Medic Against Bomb: A Doctor's Poetry of War.

Medic Against Bomb: A Doctor's Poetry of War.

Author:

Frederick Foote

Publication Date:

15/10/2014

ISBN:

9780991386116

Blurb on the Back:

Winner of the 2013 Grayson Books Poetry Prize, this book features poems by Frederick Foote, a retired U.S. Navy physician the director of the Poetry Project at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Martha Silano, who selected Medic Against Bomb for the prize, described the work well: “Refreshing, downright bracing, Foote reaffirms that war is anything but generic… these poems restore humanity to both enemy and combatant, leaving the reader with a fuller, clearer sense of the ongoing Iraqi conflict.”

Many of the poems developed from the author’s experiences on the hospital ship COMFORT, where military medical personnel cared for mostly Iraqi patients Medevac’d to the ship. Other poems emerged from the experience of caring for sick and wounded American servicemen and women, and for their families.

Review:

Thanks to Netgalley.com and Grayson Books for providing me with an advance Ecopy of the book for review purposes.

This is included in my 2014 goodreads.com reading challenge.

Medic Against Bomb is a collection of war poems from retired US Navy physician Fredrick Foote, and is mostly drawn from his experience of working on the US Navy ship COMFORT.

The Poetry is presented in a no nonsense straight forward fashion. It pulls no punches on what Foote saw and felt during his time there. Often thought provoking the poems deal with numerous traumatic and disturbing subjects and Foote manages through his poetry to give the subject the Gravitas it deserves.

As with any collection of poetry not all the poems are equal in length and quality. The book does suffer from the occasional dip in this regard, however, the quality of the writing shines through in most of the poems.

The book whilst short more than makes up for its briefness thanks to the quality held within, and its subject matter makes it an excellent read. A modern take on the poetry that the likes Siegfried Sassoon And Wilfred Owen pioneered.

8 out of 10.

The Art of Racing In the Rain - Garth Stein

The Art of Racing In the Rain - Garth Stein

Author:

Garth Stein

Published:

2008

Blurb on the Back:

Enzo knows he is different from other dogs: a philosopher with a nearly human soul (and an obsession with opposable thumbs), he has educated himself by watching television extensively, and by listening very closely to the words of his master, Denny Swift, an up-and-coming race car driver.

Through Denny, Enzo has gained tremendous insight into the human condition, and he sees that life, like racing, isn't simply about going fast. On the eve of his death, Enzo takes stock of his life, recalling all that he and his family have been through.

A heart-wrenching but deeply funny and ultimately uplifting story of family, love, loyalty, and hope, The Art of Racing in the Rain is a beautifully crafted and captivating look at the wonders and absurdities of human life...as only a dog could tell it.

Review:

This book was read as part of my 2014 Goodreads.com Reading Challenge.

Garth Stein has created a wonderful book based around the reminiscences of a dog in the hours before he is going to be put down. Enzo the dog in question is a reincarnation believing, opposable thumb envying, lovable narrator, who as he accepts that is time is nearing an end and taking the reader on a tour back through his life constantly shows his unwavering loyalty to his master Denny Swift, an up and coming race car driver.   

The book shows the life of Denny and Enzo from the view of the faithful companion. How relationships affected them, how Denny's love of motor sport imprints itself on Enzo, the birth of children and what that meant to Enzo and Denny and how illness of loved ones affect them. 

The book is both heart-warming and heartbreaking in equal measure and the ending, Oh it was perfect. 

The book is fantastically well written and you cannot help but fall in love with the characters involved and that makes sharing their ups and downs all the more emotional. 

A must read for dog lovers and well everyone else too.

9 out of 10

Peace 

Deejay

Eleanor & Park - Rainbow Rowell

Eleanor & Park - Rainbow Rowell

Author:

Rainbow Rowell

Published:

2013

Blurb On The Back:

Two misfits.

One extraordinary love.

Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.

Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.

Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.

Review:

I read this as part of my 2014 Goodreads.com Reading Challenge.

I was recommended Rainbow Rowells novels after reading a couple of other YA books. I had started out with Fangirl (already reviewed) and had enjoyed it, however, I had put this book on the back burner in order to read a couple of memoirs and books that would be considered age appropriate for my decrepit 30 year old mind. 

I'm glad I did as it left me refreshed and ready for the whimsy of young love that comes from this book. It provides a classic set-up of two outsiders coming together to make sense of a world that is uniquely unfair to them. 

Eleanor is a wonderfully rounded character who has everything thrown at her and maintains her relative sanity by keeping everyone and everything at arms length. Park is a guy who enjoys wearing eye-liner and not driving a stick shift car (Being from the UK I cannot understand why you wouldn't drive a manual car as it is the norm over here.)

Their friendship and eventual courtship over 80's rock and comics is nicely paced and keeps the reader interested. The antagonist in the father figures of the young couple are perfectly pitched, abusive and self-absorbed in Eleanors case and overly masculine and old fashioned in Parks.

I really enjoyed the book and the ending left me wanting more. I'm starting to feel that the term Young Adult Fiction should be scrapped as so much of this genre spans all ages. In my reading I am discovering that if I conformed to what my age says I should I would miss out on a treasure trove of brilliant writing. Authors like Rainbow Rowell, John Green and Meg Cabot. To be honest that would be a damn shame.

Please tell me what you think of the book, the genre, me etc I'd Appreciate the feedback

9 out of 10 

Peace Deejay.

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared - Jonas Jonasson

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared - Jonas Jonasson

Author:

Jonas Jonasson

Published:

2013

Blurb on the Back:

It all starts on the one-hundredth birthday of Allan Karlsson. Sitting quietly in his room in an old people's home, he is waiting for the party he-never-wanted-anyway to begin. The mayor is going to be there. The press is going to be there. But, as it turns out, Allan is not...Slowly but surely Allan climbs out of his bedroom window, into the flowerbed (in his slippers) and makes his getaway. And so begins his picaresque and unlikely journey involving criminals, several murders, a suitcase full of cash, and incompetent police. As his escapades unfold, we learn something of Allan's earlier life in which - remarkably - he helped to make the atom bomb, became friends with American presidents, Russian tyrants, and Chinese leaders, and was a participant behind the scenes in many key events of the twentieth century. Already a huge bestseller across Europe, The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared is a fun, feel-good book for all ages. 

Review:

This is part of my 2014 reading challenge.

You can compare this book to Forrest Gump in a lot of ways, Karlsson has the knack of being in the right place at the right time and although not being that educated helps Franco, Stalin, Regan throughout his life. This is told in a series of flashbacks while in the present day he is involved in a gang plot on his 100th birthday

The book is wonderfully bright and funny and makes a refreshing change of pace from other Scandinavian novels, from the likes of Nesbo and Larsson. It features so bizarre characters and alot of plot twists that keep the main plot running nicely. However it is the flashbacks that I found provided the most entertaining material.

A charming crime novel which will leave you with a smile.

10 out of 10.

Off to be the Wizard - Scott Meyer

Off to be the Wizard - Scott Meyer

Author:

Scott Meyer

Published:

2013

Blurb on the Back:

Martin Banks is just a normal guy who has made an abnormal discovery: he can manipulate reality, thanks to reality being nothing more than a computer program. With every use of this ability, though, Martin finds his little “tweaks” have not escaped notice. Rather than face prosecution, he decides instead to travel back in time to the Middle Ages and pose as a wizard.

What could possibly go wrong?

An American hacker in King Arthur’s court, Martin must now train to become a full-fledged master of his powers, discover the truth behind the ancient wizard Merlin…and not, y’know, die or anything.

Review:

This was read as part of my 2014 reading challenge on Goodreads.com

Pop-Culture meets the middle ages in an excellent comedic fashion. The story centres around Martin a geek in a dead end job who enjoys hacking. One day when fooling about within a website he comes across a file which seems to contain all his personal data in real-time. After messing about with his personal stats he finds that it in fact can control the world around him. 

Obviously he does what anyone else would do and starts by adding money to his bank account. This sets the US treasury on his trail for bank fraud and he uses the program to escape their grasp to medieval England.

This sets off a sequence of events which at time is hilarious and at times juvenile in its humour, As Martin struggles to become a wizard in the past all the while returning to the exact point he left the present to confuse both the Government Officials and his own parents. 

This was a highly charged, fast paced book and has left the world open so if he so desired it could easily form a sequel or even a whole series. Personally I'd like to learn about the Atlantis mentioned frequently throughout the plot.

8.5 out of 10.

Peace 

Deejay

Independent Study - Joelle Charbonneau

Independent Study by Joelle Charbonneau

Author:

Joelle Charbonneau

Pubished:

January 2013

Blurb on the back:

In the series debut The Testing, sixteen-year-old Cia Vale was chosen by the United Commonwealth government as one of the best and brightest graduates of all the colonies . . . a promising leader in the effort to revitalize postwar civilization. In Independent Study, Cia is a freshman at the University in Tosu City with her home town sweetheart, Tomas—and though the government has tried to erase her memory of the brutal horrors of The Testing, Cia remembers. Her attempts to expose the ugly truth behind the government’s murderous programs put her—and her loved ones—in a world of danger. But the future of the Commonwealth depends on her.

Review:

This book is part of my 2014 reading challenge.

So as you probably gathered from my previous post regarding the first part of this trilogy, I liked The Testing a lot. Joelle Charbonneau managed to capture my imagination with an innovative and new spin on the young adult dystopia novel. Suffice to say I was dying to find out what was going to happen to Cia Vale, the now incumbent Graduate and new university student of Tosu City University faces more trials and tribulations as she discovers more about the seedy underworld of the university.

Independent Study continues in the same vein of The Testing. Cia is face with more tests to prove that she has what it takes to survive the cut-throat world of the university. Her career choice is ignored and she is forced into a situation that she feels has been intentionally set up to make her fail so she will be "redirected." It details her struggle to survive and find people that she can trust to bring about change.

Now as I mentioned The Testing made me want to read this genre again. Independent Study while not as frantic and explosive as the first part of the trilogy, still maintains the world and adds to the disparity between the United Commonwealth Government and the University officials. 

It successfully held the interest in the world and quite frankly I cannot wait for the final part of the trilogy.

While not as good as The Testing it is still up there, I would liken it to Mockingjay at the moment, while good it rambles a bit. I am hoping that this is the weak part in the series, the lull before all hell breaks loose.

I can't wait for Graduation Day.

9 Out of 10.

Orange is the New Black - Piper Kerman

Orange is the New Black - Piper Kerman 

Author: 

Piper Kerman

Published:

2010

Blurb on the Back:

With a career, a boyfriend, and a loving family, Piper Kerman barely resembles the reckless young woman who delivered a suitcase of drug money ten years ago. But that past has caught up with her. Convicted and sentenced to fifteen months at the infamous federal correctional facility in Danbury, Connecticut, the well-heeled Smith College alumna is now inmate #11187-424—one of the millions of women who disappear "down the rabbit hole" of the American penal system. From her first strip search to her final release, Kerman learns to navigate this strange world with its strictly enforced codes of behaviour and arbitrary rules, where the uneasy relationship between prisoner and jailer is constantly and unpredictably recalibrated. She meets women from all walks of life, who surprise her with small tokens of generosity, hard words of wisdom, and simple acts of acceptance. Heartbreaking, hilarious, and at times enraging, Orange Is the New Black offers a rare look into the lives of women in prison, why it is we lock so many away, and what happens to them when they're there.

Review:

This is one of the books on my 2014 reading challenge. 

If you bought this book because you like the TV series, turn back now. The true life story of Piper Kerman is nothing like the hit netflix series. There is no prison lesbian love affair between Piper and her ex-lover and no sex between guards and inmates. don't get me wrong you can see where the things in the TV series come from however they are not as dramatic as the TV would like you to believe.

What you do get is a story about a girl, who made some bad choices in her youth and ultimately paid the price for them. Pipers year in prison while not uneventful is more about the camaraderie and the bonding between the inmates as well as the hopelessness of the American justice system. 

Piper comes across as a well educated and likeable person, however, at times the book becomes preachy on the uneducated within the prison. Her relationships with the inmates are fascinating especially with the Russian Chef Pop but they sometimes come over as stereotypical characters especially with the emphasis at times on racial groupings.

Pipers Boyfriend (come Fiancée) comes across exceptionally well being put in a very difficult situation and the support from him, Piper's family and friends is vital to her survival and the story.

The book is very well written and a very enjoyable way to spend a few hours, however remember it is nothing like the TV series.

8 out of 10.