Book #201 of 2018: The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander (The Chronicles of Prydain #2) I like this second adventure through the land of Prydain even more than its predecessor, perhaps because it has more twists and turns (some easy to predict, others not) and a greater focus on characterization over plot. But there’s the …
Continue reading “Book Review: The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander”
Book #200 of 2018: Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou A terrific piece of long-form investigative journalism, detailing the shady business practices of the Theranos blood-test corporation. From their heavy employee turnover and their “culture of secrecy and fear” to their overpromises of technical breakthroughs and their lies …
Continue reading “Review: Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou”
Book #199 of 2018: Trickster’s Queen by Tamora Pierce (Daughter of the Lioness #2) Tamora Pierce is always hit-or-miss for me, and this particular Tortall novel is unfortunately more of a miss. The spycraft feels mostly like a repeat of the last book, the plot points are easy to predict, and the author ultimately does …
Continue reading “Book Review: Trickster’s Queen by Tamora Pierce”
Book #198 of 2018: The Outsider by Stephen King Stephen King’s latest novel is also his best work in years (since 11/22/63 in 2011, in my opinion). It’s a compulsively readable mystery-thriller with an irresistible premise: a man is arrested for the horrific rape and murder of a young boy, with irrefutable eyewitness, fingerprint, and …
Continue reading “Book Review: The Outsider by Stephen King”
TV #46 of 2018: ReBoot: The Guardian Code, season 2 I ultimately gave the first season of this show a 2-star review, feeling that although it was significantly worse than the original ReBoot cartoon, it had occasional flashes of quality that showed promise. Unfortunately, I can’t be as generous to this second season (which was …
Continue reading “TV Review: ReBoot: The Guardian Code, season 2”
Book #197 of 2018: There There by Tommy Orange This debut novel is a blistering look at the experiences of many contemporary Native Americans, as seen through the perspectives of a dozen “urban Indians” who are each drawn in turn to a pow wow in Oakland. The characters differ in their relation to their heritage …
TV #45 of 2018: Better Call Saul, season 4 I’ve mentioned this before, but one reason that I prefer Better Call Saul to its parent show is that Walter White has always struck me as being evil right from the start – Breaking Bad could be exciting and horrifying, but the story was never really …
Book #196 of 2018: The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson (The Masquerade #1) A fascinating character and culture study, most reminiscent of Ann Leckie’s Imperial Radch books. Baru Cormorant is a young woman whose homeland gets annexed by an expanding empire, after which she privately vows to rise through her conquerors’ ranks to take …
Continue reading “Book Review: The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson”
Book #195 of 2018: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling (Harry Potter #3) This has always been my favorite book in the Harry Potter series, and it is no less excellent even now that I’m closer in age to the second title character than the first. Harry and his friends …
Continue reading “Book Review: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling”
Book #194 of 2018: Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover This memoir is a difficult read, recounting author Tara Westover’s fundamentalist survivalist childhood in rural Idaho and her decision as a teenager to finally pursue an education away from home, which leads her to realize just how sheltered and unhealthy her early life has been. …
Continue reading “Book Review: Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover”
The Lesser Joke: book reviews and more