Take a photo of a barcode or cover
cody_crumley's reviews
162 reviews
Star Wars Jedi: Battle Scars by Sam Maggs
2.0
This is one of those books that I really wish Goodreads had a .5 star as part of their rating system, because this is really between a 2 and 3 star book for me.
This book is bridging the gap between Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and the upcoming Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. This shows what the crew of the Mantis has been up to since the game ended and where they will be when the new game starts.
This book comes across as a “okay side quest” that feels like it would have been fine for DLC of the first game. Nothing feels super of consequence, and the new characters introduced (Fret, and a couple of others I don’t want to spoil) kinda come and go, though I could see them pop up in the new game but I would also not be surprised to never hear or see them either. The villain in this book, the Fifth Brother is another one of the Sith Inquisitors and really does not get alot of novel time, which bummed me out. The Inquisitors are cool and important to this Star Wars story, so it feels like a missed opportunity.
Where this book shines is the focus it puts on Merrin, the Nightsister that joined the crew in the second half of Fallen Order. She is really the main focus over Cal or Cere. Her struggles with finding her powers after leaving her home world, and dealing the loss caused by the Empire and overcoming just wanting vengeance is the best part of this whole book.
Because of the size of the book (only about 270 pages) and the heavy focus on Merrin, no one else of the Mantis crew is really focused on. You have a little bit from Cal and very slight things from Cere but that is about it. And the “MacGuffin” that you are chasing the whole time is dealt with in a very unsatisfying way on the last page.
This is not the worst book I have read, it is okay just know that unless you are a diehard Star Wars fan or are really wanting something to tie you over till Jedi Survivor comes out in April, then you can probably skip this one, wait till it is cheaper, or pick it up from your local library.
This book is bridging the gap between Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and the upcoming Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. This shows what the crew of the Mantis has been up to since the game ended and where they will be when the new game starts.
This book comes across as a “okay side quest” that feels like it would have been fine for DLC of the first game. Nothing feels super of consequence, and the new characters introduced (Fret, and a couple of others I don’t want to spoil) kinda come and go, though I could see them pop up in the new game but I would also not be surprised to never hear or see them either. The villain in this book, the Fifth Brother is another one of the Sith Inquisitors and really does not get alot of novel time, which bummed me out. The Inquisitors are cool and important to this Star Wars story, so it feels like a missed opportunity.
Where this book shines is the focus it puts on Merrin, the Nightsister that joined the crew in the second half of Fallen Order. She is really the main focus over Cal or Cere. Her struggles with finding her powers after leaving her home world, and dealing the loss caused by the Empire and overcoming just wanting vengeance is the best part of this whole book.
Because of the size of the book (only about 270 pages) and the heavy focus on Merrin, no one else of the Mantis crew is really focused on. You have a little bit from Cal and very slight things from Cere but that is about it. And the “MacGuffin” that you are chasing the whole time is dealt with in a very unsatisfying way on the last page.
This is not the worst book I have read, it is okay just know that unless you are a diehard Star Wars fan or are really wanting something to tie you over till Jedi Survivor comes out in April, then you can probably skip this one, wait till it is cheaper, or pick it up from your local library.
How to Be Eaten by Maria Adelmann
4.0
How to be Eaten is a modern take on classic fairy tale stories, highlighting the inequalities of said stories, while also providing a scathing look at the manipulative nature of reality tv. The main takeaway from this book is the same of most fairy tales, you can not always take what you see at face value.
The setting of the boom places classic characters like Red Riding Hood (Ruby), Gretal, Cinderella (Ashlee), among others in a group trauma therapy meeting were the women discuss their stories l, what happened to them and what they can learn from.
The group dynamics and interactions together are the best part of the book. Each “chapter” is a week with someone else from the group telling their story, with group discussions (led by Will, the mysterious but charming therapy leader) among the women cutting in.
These are definitely not based on the Disney version of these tales and are based off the Grimm style, so just like those this book’s fairy tales are dark and not always a happy ending. There are some adult themes here, so definitely consider a content warning before diving into this book.
Maria Adelmann does a fantastic job in her debut novel (having written short story collections before this) with the only complaint I have is sometimes the plot of the women’s stories being kinda hard to follow, especially on the two fairy tales I did not know much about. Besides that I really did enjoy this and I probably will never look at reality tv the same again.
The setting of the boom places classic characters like Red Riding Hood (Ruby), Gretal, Cinderella (Ashlee), among others in a group trauma therapy meeting were the women discuss their stories l, what happened to them and what they can learn from.
The group dynamics and interactions together are the best part of the book. Each “chapter” is a week with someone else from the group telling their story, with group discussions (led by Will, the mysterious but charming therapy leader) among the women cutting in.
These are definitely not based on the Disney version of these tales and are based off the Grimm style, so just like those this book’s fairy tales are dark and not always a happy ending. There are some adult themes here, so definitely consider a content warning before diving into this book.
Maria Adelmann does a fantastic job in her debut novel (having written short story collections before this) with the only complaint I have is sometimes the plot of the women’s stories being kinda hard to follow, especially on the two fairy tales I did not know much about. Besides that I really did enjoy this and I probably will never look at reality tv the same again.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
5.0
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee is a masterful take on a historical fiction novel, and the best of that genre I have ever read.
The story covers 80 years and multiple generations of this Korean family. You read through all of the choices that this family makes and get to see the impact throughout the years covered by the book. It really felt like I was reading a memoir about this family’s genealogy. Lee did an amazing job of providing their family history in a unique way.
Each of the characters in Pachinko have shades of grey to them, which makes them feel real and three-dimensional. No one character can be put in a “good person” or “bad person” bucket (though characters lean one way or the other) all of them fall on a spectrum between. Because of this, it made me want to keep learning about every character that was shown, even the more minor characters.
The historical aspect of this was so well done. Anytime a fictional book set during a real time period drives me to research more about it is a great thing, and something that does not happen often. Lee uses things like the Japanese occupation of Korea, World War II, and the Korean War as great backdrops to help tell her story of Koreans in Japan. I have learned so much from this book and will continue to read about this subject going forward. For a fictional book to accomplish that is extraordinary and shows just what a wonderful job Min Jin Lee did.
I can not recommend this book enough. There are no caveats, this book is a must read for everyone.
The story covers 80 years and multiple generations of this Korean family. You read through all of the choices that this family makes and get to see the impact throughout the years covered by the book. It really felt like I was reading a memoir about this family’s genealogy. Lee did an amazing job of providing their family history in a unique way.
Each of the characters in Pachinko have shades of grey to them, which makes them feel real and three-dimensional. No one character can be put in a “good person” or “bad person” bucket (though characters lean one way or the other) all of them fall on a spectrum between. Because of this, it made me want to keep learning about every character that was shown, even the more minor characters.
The historical aspect of this was so well done. Anytime a fictional book set during a real time period drives me to research more about it is a great thing, and something that does not happen often. Lee uses things like the Japanese occupation of Korea, World War II, and the Korean War as great backdrops to help tell her story of Koreans in Japan. I have learned so much from this book and will continue to read about this subject going forward. For a fictional book to accomplish that is extraordinary and shows just what a wonderful job Min Jin Lee did.
I can not recommend this book enough. There are no caveats, this book is a must read for everyone.
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
*I would give this 4.5/5 stars if Goodreads would let us do half stars*
Full review below:
“By age seventeen he’d convinced himself that every human he saw was a parasite, active to the dictates of consumption…he realizes that the truth infinitely more complicated, that we are all beautiful even as we are all part of the problem, and that to be a part of the problem is to be human”
That above quote from the last 50 pages of “Cloud Cuckoo Land” by Anthony Doer does a great job of describing what this book’s main focus is: Human Connection.
This novel tells multiple stories across different time periods and parts of the world, starting in Constantinople in 1453 as the walled city is under siege and on the brink of falling, to a small town in Idaho where a old librarian is working on a play with after school children, finally to the far future we’re volunteers are traveling to a new planet after Earth became uninhabitable.
There are other stops along the timeline that I will not spoil but what brings these times together is the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to utopian city in the sky in a old world/Greek myth called Cloud Cuckoo Land (this is where the book becomes slightly meta)
All of the characters of Doer’s unique novel are dreamers and outsiders who find hope and become beacons of resourcefulness during their gravest and most dangerous moments. The characters I connected with the most where the modern day time line (Zeno and Seymour) and the future (Konstance). Their arcs were incredibly done and especially in the second half, picked up to where it became hard to pit down. The past (Constantinople) started out extremely slow, but by the end became important for showing the foundation that this book is built on.
I don’t know if I will read another book like this…really ever. While it is not perfect (the beginning has pacing issues and can be hard to follow through the onboarding process of the story) it is a book that I will constantly think about years later.
Full review below:
“By age seventeen he’d convinced himself that every human he saw was a parasite, active to the dictates of consumption…he realizes that the truth infinitely more complicated, that we are all beautiful even as we are all part of the problem, and that to be a part of the problem is to be human”
That above quote from the last 50 pages of “Cloud Cuckoo Land” by Anthony Doer does a great job of describing what this book’s main focus is: Human Connection.
This novel tells multiple stories across different time periods and parts of the world, starting in Constantinople in 1453 as the walled city is under siege and on the brink of falling, to a small town in Idaho where a old librarian is working on a play with after school children, finally to the far future we’re volunteers are traveling to a new planet after Earth became uninhabitable.
There are other stops along the timeline that I will not spoil but what brings these times together is the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to utopian city in the sky in a old world/Greek myth called Cloud Cuckoo Land (this is where the book becomes slightly meta)
All of the characters of Doer’s unique novel are dreamers and outsiders who find hope and become beacons of resourcefulness during their gravest and most dangerous moments. The characters I connected with the most where the modern day time line (Zeno and Seymour) and the future (Konstance). Their arcs were incredibly done and especially in the second half, picked up to where it became hard to pit down. The past (Constantinople) started out extremely slow, but by the end became important for showing the foundation that this book is built on.
I don’t know if I will read another book like this…really ever. While it is not perfect (the beginning has pacing issues and can be hard to follow through the onboarding process of the story) it is a book that I will constantly think about years later.
Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
*If I could add Half-Stars, this would actually be a 3.5/5*
Under the Whispering Door does such a great job of representing the journey of death from the perspective of the person who passes away, but that message gets undercut by humor that slightly outstays its welcome and a romance plot that moves at a breakneck pace.
The novel follows Wallace Price, a cold-hearted, narcissistic lawyer who dies suddenly after a heart attack. He gets meets a Reaper named Mei who is to bring him to Charon’s Crossing where he will meet his ferryman Hugo, who will help him pass on. TJ Klune does a wonderful job of fleshing out each of these characters in various degrees, even the grandfather Nelson (another ghost like Wallace who as decided to not move on) and Apollo (Hugo’s former service dog) have backstories that get explored the right amount.
Right away the tone of this novel is set with content that focuses on heavy themes like grief, death, depression, mental health, suicide, and anger. This gets contrasted throughout the book with snarky humor to help alleviate what comes with discussing such serious themes. I thought that the humor worked early on, when Wallace is slowly starting to become a better person and is still processing his own death, but later on it felt like the humor undercut some of the seriousness around newly introduced characters like Alan and Cameron and their journeys.
This story does a fantastic job with representation, something that is extremely obvious that Klune cared deeply about getting right. From multiple characters being people of color, to multiple same-sex relationships or romances, to even calling out when a character makes a off color joke (Mei to Wallace when he says she sounded like a “fortune cookie” and she calls him out for that being racist). Which is why the Hugo/Wallace romance kinda bums me out a little. It felt extremely rushed, like we skipped some storylines in the middle, where we went from them disliking one another to immediately being in love.
I really enjoyed the book even with some of the issues I had with it, it was a easy read and something different from my usually contemporary novels I had read previously. It made me want to check out TJ Klune’s other books which is always a great thing.
It is a feel good story that selves into serious themes using humor and colorful characters. I only wish the balance between the three was changed to help explore the themes surrounding death and grief besides the mostly surface level exploration we get.
Under the Whispering Door does such a great job of representing the journey of death from the perspective of the person who passes away, but that message gets undercut by humor that slightly outstays its welcome and a romance plot that moves at a breakneck pace.
The novel follows Wallace Price, a cold-hearted, narcissistic lawyer who dies suddenly after a heart attack. He gets meets a Reaper named Mei who is to bring him to Charon’s Crossing where he will meet his ferryman Hugo, who will help him pass on. TJ Klune does a wonderful job of fleshing out each of these characters in various degrees, even the grandfather Nelson (another ghost like Wallace who as decided to not move on) and Apollo (Hugo’s former service dog) have backstories that get explored the right amount.
Right away the tone of this novel is set with content that focuses on heavy themes like grief, death, depression, mental health, suicide, and anger. This gets contrasted throughout the book with snarky humor to help alleviate what comes with discussing such serious themes. I thought that the humor worked early on, when Wallace is slowly starting to become a better person and is still processing his own death, but later on it felt like the humor undercut some of the seriousness around newly introduced characters like Alan and Cameron and their journeys.
This story does a fantastic job with representation, something that is extremely obvious that Klune cared deeply about getting right. From multiple characters being people of color, to multiple same-sex relationships or romances, to even calling out when a character makes a off color joke (Mei to Wallace when he says she sounded like a “fortune cookie” and she calls him out for that being racist). Which is why the Hugo/Wallace romance kinda bums me out a little. It felt extremely rushed, like we skipped some storylines in the middle, where we went from them disliking one another to immediately being in love.
I really enjoyed the book even with some of the issues I had with it, it was a easy read and something different from my usually contemporary novels I had read previously. It made me want to check out TJ Klune’s other books which is always a great thing.
It is a feel good story that selves into serious themes using humor and colorful characters. I only wish the balance between the three was changed to help explore the themes surrounding death and grief besides the mostly surface level exploration we get.
A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
4.0
The final book in the Song of Ice and Fire series returns to its strengths after a divergence in “A Feast for Crows”. “A Dance with Dragons” takes place in two halves, one that occurs concurrently with the fourth book but with different POVs. So if you were wondering what Jon, Daenerys and Tyrion were doing as the events of the fourth book were happening, you know now. The second half misses past this using those same POVs plus adding ones like Cersei, Jamie, and multiple perspectives from the Iron Islands.
I think this book has the strongest cast since “Storm of Swords” with the new POVs from “A Feast for Crows” that worth bringing over combined with the fan favorites.
This is the book that really sees the ground for all of the events they have been happening on the shadows to finally be brought to the light. Things like what Varys’ involvement with the two Targaryen children and their different approaches to taking back their throne. You also get more movement in the political realm with Stannis, Jon, and the evolving Night’s Watch and Wildlings.
This book will not change your opinion on if you like the series or not. Something that I have thought about during my re-read of this series is it being not as good as I remember. I still think it is a good book series, especially when it comes to politics and dialogue, but it is not the high water mark of fantasy that I though it was a decade ago.
If this is the last mainline boom that Martin puts out, then I have made my peace with knowing I am okay with the story not being finished, and that is something I ever thought I would say.
I think this book has the strongest cast since “Storm of Swords” with the new POVs from “A Feast for Crows” that worth bringing over combined with the fan favorites.
This is the book that really sees the ground for all of the events they have been happening on the shadows to finally be brought to the light. Things like what Varys’ involvement with the two Targaryen children and their different approaches to taking back their throne. You also get more movement in the political realm with Stannis, Jon, and the evolving Night’s Watch and Wildlings.
This book will not change your opinion on if you like the series or not. Something that I have thought about during my re-read of this series is it being not as good as I remember. I still think it is a good book series, especially when it comes to politics and dialogue, but it is not the high water mark of fantasy that I though it was a decade ago.
If this is the last mainline boom that Martin puts out, then I have made my peace with knowing I am okay with the story not being finished, and that is something I ever thought I would say.
Red Rising by Pierce Brown
3.5
*Actual rating would be 3.5 stars, if Goodreads allows 1/2 stars*
“Death isn’t empty like you say it is. Emptiness is life without freedom”
Book One of the Red Rising Trilogy tells the story of Darrow and his transformation from young, humble Helldiver (the universe’s version of a miner) who becomes a ruthless young adult that is driven by vengeance for the death of his wife Eo by the people in charge of the authoritarian society he lives in: The Golds
Pierce Brown takes the concept of Hunger Games/Battle Royale into a more mature socioeconomic and political direction. Society is structured via a extremely detailed caste system that is based on color (EX: Someone who is “Green” is a engineer or someone who has a tech background) with “Gold” being the top of the hierarchy and “Red” being the absolute bottom.
Their are sub-sections within each color, like the Scarred, who are the top of the “Gold” and descendants from the original group of overthrew the Earth government. It can be alot to keep up with and I kept having to reference a chart I found online to make sure I was following which group of people Brown was talking about.
You can feel Pierce Brown was heavily influenced by Hunger Games, Game of Thrones (with the different family’s within Gold society), and even some Harry Potter (with all of the Institute school stuff and the different houses). Even with all of that, Red Rising still feels original enough, though I am hoping it starts to break away from some of this in the next books in the series.
I did feel like there were things that Brown would have put more focus on, like Darrow’s initial involvement with the Ares group that puts him on the ultimate mission of infiltrating the upper crust of society and overthrowing it. I felt like we rushed through that extremely quickly but then stayed with the event of what happens during the Institute for 2/3rds of the book, the balance just felt a little off and I feel like could have been adjusted.
Overall, Red Rising was a solid introduction to this trilogy and I am excited to continue on with this story at some point.
“Death isn’t empty like you say it is. Emptiness is life without freedom”
Book One of the Red Rising Trilogy tells the story of Darrow and his transformation from young, humble Helldiver (the universe’s version of a miner) who becomes a ruthless young adult that is driven by vengeance for the death of his wife Eo by the people in charge of the authoritarian society he lives in: The Golds
Pierce Brown takes the concept of Hunger Games/Battle Royale into a more mature socioeconomic and political direction. Society is structured via a extremely detailed caste system that is based on color (EX: Someone who is “Green” is a engineer or someone who has a tech background) with “Gold” being the top of the hierarchy and “Red” being the absolute bottom.
Their are sub-sections within each color, like the Scarred, who are the top of the “Gold” and descendants from the original group of overthrew the Earth government. It can be alot to keep up with and I kept having to reference a chart I found online to make sure I was following which group of people Brown was talking about.
You can feel Pierce Brown was heavily influenced by Hunger Games, Game of Thrones (with the different family’s within Gold society), and even some Harry Potter (with all of the Institute school stuff and the different houses). Even with all of that, Red Rising still feels original enough, though I am hoping it starts to break away from some of this in the next books in the series.
I did feel like there were things that Brown would have put more focus on, like Darrow’s initial involvement with the Ares group that puts him on the ultimate mission of infiltrating the upper crust of society and overthrowing it. I felt like we rushed through that extremely quickly but then stayed with the event of what happens during the Institute for 2/3rds of the book, the balance just felt a little off and I feel like could have been adjusted.
Overall, Red Rising was a solid introduction to this trilogy and I am excited to continue on with this story at some point.
The Rain Heron by Robbie Arnott
2.0
“These days, when I close my eye, I see the women on the mountain. I see the fever in her skin. I see her broken in my arms. I see my bullet in her throat.”
The Rain Heron feels like a story that is trying to have the feeling of folklore fantasy, like a story that would be passed thru generations on how someone’s actions can impact their environment and influence events in the future. Unfortunately I think Robbie Arnott’s story completely misses the mark in that regard and comes across as a boring retelling of the invader helping the natives story that has been told for decades across multiple mediums
One do the first things that becomes apparent when reading this book is the formatting that Arnott choose to go with, especially with how he decides to organize the dialogue and conversations between characters. They do not have quotations and are broken across lines, other times characters will just monologue across multiple pages. For me this made it extremely hard to follow, to the point that I was more focused on following who was talking instead of understanding what they were talking about.
Which makes me sad because the strongest part of this book is the descriptions and vivid language that is used. This story has some of the most detail I have seen in a novel this year. Describing how Harker’s infection spreads thru her body, to describing the world around them, Arnott does a great job of trying to make you be there through the page.
Part II is the strongest section of “The Rain Heron” by a mile. Every other part is pale in comparison. I wish we would dive more into what happened to this world. Why was there a coup? Who led the coup? Is the war still happening? If those questions were raised or answered, then I completely missed them.
There is strong potential here, but except for Part II, nothing real lives up to it. There will be people who connect with “The Rain Heron” more than me, but besides enjoying the flowery language that was used, I will never think about this book again.
The Rain Heron feels like a story that is trying to have the feeling of folklore fantasy, like a story that would be passed thru generations on how someone’s actions can impact their environment and influence events in the future. Unfortunately I think Robbie Arnott’s story completely misses the mark in that regard and comes across as a boring retelling of the invader helping the natives story that has been told for decades across multiple mediums
One do the first things that becomes apparent when reading this book is the formatting that Arnott choose to go with, especially with how he decides to organize the dialogue and conversations between characters. They do not have quotations and are broken across lines, other times characters will just monologue across multiple pages. For me this made it extremely hard to follow, to the point that I was more focused on following who was talking instead of understanding what they were talking about.
Which makes me sad because the strongest part of this book is the descriptions and vivid language that is used. This story has some of the most detail I have seen in a novel this year. Describing how Harker’s infection spreads thru her body, to describing the world around them, Arnott does a great job of trying to make you be there through the page.
Part II is the strongest section of “The Rain Heron” by a mile. Every other part is pale in comparison. I wish we would dive more into what happened to this world. Why was there a coup? Who led the coup? Is the war still happening? If those questions were raised or answered, then I completely missed them.
There is strong potential here, but except for Part II, nothing real lives up to it. There will be people who connect with “The Rain Heron” more than me, but besides enjoying the flowery language that was used, I will never think about this book again.
Artemis by Andy Weir
3.0
This moment—this moment right now—is where we decide what kind of city Artemis is going to be.
Artemis tells the story of smuggler Jazz Bashara who is trying to straighten her life out by become a licensed EVA tour guide on the frontier Moon city of Artemis. What follows is a heist plot that Jazz tries to use to get rich quick and turns into a deeper conspiracy about the city’s underbelly and criminal dealings.
I found this Andy Weir’s novel to be more fun and entertaining then Hail Mary and alot of that has to due with the cast of characters, mainly Jazz. She is a extremely confidant woman born into a Arab family that immigrated to Artemis when she was young. Like a lot of Weir’s characters, she is extremely snarky and a smart ass. For the most part that plays really well and only gets tiring a little bit. One great thing I want to point out about this book is the ethnic diverse representation.
Between Jazz and her father (Arab), Dale (LGBTQ), Sanchez (South American), and many others, this book really feels like a melting pot of diverse backgrounds. I especially like the details that go into Jazz and her father’s background with how they deal with religious customs even with being on the moon.
All of that helps with the feeling of Artemis being a frontier town, what I imagine small towns in the middle 1800’s felt like out west in the US.
Where the book gets let down by is the overall plot, especially the back half. It never really lives up to its potential that it could have with the economic sabotage that is happening in the city. The ending also wraps up a little to clean and kinda undermines any real consequences that would have happened from the actions that were taken. It felt like the end of a good episode of network television, not bad but also nothing that makes me feel blown away.
Being this was the first novel I read on a E-Reader (Kindle PaperWhite SE) it was very enjoyable. Easy to track my place, highlight quotes and felt comfortable.
Overall, if you liked The Martian or Project Hail Mary then you should check this book out if you have not. If neither of those books spoke to you or you really did not enjoy them, then Artemis is not going to have much to change your mind.
Artemis tells the story of smuggler Jazz Bashara who is trying to straighten her life out by become a licensed EVA tour guide on the frontier Moon city of Artemis. What follows is a heist plot that Jazz tries to use to get rich quick and turns into a deeper conspiracy about the city’s underbelly and criminal dealings.
I found this Andy Weir’s novel to be more fun and entertaining then Hail Mary and alot of that has to due with the cast of characters, mainly Jazz. She is a extremely confidant woman born into a Arab family that immigrated to Artemis when she was young. Like a lot of Weir’s characters, she is extremely snarky and a smart ass. For the most part that plays really well and only gets tiring a little bit. One great thing I want to point out about this book is the ethnic diverse representation.
Between Jazz and her father (Arab), Dale (LGBTQ), Sanchez (South American), and many others, this book really feels like a melting pot of diverse backgrounds. I especially like the details that go into Jazz and her father’s background with how they deal with religious customs even with being on the moon.
All of that helps with the feeling of Artemis being a frontier town, what I imagine small towns in the middle 1800’s felt like out west in the US.
Where the book gets let down by is the overall plot, especially the back half. It never really lives up to its potential that it could have with the economic sabotage that is happening in the city. The ending also wraps up a little to clean and kinda undermines any real consequences that would have happened from the actions that were taken. It felt like the end of a good episode of network television, not bad but also nothing that makes me feel blown away.
Being this was the first novel I read on a E-Reader (Kindle PaperWhite SE) it was very enjoyable. Easy to track my place, highlight quotes and felt comfortable.
Overall, if you liked The Martian or Project Hail Mary then you should check this book out if you have not. If neither of those books spoke to you or you really did not enjoy them, then Artemis is not going to have much to change your mind.
Muppets in Moscow: The Unexpected Crazy True Story of Making Sesame Street in Russia by Natasha Lance Rogoff
4.0
“Nothing in Russia is ever over” he says “It all keeps repeating itself, like an infinite circle”
This is my first nonfiction read of the year (trying to make more time for nonfiction) and Muppets In Moscow is setting a high bar already for 2023. This is exactly what I want from a nonfiction story, were you learn something and it reads like a fiction novel.
Natasha Rogoff (author and executive producer on Ulitsa Sezam) does a fantastic job of intertwining her personal experiences working on the production, her interactions with Sesame Street corporate entities, and the volatile background of Russian Politics in a post-USSR world.
The thing this book does is show the genuine love that Russians have for their country, that as Americans we have painted them as the evil people, when in reality they are just like us where they have no control over what their government does. This comes through even more when Natasha gets to the part of the production where they hire younger writers and producers, who go through training with The Children’s Workshop (Sesame Street parent company). They come away from it with wanting to show Russian children what they were not shown in their childhoods, that they can make a change for the better.
While Ulitsa Sezam ran till 2010 and ultimately failed in its goal to show Russian children how to be more open and accepting because of things out of their control (Putin’s rise to power, etc) it still left a impact, which is shown in the epilogue that Natasha added on.
This book is heartwarming at times and heartbreaking at others. It really shows how much people put of themselves into any production of art.
This is my first nonfiction read of the year (trying to make more time for nonfiction) and Muppets In Moscow is setting a high bar already for 2023. This is exactly what I want from a nonfiction story, were you learn something and it reads like a fiction novel.
Natasha Rogoff (author and executive producer on Ulitsa Sezam) does a fantastic job of intertwining her personal experiences working on the production, her interactions with Sesame Street corporate entities, and the volatile background of Russian Politics in a post-USSR world.
The thing this book does is show the genuine love that Russians have for their country, that as Americans we have painted them as the evil people, when in reality they are just like us where they have no control over what their government does. This comes through even more when Natasha gets to the part of the production where they hire younger writers and producers, who go through training with The Children’s Workshop (Sesame Street parent company). They come away from it with wanting to show Russian children what they were not shown in their childhoods, that they can make a change for the better.
While Ulitsa Sezam ran till 2010 and ultimately failed in its goal to show Russian children how to be more open and accepting because of things out of their control (Putin’s rise to power, etc) it still left a impact, which is shown in the epilogue that Natasha added on.
This book is heartwarming at times and heartbreaking at others. It really shows how much people put of themselves into any production of art.