REVIEW: Time and Again (book) by Jack Finney

Time and Again is time travel fiction. I checked my copy out from the library.

Review:

Si Morley is a young graphic designer at an advertising firm. He has a deep love for the past, as evidenced by his fascination with the old stereoscopic slides at his girlfriend's antiques shop. As he pores over those slides, he can practically feel himself being pulled into the past.

Which makes him the perfect person for a secret government project involving time travel. The idea is this: the people chosen to travel back to particular times and places will, as part of their preparation, completely immerse themselves in the time and place they intend to travel to. That immersion will be so complete that they'll feel as if they're actually there - and, somehow, they then will be. 

Although Si is initially supposed to be part of an effort to travel to the San Francisco of 1901, he instead convinces the folks involved with the project to allow him to focus on New York City, January 1882. Si's girlfriend's foster father had always wanted to solve the mystery surrounding his father's suicide. The one remaining clue is a cryptic, partially burned letter. Si wants to see the moment that letter was mailed at the Main Post Office. He's told that he won't be allowed to interact or interfere with that moment, and he's fine with that. He figures that just seeing the person who mailed the letter might reveal something his girlfriend's foster father was never able to discover.

REVIEW: Catching Fire (book) by Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire is the second book in Collins' Hunger Games YA dystopian series. I checked my copy out from the library.

Review:

I read The Hunger Games way back in 2011. I had to read my review of it to remind myself what I thought of it - I liked it well enough but had issues with Katniss and disliked the developing love triangle. I never got around to reading more - for some reason, each new movie and book release, particularly after the original trilogy, reduced my desire to go back to it. However, one of my library's student workers was absolutely shocked that I'd only read the first book, so I decided to finally continue on in order to appease her.

In this book, the latest Hunger Games are over, but that doesn't mean that Katniss and Peeta are free from it all. Katniss and Peeta are both still in the spotlight and, as a result, they're forced to continue acting like they're a happy couple. Katniss still has feelings for Gale, but he'll barely speak to her. 

Whether Katniss wants it to or not, a rebellion is brewing with her at its center. Katniss' family's living conditions are better than they once were, but Katniss is painfully aware that this could change at any time on President Snow's orders. She tries her best to be a well-behaved victor in order to keep her friends and family safe, but even her best efforts might not be enough. 

When news about changes to the Hunger Games is released, Katniss realizes that even the smallest sliver of safety she'd found was nothing more than a cruel illusion.

REVIEW: My Dog: The Paradox: A Lovable Discourse About Man's Best Friend (graphic novel) by The Oatmeal

My Dog: The Paradox is humor. I bought my copy new.

Review:

This is the full-color version of the comic originally published online at The Oatmeal. Much like some other print versions of comics originally published online, for some reason this worked better for me online than it did in print. I'm not sure why. 

Inman's brief update online about his dog Rambo made me go hug my cat. I imagine it'll resonate with anyone who's ever loved and lost a pet, whatever the species. 

REVIEW: DPS Only! (graphic novel) by Velinxi

DPS Only! is a contemporary-set one-shot graphic novel focused on e-sports. I bought my copy new.

Review:

High school student Vicky Tan is a shy girl who lives in her esports superstar brother's shadow. She handles her brother Virgil's social media presence, and he mistakenly thinks she doesn't even like gaming. However, Vicky has a secret. When she's on her own, she logs on to Xenith Orion (the same game her brother plays). She's good enough that another player even asks her to join his team for the upcoming XO Tournament.

As she works with her new teammates and learns to communicate with them better, Vicky gradually comes into her own and gains confidence. However, when her masked secret gamer persona goes viral, will she be able to hold up against all the extra attention...and the possibility that her brother could learn her secret?

REVIEW: Horror for Weenies: Everything You Need to Know About the Films You're Too Scared to Watch (nonfiction book) by Emily C. Hughes

Horror for Weenies is nonfiction. I bought my copy new.

Review:

This covers 25 movies released between 1960 and 2018. Each movie includes a brief description, reasons you might want to watch or continue to avoid the movie (these parts tended to be more humorous than helpful), a detailed description of exactly what happens, info about why this particular movie matters in the history of horror films, some trivia, some iconic moments, and 3-4 similar books you might be interested in reading if you find that horror novels are easier for you to handle than movies.

I was hesitant to get this because, well, Wikipedia exists, and that's generally how I find out what happens in movies I'm too chicken to watch. However, the descriptions in this book are much more thorough and entertaining than Wikipedia - it made me wish that Hughes had covered many more movies than she did. I just checked whether she'd ever written books similar to this one and didn't find anything. Too bad.

The information about the impact of each of the various movies was helpful. Also, as someone who does generally do better with horror novels than movies, I appreciated the book recommendations (although it would have been nice if they'd been annotated with brief descriptions or some mention of why they were being recommended). Not that I need more book recommendations. 

REVIEW: Touch My Brother and You Die, Vol. 3 (book) by Morpho

Touch My Brother and You Die is a Korean fantasy comedy series. I bought my copy of this volume new.

Review:

Rosalite is sent to the Largole Empire to negotiate some stuff and ends up taking full advantage of the fourth imperial prince's instant adoration of Aster (Rosalite's bodyguard/lady's maid?). After a successful experience, Rosalite heads back home (with a new member of her household in tow, who she plans to use as a living printer/copier), only to find herself neck deep in what are essentially personnel problems: Jack Brown runs away due to issues with his sister, Glen is stressed and frustrated to the point where he actually plans to make some demands, and Rosalite's father is mad because she's willingly calling Sage Oswald "papa."

The publisher's description for this implies that there will be more tension and racing against the clock than there actually is. Glen's mother is barely in this, and Rosalite has hardly a thought to spare for the supposed apocalypse on the horizon.

Hey, I finally reviewed one of these volumes soon after finishing it! Not that it made much of a difference. I can remember particular events better, but the overarching story, whatever it is at this point, is still super foggy in my mind. 

The brief period from Jack Brown's POV was nice and all, except that his POV didn't feel all that different from Rosalite's, beyond him having a few thoughts about Rosalite's actions and those around her that didn't match up with Rosalite's own feelings.

I really need to stop reading this series. I have so many better things to read. 

REVIEW: Touch My Brother and You Die, Vol. 2 (book) by Morpho

Touch My Brother and You Die is a fantasy comedy series. I bought my copy of this volume new.

Review:

As usual, I should have reviewed this closer to the time when I finished it. All I can recall, at this point, is that Rosalite leaned on Glen's capable self even more (stressing him out and causing him to, rightfully, doubt that she has any interest in him as a man or even a person), and then she spent a great deal of time obsessing over Prince Marius (the third imperial prince of Largole, a neighboring kingdom) and his sexy muscles.

It probably didn't help that I'd read the first volume over a year prior, but for some reason I couldn't follow anything that was going on in this. I kept wishing that the author would let up on the "hilariously enraged/frustrated" tone enough to give a recap of a few events, and maybe more info on who some of the characters were and why they were at all important to Rosalite's overall goals. Speaking of which, what even are Rosalite's goals? I know she wants to do whatever necessary to keep from dying and being reborn yet again, and that that involves keeping her brother from attracting the romantic attentions of a bunch of the book's male characters, but that doesn't explain many of her actions.

I finished this thinking "I should probably stop here." And then, for some reason, I got volume 3. I guess I was hoping it would improve and/or start making more sense?

REVIEW: Assistant to the Villain (book) by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Assistant to the Villain is fantasy romance. I bought my copy new.

Review:

Evie Sage's family depends upon the money she brings in, so now that she's no longer employed at the blacksmith's, she's desperate to get some sort of paying job. When she literally runs into the infamous Villain while he's attempting to evade pursuers, he, for some reason, offers her a job, and she accepts. 

She's nervous about working for him, at first. After all, the Villain is supposed to be evil. While he does indeed torture people (who maybe deserve it?) and do nefarious things (which seem kind of justified?), she soon finds that she enjoys working as his assistant, making sure that the various parts of his organization all function smoothly together. And it doesn't hurt that she's got a bit of a crush on her brooding, somewhat terrifying, and ridiculously hot boss.

Unfortunately, various people's secrets, the Villain's past, and a potential traitor in the Villain's organization threaten Evie's employment, the new life she's building for herself, and whatever might be brewing between her and the Villain. 

REVIEW: Playthrough Poetics: Gameplay as Research Method (nonfiction) edited by Milena Droumeva

Playthrough Poetics is nonfiction. I bought my copy new.

Review:

The idea behind this book is that game scholarship tends to flatten video games into text for close reading, and that gameplay is a valid and necessary way to research and explore the immersiveness of video games. Each contributor used different methods to incorporate actual gameplay experience into their analyses of different games. URLs to associated YouTube videos are included - I never got around to watching any of them, but I assume some of them include gameplay footage.

This is the most academic/scholarly work I've sat and read through from start to finish in a very long while. I'm not sure I'd have managed it if it hadn't been such a short work. The focus on actual gameplay experiences did make for more interesting reading, although the way the various authors approached it worked more for me in some chapters than others. My favorite was Chapter 2, Robyn Hope's "Pathologic 2 and the Phenomenology of Illness."

REVIEW: The Secret Life of LEGO Bricks (nonfiction book) by Daniel Konstanski

The Secret Life of LEGO Bricks is nonfiction. I bought my copy new.

Review:

After finishing Brian Barrett's LEGO: The Art of the Minifigure, I came across this book and thought it would be a nice way to expand upon what I learned. However, I hesitated on Konstanski's book for a long while, primarily due to reviews that indicated that font size was too small.

Unfortunately, I agree with those reviewers. It's the worst thing about this book. For the most part, I could still manage to read the text, but there were a few captions that I had to just accept I wasn't going to be able to read, even with my glasses properly on my face.

Despite my issues with the font size, overall I thought this was a worthwhile read. When I was a kid, my family could only afford a basic LEGO brick set, and even as an adult I've only bought a few small, cheap sets. For some reason, however, I seem to really enjoy learning about the LEGO design process and how and why different sets were developed. 

REVIEW: Dungeon Crawler Carl (book) by Matt Dinniman

Dungeon Crawler Carl is science fantasy LitRPG. I bought my copy new.

Review:

At 2:23 AM Pacific Standard Time, every structure on Earth with a roof is flattened. The only survivors are those who were outside at the time. The alien beings responsible for all this destruction give them a choice: they can either try to survive in what's left of their world, or they can enter the 18-Level World Dungeon, where they will be expected to fight their way through each timed level. Only those who make it through all 18 levels or meet certain other requirements will be given their freedom. Their efforts in the dungeon will be broadcast for the viewing pleasure of an alien audience. 

At the moment of the apocalypse, Carl happens to have just stepped out in his boxers, a leather jacket, and a pair of ill-fitting crocs in an effort to bring his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, back inside. If he hadn't entered the Dungeon, he'd have frozen to death, but that doesn't make him feel much better as the NPCs he encounters immediately try to kill him. If Carl and Donut are to survive, they're going to have to figure out what's going on, level up, be creative, and keep moving.

REVIEW: Bullet Train (book) by Kotaro Isaka, translated by Sam Malissa

Bullet Train is a Japanese thriller. I bought my copy new.

Review:

This book focuses on multiple sets of characters, all of whom are traveling on the same bullet train. There's Kimura, a recovering alcoholic whose young son is comatose in the hospital. Kimura is planning to kill Satoshi, the Prince, the angelic-looking but sociopathic teenager who hurt Kimura's son. There's Nanao, the self-proclaimed "unluckiest assassin in the world," who's been sent to steal a suitcase - a seemingly easy job, but Nanao knows that nothing is ever easy when he's involved. And then there's Tangerine and Lemon, two assassins who've been tasked with retrieving their boss's kidnapped son and a suitcase, the very same suitcase that Nanao has been sent to steal. Their job seems easy too, and just about done...until the boss's son suddenly winds up dead.

This is set in the same world as Isaka's Three Assassins and takes place sometime after it (a few years, I think?). Although this can be read as a standalone, there are a few references to characters and events here and there that will make more sense if you've read Three Assassins first.

REVIEW: Tress of the Emerald Sea (book) by Brandon Sanderson

Tress of the Emerald Sea is fantasy, or maybe science fantasy. I bought my copy new.

Review:

Tress has spent her entire life on the small island where she was born, baking, collecting cups brought by sailors from all over the world, and spending time with Charlie, her best friend. She and Charlie both generally try to pretend that Charlie isn't the duke's heir, and that they aren't in love with each other, but that becomes impossible when the duke decides to send Charlie off to be married. 

Charlie's plan to avoid becoming married involves being the most boring person ever anytime he's introduced to an eligible young woman and, for a while, his plan succeeds. Unfortunately, eventually the duke and the king deal with Charlie by sending him to be captured by the Sorceress in the Midnight Sea. Realizing that no one plans to help Charlie, Tress decides to rescue him herself, however impossible that may seem.

REVIEW: A Magical Girl Retires (book) by Park Seolyeon, translated by Anton Hur, illustrated by Kim Sanho

A Magical Girl Retires is fantasy ("magical realism" might also be appropriate here). I bought my copy new.

This review includes major spoilers. 

Review:

The main character (who I believe is unnamed throughout) is a 29-year-old jobless Korean woman slowly drowning in debt. She's depressed and considering suicide. In fact, this story begins at 3am, when the MC is considering jumping off a bridge. Before she's able to finally psych herself into it, a stranger approaches her, introduces herself as Ah Roa, the Clairvoyant Magical Girl, and tells the MC that she's destined to be the most powerful magical girl ever, the Magical Girl of Time.

The MC spends most of this story feeling bewildered and awkward - she certainly doesn't feel like a magical girl, much less the most powerful one ever, but Ah Roa's belief in her is so strong and earnest that she can't help but try to figure out how she might live up to it.

REVIEW: The He-Man Effect: How American Toymakers Sold You Your Childhood (nonfiction graphic novel) by Brian "Box" Brown

The He-Man Effect is a nonfiction graphic novel. I bought my copy new.

Review:

This looks at the history of marketing towards American children, in particular instances where toys were created first and then shows (thinly veiled ads, really) were created around them, like He-Man and Transformers. The book also mentions She-Ra, Disney, Star Wars, GI Joe, etc.

I wasn't always sure I really understood the distinction between companies realizing that a cartoon character is popular and putting out merchandise to capitalize on that vs. companies creating an animated show based around merchandise. Either way, an effort was being made to get children to convince their parents to buy things for them. The author definitely seemed to judge the latter more harshly than the former, however.

Overall, this was a bit choppy, and it wasn't always clear what the author wanted to say. For example, was he blaming racist reactions to new Star Wars stuff on the commercialization of childhood? 

Lots of points were touched upon, but not always explored very thoroughly. Still, this was interesting, if a bit depressing, reading.