THE AMAZING SPIDERMAN: COMING HOME -- J. Michael Straczynski

Graphic Novel
Pencils: John Romita, Jr. Inks: Scott Hanna
Marvel Comics -- tpb
New York -- ©2001 -- 149pp
ISBN: 0-7851-0806-8

Spiderman faces his strongest, most impressive foe ever and uses brains rather than brawn to defeat his enemy.

I checked this out from my library because it helps me get my comic book "fix" to read an occassional graphic novel. My first reaction is that I am so incredibly under-impressed with the "style" of art in comic books/graphic novels today. I don't know if this style has been defined in any of the comic-related media, but I think of it as "comic book dwarfism" -- body parts, particularly heads, often larger than the rest of the body. While the coloring and inking might be better than that from the comics of the 70's-80's, they actually look less realistic to me.

Then there is the story. While moderately well-told, I couldn't help scoffing at the notion of yet ANOTHER foe, bigger, badder, stronger than anything Spidey has ever faced. How often can we keep coming up with new villains that are more villainous than anything before? The "twist" was that Spidey had to use his brains to defeat this one, and not his might. But what the heck was up with the other super freak? Where did he come from? Why did he die in such a pathetic manner?

Over-all pretty wimpy.

STAGGERFORD -- Jon Hassler

Ballentine Books -- pb
New York -- ©1974 -- 294pp
ISBN: 0-345-33375-6

Life in rural Minnesota is explored for one week, focusing on the events happening to one high school English teacher.

I really enjoyed reading this novel, it had a sense of Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon. If it never achieved the status of Lake Wobegon mythos, it's because the writing is just slightly uneven -- enough to prevent it from reaching best-seller status.

It's also quite possible that I enjoyed this more because I live in a small town, not un-like Staggerford, and was able to identify each of the characters, whereas someone who can not relate might not enjoy this book quite as much.

Still, I highly recommend this book.

PEPPERLAND -- Mark Delaney

Peachtree Publishers -- hc
Atlanta -- ©2004 -- 184pp
ISBN: 1-56145-317-X

A young girl, trying to deal with the death of her mother, finds a letter that her mother wrote to John Lennon but never sent. The girl decides to get the letter to John Lennon herself.

This is a typical YA book, full of pathos, passion, and drama -- mostly ego centric. I don't care for this kind of book, but I understand it's place in YA literature. That in mind, this was a decent book. I enjoyed the attention the young girl had for music. The relationship she had with her friend (who may or may not be gay, it was never clear ... only that he kept insisting he wasn't)was off-beat and took away from the story, though I admit that it lended a sense of realism to the story (life doesn't wrap everything up neatly and friends are unpredictable).

I was wishing that she would be able to get the letter to John Lennon, but it seems more appropriate that she isn't able to do it.

A decent read for this sort of book. Recommended for all teen-age girls living a dramatic life.

SILENT NIGHT: THE STORY OF THE WORLD WAR I CHRISTMAS TRUCE -- Stanley Weintraub

The Free Press
New York -- ©2001 -- 206pp
ISBN: 0-684-87281-1

An account of the make-shift, impromptu truce between German and English soldiers on the front lines during World War I.

This was a very interesting magazine article that has been padded to make a book. I felt that I was reading the same material over and over but in slightly different ways.

The most interesting part of this book was the all-too-brief section that indicated that a young Adolph Hitler served in an area where peace broke out during the Christmas holiday and that he had little tolerance for it.

The idea for this book was interesting, but there really wasn't enough original material for a book length manuscript.

THE SECOND MRS. GIACONDA -- E.L. Konigsburg

Aladdin Paperbacks (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) -- tpb
New York -- ©1975 -- 138pp
ISBN: 0-689-82121-2

A story of Leonardo DaVinci, his servant Salai, and the events leading up to the painting of the Mona Lisa.

There are very few authors whose books I will seek out, but Konigsburg is near the top of my list. Everything I've read of hers has been slightly different, and certainly far from "traditional" in the YA genre.

Here Konigsburg offers up some "historical fiction" about Leonardo DaVinci. I rather like the way Konigsburg handles this -- while the book seems to be about the painting of the Mona Lisa, it really is about the events leading up to the how and why of the painting. In fact, we don't meet the woman who sits for the portrait until the very last sentance of the book. This makes complete sense to me because it offers explanation (without being exposition) as to how Leonardo captures the smile and the "inner" soul of the model.

The drawback to this, of course, is that there really needs to be an understanding, on the part of the reader, who/what the Mona Lisa is, and why the painting is famous. Without this knowledge, and without, perhaps, some classroom study, the average reader most likely isn't going to understand what the books leads up to and why it ends just as we meet the title character.

Not my favorite Konigsburg book, but I'd still take a less-than-her-best Konigsburg over most other writers any time.

Recommended.

GILEAD -- Marilynne Robinson

Farrar, Strauss and Giroux -- hc
New York -- ©2004 -- 247pp
ISBN: 0-374-15389-2

An old man, a minister, writes a long letter to his very young son.

I struggled to keep my attention with this book. I had looked forward to reading this as it was the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2005, but was certainly under-whelmed by it.

Some very nice themes going here, which certainly helped it to win the prestigious prize, but I felt that the telling of it droned. The old man's "voice" was very one-note and it demanded attention to focus on what he was saying. Often I wasn't willing to give that attention because I didn't feel interested in what he was saying.

That the book was a looked-for, oft-requested best-seller doesn't surprise me. Many people buy books in mob mentality. That it won the Pulitzer doesn't surprise me, either. It's weighty themes and slow style seem tailor made for major book prizes. What will surprise me is if this book is remembered or studied even a decade from now -- if it becomes the "classic" that the booksellers promote it as.

MAGICAL THINKING: TRUE STORIES -- Augusten Burroughs

St. Martin's Press -- hc
New York -- ©2004 -- 268pp
ISBN: 0-312-31594-5

A collection of essays/memoirs.

Acknowledgements
"Commercial Break"
"Vanderbilt Genes"
"Transfixed by Transsexuals"
"Model Behavior"
"I Dated an Undertaker"
"And Now a Word from Our Sponsor"
"The Rat/Thing"
"Debby's Requirements"
"Roof Work"
"Beating Raoul"
"Holy Blow Job"
"Mark the Shrink"
"Telemarketing Revenge"
"My Last First Date"
"The Schnauzer"
"Key Worst"
"Ass Burger"
"Life Cycle of the North American Opossum"
"Cunnilingusville"
"I Kid You Not"
"I'm Gonna Live Forever"
"Total Turnaround"
"Roid Rage"
"Magical Thinking"
"Puff Derby"
"Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch"
"Up the Escalator"

Once again, an essayist (memoirist?) whose homosexual lifestyle plays prominently in his writing. This is not a lifestyle that I am familiar with, nor is it of any interest to me -- I am not curious about how his life might be different from mine because of the sexual preference. And since few of the pieces reach me on any other level, they don't hold any intrique. The article about his dwarfish cleaning lady was amusing, as was the title piece, but nothing else would lend me to recommend this book to anyone.

MEFISTO IN ONYX -- Harlan Ellison

Mark V. Ziesing Books
Shingletown, CA -- ©1993 -- 91pp
ISBN: 0-929480-31-7
Introduction and cover by Frank Miller

A man who has the power to read minds is asked by a friend to prove the innocence of a convicted mass murderer.

Only Harlan Ellison can get away with writing a short story (not even a novelette) and have it published as its own book. And... only Ellison can add a "thank you" to three people for "their rudeness, ineptitude, short-sightedness, cowardice, ignorant arrogance, and boneheaded behavior" for not printing the story in "one of their forgettable anthologies." I'm sorry, but the days when I thought it was fun to read Ellison's arrogance, rants, and full-frontal assaults are long gone. They were good when he backed them up with powerful new works, but he's too long lived on the glory days gone by and re-issues of old works.

And then there's this "book." It's ... eh... okay. What I heard was Ellison's voice, in all three main characters. There was little, if any individuality, which made the story feel more like a personal commentary, rather than a uniquely crafted tale to disturb or awaken, or whatever Ellison wanted us to feel.

Yeah, his prose style still "rocks," but maybe I'd like to see him stretch himself a bit and give us something new.

DRESS YOUR FAMILY IN CORDUROY AND DENIM -- David Sedaris

Little, Brown and Company -- tpb
New York -- ©2004 -- 257pp
ISBN: 0-965-90483-0

A collection of essays.

"Us and Them"
"Let It Snow"
"The Ship Shape"
"Full House"
"Consider The Stars"
"Monie Changes Everything"
"The Change In Me"
"Hejira"
"Slumus Lordicus"
"The Girl Next Door"
"Blood Work"
"The End Of The Affair"
"Repeat After Me"
"Six To Eight Black Men"
"Rooster at the Hitchin' Post"
"Possession"
"Put a Lid on It"
"A Can of Worms"
"Chicken in the Henhouse"
"Who's the Chef?"
"Baby Einstein"
"Nuit of the Living Dead"

David Sedaris seemed like a "big name" in essayist. I was running across him everywhere, I thought. Then, at a friend's house, I picked up one of his earlier collections and chuckled through a few of the essays. And so it was that I was looking forward to this collection.

However, what I came away with was a personal dislike for David Sedaris himself. What I came away with was a vision of a gay man (he seemed to play up his homosexuality a bit) who was whiny, bitchy, and argumentative simply for the sake of an argument (even when he knew he was wrong).

Whether any of this is true or not is beside the point. It's the impression that I came away with. And since none of the essays left any kind of positive impression with me, I'm not looking forward to reading any more Sedaris.

I quickly donated this book to my local library. If you want to read it, check it out -- don't waste your money.

BLINK -- Malcolm Gladwell

Little, Brown and Company -- hc
New York -- ©2005 -- 277pp
ISBN: 0-316-17232-4

An account of research in to the idea that first impressions are often more valuable than lengthy study.

This was a fascinating book. For those of us who have often felt that we generally have had a good sense of acknowledging and trusting our first impressions, even when we can't explain why, this book offers credence among it's documentation. The delivery of the information here was smooth and easy to read.

It will still be difficult to convince people that "a hunch" can still be valid when we are conditioned to only accept things with a great deal of introspection and study. But the studies mentioned in this book show that often a hunch is simply our brain reacting much faster than we can comprehend, and that maybe we need to accept that.

A highly recommended read.

BLACK LIGHT -- Galway Kinnell

North Point Press -- pb
San Francisco -- ©1966,1980 -- 116pp
ISBN: 0-86547-016-2

A rug weaver in Iran commits murder and is forced to live as a wanderer.

This book is more interesting now, I believe, because of it taking place in Iran.

I have a couple of problems in trying to enjoy this book. First, I have no sympathy or empathy or care for the main character. He is who he is, and I wonder why I am following his story.

While the idea of a parent and child making love is certainly not new in literature, the description and subsequent realization as described here was revolting. And what was it's purpose? I'm not sure.

I'd have trouble recommending this book primarily because it's the sort of book that relies heavily on theme, and here I am not certain as to what the theme is.

THE RUBY IN THE SMOKE -- Philip Pullman

The Sally Lockheart Trilogy -- Book One
Alfred A. Knopf -- pb
New York -- ©1985 -- 230pp
ISBN: 0-394-89589-4

A young girl, in Victorian England, learns of her father's death and a rare, cursed ruby that seems to be a the center of a murderous mystery.

I like the way Pullman weaves his tale, and I often enjoyed reading this book, though it's certainly not one of his better books. There were plot points and character movements which seemed to have no purpose.

While I feel that a weak Philip Pullman book is probably better than many others' best, this is not one I'd recommend, and I'm while I'll likely read the other books in the trilogy at some time, I'm not eactly eager to get in to the next book.

CHILDREN PLAYING BEFORE A STATUE OF HERCULES -- David Sedaris, editor

Simon and Schuster paperbacks -- tpb
New York -- ©2005 -- 344pp
ISBN: 0-7432-7394-X

A collection of short stories. Sales of the book support 826NYC, a non-profit tutoring center in Brooklyn, NY. Contents of the book are:

"Introduction" -- David Sedaris
"Oh, Joseph, I'm So Tired" -- Richard Yates
"Gryphon" -- Charles Baxter
"Interpreter of Maladies" -- Jhumpa Lahiri
"The Garden Party" -- Katherine Mansfield
"Half a Grapefruit" -- Alice Munro
"Applause, Applause" -- Jean Thompson
"I Know What I'm Doing About All the Attention I've Been Getting" -- Frank Gannon
"Where the Door Is Always Open and the Welcome Mat Is Out" -- Patricia Highsmith
"The Best of Betty" -- Jincy Willett
"Song of the Shirt, 1941" -- Dorothy Parker
"The Girl With the Blackened Eye" -- Joyce Carol Oates
"People Like That Are the Only People Here: Canonical Babbling in Peed Onk" -- Lorrie Moore
"Revelation" -- Flannery O'Connor
"In the Cemetery Where Al Jolsen Is Buried" -- Amy Hempel
"Cosmopolitan" -- Akhil Sharma
"Irish Girl" -- Tim Johnston
"Bullet in the Brain" -- Tobias Wolff
"Epilogue: About 826NYC" -- Sarah Vowell

I like reading short stories, and I like collections such as this to expose me to the works of other authors I might not normally look for. Unforunately, while most (if not all) these stories are well told and interesting in some way, none of them has made a lasting impression with me. Never did I go back to double check an author's name because I wanted more by that person. And some of these authors are "big name" writers!

A worthy cause and a decent collection make this a worthwhile purchase, but the forgettable nature of the works suggest that I don't recommend it.

A NEW THEATRE -- Tyrone Guthrie

McGraw-Hill Book Company -- hc
New York -- ©1964 -- 188pp
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 64-22458

An exploration of the reasons behind Guthrie's building of a new theatre in Minneapolis, MN, and his reflections of the first season.

I am very impressed with Guthrie's thoughts and reflections on theatre in general.

"Great drama," he writes, "always adds... some philosophical comment or allegorical overtone, not necessarily -- or even frequently -- with a conscious didactic purpose, but always with didactic possibilities."

Twice he defines "drama," both accurate and succinct. "Drama is...the re-creation by actors of a group of persons and a series of events." And, "Drama is the telling of a story in the most vivid possible manner."

And here he seems to put his finger on what is precisely right...and wrong...with theatre today (the today of forty years ago and still the today of now):"The theatre exists to entertain. Entertainment can be educative; but it is a regrettable fallacy that a serious theatre must be consciously instructive. The fallacy has been fostered by theatre people, because we have learnt, by bitter experience, that public bodies will give you funds if they can be persuaded that you aim to Educate. But if, more truthfully, you admit that your first aim is to Entertain then you won't get a cent."

This certainly hasn't changed one iota. In fact, as the arts continue to struggle to survive, the "education factor" for each project seems more and more vital. When do we get to play?

Guthrie wraps up his book with this thought:"The three greatest periods in the history of the theatre -- the Athenian stage of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides; the Elizabethan stage in England which produced Marlowe, Shakespeare, Ben Jonson and half a dozen lesser but significant poets; the French stage of Racine, Corneille and Moliere -- all these could not have happened if the writers, actors and craftsmen had not been fortunate enough to live in an age and place where a highly intelligent, lively and demanding audience had helped to create a theatre which was far more than a commercial business and far more than a frivolous pastime. Neither the artists and craftsmen nor the audience can do this alone. It is a shared process of creation, a fruitful union."

I'm not sure that this has been recognized or acknowledged any better than the way Guthrie puts it in this book. It is certainly food for thought for those of us who look to produce Art. We can only do so much without a cooperative audience.

THE BARNUM MUSEUM -- Steven Millhauser

Phoenix - The Guernsey Press Co., Ltd -- tpb
Great Britain -- ©1990 -- 237pp
ISBN: 0-75380-466-2

A collection of short stories by a Pulitzer Prize winning author.

"A Game of Clue"
"Behind the Blue Curtain"
"The Barnum Museum"
"The Sepia Postcard"
"The Eighth Voyage of Sinbad"
"Klassic Komix #1"
"Rain"
"Alice, Falling"
"The Invention of Robert Herendeen"
"Eisenheim the Illusionist"

Mostly these stories are forgettable and in many cases, a struggle to read and enjoy. In fact, I felt that most of these weren't even stories, but rather, long treatise on subject, or location, or mood.

Only the last story, "Eisenheim the Illusionist" struck any chord in me. It was as if all the other pieces were working up to putting the various elements together and producing "Eisenheim" -- though even the story of "Eisenheim" is not worthy of such a long preamble.

I love the short story as a literary form, and Millhauser seemed to be pushing the boundaries of what makes a short story, and for that I give him credit. Unfortunately, most of his attempts seem to fail.

I would not recommend this collection.

THE WHITE ISLE -- Darrell Schweitzer

Owlswick Press
Philadelphia,PA -- ©1989 -- 139pp
ISBN: 0-913896-26-8
illustrated by Stephen Fabian
autogaphed by Darrell Schweitzer

A warrior, wizard, prince challenges the god of the underworld, rescues his unborn daughter from his dead bride, and rules a land where nothing but he and his daughter can live.

I actually quite enjoyed the first half of this book, wherein the prince goes mad upon learning of the death of his bride, throws himself in to the study of wizardry and commences on the journey in to the underworld to steal his bride back. It was exciting and disturbing (this vision of the underworld was well described and unsettling -- a world in which ALL the dead retreat to no matter what god they worshipped in life, and no matter what goods they offer to entice the god of the underworld to provide favor).

The second half of the book, which had the prince, now mad, living on his own island with his daughter whom he held prisoner, fell flat. It was boring and seemed to have no purpose. What was the drive for these last 60+ pages? Where was the story going? Nowhere, it seems.

It felt like an exciting short story that had been extended.

Not a recommended book.

ANNA IN THE TROPICS -- Nilo Cruz

Theatre Communications Group
New York -- ©2003 -- 84pp
ISBN: 1-55936-232-4
Winner of 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Drama
Two Act Play

Set in 1929 in a Cuban-American cigar factory, a new lector arrives to read Anna Karenina to the workers. His arrival touches off a debate of the old versus the new as the struggling cigar factory looks for new ways to keep the old ways alive. The passions and longings of the employees come to life under the words of Tolstoy.

A beautifully written play. Poetic and intriguing. However, in a reading there were many more questions asked than answered, and I wonder if a production would hekp smooth that out somewhat.

Recommended.

TRAVEL TEAM -- Mike Lupica

Philomel Books
New York -- ©2004 -- 274pp
ISBN: 0-399-24150-7

A twelve-year-old, gifted basketball player doesn't make the local "travel team" because he's too small, even though he is unquestionably the best passer the league has ever seen. With the help of his father, a divorced, alcoholic, former-pro basketball player, they put together a team of misfits and rejects like himself to make a run for the travel team title.

I was really intrigued with the idea of this book -- short kids can play basketball and be great at it. Unfortunately the writing itself is sub-par.

The actual writing is so clumsy and poor it is almost unreadable at times. Had I turned in even a paragraph of this writing during an undergraduate writing class I would have received low grades and comments such as "Show -- don't tell!"

Unfortunately for readers, this book was published most likely because readers might be familiar with Mike Lupica's name and associate it with sports. But where was the editor? Was the writing so bad that even the editor couldn't make headway with this?

To add insult to writers and readers who know what they are doing, the publisher has done a fair amount of advertising -- more-so, I think, than the average new book.

It infuriates me when a poorly written book is so heavily promoted, and all because of a celebrity name. In truth, the book does not serve anyone well. Not the youthful reader who won't understand why they don't like the book so much. Not the publisher, who looks like they don't know a quality book. Not the writer, of whom others will not be eager to read again. It does, I suppose, serve the book seller who has nothing to lose. The publisher pays for the promoting and the seller can return the book if it doesn't sell.

Sadly, a book to avoid.

TOOTH IMPRINTS ON A CORN DOG -- Mark Leyner

Harmony Books
New York -- ©1995 -- 216pp
ISBN: 0-517-59384-X

A collection of short stories/essays.

"to merci pinto leyner"
"young bergdorf goodman brown"
"hulk couture"
"just happy to see you, chula"
"bassinet mattress day"
"immoral allure"
"the mary poppins kidnapping"
"the (illustrated) body politic"
"great pretenders"
"the good seed"
"dreams girls usa"
"the making of "tooth imprints on a corn dog""
"thoughts while listening to mahler in the afternoon"
"dangerous dads"
"eat at cosmo's"
"oh, brother"
"mi di"

Mostly the works seemed extremely pretentious. "the good seed" had me laugh out loud, and I was amused by pieces of "eat at cosmo's" and "the making of ...", but the amusement was much to rare in coming and not worth the trip. Here's a random sample of Mr. Leyner's writing (truly, I opened the book and this is the first sentence I read):

"The exemplary dad was an intermittent figure -- a Heroic Evanescence -- disappearing every morning into a mythic world of commerce, leaving behind a vestigial nimbus of aftershave, that ghostly olfactory proxy of the ever-departing father. But no longer. Proportional caretaking and quality time are the rules du jour."

Leyner's prose weighs heavily on the tongue. My university creative writing teachers probably would have written on my paper (if I had written such sentences on an assignment): "Interesting images. Over-written."

SPINNING THE GLOBE: THE RISE AND FALL AND RETURN TO GREATNESS OF THE HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS -- Ben Green

Amistad (An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers)
New York -- ©2005 -- 397 pp
ISBN: 0-06-055549-1
Uncorrect Proof edition
Foreword by Bill Cosby

A well-researched history of one of the most famous basketball teams of all time.

This history/biography of the Harlem Globetrotters and their more famous players, seems to be very well researched and quite thorough. What's more, Ben Green has managed to keep it exciting. We re-live each of their most important games with nail-biting excitement.

As a white male who grew up in the 1960's, my impression of the Globetrotters was that they were a comedy team that played basketball. What I learned was that they were truly the world's best basketball team that began incorporating comedy routines. Their popularity was such that they often played on a double bill with pro teams to draw crowds to the pro (white) games. The Globetrotters very likely saved basketball as we know it from fading away due to lack of interest.

I was also surprised to learn that Meadowlark Lemon was not thought of very highly by his fellow players. He was not considered a "team" player, was NOT a good basketball player, and his comedy routines were very carefully rehearsed, rather than coming spur of the moment as they did with the great Goose Tatum.

An excellent read. I only wish that this uncorrected proof had photos.

WINDCHASER -- Scott Ciencin

a DINOTOPIA novel
Bullseye Books - Random House
New York -- ©1995 -- 148pp
ISBN: 0-679-86981-6
cover illustration by Michael Welply

After their ship bound for Australia is lost at sea during a storm, two boy (Raymond, the son of the ship's doctor, and Hugh, a petty thief) are brought by dolphins to the island of Dinotopia, where the boys, and a "Skybax," learn the value of friendship and trust.

I remember really enjoying this book when I first read it, about the time that it first came out. It was mostly because of this book that I recommended the Dinotopia series as books for emerging readers.

As I read it out-loud to my sons at bed-time, I felt it lost some of the magic that I had initially felt, and I was even surprised at the apparent lack of dinosaurs included. However, my eldest son thought the book was "awesome" and wants me to read all the books in the series to him, so perhaps it still retains the magic after all.

THE PROMISE OF LIGHT -- Paul Watkins

Picador USA
New York - ©1992 - 271pp
ISBN: 0-312-26766-5

In 1921, Ben Sheridan learns that his Irish-American father is not his real father after he dies from Ben's blood transfusion. Ben seeks out the truth, and his real father, in Ireland and becomes involved in the bloody Irish Republican Army war against the brutal British troops.

I like Watkins' style, reminding me somewhat of Hemingway. His prose seems very laid-back, almost lethargic, yet his action sequences of fighting in the war take your breath away.

I love the set up...the father dying because what would seem to be a straightforward blood transfusion fails because Ben is not the real son -- something he never knew.

Becoming involved in the IRA through deception and circumstance works well, but I do feel that Watkins missed out on giving us (and Ben) the information we were looking for about his American father. The meeting between Ben and his real father happens after the book ends, and that works, but without the information that we were off to learn, I feel cheated.

To be fair, information does come about, but it seems (even to Ben, I think) romanticized fondness or jealous anger and I never felt that the truth was anywhere in there.

I like Paul Watkins and will seek out more of his work, but this is not one I'd recommend to a new-comer.

THE LAST RIVER RAT: KENNY SALWEY'S LIFE IN THE WILD -- J. Scott Bestul and Kenny Salwey

Voyageur Press
Stillwater, Minnesota -- ©2001 -- 255pp
ISBN: 0-89658-457-7
Illustrations by Mary Kay Salwey
Autographed by Kenny Salwey (2002) and J. Scott Bestul (2005)

A one-year "diary" of living the life of a "river rat" in the backwaters of the Mississippi River.

Broken down first by month, and then each month having three parts, 1)River Rat Almanac, 2) Scott Bestul's report on what he learns from Kenny during that month, 3) Kenny's Tale. Each is interesting in its own way, but Scott's narration is direct and honest and brings the reader right to the Whitman Swamp with him.

An engaging read, interesting, and dare I say, unique in so many ways. Better, I think than the legendary A Sand County Almanac, and will have a comfortable spot on the bookshelf near my favorite outdoor memoirist, Sigurd F. Olson.

Highly recommended.

CLEMENCY POGUE: FAIRY KILLER -- J.T. Petty

Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
New York -- ©2005 -- 120pp
ISBN: 0-689-87236-4
Illustrations by Will Davis

After being pestered by the Fairy of Frequent and Painful Pointless Antagonism, little girl Clemency Pogue vows that she does NOT believe in fairies, killing her attacker...and every other fairy in the world. Realizing that there are plenty of good fairies, Clemency and a hobgoblin set off to make things right.

A quick read that offers plenty of laughs for the adults, perhaps an interesting short story for kids, but nothing really of any substance. It's a quick adventure in the world of fairies, a little bit of action, and a short burst of triumph for the girl.

Certainly this is taking advantage of the popularity of books like Harry Potter, A Series of Unfortunate Events, and the awful books of Eoin Colfer. If it weren't for these other books, this probably would never have seen the light of a fairy's wand.

Check it out from your library if you're looking for something quick and light to read, but don't waste your cash.

HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE -- J. K. Rowling

Arthur A. Levine Books/An Imprint of Scholastic Inc
New York -- ©2005 -- 652pp
ISBN: 0-439-78454-9
Illustrations by Mary Grandpre

In his sixth year at Hogwarts School for budding witches and wizards, Harry Potter learns more about his enemy, Voldemort, and watches a dear friend die.

This book, more than any of the others does NOT stand on it's own as an individual book. The whole purpose of this book seems to be a paving the way for the ultimate show-down between Harry and Voldemort, with a couple of possible surprises thrown in (surprises which are hinted at here).

The story-telling has kept us turning pages here, but the book,on whole, feels empty. The story is not a self-contained story (ala The Sorcerer's Stone), but rather the first part of a larger story.

I would not recommend this as an individual book, but would still recommend the series as an interesting and mostly enjoyable phenomenon.

THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ -- L. Frank Baum

A Signet Classic/New American Library
New York -- ©1984 (introduction and Signet edition) -- 219pp
ISBN: 0-451-51864-0
Introduction by Selma G. Lanes
Original drawing illustrations by W.W.Denslow

A young girl gets taken from her Kansas farmhouse by cyclone to a fantastic world called OZ, where she must face strange creatures and confront a wicked witch and a powerful wizard in order to return home.

So many people think they know this book because they are so familiar with the classic MGM movie. Of course there really is so much more in the book that it might surprise people.

I find the book to be slow at times, sometimes the obstacles in the girl's way just seem so extraneous. However, I read this book aloud twice now. Once to my daughter, and once to my two boys. Each time it managed to hold my childrens' interest. They've all agreed that we should consider reading book two in the series.

I can see where this easily would have/could have been the Harry Potter of it's day. Chock full of fantastic people and places and things. In it's day however, I don't believe it was popular for adults to read a children's book, nor was fantasy as acceptable.

More people ought to read this classic.

LONG AGO WHEN I WAS YOUNG -- E. Nesbit

Dial Books
New York -- ©1987 -- 127pp
ISBN: 0-8037-0476-3
Introduction by Neal Streatfeild
Watercolor illustrations by George Buchanan
Line drawings by Edward Ardizzone

A short autobiography of children's author Edith Nesbit.

I greatly enjoy the works of Edith Nesbit and often wish that more people would read her now. She's most famous for The Railway Children, though I don't feel it's her strongest. This autobiography, which really only covers her first ten years, is written in the same, conversational style that her books are written.

I didn't find anything particularly interesting or revealing in this book, other than that she suffered from a fear of the dark as a child, and that her sister was very good at telling her fantasy stories. I couldn't help but wonder if some of those stories her sister told became the basis for any of her own later works.

This book would probably only be of interest to a true fan of Nesbit's children's books, and even then, maybe only slightly so.

WICKED: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE WICKED WITCH OF THE WEST -- Gregory Maguire

ReganBooks/ An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers
New York - ©1995 - 406pp
ISBN: 0-06-039144-8
Illustrations by Douglas Smith

Elphaba, born green and of questionable gender at birth to an emotionally unstable and sexually rampant mother and a narrow-focused, religious leader father, grows up to become the infamous "Wicked Witch of the West." This tale of politics, sex, and treachery is her "side" of the story.

This really is an incredible weaving of L. Frank Baum's tale and an original piece of work to shed new light on the Wicked Witch's story. Though at times uneven, the story is full of duplicity and complexity that requires the reader to keep a sharp eye out for what has happened and what might be coming still ahead.

I think that I enjoyed this all the more because while reading this book I have read The Wonderful Wizard of Oz twice -- once to my daughter and once to my sons. By becoming much more intimately acquainted with the original source for this book, I much more appreciated the way Maguire was able to make connections, and I certainly looked at the original story in a new light.

I would recommend this book, but I also would recommend first reading L. Frank Baum's original series (or at the very least, the first book) set Oz.

THE SHATTERED GODDESS -- Darrell Schweitzer

Starblaze Editions/The Donning Company
Virginia Beach/Norfolk -- (c)1982 -- 183pp
ISBN:1880448807
Illustrations: Stephen Fabian
Autographed: Darrell Schweitzer


An evil witch switches her son and the heir to a throne at birth. The witch's son grows up not understanding why he is capable of performing magic, but ultimately must face the witch in a showdown which could destroy the entire world.

There was a time when I really would have enjoyed a book such as this. But that time has passed for me, I think. I looked forward to this when I started it, but soon looked forward to being done with it.

I never felt truly connected to any of the characters, and when that happens one begins to wonder, "So what?" It didn't help any that I never felt comfortable with any of the character names and even to the end of the book I had some confusion as to which names belonged to male characters and which to female. The lead character was named "Ginna," and perhaps because I have a friend, two sister-in-laws, and a niece all named "Gina" I couldn't help but constantly read the name as female.

For a fantasy story with magic, it lacked too much of both and had too much posturing and vocal threats from gods and demi-gods.

I bought this direct from the author on eBay. In part becaue I felt a little sorry for the guy (I couldn't shake the feeling that he was selling this stuff as part of his way of making a living), and in part because I remember reading his shorter works in the pulps back in the 70's and enjoying them.

Unfortunately I can't recommend it.

RUFUS AT THE DOOR & OTHER STORIES -- Jon Hassler

Afton Historical Society Press
Minnesota - (c)2000 - 126pp
ISBN: 1-890434-29-9
wood engravings by Gaylord Schanilec

A collection of short stories including:

Publisher's Note by Patricia Condon Johnson
"Rufus at the Door"
"Anniversary"
"Winning Sarah Spooner"
"The Life and Death of Delano Klein"
"Dodger's Return"
"Agatha McGee and the St. Isidore Seven"
"Nancy Clancy's Nephew"
Postscript: A Letter from Agatha McGee

I have to admit that I was half hoping to not like any of these stories. I'm not sure exactly why. Maybe it's because Mr. Hassler also runs a successful, small theatre nearby, and I'm jealous of his accomplishments. Who knows. But the truth is, I enjoyed this collection. Some more than others, like any collection.

"Rufus at the Door" conveyed small town sentiments toward those who are "different" quite well. "Dodger's Return" brought back memories of childhood acquaintance J. Orlikowski. "Wow," I thought. "That's exactly what happened with me and J."

"Agatha McGee and the St. Isidore Seven" was amusing, and ended exactly the way I expected it to, and that's okay! Not every story has to surprise you with the ending. Any ending other than what was written would have been a disappointment.

Based on this collection, I will look forward to reading Mr. Hassler's "Staggerford" books, and other collections of short stories.

KIRA-KIRA -- Cynthia Kadohata

Atheneum Books for Young Readers
New York - (c)2004 - 244 pp
ISBN: 0-689-85639-3
2004 Newbery Medal Winner

A young, Japanese girl faces racism, death, family pride, and unionization for workers in the Midwest and South in the late 1950's.

I am disappointed that this novel was chosen for the Newbery Medal Award. While not a bad book, by any means, I didn't feel that this story every struck any particularly strong chords or said anyting in a new and creative way. It seemed all too obvious that the sister was going to die, very early in the book. It also seemed too obvious that the parents were likely to vote for the union despite their talk against it.

The only thing that made this story slightly unique was that it was a Japanese family working in the Midwest and deep South. Otherwise, I didn
t feel there were any fresh angles for this kind of story.

A disappointing choice for medal winner, and not likely a book that I will go about recommending.

X-MEN: SHADOWS OF THE PAST -- Michael Jan Friedman

illustrations by Jose Ladronn
bp books - distributed by Simon & Schuster
New York - (c)2000 - 328pp
ISBN: 0-7434-0018-6

A powerful extraterrestrial being who is being held prisoner in another dimension captures Professor Xavier and replaces him with a doppleganger and attempts to destroy the X-Men and the earth.

I have generally enjoyed reading novel versions of comic book heroes, and I have generally enjoyed works by Friedman, but this book just falls flat. the 300+ pages feel padded with ...what? Not much of anything. This could have been a decent 24 page comic, but as a novel it just has nothing to hold anyone's interest.

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME -- Mark Haddon

Doubleday
New York - (c)2003 - 226pp
ISBN: 0-385-51210-4

An autistic boy writes a book about his search for a killer (of a dog), and the discoveries that he makes along the way.

A very interesting book, as it gets in to the head of an autisitc boy, explaining the reasoning behind many of his actions. Some of the best description comes when he describes how he shuts down, sort of like when you press CTRL + ALT + DEL on the computer when he gets an information overload. His chapters are sequential, not 1,2,3 but lowest to highest, all prime numbers. He is a math genius and math plays a lot in to the book, yet done in such a way that even a math-loathesome person such as myself can get through it it. I can see where this book might win a great many prizes for its subject matter and it's handling of the information. However, I never really felt drawn in to the book. Certainly this is because of who is telling the story and how he (an admittedly unemotional person) does it. But by keeping my at arms length, even in the book, I couldn't feel the attachment to it that I would like when reading a book.

NICK HORNBY * SONGBOOK -- Nick Hornby

McSweeney's Books
San Francisco - (c)2002 - 146pp
Illustrated by Marcel Dzama
ISBN: 0-9719047-7-4

A collection of essays/reviews of pop music. Including:
Teenage Fanclub - Your Love Is The Place That I Come From
Bruce Springsteen - Thunder Road
Nelly Furtado - I'm Like A Bird
Led Zeppelin - Heartbreaker
Rufus Wainwright - One Man Guy
Santana - Samba Pa Ti
Rod Stewart - Mama, You Been On My Mind
Bob Dylan - Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window?
The Beatles - Rain
Ani DiFranco - You Had Time
Aimee Mann - I've Had It
Paul Westerberg - Born For Me
Suicide - Frankie Teardrop
Teenage fanclub - Ain't That Enough
J. Geils Band - First I Look At The Purse
Ben Folds Five - Smoke
Badly Drawn Boy - A Minor Incident
The Bible - Glorybound
Van Morrison - Caravan
Butch Hancock and Marce LaCouture - So I'll Run
Gregory Isaacs - Puff The Magic Dragon
Ian Dury - Reasons To Be Cheerful
Richard and Linda Thompson - Calvary Cross
Jackson Browne - Late For The Sky
Mark Mulcahy - Hey Self-Defeater
The Velvelettes - Needle In A Haystack
O.V. Wright - Let's Straighten It Out
Royksopp - Royksopp's Night Out
The Avalanches - Frontier Psychiatrist
Soulwax - No Fun / Push It
Patti Smith - Pissing In A River

This collection is really more like a series of mini-essays with a song or songs providing the purpose behind the essay, rather than a series of song reviews. It's always interesting how Hornby gets from point "A" to point "B" in these collections, but few of them actually get me to want to listen to any particular song. Worth the read, but I'll admit that I'm glad to have read the library copy rather than buying my own.

+++++++++++
trade paperback version
Riverhead Books/Published by The Berkley Publishing Group
New York - (c)2003 - 207pp
ISBN: 1-57322-356-5

Includes all of the above plus:
"It's a Mann's Worlds"
"Alternative Earle"
"Sweet Misery"
"The Entertainers"
"Pop Quiz"
Discography

The above set of essays are not about any particular song, but albums or sets.

The gem found here is Hornby's description of the ever-present pop music as "aural smog." Again, I'm glad to have read these, but I'm not likely to wish I had the book on my shelf to read again or hand out to friends. (Actually, most of my friends already have a copy.)

THE MAN IN THE CEILING -- Jules Feiffer

Michael DiCapula Books/HarperCollins Publishers
(c)1993 - 186pp
ISBN: 0-06-205036-2

A young boy who wants nothing more than to be a cartoonist, learns important life lessons about failure and not giving up from his uncle, a failed Broadway musical playwright.

A fun book with lots of Feiffer cartoons. The book really hit home in many ways with me personally, as a playwright and failed cartoonist. A recommended book as a light read, particular for those interested in cartooning.

MY LIFE IN HEAVY METAL -- Steve Almond

Grove Press
New York - (c)2002 - 204pp
ISBN: 0-8021-4013-0


A collection of short stories.

"My Life in Heavy Metal"
"Among the Ik"
"Geek Player, Love Slayer"
"The Last Single Days of Don Viktor Potapenko"
"Run Away, My Pale Love"
"The Law of Sugar"
"The Pass"
"Moscow"
"Valentino"
"How to Love a Republican"
"Pornography"
"The Body in Extremis"

A top-notch collection of short fiction, by an excellent writer. All the stories seem to center around a main-character's sexual experiences.

LIFE OF PI -- Yann Martel

LIFE OF PI -- Yann Martel
Audio Book -- read by Jeff Woodman (with Alexander Marshall)
11-1/2 hours on 9 cds -- Complete and Unabridged

An Indian boy, the son of a zoo keeper, is the lone survivor of the sinking of a cargo ship which had been transporting zoo animals to Canada. He survives the lengthy journey with a Bengal tiger as companion.

An interesting story at times, but droning and boring as I listened to it. It never fully captured my attention and drew me into the tale. I'm not at all sure as to why it has received the attention that it has. I would not recommend it, though I wouldn't necessarily steer anyone away from it if they wanted to read it. Very average at best.

MANNA FROM HEAVEN - Roger Zelazny

DNA Publications/Wildside Press
Virginia - (c)2003 - 255pp
ISBN: 1-59224-199-9

A collection of short stories.

Introduction - Steven Brust
"Godson"
"Mana from Heaven"
"Corrida"
"Prince of the Powers of this World"
"The Furies"
"The Deadliest Game"
"Kalifriki of the Thread"
"Come Back to the Killing Ground, Alice, My Love"
"Lady of Steel"
"Come to Me Not in Winter's White" - with Harlan Ellison
"The New Pleasure"
"The House of the Hanged Man"
"Epithalamium"
"The Last Inn on the Road" - with Danny Plachta
"Stowaway"
"Angel, Dark Angel"

• Six from Amber

"Prologue From The Trumps of Doom"
"Blue Horse, Dancing Mountains"
"The Salesman's Tale"
"Coming to a Cord"
"Hall of Mirrors"
"The Shroudling and the Guisel"

Previously uncollected stories by a true master of the genre. Some of these stories actually took my breath away, I was so drawn in by the writing. "The Furies" in particular was a real gem. Unless someone discovers a chest full of unfinished/unsubmitted fiction, this is likely the last collection that will see print by this remarkable talent. highly recommended if you can find it.

CANDYFREAK: A JOURNEY THROUGH THE CHOCOLATE UNDERBELLY OF AMERICA - Steve Almond

Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America -- Steve Almond
A Harvest Book -- Harcourt, Inc.
Orlando, FL (c)2004 256pp
ISBN: 0-15-603293-7

Author Steve Almond travels the country, visiting a number of the small candy makers. Part biography, part history, part economics, part self help.

A wonderfully, funny book. The information is interesting and the telling of it delicious. A highly recommended book. There should be something here to interest nearly any reader.

THE ZENITH ANGLE - Bruce Sterling

The Zenith Angle -- Bruce Sterling
A Del Rey Book, New York
(c)2004, 306 pp
ISBN: 0-345-46061-8

After the 9/11 disaster and the declaration of war on terrorism, internet and dot-com companies face a new reality -- that a major portion of the war on terrorism is actual a "cyber" war on terrorism. One of the leading researchers and developers of the internet and internet security becomes enlisted in the United States' cyber war. His work to fix a faulty spy satellite leads him to some unexpected foes and an honest-to-god death ray machine.

Bruce Sterling is one of the few writers whose work I will buy, new, in hardcover when I see it on the shelves. I generally find his work fresh and interesting, and it is always intelligent and accessible. Sterling's name is usually mentioned in conjunction with William Gibson as the leading authors of the "cyber punk" genre. I prefer Sterling's style over Gibson's.

Sadly, I think this is one of Sterling's weakest books to date. The technology described was sound, as expected with a Sterling novel, but trying to follow the main character's leaps of logic were difficult, and the relationships between the characters (which took up a major portion of the story) were muddy.

If I had read only the last 50 pages I would not have missed out on much of the back story, would have caught all the action/excitement contained in the book, and wouldn't have been any more or less confused as to who the peope were and what their associations with each other might be.

If you've never read a Bruce Sterling book, don't let this be your first, or it'll likely be your last as well.

BEST GHOST STORIES OF ALGERNON BLACKWOOD - E.F. Bleiler, editor

"The Willows"

I picked up this book because I had read, more than once, that "The Willows" is considered by many to be the best ghost story ever written. I'm not sure that I would agree. A well-written tale that had me feeling a little "edgy" at times, it didn't really sustain itself for me. I realize that many might confuse the "ghost" story with a "horror" story, and they are not necessarily the same (though they can be), but a ghostly presence ought to run a shivver up my spine, and this didn't, though perhaps it came close.

SKELLIG - David Almond

Skellig -- David Almond
Delacorte Press, New York
(c) 1998, 182 pp
ISBN: 0-385-32653-X
A middle grade novel

A young boy's family moves to a new, old, house. The boy's infant sister is very sick and will undergo heart surgery. In the decrepit shed/garage on the new property, the boy discovers an old man, apparently a vagrant eating bugs and wasting away. When the boy tries to help the man, he discovers a pair of very frail wings folded on the man's back.

This was a wonderful, lyrical story...the kind that shows that writing for children can be very strong and powerful. There is some wonderful subtext going on, and an incredible sense of magic/fantasy, which is never treated as anything too far-fetched to be real for the children in the story. Is Skellig a man? An owl? An angel? He is never explained outright, leaving the reader to make certain decisions about him.

The character of Michael, the narrator of the story, is a wonderful change of pace. He is not the nerdy, bookish, often-picked-on child that we so often find as heroes in these sorts of books. Rather, he is the average student but star of the football (soccer) field during recess. His chums bemoan his absence and then his lack of skill on the field when he misses school. Michael's change of demeanor is attributed to the family concerns over the baby girl, and certainly this plays a major role in Michael's behavior.

Another compellng character is Mina, Michael's new, home-schooled, free-spirited friend whom he trusts with the secret of Skellig. Mina lives by the motto of William Blake's quote: "How can a bird that is born for joy / Sit in a cage and sing?"

Really a remarkable story for it's targeted age group. Should only take the adult reader a day or so of casual reading and the experience will be worth the trip.