Doug Lewars's Blog, page 55

Sunny Summer Days

Sunny Summer Days by Doug Lewars



Four friends are growing up during the 1960s. Sometimes things go well. Sometimes they face the sort of difficulties that teenagers have always faced – minus the modern technology. Join Carol, Greg, Jennifer and Ellen as they make their way through a driving lesson, the difficulties faced by a competitive runner, a day spent on Toronto’s Center Island and summer jobs. There is fun. There is loss. But always there is friendship.












“My God! What have we done?” exclaimed Carol.

“Looks like she’s made a decision,” replied Ellen.

“Yes, but what’s going to happen when she comes to her senses?”

“She’ll probably return it.”

“You can’t return bathing suits! The store doesn’t allow it for hygienic reasons.”

“Hmm, you’re right. I guess she’s stuck with it then.”

“Do you think she’ll buy another one?”

“Jennifer? I don’t think so. She doesn’t like to spend money unless she really has to.”

“Well, in this case she might really have to.”

“I don’t think she’ll see it that way. I think she’ll tough it out.”

“But what about when we get to the island?” asked Carol.

“Well, they don’t have changing facilities so we’ll have to wear our bathing suits under our clothes; and when we get to the beach we’ll just take off our shirts and pants and there will be our Jennifer in all her splendor.”

“She’ll die of embarrassment!”

“You’re right. I’d better remember to bring my camera and a fresh roll of film.”

“Ellen! You’re awful! Poor Jennifer is going to die and you’re going to take pictures. Maybe I’ll bring mine as well.”

The Wilt Alternative

The Wilt Alternative by Tom Sharpe

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was published in 1979 so I found it amazing how those things being satirized were still relevant today. It is very dark humor and certainly not to everyone's tastes but even though I'd read it before I still found myself laughing at some of the scenes.

Wilt is a middle aged man who aspires to a life of peace and tranquility and yet constantly finds himself amidst chaos - admittedly some of his own making. For example he is a prude who is not prepared to tell the receptionist in a crowded waiting room at a hospital emergency intake that he needs assistance for a badly lacerated penis. As a result he is subjected to various painful and unrelated procedures by insensitive health providers. As a result the reader gets a glimpse into a National Health Service that values bureaucracy over the well-being of its patients and believes that dignity is an archaic concept best forgotten in the name of efficiency.

Tom Sharpe has a number of targets for his wit among then being progressive education, new-age fads from the 1970s, terrorists and government bureaucracies.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and I highly recommend it but for those who aspire to 'social consciousness' it should probably be skipped.



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Thief of Time

Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I've read quite a number of Terry Pratchett novels and, while I can't claim that this is the best of the lot, it's certainly a contender for top spot. In this book, he's exploring the meaning of time and, as might be expected, there's a bit of word play mixed in among the narrative. However, where Mr. Pratchett really shines is in his creation of characters. Death plays a significant part in this story as does his granddaughter Miss Susan. The latter is not really keen on being something other than fully human but she does make good use of her abilities not only to advance the plot but in her role as a teacher to young children. A few not so subtle shots are taken against modern 'progressive' education and, while some readers might wince, I had quite a chuckle seeing a number of educational fads well skewered. His other target - and the bad guys in the novel - is auditors. Perhaps he makes them out to be just a little too villainous but, hey, they're not going to go away so they may as well be satirized. In fact, near the end of the story he killed a great many of them and I'm sure he felt much better for it. Bureaucracy is one of his favorite targets and he had fun with the organization of a monastic order dedicated to controlling time. Generally they did things right - as long as no difficulties presented themselves - but when the going became confusing, they were a trifle inclined to run around and panic.

This novel was a little confusing at the beginning. Many of the main characters were introduced long before the plot was established so it was difficult to know who was going to interact with who but eventually things sorted themselves out and the book got rolling. The pacing was excellent and the footnotes, as always were charming. I can completely recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys humor, fantasy and chocolate.



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Artemis

Artemis by Andy Weir

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible spoilers ***

This was a great book. Normally I find hard science fiction to be a little tedious and, while it was true that some parts were a trifle technical, overall they added to the story and made it believable. The pacing was superb. It truly was a page-turner all the way through. I can't say that the protagonist was someone I could relate to but I found her growing on my as the story proceeded and, even at her worst, she wasn't bad enough to force me to close the book and move on. I highly recommend this one.



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We Are Not Good People

We Are Not Good People by Jeff Somers

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was very well written. The story was interesting and the pacing was brisk. The protagonist was a grifter living on the edge of the law; and, as suggested in the title, none of the characters were good people. Still, he was somewhat of a sympathetic individual so I didn't find myself hating him. On the other hand, I couldn't accept the premise that magic is inherently corrupting - or at least petty. There were low-level magicians like the protagonist and there were much more powerful individuals but NONE of them seemed to be living a satisfying life. That seems a bit of a stretch.

I didn't care much for the ending. Either it was a flashback or the author messed up his own constraints regarding magic with respect to altering the past. Also there were too many flashbacks throughout the book for my liking. I realize that it's a useful literary device but it can be used to excess. However, despite the shortcomings, I think I can recommend this book as being exciting and enjoyable.



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Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I don't think this was quite as good as the Hitchhiker series but it was well-written, had suitable weird characters and included a horse. Time travel was employed which made things a little complicated in some places but a few complications are to be expected in a good story. It's definitely worth reading.



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Guards! Guards!

Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

Of all the books I've read by Terry Pratchett, I've yet to come across one I dislike. This was certainly no exception. The characters are charming, quirky, and humorous. The plot moves quickly and keeps things exciting. Of course, not everyone likes fantasy and there are some people who dislike satire. As a result, this is not a book that will appeal to everyone. Nevertheless, the book has not yet been written - and never will be - that will appear to all readers. If you like fantasy and humor then this is for you.



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The Everyday Activist

The Everyday Activist by Michael Norton

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This consists of 365 suggestions by date for activist activity. Since it's not easy to come up with that many activities many of them are rather trivial or repetitive. For example 'read something' was fairly common. Got so such-and-such website was another. So while I have some doubts that this would be of much use to activists, it is quite useful for writers. Consider. Major plots - the kind around which a novel can be created - are pretty easy to come up with; but minor ones are more difficult because they have to be relevant to the story being told and that eliminates large numbers of possibilities. If you take a look at each page in this book and use the topics rather like a word-association test, then you can generally come up with some sort of activity. List it in a spreadsheet and when you need something to happen, take a look. You'll probably find something that can be used or modified to meet your needs. As a result, I found this book quite useful.



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The Penguin History of the World

The Penguin History of the World by J.M. Roberts

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This book is not for the faint of heart. It took me 7 weeks to slog through it. It does, however, provide a pretty good overview of history and, more importantly, historical process. It can't provide details in every area but it does provide enough material to generate interest so that the reader can drill down afterwards into areas of particular relevance. It gave me a new perspective into historical relationships not usually covered in school. For a writer, this book provides some useful ideas.



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Blackbird Fly

Blackbird Fly by Erin Entrada Kelly

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I rated this book a three because three is in the middle and I have absolutely no idea whether it's good or bad. It is intended for an audience that I guess is the in age range of 8 - 13 and that is a demographic that might consist of aliens for all the familiarity I have with them.

As for me I hated the book but that wasn't surprising. I knew at the outset it hadn't been written for me; and, as an author myself, I firmly believe in occasionally reading outside my comfort zone. This book was far, far outside that zone. I seriously considered abandoning it but I was determined to see it through because even though I wasn't enjoying the story, I was pretty certain that my dislike was more about me than the book. Simply put, it made me cringe at the heroine's total lack of a center. Sure, young people are subject to peer pressure, but this individual suffers from peer absolutism. Those around her are nothing but mirrors who reflect her illusory failures. Whatever anyone says about her she believes. She is so desperate to conform that she's prepared to go to a dance with someone she considers obnoxious just because he might be willing to go with her. While I didn't like the story, I think I could give it five stars if there were a scale for cringe-worthy writing. The good news is that somewhere around the midpoint things start to improve and the story became easier to read; but for me the damage was done. Still, it is interesting to understand the author's assessment as to what might appeal to the target demographic. I'm not sure if that assessment is accurate. What young people want and what certain adults think they SHOULD want may be two different things but I can at least understand a little more about a certain mindset. I'm not sure what I can do with the information but I may be able to find a use for it.

I can't recommend this book to young readers because I don't know whether they'd like it or not. This is definitely not for older audiences. It MAY be for those who interact with young people on a daily basis - teachers, teacher assistants, social workers, Board of Ed staff and people like that. It was definitely not for me.



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