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ClareR (6054 KP) rated Q: The Novel in Books
Jul 11, 2021
Q is set in the near future - or even an alternative ‘Now’. To say that this made me feel supremely uncomfortable would be an understatement. I kept picking it up, reading a bit, and then putting it down - until I got to the last half of the book where I basically inhaled it.
As a parent and a teacher, I found this novel really disturbing. The author has taken where we are now in our education system, and ramped it up to its most exaggerated end point. And it still didn’t seem completely over the top.
In Q’s reality, children are divided up in to their academic ability and put into one of three tiered schools - Silver, Green or Yellow. It’s a relatively new system, and for teacher Elena Fairchild, it’s a dream to teach in a top tier school, where the children are all motivated and high achieving. But when Elena’s youngest daughter is demoted from a Green to a Yellow school, Elena’s loyalty to the education system starts to disintegrate. And when her husband, who works in a senior position in the education department, refuses to save his daughter from being sent hundreds of miles away to a Yellow State boarding school, Elena decides to act.
Ooh, how I loved this. Yes, it’s uncomfortable reading. Yes, it has Eugenics written large all over it (And Elena’s grandmother even warns her and tells her about her youth under the Nazi regime). And yes, it’s uncomfortably close to reality.
But it was a gripping read with a satisfying end. I would recommend it!
As a parent and a teacher, I found this novel really disturbing. The author has taken where we are now in our education system, and ramped it up to its most exaggerated end point. And it still didn’t seem completely over the top.
In Q’s reality, children are divided up in to their academic ability and put into one of three tiered schools - Silver, Green or Yellow. It’s a relatively new system, and for teacher Elena Fairchild, it’s a dream to teach in a top tier school, where the children are all motivated and high achieving. But when Elena’s youngest daughter is demoted from a Green to a Yellow school, Elena’s loyalty to the education system starts to disintegrate. And when her husband, who works in a senior position in the education department, refuses to save his daughter from being sent hundreds of miles away to a Yellow State boarding school, Elena decides to act.
Ooh, how I loved this. Yes, it’s uncomfortable reading. Yes, it has Eugenics written large all over it (And Elena’s grandmother even warns her and tells her about her youth under the Nazi regime). And yes, it’s uncomfortably close to reality.
But it was a gripping read with a satisfying end. I would recommend it!
Jordan Binkerd (567 KP) rated Excalibur (1981) in Movies
Sep 4, 2019
Lush, beautiful visuals (1 more)
Stellar performances from all involved
Long movie, but feels like it rushes from highlight to highlight without fleshing out the story. (1 more)
More mythic fantasy of "knights in shining armor" as my younger self would have conceived it than anything grounded in reality.
Long on visuals, short on narrative cohesion and characterization
Excalibur is a classic, and deservedly so. The visuals and performances from the entire cast are outstanding, and you get to see early appearances from the likes of a then-unknown Patrick Stewart or Liam Neeson. The film is epic in scope, and that's part of the problem--in trying to tell the entire Arthurian legend, the film only has time (even at nearly two and a half hours) to hit the highlights without adding sufficient connective tissue to make sure that we care about the characters. Then there's the fact that the film caters to more of a child's fantasy version of knights in shining armor than anything else. I don't mind the anachronism of plate armor in the "dark ages," but characters living in their plate day on and day out, in peacetime, in the middle of their fortress? That crap is uncomfortable! Ten year old me would have bought that reality, but this film would have been (and in fact specifically WAS) denied to ten year old me based on the nudity and gore. I'm not asking for gritty realism, but I also wasn't expecting a return to the fantasties of my youth. Worth seeing, to be sure, but not timeless or without it's flaws.
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Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated More Than Music (Chasing The Dreams #1) in Books
Aug 13, 2020
147 of 200
Kindle
More than music ( chasing the dream book 1)
By Elizabeth Briggs
They can't resist each other, but their secret romance might tear their band apart....
Music major Maddie Taylor secretly dreams of a louder life, but geeky girls like her don't get to be rock stars. That is, until tattooed singer Jared Cross catches her playing guitar and invites her to join his band on The Sound, a reality TV show competition.
Once on the show, Maddie discovers there's more to Jared than his flirty smile and bad boy reputation. With each performance their attraction becomes impossible to ignore, but when the show pressures them to stay single, they're forced to keep their relationship secret.
As the competition heats up, Jared will do whatever it takes for his band to win, and Maddie must decide if following her dream is worth losing her heart.
Ok this is not something I would have picked up myself but the author was recommended to me by a friend It was a different series that was recommended but I always like to start from the first series. So I gave it a shot and I got a pleasant surprise! It was a sweet heart warming story of friendship l, love and the cost of a reality show. It’s characters were likeable and the story easy to follow. I will definitely carrying on with the series. Just goes to show you may not normally read a certain book but they are all worth a try!
Kindle
More than music ( chasing the dream book 1)
By Elizabeth Briggs
They can't resist each other, but their secret romance might tear their band apart....
Music major Maddie Taylor secretly dreams of a louder life, but geeky girls like her don't get to be rock stars. That is, until tattooed singer Jared Cross catches her playing guitar and invites her to join his band on The Sound, a reality TV show competition.
Once on the show, Maddie discovers there's more to Jared than his flirty smile and bad boy reputation. With each performance their attraction becomes impossible to ignore, but when the show pressures them to stay single, they're forced to keep their relationship secret.
As the competition heats up, Jared will do whatever it takes for his band to win, and Maddie must decide if following her dream is worth losing her heart.
Ok this is not something I would have picked up myself but the author was recommended to me by a friend It was a different series that was recommended but I always like to start from the first series. So I gave it a shot and I got a pleasant surprise! It was a sweet heart warming story of friendship l, love and the cost of a reality show. It’s characters were likeable and the story easy to follow. I will definitely carrying on with the series. Just goes to show you may not normally read a certain book but they are all worth a try!
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Book
It's early summer when a young poet, Dora Fielding, moves to Helensburgh on the west coast of...
Fiction
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2464 KP) rated Four Parties and a Funeral in Books
Mar 29, 2023 (Updated Mar 29, 2023)
Reality Show Gets Real with Murder
Even though Mia Carina has no desire to be part of the new reality show, Dons of Ditmars Boulevard, Belle View has been hired as a location for some events and to cater others. Not only that, but some mobsters she knows have been cast. She quickly learns that the drama unfolding before the cameras is no match for the drama unfolding among the crew. Still, she is surprised when a dead body turns up. With someone she knows the police’s chief suspect, Mia jumps in to find out what is really happening. Can she figure it out?
It was wonderful to be back with Mia and the rest of her family and friends. Yes, I did find a few things related to the production of the show stretched believability a bit for me, but that’s mostly minor. I was having fun the entire way through the book, laughing quite a bit at the antics of the characters. I suspect if I watched the kind of show being lampooned here, I would find it even funnier. There are several sub-plots, but they never take away from the strong mystery, which goes to some rather creative places before Mia reaches the logical solution. The regular characters are up to their usual antics, which is always fun, and I loved the development that some of them got. This book will leave readers, old and new, with a grin on their face.
It was wonderful to be back with Mia and the rest of her family and friends. Yes, I did find a few things related to the production of the show stretched believability a bit for me, but that’s mostly minor. I was having fun the entire way through the book, laughing quite a bit at the antics of the characters. I suspect if I watched the kind of show being lampooned here, I would find it even funnier. There are several sub-plots, but they never take away from the strong mystery, which goes to some rather creative places before Mia reaches the logical solution. The regular characters are up to their usual antics, which is always fun, and I loved the development that some of them got. This book will leave readers, old and new, with a grin on their face.
Chris Hooker (419 KP) rated All Fall Down (Supervolcano, #2) in Books
Jan 12, 2018
The follow up novel to [Harry Turtledove's] [Supervolcano: Eruption] was worth the read. The continuing story of the characters as they try in their own ways to survive was enjoyable.
[Supervolcano: All Fall Down] picked up right where [Eruption] left off. In the midst of this disaster the way [Turtledove] portrays his characters not as hero's out to save the world but as humans with all their faults makes the story more believable. It even has a serial killer mystery twist within the plot.
I definitely prefer my science fiction based on real science and not super natural. That is what [Turtledove] has produced so far with the two books from the [Supervolcano] series. I like my fantasy with a good does of reality in most cases.
[Supervolcano: All Fall Down] picked up right where [Eruption] left off. In the midst of this disaster the way [Turtledove] portrays his characters not as hero's out to save the world but as humans with all their faults makes the story more believable. It even has a serial killer mystery twist within the plot.
I definitely prefer my science fiction based on real science and not super natural. That is what [Turtledove] has produced so far with the two books from the [Supervolcano] series. I like my fantasy with a good does of reality in most cases.
EcoFriendlyNerd (40 KP) rated My Eyes Are Black Holes in Books
Sep 3, 2017
A weird, but fantastic read!
Easily the weirdest book I've ever read (and I've read quite a few). A great book to read for those who want to know what it's like in the mind of someone who suffers from schizophrenia. Well written (so much so that even I as the reader had a hard time distinguishing between reality and fantasy). I would love to know what happened prior to the book (an unmentioned event seems relevant to the story). I will say that, despite having read this book, I'm still not entirely sure what happened (that may have been the point though). All in all, well done, Mr. Smith.
Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated David Sedaris Diaries: A Visual Compendium in Books
Apr 27, 2018
David Sedaris—Live for your listening pleasure (Audio)
Genre: Radio show
Rating: 4/5
David Sedaris tells story after humorous story, always pulling laughs from his audience (the audio recording is live). This short collection of memoir-esque stories will keep you laughing the whole way through.
The recording features four stories and several diary entries that are sure to have you grinning at the least and crying from laughing at the most.
Content: There was some mild language and some sexual references. Not for the easily offended.
Recommendation: Ages 18+ to anyone who enjoys radio shows, comedy, or just needs a good laugh and a break from reality.
**Thank you to Anna from Hachette Audio for providing my review copy!**
Genre: Radio show
Rating: 4/5
David Sedaris tells story after humorous story, always pulling laughs from his audience (the audio recording is live). This short collection of memoir-esque stories will keep you laughing the whole way through.
The recording features four stories and several diary entries that are sure to have you grinning at the least and crying from laughing at the most.
Content: There was some mild language and some sexual references. Not for the easily offended.
Recommendation: Ages 18+ to anyone who enjoys radio shows, comedy, or just needs a good laugh and a break from reality.
**Thank you to Anna from Hachette Audio for providing my review copy!**
ClareR (6054 KP) rated Locke & Key, Vol. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft in Books
Apr 11, 2018
I keep telling myself not to get involved with another comic series. This book (and the next in the series) is the result of taking my children to the library to while away a wet day during the Easter holiday. I thoroughly enjoyed it, too. It dives straight in to the action from page one. Bits are rather blood thirsty, and it does bend reality (he's his fathers son, and probably fed up with being compared to him as well, but there it is!). It's all about keys and somebody, who isn't particularly nice, wanting to get their hands on them. I don't want to say anything else! All I will say, is that it's well worth giving it a chance.