Posts tagged fiction

Actual Book

Should I read it? Yes, if you’re in you’re between the ages of 28 and 42. In fact, you should read all of Jonathan Tropper’s novels if you’re in that age range.  Plan B is a quick read with engaging characters and my only disappointment is that I’ve now read all of Tropper’s books and have to wait until he releases a new one.  

ACTUAL BOOK

Should I read it? If you have any love of history, and specifically WWII, then yes.  Actually, you should read The Rising Tide first since it’s the first in this trilogy and then you should read this one.  I’m a huge fan of Shaara’s historical fiction and highly recommend all of them.

AUDIOBOOK read by Jayne Entwistle

Should I read it? Yes, if you’ve read the first two Flavia de Luce mysteries.  Bradley continues his series with the 11-year old protagonist and it is as enjoyable as the first two in the series.  The chemistry angle gets a little old, but that is easily overlooked in this quick read.  Entwistle does another fantastic job in narrating the audiobook.

AUDIOBOOK read by Rosalyn Landor

Should I read it? Maybe.  A difficult story about clones raised for organ donations, the narrative is engaging at times, but drags at others.  I also thought that Ishiguro overused the storyteller jumping between the recent past and the distant past.  If you like dystopian future stories, this one may be worth picking up.  The audiobook was serviceable, but not fantastic.

AUDIOBOOK read by Andre Braugher

Should you read it? No.  The story is forgettable and didn’t keep my interest.  The audiobook was well read by Braugher, but I’d recommend Chabon’s The Yiddish Policemen’s Union over this effort.

AUDIOBOOK read by Colin McPhillamy & Craig Baldwin

Ok, I’m behind on posting some of my latest books as I’ve been travelling.  I thoroughly enjoyed A Fraction of the Whole.  Toltz’s book follows an Australian father and son pair as the son recounts their adventures through life.  It’s a long read, but it’s very well written and quite funny at times.  The book is “written” by Jasper Dean whose father Martin is referred to as “the most hated man in Australia” and whose uncle Terry is referred to as “the most loved man in Australia”.  Martin is a remarkable character who is always trying to do things to make life better for everyone, but fails spectacularly in most efforts.  Terry is a murderer and criminal who captures the heart of the people by targeting athletes who cheat.  They are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to crazy and interesting characters in Toltz’s first novel and I look forward to additional works from him.  I also recommend the audiobook if you like Australian accents as both McPhillamy and Baldwin do a great job in reading the characters.

ACTUAL BOOK

Barring an unlikely reading binge before Sunday, it looks like 2011 will end with 43 books read.  And Full Dark, No Stars is a perfect ending book as I received it as a gift for Christmas in 2010 and it took me most of 2011 to finally read the thing.  Not that the book was bad, I just had a hard time engaging with it and found myself frequently picking up other books in its place.  A collection of four stories, this book goes to some dark areas, even for the likes of Stephen King.  There are so many fantastic King books, this just isn’t one of them.  I’d recommend picking up one of his other collections of stories (Night Shift, Skeleton Crew, etc).   

AUDIOBOOK read by Michael York

I enjoyed Chabon’s The Yiddish Policeman’s Union, so I picked this book up to see if that was an anomaly, or if I enjoy his writing in general.  I’m not sure that I’ve decided that definitively, but I did generally enjoy this book.  I think The Final Solution is targeted to young adults as the mystery is not real complex, but it was a quick read the was entertaining.  The main character in the book is an old retired English detective that helps a refugee boy who has had his parrot stolen.  The detective’s name is never given, but it can be read that he is Sherlock Holmes and I think that Chabon intended this story as a homage to Arthur Conan Doyle’s series.  The audiobook was read and produced well and is only about 3 hours, so a good one to pick up for a short trip.

AUDIOBOOK read by Simon Prebble

This was a pleasant surprise.  I can’t remember how I stumbled across this book, but I’m glad I picked it up as I very much enjoyed it.  The story takes place in Paris right after the final capture and exile of Napoleon.  There is an interesting historical feel to the book as it follows a young medical student who gets caught up with a gang of thieves.  The story moves well as he balances who he is supposed to be with who he is becoming.  For the audiobook, Simon Prebble does a great job with the narration.  A fairly quick read and worth the time. 

AUDIOBOOK read by multiple readers

I love David Sedaris.  I, however, do not much care for his short story choices, apparently.  I found this collection to be pretty dull.  I listened to this audiobook a month or two ago and can’t remember a single story from it.  Avoid this one and grab yourself an actual David Sedaris book.  Your life will be better for it.