I dud not vote for Scalzi’s The Human Division, even though I thought it was a great addition to the Old Man’s War universe. Instead, I wrote in a nomination and voted for the exceptional debut space opera Ancillary Justice.
Category: Books
Includes all types of publications: books (hardcovers, trade paperback, mass market paperbacks, ebooks, magazines, graphic novels)
Book Review: To Kill a Mockingbird by Lee (4 Stars)
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Read in June 2009
As Atticus said “Rape, riot and runaways” mixed together with prejudice and intolerance told from the eyes of a spunky young girl nicknamed Scout in 1930s Maycomb Alabama. The antics of the children, Scout, Jem and Dill, caused me to shake my head in wonder. But the adult antics merely sickened me, aside from the glimmering lights in the darkness of Atticus, Miss Maudie and Arthur Radley.
The story was well written and sparks discussion even today. Lest History repeat itself, I recommend this to everyone so that we can all be on guard against bigotry and discrimination.
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Book Review: Those Who Hunt the Night by Hambly (3.5 Stars)
Those Who Hunt the Night by Barbara Hambly
Read in October 2009
Vampires without the romance. Very refreshing. Well drawn historical setting in late 19th or early 20th century London and Paris.
James Asher, a professor of philology at Oxford, and his wife Lydia, also a doctor, but of medicine, are reluctantly coerced into investigating the case of a serial vampire killer. Don Simon Ysidro, a Spanish vampire old enough to remember (and barely survive) the great London fire of 1666, forces James into his service by threatening Lydia’s life.
Rather than risking his wife’s precarious safety and sending her into hiding, he recruits her help in tracking down both the vampire killer, and the vampire victims haunts and hidey-holes. Lydia pursues the research through probate courts, registrar of deed office, newspaper articles and other public records and resist’s the siren call of the medical pathology mystery of vampirism while James accompanies Ysidro to interrogate London’s undead citizens.
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Article: Why Everyone Should Be Reading Ancillary Justice
Why Everyone Should Be Reading Ancillary Justice
http://www.kameronhurley.com/?p=13346
I read Ancillary Justice last week but no time to write a review yet. Read this review (follow link above) because she nails it.
And I agree … go buy this book right now and read it.
Article: Comet Ison Oct 6, 2013
Comet Ison Oct 6, 2013
http://tomjmartinez.blogspot.com/2013/10/comet-ison-oct-6-2013.html
I’ve been searching the pre-dawn skies the past week with my binoculars but have not found Comet ISON yet. In the meantime, astrophotographer Tom Martinez captured it and shared it with us via his blog.
The 10 SF/F Works That Meant the Most to Me
Most of these I’ve read, and I agree with Scalzi’s endorsements. The few I haven’t read will soon be on my wishlist.
17 Passages From “Lord Of The Rings” Beautifully Recreated In Stained Glass – BuzzFeed Mobile
http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/passages-from-lord-of-the-rings-beautifully-recreated-in?s=mobile
Perfect way to start off my day. Gorgeous art inspired by scenes from Tolkien’s Middle Earth.
Audiobook Review: The Rook by O’Malley (3 Stars)
Narrated by Susan Duerden
Read in July/August 2013
I listened to this book because it was the July 2013 book of the month for the Fantasy Book Club.
Parts of this book were laugh-out-loud funny, but other parts of it just set my teeth on edge. Too many infodumps and a bit too much profanity.
I can easily see this novel as a British television series (along the lines of bad books make good movies? or average books make good television?).
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The Abomination of Ebooks: They Price People Out of Reading | Wired Opinion | Wired.com
http://www.wired.com/opinion/2013/10/how-ebook-pricing-hurts-us-in-more-ways-than-you-think
I haven’t read an article recently on ebook pricing, especially as it pertains to libraries. This is an opinion article but a good one.
Audiobook Review: Minority Report and Other Stories by PKD (3.1 Stars)
Minority Report and Other Stories by Philip K. Dick
Narrated by Keir Dullea
Read in August 2013
Once again I find myself loving and hating PKD’s writing. He created and imagined very intriguing stories and ideas. I just don’t always agree with his buried (sometimes not so subtly) political ramblings. I liked the title story, but not nearly as well as I liked the movie (even with Cruise starring in it). I should have waited and read the story first, I suppose.
I found the gem in this collection to be the one called “Second Variety.” I wanted more, much more, from that dimension. I did think the protagonist was a bit slow on the uptake, though, as I thought the actions of the undercover antagonists to be obvious and telegraphed (pardon the pun).
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