THE COLOUR OF MAGIC

The Colour Of Magic

- Terry Pratchett -

Irrelevant, illogical, borderline insane.

Yet, imaginative, inventive, and irresistible.

This book has it all, or at least most. There are characters that are out of this world, literally. The world is out of this world, literally. And, the plot is so faint it doesn’t get in the way, however, it does gently glide the story along like a gentle summer breeze.

This is the first book in the well known Discworld series. Discworld is a made up land where almost anything goes. The laws of time, space, and sometimes gravity do not apply. There is magic, magical creatures, magical luggage…overall, all things magic. This land is completely unbelievable and you will need to let go of reality to even have a chance at enjoying this book. But, that’s the point I think? You don’t run across many adult books where the imagination is free to roam, but, you do here.

Trying to explain what happens in this novel will make anyone sound a bit crazy. I’ll give it good try though. There is a cowardly unwizard (never graduated wizard school) who runs across this tourist with a magic luggage chest. They end up burning down the town, destroying a giant one eyed monster, falling off the edge of the earth…in a ‘spaceship’. All the while being followed by the tourist’s luggage, by Death himself, and Fate (who is in competition with Lady Destiny). Crazy? No, in fact it’s a highly intelligent satire. Including some thinly veiled comparisons between deadly magic and nuclear radiation. I believe there is a lot more than I could comprehend on my first pass through.

I found the book a slow read, but I mean this in the very best way possible. Pratchett makes every word count, so I took my time savouring every phrase, every metaphor, every syllable! You really have to read it to know what I mean.Apparently these Disworld books are so popular there have been many more published. They seem to have a bit of a cult following.

Conclusion: It must be good.

I thought it was good, not mind-blowing mind you. But, partway between Great and Good. Good+ if it were a grade.

RATING : READ

Proof Positive

Proof Positive

- Phillip Margolin -

Do you like that show CSI? All that forensic science keep you glued to the tube? If you do, then you'll like this book. It's CSI in book form.

The plot of the book is pretty simple, a forensic scientist fakes evidence. If we are still on the CSI theme, it would be like an episode called 'Grissom Goes Bad'...however, in this book it leads to an execution!

The book starts with the execution and its impact on the defending lawyer. It then jumps ahead a few years where a couple of new cases and lawyers are introduced. Characters are developed, a bit of the science and procedures behind the forensics are shared, and an overall picture of the city and crime atmosphere are developed. I was surprised how well Margolin did all that in the first hundred or so pages. Sometimes character development is dull or awkward, but, I was interested, engaged, and felt I knew who most of the main characters were and what motivated them. Then the main story breaks out.

There is one forensic scientist who has a different outlook on life. He does whatever it takes to put criminals behind bars. He has a deranged superhero complex that makes him believe fudging data or flat out lying in court is ok as long as it helps put the bad guys behind bars. However, when a coworker questions a piece of evidence from a previous case then forensic scientist turns into Murderman. The murder brings on more investigating, which brings on more murders...which are almost unsolvable because of the knowledge the forensic scientist has. He knows how to cover up evidence, plant evidence, or just lie while investigating his own crimes. Will he be stopped?

Of course he will, but, I will leave out how. That's what makes a book like this so good to read.

RATING: READ

Agent 6

AGENT 6

- Tom Rob Smith -

An interesting 'thriller' that kept me engaged right until the end. Then it faltered. The ending was a bit lackluster and felt too open ended. I guess I thought there would be more. However, the steps taken to get there more than made up for it.

I took this book out of the library b/c of my 'read books by Smith author's' challenge. It looked cool and sounded like a good spy novel so I gave it a whirl. The story starts with Leo, a secret police agent in communist Russia in the fifties. He has a chance encounter with this beautiful, intelligent lady and ends up marrying her. His life changes as he turns from a hardened agent into a family man of sorts. His wife and daughters makes a monumental trip to the US at the peak of the cold war on a goodwill soft-politics type mission and it all turns bad. The wife is murdered and there is a huge political incident. It is covered up and lies are told. From that point on in the book Leo's only mission in life is to find out how and who killed his wife.

We then find Leo in Afghanistan in the eighties, when Russia invaded. The problems they faced are the exact same one's reported by Nato forces today. From there he manages to defect and make his way to the US, closer to his goal of finding the killer.

In the US he uses some of his old undercover agent spy tricks to uncover what happened the night his wife was murdered. He manages to track down the exact person who was responsible for her death - Agent 6. He confronts him, almost kills him, then the book quickly wraps up with his return to Russia.

I really liked the progression of the story, it was a quick trip through a bit of communist Russia's history. I ended up liking Leo, even though he was a cold character. But, it was that ending that just left me hanging. Almost the entire book was Leo working towards a goal. Then when the goal was accomplished the book should have ended, but, it didn't. It dragged on for a bit too long; open ended, no goal, sad, a bit cliche?

RATING: READ

RED GREEN'S DUCT TAPE IS NOT ENOUGH

Duct Tape Is Not Enough

- Steve Smith -

If you follow the Canadian literary scene you will be well aware that CBC's Canada Reads just finished. This years winner: Something Fierce by Carmen Aguirre. The debate was about which books was more Canadian. Which got me thinking about Canadian literature and how I could add some more to my diet of books.

I was reading Duct Tape Is Not Enough at the time, coincidentally, which happens to be written by a Canadian. Although the book was not necessarily about Canada or Canadian culture it was funny...which I believe is a Canadian trait?

I found the format of this book great to read during a true Canadian winter. The short one page stories are wonderful to read while busy doing typical Canadian things:

-While waiting for snow tires to be put on your car at Canadian Tire. You know you are going to be interrupted many times because they'll find more things that need fixing and replacing

-While waiting in the Tim Horton's drive thru line on a Sunday morning just as the church next door lets it's worshippers out.

-While ice fishing

-While riding as a passenger on a snowmobile (in some case even the driver, like while crossing a frozen lake)

-While curling

-While playing goalie in your Sr Men's Rec league on Weds nights

This is an easy, Canadian, book that can fit into your life - especially if you are feeling you need to add a bit more Canadian content. I found it easy to relate to, which is of some concern to me, and very funny. This one did not contain the patented handyman humour/disaster stories. No, this book was more of a guide to life, midlife. There was a lot of 'old guy' jokes and just humourous commentary on getting on in life. There was a disturbing theme veiled under all fo these jokes though. A constant repetition about being a failure in life, amounting to nothing, not being able to follow simple social etiquette even at a ripe old age...but, it's ok b/c most men turn out this way. Haha, so true, which makes it all the more funny.

Another great installment by Steve Smith.

RATING: READ

The Enchanted Wood

THE ENCHANTED WOOD

- Enid Blyton -

This book was a hit in our house! The five year old love it, and the thirty plus old couldn't put it down. The begs for 'just one more chapter' were frequently given into and reading would go late into the night...sometimes past 8pm! As I've eluded to, this book is so well written it appeals to everyone. Although aimed at kids the imaginative world that Blyton creates is just so interesting and magical that I found I was just excited for bedtime story time as my daughter.

The general story is about three children who find a gigantic magical tree in a small forest behind their house. At the top of the tree is a ladder that leads into the clouds and other lands. The lands change daily and you never know what will be up there. Being a children's book makes anything possible - there is no adult pretense that confines the imagination. The children find lands like 'take-what-you-want', 'birthday land', 'the land of topsy-turvy', and many more. Each one is extreme in some aspect which in most cases turns into a problem - an adventure as they refer to it in the book. Many times the children find themselves on the verge of being stuck in whatever strange land they are in forever, either by not following the obsure rules and laws they were ignorant of or just bad luck falling into the grasp of an evil wizard (or similar magical being). But, luckily they always seem to escape just in the knick of time.

The cast of characters is also unforgettable. You have Moon-face, a small man with a big head which looks like the moon. Silky, a soft spoken fairy with golden hair. Saucepan man, a ragtag fellow who wears pots and pans instead of clothing. Mr. Whatz-his-name, a strange guy who sleeps all the time and has no idea what his name is. Dame washalot, the local launderer who is constantly pouring her water down the tree and soaking unsuspecting climbers. And, a gaggle of other fairies, snowmen, wizards, goblins, animals...the list goes on.

Enid is able to create an almost believeable world by getting into the nitty-gritty details. She invents strange foods - pop-cakes & toffee shocks (both of which blow up in your mouth). She describes the tree in great detail it's texture and colour...it's almost like you are there. There is a lot of though put into describing the daily lives of the children and the strange fairy folk, which could sound boring and mundane, but Blyton makes it extremely interesting.

This book is the perfect blend of action/adventure and the building of a new imaginary world. The story is a constant up and down, which keeps things interesting, and makes for perfect places to stop reading - at least for the night. There is just so much packed into this book that a reread is just as enjoyable as the first time around.

RATING: READ

The City and The City

The City & The City

- China Meiville -

This was one of those books I've heard about so many times. It seems to pop up in discussion, I noticed it won the Hugo award, and I've put it on a list in my head of books to read one day. Well, I finally got to it, mostly out of default. I won an ereader and wanted to try taking an ebook out of the library. A quick search of available books brought up a bunch I had never heard of that looked very, very, very awful. So, when I came to The City & The City, the first book I recognized, I quickly downloaded it. Thank goodness I did.

The book is like an onion, not that it'll make you cry, but it has many layers. The more you peel the closer you get to the core. The story progression was fantastic. It goes from what appears to be a simple murder to near world destruction...almost. If you like dystopian books like 1984, you'll love this. It is set in a dystopian style society where there is a guy who knows the rules yet consciously breaks them. Then has to deal with the 'big brother' power. However, this books ends much happier.
The 'big brother' in this book is called 'Breach', and Breach will come and get you only if you break one rule - crossing the border.
Doesn't sound like that hard of a rule?
The problem is that the border crisscrosses and sometimes overlaps throughout a city. Sometimes one building will be in one country while the building next door is in the other. Some of the streets are 'crosshatched', which means used by both countries...however, the citizens cannot acknowledge one another. The border, effectively, extends into their minds.
This idea makes the beginning of the book very confusing as the characters describe 'unseeing' things and use strange terms like 'crosshatching' or 'gyrotopical'...even 'unsmelling' the smells of cooking from the other country - which could be the restaurant right next door. But, as the story progresses this is all explained in time and things start to fall into place. This steep learning curve, with all the new terminology, is one of those things that makes the book so rewarding.
I found the story so well written that even though I know there is no place like this on earth I could still picture exactly where it was on a map - like one of those small strange countries in Eastern Europe that used to be part of the USSR.
The subtle hints of where this country would fit in the real world were expertly thrown in to the conversations of the characters. References to the political ties with Canada and the isolation from the US, foreign investment from Europe, and an immigration problem with Turkey. Meiville paints a detailed portrait of this country in the imagination that is so realistic it left me the uncomfortable feeling that I was ignorant of a country that really existed.

Rating: READ

How To Do Everything

How to do Everything

- Steve Smith (aka Red Green) -

I'm on a humour streak, this is the third in a row and by far the funniest. This whole Red Green thing; the duct tape jokes, the terrible handyman stories, and the 'man' views of life's little moments, are all starting to make sense to me. I can finally relate! It's only taken thirty years. With all this life experience under my belt I can relate, which leads to laugh after laugh. I'd say this book is aimed more towards the middle aged man, but, I'm mature for my age...guess that's why I find the underwear jokes so funny?

The book had no storyline. No plot. No real structure of any kind. It is made up of short stories (some no longer than a paragraph), lists of all kinds (mostly relating to handyman screw ups), and a few highlighted boxes filled with handyman tips. So, perfect for the reader who only has a few minutes to waste, or a two minute attention span. In other words, men. Haha, I've just given away half the punchlines in the book.

Now, when I say this book is funny I mean it. I'll give you a play by play of me reading it. *Turn page. Read. Chuckle. Read. Quietly laugh. Read. Snort. Turn page. Read. Giggle. Get funny look from Jen. Read. Laugh and say, "ain't that the truth". Get told to keep it down. Turn page. Read. Stifle Laugh. Get the look again. Turn page. Have to leave the room to laugh.*

Seriously, this book will bring laughs to you and annoyance to those around you. It's that good!

RATING: Read

The Far Side Gallery 2

THE FAR SIDE GALLERY 2

- Gary Larson -

From start to finish all laughs. Which is good, because that is the point of this 'book' right? The odds are good you'll find a good chuckle on every page, seeing as there are on average 4 comics per page. What I found interesting was over the hundereds of 'funnies' in the collection, there was really only a small range of humour; animals in human situations (funny), violence or implied violence (funny), & cruel situations (funniest)...actually, if you take a step back this does not sound funny at all. That's the sign of a good humour, it can skate the line the between rude and just plain mean and split your gut hilarious.

While reading this book I found out how hard it is to describe a 'funny' situation without making is sound horrible. This happened when my five year old asked what I was reading (and laughing at). So, I tried to explain, "you see this? These guys are stuck on a deserted island with only a basketball hoop and ball. Now, look, there ball has popped. Isn't that funny?"

"Oh this is another funny one. See all the people in the airplane are scared b/c they think they are going to crash..."

From the eyes of a five year old these 'jokes' must look very different.

This brings me to the deeper meaning of the book. It is obvious now that this is a very critical view of humanity and our view as being a superior being. It brings to light the fact that our world is full of violence and unjust situations. Larson conveys this message in the best possible way - humour. Thanks oh wise one Gary!

Rating: READ*

*A perk to this book is that there is no plot to follow, which means you can read a page here, a page there, and never feel like your lost.

Can You Keep A Secret?

- Sophie Kinsella -

Laugh. Yep, this one will make you do that. The situations this girl gets herself into by keeping a few secrets are actually quite funny. I've written this down as another funny Kinsella book I'd recommend...which I know makes all the difference in the world to you.

This was one of those books I've been meaning to read for about five years now. During which time it has travelled, but eventually made it back to me. I feel it was my destiny to read it. It was initially my wife's book. She bought it when it was new, read it, and said it was good. I had read a couple of The Shopoholic books, so I kept it in the bookshelf thinking I'd read this Kinsella installment soon enough. Well, life moved on; babies, moving, cleaning the basement...which sent this book to the thrift shop/charity shop pile. Luckily, just as we were about to drop it off I had this great money-making idea that I'd sell the books to co-workers. The book was saved for a day or two. I took my pile of books into work and managed to sell them all, making a tidy profit of about $2. This book, however, was snatched up by a co-worker who didn't pay for it, but, promised to read it and give it back. Well, awhile later the book returned to me. Again, it sat on my shelf in the basement. Until just recently, when I felt like reading a humour book...well, look at that Can You Keep A Secret was just waiting for me. Now, that I've read it I can chuck it, or burn it, or 'sell' it to my co-workers again.

A quick rundown of the story is that the main character is on a plane that is about to crash. She spills her guts to the guy sitting beside her. Every small white lie she has ever told. Every embarrassing thought she's has. Her deep dark secrets. Everything! Of course, the plane does not crash and as it turns out the guy she told all her secrets too is the owner of the big corporation she works for. The romance story develops from there. I'm going to spoil the obvious ending - she get with the owner. But, of course, it's the journey that counts...which includes her secrets and little lies being put on public display. Oh, the hilarity.

What I liked was the witty internal dialogue. We've all had some thoughts we keep to ourselves, but, to read them is for some reason so funny. I could especially relate to the office jokes, as I work in an office. And, the supporting cast of characters were just quirky enough to be believable yet absurdly funny at the same time. The english slang is also another high point - oh bugger, oh bollocks, going to nip out for a Starbucks...just another layer of humour for high browers like me.

Rating : READ

The World Without Us

THE WORLD WITHOUT US

- Alan Weisman -

This is a book to make one think. Depending on your point of view the thinking could be positive and hopeful or as uncomfortable as a prostate exam. The question raised is - what would the world be like without us? If all humans just disappeared one day.

The books starts out simple enough, looking at common things like what would happen to your house, the street out front, the park down the road. Well, your house would rot; shingles give out in the first decade, the roof caves in, the walls rot and fall, the basement eventually fills in with debris and dirt. Within a couple of hundred years your house, heck the whole neighborhood, is a mound a dirt beneath the canopy of some mature forest. Weisman then takes us on a journey through New York city. You'd think this big 'concrete jungle' would never fall down, or when it did it would never change back into a natural jungle. Well, it turns out that might happen faster than you'd think. Mostly because the island New York was a swamp at one point, but, we've covered over it. This water will do some nasty damage to building foundations really really quickly and take down even the tallest structures. That is positive to me, in a strange sounding way. It gives me hope that we haven't completely trashed the earth and it could rebuild itself if given the chance.

Then comes the rest of the book. A closer look at what we would leave behind if we all just took off into space, or died out from a deadly virus, or got so addicted to reading blogs on books that we forgot to eat and all died. What we'd leave behind is scary. The ever popular climate change, a few hundred nuclear reactors, plastic plastic and more plastic, and various other hazardous chemicals. Some of these 'problems', like nuclear reactors, are safe right now because we have people keeping an eye on them. But, with people gone these things would eventually blow up and melt-down. And, apparently plastic never fully breaks down - there is no organism that will eat it (notch that up as a victory for mankind). What a legacy.

I found this book very accessible. There was no tech talk, just plain old english used. Easy to understand the ideas and theories that Weismen puts forth. What I really liked was when I put the book down...no, that didn't come out right...when I started thinking about my own situation. What would my house look like in ten years if I did nothing to it. What would it look like in ten years if the tree out front blew down in a storm and took out the windows. What would happen the van? Would I be able to come back in fifty years and pick out my washing machine? Oh, so many important questions. Dropping the jokes, I found this book very relevant and easy to relate to.

RATING: READ