Category: Reviews

Review – Palimpsest

Posted August 21, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Palimpsest by Catherynne M. ValentePalimpsest, Catherynne M. Valente
Originally reviewed 2nd May, 2010

This book is beautiful. The language of it is mesmerising and enticing and sometimes cloying, there’s so much of it, it’s so thick with description and invention and ideas. I remember commenting about China Miéville’s work, and how the cities of his work almost seem to be characters themselves — I can see why people compare Palimpsest to his work, although in Palimpsest it’s more true than ever.

Reading this book is like exploring the city in the same limited way as the characters. Sometimes frustratingly: there’s a bit you want to see or understand or get to, but you can’t, not yet. You have to give it time for it to unfold.

I can understand why it has quite a lot of love-or-hate reactions. If you give it time, it’s a beguiling, rewarding book, but if you don’t have the time or the patience or the inclination, it’s impenetrable.

I didn’t really feel like I got to know the characters or the city as well as I would want to. Ordinarily, that would be a major turn-off for me, but there was enough to keep me satisfied, and the writing, the richness of the detail, was enough to compensate for the lack of my usual favourites. If there’s any criticism, it’s that the characters didn’t feel as rich and as real to me as I wanted them to — there were enchanting details about them, but I didn’t get to know them as I would like to.

Rating: 4/5

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Review – Art for Mindfulness: Geometrics

Posted August 20, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 4 Comments

Cover of Art for Mindfulness: Geometrics by Andy PaciorekArt for Mindfulness: Geometrics, Andy Paciorek

Yep, I’ve jumped onto this trend. Mostly for the mindfulness aspect, because I got a little book of mandalas to colour and found that it really did help with just staying in the moment and not worrying, because I’d be too busy concentrating on keeping inside the lines and deciding which colours to pick next. The designs in Geometrics are pretty good: obviously, they’re all geometric, and some of them are very complex. It’s not full of massive open spaces to colour, but detail instead. Sometimes I find that a little frustrating, in which case I switch to something else in the same book or in one of the others I have.

I’m using markers with it, and while they bleed through to the other side of the same page, they don’t mark the next page. The quality of the paper is good, and fortunately, the only thing on the back of each design is an inspirational quotation — most of which I like, too; they’re not too syrupy. I think this one will last quite a long time.

In the meantime, hey, it’s 20th August! That means it’s my birthday!

Rating: 4/5

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Review – Sapiens

Posted August 19, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Cover of A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval HarariSapiens, Yuval Noah Harari

I actually originally encountered this because I wanted to do Harari’s course on the history of humankind on Coursera or one of the other MOOC sites, and I just didn’t have the time. I hoped the book would be a good substitute, picked it up, and was promptly daunted by the size of it. That’s unfair to the book, though: it’s actually immensely readable. It treats time as a progression from physics to chemistry to biology to history, through Agricultural and Cognitive Revolutions through to Industrial ones: the story of the universe is at first told in the terms of physics, and then eventually using human eye witness accounts and evidence. It’s a fairly anthropocentric view, narrowing it down to our perspective on the past, but Harari acknowledges that.

Harari manages to be fairly even handed in discussing capitalism, communism, ideology, religion, and all those difficult topics. While sometimes I thought I could tell what his opinion on each one was, he was generally fair about the appeal even of ideologies which have failed in practice. It’s a weird mix of pessimism and optimism, really, because Harari mentions the declining rates of violence, the increasing rates of health, but also the flat rate of happiness. The fact that, for all that we do, humans don’t seem to be any happier than they were eight to eight hundred years ago.

I enjoyed it, and thought it was a solid and interesting overview of human history, and the potentials for a human future. The readability and clarity of the prose is definitely in its favour.

Rating: 5/5

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Review – The Rights of the Reader

Posted August 18, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of The Rights of the Reader by Daniel PennacThe Rights of the Reader, Daniel Pennac

Obviously, in many ways this book isn’t applicable to me because I’m not a parent, educator, or even involved much with children at all. I sometimes see them in the library when I’m on duty, but otherwise they have one world and I have mine, and never the twain meet (thankfully, since I’m dreadful with children). It also doesn’t apply to child-me: I read voraciously, exhaustively, incessantly, and my parents really did have to wonder not how to get me to read, but how to stop me. So it’s difficult for me to understand the kids he’s talking about who had to be cautiously reintroduced to books. I’ve always been passionate about my books!

Still, Pennac’s passion for books is obvious and endearing, and he could certainly turn a phrase; if the original French was half as elegant as the English translation, it must’ve been good. I think the enthusiasm and tips here might well help a parent or teacher reinvolve kids with reading. And quite apart from that, he makes some good points for readers of any age: suggesting rights that any reader should have to read what they want, where they want, as much as they want, and talking about the fact that reading is something you make time for, rather than have time for. “By making time to read, like making time for love, we expand our time for living.” Yes.

So not aimed at me, but nonetheless an interesting and lively read, helped by Quentin Blake’s illustrations. And the rules are pertinent no matter who you are…:

1. The right not to read
2. The right to skip
3. The right not to finish a book
4. The right to re-read
5. The right to read anything
6. The right to “Bovary-ism,” a textually transmitted disease (the right to mistake a book for real life)
7. The right to read anywhere
8. The right to dip in
9. The right to read out loud
10. The right to be silent

Perfect.

Rating: 5/5

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Review – The Stainless Steel Rat

Posted August 17, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry HarrisonThe Stainless Steel Rat, Harry Harrison

I was never particularly attracted by this book before, but when Ryan from SpecFic Junkie was reading it, he got me intrigued. I wasn’t going to buy it, in case it remained not-my-thing, but actually it’s pretty fun. Slippery Jim is basically a Vlad Taltos/Locke Lamora of sci-fi: a loveable rogue, ultimately reluctant to do real harm, and sort of kind of on the side of right. It’s a pretty short book, or the tone might start to grate, and there were one or two things I disliked about the portrayal of the female antagonist, but it was pretty fun.

The problem with the female antagonist is mostly that her motivation revolves around being ugly originally, and that “twisted” her. Because looks are the important thing, amirite? It’s sort of easier to take because it’s in character for the narrator, but the character’s actions aren’t hopeful in that direction.

Still, as a quick read, it works okay, and the pace and shortness keep it from getting annoying. It’s not 100% my thing, but I am going to read some more.

Rating: 3/5

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Review – Shaking Hands With Death

Posted August 16, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 5 Comments

Cover of Shaking Hands with Death by Terry PratchettShaking Hands With Death, Terry Pratchett

This short book contains an essay based very closely on a speech Terry Pratchett gave, with the help of Tony Robinson, about assisted dying and, more widely, the end of life, autonomy, and dying in the way you choose. It’s a subject pretty close to my heart, as it’s always been a subject I felt was important to debate about, and all my family are aware of my wishes if I can’t make decisions for myself anymore.

The problem is that gap where you can make the decision, but you need help to carry it through successfully. It’s not just a passing whim or a cry for help: it’s a genuine feeling that to end it now would be wise, and that there’s no hope of going anywhere but downhill; not a decision based solely on mood, obviously, but one which takes into account medical realities. I think people should be able to make that choice and, having settled things the way they need to, follow through. I have always maintained that I would rather a friend or family member die suddenly than slowly decline, particularly when that decline includes a loss of mental function. Were a family member of mine to ask me, I’d strongly consider agreeing to help them. I’d have no ethical objections, as long as they had capacity at the point of making the decision.

So I’ve always been strongly in support of Pratchett’s decisions around this, and his campaign for a change in the law. Given that, I’m not sure the extent to which someone else would find Pratchett’s arguments convincing. Still, I thought his arguments were clear and direct, without sentimentality but with feeling. I teared up a couple of times, reading this, and had the strong urge to find and hand my mother a copy so we could talk about it.

Rating: 5/5

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Review – Unspeakable

Posted August 15, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 4 Comments

Cover of Unspeakable by Abbie RushtonUnspeakable, Abbie Rushton

I’m so used to reading YA set in the US that I was actually surprised when I realised, oh hey, this is British! They’re doing their A Levels! So if that’s something you might be interested in, that’s another draw alongside the fact that it’s an LGBT story. (Well. Mostly just L.)

I originally had this as an ARC, but neglected it for so long that I ended up picking it up in the bookshop. I’m a little disappointed about that, because it turned out not to be for me. It’s pretty simply written, and while I like the issues it engages with, it was too obvious for me. There’s a mystery/thriller aspect, but I called it. And the characters… as I keep saying, teenagers may well act like that, so overblown and ridiculous, but I’m twenty-six and didn’t act like that even when I was a teenager! Much. I think. I hope. It’s just unpleasant to read about, because I just want to shake the characters — like seriously, you’re getting worked up because of what?

Even the adults seemed a little like that; I’m thinking of Megan’s mother. Granted, she was prone to drinking heavily and such, but still… It all felt a bit like a caricature, if that makes sense.

All the same, I’m going to donate this to the local library. Having LGBT stories there is important, and I don’t think this could possibly offend anyone, and it might be more to someone else’s taste.

Rating: 2/5

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Review – The Darkest Road

Posted August 14, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 8 Comments

Cover of The Darkest Road by Guy Gavriel KayThe Darkest Road, Guy Gavriel Kay
Originally reviewed 26th January, 2012

No matter how many times I read them, these books still make me cry, and more, they still have me reading late into the night, breathless and stunned. I know what’s going to happen, but that doesn’t take any of the poignancy out of it. Of the three books, this is the strongest: the best prose, the best action, the best images, the best in all the characters. He draws everything together do well, and puts the readers’ hearts through a blender without caring how much they’re undoubtedly cursing him.

(I seem to recall calling him a ‘magnificent, glorious bastard’ the last time I read it, and my other half agrees. No one can accuse Kay of being too gentle with his characters. He’s one of the few writers who can be ruthless. Tolkien’s work, dark as it can be, holds back from killing off the characters we love, and thus makes them less mortal, less fragile, and less dear.)

I still think that Kay sucks at building romance stories up. I believe in the established love of Arthur, Lancelot and Guinevere — and fresh from reading The Mists of Avalon, I find myself thinking that Kay wasn’t simply talking of loyalty to a lord when he wrote of Lancelot’s love for Arthur — and in that of Sharra and Diarmuid. Kim and Dave, Jaelle and Paul, though…

I’m pretty sure I’ll return to these books again, and find the same shining delight again.

Rating: 5/5

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Review – Buffalo Gals and Other Animal Presences

Posted August 13, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of Buffalo Gals and Other Animal Presences by Ursula Le GuinBuffalo Gals and Other Animal Presences, Ursula Le Guin

I imagine most of these stories are collected somewhere else by now, but I was also interested in this book for the introductions to each story, which may not be collected elsewhere. It’s interesting to see what Le Guin feels the stories are about, what she thinks is important to know. For example, with ‘The Wife’s Tale’, she apparently warns audiences that it is not a werewolf story at the beginning. But I thought that mistake was kind of the point? That flip-flop moment of, oh. I got it wrong. I assumed.

I’d read most of the stories before, but the poems were new. Ursula Le Guin always has a beautiful clarity about her writing, capturing mannerisms and small moments, crystallising it… and sometimes her plots feel too clever for me, but most of these are pretty accessible, and the introductions helped.

Rating: 4/5

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Review – The Galaxy Game

Posted August 12, 2015 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Cover of The Galaxy Game, by Karen LordThe Galaxy Game, Karen Lord
Received to review via Netgalley

100 pages into this, I ended up giving up, at least for now. I enjoyed The Best of All Possible Worlds, and thought I remembered it quite well, and yet all the interplay of characters and cultures felt confusing here. It features a minor character from The Best of All Possible Worlds as the main character, so you wouldn’t think it, but to be honest I am wondering if it’s best to read this straight after the first, so that all the societal details are at your fingertips. I just felt lost, unable to attach to characters or events, not quite sure why X was leading to Y, missing jumps of logic.

It’s entirely possible it’s also me being stupid, but I do think this lacked the structure and tightness of The Best of All Possible Worlds. The characters didn’t grab me, either; having Grace and her husband just in the background didn’t help, because they’re already strongly formed characters, and Rafi… you don’t know much about him in the first book, and he’s grown up a bit since then.

I might pick this up again if I ever give The Best of All Possible Worlds a reread, but I’m not that eager about it.

Rating: 2/5

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