Book #232 of 2020: How Not to Get Shot: And Other Advice From White People by D. L. Hughley and Doug Moe The satire in this book is heavy-handed but warranted, laying out how the smug lectures given to black people like “don’t mouth off to the police” are a) contradictory, b) not followed by …
Author Archives: Joe Kessler
Book Review: The Magnificent Monsters of Cedar Street by Lauren Oliver
Book #231 of 2020: The Magnificent Monsters of Cedar Street by Lauren Oliver This middle-grade adventure story has a nice anti-bigotry message, objecting to prejudice both against marginalized human groups and against the misunderstood creatures in the heroine’s care, but that’s somewhat muddled when the ultimate villain is revealed to be a monster himself. I …
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Book Review: The Extraordinaries by TJ Klune
Book #230 of 2020: The Extraordinaries by TJ Klune (The Extraordinaries #1) I’ve gone back and forth on my rating for this YA superhero title, parts of which are definitely cute and fun and offer some delightful gay and ADHD representation. I have friends who justifiably adore it, but as a whole I just can’t …
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Book Review: The Power That Preserves by Stephen R. Donaldson
Book #229 of 2020: The Power That Preserves by Stephen R. Donaldson (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever #3) A suitably epic conclusion to this classic postmodern fantasy trilogy, bringing both its setting and its reluctant champion to the verge of apocalypse before pushing forward to a measure of redemption for each. This series …
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TV Review: The Office, season 3
TV #40 of 2020: The Office, season 3 Another strong year for this classic workplace sitcom, delivering laughs that largely still stand up today and fun new developments to long-term character dynamics. If I have one complaint about this stretch of the series, it’s that it ends up feeling far less daring than it begins: …
Book Review: If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson
Book #228 of 2020: If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson (If You Come Softly #1) Here’s a book like Bridge to Terabithia that’s almost impossible to discuss without spoilers, especially given the content warning that many prospective readers might appreciate. It’s a love story between two fifteen-year-olds, one a black boy and one a …
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Book Review: Good Economics for Hard Times by Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo
Book #227 of 2020: Good Economics for Hard Times by Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo There are some interesting recent studies in this text, and I appreciate the inclusion of data from India and other developing countries, but as a piece of popular economics writing, it sinks along three key dimensions. First, despite having …
Book Review: The Guns of Avalon by Roger Zelazny
Book #226 of 2020: The Guns of Avalon by Roger Zelazny (The Chronicles of Amber #2) This 70s fantasy sequel is another fun sword-and-sorcery adventure across parallel worlds, but it’s rather less gripping than the series debut. Our demigod hero was no less superhuman in that previous volume, but as an amnesiac going up against …
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TV Review: Star Wars: The Clone Wars, season 3
TV #39 of 2020: Star Wars: The Clone Wars, season 3 Another run of this CGI cartoon that strikes me as largely disposable for the wider franchise plot, although I assume the action sequences are exciting for younger audiences. The most interesting things this year are the complications that develop in the Dooku / Ventress …
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Book Review: Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
Book #225 of 2020: Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas There’s a certain climactic reveal in this YA urban fantasy novel that I found disappointingly telegraphed from early on, but that’s honestly one of the only critiques I can make about it. What a refreshingly original story overall, populated with delightful personalities who ring with #ownvoices …
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The Lesser Joke: book reviews and more 