Tag Archives: people

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Book Review: Collapse, by Richard Stephenson

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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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Article: Ebooks and Piracy

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The link below is to an article that looks at the reasons people say they pirate ebooks – any thoughts? Share in the comments.

For more visit:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/why-do-people-pirate-ebooks_b55064

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Website: Underground New York Public Library

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The link below is to a website called the ‘Underground New York Public library.’ The site is a photographic record of people reading books on the New York City Subway. In essence it is a photography Blog of people reading.

For more visit:
http://undergroundnewyorkpubliclibrary.com/

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Article: Libraries Begin Fining People for not Picking up Holds

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The article linked to below concerns libraries in Canada fining users who fail to pick up their ‘hold.’ What do you think about these sorts of fines? They are meant to keep books available for those who actually will use the books kept on hold.

For more visit:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2012/06/06/toronto-city-libraries-new-fines-for-holds.html

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Article: Ebooks Available at the Library

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It is becoming increasingly possible to borrow ebooks from libraries. Many people however don’t know this and it is something that library users should ask about at their own public library. The link below is to an article that looks into this matter.

For more visit:
http://mashable.com/2012/06/22/libraries-are-lending-e-books/

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Website: Pinterest and Pin A Quote

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How to Use Pinterest for Quotes

The link below is to a website that allows you to highlight any text and pin it to a Pinterest board. There is a small cost for using the service. The site provides a video on how it works and also examples of how people use it. Pinterest is becoming even more useful.

For more visit:
http://pinaquote.com/

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Book Review: Currently Reading – Print is Dead, by Jeff Gomez

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I have been reading ‘Print is Dead – Books in our Digital Age,’ by Jeff Gomez. Having just read chapter two, ‘Us and Them,’ I must say that his point in that chapter is well made. The demise in traditional book sales has not been because ebooks have taken the world by storm – at least not at this stage – but because other areas of the digital world have. Generations of younger people have turned away from books in all their forms and have sought entertainment in other things, such as the Internet and video games, to name just a couple. It is reading itself that is being passed by, so the advent of the ebook is not that which is killing off the traditional book and by extension the bookseller/bookshop, but rather ‘dumber’ forms of entertainment.

Books will always be around in one form or another (at least I believe that), whether they remain as prolific as they now are is quite another thing, it is the habit of reading that may fall away dramatically and cause books to be cast aside – at least in the wider community. I think there will always be a group or community of diehard book readers, who eventually will have ebooks as their primary source of books and reading material. There are those who will not be lost entirely to less intellectual forms of entertainment, though perhaps some of these other forms of entertainment may play a role in the ‘reading’ of the future in the digital world (linked to videos, etc). Reading is a great skill that is being lost and the medium for ideas through the ages faces its greatest threat from a lack of it.

The next chapter, ‘newspapers are no longer news,’ deals with newspapers as a source of news and book reviews, or rather, how they are rapidly loosing their ascendency to online applications and tools. In a world that is rapidly changing and access to news as it happens online, newspapers are becoming a too infrequently updated source of news and information. Online access to news and events as they happen are so readily accessible, that the traditional source of news is fading away. As for book reviews, the avenues of discussion about books on the web via social networking, Blogs and the like, opens the opportunity for all to join the discussion. Book reviews in newspapers, like movie reviews, are opportunities for the reviewers to pontificate and/or push their own views onto a public unable to respond – online however the avenues of discussion are legion and varied. All may be involved – or not at all. The decision as to how one may be involved is left to the individual, which also translates to news stories in a similar manner. Interaction with the news and books has never been so simple and as rich an experience.

See also:
http://www.dontcallhome.com/books.html (Website of Jeff Gomez)
Podcast (Excerpts from the Book)
Google Books
Amazon

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Books: Are We Getting Dumber?

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Does Anyone Read Books Anymore?

The link below is to an article that asks, ‘who reads books these days?’ It’s an interesting question. I have long thought that humanity is becoming dumber, overall. Certainly our overall wealth of knowledge is growing, however, I would argue that the majority of people are getting dumber. Is that a fair statement? I guess it’s a matter of opinion.

For more visit:
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/85938

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A Cartoon History of the George Dubya Bush Years, By Elena Steier

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 I have just had a quick look at ‘A Cartoon History of the George Dubya Bush Years,’ by Elena Steier. This book is a collection of cartoons from the George W. Bush years as president of the United States. They are a comical look at those years and I’m sure will produce a laugh or two for some people. I however found little in it that amused me – perhaps because I live in Australia and don’t get all the political jokes based on the US political scene of the George W. Bush years.

I have to say that I found some of the cartoons quite offensive and a good number without anything that made them funny to my way of thinking at all. I quite openly state that I am a Christian and therefore some of the material in these cartoons is particularly shocking and offensive to me.

I have had a good laugh at a good number of the cartoons I have seen of George W. Bush in Australian papers, so I do not base my opinion of this book on my appreciation of George W. Bush as a president or for not being able to have a laugh at politics. I simply did not find this book particularly funny or appealing in any way. In fact, I have rid myself of it completely.

Available at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Fringe-Cartoon-History-George-Dubya/dp/1439211744

There is a copy here:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/23408494/A-Cartoon-History-of-The-George-Dubya-Bush-Administration

 

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Post War – A History of Europe Since 1945, by Tony Judt

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I have now started to read ‘Post War,’ by Tony Judt. The edition I have was published in 2005 by The Penguin Press. It is a massive work of over 900 pages, that includes both photographs and maps.

The period of history being dealt with is post war Europe from the end of World War II to 2005. It includes the immediate aftermath of World War II, right through the Cold War period and the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Though I have only just started (yesterday) I have completed about 100 pages thus far, which has taken me through the preface, introduction and the first chapter, ‘The Legacy of War.’ The first chapter deals with the immediate aftermath of the war and its consequences for the people of Europe. It is an horrific picture of post war Europe and the devastation it had on the entirety of Europe – nations, cities and towns, peoples and families. It is the legacy of total war.