The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, 2008

After the success of her writings during World War II, Juliet Ashton is stuck on what to write about next, until she receives a letter from a stranger on the small island of Guernsey. Through correspondence, Juliet learns of the German Occupation of Guernsey, as well as the individuals who struggled through it by forming the oddly-named Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. The society, originally founded almost by accident, brings many of the islanders together through their shared love and discovery of books. Juliet, as a writer and fellow book-lover, is drawn to these islanders and their extraordinary story.

I absolutely adored this book. I can't say enough good things about it, my only complaint being that I wish the book had been longer. This book is more about characters than anything, and I thought that Shaffer and Barrows came up with a number of characters that were endearing, complex, and real. I thought that Juliet was especially relatable and really enjoyed seeing things through her perspective. And, of course, Isola was one of the most wonderfully amusing people I have come across in a long time - I wish I knew her in real life. Part war story, part love story, part character piece, this book is one that I would highly recommend to anyone.

The Light Between Oceans

The Light Between Oceans

M.L. Stedman, 2012

After World War I, Tom Sherbourne takes a job as a lighthouse keeper on the remote island of Janus Rock, off the coast of Australia. Taking along his new wife, Isabel, the two are isolated from the world for months at a time, their only contact being with the two-man boat crew that brings their supplies every three months, and when they are allowed a month's shore leave every few years. Despite the isolation, Tom and Isabel are happy, although they long for a child, which begins to weigh heavily on Isabel after three failed pregnancies. So when a boat washes up on their shore with a tiny live baby and her dead father, Isabel sees this as a gift from God. After Isabel convinces Tom to not report the boat, against his better judgement, the two raise the baby as their own. But two years later, when they return to shore, they find out just what effect their choice has made.

This was a beautifully-written, thought-provoking book. I definitely found myself identifying more with Tom than Isabel, but I'm not a mother - I certainly can't say for sure that I wouldn't have at least been tempted to do what she did in her situation. And I'm sure that there are a lot of women out there who would have done the same. In the end, though, I'm glad that Tom did what he did, as devastating as it was. 

This is definitely one of those books that makes you think and that sticks with the reader for a while. Combining beautiful writing and complex, relatable characters, I can see why this book is being hailed as one of the best of 2012.

The Orphan Master's Son

The Orphan Master's Son

Adam Johnson, 2012

Even though Pak Jun Do was the son of the Orphan Master and not an orphan himself, growing up in an orphanage in North Korea assured that he would not be able to make it very far in life. As a young adult, he found his place - for a time - as a kidnapper, eventually raising in the ranks to learn English and become a translator. But after a seemingly harmless lie leads to him being mistaken for one of the most powerful men in Korea, Jun Do's life takes a sharp turn, leading him to a place he could only have dreamed of. 

I didn't have extremely high hopes for this book after reading some negative reviews, but I actually ended up really liking it. It was tough to read at some points - sometimes because the story got slow, and sometimes because the subject matter got dark - but I'm really glad that I read it. I thought that Jun Do's story and transformation were fascinating. I also really found it interesting to read about how different things are in North Korea compared to America, which especially came through in the broadcasts, which I found darkly humorous. There were definite aspects of Korean life that I had no idea existed. I'm glad I read this one and I'll be curious to see what this author does next.

Robopocalypse

Robopocalypse

Daniel H. Wilson, 2011

One day, in the not so distant future, one man brings a powerful artificial intelligence, named Archos, into being. But Archos is a little too powerful. One by one, technology - from domestic robots to military machines - gain intelligence, violent tendencies, and turn against their human masters. This is the story of how the Robot War began, and how humankind was able to unite and fight back in order to survive. 

I had slightly high expectations for this book. I didn't expect it to be the next sci-fi masterpiece or anything, but it had a cool concept and I had heard a decent review or two, so I hoped it would be good. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations in one big way.

The problem I had with this book wasn't the storyline - I actually thought that the idea behind the plot was really cool and the way the story played out was dramatic and plausible and interesting. My problem was that I just didn't find myself caring at all about the characters. I can't say exactly what it was - maybe it was the audiobook format, although I've never had this problem with audiobooks before - but I just didn't care about any of them. Something dramatic would happen, someone would die or just barely come out of a fight alive, and I wouldn't feel anything one way or the other. Obviously, this was a big issue for me. It's hard to like a story when you don't care about the characters. 

I know I'm not in the majority on this, so I'm not going to say that the book is bad. Like I said, the concept was really fun and dramatic. Hopefully you'll like the end result more than I did.

Break No Bones

Break No Bones (Temperance Brennan #9)

Kathy Reichs, 2006

While teaching an anthropology field school on the South Carolina coast, Dr. Brennan and her students come across a recently buried body in the excavated Native American burial ground. In her search to identify the remains, Dr. Brennan stumbles across a much bigger plot - one in which the body count is rising - and her life may be at risk as well.

I really enjoy this series of books. Even though this title wasn't one of my favorites in the series, it was still a very enjoyable read. (In general, I prefer the ones set in Montreal.) There was plenty of action, excitement, drama, and science (I'm a nerd at heart). I wasn't overly thrilled with the personal drama - I'm just not a big fan of Pete - but that was a small enough part of the plot that it didn't distract me too much. I was also pleased that I was not able to see the big reveal coming, about why the people were being murdered, and I was just as unsure about whodunnit as Brennan was. 

Overall, an excellent read, and I'm looking forward to picking up the next book in the series soon. 

Jurassic Park

Jurassic Park

Michael Crichton, 1990

Geneticists have discovered a new technique for recovering and cloning the DNA of extinct dinosaurs, and one man sees this as the perfect money-making opportunity. John Hammond's goal is to use this technology to open the world's greatest theme park on a small island off the coast of Costa Rica - a place where dinosaurs are displayed like zoo animals for the adoring public. But when a small group of experts are brought in to investigate the park's safety, things start to go wrong. What starts with a minor power loss in the facility eventually leads to a complete breakdown of order. And for those people lost inside the park itself, it becomes a struggle for survival against some of the greatest predators ever known.

This was a re-read for me. I first read it about 15 years ago after seeing the movie version and with the recent movie re-release, I figured it was as good a time as any to pick this one up again.

I have to say that, while I still really enjoyed this book, I like the movie better (which is very rare for me). I actually thought that most of the main characters were better developed in the movie version (Grant, Sattler, Malcolm, Hammond, Lex and Tim), and the jump-out-of-your-seat moments were more dramatic and/or scary in the film. There were more of these moments in the book, which was fun, but the ones that the movie put in (the T-Rex attack on the cars, the raptors in the kitchen) were just better done in the movie version.

I still really liked this book, though. Plenty of tense and scary scenes, good storyline, intriguing and novel concept (at least at the time it was written), and (mostly) interesting characters (I kind of hated Lex in the book). Definitely worth a read. Now I just have to go and dig up The Lost World, 

Death by Black Hole

Death by Black Hole: and Other Cosmic Quandaries

Neil deGrasse Tyson, 2006

This book is a compilation of essays that were first published in Natural History magazine's "Universe" section. Neil deGrasse Tyson is able to take complex concepts of astrophysics and make them accessible to the non-scientist, with just enough humor to make them interesting. 

I thought that this was a really good book. Most of the essays were really interesting and - more importantly - understandable! I never thought that astrophysics could be easy to understand, but Tyson writes it so that even the uninitiated can at least comprehend most of what he is writing about. There were definitely sections that made me feel really stupid, when what he was writing about went over my head, but the majority of the essays actually made me feel kind of smart for understanding it all (even if I know that in reality it mostly is over my head). I think that Tyson is a great writer, as well as being a brilliant astrophysicist, and I'm glad I picked up this book. I'll definitely be reading more by him in the future.