This book is pretty darn good!
581346
When I read this book, I remembered Jr. High school myself. I know it`s kind of "young adult`ish" but it was ALL kinds of entertaining. I would recommend this book for ANYONE who wants to experience their teenage life.
1554273
This book caught my attention. I came across it via the Cemetery Dance website. I took a look on Amazon and it looked very interesting. Also, I'm familiar with Bev Vincent with his Road to the Dark Tower, and others. He is a great voice in King literature. The price was right, and I'm a Prime member so I get two day delivery. Not bad! The package came in two days, exactly. Very happy about that. When I opened the package, I was delighted to find that this book is just beautiful. I wasn't expecting the quality of the book that is presented here! It's an oversized book, a bit glossy, and the cover is a rather impressive photo of King (which I was familiar with prior- it's a great photo of him!) The actual book is fascinating; each chapter has a "sleeve/envelope" where you take out the contents, different to each chapter, to examine. It's a very interesting idea for a book, and very well done. I'm impressed with it. Overall, I believe I got what I paid for. It's a beautifully well done book, it's not a huuuge book content wise, but I would have likely paid more for what I received. It's good. Check it out, it's really fascintinating! (Another bonus of this book is you see some added photos of King that have never been seen before, some of him at a very young age! Others I was familiar with, but had never heard the back-story to them. It's all explained here!)
189511
I can't say enough about how good this book is. I was hesitant to try learning music from a book, and granted, you do need to be able to read (at least on a rudimentary level) music to pick up the concepts in the book. But I found that, especially with the help of the included CD, which is referenced frequently throughout the book, it was relatively easy. After reading the first few chapters, I was blown away by the fact that I was learning some REALLY important concepts that I had never really been told about before! Just knowing some of these previously mysterious concepts has made me a much better afro-cuban percussionist, and I'm just getting started with the book. Also, Michael Spiro is a true educator - clear, concise, and interesting - but not too dry! For conga players who have gotten past the initial stages of learning (proper technique,the basic rhythms, etc) and are looking to go to the next level, I highly recommend this.
3272377
You should charge for this book! It's way too good!
4963109
I just can't believe how good this book was!!!!.
1750871
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book but I absolutely LOVED it. Yes, there is quite a lot of bad language, but it's intertwined with the action well, and it makes sense in context. Think of it as "banter." It doesn't totally insult your intelligence like a Seth Rogen or Dane Cook movie. At heart, these characters are genuinely good people, although they are a little rough around the edges on the outside. And the rough edges are what's interesting about them. It's not a deep book--you won't learn big truths about yourself or the universe. However, you will laugh! If you've even played D&D just a couple of times, even if it was decades ago, you'll enjoy this. Suppose you could simply sleep to recover from a mortal injury? Suppose your friend could heal you with a few words? What if killing that guard at the gate meant REALLY cutting off his head? Silly, goofy, completely implausible. I finished reading this one last night and I've already bought the second one this morning!
3122761
I really enjoy this book, because it has all kinds of great quotes and questions that will appeal to most of us in some way.  This book can be as much or as little as you make it.  It's the kind of book you can pick up, turn to a page, and find something interesting.  I highly recommend it!
2587808
Reasons why this book is excellent:

1. The humor. Nothing helps concentration like funny stuff. The author writes well and injects humor intelligently throughout, without being childish.

2. The fact that you may well disagree with the author on several points (I do - notably social media and the need for an author platform) but will probably still think the book is great!

3. The fact that it doesn't waste the reader's time - it is concise, with bullet points and eye-catching titles and sub-headings, but packed with information.

4. The formatting. It is superb. Seriously, it's worth buying the book just to admire the formatting!

5. All the numbered stuff. Gotta love lists and numbers!

This is a must-read for every author who wants to get ahead of the pack.
4061628
I don't know how many others out there are like me, but this book was so good that I'm almost tempted to buy the $8.63 Kindle version of it... However, being of the mind that electronic books shouldn't cost that much, I got this book from the library, and have to say that it's the first of author Wingate's books that I've read - and it's *definitely* NOT the last!  I was so impressed with the writing of this book, from first page to last; it was not just a good story, but very well written, and I found myself really interested in all the characters... even the one eared cat that mysteriously comes in and out of the old house that Tandi is supposed to be cleaning.  On top of the cleaning, she ends up reading prayers that are in multiple prayer boxes found in the old woman's bedroom.  These tell the story of the old woman, and little by little, they change Tandi's attitude as well.  Well written/GREAT story!  Worth the read!
3763031
A really good book even for someone who doesnt read. (:
934302
If Mark Tufo were to write a user's end agreement or the technical notes to my dishwasher,  I would pre-order them and read them with gusto. Fortunately, this was a way more enjoyable story, gross and disgusting in spots, but in a good way!  I laughed, I cried, I got strange looks from people I don't know while reading and never cared because this book is just so damn good.  If I had to criticize anything about it; it would be that it is too short. I could have gladly read it for a few more days,  weeks or months, but only if I didn't have to wait any longer for it to come out!  So read it already!
3879681
I love this book! It is very funny and David has many stories to tell that will make you laugh. He might be a smart aleck but he's a good one. I hope he makes another book! P.S as a previous review said that the title didn't make sense you have to do two things to get it: 1) Read the intro (they are actually quite funny) and 2) There is a series of emails(another one of his stories) that explains the book cover image. I hope you enjoy! :)
1315432
A very well-written and incredibly useful book!
2000996
I really enjoyed this book!  It is pretty technical for a good pat of it (I am not technically inclined or educated) but if you pay attention, much of it is explained.  There is some good humor, some real nerve wracking  passages and overall it is a great book.  My husband is finally reading it now on my recommendation and is agreeing with me.  I can agree with others comments and understand some of the poor reviews, but for me it was well worth the read..
2571354
Who knew?? I actually don't read books that often at all but I was delighted when my wife got me this book for my birthday this year. I love how each chapter was fairly short so that I could easily read a whole chapter or 2 when I could squeeze in some reading time. Each chapter is like a little story which is great so you don't have to go back a paragraph or so to remember what you read last. I liked how Lino related all of the stories to his faith. It made me feel like I was actually learning something! Wow! Anyway, as a struggling Catholic myself, it's very reassuring to know there are lots of others like me just going through life trying to be better but not always succeeding...and it's okay! I'd like to say that I would recommend this book and "The Catholic Guy" radio show to all my fellow Catholic brothers and sisters but, it'll probably end up being only about 58% of them only because I'm getting old and I don't remember so much anymore. To sum it up: "Sinner: buy it, then read it."
1607211
Before you read, sorry, there be spoilers. Nothing to give the entire plot away, but if you're one of those, well, ye be warned.

A quick read, very engaging, and delightful from start to finish. Polished and well-thought-out, the book richly deserves four stars. I read the whole thing in one sitting. If I could, I'd give it four and a half stars. There is only one thing keeping it from getting a 5-star rating. But let me explain it this way:

I had to laugh when I read the acknowledgements at the end of the book. Kate Nintzel, BRAVO for making Mr. Testerman write another 75 pages into the book, and BOOOOOO for accepting only 75, and not 150. The single solitary thing I thought was lacking in this book, as other reviewers have noted, is that in his desire for economy of words, Mr. Testerman has lost just a little of the personality of his main characters. There's much more emphasis on the descriptions of what his characters are DOING physically rather than what they appear as.... which, since they are fantasy creatures, was exactly what I wanted more of. If this book had been ANOTHER 75 pages longer, I think it could've been that much better. That's a good thing, Mr. Testerman, to have people saying, "MORE! MORE!" when you are writing, and should be certainly taken to heart when you are writing your next novel. I understand the concept of leaving something to the reader's imagination, but I also wanted to know just exactly "which" version of the satyr this character was, or what the dragon really looked like!

One last thing: It was so abruptly ended, I wanted to cry! What about the sister?! Does she reconcile? The book ending does not lend itself well (in my humble opinion) to a sequel, but it just... ended! Great climax, good resolution, epilogue too short. A page and a half could've easily been ten in my mind to really button it up.

All that being said, to me, those are really quite pedestrian concerns and the book was overall really super. As others have commented, the cover art is TRULY splendid and absolutely perfect and ideally-suited to the concepts in the book.

I also agree with others who say this is less an urban fantasy than a urban-to-rural quest by a modern-day paladin/knight, culminating in a fairy-tale ending that's not exactly "sweet", I'd call it more "savory." Satisfying and rich, but doesn't make you go, "aw[...]" An honest read. Well worth full price. Really intriguing and smartly-written. But why are you still reading this review? Order this book!
4786541
Holy Cow! This book was so darn good! The first few chapters will have you comparing it to Jaws, but that's okay because the comparisons will be positive. But once you are past those beginning chapters, Shark Island stakes its own claims in the sea predator genre, and man, does it ever succeed. This book scared the heck out of me! Chris Jameson's prose is vivid and crisp, he doesn't waste words with needless exposition and he concentrates on the action. It may be the perfect beach read, but I would recommend Shark Island any time of year.