Blankets (Craig Thompson)
I was a little tough on the first Thompson book I read, a graphic novel called Habibi that reached for greatness and couldn't quite grasp it. Weirdly enough, his previous work - this book - is everything I could have asked for and more. I don't want to gush too much, but this book is beautifully written and drawn, at turns hilarious and heartbreaking (mostly heartbreaking) as it follows our hero Craig and his struggles growing up.
I guess if I'm looking for some criticism, the art in Blankets isn't as breathtaking as it is in Habibi, both because this is earlier in Thompson's career and because the setting is more stark and less fantastical - and come to think of it, that's more of an observation; the stark art in Blankets perfectly fits the tone of frozen Midwestern lost despair. Huh. Well, I guess for once I can't think of a single thing to complain about. Um, highly recommended.
Grade: A+
Monday, September 30, 2013
Friday, September 27, 2013
"Dragon Age: Asunder"
Dragon Age: Asunder (David Gaider)
This is one of the most dreaded works out there: A video game tie in (bum bum bummmm). The three Mass Effect novels were alright (I'm not sure in retrospect they quite reached that A- I gave out), but this novel is a cut above those, and the only thing that holds it back from being an easy recommend is that it's absolutely steeped in Dragon Age lore. If you haven't played both games you'll probably be pretty lost, and even someone like me who's not just played but also read most of the optional material in those games had no idea who someone from one of the previous Dragon Age novels was when she showed up.
If you can surmount that formidable barrier to entry, though, there's a great story in here packed full of the kind of interesting, fleshed-out characters that you probably wouldn't expect from a video game tie-in novel. My only nitpick is that the villain comes off as a bit of a mustache-twirling cartoon bad guy - the author does attempt to give him some depth and motivation for his actions, but this comes as too little, too late to make him into a believable person at cross-purposes with our hero instead of a naughty antagonist for our heroes to look good fighting. This is the only thing I can complain about, though, and if you know enough about the setting to consider buying this, I highly recommend it.
Grade: A-
This is one of the most dreaded works out there: A video game tie in (bum bum bummmm). The three Mass Effect novels were alright (I'm not sure in retrospect they quite reached that A- I gave out), but this novel is a cut above those, and the only thing that holds it back from being an easy recommend is that it's absolutely steeped in Dragon Age lore. If you haven't played both games you'll probably be pretty lost, and even someone like me who's not just played but also read most of the optional material in those games had no idea who someone from one of the previous Dragon Age novels was when she showed up.
If you can surmount that formidable barrier to entry, though, there's a great story in here packed full of the kind of interesting, fleshed-out characters that you probably wouldn't expect from a video game tie-in novel. My only nitpick is that the villain comes off as a bit of a mustache-twirling cartoon bad guy - the author does attempt to give him some depth and motivation for his actions, but this comes as too little, too late to make him into a believable person at cross-purposes with our hero instead of a naughty antagonist for our heroes to look good fighting. This is the only thing I can complain about, though, and if you know enough about the setting to consider buying this, I highly recommend it.
Grade: A-
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
"The Space Wolf Omnibus"
Space Wolf Omnibus: Space Wolf / Ragnar's Claw / Grey Hunter (William King)
Three novels about, umm, space wolves. I'm going to review all three novels in one post; never let it be said you don't get value here!
Space Wolf: This entire novel is a flashback showing how our hero, Ragnar (I kept thinking of the guy from Dragon Quest IV) became a Space Wolf, opening with him as a normal dude and ending as he's completed his initiation and is ready to head out into the galaxy to fight. I was going to complain about the fact that we know that he doesn't die because this is the first novel in the omnibus, but the novel itself spoils this by having him get whacked on the head and flash back, so you know he's gonna be okay. Plus, I guess, the novel is titled Space Wolf, not Guy Who Tried To Become a Space Wolf But Died. No, the real issue I have is that the writing is what could charitably be called workmanlike and perhaps more accurately be called pedestrian; this is a interesting book because of the novel-sized depth given to becoming a Space Marine, not necessarily because it's well-written. I'd probably only recommend this to people on the ends of the 40k fan spectrum: It's a good place to get started or an interesting read if you're really into the setting.
Grade: C+
Ragnar's Claw: Goofily enough, this is another novel-length flashback, this time with a older Ragnar flashing back to his first deployment. The plot's a bare-bones GET THE MCGUFFIN, and honestly it's not as interesting as the fact that this novel is where things start getting weird. King seems to be working off some old, no longer in canon idea of what a Space Marine is, as Ragnar meets a Inquisitor who is "almost as tall as [Ragnar] is" - no small feat considering Space Marines are usually 8 - 10 feet tall without shoes. (This gets even sillier when they meet a guy who is taller than a Space Marine who is "tall even for a Space Marine", which by my estimate would make this guy a normal human who is over ten feet tall.) More than that, these guys don't really act a lot like Space Marines, as I found myself incredulously reading about them farting and then teasing each other for who produced the most impressive gas.
In a way, this is interesting in itself, but it runs against one of the more interesting themes in W40k, which is how the Space Marines' super-humanity sets them apart from the average human (for a more nuanced take on this subject, I recommend, of all things, A Thousand Sons). The heroes of this book are just guys who can smell well and don't get tired, and this combined with the nothing special plot results in a novel that isn't bad, but doesn't really have much to recommend.
Grade: C-
Grey Hunter: Unbelievably, the omnibus goes three for three with flashbacks, as this novel too opens with a page of Ragnar in the present day and then the rest of the book is a huge flashback. I'm not really sure I have much to say about this novel; free of the first novel's unusual focus on the making of a space marine and the second novel's weird obsession with farting, this is just a straight up average old W40k novel. The basic plot is that some Chaos guys stole a MacGuffin that the Space Wolves want back, so they go and shoot and stab a bunch of people. It's perfectly serviceable and there's nothing wrong with it, but a few days after reading it I'm struggling to remember anything interesting about it at all.
Grade: C
In sum, I think this entire omnibus is like the first novel it contains - it can only really be recommended to someone looking to dip an exploratory toe in the W40K setting, or for superfans for whom $10 for 3 full-sized average-quality novels is irresistible. There's nothing really wrong with this collection, but even at such a cheap price for so much, there's some really excellent W40K material out there that this omnibus just can't stack up against.
Grade: C
Three novels about, umm, space wolves. I'm going to review all three novels in one post; never let it be said you don't get value here!
Space Wolf: This entire novel is a flashback showing how our hero, Ragnar (I kept thinking of the guy from Dragon Quest IV) became a Space Wolf, opening with him as a normal dude and ending as he's completed his initiation and is ready to head out into the galaxy to fight. I was going to complain about the fact that we know that he doesn't die because this is the first novel in the omnibus, but the novel itself spoils this by having him get whacked on the head and flash back, so you know he's gonna be okay. Plus, I guess, the novel is titled Space Wolf, not Guy Who Tried To Become a Space Wolf But Died. No, the real issue I have is that the writing is what could charitably be called workmanlike and perhaps more accurately be called pedestrian; this is a interesting book because of the novel-sized depth given to becoming a Space Marine, not necessarily because it's well-written. I'd probably only recommend this to people on the ends of the 40k fan spectrum: It's a good place to get started or an interesting read if you're really into the setting.
Grade: C+
Ragnar's Claw: Goofily enough, this is another novel-length flashback, this time with a older Ragnar flashing back to his first deployment. The plot's a bare-bones GET THE MCGUFFIN, and honestly it's not as interesting as the fact that this novel is where things start getting weird. King seems to be working off some old, no longer in canon idea of what a Space Marine is, as Ragnar meets a Inquisitor who is "almost as tall as [Ragnar] is" - no small feat considering Space Marines are usually 8 - 10 feet tall without shoes. (This gets even sillier when they meet a guy who is taller than a Space Marine who is "tall even for a Space Marine", which by my estimate would make this guy a normal human who is over ten feet tall.) More than that, these guys don't really act a lot like Space Marines, as I found myself incredulously reading about them farting and then teasing each other for who produced the most impressive gas.
In a way, this is interesting in itself, but it runs against one of the more interesting themes in W40k, which is how the Space Marines' super-humanity sets them apart from the average human (for a more nuanced take on this subject, I recommend, of all things, A Thousand Sons). The heroes of this book are just guys who can smell well and don't get tired, and this combined with the nothing special plot results in a novel that isn't bad, but doesn't really have much to recommend.
Grade: C-
Grey Hunter: Unbelievably, the omnibus goes three for three with flashbacks, as this novel too opens with a page of Ragnar in the present day and then the rest of the book is a huge flashback. I'm not really sure I have much to say about this novel; free of the first novel's unusual focus on the making of a space marine and the second novel's weird obsession with farting, this is just a straight up average old W40k novel. The basic plot is that some Chaos guys stole a MacGuffin that the Space Wolves want back, so they go and shoot and stab a bunch of people. It's perfectly serviceable and there's nothing wrong with it, but a few days after reading it I'm struggling to remember anything interesting about it at all.
Grade: C
In sum, I think this entire omnibus is like the first novel it contains - it can only really be recommended to someone looking to dip an exploratory toe in the W40K setting, or for superfans for whom $10 for 3 full-sized average-quality novels is irresistible. There's nothing really wrong with this collection, but even at such a cheap price for so much, there's some really excellent W40K material out there that this omnibus just can't stack up against.
Grade: C
Saturday, September 21, 2013
"Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths"
Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths (Shigeru Mizuki)
This is a "90% autobiographical" retelling of the author's WW2 experience. As you can probably guess from the title, it's quite grim - early on our group of heroes is detailed to go on a suicide charge, but commit the crime of coming back alive after news of their noble deaths has already been spread to the rest of the army as a morale-booster, and it only gets worse from there.
Despite the sheer hopelessness of the material presented within, the author's style is so gripping that it's almost impossible to put down. Mizuki combines very realistic backgrounds (and tanks, planes, and ships) with cartoon-styled people, and this technique gives each person a lot of personality; it's impossible not to feel for these guys getting slapped around, not getting enough to eat, and worrying about getting eaten by alligators. The grimness of the material is the only caveat I'd apply, and I would hasten to add that while you'll feel horrible after finishing the book, this is a story that deserves to be told.
(Discussion question: Is it tasteless to apply the "didn't like the end" tag to the ending of a book titled Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths?)
Grade: A
This is a "90% autobiographical" retelling of the author's WW2 experience. As you can probably guess from the title, it's quite grim - early on our group of heroes is detailed to go on a suicide charge, but commit the crime of coming back alive after news of their noble deaths has already been spread to the rest of the army as a morale-booster, and it only gets worse from there.
Despite the sheer hopelessness of the material presented within, the author's style is so gripping that it's almost impossible to put down. Mizuki combines very realistic backgrounds (and tanks, planes, and ships) with cartoon-styled people, and this technique gives each person a lot of personality; it's impossible not to feel for these guys getting slapped around, not getting enough to eat, and worrying about getting eaten by alligators. The grimness of the material is the only caveat I'd apply, and I would hasten to add that while you'll feel horrible after finishing the book, this is a story that deserves to be told.
(Discussion question: Is it tasteless to apply the "didn't like the end" tag to the ending of a book titled Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths?)
Grade: A
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
"The Cleanest Race"
The Cleanest Race: How North Koreans See Themselves and Why It Matters (B.R. Myers)
This book takes a very unusual approach - because the information coming out of North Korea is so limited, the author has constructed a view of contemporary North Korean society and attitudes based on both internal and external propaganda (in particular the contrast between the bombastic external material and the explicitly racist, nationalist internal text). I feel like I really learned a lot from this book - CNN and Wikipedia weren't getting the job done - and it's surprisingly hard to put down. You don't really need to know anything about North Korea to get a lot out of this book, and in fact, I only have one complaint, and brace yourself, it's a little weird. My issue is that for some reason, this book has gigantic margins. I mean, look at this:
Occasionally there will be a footnote or postage-sized black and white photo in these big margins, but 90% of it is white space, and it kind of makes it feel like you're reading a very informative but terribly laid out webpage from the 90s.
That's really the only bad thing I can say, though; If you've ever had even a passing interest in North Korea, don't miss this.
Grade: A-
This book takes a very unusual approach - because the information coming out of North Korea is so limited, the author has constructed a view of contemporary North Korean society and attitudes based on both internal and external propaganda (in particular the contrast between the bombastic external material and the explicitly racist, nationalist internal text). I feel like I really learned a lot from this book - CNN and Wikipedia weren't getting the job done - and it's surprisingly hard to put down. You don't really need to know anything about North Korea to get a lot out of this book, and in fact, I only have one complaint, and brace yourself, it's a little weird. My issue is that for some reason, this book has gigantic margins. I mean, look at this:
 |
| Hey, the margin should be almost half as wide as the main text, right? Right? Uh oh. |
Occasionally there will be a footnote or postage-sized black and white photo in these big margins, but 90% of it is white space, and it kind of makes it feel like you're reading a very informative but terribly laid out webpage from the 90s.
That's really the only bad thing I can say, though; If you've ever had even a passing interest in North Korea, don't miss this.
Grade: A-
Sunday, September 15, 2013
"Lord of the Night"
Lord of the Night (Simon Spurrier)
This is the non-ADB Night Lords novel. For some reason, I didn't think I was going to enjoy this book; maybe it was the hyperbolic caption that "The master of terror now has something to fear" (after finishing the book I still have no idea what this means), or maybe it's the fact that the cover has a evil Space Marine hefting a chainsword seemingly peering at the viewer from a big glowing vagina (although I'm not sure how that could be anything but awesome now that I'm thinking about it).
In any case, I of course shouldn't have judged the book by the cover, as it's quite good. It's about a Chaos Space Marine who's just woken up after being trapped in the Warp for 10,000 years and his search for the Corona Nox - all you really need to know is that it's the mcguffin - with his actives falling under the investigation of an Inquisitor who is the other POV character. And it's very good; for once I can't even really think of any little details to complain about. The author makes POV switches easy to follow by just printing the character's name at the start of a chapter - why more authors don't do this I have no idea - and both of our main characters are wonderfully fleshed out, to the point where I felt conflicted not knowing which one of them to root for when they came into conflict. On top of that, Spurrier has an excellent grasp of the Night Lords and the W40k setting in general, and I really enjoyed how he showed a single Chaos Space Marine being able to stir up an incredible amount of conflict and strife in the hive city that he comes to call home as he pursues his goal. It's too bad Spurrier only wrote one more 40k novel that I can find; he knocked this one out of the park.
Grade: A
This is the non-ADB Night Lords novel. For some reason, I didn't think I was going to enjoy this book; maybe it was the hyperbolic caption that "The master of terror now has something to fear" (after finishing the book I still have no idea what this means), or maybe it's the fact that the cover has a evil Space Marine hefting a chainsword seemingly peering at the viewer from a big glowing vagina (although I'm not sure how that could be anything but awesome now that I'm thinking about it).
In any case, I of course shouldn't have judged the book by the cover, as it's quite good. It's about a Chaos Space Marine who's just woken up after being trapped in the Warp for 10,000 years and his search for the Corona Nox - all you really need to know is that it's the mcguffin - with his actives falling under the investigation of an Inquisitor who is the other POV character. And it's very good; for once I can't even really think of any little details to complain about. The author makes POV switches easy to follow by just printing the character's name at the start of a chapter - why more authors don't do this I have no idea - and both of our main characters are wonderfully fleshed out, to the point where I felt conflicted not knowing which one of them to root for when they came into conflict. On top of that, Spurrier has an excellent grasp of the Night Lords and the W40k setting in general, and I really enjoyed how he showed a single Chaos Space Marine being able to stir up an incredible amount of conflict and strife in the hive city that he comes to call home as he pursues his goal. It's too bad Spurrier only wrote one more 40k novel that I can find; he knocked this one out of the park.
Grade: A
Thursday, September 12, 2013
"Boring Postcards USA"
Boring Postcards USA (Martin Parr)
Unsurprisingly, this is the American version of the one and only Boring Postcards. At first, I thought the author had lost it, as the first couple pages feature postcards that are, if not exactly thrill a minute, at least sport some mildly pleasent greenery; This does not last as the helicopter shots of planned expressways quickly give way to thrilling highway onramps, nondescript car washes, and pictures of Krispy Kreme donut boxes. Boring Postcards USA proceeds to deliver exactly what it promises, with no text except what I assume are captions from the postcards themselves - I certainly don't know of anyone who would describe the soulless recktangle that is Atlanta's new terminal building as "magnificent". The result is bizzarely fascinating; I had to stop myself from just reading the entire book in one sitting as I kept wanting to turn the page and see how Parr would top the images I was currently looking at. Highly recommended.
Grade: A
Unsurprisingly, this is the American version of the one and only Boring Postcards. At first, I thought the author had lost it, as the first couple pages feature postcards that are, if not exactly thrill a minute, at least sport some mildly pleasent greenery; This does not last as the helicopter shots of planned expressways quickly give way to thrilling highway onramps, nondescript car washes, and pictures of Krispy Kreme donut boxes. Boring Postcards USA proceeds to deliver exactly what it promises, with no text except what I assume are captions from the postcards themselves - I certainly don't know of anyone who would describe the soulless recktangle that is Atlanta's new terminal building as "magnificent". The result is bizzarely fascinating; I had to stop myself from just reading the entire book in one sitting as I kept wanting to turn the page and see how Parr would top the images I was currently looking at. Highly recommended.
Grade: A
Monday, September 9, 2013
"The Cat's Table"
The Cat's Table (Michael Ondaatje)
I knew this book wasn't going to be for me if the back was anything to go by. Take a gander at this:
After this bizarre scene, the book goes downhill quickly, flashing forward to a bunch of scenes that try and fail spectacularly to interest the reader in our hero's relationship with the sister of one of his friends (and, in an amazingly tonally deaf turn, one of his 30 year old friends apparently having romantic feelings for the 14 year old he's tutoring). Here the book goes from mildly boring pap to downright painful GUYS THIS IS MEANINGFUL pretentious crap. The 150 pages of text remaining in the book at this point I believe may qualify as a crime against humanity, or at least literature.
Grade: D-
I knew this book wasn't going to be for me if the back was anything to go by. Take a gander at this:
In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy in Colombo boards a ship bound for England. [...] As the ship crosses the Indian Ocean, the boys tumble from one adventure to another, bursting all over the place like freed mercury. But there are other diversions as well: they are first exposed to the magical worlds of jazz, women, and literature by their eccentric fellow travelers, and together they spy on a shackled prisoner, his crime and fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever. By turns poignant and electrifying, The Cat’s Table is a spellbinding story about the magical, often forbidden, discoveries of childhood, and a lifelong journey that begins unexpectedly with a spectacular sea voyage.Doesn't that sound like the most horrible shit you can imagine? Luckily, it's not as bad as it sounds. In fact, the first 100 pages or so sometimes almost raise to the level of entertaining, although it's quite meandering and full of characters who stop just short of turning to the camera and exclaiming "Did you notice how eccentric I am?!". The book really starts getting terrible at the point where the hero and his two buddies go on shore and come back with a small yappy dog who runs into the room of the richest guy on the ship and murders him by ripping this throat out. (Readers are directed to drop the record-scratching sound effect here)
After this bizarre scene, the book goes downhill quickly, flashing forward to a bunch of scenes that try and fail spectacularly to interest the reader in our hero's relationship with the sister of one of his friends (and, in an amazingly tonally deaf turn, one of his 30 year old friends apparently having romantic feelings for the 14 year old he's tutoring). Here the book goes from mildly boring pap to downright painful GUYS THIS IS MEANINGFUL pretentious crap. The 150 pages of text remaining in the book at this point I believe may qualify as a crime against humanity, or at least literature.
Grade: D-
Friday, September 6, 2013
"Ball Four"
Ball Four (Jim Bouton)
Nham's Guide to Driving Your Wife Crazy Using "Ball Four"
(Warning: Neither N. Ham nor this blog are liable for any bodily injury that my result from using this guide, including, but not limited to, bodily harm up to, and including, tickling, being told that you are no longer allowed to do something you enjoy for a tenuous reason related to following this guide, and any other myriad ways your wife has of expressing her displeasure. If your wife tells you that what you are doing is "fine", immediately discontinue use of this guide. Women who are pregnant or are about to become pregnant should not handle this guide. Consult a local advice columnist immediately if you notice any of these side effects.)
Step 1: Read Ball Four (spoiler alert: it's pretty good).
Step 2: Get married.
Step 3: Watch baseball around your wife so that she becomes interested in it.
Step 4: Answer all of her questions about baseball with "Well, like it says in Ball Four..."
Step 5: Have an escape route ready.
In all seriousness, this is a great book, a rare actual athlete-written autobiography instead of someone talking into a tape recorder, and its honest portrayal of players and coaches blew the lid off baseball's all-american clean-cut mom and apple pie image when it was first published. Beyond that, though, it's also very funny, and after spending a few pages with Bouton I found it very hard not to start rooting for the guy (at this point in his career he's an old junkballer whose big goal is to land a spot on the Seattle Pilots, a terrible new expansion team). It's been said that "Ball Four is a people book, not just a baseball book", and I don't know that I can really add anything to that; I don't think you need to know or even really care about baseball to have a blast reading this, although if you do the behind the scenes looks that caused such a kerfluffle when the book was originally published are probably even more interesting. In fact, about the only complaint I have is that I can't think up a good ending for this review, which is hardly the book's fault, but I need to blame somebody who isn't me.
Grade: A
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
"Knights of the Sea"
Knights of the Sea: The True Story of the Boxer and the Enterprise and the War of 1812 (David Hanna)
I'm gonna cut right to the chase here: This book is a mess. From the title, you'd probably guess it's about a naval battle in the War of 1812, but what it reads like is a panicked high school history paper desperately trying to meet a minimum word count; Hanna seems unable or unwilling to hold on to a narrative thread, so instead he keeps going into non sequitors, quoting big parts of poems or songs, or quoting Jane Austen or Shakespeare. The result is a bizarre, tedious frakenstein of raw, puzzling little scenes that never seem to have anything to do with each other or, heaven forbid, what the book's actually supposed to be about. Hanna needs to get his shit together and hire a tougher editor.
Grade: D-
I'm gonna cut right to the chase here: This book is a mess. From the title, you'd probably guess it's about a naval battle in the War of 1812, but what it reads like is a panicked high school history paper desperately trying to meet a minimum word count; Hanna seems unable or unwilling to hold on to a narrative thread, so instead he keeps going into non sequitors, quoting big parts of poems or songs, or quoting Jane Austen or Shakespeare. The result is a bizarre, tedious frakenstein of raw, puzzling little scenes that never seem to have anything to do with each other or, heaven forbid, what the book's actually supposed to be about. Hanna needs to get his shit together and hire a tougher editor.
Grade: D-
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