I wrote a poem about July
July, oh July
with your temps so high
so high you could fry
an egg on the si...dewalk
it makes me want to cry
but again it is so hot - my eye
my eye it stays dry
It's a work in progress. I should have it ready by next July.
------------------------------------------------------------
Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline
I love a sequel. Just when you think the story is over BOOM, it's back. If a movie has a part two, there is a really good chance it is now the movie I prefer. (Note: this opinion does not apply to prequels.) So, getting to continue the story of Ready Player One was a huge treat.
In the first book, Wade Watts is an impoverished kid living in the "stacks" of Oklahoma City. The stacks are neighborhoods where trailers and mobile homes have been stacked on top of each other to maximize the population of an area. Wade mentally escapes his life of destitution by entering a virtual world that has consumed society. The Oasis. Inside the Oasis, there's an ongoing contest to win a fortune.
In Ready Player Two, Wade Watts is back and there's another contest to win. Will he be victorious?! Was he victorious the first time around?!?! Tune in to both books to find out.
Spoiler Alert, still no references to the Facts of Life.
If I'm being honest, however, this sequel pales in comparison to the greatest sequel of all time, Sister Act II: Back in the Habit. Whoopi Goldberg reprises her role of a Las Vegas headliner masquerading as a nun? Only this time she's back to teach inner-city kids music and life lessons??? Sign me up twice. Sure, it has much lower stakes than the first Sister Act, where Whoopi Goldberg hides from a mob boss who wants her dead.
But to quote Whitney Houston:
I believe the children are our future
Teach them well and let them lead the way
In Back in the Habit, the future is on the line.
Ready Player Two was a fun book, though.
------------------------------------------------------------
Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler
Another sequel. I probably should have paced myself better with this series. I didn't put much time between the first book, "Parable of the Sower" and this continuation of the story. Much like the first story, tragedy abounds in this book.
One thing Parable of the Talents does that the first does not, is provide perspectives from several different characters. Like Parable of the Sower, Parable of the Talents is an epistolary. The story is told through diary entries. Parable of the Sower is solely the entries of Lauren and her quest for freedom. Parable of the Talents features entries from Lauren, her husband, and her daughter. Utilizing writings from several different characters added a dimension to the sequel that the first does not have.
But again, like the first book, very heavy, lots of violence and death.
------------------------------------------------------------
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
I had no idea what this book was about when I started it. It was featured on a condescending list that said "read this, it's culture" so I read it and now I am culture.
Also, I'm realizing I should have written this section immediately after finishing the book.
Okay, let me try to recap The Alchemist:
There's this boy. Man? There is a male character of a certain age. He's a shepherd in the south of Spain (Andalusia) and he has a dream about finding treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. The treasure is his destiny. He goes on a wacky little adventure to Africa (and I spend a lot of time looking up geography). Boy meets world, then boy meets girl. At one point he turns himself into the wind.
Short allegorical story short, the treasure was inside him all along.
Or, it's the journey not the destination.
Or, if it's meant to be it will be.
If you want to be culture too, you should read this book.
------------------------------------------------------------
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
Once again I have been burned by a book with a bird title, not being about birds.
Dakota Fanning is a young woman in France in the 1940s. Her husband has been drafted into the military to fight the next Great War, leaving her alone at home with their young daughter. But not for long!
Her sister, Elle, who has been bouncing between boarding schools over the past several years, comes to live with Dakota. But not for long!
Elle feels deep within her soul that she must do something to aid in the war effort. And then she does!
At different points, the book made me sad, mad, and sad and mad. It's about World War II and Nazis, and the horrible atrocities they committed.
It is also a harrowing tale of doing what’s right in the face of great adversity.
I recommend this book.
------------------------------------------------------------
The Lost Apothecary
The Lost Apothecary is about Caroline. Caroline in the City*. The city is London.
Right before her 10th anniversary, and a big trip to England to celebrate, Caroline finds out that her husband has been cheating on her. She decides to take the vacation by herself to get space from the situation. One of the first things she does when she gets to London? Mudlarking in the River Thames.
Mudlark
/ˈmədlärk/
noun
a person who scavenges in river mud for objects of value.
Whilst mucking about in the river, she finds a peculiar little vial. The artifact leads her on an adventure filled with discovery - discovery of history... and of herself.
Bonus points: the writer is a graduate of the University of Kansas! Rock Chalk! 10/5
*I've never seen the show Caroline in the City. But I've seen Back to the Future (and the far superior, Back to the Future Part II), which also stars actress Lea Thompson. This is a filler paragraph because I really wanted to reach one thousand words with this post. I still have not reached my goal so better press on. I have mixed feelings about Back to the Future Part III.
------------------------------------------------------------
Additional books I read:
Comments
Log in to post comments.Copyright © 2023 Scribble LLC
DownScribble v1.0.15 Released 10 Jun 2023