R. Moore

A crazy and dangerous culture

Revisado: 08-03-14

A well-researched story of a couple of deep-water divers and the mysterious U-boat they discovered. Very interesting insight into the culture of this crazy and dangerous lifestyle.

I’m only nitpicking now, but some parts veered too deep into backstories for me, and my interest waned at times.

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Typically good

Revisado: 08-03-14

Pretty much typical Neil Gaiman. But I love typical Neil Gaiman. I also love him as a narrator.

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Never excites or exalts

Revisado: 08-03-14

Hmmmmmmmm. Alright, so the writing is good. There are occasional great turns of phrase, and a bit of decent highbrow humor. The entire book is quite reminiscent of Downton Abby -- what with all the earls and ladies and the constant reminders of one’s proper place in British society.

However, the story moves like molasses at times, and as much as everything seems in place for a good read, it just never excites, exalts, or makes me feel like I’m lucky to have picked it up. I’m not overly disappointed that I read (listened to) it, but it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

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Creative, original, funny

Revisado: 07-18-14

I really, really enjoyed this book. It’s a collection of short stories (some very short) that really shows off B.J. Novak’s talents. He’s creative, original, funny, and a good writer. The audiobook version was especially enjoyable, featuring Novak himself reading most of the stories, along with fellow “The Office” cast members Jena Fisher, Mandy Kayling, and more.

My three-star rating is probably more of a three-and-a-half. The reason I don’t rate it higher is the inconsistency of the stories. Some just completely fell flat for me -- maybe because I wasn’t listening on the same plane as he was writing, and thus not really his fault. ☺

Fortunately, the flat stories are among the shortest, and it’s never very long to the next creative gem.

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Far from perfect, but an outstanding listen

Revisado: 06-07-14

It's been a while since I posted a review. Let me come back in fine fashion, then, with this gem. (The book is a gem. Not my review.)

The Sense of an Ending is far from perfect, and yet is the best book I’ve read in a long time. The story is narrated by Tony Webster, a 60-something looking back on some events in his life that he’s now discovering may not have happened quite as he remembered them. This, it is pointed out, is much like history itself. We (or at least those of us with spouses) know how often we get the details of even recent events wrong. How in the world, then, can accounts of historical events be trusted?

The actual storyline is quite interesting. The conversations, philosophizing, and lessons learned are thought-provoking. The writing is superb, filled with an almost ridiculous amount of quotable passages. Finally, you won’t be hearing one of my frequent complaints that the book could have been half as long -- this one is on the compact side and I actually would have liked it to go longer!

There are a couple of plot turns that didn’t quite make sense to me, but any complaints are certainly minor to the overall experience. As a bonus, the narration was superb.

Things for my own remembrance follow.

*

“History is that certainty produced at the point where the imperfections of memory meet the inadequacies of documentation.”

*

“When we’re young, everyone over the age of 30 looks middle-aged. Everyone over 50, antique. And time, as it goes by, confirms that we weren’t that wrong. Those little age differentials, so crucial and so gross when we are young, erode. We end up all belonging to the same category, that of the non-young.”

*

“We live with such easy assumptions, don’t we? For instance, that memory equals events plus time. But it’s all much odder than this. Who was it said that memory is what we thought we’d forgotten? And it ought to be obvious to us that time doesn’t act as a fixative, rather as a solvent. But it’s not convenient, it’s not useful to believe this. It doesn’t help use get on with our lives, so we ignore it.”

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Yes! Amazed how much I cared about these people.

Revisado: 10-06-13

Yes. Yes yes yes. This book succeeds in every way The Road failed for me. Set in Colorado after disease has wiped out most of the population, Hig has learned how to keep a small bit of his humanity while reluctantly doing what it takes to survive. Others aren't so reluctant, including Bangley, with whom he's formed an uneasy partnership.

The story hooks you from the beginning and builds nicely to the end, and Heller does a great job of developing characters you really care about. Then there's Jasper, Hig's beloved old dog, who made me come home and hug Garth every day after listening on my commute. I was, at the end, amazed how much I cared about these people (and dogs) and the bonds they formed. The writing is superb. About the only negative I can think of is the writing style Heller uses: Somewhat fragmented, perhaps the way inner dialog streams through our protagonist’s head. I barely noticed it while listening, but did see some reviews that a few readers were somewhat frustrated by it in the beginning, but after they stuck with it for a while it flowed naturally and worked well.

Things for my own remembrance follow.

*

(On constellations): I name one for a scrappy, fish-loving dog.

*

I still dream Jasper is alive. Before that, my heart will not go.

*

My favorite poem, the one by Li Shang-Yin:

When Will I Be Home?

When will I be home? I don't know.
In the mountains, in the rainy night,
The Autumn lake is flooded.
Someday we will be back together again.
We will sit in the candlelight by the West window.
And I will tell you how I remembered you
Tonight on the stormy mountain.

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Excellent story, great narrator

Revisado: 08-18-13

The conflict in Northern Ireland was constantly humming along in the background of my youth: Protestants, Catholics, car bombings, IRA, Ulster, Belfast, Londonderry. This book combines a good thriller with a lot of background on the conflict, and really helped me understand some of the finer points of what was going on. A solid four stars, and another half star for a well-read audiobook by Irishman Gerard Doyle.

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Interesting, but can't go further

Revisado: 06-27-13

This is certainly an interesting book, and not necessarily because of the storyline. After finishing up some great writing in books like The Thirteenth Tale and The Art of Fielding, the writing in this one was extremely simple and straightforward. No clever turns of phrase or eloquently woven sentences. However, the story was interesting enough that it didn’t really matter.

But, it’s an incomplete book. I knew that going in, of course, because it’s only part one of the series, but it was still a very unsatisfying experience. I can understand leaving the reader wanting more in the rest of the series, but it didn’t tie up any major storylines, and opened way too many doors and plotlines. After listening for 34 hours, there is no way I’m going any deeper into this interesting world.

Some other problems: While I liked switching between characters for the narration, a few major moments (such as the death of a major character) happened at a distance…told by different character. Or (as in the results of a battle) as a recounting at the dinner table. This was very odd to me, and seemed to minimize what were major episodes in the book.

I’d give it two stars, but the great world created by Martin and interesting storytelling pulls it up to three. Good narration by Roy Dotrice.

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I don't get the appeal

Revisado: 06-27-13

A quite run-of-the-mill and mostly forgettable book for me. It’s a collection of articles from Jon Ronson, who may or may not be famous outside the U.S. -- “Jon meets the man preparing to welcome the aliens to earth, the woman trying to build a fully-conscious robotic replica of the love of her life and the ‘Deal or No Deal’ contestants with a foolproof system to beat the Banker.” Though many reviewers laud his storytelling ability, I mostly found myself just on the short side of interested.

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Waited too long for the good stuff

Revisado: 03-18-13

The story was interesting enough to hold my attention (three stars isn’t a bad rating, after all). Guy moves into an apartment and begins to notice some very strange things about the building. Guy and neighbors start to compare notes, and decide to investigate. But I think it could have been far better. In journalism terms, the author “buried the lead.” It wasn’t until the latter part of the book that it hit me this could have been Stephen-King-esque if he hadn’t waited so long to bring elements from the last part of the book into the story.

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