Tag: 2015-reviews • BookLikes

show activity (+)

1

review 2016-03-12 19:06

I Will Get a Lot of Stick For This But...: "Shapes, Scenes and Strokes: Book Reviews 2015" by Myselfie

Shapes, Scenes and Strokes: Book Reviews 2015 - Manuel Augusto Antão

Over the last years, several people asked me whether I'd consider publishing a collection of my posts. Until 2015 I couldn't be bothered. Then someone offered to help me putting them out (I'm not at liberty to tell you who).

I've always wanted to collect my writing stuff. And to do that I always thought "Timelessness" had to be a factor, i.e., the essays had to be timeless. The last thing I would want to get is an essay book on the state of world peace...The essays needed to be written from an historical perspective as well, with the frame of reference being “...Book Reviews 2013, 2014, 20150,…” not “Last year,….

Two books I love are collections of essays by Umberto Eco ("How to travel with a Salmon") and John Clute ("Scores"). Both without much fanciness, but I don’t regret a dime buying them. If you like this kind of stuff, this collection of diatribes might be for you, otherwise stay well clear.

When I was thinking about publishing this 3rd book of my posts I asked myself why should I publish a book with my stuff in the first place. I mean, what is the advantage of having a book (and paying for it) over simply parsing through a list of posts and links (that my supposedly readers probably already know) online?

(On the cover of the book, Tram 28 which is a highlight of any visit to Lisbon-Not-In-Maine, my hometown ...).

I'd like to dedicate this collection to all the wonderful people I have met on Booklikes: Themis-Athena's Garden of Books, Troy's Blog, Bookstooge's Reviews On the Road, Char's Horror Corner, Reclusive Reads, BrokenTune, Bookaneer, RedTHaws Reads Randoml, The English Student, Book Reviews Forevermore, Awogfli - Bookcroc, Debbie's Spurts, Url Phantomhive, Murder by Death, Rachel the Book Harlot, The Mental Hoard of Bettie's Books, Lornographic Material, From Dark Places, The Grand World of Books, Thewanderingjew, 99 problems and a book ain't one, Lora's Rants and Reviews, To Read Is to Fly, I cannot live without books, Leopard, It's a Mad Mad World, It's a Hardback Life, Spare Ammo, WRGingell, Jessica's Book Thoughts, Constantly Moving the Bookmark, A Reading Life, ѦѺ, spocksbro, Lunaluss --- Because Books Lead you to Many Roads, Chris' Fish Place, Gregor Xane, Demoniacally Reading, Grimlock, Oldham Rocker's Mad Mumblings, Buchsalon, Arbie's Unoriginally Titled Book Blog, Sarah's Library, The Boat Was My Friend, SusannaG - Confessions of a Crazy Cat Lady, nospin, Gurglings of a Putrid Stream, BOOKWRAITHS REVIEWS, Dantastic Book Reviews and many others. It's really been fun.

If you can be bothered to read why I think rehashing my own stuff is a good idea, read on.

2016

Like Reblog Comment

show activity (+)

5

text 2016-01-02 17:46

December 2015 reviews

Familiar Diversions

I almost forgot about my December 2015 collage. It's...a little crammed. If I counted correctly, I reviewed more things in December than in the previous 8 months combined. Most of it was post-vacation catch-up. Since the pics are so tiny, here are a few favorites.

Favorite Book Cover:

My love for this cover was a big part of the reason why this was the first book by this author that I tried. Unfortunately, the book itself was almost painful to get through. (ETA: I just figured out that this cover art was created by Julie Dillon, one of my favorite artists. No wonder it caught my eye!)

Favorite Graphic Novel (Manga, etc.) Covers:

I love Sebastian dressed up as housemaster, the cover for Milkyway Hitchhiking makes me think of a children's book, and annoyed Chi is adorable (actually, any kind of Chi is adorable).

december 2015 reviews december 2015 collage

Like Reblog Comment

show activity (+)

8

review 2015-12-23 19:26

The Walking Dead: Invasion - A Review

Constantly Moving the Bookmark

THE WALKING DEAD: INVASION by Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga

When we last left our group of Woodbury survivors in “Descent” they had just moved everyone left after the governor’s rampage underground. They made the ancient tunnels and mine shafts habitable and safe. However, they knew they could not stay down there forever because living underground was taking it’s toll on the senior citizens and children in Lilly Caul’s group. Lily wants Woodbury back but it is still infested with the herd of walkers that drove them underground in the first place.

Deep in the “hinterlands” Reverend Gerlitz is very busy rebuilding his group of followers and he has come up with a diabolical new weapon to take revenge on not only the walkers roaming about but on Lilly and her group as well.

Which group will come up victorious is this (reputedly) final confrontation.

I had this audio book on hold at the library and it became available shortly after the “Walking Dead” midseason finale aired, so I could continue to get my “walker fix” for a little while longer. Although not the best book in the series I did enjoy this installment in the series and I think any fan of the television show would enjoy the books as well. Of course, there is no shortage of “gruesome” in these books and I think the only authors who can match George R.R. Martin for his ruthlessness in killing off favorite characters is the team of Kirkman and Bonansinga. What else can I say about this book? I enjoyed it and it is what it is … a book about a zombie apocalypse … that for some strange reason I find entertaining.

If you have read the other books and are a fan of the series then I highly recommend these books. Although there is some overlap between these books and the television series you won’t hear too many familiar names. If you are thinking about reading the books I would highly suggest starting with “The Road to Woodbury”.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

ROBERT KIRKMAN (from www.thewalkingdead.com)

In addition to his work as a writer and executive producer on The Walking Dead, Robert Kirkman is also a successful creator of independent comics. Kirkman created and continues to write the long-running Image Comics title The Walking Dead, on which the show is based, and the comics have been gaining popularity throughout its run. He also writes the acclaimed and equally long-running super-hero comic Invincible, which he created with Cory Walker, and the all-ages comic Super Dinosaur, which he created with Jason Howard.

JAY BONANSINGA (http://www.jaybonansinga.com/about)

THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE says, “Jay Bonansinga has quickly and firmly established himself as one of the most imaginative writers of thrillers. His twisting narratives, with their in-your-face glimpses of violence, are set in an unstable, almost psychotic universe that makes the work of many of his contemporaries look rather tame.”

Jay also proudly wears the hat of indie filmmaker: his music videos have been seen on The Nashville Network and Public Television, and his short film CITY OF MEN was awarded the prestigious silver plaque at the Chicago International Film Festival. The holder of a master’s degree in film from Columbia College Chicago, Jay currently resides in Evanston, Illinois. He is also a visiting professor at Northwestern University in their Creative Writing for the Media program, as well as the Graduate Writing Program at DePaul University.

ABOUT THE NARRATOR (www.fredberman.net)

Age & Hometown: 39 (“but in meerkat years, that’s 25!”); Manhasset, Long Island Current Role: Entertaining Broadway audiences as the hysterical meerkat Timon in Disney's long-running hit The Lion King. A Familiar Voice: An accomplished voiceover actor on more than 50 audio books, Berman says the key is not to impersonate or put on voices. “I cast the book in my mind,” he explains. “I say, ‘Who is this person?’ So, in my head, Judi Dench is playing this role. I don’t want to do an impersonation of Judi Dench, but I am channeling her in that moment. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.” Berman's audio work ranges from children’s books to what he calls “fantasy romance novels”—and sometimes both in the same day. “One time, I went from the most ridiculously depressing book, The Painted Bird, about a kid wandering through the forests of Poland after World War II, to a romance book where I voiced the sexiest Greek man alive who always wears leather pants and no shirt in softcore porn scenes.” When pressed to choose between acting and music, Berman responds, “I love them both, but I have to be honest: There is nothing in the world like playing drums in a rock-and-roll band at a live concert.

audio book review book reviews 2015 not exactly a christmas story

Like Reblog Comment

show activity (+)

5

review 2015-12-08 18:45

Review: Cold Feet at Christmas

Tina's Reading Space

The first thing that got me excited about this book was the adorable cover! Runaway bride, at Christmas no less... I was intrigued. What I hoped was a light hearted Christmas romance turned out to be more of a heavy, predictable story with some sexy scenes thrown in.

Now I'm usually all for some depth in my romance books. I love a good redemption story, but this book just had me frustrated the whole time. The book blurb promised a fleeing bride and a handsome man, both of which were present but the story itself was more about their bickering relationship, a man with a lot of baggage and a woman with no direction.

Leah seemed like a fun character, and while she had some funny moments she seemed artificial to me. Leave my wedding after finding my fiance with a bridesmaid and immediately jump into bed with a stranger? Well we all make mistakes when we are in pain and I can almost believe that. Proceed to move to a different country with no income and only knowing said stranger.... much less believable.

Aside from the insta-love from Leah's side, Rob was dealing with lots of demons of his own. I didn't quite expect the heaviness of his back story but that's not what bothered me. The writing style of constantly trying to create an internal conflict for him was hard to get through. Guilt and anger are sincere emotions and I feel like his standoffish behavior was supposed to create this tension with him and Leah but it seemed so forced and insincere. The constant "I don't deserve to be loved" attitude was exhausting and seemed to drag the story on for much longer than the actual 222 pages. His redemption moment was so very predictable I almost didn't finish the last chapter.

If you're looking for a light fun Christmas romance, this is not it. I will say that there were some exciting and sexy scenes mixed in with all of the drama that were fun to read.

romance Adult Romance predictable 2015 reviews

Like Reblog Comment

show activity (+)

1

text 2015-12-01 04:33

November 2015 Reviews

Familiar Diversions

I have a lot on my "to be reviewed" list, but I haven't gotten around to most of them yet. Which means that my November collage is pretty pathetic - 2 manga volumes, a box of snacks, and a TV series.

november 2015 reviews november 2015 collage