studiomikarts's reviews
55 reviews

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

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adventurous dark funny tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

While in most trilogies I find the middle entry to be my least favorite, that has never been the case for The Lord of the Rings. This novel, The Two Towers, stands just as strong as its bookends. One of the biggest elements that makes it so appealing are the horse-rearing people of Rohan; they have been my favorite group of mankind in Middle Earth since I was a child. But this time, I also felt the Ents and their trees were just as interesting and awe-inspiring. Perhaps it's because I've become vegan since I last read these books, which has given me a greater interest in and respect for plant life, but I think it's also the idea that the forest and its keepers were here long before any humanoid life, which is rather scientific, since trees did evolve much sooner than mammals in reality.

Before I comment on the audiobook in particular, which was my format this time, I also want to mention that The Two Towers is so much better in its original format (book or audiobook), versus the 2000s live-action movie adaptation. Sam, my favorite character of all, is still nasty to Gollum, but not in the despicable way shown in the movie. His unkindness in the original is much more justified, and he's more shrewd than his movie counterpart, keeping his mouth shut when it's prudent, watching and waiting, looking before he leaps. I found this to be the case for many characters, actually. Faramir is more reasonable and less meatheaded, "wizard-like" as Sam puts it, and even the orcs are more relatable thanks to their long dialogues that give glimpses into their lifestyles and culture.

As for this audiobook, narrated by Andy Serkis, I feel there's not much more praise I can add to what I've already sung in my reviews of his readings of The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring đŸ˜… It is simply excellent. I have no complaints whatsoever, and although I feel it might be nice to listen to my old CD and cassette tape versions of the Middle Earth books someday, I might just be too addicted to Serkis's masterful delivery to listen to anything else!
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The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This audiobook narrated by Andy Serkis isn't just a reading of J.R.R. Tolkien's work, it's a world-class performance đŸ¤© I've always been moved by the epic nature of this tale, but never before have I felt the emotion in it so keenly. Something especially effective in the narration is the use of drawn-out pauses, the intake of breath, the volume and cadence of speech, etc., to bring the scenes to life. It was as if the characters were saying these things for the first time ever, the conversations developing organically, with no hint of the fact that their words were decided decades ago, and have been repeated countless times since. A film grander than the Peter Jackson adaptations played in my mind's eye as I listened to this masterful delivery. Even when, in future, I properly read the books for the Nth time, Andy Serkis's brilliant interpretation will forever inspire my own inner voice. My experience of The Fellowship of the Ring has been permanently altered for the better by this audiobook. I had no idea, as a lifelong fan of Middle Earth, that such a thing was possible!
Letters to a Young Writer: Some Practical and Philosophical Advice by Colum McCann

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challenging hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

4.0

The writing was a little too artsy for me; I prefer to receive advice more directly. There were some chapters that I breezed through and got nothing from, because it was just a mess of words from which no meaning seemed to emerge. That's why I'm giving this book four stars instead of five. But it's still a solid four stars! Despite the annoying and bewildering passages, overall I found it motivating and inspiring, even comforting. I have over a dozen sticky notes and flags filling the book, summarizing some of the best advice and pointing to quotes I know I'll need to read again. And despite my complaints, the final chapter nearly moved me to tears with its powerful message! This is one I'll keep in my personal library and come around to again in the future.
Life Day Treasury: Holiday Stories From a Galaxy Far, Far Away by George Mann

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.0

Another solid, middle-of-the-road, three-star book for me. The year-end holiday theme helped bolster it, but there were a lot of issues that kept me from giving it a better rating. The illustrations were nice. I found their concept-art-quality interesting. They also helped with visualizing the characters in each of the stories, which was a big problem with the text. I was constantly on my phone, googling names of characters, species, locations, vehicles, etc. because the writing did not, for the most part, describe many of these things outside a mention of their proper names. I LOVE Star Wars, but I felt excluded by the way this book assumed I'd be a religiously devout fan, like a living Wookiepedia (the site I was constantly visiting while I read) without the need for help in imagining the characters and things. Even with the illustrations, the one per story rarely gave enough visual material to cover everything. It's almost as if the proper names of Star Wars specific things were chosen in lieu of more creative descriptions because it saved space. I say this because another complaint is that I found most of the stories to be rather rushed, especially in the conclusions. I think the authors tried to pack too much content into too small a word count.

Still, I found several stories charming (my favorite was the The Spirit of Life Day, a cool ghost story~) and it was an easy, quick read, so that even with my complaints, I didn't feel like my time was wasted. I actually wouldn't mind reading this book again next holiday season. It's definitely worth keeping in my holiday collection even just for show. The paper quality is a bit low, but it has fancy deckled edges and good cover design & construction. For someone who loves the year-end holidays and Star Wars, it's not a bad book!
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Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

I enjoyed this book just as much as the previous one! In fact, it began so smoothly, following immediately the concluding events of the first book, that it didn't even feel like a separate thing. I'm not sure I've ever felt that way when reading other book series before, even my favorites like Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings. Some of the things that were especially well done in this volume included the tension at the beginning (enough to keep me reading, but not so much as to be annoying), all of the action scenes, Temeraire's amusing bloodthirstiness somehow harmoniously married to his deep compassion for other living things, and Lawrence's constant show of character flaws that miraculously do not make him any less likeable as a protagonist. Excited to get reading volume 3!
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Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection by Arthur Conan Doyle

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adventurous dark funny hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

I'd read a good deal of the original Sherlock Holmes stories before starting this audiobook but it was here that I finally experienced them all. Stephen Fry was a phenomenal narrator! Excellent character voices, foreign accents, emotional delivery at all the right times--I suppose that's what you get when someone with true acting chops reads you some of the best stories ever written~ I don't think I'll ever be able to listen to anyone else narrate the Holmes canon. The inclusion at the beginning of each book of a foreword by Fry himself was an excellent move. Not only did I learn a ton about the stories and their author, I learned things about the narrator that tied him to the Holmes fandom and just made him more interesting than ever as a person. I'm sure this won't be the last time I listen to this audiobook!
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The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

The Hobbit is my number one favorite book of all time. I'm very happy to report that Andy Serkis's narration not only does it justice, it brings it into the realm of artistic performance. I laughed out loud, I was riveted, I got chills, and I was moved deeply, even though I've read these words countless times before. The only negative is that the singing parts can be a tad bit awkward, but combined with the rest of the amusing and powerful reading, it actually works to give the listener an experience akin to having the story read by one's favorite uncle, perhaps sitting as a family around the crackling fireplace as dusk falls~ It's a simultaneously cozy and enthralling audiobook! Ultimately, I felt like this was what the most recent live-action movie adaptations should have been, especially considering some of the same melodies for the songs are used here!
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The Legend of the Christmas Witch by Aubrey Plaza, Daniel Murphy, Julia Iredale

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adventurous dark fast-paced

3.5

Well this book did not end how I expected! It's very rare for me to read an open-ended conclusion like this, especially in a picturebook. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I think it's interesting and surprising to leave off in a way that makes it seem like the most exciting part may be yet to come (not in a sequel way; rather, it almost feels like a ghost story, where the audience is left to ponder it and perhaps spook themselves later with their own thoughts). But the ending also had too much of a real-world influence. The idea that
global climate change is on its way to releasing the witch, who may then unleash either good or evil upon the world
is a bit too much on the nose. There are other similar instances like that throughout the book, as well. Just being a little too eager to make a modern Christmas tale that addresses modern concerns about equality and the environment. Keep in mind that this is the opinion of a very liberal minded reader; I love stories that give females prominent and starring roles, and change expectations and the status quo, and more important still, stories that encourage compassion and care for animals and the environment, but I still wish it would have been more subtly attempted in this story. For instance, instead of
Kristtorn's brother literally telling her there's no place for her in the world and that she'd best stay hidden, which comes across strongly as a man telling a woman to know her place, or in other words, that women 'belong in the kitchen'
, surely there was a more artful way? I asked myself that question at many places throughout the book, unfortunately. There was also a single typo in the middle of the book that was a bit silly and rather ruined the mood and immersion on that page.

Setting the issues with the writing aside, I loved the illustrations throughout the book. They are gorgeous and make The Legend of the Christmas Witch worth owning, even with its other shortcomings. If you enjoy picturebooks primarily for the imagery, this is definitely one worth adding to your collection!
The Great Stink: How Joseph Bazalgette Solved London's Poop Pollution Problem by Nancy Carpenter, Colleen Paeff

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funny informative lighthearted fast-paced

5.0

What an excellent non-fiction picturebook! It tells a story few today have heard (at least among my circles) and does it in an accessible, engaging way. The text is well-placed and the information easy to understand. The illustrations are both humorous and detailed, rendered in an easy, loose style that modestly hides how much planning and design must have gone into each spread. The inclusion of modern day information on poop pollution and ways individuals can help curb it is an excellent conclusion!
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When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? by George Carlin

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challenging dark funny fast-paced

3.0

George Carlin was my favorite comedian for most of my life, but as the years have gone by, and especially with the rise in extremist politics in America and the start of the pandemic (among a great many other things) it's hard to find the darkest parts of his irreverent comedy funny anymore. There are people today who espouse such views honestly, not sarcastically or in jest. I know people who have heard the most twisted things Carlin said and modeled their lives on them, using them as excuses for appalling behavior and opinions. Seeing this unfold in my lifetime has ruined what used to be nothing more than irreverent comedy, and I came to realize that in reading this book.

Even so, there are still some nuggets of pure comedy, witty language, and striking insight in this book (and in Carlin's material as a whole). I wish someone would make a fan edit of just the best stuff, but I suppose it's all a matter of opinion, so the only one who could do that to my satisfaction would be myself đŸ˜… Here are a few quotes that I loved:
  • I'm not a person who thinks he can have it all, but I certainly feel that with a bit of effort and guile I should be able to have more than my fair share.
  • These anti-war demonstrators are really unimpressive people. They're against war? How groundbreaking; what a courageous stand. Listen, angry asshole, pick something difficult. Like religion. Why don't you get out on the street and start marching around against religion―something that's really harmful to mankind. War is simply nature's way of doing things; of keeping down the count. Religion is the problem. Get rid of religion and you've done the planet a favor. So how about getting out there next weekend and marching around with a sign that says Ho ho ho! Religion must go!? Come on, protesters, show some balls.
  • There are caregivers and there are caretakers, and yet the two words are not opposites. Why is this?
  • I wish the ecology people would save one species that would make a dramatic comeback and then wipe us all out.

There were a lot of gems like the above, but outside the negative issues I mentioned already, there was also a LOT of repetitive content that was so boring I just skimmed over it whenever I realized it was happening again. It was mostly the euphemisms sections, but there were other instances as well, usually long lists of similar words. I think that kind of material works much better delivered in a standup routine. Sometimes, I will grant, the repetition worked in the book's favor, and I'd look forward to certain bits, especially the bullet lists of random thoughts or questions, which always showed Carlin's wit and warmth.

Overall, three stars feels good as my rating. No higher, no lower. But I think this and my other Carlin book will be leaving my personal library after this. The good stuff is really good, but the bad stuff is too much.
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