The Princess Bride by William Goldman

I originally read this as a teen after falling in love with the film. I have to say, it is very different than I remember it from my first read. I remember thinking that it was very dry and dull for the "good-bits" version. After getting half way through the book this time, I began to wonder if I was crazy or if I had read the actual book by Morgenstern. It's very likely that I simply didn't understand much of the subtle humor at that tender age.


I have to say, that they did a pretty decent job adapting the book to film. The flashbacks from the book were handled very well, and in a way that didn't lead to overly long and dull exposition. It's very hard for me to not compare the book to the movie in this review, I have watched the film times beyond counting (I'm on my fourth copy: one loaned and lost, a second the tape busted on, and a third scratched). I'd have bought the anniversary edition, but it didn't have enough bonus material on it. It is a favorite movie in my house, in fact, it's one of the movies that I'd bring with me to a deserted island.

Ok, back to the book itself. I was inspired to reread it because of the Twitter Geek Girls Book Club, a book club for girls that aren't into chick-lit or romance novels (at least not only those). Goldman's approach of "abridging" a historical satire to make it enjoyable for his son and recreate the story that his father read to him is endearing. His use of asides adds to a feeling of intimacy with the author, and the characters in a round-about way. The reader can feel his nostalgia emanate from the page, in much the same way that I have a soft place in my heart for the movie. So much of the book was in the movie that it is very hard for me to separate my feelings for the two.

There were several parts of the book that I wish had made it to the film, though I understand why they did not. Inigo (most everyone's favorite character) returns to the Thieves' Quarter after encountering the "Man in Black", a place that he hates. He is wishing that he could wear a sign that says, "Be careful, this is the greatest fencer since the death of the Wizard of Corsica. Do not burgle." That struck me as quite funny, most likely due to the use of the word burgle.

If you are looking for a gently funny book with action and adventure, or if you are simply a fan of the film, I suggest picking this book up. I plan on trying some more of his works. If The Princess Bride isn't your sort of thing, remember he also wrote "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid".

The Eyre Affair Review

I read this book years ago and enjoyed it, so I thought I'd read it again with my Second Life book club. I had forgotten much about the book since I last read it.

Jasper Fforde weaves a tale about a police detective, Thursday Next, who specializes in literary crime. Most of the time it is a very dull job, at least for most of the LiteraTecs. Thursday seems to attract adventure. Before becoming a police officer, she fought in the Crimean War. In this war, she lost her brother, and the love of her life. One to death, the other to the trauma of war.

The world of Thursday Next is a world of time travel, cloned extinct pets, and characters being kidnapped out of famous books. England and Russia have been fighting a war off and on for over a century. Her father is a time traveling fugitive that is trying to fix the past, so she rarely sees him.

Thursday's nemesis in this book is Acheron Hades. He is probably my second favorite character of the whole book. Thursday is drawn into this adventure because Hades was her professor in college, so she can identify him. He has the strange ability to locate people when they speak his name, seems to be invulnerable to any physical harm, and apparently has the ability to teleport and cause others to hallucinate. He commits evil acts for the pure pleasure and feels that to robbery for the sake of financial gain is low, common, and in poor taste.

Fforde combines adventure and comedy together very well. As an American, I know there are some references to part of London and England that I missed completely. There are many puns, some good, some come with a groan factor. I really enjoy the book, it was a fun read. I'm actually in the mood to read the rest of the series.

John Dies at the End Review

This book is a dark comedy/horror by David Wong. David Wong is the pseudonym for the head editor of Cracked.com. It is another book, among a growing number, that was originally published online and is now gracing the shelves of our favorite bookstores.

The set up is this, David and his best friend are reluctant paranormal investigators. John, the aforementioned best friend and the title's namesake, takes a drug called "soy sauce". When David comes to rescue John from what he believes is a very bad trip, he accidentally takes some of the drug. There are no quotes around accidentally, as it is completely sincere and meant in no way to be sarcastic. The after effects of the drug cause all sorts of problems for both David and John, though not in the ways you might expect.

The style of "John Dies at the End" is very conversational, it feels like a buddy telling you of his drunken adventures. The descriptions are incredibly vivid, without being grotesque. There were sentences in this books that made me laugh and say "oohh, gross" at the exact same time. The descriptions are not intended to get a gross out reaction, but simply provide a clear mental picture. Wong supplies us with several unexpected twists in the tale.

I recommend this for people that like horror, comedy, or are just looking for something a little out of the ordinary. If you are a fan of Cracked.com then you will definitely enjoy this book, but then again if you are a fan of Cracked.com you probably already know about the book.

Two Very Different Books

I was reading two books at once this time, a habit which drives the husband nuts. I had started Obsession by John Douglas first, and it was really what I was wanting to focus on. It's a non-fiction book that looks at the motives and behaviors of serial rapists, stalkers, and sexual predators. My other book is from the other end of the spectrum, Hogfather by Terry Pratchett. I was reading Hogfather with a dual purpose: to make the holidays a little more humorous and for my book discussion group.

Obsession discusses not only the motives and behaviors of such criminals, but how people can avoid being victims, fight back when they are attacked, and the justice system in such cases. John Douglas's feelings of sympathy for the victims of such acts, as well as his anger at the fallacies in the public mind and well as the justice system come across clearly. He even discusses the criminals that inspired Thomas Harris to create Hannibal Lector. Many of the accounts were quite upsetting, there were parts that were definitely not easy to read.

Hogfather was light-hearted, funny, and also insightful. What else can I say? It was another great book by Pratchett. Death and his grand-daughter Susan must prevent the Audtitors (of the Universe) from destroying the Hogfather (Discworld's Santa Claus). Pratchett looks at the human need to believe in myths, and speaks a great truth about the human psyche. "You must believe the small lies to believe the big ones." The big lies refer to things like justice, equality, and other noble concepts that many of us hold dear. Death tells Susan, "If you don't believe them they will never come to be." I may have paraphrased both those quotes a bit, and I apologize for any mistakes I made in them.

Both books are ones I would recommend, though for completely different reasons. I hope everyone has a great new year.

The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett

I read another Terry Pratchett novel years ago, so long ago I can't remember the title. I have seen a couple of the movies based on his works, "Hogsfather" and "The Color of Magic", they were both hilarious.

This book is the first installment of the Discworld series. It started a bit slow for me, but first novels can drag a bit since they are setting up the rules of the universe. Towards the end I was beginning to see the humor I expect from Pratchett. Terry is very good at playing with words. He utilizes puns, as well as phonetics as a source of humor. Terry also has a talent for absurdity in situations.

We are introduced to Rincewind, a failed wizard and a featured character in the Discworld, and Twoflower, a tourist from the Counter-weight Continent. Their personalities are exact opposites. Rincewind is pessimistic and terrified of everything, this attitude isn't unfounded as bad things continually happen to him. Twoflower is an optimist, unafraid, and excited about everything around him. This contrast adds to the humor. Sometimes Twoflower's attitude saves them, often Rincewind is dragging Twoflower out of harm's way. We also meet The Luggage, an icon of the Discworld. It is made of sapient-pearwood, has teeth and hundreds of feet. It will follow its owner anywhere and will protect him and his belongings. Death also makes several appearances in this book. We even get to see him at home and his white steed. Death must collect the souls of any wizards personally and becomes quite peeved with his "near Rincewind experiences".

I look forward to the further adventures of Twoflower, Rincewind, and Death.

Stripped by Eddie Izzard

Ok, my husband and I have been huge fans of Eddie Izzard for about a decade. So when I got an email from The Bee Keepers, the Eddie Izzard fan club, that he was coming to Houston we were shocked and excited. We ordered our tickets immediately. Most of the acts we want to see go to Dallas/Fort Worth or San Antonio, which are about six hours away. Way too expensive to buy the tickets, pay for gas, and rent a hotel room.

So we went last night, had a very nice dinner at an Italian place in downtown called Mingalone. Then it was on to the show at Jones Hall. The show started about 10 minutes late, which was fine with us. There was a mix up with our tickets, which actually resulted in us getting better seats. We were seven rows away from the stage, center stage.

Now Eddie is a bit out there for many. He's a liberal, British transvestite. Though he was an off-duty transvestite for this show. We were very curious how he would be received in one of the reddest cities in the reddest states in America. Most everyone in the audience was laughing at the beginning of the show. He got cheers and jeers when he said that we should elect Obama. Though he made some jokes, and most of the audience began laughing again. His topic was, kind of, the history of civilian, though he tends to go off on apparently random tangents. I love his tangents, he always manages to bring them back around to wear he started, or gets the audience to "lead" him back. He lost a few of the audience permanently when he did a bit about the Bible, a portion of the audience didn't know who he was.

My husband and I loved the show, we laughed until it hurt. I got a cake or death t-shirt. I've included a lego clip of his cake or death skit below.