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All posts for the month April, 2016

TOTO’S TALE AND TRUE CHRONICLE OF OZ – Sylvia Patience

Posted by Daniel on April 29, 2016
Posted in: CHILDREN'S, SF/FANTASY, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Too many people think that the Wizard of Oz story is essentially the remarkable film version.  It’s a great movie (one of the few that I do still watch repeatedly), but of course there’s much more to the book upon which the move was based.

This delightful little book, Toto’s Tale and True Chronicle of Oz, by Sylvia Patience, recounts the familiar story (as told in L. Frank Baum’s book) but from the viewpoint of the only other character who has been through everything that Dorothy Gale goes through … her dog, Toto.

Author Sylvia Patience takes an interesting track by anthropomorphising Toto – and why not…we already have a human-like scarecrow and tin woodman and an anthropomorphic lion, so why not?  But his human-like attitude ends there… Toto, unlike the lion, cannot speak and it is this desire (to speak) that motivates him to get to Oz to meet the wizard.  But of course, by not being able to speak, he can’t communicate his desire to anyone else. Only one person manages to understand his desire, but I won’t say who that is.

The book even manages to include some of the wonderful Denslow artwork, now in the public domain.

It was definitely fun to revisit Oz in this way and it had me remembering the original book (which I last read, perhaps six years or so ago) and as I read I wondered how closely it would follow the Baum story, and if memory serves, it does so quite well.

But at the same time, that’s kind of the problem.

This is the same story that Baum told.  Same goal (get to Oz to have wishes granted), same obstacles.  Only the viewpoint is different.  And I can’t help but wonder – what’s the point?  We already have this story!

Yes, there are a few additions, some downright clever, but it’s still primarily the same story.

And since Baum wrote a series of Oz books, I wonder why Patience didn’t write a continued journey – a new story.  With Toto returning and having his own adventure, perhaps.

If I were to read a story of Oz to my children (and I have), I would start with the original, then move on to Baum’s additional stories.  Reading someone else’s version of the original story would be very far down on my list (unless it were significantly better than the original).

Looking for a good book?  Toto’s Tale and True Chronicle of Oz, by Sylvia Patience, is a fun re-telling of the Wizard of Oz story with a little bit of a twist, but it is, essentially, the same story as L. Frank Baum’s classic, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Toto’s Tale and True Chronicle of Oz

author: Sylvia Patience

publisher: Sylvia Patience

ISBN: 0692542558

paperback, 234 pages

 

NINETY-NINE STORIES OF GOD – Joy Williams

Posted by Daniel on April 28, 2016
Posted in: HUMOR, OTHER, SHORT FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THROWBACK THURSDAY: REVIEWING A REISSUE

Tin House Books has elected to reissue this book, Ninety-Nine Stories of God, by Pulitzer and National Book Award finalist, Joy Williams.  This is a collection of what might be considered ‘flash’ fiction.  Very short (many not even a page in length) works each with a theme of how God is (or might be) present in our lives.  Some of these accounts are clearly fictitious (or at least an imagining) and some feel as though they might be drawn straight from the author or reader’s life.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this collection, having never read anything by Ms. Williams prior to this.  I wondered if it might be some form of daily devotional – a series of uplifting reflections.  But coming from a an author short-listed for the Pulitzer and National Book Award, I suspected it might be something quite different.  It is definitely something quite different.

What I found quite appealing about this book was the subtle sense of whimsy.  For example, in one short story, we read about a dog whose mistress always wore sunglasses, day and night and

When the woman had people over, she placed a big bowl of sunglasses outside the front door and everyone put on a pair before entering.  It was easier than locking the dog in the bedroom.

This story is called “NOCHE”.  Or the story “ACTUALLY” … which is so short I can’t really even quote from it without reproducing the entire story.  As was the case with “ESSENTIAL ENOUGH” which I found tremendously amusing and at the same time sometime to reflect upon.

And how can you not enjoy the humor in a collection like this when you have stories with titles like “HER EYES WERE SET RATHER CLOSE TOGETHER, WHICH GAVE HER AN URGENT AIR”?

Not surprisingly, not all of these shorts were gems or appealed to me.  I suppose it would be too much to expect that all ninety-nine stories have a strong impact on the reader, but there is enough here to make this a very strong collection.  Sometimes the presence of God is hard to find, but I often found these stories to be the more interesting stories to reflect on.

Over-all, I was pleasantly surprised by these stories.  Whimsical, reflective, and brief, this is a quick and entertaining read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Ninety-Nine Stories of God

author: Joy Williams

publisher: Tin House Books

ISBN: 1941040357

hardcover, 168 pages

LAST MAN OFF – Matt Lewis

Posted by Daniel on April 27, 2016
Posted in: NON-FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Twenty-three year old Matt Lewis is about to start a job that he’s been looking forward to … being a scientific observer aboard a fishing vessel in the Antarctic Sea.  But what he observes is that everything about the venture is unorganized and dangerous, and when the boat sinks and he has to fight for his life against the elements, the situation, and possibly against other crew members.  That he is only one of 17 survivors of 38 crew members, is a testament to his tenacity.

This book strikes me as a catharsis, a means by which survivor Matt Lewis has tried to come to terms with the experience he had aboard the Suldar Havid, a fishing vessel that would depart from Africa.

In essence, we know the outcome.  We know that Matt Lewis will survive a disaster at sea.  What we don’t know, the reason for us to read this (other than our human desire to rubber-neck at an accident) is to find out what happened and what kind of trial Lewis would have to over-come.

Lewis does a nice job of setting us up, detailing his experience and his excitement about venturing forth on a fishing vessel – something he hasn’t done.  He writes about a friend, also set to be an observer (essentially, someone whose job it is to make sure that the vessel’s crew are following maritime and marine regulations) – an odd position of authority and not a crew member.  He writes about watching his friend board a nice looking, modern ship while he waited another day or two before getting his assignment, and how his first reactions were certainly one of disappointment to see the beaten, battered, modified ship that was to be his own home.

Aboard the ship, Lewis tries to be neutral and simply be observant and comment on what he sees, but the reality is that this is nearly impossible.  Knowing the end result we do get a sense, through his writing voice, of things that might be suspicious or that might become troublesome.  But being young and in a new position on the boat … one which might easily be seen as invasive or as ‘the enemy’ … potentially has him being a bit more cautious and timid.

Interestingly, when Lewis writes of the storm and how it was handled by the captain of the ship, it appears obvious to me that the captain is ignoring safety protocols in favor of finishing ‘just one more’ fishing line.  That waves are flooding the holds is obvious to the captain, but that he ignored pleas to see the damage or that the pumps aren’t working, is less obvious, but still a factor.  And yet Lewis writes of the captain in favorable terms – though the writing itself has a hint of something else. (Something which we learn of at the end.)

The sinking of the ship is horrible, and the things that Lewis and some of his shipmates suffer through before the rescue is nightmarish. Walking or standing on the dead bodies of people you worked with, in below-freezing water, on a raft that is falling apart is, at best, a nightmare.  I can’t imagine revisiting this unless it’s exorcise the horror he’s live with since 1998.

I don’t want to belittle the events in this book, by any means.  The truth is, Matt Lewis is fortunate to be alive.  But the story here is not quite the thrilling life-or-death adventure story that it is billed as.  I recently read another story of struggle (In the Kingdom of Ice) that had me on the edge of my seat (metaphorically) with curiosity and concern for the men aboard ship.  I did not have that here.  Lewis is so close to the matter and the results of the past are still close at hand and he doesn’t allow us to build any empathy for any of the other people in the book.  Even Lewis doesn’t come off as entirely likable, though  we certainly connect with him the most given that he’s the one telling the story.  The person we next most connect with is ‘Boetie’, but for reasons that will become obvious to those who read the book, there are problems with our being attached to Boetie.

And perhaps it’s a case of our being too used to Hollywood movies, or in my case of recent reading, but a shipwreck survival tale meant to be gripping seems like something that the survivors should struggle through for days, weeks, months, even years before rescue.  This shipwreck happened and the rescue ships took three and a half to four hours to get to the location.  Yes, it was ice-cold seas, high waves, and by the time the rescuers were on scene, it was dark, making a search practically a miracle to pull off.  And no, I wouldn’t want to be in the flimsy raft for four hours, wondering if rescue would come, but the drama was not as intense as I expected (again, perhaps because it was not made as personal to me.

It is amazing what a person can go through and survive.  Matt Lewis’ story of survival after the sinking of a fishing vessel in the late 1990’s is incredible and clearly a means for Lewis to work out some of the issues he’s had with the events.  And it’s worth a read if you enjoy non-fiction and tales of struggle and survival.

Looking for a good book?  Last Man Off, by Matt Lewis, is the true, personal story of one man’s time aboard a fishing vessel in the Antarctic, its sudden sinking, and the man’s struggle to survive until rescue arrives.  It is a fair read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Last Man Off: A True Story of Disaster and Survival on the Antarctic Seas

author: Matt Lewis

publisher: Plume

ISBN: 0147515343

paperback, 256 pages

BEYOND EDEN – Kele Moon

Posted by Daniel on April 25, 2016
Posted in: ROMANCE, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

WARNING – THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SEXUAL REFERENCES AND ADULT LANGUAGE

No.

I want so much to leave that as my entire review, because I think that’s pretty much all it deserves, but at the same time, I feel a responsibility to explain why.

The story: Three long-time friends (Danny, Paul, and Eve) are in love with one-another.  Though they’ve been in and out of relationships with each other and with others, the time has arrived when they must face up to the fact that Eve is going to have to choose between Danny and Paul.  But it isn’t as easy as that.  Paul has been a sexual slave-servant to Danny’s sadistically domineering behavior.  And when Danny finds out that Paul still has feelings for Eve, he uses (abuses) his sexual power over Paul to let him know that he’ll never get to have Eve.  When Eve learns about the nature of their relationship, Danny convinces her to experience the pain that he loves to dish out.

This is clearly…CLEARLY…not my type of book.

I don’t consider myself prudish (though maybe I should reassess this?) and I accepted to read this, knowing it was likely to contain some graphic sex, and possibly some graphic sex that is unfamiliar to me (homosexual sex).  What I didn’t expect was that it would contain violent sex and characters who enjoyed pain.

Danny is not just a Dominant sex provider, he and Paul are in a relationship that thrives on hurting one another. (“Unbelievable, I’ve got to beat the shit out of you to get you to love me” Danny says to Paul at one point.)  When Eve finally learns all this about the two, she comments that it is a problem that Paul is ‘addicted to pain.’  Danny replies:

“…anyone can get an endorphin high from pain, but it’s usually pointless because the agony makes us too miserable to enjoy it”

“But if you enjoyed pain–” (Eve)

“Then it makes an endorphin high the highlight of a really fun game.”

Which might make it sound as though Danny is thoughtful and caring, but he does convince Eve to experience the pain that he can dish out, and when she asks about safe words, he bullies her and says that she needs to trust him.  Ah…no.

But the problem here, for me as a reader, is not so much the sex that I can’t imagine anyone ever enjoying … I get that there are people who feel this way … it is that none of these characters is particularly likable!  Danny is the leader of this three-some and should be the character that we respond to, but since he also has the role of the person who enjoys inflicting pain on others there is a big hurdle to over-come.  But there is nothing here to make us like this person despite his sexual predilections (I presume that we’re supposed to like him because of his interest in being a Dom).  We don’t tend to like Paul because he’s a wimp.  It’s okay to have a sexual fantasy to be dominated or even to be in constant pain to enjoy sex, but can he be strong otherwise?  He’s supposed to be an attorney, but I think that’s just to try to make him a strong character, but the author actually needs to put some effort into it.  Giving him a powerful professional position does not make him strong.

And Eve…?  To be honest, I don’t know why she’s in the book.  Both men claim to love her and want to be with her, but their homosexual relationship (based on dominance and pain) is so strong that I couldn’t believe either ever wanted to be with a woman.

I truly admit that homosexuality and dominance in sex is not my cup of tea.  So why read this?  Good question.  If you look at the book description as found on Goodreads, I don’t think you’ll find what’s actually in the book.  I was expecting a book about three people who have a long and strong relationship that includes a lot of sex.  I was not expecting something that would appeal primarily to the Marquis de Sade.

Looking for a good book?  Even if you are a fan of S&M, either in your personal life or in your literature, Beyond Eden, by Kele Moon, fails to provide a quality read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Beyond Eden

author: Kele Moon

publisher: Ellora’s Cave

ISBN: 141996416X

paperback, 404 pages

SWORDS OF SORROW: THE COMPLETE SAGA – graphic novel

Posted by Daniel on April 22, 2016
Posted in: GRAPHIC NOVEL, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Well, I was very excited for this book.  Seeing Gail Simone’s name on a book of female warrior heroes, I was pretty sure that this would be another great story with strong women in strong roles.  Sadly, I was wrong.

The story:  A whole bunch of strong female characters, some I am familiar with (Vampirella, Dejah Thoris, Red Sonja) and many that I am not so familiar with (Purgatori, Lady Demon, Chastity, Jennifer Blood, and many others), are being paired up in teams by someone called The Traveller to save the world from The Prince (of Darkness), who is getting his own team of monsters together to fight the female champions.  But pairing up these strong, independent women is not going to be easy.  First, they need to find a way to not kill each other before they can fight together.

And…that’s pretty much it.  Each woman is plucked from her home world and plopped down with another woman warrior.  They see each other as opponents for a bit but come to respect each others’ abilities and fight off some real enemies.

Okay…so the plot is pretty weak, but the working of the story could still be done well.  Unfortunately, it isn’t.  This is a 500+ page graphic novel, which might be one of the longest I’ve ever read (though I must admit here that I haven’t read the entire thing … the Advance Reading Copy that I was given stops at page 413), and it is so incredibly repetitive that I could practically write the dialog myself based on the first segment.  Woman meets woman.  Comments on strange attire.  Sees other woman as a threat.  Fight.  Common enemy arrives.  Fight side by side.  Admit respect for other woman despite strange attire.  Repeat.

If the repetitive nature of the stories isn’t enough to scare off the reader, a complete lack of understanding of the characters by the writers might do the trick.  I nearly put the book down when Red Sonja (a warrior from the ‘Hyborian’ age [which takes place before the beginning of recorded history according to creator Robert E. Howard]) goes back further in time to team up with Jungle Girl and Red Sonja has to explain quips and puns to Jungle Girl.  Where do I begin with what’s wrong with this?!

There is a moment, around page 300 when a number of the women come together and it feels as though we might actually be working toward a climax that could be exciting, but it is only a temporary build in the story.  I will hope that there is another crescendo to the story in the last 100 pages that I didn’t read, but it hardly matters…there isn’t enough build in this story as it is to make it interesting enough to read.

The art is extremely hit-or-miss.  There is some really beautiful art:

good art

And there is some art that is rather terrible:

bad art

(Yes…that’s our Red Sonja above – she kind of looks like Red Sonja as imagined by a Disney version for elementary students.)

And there’s pretty much everything in between these two styles.  While the story is predictable and repetitive, the art is wildly un-predictable.  I most definitely would not buy this book just for the art.  In fact, I just plain wouldn’t buy this book.  It is a huge disappointment.  Such a great opportunity to really have these great female characters shine, but instead they all seem pretty much alike, doing pretty much nothing.  Such a waste.

Looking for a good book?  Swords of Sorrow Complete Collection Volume 1 is a massive graphic novel, at over 500 pages, and had great potential but falls flat with the story and the art.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Swords of Sorrow Complete Collection Volume 1

authors: Gail Simone, Emma Bebby, Marguerite Bennetm Nancy A. Collins, Mikki Kendall, Leah Moore, Mairghread Scott, Eric Schultz, G. Willow Wilson

artists: Sergio Davila, Dave Acosta, Mirka Andolfo, Ronilson Freire, Francesco Manna, Rod Rodolfo, Noah Salonga, Crizam Zamora

publisher: Dynamic Forces

ISBN: 1606908065

paperback, 504 pages

TEK POWER – William Shatner

Posted by Daniel on April 21, 2016
Posted in: MYSTERY, SF/FANTASY, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

THROWBACK THURSDAY: REVIEWING A REISSUE

If you combined Captain James T. Kirk with Sergeant T. J. Hooker you’d get Private Investigator Jake Cardigan.  If you don’t already know who Captain Kirk or T.J. Hooker are, you’re probably not going to be interested in this book.

William Shatner is listed as the author on this book six of the TekWar book series.  The series features a P.I. in the future and ‘Tek’ is an illegal, digital drug that comes as a microchip.  In this volume, a drug cartel has plans to kidnap/kill the U.S. President and replace him with an android.  The plan is already in action as the president, a Tek addict, has been hospitalized and an android is in his place and no one realizes.  Jake and his partner, Sid Gomez must expose the plot or the real president will die and the All-American way of life could be gone.

This is actually a pretty good idea for a story (and it’s been done very well recently with the “Nexus” books by Ramez Naam), and even given that it was written two decades ago and it hasn’t aged well (VCRs?) there is some fun here.  For a book about drugs and kidnapping the president, it’s a pretty light-weight book.  Our protagonists go from one lead or source to another with a comical regularity with an occasional chase or fight in between leads.

There is also an attempt at a lot of humor inside the story – this is not surprising given that the book is ghost-written by Ron Goulart, an author who wrote a lot of humorous sci-fi in the 1970’s and 1980’s.  But the humor also feels a bit dated.  Things that I thought might be funny when I was in my teens or twenties (such as getting the hispanic/latino name wrong) are not very funny now, in my mid-fifties.

I never really bought into the characters.  Of course it was hard for me not to picture William Shatner as Jake Donovan, and while that might have worked in the 80’s, picturing the Shatner of today trying to carry off this role now…?  It didn’t help my reading.

The series clearly has a following (the books have spawned comics, movies, and a television show), and this particular book isn’t a bad read, but it’s not particularly memorable either.  I can’t recommend it but if you come across it and choose to give it a read, it would be a decent way to spend a few afternoons.

Looking for a good book?  Tek Power, by William Shatner, is the sixth book in a series about a detective in the future.  It is dated and not nearly as intense as one might expect from a book about detectives and drugs, but it’s a pleasant way to pass some time.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Tek Power

author: William Shatner

series: TekWar #6

publisher: Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy

ISBN: 1480464937

ebook, 293 pages

OBJECTS OF DESIRE – Rita Catinella Orrell

Posted by Daniel on April 20, 2016
Posted in: NON-FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I knew, going in to this, that this was going to be a book about ‘adult sex toys’ (more kindly referred to as “erotic products”), but beyond that, I wasn’t sure what to expect here.  I think the subtitle, “A Showcase of Modern Erotic Products and the Creative Minds Behind Them,” is really key to this book.

This is not a catalog or even a review of modern erotic products.  While it does feature some of the newest (currently) erotic products on the market, it does so in an artistic fashion (as opposed to either clinical or sensual) making this more like a coffee-table photo book than anything else.  In her preface to the book, author Rita Catinella Orrell (who writes a consumer product design blog) writes: “The products in this book were chosen to appeal not only to lovers of good design, say the casual, curious observer, but also to those lovers of good design with a serious interest in acquiring these pieces.” And I’d say this is a pretty apropos statement.

The primary focus here appears to be the design of the products.  I think it’s safe to say that the sex toy has come a long way from the days of simple vibrators or dildos and cheap plastic vaginal socks or mouths for male use.  And yet, the ultimate purpose or result of the product remains the same.  So where are the changes?  In the quality of the materials in the product and the fine-tuning of shapes, angles, curves, and stimulation additions.  What also has changed is the use of technology and the ability to control devices through the use of cell phones.

One of the more interesting products within is the “long distance” sex toys.  One company (I won’t advertise individual companies here … you can read the book) packages a his-and-hers sex toy set in which each partner can control the vibration intensity of their partner’s toy through their own cell phones.  So… while apart, instead of just the sexy talk over the phone, you can add another dimension and actually control the action your partner is getting, while still talking.

There are even vibrators that react to music or specific sounds.  Who knew!?

But as is often the case with coffee-table style photo books, the objects within are not the sort that are easily available, or at least not usually in expensive.  The above mentioned his/hers toy retails for $400.  This doesn’t strike me as something for the average couple, but for those who are serious about their sexual toys.

I will admit, with a chuckle, that there were times when I viewed a product and I had no idea how it would be used (I guess I’m a little out of my league here).  Fortunately, I may not be the only one as on some rare occasions, along with the classy photography of the product there might be included a very sterile, clinical diagram of the product in use.

Also, along with the product display, there are very brief interviews with some of the leading designers of some of these new products

There is still a sense of taboo surrounding the world of sex – specifically the world of sex for fun or as a pastime, rather than for procreation only – but books such as this show that we’re becoming a little more open to talking about and sharing these sorts of things.  And as we can make these products more personalized (curves and shapes designed for the uniqueness of an individual’s body) the more likely we are to realize that these objects aren’t just for ‘deviants,’ but for anyone who wants to enhance their sensual pleasure experiences.  Books like this make us realize that these products are available and that intelligent, qualified experts are always working to design new products.  Now if we can work on the product prices and availability perhaps more people would purchase a product of this sort, and not just those whose lifestyle really revolves around these experiences.

Looking for a good book?  Objects of Desire, by Rita Catinella Orrell, is a photo book of modern sex toys, presented in nicely photographed, artistic fashion.  Put one on your coffee table and see what your neighbors think the next time they come over for drinks.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

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Objects of Desire: A Showcase of Modern Erotic Products and the Creative Minds Behind Them

author: Rita Catinella Orrell

publisher: Schiffer Publishing

ISBN: 0764351044

hardcover, 272 pages

DRAWING BLOOD – Deirdre Verne

Posted by Daniel on April 18, 2016
Posted in: MYSTERY, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

CeCe Prentice is a Freegan – someone who seeks to reduce their footprint on the planet by reducing waste and reusing everything possible and even digging for discarded food.  As such, she’s acquainted with the manager of the town dump (where CeCe was planning to ‘shop’ for her next vehicle).  When Big Bob, the dump manager goes missing and is later found dead under a load of recycling, CeCe uses her art skills to make sketches of the scene and identify potential witnesses. But despite CeCe’s uncanny ability to recall faces and draw them accurately, she’s having a lot of trouble with one individual.

CeCe comes from a family that might just define the term dysfunctional.  Her mother is a recovering addict.  Her twin brother (who died in the previous book) she discovered was not her biological twin after all, and her father was the head of an organization experimenting with genetics and, as it turns out, stole an egg from twelve-year-old CeCe and fertilized it with a sperm cell from her ‘brother’.  Now she’s wondering if there’s a sixteen year old son or daughter in the world with her DNA.

As with the first book (see review here), there is some really incredible science going on.  Incredible and scary.  I can’t imagine the sort of psychological effect it would have on a person to know that you’ve been robbed of your seed/egg and that it was used to reproduce – that you have a child that you’ve never known about.  (Okay…this does sort of, sometimes, happen to men, but not so much for a woman, for obvious reasons.)  But fortunately I don’t have to imagine it as author Deirdre Verne captures it quite well.

CeCe’s artistic abilities play a slightly larger role in this book, which is much appreciated.  It is a mystery with the word ‘drawing’ in the title, with a protagonist with a great artistic skill, but this is still primarily a medical/scientific mystery/thriller.  The artistic talents come into play with this particular story.  This plot, with the dead manager and his missing wife, is the center for this particular book, and it is a worth-while mystery.  It is worthy of its own focus.  But the overarching story of the family dynamics with the gene research and the theft of DNA and the loss of trust is what really makes this a story to immerse one’s self within.

I found this book even more interesting than the first book in the series, in part, I suspect, because Ms. Verne builds on the what she’s previously established.  It’s like doing a jigsaw puzzle, only to realize that a bunch of different jigsaw puzzles, when put together form another, larger picture.  I absolutely love the intricacies here.

Looking for a good book?  This is a mystery series worth reading, and while I would suggest reading Drawing Conclusions first, Drawing Blood still works nicely on its own.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Drawing Blood

author: Deirdre Verne

series: A Sketch in Crime Mystery #2

publisher: Midnight Ink

ISBN: 0738742287

paperback, 336 pages

 

RUBY WIZARDRY – Eric Weinstein

Posted by Daniel on April 15, 2016
Posted in: CHILDREN'S, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

Though I have a better than rudimentary knowledge of some basic computer languages (HTML, PHP, JAVASCRIPT) I will admit that I’d never even heard of Ruby before, so I was definitely curious to check this one out.  I reviewed a companion book, Javascript For Kids here.

As the subtitle says, and as the drawing on the cover indicates, this book is written for kids.  Or at least for people trying to learn something on a very rudimentary level.

I suspect that for that fifth or sixth grader, interested in computers and with enough interest in computers, this might be just the right way to explain it.  Author Eric Weinstein approaches this by telling a fantasy story and correlating the needs of the characters in the story with the needs of the Ruby programming language.  It is a very clever means of teaching and I can easily see this as a series of classroom lessons.

Weinstein also does a nice job of building on each chapter, taking the young developer through the process and learning the important steps  – syntax, strings, if, elseif, else, loops, arrays, and so on.

Whereas the Javascript for Kids was really helpful and a book that I was able to read and use, I found this story-telling method a bit much for me.  I grew impatient and just wanted the Ruby lesson.  I didn’t want to read a story, I wanted to learn how to program with Ruby.

I am not a teacher, however, and my own children are likely beyond this level of learning, so it’s very difficult for me to say how it would go over with the target audience.  I think it would work well and would want to see this available in my local library.

Looking for a good book?  Ruby Wizardry by Eric Weinstein is a software programming book for children, told through a fantasy narrative, with some good lessons in the Ruby language.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

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Ruby Wizardry: An Introduction to Programming for Kids

author: Eric Weinstein

publisher: No Starch Press

ISBN: 1593275668

paperback, 252 pages

RED SONJA/CONAN: BLOOD OF A GOD – graphic novel

Posted by Daniel on April 13, 2016
Posted in: GRAPHIC NOVEL, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Conan and Red Sonja, together again?  Absolutely!  And it works!

I’ve been a fan of the Conan stories since reading the Robert E. Howard books and stories back in the 70’s.  Then I followed that up with the really excellent comics published by Marvel.  But as with almost any good thing, the market seemed to get glutted with Conan – new books, new comics – and I lost interest.  I’ve picked up a few Conan graphic novels and thumbed through them, but wasn’t very impressed.  But when this became available for review I thought I’d give it a try.

Conan and Sonja are both captains of some mercenary soldiers who have hired on to help a small kingdom fight off a wizard in a neighboring kingdom.  When the local king wants to choose one captain to lead the mercenary army, Conan and Sonja step up to be co-captains, and of course must first fend off some foolish men who think that they should captain the army.  Once the captaincy is decided, Conan and Red move their army out.  When they camp for the night, giant monsters attack the captain duo.  Monsters send by the wizard of the soon-to-be-invaded kingdom.

The wizard’s blind adviser warns the wizard that Sonja and Conan could bring the wizard to ruin, but hubris gets in the way, the wizard confident he can fend of the Hyborean barbarians.  Indeed, the wizard send an entire army of monsters and nearly everyone on the field of battle lies dead.  Except Conan and Red Sonja.  Though Conan doesn’t see Sonja’s body and presumes she is dead as well, so Conan continues on toward the castle.  Sonja crawls out from under some bodies to find looters already going through the pouches of the dead.  She gets the story of the battle from these observers’ eyes, and heads off after Conan.

Conan and Sonja catch up to the wizard, but there is something that gets revealed to the pair and they have yet an even bigger fight, just for their very survival.

This book definitely had a sense of adventure and excitement and just the right amount of fighting to feel like I’m reading a classic Conan story.  The wizard and his secret is not too unexpected if you’ve read this sort of story before, but it works in just the right way.

What doesn’t work quite so well is the personalities of Sonja and Conan.  While both have always been a bit arrogant it has typically come across as confidence – knowing their skills and not afraid to talk about it.  But here it comes across as hubris – particularly with Conan.  When he’s fighting, he’s classic Conan.  When he’s not fighting, he’s bragging and boasting, which just doesn’t feel right.

The artwork is fine.  For the most part it works.  At times it doesn’t come across very well.  Sonja alternates from a tough fighting warrior woman to a cutesy little girl (which is not how I ever picture her) and Conan sometimes has the classic Romita/Buscema/Alcala look and sometimes he looks Native American. Inconsistent, but over-all, worth looking at.

This was a fun romp in the Conan/Red Sonja world and made me want to read some of the original stories again.

Looking for a good book? Red Sonja/Conan: The Blood of a God is a graphic novel that is a decent throw-back to the classic Conan comics that Marvel once published and is worth picking up to read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Red Sonja/Conan: The Blood of a God

author: Victor Gischler

artist: Roberto Castro

publisher: Dynamic Forces

ISBN: 1606908219

hardcover, 96 pages

NO ONE’S PET – Sheila Kennedy

Posted by Daniel on April 12, 2016
Posted in: MEMOIR, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

First, let’s point out that this isn’t a biography (or autobiography) so much as it is a memoir.  What’s the difference?  A memoir (typically) doesn’t follow the timeline of one’s life but selects moments that were meaningful and expounds on them, often jumping around.  No One’s Pet by Sheila Kennedy definitely fits the memoir mold.

Kennedy was a wild child, not afraid to speak her mind or challenge (or at least question) authority.    Coming from a home with an abusive father, a negligent mother, and living with a prostitute aunt, it’s not surprising that Sheila found her way into nude modelling.  In fact she seemed tailor-made for it.  But to Kennedy’s credit, she doesn’t seem to look back on this (or much of anything) with anger or hatred.  It was what it was, and she’s moving forward.

Despite this rough up-bringing and a roller-coaster ride of being at the top of the game and then struggling to make enough money to put food on the table, Sheila Kennedy seems to have lived a charmed life.  Whether it’s because of her doe-eyed cuteness, or her wanderlust, or her devil-may-care attitude, she’s gone in and out of settings with people (often influential people) willing to help her along the way.  When she was determined to leave ‘home’ she was connected with one of the top photographers in the country.  When she meets him, she hands him a couple of Polaroids of herself.  He tells her that she’ll never get work and describes what is wrong with her.  But, as a favor, he sends two Polaroids to Playboy and two to Penthouse.  Penthouse responds and she begins a strange journey that most of us could never imagine.

Kennedy becomes one of the first Penthouse models to take up residence at Bob Guccione’s Penthouse mansion, is lavished with gifts from Guccione and given a strange amount of freedom to wander, explore, and date as she chooses, while remaining one of Guccione’s harem girls (though willingly – Kennedy repeatedly writes how much she cared for and was attracted to Guccione).  Staying at the mansion propels her to being a Penthouse Pet of the Month (multiple times) and Pet of the Year (1983).

Not surprising to most of us on the ‘outside’ of this industry, this sort of stardom doesn’t last.  It does have its perks, though, as being a Pet of the Year, she is introduced and has sexual encounters with many leading names in the entertainment industry (and she’s not shy in this book to tell us who is large and who is small when it comes to penis size [because, apparently, it DOES matter]).  But rarely does she describe these encounters as forced (one is definitely worthy of being called rape) but rather her willingness to enjoy these really good-looking men (as she describes them).

What I liked about the book was her style.  She writes very conversationally.  One gets the feeling that we are sitting in a room and listening to her tell about her life.  It jumps around, just as such a conversation might as well.  This was very easy to read and the style gives us an understanding of the person, just as much as the information she shares.

What I didn’t like about the book was what she doesn’t tell us.  Twice she hints at turning to religion during times when she was “at pretty loose ends”.  During one of those times she met Billy Zabka (the mean kid from Karate Kid), a Christian who is Kennedy’s son’s godfather.  But what about these times?  How did they influence her or change her or help her through the tough times?  We get nothing on this other than the quick mention – though I suppose we can deduce that the influence these times had was minimal since it was during one of these times that she began a sexual dalliance with Scott Baio.

One of the things we discover about Sheila Kennedy from this memoir is her innocence … or perhaps a better term for it would be her gullibility, or even vulnerability.  She was vulnerable because of her innocence or her inability to make choices based on more than appearances.  Nearly every man she meets and sleeps with is described as good-looking, or hot, or sexy, or “actually quite charming.”  She is clearly unable to see beyond the exterior or the presentation of a person.  And it is when she wraps up this book that realize that she really has no clue as to how she was presented to the world how the world views her.

For me… There hasn’t been a time quite like it before or since; going on “Late Night With David Letterman”, getting introduced to fantastic artists, prominent politicians, and colorful bottom-feeders…and being recognized as not a sex object but a strong woman making her way in the toughest and coolest city in the world.  There was nothing like it.

(And by the way, what she describes of her appearance on Letterman was his making fun of the prizes she won as Pet of the Year.)

It is fortunate that this was a great time through her own eyes because the alternative would be seriously depressing and because she remains upbeat about it, it makes for a delightful read.  It is true that she was/is strong, which has gotten her into and through many an escapade, but it is also likely true that she remains a bit innocent about much of it.

Looking for a good book?  Sheila Kennedy’s memoir/autobiography No One’s Pet, is an easy to read sexual romp through the entertainment world of the 1980’s.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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No One’s Pet: The Autobiography of Sheila Kennedy

author: Sheila Kennedy

publisher: Jerrick Media

ASIN: B01B8R1P5M

Kindle edition, 226 pages

UNBREAKABLE – Kami Garcia

Posted by Daniel on April 11, 2016
Posted in: SF/FANTASY, YA. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

I have a long backlog of Advance Reading Copy (ARC) books and I dip randomly into the pot and pull one out to read.  Such was the case with Unbreakable by Kami Garcia.  I was very glad to have selected this book – it is an enjoyable read.

Teenager Kennedy Waters discovers her mother dead one day and her world changes in unfathomable ways.  When a cat tries to kill Kennedy, the girl is rescued by strangers … twin brothers Jared and Lukas Lockhart. The boys explain that Kennedy’s mother was a member of a secret society with supernatural powers saving the world from demonic uprisings.  But the demons are winning and Kennedy, the twins, and two others (Priest and Alara) are all that’s left.  Unfortunately, Kennedy’s mother never shared any of this her and this supernatural world takes her by surprise and she has no idea what her special ability might be.  But since she’s now being hunted by human police (as a runaway or a kidnap victim) and by demons she has no choice but to stay with Jared and Lukas and the society, which isn’t so bad except it means she also has to confront her attraction to them while confronting ghosts who want her dead.

I found this to be a really exciting YA paranormal story.  We have the typical teen-aged girl suddenly on her own in a threatening environment, which is one of the staples of a YA book.  She thinks her situation in the world is unique to her and that no one could possibly understand what she’s going through.  And she’s faced with true love, but for the good of all or good of the world, she must be a martyr and ignore this true love.  She is full of pathos and reflection.

And while this book manages to have all the things that one looks for in a YA novel, it manages to do it in an original way.  Having recently read another YA novel in which the pathos took over the entire story, this was a nice change.  There was a nice balance between story, mystery, action, love, and reflection.  We didn’t dwell too much in any one spot.

Garcia’s writing is tight which makes this very nice and easy to read.  And the world-building is strong.  I haven’t read too many ‘ghost story’ novels but of the one that I can think of (the Jonathan Stroud “Lockwood & Company” series) complements this well with some common ghost fighting measures.  But there were some things that were unique to this book (for me, at least). (“Spirits absorb the energy from things around them, including batteries.”)

I particularly liked the scene in which Kennedy faces a room full of the ghosts of children who are trying to communicate with her.  It manages to be frightening and still show some hope.  Garcia’s command of the story and her characters really pays off in scenes like this.

A solid mystery in a better than average YA setting made for a terrific read.

I’ve since read a number of the negative reviews on Goodreads (mostly because they are from readers whose reviews I follow and respect) and I will say I’m disappointed in the comparisons to a television show.  I know this is because the publisher or author has included this comparison in their synopsis of the book.  But perhaps because I am not a big television watcher any more, I could not compare this book and take it on its own merits.

Looking for a good book?  Unbreakable, by Kami Garcia, is a strong paranormal YA novel that will have the reader on the edge of his/her seat while empathizing with the protagonist to understand this strange new world.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

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Unbreakable

author: Kami Garcia

series: The Legion #1

publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

ISBN: 031621017X

hardcover, 305 pages