tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88800886925950662312024-03-05T04:56:42.414-08:00Em and Emm Expound on ExpositionEmma and Emily review books!Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.comBlogger218125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-6494266181072447562013-10-04T11:48:00.001-07:002013-10-04T11:48:28.016-07:00The Blade Itself by Joe AbercrombieThis book has been recommended to me, and on my radar for a long, long time. I am extremely glad I finally got around to reading it!<br />
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The Blade Itself is in some ways a typical fantasy novel with magic, warriors, and romance. It takes the normal fantasy archetypes and builds on them in really interesting ways! I highly recommend this book, and will avoid spoilers in the following review.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The Blade Itself follows my favorite formula for fantasy. It has a diverse group of point of view characters, all across the setting, doing exciting things which will presumably all converge at some point throughout the series. Abercrombie does a really good job of making memorable characters. There are a lot of important people, some of whom seem superficially similar, but he does a good job making them all have distinct voices and compelling stories. <br /><br />
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A major complaint I have about the series so far is that the magic is confusing and poorly defined. It's a little plot-devicy and nebulous. I think this might be a deliberate plot point, however, and might get pinned down later. Some of its vagueness is probably deliberate, since few people in the setting understand it. The source and methods will probably get fleshed out later, but so far it's a little like, "and then MAGIC happens" to solve some problems. <br />
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This is a very dark story, in a dark setting, full of dark characters. If you like <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/search/label/Matthew%20Woodring%20Stover" target="_blank">Matthew Stover</a> or <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/search/label/George%20R.R.%20Martin" target="_blank">George R.R. Martin</a> this will probably work for you. It's pretty violent, lots of torture, swearing, etc. One of the main characters is a professional torturer, for example. Not a ton of sex or rape, but some is implied. The F-word is used quite a bit, but many characters use the word "fruits" for male genitals which cracks me up every time. That and "the cock rot" comes up a lot. Just putting that out there because it's funny, and this series is not for children. <br />
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This book will probably go over well with fans of fantasy who don't mind dark stuff. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to any fans of Game of Thrones. In a lot of ways it's more interesting and exciting than Game of Thrones, which honestly can be a little slow and gratuitous. <br />
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5/5 StarsEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-35141598752515104562013-09-13T13:32:00.000-07:002013-09-13T13:32:19.644-07:00Prospero's Children by Jan SiegelIn which a young woman discovers hidden magic and another world.<br />
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This book is a really interesting, unusual, and compelling fantasy story. I would recommend it to fans of fantasy, although discovering it has sequels diminished it for me a little. More on that after the cut.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Prospero's Children follows Fern as she and her brother explore a new house and its mysteries. It sounds like any other fantasy story, and it's difficult to say why it isn't. The tone is so perfect and urgent that it made it unusually intriguing. It starts a little slow, and really ramps up after the main character has left for this other world. The second half is much faster paced than the first, and contains a really well written romance, too. <br /><br />
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My main complaint with this book is more a complaint about authors generally. What is the problem with writing a one-shot story? Why do <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/10/lies-of-locke-lamora-by-scott-lynch.html" target="_blank">good stand alone books</a> have to have <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/11/red-seas-under-red-skies-by-scott-lynch.html" target="_blank">inferior sequels</a> tacked on? Why can't good stories just end before they are completely beaten into the dirt? This is one of those. There was nothing at the end that demanded sequels. I didn't know it HAD sequels until I'd finished it, and was annoyed. More authors ought to write self contained stories with ballsier endings.<br />
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I would definitely recommend this book to fans of fantasy. It's unusual and a very interesting story.<br />
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4/5 stars<br />
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<br />Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-12332076916884793922013-09-13T13:21:00.000-07:002013-09-13T13:21:18.343-07:00Percy Jackson and the Olympians (Series) by Rick RiordanI am again reviewing this entire series in one go, because there isn't so much to say individually about the books.<br />
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These are really solid young adult fantasy books. I would recommend them to most fans of young adult books generally! They are better than the movies, so far, although I have enjoyed the movies.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The Percy Jackson books follow the story of Percy Jackson, a son of the god Poseidon, as he figures out who he is, tries to stay alive, and has adventures which culminate in an important battle. It's VERY young adult in terms of the way the characters talk (cheeeeeeesy dialogue) but the story and characters are more universal. <br />
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Unlike <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2010/10/catching-fire-by-suzanne-collins.html" target="_blank">some young adult books I could mention</a>, these books tread very lightly on teen angst, romance, and love triangles. Some of that stuff is there, but it's masterfully subtle and doesn't take away from the story. Any romance stuff is extremely secondary to the children of gods, saving the world adventure stuff. Which is awesome! The romantic-ish relationships between the characters are handled really well. They add a little bit of depth, but are not dwelt on. That aspect was handled really well.<br />
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These are very clean, light young adult books. Some other series purporting to be for kids of young adults have really dark or disturbing elements. Not these. There are villains, and violence, but it's tasteful and mostly about good people trying hard. They seem unusually uplifting and positive for the genre. <br />
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I would not hesitate to recommend these books to anyone (even young readers) who found the cheesiness inherent to young adult books acceptable.<br />
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4/5 starsEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-31736543865976290102013-09-13T12:55:00.000-07:002013-09-13T12:55:20.538-07:00Wild Cards (Series) by George R.R. MartinIt's been a while, but I have lot's of books to review!<br />
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I am going to address the Wild Cards series in one chunk, because there isn't a lot to say about individual books. I got up through Volume 9 (Jokertown Shuffle) before stopping because the books became difficult to find and for other reasons discussed below. <br />
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This review will contain spoilers.<br />
<a name='more'></a> The coolest thing about Wild Cards is the setting itself. It's unusual, and lends itself to really compelling stories. The premise is that in 1946 an alien virus is released over New York City, which causes horrible deaths, disgusting mutations ("Jokers"), and occasionally super powers ("Aces"). This changes the world and creates both celebrity aces and joker slums. The interactions between ace, joker, and non-mutated people is really interesting. <br />
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Wild Cards is technically an anthology. It has different chapters and storylines written by different authors including George R.R. Martin, Roger Zelazny, Lewis Shiner, Walter Jon Williams, Pat Cadigan, Howard Waldrop, Leanne C. Harper, Chris Claremont, Victor Milán, and John J. Miller. I don't know who most of those people are either. This can make the books incredibly disjointed and inconsistent. Different people write characters differently, and there is no consistency in the tone or pace of stories. Some characters are many stories and books, others show up only occasionally. It's frustrating to read about characters I don't care about and have nothing on the fun characters in an entire book, to me. If inconsistency bothers you, Wild Cards might not be for you.<br />
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Wild Cards is DARK. There is plenty of violence, lots of disgusting stuff, and a great deal of disturbing (if not terribly graphic) rape. It is about the level of darkness of Martin's other books. More than most fantasy, less than some. If you don't like reading about horrible murders and people being awful all the time, this is not for you.<br />
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One thing Wild Cards is very consistent with is how women are portrayed. As victims. There are female aces with epic superpowers, female joker outcasts, and natural women. All are ok people trying to get by with varying degrees of success and being swept up in the currents of the more important (male) characters. When men become women (yes, it's a thing in the books) they suddenly become victims too. It's pretty notable in a series with so little consistency that the women throughout are all uniformly pawn-like. Even villainous women are really just pawns of worse male villains, being manipulated and used. Not ideal. <br />
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I stopped reading the series because I couldn't find the next book for under about $20. Which is too much. I will might continue eventually if I ever find reasonably prices eBooks. The other reason I quit reading it is because Jokertown Shuffle is really, really, tacky. The main plot involves a familiar character having his body switched with that of a teenage girl, and then getting repeatedly raped and impregnated by his evil grandson. Those scenes were horrible and plenty graphic, and made me decide I'd had about enough. That's just way too far. <br />
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I would recommend these books only to someone who really liked superpower type science fiction and didn't mind dark, violent, nasty, rape-filled books.<br />
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3/5 stars.<br />
<br />Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-83397839202394395412012-09-05T18:05:00.001-07:002012-09-05T18:09:29.270-07:00Bioshock: Rapture by John ShirleyCombination video game novelization and dystopian parody of <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2010/06/atlas-shrugged-by-ayn-rand.html">Atlas Shrugged</a> in which a new civilization is built that doesn't turn out quite as awesome as expected.<br />
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This book is a prequel to the BioShock video games, which I have not played. It begins with wealthy capitalist, Andrew Ryan, recruiting people to populate his wonderful, new, underwater, capitalist paradise called Rapture and apparently bridges the descent of Rapture from perfect society to the setting of the horror games.<br />
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Warning, some spoilers will follow.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I read this book because I was told (*cough* possibly on a first/last date with a guy) that the setting of BioShock was an awesome parody/exploration of the <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2010/06/atlas-shrugged-by-ayn-rand.html">Atlas Shrugged</a> setting. I really, really liked the setting and concepts, but the characters and story in this book are a little weak. Maybe I would have enjoyed the games more.<br />
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<a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2010/06/atlas-shrugged-by-ayn-rand.html">Atlas Shrugged</a> (1 star, I hate this book) involves wealthy capitalists leaving civilization to form their own awesome town full of people who hate taxes, government interference, and people who can't or won't work hard. It Atlas Shrugged the town is a paradise where the inhabitants are all good (apparently only bad people like government), hard working, and successful. Apparently Ayn Rand had never met people. In Rapture, the poor can't find work to feed or house their families and the lack of government allows all kinds of crime and abuse. I personally find the idea that many people would find new ways to take advantage of others in the absence of any government more plausible than Ayn Rand's alternative, and was vastly amused by Shirley's exploration of the consequences of a no-rules city for rich people, by rich people.<br />
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The book follows several forgettable characters gradually growing disillusioned with Andrew Ryan and Rapture and trying to survive. Rogue ex-nazi scientists create super drugs in the living bodies of debtors, fabulous artists murder, rape, and mutilate for funsies, and children are snatched and enslaved to further the interests of the capitalists. Meanwhile, Andrew Ryan is compromising his ideals to protect the idea of Rapture, e.g. promoting censorship and disappearances to prevent unions from forming or religion from existing. Eventually, drug-addicted superhumans are created by the drug manufactures operating with impunity. I understand these are important in the video game, but are not remarkably entertaining to read about. <br />
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I would recommend reading this if you are enamored with the video games, but probably not otherwise. I have to assume better explorations of the Atlas Shrugged setting exist, and I want to read them if they do!<br />
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3/5 starsEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-6059876336961551692012-04-01T19:52:00.000-07:002012-04-01T19:52:06.465-07:00The Demi-Monde: Winter, by Rod Rees<i>The Demi-Monde: Winter</i>, by Rod Rees. William Morrow, 2010. 517 pp. 978-0-06-207034-0.<br />
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... in which a young woman is enlisted to save the US President's daughter, who is trapped in a virtual world populated by Nazis, terrorists, and various villains from world history.<br />
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<i>The Demi-Monde: Winter</i> is the first book in a series involving a virtual reality (the Demi-Monde), set in 2018. This virtual world was created to simulate urban warfare scenarios for US soldiers in training, and the programmers populated the world with "dupes", virtual duplicates of real-life people, famous and otherwise. The computer world's technology is set to be comparable to the technology available in Victorian times. The most prominent people populating the Demi-Monde are some the worst people to ever live, including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinhard_Heydrich">Reinhard Heydrich</a> (one of Hitler's right-hand men), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavrentii_Beria">Lavrentii Beria</a> (Stalin's chief of police), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomas_De_Torquemada">Tomas de Torquemada</a> (a prominent figure in the Catholic Church's Spanish Inquisition), and plenty of others. The catch? The people in the Demi-Monde don't know that they're not real; all they know is that living in the Demi-Monde is hell. Unfortunately for the real-life humans who are spending time in this computer simulation, if you die in the computer, then you die in real life. Somehow, the US President's daughter Norma has been lured into the Demi-Monde, and is being held captive by Heydrich and his lackeys. The US Army recruits a young woman, Ella Thomas, to infiltrate the Demi-Monde and bring Norma out safely. However, the rulers of the Demi-Monde have a bigger plan for Norma and all of the residents of the computer world.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>First let me say, if you think this sounds like The Matrix with Nazis, then you're wrong. I found this to be one of the most original, intriguing virtual reality books that I've read. The world building in this novel is fantastic. The fake world in the computer simulation is so vividly described, but also maintains enough different-ness to remind the reader that this world is not quite real. Each geographic community was clearly very thoroughly planned out by the author, and as the characters move around the Demi-Monde, the locations and settings are easy to imagine based on the author's descriptions. The cultures of the Demi-Monde were equally vivid, almost to the point of making the book difficult to read. Since the whole point of the Demi-Monde was that it be ruled by the most awful people ever, most of the cultures in it are racist, sexist, religiously intolerant, and generally very unpleasant. The whole book was a very interesting, complicated look at political ideology, religious fundamentalism, superstition, and hero-worship. It could easily have been another 150 pages long. <br /><br />
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The main character, Ella, is really well done. She's very obviously a modern American young woman... an independent free-thinker who's brash enough to get herself into a lot of sticky situations. Many of the supporting characters are interesting as well: the people pulling the strings in the real world, Ella's allies in the Demi-Monde, enemies in the Demi-Monde. While plenty of the bad guys are evil caricatures of pretty much any scheming evil baddie, several of them are complex characters whose evil characteristics are complicated and very, very chilling (especially considering that these characters are based on real people!). Unfortunately, there are a lot of prominent characters that are not very interesting. Trixie, the daughter of a prominent Demi-Mondian, is one of the most important characters but I generally found her to be flat, hateful, and boring. She's a good representation of how uncompromising idealism can go horribly awry, but I didn't find her to be very realistic. Norma, the president's daughter, started out as likable but ended up being kind of boring and irritating; I am assuming that will change since the second book in the series is mostly about Norma.<br />
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The book had a number of other faults. In some places, the plot moved too quickly for me, and I was sort of confused about why things were happening. This problem is compounded by the weird vocabulary used by the Demi-Mondians; some of this weird vocabulary is defined in a glossary at the back, but many of the words are left for the reader to figure out. Sometimes the lack of supporting details wasn't a big deal, but sometimes it left me puzzling over something for the entire book. For example, I never really understood why Ella had to be the one to go into the Demi-Monde to find Norma; I only figured that out at the very end of the book. Also, there were a lot of plot conveniences and one really huge deus ex machina moment, but I guess since the book is mostly set in a computer world, anything goes.<br />
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Despite the book's many faults, I raced through it, dying to know what happened next. When the book ended on a cliffhanger (grr), I went looking for information about the sequel. I was told that the next book wouldn't be available in the US until next winter, which made me seek out a UK copy of the sequel. So, regardless of the book's faults, I enjoyed it immensely. I am a little bit skeptical about the ending, as it suggested that the next book might be moving in a direction that I won't like, but we will see!<br />
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5/5 starsEmilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-41062695635806258232012-03-11T13:50:00.000-07:002012-03-11T13:53:59.055-07:00The Rook, by Daniel O'MalleyThe Rook, by Daniel O'Malley. Little, Brown and Company, 2012. 978-0-316-19327-6.<br />
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... in which Myfanwy Thomas awakes with no memory of who she is, and must somehow return to her life as a high-ranking official in a secret government agency that protects the world from supernatural enemies.<br />
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Myfanwy Thomas (pronounced miff-uh-ney) wakes up one night and finds herself surrounded by dead bodies wearing latex gloves, with no memory of who she is. In her pocket, she finds a letter from her pre-amnesiac self, explaining that her name is Myfanwy Thomas and that she is being hunted by people who want to destroy her. Following the clues from her pre-amnesiac self, Myfanwy Thomas gradually learns that she is a Rook for the Checquy, a top-secret British government agency with hundreds of agents, directed towards protecting the world from various supernatural threats. Myfanwy's title of Rook places her in the very highest echelon of the Checquy, essentially making her a general in charge of all domestic supernatural problems. Myfanwy has to continue to follow the clues to discover who she is and who is trying to kill her, while also preventing her dangerous colleagues at the Checquy from discovering her total amnesia, and while preventing a full-scale invasion of horrifying monsters attempting to take over Great Britain.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>On an unrelated note, this is the first e-book I have ever read from an e-reader. A few days ago, my husband surprised me with a gift of a Nook Simple-Touch, and now I am reviewing a copy of <i>The Rook</i>, a book on my Nook. Here's my review. Take a look! (I couldn't resist)<br />
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Anyway. <i>The Rook</i> is one of the more absorbing pieces of urban fantasy that I've ever read. The story is told in several different styles. The majority of it is told from Myfanwy's perspective, after she wakes up with amnesia. Most of the rest of the story is told through the letters that pre-amnesia Myfanwy wrote to post-amnesia Myfanwy. It soon becomes clear that the two versions of Myfanwy are very different people, which makes her character so much more interesting. Pre-amnesia Myfanwy had a reputation for being a paper-shuffling administrator, absolutely brilliant at planning and office work but totally useless with her supernatural powers and completely afraid of confrontation with her colleagues. Post-amnesia Myfanwy is much stronger in her powers (the ability to control another's mind and body), and much more willing to be aggressive in her career and personal life. Either way, Myfanwy is a well-constructed character who is likable and relatable, interesting, flawed and multi-dimensional.<br />
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Several of the side characters are very well done secondary characters. Myfanwy's secretary Ingrid is especially interesting, especially as she reacts to Myfanwy's attempts to fish for information after her amnesia. A lot of the superpowers exhibited in the book are unusual, compared to the superpowers one normally sees. There are plenty of the normal powers, like metal manipulation and superstrength, but there are plenty of weird ones that I would never have thought of.<br />
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The world that Daniel O'Malley has created makes for very interesting material. Like so many other popular fantasy novels, this one revolves around a supernatural world that exists right under our noses; magic and superpowers and weird beasts being kept just out of the sight of normal human beings. The Checquy is a complicated organization with a complicated task and a complicated structure, which lets O'Malley bring in all kinds of characters and plot twists. It was interesting how all of the titles within the Checquy ("checquy" means a coat of arms divided into squares; see book cover above) are based on chess pieces. The two Rooks, one of whom is Myfanwy, are responsible for tracking down and containing domestic supernatural threats. Their colleagues the Chevaliers (knights) take care of international supernatural affairs, the two bishops take care of the overall administration of the whole Checquy, and the lord and lady of the Checquy are the ultimate authority in the organization.<br />
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The plot of the book moves along quickly. The book opens with Myfanwy's awakening with her amnesia, and from there, Myfanwy is almost constantly moving from crisis to crisis. The only lulls in the action come the form of the letters from pre-amnesia Myfanwy, who had been warned by a number of psychics that she would be losing all of her memories at some point, as a result of an attack from another member of the Checquy . The letters are a little bit of the plot convenience, because they're an easy way for the author to inform the reader of all of the necessary background information, without making the reader flounder around for answers. It does interrupt the flow of the book a little, especially when the text goes from Myfanwy being attacked by a giant fungus to a letter describing the minutiae of administrative tasks that are among the Rook's duties. There are plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader guessing, though the villains turn out to be fairly predictable. It's a fun book to read, not only because of the fast pace of events, but also because Myfanwy turns out to be a pretty funny person, especially when she's angry.<br />
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The level of complexity in this book is just right, in my opinion. The book has enough details and characters to require careful reading, but not to the point where the reader is bogged down with a very long character list and a thousand pages of plot. The story is dense enough to satisfy a reader's desire for a longer read, without requiring so much time that the reader feels like they're reading an epic. It's definitely a book for adults who enjoyed Harry Potter as children, but would now like to read fantasy with a little more grit and detail and complexity. There are plenty of things for fantasy fans to enjoy in this book, from its new interpretation of supernatural myths and creatures to its subtle mockery of some genre cliches. (There was one instance that I would like to believe was meant to be taking aim at <i>Eragon</i> and other boy-meets-dragon books, but perhaps I am reading too much into it)<br />
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5/5 starsEmilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-20962317140922101202012-03-04T13:06:00.001-08:002012-03-04T13:07:19.752-08:00After the Golden Age, by Carrie VaughnAfter the Golden Age, by Carrie Vaughn. Tor Books, 2011. 342 pp. 978-0-7653-6460-9.<br />
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... in which Celia, the totally normal daughter of the two greatest superheroes on Earth, fights evil and finds her own way in the world.<br />
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Celia West is the daughter of Captain Olympus and Spark, the two greatest superheroes in the world. Unfortunately for Celia, she was born completely normal, and her most exciting accomplishment is her silver medal from a high school swim meet. Estranged from her parents, who were disappointed at her lack of superpowers, Celia now works as an accountant. When her accounting firm is called in to work on the financials of the Destructor, her parents' biggest nemesis who is about to stand trial, Celia gets drawn back into the world of superheroes and supervillains. As one of her biggest secrets is revealed to the world, Celia has to learn to contend with bad guys, her parents, and her own place in the world.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Carrie Vaughn has done a great job with crafting a fast-paced, interesting book that is perfect for a lazy afternoon. Named for the "golden age" of superheroes (Superman, etc), the book is about superheroes and the people around them after the superheroes have passed their peak, but it avoids most of the usual cliches that come to mind when superheroes are mentioned. The cliches that do pop up are generally treated with a tongue-in-cheek kind of sensibility.<br />
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The plot itself moves along at a nice pace. At no point does the book drag, and the story is fast enough to keep the reader's attention, but not so fast that it feels like mindless action. There is plenty of drama, both in the action sense and the interpersonal sense, but luckily the book never starts to feel self-important. What this book is definitely escapist fiction at its best: meant to entertain, with its twists and love stories and action.<br />
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The most interesting part of the book is the characterization. I liked Celia a great deal, though she did tend to feel sorry for herself. If I had lived her life, though, I can't say I'd have been any better. She's an interesting heroine, who wants to make a name for herself, and establish her own career away from her parents and their glory. She wants to get away from the mistakes of her childhood, and she wants to prove to her father that she can be a good accountant, even if she can't fly or lift cars. Celia's mother and some of the other superheroes in the book are also interesting... three dimensional and unconventional. Celia's father is probably the hardest to pin down... he clearly expects a lot out of Celia, and he is clearly disappointed in her, but also clearly loves her. The relationship between Celia and her father (Captain Olympus) is probably one of the more interesting part of the story.<br />
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The biggest weak spot of the book is probably the romantic angle. It sort of felt like it was thrown in because readers expect a love story, so the love story kind of pops up out of nowhere and doesn't get as much attention as the characters deserve. Having said that, the love story was understated enough that I never felt like I was wading through a soap opera, and I never felt like the love story dominated the novel as a whole, which is nice.<br />
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Recommended reading for people who enjoy superhero stories, or quick fantasy reads. It's not high-brow fiction, but it's entertaining, and fun, and interesting, and that's what matters to me.<br />
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5/5 starsEmilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-55875901089406092472012-03-04T12:39:00.000-08:002012-03-04T12:39:09.402-08:00The Mindful Carnivore, by Tovar CerulliThe Mindful Carnivore: A Vegetarian's Hunt for Sustenance, by Tovar Cerulli. Pegasus Books, 2012. <br />
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... in which the author explains his reasoning for becoming a vegetarian, and then the ethics and philosophy behind his gradual move back to eating meat. <br />
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This review is of a digital copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.<br />
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Throughout his life, Tovar Cerulli has spent more time outdoors and observing nature than most people do. His childhood gave him a deep appreciation of how each animal is important to the natural world, and he came away with a deep reverence for all kinds of life. His experiences with fishing as a child also gave him an understanding of where his food comes from, and how it connects him back to the wider world. As an adult, this awareness led to Cerulli becoming a vegetarian, and then a vegan, believing that it was unethical to take a life for the purposes of eating, especially when there were so many other options available. Over time, however, Cerulli's further observations of the natural world led him to an understanding that his veganism was, in a way, separating him more from the natural world and was leaving him hungering for something more. <i>The Mindful Carnivore</i> is an explanation of the beliefs that brought Cerulli back to eating meat, and back to hunting and fishing, and how his new lifestyle remains compatible with the beliefs that brought him to vegetarianism.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />This book was by far and away one of the more thought-provoking, clearly explained, and beautiful books that I've ever read on vegetarianism, eating in general, or humanity's connection to nature. First of all, the writing is top-notch. Cerulli's writing never becomes dry or boring, and it never becomes preachy. When he explains his beliefs, he does it gently and simply, so the reader never feels put on the spot. His anecdotes about the events in his life that shaped his beliefs are so interesting to read, partially because the language he uses really brings the story alive.<br />
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The other thing that makes this book wonderful is the content. As a vegetarian myself, I frequently find myself challenged to explain why I eat the way I do. Sometimes it's because people are genuinely curious, but more often than not, I think people like to rationalize to themselves why they think it's okay to eat meat. Generally I find that most people's reasons for eating meat are a) they really would rather live in ignorance rather than learn the truth about meat production in America and b) they're too lazy to make a change. If all meat eaters in America were like Tovar Cerulli, though, I would be so happy. <br />
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Mr. Cerulli chose to go back to eating meat for several reasons: he mentioned that his veganism was leaving him feeling a little unhealthy, but more importantly, he often felt like he wasn't connected to the world in the same way that he was when he was still fishing for food. He views hunting and fishing as an almost spiritual experience. Fishing is generally a very quiet sport, leaving the fisherman with a lot of time for quiet contemplation of the world around him, and hunting requires that the hunter have a good understanding of how animals move and think, and how they interact with each other and the forest around them. I would like to believe that all hunters and fishermen approach their sports with this much reverence, but there are too many people out there who treat it as an excuse to drink beer or an excuse to show off their guns or an excuse to shoot a beautiful animal just so they can stick its head on a wall. If only all hunters were like Tovar Cerulli, I'm pretty sure the world would be a much better place.<br />
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Cerulli also made the very, very respectable and admirable decision to only hunt for sustenance, and only eat meat when he knew where it came from, whether it came from his own hunting, or from a source that he knew was ethical, respectful, and trustworthy. This is probably the part of the book that makes me respect him the most. Part of what drives me to be a vegetarian is that if I do not have the guts to look an animal in the eye and end its life with my own hands, then I lack the moral authority to ask someone else to do it for me. Since I obviously don't have the stomach for hunting, that really only leaves store-bought meat, and to me, giving someone money for their product represents an implicit endorsement of the practices used to produce said product. There is no way that I could ever approve of the vast, vast majority of American meat production practices (most people wouldn't, if they could bring themselves to care enough to educate themselves!!), which pretty much leaves me with vegetarianism as the best option. Cerulli manages to bring his beliefs about animal welfare and naturalist ethics along with him when he becomes a hunter, and never loses his reverence for the animal's life, or the beauty of the animal's (and his) part in the greater scheme of the world.<br />
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While this book didn't lead me to change any of my own personal habits (see above), I am very glad I read it and I feel like I'm a better person for it. This should be required reading for everyone who eats meat, and everyone who does not (so, basically everyone). Vegetarians should understand that eating meat isn't inherently evil in and of itself; it's the practices that go along with it that are so abhorrent. Meat eaters should understand that when they eat that burger or steak, it came from an animal leading a really artificial and pain-filled life, and they should know that there are better alternatives out there. I'm a big, big proponent of people keeping themselves educated, and there is nothing I hate more than willful ignorance ("Don't tell me those terrible things about factory farms, it'll just make me sad. Excuse me while I go make my chicken dinner"). So, if I could, I would make everyone read this book!<br />
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5/5 stars<br />
<br />Emilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-76223213054296591442012-02-26T19:46:00.000-08:002012-02-26T19:46:40.073-08:00The Annotated Hobbit, by JRR Tolkien<i>The Annotated Hobbit</i>, by J.R.R. Tolkien and annotated by Douglas A. Anderson. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1988. 335 pp. 0-395-47690-9.<br />
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... in which Bilbo and company's adventures are annotated with notes about Tolkien's inspirations and the various changes between different editions of <i>The Hobbit</i>.<br />
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<i>The Annotated Hobbit </i>is a unique copy of <i>The Hobbit</i> because in its margins, writer Douglas Anderson has added in a plethora of notes and images to supplement the main text. Most of the notes are about Tolkien's various inspirations, both in terms of plot and linguistics. There are also various footnotes noting the different changes between various editions over the years, and illustrations are included throughout the book showing different artists' interpretations of the events from different international editions. I'm not going to bother to summarize the plot, because if you don't know the plot of <i>The Hobbit</i> by now, then you probably don't care.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The best thing about this kind of book is that it really is a book for book-lovers. The story itself is, of course, iconic in its own right, and the annotations just add to its massive appeal to geeky bibliophiles the world over. The added illustrations from different international editions really bring an extra dimension to the story, and it was especially interesting to see how different artists depicted the scenes and characters.<br />
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I'm not going to review the story itself because... well, it doesn't really need to be reviewed at this point. However, the value of the annotations and notes and added illustrations were the best part of rereading this book this time around, because I really learned a lot about Tolkien's process, and a lot about the things that inspired him. It was really interesting to read the notes about how tiny (or large) details changed between different editions of the book. Of course, there's the big difference of Bilbo finding no magic ring in the first edition of the book, and then there's the minor differences, where Tolkien changed a word or two to make a small difference in the book but a big difference in the flow of the sentence or the philology.<br />
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I probably would not recommend this version to anyone who has never read <i>The Hobbit</i> because the notes in the margins can be a little distracting, and I probably wouldn't recommend it to anyone with only a casual interest in Tolkien's work, but for anyone who loves learning about Tolkien and Middle Earth and all of the things related to it, this is the book for you! <br />
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5/5 starsEmilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-58541091233538657472012-02-26T01:00:00.000-08:002012-02-26T01:00:29.098-08:00<i>Lucy,</i> by Laurence Gonzales. Vintage Books, 2011. 307 pp. 978-0-307-4890-5.<br />
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... in which Lucy, a the product of a science experiment with breeding humans and bonobos together, teaches the world what it means to be human.<br />
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<i>Lucy </i>opens in the Congo, where primatologist Jenny Lowe is studying bonobos (a cousin of the chimpanzee, and one of humanity's closest relatives). When Jenny is forced to flee from the Congo as the civil war reaches her study site in the jungle, she finds that another primate researcher has been murdered. Her colleague leaves behind a 14-year-old daughter, Lucy, and Jenny feels obligated to take Lucy with her as she flees the country. Jenny takes Lucy to Chicago with her, and when it becomes clear that Lucy has no living family, Jenny adopts her as her own daughter. When reading through Lucy's father's notes, it becomes clear that Lucy is the product of a strange experiment: she is half human, half bonobo. Because Lucy appears to be completely human, and is more intelligent and articulate than most humans, Jenny tries to enroll her in school. As Lucy begins to settle in to her new life, her secret inevitably gets out, and Lucy becomes an overnight celebrity. Lucy's new public presence sparks a debate about what it means to be human, and could threaten her life and the lives of everyone she loves.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I'll start out with the science question. A fair number of other reviews of this book complain about the implausibility of creating a viable child using human sperm and a bonobo ovum (artificial insemination... the author works hard to make this part as scientific and not-gross as possible). I don't know a lot about genetics and biology, but I do know that bonobos and chimps are our closest relatives among the apes, so it didn't seem entirely absurd to me. Also, I do know that there aren't giant space worms that poop out magic stuff that helps space-people navigate across the cosmos, and I know that you can't create a dinosaur from a fossilized mosquito, and I know that the Earth is not going to be destroyed to make way for an inter-stellar bypass, but these things did not stop me from enjoying any of those books, so... whatever. <br /><br />
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In <i>Lucy</i>, Laurence Gonzales has written the sort of book where the reader is compelled to read it until the end, in one single sitting. The main characters are all so sympathetic that it's impossible to put the book down. That is probably the biggest strength of this book; it's impossible for the reader to stop rooting for Lucy, and the other main characters are all likeable enough in their own right to bring out even more of the reader's concern. Lucy herself is undeniably a person, despite her unusual genealogy, and Gonzales goes out of his way to present her as an otherwise normal teenage girl, who just want to fit in and make friends. The intense likability of the characters really adds to the emotional impact of the book.<br />
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<i>Lucy </i>is also undeniably a book with a Point: the question "what is a human?" never leaves the reader's mind, and immediately after Lucy goes public with her story, we immediately get the inevitable wave of extremists who want Lucy immediately killed for being an abomination against Christ. The comparisons between so-called "human" behavior with the behavior of bonobos and chimpanzees are also frequent. Lucy herself points out several times that she did not ask to be made, she did not ask to be different, so why does this mean that she gets different/fewer rights from the "real" humans? These kinds of questions are likely to invoke a strong reaction in a lot of readers, so this book is bound to be a very affecting book (regardless of where you fall on the question of Lucy's humanity). It is definitely a thought-provoking book, with enough humor and drama and action thrown in to keep it interesting and engaging. <br />
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I have two complaints about <i>Lucy</i>. My first complaint is that the pacing of the book is very uneven. Only 20 pages in, and Lucy and Jenny have already survived the Congalese civil war and have arrived at Jenny's house in suburban Chicago. We spend a long time learning about Lucy's first few days in Chicago (also her first days away from the remote jungle), but nearly the entirety of Lucy's first year of high school passes in a few pages. In an interview, the author said that this book initially started out as a screenplay, which is very clear in the book's pacing. It's very well set up for scene breaks and the dialog and speeches are short and eloquent, making them perfect for the screen. Unfortunately as a reader, I would have liked to have about 200 more pages in the book.<br />
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My second (larger) complaint is that this book is somewhat lacking in subtlety. This might be partially due to the book's short length, but the book's characters and the book's message are both very straightforward. The immediate likability of Lucy, Jenny, and their friends works well while the reader is still reading the book, but after finishing it, the characters sort of look a little too perfect, in retrospect. None of Lucy's immediate friends react at all badly to finding out that she's half bonobo. I don't know about anyone else, but I am pretty sure I'd have at least a brief moment of shocked horror upon finding out that one of my best friends was half ape. I like to think I'd get over it, but I'm not sure I'd be so immediately accepting of it as everyone around Lucy. This could be because Lucy is so freaking lovable... she looks human, she's sweet, she's amazingly intelligent, so how could anyone not immediately accept her? Gonzales also beats us over the head with Lucy's humanity... her socializing with her peers, her love of Shakespeare, etc. Lucy's animal traits are also pretty much as ideal as possible... she's not at all savage, and her most animal-like traits are her superior strength and agility, her superior senses, and her ability to communicate with animals. Of course, there's also the villains... the obvious senator who writes a bill to define Lucy as an animal, or the Christian fundamentalists who want Lucy immediately destroyed because she's an abomination and not a person. I would complain that these characters are far too much like cartoonish caricatures, but the truth is, they do a pretty good job of making themselves seem like cartoonish caricatures in real life. Still, it would have been nice to see more bad guys with some more nuance.<br />
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<br />This is not to say that the book is flat... not at all. It's a very engaging read, and it left me with a lot to think about. It's an emotionally profound book, that will make most readers feel the characters' joy and fear and sorrow very acutely. There are plenty of moments of interesting insight, like when Lucy looks at a researcher and thinks "she was looking at the bland, indifferent, earnest face of true evil" (240). I'm sure the author would have a lot of interesting things to say about civil rights issues involving transgender people, or any other people who were born different and have had their civil rights diminished for it. <br />
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I would recommend this book to people who enjoy Crichton-esque books, or anyone with an interest in civil rights in America, or anyone who enjoys books like <i>Frankenstein</i>. I might not recommend this book to anyone who's a religious fundamentalist... it might offend them. But, then again, they might learn something from it... so, yeah, recommended for anyone who doesn't require their books to be subtle and nuanced, but enjoy a good thought-provoking story with a moral behind it.<br />
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4/5 starsEmilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-5216925634275235272012-02-20T01:26:00.000-08:002012-02-20T01:26:42.926-08:00Never Let Me GoMost of the books I read could be compared to junk food. Light, sweet affairs which dissolve quickly and let me rant excitedly about, whether I love them or hate them. Though I don't see myself trending towards the classics anytime soon, it really felt good to read a real piece of literature, which is what Never Let Me Go is. And I feel like unlike the sugary books I more often read, I will be digesting this one for the rest of my life. <br />
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I believe Emma was curious about whether this book would have been better if the overall concept and storyline hadn't already been spoiled for her before she started reading it. I did not know the book's concept before I started reading, and I believe it did in fact make my experience more powerful. <br />
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The deftness with which Kazuo Ishiguro weaves his narrative defies description. Suffice it to say, he manages to tell you what he is doing to you, the reader, directly without you even realizing it until it is too late. You are already trapped in the narrative related by this book's main character, Kathy and you are doomed to experience the book as if it were your own past.<br />
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The book explores regret, tragedy and interpersonal relationships. Growing apart and of life and of death. Its varied characters ooze humanity and every single one of them is engaging.<br />
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The book is not entirely without flaw, and I would feel remiss to not mention where I saw them. The climax of the book involves a final set of revelations which seem to fall short of explanaing a few of the later plot developments, but upon further reflection this sort of ties back to the theme the book strives for, of good things coming to an end and of tragic unfairness brought on by unthinking apathy and selfishness. A stronger reason here very well could have undermined the power of this book, but I felt unstatisfied. That very well could have been the point. <br />
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Second, there is another instance of anti-intellectuallism on display, although this one is so incredibly slight that you could be forgiven for missing it. I just have a problem with the default assumption that somehow the people who dedicate their lives to medicine must be total inhuman monsters, and that somehow science inherently requires and benefits from dehumanization. Again, this bias is incredibly slight, practically an offhand comment or two just a few times in the whole book. <br />
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Final and most egregious is that there is no resistance to the events depicted. I could not believe that these characters would act so passively in reaction to what they experience. I can't help but think this must be a product of the difference between my culture as an American and the culture of the writer as British and Japanese. It might be my biased perspective, but it almost seems like characters are resigned to inaction because they don't want to be in defiance of any rules... that they don't want to rock the boat or inconvenience anyone else. Again, it could be merely a product of my different cultural perspective, but the placidity was the only thing these characters had which wasn't completely, spellbindingly human to me.<br />
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This is a singularly good book. It would not be hyperbole to say this book changed my perspective on life itself and I truly thank Emma for leading me to it. 5/5Brethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15143785836776932877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-11872477010543509302012-02-15T20:09:00.000-08:002012-02-15T20:09:01.651-08:00The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green<i>The Fault in Our Stars</i>, by John Green. Dutton Books, 2012. 318 pp. 978-0-525-47881-2.<br />
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... in which two teenagers meet at a cancer support group and deal with love, pain and loss.<br />
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<i>The Fault in Our Stars</i> is narrated from the point of view of Hazel, a 16-year-old girl who is slowly dying from metastatic thyroid cancer. She spends her time attending classes at a local community college and going to a largely useless support group for teenagers with cancer. While reluctantly attending a support group meeting one day, Hazel meets 17-year-old Augustus, a handsome and charming boy who lost a leg to osteosarcoma, which has gone into remission. Hazel and Augustus bond over their shared experiences with cancer, and their shared love of a particular novel. As their relationship progresses, Hazel has to consider the fact that her diagnosis is terminal, despite the fact that her death is coming slowly, and she must decide how this will ultimately affect the way she forms relationships, especially her relationship with Augustus.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I was sort of eying this book for awhile before finally buying it, and then after buying it, I waited a little while to read it. First of all, I'm a little burnt out on YA fiction. Secondly, the reviews I read on Amazon and other book review sites sounded like they were written by 13 year old girls, and mostly sounded like, "omg john green is the best author ever i luv him what a great book hazel and gus 4eva." This made me a little hesitant to read the book, because with this subject matter, the author would have to really balance the dark humor and the gravity of the situation, while still keeping the book suitable for a young adult audience without insulting the reader's intelligence. Luckily for everyone, Green does a reasonably good job of balancing all of these things. <br />
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In terms of humor, the book is probably equal parts funny and sad, though all of the humor sort of has the elephant-in-the-room lurking behind it. In other words, all of the humor is dark cancer/death humor that tries to be witty and ironic (and generally succeeds). The humor is a good balance for the rest of the book, which can be pretty heavy and emotional. With a few key (important and necessary) exceptions, I didn't ever feel like the emotional scenes were too heavy, and I also didn't feel like the humor was too trivializing (more on this later). This is not to say that this isn't a profoundly affecting book... I definitely cried about five times while reading it (I also read it in one sitting, which might have made a difference). But if you go into a book like this expecting that you won't be sad, then you're probably not the target audience and I doubt you'd enjoy the book anyway. <br />
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The writing quality of the book as a whole was good. Green does a nice job at moving the plot along quickly, and the love story is nicely done, especially considering that the characters are teenagers. He makes it clear that Hazel and Gus' love is real (and not a puppy love), but it's also believable (no Bella and Edward here, folks). The love story was touching enough without being sappy, and felt real enough to make the ending of the story emotionally potent. (Potently sad? Potently happy? What do YOU think?)<br />
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So, those are the good things about the book. Now for the list of things I disliked, and the things that had me on the fence.<br />
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As a character, Augustus never felt 100% genuine to me. I liked his character, and if I met him in real life, I'm sure I'd like real-Augustus, but I find it pretty unlikely that I'll ever meet a 17-year-old boy that is as self-aware, intelligent, articulate, charming, and likable as Augustus is. He is so witty and amusing that I almost find him unbelievable. If the characters were a bit older (say, mid-20s), I would find it a lot easier to believe, but in my experience, witty, intelligent, amusing 17-year-old guys are not also self-aware and likable. It's a fairly minor complaint, as I did like Augustus and I liked his relationship with Hazel, but I felt like it was worth mentioning.<br />
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I also didn't really care for the parts of the story that revolved around Hazel and Gus' shared love of the fictional book <i>An Imperial Affliction</i> (with they refer to as <i>AIA</i>). This book-within-the-book is also about a kid with cancer, and Hazel and Gus are obsessed. Their bonding over the book and their quest to contact the book's reclusive author provide some pretty major plot points, but I mostly found those parts kind of distracting. When they do go searching for the book's author, it provides some minor plot twists, but mostly serves as a catalyst to set other events in motion. Toward the end, when (minor spoiler ahead) <i>AIA</i>'s author makes a surprise visit to Hazel, that whole plotline sort of felt unnecessary and heavy-handed, and disrupted the complicated emotions of that part of the novel. <br />
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Finally, the things that left me conflicted. While the book was well-written and very emotionally touching, I'm not entirely certain that it brought anything new to the category of "cancer literature". I feel like this is such an easy topic for authors... bam, immediate emotional novel! Just add characters. I am not sure about John Green's personal experiences, but his characters' interactions with each other feel believable without being anything particularly new. Variations on the useless support group have been seen many times before, and the most tragic characters were the ones who weren't going to be dying anytime soon. Except for the bits revolving around tracking down <i>AIA</i>'s elusive author, the weakest parts of the book were just before the end, after stuff happens that we can't talk about, on account of spoilers, even though I feel like this should have been the strongest part of the book. Basically what I'm saying is that I wish this very good book had been a perfect book, and I wish it could read my mind about the things that aren't mentioned in it. <br />
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All of these things are very minor complaints about what was, in truth, a very good book, especially considering its target audience. This is definitely the rare YA book that I feel I could give to any adult without a trace of embarrassment or shame, and even though it's a sad book, it's not like I didn't know the sad parts were coming. I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in unusually emotionally complex YA fiction, or anyone with an interest in fiction in general, provided they don't mind crying once or twice or five times. I'm giving it 4 stars, for the reasons given above, though I suspect that most people would give it 5 stars... I'm just picky, with different expectations for this sort of book.<br />
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4/5 stars<br />Emilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-77967237246067659612012-02-14T19:47:00.000-08:002012-02-14T19:47:30.439-08:00Divergent by Veronica RothIn which a 16 year old girl makes a decision to determine her future, and deals with her choice.<br />
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Emily already wrote a <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2012/01/divergent-by-veronica-roth.html">good summary</a> of Divergent, so I won't go into the plot much here. Divergent is about a girl in a dystopian Chicago confronted with life defining choices, love, conspiracies and adventure. Divergent is one of the best young adult books I've read because of the exciting story and compelling heroine. I highly recommend it!<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Young adult books about girls seem morel likely than normal to have boring, irritating "<a en.wikipedia.org="" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=8880088692595066231" http:="" mary_sue="" target="new" wiki="">Mary Sue</a>" type protagonists. Such was not the case here. The point of view character, Tris, was awesome but flawed and really compelling. She was really well developed. Her characterization was a major strength of the book. I loved her unique combination of strength and vulnerability.<br />
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Another surprisingly strong element in Divergent was the romance. It was a really, really well done romance. It's hard for me to not get irritated by romance focused on kids. I was even annoyed by that element in the Hunger Games trilogy, which I loved. But Roth does it right in Divergent. It's just the right amounts of uncertainty, awkward timing, and passion. It really worked for me.<br />
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The setting was also pretty engaging, if less well developed than the protagonist. Dystopian Chicago is divided into factions by broad personality type, with jobs and families being segregated. It's interesting, but a lot is not explained in Divergent. Hopefully its sequels will describe what's outside of the city, what goes on with factions not emphasized in Divergent and other setting elements that were lacking. Two of the factions, Candor and Amity, were barely mentioned in Divergent. <br />
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I feel like the setting in Divergent, with militaristic Dauntless, puritanical Abnegation, and self-superior Erudite were maybe less than subtle comments about classes in America. Or maybe I'm reading too much into it. I don't have the finest-tuned metaphor radar.<br />
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I need to stop reading books whose sequels are still being written. Evidently, Divergent is part of an expected trilogy, the second volume of which is scheduled for this May. It drives me nuts to wait for sequels! Other than the fact that this series is incomplete, I wholeheartedly recommend this book. If you like young adult adventure stories, this is a really strong one.<br />
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5/5 starsEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-48780302634654404452012-02-04T09:54:00.000-08:002012-02-04T09:54:09.088-08:00Mass Effect: Revelation by Drew KarpyshynIn which an attack on a space station leads to an investigation into an interplanetary conspiracy.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Mass Effect: Revelation is related to the Mass Effect video games. I'm not sure about how close it is to the video games, because I haven't played them. Revelation stands completely on its own as an exciting story in a well-developed setting</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><a name='more'></a>A man in Earth's space military is sent to find a woman who went missing when the space station she worked on was attacked. Different factions work together or against each other at different points in figuring out what happened and how they could profit from it. <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I wasn't expecting a ton from this book because it's a video-game tie-in by a newish author, but it was more entertaining and engaging than I expected! I didn't feel like I was missing on plot elements by not having played the game or anything.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The setting is the strongest part of the book, I thought. It's a really neat concept with lots of alien races and complex cultures. There is some background tension, particularly between humans and aliens they've specifically pissed off. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I would recommend this book as a stand-alone science fiction adventure story. It's a quick read and very exciting, but without a ton of depth.</div>Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-62193538467016959712012-01-30T19:25:00.000-08:002012-01-30T19:25:36.034-08:00Big Miracle, by Tom Rose<i>Big Miracle</i>, by Tom Rose. St. Martin's, 2011. 324 pp. 978-0-312-62519-1.<br />
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... in which we learn about the international effort to rescue three California Gray whales trapped under the ice near Barrow, Alaska.<br />
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This is a review of an advanced copy provided to me through Goodreads' FirstReads program.<br />
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<i>Big Miracle</i> is the true story of the rescue of three trapped whales in 1988. The whales started their southern migration too late in the summer season, and soon found themselves trapped in the ice near Barrow, Alaska (the northernmost point of the United States). The story became an international tale, with people all around the world watching the events unfold on TV, and with an international group of people coming together to rescue these animals. Presumably this book was the inspiration for the movie of the same name being released this February, but I'm really skeptical.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I don't know if I've ever read a more frustrating book (hence the delay in its review... I finished the book weeks ago). The first thing that I feel I should mention is that this book was previously published in 1989 under the name <i>Freeing the Whales: How the Media Created the World's Greatest Non-Event</i>. I don't know about you, but to me, that original title doesn't suggest any kind of miracle, big or small. Tom Rose, the book's author, was one of the many journalists who converged on the tiny town of Barrow to cover this hugely popular story, so the book is told through the eyes of a journalist who found himself dumped at the top of the world to cover what was, to him, an inexplicably popular story about nothing.<br /><br />
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I guess I'll start with the good things about the book (because they're easier to discuss). The story itself is really interesting... having been born in 1986, I am too young to remember it, so it was all entirely new to me. I enjoyed getting a glimpse of life in one of the harshest climates on the planet, and I enjoyed watching people from all walks of life come together to rescue some really amazing animals. The people were all interesting, and I did truly want to find out what happened to both the whales and their rescuers.<br />
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Having said that, the great story wasn't invented by Mr. Rose... he just put it on paper. If any credit is due to someone for the inspirational story, then it goes to the people who actively participated in the whales' rescue. As far as I can tell from the tone of the book, the only thing Mr. Rose did was report to the Japanese TV station that employed him, while mentally showering the whole thing with his scorn and disdain. I almost never got any sense of wonder from Mr. Rose's writing (snide and riddled with typos), and I found myself marking pages with some really amazing example of his ability to ruin something wonderful with his tone. Unfortunately, when I realized that I'd marked ten consecutive pages, I gave up before I ruined my copy of this wonderful book.<br />
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Among the examples of Mr. Rose's really inspirational writing are the following passages:<br />
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"Cindy didn't consider herself a left-wing anti-everything rabble-rouser; none of them ever do... in many ways, Cindy Lowry was Alaska's version of a limousine liberal." pp 88-89<br />
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"... in a very real sense, it was environmental activism that caused the <i>Exxon Valdez</i> disaster... similar points were made following the 2010 deadly blowout of BP's Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Why are companies like BP risking billions of dollars to drill so far out to sea and in waters so deep? Because environmentalists have succeeded in locking up available and accessible oil resources closer to shore not to mention dry land." pp 50-51 (The poor punctuation in that last sentence belongs to the author, not to me.)<br />
<br />Among the examples of Mr. Rose's strong grasp of the English language are such words as "prioritizetze" (pg 27) and the sentence "Did non-Inuit's really think that Eskimo's were so brittle as to be broken by some stupid sentence?" (pg 289), along with countless examples of missing quotation marks or lost commas. <br />
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As readers of this blog know, I think it's absolutely unforgivable when a published author has multiple typos or grammar errors in his or her book. If you, the author, don't catch your own mistakes, then you'd better hope you have an editor. It might be that this book was rushed to press in order for it to hit the bookshelves before the movie's release, but the quality of the book suffered for it. For example, when the book's epilogue was updated to cover events between 1989 and 2011, the author couldn't even be bothered to change the tense in some of his sentences. One key person in the story is described as living with his wife in Alaska, "where they can be seen driving in a silver Maserati" (pg 309), while two sentences later it says that the same person was killed in a plane crash in 1992. I highly doubt that we can still find him driving around in his silver car. <br />
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Apart from the questionable writing and editing in this book, I was even more bothered by the author's not-so-subtle disdain for everything environmental. He goes out of his way to complain multiple times about how oil drilling isn't allowed in ANWR, and the examples above are only a small sampling of his many digs at environmentalists in general. My own politics and beliefs notwithstanding, I don't feel like every story has to have some moral or political point, and this story could have been both inspiring and analytical without being nasty and snide. The story itself was enough to make most people happy, and there were multiple angles that Mr. Rose could have used to cover some of the more interesting aspects of international cooperation in the midst of a cold war between two superpowers. <br />
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I have numerous other small complaints (for example, Rose goes out of his way to acknowledge that while the native people do call themselves Inuit, everyone else calls them Eskimos so that's what he's going to use too), but they aren't as relevant as the complaints listed above. I really wanted to enjoy this book... and I really would have, if the author could have checked his politics and ego at the door.<br />
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2/5 stars.Emilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-53072968529103922572012-01-29T09:36:00.000-08:002012-01-29T09:40:07.985-08:00Homeward Bound by Harry TurtledoveThe final book in the series that starts with Worldwar: In the Balance. <br />
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Homeward Bound is the less than stunning conclusion to Harry Turtledove's series about an alien invasion of Earth. It's set in the near-future where America has maintained its independence (mostly) and sent a space ship to the alien invaders' home world.<br />
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This review will not contain major spoilers.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Homeward Bound is like the <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/11/colonization-aftershocks-by-harry.html">previous book</a> in the series. Not a whole lot happens. It's a good conclusion to the story, it just doesn't cover a lot of ground. Since the human characters are traveling around the universe at high speeds, sometimes frozen in a space-traveling hibernation, a lot of the book is just about how weird it is to outlive everyone and see the effect of so many generations.<br />
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It definitely leaves room open for even more sequels, as the large questions characters wrestle with about the future of earth and the alien planets are left largely unanswered. As far as I know Turtledove is leaving his options open to write additional sequels! <br />
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It's getting a little old how Turtledove keeps recycling the same few characters. Sam Yeager, for example, was in every single book from when he was a young baseball player to when he's like 200 years old based on time spent frozen or going light speed. And even small characters are the ones that just happen to come up again and again when it would make more sense if importance were diversified a little.<br />
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All in all this is a fun book, and if you've made it this far into the series you'll probably enjoy it!<br />
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3/5 starsEmmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-37564942075970517972012-01-17T20:55:00.000-08:002012-01-18T18:40:45.640-08:00The Magicians by Lev Grossman<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzylHlvvwY23ARG_wUSVFrjYLLeSwo3t4Vlm4vyuRa65cB4NdKRAEN8zDsbBHeTcLS12TeZQfV-UEqWGORGKjK9_34HuVxQo0_BGsDkyGRu-Chefe9Bl8ly26Gi9wE1tLiS82EDrjoGfA/s1600/File%253ATheMagicians.jpeg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698832227849056050" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzylHlvvwY23ARG_wUSVFrjYLLeSwo3t4Vlm4vyuRa65cB4NdKRAEN8zDsbBHeTcLS12TeZQfV-UEqWGORGKjK9_34HuVxQo0_BGsDkyGRu-Chefe9Bl8ly26Gi9wE1tLiS82EDrjoGfA/s400/File%253ATheMagicians.jpeg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 300px;" /></a><br />
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lev Grossman’s <i>The Magicians</i> follows the story of Quentin Coldwater, a very intelligent but moody and often lonely teenager who happens to also be a magician. In the book’s early pages, Quentin quickly finds out that he can perform magic, passes an entrance exam for Brakebills School for Magic, and embarks on a journey to becoming a magician. (If this reminds you of a cultural phenomenon known as Harry Potter, well, I’ll get to that.) From there the story progresses quickly, following Quentin and his classmates through their adventures in learning magic and eventually transitioning into life in the “real world,” whatever that may mean for young magicians in New York. (And if that seems a little thin on summary, I’ll get to the book’s atypical plot structure eventually, too.) </div>
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Let’s pause for the inevitable Harry Potter comparisons. A modern fantasy novel, set at a school for young magicians? It’s hard not to see the similarities. Grossman himself even makes passing acknowledgments of this in the text; Quentin remarks on Hermione’s studying habits and bemoans that not all intelligent, would-be magicians are actually like her. Beyond these initial obvious similarities, however, the two works are fairly different. While the Harry Potter series is a gradual coming of age story, following Harry and his friends from childhood to a kind of young-adult maturity, <i>The Magicians</i> is more about the transition into adulthood and the inevitable struggles of growing up, figuring out what to do with life, and the stupid things done in that transitional phase. Essentially, it’s the difference between middle/high school and college/immediately post-college-- while the ages of those involved may not seem that far off, their experiences are radically different. (As an aside, as someone still mired in the latter of those stages, I found that this setting made the characters and their struggles appreciably relatable.) There’s a reason <i>The Magicians</i> has gained the reputation of being “Harry Potter for grown ups,” and while that characterization is overly simplistic, there is certainly some truth there.</div>
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I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that focusing on the Harry Potter comparisons shortchanges the more critical Narnia comparison constantly lurking in the novel’s background. While Narnia is never mentioned explicitly, Quentin (and many of his friends) are obsessed with a series of children’s books set in a magical world called Fillory, which effectively serves as a Narnia stand-in. The idea of this fantastical realm proves to be a powerful motivator for the young magicians, and in the long run is much more crucial to the overall plot than any surface-level similarities with Harry Potter. </div>
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Despite these overt references and similarities to fantasy canon, however, one of the most enjoyable aspects of <i>The Magicians</i> is the way that Grossman plays with the conventions and structures of a typical coming-of-age fantasy story. For a book that starts out as a story about learning at a magical college, the pacing and plot takes some unexpected turns. For one thing, Quentin and his classmates’ five years at Brakebills is only the first third the book. This sped-up timeline contributes to the unusual overall structure of the plot. While a great deal of fantasy plots revolve around a epic quest with a clear enemy and/or end goal, <i>The Magicians</i> drifts along almost aimlessly, much more content to simply follow its characters as they try to figure out their lives. This lack of an overt overarching quest actually allows the novel to move briskly and eliminates what might otherwise be slow or sagging bits of plot. Not only does the plot move without much drag, but since Grossman bucks the standard arc of an epic quest, it’s also that much more difficult to predict what’s coming. As a result, the book reads fairly quickly while still being compelling and, importantly, interesting and even unexpected.</div>
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Probably not surprisingly, the lack of an epic structure also impacts the presentation of the book’s protagonists, and the standard ideal of a hero in fantasy is not really on display here. Quentin is not the infallible hero of so much fantasy, on a journey to fulfill an inevitable destiny. Nor is he an antihero, exactly; for the most part, he just … exists. He is a driven individual, just not driven to any goal in particular. Quentin does eventually get some sense of direction in the later portion of the book (or at least he thinks he does), but even that gets muddled with personal issues and doesn’t quite work out as anticipated. While I enjoy epic fantasies and their heroes as much as the next person, I found this undercutting of the traditional hero refreshing. Having magic does not automatically make Quentin and his classmates’ lives better, or guarantee them a major adventure or destiny, nor does it guarantee that they’ll deal well with adversity when it does eventually find them.</div>
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The major pitfall of this non-epic heroic structure, however, is that we’re left with frustrating and sometimes downright unlikeable protagonists. There is no sense, for instance, that Quentin is driven to some ultimate good, therefore making his occasionally (and increasingly frequent) pettiness and sulkiness forgivable as part of a journey or personal growth. Instead, it seems like… well, standard pettiness like we might encounter from anyone in our own lives, and is about as enjoyable. And as there is no epic journey sketched out for Quentin, it becomes harder to write off his increasingly annoying habits and self-involvement as the traditional low point every hero must go through before he rises high in triumph. Instead, one gets the sneaking suspicion that it is an irremovable part of Quentin’s character to be at least a little petty at all times. While this is not a deal breaker for the book, it is often frustrating. There is a reason most authors make likable heroes—it’s a lot harder to enjoy a book when you want to reach through the page and throttle the characters. Realistic, yes; fun to read, not as much.</div>
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Quibbles with the characters’ attitudes aside, however, there is still clearly much to recommend about <i>The Magicians</i>. More than any book I’ve read, <i>The Magicians</i> gives a sense of magicians dealing with the real world, trying to figure out how to grow into adulthood and deal with life while also dealing with magic. If only the realism stopped short of making me want to slap Quentin and his cohorts repeatedly, I’d have fewer qualms in my praises. </div>
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4/5 stars</div>Emma Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09665583344649425301noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-59148947146072529122012-01-09T20:29:00.000-08:002012-01-09T20:29:39.949-08:00Foster Me Up by Rhonda ZimmerAn autobiography about life going through foster care.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3d_YyICTx7PxHnXoWlU6QSsAT8-133O9yhEfHe2rZVjdiRZPlx4bqWzQAumMZmJfwsGeLrwF_wQ_Kjlw82pl0-grQYfM-ONAgWAUJPA_ryZMUx3-W9hJal-ima0Wf8o65jeujlM1Sk_xK/s1600/Foster+me+Up+Rhonda+Zimmer+autobiogrpahy+book+review.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3d_YyICTx7PxHnXoWlU6QSsAT8-133O9yhEfHe2rZVjdiRZPlx4bqWzQAumMZmJfwsGeLrwF_wQ_Kjlw82pl0-grQYfM-ONAgWAUJPA_ryZMUx3-W9hJal-ima0Wf8o65jeujlM1Sk_xK/s320/Foster+me+Up+Rhonda+Zimmer+autobiogrpahy+book+review.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
Rhonda is a friend of mine, so I can't be disinterested reviewing her autobiography! I can say that this is a really unique perspective from someone inside and outside the foster care system. Rhonda managed to beat the odds of a difficult youth bouncing from home to home and become a successful adult. This book describes her childhood with her twin sister, alcoholic father and confused mother and how she managed to prevail against all of it. This would be a quick and edifying read for someone interested in a uncensored look at the life of a teenager in foster care.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-89953742172288208932012-01-09T20:13:00.000-08:002012-01-13T07:13:04.828-08:00Daughter of the Forest by Juliet MarillierIn which a young girl must survive and perform a difficult task to save her brothers' lives.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> I feel like this is a perfectly good book that just didn't appeal to me very much for a number of reasons. So this review will probably be inordinately harsh, and will contain spoilers because it wasn't good enough for me to recommend! If you think you'd like this book, I recommend you read some other fantasy book instead. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
Daughter of the Forest is about a girl named Sorcha who enjoys a fairly idyllic childhood in the wilderness of fantasy Ireland with her aloof father and six older brothers. Her childhood is interrupted when an evil witch marries her father and curses her brothers to turn into swans. To save her brothers, she must make a shirt for each of them out of spiny plants that hurt her hands and are prohibitively difficult to weave. And that's just the beginning of Sorcha's problems.<br />
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I get that it's a really simple and effective way to make readers care about protagonists when all of the bad things and injustice in the universe happen to them, but it doesn't make for great literature. It evokes emotion, but also resentment and annoyance from me. Sure, every single chapter of this book made me cry, but it wasn't good. It was formulaic and predictable with nothing new. Even the plot is apparently an adaptation of an Irish folk tale. I felt like everything from the impossible quest to the obligatory love triangle had been done to death.<br />
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And the totally unnecessary rape scene! Naturally when the female protagonist needs an extra burst of sympathy and an excuse to be feeble for the rest of eternity there is a totally unnecessary and disgusting rape scene. Way to go, Marillier, I bet no one's done that before.<br />
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The protagonist didn't do a whole lot for me. She pretty much ran around doing whatever anyone told her and not showing any ambition or fight. Even when her brothers were separating her from her one true love or whatever she pretty much rolled with it. A little fight would have gone a long way.<br />
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To be fair, this book is well written and has an engaging plot. It just has many of the buttons such as rape, wimpy women, poorly developed or stereotypish characters, and cheap emotional shots that annoy me disproportionately. I recommend reading original books with awesome girls in them instead of this, such as <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2010/07/feast-of-souls-by-cs-friedman.html">Feast of Souls</a>, <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2010/10/hunger-games-by-suzanne-collins.html">The Hunger Games</a> or <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/118755.Winter_of_Fire">Winter of Fire</a>.Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-5922450738974071662012-01-02T10:29:00.000-08:002012-01-02T10:29:49.535-08:00Divergent, by Veronica Roth<i>Divergent</i>, by Veronica Roth. HarperCollins, 2011. 487 pp. 978-0-06-202402-2.<br />
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... in which Beatrice, living in a dystopian future Chicago, must choose a faction, survive the dangerous and competitive training for initiates, and stop a plot that could destroy her whole society.<br />
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<i>Divergent </i>follows the adventures of a 16-year-old girl named Beatrice Prior. Beatrice lives in a futuristic dystopian Chicago, where all of the population is divided into five factions, distinguished from each other by their central characteristics: Abnegation (the selfless), Candor (the honest), Amity (the peaceful), Erudite (the intelligent), and Dauntless (the brave). At the age of 16, each citizen takes an aptitude test and then chooses which faction they would like to join. Many stay with the faction they were raised in, though some decide to switch. On the day of her aptitude exam, Beatrice is given inconclusive results, which means she is Divergent... a very dangerous thing. Despite being raised in Abnegation, Beatrice chooses to switch factions to Dauntless, and changes her name to Tris. There, she must survive a very dangerous and very competitive month of training, while learning why being Divergent is a dangerous trait. Along the way, Tris meets a boy (of course) and discovers a dangerous plot that could destroy her whole society.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>This book reminded me strongly of Lois Lowry's <i>The Giver</i> in its first couple of chapters. The setting is a little bit similar (only in the beginning), and the scenes where Tris is choosing her faction reminded me somewhat of the Ceremony of Twelve that Jonas goes through. As I really love <i>The Giver</i>, these similarities made me very happy.<br />
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Having said that, after the first few chapters, any likenesses between the two books disappear, and <i>Divergent</i> becomes a wonderful novel of its own. I really enjoyed Veronica Roth's writing style; the book moved forward at a good pace, there was a good balance of exposition and dialog, the writing was free of cliches, and the characters were well developed.<br />
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Probably the strongest aspect of the book is the heroine, Tris. Roth does a really excellent job of making Tris seem like a real teenage girl, which seems like a common challenge in YA fiction (I'm looking at you, Stephenie Meyer). Tris is brave enough to deserve her place in Dauntless, but she isn't so brave to be above fear and apprehension. She's selfless enough that the reader can see her origins in Abnegation, but she isn't so selfless that the reader is put off by her angelic goodness. She's intelligent, but not intimidatingly so, and she has plenty of character flaws that make her seem like a real person. The book is written from a first person perspective, in the present tense, which gives the reader a sense of connectedness with Tris, and makes all of the events in the book seem more immediate and important.<br />
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I also quite liked the setting. It was an interesting take on the futuristic dystopian setting, and was original enough to make it unique, instead of just being all evil dictators and fearful people. For a young adult book, the setting had a good amount of complexity... just enough to make the book interesting, but not so much complexity that it required too many pages. If this book was intended for an adult audience, I would have liked more detail and depth to it, but for a young adult book, I think it's very appropriate and exactly what it should be. Readers from Chicago will probably also appreciate the geographical setting, as a lot of Chicago's famous features are very recognizable in the book (Navy Pier, Millennium Park, etc).<br />
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I guess my only complaint would be that some of the factions weren't fully fleshed out. We see a lot of characters from Abnegation and even more in Dauntless, so we get to see how people vary within a faction, but with the others, it seems like the entire faction is defined by their one single trait. I have a hard time believing that everyone in Erudite is as smug and cold-hearted and analytical as they seem, but I think this issue will certainly be addressed in the sequels. Given the scope and length of this book, I think this is a very minor complaint about what is otherwise a very excellent novel.<br />
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I haven't read <i>The Hunger Games</i>, but I suspect that people who enjoyed those books would very much enjoy this one, as well. This book would appeal to pretty much anyone who enjoys the rapidly-growing genre of YA dystopian lit, and anyone who enjoys a good, thought-provoking book that is also a fast read (I read it in one evening).<br />
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A good way to start my 2012 reading! <br />
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5/5 starsEmilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-75799408092266983212012-01-02T09:26:00.000-08:002012-01-02T09:26:25.202-08:00New Year's Reading ResolutionsEmily's New Year's Reading Resolutions:<br />
<ol>
<li>Read more non-fiction. </li>
<li>Read 64 books this year... that's 1 book a week for 52 books, plus an extra book per month, for 12 more books. If the world ends in December, then I'll make the goal 61 books.</li>
<li>Try some new genres. I don't read many thrillers or mysteries, and I don't frequently read general fiction/literature.</li>
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What are your reading goals for 2012?Emilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-5876766215014658992012-01-01T12:54:00.000-08:002012-01-01T12:54:52.675-08:00Worst of 2011Here are the worst books we read in 2011!<br />
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Emma's List:<br />
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<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/02/dont-vote-by-pj-orourke.html">Don't Vote by P.J. O'Rourke</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/01/burning-alive-by-shannon-butcher.html">Burning Alive by Shannon Butcher</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/10/how-to-dunk-doughnut-by-len-fisher.html">How to Dunk a Doughnut by Len Fisher</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/10/interworld-by-neil-gaiman-and-michael.html">Interworld by Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/12/day-by-day-armageddon-by-jl-bourne.html">Day by Day Armageddon by J.L. Bourne</a></li>
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Emily's List:<br />
<ol>
<li> <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/05/hush-hush-by-becca-fitzpatrick.html">Hush, Hush, by Becca Fitzpatrick</a></li>
<li>Directive 51, by John Barnes (not reviewed here because I couldn't even finish it)</li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/12/opening-atlantis-by-harry-turtledove.html">Opening Atlantis, by Harry Turtledove</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/05/lonely-werewolf-girl-by-martin-millar.html">Lonely Werewolf Girl, by Martin Millar</a></li>
<li>Little Bird of Heaven, by Joyce Carol Oates (also not reviewed here because I was so bored that I didn't finish the book)</li>
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</ol>Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-56220369317686154392012-01-01T12:44:00.000-08:002012-01-02T06:28:14.971-08:00Best of 2011These are the best books we read in 2011, whether or not they came out this year.<br />
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Emma's List:<br />
<ol><li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/11/never-let-me-go-by-kazuo-ishiguro.html">Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/06/rock-paper-scissors-by-len-fisher.html">Rock, Paper, Scissors by Len Fisher</a></li>
<li> <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/10/lies-of-locke-lamora-by-scott-lynch.html">The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/08/legacy-of-kings-by-cs-friedman.html">Legacy of Kings by C.S. Friedman</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/03/game-of-thrones-by-george-rr-martin.html">Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin</a></li>
</ol>Emily's List:<br />
<ol><li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/04/wise-mans-fear-by-patrick-rothfuss.html">The Wise Man's Fear, by Patrick Rothfuss</a></li>
<li> <a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/11/alloy-of-law-by-brandon-sanderson.html">The Alloy of Law, by Brandon Sanderson</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/01/dream-of-perpetual-motion-by-dexter.html">The Dream of Perpetual Motion, by Derek Palmer</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/02/running-books-by-avi-steinberg.html">Running the Books, by Avi Steinberg</a></li>
<li><a href="http://em-and-emm.blogspot.com/2011/04/art-of-racing-in-rain-by-garth-stein.html">The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein</a></li>
</ol>Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310039122656051824noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8880088692595066231.post-551925527290298542011-12-31T14:43:00.000-08:002011-12-31T14:43:59.731-08:00Touch of Power, by Maria V. Snyder<i>Touch of Power</i>, by Maria V. Snyder. Mira, 2011. 400 pp. 978-0778313076<br />
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... in which Avry, a young healer, runs from bounty hunters, gets herself captured, falls in love, and faces an impossible choice.<br />
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This review is of a digital copy provided to me by the publisher via NetGalley.</div>
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<i>Touch of Power</i> follows the adventures of Avry, a 20-year-old woman with special healing abilities. Unfortunately for her, healers in her world have been hunted down and executed, since everyone else blames them for the plague that killed the majority of the population a few years earlier. One night, as Avry sits in a cell awaiting execution, a man named Kerrick breaks her out. The catch? Avry must travel with Kerrick to heal a prince, who is possibly the world's only chance for lasting peace. However, healers can't heal the plague like they can with ordinary diseases and injuries; the healer who takes the plague from another will sicken and die, and the man that Kerrick wants Avry to heal was partially responsible for the slaughter of all the healers Avry knew. As Avry travels with Kerrick, she must decide if she wants to save the prince, while also avoiding capture from bounty hunters.</div>
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<a name='more'></a>I'm going to start this review by saying that I really, really enjoyed Maria V. Snyder's <i>Study</i> series, starting with the book <i>Poison Study</i>. I found those books to be quick, engaging reads with likeable characters and good writing, with enough creativity to distinguish them from other fantasy novels. I also enjoyed the follow-up series, the <i>Glass</i> books. So, I went into this book with pretty high expectations.</div>
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<i>Touch of Power</i> has a sympathetic main character in Avry, who is three-dimensional and complex. I liked her healing abilities, and I generally enjoyed the system of magic employed in this book (though it wasn't anything super original and groundbreaking). I liked the development of most of the secondary characters as well. The villains were mostly well developed, and the protagonists all had their own little quirks and flaws.</div>
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The plot of the book wasn't quite as engaging as the plot of the <i>Study</i> books, but it was interesting enough to keep my interest. Although I felt the pacing was a little off in some places, I was mostly looking forward to reading more of the book and seeing what happened. I liked the minor twists along the course of the book, though none of them were super surprising. The plot was also simple enough to make the book a fast read, while being complex enough to keep the book interesting.</div>
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Unfortunately, I found that the writing quality of this book wasn't quite as high as the quality in the <i>Study</i> books. As I said before, sometimes the pacing felt a little off, and some of the narrative didn't feel very smooth to me. The system of magic in the book wasn't explained as much as I'd like, and I felt that some of the characters could have had a little bit more back story. </div>
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I also don't tend to enjoy stories of young women falling in love with their rude, boorish captors. It worked for me in the <i>Study </i>books, possibly because Yelena and Valek felt more realistic as a couple to me. Kerrick never really felt like a love-interest kind of guy to me until the very end, so the romance angle never felt quite right to me.</div>
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I'm going to give this book a 4/5 stars, for a few reasons. Although I had my complaints about the book, I am glad I read it. Also, the plot developments toward the end added enough intrigue to make me want to read the sequels, so I think that counts as a success for Snyder.</div>Emilyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463115927796731953noreply@blogger.com2