To come to a reckoning: My One Hundred Best Games is a splendid collection and a good summation of Alexey Dreev’s chess achievements to date. The games are unfailingly interesting, often aesthetically pleasing and as a showcase of modern chess they can hardly be bettered.
Category: Book Reviews
Book Reviews
A review of Beginner’s Greek by James Collins
The problem is that there’s not much substance to this novel. If all you want is entertainment, then this will provide it. It is competently written, but uneven; character development is in need of work. And there is too much manipulation of the reader.
A review of The ABC Checklist for New Writers by by Lorraine Mace and Maureen Vincent-Northam
Mace and Vincent-Northam are both experienced freelancers, and provide readers with the benefit of their experience. The overall result will be a shorter learning curve and fewer rejections. Topics covered include such things that all new writers need to know, like writing a bio, how to research the market, how to format a children’s picture book, writing a cover letter, avoiding common grammatical problems, invoicing, and a whole lot more.
A review of His Illegal Self by Peter Carey
This last sentence so changes the story, that this reader at least, went back and re-read it in its entirety, seeing everything in a different light. I enjoyed it the first time, but found much to reflect on the second – the hallmark of a good novel. Che is believable, both as the eight-year old boy struggling to find himself, and as the older, wiser narrator he becomes by the end of the book.
A Review of The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book by Patricia L Fry
The new version is still comprehensive, and still contains a superbly structured, compendium of knowledge about the world of “authorship”. The book is still infused with Fry’s 30+ years of experience in writing, publishing and teaching writing and publishing, and is still a well written, easy-to-read book that will help authors at all stages of their careers. But the new edition has been significantly updated.
A review of Milton Caniff’s Steve Canyon: 1947
As an artist, Caniff uses square or rectangular panels, nothing fancy, about three or four to a row. The panels show a continuous change of perspective, to involve the viewer in Canyon’s world and create the impression that you inhabit the same space. There are wordless fight sequences and car chases; gorgeous, high-kicking, high-cheek-boned femme fatales; the use of montage and other cinematic effects.
A review of Sixty Poems by Charles Simic
Charles Simic is a snug fit for the poet who uses the obvious to explore the mysterious and like any competent practitioner of the poet’s craft, he selects words exactly. To read these sixty poems, almost all of them short and ranging in date from 1986 to 2005, is to respond to the insights that govern a strange world disclosed by the familiar.
A review of George’s Secret Key to the Universe by Stephen and Lucy Hawking
Reviewed by Magdalena Ball George’s Secret Key to the Universe by Stephen and Lucy Hawking Random House ISBN 9780385612708, $27.95aud, ages 9-12 http://www.georgessecretkey.com/ Some of my earliest defining experiences involved the planetarium. I will never forget sitting in that big…
A review of The Daring Book for Girls by Andrea Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz
All in all, like The Dangerous Book for Boys, The Daring Book for Girls is a good-looking, long lasting gift that girls will turn to for inspiration repeatedly. The balance between doing and learning is nicely managed, and the information is geared to be interesting and exciting for young girls.
A review of My Inflatable Friend by Gerald Everett Jones
My Inflatable Friend is a super easy read that won’t tax even the laziest reader. It is pitched to a male audience in the main, and makes no apologies for that – there’s plenty of wish fulfilment, skirt chasing, and a definite male perspective. But the book isn’t dumb either.