book reviews
Graphic Novel Review: The Hound of the Baskervilles
Dark Tales: The Hound of the Baskervilles: A Graphic Novel
by Arthur Conan Doyle
by Arthur Conan Doyle
3 out of 5 stars on GoodReads
A good retelling of the Hound of the Baskervilles in comic book form! The artwork is dark and creepy, giving deep shadows to everything, and perfectly reflecting the mysterious nature of the story.
I thought that Holmes’ character is represented beautifully both through the artwork and the dialogue. His austere personality and furtive energy comes across strongly on every page! Continue reading
I thought that Holmes’ character is represented beautifully both through the artwork and the dialogue. His austere personality and furtive energy comes across strongly on every page! Continue reading
Book Review: Emily and the Spellstone
Emily and the Spellstone
by Michael Rubens (Goodreads Author)
by Michael Rubens (Goodreads Author)
4 out of 5 stars on GoodReads
Emily hates adventures, but when she discovers a magical stone that acts as a cellphone, she is thrown into a magical adventure that proves she is strong and resourceful against the greatest of enemies. A fiery monster named Gorgo is trapped in the Spellstone, and vows to eat Emily if he ever gets free. But Emily needs his help to defeat the nasty people who are seeking the stone’s power for their own evil purposes.
I loved the wit and humor of this book! The dialogue is snappy and every new magical situation is hilariously weird. The plot is full of action and danger. The characters are beautifully written with plenty of contrast and development. Continue reading
Book Review: Marvelous Land of Oz
The Marvelous Land of Oz (Oz, #2)
by L. Frank Baum
by L. Frank Baum
2 out of 5 stars on GoodREads
Tip is a young boy living in Oz, servant to a nasty witch. He fashions a pumpkin head that comes to life, and they travel to the Emerald City to meet the Scarecrow and Tin Man, falling into the middle of a revolution along the way.
I didn’t really enjoy this book, maybe because I listened to it as an audiobook, and I didn’t like the narrator. Usually I love the Oz books, but this one fell flat. The characters are so dry, the jokes aren’t funny, and even the imaginative setting of Oz felt like a rehash of the same old things from every Oz book. Maybe it was the narrator. Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for this book. Maybe because I’ve been reading the Oz books out of order, so I already knew some of the plot points. It’s a good story, but I somehow couldn’t enjoy reading it.
Comic Review: Herding Cats
Herding Cats (Sarah’s Scribbles, #3)
by Sarah Andersen (Goodreads Author)
by Sarah Andersen (Goodreads Author)
4 out of 5 stars on GoodReads
Another hilarious collection of comics about dealing with anxiety, being introverted, loving life, and staying creative! I just adore Sarah Andersen’s work. She has such a unique way of cutting to the heart of what brings delight or disaster into our everyday lives. She actually makes me laugh out loud, crazy giggle, and chuckle to myself when I read her work.
The only reason I took off one star is because I’m not a pet person, and several of the comic panels are about loving dogs and cats. I’m just ‘meh’ about pets, so those didn’t interest me. However, pet owners would probably love those.
Disclaimer: I received an ecopy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.
Manga Review: Dream of the Butterfly
Dream of The Butterfly Vol 1: Rabbits on the Moon
by Richard Marazano, Luo Yin
by Richard Marazano, Luo Yin
3 out of 5 stars
Little Tutu is lost in a snowstorm and travels to a magical land where animals talk and humans aren’t welcome. She is forced to work in a factory, and befriends several groups that need her help to rebel against the emperor. But Tutu is just trying to find her way back home, and the emperor asks her bring him a rare spring butterfly with mysterious powers.
I liked the imaginative characters and setting, but the plot is jumping all over the place and there’s not really enough time spent on any
Favorite Books of 2017
Book Review: Jamaica Inn
Jamaica Inn
by Daphne du Maurier
by Daphne du Maurier
4 out of 5 stars on GoodReads
After her mother’s death, Mary arrives at Jamaica Inn on the coast of Cornwall to live with her Aunt Patience and the uncle she has never met. He is a man feared through all the country as rumors of smuggling and murder surround Jamaica Inn. Mary is horrified as she discovers the truth about the inn, but it’s too dangerous to go against her vicious uncle, until Mary receives help from an unexpected ally.
The writing is expressive and really paints a picture of the setting amidst the dark moors. The story is certainly striking, even though I found the plot fairly predictable.
Mary’s character has a good balance, since she’s plucky but also vulnerable. The other characters are vivid and interesting too, even the awful villains. Each person has such colorful dialogue, descriptions, and body language that they jump off the page into life! I was truly afraid of the villains, truly sorry for the pathetic Aunt Patience, and absolutely disgusted with the nasty smugglers. I could almost smell them, they were so close to life.
Excellent writing and a good tale of mystery and suspense!
Book Review: Frightful’s Mountain
Frightful’s Mountain (Mountain, #3)
by Jean Craighead George
by Jean Craighead George
3 out of 5 stars
This is my least favorite book in the trilogy, because it mainly focuses on the peregrine falcon, Frightful, and Sam is barely in the story at all. If you are interested in falconry at all, you would LOVE this book! Very informative and dramatic, as Frightful learns to survive in the wild, struggles to find a mate and raise her own chicks, and finds her way back to Sam as a wild bird.
Continue reading
Continue reading
Book Review: Candide
Candide
by Voltaire, John Everett Butt
by Voltaire, John Everett Butt
2 out of 5 stars on GoodReads
Candide and his friends are thrown into horrible situations, tortured, robbed, conscripted into armies, sold as slaves, shipwrecked, beaten, thrown into prison, etc… for the entire book, all the while discussing the philosophy of optimism, the idea that all is well and good in the world, despite the evidence to the contrary.
The writing is extremely concise and lacking in any detail, so that all the characters are one-dimensional, and the plot is very sparse. Everything moves quickly from one plot point to the next, so that within a few sentences the entire situation has changed. Not much is explained either, leaving a lot of plot holes and gaps in the story. Continue reading
Luminous Libro 