Patricia Hamill's Blog: I read too much!, page 23
February 19, 2013
Review: The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story by Fred Saberhagen
The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story by Fred SaberhagenMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story is an excellent story of tragedy and corruption of the soul.
Prince Murrat, smitten by Princess Kristin during his last visit to Tasavalta when he stole Woundhealer with the aid of Coinspinner, is determined to make it up to the lonely princess and hopes to win her away from ever-absent Prince Mark. What better way to do so than to present her with the Mindsword, a god forged sword with the power to convert all within it's radius into devoted followers.
Starting off his journey with good intentions and vowing never to use the Sword for himself, Prince Murrat soon finds that he cannot keep that promise when his and his son's fates are threatened on the road to Tasavalta. Even as he reluctantly accepts the conversion of the bandits who threatened him, the Prince vows never to do so again, holding to his goal of presenting the Mindsword to his adored Princess Kristin.
Meanwhile, Vilkata, the Dark King and once owner of the dreadful Mindsword, senses that the sword has been found and teams up with a demon, Akbar, to steal the sword away from its new owner. Posing as a blind old man who once knew Kristin, he convinces Prince Murrat to bring him along on his quest to gain the Princess' favor.
Events continue to escalate out of control and Prince Murrat falls further and further under the influence of the Mindsword's heady power.
I couldn't put this book down.
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February 16, 2013
Review: The Fifth Book of Lost Swords: Coinspinner's Story by Fred Saberhagen
The Fifth Book of Lost Swords: Coinspinner's Story by Fred SaberhagenMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
The Fifth Book of Lost Swords: Coinspinner's Story is excitement embodied in the written word.
Prince Murrat, a visiting diplomat from neighboring Culm, begs Princess Kristin to allow him to borrow Woundhealer so that he can bring it back to heal his ailing sovereign. When she firmly refuses, the Prince puts his own Sword, Coinspinner, a god forged sword that unfailingly puts the odds in it's owners favor (so long as they possess it), into play and steals the Sword of Love.
Coinspinner's web of luck, however is fickle and good fortune soon abandons Prince Murrat when he lends it to a bitter young relative who decides to keep it for his own benefit. Relying on the Sword in a game of chance, the young man soon loses it to the dread wizard Wood, who wields Sheildbreaker, a sword immune to Coinspinner's influence.
Wood immediately turns the sword against young Adrian, Prince Mark and Princess Kristin's eldest son, who is on a magical quest in the City of Wizards with a fellow student, Trilby. Caught in a web of enchantment enhanced by a web of luck woven by Coinspinner, Adrian and Trilby are nearly destroyed. But Coinspinner, always on the move, decides to take itself away from Wood at the last instant.
My favorite element of this story is the way the characters are influenced by Coinspinner, even as they try to use it to their own favor. For a lucky sword, this one seems determined to abandon it's owners at the most inopportune times. It makes for a fun story.
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February 13, 2013
Review: The Third Book of Lost Swords: Stonecutter's Story by Fred Saberhagen
The Third Book of Lost Swords: Stonecutter's Story by Fred SaberhagenMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
If you've been following this series, this one will throw you off a bit. It's still an interesting read, but pretty much abandons the main characters to go on a Sherlock Holmes-like tangent.
Stonecutter, a magical sword forged by the gods with the power to cut through any stone, is loaned to a desert prince by Prince Mark of Tasavalta and is then promptly stolen under mysterious circumstances. A young doctor, Kasimir, feels bad because he was in the tent when the sword was taken and feels obligated to find the thief and retrieve the sword. He's in luck when he runs into a famous Magistrate, Wen Chang, who agrees to take on the investigation for the prince and takes Kasimir along for the ride. Twists abound as they follow the trail of the sword which keeps changing hands as various underground groups and individuals steal the sword from each other for their own reasons.
The most fun I got out of this book was trying to identify all of the mega inspector and his trusty companion cliches. Amusing, but not the best of Saberhagan's work.
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February 11, 2013
Review: Jimbo the Homeless Cat by Enrico Antiporda
The Adventures of Jimbo, the Homeless Cat by Enrico AntipordaMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Beautiful story. Well-written, thoughtful and engaging. It actually brought me to tears a couple of times. Also, the pictures match the story and are lovely. Looks great on the kindle app in "night" view because the pictures really pop.
The story is told by Jimbo, a cat who finds a loving home with a kind artist named Billy. They are happy together and Jimbo loves the beautiful artwork Billy makes and the smiles the art brings to those who buy it. But one day, their house burns down and Billy and Jimbo escape with almost nothing, but they have each other.
Jimbo is distraught, but Billy reminds him that they are safe and things will get better. In the meantime, they make a temporary home under a bridge and find happiness while Billy paints the pictures they will need to rent a new apartment. But as in life, tragedy sometimes strikes twice and Billy falls to an illness leaving Jimbo alone.
This is the first place in the story where I found myself fighting off the tears, because Billy spends his last moments comforting Jimbo and telling him that everything will be ok and that he wants him to be happy. Jimbo takes the heartfelt advice with him as he travels to find a new home and new people who will love him forever.
This is an excellent story with lessons of love, optimism and being happy with what you have, even in the face of loss or tragedy. Even as an adult, I thoroughly enjoyed the story and find myself thinking about Jimbo and Billy and their wonderful approach to life.
The pictures are also wonderful as they are on every view (on the kindle) and are a perfect companion to someone reading the words aloud.
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February 5, 2013
How am I reading six books right now!
I was just puttering around my goodreads account and came across my currently reading list. Six books! Yikes.
So, here's the scoop. I'm not actually reading six at once, more like three. Of course, I started the first of those sometime late last week, and wrapped three by Sunday afternoon.
I think the culprit is that I'm trying out a new "favorite" author, David Estes, and when I do that I tend to simply read everything they have to offer, and he has a bunch. I think he mentioned having something like eleven published books out there. So far I've tackled two and a half of them: Fire Country (awesome), The Moon Dwellers (exciting), and the in progress The Star Dwellers (loving it so far). Next up will be The Sun Dwellers, which will wrap up the Dwellers books.
Fire Country is actually a sister series to the Dwellers series. All of them are set in a post meteor apocalyptic future and feature strong young people as their main characters. I am particularly impressed with the strong female characters in the books I've read so far. I haven't read many books that ring true to me from a female perspective, but his do. And, as an added bonus, these stories managed to tear me away from reading The Two Towers, which isn't easy to do.
Besides the David Estes books and LOTR, I've also just wrapped up a fun little series starter, Run, Witch, Run, which features a young girl just coming into her powers dealing with uncaring adoptive parents who are over the fun of having a kid as well as mysterious stalkers who seem to be after her. A tiny blond Mountain Witch (a breed of being, rather than a profession) befriends her, but has her own secrets. As the name implies, she decides to make a run for it and hide away from all of them. I really loved how the author juggles the different perspectives. It's almost like three stories in one and they're all woven in together wonderfully.
That leaves number six, which I've just started. Since I'm on page 17 out of 700 or so, I think I'll wait to give my impressions on it. Just in case you're interested though, it's Askari: Child of Muralia Book I.
This weekend, I plan to write reviews for all the 100% read, currently reading books I have in my queue. Perhaps then it won't look like I'm an insane reading machine.
So, here's the scoop. I'm not actually reading six at once, more like three. Of course, I started the first of those sometime late last week, and wrapped three by Sunday afternoon.
I think the culprit is that I'm trying out a new "favorite" author, David Estes, and when I do that I tend to simply read everything they have to offer, and he has a bunch. I think he mentioned having something like eleven published books out there. So far I've tackled two and a half of them: Fire Country (awesome), The Moon Dwellers (exciting), and the in progress The Star Dwellers (loving it so far). Next up will be The Sun Dwellers, which will wrap up the Dwellers books.
Fire Country is actually a sister series to the Dwellers series. All of them are set in a post meteor apocalyptic future and feature strong young people as their main characters. I am particularly impressed with the strong female characters in the books I've read so far. I haven't read many books that ring true to me from a female perspective, but his do. And, as an added bonus, these stories managed to tear me away from reading The Two Towers, which isn't easy to do.
Besides the David Estes books and LOTR, I've also just wrapped up a fun little series starter, Run, Witch, Run, which features a young girl just coming into her powers dealing with uncaring adoptive parents who are over the fun of having a kid as well as mysterious stalkers who seem to be after her. A tiny blond Mountain Witch (a breed of being, rather than a profession) befriends her, but has her own secrets. As the name implies, she decides to make a run for it and hide away from all of them. I really loved how the author juggles the different perspectives. It's almost like three stories in one and they're all woven in together wonderfully.
That leaves number six, which I've just started. Since I'm on page 17 out of 700 or so, I think I'll wait to give my impressions on it. Just in case you're interested though, it's Askari: Child of Muralia Book I.
This weekend, I plan to write reviews for all the 100% read, currently reading books I have in my queue. Perhaps then it won't look like I'm an insane reading machine.
February 3, 2013
Review: The Goldenwealth Light by Scott McCloskey
The Goldenwealth Light by Scott McCloskeyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Danger, friendship, and adventure abound in this action packed tale of young Theo and his little sister, Marie, who join with a charismatic group of 'contrary' young people on an epic journey through a magical land.
While the scenery and imagery are dynamic as well as beautiful, I think the greatest strength of this story is the cast of unique and richly developed characters and fantasy creatures. The central theme is one of learning to accept yourself and others despite perceived differences or shortcomings.
Simply put, this is a truly unique story which will draw you in and have you turning pages for hours on end. I cannot wait to find out what's in store for Theo and the others in the next volume of The Traveler of Ord series.
I recommend this book to anyone who loves the epic adventure of The Neverending Story and the seemlessly relatable characters found in the Harry Potter series.
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January 29, 2013
Review: The Hunger Games boxed set by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games Trilogy Boxset by Suzanne CollinsMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Hunger Games, all three installments, is a frightening yet engrossing survival story following Katnis Everdeen. The first book introduces readers to the Hunger Games, an annual event in which 12-18 year old children from the formerly rebelious districts are pitched against eachother in a deadly competetion in which only one contestant is allowed to survive. Truly horrifying is that if the players aren't entertaining enough, the gamemasters stack the odds against them with booby traps, weather, and genetically modified animals (vicious and tenacious).
The second book throws un unexpected twist in the lives of the districts, which I don't even want to mention at a high level. The whole book is a spoiler. A good mix of tragic, heroic and ridiculous characters keep the story fresh. I highly recommend continuing the trilogy.
The third book wraps up all of the major plotlines and once and for all settles who Katnis will end up with. The story shifts away from the hunger games as true rebelion goes into full force. Will they succeed? If so, what will they do with their new power?
Books one and two are my favorites, but three is vital to the story, so I recommend getting all three at once. You won't want to wait for the next one once you've started.
One word of caution, this story is filled with violence, tragedy and horrific acts by and against children. If you are getting this for your kid, read it yourself first and consider what your kid can handle (and what you'd want your kid to handle). I'm a middle aged woman, I like it, but I'm not sure I'd let my 13 year old son read it. Maybe in a few years.
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January 26, 2013
Writing for work and fun...
Today, I decided to write about the various types of writing I do, including creative writing, of course. Here's the breakdown, in order of highest to lowest volume.
1. Business writing (emails, memos, standard operating procedures, etc.)
2. Instructional Writing (training materials, eLearning Courses, lesson plans)
3. Creative Writing (stories)
4. Social Writing (blogs, essays, and reviews)
As you can see, the majority of the writing I do falls into the Business and Instructional Writing categories (my day job), but I spend a great deal of time at home on the Creative and Social Writing.
Because each type of writing requires a significantly different approach, I will go over each one briefly:
Business writing:
Focus: Be short, sweet, and to the point.
Purposes: To convey information, to persuade others, to provide instructions, and to record information
Prewriting: For business writing, I typically use outlining, free-writing, and the occasional brainstorm or mind-map when the topic is complex or the outline eludes me.
Downside: You're typically writing for an audience that has limited time and doesn't really want to read what you've wrote. You'll lose your reader if you add too many details or present information with too many words. Personally, I tend to explain/describe too much and have to sweep through my business documents to cull the fluff out of them.
Instructional writing:
Focus: Be accurate, informative/demonstrative, concise, and interesting.
Purposes: To inform, to transfer skills/knowledge, to influence attitudes/behaviors, and to entertain (up to a point, of course).
Prewriting: Typically, I use mind-mapping and outlining when I design training materials, but the trick to a good training outline is to remember the purpose for the training. What better way to define the purpose than to start with SMART objectives. I won't go into objectives just now because I could devote an entire post to the topic. Next, I determine whether the training must focus on teaching knowledge vs. teaching a skill, because that determines the order in which information is presented. To teach a topic (knowledge), it is best to begin with the simple and build your way up to the complex. To teach a task (skill), it is best to go in the order that a person is expected to perform the activities. Once I have objectives and a content outline (in the right order), then I fill in all the details. Seem like a lot of work? You bet it is, but taking a structured approach, like ADDIE, helps. Check out this ISU College of Education writup on the ADDIE method: Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate.
Downside: You're writing to change a person's knowledge, skills and attitudes (or behavior), but it is extremely easy to give too much information or to go on tangents. If your efforts to focus the training on the topic at hand fail, you're likely to confuse the audience or emphasize things they don't need to know. Another important thing you may overlook is gaining buy-in. If you're teaching adults, and you don't convince them why they should care about what you're teaching, you'll lose their attention (and you may even turn them against you).
Creative writing:
Focus: Be entertaining, show/don't tell, make sense (even when writing fiction), and draw the reader into the story.
Purposes: To entertain, to explore ideas, to convince, and to invoke emotion/empathy/sympathy.
Prewriting: My favorite methods are mind-mapping, drawing, and free-writing. For more information, check out my earlier post, Time to get Writing!
Downside: Like other types of writing, having a plan is vital, and if you don’t have one, your writing will suffer. For creative writing, this plan can incorporate the plot, character arcs, or any other number of elements. Whether you start with a plan or develop it as you write, consistency is key. Editing, rewriting and second opinions can help you determine whether your story has hit the mark you intended it to hit.
Social writing:
Focus: Be entertaining, true, concise, and friendly (or unfriendly, depending on your goal).
Purposes: To share opinions/experiences/information, to meet/connect with/stay in touch with others, and to fulfill a need for social interaction.
Prewriting: It depends. I doubt many people pre-write for tweets, Facebook posts, or message board posts, but I definitely put some thought and planning into blog posts and book reviews.
Downside: Social networks are fun and often friendly, but it's easy to forget that everyone can see what you've wrote, and it's likely to stay on the web forever. I recommending giving a second and third look to everything you plan to share with the world. Consider the possible reactions of your boss (or future bosses), your friends, your family, and even your enemies. If what you're writing is inflammatory, insulting, or just in bad taste, you might want to abort the post. Finally, due to the ease of sharing and posting online, don't forget the importance of accuracy. Wiki's are a good example of where information can go astray to the detriment of any who take them at face value. Check out this classic clip from the Colbert Report (The Word-Wikiality), which is both amusing and disturbing at the same time.
1. Business writing (emails, memos, standard operating procedures, etc.)
2. Instructional Writing (training materials, eLearning Courses, lesson plans)
3. Creative Writing (stories)
4. Social Writing (blogs, essays, and reviews)
As you can see, the majority of the writing I do falls into the Business and Instructional Writing categories (my day job), but I spend a great deal of time at home on the Creative and Social Writing.
Because each type of writing requires a significantly different approach, I will go over each one briefly:
Business writing:
Focus: Be short, sweet, and to the point.
Purposes: To convey information, to persuade others, to provide instructions, and to record information
Prewriting: For business writing, I typically use outlining, free-writing, and the occasional brainstorm or mind-map when the topic is complex or the outline eludes me.
Downside: You're typically writing for an audience that has limited time and doesn't really want to read what you've wrote. You'll lose your reader if you add too many details or present information with too many words. Personally, I tend to explain/describe too much and have to sweep through my business documents to cull the fluff out of them.
Instructional writing:
Focus: Be accurate, informative/demonstrative, concise, and interesting.
Purposes: To inform, to transfer skills/knowledge, to influence attitudes/behaviors, and to entertain (up to a point, of course).
Prewriting: Typically, I use mind-mapping and outlining when I design training materials, but the trick to a good training outline is to remember the purpose for the training. What better way to define the purpose than to start with SMART objectives. I won't go into objectives just now because I could devote an entire post to the topic. Next, I determine whether the training must focus on teaching knowledge vs. teaching a skill, because that determines the order in which information is presented. To teach a topic (knowledge), it is best to begin with the simple and build your way up to the complex. To teach a task (skill), it is best to go in the order that a person is expected to perform the activities. Once I have objectives and a content outline (in the right order), then I fill in all the details. Seem like a lot of work? You bet it is, but taking a structured approach, like ADDIE, helps. Check out this ISU College of Education writup on the ADDIE method: Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate.
Downside: You're writing to change a person's knowledge, skills and attitudes (or behavior), but it is extremely easy to give too much information or to go on tangents. If your efforts to focus the training on the topic at hand fail, you're likely to confuse the audience or emphasize things they don't need to know. Another important thing you may overlook is gaining buy-in. If you're teaching adults, and you don't convince them why they should care about what you're teaching, you'll lose their attention (and you may even turn them against you).
Creative writing:
Focus: Be entertaining, show/don't tell, make sense (even when writing fiction), and draw the reader into the story.
Purposes: To entertain, to explore ideas, to convince, and to invoke emotion/empathy/sympathy.
Prewriting: My favorite methods are mind-mapping, drawing, and free-writing. For more information, check out my earlier post, Time to get Writing!
Downside: Like other types of writing, having a plan is vital, and if you don’t have one, your writing will suffer. For creative writing, this plan can incorporate the plot, character arcs, or any other number of elements. Whether you start with a plan or develop it as you write, consistency is key. Editing, rewriting and second opinions can help you determine whether your story has hit the mark you intended it to hit.
Social writing:
Focus: Be entertaining, true, concise, and friendly (or unfriendly, depending on your goal).
Purposes: To share opinions/experiences/information, to meet/connect with/stay in touch with others, and to fulfill a need for social interaction.
Prewriting: It depends. I doubt many people pre-write for tweets, Facebook posts, or message board posts, but I definitely put some thought and planning into blog posts and book reviews.
Downside: Social networks are fun and often friendly, but it's easy to forget that everyone can see what you've wrote, and it's likely to stay on the web forever. I recommending giving a second and third look to everything you plan to share with the world. Consider the possible reactions of your boss (or future bosses), your friends, your family, and even your enemies. If what you're writing is inflammatory, insulting, or just in bad taste, you might want to abort the post. Finally, due to the ease of sharing and posting online, don't forget the importance of accuracy. Wiki's are a good example of where information can go astray to the detriment of any who take them at face value. Check out this classic clip from the Colbert Report (The Word-Wikiality), which is both amusing and disturbing at the same time.
January 20, 2013
Review: Creator Class by K.M. Breakey
Creator Class by K.M. BreakeyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Creator Class by K.M. Breaky is a smart, thought-provoking, and disturbingly plausible vision of the future that will forever color my view of the world as we know it.
Life in the year 2083 is a utopia. Over population, lack of resources, war and conflict are a thing of the past and people are happy, truly happy. So why can't Shawn Lowe join them in that happiness? Perhaps it's due to his Nana's hints of past freedoms lost or maybe it's the sense that there must be more to life than wearing himself out in the gameroom or stagnating amongst his peers in the neverending cycle of life as defined by Earthism. Whatever the cause, Shawn's rebelious tendencies have been noted, and the consequences are likely to be dire.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story from the very first page to the very last. Some of my favorite things about it include the realistic characters, the family dynamics, the plausible, though disturbing, view of our future as the human race, and of course, the social dynamics both within and between the Classes.
If you loved The Hunger Games, you'll love Creator Class.
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January 19, 2013
Review: The Second Book of Lost Swords: Sightblinder's Story by Fred Saberhagen
The Second Book of Lost Swords: Sightblinder's Story by Fred SaberhagenMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
In The Second Book of Lost Swords: Sightblinder's Story, Saberhagen finally gives a name and a face to the Ancient One introduced in the First Book of Lost Swords: Woundhealer's Story to the realm of the Swords.
This story follows Yambu, Zoltan and Ben as they attempt to use Sightblinder, a god forged sword that causes it's bearer to take on the appearance of the most loved (or hated) figures in the imaginations of those who behold him (or her), to save Mark of Tasavalta from a mysterious wizard who has taken him hostage.
They come across a young man, Arfinn, who had planned to bring the Sword to the local wizard (whose castle has just been taken over by the Ancient One) and persuade him to part with it, but Arfinn soon changes his mind and steals it back, leaving Ben, Yambu and Zoltan to attempt a rescue without it.
Also making an appearance is Prince Mark's father, the mysterious Emporer, and Draffut, the Lord of Beasts.
Tragedy and adventure color this story in a web of intrigue as those involved struggle to acheive their disparate goals. All in all, a good story. I recommend reading The First Swords (Book of Swords 1-3) and The First Book of Lost Swords: Woundhealer's Story before taking on this one.
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