JD Book Club: What Are You Reading Now?

[Phrubruh]

Reading the "The Kingdom Keepers" by Ridley Pearson.



Using cutting-edge technology, five Florida teens have been transformed into Holographic Hosts at Disney World. Their images appear throughout the Magic Kingdom, giving visitors information about the various attractions. It all seems to be going well, until the participants begin having disturbing dreams that start affecting their everyday lives. They sneak in after the park has closed, and Wayne, a retired Imagineer, directs them in their fight against the Dark Side, embodied by Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty. Audio-animatronic pirates from The Pirates of the Caribbean travel through the Magic Kingdom in the little cars from the Buzz Lightyear ride. The dolls from It's a Small World clamber into the boats and start biting the occupants. Cinderella's Castle is filled with an eye-popping array of staircases, à la Escher. There's a certain coolness factor for the notion that people could be both human and hologram at the same time, and the illicit thrill of seeing all the things you don't normally get to see (both real and imaginary) makes this a must-read for serious Disney fans. However, readers never really get to know any of the characters well, except for Finn, the narrator, and the mystery is so convoluted that it's hard to follow, and even harder to care about. Additional.

[Morgbug]

Finished:

Just grabbed this one and started it.  Finished up on these two prior:

[BrentS]

I read fragment last summer. Not the greatest book but I liked the story even if it was a bit predictable.

[Chris M]

I've had to read 5 books plus a textbook for my current masters class.  This is the last of the books I have to read.  I got lucky and my instructor told us if we used a book that was related to the topic at hand we were welcome to do so.  So, instead of having to work my way through 5 of his books, I used two of my own that I had recently read, two on his list, and one that I stumbled across by accident.

[Nathan]

Picked up from a booth at C5, recommended by both of the guys there.

Twenty years after her death, Catherine Lucille Moore (1911–1987) remains one of the most influential female fantasy authors of all time. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Moore published her first story in Weird Tales  in 1933, where it met with immediate success and earned praise from contemporaries such as H.P. Lovecraft. In a time when female authors were still marginalized and practically unheard of in genre fiction, Catherine hid her gender by publishing under the name C.L. Moore. She proceeded to write high-profile stories for Weird Tales and Astounding  for the next decade, earning particular acclaim for her characters Jirel of Joiry, the first strong female protagonist in the sword and sorcery genre, and daring spaceman Northwest Smith. Moore met science fiction author Henry Kuttner in 1936 when he wrote her a fan letter, mistakenly believing her to be a man, and in 1940 the two were married. Together the couple collaborated on numerous stories and scripts for television shows under their own names and at least 17 pseudonyms, of which Lewis Padgett and Keith Hammond are the most recognized. In 1998 C. L. Moore was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame.

[Morgbug]

Finished the first, on to the second.

[Phrubruh]

Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery by Deborah Howe.



This immensely popular children's story is told from the point of view of a dog named Harold. It all starts when Harold's human family, the Monroes, goes to see the movie Dracula, and young Toby accidentally sits on a baby rabbit wrapped in a bundle on his seat. How could the family help but take the rabbit home and name it Bunnicula? Chester, the literate, sensitive, and keenly observant family cat, soon decides there is something weird about this rabbit. Pointy fangs, the appearance of a cape, black-and-white coloring, nocturnal habits … it sure seemed like he was a vampire bunny. When the family finds a white tomato in the kitchen, sucked dry and colorless, well … Chester becomes distraught and fears for the safety of the family. "Today, vegetables. Tomorrow … the world!" he warns Harold. But when Chester tries to make his fears known to the Monroes, he is completely misunderstood, and the results are truly hilarious. Is Bunnicula really a vampire bunny? We can't say. But any child who has ever let his or her imagination run a little wild will love Deborah and James Howe's funny, fast-paced "rabbit-tale of mystery."

[Phrubruh]

Now reading "The Silver Spoon of Solomon Snow" by Kaye Umansky.




A luckless foundling stars in this sometimes-amusing orphan tale. When 10-year-old Solly Snow learns that he was left on the doorstep as a baby, he immediately sets off to find his true parents. His only clue is the silver spoon that Pa Scubbins had recently pawned in town. Accompanied by a bookish neighbor girl and a pesky, but clever circus performer called the Infant Prodigy, the boy has several narrow escapes and surprises before his quest ends. These mildly involving adventures are related in a sardonic tone that fans of Lemony Snicket's books might enjoy. Highlights include several interludes that mockingly describe the still-grieving Perfect Parents who may (or may not) finally clear up the mystery of Solly's birth. The cloyingly sweet, but resourceful Prodigy is an especially fun character, as she blithely charms and annoys people along the way. Sly narration injects a sense of fun to many of the happenings. Solly himself isn't particularly funny, but his determination, lightened by nervousness and occasional moments of exasperation with his companions, makes him a likable protagonist. His Victorian-style world is filled with greedy adults on the lookout for orphans to exploit. The tale loses a bit of steam when the humor takes a backseat to plot advancement, but there are enough quirky characters and funny moments to sustain readers' interest through to the unexpected, but satisfying conclusion.

[Phrubruh]

Also reading "Science Fair" by Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson.



When Grdankl the Strong, president of the small, but extremely unhappy country of Krpshtskan, declares war on the United States, no one is safe. Its agents are en route to Hubble Middle School where an operative has been working for several years to create award-winning science-fair projects for underachieving children and their overinvolved parents. This is the year that the top projects will be designed to work in concert to bring down the United States in one enormous, electromagnetic pulse strike. All that is standing in the way of this diabolical plan are three students, a science store operator, a handful of bumbling FBI agents, and a giant Weinermobile. Barry and Ridley have created a wild story of danger, espionage, stinky cheese, exploding vats of Coca-Cola, and one floating frog. This nonstop, action-packed novel will appeal to every kid who has ever had to do a science-fair project.

[Phrubruh]

And something more adult and bloody like "Under the Dome" wasn't bloody enough. 

"Blood Rites" by Jim Butcher.



Per usual, wizard-detective extraordinaire Harry Dresden is in trouble. He barely escapes an assassination attempt, courtesy of the Black Council of vampires, when Thomas, a vampire who has helped Harry out on occasion, asks him to take a case. It seems someone doesn't want porno film director Arturo Genosa's latest effort to get off the ground. An entropy spell has killed two of Arturo's assistants, and Thomas wants Harry to find the culprit. With suspects abounding--Arturo has no fewer than three ex-wives--Harry decides to pose as a production assistant at the studio. Though he isn't able to stop another sabotage attempt, this one threatening an actress' life, he does save the young woman. With danger closing in, the last thing Harry needs is a sexy succubus and a surprising revelation about his heritage. Filled with sizzling magic and intrigue as well as important developments for Harry, the latest of his adventures will have fans rapidly turning the pages.

[Phrubruh]

Now reading "Peter and the Star Catchers" by Dave Berry.



Humorist Dave Barry and suspense writer Ridley Pearson have clearly taken great delight in writing a 400-plus page prequel of sorts to Scottish dramatist J.M. Barrie's beloved Peter Pan stories. The result is a fast-paced and fluffy pirate adventure, complete with talking porpoises, stinky rogues, possible cannibals, a flying crocodile, biting mermaids, and a much-sought-after trunk full of magical glowing green "starstuff." Ever hear of Zeus? Michelangelo? Attila the Hun? According to 14-year-old Molly Aster they all derived their powers from starstuff that occasionally falls to Earth from the heavens. On Earth, it is the Starcatchers' job to rush to the scene and collect the starstuff before it falls into the hands of the Others who use its myriad powers for evil.
On board the ship Never Land, an orange-haired boy named Peter, the leader of a group of orphaned boys being sent off to work as servants in King Zarboff the Third's court, is puzzled by his shipmate Molly's fantastical story of starstuff, but it inextricably binds him to her. Peter vows to help his new, very pretty friend Molly (a Starcatcher's apprentice) keep a mysterious trunk full of the stuff out of the clutches of the pirate Black Stache, a host of other interested parties, and ultimately King Zarboff the Third.

The downright goofy, modern 8-year-old boy humor sometimes clashes with an old-time pirate sensibility, and the rapid-fire dialogue, while well paced, is far from inventive. Still, the high-seas hijinks and desert-island shenanigans will keep readers turning the pages. Greg Call's wonderful black-and-white illustrations are deliciously old-fashioned and add plenty of atmosphere to a silly, swashbuckling story that shows us how Peter Pan came to fly and why he, and his story, will never get old.

[Morgbug]

I enjoyed this book immensely, finishing it last night.  Stunning to see how a fictional town in Maine can so resemble small towns anywhere else. 

[Keonobi]

Just finished The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance by Sean Williams, who also wrote the novel The Force Unleashed.  Overall I like Fatal Alliance a lot better, granted he had to frame a novel much more around the existing story line for FU (I'm not familiar enough with the MMORP to say the same about FA), which I think really limited what he could do, particularly with fight sequences.  Fatal Alliance was much better about this and was quite enjoyable.

[Mikey D]

I enjoyed this book immensely, finishing it last night.  Stunning to see how a fictional town in Maine can so resemble small towns anywhere else. 

What am I, your personal book recommender?  You've been reading a lot of **** I've read recently - first, the Millennium Trilogy (TGWTDT, TGWPWF, TGWKTHN) and now Under the Dome.

But I agree, Under the Dome was a fantastic book.  It's up as one of my favorite King books, after It and The Stand.  I'll probably re-read the latter two soon as it's been awhile since I've read them (high school).

As long as your taking recommendations, next I suggest The Passage.  The first third was absolutely gripping and I couldn't put it down.  It slowed down a bit after a major plot twist (you'll know it when you get to it) and took a bit to get going again, but it ended well.

Since my last posting, I've read:



and

volumes 5 - 8 of Ex Machina (volume 9 shortly), volume 1 of The Walking Dead (volumes 2 - 12 shortly) and volume 1 of Invincible (ditto).

Novel wise, right now I'm reading:

[Morgbug]

Sure, I'll take the recommendation.  I haven't read the third book in the Millenium trilogy yet though as I was waiting for it to come out in paperback or at least find it that way if it's not already out.  I think there's a new Scarpetta novel out in paperback so I'll grab that as well, but I'll put The Passage on the list.  As for the Dome, the local bookstore was selling it for $10 so why not.  I'd forgotten how much I liked King's novels. 

I've been a King fan for a long, long time.  The Talisman would be in my top three King books along with The Dome and the Stand.  The Talisman started me reading for recreation after learning to hate books thanks to high school (really, try reading some Solzhenitsyn at some point when you're being forced to.  It could be good stuff for all I know but when it's not by choice it's painful).  A whole slew of other authors followed along from that, mostly in the horror vein but lot's in suspense as well.

When there's little out there that interests me in relatively current novels I always slip back to the Ballantine's Illustrated History of WWII.  Smallish books, only about 160 pages each but very small print and quite good, compact summations of various aspects of that war.  There's about 150 odd books in the series and I've been through about 60 of them in the last two years.  Trying to complete my collection of those is a bit of a chore.  Some of them are extremely rivetting and well written; others are horrendously tedious.