La magia del lupo, é un racconto ambientato in una foresta, il giovane Torak, ha appena visto spegnersi davanti ai suoi occhi il padre,esperto cacciatore, dopo essere stati assaliti da un orso indemoniato.

 

Torak cercherà più volte di seguire il suo destino e salvare la foresta dall'orso, ma vi saranno stolti che gli metteranno sempre i bastoni tra le ruote. Cercheranno addirittura di ucciderlo per addempire la profezia sull'uomo che ascolta.

 

Un racconto crudo dove Torak va a caccia, sbudella e cucina le sue prede in compagnia di Lupo, e scoprirà segreti su suo padre che cambieranno per sempre la sua vita.

Una storia semplice che fa trasparire dei temi importanti come quello dell'amore fraterno e della fiducia reciproca che rendono possibile l'impossibile.

I'm sorry science fiction fans, for me Ender's Game was only OK.

 

I've finished the book some time ago but couldn't decide how I felt about it. There were lines, pages when I thought I'll just put it aside and let it go and other time I thought Hmm, oh wow, that's interesting point. It's been really long time since any book brought such contradictory thoughts.

 

Ender is a 6-year-old genius who is chosen to be world saver in upcoming war with aliens. The boy is taken from his family house to Battle School where he is trained hard beyond his possibilities. Ender is the best so he's also hated by other children, he struggles with other boys who bully and intimidate him. In those critical situations Ender reveals his dark side which is in odds with his inner feelings and leads to frustration and fear of becoming a monster, a sadist, a murderer, like his older brother. I felt really sorry for Ender but at the same time I just couldn't grab the connection with him as he didn't sound like a child, like a 6-year-old boy. It confused me and made me think of him as of total stranger and not character I'm bonded with.

 

Battle School brought Ender's many enemies and few friends with whom he trains. The description of battles and trainings were great and this part I really enjoyed.

 

But what the Game is really about? The story quite depressing and full of manipulations. Nothing seemed as it looked like, the adults in school were boys' guides, mentors and enemies at the same time. Not to mention the children who are quite terrifying with their big brains and deadly thoughts (there were moments where I thought of Lord of the flies).

 

Ender's Game has also a political aspect in which Ender's siblings pull the strings via net and false identities who are active in top world discussion panels. Thanks to their genius tactics they can influence the political and economic directions the world is heading. And this is the part which was the least interesting for me, it's just not my cup of tea. Like the whole science fiction, I'm afraid.

 

But then again, no one is perfect and not everyone needs to like everything.

I was never overweight until I hit my teens--then I struggled for decades with an increasing weight problem that got worse with every diet. I'd collect diets and diet books, Scarsdale, Rice Diet among others, all promising 20 pounds of weight loss within two weeks--and you know what, I succeeded in that. Problem was, that was a weight loss I couldn't sustain, not even long enough to get to goal weight and each time I'd fall away I'd get even fatter, until I was morbidly obese--over 250 pounds and a size 24. Maybe it's just I needed to change, but this book really made a big difference for me. I lost over 100 pounds. Over the years I've put some of it back--I had a bout of sciatica that caused me to stop hitting the gym and once I broke that habit I lost some of the good eating habits too--but only to a point. I didn't ever go back to my top weight--not even close. This stopped the yo-yo-ing and I'm well below 200 pounds--overweight, but not with the problems before this taught me to at least walk every day, use stairs, and eat somewhat healthier. And I know if I want, I could lose the rest again using this program. I'm not saying it's easy. The first two weeks of exercise were really hard for me. But I remember when I saw my first muscle, began to feel better and stronger. It is doable. Even for someone like me who is far from athletic. And I liked how it doesn't focus on calorie counting or weighing and measuring. You get a list of healthy foods, then a meal consists of a fist-sized portion of protein, a fist-sized portion of grains/carbs and lots of veggies. I find that a lot easier to live with than a program like Weight-Watchers.

Plundering Paradise: The Hand of Man on the Galápagos Islands referenceOpening: Midnight is not yet an hour away, and already the streets ofPuerto Ayora are in flames. The fires cast flickering shadowsacross the shuttered fronts of the village’s shops and bodegas. Thebroad fronds of the coconut palms and the feathery branches ofthe flamboyant trees glimmer against the overarching blacknessof the Pacific sky.The flames are fed by rag-stuffed effigies of the politicians andbankers, the oilmen and fruit barons, the dealmakers and millionaireson the mainland who, as far as these islanders are concerned, are robbingthe people of Ecuador blind.