Sick and some Mini-Reviews

So I've been sick for the last four days and barely functional the last two. I started feeling like I was coming down with a cold on Saturday, on Sunday I made it to church but an hour later it hit me full blown and into bed I went. Monday and Tuesday are blurs. I couldn't get out of bed and my eyes hurt so much I couldn't even read! I could get them open enough to watch TV though so I spent both days watching DVDs and sleeping. Today ... well I'm up, dressed and prepared to face the day but only slowly as I'm working on about 50% at this point.

So needless to say I don't feel like writing proper individual reviews but I have a little pile here that needs to be done so I'm just giving mini-reviews today.


The Pigeon Wants a Puppy by Mo Willems is his latest book in the pigeon series. My son loves these books because he can read them himself and they are hilarious. He really identifies with the pigeon and I think any child will as well as any adult who can remember being a child. This time Willems puts a little twist on the theme though. This time pigeon complains and wheels and deals for a puppy and {gasp} actually gets one this time. Only thing is he didn't realize that puppies are a lot bigger than pigeons, hence a very funny ending and pigeon puts his mind onto a different, though still unsuitable, pet. Highly recommended! Each of the four books in this series are just as good as the other and anyone, young or old, is going to have a big giggle over them. 5/5



44. Animal Farm (Fables, Vol.2) by Bill Willingham. Now having read this second book in the series I am officially a fan and can't wait to get my hands on the next volume. This is very different from the first one which had a classic noir feel to it. This time around Animal is indeed an Orwellian reference. The non-human fables and those unable to to take human form live on a large plot of land that has been enchanted with a spell to keep humans away. This is called "The Farm" and a large amount of the population is unhappy with the rather prison like conditions. Though the place is nice enough and not lacking in any way there is still the fact they can't leave. I loved the thematic cross between Animal Farm and Lord of the Flies. Lots of new characters were introduced while Snow White and Rose Red remained main characters as from the first volume. In this book we meet the three little pigs, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, giants, a dragon, several animals from The Jungle Book including Baghera and Shere Khan plus many others. 4/5


45. Unintended Consequences (The Amazing-Spiderman, Vol. 5) by J. Michael Straczynski. This is a great volume with lots of deep issues for Spider-Man to deal with and contemplate. A nuclear test revives 12 mob bosses from the fifties who were killed and buried out in the desert in an old chemical waste hold. The combination of the chemicals being nuked brings together a creature formed of each of the men with an oozing Hulk type of appearances. It's main goal is to kill the man who put the hit on them but it doesn't care who gets hurt along the way. Spider-Man has to deal with the issue of helping people whether they be good or bad. In the last couple of issues Peter Parker is back to teaching and helping a student who especially needs some help with her life. He eventually meets up with Ezekiel again and finds out a bit more about this mysterious man and is posed with a question for contemplation. Sure, he gets the bad guys but what happens to them after they go to prison and should he just be getting the bad guy or should he be doing something to prevent people from becoming bad in the first place? An interesting proposal that makes me anxious to see where the character goes next. 3.5/5


Home: A Memoir of My Early Years by Julie Andrews. I've been really looking forward to finding the time to read this book since it was published last year (2008) but unfortunately after reading 155 pgs. I just couldn't bring myself to dredge through it anymore. A typical story of a dysfunctional family and Julie's childhood supporting her family as a singer. The main problem is that the narrative had no personality, no emotion to it. Julie tells of a particular night when her alcoholic stepfather enters her room and makes advances towards her and yet there is no feeling behind it or anything else in the book, at least up to page 155. It was with regret that I found the book not to my liking and I just couldn't get up the willpower to carry on. DNF