Close Encounters of the Fourteenth Century Kind
Howdy! I’m on vacation in Brazil for most of September, so I turned the tables on my readers and opened up the blog for guests posts while I’m gone. Today’s post comes from John, a.k.a. Mr. Lector’s Books. I have a confession: I listen to a lot of audiobooks. Where most people listen to music, […]
Review of Illusion by Frank Peretti (2012)
Bottom line: A fascinating and intriguing story about love, time-travel, and magic. Rating: Strongly Recommended Blurb: In a world where nothing is as it seems, anything is possible. DANE AND MANDY, a popular magic act for forty years, are tragically separated by a car wreck that claims Mandy’s life—or so everyone thinks. Even as Dane […]
Review of Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card (1985) (The Ender Quintet)
Bottom line: A compelling character and suspenseful story combine to create an engrossing read. Rating: Recommended Blurb: In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race’s next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew “Ender” Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, […]
Review of the Chronological Man Adventure Series by Andrew Mayne
Bottom line: A fun, historical, science-y, steampunk-y, adventure-y series of short stories. Rating: Strongly Recommended Review: I really like this series. It consists (so far) of two short stories, telling the tale of Smith, time traveler extraordinaire, who shows up to save the day whenever he is needed. The books are short enough to be […]
Review of “Nineteen Eighty Four” or “1984” by George Orwell (1949)
Bottom line: Definitely worth a read, as it explores timeless topics such as power, inequality, and control. Rating: Strongly Recommended Blurb: 1984 has come and gone, but George Orwell’s prophetic, nightmarish vision in 1948 of the world we were becoming is timelier than ever. 1984 is still the great modern classic of “Negative Utopia” – […]
Review of Timekeeper by Heather Albano (2012)
Bottom line: A very strong sequel to Timepiece, and a very fun read. Rating: Strongly Recommended Blurb: An alternate history adventure featuring time travelers, freedom fighters, Frankenstein’s monster, the Battle of Waterloo, and Napoleon invading Britain by dirigible. — In Timepiece, young adventurer Elizabeth Barton and her suitor William Carrington used a mysterious pocket watch […]
Zombie Twofer
First, let me preface this by saying that I’m not really into zombies. Most zombie movies are reviewed enthusiastically for me by my husband, followed by a “and you should never watch it”. What can I say? I’m a wimp about violence. However, I thoroughly enjoyed these two books, and they continue to make the […]
Review of Divergent by Veronica Roth (2011) (Divergent Book 1)
Bottom line: Reading Divergent is like watching a good action movie: it’s not really about the plot, it’s about the heroes and their journey. Rating: Recommended Blurb: In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), […]
My Favorite Ray Bradbury Books
I found out today that Ray Bradbury died yesterday (June 5, 2012) at age 91 – not bad! He wrote one of my favorite books (Fahrenheit 451), so I wanted to give a brief tribute here. What better way to remember him than by reading some of his works? Here are some of my favorites: […]
Review of The Hunger Games Movie
Bottom line: One of the best book to movie adaptations I’ve seen. A great movie of a great book (see my review of the book here). Rating: Strongly Recommended Review: I am normally one of those people – the ones who come out of a movie adaptation of a book moaning and whining about all […]