Book reviews!
I forgot to tell you guys about George's Secret Key to the Universe! I finished it ages ago. It was great! There was danger, adventure, giant pigs named Freddy and a hateable villain/school teacher. As with any good kids book, there was a moral to the story: "love science, be curious, save the planet, explore others."
I was surprised by how much the book was about the dangers of climate change. But it didn't really detract from the plot. See, George's parents are crazy Eco-Warrior Hippies and George is very embarrassed by them and mad that they won't let him have a computer. Naturally, when a physicist moves in next door, he thinks the man is the coolest adult ever. He's surprised to find however that this physicist, despite loving technology and science, doesn't thing that his parents are cracked.
I think I learned a few things from the book and certainly reviewed some of what I had learned in school but mostly forgotten. There are fact sheets with extra info on the subject matter throughout the book and full colour pictures from Hubble. I also thought it was funny how much the book was pimping Stephen Hawking's theories. "You see kids, there's this thing called Hawking Radiation, things can escape a black hole!" I'm pretty sure that is still a hotly debated topic in the science community (but I could be wrong). If they ever prove it wrong the whole ending will fall flat on it's face (and won't be happy anymore). But I supposed one has to write about what one believes whether or not others agree. I'll have to go look that up now and see what the general consensus on Hawking Radiation is these days.
The other day I was in chapters. I always walk through the kids section to Check for Diana Wynne Jones book on the off chance they have one I don't own. Most book stores seem to have picked three of her books and carry only those three, but every once in awhile there is something different. This time there was something different. In fact I didn't recognise the title. The cover said that is was a sequel to Howl's Moving Castle so I thought perhaps they had republished Castle in the Air under a different title. No, it was a NEW BOOK! I guess I've been living under a rock or something because she published a new Howl book this year! Of course I bought it on the spot and didn't put it down until I finished it. I was very tempted to re-read it then because there just isn't enough of it! It was wonderful. It's interesting how thing change over the years. Most of DWJ's books that were published in the 70s are about kids who's parents are neglectful or absent. This one is about a child who has over-protective, oppressive parents, as many seem to be these days. All the characters were perfect right down to the puppy-dog. As per-usual, I thought I had predicted how everything would come together in the end and was dead wrong. That's one thing I love about DWJ, just when you think her ending is going to twist one way it goes the other, so there's still a surprise, even when you've read half her books. Oops, I forgot to mention, the book is called The House of Many Ways. Go read it, it's wonderful.
I was surprised by how much the book was about the dangers of climate change. But it didn't really detract from the plot. See, George's parents are crazy Eco-Warrior Hippies and George is very embarrassed by them and mad that they won't let him have a computer. Naturally, when a physicist moves in next door, he thinks the man is the coolest adult ever. He's surprised to find however that this physicist, despite loving technology and science, doesn't thing that his parents are cracked.
I think I learned a few things from the book and certainly reviewed some of what I had learned in school but mostly forgotten. There are fact sheets with extra info on the subject matter throughout the book and full colour pictures from Hubble. I also thought it was funny how much the book was pimping Stephen Hawking's theories. "You see kids, there's this thing called Hawking Radiation, things can escape a black hole!" I'm pretty sure that is still a hotly debated topic in the science community (but I could be wrong). If they ever prove it wrong the whole ending will fall flat on it's face (and won't be happy anymore). But I supposed one has to write about what one believes whether or not others agree. I'll have to go look that up now and see what the general consensus on Hawking Radiation is these days.
The other day I was in chapters. I always walk through the kids section to Check for Diana Wynne Jones book on the off chance they have one I don't own. Most book stores seem to have picked three of her books and carry only those three, but every once in awhile there is something different. This time there was something different. In fact I didn't recognise the title. The cover said that is was a sequel to Howl's Moving Castle so I thought perhaps they had republished Castle in the Air under a different title. No, it was a NEW BOOK! I guess I've been living under a rock or something because she published a new Howl book this year! Of course I bought it on the spot and didn't put it down until I finished it. I was very tempted to re-read it then because there just isn't enough of it! It was wonderful. It's interesting how thing change over the years. Most of DWJ's books that were published in the 70s are about kids who's parents are neglectful or absent. This one is about a child who has over-protective, oppressive parents, as many seem to be these days. All the characters were perfect right down to the puppy-dog. As per-usual, I thought I had predicted how everything would come together in the end and was dead wrong. That's one thing I love about DWJ, just when you think her ending is going to twist one way it goes the other, so there's still a surprise, even when you've read half her books. Oops, I forgot to mention, the book is called The House of Many Ways. Go read it, it's wonderful.