice and Fire, Vol. 2) by George R.R. Martin bookshelves: currently-reading, fantasy, favorites	my rating:
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	01/13 Andrew gave to: Portland Hill Walks: Twenty Explorations in Parks and Neighborhoods (Paperback) by Laura O. Foster bookshelves: currently-reading, portland	my rating:
	recommended to Andrew by: Rachel Wall recommended for: people with legs, especially ones in Portland Oregon read in January, 2008 Andrew said: "I started off the new year with a hill walk on New Years Day. The walk was a lot of fun, I chose the one through washington park, which was a blast. I went with someone and since we were walking and talking, I found it difficult to find where to tu...more " add a comment

Andrew's recent updates (rss)

September 19

Andrew marked as to-read:
Toll The Hounds (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, Vol. 8)
by Steven Erikson
bookshelves: to-read

my rating:

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August 11

New comment on Girl's review of Pattern Recognition

Andrew wrote: "I tried the audio version of this and couldnt get into it... actually it put me to sleep. I was on...more "

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July 28

Andrew gave

to:
The Catcher in the Rye (Paperback)
by J.D. Salinger
bookshelves: classics

my rating:

read in January, 1989

Andrew said: "I re-read this book recently... the first time since my freshman High School English class ~19 years ago or so.

I remember nothing of the book, other that I did not like it.

I also remember my mother being surprised that I did not like it.

A...more "

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June 19

Andrew read and liked D_Davis's review of The Lathe of Heaven:

"I've never been a huge fan of Ursula K. Le Guin. Now, granted, I've only read a handful of her short stories (all dealing with her fictional race of a/bi-sexual beings), and I have started but failed to crack a few of her novels. I really want to lik...more I've never been a huge fan of Ursula K. Le Guin. Now, granted, I've only read a handful of her short stories (all dealing with her fictional race of a/bi-sexual beings), and I have started but failed to crack a few of her novels. I really want to like her, and with all the praise she gets, I think I should like her. I don't think authors are this highly regarded, both with critics and with readers, for no good reason. I recently told a friend of mine that I was going to read a Le Guin book, and he said, disparagingly, “enjoy the infodump.” I thought this was a pretty good description of Le Guin's style. I often feel as if she is preaching to me from atop some ivory, gender-issue-tinted tower, and that as a straight, white, male I just wasn't meant to get the cut of her jib. I sometimes feel as if she should be writing sociology textbooks for alien cultures rather than narrative based fiction (well, I guess she kind of does do that...).

And so it was with some trepidation that I recently purchased The Lathe of Heaven. It is a short book, and so I figured that even if I didn't enjoy it, it would be over soon enough - that's me, an optimist to the end. Holy crap was I ever wrong. This book blew my freaking mind. It is incomprehensibly good, and even though there are moments in which Le Guin piles on the INFORMATION, often dealing with dream-psychology, the narrative is tightly focused, moves with a purpose, and features a few central characters that shine with nuanced emotions and motives. I couldn't read this fast enough; I wanted to devour the plot presented on each and every page as quickly, but as carefully, as possible. Like a well written poem, each phrase and passage of this short novel is precisely written, and each word is chosen for its most effective usage.

...

The most lavish praise I can thrust upon this book is that it reminds of a Philip K. Dick story. Now, these kinds of comparisons are often dangerous, because some might argue that by not celebrating Le Guin's own unique voice that I am, in fact, disparaging her writing. But this is not true. As most of you know, I am a huge dickhead; I've read more, and liked more, by good old Phil than any other author. The Lathe of Heaven could easily be placed, side by side, with Dick's best, namely Martian Time Slip, The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch and A Scanner Darkly. It reminds of Dick, but this is not to say that I enjoyed it because Le Guin was simply channeling my favorite author. I know that the two authors were quite close, and Le Guin helped Phil a great deal later in his life, and I wouldn't be surprised if she wrote this with her friend and colleague in mind. It reminded me of Dick's work simply because I enjoyed it almost as much.

My Le Guin shell has now been broken, and I feel as though I am prepared to embrace more of her work. It is hard for me to put into words just how much I loved The Lathe of Heaven. Every page was a joy to read, and every new reveal, plot point, and character decision was composed with a master's eye for detail. It's as if Le Guin left all the boring parts out, and decided, smartly, to focuses only on the stuff that really mattered to the characters and the narrative. I appreciate this aspect about well written older science fiction; short, concise, to the point, and not belabored with overwrought exposition. This book reads like a dream, it effortlessly flows from one point to the next, and contains a world built upon in its own logic, a logic that totally works within the printed page. I can easily imagine these characters living on, in some parallel universe, and I only wish I was able to visit their world now, to see how it has changed.

full review @www.genrebusters.com...less "

2 comments

June 18

Andrew added:
A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World from Prehistory to Today (Hardcover)
by William J. Bernstein
bookshelves: cant-bring-myself-to-read-it

my rating:

read in July, 2008

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April 28

Andrew gave

to:
Good Omens (Mass Market Paperback)
by Neil Gaiman (Goodreads author!)

my rating:

read in June, 2008

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Andrew gave

to:
The Day of the Triffids (Paperback)
by John Wyndham
bookshelves: scifi

my rating:

recommended to Andrew by: Julia
read in April, 2008

Andrew said: "Great classic sci-fi.

Most of the world goes blind and there are angry stinging plants about! "

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April 19

Andrew gave

to:
The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Paperback)
by Douglas Adams

my rating:

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April 18

Andrew gave

to:
The World According to Garp (Paperback)
by John Irving
bookshelves: favorites

my rating:

recommended for: people who like to read good books
read in April, 2008

Andrew said: "I really enjoyed this book. It flowed well, the characters were entertaining and real, while being absurd. I really got into the book, and can see why people rate this so highly. "

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Andrew's favorite quotes

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read."
— Groucho Marx

tags: animals, books, dogs, friends, humor

2047 people liked it

"To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance"
— Oscar Wilde

45 people liked it

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Sustainable Foodies — 419 members — last activity 4 days ago, 01:50PM
A group for people who love food and care about the effects our food choices make on the environment. Vegetarians, vegans, omnivores, gardeners, farm...more

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	John 474 books 23 friends
	Girl 189 books 37 friends
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	Allison 73 books 4 friends
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