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Book Review: Collapse, by Richard Stephenson


Collapse‘Collapse’ by Richard Stephenson is book one in the ‘New America’ series and I believe Stephenson’s first novel. The novel is set in the year 2027, with the USA falling apart. It is in the grip of the 2nd Great Depression and is at war with the Great Empire of Iran. The state of Florida has been devastated by a hurricane that has left over 1 million people dead and Texas is about to face the same fate. The government is about to fall. The people are descending into anarchy. What will become of the USA?

Though a first novel, the suspense and action of the novel is first rate. It is very easy to read and carries you along quite easily. However, there are serious issues with the grammar and spelling, as well as some fairly obvious errors in the actual text of the story. A good proof reader should have picked up on these mistakes and that would have resulted in a far more polished and professional  product.

There is also a short sex scene tacked onto the end of the story which I thought was somewhat tacky and unnecessary. It did nothing for the story as a whole and was completely out of place in the overall development of the novel.

If you can see past these obvious flaws without too much prejudice, the novel is a very good read and I do look forward to picking up the story when the next book in the series is released in 2013.

Buy this book at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Collapse-Richard-Stephenson/dp/1477654631/

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From My Armchair: 11 August 2012


I really didn’t think I’d get too much read this week, but as you will see from the list below I have been able to read a fair bit.

I was able to get The Hunger Games trilogy completed, which is good given the DVD of the first movie will be out in a week or so here in Australia. I haven’t seen the movie yet, so getting the books read prior to the movie was something I wanted to do.

This coming week I’d like to get a few more books read – I’ll see how I go.

 

Social Networks, Web Applications & Other Tools

Not a lot done on social networks or web applications this week. I have added a few books to Goodreads, that is about all really.

 

Currently Reading:

Currently, I am reading the following books:

Discipline of GraceDiscipline of Grace, by Jerry Bridges

I’m hoping to actually make some good progress on this book today and tomorrow. I read it once or twice before, but not in a while. Looking forward to getting into it. Jerry Bridges is usually very good to read.

 

CollapseCollapse, by Richard Stephenson

I’m just over halfway through this one, but it is a fairly long novel so it will take another day or two to complete at least.

 

Finished Reading:

This week I have been able to read the following books:

Phantoms on the BookshelvesPhantoms on the Bookshelves, by Jacques Bonnet

I completed this book very early in the week and have written a review which can be found via the link below. Probably only really appeal to those of us who are really into books and have a library of our own. I quite enjoyed the read.

See also:
https://atthebookshelf.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/book-review-phantoms-on-the-bookshelves-by-jacques-bonnet/

 

Killing CalvinismKilling Calvinism: How to Destroy a Perfectly Good Theology from the Inside, by Greg Dutcher

This was a great book and one I should read on a regular basis – perhaps once a year. A very challenging book, with many lessons for the church today (thinking of reformed churches).

See also:
https://atthebookshelf.wordpress.com/2012/07/31/book-review-killing-calvinism-how-to-destroy-a-perfectly-good-theology-from-the-inside-by-greg-dutcher/

 

Catching FireCatching Fire: The Hunger Games Books 2, by Suzanne Collins

I haven’t as of yet wrote a review on this one – will do soon hopefully.

 

MockingjayMockingjay: The Hunger Games Book 3, by Suzanne Collins

I haven’t as of yet wrote a review on this one – will do so soon hopefully.

 

Purchased & Added to Library:

I again grabbed a heap of free ebooks from Amazon. These are all of the books I’ve posted on my Blog ‘The Book Stand,’ so all posted there I also downloaded for myself. I’ll certainly have more books than I can ever read that’s for sure, but certainly never wanting for choice. No harm in grabbing them while there free and in digital format – if I don’t read them all, what does it matter? At least I’ll have them if I want to read them.

Among the books I actually purchased this week:

The Hunger Games – Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games – Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins
In Christ Alone – Living the Gospel Centered Life, by Sinclair Ferguson
Set Apart – Calling a Worldly Church to a Godly Life, by Kent R. Hughes

 

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Reading: The Hunt for Red October and Jason Bourne


particularkev's avatarKevin's Daily Photo, Video, Quote or Link

I am a big fan of Tom Clancy novels and in particular the Jack Ryan series. A number of years ago I read all of the novels published in the series up until the time I moved house and so for the last 5 years I haven’t read any new ones. When I moved I decided I needed to clean out some of my books (and I have a huge library), so I figured the majority of my fiction books could be cleaned out. I always regretted moving the Tom Clancy novels along, though I figured that at some point I could reclaim them as ebooks, which I am now beginning to do.

A couple of weeks ago I decided to start reading the series again – right from the beginning. I hesitated as to what order I should read them, given that Patriot Games really was set before The…

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Unknown's avatar

Website: You’re All Just Jealous of my Jetpack


Good cartoons can be difficult to find, especially about books and reading. The site linked to below is a great find for cartoons in this area of interest. Have a look – you won’t be disappointed.

For more visit:
http://myjetpack.tumblr.com/

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Announcement: New Blog – The Book Stand


I have started a new Blog to complement this one. It is called ‘The Book Stand.’ The Book Stand is a place to find free Kindle and/or pdf format ebooks, as well as good ebook offers every now and then. It is a Tumblr Blog.

For more visit:
http://bookstand.tumblr.com/

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Facebook Page: At the BookShelf


I have been working on a Facebook Page for At the BookShelf. This is now live and has been for a little while. I am looking at ways to broaden the horizon for At the BookShelf and a Facebook page is a good start. I still need to add a cover picture and profile picture – if anyone has a suggestion please feel free to let me know via the page.

Please follow on the Facebook page (by liking the page) via the link at the right of the Blog. Thanks all 🙂

Visit the ‘At the BookShelf’ Facebook Page at:
At the BookShelf.

Unknown's avatar

Article: Pretty Books


The link below is to an article that asks the question, ‘how pretty should books be?’ This is an interesting question. Do books need to be pretty or is good content enough? What do you think?

For more visit:
http://www.torontostandard.com/culture/they-become-what-they-behold-or-how-pretty-should-a-book-be

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Article: Google Book Suit


The link below is to an article reporting on the suit being brought against Google for alleged copyright infringement. Being a big fan of the Google Books project, I would dearly love to see a solution that allows the project go ahead, yet be a very good thing for authors with copyrighted works.

For more, visit:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/google-wants-authors-to-drop-book-scan-suit_b51156

Unknown's avatar

Website: Appear in a Novel


The link below is to a site that allows you to appear in a book. Intrigued? Have a look – could be a good gift idea for family and/or friends.

For more visit:
http://www.ustarnovels.com/personalised-classic-novels/

Unknown's avatar

Article: Ways Libraries are Using Pinterest


The following link is to an article on how libraries are using the social networking site Pinterest to their advantage – some good ideas among them.

For more, visit:
http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2012/03/12/20-great-ways-libraries-are-using-pinterest/