Joan Kessler
I loved the idea of this story; time-traveling with a talking cat. It has so much potential. It was a bit like the Sherman and Mr Peabody cartoons in that it was a fun jaunt through history but it had no particular narrative thread. It would have been great if there had been something that tied all the stories together so that it was more of a quest rather than a random sight-seeing tour.
Having loved E. Peters' Amelia Peabody series, I looked forward to a modern return to Howard Carter's Egypt. (I'm delighted that my copy has a modern cover design, too.) I liked this story overall, although it was about 100 pages before the story took off. It has humor and armchair travel highlights, and Deal has more than a passing knowledge of Egyptology. She tends to stray into the territory of information for its own sake, and over-explains instead of just getting on with the story. The book could easily be tightened. The typos and 1.5 spaced typesetting were off-putting. But it could be a promising series.
This first book by eleven-year-old Wilcox is a quick and entertaining read. It's well-paced with elements of magic, danger, and humor. The settings and characters are solid and believable. I particularly liked meeting the character Granite. Kids who like fantasy and adventure stories will like Phoenix Feathers.
An intense story about a strong-willed girl growing up without love, struggling through other horrible conditions, and finding freedom in body, mind, and soul in a time that didn't recognize freedom for women. The theme, love is not something you must earn, plays out beautifully throughout the book. But note to first-time readers of Jane Eyre; the annotations contain spoilers. I found this annoying, despite my familiarity with the story, and left off reading them for several chapters, catching up with them later. But on the whole, I appreciated the excellent annotations as a writing structure guide. A really insightful way to read a story.
If you like the dark and grotesque, this book is for you. I picked this up at an airport while waiting for a flight, wanting to expand my reading choices. Turns out it is not the sort of story I like, or the sort of character I like to read about. I found the opening confusing and the narrative difficult, but on the whole, Moshfegh is a skilled writer and the book, for what it is, is well done.
For years, I've been watching Doctor Who hoping to see the TARDIS kitchen, if only to confirm that the TARDIS galley cook is science-nerd chef Alton Brown. Meanwhile, I've got the cookbook, an Xmas present from my sister (who, serendipitously, received the same present from me). There are full color photographs for almost every recipe (though I could have done with a fork or teacup in the background for scale in some of them). Some recipes are straight forward (Pasta Bow Tie Salad, Banana Party Pops) and others are more labor-intensive (the TARDIS and Pandorica cakes). Some are instantly appealing (A Pizza Cassandra, Fish Fingers & Custard, and Jammy Dodgers), but not everyone will be tempted to tuck into an “Inside a Dalek” Salad. The cookbook also features photographs from the series. It's a delightful book for fans and adventurous cooks.
Until reading this book, my only knowledge of the Dracula story came from the films. While I still love some of the films (huge TCM fan), in them the character of Mina is usually diminished to that of a soft-boiled egg. But in his book, Stoker not only gives her intelligence, courage, and self-respect (as well as grace and beauty of mind), but also opportunities to use them. She is the hero of this story. Perhaps because Stoker's mother was a feminist, he saw no reason not to make Mina an active part of the story. It is well paced (although I could have done with less dialogue from Van Helsing), and he uses the landscape and scenery to evoke a perfectly creepy atmosphere. It makes for a compelling read.
Impossible to read this without hearing Kate's voice in your head. I don't always like the way she speaks, but she is true to herself, and I admire that. This is a favorite film of mine, and I enjoyed making the journey by book as well. There are plenty of full-page photographs in this single-chapter telling of a memorable adventure.
