For the last couple of years, I joined Goodreads.com's reading challenge, where you set out to read a certain amount of books in a year and then try to get through them all. In 2015, I tried to do 12, but managed to finish 11 (the last one, Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon, I just was too tired in December to get through). I picked a few books by favorite authors, some by people that I've never read. Some were surprisingly bad, others were better than I expected, and one was The Martian.
So today, let's give you the rundown of what I read last year, listed alphabetically.
52-Pickup by Elmore Leonard: I read Get Shorty and Be Cool when I was in my early 20's and decided I was a fan of Elmore Leonard. I named one of my characters in my most recent novel in his honor (Dutch). I started this book expecting it to be an awesomely gritty crime story. Instead, I found it to be horribly dated, what with the free-flowing racial slurs and very outdated sensibilities. It was written in the 70's though, so I won't say he had lost touch, but the book definitely did not age well. 2 stars.
Beautiful You by Chuck Palahniuk: Palahniuk is another favorite of mine, having read six or seven of his books, including Fight Club and Choke. Beautiful You is the story of a woman who is made to be the guinea pig for a new generation of sex toy designed by a powerful businessman that has disastrous side effects up to and including death. These sex toys have turned women all over the world into masturbation addicts, and only the guinea pic, through mastery of her own sexuality, has a chance of stopping his plan for world domination. It's a well-written, off the wall story that I had a ton of fun with. 4 stars.
The Dead Run by Adam Mansbach: Yes, the Go The Fuck To Sleep guy. I liked another book of his (Rage is Back) and gave The Dead Run a look. I'm glad I did. In it, Mansbach weaves together a noir/supernatural tale that weaves together a smuggling story with a cult worshiping an immortal Incan priest. What really impressed me more than anything is that it seems Mansbach has a deep respect for ancient myths and legends regarding older cultures, and sprinkles that stuff liberally in the last two books of his I read (Rage is Back also had a mystic aspect to it, along with deep roots in B-boy culture. Another day though...). It was a great thrill ride and quite a compelling page-turner. Adam Mansbach is more than a gimmick children's writer. 4 stars.
Debbie Doesn't Do It Anymore by Walter Mosley: I have a Walter Mosley book that I haven't gotten around to reading, but when I saw the premise to this one, I had to pick it up. Porn mega-star Debbie Dare retires after the death of her cheating, abusive, porn-producer husband dies and finds herself burdened with the enormous debt her husband incurred to various LA lowlifes. In addition to figuring that out, she must reconcile with her family, his family, and the son she had when she was a teenager. It's a great setup, but it never quite got past "simmer" for me. I found myself engrossed enough to read it in a day and a half, but never quite got the payoff I was looking for. Not bad, but not great either. 3 stars.
The Dragon Factory by Jonathan Maberry: Book Two in his Joe Ledger series, of which I had read one and three and loved. The Dragon Factory features Joe Ledger and his DMS team pursuing a group of geneticists descended from Josef Mengele, who have created genetically engineered mythological creatures (dragons, unicorns, etc) for hunters sport... and to create an unstoppable army of fearsome potential to rule the world after a virus clears out all who do not fit the Nazi ideal of the Master Race. Yeah, I know, completely off the walls, batshit crazy. But wow, was this a fun action movie of a read. 4 stars.
Freaky Deaky by Elmore Leonard: My second Elmore Leonard book of 2015 led me to realize that I'm not as big a fan of his as I thought. Which is a shame. He follows two ex-hippie bombers as they try to extort a million dollars from someone they ran with back in the day, and the detective trying to stop them. Fairly bland, very dated. But I got through it in a day. 3 stars.
Ghosts of Manhattan by Douglas Brunt: Well-written story about a guy working at Bear Stearns at the the onset of the 2008 financial crisis... well-written in the sense that the story was well told. The protagonist, however, a very wealthy trader who is suddenly having a crisis of conscience with his lifestyle (oh, no, the hooker and blow life has too many hookers and too much blow... woe is me) rang completely hollow with me. I found him to be completely unlikable and his "struggle" didn't seem to be much of one at all. Liked the story, hated the storyteller. 3 stars.
The Martian by Andy Weir: The first manned mission to Mars leaves a man stranded on the surface after a freak dust storm, and he has to "science the shit out of this" to survive the estimated 600+ days it will take to wait for rescue. Brilliant and compelling, science-fiction close enough to realistic with an ease of access akin to Bill Nye The Science Guy. Thoroughly engrossing, we see the hero, Mark Watney, use science and humor to keep himself alive, hopeful and sane, alone on a barren planet, presumed dead, and billions of miles from home. Can't say enough good things about this. Read it. Now. 5 stars.
Monster by A. Lee Martinez: I underestimated this one going in, thinking it was kind of kiddie-fluff. Mistake. This turned out to be a solid supernatural read about a color-changing monster hunter and his paper-man sidekick, protecting a normal human from the magical forces trying to get to her. I'm not usually into fantasy stuff, but this was pretty fun to read. 4 stars.
Secondhand Souls by Christopher Moore: The latest by my current favorite author, Secondhand Souls is the sequel to A Dirty Job. The sequel finds a resurrected Charlie Asher and his friends Lily, Audrey, retired detective Alphonse Rivera and Minty Fresh, once again battle the mythical Morrigan for the souls of the recently departed in San Francisco while their new master, Minty's cousin Lemon Fresh seeks to ascend (or descend) and become a new god of Death. I'm a massive fan of Christopher Moore, and A Dirty Job was the first book of his that I read, so naturally Secondhand Souls was incredibly fun for me. If you haven't read the earlier book, then very little of it will makes sense to you at first. But I think you'll still enjoy it as Moore's engaging and riotously funny style gets you over that hump. 4 stars.
The Serpent of Venice by Christopher Moore: This sequel to Fool puts Pocket the Jester in Italy as he finds himself in the middle of Shakespeare's Othello, and with old friends and a new pet sea serpent, seeks to stop a coup. I wasn't as big a fan of Fool as I was of Christopher Moore's other stuff, but it wasn't bad. It was original and funny. This is kind of like the joke you love and makes you smile, but you've heard it before so you don't enjoy it quite so much. 3 stars.
There you go. 11 books, one year. Not bad, but this year, let's see if I can do more...
Showing posts with label Adam Mansbach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adam Mansbach. Show all posts
Thursday, January 21, 2016
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Something to Talk About
I haven't written in my blog in a while.
There are comfortable reasons why. I've been busy at work, I've been on vacation, I've been working on other writing projects. I've been busy finding a new apartment and preparing to move there. I've been busy living.
All of these things are true. None of them are the real reason. I haven't written in my blog of late because I haven't had anything to say.
In January, while anticipating my novel's release, I made what could only be called a business decision when I decided that I would not write about politics or race or religion or my opinion on any of the controversy of the day. I didn't want to offend and alienate potential customers. I was afraid. Consequently, I haven't had much to talk about because politics, race, and religion seem to be the top three conversation pieces in this country. So, in my effort to not offend anyone, I've essentially silenced myself.
It's a messed up commentary on the world we live in today. But we'll put that aside for now.
It is a thought process that has bled over into my personal life, and I find myself silent more often than not when a situation demands to be called out. I've let things pass because I've felt it was inappropriate to comment on it, or unwise to alienate certain people. Jeez, I'm strategizing my personal life!
When you're young and you have nothing to lose, you tend to speak your mind more; after all what difference does it make if some random person doesn't like you. But as you get older, an you acquire stuff -- possessions, careers, respectability -- you get less likely to risk the trappings of comfort and adulthood by speaking your mind. So in holding on to your stuff, you kind of lose your compass.
And to that I say, f**k that.
I will speak my mind more. I will say what people may not like to hear, not to be controversial, or to be funny per se. I won't do it to be crass or clever. I'll do it because I want to be honest with myself, and honor the things I believe in. I want to question the things that I don't understand, and expose the things that make no sense.
I want to have something to talk about.
Oh, yeah, coincidentally-but-not-really, there was a grand jury verdict today that caused a little hubbub. Make no mistake I'll have something to say about that.
There are comfortable reasons why. I've been busy at work, I've been on vacation, I've been working on other writing projects. I've been busy finding a new apartment and preparing to move there. I've been busy living.
All of these things are true. None of them are the real reason. I haven't written in my blog of late because I haven't had anything to say.
In January, while anticipating my novel's release, I made what could only be called a business decision when I decided that I would not write about politics or race or religion or my opinion on any of the controversy of the day. I didn't want to offend and alienate potential customers. I was afraid. Consequently, I haven't had much to talk about because politics, race, and religion seem to be the top three conversation pieces in this country. So, in my effort to not offend anyone, I've essentially silenced myself.
It's a messed up commentary on the world we live in today. But we'll put that aside for now.
It is a thought process that has bled over into my personal life, and I find myself silent more often than not when a situation demands to be called out. I've let things pass because I've felt it was inappropriate to comment on it, or unwise to alienate certain people. Jeez, I'm strategizing my personal life!
When you're young and you have nothing to lose, you tend to speak your mind more; after all what difference does it make if some random person doesn't like you. But as you get older, an you acquire stuff -- possessions, careers, respectability -- you get less likely to risk the trappings of comfort and adulthood by speaking your mind. So in holding on to your stuff, you kind of lose your compass.
And to that I say, f**k that.
I will speak my mind more. I will say what people may not like to hear, not to be controversial, or to be funny per se. I won't do it to be crass or clever. I'll do it because I want to be honest with myself, and honor the things I believe in. I want to question the things that I don't understand, and expose the things that make no sense.
I want to have something to talk about.
Oh, yeah, coincidentally-but-not-really, there was a grand jury verdict today that caused a little hubbub. Make no mistake I'll have something to say about that.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Review: Rage Is Back
Take one part teen angst, one part drugged-out mysticism, and one part ode to old-school B-Boy culture, mix well, and you have "Rage Is Back," the latest from Adam Mansbach. If the name sounds familiar, it's because he created a surge of controversy with a children's book for adults called "Go The Fuck To Sleep."
"Rage Is Back" follows 18 year-old Kilroy Dondi Vance, son of 80's graffiti icon Billy Rage. Dondi is a relbellious, disillusioned smart-ass from the outset as he whines about the events that led him to couch-surf with several friends, and change is set in motion when a member of Billy Rage's old crew informs Dondi that his father has returned to New York. It seems that on the night that Dondi was born, Billy witnessed a delusional police officer, which sends a grief-stricken Rage on a one-man graffiti campaign against the officer. And when the city responds by threatening jail time and a $2 million fine, Billy skips town, heading to Mexico without his wife or his infant son. Rage's return coincides with the mayoral campaign of the same cop that murdered his friend, so Dondi, Rage, and every graffiti artist they can find devise a plan to bring this cop down.
I found the narrative a bit stunted, filtered mainly through Dondi's eyes, leaving a healthy dose of annoying teen smugness to much of the first act. This is cleaned up by the middle of the book as Dondi deals with his daddy issues and starts to grow up, aided by a vision quest brought about by a mystical, South American hallucinogen. This does make the early parts of the story drag as Dondi is the self-righteous snot we all want to slap across the face. He's initially not a very likable narrator, and is self aware enough to mention as much.
Thematically, Mansbach touches on quite a few things that we can all relate to, such as the realization that once upon a time, our parents were "cool," or that once we focus our -- well, rage -- we can accomplish great things. He did his homework here as he frequently references mid-to-late 80's hip-hop culture as well as the graffiti phenomenon from the time. I personally found the mystic, hippie-ish, drugged out portions to be a bit unnecessary, but overall the story works.
By no means is Rage Is Back perfect. The lack of a likable narrator nearly torpedoes the story in the first 50 pages. The story, if you stick with it, is thoroughly enjoyable, and easily recommended as a way to pass a summer day.
Rating: 6 of 10.
"Rage Is Back" follows 18 year-old Kilroy Dondi Vance, son of 80's graffiti icon Billy Rage. Dondi is a relbellious, disillusioned smart-ass from the outset as he whines about the events that led him to couch-surf with several friends, and change is set in motion when a member of Billy Rage's old crew informs Dondi that his father has returned to New York. It seems that on the night that Dondi was born, Billy witnessed a delusional police officer, which sends a grief-stricken Rage on a one-man graffiti campaign against the officer. And when the city responds by threatening jail time and a $2 million fine, Billy skips town, heading to Mexico without his wife or his infant son. Rage's return coincides with the mayoral campaign of the same cop that murdered his friend, so Dondi, Rage, and every graffiti artist they can find devise a plan to bring this cop down.
I found the narrative a bit stunted, filtered mainly through Dondi's eyes, leaving a healthy dose of annoying teen smugness to much of the first act. This is cleaned up by the middle of the book as Dondi deals with his daddy issues and starts to grow up, aided by a vision quest brought about by a mystical, South American hallucinogen. This does make the early parts of the story drag as Dondi is the self-righteous snot we all want to slap across the face. He's initially not a very likable narrator, and is self aware enough to mention as much.
Thematically, Mansbach touches on quite a few things that we can all relate to, such as the realization that once upon a time, our parents were "cool," or that once we focus our -- well, rage -- we can accomplish great things. He did his homework here as he frequently references mid-to-late 80's hip-hop culture as well as the graffiti phenomenon from the time. I personally found the mystic, hippie-ish, drugged out portions to be a bit unnecessary, but overall the story works.
By no means is Rage Is Back perfect. The lack of a likable narrator nearly torpedoes the story in the first 50 pages. The story, if you stick with it, is thoroughly enjoyable, and easily recommended as a way to pass a summer day.
Rating: 6 of 10.
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