Title: The Woodbegoods by E Nesbit
Genre: children's
Rating: 8.5/10
Comments: Once upon a time children were not wrapped in cotton wool or bubble wrap but were left alone by adults to find their own fun and create their own entertainment. The six Bastable siblings, banished to a country estate for the holidays after creating choas and destruction during their first days at home, lead their 2 cousins into all kinds of mischief despite all their attempts to be good - they are the Wouldbegoods because they would be good if they could, but somehow the best laid plans so often result in chaos and disaster. As an adult, living with the Bastable children would drive one to insanity but it is impossible not to appreciate their good intentions and fundamental honesty.Another Nesbit nbook which more than stands the test of time.
Thursday, 9 July 2009
Tuesday, 7 July 2009
The Railway Children by E Nesbit: Book 42, 2009
Title: The Railway Children by E Nesbit
Genre: children's
Rating: 7/10
Plot description: When father is taken away by two men, Bobbie, Peter and Phyllis have to leave their lovely London home and go and live in the country with their mother and 'play' at being poor. They become fascinated with the local railway and friends with the people who work there. They have a series of adventures where they save the day and meet the man who will save their father.
Comments: I didn't enjoy this nearly as much as The Enchanted Castle. There were too many coincidences and things just fitted in a little too neatly. Also, as an adult living in the 21st century, I cringed at some of the dangerous activity around the railway line. Nonetheless, it is very well written and an enjoyable read.
Genre: children's
Rating: 7/10
Plot description: When father is taken away by two men, Bobbie, Peter and Phyllis have to leave their lovely London home and go and live in the country with their mother and 'play' at being poor. They become fascinated with the local railway and friends with the people who work there. They have a series of adventures where they save the day and meet the man who will save their father.
Comments: I didn't enjoy this nearly as much as The Enchanted Castle. There were too many coincidences and things just fitted in a little too neatly. Also, as an adult living in the 21st century, I cringed at some of the dangerous activity around the railway line. Nonetheless, it is very well written and an enjoyable read.
Monday, 6 July 2009
The Enchanted Castle by E Nesbit: Book 41, 2009
Title: The Enchanted Castle by E Nesbit
Genre: children's, fantasy
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: Written in 1907, The Enchanted Castle more than survives the test of time. Siblings Gerald, James and Kathleen wake a princess from an enchanted sleep and enter her world where magic and reality collide and where the phrase "be careful what you wish for" is certainly true. The princess turns out to be the niece of a housekeeper on an impoverished estate filled with secret hiding places and tunnels and where the statues come to life at night. A magic ring that turns her invisible proves very difficult to remove and the children struggle to protect the adults who surround them from the consequences of their magic. An enthralling imaginative read from the first to last page.
Genre: children's, fantasy
Rating: 9.5/10
Comments: Written in 1907, The Enchanted Castle more than survives the test of time. Siblings Gerald, James and Kathleen wake a princess from an enchanted sleep and enter her world where magic and reality collide and where the phrase "be careful what you wish for" is certainly true. The princess turns out to be the niece of a housekeeper on an impoverished estate filled with secret hiding places and tunnels and where the statues come to life at night. A magic ring that turns her invisible proves very difficult to remove and the children struggle to protect the adults who surround them from the consequences of their magic. An enthralling imaginative read from the first to last page.
Tuesday, 30 June 2009
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1: The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson - Book 40, 2009
Title: The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1: The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson
Genre: Literature, history, young-adult
Rating: 8.5/10
Plot summary: (From School Library Journal)
In this fascinating and eye-opening Revolution-era novel, Octavian, a black youth raised in a Boston household of radical philosophers, is given an excellent classical education. He and his mother, an African princess, are kept isolated on the estate, and only as he grows older does he realise that while he is well dressed and well fed, he is indeed a captive being used by his guardians as part of an experiment to determine the intellectual acuity of Africans. As the fortunes of the Novanglian College of Lucidity change, so do the nature and conduct of their experiments.
Comments: Very readable while being stuffed with historical detail that gives a different perspective than usually portrayed of the time of the American Revolution. Would be a great text for Year 10-11 English and/or as a springboard for discussion about American history. Much of the writing is in the storyteller style of Peter Carey.
Genre: Literature, history, young-adult
Rating: 8.5/10
Plot summary: (From School Library Journal)
In this fascinating and eye-opening Revolution-era novel, Octavian, a black youth raised in a Boston household of radical philosophers, is given an excellent classical education. He and his mother, an African princess, are kept isolated on the estate, and only as he grows older does he realise that while he is well dressed and well fed, he is indeed a captive being used by his guardians as part of an experiment to determine the intellectual acuity of Africans. As the fortunes of the Novanglian College of Lucidity change, so do the nature and conduct of their experiments.
Comments: Very readable while being stuffed with historical detail that gives a different perspective than usually portrayed of the time of the American Revolution. Would be a great text for Year 10-11 English and/or as a springboard for discussion about American history. Much of the writing is in the storyteller style of Peter Carey.
Friday, 26 June 2009
Back Roads by Tawni O'Dell: Book 39, 2009
Title: Back Roads by Tawni O'Dell
Genre: Modern literature
Rating: 8/10
Comments: Very compelling read about the ultimate dysfunctional family in small-town dead-end America, told through the eyes of 19-year-old Harley who has taken on parenting responsibilities of his 3 sisters while his mum serves time in jail for killing his father. Both shocking and disturbing, yet tender and funny in places.
Genre: Modern literature
Rating: 8/10
Comments: Very compelling read about the ultimate dysfunctional family in small-town dead-end America, told through the eyes of 19-year-old Harley who has taken on parenting responsibilities of his 3 sisters while his mum serves time in jail for killing his father. Both shocking and disturbing, yet tender and funny in places.
Tuesday, 23 June 2009
Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner: Book 38, 2009
Title: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner
Genre: Children's
Rating: 8/10
Comments: Written in 1894 and continuously in print until at least 1994, this is considered one of the classics of Australian literature. Although I was always a voracious reader there are some surprising gaps in my literary history.
It tells the tale of seven wild siblings living outside Sydney in the 1880s and the various scrapes they get up to, tormenting their army father and young step-mother (who at 20 is only four years older than the eldest sibling). For the most part it avoids the excessive moralising of most children's books of this era and it survives the test of time reasonably well. The writing style is that of a storyteller speaking directly to her audience. While I loved the Australian setting, I don't think it is quite as good (from an adult reader viewpoint) as Anne of Green Gables, which I think is a reasonable comparison.
Genre: Children's
Rating: 8/10
Comments: Written in 1894 and continuously in print until at least 1994, this is considered one of the classics of Australian literature. Although I was always a voracious reader there are some surprising gaps in my literary history.
It tells the tale of seven wild siblings living outside Sydney in the 1880s and the various scrapes they get up to, tormenting their army father and young step-mother (who at 20 is only four years older than the eldest sibling). For the most part it avoids the excessive moralising of most children's books of this era and it survives the test of time reasonably well. The writing style is that of a storyteller speaking directly to her audience. While I loved the Australian setting, I don't think it is quite as good (from an adult reader viewpoint) as Anne of Green Gables, which I think is a reasonable comparison.
Sunday, 21 June 2009
The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger: Book 37, 2009
Title: The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
Genre: Romance, Sci-fi
Rating: 10/10
Comments: A total mind-f*ck, combining the best of romance and "what if" sci-fi. This is the story of Henry DeTamble, a dashing, adventuresome librarian who travels involuntarily through time, and Clare Abshire, an artist from an affluent family whose life takes a natural sequential course. Henry and Clare meet when she is six and he is 36; marry when she is 22 and he is 30 and do their best to live a 'normal' life despite Henry's genetic predisposition to vanish in time and place, causing havoc and danger to himself and others.
Genre: Romance, Sci-fi
Rating: 10/10
Comments: A total mind-f*ck, combining the best of romance and "what if" sci-fi. This is the story of Henry DeTamble, a dashing, adventuresome librarian who travels involuntarily through time, and Clare Abshire, an artist from an affluent family whose life takes a natural sequential course. Henry and Clare meet when she is six and he is 36; marry when she is 22 and he is 30 and do their best to live a 'normal' life despite Henry's genetic predisposition to vanish in time and place, causing havoc and danger to himself and others.
Photo finish by Ngaio Marsh: Book 36, 2009
Title: Photo finish by Ngaio Marsh
Genre: Detective
Rating: 6/10
Plot summary: (from Amazon)
In Ngaio Marsh's "Photo Finish", Inspector Alleyn travels to Marsh's back yard -- New Zealand -- to consult with an Opera diva who is being stalked by a mysterious photographer. Unflattering photos of 'The Sommita', as she is known, have driven her -- as well as her 'patron' and his staff -- to distraction. Alleyn, along with his artist wife, Agatha Troy (who is to paint a portrait of the singer), journey to a remote island hideaway where murder -- no surprise -- quickly occurs.
Comments: Characters are stereotypical and over-the-top, plot is predictable but still an enjoyable read if there is nothing else around.
Genre: Detective
Rating: 6/10
Plot summary: (from Amazon)
In Ngaio Marsh's "Photo Finish", Inspector Alleyn travels to Marsh's back yard -- New Zealand -- to consult with an Opera diva who is being stalked by a mysterious photographer. Unflattering photos of 'The Sommita', as she is known, have driven her -- as well as her 'patron' and his staff -- to distraction. Alleyn, along with his artist wife, Agatha Troy (who is to paint a portrait of the singer), journey to a remote island hideaway where murder -- no surprise -- quickly occurs.
Comments: Characters are stereotypical and over-the-top, plot is predictable but still an enjoyable read if there is nothing else around.
Friday, 19 June 2009
The Risen Empire by Scott Westerfeld: Book 35, 2009
Title: The Risen Empire by Scott Westerfeld
Genre: sci-fi, epic
Rating: 9.5/10
Plot summary: (from Amazon)
In the far future, human beings have colonized 80 worlds across space, and are ruled over by an immortal. The Emperor of this future realm has ruled for over 1600 years after discovering a way to raise the newly dead so that they may live and serve him forever.
The Empire has been at war for decades with an all-female race of humans called the Rix. These Rix are cyberneticly enhanced cultists who worship planetary A.I's. The Rix have taken it upon themselves to spread these A.I's to the worlds controlled by the Risen Empire, which would in-turn, change the Empires worlds into giant living minds.
Comments: One of the best science fiction books around, combining great ideas, great writing and an epic, twisting plot. It forces the reader to confront the ultimate question - what is life? Can a machine have true sentience? Can death really be overcome? Westerfeld's descriptions of the evolution and use of nanomaterials in this futuristic world is both highly imaginative and highly believable; a fascinating conception of the possibilities and dangers of new technology. Another aspect of this book that was interesting was the emphasis on how strengths could be weaknesses and vice-versa: the soldier hero wears prosthetic legs and a prosthetic arm due to enduring months of torture and imprisonment; the forward-thinking senator had to take regular doses of an 'apathy' drug to avoid descending into madness - yet these are not impediments to their love and ultimate triumph. Compelling reading.
Genre: sci-fi, epic
Rating: 9.5/10
Plot summary: (from Amazon)
In the far future, human beings have colonized 80 worlds across space, and are ruled over by an immortal. The Emperor of this future realm has ruled for over 1600 years after discovering a way to raise the newly dead so that they may live and serve him forever.
The Empire has been at war for decades with an all-female race of humans called the Rix. These Rix are cyberneticly enhanced cultists who worship planetary A.I's. The Rix have taken it upon themselves to spread these A.I's to the worlds controlled by the Risen Empire, which would in-turn, change the Empires worlds into giant living minds.
Comments: One of the best science fiction books around, combining great ideas, great writing and an epic, twisting plot. It forces the reader to confront the ultimate question - what is life? Can a machine have true sentience? Can death really be overcome? Westerfeld's descriptions of the evolution and use of nanomaterials in this futuristic world is both highly imaginative and highly believable; a fascinating conception of the possibilities and dangers of new technology. Another aspect of this book that was interesting was the emphasis on how strengths could be weaknesses and vice-versa: the soldier hero wears prosthetic legs and a prosthetic arm due to enduring months of torture and imprisonment; the forward-thinking senator had to take regular doses of an 'apathy' drug to avoid descending into madness - yet these are not impediments to their love and ultimate triumph. Compelling reading.
Wednesday, 10 June 2009
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos: Book 34, 2009
Title: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos
Genre: wit and humour
Rating: 10/10
Plot summary: (From Amazon)
Anita Loos's "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" is a comic masterpiece. Loos tells the story of Lorelei Lee, a blond, money-seeker, opportunist girl on a trip through Europe. From Now York to London, to Paris and all the way through Vienna Lorelei meets lots of gentlemen, charms them, gets money and jewels from them and then light-heartedly leaves them with a short note in which she promises she will meet them somewhere else, perhaps. A real strumpet, Lorelei Lee emerges as a delicious creature from Loos genial prose, and by the end of the book, we have learned to love her.
Comments: I loved the movie (starring Marilyn Monroe) but this book, while hysterically funny, has a darker and slightly crueller edge. Lorelei Lee is completely without conscience and has an entertaining mix of determination, idiocy, and a constant belief in her own towering intellect. A far more likeable version of Paris Hilton, set during the Jazz Age, without a sex tape in sight.
Genre: wit and humour
Rating: 10/10
Plot summary: (From Amazon)
Anita Loos's "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" is a comic masterpiece. Loos tells the story of Lorelei Lee, a blond, money-seeker, opportunist girl on a trip through Europe. From Now York to London, to Paris and all the way through Vienna Lorelei meets lots of gentlemen, charms them, gets money and jewels from them and then light-heartedly leaves them with a short note in which she promises she will meet them somewhere else, perhaps. A real strumpet, Lorelei Lee emerges as a delicious creature from Loos genial prose, and by the end of the book, we have learned to love her.
Comments: I loved the movie (starring Marilyn Monroe) but this book, while hysterically funny, has a darker and slightly crueller edge. Lorelei Lee is completely without conscience and has an entertaining mix of determination, idiocy, and a constant belief in her own towering intellect. A far more likeable version of Paris Hilton, set during the Jazz Age, without a sex tape in sight.
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