New Release: Abridged Classics

I know that many of us could use a bit of added levity in our lives these days and, as we are bookish people, Abridged Classics by cartoonist John Atkinson is probably a good place to find some. Although the subtitle will be inaccurate for most of us--Brief Summaries of Books You Were Supposed to Read But Probably Didn't--since we don't dodge the classics, we can find these very brief comics funny because we are, in fact, in the know.

With one or two page spreads on over 100 books, this is a fun read that even Z (who is heading to high school and will be expected to read a couple of these) enjoyed.

Very briefly,
K

p.s. I received this book from the publisher.

Classics Challenge 7: Three Men in a Boat

I was planning on reading the sequel to Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat (1889) for the Back to the Classics Challenge and decided to reread this as well and count it for "Re-read a Favorite Classic" because 1) it's short, 2) it's funny, and 3) it led me to Connie Willis, whom I adore.

Based on a quick look back through my posts, I was reminded that I first read this book in 2011 when Willis' To Say Nothing of the Dog was recommended to me by Teresa of Shelf Love and I wanted to read this first. Basically, it's the story of a fictional J, two friends, and a dog, who take a small boat up the Thames from London to Oxford. I found the exact same things to be true this time -- the book is ridiculously quotable, it's quite an easy read, and it is much funnier than Jerome's intended travel guide would have been. I'm glad that I will finally be reading his about his German bicycle adventures soon!

(And yes, I will be rereading Willis again this summer too. Too bad it's not a classic yet!)

With mirth,
K

New Release: Space Opera

As soon as I heard about Catherynne Valente's latest book, Space Opera, I decided it wasn't for me. After all, I had never watched a single Eurovision performance and that's what this was billed as -- Eurovision in space. But then I started seeing the reviews that she was retweeting on Twitter and they said things about Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett and laughing and loving and, well, I gave in and grabbed the last copy at my local indie bookstore (which was a good thing since it's out of stock in many places and already on its sixth printing!). Then I started hearing even more amazing things about the audiobook, read by Valente's partner, actor Heath Miller, and so I promptly put in a hold for that at the library. I ended up doing the entire thing on audio but am glad I have the hardcover to put on my shelf because this is a book that I'm definitely going to want to revisit, perhaps quite soon.

So, this story *is* kind of Eurovision in space but, then again, it's so much more, enough that it can be enjoyable for many different sorts of readers. It's definitely a commentary on current U.S. politics. It's also a celebration of diversity. And it's, most of all, a plea for all humans to improve our behavior and to prove our claim to sentience. Liberally peppered with angst and profanity, Valente's frustration with the current state of the world certainly came through and mirrored my own. What she has managed to do that I haven't though is to create a possible solution. Now, the chances of that solution--a performance by the earth's greatest living pop group at an intergalactic competition to try and prevent the human race from being destroyed--being in our future is probably quite slim but I appreciate her creativity. The real solution is probably going to be much more painful and require an effort from more than two people. In the meantime, we are only going to be kept sane by bonding together over things like smart and entertaining art. For now, I suggest we bond over this book.

Searching for harmony,
K

p.s. Valente got news a few days ago that it's going to become a movie!

#MarchMagics : Soul Music

It seemed almost predestined that I would be reading Soul Music when the inestimable Chuck Berry died last week. This story is an homage to the power and the eternal nature of rock and roll. It is also a study of humanity and fate. Death has been overwhelmed by an expected but unavoidable loss and he goes in search of oblivion, leaving his job to be automatically filled by his sixteen-year-old granddaughter, Susan. One of Susan's first empty hourglasses belongs to Imp y Celyn, a young musician. But, just as she prepares to break the rules and save his life based on a strange feeling of familiarity, she is preempted by a chord. The music instead saves him and takes over his life.

This is one of those books that has SO many references that it is impossible to catch all of them on the first or even the second read. Even the smallest throwaway phrase can be a joke or a play on words. The big ideas though are easy to catch. The music of the universe began with the big bang and rock and roll has the power to change the world. Also, a human would not make a successful Grim Reaper because it's a job that has to be done without emotion, no matter what ... usually. I loved all of the side characters, even C.M.O.T. Dibbler and Ande Supporting Bands. This is a good, solid book that must have taken ages to put together so seamlessly.

Question of the Day: In this story, almost everyone who hears the Music With Rocks In has an urge to play it or worship at its altar. Did you ever dream of a rock and roll lifestyle? What is your musical life story?

My answer? As a kid, I sang in the church choir and in one or two school musicals, played the trumpet for eight years, and studied classical piano for a bit. None of those seemed particularly "cool" though and I always wanted to learn guitar. I tried one lesson but the guy was a 90's metal band type who taught songs instead of fundamentals and it just wasn't the right fit for me. After high school, my daydreams turned to waiting for the day that one of my favorite bands desperately needed me to be a backup singer in the middle of a show. But, no matter how many concerts I went to, they never felt the need to grab my hand, pull me up on the stage, and marvel at my skill. Sigh. Now I just crank up the car radio on sunny days and sing until I'm hoarse.

On the backbeat,

K

#RIPXI : 6, Curioddity

I have no idea exactly what I need to tell you about Curioddity by Paul Jenkins to give you the best overview of this story because there is A LOT going on in this quirky sci-fi mystery. I should obviously tell you about Wil, the subpar, broke private investigator, who lives in an apartment with weird sounds in the pipes, the revolting scent of cooked mushrooms, and a cat-lady landlord. Also, since it's the main point of the plot, I'll need to tell you that he gets a strange elderly visitor to his office who hires him to find a missing item from the Curioddity Museum. I could tell you about how Wil's head frequently comes in contact with sharp or heavy objects because, well, it's something he is certainly aware of and it's also the way he meets the lovely and free-spirited Lucy. I might tell you about Wil's parents, the chess-playing twins, or the man who sells crap items on the tv, but out of context you aren't really going to understand what they're doing there. There's also the Perpetual Penny, the unordered golf club, and the ninja-bots, all things that you obviously don't need to know about before going into the story but, by mentioning them, I am hoping to pique your interest. However, if I only tell you about these things, you still wouldn't have any idea about how fun this story is and that's what I really want to tell you. It is funny and mind-expanding and sweet and perilous as all get out.

The writing is a little shaky at times but this is Jenkins' first novel after a career of writing comics and video games. I'm giving him a pass because he has a great imagination and some obviously stellar influences. I'm going to file this on my shelves along with The Order of Odd-Fish, The Somnambulist, and all of my other favorite quirky, science-fictiony stories.

Un-looking forward to what comes next,

K

#MarchMagics Readalong: Equal Rites

Welcome to the Equal Rites readalong! This is our first readalong of the month and, for some of you, your first Pratchett!

This is the third Discworld book but the first in the Witches series. Some readers find the Rincewind books (The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic) a bit harder to start with. And, luckily, this book delivers all of the Discworld basics so that readers aren't short any information. You learn about the structure of Discworld -- a flat disc of earth and water on the back of four massive elephants who stand on the back of A'Tuin, the great turtle. You learn about Ankh-Morpork, the large city of grime and crime. And finally, you learn about witches and wizards.

This book introduces us to the powerful witch Granny Weatherwax, a prominent figure in many of the Discworld novels. (In fact, she shows up in a full dozen of them!) Though many readers start their journey with The Wee Free Men, the first Tiffany Aching book, I enjoyed having more of the backstory about Granny Weatherwax before getting into that subplot of the Witches story.

We also get to meet Esk (Eskarina Smith), who shows up again in I Shall Wear Midnight, so also I find it's nice to know her already before that time comes. Traditionally, the eighth son of a eighth son will become a wizard. Esk is the eighth daughter of a eighth son and somehow, bucking tradition, she inherits a staff and, consequently, powers from a dying wizard on the day she is born.

Equal Rites (obviously a play on the words "equal rights") establishes the lore about witches and wizards (did I just say "lore'?! ::gulp::), and especially the traditional roles of women (witches) and men (wizards). Different characters react in different ways to Esk and her desire to become a wizard. The narrow confines of gender roles are explored again in the Tiffany Aching series when one male character shows aptitude toward being a witch.

Was this your first time reading Equal Rites? Did you like it?

Who was your favorite character?

Would you rather be a witch or a wizard?

Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below or leave a link to your own post!

Breaking boundaries,
K

Nonfiction November: Yes Please

I was given a pretty (and heavy! nice paper!) newly-released paperback copy of Yes Please by Amy Poehler to review. Though I had this lovely paperback, I was told repeatedly that I *had* to listen to it on audiobook. So I got on the library hold list and, when it was available, I started a co-read of sorts. And now that I've done it, I want to recommend it to everyone else who hasn't read this book yet. Poehler's humor comes through in both mediums but there are benefits to each one. If you listen to the audiobook, you get Seth Meyers, Patrick Stewart, Carol Burnett, Kathleen Turner, and even Amy's parents chiming in. If you get the book, you get to see childhood and teen pictures of the young comedienne. I definitely feel like I got to have the best of both worlds on this read.

This book is funny and profane, sometimes dark and sometimes thoughtful. It was a little disorganized but I'm guessing that there wouldn't be a simple way to organize such diverse content. My favorite parts were the discussion of Parks and Recreation (which I didn't start watching until last year and now I still haven't quite finished because I don't want it to end) and the insider look at SNL. I loved Amy's potty mouth/keyboard and her parents' Boston accent. I wasn't so into the semi-frequent drug mentions or her talk about smoking (though she seems to have quit now). Overall, this was a very honest sharing of her life both in and out of "the business" that was as comfortable as a late-night talk over drinks with a friend.

Peeking behind the curtain,
K

New Release: Gumption

Until recently, Gumption: Relighting the Torch of Freedom with America's Gutsiest Troublemakers was not the type of book I would have picked up. But, thanks to finally getting on the Parks and Recreation bandwagon, a recent interest in historical figures, and a well-timed offer of this book from a blogging friend, I broadened my horizons and had a fun time to boot with Nick Offerman.

The basic premise of this book is that he evaluates twenty-one modern and historical figures and tells us why he thinks they've got gumption. It's a really interesting exercise and will certainly lead to readers composing their own mental lists. He's also incredibly funny, has a great vocabulary, and an adorable love for his wife, Megan Mullally. It also didn't hurt that he's only five years older than me so we come from the same time, if not the same place.

Offerman's list includes politicians, authors, singers, craftsmen (and women! he rocks the equality message in this book), and performers. Sometimes his criteria is quite straight-forward but, other times, it veers in a more philosophical direction. Though I'm pretty sure he didn't mean this to happen, it really gave a lot of insight into how he thinks and what he values. P.S. If he now sounds too high-brow for you, rest assured that he also loves a good steak ... and farts.

Anyway, I wanted to record my additions to his list. My criteria was simple: someone who makes a difference (for the better) in the world, who does things differently than those who have come before. I'm sure I have more additions but these were the first ones to come to mind as I finished reading the book.

Jane Goodall, Bill and Melinda Gates, Elon Musk, Neil Gaiman, Boyan Slat, Zack Kopplin

Who do you think has gumption?

Feeling a bit of my own gumption surfacing,

K

Long-Awaited Reads Month: Miss Hargreaves

If you've followed Simon Thomas' blog for any amount of time, you'll have probably noticed him mentioning Miss Hargreaves by Frank Baker. Well, mentioning is a bit of an understatement ... peddling, singing the praises of, extolling ... those might be better word choices. (There are, in fact, over 15 references and posts about the book on his blog!) And so, dutifully, I grabbed the book as soon as I saw it on the used shelves at my local indie. Then, as so often happens with highly anticipated books, it sat on my shelves because I was nervous about reading it and not having it live up to expectations. Luckily, Long-Awaited Reads Month inspired me to finally pick it up.

Norman Huntley and his friend Henry are on a trip when they decide to visit a local church. When inside, they are less than impressed by the building so they start having a little fun. Part of this fun is to invent the elderly Miss Hargreaves, friend of the former vicar, poet and musician, owner of a parrot and a portable bath. They take the joke a bit too far and actually write a letter to the fictional Miss Hargreaves and are utterly surprised to receive a letter back, stating that she is on her way to visit her "dear Norman" at his home. Norman and Henry now have to figure out why Miss Hargreaves exists and if there's anything they can do to change that (or if they even want to).

First, I need to thank Simon for championing this book. I'm not sure I would have picked it up otherwise. And if I hadn't, I would have missed a unique and thoughtful read full of magic and humor. My favorite character was actually Norman's father, a somewhat scattered but intelligent man whose ramblings sometimes turned out to be timely advice. And the thought that one's imaginings could become reality if you were the right kind of person is, well, enticing but still frightening. I think the only thing that kept me from completely loving the book was my inability to understand Norman's attraction (not in that way) toward Miss Hargreaves, even when she was at her most infuriating. I guess the relationship was guided by values both British and 1940s-ish that I just couldn't quite relate to. Still, the quality of the story and the writing was enough to make this an exceptionally amusing and thought-provoking read. I do hope that it finds many more readers and that Simon continues to be its biggest cheerleader!

Awaiting the next stellar read,
K

Catching Up: Sci-Fi, Humor and Fun

I wanted to get my reviews/mentions caught up before RIP season starts so I'm going to start with a couple today that I read during the Dog Days Readathon (for which I failed to do a wrap-up post because I had to get ready for my mother-in-law's visit ... yay).

First up was Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett. I had stalled in my Discworld reading but I was excited to get going again and this was the perfect book to do it with. Granny Weatherwax is one of my favorite characters and she, Nanny Ogg and poor, young Magrat have a fun dynamic. I liked the brief foray into Ankh-Morpork and the whole Hamlet tie-in. This is definitely a book that stands completely on its own.

Then I did a reread of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. This was a many times over reread but I have watched the recent film so many times since the last time I read it that I ended up somewhat surprised about what is and isn't actually in the book. It turned out to be so much more simple and fun of a story than I remembered. I definitely want to read the other book in the series in the near future.

I finished up the weekend (and went into the week after) with Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. I was totally in the mood to read it after seeing Neil recently and I was due for a reread anyway. It was only my second time with it and, while I remember it being funnier than it was this time through, I also didn't remember quite the level of sharpness and wit that was in it. Also, the last time I read it, I hadn't read any Pratchett and not much Gaiman so it was a different experience to be more familiar with their styles and language choices. Bottom line, it was still a fantastic read the second time through and I can't wait to see the (possible) upcoming tv production.

Finally, I'm in the middle of Witches Abroad, also by Terry Pratchett because I just couldn't stop! It's a bit of a slower book than other Discworld novels I've read so far but it's a fairy tale and fantasy lover's dream. So far I've caught references to The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and multiple fairy tales (Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty and vampire lore to start). It's amusing and I can't wait to finish it this week in preparation for RIP.

Having laughs and learns,
K

New Release: The 13-Story Treehouse

For the first time, Z has read an entire book to me at bedtime -- The 13-Story Treehouse by Andy Griffiths, illustrated by Terry Denton. This amusing illustrated novel out of Australia is full of penguins, monkeys, catnarys (you'll have to read to find out about them!), a sea monster and even a giant gorilla. And who could ever resist a treehouse with every awesome feature imaginable?

The trailer can do much better than I can to show you all that this book (and treehouse) has to offer --


Z absolutely loved this book, sometimes reading me three chapters a night! We laughed out loud constantly and had a fun time following the increasingly ridiculous plot. And though there was a bit of burping (and a brief monkey poo mention), this book managed to be funny without resorting to over-the-top bathroom humor as so many other series seem to do these days. And apparently there will be a sequel next year -- The 26-Story Treehouse!
Dreaming of marshmallow machines, K and Z

Eleven Impossible to Ignore Stories

Well, once again I have Carl to thank for getting me to pull a book out of my TBR (this time for The 2013 Science Fiction Experience) that I ended up loving. This book has eleven stories, three of which were Hugo and/or Nebula award winners. But, if you ask me, these stories are all winners.

A couple of years ago, I started to keep a short story journal that simply lists the names of the stories and a 1-5 rating (5 being love). This is mainly just because I am terrible with remembering story names and it saves me time when I want to find a story I know I enjoyed before. Well, most anthologies have one or two DNFs, a couple of ones and twos and then mostly threes and fours with one or two exceptional fives. This collection, as recorded in my journal, has no stories below a three. It broke down like this

3: "In the Late Cretaceous"
3+: "Schwarzschild Radius", "Chance"
4: "The Last of the Winnebagos" (with a possible +), "Even the Queen", "Winter's Tale", "At the Rialto"
4+: "Time Out", "Jack"
5: "Ado", "Spice Pogrom"

Every one of these stories drew me in. They are all well-crafted and I enjoyed the broad range of subjects that she presented -- from quantum physics to menstruation. "Jack" was probably my favorite story to read as it was set during the Blitz and I think she just does a fantastic job every time she writes in that time period. The story didn't get a five though because I thought one tiny aspect of it was a bit cheesy. (If anyone is familiar with the story, I would love to chat about it!) "Ado" and "Spice Pogrom" were comedies and I thought they were hilarious. "Spice Pogrom" was probably really a 4/4+ story but I had so much fun reading it that I gave it full marks. Some of the reviewers on LibraryThing really didn't like her sense of humor (and yet they claimed to have loved To Say Nothing of the Dog -- go figure!) but I really enjoyed it. I think I do best with science fiction when there's an element of humor involved, like with Douglas Adams and Jasper Fforde.

It sounds like some of these stories will be in her newest collection (out in early July)--"At the Rialto", "The Last of the Winnebagos" and "Even the Queen"--but not my favorites so it's still worth looking for this older collection if you're in the mood for some fantastic tales.

Imagining eleven impossible things,
K

RIP VII Read #9: The Infernals

Though there are only two books in John Connolly's Samuel Johnson Tales so far, I think that it's one of my favorite series ever. And, before I go on, The Gates and The Infernals (Hell's Bells in the U.K.) are listed in some places as YA books, but I'm not convinced that they really are except for having a young protagonist. In my review of The Gates from two years ago, I apparently took issue with this same YA labeling so at least I'm consistent.

With copious (hilarious) footnotes about science and religion, this story picks up soon after the first when scientists are about to do the same thing again that caused demons to be able to cross over to our realm because, well, they never learn ... or they always want to learn or something like that. And, as in the first tale, poor little Samuel Johnson is about to be caught up in the middle of it all. But this time, he gets pulled through into Aitch-Eee-Double-Hockey-Sticks and, with the help of his trusty dachshund Boswell and some other unwitting travelers, he's going to have to stop the domination of the world by the forces of evil all over again.

I'm not kidding when I mention hilarity. I decided to start this book the night before Read-a-Thon so that I wasn't starting fresh on a book first thing in the morning and, just during the first chapter, I laughed out loud twice and the husband made the mistake of asking what was so funny and then had to sit while I recited a footnote out of context which I still found funny but him ... not so much. Now, if you're not a fan of Douglas Adams or Monty Python or Terry Pratchett, you probably won't find this book as side-splitting as I did. But if you like your humor dark and British (insert Idris Elba joke here -- side note, did you hear he could possibly be the next James Bond?!), you'll likely adore these books as well.

Getting the hell out of here,
K

RIP VII Read #8: New Release: The Woman Who Died a Lot

Will it surprise you if I tell you I loved Jasper Fforde's latest, The Woman Who Died A Lot? No? I've made my love of the Thursday Next series too obvious? Well, though this one had a little bit of a slow start, it picked up quickly and was a strong story of an aging action hero. I'm really not sure what else to call Thursday. She's fought vampires, a minotaur, the Hades family and, well, Jack Schitt. She's saved the world from pink goo, fictional weapons and the most evil of corporations. And she's managed to have a family of three -- er, two somewhat-adjusted children. So, if there weren't synthetic Thursdays running around town, things would almost be pretty good for her. But, as always, things aren't perfect and Thursday's on the case.
Sometimes I wish that Jasper would just write one of these a year. I love this series so, so much. This one was pretty heavy science fiction with barely any Book World and I still loved it! Okay, I've used the word "love" four times now so I need to end this. Please, please read this series. I'll be your best friend.

Preventing a smiting by the Great Fforde,
K

"The desert was empty, as though a great drain had sucked the world underground."

As I was reading some Terry Pratchett in early July, I got an email that offered this book, The Order of Odd-Fish by James Kennedy, for review and it seemed like a read that was in the same vein of absurdist literature that I was already enjoying. I also remembered the positive review that Aarti gave it a couple of years ago so I accepted and expected a fun read. What I didn't expect was a well-crafted, frankly brilliant novel that left me wishing for more. Though it is billed as YA, I didn't see any reason besides a teen protagonist that this couldn't be enjoyed by lots of adult readers as well.

That teen protagonist is Jo Larouche, thirteen years old and an orphan, who lives with her "aunt" Lily Larouche in a bizarre, bedazzled palace in the California desert. They're celebrating Christmas Eve with a rip-roaring costume party when, well, things start happening. Not only does Jo notice a large man watching her, but she eventually ends up talking to a man-sized cockroach (not a costume). Then, at a pre-appointed time, a package falls from the sky with her name on it -- a cardboard container that contains a mysterious black box. By the next morning, Jo's life is in danger and what follows is an adventure that could only come from a very fertile imagination!

I'll admit that after a couple of days of reading this book regularly, it got to the point where I simply couldn't put it down. With itchy eyes and mild regrets about the following morning, I finished reading it at 4:30 in the morning! The villain of the story was, to be honest, terrifying. But Jo and her friends and "family" were fantastic. The story heads in a direction where you truly aren't sure who will survive the madness. Though some might find this story to be a bit much, I think it certainly deserves a wider audience. If you're in the mood for something exciting and original, this one would be worth a look (and take a peek at the fan art too)!

Joining the Order and waiting for my ostrich,
K

"It's still my favorite book in all the world."

Praise be to the Once Upon a Time Challenge. I have finally read The Princess Bride! And what did I think of William Goldman's, a.k.a. S. Morgenstern's, "classic tale of true love and high adventure"? Well, to be honest ... it made me want to watch the film again (which I promptly did). There were things I loved in the book that weren't in the movie (The Zoo of Death scene with Inigo and Fezzik) and things that I was hoping to read that just weren't there (the word "putrescence" ... you know where it is!). I couldn't help but see all of the book characters in my mind cast as the film characters. The only one that ended up not working for me was Humperdinck -- I had to recast him based on the book description. But the meta format of the book was fun -- even more so than Peter Falk and Fred Savage in an 80's kid bedroom.

So thank you to Heather and her list of books she couldn't live without. This was number one and I can see how, if you picked this book up at the right time, you could easily fall completely in love with it. I wish I had seen fit to pick it up about 20 years ago. Instead, I'll always have fond memories of sitting with my friends at a GT (a "get-together", for anyone not familiar with that term) shouting "anybody want a peanut" or rolling down a large grassy hill at the park screaming "AS YOU WISH" at the top of our lungs. This story will always be a favorite no matter the format.

Happily ever after,
K

New Release: Nerd Do Well

I will admit that when I saw this book was going to be featured on a TLC Tour, I contacted them immediately and begged to be included. I am a pretty big fan of the author's films and the television show, Spaced, that he created. And though I rarely read memoirs, this was one that I was really curious about. So, as you can imagine, my expectations were quite high for this book and thankfully it didn't disappoint. It definitely bodes well for a comedian/actor's memoir if they can make you laugh on the first page of the book. And laugh I did, half-way down the first page of Simon Pegg's Nerd Do Well: A Small Boy's Journey To Becoming a Big Kid.

You hopefully know Simon Pegg from his films Shaun of the Dead (a zombie comedy), Hot Fuzz (a small-town murder comedy) and Paul (an alien-visitation comedy) -- or at least his role as Montgomery Scott in the recent Star Trek reboot where he affects the cutest Scottish accent. If you aren't familiar with any of these, please go watch the trailer for my current favorite (which he co-wrote), Hot Fuzz with Simon as Officer Nicholas Angel, a London police officer sent away to a model village when he was too diligent. Of course, things are not going to remain calm for long when Angel's diligence uncovers the dark side of the seemingly happy town.

So now you probably have the gist of Simon's sense of humor. It's the backbone of the novel and his voice comes through quite clearly in his writing. The book is a combination of two parts -- the expected memoir of Simon's youth, education and early career interspersed with the story of a handsome super spy named, well, Simon Pegg. These chapters were absolutely hilarious to me but if you don't have the sense of humor of a fifteen-year-old fanboy (or the ability to enjoy that sort of humor), they might not really amuse you. The rest of the book is full of reminiscences of first films seen, childhood theater roles and musings on Star Wars among other things. It was fascinating to read about how Simon turned his youthful obsessions into a dream adulthood.

While the timeline skipped about a bit and sometimes took a little bit of work to follow, the content of this book was fun and I had a great time reading it. I'm sure it didn't hurt that Pegg is only five years older than I am so I was able to relate to some of his childhood experiences of the early 80s. My husband is excited to read it next and I think he'll relate to it even more than I did. Here's the book trailer (which is also rather funny) --







In a little nerd heaven,
K

This memoir is currently on a TLC Book Tour. You can read another review at

GeekDad

Other reviews will be posted throughout the month at the tour site.


Support our site and buy Nerd Do Well: A Small Boy’s Journey to Becoming a Big Kid on Amazon or find it at your local library. We received an uncorrected proof for review.

"There were four of us -- George, and William Samuel Harris, and myself, and Montmorency."

The other day I was talking with Teresa of Shelf Love on Twitter about books that make you think of other book bloggers while you're reading them. I was in the middle of one that I knew another blogger would have issues with. We chatted for a bit about that and then she mentioned that she had just finished Connie Willis' To Say Nothing of the Dog (read her review here) and thought that I would love it as much as she did. Well, that one has been on my "to read" list for years but before I read it, I wanted to read the book that inspired it -- Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat (subtitled To say nothing of the Dog!).

Jerome K. Jerome (his actual name -- his father was Jerome C. Jerome) set out to write a guidebook, which was the popular thing at the time, and ended up with a hilarious but thoughtful story of the adventures of three men and a dog on the Thames. The narrator, J., is a take-charge type -- he likes to have the responsibility of telling other people what sort of work they should be doing. His companions George and Harris are a bit lazy and daft but they decide together that they all need a break from their daily routines and a boat trip on the river sounds just the thing.

George said:
'Let's go up the river.'
He said we should have fresh air, exercise and quiet; the constant change of scene would occupy our minds (including what there was of Harris's); and the hard work would give us a good appetite, and make us sleep well.
Harris said he didn't think George ought to do anything that would have a tendency to make him sleepier than he always was, as it might be dangerous. He said he didn't very well understand how George was going to sleep any more than he did now, seeing that there were only twenty-four hours in each day ..."

After the trouble of making lists, packing and a late start on the first morning, they are off to row, tow and sail up the Thames. Between the items that they forget to take (a can opener) and the things they should have left behind (a banjo), they are in for an interesting trip. Mixed in with the narrative of the current adventure, J. tells stories of past boating adventures and second-hand stories from other river travelers. He also dishes up a bit of philosophy along with a boat-load of humor.

Written in 1889, this novel definitely seems to be transitioning in language from the Victorian to the modern. It's an easy read and Jerome's timing is perfect. If I started quoting all of the passages I found witty or hilarious, I would copy about half of this 170 page story. This one was a pleasure to read and I'm excited to see how Connie Willis' time-traveling protagonist fares when faced with a Victorian outing and only his knowledge of Jerome's story to guide him. I will also be reading the further adventures of J., George and Harris as they attempt a bicycle tour of Germany in Three Men on the Bummel.

Off for adventure,
K


Support our site and buy Three Men in a Boat and Three Men on the Bummel on Amazon or find it at your local library. We borrowed a copy from the library but will be purchasing our own copy soon!

RIP Read #3: The Gates

I had to get one more RIP V Challenge in before Book Blogger Appreciation week starts and, fortunately, it was a great one!  Some of you may have read and enjoyed John Connolly's The Book of Lost Things which is a fantastically dark fairy tale adventure.  Well, The Gates is nothing like that.  Rather, it turned out to be another sort of book I adore -- a dark, very British comedy in the same vein as Douglas Adams and Jasper Fforde.  With character-naming puns (philosophers, no less!) and snarky comments galore, I had a great time with this purportedly YA novel.  I say "purportedly" because I'm somewhat doubtful that it will be many teens' cup of tea.  It has a good bit of science and theology and I didn't feel it was written at a non-adult level at all.  The only sort of youngster or teen that I can see enjoying this book would be the ones who would pick up (and adore) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

Anyway, let's go back to the first two sentences --

In the beginning, about 13.7 billion years ago, to be reasonably precise, there was a very, very small dot.  The dot, which was hot and incredibly heavy, contained everything that was, and everything that ever would be, all crammed into the tiniest area possible, a point so small that it had no dimensions at all.

Now, if you are an anglophile and a nerd like me, you probably will have found yourself reading those sentences in a John Cleese-ish jaunty narrator's voice.  In fact, I just might have read the entire book to myself in that voice.  I'll even admit to going and listening to a sample of the audiobook to make sure that they had chosen the correct sort of narrator for this book (which they had).  So, what sort of novel gets an entire faux voice in my head?  One where young Samuel Johnson accidentally watches his neighbors summon up some heinous demons from hell whose duty it is to prepare the way for the Great Malevolence to come to Earth and destroy it.  I don't even know quite where to go from there because this book is all over the place (but in a good way).  We meet demons of all sorts (bad and not-so-bad), Samuel's mom, his friends, his wiener dog, some police officers, a vicar, a verger and a few scientists who work on the Large Hadron Collider and play Battleship.  It's not an incredibly suspenseful tale but it's certainly worth the ride.  A word of warning, though, to any readers who dislike footnotes -- this novel is full of them (and they're funny).

Ready to read it again already,
K


Support our site and buy The Gates: A Novel on Amazon or find it at your local library.  We bought our own copy.

New Release: A Whole Nother Story

Have you been wanting to get in early on the next big series?  Do you love Lemony Snicket or The Mysterious Benedict Society?  If you answered yes to either of these questions, you should definitely read A Whole Nother Story by Dr. Cuthbert Soup.  It's smart, witty and full of adventure -- and set up nicely to continue in another book.

The focus of this story is the Cheeseman family -- father, two sons and daughter.  And don't forget Steve -- he's a sock puppet.  And I better mention Pinky, the now hairless fox terrier, who is able to save the family from danger more than once.  And the Cheesemans (Cheesemen?  ::wink::) are not just the focus of the story, but also the focus of three different searches by nefarious government agent/corporate heavy types who are trying to get their hands on an amazing device that Dr. Cheeseman is inventing.  So the Cheesemans are on the run, constantly changing homes and their names and hoping to complete the device in the hopes of reversing something tragic that happened in their lives.

Except for a few spots where the humor was a bit forced, I loved this book.  Not only do these children have a healthy relationship with their father but they are also kind to new friends that they meet -- friends who aren't the most popular kids but have their own strengths.  The plot is compelling and even heartbreaking in parts.  I really hope that this becomes a successful series!

And for the first time ever I'm going to send my readers to go watch a book trailer -- this one made me laugh out loud!  There's even a "New Identity Customizer" (click on "NIC names" on the same page) that will give you a new name for when you need to go on the run -- mine is Jambalaya Raisinham.  They'll never find me now.

Trying to get hired at Dr. Soup's National Center for Unsolicited Advice,
J (for Jambalaya)


Support our site and buy A Whole Nother Story on Amazon or find it at your local library. We borrowed our copy from the library but will probably buy our own copy soon!