Sotto Voce's Blog, page 7

Black Hole Radio (Ann Birdgenaw)

 

I read the Black Hole Radio series out of order, with thefirst book being the last. Although it didn't really impact my readingexperience, I wish I had read this one first.

This book is funny, with a good background story that startsit all, including the real-life beep beep beep experience. It has adventures,an exciting alien world, super abilities, cool races, celebrations, and also anidealistic view of the world. I don't know about others; I've always wanted toexplore the space since I...

Hearts at War (Christa Nonnemaker)

A simple and sometimes cliché' love story before, during, and after World War II. The story stretches from the characters' childhood until they return from the war.

I like to read about many aspects behind the actual war, and it must have been a lot of work to research them. WWII's impact is felt everywhere, even by the generations born after that. My grandparents had a lot of tales about it, some of the most inspiring and terrifying ones.

The book centres around two characters' relationship, the ...

Newhope (Ed Morawski)

I didn’t know what to expect when I first read this book, wary that it would be overly religious from the blurb.

The book starts strong, we are thrust right into action, and it’s easy to read. There is a murder in what seems like a peaceful small town where crime is unheard of and everything is meticulously orderly. At least that was what I was prepared for a few chapters, then something, a very weirdly worded proposal, threw me off.

I will try to keep this vague and brief, but warning not to read...

BOO

Edit: I thought I had published this, but apparently it stayed in Draft. Oh well.

I met a long-time friend last week, driving all the way tothe airport early in the morning so that I could catch up with her for twohours. She was in town, in transit for an article's job in a magazine.

I don't have many friends, and I have less the older I getbecause most time, I'd rather be alone than hanging out with those withdifferent frequencies. But those who remain are the ones I would make a goodeffor...

RIP Laptop

Two weeks ago, there was a blackout in my area. I thought nothing of it, even though it was quite unusual. The power was back after one and a half hours and went off again. Finally, in the afternoon, the power was up, and I put on my computer to catch up with things I should have done. Not too long after it was on, the screen went black.

My laptop was old in today’s standard. It was almost ten years old and had gone through a lot of life preservations. I had changed the screen after I endured the...

Awakening the Other Way (Marcel Eschauzier)

 

Reading this book feels like I am sitting opposite arelative I haven’t met for a long time and trapped in a circle of conversationthat I try so hard to understand. At some point, I nod my head in agreement. Atothers, I can’t really digest the concept and keep throwing my glance at thedoor, looking for an escape.

I am a mood reader; I need to be in a reading mood/situationto get started, but once I’m in, it depends on the book to keep me there.Unfortunately, I have to admit that it takes ...

Research Then and Now

I remember scouring a musty library to search for a book two decades ago. One book, because that was the only reliable source available. I took a two-hours bus from my uni and reached the library ten minutes before three o’clock. They denied my entry because three o’clock was closing time.

I didn’t have another day because it was the earliest I could escape from my lectures, so I begged for kindness from the sadistic, grinning librarian to let me in for just that ten minutes. She eventually agree...

The Age of Discovery: The Travels and Adventures of Marco Polo Throughout China and the Mongol Empire, Volume I (Joe Lee Roger)

I think this is the most entertaining history book I have ever read. The book follows the journey of Marco Polo, but instead of boring recalling of the trips, it includes fun snippets, exciting information about the culture of places he visited, how he viewed them, and the precious, here and there—a little bit, not too much—author's commentaries that are both funny and sarcastic. The comparison of the modern-day in the language at that time at the end of the book is also a gem. 
 The journey went...

Black Mirror and Real Life (Why These Are My Top Five Episodes)

Black Mirror used to be one of my favorite TV series. It goes down a lot after season four, but it's still better than most of the other shows out there. I am a sucker for realistic future scenarios, and as scary as it is, many 'fictional' scenarios in Black Mirror have come true all around the world, but that will be the topic for another day. Today, I want to list my favorite episodes based on how they affected me the first time I saw them. Many of them might be off of others' popular lists, b...

Papers in Trash Pool

Here I am again, staring at another brochure of an appliance manufacturer, advertising things I don’t need, using colorful thick papers that are hard to tear, just because I bought something from them almost twenty years ago. I didn’t sign up for anything except to register for the warranty, and they appear in my email inbox and home address. Almost two decades.

I used to like National Geographic magazine. It has a lot of interesting articles and beautiful natural pictures. In fact, I liked it so...