Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan

Posted October 17, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Young Adult / 0 Comments

Boy Meets Boy by David LevithanTitle: Boy Meets Boy (Goodreads)
Author: David Levithan
Published: Harper Collins, 2003
Pages: 223
Genres: Young Adult
My Copy: ARC from Netgalley

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Paul is a sophomore in a high school unlike any other. He meets Noah, and thinks he is the one, the person he will spend the rest of his life with. That was until he blew it, the school bookie has the odds 12 to 1 against him. But Paul is determined to not let this get him down; he knows what he wants and will go after it.

This is your typical romantic comedy done in a different way. I want to talk about the world first; in this utopian world sexuality is not an issue. Even in the high school, the homecoming queen is also the quarterback (Her name Infinite Darlene, but her parents called her Daryl) and every click is divided into gay stereotype, except for the straight people who seem to be bunched into an (almost outcast) group. The school has a gay-straight alliance which was formed to teach the straight people to dance. Everything is too perfect; no one struggled with their sexuality or identity.

I’m not sure if it is just me improving as a reader but I spent most of this novel questioning everything and not enjoying the clichés and ease of these people’s lives. No one seemed to have any major issues and for a high school that seems too fake; this is why I’m convinced they live in the utopian world where everything is perfect. These students are highly intelligent and seem to have everything worked out, the only struggles they have are the ones needed to drive the typical romcom plot.

My first experience with David Levithan was his co-written novel Will Grayson, Will Grayson with John Green and while I enjoyed that book enough to try his novels there was just too much that bothered me about this one. I’m assuming this is bad news for any other John Green books that I might read, their styles are very similar but I just couldn’t get past of the unanswered questions that I asked.

I’m glad there are romantic comedies between two guys and I think more GSM (Gender and/or sexual minority or LGBT if you prefer) novels are needed. I just don’t like that no one seems to have real struggles; I want this in all characters. I never expect a teenager in particular to have everything worked out and with their budding sexuality there are so many complex emotions that could be dealt with in a book like this.

One other thing that really bothered me in this book was the excess of nods. I began to think of all the characters as bobble heads rather than humans. It is like excess winking in novels, no human nods or winks that much in real life, why do they do it in books? I know with nodding it is just a way to show that a character agrees but if it is used too much it just feels too unrealistic.

This is an entertaining book that I just had too many issues with, not enough to never try Levithan again (still want to read Two Boys Kissing) but it really bothered me. I know many people loved this book and his style still feels similar to John Green, so I think it’s just me. I will love to know what worked or didn’t work for the people that have read this book. I don’t think I’m missing anything, so why is this much loved YA novel so difficult to enjoy.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Was “Forced” to Read

Posted October 15, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Top Ten Tuesday / 0 Comments

toptentuesdayIt’s Tuesday again which means time for another round of Top Ten Tuesday; I like joining in of this meme because I have a set topic to work with. Top Ten Tuesday is a book blogger meme that is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish and this week the theme is: Books I Was “Forced” to Read. I don’t like the word “Forced”, but what I’m going to do since this blog is a product of an online bookclub, I’m going to pick ten books (in no particular order) that was picked as a read in the group and I really enjoyed. I’m only picking books I hadn’t read before (so no Lolita, The Fault in our Stars, Night Circus, etc).

Murder in Mississippi by John Safran

Posted October 14, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Non-Fiction / 0 Comments

Murder in Mississippi by John SafranTitle: Murder in Mississippi (Goodreads)
Author: John Safran
Published: Penguin, 2013
Pages: 304
Genres: Non-Fiction
My Copy: ARC from Netgalley

Buy: Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

When John Safran was filming Race Relations he was going to include a segment where he announced at The Spirit of America Awards that Mississippi’s most notorious white supremacists Richard Barrett has an African heritage. This was no stretch as all bloodlines will eventually lead back to an African ancestor but the threat of legal action meant it was never aired. A year later this white supremacist was murdered and the killer African American. Safran heads back to Mississippi to find out just what happened.

I’ve been a fan of John Safran’s documentary series l highly recommend John Safran Verse God if you have never experienced his style. He is not afraid to push the boundaries and his mind works in an interesting way. This makes for great documentaries that are funny, entertaining, informative and will leave you thinking. So when I found out he wrote a true crime book, I needed to read it.

This isn’t just a standard true crime book either, this is part memoir. You get to learn about what happened to Richard Barrett and befriending the accused, but you get to read about Safran’s journey too. From the filming of the segment to deciding to write this book you will follow John Safran as he learns what happens and tries to work out how to write a True Crime book.

Written in the style that John Safran’s documentaries follows, Murder in Mississippi is part true crime and part memoir. I enjoyed the memoir side more than learning about the crime, I liked following Safran’s train of thought as he tried to work out the best way to approach the research and execution of the book.

John Safran’s writing style is a little weak but I didn’t expect a masterpiece for a first book. Hiss style feels more visual focused and might have worked better as a documentary but I still enjoyed the read. The journey is fascinating and Safran’s unique style was what made the book work.  Fans of documentaries, John Safran or true crime, I think you might enjoy this one as well.

Mini Review: Graphic Novels (Fables, Batman & Hawkeye)

Posted October 12, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Graphic Novel / 0 Comments

I’ve been reading a few graphic novels in the past month or two and I have really struggled to work out how to review them. I thought maybe I could just give a quick mini review of the ones I’ve read recently. I just discovered Comixology (I know, late to the party) and their mobile app is great. I never thought reading a comic on a phone would be a great experience but they have nailed it. So you might see a few more reviews of graphic novels in the future.

Fables: Legends in Exile I really love the concept of Fables, the Fabletown community (all characters from different fairy tales) living in New York. The Big Bad Wolf is a hard-boiled detective that is on the case to find out who killed Rose, Snow White’s sister. While the art has a real 80’s feel to it, it is the story telling that makes this a great graphic novel. I expect to be reading a lot more from this series.

 

Batman: The Killing Joke I’m not a fan of art style in Alan Moore’s graphic novels but I really do enjoy a good Batman comic. This is a dark, comical and sadistic read, almost like an origin story for The Joker. If you are a fan of Alan Moore or Batman, this is a must read, this is The Joker that Heath Ledger modelled his role after in The Dark Knight.

 

Hawkeye: My Life as a Weapon Hawkeye is one great superhero and he doesn’t have any superpowers. In fact most of my favourite superheroes don’t have superpowers (The Punisher, Batman) but unlike them, Hawkeye isn’t doing this for revenge. Most people know that there are two Hawkeye’s (Clint Barton and Kate Bishop) and Matt Fraction (the author) has an interesting approach to including both of them. This is more of a look into the personal lives of Hawkeye rather than a superhero adventure, highly recommend this and will be continuing this series.

If anyone knows of some good graphic novel series I should try, please let me know. If you have not really tried a comic before and don’t know where to start, check out my First Steps post on that topic. On a final note, another great thing about the Comixology app is the free comics, good way to try a series (normally offer issue one or a previewer) without spending any money.

Skinner by Charlie Huston

Posted October 11, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Thriller / 0 Comments

Skinner by Charlie HustonTitle: Skinner (Goodreads)
Author: Charlie Huston
Published: Orion, 2013
Pages: 400
Genres: Thriller
My Copy: Library Book

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Skinner is in the ‘asset protection’ game and he was really good at it. His method was fear, he believed the only way to truly protect someone is to make the cost of acquiring an asset far greater than the asset themselves. His employees were uncomfortable with his methods and eventually burnt him; now he is needed again and Skinner needs to re-establish his reputation once again.

I’ve not read Charlie Huston before; I knew he wrote the noir novels featuring Hank Thompson and the supernatural vampiric private eye Joe Pitt series. Both series sound right up my avenue, so why did I start with Skinner? Availability. I went into this novel not really knowing what to expect but hoping for a dark spy thriller; what I got was so much more.

While Skinner is written as a modern day spy thriller the complexity behind the espionage reminds me of the hey days of John le Carré. Skinner has been asked to come back, working for Kestrel which is a private offshoot of the CIA. The whole concept of a corporate owned intelligence agency is no new concept but it leaves Huston with the ability to blur the lines and keep the reader wondering if what is happening is on the level. Skinner’s asset, Jae, is a robotics expert and data analyst which gives us the predictable romantic interest, something that worried me the most within the book.

What I like most about this novel, apart from the complexity, is the way Charlie Huston throws the reader into the story, slowly revealing backstory and small clues into what is happening. This technique leaves the reader guessing about the missions and the characters involved. While this reads as a spy thriller, the way Huston works the characters is masterfully executed and left me wondering, and often not seeing a twist until it is happening.

Skinner is a cutting edge thriller; a novel I had so much fun reading and couldn’t recommend enough for anyone interested in books about espionage. The novel will keep you guessing, leave you thinking and the characters are great, I hope this is the start of a new series because I want Skinner to return. Exploring the terrors of modern warfare and cyber terrorism, you will fly through Skinner but then you won’t stop thinking about it.

Judging a Book by its Cover

Posted October 10, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature / 0 Comments

They say “never judge a book by its cover” but why can’t you? You can tell a lot about a book by its cover. You can tell if a book is self published, get a sense of the genre and even the blurbs on the front of the book might give you an idea. To test out this theory, I thought I might play a little game. I recently got a gift certificate for a commercial bookstore and I was struggling to work out what to buy (I had three books that I was definitely going to get but I wanted to use the entire voucher). So I picked up a book that I’ve never heard of and I’m going to read and review it.

The book is called American Dream Machine by Matthew Specktor; I have never heard of the author or the book before. Judging by the cover I assume it is set in the 1960’s and the title suggests it’s about the great American dream, maybe on the lines of Revolutionary Road. There is a blurb by Jonathan Lethem, which makes it sound promising.

I know Jonathan Lethem mainly from Motherless Brooklyn and believe he writes literary mysteries. I know Raymond Chandler, Philip K. Dick and Patricia Highsmith influence him so if Matthew Specktor is anything like Lethem then I’m in for a treat. Watch out for my review of American Dream Machine and who knows I might try this again.

If you want to try for yourself, the rules are simple. Go to a bookstore or library and pick a book by an author. The only real rule is you are not allowed to read the synopsis or look it up online. I’ve still not read the back of the book; I’m just going to start reading it. This is going to be fun…I hope.

Happy Hour in Hell by Tad Williams

Posted October 9, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Fantasy / 1 Comment

Happy Hour in Hell by Tad WilliamsTitle: Happy Hour in Hell (Goodreads)
Author: Tad Williams
Series: Bobby Dollar #2
Published: DAW, 2013
Pages: 400
Genres: Fantasy
My Copy: ARC from Netgalley

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Bobby Dollar is back, the angel that is sometimes known as Doloriel has advocated for the humans on heaven’s behalf more times than he can count. He goes to hell and back to fight for the souls of earth but this time he actually has to go to hell. His girlfriend a demon called Casimira (the Countess of Cold Hands) is been held hostage by one of the most powerful demons in hell, Eligor the Grand Duke of Hell.

First off let’s talk about the first question people are asking; why is an angel dating a demon? This is a question I’ve asked myself too, even in the first novel it seems weird. Best not to think of Bobby Dollar as an angel, he walks that fine line between good and evil but if you need an advocate you would want him on your side.

This is the second book in the Bobby Dollar series and if you haven’t read The Dirty Streets of Heaven then you really should. Bobby Dollar is as hard-boiled as they come. He will fight for good but he is not afraid to get down to a fight. I really enjoyed the first novel in the series and can’t recommend it enough, if you are looking for a dark gritty urban fantasy.

The thing I didn’t like about Happy Hour in Hell is there is a huge chunk of the novel set in hell, rather San Judas. I loved the world Tad Williams built and I’m just annoyed that he left it. Hell made for an interesting backdrop; the torture, violence and unspeakable acts that happen in this book really gives you a sense of what Hell must be like. Williams knows how to build a world but Hell isn’t as original as San Judas and not as interesting.

The other thing that bothered me about this book is that Bobby Dollar didn’t seem as hard-boiled as before. He used to be a strong, uncompromising type that would go to hell to rescue a damsel in distress but having a girlfriend made him a little soft. I’m not saying this is a bad thing but you look at the great hard-boiled detectives in history and there is always that flirtation with a femme fatale but they never seem to be the kind of person that settles down. They don’t want to put someone in the position where the woman could be in danger as a way to get control of them. They are often loners for this reason, better a woman is safe from harm than being happy. Having said that, I would love to know if there are any hard-boiled detectives that are in a relationship and are happy (that don’t end badly for the woman), I know people would probably say Nick and Nora Charles (The Thin Man) but I think of them as a crime fighting duo.

I liked Bobby Dollar when he was cold and bitter; I’m not sure if Tad Williams was trying to make him more likable or accessible but it made me hate him. So much so I’m not sure if I want to read book three when it comes out. I will see how a feel when it is closer to the release date in 2014. I love the hard-boiled urban fantasy blend and for me this was moving away from that style to the straight fantasy style he is better known for. Bobby Dollar is a great character and I hate seeing what has happened to him; hopefully book three is different.

London Falling by Paul Cornell

Posted October 7, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Fantasy / 0 Comments

London Falling by Paul CornellTitle: London Falling (Goodreads)
Author: Paul Cornell
Series: Shadow Police #1
Published: Tor, 2012
Pages: 400
Genres: Fantasy
My Copy: Library Book

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Detective Inspector James Quill is about to complete a major drag bust, the type of bust that will launch his career. Then his prize witness went and got himself killed in custody. This mysterious death leads Quill to be recruited by intelligence analyst Lisa Ross into a special CID unit. The murder of his witness suspect Rob Toshack was not a normal one and soon Quill and the team find themselves investigating London’s sinister magical underground.

I’ve said this before, I have a hard time with fantasy but I overcome that by reading books like London Falling. This is a dark and gritty London police procedural/urban fantasy novel; I read it for the mystery and it’s an easy way into the world of fantasy. I’ve had some decent success with this tactic and now I’m faced with the problem of reading urban fantasy and not fantasy.

Let’s get all excited about the author for a moment. For those who don’t know who Paul Cornell is, he has written for Marvel and DC comic books as well as on the TV shows Robin Hood, Primeval, Casualty, Holby City and Coronation Street. The most important achievement and all that really matters is his involvement on Doctor Who; even writing a number of the novels and creating a spin off companion in Bernice Summerfield.

I will admit that I picked this book up solely based on the Doctor Who involvement but I read it because of the dark mystery. I don’t know what it is about English police procedures but for me I think they are far superior; they are not afraid to go dark and the whole police culture over in London in particular is fascinating. With so many cameras filming people’s every move it is interesting to see that the crime rate is still high. I suppose there are not enough men to watch and police every camera but the whole scene fascinates me.

I’ve read the first book in the Ben Aaronovitch series and while that was good, I found this was better. Aaronovitch adds humour to his novel and Peter Grant is a blundering rookie, whereas James Quill is as hard-boiled as they come and you know how much I enjoy that.  The only major issue I had was because this novel tells the story of the CID unit of four people, it is told in a third person perspective and I like the first person perspective in a novel like this just so I can get into the protagonist’s head. This wasn’t a major problem, more of a personal preference.

The book starts off as a police procedural and near the start I was hoping it would turn into something like The Wire but as the magical elements slowly got introduced the book departed from that whole feel and turned into a real urban fantasy affair. The book has a lot of flaws but I enjoyed the noir-ish style and was willing to forgive any shortcomings.

I believe this is the making of a new urban fantasy series and book two, The Severed Streets comes out in April next year.  If you are interested in London based police procedurals and want to try an urban fantasy novel then this is the one to go for you and obviously if you enjoy The Dresden Files series, I would recommend this one as well. It is rare for me to find a series to be excited about, I thought I had that in the Bobby Dollar series but I was disappointed with the second book, let’s hope this isn’t the case with this series too.

Player One by Douglas Coupland

Posted October 6, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Speculative Fiction / 0 Comments

Player One by Douglas CouplandTitle: Player One (Goodreads)
Author: Douglas Coupland
Published: Windmill Books, 2011
Pages: 246
Genres: Speculative Fiction
My Copy: Library Book

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

Player One tells the story of five people trapped in an international airport during a global disaster. Over the next five hours, these lives are changed forever;  a single mother waiting for an online date, an airport cocktail lounge bartender, a pastor on the run, a cool blonde bombshell incapable of love and a mysterious person known as Player One. The novel follows the interactions of these five people as they react to the chaos as we slowly find out just what happened.

Douglas Coupland masterfully explores human interactions in the midst of a disaster as well as looking at things like human identity, religion and sociology in this sharp and to-the-point novel. Coupland is a bestselling author that writes some very easy to read post modernism and is often dealing with topics such as religion, Web 2.0 technology, human sexuality, and pop culture. This is my first Douglas Coupland novel but it isn’t the last of them. He reminds me a little of a modern Kurt Vonnegut with his philosophical approach to science fiction. Think a modern Cat’s Cradle where the disaster dealing with modern issues rather than those of the atomic age.

I’m finding this novel really hard to review because honestly, I don’t want to give anything away. This is the kind of novel you enjoy more if you don’t know too much about it. I don’t want to give the impression that this is a heavily philosophical novel, Coupland writes in a way that is accessible for readers of all ages. Almost like a YA novel but for a more serious reader you have all these ideas worth exploring; this is the stuff I have the most fun with. I just love a complex novel that seems basic on the surface but if you are willing, you can spend hours trying to analyse.

I don’t think this reads like a post-apocalyptic fiction, but it does feel like this is the right genre. The entire novel takes place in a bar over five hours and feels more like a postmodernist novel rather than anything else. I’m not going to spend time trying to work out what genres to fit this into but rather just wrap up this review.

I know this is a little short but I really don’t want to give too much away. Just tell people to try it, maybe not the type of novel for females but if you like Vonnegut or like the sound of this novel then maybe this is for you. I’ll be interested in hearing people’s thoughts on this book. I’m sorry this is a weird review but better to say too little than too much. It’s only 200 pages long so won’t take too much effort to try.

Why do I Avoid Big Books?

Posted October 5, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Literature / 0 Comments

I’ve talked a little about my fear of large novels previously but I think this time to revisit this topic once again. More and more large books are turning up in my to-read lists and while I’m excited to read them, a book so large often puts me off. I do read large books but it seems to be on a rare occasions. Yet there seems to be more large novels still waiting that haven’t been read. Is there any way to motivate myself or force myself to spend the time reading a book over 800 pages?

It is not the classics that have calling my name; sure I want to get to War and Peace, The Brothers Karamazov and even In Search of Lost Time but there are some very recent releases that look interesting too. Including A Naked Singularity by Sergio De La Pava, The Kills by Richard House, The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton and The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. I’m sure there are books that aren’t classics or recent releases that are deserve to be read as well that are over 800 pages, they just feel like a huge investment.

This month I’m reading The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett which sits at 973 pages and while I’m enjoying it so far, that is a big investment of time. I have read some great big books, including Anna Karenina, Les Misérables and Infinite Jest but if I want to compare the time investment of those books compared to reading two books, it seems to take so much more time. Now it is your turn, let me know what your thoughts are about big books; have you read some good ones? Are there any on your shelves that are scaring you? And do you have any tips to motivate yourself.