Book Challenge Update: Five Odd Honors

I finished a book for the One, Two, Theme! Challenge and of course the Series Challenge.  Five Odd Honors by Jane Lindskold is for the Mah-jongg challenge in particular.  (In a bit of crossover blogging I bought and read it on my new Kindle, which was a very nice experience). This gives me two of the tree books I need for this level of the challenge.  Overall, this challenge is going pretty well!

Five Odd Honors is the third book in the Breaking the Wall series, which I love love love.  To say I was excited to read this book would be an understatement.  It is a great series, start at the beginning.  I'm going to review it, but not say much about the plot as well if you haven't read any of it yet it is very very spoilery.  The series is Urban fantasy (don't worry not the glittery vampire and angsty girl kind).  It is about a group of magical people who's cool form of chinese type magic is linked to the chinese zodiac.  And Mah-jongg was created to help them remember and write spells.  These people's ancestors were exiles and they are trying to get back/make piece with the lands they came from.

As I mentioned I loved the first two books.  While I liked this book, I was a touch disappointing.  The characters were all scattered about and doing their own thing . . . what I like about the characters (well, what I like the most) is how they interact with each other.  So, I found this disappointing.  Particularly because the characters who's interactions are the more fun to read were not together.  Not a lot of deep character stuff happened, which also disappointed me.  The action was good and it was way more gory and violent then the previous books (not actually a problem for me). In essence it was good, but not great.  The first two are great (in my opinion).  The book felt a lot like a place holder.  Away to finish up the first series (3 book) story arch and then move to the next arch.  I hate that.

The result.  I'm desperately waiting to see when (if?) the next book comes out.  I have faith.  I love the series.  It can recover from this, my not so favorite book.  Jane Linskold tends toward the long series or the stand alone.  So, I'm hoping for another.

Book Challenge Update: Kafka On the Shore

I finished another book for my book challenge.  Kafka On the Shore by Haruki Murakami.  Its for my One, Two, Theme Challenge.  Its my fiction book for my Japanese pop culture section. I had never before read anything by Haruki Murakami . . . I heard he wrote good books though.  I picked Kafka . . . I'm not sure why.  I liked the title I guess.

After reading the book, I am still not sure if I liked the book.  I did enjoy reading the book, though.  You might wonder how those two things could co-exist.  Well you see the writing was very compelling.  By that I mean the style and the actual prose.  It just read nicely.  However, I'm not so sure about the story.  It was interesting.  I wondered what was going to happen.  But, the characters realities may have been a touch to surreal for me.  There wasn't enough people acting the way people should act.  I also had a hard time getting attached to the characters.  I was simply a voyeur watching what was happening to them.  I do mean watch.  I felt like I could see a lot of the book.  Part of why it is enjoyable to read.  I did enjoy the Nakata story line a lot.

In the end, its an interesting read.  I'm just not sure if I got what I was suppose to out of it, nor do I know if I'd say I really liked the story.  It made me think though and was a bit intriguing.  I will note that its a bit graphic, if your not up for that it is not for you.

Book Challenge Update: Medieval Britain: A very Short Introduction

I've read another book for my One, Two, Theme Challenge!  Again it is for the Medieval Category, which I'm now almost done with.  Just two more books.  One of which needs to be fiction . . . I'm going to have to start looking!

Not a very exciting cover . . .

I read "Medieval Britain: A Very Short Introduction" by John Gillingham and Ralph Griffiths for this review.  It is very short . . . and delightful.  It is just an easy fun read.  The writing it superb and not too filled with history jargon.  If you have any interest in learning more or something about Medieval Britain, I would suggest you start here.  I have read a lot about Medieval Britain.  Meaning I'm reading it towards the end of my reading and I found it really made things (like the time-line) click in my head.  If you know about the confusion line of succession in the late medieval period you'll know why this took me a bit to get my head around.  So, for shear clarity this is a great book.  It also covers a lot, both in time and scope, for such a small book.  That being said it isn't overly detailed . . . it couldn't be.  But, it is a great survey of whats going on and gives enough specifics that I didn't feel like it wasn't based on anything.

If you want something to read that makes you look smart, but doesn't take too much effort or time . . . this is for you.  Or read it if you just like to learn stuff and read a good book.

Book Challenge Update: Women in Late Medieval and Reformation Europe 1200 - 1150

This is another book for my One, Two, Theme Challenge.  Its nonfiction book for my Medieval Category.  I really seem to be attacking this category in a kind of strange jumpy fashion, but it appears to be working.

Women in Late Medieval and Reformation Europe 1200 - 1550 (WLMRE) by Helen Jewell is a companion book to Women in Dark Age and Early Medieval Europe.  Like its the first book, WLMRE is very well written and really pulls you in.  I may be temped to read it even if I didn't really have a reason too.  In fact, I quite enjoyed the chapters I didn't have to read for what I wanted to know.  The book imparts a lot of information, while not getting to dense or overly stodgy and historical sounding.  The argument also doesn't get bogged down in blaming men for the fact that in most cultures at most times its really hard being a women.   I give Helen Jewell a lot of credit for writing about power inequalities and patriarchy without shouting "Help, Help, I'm being repressed!*"  Helen Jewell really exemplifies the new trend in history writing.  She is very readable and doesn't try to get to grandiose.  The book is also a very nice size to keep the interest of non-historians.

I did have one problem with the book.  When she sites sources she does not give a lot of context for the quotes and the situation that produced them.  As a Anthropologist this was extremely frustrating for me.  However, I do realize this would have made this a much longer and more bulky book.  Also, this may only be possible if talking about very specific case studies and it is important to have works saying something about more than specific towns etc.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book for history lovers or people who want to know more about the late medieval period and female history.

* Bonus points if you know what this is from before you watch the video.  If you've not see it, you must . . . because I said so . . . and no I'm not repressing you. "Come see the violence inherent in the system!"

Book Challenge Update: The Great Mahjong Book

I have completed another challenge component for my One, Two, Theme Challenge.  I'm quite enjoying the challenge.  Is nice to be compelled to read some non-fiction I normally wouldn't.  For this entry I read The Great Mahjong Book: History, Lore, and Play by Jelte Rep.  Jelte Rep is not Chinese.  He is from the Netherlands, but has a deep (its obvious from the book) love of Mahjong.  I became interested in Mahjong from the book "Thirteen Orphans" by Jane Lindskold. The title is actually a Mahjong hand and the magic in the book is all visualized using Mahjong.  Anyway its a fun book (I recommend it) and got me interested in Mahjong.

The Great Mahjong Book contains both history and how to play the game.


HOW TO PLAY THE GAME:

Thirteen Orphans

 I must say I don't think I could just pick up and play Mahjong right this minute.  If I had both the book and a Mahjong set I think I would have a fighting chance. The book has beautiful color pictures of different hands and the rules from all different Mahjong variants.  It also provides great tables on how to score etc.  If I was really committed to learning Mahjong I would buy both a mahjong set and this book.  I think they would work great together.  It also provides so many variants that you could get people play what seems to be a wide range of playing styles all on the same page.

HISTORY OF MAHJONG:

lots of tiles . . .

The history sections are mixed in with the game variants.  So, each countries version comes with the history of Mahjong in that region.  This both works and doesn't work.  It becomes a bit spotty to read.  I would have preferred a book with two halves.  One half history (and more of it because its super interesting) and one half how to play the game (wherever you might be).

OVERVIEW:

Full sets come in cool boxes!

Overall the book was interesting and pretty fun to read.  I don't think Mahjong will stick in my head, but it is clearly a good companion to have for playing the game.  If you want to know more about Mahjong I would suggest this book.  The tone is light and easy to read . . . plus its interesting.

Book Challenge Update: Women In Dark Age and Early Medieval Europe c500 - 1200

I have completed another book for my One, Two, Theme challenge.  This one is for my 5th category Late Medieval/Medieval Britain.  Now the reason this is a topic is because medieval Britain is the time period for my dissertation work and I feel it is important to know more about the time period.  I like history books, so it seemed like a good deal all around.  So, if you don't like non-fiction this book and review are probably not for you.

Women In Dark Age and Early Medieval Europe c500 - 1200 by Helen M Jewell.

First, I feel it is important to point out that is a good bit of scholarly work.  Very worthwhile if you study Medieval Europe.  It has a fair focus on Britain making it useful to me. It is also unique for its focus on women.  This is becoming more common in the medieval studies literature, but is by no means hugely available.  Part of this is due to the difficulty in obtaining primary sources on the subject.

But how is it to read?

Quite enjoyable actually.  The book is well written and the prose is not unduly bogged down with heavy phrases to make it sound more impressively historical in nature.  It also is not over referenced.  The author simple presents how things were during the period, but also makes an argument for change through time.  All of these make for a very readable and helpful book.

If you are interested in medieval history and/or the history of women this is a good choice.

Book Challenge Update: The Physics of Star Trek

I finally got around to starting my One, Two Theme Challenge.  This is a fun tiered challenge.  My Themes are Physics, Japanese Pop Culture, Mah-jongg, Bioarchaeology, Late Medieval/Medieval Britain. (How it works: you pick at least 3 themes.  For the 1st you read one book, for the 2nd two books, and the third, 3 books.  From number two onwards you need at least one fiction and one non-fiction book.)

I have started (yay!) and finished (YAY!) my first level -  Physics.  What did I read for this exciting challenge?  The Physics of Star Trek by Lawerence M. Krauss.  Now I started reading this book a long long time ago . . . but I got super busy with PhD stuff and had to miss Dr. Krauss lecture at the U of A because I was out of town . . . and so I just never got back to it after the first two chapters.  Which is why it made it to my One, Two Theme Challenge.  To get me to finish reading it (I love Star Trek, so it seemed important).

On to the actual review.  So, I both really liked this book and really couldn't be bothered.  The author seemed a bit haphazard in his assessment of Star Trek plots and ideas.  I almost think a focused look of the science of Star Trek ? (pick any episode or movie, or may be even series) would have greatly improved the book.  Really there is very very little Star Trek in this . . . . or Star Trek context.  Its just mainly physic . . . which is cool.  It just all seemed so random and random means some sections I found fascinating and others I was like I think you missed the point. 

One very good point of the book is that the physics is talked about in an understandable way.  You do not need to be a physicist to understand the book.  It was also nice that the book both showed ways the writers got it right or were at least in the ballpark as well as how they got it wrong.  It made for a nice balance.  For a non-fiction book it is very well written and has good flow.  It is a must for Star Trek fans . . .  at least I think it is! This is the end . . .

maybe . . .

Book Challenges 2011!

It has been awhile since I actively participated in any book challenges.  I love them, but the PhD can be kind of brutal to the free time one has.  I decided to give it a try this year.  I have 3 I'm definitely going to do and then an alternate that we will see if I can get off the ground or not . . . I might pick up another if someone has a good suggestion as well.  If you love reading and books your should really try your hand at a challenge.  It is a nice semi interactive way to read and share about books.  I was reminded of this by Irish over at Ticket to Anywhere (Its a great site, I suggest a visit.  I wish I could read so much!)  So without further adieu the challenges!


Challenge 1: One, Two, Theme (Jan 1 - Dec 31, 2011)

So, For this one you pick at least 3 themes.  For the 1st you read one book, for the 2nd two books, and the thrid, 3 books.  From number two onwards you need at least one fiction and one non-fiction book.  You can have more than 3 themes of course.
My Themes:

1. Physics
2. Japanese Pop Culture
3. Mah-jongg
4. Bioarchaeology
5. Late Medieval/Medieval Britain

Challenge 2: Series Challenge (Jan 1 -Dec 31, 2011)

The second challenge should be fairly easy.  I need to read at least 3 books that end or catch a series up to date.  This one is sponsored by Secret dream world of a bookaholic.   This one should be easy to fill up! We will just see how many I get!

Challenge 3: Whats in a Name Challenge (Jan 1 - Dec 31, 2011)

This one is a bit more directed.  You pick one book with a title that meets the criteria for each topic of the challenge!  Criteria are: A book with a number in the title, a book withe jewelry or gem in the title, book with a size in the title, book with travel or movement in the title, book with evil in the title, and book with a life stage in the title! It should be fun.






So, look for my blog entries about what I'm reading!  They will be linked to the sponsoring sites of course!  I highly recommend starting up a few challenges of your own!