Minerva Dobbs is a sensible girl. She’s an actuary, the man she’s dating is a sensible choice, and her clothes are sensible and “slimming.” But then there are her shoes. Her shoes hint at the real Min. Her shoes are fun, frivolous concoctions. One night, Min meets Calvin Morrissey in a bar. As she’s heading Continue Reading…
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde: Book Review
It seems like I run into references to Dorian Gray pretty frequently (Most recently in James Blunt’s song “Tears and Rain“). I decided to pick this up because I was tired of not understanding the references. The Picture of Dorian Gray begins with one of Dorian’s friends, a painter named Basil Hallward, just finishing his Continue Reading…
The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks: Book Review
Azoth is an 11-year-old boy barely surviving in the streets of Cenaria City. He’s part of a brutal gang of children who will do anything in order to survive. But Azoth wants to do more than survive; he wants a way out of the Warrens and he sees an apprenticeship with master assassin Durzo Blint Continue Reading…
Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey: Book Review
4 Stars. This was not what I expected, but I’m not complaining. I expected more of a science-fictiony werewolf story and that’s not really what this is. The nonhuman? superhuman? other-than-human? side of Loup definitely defines a large part of her life, but it’s not really what drives […]
Still Alice by Lisa Genova: Book Review
Dr. Alice Howland teaches psychology at Harvard. A brilliant researcher and professor, she has a field-changing body of work behind her and looks forward to many years of pursuing her passion. Then she starts noticing serious lapses in her memory. She finally gets scared when she goes out for a run and gets lost a Continue Reading…
The Arabian Nights: Book Review
For those 2 people who don’t know, The Arabian Nights is sort of a collection of short stories told in Arabia (which seems to include India and parts of China) waaaaaay back in the day. The framework of the story is about a sultan who caught his wife cheating on him. After he has her Continue Reading…
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot: Book Review
HeLa cells (named after the woman they came from, Henrietta Lacks) have been used for about 60 years by scientists all over the world for all kinds of cellular research. Yet very few scientists could tell you the real name of the woman the cells came from, much less anything about her. Yet somehow, Rebecca Continue Reading…
The Once and Future King by T.H. White: Book Review
This is the story of King Arthur, Guenever and Lancelot. I think we all know how that goes. I’ve been reading this off and on for the past six months. I would start to read it, lose interest, and pick up something more interesting. I finally decided that it was time to either give up Continue Reading…
Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor: Book Review
Karou is a blue-haired high school art student, living a double life in Prague. By day she deals with her jerk of an ex-boyfriend and hangs out with her best friend Zuzana. By evening, or whenever duty calls, she does odd jobs for her secret family, a group that she calls the Chimera. They seem Continue Reading…
Four to Score by Janet Evanovich: Book Review
Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has been given the task of bringing in Maxine Nowicki. It should be a straightforward job. Maxine has a clean record and she only “stole” her boyfriend’s car. But Maxine proves strangely elusive. Stephanie’s job gets harder when Joyce Barnhardt, a new bounty hunter, starts tracking Maxine as well. Stephanie and Continue Reading…
So Brave, Young, and Handsome by Leif Enger: Book Review
Monte Becket is a postman in Minnesota in 1915. In his spare time, he wrote a swash-buckling adventure that somehow becomes something of a bestseller. No one is more surprised than Monte. As these things do, the success goes to Monte’s head and he quits his day job to become a fulltime author. And he Continue Reading…