Book Reviews

Lately I have been drifting away from the nightly sci-fi/fantasy and I have been reading a few "self-help" books. I don't agree with everything they say, but it is good to get insight and another point of view on things.

Take, for instance this book, which is for people (like me) who are too nice for their own good. Most of the time, I believe, this is a good thing. But when you are too nice, you can get walked all over, too. Even by your friends and those who love you. (Which, by the way, is what led to me reading a bunch of self-help books.)

The book is available on amazon here, and as an e-book here.

The author puts forth that we nice people tend to make nine "self sabotaging mistakes" and he gives alternative ways of handling these delicate sitations which allow you to maintain your rights and dignity and self respect, and at the same time, remain a nice person. The nine mistakes he says we make are as follows:

1) Trying to be perfect/pleasing others
2) Taking on too much
3) Not saying what you want
4) Suppressing your anger
5) Reasoning with irrationality
6) Telling little lies
7) Giving advice
8) Rescuing others
9) Protecting those in grief

This book gives step by step directions on the appropriate ways to deal with these situations when they arise.

Just yesterday I was in a situation where I was to give someone advice. Because I read this book, I did something else in place of giving advice, and I guess this will be a test of how well this guy knows his stuff. I can't tell you yet how it worked out because I don't yet know.

Not a bad book, really. The advice he gives (ironically giving advice throughout the entire book, even in the chapter that says do not give advice) is very logical and sound advice. I found myself agreeing with most of it.

If you have problems with one or more of the situations listed above, you may want to check this book out.

This has got to be the BEST book I have read in a very long time.

This book, You Are Your Choices, by Alexandra Stoddard, is a collection of 50 short essays on how to live a better, more meaningful, happier life.

She gets it right every time. Not bad for an interior decorator.

My only complaint about this book is that someone somewhere (the author, the publisher, both maybe?) makes too much out of the fact this is her 25th book. I understood that the first couple hundred times I read about it. You don't need to keep reminding me.

On the other hand, having only published TWO books myself, who am I to say that I would also not want to gloat over having 25 books out there? It is quite the feat.

This book talks about how to get along with others, how to see beauty in just about everything, how to generally be a happier and more fulfilled person. There are a lot of quotes from various philosophers that help out as well.

If things aren't going quite the way you would like, or if you think maybe your life could be just a bit better than it is, definitely give this book a try.

You'll be glad you did.

It is rare that I read the same book twice in a row, I can't even remember the last time I did it, but I do plan to read this again. I am thinking there is more to be learned.

I give this book seven stars out of five.

Reading the Batman novel below got me interested in what else Simon Hawke has written. So one day while exploring ereader.com, I came across The Patrian Transgression.

Unfortunately, this book didn't "wow" me the way his other one did.

Kirk and company are called to a planet that has a telepathic police force, and where even thinking of a crime is against the law (and apparently punishable by death).

This book does look at the ethics of such things, and has some interesting discussions along those lines. My favorite part of it is the character development of the Patriam assigned to Kirk. I suppose it isn't impossible to predict what happens to him at the end of the book, but it was still done well.

Simon's Batman novel was better, but this was still a good read.

I have read many Batman novels in my day. In fact I think I have read just about every one of them. But this one, To Stalk a Specter, written by Simon Hawke, is the...

...Best.

...Batman.

...EVER.

It isn't so much the action or the plot that makes it great, though that, too, it is more the incredible dialog in this book. Especially between Batman and Jim Gordon. Simone Hawke can really write the Bat!

A drug lord is caught and will be standing trial. But someone has hired the Specter, the world's greatest assassin, to free him before the trial begins. He sends word out that if he is not freed, people in Gotham will die. When the police refuse, the people in Gotham in Gotham start dying. Can Batman find the Specter in time to prevent any more deaths?

The Dark Knight takes on his most dangerous foe this side of the Joker.

This book is hard to find, but well worth it for anyone who likes to read Batman prose. This is the best that is out there.

Getting back to this book blog (after being away too long), I have recently had the pleasure of reading the DC universe novel, Trail of Time. I agree with the review on amazon that what makes this book is Jonah Hex and Bat Lash, etc. I was never one for Westerns, but Jonah is definitely all right in my book, despite carrying the "mark of the demon."

I was also glad to see the Phantom Stranger finally make it into a novel. I have been following him since the 70's and always felt he should have had more attention than he has gotten. Also, in all those years, never have we known what his hair style is...until now. That was a nice touch.

Personally I think the novel could have done without Superman, Phantom Stranger, and the Demon. If it had been just the four westerners, Hex, Lash, Diablo, and Scalphunter, it may have made a better novel.

The premise here is three evil sorcerers (Mordru, Vandal Savage, and Felix Faust, for those who know of them) have gotten together to take over the world in a plan that spans the centuries. It begins in 560 AD, and comes to fruition in modern day. Unless Superman, Stranger, Demon, and the old West can stop it from happening. Will they succeed? Read and find out if you dare, though there are better novels out there.

Looking for a way to get some further use out of my Cingular 8125 investment, I decided to look at maybe trying a few book readers. First I tried uBook...

www.gowerpoint.com

...and that was okay, I suppose, though I don't really like the way the autoscroll works. And it had a few other problems, too. But hey, it is free and so what's not to love? :)

Next I went to this site...

www.manybooks.net

...and downloaded a bunch of free ebooks to read, some of which I will be reviewing here.

I have been wanting to read books but the library here in this small town is inadequate and I don't want to buy books because I don't really have a place to keep them.

Enter eReader.

www.ereader.com

With eReader, I can buy books at a discounted price and store a ton of books in the space of a single CD-ROM.

I am not going to be anal and insist that my book be actual pages. That doesn't really matter to me. To me, it is the content that makes or breaks a book, not what it is printed on.

I was surfing eReader earlier today and found a lot of books that I was thinking about getting over at the Barnes & Noble. The closest one of those is like 30 some minutes away from here. So yeah, I am happy.

eReader can read books in palm's DOC format (like uBook), as well as its own proprietary encrypted format. Encryption requires a key to "unlock" books, but the key is your name and credit card number, the card number being the card you used to purchase the book from ereader.com.

I have already made a few "themes" (or "skins") for eReader, and I will be posting them in the download area of my website soon.

Everyone knows that one way you become a good writer is to do a lot of reading. Used to be I wanted to read and I had nothing to read? Now I just come into the office here and buy (or download) some material.

Look for reviews in the coming weeks.

As much as I didn't like the novel below, I didn't like this one even more.

Now I understand that Batman is dark character. I am sure if I was witness to what Bruce was at eight years old, it would likely mess me up as well. I can accept the darkness of the novel. I don't like it, but at the same time, it is much more "Batman" than some of the other novels, and definately more than then the 60's TV show.

The novel centers around the early days of the Caped Crusader. Back before there was a Robin and when James Gordon was stil Captain rather than Commissioner. A white supremacy group has developed some particularly nasty weapons and plans on starting a global race war.

Not if Batman has anything to say about it...

Controversial plot aside, my main problem with this novel is that I could have done without the four letter words popping up every other sentence, sometimes even more frequently. Okay, so be dark about Batman if you want to. But I do believe that a good writer can tell a Batman story without such language.

And really, it isn't even so much the language I have problems with, it is how often the language is used.

If you are into such language, go and get this book. You will be in Heaven. If, however, you are a bit more mature, than you may want to skip it, even if you are a fan of the Dark Knight.

This novel troubled me a bit as I was reading it. Based upon the Avengers, the novel opens with Captain America himself in the middle of a steamy adulterous affair. Now don't go writing to me and telling me that what I am reading is not the Avengers. I know that. I just have a problem with Cap doing such a thing. The Captain America that *I* know would never do such a low down thing as that.

That said, the story itself is not bad. Some people from the future come to warn the Ultimates/Avengers that the earth is at a crossroads in history. In order to prevent the future from becoming, well, less that "Ultiamte" the heroes need to take certain actions now. After convincing the skeptical heroes that they are in fact from the future, our stalwart team goes on a mission to save the future.

But of course (*yawn*) all is not as it seems.

If you are a fan of Iron Man, you will like this novel. If you are a fan of Avenger time travel stories, you will like this novel.

I really didn't much get into it.

I just finished reading a book called, When Pleasing Others is Hurting You. This is a book about codependency and when to say YES to people and when to say NO.

One thing I got out of this book is that it was right for me to put the few people I did on my "Want Ring" - which is a special ring I have on my cell phone that tells me it is someone calling who is calling simply because they "want" something from me.

Many of us have people like this in our lives. They take advantage of us, and they "want" stuff from us, while at the same time are unwilling to give anything in return. Thankfully the people here in Bedford like that re few and far between. But for those two or three I have come across who are like that, I have the Want Ring.

Many times I get calls from members of the church who "want" something from me. Usually it is computer related. I have been known to fix many a computer glitch and I have somewhat of a reputation for this at the church.

While I suppose this is something to be proud of, it also carries a responsibility that I don't really want. Because what happens is someone that I fix a computer for will recommend me to someone else who may be having problems.

Now don't get me wrong. I do love my friends, very much. I am extremely loyal to those I believe are friends and who consider me a friend in return. But those that I don't know, or those that I am not so interested in knowing all that well, I am not so sure I want to do so much for them?

This book helped me realize that sometimes in these situations it is okay to say NO once in a while.

So if you are like me, and have a problem saying NO sometimes, this book is for you.

I was just reading Baby Sitters Club #83 (Stacey vs. the BSC) and I have to ask, what the hell is wrong with Stacey?

Don't get me wrong, I do love her dearly, but right now I just wanna knock her upside the head! I mean, here are her best friends, and look at what she does to them!

And poor Charlotte! The Stacey I know would never have broken a promise to Charlotte. And that bit about being on the phone was way off. I just don't like where her attitude is taking her.

Look at me, going on like a 10 year old girl what just read the book.

I pray that in later books, she comes back to her senses. Of course all of the books have come and gone now and a lot of you know what eventually happened. But don't tell me, I don't wanna ruin the surprise.

We all deserve a second chance. I just hope that somewhere along the line, Stacey got one and made some good of it.

I finished reading two more books. One was Peter Beagle's Lila the Werewolf, which I found to be disappointing. Not his best work, though the other two Beagle stories in this blog so far more than make up for it.

Interesting how he linked sexual desire and lycanthropy, though. Beagle said in his introduction that a psychologist or two pondered the state of his mental health after reading this book. I can see why.

I didn't like the way this ended. Way too violent for my tastes, though some people reading this blog may just track down this book based on the sex and violence I have commented on. If you do, be sure to check out Beagle's other work, it is so much better.

The other book I recently read was Baby Sitter Club Mystery #1, which girls reading this will know that it is called, Stacey and the Missing Ring. I do like the way this one ended. I tried to figure out the mystery and I tried to "guess" where the missing ring was. (I was assuming, of course, that Stacey did not take it.) I was not able to figure it out before the end, despite having a cat or two myself. But I am not sure Ann Martin provided enough clues. I am usually pretty good with these kinds of things.

Now I am reading Baby Sitters Club #43, Stacey's Emergency. Apparently my girl Stace has been doing naughty things that get her in the hospital. (ACK!) Well, can you blame her? A 13 year old girl caught in the middle of a bitter divorce? I can see where that would be stressful.

Also, for the more mature part of me, I am reading the final Peter Beagle story in the book, The Last Unicorn. So far it seems to live up to the rave reviews. Just about makes me wanna see the movie.

I finished this novel and I recommend it heartily. It is amazing how two dead people can learn more about living than they ever did when they were alive. I also like the way it ends. Though it did leave some questions unanswered. I would like to see a sequel to this to answer those questions.

Peter Beagle's pontification seems to know no boundaries as he waxes poetic and philosophical throughout the narrative. He was 19 when he wrote this, and his observations of the human condition are light years ahead of what any 19 year old should know.

Well done, Peter. Well done, indeed.

A wealthy socialite hosts a big party at her mansion and invites Death to come. She figures out a way to deliver the invitation (which, though quite tactless, was also very clever) and Death sends back a notice that her invitation is accepted.

The wealthy lady figures Death is female, and she is right. Not only female, but a very beautiful female.

I can't say I saw the ending coming from a mile away, but I knew what would happen well before the end of the story. I didn't like this one as much as A Fine and Private Place, maybe because it was too predictable.

Still, there can be no doubt Beagle is an incredibly gifted writer. I wish I could write as good as he does!

Now I am reading the third novel of the book, Lila, the Werewolf. I only started, and I so far have no idea where it is going.

I like that.

Today I read the Baby Sitters Club. Book number 3, which the girls reading this already know is called, The Truth About Stacey.

This was a short book and I read it all today, though not all at once.

This story is about two things, Stacey's parents (over protective because of her diabetes, maybe I wanted to read this because I can relate to parents being a wee bit over protective due to disability), and also in the story is the creation of a rival baby sitters club. It's taking business away from the four girls and of course they are none too happy about it.

I got this book at a yard sale for all of a whoppin' twenty cents. I have met the author (Ann M. Martin), we talked for a while, though I doubt she would remember it.

I got several other books for 20 cents a piece while I was there, too. I like getting books for that price.

One of the secrets of writing is to read a lot of diverse stuff. I guess that includes the Baby Sitters Club.

Anyway, I do recommend this book for those interested, some at amazon say it is the best of the series. I haven't read that many of them, but I do like this story, and I really like the way it ends with Stacey asserting herself over her parents and taking control.

Many of us could learn a thing or two from her. I know I did. :)

I have a hard cover book that is a compilation of four Peter Beagle novels. I have had it for years, I think I got it at a garage sale for a dollar or two, and I am just now getting around to reading it, having finished the Spider-Man novel. (Now there's a run on sentence!)

I am reading them out of order, preferring to read them in the order they were written. So that means I start with A Fine and Private Place, about an old man who makes his home in a graveyard. A raven comes to visit him twice a day and brings him food he steals from the deli.

Then he and the raven have a conversation (that's Beagle for you), and the raven goes on his way.

That's as far as I have gotten so far. I hear there is a lot to this story.

Somewhere in this collection is The Last Unicorn, which I have always wanted to read...

Thought I'd start this blog by mentioning that I recently finished reading The Darkest Hours, the latest Spider-Man novel.

And what a mess the WebHead has gotten himself into this time! Just as life was settling down, along come three villains, all of whom are stronger and more powerful than Spidey! And if even one of them so much as touches him, he is as good as dead.

What is a superhero to do? Well, the Black Cat is around to lend a hand, and he also finds help from another, more unlikely source.

Meanwhile, Mary Jane (who is feeling a bit insecure, and jealous of the Black Cat) is trying to get a driver's license.

Can Spidey outwit and defeat these undefeatable foes? Can Peter live through teaching Mary Jane how to drive? And how, pray tell, does Dr. Strange fit into all of this?

Find out by reading The Darkest Hours, recommended for any fan of the wall crawler.