See my review on [b:A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Stories|7153379|A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Stories|Charles Dickens|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1260552417s/7153379.jpg|18659151]
Oh, Coupland... this just wasn't my cup of tea. This book wasn't "bad" by any means but it wasn't something that spoke to ME in particular. From what I understand, this book was something extremely new for Coupland and I commend him for trying to diverge from his techy and geeky style to try something new. Some LOVED this and I can see why... he gives you so many questions to think about, like always. I didn't want to rate this book under 3 stars because to be honest, Coupland is a great writer and even though this topic doesn't speak to me... it will and should move others.
This was a magical story that involved ALL the things I love; design, books, google, geeky tech and even a museum for yarn! I crave books like these and they only come once so often, which made it a great surprise to have two fun reads in a year... the other being "[b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333576871s/9969571.jpg|14863741]" by Ernest Cline. Both books give a good feeling mystery with a futuristic twist. I fell in love with Penumbra, his bookstore and wanted to be involved in the search/mystery myself. I love authors that really understand the magic of a good adventure, it's like the lost art of storytelling and we could really do with some more like this. The writing itself is done well, nothing astounding but with a story like this... sometimes you can overlook a bit of youthful "teen lit" writing, especially when done well. I would recommend this to anyone and everyone who loves books, reading, mysteries and futuristic techy books.
Medium Raw was not as impressive as his first book [b:Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly|33313|Kitchen Confidential Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly|Anthony Bourdain|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348988611s/33313.jpg|4219], which I absolutely fell in love with. I enjoyed his witty dialogue that seems to be a consistent style of Bourdain, however the topic wasn't my cup of tea. I consider myself a bit of a "foodie" and have been called a "food snob" by others, I also find myself watching cooking show and challenges but don't have an extensive working knowledge of the chefs in the business. Bourdain tells his side of the "famous chef" following that has become quite popular recently. As fascinating as it could sound, this didn't impress me and I found myself bored! Bored is not something that should happen when Bourdain's voice is telling a tale. He is such a great storyteller that this wasn't a total loss and I can't wait to try another of his books, especially as an audio book.
I love that Ransom Riggs collected photos ALL his life to compile a book like this. How amazing to delve into the life of someone else through a picture and a simple statement written on the back? Who knew that people discarded these photos so easily at garage sales!? His collection is excellent and I will be opening this book over and over just making up my own stories from those pictures. If anyone needs inspiration for fictional stories, this would be the perfect place to find it. Photography has changed so much, just recently too... I find that printed pictures will be a thing of the past very soon. Hopefully the photos that are still around are as cherished by others as Riggs has made them. Love this, just love it!
Sarah's Key is a very sad tale, one I almost wanted to finish without the happy ending. This would have given the story a feeling of truth but the ending was just too good to be true. This however didn't ruin the enjoyment of this book, which shows how well de Rosnay can write a tale of historical fiction. I was in the mood for this type of book and couldn't put it down. The story kept me captivated UNTIL the end, where it fell apart for me. However, I would recommend this to anyone who loves a good book of historical fiction that keeps you wondering.
Why was I never informed of the wit and brilliant comedic prose of Charles Dickens? I LOVED the writing style! Dickens spins his tale full of old fashioned comedic wit that reminds you of immature teenagers giggling about the opposite sex. The names of all the characters alone give you a glimpse into the silly nature of Dickens. I'm a very goofy person at heart and this connected me to the past in a geeky way I didn't expect. The novel almost seems to transcend the era it was written, if you took away some of the slang you might be guessing as to the date.I also loved the storytelling of someone searching for that "great expectation" and the hiccups and changes to personality you may encounter along the way. The lighthearted way Dickens delves into the psyche of a persons want of becoming "something" is so clever. He shows you that nobody is perfect, but that IS okay! I wish more modern fiction took this lighthearted approach to some very sobering topics. We all need a little more goofiness in our lives.
I love Shirley Jackson, I really do. I've always put this book on the back burner because I wasn't in the "mood" for a haunted house story. Little did I know that this is SO much more than that. Okay, yes... it IS a story of a haunted house but what Jackson has done for the haunted genre mirrors what Hitchcock did for the spooky film genre. She knows how to descriptively get into the mind and send icy chills throughout your body. I think one of my favorite things about this book is how much I hated all the characters. Usually when one reads a book full of detested characters, that book is hard to get through. This was not the case for “The Haunting of Hill House”, even though the characters had horrible qualities, it only added to the terror of Hill House. It showed just how far people can fall when faced with madness… one who has deplorable characteristics can somehow become even more intolerable when driven to the edge. I loved every bit of the fall from mediocrity (most books follow the “fall from grace”), Jackson wanted to show that everyone who enters the house will be affected negatively. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a good chill down the spine, the kind of spook we get from watching an Alfred Hitchcock movie. [ai:Alfred Hitchcock|9420|Alfred Hitchcock|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1208725187p2/9420.jpg]
Where do I start with Gretchen Rubin and her "Happiness Project"... I liked and disliked the book/author at the same time. I believe everyone should be striving to better their life and try to accomplish things to make them happy. Gretchen Rubin's book is essentially her own account of trying to accomplish just that. I liked her approach of breaking it down into a 12 step monthly program that acts as a continuous New Years Resolution. However, I don't like the personal experiences she uses. This woman is rich, has a wonderful husband, children, in-laws, lives in New York and pretty much has the ability to quit her lawyer job to stay at home and pursue her writer dream. Well, good for her. Not to sound bitter but her experiences put some perspective on what "problems" people like her try to tackle and it can be quite laughable. This book would be great for someone who has it all but is bored and gets easily irritated with having it all. Don't get me wrong, I did come out of this with many good tips and ideas for increasing my happiness but I also was very irked by the pompousness of Gretchen and her perfect life.
The Partly Cloudy Patriot is a very entertaining book that brings up some controversial topics (some political, some not). Sarah Vowell, the author, gives a great performance. What else can you expect from a regular contributor to NPR and "This American Life"? She knows how to create topics of conversation and throw them in your face and say "GO". I was a little disappointed the full cast of comedians listed in the Audiobook made mere cameo appearances. I suppose the Author always makes the best voice for their own book but I got a bit too excited seeing that all-star cast. I'm looking forward to picking up another of her books in the future.
This story is interesting because it has many depths. This woman is trapped by something… Is she trapped by some illness? Or could it be her husband and those around her? What about her psyche? Or by the tiny room, with the ugly and haunting wallpaper, where she spends the majority of her time in? Those around her only make this situation worse. Her husband, the head of the household is also a Doctor, making her situation even more pitiful. I’m slightly curious to see this story from the perspective of her husband, would it show him in the same light or would we see another side? You can see his love for her, so why then does it look like he is trapping her in this house. The wallpaper is another interesting aspect of the story, the obsession behind the ugliness of it. This woman has strong observation skills that have been with her since childhood. This could be telling of extreme intelligence or autistic/OCD traits which would explain the unexplained “sickness”. I also think that when someone is depressed it can escalate by staying inside and being inactive. Sometimes the best cure is actually forcing yourself to do the things you don’t want to. All the people involved in her caretaking only placate her. It only gets more interesting when she sees a woman trapped behind the pattern in the wallpaper. Is this a reflection of how she feels in her current condition? Is the trapped by those around her or just getting more paranoid?This story ended up giving me the creeps. The description of the wallpaper woman crawling and shaking the pattern in front of her seemed right out of a horror movie. The descriptions gave me some very ghostly images and the idea of being trapped in a room days on end is the perfect setting for horrific imaginings. I really love it because it’s not the typical scary story, almost like the creepy parts are underneath and need to be dug up. The story really plays with reality, what is real and what is merely imagination. What is real to someone could be a trick of the mind and the start of crazy thoughts. How easy it is to lose ones sanity.
This book surprised me. I think everyone has heard of "The Island of Dr. Moreau" whether it be from the book, the movie or just the concept or reference. I knew what the book was about before reading it but really had no idea how creepy and detailed the book would be. Looking at the history of it, I found out this was a banned book that most found “appalling” because of the subject matter. According to Wikipedia, “When the novel was written in 1896, there was much discussion in Europe about degeneration and animal vivisection. Interest groups were formed to address the issue: the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection was formed two years after the publication of the novel.” This just shows you how powerful this novel was back in that time period. What surprised me is how H.G. Wells came up with this advanced science, technology and psychology back then. He wasn’t just a writer but an inventor through his writing. He has a way of connecting with things that people don’t yet understand or can even wrap their minds around. I find his writing to be extremely thought provoking, and would have loved the chance to have read it back in its time period. Without giving too much away, I wanted to mention my connection with the main characters thoughts and feelings about humans after his experience. I related so well to his reactions at being back in civilization that I find myself questioning how human I am, or how human any of us are. Why do we feel aggravated by other people so easily? Is evolution connected to this or just a coincidence? I really connected with this book and enjoyed reading it quite a bit. I’m not sure if I’m in love with Wells or just his writing but I’d really like to use his time machine to travel back and meet him… and maybe swoon a bit. :)
This second installment in the "Freakonomics" series was an interesting listen but fell short (same with the first book). I really enjoy the Freakonomics bit on NPR and think it would be easy to translate this into a book format but for some reason the books aren't as interesting or compelling. I can't say it wasn't an entertaining read because it did keep my attention the whole time. Some topics I enjoyed more than others and if Levitt wrote another book like this, I would audiobook it in a heartbeat since it makes for a great "listen".
Most of the stories were poorly written, one was ghastly. The stories themselves are amusing and thankfully short. I picked this edition because it includes a story from Joyce Carol Oates but I'm thinking maybe I should have tried one of the first two editions. This was nothing that will be remembered and if anything, most of the Authors in this collection I will be avoiding in the future. I think the best writing were from the known Authors I love, Joyce Carol Oates and Neil Gaiman. I like to read short stories to find other Authors that I can break into, this was not the case here. Very disappointed.
This was just as complete and emotional as the first part. I think the characters became alive this time around, enough to even give me a slight annoyance (not always a bad thing).
