http://www.goodreads.com/user/updates_rss/963507 en-US Mon, 04 Aug 2008 07:31:25 -0700 60 http://www.goodreads.com/ 200 41 http://www.goodreads.com/images/layout/gr_logo.gif 33828900 Mon, 04 Aug 2008 07:31:25 -0700 Review29201149 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/29201149 to: Foundation and Empire (Foundation Series, #3) by Isaac Asimov
bookshelves: sci-fi
]]> 33828956 Mon, 04 Aug 2008 07:30:54 -0700 Review29201195 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/29201195 to: Foundation (Foundation Series, #2) by Isaac Asimov
bookshelves: sci-fi
]]> 31044102 Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:17:39 -0700 Review27038227 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/27038227 to: Teaching With Love and Logic: Taking Control of the Classroom (Paperback) by Jim Fay
I was handed this book by the head of a middle school and it is a solid piece of work. The subtitle is a bit misleading since much of the emphasis is on sharing control with your students. The basic idea is that people's self-worth and desire for control are at play in most situations where a student is 'misbehaving'. Therefore, valuing the student (regardless of the judgment of their behavior), showing empathy, giving students options in situations where we might usually dictate, and giving students time to think are better options than punishing and creating antagonistic situations.

Similar to the recommendations of Alfie Kohn, offering choices and preferring discipline (as an internal characteristic) and not punishment (as an external act) the book is a good read for any teachers. I am not crazy about the writing, it can be a tad saccharine and some of the conversations they quote sound like they were written and approved, not actual conversations. But it combines psychology, common sense, and anecdote to end up providing some very good recommendations. ]]> 29380952 Sat, 28 Jun 2008 07:34:54 -0700 Review25739204 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/25739204 Christine Falls: A Novel (Hardcover) by Benjamin Black
bookshelves: currently-reading
]]> 28223983 Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:42:33 -0700 Review24825086 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24825086 to: A Little Yellow Dog : Featuring an Original Easy Rawlins Short Story "Gray-Eyed Death" (Paperback) by Walter Mosley
bookshelves: hard-boiled--and-variants
]]> 27018301 Fri, 06 Jun 2008 13:17:20 -0700 Comment914773 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/21993239 Barb's review of The Perfect Fake
by Barbara Parker

Me too--for reading books set in places that you know. In any type of book, that's fun. It's great when it's the exact place, but I also just like it when it's set in "small New England town" in general and I feel like it might as well be the one I went to high school in. ]]> 26992072 Fri, 06 Jun 2008 09:25:56 -0700 Review23856741 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/23856741 to: Dhalgren (Paperback) by Samuel R. Delany
bookshelves: sci-fi
Weird, wonderful. I guess you call it a sci-fi, but don't expect anything straightforward about it. ]]> 26991995 Fri, 06 Jun 2008 09:24:35 -0700 Review23856675 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/23856675 to: Black Betty (Paperback) by Walter Mosley
bookshelves: hard-boiled--and-variants
]]> 25929676 Fri, 06 Jun 2008 09:23:38 -0700 Review23032639 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/23032639 to: The Geographer's Library (Paperback) by Jon Fasman
This is my first foray into the historical mystery. It was dubbed a 'brainy noir' and, I like noir, so I gave it a shot. I would've given it four stars except that I felt the resolution was a little too expository.

Up until then, I was happily devouring this book with that touch of jealousy towards the writer that means I am really liking it. It follows a very young small town reporter as he is assigned to write an obituary for a seemingly benign local professor. In the iceberg style of plotting, there is a lot, lot more below the surface.

The first-person narrative is interspersed with short stories about and inventories of a series of artifacts that all pertain to alchemy. In this case, it is not simply turning lead into gold but transformation in general. Both the narrative and these stories are very engaging. They alternate and one of the reasons I went through this book as quickly as I did was when I was reading the main narrative, I always wanted to see the next mini-story, and when I was in the mini-stories I always wanted to see the next chapter in the narrative.

The several characters are very well drawn, better than most mysteries in general. He uses fore-shadowing very well and all in all it is very tight. Like I said, I would have given it four or more stars except that I felt a little too much got explained, unnecessarily, at the end.

I think it satisfied the 'brainy noir' billing, a smart yet not heavy read. ]]> 24698183 Mon, 12 May 2008 08:43:57 -0700 Review22069472 http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/22069472 to: Lonely Werewolf Girl (Paperback) by Martin Millar
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