Very intriguing epistolary polychronic novella with lyrical prose. Through the alternating messages of two adversaries, Red and Blue, in the Time War,Very intriguing epistolary polychronic novella with lyrical prose. Through the alternating messages of two adversaries, Red and Blue, in the Time War, we see them manipulate threads of time to push the outcome in their side's favor. No infodumps and a gradual reveal of the backstory. These adversaries admire one-another's work and fall in love via the temporal messages they plant for one another to discover much later in mundane things, like encoding them in the rings of trees, for instance. A very well thought-out and executed story. Highly recommended....more
Picked this up before a trip to Peru since it was the first book by the best known Nobel prize winning Peruvian author, Mario Vargas Llosa. It is abouPicked this up before a trip to Peru since it was the first book by the best known Nobel prize winning Peruvian author, Mario Vargas Llosa. It is about life in a military academy, boyish pranks, serious consequences and punishments for misbehaving, and then a cover up of a murder at the school. Also the first relationships with girls, and early dating. Rivalries over girls. Band of boys harassing younger initiates at he school. The writing was good, especially in the epilogue, where the present of the boy being interviewed by a friend is intertwined with the experience of that friend and his girlfriend sentence by sentence. Not much specifically about Perú,which I had hoped for. Seems to be universal in terms of what can be expected of teenage boys in a military academy....more
My Mom wrote this, her first children's book, at age 79! She hired a professional artist to illustrate it. And she signed my copy personally. How coulMy Mom wrote this, her first children's book, at age 79! She hired a professional artist to illustrate it. And she signed my copy personally. How could I not give her 5 stars?...more
My Mom wrote and illustrated this, her second children's book, at age 81! And she dedicated it to me and my siblings. How could I not give it 5 stars?My Mom wrote and illustrated this, her second children's book, at age 81! And she dedicated it to me and my siblings. How could I not give it 5 stars?...more
This one was just not in my wheelhouse. I appreciate the modernism, but it somehow seems derivative of Joyce and others. Surprised to find this so higThis one was just not in my wheelhouse. I appreciate the modernism, but it somehow seems derivative of Joyce and others. Surprised to find this so high on many best novels lists. It concentrates on form, divided into 12 episodes, but lacks coherence. Much is reminiscent of Dos Passos, the interjection of ads, radio, etc. The best episode is the one from Yvonne‘s POV. It‘s just hard to be sympathetic to a man who is knowingly drinking himself to death. Tough subject, but with some literary merit. Recommended only for literature fans. The looming of the volcanoes is nice death symbolism. ...more
A fun read, but the story is too fragmented over multiple time slices and character groups. The 50s sailor antics are the funnest part. The Malta concA fun read, but the story is too fragmented over multiple time slices and character groups. The 50s sailor antics are the funnest part. The Malta conclusion and Spionage story is not as entertaining. Lots of details about Malt, Egyptian, and Italy during the 1st 2 decades of the 20th century. The alligator hunters in the New York sewers were fun. In general, just fairly random, and not tied tightly together, rambling. The inventiveness in the naming of the characters is one of the highlights for me....more
Though this is not a novel, but rather a history, it is nonetheless a compelling read. I do miss the strong POV characters of the Song of Ice and FireThough this is not a novel, but rather a history, it is nonetheless a compelling read. I do miss the strong POV characters of the Song of Ice and Fire novels, but the limited semi-omniscient historian narrator gives the reader a good sense of the uncertainty of history, always comparing alternative accounts of events from different source historians. And one of those, Mushroom, a dwarf jester turned historian, reminds the reader of Tyrion in his wilder moods. The 135-year summary narrative is peppered with plenty of detailed anecdotes to keep the reader‘s interest. Of course there‘s not time to dive deep into many of the historical characters, and there‘s no inner monologues at all, but the reader does get a feel for some of these personalities and their conflicts. All in all, I enjoyed it and would recommend it for any fan of the novel series or the TV series. It provides a colorful background to the families found there. I read this in parallel with a reread of The Silmarillion, both also in parallel with the respective TV series, just to get a feel for the differences. I have to say that I really enjoyed this more than Tolkien‘s history and the same goes for the TV series derived from both of them. Despite being a long time Tolkien fan, I can now appreciate the revolution that Martin created in fantasy: good vs. evil is too simple - it is much better to have many characters with shades of gray, leaving room for intrigues, machinations, etc. One last comment: the paperback version i read had an interview with Martin at the back which was very illuminating about his creative process and decisions made in prioritizing which books to finish when. Also worth a read for fans of the unfinished Fire and Ice series. ...more
The idea was really good: archaeologists in space uncovering the ruins of ancient alien civilizations. Plenty of mystery about why they were wiped outThe idea was really good: archaeologists in space uncovering the ruins of ancient alien civilizations. Plenty of mystery about why they were wiped out. But the characterizations were weak. One main protagonist stood out, but the others all just blended in together and it was hard to distinguish them from one another. I read this because it appeared on a list of nominees for the Arthur C. Clarke award, but it doesn’t surprise me that this didn’t win it. Too bad, there were some really interesting ideas here....more
Genetically engineered “quaddies”, having four hands and no feet for work in zero g, achieve their freedom from their enslaving corporation with the hGenetically engineered “quaddies”, having four hands and no feet for work in zero g, achieve their freedom from their enslaving corporation with the help of a human engineer who sympathizes with their plight. Lots of details of welding in space. Incompetent adversaries make it an easy escape except for the engineering problems the quaddies have with their getaway habitat turned into spacecraft. Fast-paced, with some interesting inter-species interactions. Lots of details about pregnancy, childbirth and nursing in zero g. (I guess. The author went through a pregnancy while writing the book?). Some interesting scenes describing sex with 4 hands (each). Altogether decent light entertainment with a bit of depth regarding the emancipation movement. ...more
Once you get over the suspension of disbelief that people could actually manipulate seismic forces mentally, the story is a good one. I picked it up sOnce you get over the suspension of disbelief that people could actually manipulate seismic forces mentally, the story is a good one. I picked it up since it won the Hugo, but I’d classify it more as fantasy than sci-fi, due to the above-mentioned seismic manipulation powers of some characters. Character development is very strong, relationships are complex and thoroughly worked-out. All in all, a good read!...more
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