I was a little apprehensive about this one, both because of an inherent distrust of popularity and because I'd gotten a somewhat bad review from a friend, but I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. The first two parts of the novel were witty and fun—somewhat like what I imagine a Jane Austen novel would be if I had ever been able to laugh at a Jane Austen novel. (Mind you, I haven't read any Austen since high school—maybe I'd like her work better if I revisited it today.) The third part was darker but no less engaging. I think it's quite an accomplishment that Clarke was able to write a novel in over a thousand pages that never felt slow or boring to me. In fairness, though, I must admit the possibility of some bias—since I first started the Hornblower series I've been becoming more and more enamored of fiction set in Napoleonic-era England.

Started: 2007-06-18 | Finished: 2007-07-11

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I think that what I love about Jeffrey Eugenides is the way he can so perfectly evoke the feeling of being a young person. My own childhood was rural instead of suburban, but there's a certain feeling to youth that I think must be universal, and Eugenides really knows how to capture that feeling. He did it in Middlesex and he did it in this book. What's different about this one, though, is that the narrator remains faceless. Despite that, or maybe because of it, we get a very good sense of the narrator—the story is told in such a personal way that you get the feeling that you're being told a story by a real adult looking back on real events from his past. I connected very strongly with the story, which of course made it all the more depressing in the end. In that respect it was perhaps not the best book for my current frame of mind, but it was nonetheless a beautiful, haunting story.

Started: 2007-06-04 | Finished: 2007-06-17

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I think I'd say that I liked this book more than I enjoyed it. I found the characters and their relationships intriguing and I loved the descriptions of the working-class towns in the English Midlands of the 1900's. Still, the prose style made things kind of difficult for me—I had a particularly hard time keeping up with the changes in perspective and the passage of time. All in all, though, I can see why this is the sort of book that is so often taught in lit classes and I'm glad I read it.

Started: 2007-03-26 | Finished: 2007-06-03

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I first read this book the summer before my freshman year of high school—it was our summer reading assignment. I ended up waiting until the last week before school started because, well, it was summer and I wanted to have fun, not do homework. Fortunately, I liked it so much that I tore through the book in about two days and was prepared for the test when I got to class on the first day. Coming back to it as an adult, I have to say that it holds up pretty well, although it does now feel strongly like a children's book. That's what it is, of course—the only reason I bring it up is that Watership Down is so often compared to The Lord of the Rings and while I can see the similarities, The Lord of the Rings brings me something new every time I read it, whereas this one is appealing more for the childlike point of view and the associated feelings of nostalgia.

Started: 2007-02-03 | Finished: 2007-03-12

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I'd never heard of Blindsight or Peter Watts before Raja (writer of the Strobelight Review here at Sakeriver) posted his review of the novel in the forum. Like him, I found this book engaging and the ideas in it intriguing, but at the same time I also found it kind of disturbing. Watts presents some very interesting ideas about the nature and function of human consciousness—indeed, he says in the endnotes that the book is really a thought experiment on that topic—but the conclusions he presents are the sort that tend to push me into the kind of existential introspection that I really don't enjoy. Still, Watts is a good enough writer that he does make a real novel out of Blindsight, with rich characterization and a fascinating, if—to my mind, at least—bleak milieu, rather than the mere veneer of a story that is all many hard SF writers can manage. If you're a fan of hard SF I'd recommend this one. It's a little hard to keep up at times but it's good enough to be worth it.

Started: 2007-01-08 | Finished: 2007-01-29

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I'd say that this was an interesting read, but not a great one. It was interesting because I got a glimpse at Vonnegut's beginnings as a writer. Not great because, well, the stories didn't hold up that well. They were well-written, sure, but the mood and sensibilities were pretty dated. It actually kind of reminded me of something Heinlein might have done in his short or young adult fiction, minus the science fiction aspects, of course. Still, the stories were entertaining and easy to read, so if you're looking for some light stuff—maybe a bathroom book—you might check this one out.

Started: 2006-12-18 | Finished: 2007-01-01

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If this book had been entirely fictional, I would have found it very moving. The fact that it's an autobiography leaves me a little confused. On the one hand, I found a lot I could relate to in the story Obama tells of his life. At the same time, the cynicism I've long felt toward politics and politicians predisposes me to distrusting it. It really did resonate with me, though. The more obvious part that drew me in was the portrait of a young man coming to terms with his mixed heritage. What really struck a chord with me, though, was the search for the stories of his own past. Reading about Obama's discoveries about his father made me think about how little I know about my own parents' lives. Even the parts that I was around for meant something different to me than to them. It's a strange thing to think about, that as familiar as the people in my life might be, I really hardly know them. So I think I can say that more than anything I've read in a long time I found this book inspiring.

Started: 2006-10-05 | Finished: 2006-10-24

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The short review: I was absolutely riveted by this book. Rather than being a complete history of the 442nd Regiment and 100th Battalion, Just Americans focuses on the formation of the units and the way that their actions in the Southern France campaign of World War II helped to end the internment of Japanese Americans back home. As a part of that Asahina examines the political motivations for and consequences of the internment, as well as an appendix that attempts to address some of the issues of revisionist history and the current state of the civil rights movement. I'm not sure I completely agree with everything Asahina says, and certainly fans of FDR will be struck by his scathing attack of New Deal social policies, but at the very least it's food for thought. That covers the intellectual part of my reaction. A more detailed discussion of the more personal part will follow in the Useless Opinions section.

Started: 2006-07-29 | Finished: 2006-08-03

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I've liked everything I've read by Steven Brust, so the fact that I liked this one as well is no surprise. Just like the rest, Issola was a quick read, full of action and sarcastic wit. Brust has a real knack for characterization—not only have I enjoyed the recurring lead characters throughout the series, but he also brings in new ones with each installment, or expands on smaller characters from previous novels, that also get to me. It's that skill that makes the poignant ending of Issola effective—much in the same way that it did in Teckla and Athyra, two of my favorites in the series. I'm looking forward to the next one.

Started: 2006-07-26 | Finished: 2006-07-29

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I haven't thought about Steven Brust's work in a while, but a Penny Arcade strip last month reminded me and the ensuing wave of nostalgia prompted me to spend a few weeks rereading his entire Vlad Taltos series. Of course, since the last time I'd read one of these novels two more had been written and I had to go and get those as well. I was a little surprised to find that the series held up just as well upon rereading as it did in my memory—possibly even better. Brust created a world that is just as intriguing to me as Middle Earth or The Land, but where Tolkien and Donaldson went for the mythic and epic, Brust wrote more colloquially. His characters end up feeling more real to me and more well-rounded—they have senses of humor, for one thing. It makes for a really fun read.

Started: 2006-07-23 | Finished: 2006-07-25

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