Take a photo of a barcode or cover
wordsandnocturnes's reviews
441 reviews
A Conspiracy of Friends by Alexander McCall Smith
3.0
The final book in the Corduroy Mansions trilogy, A Conspiracy of Friends picks up after The Dog Who Came in from the Cold, featuring the same characters although it introduces a few more, which shows at least that it does revolve around the residents of Corduroy Mansions. Again, it has many storylines.
William French receives an unexpected confession from an old friend. He also, miserably, manages to lose his dear canine Freddie de la Hay along the way (ah, it rhymes). Caroline’s mother hopes to set Caroline up with “the right sort of boy”. Caroline is suspicious about this, and maybe her friendship with James would be jeopardised because of this. Barbara learns of a very long and surprising truth from her fiance. Rupert, on the other hand, feeling tricked by Barbara, converts her authors over to him in an attempt to make her more unpopular. Berthea Snark has to deal with her brother, who this time around, decides to pick up motorcar racing (something really dangerous to a man of his age. Dangerous to all ages, in fact).
The new characters include William’s son, Eddie, who has not done much in his life, more so than his father. Eddie and his girlfriend Merle hope to revamp a property owned by Merle. They hire a pretentious interior designer to do the work. Oedipus Snark also gets his own point of view in this book, where his unpleasantness brings him an unexpected change.
If this is truly the last book of the trilogy, it sure left a lot of potential openings for sequels. Like the other books, I loved its cosy tone and how little things can be delights, but this book left me thinking that it was somehow unfinished and incomplete.
William French receives an unexpected confession from an old friend. He also, miserably, manages to lose his dear canine Freddie de la Hay along the way (ah, it rhymes). Caroline’s mother hopes to set Caroline up with “the right sort of boy”. Caroline is suspicious about this, and maybe her friendship with James would be jeopardised because of this. Barbara learns of a very long and surprising truth from her fiance. Rupert, on the other hand, feeling tricked by Barbara, converts her authors over to him in an attempt to make her more unpopular. Berthea Snark has to deal with her brother, who this time around, decides to pick up motorcar racing (something really dangerous to a man of his age. Dangerous to all ages, in fact).
The new characters include William’s son, Eddie, who has not done much in his life, more so than his father. Eddie and his girlfriend Merle hope to revamp a property owned by Merle. They hire a pretentious interior designer to do the work. Oedipus Snark also gets his own point of view in this book, where his unpleasantness brings him an unexpected change.
If this is truly the last book of the trilogy, it sure left a lot of potential openings for sequels. Like the other books, I loved its cosy tone and how little things can be delights, but this book left me thinking that it was somehow unfinished and incomplete.
Penitentiary Tales: A Love Story by E.A. Luetkemeyer
5.0
Penitentiary Tales: A Love Story starts off with choppy, uncertain dialogue and a strangely off-putting absence of quotation marks. However, the dialogue gets better and more fluid, and this is pulled off to great effect. In the beginning of the book, Dean Davis is faced with having to explain his imprisonment to his father-in-law, having to say farewell to his family, and is about to be thrown into a completely new environment. The choppy dialogue gives off a sense of detachment and displacement that works wonderfully with the story.
This book is an eye-opener. We so often forget that people who are different from us are human too. In this book, we get a glimpse of some of the people that occupy the space behind bars. We are introduced to a wide cast of characters throughout the book, a few who slip from the mind until reminded. Even so, most of them are vivid characters that possess unique personalities such as Mother Goose, Botha and so on. All of these characters have their own motives, their goals and their truths which show us that contrary to what we are led to believe, they are very human too. We are shown that they are not all beefy thugs that beat up each other or resent each other all the time (as what many movies depict). There is some resentment, and they do fight, but there are also inmates that are confused as to why they're doing time behind bars, those who are waiting patiently to be let out, those who don't want to pick a fight... and even the ones who do want to fight, many of them are less fortunate than us, having to tough it out on the streets with no permanent place to call home.
Life in prison can be wildly surprising too. Drawing from personal experience, E.A. Luetkemeyer includes transposed versions of events that happened while he was doing 4 years behind bars. There are welding lessons, play rehearsals, interviews among inmates and a wide variety of other pastimes and hobbies. Of course, there is also the constant lurking sense of danger that can come when you don't control your tongue or monitor your behaviour in the presence of other inmates.
After initial disorientation, this book flows well and reads wonderfully. What makes this book so colourful and gripping is still, I maintain, its fascinating set of characters and Dean Davis' unbiased, natural narration. The narration is honest and straightforward enough without being a bore, embellished now and then by some description that further enhances the storytelling. The characters vary and are diverse, and that Dean Davis' voice is clearly expressed throughout ensures that he isn't swamped by the other characters, becoming a clear central point throughout the book. The social issues mentioned in this book are also food for thought, all of which still happen and are most troubling.
For anyone looking for a read that gives you a different perspective of prison life and has multiple viewpoints on topics of race, sexuality and so on (although beware of explicit scenes), then you should give this book a chance.
This review first appeared on Reedsy Discovery.
This book is an eye-opener. We so often forget that people who are different from us are human too. In this book, we get a glimpse of some of the people that occupy the space behind bars. We are introduced to a wide cast of characters throughout the book, a few who slip from the mind until reminded. Even so, most of them are vivid characters that possess unique personalities such as Mother Goose, Botha and so on. All of these characters have their own motives, their goals and their truths which show us that contrary to what we are led to believe, they are very human too. We are shown that they are not all beefy thugs that beat up each other or resent each other all the time (as what many movies depict). There is some resentment, and they do fight, but there are also inmates that are confused as to why they're doing time behind bars, those who are waiting patiently to be let out, those who don't want to pick a fight... and even the ones who do want to fight, many of them are less fortunate than us, having to tough it out on the streets with no permanent place to call home.
Life in prison can be wildly surprising too. Drawing from personal experience, E.A. Luetkemeyer includes transposed versions of events that happened while he was doing 4 years behind bars. There are welding lessons, play rehearsals, interviews among inmates and a wide variety of other pastimes and hobbies. Of course, there is also the constant lurking sense of danger that can come when you don't control your tongue or monitor your behaviour in the presence of other inmates.
After initial disorientation, this book flows well and reads wonderfully. What makes this book so colourful and gripping is still, I maintain, its fascinating set of characters and Dean Davis' unbiased, natural narration. The narration is honest and straightforward enough without being a bore, embellished now and then by some description that further enhances the storytelling. The characters vary and are diverse, and that Dean Davis' voice is clearly expressed throughout ensures that he isn't swamped by the other characters, becoming a clear central point throughout the book. The social issues mentioned in this book are also food for thought, all of which still happen and are most troubling.
For anyone looking for a read that gives you a different perspective of prison life and has multiple viewpoints on topics of race, sexuality and so on (although beware of explicit scenes), then you should give this book a chance.
This review first appeared on Reedsy Discovery.
あなたの一日が世界を変える［日英対訳］ Your day will change the world［Japanese and English］ 今日が輝く「10の問いかけ」\u3000The Ten Questions to make your day shine by くすのきしげのり, 花丘 ちぐさ, 古山 拓
4.0
Your day will change the world is a book with simple but important messages. These messages are simple reminders that we might have forgotten or have slipped from our mind in this age of complicated events. There is a story that accompanies the message “your day will change the world”. In addition to that, there are also 10 questions that enrich and enhance said message. The writing is easy to understand, perfect for children to read, but also a fast and good read for anyone else.
Besides, there are also beautiful watercolour illustrations done by Taka Furuyama that make the whole reading experience much more pleasant and, in my case, invokes nostalgia brought from reading books with a similar type of illustration from my childhood, which is a nice touch.
When we come away from the book, we’re encouraged to ask the question “what can we do to make our day shine”? It’s a question that carries a lot of weight, because after all, our day will change the world.
Besides, there are also beautiful watercolour illustrations done by Taka Furuyama that make the whole reading experience much more pleasant and, in my case, invokes nostalgia brought from reading books with a similar type of illustration from my childhood, which is a nice touch.
When we come away from the book, we’re encouraged to ask the question “what can we do to make our day shine”? It’s a question that carries a lot of weight, because after all, our day will change the world.
The Whaler by Matthieu Bonhomme
3.0
This book is an introduction to the Esteban series. It does a pretty good job of it, hooking us in with thrilling action and introducing us to the protagonist, a native American boy named Esteban.
Esteban, after the opening events, gets a job on a whaling ship. Little mysteries are set up throughout the story, prompting questions like “how does Esteban’s mother know the whaling ship’s captain?”, “who or what was the messenger bird who could hear the voices of spirits?”
The art lends a somehow minimalist feel to the story, showing calmness in a story filled with crashing waves and sure action. The still mood set by the art is punctuated and brought to life with jagged font and wide spreads, which makes visualising the story much easier.
To sum it up, this book is a good introduction to the protagonist and his life on the whaling ship.
Esteban, after the opening events, gets a job on a whaling ship. Little mysteries are set up throughout the story, prompting questions like “how does Esteban’s mother know the whaling ship’s captain?”, “who or what was the messenger bird who could hear the voices of spirits?”
The art lends a somehow minimalist feel to the story, showing calmness in a story filled with crashing waves and sure action. The still mood set by the art is punctuated and brought to life with jagged font and wide spreads, which makes visualising the story much easier.
To sum it up, this book is a good introduction to the protagonist and his life on the whaling ship.