Review: First Meetings: In the Enderverse

First Meetings: In the Enderverse by Orson Scott Card
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had read that original Ender story in Analog magazine when it came out, but I didn't remember it very well. I was glad to have a chance to reread it without buying the now high-priced copy of Analog. I read the Ender and Ender's Shadow series, so I was glad to read a little more in the same style that provided some historic background into Ender's ancestors and Jane. Good for a few hours of entertainment.

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Review: The Latte Factor: Why You Don't Have to Be Rich to Live Rich

The Latte Factor: Why You Don't Have to Be Rich to Live Rich by David Bach
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Another personal financial planning / retirement savings parable. One of many, nothing very outstanding here.

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Review: Oh William!

Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I listened to this as an audiobook and I very much enjoyed it. I've seen some not so positive reviews of this on Goodreads, and I wonder if what I liked, the pacing, the shared emotion (or lack of emotion at times), and the way the sentences sounded was as much a function of the narration as the writing. Perhaps so.

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Review: Suder: A Novel

Suder: A Novel by Percival Everett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Caused me to listen to a particular Charlie Parker album I hadn't listened to before. Very odd happenings, but put together realistically. I look forward to seeing what the author can do without leaning heavily on the bizarre.

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Review: Going Zero

Going Zero by Anthony McCarten
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

A friend read this and thought I would really enjoy it. I can understand her thinking -- the surveillance we all face from the use of technology is something I can worry about. But the problem with books like this is that the author suggests that technology exists that seems far fetched, and then makes that technology a key part of the plot. It happened a couple of times, and while I'm willing to suspend disbelief when reading such books, this one went to the well too many times for me. So I liked the concept and the story and the non-technology related twists, but the tech side was a bridge too far. This did feel very much like a screenplay, and i can see someone like Amazon picking this up for filming.

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Review: The Greatest Game Ever Pitched: Juan Marichal, Warren Spahn, and the Pitching Duel of the Century

The Greatest Game Ever Pitched: Juan Marichal, Warren Spahn, and the Pitching Duel of the Century by Jim Kaplan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I had recently finished Bob Gibson's "Pitch by Pitch", his recounting of the details of a single game in the 60s that he believe memorable. It was. And I found his book to be quite well done, showing Gibson's thinking about the situations of almost every pitch, as well as his take on his opponent's pitching decisions. You learned a lot and were entertained. I expected the same with this book. Instead, this was more of a two pitcher biography, with lots of back (and post-) story on these player's careers. The game itself was not covered in the depth that Gibson wrote, and I suppose that's no surprise given the author is a reporter and not one of the pitchers. I did find i learned a lot about these players, but not so much about a single game, but about their careers.

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Review: This is It: And Other Essays on Zen & Spiritual Experience

This is It: And Other Essays on Zen & Spiritual Experience by Alan W. Watts
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Having read the many positive reviews here, I suspect that my listening to the audiobook, without the benefits of reading and reflecting as I would with a physical book, was not a good thing. I found a lot of long-winded sentences that were difficult to follow on audio. With a book you could easily re-read. While driving and listening, no way. I will possibly try another...

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