I feel like there's no way for me to continue reviewing these books without repeating myself, and I'm only half way through the series. So I will just go ahead and apologize in advance for all of the rest of my Hornblowed-related reviews. This one, like the preceding four, was a great read. That's all.

Started: 2005-10-31 | Finished: 2005-11-08

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As you may know, Gene Wolfe is one of my favorite authors. He has this way of writing books that are layered enough that you can keep coming back to them and finding new ways of understanding them, while at the same time creating worlds and characters that intrigue you on the first read. Even though I know that Wolfe demands attention from his readers, I read this book too quickly. I was just enthralled by the mythology of the story and by many of the characters, especially Able (the narrator and protagonist) and Toug (a boy he meets early in the first book). I did try to read critically, but I was just enjoying it too much. Consequently, I am left with many questions at the end of the book. That doesn't really bother me, though, because it gives me an excuse to go back and read it again some time.

Started: 2005-10-19 | Finished: 2005-10-28

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I'm pretty wrapped up in the second book, and the first one alone doesn't stand alone as a story, anyway, so instead of reviewing both books separately, I'm going to cop out and review them together when I'm done with The Wizard. I know you are all terribly disappointed.

Started: 2005-10-07 | Finished: 2005-10-18

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It took me a pretty long time to finish this book considering that it wasn't terribly long. (My edition is 312 pages.) I never really got into it, I think. Even so, I got the sense that there was a whole subtle world of meaning that I was unable to connect with. There's a very Eastern European feeling of gravitas about all of the vignettes Kundera presents, and I did find his obsession with borders intriguing; it reflected the same sort of transitional moment that I find fascinating in Westerns. Still, I finished the book feeling like I didn't get it. Perhaps I'm just too entrenched in the modern sensibility that he seems to criticize to be able to fully appreciate what he's trying to say. Or maybe I just disagree with him. Or maybe he's not even really criticizing. I don't really know. I think in order to really understand Kundera's message I would have to put a lot more work in, but I don't think I'm willing to invest that much effort. Not right now, anyway.

Started: 2005-08-30 | Finished: 2005-10-06

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Assassination Vacation was a pretty decent read, but the thing you've got to keep in mind is that it's really more of a personal essay than a history--you learn a lot more about Sarah Vowell than you do about the presidents whose assassinations she follows. Vowell has an interesting voice as a writer, sarcastic and dry with a very sharp wit. She's very matter-of-fact about her opinions, which are very strong. The book is filled with little tidbits and details of the first three presidential assassinations--Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley--but what I found more interesting was the peek into Vowell's personality that the book provides. She's quite a character, as you might guess about the sort of person who plans vacations around travelling to obscure presidential museums, historical sites, and cemetaries. To Vowell, history and these presidents aren't dead, they are quite an active part of her life and the world she walks in. I wouldn't recommend this book to religious people or anyone who cares in the slightest for George W. Bush, but those of you who are liberal, atheist Bush-haters should find it entertaining.

Started: 2005-08-11 | Finished: 2005-08-20

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I have to say, I'm pretty impressed with the way this series has progressed. Rowling has managed to mature both her characters and her stories seamlessly and realistically. Younger fans, who have grown up with the series, have continued to find that the next book is right at their level. I do wonder a bit, though, at how I'll work this out with my own future kids. I mean, I don't think I'll be able to get away with saying, "The end. Now we'll have to wait another year until you're old enough for the next one." Well, I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. I quite enjoyed The Half-Blood Prince. Harry still had his share of youthful folly, but he wasn't nearly as angsty and annoying as he was in The Order of the Phoenix, and it was also interesting to see what Rowling did with the other characters. As with the previous book, though, this one had some very emotionally heavy scenes. I don't mind admitting that I was affected by it. I'm very interested to see how Rowling wraps it all up in Book 7.

Started: 2005-08-07 | Finished: 2005-08-09

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This one was an even quicker read than the previous three Hornblower books, or it would have been if I'd had more time to read it. Hornblower During the Crisis is a collection of two short stories and an unfinished fragment of the novel Forester was writing when he died. Reading that part was a little frustrating, as it ended far too soon, but fortunately the initial action of the story had been completed, so I wasn't left hanging as much as I could have been.

Started: 2005-07-10 | Finished: 2005-07-18

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You don't really need me to say that this is a good book. After all, it won the Pulitzer Prize. It is an excellent read, though. Diamond takes on a very profound question--that is, why were some civilizations able to advance so much more rapidly than others?--and is able to provide a very simple, satisfying answer. The best part is that the book is very easy to read; just about anyone should be able to understand Diamond's argument. In fact, the only reason that it took me so long to finish this book is that I was heavily distracted by video games. In any case, I highly recommend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in history or anthropology.

Started: 2005-04-12 | Finished: 2005-06-07

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In some ways, this was a worse book than the other two. The same annoyingly stilted writing style was present, but this time the book also suffered from a very odd structure. It felt as though the author had had ideas for two books but not enough to really flesh out either one sufficiently, so she just crammed both of then into a single volume. On the other hand, I found myself even more drawn in by the story, disjointed as it was. Something about the characters' increasing maturity, combined with the pseudo-African setting of the second half of the book and the addition of a young boy to the cast just clicked for me. All in all, I'm not sure whether I liked or disliked the series, but I have found myself wondering what happens next. If Carey ever does decide to write more stories set in this world, I do hope she gets over her overly affected writing habits. If not, I'll probably just complain and read them anyway.

Started: 2005-04-11 | Finished: 2005-04-20

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Book three of the Hornblower series was just as good as the first two, but it was kind of interesting to get a closer look into Hornblower's mind. The second book was told from another character's point of view, and the first kept the focus wider. This one, though, zoomed right in, giving us much more of Hornblower's thoughts and impressions. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Still, I think I'm going to take a bit of a break from the series; I don't want to get burned out on it.

Started: 2005-04-04 | Finished: 2005-04-10

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