Book #3 of 2018: Exit West by Mohsin Hamid There’s a bit of a disconnect between the beginning and end of this novel, but they’re both appealing in their own right. The first half tells a love story in the characters’ war-torn home country (which is never specified by name but appears to be somewhere …
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Book Review: The Return of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Book #2 of 2018: The Return of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs (Tarzan #2) This pulp sequel doesn’t quite hit the ludicrous thrills of its classic predecessor, which makes it harder for a modern reader to look past all of the 1900s racism and sexism. It’s worth reading if you want to see the happy …
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Book Review: The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
Book 1 of 2018: The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (The Queen’s Thief #1) This tale of a skilled thief released from prison to rob for the monarch was somewhat predictable, but still very fun and strongly reminiscent of other stories that I’ve enjoyed. (The religious aspect feels straight out of Tortall, and I can …
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TV Review: Game of Thrones, season 5
TV #49 of 2017: Game of Thrones, season 5 This is where the wheels really start to come off Game of Thrones. It’s still better than season 7 in terms of character logic and a lack of plot armor, but this is the point where the writers were past the current ending of the books …
Movie Review: The Judge (2014)
Movie #26 of 2017: The Judge (2014) The cast is good (especially if you’ve been dying to see Marvel’s Iron Man and Kingpin as brothers), and they act their hearts out, but the writing completely fails to live up to their performances. My dad has seen this movie a few times and was really excited …
Book Review: Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft
Book #265 of 2017: Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft (The Books of Babel #1) There are some definite rough spots in this steampunk Tower of Babel story, but I like how its protagonist steadily grows from a fussy schoolteacher into someone braver and more capable over the course of the novel. The Tower itself is …
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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 …
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 …
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 …
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 …
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