Books, Books, Books...
I didn't read much in May...
May Books
THE DAVINCI CODE, Dan Brown: Liked the story, thought the writing was less than stellar on a couple of different levels. Liked the movie better.
ANANSI BOYS, Neil Gaiman: Generally I love Neil Gaiman's writing but it took me a while to get into this because I didn't care about any of the characters and spent a lot of time wanting to slap them. Loved the ending but I only hung on that long because it was NG and I felt I should like the book. Anyone else, I'd have quit about a third of the way in. But it may have been a hormonal thing on my part.
June, however, was a different story. In my own defence, I did spend a lot of time travelling back and forth to Toronto...
June Books
HIS MAJESTY'S DRAGON, THRONE OF JADE, and BLACK POWDER WAR, Naomi Novik: These are brilliant books. They have everything - content, craft, and originality. The historical details are one heck of a lot more accessible than the same details presented by Patrick O'Brien, the blend of history and fantasy is seamlessly done, the characters are compelling, and I really hope someone has sent all three of these to Peter Jackson. I mean, now that he's got the big monkey out of his system he has to have some free time...
THE SALT ROADS, Nalo Hopkinson: Nalo's books are more visceral than anything else I read plus I love the way she actually strings words together. As writer, reading Nalo helps clear away the crap and clutter and makes me look at my work from a whole new angle. She makes my brain dance. Plus, there's a Reading Group Guide in the back that includes an interview with Nalo and Questions for Discussion. I have no time or patience for reading groups but I love this kind of thing.
REGENERATION, Julie Czernada: The biggest problem with this book is that it's the final book in the series. I adore Julie's aliens. She manages to balance actual alien behavior with the need to make them understandable to her readers and does it beautifully.
WINDERSHINS, Charles de Lint: There are two writers whom I have asked Bakka-Phoenix to just send me everything they produce. Don't bother checking, don't worry about the price, just run through my credit card and pop it in the mail. One of them is Terry Pratchett. The other, is Charles de Lint. This is another one of his Newford Stories - contemporary fantasy sliding into magic realism with music -- and it probably helps if you've read the rest but since you should have read the rest anyway, well, that's not a problem is it?
CORSETS TO CAMOUFLAGE, WOMEN AND WAR, Katie Adie: Although written in association with an exhibit at the Imperial War Museum this is in many ways a very personal book as Ms. Adie brings family stories in around the facts, speaks to as many of the actual women involved as she can, and ties it all together with her opinions on what she's reporting --including, in the final sections, her reporting given that she's with the British Troops as a war correspondent during Desert Storm.
May Books
THE DAVINCI CODE, Dan Brown: Liked the story, thought the writing was less than stellar on a couple of different levels. Liked the movie better.
ANANSI BOYS, Neil Gaiman: Generally I love Neil Gaiman's writing but it took me a while to get into this because I didn't care about any of the characters and spent a lot of time wanting to slap them. Loved the ending but I only hung on that long because it was NG and I felt I should like the book. Anyone else, I'd have quit about a third of the way in. But it may have been a hormonal thing on my part.
June, however, was a different story. In my own defence, I did spend a lot of time travelling back and forth to Toronto...
June Books
HIS MAJESTY'S DRAGON, THRONE OF JADE, and BLACK POWDER WAR, Naomi Novik: These are brilliant books. They have everything - content, craft, and originality. The historical details are one heck of a lot more accessible than the same details presented by Patrick O'Brien, the blend of history and fantasy is seamlessly done, the characters are compelling, and I really hope someone has sent all three of these to Peter Jackson. I mean, now that he's got the big monkey out of his system he has to have some free time...
THE SALT ROADS, Nalo Hopkinson: Nalo's books are more visceral than anything else I read plus I love the way she actually strings words together. As writer, reading Nalo helps clear away the crap and clutter and makes me look at my work from a whole new angle. She makes my brain dance. Plus, there's a Reading Group Guide in the back that includes an interview with Nalo and Questions for Discussion. I have no time or patience for reading groups but I love this kind of thing.
REGENERATION, Julie Czernada: The biggest problem with this book is that it's the final book in the series. I adore Julie's aliens. She manages to balance actual alien behavior with the need to make them understandable to her readers and does it beautifully.
WINDERSHINS, Charles de Lint: There are two writers whom I have asked Bakka-Phoenix to just send me everything they produce. Don't bother checking, don't worry about the price, just run through my credit card and pop it in the mail. One of them is Terry Pratchett. The other, is Charles de Lint. This is another one of his Newford Stories - contemporary fantasy sliding into magic realism with music -- and it probably helps if you've read the rest but since you should have read the rest anyway, well, that's not a problem is it?
CORSETS TO CAMOUFLAGE, WOMEN AND WAR, Katie Adie: Although written in association with an exhibit at the Imperial War Museum this is in many ways a very personal book as Ms. Adie brings family stories in around the facts, speaks to as many of the actual women involved as she can, and ties it all together with her opinions on what she's reporting --including, in the final sections, her reporting given that she's with the British Troops as a war correspondent during Desert Storm.