Iron Man 2

Iron Man 2 was fantastic. My husband read in the Toronto Star that it only received 2.5/5 stars. So when we went to see it last night, I didn’t have very high expectations. Today, I check Rotten Tomatoes which has it “Certified Fresh” with 74%. That’s more like it.

If you like action movies with an underlying current of comedy, you’ll love Iron Man 2. It’s full of fantastic explosions and armoured fights. It’s also full of comedic exchanges between Robert Downey Jr. and his co-stars. The movie touches on Tony Stark’s self-indulgent, self-destructive tendencies, which I thought added a bit of realism to the movie. He drinks too much as is narcissistic and he thinks he can single-handedly save the world. The movie was funny and exciting. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I could go on about what I loved, but really, just go see it.

One more thing, there’s an extra scene after the credits. I think it’s a bit of marketing for the filmmakers, but it’s still interesting.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- George Eliot VERSUS Joseph Conrad

Vote for your favourite!

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- George Eliot VERSUS Joseph Conrad

Check out: "Android Karenina Review Copies - Calling All Bloggers! | Quirk"

To any bloggers who also review books: Quirk is giving away free copies of Android Karenina.

Android Karenina Review Copies - Calling All Bloggers! Quirk

Confessions Of A Jane Austen Addict

By the second sentence of Laurie Viera Rigler’s Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict, I was hooked. Rigler’s main character is Courtney Stone, a twenty-first century, working, independent, thirty-year-old woman, who is obsessed with Jane Austen. Courtney’s mind is somehow transported into the body of a woman named Jane Mansfield. Jane lives in the nineteenth century, in a year when only Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice have been published. These two novels become Courtney’s only connection to her former life as she is forced to live Jane’s life.


Rigler’s writing was inviting, a smooth combination of contemporary writing style and “Regency” language. One of the first things that struck me and was maintained throughout the novel, is the realistic portrayal of life in the 19th century. The first problem Courtney is faced with is having to pee, which, as far as I can remember, is never addressed in any book or film about that time. There’s the lack of hygiene (Courtney has to insist on bathing twice a week), farting in church and a woman’s “monthly courses” which means she is “indisposed” until it is over. Courtney even comments on how the era is romanticized. She is frustrated by how little freedom women have and how a woman of thirty is practically over the hill. I suppose I would be too if I found myself in that era. Courtney’s observances only add to the plot of the story.


Just like in an Austen novel, nothing is what it seems in Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict. There are misunderstandings. Hidden meanings. There are circumstances that Courtney laughs at, though if it were Lizzy Bennet, she might be disgusted. There are terrible people who pretend to be friends. There are marriages of convenience, while there is also the search for love. Laurie Viera Rigler’s first novel has left me happy; wanting to know more, yet satisfied with the ending.

Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell

I’ve just finished Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke.  It is 782 pages of dense, DENSE, DENSE writing and I think I am unsatisfied by the ending. My brain may explode. I kept expecting the ending to be more… romantic? Strange does all this work to free his wife, but doesn’t go to her immediately. Part of him seems to want them to be together, but another part rather be with Norrell.

[This might be an irrelevant question, but why don’t the Stranges have any children? They were married for many years, around ten, I think (though Mr. Strange spent three years in the war). What kind of birth control did they have back then? Just something I find curious.]

I liked the rest of the ending. All the important characters are dealt with. I think most get what they deserve. I felt pity appropriately and was quite happy with the outcome of some of the characters, like Childermass and Stephen Black. I do wonder what happened to Lady Pole though.

The pacing of the novel made it a bit difficult to get through. I found the beginning section that just focused on Norrell immensely slow. Once Strange was introduced however, it moved quickly. Once Strange got back from the war, I was having a difficult time again. Then, the final section, with the disappearance of Mrs. Strange, it was back to quick and exciting. I think I would have liked the story better, if it were either shorter or maintained the same quick pace throughout. I think part of what made it at times difficult is the “regency” style language it was written in, as if the author was a contemporary of Jane Austen or Charles Dickens.

In the end, I mostly enjoyed the novel. Would I recommend it? Absolutely, but I think you have to be a fan of two things. The first would be Austen or Dickens (or their contemporaries), because this isn’t the language of the twentieth or twenty-first centuries. The second, you have to enjoy a little fantasy. There are magic and fairies and people brought back from the dead. This isn’t Dungeons and Dragons fantasy, but the fantasy of a “lady” or “gentleman”.

why is he ...

At first, I thought this was a joke. But it's not. I tested it. It's so sad.

The original post can be found here:  Stargazing blog by Malene Arpe

...BUT if you type in "why is she" you get similar sad results.

The Giants In The Parkade

Does Franz Hohler’s The Giants In The Parkade count as a short story? It’s only six sentences! It was translated from the German by Jeff Kochan for the Winter 2009 issue of PRISM international. This is one time where I am sure the translation is accurate and couldn’t really affect the feeling of the story. I re-read the story a couple times (it being so short, it really wasn’t inconvenient.) Hohler packed a lot into six seemingly simple sentences. The giants had purpose and resolution. The reader could actually get a sense of who the giants were.

In the same issue of PRISM, there is another story of Hohler’s, The Creation. This story is a whopping eleven sentences. Somehow it felt more like a story than Giants In The Parkade. These two extremely short short stories got me to thinking, with stories this short, how many does he have to write to publish a collection? Or do they get mixed in with his novels and poetry? I wish that Wikipedia had more to say about him. His website is entirely in German, so I can’t find easy answers to these questions.

[This post was written in conjunction with Short Story Monday hosted by The Book Mine Set]

"Shakespeare may be dead, but he's still smarter than you"

From the Stargazing blog by Malene Arpe. Apparently, according to statistical analysis, Shakespeare knew six-times as many words as the average person. This is sure to make the Shakespeare lovers happy.

MOST AWESOMEST THING EVER

So, the MOST AWESOMEST THING EVER is a website that is searching for The Most Awesomest Thing. Ever. It's pretty funny. When you vote, the choices can be really odd. Sometimes both choices are terrible, but you still have to vote. It's a great tool for procrastinating.

The Dark Tower: The Long Road Home

Yesterday I finished The Long Road Home the second graphic novel added to Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series. Even though the series of novels I complete (supposedly complete, I read that King has an idea for an eighth book) there are still stories to be told, question that want answers. The first graphic novel, The Gunslinger Born is a condensed version of part of the novel, Wizard and Glass. The Long Road Home continues that story. King’s novels don’t tell the reader how Roland got from Hambry back home to Gilead. There is much of Roland’s life left to tell.


With King as a creative editor, Robin Furth, Peter David, Jae Lee and Richard Isanove hope to give fans stories worth reading. The Long Road Home certainly was. I couldn’t put it down. I was excited to see the glimpse into Roland’s future and the revelations given by the Crimson King. This installment is full of energy, breathing new life into a series though to be over.

Telephone, by John Fuller

Telephone is a funny little story by English writer John Fuller. Fuller is Fellow Emeritus at Magdalen College, Oxford, which I had to look up. Emeritus means he’s retired. He writes primarily poetry, but also short stories and novels. After reading Telephone it makes me interested in reading more of his work. What I found most interesting about him was that he started a small press, the Sycamore Press, which he ran out of his garage. It was in operation from 1968 to 1992. He helped establish authors like W.H. Auden.

In Telephone, the unnamed narrator has made himself at home in a friend’s apartment. He is sitting on the sofa drinking a substantial vodka tonic. His friend Dickie, is away, so the narrator is alone. He is left to his own imagination. You get the feeling that more than his day was boring. The narrator seems to need more fun in his whole life. John Fuller gets a lot into just two pages; you get a sense of the character as a whole. I enjoyed every bit of this very short work.

Inglourious Basterds

Is Inglourious Basterds what would have happened if Quentin Tarintino was in charge of ending World War II? I finally got around to seeing Tarantino’s film this weekend. (It seems like I’m finally getting to see a lot of movies that came out just after my daughter was born.) Inglourious Basterds is a film I really enjoyed. I had fun watching it, though I fell like it’s one of those movies I’d have a difficult time sitting through again knowing what happens. It’s not that there is anything too upsetting or graphic. It’s more about knowing the result of the scene. Having seen it already, the mystery and anticipation is gone.

Brad Pitt was amazing. Lt. Raine was so different from other roles he has played. The entire cast was amazing. I loved Shoshanna. I really appreciated that we get to see past Private Zoller’s handsome front before the end. I did not expect to see Mike Myers either. It was a great surprise. Christoph Waltz tied the whole movie together. Tarantino’s style is all over his film, so you should appreciate his work, but this isn’t just for his fans, it’s for everyone who likes a good story.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Margaret Wise Brown VERSUS Maurice Sendak

Two great children's authors go head-to-head. Who will win? I'm voting for Margaret Wise Brown, but Maurice Sendak is pretty amazing too.
The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Margaret Wise Brown VERSUS Maurice Sendak

Avatar

So last week, my husband and I got a babysitter and finally made it out to see Avatar. It was a visually impressive movie. It had a great story. The actors were fantastic. The 3D was great. I really liked it. I didn’t think it was the best movie ever, but I’ll definitely be getting the Blu-Ray when it comes out. Maybe they’ll have it in 3D too.

Here is my problem. It has nothing really to do with the movie itself. It is the same problem I had when I went to see Watchmen just over a year ago. The movies themselves aren’t really anything alike, but when I’m watching a movie and there is a small child making sounds of unhappiness it is very distracting. You can read what happened last year at Watchmen in my previous post. At Avatar there was a five-year-old girl watching the movie, presumably with her parents and she didn’t seem very happy about it. Avatar isn’t a super violent movie, but a guy does get shot through the chest with a giant arrow in a very obvious way. There are battle scenes and people die. One year later I am asking again. PLEASE, do not take your children to movies that are going to scare them. I can speak from experience; your child will have nightmares. It also disturbs other people in the theatre. If your child starts to cry it should be obvious that they’re not enjoying themselves. It makes me so angry; it taints the movie for me.

The Book Mine Set: Thoughts on Canada Also Reads

The Book Mine Set: Thoughts on Canada Also Reads

Now I Lay Me

Now I Lay Me is the last story in Ernest Hemingway’s collection, Men Without Women. The collection is one of Hemingway’s earliest works and his second book of short stories. Hemingway was one of the most influential writers in American literature; some even see him as the ultimate American writer. Hemingway was not one for long, flowery passages describing a summer day or a cottage on a hill. He used quick exchanges and short sentences. Now I Lay Me is a great example of his ability to create forward momentum. Hemingway also wrote what he knew; this story deals with a shell shocked soldier from the Great War (aka World War I, when he published this story in 1925, there was no World War II.) Many have said that Hemingway wrote a fictionalized version of his own life, a “what if” idea. If you know anything about Hemingway’s experiences as a soldier and as someone who was involved in more that one war, you can see that reflected in his work. This story and the entire collection is a must for any Hemingway enthusiast or even a beginner wanting to ease into his work.

The Gum Thief

The Gum Thief was brilliant. Douglas Coupland has amazing skill at creating such great characters. Roger and Bethany feel like real people. Even the secondary characters have a reality about them. Doesn’t Kyle remind you of someone you dated? You can see DeeDee as someone’s mother. Roger and Bethany are not generic. They are individuals who are shaped by their circumstances.

It took place (mostly) in Staples! It’s one of the things that drew me to the novel. I worked at Staples a long time ago. I’m sure employees of the big box stores can relate to what Bethany and Roger say. Maybe everyone else will discover something. When a customer goes in, they don’t know that their sales associate is a budding novelist. No one knows who’s divorced, who has children or who has lost a loved one. Box store employees are anonymous. I think it was a wonderful idea to have a non-generic setting. Having such a specific location really makes you think about the people there.

I don’t think I have anything negative to say. I enjoyed the letter writing style. I thought Roger’s Glove Pond was strange and funny. I liked how “real life” events were making their way into the fictional novel. I even love to hate the person who gives Roger a C-. She hates all the things that make this novel wonderful. In case it’s not obvious, I loved The Gum Thief.

The Host

The Host is the “other” novel by Stephenie Meyer. It’s not about vampires and has nothing to do with werewolves. The Host is about life post-alien invasion. It was an invasion so quiet, humans didn’t realize it was happening. Once they did, it was too late. The Host doesn’t focus on the invasion itself, that’s the past. It deals the present and the future.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the novel. Friends had warned me that The Host wasn’t as good as Twilight. Maybe they spent too much time comparing the stories. They are different in content, as well as characters. I don’t think there is anyone like Uncle Jeb in Twilight. I don’t know if someone who really likes vampire fiction is going to like a story about aliens. Though, on her website, Stephenie Meyer says that The Host is science fiction for people who don’t like science fiction.

If you’ve read her other books, however, you can’t help but make a comparison. There is a love triangle, though it might be more of a square. There’s a family member that Wanderer, the main character, is concerned about. Meyer’s quick pace and eventful plot keeps you racing through the [over] 600 pages. The Host is more mature in its language, though it has been a while since I read her other books. I like Wanderer more than Meyer’s other heroine. Wanderer has a strength, determination and conviction that Bella lacked, though maybe the movies have coloured my view. Yes, she a lot of what she does is out of love, but she also thinks of the greater good. Wanderer has a great altruistic quality.

Would fans of Twilight like The Host? I certainly do. I suppose it depends on how diverse their tastes are in books. It’s being made into a movie, so I’m sure Meyer and the people producing the movie hope so. For those who have never read Meyer’s other novels, The Host is a great story about an alien’s quest among humans and human survival among the aliens who now inhabit the Earth.

Divisadero

I just finished Divisadero, the latest in fiction by Michael Ondaatje. Divisadero is a beautifully written novel. The language is fluid and emotional. Perhaps it is too emotional or sentimental, at least with the last third of the novel. The first part of the novel introduces the reader to Anna and her family in the 1970s and it takes us from their childhood, through their personal evolutions after the family is splintered. I spent the second part of the book longing to know what happens to Anna, Claire and Coop.

In the second section, Ondaatje takes us into the life of the author Anna is studying. The life of this author is connected to Anna’s current lover, who knew him as a boy. It’s an interesting story. The style changes here, the story seems to float along, moving away from the excitement and urgency evoked by the first section.

I feel as though Divisadero should have been two novels. They can remain connected, like In The Skin Of A Lion and The English Patient. There are definite parallels between the life of Anna and the life of the author she studies. There are fractured families, secret love affairs and solitude. The narration changes throughout the entire novel, but that’s easy enough to follow; each character has their own voice. It’s the two stories, yes connected, but not necessarily needing to be in the same book. I might have liked it better it the story came back to Anna, Claire and Coop in a more decisive way. Though I liked it, I find myself unsatisfied with the ending.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Louisa May Alcott VERSUS Thomas Hardy

Vote for your favourite. I'm going with Thomas Hardy personally. Is it bad that I've never read Little Women?

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Louisa May Alcott VERSUS Thomas Hardy

Escape to Etobicoke

“Escape to Etobicoke” is a short story in the collection The Book of Ifs and Buts by Rabindranath Maharaj. I was drawn to this collection for a couple reasons. I liked the title. I liked the book cover. I liked the name of the author. After reading the little blurb about him on the back, I thought he was someone I could relate too. (Maharaj immigrated to Canada from Trinidad, just like my parents.) Therefore, I had to buy his book of short stories.

Like other stories in the collection, “Escape to Etobicoke” is about the issues immigrants face when moving to Canada. The main character, Robert, was journalist at a prominent Trinidadian newspaper. Now he tutors a boy in English. He tries to make his life work here. He talks about the relatives he stayed with, also immigrants, formerly teachers. Now they’re shift workers. He talks about their children, who are Canadian, who speak differently, act differently from their parents and what that does to their family. He faces difficulties trying to make this new life for himself and refuses to go back to Trinidad.

The story takes the form of a letter to a friend. I’m never sure with letters-as-short-stories. Is this really the way someone would write a letter? I don’t think so. Maharaj actually seems to address this issue. In the letter, the writer, referring to the language that he’s using, says that he’s not a poet. The reader remembers that he is a journalist and so then presumably has a way with words.

I like that the main character describes what he has come to learn as the difference between Americans and Canadians. I also like the way he describes the hardships faced by immigrants. He does this without being melodramatic or begging for sympathy. It’s a description of his experiences. You get the feeling that perhaps “Escape to Etobicoke” started as an actual letter that Maharaj wrote to someone back in Trinidad. I suppose there's a lot I like about this story and the collection it comes from.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Louisa May Alcott VERSUS Sylvia Plath

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Louisa May Alcott VERSUS Sylvia Plath

The Helmet of Horror

I’m not even sure where to begin. I finished The Helmet of Horror a lot faster than I thought I would. It only took two days; I couldn’t put it down. I could have read it in one if I had the time. I’m thinking about it now, even considering re-reading it. There’s so much symbolism and philosophical thought I’m certain I missed. I’m never sure with translations, whether to attribute the readability to the author or translator, but the language was engaging and easy to follow. The concept however, is all Victor Pelevin.

The Helmet of Horror is a modern re-telling of the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. For those that don’t know, Theseus has to find his way out of a labyrinth while being pursued by a Minotaur. He uses a magic ball of string to find his way out and kills the Minotaur. There’s more to the myth that you can find here.

The novel is written entirely in dialogue, but without any of the characters actually speaking to each other. It takes place in an internet style chatroom. I say “internet style” because they actually aren’t on the internet; they can’t access anything with their computers except the chatroom. Their only interaction with anyone is through the computer screen; there are no voices or faces. They can’t share any personal information, not even their names. Each person is assigned a pseudonym, which they can’t change.

ASIDE: You can see what I mean with a preview from Google Books. I just discovered it as I was looking for an image of the front cover to add to this post. I tried a few other books out. It has previews for quite a few. I think I might use this in the future. I vaguely remember some kind of legal thing in the news about Google and publishers. Well, hopefully they’ve solved that problem.

There are mysterious moderators. There is a search for Theseus. Who is Asterisks? There is religion, philosophy and an incomprehensible Helmet of Horror. There is no proof than anyone the characters “speak” with is real.

Victor Pelevin’s The Helmet of Horror is a great addition to the Myth Series. Unlike the last Myth book I read, this one makes me eager to read another.

Rhyme Stew

Rhyme Stew is a great little book of satirical poetry by Roald Dahl. It was given to me with a few other books for my daughter. Like I do with other books, before reading this to my child, I read it for myself. I’m glad I did. The cover of Rhyme Stew has the recognizable Quentin Blake illustrations. On the side of the cauldron it says, “WARNING Unsuitable for Small People.” It really is. For example, the short poem, St Ives:

As I was going to St Ives
I met a man with seven wives
Said he, “I think it’s much more fun
Than getting stuck with only one.”

I thought it was hilarious, but would I read it (then have to explain it) to a small child? Not likely. This isn’t even the most inappropriate one. There’s nudity, a vicar feeling the thigh of a woman, cat kicking and thievery. This book should be rated at least PG-13. I was quite surprised by the content. Though I enjoyed it, I think it’ll be a while before I let my daughter read it.

The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower

I’ve finally finished Stephen King’s Dark Tower series (not including the graphic novels). I think I read the first book, The Gunslinger when I was thirteen, maybe fourteen. Let’s just say that was a very long time ago. How do I feel now? I don’t know. Happy to know how it ends, definitely. I’m not sure what I think of the ending. To those who have read the book: The horn makes it different, right?

At the end of The Dark Tower (and most of the others in the series) King includes an “Author’s Note”. In it, he asks that readers not send him angry letters; he won’t answer them. I could have been happy if he had just ended after the “Prologue,” but no, he writes something that could make a lot of readers angry. Before what he titles “Coda,” King includes an appeal of sorts, telling the readers they have a choice, they don’t have to read this part. They can enjoy the end as it is. Does he really think people won’t read the last few pages of the book? At least it’s an ending with a little glimmer of hope.

The Dark Tower is a long book. The copy I have is 845 pages. As much as I like this novel, I have the same problem with it that I’ve had with the last three in the series. The beginning starts great, but then it hits a chunk of story that’s too much talking, too much explaining of things that I don’t think matter. Then, when you get to the second half, it moves quickly and the story picks up an amazing flow. I think I might have said this with the last book of his I read, the book could have easily been a hundred pages shorter. Does this ever stop me from reading his books? No. They are exciting stories that I enjoy.

A Haunted House

Inspired to read, A Haunted House by Nan’s review last week, I dove into my collection of Virginia Woolf’s short fiction for this week's installment of Short Story Monday. It wasn’t a very deep dive since A Haunted House isn’t even two full pages long. It is however, Woolf’s distinct “stream of consciousness” style. The reader moves along with both couples, living and dead, as they search and go about there day. I love the end. A Haunted House isn’t a scary ghost story. It’s sweet, with just a touch of creepy. It’s perfect for a Woolf lover or a Woolf beginner.

As Birds Bring Forth The Sun

A little late in the day, but this is the first of what I hope to be many contributions to Short Story Monday. Every Week I read John Mutford’s reviews of short stories. As I looked at my every-growing library, I realized that I had a lot of Short Story collections, Alice Munro, Carol Sheilds and even Stephen King are just a few of the authors whose short stories I have read and will read. I also have a fair stack of literary journals/magazines, including PRISM international, Other Voices and Geist. So I hope, every week, to add my review to Short Story Monday.

As Birds Bring Forth The Sun by Alistair MacLeod is the first story in a rather thick collection called From Ink Lake edited by Michael Ondaatje. (I know it’s also the title of one of MacLeod’s collections. This is just how I was introduced to it.) As Birds Bring Forth The Sun is part short story, part ghost story and part family legend. Simply, it’s about a love of a man for his dog. Yet, it’s not a simple story. It’s a powerful love. The story of the mysterious grey dog remains a part of the life of the family generations later. MacLeod tells an interesting and thoughtful tale. Though it isn’t long, the story stays with you. You wonder about the secret of the dog.

The Almost Moon

What if your whole life had been leading up to the murder of your mother? I feel like that is the case of Helen Knightly. Her mother is crazy. After the death of her father, Helen is left to care for her. She is divorced and her children have moved away. She also manages to alienate her best friend, really making herself alone. Does she do this on purpose? Yes and no.

The novel takes place over 24 hours (or a bit more). It starts one evening and ends the next. It also takes place over Helen’s whole life, as she looks back to see what brought her to this place. The Almost Moon had a good ending. I think Helen finally makes the right decision. However, it also left me with a lot of questions. Just a page or two more and I would probably have the answers I want. They’re just not there.

If you’ve read Alice Sebold’s amazing novel, The Lovely Bones, (if you haven’t, got get it, now), you’ll enjoy The Almost Moon. It didn’t have the same level of excitement for me, but that’s okay. It was a great read that definitely captures your interest. It’s Sebold’s style that holds you. I eagerly await another Sebold book.

The Lump Of Coal

The Lump Of Coal is a children’s Christmas tale written by Lemony Snicket. When Lemony Snicket’s An Unfortunate Series of Events ended, I was sad. (You can find my comments on the various books on this blog in July, August and November 2006.) Not only did I want to know more about the Baudelaires, but I was going to miss Snicket’s unique style of writing. He has a way of teaching something to the reader, whether a moral or meaning of a word, with ease. He does not condescend; explanations are done plainly and with humour.

In this story, it starts off a little sad. No one wants a lump of coal for Christmas. At least, that’s what you think. Someone wants a lump of coal and it makes them very happy. Snicket turns a negative into a positive without being obvious. It just happens naturally, as we follow the coal on his journey. The Lump Of Coal, I think, actually teaches you to look beyond preconceptions. A cliché comes to mind, but I think it’s appropriate in this instance. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.

PS: The cover is actually silver, not white.
PPS: The illustrations are done by Brett Helquist and they’re fantastic!

Loneliest Number

Go to your Google search engine and type in "loneliest number". Please.

Negotiating With The Dead: A Writer On Writing

Negotiating with the Dead is Margaret Atwood’s tale of what it’s like to be a writer. It’s not instructions; it doesn’t tell you how to be a writer. Negotiating with the Dead expounds different aspects of what it’s like to be a writer. Atwood uses many metaphors and explains what is often going on in a writer’s mind. She also talks about the relationship between writer and reader. It is a good book; just don’t expect a road map on how to be as successful as the author

Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters

Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters is Quirk Classics newest Jane Austen installment. Ben H. Winters’s does a fair job taking the classic tale to a sub-surface level. It is a fun and interesting read, blending personal heartbreak with sea monster attacks. Winters keeps the essential personality of each of the characters. He leaves the old world of Austen behind and creates a new one. It is a world fraught with battling sea-beasts.

Winters is not the same author who created Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. There is a difference in writing style and the manner in which the books are transformed. While Winters created entirely new towns and re-wrote much of the story, Seth Grahame-Smith’s approach was more subtle. So don’t expect the same feeling from both books. The individual style is apparent. I prefer PPZ; SSSM seemed too long. It lacked something that PPZ managed to keep from the Austen original. SSSM is a fun read though, and if you liked the first Quirk remake, try this one too.

Kick a Ginger Day

Have you heard of this? November 20th was national Kick a Ginger Day. This is its second year. I must be out of the loop. My husband was telling me about it. As he was teaching, the vice-principal was going around and talking to each classroom. Last year it got pretty bad. My husband told me that one of his students had bruises up and down her calves. So this year, the school was taking a stance. “Kick a Ginger” and suffer the consequences.

Do you really want to kick Julia Roberts, Amy Adams, Reba McIntyre or Rupert Grint? Yes, you might want to kick Lindsay Lohan, Carrot Top or Ginger Spice, but that doesn’t really have anything to do with their hair colour.
I talked to my husband, then took a look around the internet. Kick a Ginger Day came from a South Park episode that said red-haired people were bad and had no souls. Apparently, the episode was supposed to satirize vampire movies and Children of the Corn. I’ve never seen the episode and have no desire to. Clearly their attempt at satire failed.

Last year, a Facebook group was created for Kick a Ginger Day. 40000 people joined! People with red hair found themselves in danger. Children were coming home with bruises because classmates were kicking them. Some police were classifying this as a hate crime; the only reason these people were attacked was because of the colour of their hair. Now, if you search Facebook, there are many more groups denouncing this act, encouraging you to “hug a Ginger” instead. I’m still shocked that people would kick a group of people just because a cartoon told them to do it.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Chuck Palahniuk VRESUS Miriam Toews

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Chuck Palahniuk VRESUS Miriam Toews

True Blood

I just finished watching the HBO series True Blood. It was fabulous! I was initially hesitant to watch it. I’m a fan of the Charlaine Harris books and didn’t want to be disappointed with their interpretation on television. However, a friend who had read the Sookie Stackhouse books at about the same time as me, recommended True Blood. She loves Eric. After watching the series, I can see why.

True Blood is based on the Harris books, but it’s not quite the same. The vampires seem a bit meaner. In the books, I’m rooting for Eric and Sookie, but on the show, Eric might be too “evil” for me. So, I’m for Bill on the show. Season one is the first book, season two is the second, and there are more differences than just the vampires’ behaviour. What happens to Jason and his reaction to these circumstances are a significant change. Amy and Jessica are new characters. Lafayette is still alive. The maenad went from a flash in the pan to a primary pain. These changes are fantastic and fun.

I wonder how True Blood interprets Club Dead in season three. Who are they going to cast as Alcide Herveaux? Are Sophie-Anne and Hadley going to make another appearance? How will Eric and Sookie get closer when she’s so disgusted with him now? With the end of season two, they’ve already changed the kidnapping. I’m eager for season three.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Chuck Palahniuk VERSUS Douglas Adams

Vote for your favourite author. I like Douglas Adams, but Chuck Palahniuk gave the world Fight Club.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #5- Chuck Palahniuk VERSUS Douglas Adams

The Giving Tree

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein is a classic children’s story that I’ve recently read to my little baby. My daughter is now 5½ months old. I read her The Giving Tree Tuesday and Wednesday before her naps. Unlike my daughter’s favourite, Goodnight Moon, this is a story I read as a child. The copy I have now is my husband’s.

It’s kind of sad. When I was younger, I remember thinking of it as sweet. I’ve read it to her twice and I feel like I’m getting emotional each time. I know it’s silly, but the tree does so much for the boy and I feel like he just takes advantage of her. I talked to my husband about it and basically he said it’s a story about unconditional love. I know I would certainly give everything of myself for my child. Yet, I feel like the boy ought to appreciate the tree. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just being silly in my sleep-deprived state… or perhaps I’ve grown cynical in adulthood.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #4- Frankenstein VERSUS The Turn of the Screw

Vote for your favourite scary tale. Mary Shelley versus Henry James.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #4- Frankenstein VERSUS The Turn of the Screw

Servant of the Shard

Which Drizzt related book is this? I’ve lost count. Drizzt Do’Urden isn’t exactly in this book, though he “writes” a journal entry before each section, as with The Spine Of The World which follows Wulfgar’s adventures away from Drizzt. I miss Drizzt. I feel like it’s been so long. I do have to say that I liked Servant Of The Shard better than the last book. The first half I found a bit slow. The main group of characters spent too much time in Calimport and I felt like the story wasn’t going anywhere. The second half was much better. Once Entreri decided to take the Crystal Shard from Jarlaxle, there was so much more excitement. The story moved forward at a better pace. Even though there was no Drizzt, his presence was definitely felt. As a treat (at least I think so) Cadderly made an appearance. It was appropriate to the story and not surprising. Servant of the Shard makes me eager to read the next Drizzt book and the next Entreri/Jarlaxle book too.

Book Number 66: What Is Stephen Harper Reading?, brought to you by dozens of great writers

Book Number 66: What Is Stephen Harper Reading?, brought to you by dozens of great writers

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The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #4: Frankenstein VERSUS The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

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The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #4: Frankenstein VERSUS The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

Goodnight Moon

Is it possible for my 4-month-old to already love Goodnight Moon? I think it is. Almost every night, my husband sits with our little baby and reads her the story of the little bunny saying, “goodnight”. It is simple and sweet. My daughter loves to look at the illustrations and even helps her father turn the pages. You might think that it’s just the soothing sound of his voice, but no other book gets quite the same reaction.

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #4- The Wizard of Oz VERSUS Frankenstein

Who's your favourite?

The Book Mine Set: The Great Wednesday Compare #4- The Wizard of Oz VERSUS Frankenstein

From Dead To Worse

What just happened?! That was maybe the best ending of the whole series. More than any of the other books, it makes me want to get the next one right now! This is a book of surprises and change. When something happened and I thought it ought to be the end of the book, there was so much more. story to tell. This book was filled with excitement and mystery; you really didn’t know what was going to happen next. I can’t really say much without giving the story away. If you’re a fan of Sookie Stackhouse, From Dead To Worse does not disappoint.

Undead And Uneasy

Undead and Uneasy is the fifth installment of MaryJanice Davidson’s Undead series, starring Betsy Taylor. Betsy has been abandoned; she wanted to be left alone and now everyone is missing. This is definitely one of the better installments. Betsy is finally accepting the role as the Vampire Queen. She is becoming independent instead of relying on her companions to solve everything for her.

The Wyndam werewolves, another of Davidson’s creations, also make an entrance. Antonia was already on the scene, but the rest of the gang shows up knocking on Betsy’s door. I’m glad I took the time to read Derik’s Bane. It was a good introduction to the pack before this story.

There was a good fight, some good love, bad enemies and bad boys. Betsy Taylor isn’t Sookie Stackhouse or Bella Swan, but she’s someone I’ll keep reading about.