Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture was at times insightful and at other times a long thank you letter to his wife and kids.
The first three-quarters of the book provided many interesting life anecdotes. Some of my favorites were: how influential the world of Disney was in his life, how he went about fulfilling many of his childhood dreams, and how his first football coach started his team's first practice without a football.
The last quarter of the book went on for too long about how great his wife and kids were. While commendable, I didn't feel it provided the reader with any information that would help him or her in their own life.
I was disappointed that the The Last Lecture did not contain a transcript or narration of Randy's lecture, thereby turning the book into a "behind the scenes" making of the last lecture.
In conclusion, I felt that while the book had much to offer at times, lacking the actual lecture left me dissatisfied.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Book Review: In Cold Blood
In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote is a gripping story not so much about the act of murder, but of how two men can commit premeditated murder against a family of four they have never met. Capote’s ability to attribute distinctive voices to the principal characters (victims, murders and police) as well as his evocative descriptions really kept me engaged.
I was worried initially about his portrayal of the murders considering the vividness of his descriptions. In the end, the description of the murders themselves seemed somehow short in description; just enough to tell it as it was, but not too much to cause one to avert the eyes. Actually, what was more haunting to me was the story of the murderers from childhood to the time they were captured.
Recently, a high school teacher caused a stir when she wanted to have her class read In Cold Blood. At first, I couldn't figure out what the debate was about as the readers would be high school students and the murder itself wasn’t anything worse than high school students would see in a horror film. But somewhere around the halfway point of the story, Capote really began describing the murderers’ upbringing and what may have caused them to become capable of premeditated murder. At that point, I could understand the debate.
Mind you, it’s Capote’s writing skills and wealth of research that really made this novel so effective. The opening scene, taking us into the town of Holcomb, Kansas was very so evocative, I had my son listen as I read the first three pages out loud to him. He was really impressed.
Also, Capote’s discussion about insanity pleas as a defense and how these two murderers became poster children for psychiatry in criminal cases was very interesting.
My only critique is the lead investigator and wife’s story dragged at times compared to the rest of the compelling novel.
In Cold Blood, is a very good, read and it is dark. I’d recommend it as a book for adults, but could see the book being used as a teaching tool in a senior high school classroom.
I was worried initially about his portrayal of the murders considering the vividness of his descriptions. In the end, the description of the murders themselves seemed somehow short in description; just enough to tell it as it was, but not too much to cause one to avert the eyes. Actually, what was more haunting to me was the story of the murderers from childhood to the time they were captured.
Recently, a high school teacher caused a stir when she wanted to have her class read In Cold Blood. At first, I couldn't figure out what the debate was about as the readers would be high school students and the murder itself wasn’t anything worse than high school students would see in a horror film. But somewhere around the halfway point of the story, Capote really began describing the murderers’ upbringing and what may have caused them to become capable of premeditated murder. At that point, I could understand the debate.
Mind you, it’s Capote’s writing skills and wealth of research that really made this novel so effective. The opening scene, taking us into the town of Holcomb, Kansas was very so evocative, I had my son listen as I read the first three pages out loud to him. He was really impressed.
Also, Capote’s discussion about insanity pleas as a defense and how these two murderers became poster children for psychiatry in criminal cases was very interesting.
My only critique is the lead investigator and wife’s story dragged at times compared to the rest of the compelling novel.
In Cold Blood, is a very good, read and it is dark. I’d recommend it as a book for adults, but could see the book being used as a teaching tool in a senior high school classroom.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Book Review: A Game of Thrones (series)
I really enjoyed reading A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin. The book follows so many different characters, that at first it almost gets unwieldy, but Mr. Martin is able to keep it together. He does provide an appendix with a listing of the names and relationships of the royal houses. I might have used it if I had known it was there, but I was not lost without it. As in many multi-person point-of-view novels there are certain characters a reader can relate to better than the others, and this novel is no different. I will say that one of the character’s stories I liked least in this novel, became one of the more intriguing stories in the second book.
I praise Martin on his attention to detail to the world he created. The tools, weapons, homes, clothing, food and other items appear to be based on technology from the middle ages. Everything is very functional, machines and weapons make sense, no item are hard to understand. Also the elements of magic and fantasy are very subtle at first, helping keep the novel grounded in reality. Only slowly does mystical elements insert themselves into the story. However, the story never takes on (so far) a fantasy novel flair.
I enjoy maps in books, but found that I had to frequently use the map in this book as the characters are always moving or talking about some other city or place where something happened or was happening. I'm on the fourth book and still have to refer to the maps to figure out where the characters are.
A Clash of Kings and Storm of Swords maintain the same level of detail, creativity and excitement as the first. However, the fourth book, A Feast of Crows disappointed me because only one of my favorite characters was in it and even then she went down an uninteresting path in this book. The rest of my favorite characters were completely absent from this novel. Martin says at the end of Feast of Crows that all of the other characters' concurrent stories will be told in the next book. To read a 1000 page novel without my favorite characters, then read another 1000 pages before I get back to the characters I just read about, is something I'm not happy about.
The books are really good reads, but they are very long.
I praise Martin on his attention to detail to the world he created. The tools, weapons, homes, clothing, food and other items appear to be based on technology from the middle ages. Everything is very functional, machines and weapons make sense, no item are hard to understand. Also the elements of magic and fantasy are very subtle at first, helping keep the novel grounded in reality. Only slowly does mystical elements insert themselves into the story. However, the story never takes on (so far) a fantasy novel flair.
I enjoy maps in books, but found that I had to frequently use the map in this book as the characters are always moving or talking about some other city or place where something happened or was happening. I'm on the fourth book and still have to refer to the maps to figure out where the characters are.
A Clash of Kings and Storm of Swords maintain the same level of detail, creativity and excitement as the first. However, the fourth book, A Feast of Crows disappointed me because only one of my favorite characters was in it and even then she went down an uninteresting path in this book. The rest of my favorite characters were completely absent from this novel. Martin says at the end of Feast of Crows that all of the other characters' concurrent stories will be told in the next book. To read a 1000 page novel without my favorite characters, then read another 1000 pages before I get back to the characters I just read about, is something I'm not happy about.
The books are really good reads, but they are very long.
Book Review: Last Flag Down: The Epic Journey of the Last Confederate Warship
Last Flag Down by John Baldwin and Ron Powers tells the story of the Confederate warship CSS Shenandoah and her executive officer Conway Whittle. At times I found it very interesting, especially during the final months of Shenandoah's voyage and when the authors provided information about major Civil War events that were occurring back on the mainland while they were at sea. However, middle parts of the novel dragged as the men navigated long stretches of sea where nothing happened. Even the protagonist Whittle would often say how uneventful the days could be.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Book Review: The PIllars Of The Earth
I chose to read a novel by Ken Follet based solely on his reputation for writing critically acclaimed novels. I chose The Pillars Of The Earth because it is a historical novel about a period that I knew little about, 12th century England, and a subject I even knew less about, cathedral building and how English life centered around it.
This is not a fast-paced novel. It is 943 pages rich in details and language that takes you on a journey through a time where might was right, religion played an enormous part in everyone’s lives for good and bad, and showed a modern reader how tenuous one’s hold on life could be during that time.
My favorite chapter was the prologue. I had not read a chapter written in an entirely omnipresent point of view in a long time, and even longer for one done well. I actually read it twice, and even read it again to my son to show him how using details effectively can truly paint pictures in someone’s mind. Here is the opening line and first paragraph:
The small boys came early to the hanging.
It was still dark when the first three or four of them sidled out of the hovels, quiet as cats in their felt boots. A thin layer of fresh snow covered the little town like a new coat of paint, and theirs were the first footprints to blemish its perfect surface. They picked their way through the huddled wooden huts and along the streets of frozen mud to the silent marketplace, where the gallows stood waiting.
While I praise Follet’s writing for his use of details and language, be forewarned these details are used in every aspect of the book, whether it’s the building of the church, character descriptions, sex, murder, and rape.
While the first chapter is written in omnipresent, the rest is written in third person with alternating perspectives.
I enjoyed The Pillars Of The Earth, but it is very long and at times felt like it.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Movie Review: Transformers 3--For Kids?
My first inclination is to say, no. However, I went with 6 kids from 8 to 10 years old and they all said they liked it.
One ten-year-old said he liked it, but it was a little violent. This was the boy who had no problems with the first Transformers movie when he was 6 or the second one when he was 8. See my post from two years ago.
The problem with Transformers 3 was with was the way in which they depicted the violence.
I never knew one of the criticisms of the first two movies was that the violence needed to be more graphic, more visceral, because these two elements were definitely heightened.
There was no torture this time, and the first half of the movie was clean enough - actually I enjoyed it and the premise; it was the second half of the movie that ruined it for kids' parents:
-Suddenly, the robots bled red lubricant. If one got shot, lubricant went flying. When one got punched in the face, red lubricant poured out of its mouth. In the previous movies, it would be a few machine parts.
-Humans were literally blown apart. As in, let's watch one leg go this way and the other go that way. And when I say humans, it wasn’t just soldiers, but civilians (lots of them).
-There were a couple of graphic scenes of human corpses.
-Also, in the first movie, when Megaton ripped Jazz apart depicting how ruthless he was as the bad guy, it was shocking. Here the Autobots do it with relish to the Decepticons. Don’t get me wrong, the bad guys deserved bad things to happen to them, but suddenly there was no difference in the way either side fought-without remorse, hesitation, or mercy. Tearing an enemy limb from limb is tough to watch, and still wrong, whether it’s the good guys or bad guys doing it.
When I walked out of the theater and saw a little kid, no older than 6, in an Optimus Prime costume, and all the other young kids in line, I felt bad for their parents as they had no idea what they were about to have their children watch.
And before you say, “Hey, come on, it was rated PG-13, parents should know better,” walk into any Toys R Us or Target, and their shelves are filled with Transformers toys and clothing. Are you really saying all this merchandise is targeted to 13 year olds? The other two movies were also PG-13 and neither rose to quite this level of graphic violence.
Really, flying red lubricant? Come on.
Would I take my boys to see the movie again knowing what I know now? My ten year old yes, and probably my eight, because what 8- or 10-year-old boy isn’t dying to see it.
For some reason sequels tend to be darker, look at Harry Potter, it’s just a real bummer that Transformers 3 had to be like this.
(As an aside, the editing for THE BATTLE, basically the entire second half of the movie was horrible, with people, Autobots, and Decepticons popping up out of nowhere, then disappearing, and then finding themselves in unexplained situations. It seemed liked the editors had so much footage, they didn’t know what to stick in and cut out, and then stayed on some scenes way too long and others way too little. Really annoying. In my opinion this was the worst Transformers’ movie by far for even more reasons than I've explained already, but I can’t say more without being a spoiler.)
One ten-year-old said he liked it, but it was a little violent. This was the boy who had no problems with the first Transformers movie when he was 6 or the second one when he was 8. See my post from two years ago.
The problem with Transformers 3 was with was the way in which they depicted the violence.
I never knew one of the criticisms of the first two movies was that the violence needed to be more graphic, more visceral, because these two elements were definitely heightened.
There was no torture this time, and the first half of the movie was clean enough - actually I enjoyed it and the premise; it was the second half of the movie that ruined it for kids' parents:
-Suddenly, the robots bled red lubricant. If one got shot, lubricant went flying. When one got punched in the face, red lubricant poured out of its mouth. In the previous movies, it would be a few machine parts.
-Humans were literally blown apart. As in, let's watch one leg go this way and the other go that way. And when I say humans, it wasn’t just soldiers, but civilians (lots of them).
-There were a couple of graphic scenes of human corpses.
-Also, in the first movie, when Megaton ripped Jazz apart depicting how ruthless he was as the bad guy, it was shocking. Here the Autobots do it with relish to the Decepticons. Don’t get me wrong, the bad guys deserved bad things to happen to them, but suddenly there was no difference in the way either side fought-without remorse, hesitation, or mercy. Tearing an enemy limb from limb is tough to watch, and still wrong, whether it’s the good guys or bad guys doing it.
When I walked out of the theater and saw a little kid, no older than 6, in an Optimus Prime costume, and all the other young kids in line, I felt bad for their parents as they had no idea what they were about to have their children watch.
And before you say, “Hey, come on, it was rated PG-13, parents should know better,” walk into any Toys R Us or Target, and their shelves are filled with Transformers toys and clothing. Are you really saying all this merchandise is targeted to 13 year olds? The other two movies were also PG-13 and neither rose to quite this level of graphic violence.
Really, flying red lubricant? Come on.
Would I take my boys to see the movie again knowing what I know now? My ten year old yes, and probably my eight, because what 8- or 10-year-old boy isn’t dying to see it.
For some reason sequels tend to be darker, look at Harry Potter, it’s just a real bummer that Transformers 3 had to be like this.
(As an aside, the editing for THE BATTLE, basically the entire second half of the movie was horrible, with people, Autobots, and Decepticons popping up out of nowhere, then disappearing, and then finding themselves in unexplained situations. It seemed liked the editors had so much footage, they didn’t know what to stick in and cut out, and then stayed on some scenes way too long and others way too little. Really annoying. In my opinion this was the worst Transformers’ movie by far for even more reasons than I've explained already, but I can’t say more without being a spoiler.)
Monday, June 27, 2011
Book Review: Blood Oath
Three short sentences on the front cover prompted me to pick up Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth: The Ultimate Secret. The Ultimate Agent. The President’s Vampire. I knew I’d buy the book after I read the first page. It didn't hurt that I have an interest in the Balkans. But aside from that, I really liked how chapter one used a secondary character’s reaction to the vampire to introduce him.
Farnsworth used many different perspectives to tell the story and I liked how he let the reader know the antagonists and significant secondary characters’ goals, fears, and wants.
Most of the action scenes were done well. However, there were some grisly parts.
My primary critique is that the human protagonist was introduced as a complainer which tainted my view of him through the rest of the novel.
Blood Oath is a good, imaginative book.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Historical Novel Society 2011 Convention
I had the great opportunity to attend the Historical Novel Society Conference in San Diego last weekend.
While the panels were interesting, what made the experience so fabulous was everyone being so friendly. No matter where I was, sitting at a meal, walking down a hallway or waiting outside the agent's pitching room, everyone was eager to engage in conversation. I heard fascinating stories about outlaws, princesses, kings, nuns, the arts, adventures, mysteries, romances, the Civil War, The War of the Roses, Ancient Egypt, Ancient Rome, the American West and so many more.
I also learned a lot about the business side of writing--especially the significant and unknown effect of e-books on the writing industry. Even though Bookscan isn't tallying e-book sales yet, there are indications that e-books now make up 30% of the market for books sold and for fiction up to 50%. During the final breakfast, I also had the opportunity to meet fellow members of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Historical Novel Society. And even though I had signed up late to the conference, meaning I had no scheduled agent pitch sessions, Kris did an amazing job in managing the no-shows allowing me to meet with three wonderful agents.
Thank you HNS for holding such a fun and interesting event.
While the panels were interesting, what made the experience so fabulous was everyone being so friendly. No matter where I was, sitting at a meal, walking down a hallway or waiting outside the agent's pitching room, everyone was eager to engage in conversation. I heard fascinating stories about outlaws, princesses, kings, nuns, the arts, adventures, mysteries, romances, the Civil War, The War of the Roses, Ancient Egypt, Ancient Rome, the American West and so many more.
I also learned a lot about the business side of writing--especially the significant and unknown effect of e-books on the writing industry. Even though Bookscan isn't tallying e-book sales yet, there are indications that e-books now make up 30% of the market for books sold and for fiction up to 50%. During the final breakfast, I also had the opportunity to meet fellow members of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Historical Novel Society. And even though I had signed up late to the conference, meaning I had no scheduled agent pitch sessions, Kris did an amazing job in managing the no-shows allowing me to meet with three wonderful agents.
Thank you HNS for holding such a fun and interesting event.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Book Review: Old Yeller
Reading Old Yeller falls in line with a goal of mine which is to read the old classics that I had somehow missed. I've found some real gems like The Old Man and the Sea and Fahrenheit 451.
A short quick read at 198 pages, Old Yeller is a solid boy and his dog story. What differentiates it from the other boy/dog stories is Gipson's knack for language that gives it a certain authenticity to its era, while at the same time providing insight into the tough life of families on the frontier from the view of a youth transitioning to manhood. The novel shows how a young teenager would have to be competent at many roles, hunter, farmer, carpenter, among others to ensure his family's survival.
The book also gave me some insight into the resiliency of life on the frontier. For example, I'm currently recovering from the flu. To get better, I had the fortune to visit a doctor six blocks away and pick up a prescription two blocks away.
Living on the frontier, a mother had to know how to draw out a fever and which plants could be turned into a poultice that could suck out an infection, and while taking care of sick or injured children or husband, she'd have to take over the men's chores until they or he got better, otherwise it wouldn't get done.
I recommend Old Yeller for any age as a short quick and interesting read.
A short quick read at 198 pages, Old Yeller is a solid boy and his dog story. What differentiates it from the other boy/dog stories is Gipson's knack for language that gives it a certain authenticity to its era, while at the same time providing insight into the tough life of families on the frontier from the view of a youth transitioning to manhood. The novel shows how a young teenager would have to be competent at many roles, hunter, farmer, carpenter, among others to ensure his family's survival.
The book also gave me some insight into the resiliency of life on the frontier. For example, I'm currently recovering from the flu. To get better, I had the fortune to visit a doctor six blocks away and pick up a prescription two blocks away.
Living on the frontier, a mother had to know how to draw out a fever and which plants could be turned into a poultice that could suck out an infection, and while taking care of sick or injured children or husband, she'd have to take over the men's chores until they or he got better, otherwise it wouldn't get done.
I recommend Old Yeller for any age as a short quick and interesting read.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Book Review: Angels & Demons
Angels & Demons was good escapist fiction. Black-hearted villains, a damsel in distress, a reluctant hero, a mystery, and a smattering of red-herrings. It wasn't a high literary novel in terms of the writing, but Dan Brown knows how to end a chapter, keep a book moving, and develop some good characters.
As with The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown found a historical myth and launched it into a conspiracy story involving the Roman Catholic Church. Unlike in the Da Vinci Code where the novel's historical premise centered on debunking one of the basic tenets of faith for Catholics, hence their protest of the movie, Angels and Demons' historical premise was based on the age-old battle between science and religion.
So far, my favorite Dan Brown book is The Da Vinci Code.
As with The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown found a historical myth and launched it into a conspiracy story involving the Roman Catholic Church. Unlike in the Da Vinci Code where the novel's historical premise centered on debunking one of the basic tenets of faith for Catholics, hence their protest of the movie, Angels and Demons' historical premise was based on the age-old battle between science and religion.
So far, my favorite Dan Brown book is The Da Vinci Code.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Book Review: Mockingjay
I found Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins to be a very different book from the first two novels in The Hunger Games Trilogy.
The critical difference was Peeta wasn't in the first half of the novel. Peeta and Katniss great relationship that Suzanne Collins created is what kept me addicted to the first two novels (along with the great chapter cliffhangers). Unfortunately, Katniss' relationship with the other principal characters, Gale, Coin, Haymitch, Finnick, etc., couldn't keep me engaged in the first half of the novel. Considering Katniss kept saying she felt out of it or disconnected, so did I as a reader. My son gave up after 50 pages. I almost gave up after 100.
Once Peeta played a more prominent role in the novel, the energy returned and I finished the rest in two days.
But I was very disappointed by how bleak, dark, and violent it became. I'm not sure how Mockingjay can be considered a teen novel. The violence really did get horrific.
It shows the worst in people and instead of not knowing who to root for, I was begging for at least one positive thing to happen in the book--anything.
I really enjoyed the first two books in the series, but the third was too dark for me.
The critical difference was Peeta wasn't in the first half of the novel. Peeta and Katniss great relationship that Suzanne Collins created is what kept me addicted to the first two novels (along with the great chapter cliffhangers). Unfortunately, Katniss' relationship with the other principal characters, Gale, Coin, Haymitch, Finnick, etc., couldn't keep me engaged in the first half of the novel. Considering Katniss kept saying she felt out of it or disconnected, so did I as a reader. My son gave up after 50 pages. I almost gave up after 100.
Once Peeta played a more prominent role in the novel, the energy returned and I finished the rest in two days.
But I was very disappointed by how bleak, dark, and violent it became. I'm not sure how Mockingjay can be considered a teen novel. The violence really did get horrific.
It shows the worst in people and instead of not knowing who to root for, I was begging for at least one positive thing to happen in the book--anything.
I really enjoyed the first two books in the series, but the third was too dark for me.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Book Review: Catching Fire
Rarely does a sequel capture the energy and excitement of the first novel. Everything in a first novel is new and fresh and sometimes authors seem to struggle to maintain the same intensity and freshness to the reader.
Collins did not seem to have any of those problems here. Like her last novel, just when you think you know what's going to happen, she throws you a curve ball, but a curve ball that makes sense. For me, that's the gem of this series. I've read novels where the author will say something and I'll be left wondering where did that come from, or how did we get to this point and never figure it out.
Whereas the first novel, The Hunger Games, took three pages for me to get into it (and then I couldn't set it down after that), Catching Fire, had me from the get go. Although, unlike the first novel, somewhere in the middle of Catching Fire, it did slow down and I was able to set the book down and go to bed at a decent hour two nights in a row. Then the book took off again, and I was up into the wee hours of the third night finishing it off.
An excellent sequel to The Hunger Games.
Collins did not seem to have any of those problems here. Like her last novel, just when you think you know what's going to happen, she throws you a curve ball, but a curve ball that makes sense. For me, that's the gem of this series. I've read novels where the author will say something and I'll be left wondering where did that come from, or how did we get to this point and never figure it out.
Whereas the first novel, The Hunger Games, took three pages for me to get into it (and then I couldn't set it down after that), Catching Fire, had me from the get go. Although, unlike the first novel, somewhere in the middle of Catching Fire, it did slow down and I was able to set the book down and go to bed at a decent hour two nights in a row. Then the book took off again, and I was up into the wee hours of the third night finishing it off.
An excellent sequel to The Hunger Games.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Book Review: The Bourne Legacy
I loved the Bourne movies. In looking for a quick read, I picked up The Bourne Legacy by Erin Van Lustbader. It was a quick read and the opening chapter in Chechnya was really well written. However, there was quite a disconnect from who Bourne was in this book and the three movies. I never quite got used to it.
I don't know if the three books the movies were based on were quite as different as this book was from the character in the movies, if so then I'm comparing apples to oranges. But if not, There were a couple of story developments that put me off. First, Bourne was always getting his butt kicked. He never lost a fight in the movies. Second, I was surprised that there was such an emphasis in the last two movies of him not killing people whereas it wasn't even mentioned in this book. I also didn't buy Bourne and Khan's history. It seemed to come out of the blue (again based on the movies). Their flashbacks really put me off.
If you've only seen the Bourne movies, I would not recommend this novel.
I don't know if the three books the movies were based on were quite as different as this book was from the character in the movies, if so then I'm comparing apples to oranges. But if not, There were a couple of story developments that put me off. First, Bourne was always getting his butt kicked. He never lost a fight in the movies. Second, I was surprised that there was such an emphasis in the last two movies of him not killing people whereas it wasn't even mentioned in this book. I also didn't buy Bourne and Khan's history. It seemed to come out of the blue (again based on the movies). Their flashbacks really put me off.
If you've only seen the Bourne movies, I would not recommend this novel.
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