Who has been a slacker?
Yep, that bloody thing called life has overwhelmed me. While I have been reading, writing reviews has slipped away. This is the catch-up of all that I have used to escape that thing called reality.
The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter
Kindle Edition, 528 pages
Published August 8th 2017 by William Morrow
Charlotte and Samantha Quinn, teenage years should be the beginning of new adventures but a brutal home invasion turns their lives upside down. The real pain of what occurred will be brought to light, some twenty odd years later when the family confront the ghosts of the past through the events of a school shooting.
There is little let up as events unfold and you become embroiled in the character’s lives. Charlotte Quinn is determined, bull headed and broken. You find yourself rightly frustrated by Charlotte’s approach to the situation around her and her flaws makes her believable. Sam Quinn who comes into the story a little later is also broken, but her determination comes from a desire to do more than just survive.
Slaughter knows how to launch a reader straight into the action and keep you plunged into the depths of the tragedy of the past and present. She expertly weaves all the characters and storylines together with ease and has you flipping pages at a rate of knots. Slaughter knows how to keep the reader engaged and this is cracking read.
Everything I Know About Writing by John Marsden
Paperback, 195 pages Published 1998 by Pan Macmillan Australia
I had read this book many years ago and found it at the time refreshing and engaging. Marsden is a well known Australian young adult author, his 'Tomorrow when the War began' series are highly revered.
What I love about this book is it is plain, simple, no nonsense, you can do it style. Marsden reminds you to open your eyes, look around and put this to the page. There are plenty of examples, ideas to get you writing and some excellent sections on grammar.
If you are a writer or want to be a writer, this is a great book to kick start you into tapping at those keyboards for hours on end.
Plus you have to love a cover that has a computer relic on it.
The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli
Kindle Edition, 252 pages Published May 8th 2018 by Riverhead Books
I am not a scientist in any way shape or form, but I am curious and this book is for the curious. What Rovelli does is introduce you to time and all its mysteries.
He does not talk down to you, he encourages you by putting the questions out there and letting you stew on them. It is not a long book but you find yourself mulling over the concepts. This is a book I will re-read and I will certainly explore more of the theories, concepts that have been explained.
I really enjoyed this read and even though some of it was beyond me, it did not daunt me at all.
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
Kindle Edition, 499 pages Published December 18th 2012 by Disney Hyperion
Something has happened to the youth of the USA as the vast majority die once they reach ten years of age, the few who survive, find themselves endowed with psychic abilities. Rather than be lauded for surviving a terrible disease, the survivors find themselves ripped away from family and friends and cast into detention camps.
Ruby has been living in one of the worse camps since she was ten years of age when her skills manifested. Scared to use what she has, Ruby is able to hide her abilities from the authorities until one day a new test, reveals her secret.
Bracken has created a dark dystopian world where fear over runs common sense. She has crafted layers of Government bureaucracy, social groups and imagined a world that could become real. The characters have depth and interesting backstories. Bracken writes with great pace and keeps the reader engaged in the story.
However the novel does not wholly work. The main quibble I have is this book appears to be long set up for the next book. Now I do not mind more being revealed in future books but I just found too much was held back from the reader. Ruby as the main character bounces from one adventure to the next with no real strong purpose. Her motivation is either ‘I need someone to teach me how to use my powers’ or ‘how do I contact my family?’. At least Liam, has an agenda to release the rest of the children from the camps. There are hints that Ruby may develop a bigger agenda but you need to wait for that in the next book. There are also additional hints that perhaps the power behind the incarceration of the children is more than just the Government. That maybe an individual has his own agenda for power. There are several groups seeking to impose their agenda on the children and society but it is only hinted at and again, wait for the next book.
I can understand why this book is popular and why it is now a movie. Bracken has created a world on paper that is realistic and scary.
The Victim by Saul Bellow
Paperback, 272 pages Published March 1st 1996 by Penguin Classics (first published 1947)
Leventhal is a man full of self doubt and always wondering if the other guy knows better. He meets, seemingly by chance an old colleague who blames Leventhal for a past incident.
I have not read any of Bellow's work before and found this book both frustrating and engaging.
I was never sure about Leventhal's character. Was he a victim or just riding the coat tails of life?
It's a novel that is wonderfully written with fantastic descriptions. It is thought provoking and infuriating.
The Vanity Fair Diaries: 1983–1992 by Tina Brown
Kindle Edition, 448 pages Published November 14th 2017 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Have to be honest I have never purchased a copy of the magazine Vanity Fair and I may have read a copy while in any number of waiting rooms. So why read Tina Brown's diaries? Insight, you are given an intimate view of history and some of the major players.
Brown takes you from her days at Tattler to Vanity Fair and allows you to understand the politics behind putting a magazine together. It is a fascinating read as you appreciate the effort to design the layout and create an edition that will sell. There is a considerable amount of name dropping but done in a reporters way, she was at a dinner and met so and so. Some of the character descriptions are humorous and insightful. It is not all fame, Brown also lays bare some of her own private moments. One of the saddest moments is when you realise how many of Brown's friends and colleagues were struck down by AIDS.
These diaries give a really wonderful personal perspective on a period of time where was a great of deal of change.
Women & Power: A Manifesto by Mary Beard
Hardcover, 115 pages Published December 12th 2017 by Liveright
Okay so I am a bit of fan girl of Mary’s having watched a couple of her documentaries on all things classical and eagerly read Pompeii.
I knew that this was going to be a short read and I did not mind. I knew that this book was built around a series of lectures Beard had given and was I was intrigued. I was not expecting such a huge impact upon reading this short piece.
What Beard does in Women and Power is convey big themes in a concise narrative that prompts you to think for yourself. Beard sets out wonderfully a series of discourses about how access to power has been stifled and how women have been silenced throughout history.
The book is great fodder to make you think, question, agree and rage. It will not to be everyone’s liking but this book is about creating dialogue whether for or against and that is what makes this important.
Dance Upon The Air (Three Sisters Island #1) by Nora Roberts
Kindle Edition, 404 pages Published June 1st 2001 by Jove
In Dance Upon the Air, Roberts sticks with her trusted modus operandi of giving us a female characters with a difficult past looking for redemption. Nell comes to Three Sister’s Island looking to establish herself into a new community after spending time on the run. As Nell’s story is slowly teased out and her attraction to Zack sizzles along we learn that all is not as it seems. Roberts takes you on a journey that keeps you flicking the pages as the tension ratchets up on several levels.
What I like about Roberts is that there is a certainty to what you are reading. There will be strong vulnerable female leads who find their inner strength through their own deeds and the help of the community around them. In many ways reading Roberts is reaffirming as you are often reminded that for all the struggles there is plenty of good out there. You know what you are getting into, pure escapism and there is nothing wrong with that.
Kindle Edition, 528 pages
Published August 8th 2017 by William Morrow
Charlotte and Samantha Quinn, teenage years should be the beginning of new adventures but a brutal home invasion turns their lives upside down. The real pain of what occurred will be brought to light, some twenty odd years later when the family confront the ghosts of the past through the events of a school shooting.
There is little let up as events unfold and you become embroiled in the character’s lives. Charlotte Quinn is determined, bull headed and broken. You find yourself rightly frustrated by Charlotte’s approach to the situation around her and her flaws makes her believable. Sam Quinn who comes into the story a little later is also broken, but her determination comes from a desire to do more than just survive.
Slaughter knows how to launch a reader straight into the action and keep you plunged into the depths of the tragedy of the past and present. She expertly weaves all the characters and storylines together with ease and has you flipping pages at a rate of knots. Slaughter knows how to keep the reader engaged and this is cracking read.
Everything I Know About Writing by John Marsden
Paperback, 195 pages Published 1998 by Pan Macmillan Australia
I had read this book many years ago and found it at the time refreshing and engaging. Marsden is a well known Australian young adult author, his 'Tomorrow when the War began' series are highly revered.
What I love about this book is it is plain, simple, no nonsense, you can do it style. Marsden reminds you to open your eyes, look around and put this to the page. There are plenty of examples, ideas to get you writing and some excellent sections on grammar.
If you are a writer or want to be a writer, this is a great book to kick start you into tapping at those keyboards for hours on end.
Plus you have to love a cover that has a computer relic on it.
Kindle Edition, 252 pages Published May 8th 2018 by Riverhead Books
I am not a scientist in any way shape or form, but I am curious and this book is for the curious. What Rovelli does is introduce you to time and all its mysteries.
He does not talk down to you, he encourages you by putting the questions out there and letting you stew on them. It is not a long book but you find yourself mulling over the concepts. This is a book I will re-read and I will certainly explore more of the theories, concepts that have been explained.
I really enjoyed this read and even though some of it was beyond me, it did not daunt me at all.
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
Something has happened to the youth of the USA as the vast majority die once they reach ten years of age, the few who survive, find themselves endowed with psychic abilities. Rather than be lauded for surviving a terrible disease, the survivors find themselves ripped away from family and friends and cast into detention camps.
Ruby has been living in one of the worse camps since she was ten years of age when her skills manifested. Scared to use what she has, Ruby is able to hide her abilities from the authorities until one day a new test, reveals her secret.
Bracken has created a dark dystopian world where fear over runs common sense. She has crafted layers of Government bureaucracy, social groups and imagined a world that could become real. The characters have depth and interesting backstories. Bracken writes with great pace and keeps the reader engaged in the story.
However the novel does not wholly work. The main quibble I have is this book appears to be long set up for the next book. Now I do not mind more being revealed in future books but I just found too much was held back from the reader. Ruby as the main character bounces from one adventure to the next with no real strong purpose. Her motivation is either ‘I need someone to teach me how to use my powers’ or ‘how do I contact my family?’. At least Liam, has an agenda to release the rest of the children from the camps. There are hints that Ruby may develop a bigger agenda but you need to wait for that in the next book. There are also additional hints that perhaps the power behind the incarceration of the children is more than just the Government. That maybe an individual has his own agenda for power. There are several groups seeking to impose their agenda on the children and society but it is only hinted at and again, wait for the next book.
I can understand why this book is popular and why it is now a movie. Bracken has created a world on paper that is realistic and scary.
Paperback, 272 pages Published March 1st 1996 by Penguin Classics (first published 1947)
Leventhal is a man full of self doubt and always wondering if the other guy knows better. He meets, seemingly by chance an old colleague who blames Leventhal for a past incident.
I have not read any of Bellow's work before and found this book both frustrating and engaging.
I was never sure about Leventhal's character. Was he a victim or just riding the coat tails of life?
It's a novel that is wonderfully written with fantastic descriptions. It is thought provoking and infuriating.
The Vanity Fair Diaries: 1983–1992 by Tina Brown
Kindle Edition, 448 pages Published November 14th 2017 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Have to be honest I have never purchased a copy of the magazine Vanity Fair and I may have read a copy while in any number of waiting rooms. So why read Tina Brown's diaries? Insight, you are given an intimate view of history and some of the major players.
Brown takes you from her days at Tattler to Vanity Fair and allows you to understand the politics behind putting a magazine together. It is a fascinating read as you appreciate the effort to design the layout and create an edition that will sell. There is a considerable amount of name dropping but done in a reporters way, she was at a dinner and met so and so. Some of the character descriptions are humorous and insightful. It is not all fame, Brown also lays bare some of her own private moments. One of the saddest moments is when you realise how many of Brown's friends and colleagues were struck down by AIDS.
These diaries give a really wonderful personal perspective on a period of time where was a great of deal of change.
Hardcover, 115 pages Published December 12th 2017 by Liveright
Okay so I am a bit of fan girl of Mary’s having watched a couple of her documentaries on all things classical and eagerly read Pompeii.
I knew that this was going to be a short read and I did not mind. I knew that this book was built around a series of lectures Beard had given and was I was intrigued. I was not expecting such a huge impact upon reading this short piece.
What Beard does in Women and Power is convey big themes in a concise narrative that prompts you to think for yourself. Beard sets out wonderfully a series of discourses about how access to power has been stifled and how women have been silenced throughout history.
The book is great fodder to make you think, question, agree and rage. It will not to be everyone’s liking but this book is about creating dialogue whether for or against and that is what makes this important.
Dance Upon The Air (Three Sisters Island #1) by Nora Roberts
Kindle Edition, 404 pages Published June 1st 2001 by Jove
In Dance Upon the Air, Roberts sticks with her trusted modus operandi of giving us a female characters with a difficult past looking for redemption. Nell comes to Three Sister’s Island looking to establish herself into a new community after spending time on the run. As Nell’s story is slowly teased out and her attraction to Zack sizzles along we learn that all is not as it seems. Roberts takes you on a journey that keeps you flicking the pages as the tension ratchets up on several levels.
What I like about Roberts is that there is a certainty to what you are reading. There will be strong vulnerable female leads who find their inner strength through their own deeds and the help of the community around them. In many ways reading Roberts is reaffirming as you are often reminded that for all the struggles there is plenty of good out there. You know what you are getting into, pure escapism and there is nothing wrong with that.
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