The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

If I could jump through time, I'd go back and teach myself some hard facts of life so I'd be ready when the hard knocks came. Henry DeTamble, does exactly this, and finds time (heh) to meet his future wife, make money and have a bunch of very interesting adventures along the way.

The sad thing about the Time Traveler's Wife is its title. Though fitting, the target audience (people who like love stories), will tend to stay away because it has the phrase "Time Travel" in the title. And since Time Travel belongs in the genre of Science Fiction, somebody looking for sweet love story will probably skip this story.

Another sad thing about this story is that it's main theme is about love. People looking for good time travelling romp will probably be turned off by the blurb on the back-cover that says:

"At its core The Time Traveler's Wife is an old-fashioned love story"

It's enough to make anyone puke.

But the truth is, it doesn't matter if you like sappy lovey dovey books or sci-fi, The Time Traveler's Wife is an immensely enjoyable read, and even though it reveals nuggets of information beforehand, it is most likely that the reader will find him or herself surprised at the turn of events later in the book.

Now, stop reading this and get a copy. It's great!

UPDATE:
Whoops, I didn't notice Rumoku mentioning he would review The Time Traveler's Wife in the previous post. Sorry 'bout that. Don't make this stop you from posting your opinion though!

George's Marvellous Medicine by Roald Dahl

Hi, Seed-of-Evil-turned-librarian-Rumoku here. I would like to say that I'm glad to write my first post for ReadLust but I'm not. Possibly because it is actually my third post. Or at least it would be if technology didn't constantly fail me and screw up my posting! Graaaagh!

Anyway, here I am to review (for the third time) Roald Dahl's "George's Marvellous Medicine" (GMM). Now, if you are not familiar with Roald Dahl's works (in which case you should torture yourself in a slow, excrutiating manner to absolve yourself of sin) the first thing you'd notice is his brilliant use of prose and wit. Many books that I have read as a child lose a certain something through the passage of time (think Peter and Jane). Not so with GMM. The story is quick and fast paced but not lacking in detail; things easily left out in most children's books.

The story itself does not require a degree in brain surgery to understand: Young George is sick and tired of his foul mouthed Grandma and it's payback time. So he switches her medicine with a special concoction of his own...with humorous consequences. I could tell more but that'd ruin everything.

Now, if the God of Technology would see fit to allow me to actually post this post maybe you'd be inspired to re-read this modern children's classic. Hey, I believe in miracles too...

Rumoku out!

Next: The Time Traveller's Wife...maybe

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

I didn't catch the movie of the same title, so I can't quite give a book/movie comparision. The book is an interesting read - I finished it in two sittings, same day.

The writer documents* her 2 year experience being warded for insanity. It's a first hand account of being and feeling 'madhouse' and madness. The writer offers a glimpse of a life removed from normalcy. In between tales of daily events and routines she discusses the meaning and interpretation of madness.

I would recommended the book. It's an interesting read, a view of the world from another angle. Just don't get yourself questioning your own sanity at the end of the book!

*complete with original supporting letters and such

The Alabaster Staff by Edward Bolme

I bought this book partly because I was playing Neverwinter Nights on my PC at the time and I wanted something Forgotten Realms-ish to devour when I was away from my PC, and partly because the author was a writer from BioWare, makers of Neverwinter Nights. Thinking I was in for a good ride, I quickly delved into the book, expecting at an enjoyable light read.

The Alabaster Staff by Edward Bolme recounts the story of a girl Kehrsyn who is light with her fingers. Though she prefers to earn her coin by performing illusory tricks and even some juggling in public, circumstances force her to use her talents in less than legal ways. So bad things happen; things get stolen; people get mad.

I'll get to the point. The book's boring. Don't read it if you have something else to read. I found the dialogue between characters clichéd and lifeless. I liked the ending but only because the story finally ended.

Hello World!

Hi! Glad you could drop by.

After buying some books at a recent booksale, me and Sharks stopped by at Starbucks for a quick sip of brew. While we were browsing through our recent purchases, we concocted the idea for having our own bookblog. A blog about books.

You see, we wanted to list the books we were reading, and in the process, give a quick review of each book. And what better way than to use a blog?

So here we are. What will come forthwith will be our recent reads, what we think of them, and any related subjects worth blogging about.

Here we go!