Monday, April 26, 2010

Another book review site

Here's a review on another site worth reading. His blog is all about meaningful books relevant to his personal life goals. Worth a visit.

Read the blog







_

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Friday, April 9, 2010

Some Driving Tips

~ Tell us the title: The Bad Driver's Handbook: Hundreds of Simple Maneuvers to Frustrate, Annoy, and Endanger Those Around You
~ Who penned this work?: Zack and Larry Arnstein
~ How did this piece find it's way to your nightstand?: The awesomely awesome Library Convention
~ Number of pages: 189
~ Time passed from start to finish?: 3 days
~ Describe the cover: Black and yellow similar to "Caution" tape, with an illustration of "The Jerk-Merge Left" and a stop sign with that doesn't say stop, instead "The Book the DMV Doesn't Want You to Read!"
~ In what section of the bookstore would a reader find this?: Humor, Fiction
~ Summary of the basic plot: Silliness, complete silliness. 39 ridiculous chapters of ways to piss of other drivers...and wreck your car. But, still funny.
~ Background information on the story/author: "Zack Arnstein, after failing his first three driving tests, finally passed it at the age of 16 on his fourth try, making him one of the world's most distinguished experts on driving tests." AND "Larry Arnstein, after failing his first driving test, passed it at the age of 18 on his second try. He has also collected his share of moving violations and fender-benders during a driving career which included driving taxicabs in New York City and Berkeley, California." straight from the back cover.
~ What did you think of it? (your general response, what you liked or didn't like, what you learned, anything else you want to share about it): Total silliness.
~ Which page was your favorite? Share why: Pg. 114, it has a list of what your mechanic might say and what it actually means. For example, "If Your Mechanic Says, Your intake manifold pulley needs to be rebuilt. He Means, I lost a bet last night, and I'm a bit low on cash."
~ If the story was made into a movie, who would you cast as the main characters? Not sure that works here...but maybe Will Ferrell and Jim Carrey, they could be really bad drivers.
~ Share a quote that was worth reading twice. Explain why: Nothing exactly quote-worthy.
~ Choose your rating:
- Changed. My. Life.
- I laughed, I cried, I want you to read it
- A definite page-turner
- Good to check out but don't spend the cash.
- Why did I waste my weekend on this?
- A disgrace to paper everywhere
~ Flip to page 2, 22, or 202. Share the 7th sentence on the page. "Basically, what he was trying to say, in his own way, is that speed limits are a crock of sh*t." (Somehow Einstein's Theory of Relativity explains away speed limits)

Cataldie's Mission

~ Tell us the title:
Coroner's Journal: Forensics and the Art of Stalking Death
~ Who penned this work?:
Louis Cataldie, M.D.
~ How did this piece find it's way to your nightstand?:
First trip to Powell's Books and the forensics aspect grabbed me.
~ Number of pages:
336
~ Time passed from start to finish?:
2 weeks
~ Describe the cover:
Black and white, low-angle shot of a sheet-covered body in a forest; title is this color, subtitle is this color.
~ In what section of the bookstore would a reader find this?:
Memoirs, Legal/Forensics
~ Summary of the basic plot:
Author tells about his life as a coroner. From duties in pursuing causes of death to cleaning up after Hurricane Katrina to the odd responsibility of committing psychotics to mental institutions.
~ Background information on the story/author:
Louis Cataldie was a General Practitioner when he first finished med school. He was actually drawn to be a coroner by his interest in psychiatry. When he moved to Baton Rouge he found himself working at the coroner's office. He progressed through the ranks and was acting coroner of East Baton Rouge Parish for five years. He finished his career after two years as the Louisiana State Medical Examiner.
~ What did you think of it? (your general response, what you liked or didn't like, what you learned, anything else you want to share about it):
It was an interesting point of view on murders with a few weird accidental deaths thrown in. It wasn't very technical in the biology/forensic science aspect, in fact it definitely could have used more input from the science side. Interesting note...he got sued at one point (case went to trial with Cataldie's side prevailing) by a lawyer that was a member of the Louisiana State Senate. A law that the Senator wrote saved him.
~ Which page was your favorite? Share why:
His description of the days after Hurricane Katrina paid respects to the deceased while providing a small glimpse of the horrors that occurred. In total, ten corpses were recovered from the Louisiana Superdome--contrary to urban legend, not one was a homicide." That revelation was a shock to me...five years later.
~ If the story was made into a movie, who would you cast as the main characters?
Actually, throw a toupe on Dr. Phil and you've got your guy. Not only the right look, but the personality seems to mesh too.
~ Share a quote that was worth reading twice. Explain why:
In total, ten corpses were recovered from the Louisiana Superdome--contrary to urban legend, not one was a homicide." That revelation was a shock to me...five years later.
~ Choose your rating:
- Changed. My. Life.
- I laughed, I cried, I want you to read it
- A definite page-turner
- Good to check out but don't spend the cash.
- Why did I waste my weekend on this?
- A disgrace to paper everywhere
~ Flip to page 2, 22, or 202. Share the 7th sentence on the page. Not appropriate.

Truth is more fascinating than fiction

~ Tell us the title: Louder Than Words: A new teen memoir series (sampler)
~ Who penned this work?: Several girls. This sampler contains excerpts from the stories by Chelsey Shannon, Marni Bates, and Emily Smucker
~ How did this piece find it's way to your nightstand?: Picked up from the library convention
~ Number of pages: 44
~ Time passed from start to finish?: About an hour
~ Describe the cover: Photos of the books by these three authors. Each book has a picture of the author on the front.
~ In what section of the bookstore would a reader find this?: Memoir/Biography or Teen
~ Summary of the basic plot: These are excerpts from three teen girls' stories of their unique lives. Chelsey's father was murdered. Marni has a disease where she compulsively pulls out her own hair. Emily learns she has West Nile.
~ Background information on the story/author: See above.
~ What did you think of it? (your general response, what you liked or didn't like, what you learned, anything else you want to share about it): These excerpts were incredibly well-written and conveyed emotional accuracy. I am very eager to read the full stories. These are three from a series that contains at least 4 other books I believe.
~ Which page was your favorite? Share why: That's difficult to say without getting to read the entirety of each story. Perhaps the first page of the sampler, because it caught my attention enough to take it.
~ Share a quote that was worth reading twice. Explain why: (from Marni's story): "Eyelashes have a completely different feel to them." She is talking about her disease (where she compulsively pulls out her own hair, eyelashes, eyebrows..) in great detail. I found such a fascination in this honest discussion. When I was in highschool, I knew a girl who had this disease. It was never talked about, however, which I always found frustrating because I wanted to understand it, to know what it felt like to her, and why she did it.
~ Choose your rating:
- Changed. My. Life.
- I laughed, I cried, I want you to read it
- A definite page-turner (and I want you to read it)
- Good to check out but don't spend the cash.
- Why did I waste my weekend on this?
- A disgrace to paper everywhere
~ Flip to page 2, 22, or 202. Share the 7th sentence on the page. "It was sort of like deforestation."

A memoir

Tell us the title:
A Common Pornography
Who penned this work?:
Kevin Sampsell
How did this piece find it's way to your nightstand?:
I got the book for free from the awesome library convention!
Number of pages:
218
Time passed from start to finish?:
About 36 hours
Describe the cover:
A chair stands alone in the corner of a room of uncomfortable brown shades.
In what section of the bookstore would a reader find this?:
Biography
Summary of the basic plot:
This is the biography/memoir of Kevin Sampsell. It details his life really from childhood to present day.
Background information on the story/author:
Kevin Sampsell works for Powell's Books here in Portland. He grew up around the Spokane area, lived a few other places, and wound up in Oregon.
What did you think of it? (your general response, what you liked or didn't like, what you learned, anything else you want to share about it):
I have to say I loved several things about it! The layout was wonderful. Each 'chapter' was essentially a different memory from his life, and lasted 4 pages at most. It made for a quick read, but it also felt like I was watching family videos, seeing just the highlights of what someone sees as the defining moments in their life. If I ever wrote a memoir of my own, I would want to do it in this style. He did a wonderful job carrying us from his childhood to his adult life with his manner of writing as the book progressed. His blatant honesty was shocking and refreshing, and added so much depth to the story, notably accenting his innocence as a child. His story shows that every family has some dirty little secrets, and sometimes the family itself doesn't know them.
Which page was your favorite? Share why:
Page 31, The chapter called Car-Mull. Whereupon him and his brother convince a neighbor boy to eat bird poo. It takes some guts to admit to doing such a thing.
If the story was made into a movie, who would you cast as the main characters?
Mmm, that's the thing about a memoir...I can't see anyone but him playing...himself. His dad would definitely be Jon Gries though.
Share a quote that was worth reading twice. Explain why:
(Describing his experience at his dad's funeral): "I hadn't brought a jacket and I was pretty cold. I could barely hear the last formulaic words of the priest and I just wanted to get back in my car. I saw the backhoe behind the crowd, behind a tree, like it was an animal trying to hide from us." To me, this is heartbreaking yet relieving, which I believe the funeral was for him. He's not focused on memories of his dad, and he just sees the blunt honesty of death (the backhoe 'hiding'). He's not listening to the priest, and he just wants to leave. It speaks to the poor relationship he had with his father, which is sad, but also to his acceptance of the loss.
Choose your rating:
- Changed. My. Life.
-I laughed, I cried, I want you to read it.
- A definite page-turner
- Good to check out but don't spend the cash.
- Why did I waste my weekend on this?
- A disgrace to paper everywhere
Flip to page 2, 22, or 202. Share the 7th sentence on the page.
"It was the first time I gave up."
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