Reading Update 07 June 2014

A few words on the 13 books I've finished since my last update.

The Enchantress by Michael Scott

This was a fun, light ending to a fun, light series. I was satisfied with how the six-book saga wound up. If you liked the previous books, you'll like this one.

6.75/10

Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

I liked this book a lot.  It's not quite as impactful as the first, as the novelty has worn off and we're clearly being guided toward a third book, but it is just as tense and gloomy and dark as the first, and I'm eagerly awaiting the third.

8.5/10

Chinese Cinderella: The True Story of an Unwanted Daughter by Adeline Yen Mah

This is a bowdlerized version of a longer autobiography, pared down for children to read.  It's simple but harrowing.

6.5/10

Find Me by Romily Bernard

This is a good, fast-paced YA hacker novel with a great female protagonist and several interesting plot lines.  I'm glad to know there will be follow-up starring Wick.

8.25/10

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I would have liked this book better if I hadn't had such high expectations from it being the *it* book a couple summers ago.  As it was, I liked the book, but not until about halfway through when the slightly predictable plot twist occurs.  A very fun read with complex characters.

8/10

Stay Where You Are and Then Leave by John Boyne

This was a great exploration of PTSD from the point of view of a child whose father is shipped off to fight in WWI.  Boyne captures the emotional swings of an entire family to show us the real costs of war without ever falling prey to sentimentality.

8.5/10

The Eye of Minds by James Dashner

This was a disappointing book, especially because I so enjoyed his first series, the Maze Runner trilogy.  I could never quite get into the story or the characters.

4/10

Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff

This was a fun middle grade retelling of the Rumpelstiltskin story, from his perspective.  Don't expect anything like the book Wicked, but it's easy to fall into this story.

7.75/10

More Than This by Patrick Ness

This was an excellent book: tense, with complex, moving characters, and a compelling plot line. I recommend this book.

9.25/10

Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

If, like me, you've been putting this one off because the uninspiring cover art or the so-so title, shame on us both.  This was a superb book, my favorite new read in a long while.  It's very dark, very tense, very bloody--and Lawrence somehow convinces us to care deeply about a despicable protagonist.  This book sucked me in like no other in the past few months.  Highly recommended.

9.75/10

Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang by Chelsea Handler

This is Handler doing what she does best: telling compromising stories with hilarity and her signature debonair disregard. A very funny book.

8/10

In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan

I've been a fan of Pollan for awhile now, but kept putting this book off, I'm sorry to say.  It's excellent, insightful, and should be required reading for everyone who eats food.  Presumably, that includes you..

9.5/10

King of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

The sequel to Prince of Thorns, this book was equally as tense and dark and compelling.  We keep a similar pattern--cutting back and forth between present and past storylines--all of which are gripping.  Jorg is a little softened here, his bravado tempered somewhat with pain and perhaps a little wisdom.  But he's still the Jorg who wrung out our sympathy and admiration and disgust in the first book. Also highly recommended.

9.5/10

Until next time,

Happy Reading

Finished Reading - 22 April - Catching Up

Once again I let a little too much time lapse between updates.  I've been really busy with a new job, and haven't had as much time to read lately, so I've only got 10 books to show for the last 6 weeks.

As with my last catching up post, I'll offer short microreviews for each.

Lirael (The Abhorsen Trilogy) by Garth Nix.
This book, like the first in the trilogy, Sabriel, was a delight to read.  The world of these books feels so comfortable and real, as though you're visiting a place you once knew that has been lost to memory.  Lirael is a great book in its own right, but is not quite on par with the excellent Sabriel.  Still, I very much enjoyed it, and am looking forward to the final book in the trilogy.  I recommend this title.
9/10

Looking for Alaska by John Green
A great book.  I didn't expect to like it as much as I did, particularly after reading The Fault in Our Stars (who could top that book?), but John Green is a master at facing head-on the darkness that a lot of teens experience, and he does it in a way that is honest and unforgiving and completely genuine.  Highly recommended.
9.75/10

Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive) by Brandon Sanderson
Another very good book that is slightly over-shadowed by its prequel. All the risky elements I loved about the first book in the series, The Way of Kings, are still here--interludes, interior artwork, very original and alien worldbuilding, and a scope that is beyond epic--and we still follow the same main characters from book one.  I liked that this book was more about Shallan, but Kaladin's storyline was not as interesting and the book's ending left me a little disappointed.  Still, this is a recommended title.
8.25/10

The Ginger Man by J. P. Donleavy
I picked up this book after reading a NYTimes Magazine article on the 87 year old author that really caught my fancy. I can see why the book is still a bestseller 50 years later, and it's mostly stood the test of time.  It actually reminded me a lot, in both pleasant and not so pleasant ways, of reading Malcolm Lowry's Under the Volcano.  I liked this book, but it did little else for me.
6.5/10

Something More Than Night by Ian Tregillis
This book was fascinating in many ways, and I was happy to write a review of it for Strange Horizons. As I wrote there, this is part tongue-in-cheek noir detective story, part ontological examination of the foundations of reality, ever so slightly and amusingly absurd, and dripping with lush, weird descriptions.  It won't be for every reader, but some will find it as wonderful as I did.  I recommend this title.
9/10

The Leader Who Had No Title by Robin Sharma
I read this book because it was given to me by my new boss, who really likes Robin Sharma (he attends his retreats every year).  As I wrote in my Goodreads review, this book basically takes all the favorite tricks of pushy evangelists--saying your first name way too often, grandiose but vague promises, unnecessarily withholding "important" information that is the "key" to "unlocking" something, encouraging the status quo by telling people to always do their best no matter what their position in life is--and then combines it with very poor writing.  For even my low expectations, this was a very disappointing book.
2.0/10

Halftime: Changing Your Game Plan from Success to Significance by Bob Buford
Another book given to me by my new boss.  Despite being outside both target audiences (businesspeople and Christians), I still found it interesting and engaging, with lots of useful lessons.  Buford is a good writer, and if he's only interested in a certain segment of the population, that's his prerogative. I ended up liking this book, despite its being heavy-handed.
6.75/10

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
Another book given to me by my new boss, and the best self-improvement book I've read. Carnegie clearly knows what he's talking about, and practices what he preaches. Plus his narrative approach is refreshing after the overload of superlatives and unlocked secrets found among contemporary writers of these types of books.  I recommend this title (and, as of this writing, it's only $2.99 on Kindle).
8.25/10

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
The book that brought Asperger's syndrome into the mainstream when it was released back in 2004. This is a great book with an utterly convincing narrator, and his atypical observations and interpretations help us not only understand a little of what people with Asperger's go through, but they also help us see ourselves in surprising new ways.  Highly recommended.
9/10

Finished Reading 10 March 2014 - Catching Up

It's been a little while since I've updated my reading list, and in that time I've finished 16 more books.

To catch up I'll skip my usual short reviews and just give you links, a few words of description, and my rating.  Micro-reviews, in other words.

Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 written and illustrated by David Petersen
Great artwork, a good story.  Like a darker, illustrated Brian Jacques. I enjoyed it, but wanted more story.
6.75/10

Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow
The book that launched Doctorow's career as a novelist. Worth the praise it receives.  Highly enjoyable, quirky, sarcastic, satiric.  Joe Haldeman meets Robert J. Sawyer for the next generation.
8.5/10

Despair by Vladimir Nabokov, revised English edition
Not quite as brilliantly creepy as Lolita, but Nabokov's trademark lush, beautiful English is present.  Not a plot-driven story, but an exploration of character and self-delusion.  Engaging, but not captivating.
8/10

Wonder by R. J. Palacio
Smartly written YA book about a disfigured and often reviled boy, August. Just when I thought it was getting too much, Palacio wisely shifted gears and expanded the story with more viewpoints. Think Rudy goes to private school.
8.25/10

Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch
A great follow-up to The Lies of Locke Lamora, if not quite as tightly plotted as the first book. Locke and Jean take a meandering journey that somehow manages to always be fascinating and thrilling. Once again listened to the audio version, brilliantly narrated by the wonderful Michael Page.
9.25/10

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Quiet and introspective, like Ishiguro's other novels.  I liked it, but wasn't head over heels like so many others. I suspect much of the buzz in the SFF community is because it's Ishiguro dipping into their backyard, not because the book itself is that great.  I preferred The Remains of the Day.
6.75/10

Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett
My second foray into Discworld, after The Colour of Magic (which I previously reviewed here).  I liked this book better.  Reads much less like a Douglas Adams derivative, and Discworld feels more fully realized.  A really funny book.
7.75/10

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Loved this book. Go read it now.  Seriously.
9.75/10

The City of Ember: Deluxe Edition by Jeanne DuPrau
A timeless tale.  Great use of archetypal characters and symbols, mixed with a very original idea of a damp, cool city mismanaged by corrupt politicians and surrounded by darkness.  And the lights are going out.
8/10

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai
A novel of poems describing a young girl's experience of fleeing the fall of Saigon and growing up a refugee in the American south.  Deep, moving, and a great use of form.
8.25/10

The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson
The damsel-in-distress tale is flipped in this plot-driven story which nonetheless manages some great characterization.  A cut above the second book, The Crown of Embers (which I previously reviewed here).  The last (and best) book in a very good trilogy.
8.75/10

Dodger by Terry Pratchett
A YA historical fantasy from Pratchett about a "tosher," a boy who makes a living collecting things that wash down into the Dickensian sewers of 19th C London.  Speaking of  Dickens, he makes an appearance, as does Sweeney Todd, Benjamin Disraeli, Robert Peel, and a host of other notable figures.  A very enjoyable, always fun adventure story.
8.75/10

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
A surprisingly good addition to the over-saturated YA vampire market. Black provides a refreshing and interesting twist on vampire stories, though it does still fall into the YA female protagonist cliche of the girl fighting against her feelings for the bad boy.  Still, a very creepy book in the best of ways.
7.75/10

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.
Very imaginative use of found photographs to craft a tense, scary story.  Loved the idea for form, and found the concept of "loops" and "peculiars" very fascinating.  The book got off to a slow start, and it wasn't until halfway through that the protagonist became interesting for me, but around that point the book fell into place and started really working.
8.0/10

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver
Kingsolver is in my opinion one of the greatest living American novelists, but she's often overlooked because her favorite themes of environmentalism and the quiet desperation of women's lives are themselves often overlooked.  This isn't her best book, but an average showing from Kingsolver is still a very good book by any metric.
8.5/10

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
Based on the true story of a gorilla who lived most of his life in an enclosure in the middle of a mall, and told from the gorilla's perspective, this short novel has a lot of heart. Recommended for young readers and adults alike.
8.5/10

Finished Reading 1/28/2014 - Counting by 7s, and How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia

This is a great young adult title about a girl with Sherlockian intelligence who is given up as a baby, and then as a twelve year old loses her new parents.  Willow has a lot of trouble connecting with people, but when the new friend she meets at counselling intervenes to try to find her a home, suddenly the loneliest girl in the world is surrounded by a strange cast of characters who go to extreme lengths, some of them against their natural inclinations, to provide her a new family.  Somehow, the girl who by intellect and circumstance both is an outsider, connects movingly with the reader.  It's a subtle book, and though it's an easy read and one you will find yourself constantly wanting to turn the next page, it deals with the very weighty subjects of loss, grief, and identity with a very deft hand.  This is definitely a recommended title.

Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

8.75/10

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For me, this book appeared out of nowhere on a swiftly rising tide.  Around the same time I first saw this title on an awards list and got interested, several of my friends asked me if I'd read, or recommended I read, Mohsin Hamid.  I haven't read Hamid's other two novels, but this one deserves the buzz.

The book never names a city or a character, and it's narrated in second person point of view--all risky choices, but here they pay off big.  The frame is of a self-help book to assist you, the reader/protagonist, in doing just what the title claims.  It's broken into specific targets or goals, each of which is undermined by a multitude of factors that stand in the way: disease, poor infrastructure, government corruption, shady business partners, murderous business rivals, love.  Along the ride, the second person pov forces you to inhabit this unnamed city and rise through its squalor and filth and crime and death.  I was frequently reminded of the three months my wife and I spent in India.  For Westerners especially, this short novel goes a long way to helping readers understand the challenges and motivations of rising Asia.  Another recommended title.

How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia: A Novel by Mohsin Hamid

9.0/10

Finished Reading 1/25/2014 - The Crown of Embers, and The Dinosaur Feather

The Crown of Embers (Girl of Fire and Thorns book 2) by Rae Carson

This was an enjoyable read.  The characters are mostly well developed, the plot is interesting and engaging, and the danger to the characters feels real.  I was reminded on occasion that I was reading a young adult book with a female heroine, which might be just what some readers are looking for, but for the most part this read simply as a good book, without any needless classification of a good YA book, or a good fantasy book.  I had a few quibbles about minor plot points--my wife and I disagreed on them--and how a lack of realism in simple matters undermines when readers are asked to follow along with the more magical, less possible things.  But overall, this is leaps and bounds above most of the books being written for the same audience, and I'm looking forward to both the prequel novellas and the third book.



7.75/10

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The Dinosaur Feather by S. J. Gazan

This book is in many ways, mostly good ways, odd.  Is it literary fiction? a myster? a thriller? a detective novel?  It defies genres and categorization with a refreshing blend of intrigue, character development, suspense, and backstory.  Some reviews I read found fault with how much we learn about the pasts of the characters, but for me this was a welcome departure from the typical plot of the murder mystery.  And the scientific conflict around which most of the characters' lives revolve was very interesting.  I became aware of this book because I saw it billed as the "best Danish novel of the decade."  While I wouldn't rank it so high as that--even having not read, to my knowledge, other Danish fiction, I hope for their sakes there is more and better--it is nevertheless a very rewarding book for readers who enjoy falling deep into their characters.  While readers who are more interested in plot may find themselves bored or frustrated, there are still pleasures to be had for them as well.



8.0/10

Finished Reading 1/20/2014 - Independent People

I started this book long ago as a nightly read-aloud with my wife.  We had each previously read Iceland's Bell (I loved it, whereas she thought it was merely good, and a bit boring).  Determined to convert her, I launched this book upon her; short of the halfway mark, it was shelved.

Time passed, and meanwhile the book lingered in my imagination.

I finally got back to it, and I'm glad I did.  I can say without hesitation that Bjartur of Summerhouses is one of the greatest protagonists of the novel form; he should be held alongside Don Quixote, and Rochester, and Milton's Satan (not a true protagonist, or a novel, but still), and Pickwick, and Jude the Obscure.  Bjartur stands--foolishly, obstinately, and heroically--unmoving as the world changes around him, and his story becomes the story of his country, seen through the eyes of its most stalwart and enduring (if not endearing) crofter.

Admittedly not the book for everyone, but for me this was a very fine read indeed. 

Independent People by Halldór Laxness

9.25/10

Finished Reading 1/14/14 - The Color of Magic (and others)

One of the many blurbs at the end of the book states that Terry Pratchett does for fantasy what Douglas Adams did for science fiction, and I couldn't agree more--except I suspect the author of those words meant them as highest praise, whereas I don't.  I was amused by this book, much like I was with the Hitchhiker's Guide books, and I suspect I'll read the sequel before too much time has passed, but it didn't really do much for me.  As with Adams' books, of which I've read three, I don't yet see why Discworld has spawned such a rabid following.  For me, it amuses but doesn't delight, interests but doesn't engage.

The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett

6/10



As a bonus, some words about two other books I finished in the past few days.



The titular doll of this book was really creepy, and I enjoyed the fantasy-meets-reality, nerds-on-a-quest plot.  The book didn't wow me, but it was a fun, quick read that leaves a bit of mystery for the imagination to decide.

Doll Bones by Holly Black, illustrated by Eliza Wheeler

6.75/10





This book was charming, and, thinking back, words like "classic" and, perhaps more appropriately, "timeless" come to mind.  It's a short book, more of a novella, really, and it reads quickly--unfortunately so, because the story, characters, and narrative voice are all so lovely. If, like me, you somehow managed to escape childhood having never read this book, do yourself a favor and pick it up.

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

8.25/10

Finished Reading 1/09/2014 - The Book Thief

Another book that's been on my to-read list for awhile, but that I was in no hurry to read--until my wife told me the movie was coming out and that we would be going to see it.  Books that I know will be dark and depressing take me a long time to work myself up to beginning, and there's not much that's darker or more depressing than a book about WWII and the Holocaust told from the point of view of Death.

But greater than that inertia is my fear that a movie will spoil a book for me, so reluctantly I pushed The Book Thief to the top of my list.  I'm glad I did.  This story is beautiful, and the language used to tell it is constantly fresh, imaginative, evocative, and surprisingly apt.  I found myself wondering multiple times, why don't we say that phrase that way? or, why don't we use this word for that?  It's a lovingly crafted book, which helps underscore the love and humanity of the characters.  Even Death, on occasion, has a heart.

This is turning out to be a very good year for books so far.  I only hope I can find a few more titles as original and moving as this one turned out to be.

The Book Thief, but Markus Zusak.

9.25/10

Finished Reading 01/07/2014 - The Lies of Locke Lamora

I've been wanting to read this one for several years now, but never quite seemed to get around to it.  Now I'm sorry I put it off.  The worldbuilding here is very well done, and the characters are full of wonderful little quirks, faults, and gritty realities.  Plus Lynch is the best I've ever read at crafting curses and fitting them naturally into dialogue--difficult enough to do well, but he masters it.

But that's not what really charms in this book.  The core story--a band of suave, merry con men who jump in way over their heads--is beautifully unflinching.  This is not to say it's a flawless book (who would want to read one of those?).  There were several places where the purpose of a chapter is fulfilled, but we don't wind down for several pages.  It wasn't until halfway through the book that I began to appreciate these, as they offer us further glimpses of character and the society, and all the while we really are building toward the inevitable climax.  Yet even with that sense of inevitability, Lynch manages quite a few surprises.

Two final things of note that greatly enhanced my enjoyment of the book.  First, Scott Lynch is really fucking funny.  I laughed a lot as I made my way through.  Locke is one of the better characters I've read in years, and his sense of humor is a large part of that.  The other reason was that I listened to the audiobook, beautifully narrated by Michael Page.  If you can, listen to him read the book to you.  He's fantastic.

I cannot recommend this title highly enough.  I'm very eagerly looking forward to the second volume, which I'll be listening to again, once again narrated by Michael Page.

The Lies of Locke Lamora, by Scott Lynch.

9.5/10

Finished Reading 01/03/2014 - Fortunately the Milk

This is a very quick read, and has some lovely illustrations by Skottie Young.  The story was interesting (like Big Fish, but with time travel) and I enjoyed it somewhat, but it's my least favorite of Gaiman's books for younger readers.  It lacks the poignancy of Big Fish, or most of Gaiman's other works, for that matter. He's shooting for a younger audience than that of The Graveyard Book or even Coraline, but this book only amused me, whereas the other two blew me away.

I could see myself reading and rereading this book back when I was eight, perhaps nine, but then I would have put it behind me.  Unlike most of Gaiman's other books, which hit on many levels and work for readers of all ages, Fortunately, the Milk didn't live up to my (admittedly very high--it's Neil Gaiman, after all) expectations.  Buy it for your kids, your nieces and nephews, but don't expect too much out of it for yourself.

Fortunately, the Milk, by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Skottie Young

5.0/10

Finished Reading 01/02/2014 - Collapse

I've been reading this one for a while, as it is a big, dense book, and its organization makes it well suited to reading a lengthy chapter and then putting it aside for a few days to ponder.  As with his previous work in a similar vein, Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, Collapse is above all meticulous and methodical.  Augustinian is the word that comes to mind.

Probably not the best book for every reader, but I find Diamond's approach to be very persuasive, and his look at past and present societies very compelling.  Recommended for those interested in history, the environment, politics, or international relations.

Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed: Revised Edition by Jared Diamond.

8.0/10

Finished Reading 01/01/2014 - Academ's Fury

I read the first Codex Alera book, Furies of Calderon, last September, and liked it well enough to want to continue the story eventually, but wasn't blown away.  But then I kept finding my thoughts drawn back to Calderon, and the characters, with a surprising magnetism.  I didn't want to build up my expectations too high, only to have them let down, so it was with some trepidation that I began this second volume.

It didn't disappoint.

The characters are just as engaging as before, and the world is more fully developed and explored.  The overall plot felt a little bit contrived, but overlooking this overarching point, it was very easy to get lost in the story, as the action compels the pages to keep turning.

Fans of the first book in the Codex Alera will find even more to appreciate here, and I for one am looking forward even more to the third book than I did the second.

Academ's Fury (Codex Alera Book 2) by Jim Butcher.

8.25/10

Finished Reading 12/16/13 - Pandemonium

My wife and I read this one together, aloud (we generally do this a book at a time, slowly, over a month or so, while privately reading other titles).  We had both read the first book, Delirium, and liked it well enough to be interested in the second.  In that book there were a few moments of very well-crafted sentences, the overall idea was intriguing, and the ending was well done, so we approached this second installment thinking it would be equally as entertaining.

But aside from a few well-crafted sentences again, my experience with this book was largely one of frustration.  Major plot points revolve around increasingly improbable set pieces and equally improbably character choices.  And aside from a few very admirable sentences, the writing (and plot) consistently pushed me out of the story, such that it was never possible to get lost in it.  We were always aware this was a contrivance, and could never feel the reality of the characters.

All in all, I didn't have high expectations for this book, but still felt disappointed by it.  And then the bombshell ending, which we both saw from ten pages away, felt like a last minute trick to force us to read the third book.  I generally don't like books that rely on tricks.

One positive note is that the Kindle version of book 2 is only $1.99 as of this writing, which is a reasonable price for some entertainment.

Pandemonium (Delirium Series Book 2) by Lauren Oliver.

2.0/10

Finished Reading - The Long War

I decided to mirror the What I'm Reading page from my website over here, and offer just a few words of summation along with the books I finish.

I've been using a 10 point rating system for some time now, broken in quarter point steps, to give a little more flexibility than just the 1-5 stars most sites offer.

The book I finished today is The Long War, book 2 in the Long Earth series by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter.  I liked it about as well as I liked the first book, which is to say that I think the concept is stupendous, the possibilities mind boggling, and some of the imagined Earths really interesting--but the plotting left me less than awe struck, a little more so in this second volume than the first.

Still, I'm interested enough to see what happens next that I'll definitely be picking up the 3rd installment when it comes out.

The Long War by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter

6.75/10