The Lesser Joke: book reviews and more

Book Review: Doctor Who: The Legends of Ashildr by James Goss, David Llewellyn, Jenny T. Colgan, and Justin Richards

Book #264 of 2017:

Doctor Who: The Legends of Ashildr by James Goss, David Llewellyn, Jenny T. Colgan, and Justin Richards

Four generally unrelated short stories about the immortal Doctor Who character memorably played by Maisie Williams in 2015, all set between her first two appearances there (The Girl Who Died and The Woman Who Lived). It’s a solid but not particularly revelatory collection, with the strongest entry being Jenny T. Colgan’s story about the heroine facing a plague outbreak alongside her mortal children. Overall a nice quick read for anyone wanting to see more of this character.

★★★☆☆

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Book Review: New Boy by Tracy Chevalier

Book #263 of 2017:

New Boy by Tracy Chevalier

Othello is my favorite Shakespeare play, and I love the idea of retelling its story in a 1970s schoolyard. The new setting leaps off the page, as the son of a Ghanaian diplomat newly posted to Washington, D.C. joins an otherwise all-white sixth grade class and falls in love with the girl assigned to show him around. Unfortunately, the plot maneuvers required for the story to hit some of the major beats of the play can feel rather contorted at times, and the characters’ actions often — although not always — strain credulity for children of their age. (Certain Shakespeare references within the story are also too cute by half, raising distracting questions of whether adults like Mr. Brabant would be aware of Othello the play.)

The saving grace of the novel comes from it preserving the original story’s trenchant critique of racism both external and internalized, but as a whole I don’t really think it lives up to its potential.

★★★☆☆

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Book Review: Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Book #262 of 2017:

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor (Binti #1)

There are not enough black heroines in science fiction, and Binti is a welcome addition to their ranks. I especially liked how her people’s cultural traditions played an integral role in this character’s journey, and how she ended up as something of an alien ambassador straight out of an Octavia E. Butler story. I did have some issues with the length and pacing of the novella, however, which seems like it would have been stronger as a full novel. (If nothing else, more insight into the aliens’ logic and a show of consequences for their actions would have been nice.) Still, this was a quick enough read with a refreshing enough protagonist that I think I’ll seek out the two sequel novellas too.

★★★☆☆

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Book Review: Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff

Book #261 of 2017:

Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff

Jim Crow was a time of horror for black Americans, which makes it a natural fit for this novel about an extended black family coming up against the sorts of cosmic nightmares written about by H.P. Lovecraft. (Lovecraft himself was also an infamous racist, so there’s an element of reclaiming his narratives here, although that might have been stronger coming from a black author.) In a series of interconnected stories, Matt Ruff presents the Turner family’s dealings with power-hungry sorcerers, mystic cultists, incomprehensible cosmologies, and more. Throughout it all, his characters face the daily oppressions and terrors of black life in the 1950s, which in many ways overshadow the Lovecraftian ones. It’s a smart blend of racism with classic horror tropes, and a thrilling pulp read.

★★★★☆

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Book Review: The Waste Lands by Stephen King

Book #260 of 2017:

The Waste Lands by Stephen King (The Dark Tower #3)

This third book in my reread of Stephen King’s Dark Tower series is just as great as I had remembered. If Book 1 mostly serves to introduce the weird world of this story, and Book 2 serves to recruit the supporting cast, here’s where it all comes together in our band of heroes striking out across that decaying world on a quest for the Tower at its center. I love the skill with which King builds up this post-apocalyptic setting, as he paints not just a land that has “moved on” after the downfall of civilization, but also the many ways in which it differed from our own reality even before then. It’s a huge genre mashup, a Western full of rogue cyborgs and malign AIs alongside magic portals and mystical destinies. And with well-drawn characters at its core and a plot to drive them onwards, it’s really a whole lot of fun.

(It was also neat to revisit this novel after seeing the movie adaptation of the series, which drew heavily from Jake’s storyline here. That film was something of a mess, but there are plenty of cool moments from The Waste Lands that we finally got to see on the big screen. I’m still holding out hope for a more faithful adaptation someday, though.)

★★★★☆

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Book Review: Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold

Book #259 of 2017:

Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold (Vorkosigan Saga #1)

This space opera skewed a little close to a romance novel, which is not really my genre of choice. (Two enemy soldiers essentially fall in love at first sight, with the protagonist feeling overcome by her counterpart’s rugged manliness.) If you can invest in that central relationship, it’s a decent sci-fi action story with some appealing culture clash frictions, but I found myself struggling to make that leap. I’d also be remiss if I didn’t give a trigger warning for a scene in which the novel’s heroine is stripped, tortured, and threatened with rape. I know this is only the first book in a long ongoing saga, but I don’t feel particularly drawn to read on any further on the strength of this one.

★★★☆☆

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Movie Review: Attack the Block (2011)

Movie #25 of 2017:

Attack the Block (2011)

I’ve seen this movie a couple of times before, but this was my first time watching it since John Boyega and Jodie Whittaker’s careers have really taken off (him as Finn in the new Star Wars trilogy and her starting as the Thirteenth Doctor in tomorrow’s Christmas special). It’s easy to see, in hindsight, why they’ve both gone on to become such stars. And the movie holds up really well! Aliens being driven off by inner-city London kids is such a great set up for a movie to begin with, and it’s executed just about flawlessly. Plus it hides its low budget really well, especially with that ingenious and creepy creature design. Definitely one to seek out if you’ve never come across it before.

★★★★☆

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Book Review: How to Set a Fire and Why by Jesse Ball

Book #258 of 2017:

How to Set a Fire and Why by Jesse Ball

The troubled teenage anarchist (and budding arsonist) at the heart of this story got under my skin in the best way. She’s so well-drawn in her roughness and her vulnerabilities, with her darkly biting perspective on life immediately distinctive and unforgettable. She’s a Holden Caulfield for a whole new generation, with less posturing and more focus on burning out injustice at its root. I think someone like Lucia Stanton would scare me a little in real life, but as a fictional character I just want to protect her and rave about her to anyone who’ll listen. I wish this book were longer, but it still gets my highest recommendation as is.

★★★★★

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Book Review: Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

Book #257 of 2017:

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer (Southern Reach #1)

This was an unsettling sci-fi tale of delirium and paranoia, but there was a bit too much unresolved ambiguity for me to truly love it. The narrator is exploring an environment that’s known to warp perception and impede clear thinking, and that’s even before she gets exposed to a hallucinogenic plant spore or realizes the extent to which her shadowy government commanders have hypnotized and conditioned her. The resulting story is well-told and creepy, but I would have liked just a little bit more clarity in what was really going on. (There’s a movie adaptation coming out soon, so it’ll be interesting to see how these ambiguities are handled on the screen.) This is only the opening volume of a trilogy, but I’m not sure at this point whether I feel like reading any further.

★★★☆☆

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TV Review: The Mindy Project, season 3

TV #48 of 2017:

The Mindy Project, season 3

This show is getting incrementally better, with the addition of Danny’s mom this season a definite strength. On the other hand, it’s still wildly inconsistent in terms of character logic and the type of show it feels like it’s trying to be. Like I’ve said before, this show is frustrating as much as (if not more than) it’s entertaining for me.

★★★☆☆

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