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Lewis Black: Red, White & Screwed
Lewis Black, Joe Grifasi
HBO Home Video, 2006
Funny as Hell!
+ Great ! !
+ Very Funny
+ Way too funny!
+ Hilarious comedian who is not afraid of being critical
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Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life
Anne Lamott
Anchor, 1995
Pep in your step!
+ Teacher resource
+ fantastic
+ Not just another how-to textbook; a must for the writer wanna-be
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The Memory Keeper's Daughter
Kim Edwards
Penguin (Non-Classics), 2006
A real page turner
+ Not a book for action/adventure lovers
+ The Memory Keeper's Daughter
I am so stunned by all of the negative reviews on this book! I think I tend to be very critical of books, and have a very short list of favorites. I absolutely loved this book. I thought the characters were very well-developed, and the author's writing positively flowed. The relationships ...
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Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors
Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan
Ballantine Books, 1993
Years later, still effective
+ Carl Sagan's Best Book
+ Easy read on a hard subject
+ Sagan Again Explains the Universe
+ Truly a page turner.....
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1421: The Year China Discovered America
Gavin Menzies
Harper Perennial, 2004
Excellent history
+ Goodbye to the "Spaceman" theory
+ Fact/Fiction who cares......
+ Amazing
+ Intriguing perspective
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The Yiddish Policemen's Union: A Novel
Michael Chabon
HarperCollins, 2007
Bittersweet like woodsmoke
+ Deliciously Multi-Layered
+ Really, really good
This is a book I am not allowed to read in bed, as my husband is opposed to books that make me cackle while he's trying to sleep.
" According to doctors, therapists, and his ex-wife, Landsman drinks to medicate himself, tuning the tubes and crystals of his moods with the crude hammer of ...
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The Human Stain: A Novel
Philip Roth
Vintage, 2001
Philip Roth = Genius
+ A smart novel which will stay in your mind for days
+ Recommending Philip Roth is a little like recommending sex...
A college professor is forced to resign for alleged racism and begins an affair with an illiterate woman. In my opinion, this is very close to the perfect book. The writing is genius, and the scope of the book is enormous.
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Bel Canto (P.S.)
Ann Patchett
Harper Perennial, 2005
Stunning and Emotional
+ Almost spectacular
+ Patchett Delivers Again
+ simply wonderful
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I Am a Strange Loop
Douglas R. Hofstadter
Basic Books, 2007
I love Amazonmarketplace and I love Douglas Hofstadter.
+ Let's just let the boy-in-the-man play
Every book written by Hofstadter or co-authored by him is sitting on my "bible" shelf -- next to my bed. I've read them all several times over. Being able to get one from Amazon is so good. I am now homebound and I love the reviews, suggestions, etc. that I get here. Sometimes I feel I'm having ...
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Darkness at Noon: A Novel
Arthur Koestler
Scribner, 2006
Psychological Examination of Stalinist Show Trials
+ Fiction is rarely as good as reality
+ Novel of Ideas
+ "1984" in 1938
+ Brilliant, insightful pessimism.
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The Magician's Assistant
Ann Patchett
Harvest Books, 1998
Great Story From Unlikely Scenerio
+ Just Another Normal Life
+ A truly wonderful book
+ Storyteller
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Sweet and Low: A Family Story
Rich Cohen
Picador, 2007
The mystery of the pink packet
+ ELLEN & HER ISSUE
Rich Cohen is only getting better with time. This is a captivating story of the ubiquitous pink packet and the family business around it. Lucky us: a very good writer seems to be related to every remarkable person on the planet (see Rich's other books: the Avengers and Tough Jews). Find out what ...
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The Primal Teen: What the New Discoveries about the Teenage Brain Tell Us about Our Kids
Barbara Strauch
Anchor, 2004
Adolescence partially explained
+ Why do teens do what they do
+ A must-read for every parent!
This book provides a series of relatively recent findings on brain development, during adolescence, and connects those changes with behavior patterns seen in many teenagers. Some of the findings discussed are interesting, but not startling, while others are quite remarkable, and go a long way ...
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The Skull Mantra (Inspector Shan Tao Yun)
Eliot Pattison
St. Martin's Paperbacks, 2001
Mesmerizing
+ great read
+ Tibetan Murder Mystery
I enjoy reading mystery and police procedurals from other cultures. The Bangkok books by John Burdett, the Wallander series by Mankell, Qui Xialong's books set in China, Natsuo Kirino's Out, Alexander McCall Smith's Mma Ramotswe stories. I picked this book up with that in mind.
To me, the ...
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Ordinary Heroes
Scott Turow
Grand Central Publishing, 2006
Incredible World War 2 novel full of engaging characters
+ Good experience
+ Solid Turow Book
+ Turow tries something a bit different--and it works
+ Slow to start, powerful second half.
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