What really sets this simple story apart from the rest is the illustrative style. Pratt has overlayed black and white photographs of Victorian landmarks with eye-catching coloured depictions of Riley and his menagerie. At each location Riley reveals yet another masterful invention to help with his search—everything from: automated whiz-bang ground-hugging projectiles to fandangled hifalutin patented doodads.
Category: Book Reviews
Book Reviews
A review of Alternate Beauty by Andrea Rains Waggener
Alternate Beauty is a treasure trove of self-realization for more than just the main character; it can be life altering for the reader as well. In her original world Ronnie desires to be a fashion designer. As a youngster, her mother dashed those dreams and although her desire was strong, she let it go to sink her sorrows in food. We all have something we desire to do or have and we let it go due to deep seeded fear.
A review of Private Life by Jane Smiley
Though Private Life is far from a happy book, the subtle beauty of its perceptions and the richly drawn tapestry of the characters that revolve around Margaret and her intensely private life provide the reader with a powerful and utterly engrossing work.
A review of The King’s Gambit for the Creative Aggressor by Thomas Johansson
One practical advantage to playing the King’s Gambit is that you cannot get sidetracked into other openings. If you play the Spanish or the Scotch, for example, you have to reckon with encountering the Philidor or the Petroff (amongst others) instead. There’s none of that here: with 2.f4 White sets out his stall and determines the future course of the play.
A review of Never Fear Cancer Again: How to Prevent and Reverse Cancer by Raymond Francis
The simplicity of the Beyond Health model makes it very attractive, and certainly for those of us who are interested in staying well and avoiding diseases of all kinds the advice in this book is easy to accept and very worthwhile. Eating less junk food and more fresh vegetables and fruit and raw healthy grains, sprouts and nuts can only do us good, as can reducing our exposure to toxins and perhaps supplementing with a good multi-vitamin and fish oil at least.
A review of Blindfold Chess: History, Psychology, Techniques, Champions, World Records, and Important Games by Eliot Hearst and John Knott
One especially fine section of the book concerns itself with Miguel Najdorf’s blindfold simultaneous displays of the 1940s; and the authors are to be highly commended for their research in bringing to light the full scale of Najdorf’s achievement. They make a convincing case that Najdorf should be regarded as the holder of the world record (on 45 boards), rather than Koltanowski, the generally accepted record holder.
A review of To Be Sung Underwater by Tom McNeal
To Be Sung Underwater is a perfect example of a typical love story told in a unique and beautiful way, complete with an ending I certainly didn’t see coming. I can only imagine how much work it took Tom McNeal to produce writing that seems so effortless.
A review of Among the Departed by Vicki Delany
How do people carry on with their lives when someone has not only departed, but vanished? How do they cope privately with the not-knowing, and endure the public scrutiny? What becomes of them? The novel gives the reader an insight into those living out their lives among the departed. This aspect of the novel is particularly compelling, thought provoking, and heart-rending.
A review of Madre: Perilous Journeys with a Spanish Noun by Liza Bakewell
Liza Bakewell is a linguistic anthropologist but Madre is not an academic tome; more like a dance through the linguistic history and difficulties of a word in the Spanish language that does not just mean ‘mother’. Madre, it becomes clear, can take on all sorts of meanings depending on the context of its use.
A review of The Beach Trees by Karen White
White is purposeful in her choice of setting. While Julie and the Guidrys rebuild their lives—both together and separately—they come together to physically rebuild the Guidrys’ beach house, River Song. The house will come to represent a new beginning for everyone, although as Monica’s grandmother Aimee explains, rebuilding and starting over is nothing new for the Gulf Coast residents—it’s simply a part of life.