fairywhispers's "2009 Bookshelf"

Those who believe the CIA is behind every major event in the last hundred years will love Luci in the Sky. All the cliches are here. Girl invents new technology and game software. Long-lost father steals it to create space-age plane which is, to all intents and purposes, invisible and has a hidden doomsday feature that will turn it on its creators. CIA wants it for their own sinister purposes. Girl enlists aid of criminal mastermind to steal it back. Girl and criminal mastermind fall in love. However, Chris Fox moves beyond the cliches to deliver a fast-paced and thrilling ride about modern society’s worst nightmare – what happens when our technology turns on us? This book will have you on the edge of your seat.

The New 50 Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth concentrates mainly on America and it would be nice to see more Australian content. Despite that, this book is well-written – simple for kids to understand without being boring for adults to read. It is filled with fascinating facts and helpful tips. As an adult, even I learned a lot from this book. I particularly like the inclusion of websites for us to look up further information. This is a great resource for parents and teachers because there are loads of activities and experiments to do with kids. Whether you believe the argument for global warming or not, most people cannot deny that we are damaging the environment in many areas and overusing the world’s resources. This book can shows us dozens of ways to reduce our impact on the Earth, leading healthier lives and saving money in the process. The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth is a great addition to any bookshelf.

This was an OK book. The characters were well written, but a little cliched – the drifter who used to be a cop blowing into town just in time to save the world and emotionally rescue the small-town female cop with a tragedy in her past. I also found parts of this book a bit MacGyver-ish for my taste. After all, who repeatedly bats heads with fanatical terrorists bent on kick-starting Armageddon and still comes out on top? The other thing that annoyed me about this book was the strong political message contained within. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with books that have a moral to the story – but could we be a little more subtle about it?

If you can look past the faults, this is an enjoyable story. However, it is not one I’ll be reading twice.

I have finished reading [Bite]. Those who like vampire fiction will love this book. Bite is an anthology of short stories from some of the genres best authors. The included stories are:
The Girl Who Was Infatuated With Death by Laurell K. Hamilton This is the story of a Vampire Hunter hired to find a seventeen year old girl, before her vampire boyfriend is able to give her that fatal third bite.
One Word Answer by Charlaine Harris A small-town woman is given the opportunity to decide the fate of her vampire cousin’s murderer.
Biting in Plain Sight by MaryJanice Davidson This is my pick for second place. A vampire lives peacefully as a small-town vet, until a rogue vampire begins luring young girls into killing themselves. It is up to her to put a stop to it, with the help of a reluctant vampire Queen.
Galahad by Angela Knight My favourite story in this collection. Welcome to a whole new mythology where Arthur and his knights are actually vampires, created by Merlin (an inter-stellar traveller) to keep order in the world.
Blood Lust by Vickie Taylor This is my pick for third place. Join a scientist in his quest to become a vampire in order to wreak his revenge on the vampire thief of his formula for synthetic blood.
I am still relatively new to vampire fiction, so most of these author’s are new to me. I thoroughly enjoyed these stories, however, and I will most certainly be delving deeper into this genre.

I moved out of home when I was very young and knew very little about housekeeping. Therefore, I find books about how to clean and decorate incredibly helpful. How to be Comfy is the best book I’ve read so far in this genre (I haven’t read Spotless or Speedcleaning yet, but I sure will be now!). It is packed full of helpful tips about how to make your home a place you you want to spend time rather than just the place you sleep and eat.

In addition to the main text, there are hint and tip boxes which are very helpful, and some interesting little peeks into cleaning in days gone by. I found the tips on how to iron interesting and the entire section on choosing and storing food was incredibly helpful – up to now I’d just been guessing (wrongly in some cases).

This book is a must-have in any home and I will be obtaining it for my personal collection.

Illustrated Anthology of Sorcery, Magic and Alchemy is a very interesting delve into the history of, and attitudes towards, the occult. The chapters dealing with magic and alchemy were interesting, but some parts were a little on the technical side, making them difficult to understand. The chapters dealing with sorcery were my favourites. They were intensely readable, written in simple layman’s terms, without being dumbed down, and the content made fascinating reading. While much of this book is written from a Christian perspective, it is not so heavy-handed as to make it hard to ignore. I found this book extremely informative and insightful.

However, even if you have no interest in the subject matter, Illustrated Anthology of Sorcery, Magic and Alchemy is worth perusing just for the wonderful selection of illustrations included. There are over 300, many of the gorgeously intricate plates and artwork, most of them difficult, if not impossible for the average person to access. My only lament is that they are reproduced in black and white – I would have loved to view these beautiful pieces in colour!

This book is a must-read for anyone with even a passing interest in the occult, alchemy, history or art.

This book is filled with tricks, pranks jokes and trivia. Some are worth reading, others not so much. I’ll tell you one thing, though. I’d love to have been a fly on the wall when some of these pranks were played on unsuspecting parents! At times boring, but mostly funny. Your kids will love it!

I still have not decided whether or not I liked The Hammer of God. The characters were quite flat and the story un-engaging, and there were loads of seemingly unnecessary boring bits of commentary. However, there were some interesting observations and viewpoints expressed, as well as some interesting conceptions for the future of mankind. For me, the best aspect of the book was Kali. A rather small percentage of the story actually takes place on Kali, yet her presence is felt. Through all the flashbacks and commentaries we feel the ominous, brooding presence that is Kali, lending a sense of doom to the entire novel. This book is difficult to classify. I’m afraid readers will simply have to judge for themselves.

This was an OK book, but it was more mysterious than thrilling. I liked that there were chapters written from the point of view of the aliens, giving a different perspective than we would otherwise have had. It is ironic that the aliens appeared ‘evil’ to the humans, when they were merely doing to us what we have done to countless other species. I wonder if this was the author’s intent? Trapped is certainly worth reading once, but I wouldn’t read it twice.

Tired of hearing everyone rave about this novel, I decided it was about time I see what all the fuss is about. I’m glad I did. This has to be the easiest classic I have ever read. Classic literature generally consists of very heavy language that needs to be waded through like a swamp. Not so, The Great Gatsby. Not only is this novel easy to read, it is also a pleasant story. This book focuses on the usual themes of class, gender roles and progress, but it also touches on the different standards of honesty expected from various characters, and (more subtly) the impact of the Great War on the lives of those who lived through it. The focus on the difference between West Egg and East Egg can also be seen as representing the division between Old Aristocracy and the nouveaux riche. Fitzgerald also seems to touch on the difference between true friends and opportunistic hangers on. During life, Gatsby’s home is filled with people, many of which he has never met, but on his death, it is the relatively new acquaintance of the Narrator that proves true and lasting – the others have disappeared. This a short, enjoyable and easy to read novel.