Wednesday, November 28, 2007
The Last Continent
by Terry Pratchett
Bwah-hah-hah-hah-hah-hah! More Discworld silliness, this time with an Australian flavor. It's funny. Read it.
Check it out...
LibraryThing link
Bwah-hah-hah-hah-hah-hah! More Discworld silliness, this time with an Australian flavor. It's funny. Read it.
Check it out...
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, Discworld, TerryPratchett
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
The Breadwinner
by Deborah Ellis
Parvana is a girl living in Kabul, Afghanistan under the rule of the Taliban. In a society where grown women are held prisoner to repressive rules of behavior, Parvana is just the right age. She is old enough to run errands for the family and help her crippled father get around town. But then her father gets hauled off by the Taliban soldiers and the burden of supporting the family falls on her young shoulders. She's the only one in her family who can masquerade as a boy, don't you know. (Well, except for baby Ali, I suppose, who really is a boy.) As far as a girl-masquerading-as-a-boy tale goes, The Breadwinner is pretty typical. What makes the book interesting is the picture of Taliban run Afghanistan it offers. 'Tis a culture of oppression, yet one that had failed to totally eliminate hope. I can only pray that hope and justice win out wherever such regimes hold sway.
For waiting room material, it's rather good.
LibraryThing link
Parvana is a girl living in Kabul, Afghanistan under the rule of the Taliban. In a society where grown women are held prisoner to repressive rules of behavior, Parvana is just the right age. She is old enough to run errands for the family and help her crippled father get around town. But then her father gets hauled off by the Taliban soldiers and the burden of supporting the family falls on her young shoulders. She's the only one in her family who can masquerade as a boy, don't you know. (Well, except for baby Ali, I suppose, who really is a boy.) As far as a girl-masquerading-as-a-boy tale goes, The Breadwinner is pretty typical. What makes the book interesting is the picture of Taliban run Afghanistan it offers. 'Tis a culture of oppression, yet one that had failed to totally eliminate hope. I can only pray that hope and justice win out wherever such regimes hold sway.
For waiting room material, it's rather good.
LibraryThing link
Labels: WaitingRoomMaterial
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Trinity
by Matt Wagner
Another DC Comics collection that was an impulse borrow from the library. This one tells a tale of DC Comics' big three: Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. Some folks seem to see an inherent connection between the three characters--I don't see anything besides their ability to maintain comic book sales for over sixty years. Still, Mr. Wagner has done a very nice job of weaving a tale of character relationships and beating the bad guys.
It makes excellent waiting room material.
LibraryThing link
Another DC Comics collection that was an impulse borrow from the library. This one tells a tale of DC Comics' big three: Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. Some folks seem to see an inherent connection between the three characters--I don't see anything besides their ability to maintain comic book sales for over sixty years. Still, Mr. Wagner has done a very nice job of weaving a tale of character relationships and beating the bad guys.
It makes excellent waiting room material.
LibraryThing link
Labels: DCComics, WaitingRoomMaterial
Green Lantern: Rebirth
by Geoff Johns, Ethan Van Sciver and Prentis Rollins
I didn't want to like this one--it commits what has to be one of the biggest transgressions in comic book continuity. (in my eyes, at least) It resurrects a character previously killed off. There are many characters that have been killed off by bad editorial decisions, but as far as I'm concerned, resurrecting them only makes for worse story telling. As a reader, why should I even care when a character sacrifices their life if I know that in a few years they will be revived by a different editor? Anyway, enough ranting. The problem with Green Lantern: Rebirth is that it is very well done. The writing is very good--grand and sweeping, chock full of insights into the characters and mythos. The artwork is even better, following in the vein of Neal Adams and Brian Bolland. So if you don't mind yet another comic book resurrection, go ahead and check this one out.
LibraryThing link
I didn't want to like this one--it commits what has to be one of the biggest transgressions in comic book continuity. (in my eyes, at least) It resurrects a character previously killed off. There are many characters that have been killed off by bad editorial decisions, but as far as I'm concerned, resurrecting them only makes for worse story telling. As a reader, why should I even care when a character sacrifices their life if I know that in a few years they will be revived by a different editor? Anyway, enough ranting. The problem with Green Lantern: Rebirth is that it is very well done. The writing is very good--grand and sweeping, chock full of insights into the characters and mythos. The artwork is even better, following in the vein of Neal Adams and Brian Bolland. So if you don't mind yet another comic book resurrection, go ahead and check this one out.
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, DCComics
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
by J. K. Rowling
This third volume of the Harry Potter series isn't bad. In his third year at Hogwarts, Harry has to contend with the escaped prisoner, Sirius Black. Well, that's stretching the truth a bit. Sirius Black is an escaped prisoner, but he isn't troubling Harry directly throughout the book. Since Black was convicted as an accessory to the murder of Harry's parents, the powers that be assume that he'll be looking to harm Harry as some sort of revenge. So Harry finds himself a bit of a prisoner on the Hogwarts campus, confined by rules and guardians who are all intended to protect him from Sirius Black. Of course, those plans don't quite work out as intended. Good thing, too, since it makes for a more interesting tale.
I'm glad I checked it out.
LibraryThing link
This third volume of the Harry Potter series isn't bad. In his third year at Hogwarts, Harry has to contend with the escaped prisoner, Sirius Black. Well, that's stretching the truth a bit. Sirius Black is an escaped prisoner, but he isn't troubling Harry directly throughout the book. Since Black was convicted as an accessory to the murder of Harry's parents, the powers that be assume that he'll be looking to harm Harry as some sort of revenge. So Harry finds himself a bit of a prisoner on the Hogwarts campus, confined by rules and guardians who are all intended to protect him from Sirius Black. Of course, those plans don't quite work out as intended. Good thing, too, since it makes for a more interesting tale.
I'm glad I checked it out.
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, HarryPotter, JKRowling
Thursday, November 22, 2007
The Days Are Just Packed
by Bill Watterson
I remember being disappointed when this one came out, mostly because it's printed at a bigger size than the previous Calvin and Hobbes books and it made the cartoon shelf of my bookcase look sloppy. That's about the biggest complaint I have against this volume. Oh, the strips don't seem to be quite as funny as Mr. Watterson's previous efforts, but they still manage to make me smile, chuckle or even laugh out loud. The Sunday strips are also in color, a little perk to make up for the book's inconvenient size.
It's on my shelf.
LibraryThing link
I remember being disappointed when this one came out, mostly because it's printed at a bigger size than the previous Calvin and Hobbes books and it made the cartoon shelf of my bookcase look sloppy. That's about the biggest complaint I have against this volume. Oh, the strips don't seem to be quite as funny as Mr. Watterson's previous efforts, but they still manage to make me smile, chuckle or even laugh out loud. The Sunday strips are also in color, a little perk to make up for the book's inconvenient size.
It's on my shelf.
LibraryThing link
Labels: BillWatterson, CalvinandHobbes, OnMyShelf
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
How Few Remain
by Harry Turtledove
I'm afraid I read this one out of order. Back last year, I happened to stumble across The Great War: American Front, which tells a tale of World War I in a world where the Confederate States of America is an actuality. The characters in the book referred, from time to time, about a second War between the States that had occurred in the 1880s and had served to create deeper divisions between the North and the South. I found myself wishing that I could also read that tale, foolishly unaware that it had already been written. How Few Remain is that tale, an enjoyable read in its own right. The year is 1881 and after almost 20 years of Democrats in the White House, the president is once again a Republican. He's itching to regain some lost glory, and when the Confederate States of America expand their territory by purchasing the states of Sonora and Chihuahua from Mexico, President Blaine considers it sufficient cause to start military action. The resulting war is told from the viewpoint of various characters. It's the same technique Mr. Turtledove uses in The Great War, but in this case, the featured characters are all famous characters from our own history--Gen. "Stonewall" Jackson, Frederick Douglass, Samuel Clemens and a disgraced ex-president, Abraham Lincoln, among others. Mr. Turtledove does a good job breathing life into these characters, sending me to the Wikipedia to scope out what these people were really like. And, of course, also sending me to the bookstore to hunt down the subsequent titles in this alternate history epic.
I want this one on my shelf!
LibraryThing link
I'm afraid I read this one out of order. Back last year, I happened to stumble across The Great War: American Front, which tells a tale of World War I in a world where the Confederate States of America is an actuality. The characters in the book referred, from time to time, about a second War between the States that had occurred in the 1880s and had served to create deeper divisions between the North and the South. I found myself wishing that I could also read that tale, foolishly unaware that it had already been written. How Few Remain is that tale, an enjoyable read in its own right. The year is 1881 and after almost 20 years of Democrats in the White House, the president is once again a Republican. He's itching to regain some lost glory, and when the Confederate States of America expand their territory by purchasing the states of Sonora and Chihuahua from Mexico, President Blaine considers it sufficient cause to start military action. The resulting war is told from the viewpoint of various characters. It's the same technique Mr. Turtledove uses in The Great War, but in this case, the featured characters are all famous characters from our own history--Gen. "Stonewall" Jackson, Frederick Douglass, Samuel Clemens and a disgraced ex-president, Abraham Lincoln, among others. Mr. Turtledove does a good job breathing life into these characters, sending me to the Wikipedia to scope out what these people were really like. And, of course, also sending me to the bookstore to hunt down the subsequent titles in this alternate history epic.
I want this one on my shelf!
LibraryThing link
Labels: HarryTurtledove, OnMyShelf, Timeline-191
Thursday, November 15, 2007
"It's a Jungle Out There!"
by Ron Snell
When you were a kid, did you ever daydream about growing up someplace exotic? The rough and tumble wild west? The mysterious orient? The jungles of Africa? Well, Ron Snell did grow up in a jungle. (In Peru, not Africa, but hey, a jungle's a jungle.) He was a missionary kid in the 1950s and in this book--the first volume of The Rani Adventures--he tells tales of his childhood. Unlike most (all?) missionary biographies I've read, there's a lot more humor than religion in the story. Actually, that may not be accurate. The faith of "Rani", his family, friends and neighbors is woven throughout the stories in the book. It just serves more as the foundation of his life rather than the ornamentation. Anyway, the book's a fun read and I'll have to steal this book from my kids once they're done with it.
I want it on my shelf.
LibraryThing link
When you were a kid, did you ever daydream about growing up someplace exotic? The rough and tumble wild west? The mysterious orient? The jungles of Africa? Well, Ron Snell did grow up in a jungle. (In Peru, not Africa, but hey, a jungle's a jungle.) He was a missionary kid in the 1950s and in this book--the first volume of The Rani Adventures--he tells tales of his childhood. Unlike most (all?) missionary biographies I've read, there's a lot more humor than religion in the story. Actually, that may not be accurate. The faith of "Rani", his family, friends and neighbors is woven throughout the stories in the book. It just serves more as the foundation of his life rather than the ornamentation. Anyway, the book's a fun read and I'll have to steal this book from my kids once they're done with it.
I want it on my shelf.
LibraryThing link
Labels: OnMyShelf, RaniAdventures, RonSnell
Financial Meltdown in the Mainline
by Loren B. Mead
This little volume looks at the current financial state of the mainline church denominations. (Well, current when it was published in 1998, anyway.) It doesn't look good. As membership (and income) has declined, the powers that be have been reluctant to cut back on programs, so now most denominations aren't too fiscally healthy. That's hardly news to me--as a member of small congregations for the past couple of decades, I've come to see budget woes as the status quo. So that part of the book was rather boring. What I did enjoy and what makes me want to hang onto this book is Mr. Mead's take on the social background behind it. We Christians--at least us American, mainline denomination Christians--have a twisted relationship with money. When Jesus talks about how difficult it is for the rich to enter heaven, we meekly nod and conveniently ignore the fact that as Americans we are rich. We want to think we are above mammon, yet as Mr. Mead points out, we're all money addicts. So most of us in the church have a hard time dealing with, or even talking straight about, money. The book offers no quick, easy solutions, alas. But then the first step for overcoming addiction, they say, is to admit you have a problem. In that, Mr. Mead is definitely pointing in the right direction.
Yo! Check it out!
LibraryThing link
This little volume looks at the current financial state of the mainline church denominations. (Well, current when it was published in 1998, anyway.) It doesn't look good. As membership (and income) has declined, the powers that be have been reluctant to cut back on programs, so now most denominations aren't too fiscally healthy. That's hardly news to me--as a member of small congregations for the past couple of decades, I've come to see budget woes as the status quo. So that part of the book was rather boring. What I did enjoy and what makes me want to hang onto this book is Mr. Mead's take on the social background behind it. We Christians--at least us American, mainline denomination Christians--have a twisted relationship with money. When Jesus talks about how difficult it is for the rich to enter heaven, we meekly nod and conveniently ignore the fact that as Americans we are rich. We want to think we are above mammon, yet as Mr. Mead points out, we're all money addicts. So most of us in the church have a hard time dealing with, or even talking straight about, money. The book offers no quick, easy solutions, alas. But then the first step for overcoming addiction, they say, is to admit you have a problem. In that, Mr. Mead is definitely pointing in the right direction.
Yo! Check it out!
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, LorenMead
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
by J. K. Rowling
The second volume of the series tells the tale of Harry's second year at Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It's a year in which Harry is plagued by an incompetent, self centered teacher named Gilderoy Lockheart, fawning first year students, and rumors that Harry is responsible for loosing a horrid monster from the mysterious Chamber of Secrets. It's an enjoyable tale, though I was a bit disappointed how quickly the series seems to have devolved into formula. Maybe I took the hype too seriously.
What the heck, check it out anyway.
LibraryThing link
The second volume of the series tells the tale of Harry's second year at Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It's a year in which Harry is plagued by an incompetent, self centered teacher named Gilderoy Lockheart, fawning first year students, and rumors that Harry is responsible for loosing a horrid monster from the mysterious Chamber of Secrets. It's an enjoyable tale, though I was a bit disappointed how quickly the series seems to have devolved into formula. Maybe I took the hype too seriously.
What the heck, check it out anyway.
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, HarryPotter, JKRowling
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Batman: Detective #27
by Michael Uslan and Peter Snejbjerg
This one's an impulse borrow from the Library. It's an imaginary tale of Batman--I think they're still calling them "Elseworlds" tales. It combines the ideas of a secret society of detectives and a post-Civil War plot of revenge with a Bruce Wayne who has chosen a different road than to become the Batman. Like most "Elseworlds" stories of the Batman, it pays homage to the character's 68-year-old mythology, but this is the first one I've read that evokes a bit of the 1960s television show and laces the tale with puns and in-jokes. (Not as bad as the TV show, mind you, but enough that you can't take the story too seriously.)
Holy Conspiracy! Check it out!
LibraryThing link
This one's an impulse borrow from the Library. It's an imaginary tale of Batman--I think they're still calling them "Elseworlds" tales. It combines the ideas of a secret society of detectives and a post-Civil War plot of revenge with a Bruce Wayne who has chosen a different road than to become the Batman. Like most "Elseworlds" stories of the Batman, it pays homage to the character's 68-year-old mythology, but this is the first one I've read that evokes a bit of the 1960s television show and laces the tale with puns and in-jokes. (Not as bad as the TV show, mind you, but enough that you can't take the story too seriously.)
Holy Conspiracy! Check it out!
LibraryThing link
Labels: CharlesSchulz, DCComics
Friday, November 09, 2007
I am David
by Anne Holm, translated by L. W. Kingsland
David is a 12 year old boy who has essentially grown up in a concentration camp in some unnamed Communist country. One of the guards--David only refers to him as "the man"--arranges for the boy to escape, and mysteriously gives him instructions to go to the port of Salonika, stow away on a ship to Italy and then make his way north to Denmark. David follows the man's instructions, fully expecting to be shot in the back at any moment, and so begins one of the odder travelogues I've read. While David is quite ignorant about life in Italy, he has far too much experience with human life in prison. It makes for some expected mistakes, but also for an interesting view of life in the "free world". On the surface, the concept of a 12-year-old making a journey from some Balkan country to Denmark seems unrealistic, but Ms. Holm had me so caught up in seeing the world through David's eyes, I didn't worry too much about the plot. The story weakens a bit in the end, but overall it's a tale worth checking out.
LibraryThing link
David is a 12 year old boy who has essentially grown up in a concentration camp in some unnamed Communist country. One of the guards--David only refers to him as "the man"--arranges for the boy to escape, and mysteriously gives him instructions to go to the port of Salonika, stow away on a ship to Italy and then make his way north to Denmark. David follows the man's instructions, fully expecting to be shot in the back at any moment, and so begins one of the odder travelogues I've read. While David is quite ignorant about life in Italy, he has far too much experience with human life in prison. It makes for some expected mistakes, but also for an interesting view of life in the "free world". On the surface, the concept of a 12-year-old making a journey from some Balkan country to Denmark seems unrealistic, but Ms. Holm had me so caught up in seeing the world through David's eyes, I didn't worry too much about the plot. The story weakens a bit in the end, but overall it's a tale worth checking out.
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
John Tyler, the Accidental President
by Edward P. Crapol
This one didn't quite fit the criteria for my presidential biography reading list. What I want is a complete biography that documents the person's entire life. Though Mr. Crapol does give the basic information of John Tyler's early life and career, this book focuses on the years of Tyler's presidency. But by the time I discovered it, I had already checked the book out, so I decided to forge ahead and read it. It's an interesting read, geared toward someone who has a basic knowledge of the era and Tyler's role in it. I really don't qualify for that, I suppose, but I was able to follow along. Mr. Crapol is trying to challenge the prevailing stereotypes of Tyler--a strict states' rights man, a conservative constitutionalist and an ineffective leader. He shows how, like many politicians, President Tyler's actions didn't always jibe with the ideals he proclaimed. Mr. Crapol also makes the case that while many have called Tyler ineffectual, he actually set many precedents that strengthened the clout of America's chief executive. (Don't know if that's a good thing necessarily....)
LibraryThing link
This one didn't quite fit the criteria for my presidential biography reading list. What I want is a complete biography that documents the person's entire life. Though Mr. Crapol does give the basic information of John Tyler's early life and career, this book focuses on the years of Tyler's presidency. But by the time I discovered it, I had already checked the book out, so I decided to forge ahead and read it. It's an interesting read, geared toward someone who has a basic knowledge of the era and Tyler's role in it. I really don't qualify for that, I suppose, but I was able to follow along. Mr. Crapol is trying to challenge the prevailing stereotypes of Tyler--a strict states' rights man, a conservative constitutionalist and an ineffective leader. He shows how, like many politicians, President Tyler's actions didn't always jibe with the ideals he proclaimed. Mr. Crapol also makes the case that while many have called Tyler ineffectual, he actually set many precedents that strengthened the clout of America's chief executive. (Don't know if that's a good thing necessarily....)
LibraryThing link
Labels: CheckItOut, PresidentialBioReadingList
Sunday, November 04, 2007
The Great Compromise
by Greg Laurie
Christians are hypocrites. We espouse high ideals and end up compromising every one of them. Sometimes it's a tendency I fight against, but there are other times I find myself cutting moral corners quite comfortably. Anyway, it's because I'm such a hypocrite that I was intrigued by the title of this book. As it examined the way American Christians try to "serve two masters" and live a "Christian, but not too Christian" life, would it offer insights into some areas where I've been turning a blind eye? Well, yes and no. Mr. Laurie did indeed mention some of my sins, but it was hardly news to me. And unfortunately, even that he didn't do it very well. The whole book is basically a bad sermon--one of those that revolves around a central concept rather than the Word of God. It's one of those that tries to speak authoritatively by tacking a bunch of Bible passages onto its pre-selected subject rather than starting with the text and seeing what concepts spring from that. I also found Mr. Laurie's "preaching" lacking in a) that he read things into Scripture that aren't necessarily there and b) he focuses too much on how we Christians need to do better at not compromising our beliefs while not mentioning that Jesus died for these sins as well. Ah, well. Even if it didn't offer any new insights, I do need to be reminded of the old ones now and then.
'Tis rather poor waiting room material.
LibraryThing link
Christians are hypocrites. We espouse high ideals and end up compromising every one of them. Sometimes it's a tendency I fight against, but there are other times I find myself cutting moral corners quite comfortably. Anyway, it's because I'm such a hypocrite that I was intrigued by the title of this book. As it examined the way American Christians try to "serve two masters" and live a "Christian, but not too Christian" life, would it offer insights into some areas where I've been turning a blind eye? Well, yes and no. Mr. Laurie did indeed mention some of my sins, but it was hardly news to me. And unfortunately, even that he didn't do it very well. The whole book is basically a bad sermon--one of those that revolves around a central concept rather than the Word of God. It's one of those that tries to speak authoritatively by tacking a bunch of Bible passages onto its pre-selected subject rather than starting with the text and seeing what concepts spring from that. I also found Mr. Laurie's "preaching" lacking in a) that he read things into Scripture that aren't necessarily there and b) he focuses too much on how we Christians need to do better at not compromising our beliefs while not mentioning that Jesus died for these sins as well. Ah, well. Even if it didn't offer any new insights, I do need to be reminded of the old ones now and then.
'Tis rather poor waiting room material.
LibraryThing link
Labels: WaitingRoomMaterial
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