Sunday 19 August 2012

The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman

The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman

Published 2010 by Canongate Books (as part of the Canongate Myths series)

Rating - *** (out of five stars)

The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ is an intriguing book for many reasons. The book is Philip Pullman’s retelling of Jesus’ story, the main change being that Jesus now has a brother called Christ. The title of course hints at the personalities of these two and the roles they play, though by no means touches on the intricacies involved in their relationship with each other. In a lot of ways though the most important part of this book isn’t the plot or characters, but the message and ideas which the author has presented inside these pages.
I described this book as “intriguing” initially, and interesting and thought provoking are also words which in my opinion apply here; involving and gripping definitely less so. This is a quick read and so the slow start doesn’t really matter, but I have to say that all I got from the first few chapters was an intense dislike for Christ. It isn’t really until the very end that the story starts surprising you as a reader. It’s not exactly that this is a problem, more that you don’t normally find yourself in a situation where you’ve already heard or read three-quarters of the story before in some form or another. It definitely makes this into a very different reading experience, at least for me anyway.
That’s not to say I didn’t like this book though. I have read quotes of Pullman’s previously concerning religion and found his views quite similar to mine, so I obviously had different feelings about what I was reading than someone who disagrees with the religious opinions expressed (and I’m guessing that there were probably a lot of people who were extremely angry when they finished this book). The afterword adds another element, with the inspiration behind this retelling set out, as well as some of the aspects which were less clear explained. Not that every detail is made perfectly transparent; quite rightly some quite important points are still left for the reader to interpret, but overall I did find the afterword the most appealing part of the novel.
This review may perhaps seem slightly negative, but I assure this is a book I enjoyed and which I’m very glad I read. I do think that perhaps more could have been done with the concept, but overall it’s a controversial take on a topic which luckily isn’t all hype.


Tuesday 14 August 2012

Book Haul!


This is a bit of an experiment, but I thought I’d try posting a book haul post on here. I’ve seen a lot of Booktubers do this and I’ve always found them really interesting so I figured I’d give a text version of it a go...
In the last few months I’ve had a bit of a book buying spree. I usually only purchase books I especially want and know I will read again, because they aren’t the cheapest things and if I’m never going to reread something than the library works just as well. Recently however I’ve been acting a bit of out of character and have quite a large stack of books waiting for me in the to-read pile which I actually own.  This is mainly down to discount bookstores and the fact I’ve had to get stuff for my English Lit course next year (I haven’t included them ones in this list) but I thought I’d take the opportunity to do a book haul whilst I could.
I’m going to include where I bought each one, but as a lot of them were reduced or on special offers in no way could I guarantee whether they’ll actually have them in the store near you. Also I live in the UK, so if you don’t a) I don’t even know if half of these stores exist for you and b) it’s probably even less likely that they’ll have the same things I bought.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Keep Me in Mind by Nancy Holder
Bought for £1 in Poundland
This is the only one of these books which I’ve actually read yet and I have to say I got what I was expecting. This is a choose your own adventure style book and I basically bought it as a bit of fun and light hearted reading, which would probably make me laugh with its cheesiness but that as a fan of Buffy would satisfy me no matter how bad it was because you can always do with a bit me more slayer in your life. 

The Baker Street Boys: The Case of the Disappearing Detective by Anthony Read
Bought in a random book store which was closing down for 50p
The Baker Street Boys: The Case Of The Disappearing Detective
 I was browsing through the 50p stand in the shop and the words “Baker Street” caught my eye. At such a cheap price and with my obsession with the world’s only Consulting Detective I of course had to have this. The basic premise seems to be that Sherlock has gone missing, so I don’t actually know how much he’ll feature, but regardless I’m sure this will be alright for some light reading.
These next three were all bought on a 3 for £5 offer in The Works. If you have a branch near you, it’s seriously worth  checking out because there’s a huge variety of books in the offer, including a lot of well known authors and bestsellers (I saw a few things by Lionel Shriver, and if you’re into YA stuff there was Wither and various books by Scott Westerfeld)

The End Specialist by Drew Magary
The End Specialist
I picked this up initially because of its cover as I recently read the Book Thief (so good!) and their artwork is very similar. Then I read the blurb and it gripped me. This is set in the future when a cure has been developed which means nobody will ever die of old age, though bullets and diseases can still be fatal. Sci-Fi, death and eternal youth; what isn’t there to love?

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen.
So far I’ve read Emma, Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion all of which I’ve loved and so I’ve wanted to read Sense and Sensibility for a while. So I bought it and hopefully it will live up to my expectations!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer 3 by Nancy Holder, Kirsten Beyer and Christopher Golden Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Volume 3)
Like I said, I love Buffy. This seems to be the third volume of a collection of original Buffy stories. They had one or two different volumes of the series, but I decided on this one mainly because there’s a story which sounds pretty Willow-centric.

Have you read any of these? If so tell me what you though in the comments. And if not, what books have you bought recently?

Sunday 12 August 2012

Book Survey

I saw this on Kayley Hyde's blog ages ago and  it seemed like a kind of cool thing to do...

Favourite childhood book?
Well, Harry Potter (all of them) by JK Rowling but I still read and love them. When I was younger though I loved Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
What are you reading right now?
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
What books do you have on request at the library?
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami, Buffy the Vampire Slayer season eight, vol one by Joss Whedon & co, and Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James. I know, I'm ashamed of having that reserved, but I decided I should probably actually have read the book I've been slagging off for months.
Bad book habit?
Spilling drink on the pages or creasing the corners in my bag
What do you currently have checked out of the library?
Midnight Days by Neil Gaiman, X-Men First Class - The Wonder Years, Dr Horrible and Other Horrible Stories by Zak Whedon, Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy and Villette by Charlotte Bronte.
Do you have an e-reader?
No. I'm sorry, but they aren't the same as a real book for so many reasons that  I could write a whole blog post on that alone
Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
I often like to read one novel and one graphic novel/comic book at the same time.     
Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?
I started this blog about two hours ago so, no.
Least favorite book you read this year (so far?)
Middlemarch by George Eliot
Favorite book you’ve read this year?
The Fault in our Stars by John Green
How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
I read quite a broad range of stuff, so I'm not really sure what my comfort zone would be 
What is your reading comfort zone?
Again I'm not sure I have one, but I read a lot of fantasy and dystopians at the minute
Can you read on the bus?
If I want to...
Favorite place to read?
Lying on my bed
What is your policy on book lending?
I don't mind, unless it's a book that's particularly special      
Do you ever dog-ear books?
Yes
Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
NEVER!
Not even with text books?     
Okay, yeah with school books I do
What is your favorite language to read in?
English, because unfortunately it's the only one I know. I attempted to read Philosopher's Stone in French once and didn't get past the first chapter
What makes you love a book?
Really kick-ass female characters, references to other things I like, and a complicated twist at the end where really minor things turn out to be super important. And characters that I really care for
What will inspire you to recommend a book?
When once I've finished I just want to re-read it and talk about it loads and therefore need someone to do this with. Or also if it just comes up in a conversation
Favorite genre?
Fantasy
Genre you rarely read (but wish you did?)
Non-fiction maybe? 
Favorite biography?
I don't really read many biographies so I suppose I'd have to say Billie Piper's by Chris Stevens because it's about the only one I can remember, besides a terrible one on Robert Pattinson which basically said "hahaha aren't Twilight fans so much cooler than those Harry Potter nerds". As a Harry Potter nerd I obviously wasn't happy about that
Have you ever read a self-help book?
No
Favorite cookbook?
I don't really use them,
Most inspirational book you’ve read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?
The Fault in our Stars by John Green again. I just adore that book and everything about it.  
Favorite reading snack?
Coffee and a chocolate digestive biscuit
Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience
Perhaps Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman. Everyone at the reading group I go to loved it so much and it's always on best book lists, but I have to say I found it just average     
How often do you agree with critics about a book?
I don't really read reviews of books too much, but in some cases they've loved something I hate or vice versa
How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
As long as I have legitimate reasons I don't have a problem with it really. I'm allowed to have an opinion on something just as anyone else is.
If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you choose?
Elvish becuase that would be the most awesome thing ever. I don't care if it's a kind of pointless skill 99% of the time, because elves are just the best creatures (and I want their ears)
Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?
In the last six months or so I've started reading loads of comic books and I suppose they can be intimidating because if it's a series you're not familar with there are all these characters and past events that it's just assumed you know about.
Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
I don't get nervous about reading a book. if I hate it or it just isn't my thing I can always stop half way.
Favourite Poet?
I don't really read poetry, unless it's at school, so I'm not sure I have a favourite
How many books do you usually have checked out of the library at any given time?
Probably five or six as I change them pretty regularly
How often have you returned books to the library unread?
Occasionally, but normally I try to force myself through it
Favorite fictional character?
Well Luna Lovegood is my absolute favourite, but there are so many others (such as Lyra Belaqua, Lisbeth Salander, Jane Eyre, Ramona Flowers, Hermione Granger, Willow Rosenberg as well as others that aren't from books)
Favorite fictional villain?
Bellatrix Lestrange 
Books you’re most likely to bring on vacation?
Just whatever I have ready to read next 
The longest you’ve gone without reading
Two or three days probably  
Name a book that you could/would not finish
Beloved by Toni Morrison; I'm sorry, but I just hated that book, and really don't care that it won Nobel prizes and stuff. I was pleased about getting as far as I did, so I just read the synopsis online.
What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
The fact that I know there are probably other things I should be doing
Favorite film adaptation of a novel?
The Lord of the Rings, because Peter Jackson completely captures everything that Tolkein wrote and it's really clear how much he cared about the original material. I actually prefer the films to the books, which is very, very rare for me.
Most disappointing film adaptation?
About a Boy. I also have major problems with the Harry Potter films because I feel that in someone else's hands they could have been done so much better, content wise at least.
The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
Not much really; probably never more than £15? I don't buy that many books and any which were super expensive were most likely gifts
How often do you skim a book before reading it?
Never
What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
A boring plot which doesn't seem to be going anywhere or characters that I have no connection to
Do you like to keep your books organized?
Yes, totally. I may be slightly obsessive about this but I treat my bookshelves like a library. There are different sections for each genre and some bits are labelled with post-it notes. Then the general fiction bit is ranked in order of how much I love them.
Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
I keep them. Maybe it's selfish but if I want a book to be there for me to read again and again. Plus I'll need them for when I have a giant house and have a huge library which is a cross between the Hogwarts one and Giles' library at Sunnydale High

Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?
The Gone series? I don't know what it is about them because everyone says they're good, but something tells me the claims that they're as good as The Hunger Games won't be true.
Name a book that made you angry
I'm not sure. Out of Shadows by Jason Wallace annoyed me and the previously mentioned Robert Pattinson biograph pissed me off, but I know there are others that I'm somehow forgetting.
A book you didn’t expect to like but did?
Again I'm not sure. Perhaps Heroes by Robert Cormier which we had to read at school and sounded so dull, though is actually really good.
A book that you expected to like but didn’t?
Middlemarch. I thought because George Eliot was a woman forced to write under a pseudonym perhaps there'd be a bit of feminism in there, but I have to say most of the book was just about marrying half the village off
Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading?
Re-reading books I love over and over. I've literally read each Harry potter book about ten times and it can never ever get old      

Dr Horrible and Other Horrible Stories

 

by Zak Whedon, with Eric Carnete, Farel Dalrymple, Jim Rugg, Joelle Jones and Scott Hepburn

Publisher: Dark Horse (21 Sep 2010)

Rating ***** (out of five stars)

This is a freaking amazing book; to me it was literally perfect. I’ll admit I’m hugely biased what with being a massive fan of everything Whedon, but I don’t think anyone could deny that this is a superb comic. If you’ve seen Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog you might think that transferring that to paper would be hard, and yet somehow they’ve managed to do it. Each story manages to capture the just slightly cheesy fun and humour, and captures the characters voices amazingly accurately. The short stories contained in this volume complement the original web series perfectly. I think the only negative I have is that there isn’t another volume of these.
All of the tales in this volume are great, but Moist: Humidity Rising and Penny: Keep Your Head Up were my particular favourites. Both flesh out the two characters that were prone to seeming slightly 2D previously, giving them back stories which are truly heart-warming. The Moist story really makes me feel for him, whereas the Penny one gives readers a great perspective on her point of view. In fact the ending to Penny: Keep Your Head Up may make the web series’ climax even more tragic if that’s possible. But if you were looking for an entirely new story there’s The Evil League of Evil, the tale of what happens when the superheroes leave town for vacation and ordinary people are left to step up to the plate.
As this is a graphic novel (I’m never sure whether that or comic is the appropriate term) I should probably comment on the artwork. Once again, I love it. The style is cartoonish, yet eerily real to life and very much in keeping with the generally cheery atmosphere of these stories. I also like the consistency throughout the book; rather than flitting between styles as is often done, all the artwork seems in the same vein which as all the stories are occurring in the same universe makes sense to me and gives the tales an ounce of believability. The final page of Penny: Keep Your Head Up is adorable and shows how versatile the style is, being able portray both cutesy and darker moments equally well.
Of course it’s hard for me to say what this comic would be like for a reader who hasn’t seen Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, and I realise that a lot of the references and jokes may be lost on these readers. But even so I think the stories would remain enjoyable and compelling; plus the musical is up on YouTube (or available on DVD for a very reasonable price) so why not immerse yourself entirely? If you’re a nerd with a love for musicals (or even if you’re not) I don’t think you’ll regret it.