Search

Search only in certain items:

    Syberia 2 (FULL)

    Syberia 2 (FULL)

    Games and Entertainment

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    Following Syberia's resounding success with players throughout the world, Benoît Sokal invites you...

Pan's Labyrinth: The Labyrinth of the Faun
Pan's Labyrinth: The Labyrinth of the Faun
Cornelia Funke, Guillermo del Toro | 2019 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
8.5 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
I loved the original film of this book (with the same name), so the thought of a book intrigued me, especially as it was written afterwards. And let’s face it, anything with fairytale connections is on to a winner where I’m concerned.

This book perfectly illustrates the cruelty and despair of the fascist regime under Franco. Ofelia tries to escape real life in her books, but this becomes increasingly difficult for her as her mother becomes more and more ill during her pregnancy. The brutality of her stepfather and his terrible methods of control is seen in the surrounding area and his own home: the lack of care for his wife, the plans to kill the anti-fascist fighters in the woods, and his methods of torture.

Ofelia escapes in to her imagination - or is Pan real? I loved this aspect and the tasks she was given to complete. I really enjoyed how the folktales were interwoven and alternated with real life (which had the harsher conclusions? Fairy tales don’t always have a happy ending), and gave an explanation to the origin of the Labyrinth.

The illustrations were beautiful too, and put faces to the characters - after all, it’s a long time since I saw the film. But this book stands so well on it’s own, and dare I say that you don’t need to have seen the film? Well, no, because I really enjoyed the film! So, read the book, and watch the film - you won’t regret it!
  
Timothy Mean and the Time Machine
Timothy Mean and the Time Machine
William A. E. Ford | 2019 | Children
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
What I liked most was the fun rhymes and locations (0 more)
If I absolutely had to pick something I did not like it would have to be the few lines that did not rhyme as they almost upset the flow of the passage (0 more)
Honest Review for Free Copy of Book
Contains spoilers, click to show
Timothy Mean and the Time Machine by William A. E. Ford was a wonderful little children's book. Marcelo Simonetti also created some amazing artwork for the book. The rhymes on just about every line would hold a child's attention and the interesting locations would inspire their imagination. The book is very short, with only about ten pages with text on them. This makes it great to prevent young readers from being intimidated by the size of the book. The book also goes through the days of the week, helping to teach children the names of the days in a fun way.

     Being bored one day, a young boy by the name of Timothy Mean decides to build a time machine. He visits Vikings and Pirates on their ships, causing them trouble. He visits his parents while they are children and in school themselves. At one point he even pulls the pants down on am astronaut. No trip in time would be complete without a trip into the future so that is exactly what he does. Timothy also likes playing pranks and being a trouble-maker at each location he visits.
 
     The locations visited and Timothy's pranks open up chances for discussion with parents and slightly older children. Parents could ask their children all kinds of things about the book. They could ask about if their child would want to walk on the moon, or what they think the future will be like. Parents could ask about what their child would do if they were a pirate or maybe what they think life was like in mid-evil times. Almost any children's book that encourages children to think and use their imagination is a good one.

     I loved the book. What I liked most were the fun rhymes and locations. If I absolutely had to pick something I did not like it would have to be the few lines that did not rhyme as they almost upset the flow of the passage. Though in all honesty, it is not a big issue and for a children's book writers are somewhat limited on their options to ensure a child would understand.

  Target readers for this book are anyone. As a mother, I would feel comfortable reading this book to my children no matter how young. I also feel like this would be a good book for a beginning reader, maybe a page a dag. For even more fun and value, parents could have their new readers read the page that goes with the current weekday. Slightly older children and more experienced readers could sit down and read the entire book on their own.

     I rate this book 4 out of 4 and plan on getting a physical copy for my own children (I reviewed a digital copy of the book). The book was wonderful and I hope it gains enough popularly that William A. E. Ford creates an entire line of rhyming Timothy Mean books

https://facebook.com/nightreaderreviews
  
L(
Legacy (Legacy, #1)
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
It's unfortunate that the publishers insisted on making Cayla Kluver's age known. I see it mainly as a disheartening marketing ploy that is unfair to her and detracts from her talent. The whole time reading, I thought of her age and wish I hadn't known how young she was. I want her work to speak for itself, not her age, so I've tried to write a fair and accurate review reflecting that.

Miss Kluver has a good grasp of pacing and her imagination is very good. She shows promise and I'm sure her future books will only improve the more she writes. The beginning is a bit shaky, mainly due to detailed descriptions that halt the flow of the book (what I would call "stop and go" writing) and suffered extraneous words and adjectives. This occurs off and on throughout the book, but if you can get past the first sixty to seventy pages, both of these greatly decrease. After that, I got more into the book and was entertained throughout the rest of the story. Princess Alera has a nice balance of contrasts to her and she does well as the main character. Male characters, such as Narnian, London, and Destari, shine more than anyone else and I couldn't help but become fascinated by them. Despite my initial trepidation, I find myself looking forward to the next book featuring these characters and this world. I sincerely hope the sequel delves more into the Cokyris and their side of the story, for I can't help but feel the need for more equality and not the typical "good vs. evil" concept.
3.5 stars
  
The Lego Batman Movie (2017)
The Lego Batman Movie (2017)
2017 | Action, Animation, Comedy
Batman reigns supreme. Dark, Gothic, self important egotist with serious commitment issues. The Lego Batman Movie could have been little more than a cash in on a popular character from the 2014 surprise hit, The Lego Movie (2014), but instead we get a film which would seem to cement the future of this spoof, family entertainment franchise.

The “Real” Batman, as we all know, is struggling along the rest of hid Justice League pals to break back in to big leagues, but as long a Marvel are ruling the box office this is an uphill task, but here we have a movie and franchise which is limitless in its possibilities, plotting and imagination as anything and everything can be pulled out for the bag for the most entertaining, if not bizarre mash ups imaginable.

Not just limiting himself to DC, director, Chris McKay of Robot Chicken fame, other movies and toys of all ages can band together to create these plots but that said, these are not just cynical product placements, they are taken from the minds of the audience, whether they be three years old or 80, as Batman is himself referenced to be in this film.

Also, drawing on Batman’s long and lavish history as much as possible, we have it all, from the earliest comics, theatrical serials, every previous feature film and a few new twists to be thrown in at will. In short, this is as much fun as you can imagine and it lives up to its potential if not surpassing it from the opening black frames to the final credit.

Recommended for all the family whether you are Batman fans or not.