9 Books

I have very much neglected writing about the books I have read over Christmas and since then. Everything has been really busy (and it doesn't help that we got a Wii for Christmas). So here I am going to go over the books I have read since the last post and there have been a few.

From the End of Heaven and Clear as the Moon books 5 and 6 of the series The Great and Terrible by Chris Stewart.

As with the rest of this series these books are very well written and explore some very realistic future possibilities. The one complaint I have was a lack of resolving some very important issues. The major dilema is resolved however some of the accompanying problems are just glosses over and not really solved. I would highly recomend this series to everyone (however those that subscribe to an LDS perspective will find much more to relate to).

Pillage by Obert Skye

I had high hopes for this book because I really like the way Skye writes however I have not liked the how he presents the worlds he has created. In Pillage he does a great job of setting up the Mystery and suspence that is involved and I really enjoyed that part of the book. It kind of fell apart after all of the Mystery was gone. This book was far better than all of the books in his Leven Thumps Series. Maybe the last book in that series will be better.

Water Keep by J. Scott Savage

Pretty good book that has many traditional fantasy plot devices, orphaned children with special gifts, unknown parents/ancestery and the like. It is different from some others in that it deals with handicaping conditions in the two main characters, a physical hanicap for one and a magical handicap for the other. This was a descent start to what appears to be a four book series.

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo

After hearing a lot of this book and in anticipation of seeing the Movie I picked this one up and was quite disappointed. It may have been that I was just expecting too much. I just found it kind of plain and not incrediblly entertaining. I still haven't seen the movie yet but I wonder if I will like it more than I liked the book.

Rolling with the Tide by Jeff Call

The second novel by LDS author Jeff Call, and one that I think is much better written. The story of and LDS Quarterback who ends up playing for the Alabama Crimson Tide. I really enjoyed this story about the extreem challanges that face an extrodinarilly talented young man.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

This book has become something of a national phenomenon and I don't think that I would have read it had I not gotten it as a gift for Christmas. Not that I didn't want to read it but It did not stand out to me. I began reading it and I really enjoyed the book. The author talks about having a fulfilling life by realizing your childhood dreams. He also talks about the lessons he has learned to live by and how one canhelp other realize their dreams. A very uplifting book and one that really made me take a look at my own life.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J. K. Rowling

This was an interesting addition to the Harry Potter books that is enjoyable in and of itself however it does not add anything to the origional story. Neither does it have the same charm or intensity as the Harry Potter books. A good quick read.

The Innocent by Harlan Coben

I got this book for free and I have seen so many of his books around that I thought it might be interesting to give it a try. However I now know why I have always avoided this typical Adult fiction. I really enjoy reading both Young Adult and Adult books however I am always leary of "Adult" books because I don't want to read offensive material and for the most part the books I have read I have been able to avoid anything too bad (even though just about every author has to throw in some language and sex so it has to be an "Adult" book). This book was not awful however what I thought would be an intriguing murder mystery ended up being a convoluted though intriging story that involved more strippers than police officers. The mystery was intriging and kept me reading however the resolution was far from satisfying. I don't think that I will read another of his books.