Bradford

A delicious mix of fantasy, tech and love

Revisado: 03-05-18

Anders deserved to win the Nebula for this work. She masterfully combines magic, witches and druidism with science fiction and technology in near-apocalyptic, 21st-century future. She deftly mixed the challenges of feelings, romance and social interaction with the big-picture challenges of morality, right vs. wrong and the potential end of the world at human hands. Even while her characters debate and fight to save the world, they are torn by their pasts, their present and uncertainty about themselves and roles. But Anders' great skill is not just in genre-blending, she wields the adjective with a mastery rarely seen these days. On every single page she engages at least 2-3 senses at a time with immaculate, intricate descriptions, drawing you even deeper into her world. If you have read any of Anders' work of follow her Twitter feed, you get a sense that years of frank discussions with other SF/F writers found their ways into the story, from the name of the bookstore, to the specific bars the characters visit, to the battle of magic vs. technology and who would win. I would say this is a great YA book, but for the adult language and sexual descriptions (the first and second chapters that introduce us to the middle grade-age main characters are perhaps the best character descriptions I have read in years!), but I think it would definitely appeal more to the YA/millennial reader vs. the classic SF/F reader. No matter what, if you want to take a romp through a fun, genre-blended adventure, this is the book for you.

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Good intro to the early days of the research

Revisado: 01-29-18

This book was written only a few years after the sub was raised, so it’s not the latest book to read. Written for readers in secondary school, it is a very good intro to the history, science and archeology around the sub and what is being done with it. Worth a listen.

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The Story of the Civil War

Revisado: 01-19-18

Professor Gallagher does an amazing job taking you through the political, military and cultural perspectives on the war. Make no mistake, this is a mid to high level overview since he rarely dives deep into greater detail except on the most pivotal of topics. Instead, this lecture is best used to introduce you to the people, places, events and impact of everything between 1860 and 1865, and then you take it from there on your own deeper dive research. Gallagher is careful to avoid broad generalizations or summaries and retains a dispassionate perspective on most things. He is clear on his personal biases towards particular individuals and events, although there are only a few of them. In the end, this lecture is like listening to someone tell you the story of the Civil War, and even with all the statistics that he brings, you feel like you’re listening to a story ... a great way to learn the history.

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A nice end to the series

Revisado: 05-04-16

The mirth and humor from the second book is all but gone, and the seriousness and tension of the situation for the characters is ramped up from the start and never lets go. Sanderson keeps the conflict moving steady onward to peaks and climaxes while continuing to build on the mythology that he has created in the series. Characters grow, long-term mysteries are resolved (well, the important ones, anyway), and the series is ultimately resolved, if not in the perfect way that I was hoping for. Sanderson's use of the salt city and parallel worlds are interesting but in the end cause more head-scratching than excitement as they contribute to this novel's storyline. I can't help but wonder if the story would have been better if he had kept everything isolated to a single world and focused on how the choices of the past and present are impacted by only the people in our world. But it still works, and it was a good finish to the series, if not a slam dunk. Andrews puts in a masterful performance once again, establishing great personalities for Evil Prof and Nighthawk that are likely spot on imitations for the voices that Sanderson heard in his head as he wrote. All in all, a good read and a good finish to the series.

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Great lecture on history of SF

Revisado: 04-02-16

After finishing the series, I wanted to sign up for his lectures. Wolfe brings a massive trove of direct experience and perspective to the subject that introduced topics within SF I'd never even thought about before. This lecture is the literary history of science fiction, and Wolfe never directly mentions how it "works." He lets the subject matter speak for itself. The only topic I felt he didn't explore was "soft" vs "hard" SF, but I'm sure he has a good reason. His own personal preferences and bias are kept in check until his lectures explore the fiction of his own lifetime.

As a lifelong fan/reader/writer of SF, this was a wonderful introduction to the larger literary "family" I never knew were there. I hope it will be for you too.

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It's like listening to an episode of Doctor Who!

Revisado: 01-14-16

I've only read a handful of Doctor Who novels, but I figured a novel that featured the War Doctor was a chance to reintroduce myself to the genre. I couldn't have been happier with the experience. It really was, like the headline suggests, as if I was listening to a transcript of a TV Doctor Who episode complete with familiar sound effects, voices, characters and situations. George Mann does a phenomenal job throwing in multiple references to canon Doctor Who episodes, both before and after the War Doctor. Key elements of his story refer back to my favorite classic Who episode, "The Five Doctors," which just made the story that much more meaningful to me. Nicholas Briggs is the voice of the Daleks on the television show, and he displays his incredible range of vocal skills in the narration. He does an excellent John Hurt impression, so his War Doctor dialogue is spot on. Having the same voice actor as the TV show just makes the Dalek dialogue that much more authentic. The novel introduces elements of the Time War and (no surprise) also ties directly into "The Day of the Doctor" TV episode. I, for one, would welcome more War Doctor stories, both before and after the events of this book, but I'll have to settle for before. There isn't much detail out there about the War Doctor, how he thought and behaved, and this novel is a fantastic start to filling in the gaps on that iteration of the Doctor. Definitely a worthwhile read for anyone who is a fan of the rebooted series and the War Doctor.

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A decent start

Revisado: 09-22-15

The bar was set high, and Wendig knew it. Anyone who has followed SW novels for the past 30 years and the expanded universe (that got dumped earlier this year) couldn't help but compare any new work to those books. Wendig knew better than anyone that if you read Timothy Zahn's Thrawn trilogy, the bar was set very high to make a better post-ROTJ story. Sadly, Wendig didn't make it over the bar, but he didn't knock it down either. This is the first book of a new trilogy, so Wendig had to setup a large number of characters and situations while also whetting the appetite of hardcore SW fans (like me) with updates on the whereabouts of our favorite characters. Wendig delivers on both accounts through a well-organized mixture of chapters and interludes, giving the reader a strong sense of where the SW universe is at this point. How all of the minor characters introduced in these interludes interact with each other and carry the narrative forward will be interesting to discover in future books. But sadly Wendig missed out on an opportunity to really push the SW universe forward towards Episode VII by focusing almost entirely on minor/new characters rather than on the main characters of the SW universe. I think the same story told with our SW favorites could have accomplished more. One thing that Wendig definitely did better than Zahn was paint the picture of life after ROTJ. Planets are still under Imperial control, and stormtroopers are everywhere to force peace and order. Rebels, Imperials, refugees, criminals and normal citizens of the galaxy are all haunted by PTSD or what they experienced during the war, and current events continue to impact their lives and inner struggles/sacrifices. The universe didn't just turn back into a happy place after ROTJ. Some things got much worse. Wendig definitely put the "Wars" back in "Star Wars," far better than Zahn did.

Wendig's voice and writing style (present tense) are not really my cup of tea, and the oddity of the voice sometimes wrecked havoc with my experience. While he threw in plenty of classic SW lines, sometimes he did it too much or put it into a character that just didn't fit right. The worst part of the novel were the numerous 21st century colloquialisms that Wendig threw in. Each time I ran into one, I was transported away from the SW universe and back into my reality; something the movies, Zahn and much of the expanded universe never, ever did. But Wendig will not apologize for his approach, nor will I ask him to. It simply diminished the overall experience of the book for me, that's all.

Marc Thompson's performance is amazing! He is a cast of characters all rolled up into one. He does an amazing Han Solo and Admiral Ackbar impersonation. Each character, however major/minor, has a distinct voice so there is no question who is talking. Alien characters are given texture and flavor through his performance that is otherwise lacking from the prose. For the lesser SW fan who might not know what a Sullustan is, Thompson's performance allows them to enjoy the character nonetheless. The production company spared no expense, providing numerous sound effects and original John Williams music to transport you into the SW universe (which made getting ripped out of them by Wendig's prose all the more unsatisfying).

All in all, I have to trust the minds at Disney that they know what they're doing and setting up a new SW universe filled with history and interesting characters, each of which are part of a larger universe that eventually impact each other. I have to trust Wendig will deliver on what he started in the next two books. The bar is still set high, but he has 2 more jumps to make.

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A good read for the dad of a newly diagnosed kid

Revisado: 08-25-15

My son was diagnosed on the ASD spectrum earlier this year, and like any good book lover I sought out answers in books and first-hand accounts from other parents. Peete's book stood out because of his popularity (I remember watching him play in the NFL as a kid) and his wife's advocating efforts for autism awareness. So it seemed like a safe read, and it definitely was. The majority of the book is the story of how the Peetes approached the challenges of autism with their son. If you're looking for a story about how a family deals with the diagnosis and the first few years with autism, this is a pretty good read, down-to-earth and without the scientific terms that other books throw in. I particularly enjoyed Peete's honesty about his own denial and poor choices after the diagnosis which only increase his credibility as a source of information about autism and how parents deal with it. I would also love to have another conversation with his daughter, the "Professor," since she gave some great advice on how to incorporate an autistic child into mainstream elementary school classes. Peete's "tips" at the end of chapters were sadly over-generalized pieces of advice that I've heard from many others before. But the honest recounting of his feelings, thoughts and experiences make this book a worthwhile read for any dad with a kid recently diagnosed on the spectrum. It's always good to hear there are others out there with similar if not identical experiences, and this book will certainly provide that. Perhaps it will have a stronger impact for other dads than it did for me, but I am glad that I read it.

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Another fun romp from Cline, but not as awesome

Revisado: 08-05-15

Cline's sophomore novel holds up on its own, but it's impossible not to compare it with "Ready Player One" given the endless slew of 1980's pop culture, movie, SF and other references strewn throughout "Armada." (I swear, Cline's futures can only be saved if we're all capable of maintaining 1980's culture. I shudder to wonder what types of books we'll see in 20 years when a SF author figures out how 1990's boy bands' music will save the world.) At times, the characters mirrored the characters of RPO so closely it was hard to tell the difference, but Cline separates them enough in personality if not with their actual dialogue. The main character uses complex words that he would never use but Cline might use often, but it's easy to look past that too. You can't do everything perfectly with first-person perspective, after all. The basic idea behind the novel is fun, and Cline introduces it in a playful way even though it's a massive infodump in Chapter 1. The impossibilities of the minor plot details (Really, a high school student is suddenly capable of flying a spaceship from the moon to Earth and through the atmosphere just because he played a lot of video games?) are quickly forgotten in the fast-paced action of the story, and the final solution to the impending invasion is nice but not great, reminding me more of the ending of Sagan's "Contact" than anything I was expecting. Wheaton continues to be the reigning king of narrating SF novels, putting in another amazing performance here. He even does a pretty good Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking impersonation. Wheaton is the perfect narrator for this novel and keeps you listening even as you roll your eyes. It's not near as good as "Ready Player One," but "Armada" continues all the great tropes that Cline has mastered. If you sit down in front of your first-player video games and wish that they were real, this is a novel worth your time. Mr. Cline, I look forward to your next book (John Hughes' movies save the world?).

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Fun and Interesting Hard Science Fiction

Revisado: 07-04-15

Andy Weir has proven how good it is to do your homework. As one who doesn't particularly favor hard science fiction, I really enjoyed this book that merged chemistry, physics and botany seamlessly into 1970's references, vernacular language and the high tension of space missions. Weir does a great job of explaining things without boring us or slowing down the narrative with a chemistry lesson. It helps that the main character combines the plucky delivery of a high-school chemistry teacher with the hard-nosed trucker who tells it like it is. If Wattney weren't such a likable character, this book would probably collapse under the weight of its own science. Instead, Weir put together a first-person narrative that will transport you to Mars and put you in peril alongside the characters. He'll keep you guessing as to whether or not the characters will endure as each crisis unfolds. And, even in the most dire of times, he'll drop a joke in to help you take a breath and keep going. This book was a surprisingly good read, especially for any reader with an in-depth knowledge of chemistry and physics (which I do not have). I definitely recommend it! Looking ahead to the movie coming out this fall and the cast they've assembled, if they stay true to the book, it will be a fun movie indeed.

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