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ajunejane's reviews
428 reviews
Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto by Chuck Klosterman
4.0
Pretty good. It is a bit outdated though, being nearly nine years old. While pretty much all of the pop culture references still exist for me, I felt as if I was looking at a time capsule, not only in terms of what was popular or relevant in 2003, but also in terms of Klosterman's opinions and views on life. I feel that as a country we've moved on a great deal from where he puts us. This is not to say that postmodernism is not relevant (although I am ready for whatever comes post-postmodernism), but I don't feel that his assertions quite have the same weight they did then. Despite all the nostalgia (on my part), he writes cleverly and I found it to be a good read overall.
Emma by Jane Austen
4.0
One of the more ridiculous heroines, but still enjoyable. Jane has a good sense of humor. Despite it's length, a quick read.
Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeannette Walls
4.0
Pretty good read. The narrator's voice was consistent, and while the main character sometimes seemed to be a stereotype of the depression-era hard life kind of woman, she was never boring. I appreciated that the author mentioned that while the story was mainly a biography of her grandmother, she took some liberty with the stories since she never had the chance to interview her before her death.
The Science of Doctor Who by Paul Parsons
4.0
This book was pretty fascinating, if only for the discussion of humanity's technological future. While I've only recently begun watching the new series of Doctor Who, aliens and conspiracy theories have always been fascinating. While Parsons tends to wax quantum-theoretical (a bit trying for my mere high school physics education), the language is understandable enough and the concepts fairly easy to grasp (if trying to grasp the concept of the Universe and what may have existed before or what may exist after it's end is fairly easy). Overall good read. And I will definitely be looking up cybernetic implants.
11/22/63 by Stephen King
4.0
Excellent writing as always. Time traveling is also fascinating to me and I like the way that King handled it. There were a few too predictable moments, but I was very entertained on the whole.
The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar
3.0
Entertaining and light. A quick read and tightly knit, though not something I would want to reread. Still, I'll do what I can to spread the word about Glaswegian authors.
History of My Life by Giacomo Casanova
4.0
I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed with these first two parts of Casanova's memoir, only because I was expecting more graphic descriptions of his sexual exploits. However, it read as more of an adventure story, detailing all the interesting things that happened to him between birth and age 25. I was still greatly entertained, and put up with all of his euphemisms because he seemed to be generally in love with each conquest he made (though he did not them conquests) and therefore seemed like less of a jerk than I expected. These non-conquests also seemed to be generally grateful to him, even when he would leave them to make his fortune in some other way or fall in love with someone else. I guess the action must have been pretty bad for all of these women to go for Casanova without any promise of marriage or honor, even though the majority of the ones he fell in love with were virgins or young wives of other men. A true player. I'm not sure I'll read the other 10 volumes of his memoir, but I did enjoy analyzing his characters and life philosophy while reading these volumes. If you're looking for an erotic novel about some bare-chested Italian with fabio hair bringing the magic to thousands of women, this memoir is slightly classier than what you're looking for.
Shroom: A Cultural History of the Magic Mushroom by Andy Letcher
3.0
This book was very informative--I learned something new on nearly every page. However, the author tended to wax a little too poetic and long-winded at certain times, as if he wanted to end a section but wasn't sure how to do it concisely. He provided plenty of context for his research. but was also clearly biased in favor of his subject.
Walking by Henry David Thoreau
4.0
"...in Wildness is the preservation of the World." Thoreau's two essays in my version of the text, "Walking" and "Night and Moonlight" focus on the importance of not only appreciating existing wildness around us, but cultivating wildness in ourselves and the surrounding areas. Almost contradicting himself in some parts, he suggest that the Farmer is above the Indian, in that he believes that some cultivation and agriculture is better than leaving things lie. At the same time, he holds the view of his time that the Indians (read, Native Americans) are a primitive culture with no complex technology, saying that they would cultivate the land with a "clam shell." Despite this evidence of his time period and a few slight contradictions, I found these essays to be fresh and informative, still applicable in a time when nature seems to be slipping away through our fingers. Thoreau's places where "no man has stood before and no man will ever stand" are growing few and far between.