Alex C. Telander's Blog, page 45
May 5, 2014
The Birth of the Half Star
While Goodreads continues to spend its time deliberating on whether to add half stars or not to their rating system, which now seems to be spanning a time of years, I’ve made the call to go ahead and start using half stars in my own rating system with book reviews.
Now, for my ratings I use a capital B (for Bookbanter) to represent a single star, as shown below:
And I am now adding a half star option to be more clear and precise in my rating of my reviews. The half star is show below:
A number of the books I read and review tend to be good and worthy of four stars, but only some are worthy of the highest five-star rating. With the addition of the half star option, its going to provide an additional level of rating to show books that are actually better than the regular four stars, but are not quite good enough to merit the full five stars.
May 2, 2014
S. V
[This is the fifth installment in a series. The whole series can be found here.]
In the fourth chapter of Ship of Theseus it almost seems as if the events taking place within the book take a secondary stage to the seemingly more important story of the two commenters discussing the chapter, but also revealing details about events in their own lives and their developing relationship. The female commenter wants them to finally meet in person and see if they have more in common other than Ship of Theseus and V. M. Straka, while the male commenter pleads that he is simply too busy with his work, though it is clear that while he would very much like to meet her, he is also extremely nervous about it. The female commenter addresses this by discussing a future job prospect and how she will be graduating soon, which the male commenter then takes on by trying to get to her confirm she will definitely be leaving the area.
In this chapter reader learns that the notes being made in the margins by each of the characters are not all within the same time frame. There are intense discussions between them on a couple pages, which is not continued but just ends, because that was as far as they reached with the reading at that time. Is a little unusual to deal with as a reader, but once the reader understands the construct of the margin notes, it becomes more acceptable. This is further confirmed when these characters reference discussions made at an earlier points in the book and what bearing it has on the current context.
Learn that the names for the margin characters is Jennifer and Eric.
Events begin to have a stronger bearing on their lives as there are a series of fires occurring near to Jennifer, scaring her, while she becomes distant and estranged from her roommates, as well as at times she wonders if there is an intruder in her place of residence. Lends an air of tension and fear with the idea that with the more of the book they read, the worse things seem to become in their lives, with supposed people knowing what they are doing and wanting to terrorize and stop them.
As things continue to get weirder in their lives as they continue the reading, learn that there have been a series of “S” symbol sightings throughout the world, being collected and tracked through specific websites. Eric believes most of them to be hoaxes, while Jennifer is not so sure, especially when they continue to be discovered in unusual places, including recently excavated caves. Seems clear that Straka was unaware of the occurrence of the Ss during the author’s lifetime.
It was in read this particular chapter that I realized the sort of code to the different colored margin texts that may have been apparent to other readers earlier on, which is that each specific color of text is done during a specific time and specific read through. Eric read the book the first time when he was a teenager, which are all the notes in pencil. Then the specific color texts of Eric and Jennifer discussing back and forth are from different moments in time, some occurring closer to the present and presumably the end of the book. Therefore have points in the book of Eric and Jennifer talking about finally meeting, and other points when they have already met and are discussing the text.
This helps to add another level of drama to the overall book as the reader tries to work out at what point they are discussing the events of Ship of Theseus in their own lives and what has been happening to them. Just another level of complexity added for the enjoyment of the reader.
It was at the end of this chapter that I got the sense that S. is one of those books that could use multiple readings (much like Ship of Theseus is for Eric and Jennifer) and with further readings, new things will likely be read and discovered and appreciated.
April 30, 2014
Book Report: Library Tats, Landmarks of Dark Fantasy, Literally Best Colbert Moments & More!
Asking the Wrong Questions
The new Hugo nominations are out and here is why it is once again a sorry state of affairs.
Dark Fantasy Landmarks
IO9 presents the great landmarks in the history of dark fantasy beginning farther back than you think.
Amazon Biz Lagging
In the states and locations where Amazon is now required to charge sales tax, business has been declining for the online juggernaut.
[READ MORE . . .]
April 28, 2014
“Saga Vol. 3” by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image Comics, 2014)
In the third volume of the award winning graphic novel series, our strange cast of heroes finally make it to the distant planet of Quietus where they hope to meet Oswart Heist, a novelist of some acclaim who once wrote a trashy piece of romance that was supposedly secretly veiled as a story about two star-crossed lovers who should never been together falling in love. It was this book that Alana first read and came to believe to be something true and achievable, and when she met Marko and had him read the book also things took a great turn in their relationship.
A good chunk of this volume is spent in giving some important and useful back story to our main characters, as well as a past love of Marko’s, one Gwendolyn who has joined the small posse of bounty hunters looking to capture the married couple and end their union. Prince Robot is the one who has been tasked to make sure this mission is carried out without any mishaps, and so far he has been less than impressed.
This volume gives some good surrounding story to many of the characters we’ve already met, but in this story like any good one it is not always clear who is ultimately good or evil, because everyone is just so different and fresh and new and has never been seen before, not just in comic book form, but in story form. Volume 3 fills in some important history holes that the reader has been wondering about and keeps them on the edge of their seat with what’s going on on Quietus. It’s one of those stories where you want everyone to be fine and come out alive at the end, but you know that’s not going to be the case.
Originally written on April 19, 2014 ©Alex C. Telander.
To purchase a copy of Saga Volume 3 from Amazon, and help support BookBanter, click HERE.
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April 26, 2014
“Saga Vol. 2” by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image Comics, 2013)
In the first volume, Hazel, the beautiful child of Alana and Mark – two alien races who have hated each other for generations and are bent on each other’s imminent destruction – got to see what some of the best bounty hunters in the galaxy had to offer, as well as some interesting alien species. Now things get kicked up a notch when she meets family.
As the parents and child continue to travel across the galaxy in the giant tree that is their ship, along with the help of the incorporeal teenage girl who is bonded to Hazel and helping them however she can, they get a surprise welcome from Marko’s parents. Emotions rise as his parents have just magicked themselves onto the ship with supposed good reason, but ultimately they really wish to meet Hazel and introduce themselves as her grandparents. Meanwhile, things are not going well for our bounty hunter friend and his liar cat, but because they’re such interesting characters, the reader feels empathy towards them.
The second volume continues right along after the first, continuing this saga with some new characters that continue to show Staples’ range and ability as a brilliant artist, but also in the power of the story and its diverse cast. This is of course a fantasy world we would never want to live in, but we sure can’t seem to get enough of reading about.
Originally written on April 19, 2014 ©Alex C. Telander.
To purchase a copy of Saga Volume 2 from Amazon, and help support BookBanter, click HERE.
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April 23, 2014
Book Report: Summer Reads, Gabriel Garcia Marquez RIP, Indie Bookstores & More!
Remembering Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The famous author of A Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in a Time of Cholera – to name a few — passed away this past week at 87.
Thriving Indies
Six indie bookstores that are doing well and how they’re doing it.
Print Books vs. Ebooks
Once again the battle is waged, but those in the biz say they shouldn’t be pitted against each other, but exist in a peaceful coexistence.
The Phantom of the Maine Library
The Maine State Library at first thought it had its own specter floating along its halls, but then discovered the truth.
April 21, 2014
“Saga Vol. 1” by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image Comics, 2012)
Brian K. Vaughan impressed the world with his fun and bestselling comic book series, Y the Last Man. Now he returns with a new series, partnering up with a female artist once again, this time with Fiona Staples, in Saga. A space opera science fiction original that at heart is a simple story, but is surrounded by a complex world with fascinating characters and a mythology that immediately sucks in the reader and always leaves them wanting more.
Marko is a ram-horned alien while Alana is a moth-winged alien. Their people have been fighting each other for a long time, to the point where their own worlds now choose to fight each other on other planets in distant galaxies. But Marko and Alana are unusual in that they are madly in love with each other. The first volume of Saga opens with the birth of their child and begins to be told from her viewpoint at an older age as she looks back on this tumultuous time.
It is soon discovered that these two opposite aliens not only love each other but have created a supposed abomination and they must be stopped at all costs. And so bounty hunters are employed to end them and cover up this horrific union that should never have happened.
Vaughan and Staples have clearly had a lot of fun creating a unique world with some very strange alien characters that are both interesting and enjoyable, such as a giant cat named Liar Cat, because it always knows when you are lying and will be sure to tell you. After reading this first volume, you won’t be surprised to discover it was one of the biggest selling graphic novels in 2012 and 2013, as well as winner of a number of awards. And thankfully, volume 2 is already out for you to get your hands on.
Originally written on April 19, 2014 ©Alex C. Telander.
To purchase a copy of Saga Volume 1 from Amazon, and help support BookBanter, click HERE.
April 18, 2014
“Snoopy: Cowabunga” by Charles M. Schulz (Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2013)
Snoopy is a timeless comic strip by the late and great Charles Schulz that has entertained many children and adults for decades, in fact many of those children who became adults continued to read the comic strip series, and continue to do so to this day with its reprints in the Sunday editions of newspapers.
Snoopy: Cowabunga is a great sample collection of why this is such a timeless and entertaining comic strip, featuring in addition to Snoopy and Woodchuck, well known characters like Charlie Brown, Lucy and Linus. This volume features the series of Snoopy as a beagle scout who soon gets lost in the woods and needs to get rescued, as well as addressing his questionable abilities at tennis, his participation in the Daisy Hill Puppy Cup, and many strips on Snoopy’s talent as a writer with his goal to get published.
Whether you’re a Snoopy-reading veteran, or you’re trying the comic strip for the first time with this volume, it will delight you with the highs and lows, bringing a laugh at every page, as well as imparting some useful life lessons.
Originally written on November 5, 2013 ©Alex C. Telander.
To purchase a copy of Snoopy: Cowabunga from Amazon, and help support BookBanter, click HERE.
April 16, 2014
Book Report: Amazon Buys ComiXology, Where In The World Is Westeros, Bookstore Bars & More!
World Book Night
World Book Night is quickly approaching and Shelf Awareness gives you all the info you need as well as news about a free ebook.
New Tad Williams
Bestselling epic fantasy author Tad Williams has announced he is writing a sequel trilogy to his groundbreaking debut trilogy, Memory, Sorrow and Thorn.
Bookstore-Bars
Five awesome bookstore-bars you won’t want to miss.
[READ MORE . . .]
April 14, 2014
S. IV
[This is the fourth installment in a series. The whole series can be found here.]
One of the most impressive and entrancing aspects of S. (and part of its brilliance) the many layers that the overall book possesses, each to be appreciated and studied by the reader of the book. There is the actual text of Ship of Theseus, then there is the concept of the translated work, then there are the footnotes of the translator. This is the first level, if you will, of the reading containing a number of different layers to be contemplated by the reader.
Next there are the pencil notes of one of the characters reading the text at a young age, then there are the pen margin notes made by this same character later in life and the female character he is corresponding with as they discuss both the text and their own personal feelings and events in their own lives. This is the next level.
Finally there is the level of the reader, taking this all in, in its many different aspects, putting it all together and deciding from there what the story is telling them.
While it has been hinted at in the previous chapters that there is something developing between the two characters making their comments in the margins, and I’ve discussed this in previous installments in the series, it is in this chapter, the third chapter of Ship of Theseus, that this relationship is made clear as something blossoming between the characters over the reading of this text, as they become more open with each other, sharing personal details from their lives, and being outright flirty with their commentary. This is also played upon by a relationship taking place within the text of Ship of Theseus, and the characters reading it, discussing it and playing around with it, as they hint at their evolving feelings for each other.
Adding a level of realism with the notations in the margins, the characters even make simple illustrations or doodles at points, much as we all have done when our interest begins to waver and we find ourselves wanting to create something from scratch on an empty square of paper. It adds to the level of detail put into the development and making of this book, even down to occasional smudges of the ink, leading to the possibility that the character writing the particular notation might be left-handed.
At this point of reading S. I got the sense that I was reading an important scholarly text, something out of classic literature that has been around for a number of years, perhaps even centuries, and after finishing the book, it might be worth a reread or two, perhaps right away, or perhaps after the passing of some time, so that the many subtle levels of the story can be better appreciated, once all the details from start to finish are fully known.
It is also in this chapter and a sliver of fear is introduced to the characters reading the text, which is in turn passed on to the overall reader, as they discover alterations in the text that weren’t that way before, meaning since their last reading someone has come and made this alteration, such as the underlining of the word or sentence. It forces the reader to ask questions such as whether these readers of Ship of Theseus are being watched or observed in some way, and just how important this text truly is. It adds an growing element of risk to these characters which just serves to make it more thrilling for the reader of S. This is developed even further with developments happening to these readers in their lives, people they know getting hurt, others getting killed who are in some way related to this text.
And with the development of the chilling and dark in S., it seems only warranted that there a reader should have an ideal playlist to accompany the reading. So here are some suggested playlists from Songza to add to the mood of reading S.
