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Transient Control of Gasoline Engines
Tielong Shen, Xiaohong Jiao, Mingxin Kang and Jiangyan Zhang
Book
Transient Control of Gasoline Engines drives to move progress forward. A stimulating examination of...
EE
Ecological Economics for the Anthropocene: An Emerging Paradigm
Peter G. Brown and Peter Timmerman
Book
Ecological Economics for the Anthropocene provides an urgently needed alternative to the...
WS
Wireless Sensor Networks: Current Status and Future Trends
Al-Sakib Khan Pathan, Shafiullah Khan and Nabil Ali Alrajeh
Book
Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) utilize fast, cheap, and effective applications to imitate the human...
Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Over the Holidays in Books
Apr 27, 2018
Summary: Vanessa is experiencing craziness from the holidays like she never has before: her husband’s relatives (who are extremely annoying) are visiting and taking over her holiday while he is out of town until Christmas eve, which means she has to entertain them, her sister is acting like she’s unrelated because she’s so wrapped up in her art (which she’s struggling with) and she’s trying desperately not to have an affair with the hansom playwright she’s working with…
My thoughts: It was really hard for me to see what the point of this book was, but i think it centered around holiday traditions, gifts, really weird relatives, and baking your pies instead of buying them from a store. there was no focus on the meaning of Christmas (Christ. hence, Christmas.) and i felt like the character’s decisions were not made based on what was right and the reason behind why it was right, but only to keep their dignity. the book seemed shallow in that sense. I really have a hard time understanding what these people were celebrating during Christmas—if you’re not celebrating the baby Jesus, what are you eating turkey for anyway?
The Plot: this book was a path through Christmas and New Year celebrations, so it took the four most important characters (Vanessa, her sister Thea, mother in-law Patience, and Patience’s daughter Libby) and told their Christmas stories from each of their perspectives. there were parts of the story that were really surprising—for instance, i didn’t expect what happened with Neil or Cal, and was very anxious to find out what happened.
The Characters: there were so many new characters all thrown at you at once in the beginning of the book, it’s a little tough to keep up with. Vanessa seemed to have her head on reasonably straight, which i liked. Thea though, out of all the characters, was the one who had the best grip on reality (maybe that’s just because she and I are both crazy temperamental artists, though). Patience (who was not patient) seemed trivial and silly and a little ditzy, which was perfect for her. I don’t think i was supposed to particularly like her. at least, i hope that’s the case. (because i didn’t.) Libby seemed melodramatic and had an overrated view of sex. but her love for her cousins made her endearing.
The Writing: there was a lot of swearing in this book. a lot. which really doesn’t bother me that much, because when i’m reading i skip over it and don’t really register it, but it might bother other people. the writing style in general seemed very casual, and some things were over described—i really don’t care if the toilet that she peed into was stainless steel or porcelain, and i don’t really want to know every detail of a woman’s Christmas shopping.
Recommendation and rating: I gave this book a 2 out of five, if you look on my side bar you see that I wrote “you might enjoy it, but you're really not missing anything if you skip it.” I rated it that way because I personally didn’t connect with this book (probably because of my view of Christmas being centered around Christ, not pie.) and would have lived to see tomorrow if I hadn’t read it. however, if you look below, there is a list of other blogs on this tour, and other people may tell you that it was fantastic. I guess this one just wasn’t for me. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a light quick fun read, ages 16+
check out the rest of the blog tour:
*Rundpinne: http://www.rundpinne.blogspot.com
*Frugal Plus: http://frugalplus.com/
*The Life (And Lies) of an Inanimate Flying Object:
http://haleymathiot.blogspot.com/
*Drey’s Library: http://dreyslibrary.blogspot.com/
*Wendi’s Book Corner: http://wendisbookcorner.blogspot.com/
*Opinionated? Me? : http://readingwatchingliving.blogspot.com/
*Me, My Book and the Couch:
http://memybookandthecouch.blogspot.com/
*Libby’s Library News: http://www.libslibrary.blogspot.com/
*Bookin’ With Bingo: http://bookinwithbingo.blogspot.com/
*Books, Movies, and Chinese Food:
http://books-movies-chinesefood.blogspot.com/
*Psychotic State: http://www.psychoticstate.blogspot.com/
*Readaholic: http://bridget3420.blogspot.com/
*That’s A Novel Idea: http://thatsanovelidea.blogspot.com
*All About {N}: http://www.bookwormygirl.blogspot.com/
*Starting Fresh: http://startingfresh-gaby317.blogspot.com/
*A Sea of Books: http://aseaofbooks.blogspot.com/
*Just Another New Blog: http://justanothernewblog.blogspot.com/
*Blog Business World: http://www.blogbusinessworld.blogspot.com
*My Friend Amy: http://www.myfriendamysblog.com
*Cheryl’s Book Nook: http://cherylsbooknook.blogspot.com/
*One Person’s Journey Through A World of Books:
http://bookjourney.wordpress.com/
*I Read: http://sumanam.wordpress.com/
*So Many Books, So Little Time:
http://purplg8r-somanybooks.blogspot.com/
*Keep on Booking: http://keeponbooking.blogspot.com
*Reading at the Beach: http://ilratb.blogspot.com/
*Found Not Lost: http://jmomfinds.amoores.com/
*Brizmus Blogs Books: http://brizmusblogsbooks.blogspot.com/
*Book Reviews by Buuklvr81: http://www.buuklvr81.blogspot.com/
Thank you to Sarah Reidy from Pocket Books for providing me with my review copy.
win this copy of my book at haleymathiot.blogspot.com
My thoughts: It was really hard for me to see what the point of this book was, but i think it centered around holiday traditions, gifts, really weird relatives, and baking your pies instead of buying them from a store. there was no focus on the meaning of Christmas (Christ. hence, Christmas.) and i felt like the character’s decisions were not made based on what was right and the reason behind why it was right, but only to keep their dignity. the book seemed shallow in that sense. I really have a hard time understanding what these people were celebrating during Christmas—if you’re not celebrating the baby Jesus, what are you eating turkey for anyway?
The Plot: this book was a path through Christmas and New Year celebrations, so it took the four most important characters (Vanessa, her sister Thea, mother in-law Patience, and Patience’s daughter Libby) and told their Christmas stories from each of their perspectives. there were parts of the story that were really surprising—for instance, i didn’t expect what happened with Neil or Cal, and was very anxious to find out what happened.
The Characters: there were so many new characters all thrown at you at once in the beginning of the book, it’s a little tough to keep up with. Vanessa seemed to have her head on reasonably straight, which i liked. Thea though, out of all the characters, was the one who had the best grip on reality (maybe that’s just because she and I are both crazy temperamental artists, though). Patience (who was not patient) seemed trivial and silly and a little ditzy, which was perfect for her. I don’t think i was supposed to particularly like her. at least, i hope that’s the case. (because i didn’t.) Libby seemed melodramatic and had an overrated view of sex. but her love for her cousins made her endearing.
The Writing: there was a lot of swearing in this book. a lot. which really doesn’t bother me that much, because when i’m reading i skip over it and don’t really register it, but it might bother other people. the writing style in general seemed very casual, and some things were over described—i really don’t care if the toilet that she peed into was stainless steel or porcelain, and i don’t really want to know every detail of a woman’s Christmas shopping.
Recommendation and rating: I gave this book a 2 out of five, if you look on my side bar you see that I wrote “you might enjoy it, but you're really not missing anything if you skip it.” I rated it that way because I personally didn’t connect with this book (probably because of my view of Christmas being centered around Christ, not pie.) and would have lived to see tomorrow if I hadn’t read it. however, if you look below, there is a list of other blogs on this tour, and other people may tell you that it was fantastic. I guess this one just wasn’t for me. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a light quick fun read, ages 16+
check out the rest of the blog tour:
*Rundpinne: http://www.rundpinne.blogspot.com
*Frugal Plus: http://frugalplus.com/
*The Life (And Lies) of an Inanimate Flying Object:
http://haleymathiot.blogspot.com/
*Drey’s Library: http://dreyslibrary.blogspot.com/
*Wendi’s Book Corner: http://wendisbookcorner.blogspot.com/
*Opinionated? Me? : http://readingwatchingliving.blogspot.com/
*Me, My Book and the Couch:
http://memybookandthecouch.blogspot.com/
*Libby’s Library News: http://www.libslibrary.blogspot.com/
*Bookin’ With Bingo: http://bookinwithbingo.blogspot.com/
*Books, Movies, and Chinese Food:
http://books-movies-chinesefood.blogspot.com/
*Psychotic State: http://www.psychoticstate.blogspot.com/
*Readaholic: http://bridget3420.blogspot.com/
*That’s A Novel Idea: http://thatsanovelidea.blogspot.com
*All About {N}: http://www.bookwormygirl.blogspot.com/
*Starting Fresh: http://startingfresh-gaby317.blogspot.com/
*A Sea of Books: http://aseaofbooks.blogspot.com/
*Just Another New Blog: http://justanothernewblog.blogspot.com/
*Blog Business World: http://www.blogbusinessworld.blogspot.com
*My Friend Amy: http://www.myfriendamysblog.com
*Cheryl’s Book Nook: http://cherylsbooknook.blogspot.com/
*One Person’s Journey Through A World of Books:
http://bookjourney.wordpress.com/
*I Read: http://sumanam.wordpress.com/
*So Many Books, So Little Time:
http://purplg8r-somanybooks.blogspot.com/
*Keep on Booking: http://keeponbooking.blogspot.com
*Reading at the Beach: http://ilratb.blogspot.com/
*Found Not Lost: http://jmomfinds.amoores.com/
*Brizmus Blogs Books: http://brizmusblogsbooks.blogspot.com/
*Book Reviews by Buuklvr81: http://www.buuklvr81.blogspot.com/
Thank you to Sarah Reidy from Pocket Books for providing me with my review copy.
win this copy of my book at haleymathiot.blogspot.com
Development and Social Policy: The Win-Win Strategies of Developmental Social Policy
Christian Aspalter and Kenny Teguh Pribadi
Book
In recent years, government and policymakers around the world have shifted their attention away from...
Design Leadership: How Top Design Leaders Build and Grow Successful Organizations
Book
What does it take to be the leader of a design firm or group? We often assume they have all the...
Performance Perspectives: A Critical Introduction
Jonathan Pitches and Sita Popat
Book
What is 'performance'? What are the boundaries of Performance Studies? How do we talk about...
TS
The Search for Entrepreneurship: More Questions Than Answers
Book
Since the 1980s, governments have often sought to encourage entrepreneurship on the assumption that...
Rusty Brown
9.0
Rate It
Book
The week after I finished the last page of Jimmy Corrigan I immediately started a new long story...
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Mortal Engines (The Hungry City Chronicles, #1) in Books
Dec 25, 2018
Through this entire book, I kept thinking "this feels like Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets." It's a completely different setting, and a different plot, but it had the same atmosphere. Rollicking action, fantastical premise, crazy setting, huge machines with entire worlds within them. I loved Valerian - it may not have been a critically great movie, and I don't think the leads had much chemistry, but the movie was just FUN. And that's how Mortal Engines is, too.
It's a crazy world, where cities have become mobile - think Howl's Moving Castle - and they chase each other across a barren world, devouring each other for resources in a social order they call Municipal Darwinism. Some cities, like London, are huge, with six main levels, not really counting the Gut, or the center of the machinery. Other towns are small, one or two levels crawling along trying to avoid the notice of the larger, faster cities. The peoples of the Traction Cities think people who live in statics (stationary cities, or, horror of horrors, right on the ground!) or people who are part of the Anti-Traction League, are crazy barbarians. And then there are the airship captains and crews, based out of the one floating city.
It is a crazy steampunk world, and Tom Natsworthy stumbles into a conspiracy plot by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But as he travels with Hester across the wasteland, trying to survive their pursuers and avert catastrophe, he learns more about her, and more about how the world actually works.
I absolutely adore the last two sentences of the book, and I'm going to post those here because they aren't terribly spoilery. And they're fantastic.
"You aren't a hero, and I'm not beautiful, and we probably won't live happily ever after," she said. "But we're alive, and together, and we're going to be all right."
This book is the first of a quartet, and Reeve also wrote a prequel trilogy, so there's actually three books before AND after this book. I'll probably check my library for them, because I REALLY enjoyed this book.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.com
It's a crazy world, where cities have become mobile - think Howl's Moving Castle - and they chase each other across a barren world, devouring each other for resources in a social order they call Municipal Darwinism. Some cities, like London, are huge, with six main levels, not really counting the Gut, or the center of the machinery. Other towns are small, one or two levels crawling along trying to avoid the notice of the larger, faster cities. The peoples of the Traction Cities think people who live in statics (stationary cities, or, horror of horrors, right on the ground!) or people who are part of the Anti-Traction League, are crazy barbarians. And then there are the airship captains and crews, based out of the one floating city.
It is a crazy steampunk world, and Tom Natsworthy stumbles into a conspiracy plot by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But as he travels with Hester across the wasteland, trying to survive their pursuers and avert catastrophe, he learns more about her, and more about how the world actually works.
I absolutely adore the last two sentences of the book, and I'm going to post those here because they aren't terribly spoilery. And they're fantastic.
"You aren't a hero, and I'm not beautiful, and we probably won't live happily ever after," she said. "But we're alive, and together, and we're going to be all right."
This book is the first of a quartet, and Reeve also wrote a prequel trilogy, so there's actually three books before AND after this book. I'll probably check my library for them, because I REALLY enjoyed this book.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.com