Don't Panic, Douglas Adams and the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - Neil Gaiman

The late Douglas Adams (DNA) was a genius - famous for missing deadlines (hence the 'late'), famous for his wonderful Hitchhikers trilogy (not a trilogy), and now famous for having died young and at the height of his talents (also hence the 'late').

I was introduced to his writing by my parents, but not as you'd expect with HHGTG, but with the little black book with 'this book will change your life' on the front cover - The meaning of Lif.  If you haven't read it stop reading this review now and go and find it immediately!

This review isn't of a Douglas Adams book - it's a of a book about him, but not a biography as such.

Neil Gaiman (another genius and fav author of mine), was obviously a friend and admirer of DNA.  This book by Gaiman tells the stories of how DNA came to write; mainly HHGTG, but also his lesser known novels (Dirk Gently), the travel/environmental collaboration with Mark Carwardine, Lif (with John Lloyd) and all the numourous Hitchhikers spin offs (the books, game, tv programme, radio sequels etc).

If you are a DNA fan this is a must read; if you aren't a fan I'd say don't bother - a working knowledge of his writing is essential.  Gaiman tells stories, quotes others involved and also collects together scenes and episodes not published before or cut from the original radio series.

Obviously written before DNAs untimely death, I wonder how Gaiman would finish it now?

Bought on Green Metropolis
7th - 11th July 2010

The Vesuvius Club - Mark Gatiss

Mr Lucifer Box Esq is a portraitist, dandy, wit, rake, and his majesty's most dashing secret agent.  When something is wrong in the empire he's the man for the job.....especially if it involves a mixture of both ends of the social scale!

I love the writing style of this book, in the vain of Oscar Wilde, but perhaps with a bit more buggery that Wilde was able to get away with (much as he might have liked to!) - how things have changed!

Mr Box is not a likeable person, yet it's had not to like him!  He's selfish, arrogant, shocking and generally a cad - but people are obviously drawn to him, just as I was whilst reading.  I wonder how much of the character is based on the author?

The story centres around the deaths of some prominent vulcanologists, and Box is despatched to find out 'whodunnit' - so it's a detective novel, of a sort.

If you are easily offended don't read the Lucifer Box books (there are three so far), but if you can cope with buggery, murder and high fashion this books is a great read, easy and funny.

Bought on Green Metropolis.

June 2010

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, who played with fire, who kicked the hornets nest - Steig Larsson

Firstly I should say that I didn't 'read' these three books, I listened to them on audio CD.  I've always had a problem with books that contain a lot of foreign words and names, and since the original language of these was Swedish I knew I'd struggle to keep up with the characters.

So, I bought the abridged versions (10 CDs each, unlike the unabridged which would have taken me forever to get through!), and started listening to them in the car......sometimes staying in the car long after the journey had ended to keep listening!

All three stories centre around two main characters; a journalist named Mikael Blomkvist, and a troubled, goth teenage computer hacker called Lisbeth Salander, and all are thrillers but with slightly different focuses; the first is a murder mystery, the second and third build on the theme with international crime and politics brought in for good measure!

I don't want to give the stories away, but I'd certainly say read them in order.  The first is sort of 'stand alone', and it's would be possible to read the second and third together; but the whole trilogy works so well, and the stories all come together so well it would be a shame to miss that dimension.

One thing I will say is that they are not for the faint hearted, there is violence (lots of it), and explicit sex, most of it violent.  But don't let that put you off.

The characters are great, you come to care for them, and Salander is like no other book heroine I've ever come across before – victim and heroine at the same time.

The shame of these books is the fact that the author died (suddenly and very young) just after delivering the last one to his publisher – so he never got to see the success, and we'll never get to read another story by him.

Inevitably they've been made into films, with the first and second already out – I want to see them, but haven't had the opportunity yet.  Of course they are unlikely to live up to the books, but should still be enjoyable none-the-less.  I'm sure that the character of Salander will pop up again!

Bought on Amazon - CD Audio books
April - May 2010

Who moved my Cheese? - Dr Spencer Johnson

'An amazing way to deal with change in your work and in your life'

The cover alone would have put me off reading this little 'self help' book, with endorsements by various newspapers and big bold text telling me that it's sold over 24 million copies!  But about four people at work had been singing it's praises....and it's only very short.

So short in fact that it only took me about an hour to read - more of an article than a book.

The basic premise of the book is that it uses a short parable about four characters in a maze looking for cheese to show how we can better deal with change in our lives.

So, learn how you deal with change, which one of the characters you are and how you can change to be one of the others - very few of us are one of the two mice; Sniff who sniffs out change early, or Scurry who scurries into action.  Many more of us are more like one of the Littlepeople; Hem, who denies and resists changea he fears it will lead to something worse; or like Haw, who learns to adapt when he sees that change to lead to something better.

A very interesting book, an excellent way of getting across a simple message, which really we all know - but fear!

15th June 2010

Lent to me by Gee.

Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen

One of my old work colleagues, a contact on Facebook, wrote a very short review of this book, and I realised that I already owned it!  I also realised that when I'd bought it, it was because I'd read an excellent review in The Guardian – so I thought I'd give it a go.

Jacob is now 90, or possibly 93, and living in a 'old people's home' somewhere in America; he's certainly got all his faculties even if his body is crumbling around him, and he can remember like yesterday his life after jumping aboard a traveling circus during the prohibition period (1920s).

Sara Gruen skillfully mixes the experiences and memories of Jacob, whilst telling the story of his life after both his parents are killed and he is left with no option but to try his luck with the circus.

At points during the book I found myself wondering if it was a true story (it's not, although many elements are taken from real circus history in the United States).  The love story between Jacob and one of the performers is wonderful, and dangerous all at the same time and the uncertainty of the outcome is kept up until very near the end.

As Jim said, this book is the type that you think about afterwards, that you wonder about going back to and reading your favourite sections – I'm looking forward to seeing what Gruen writes next (I know she's written some other books, but none like this I don't think).

I should just mentioned that if you are thinking of reading this you do so soon, as it is currently being made into a film (when I say 'currently', I do actually mean that filming has started).  It will be massive, as it stars one of the main actors from the Twilight series, but despite that I think they'll probably do a good job (not that I think that Robert Pattinson is a bad actor, just that I think that he will overshadow the film) – the book certainly lends itself to the visual.

June 2010
Bought on Green Metropolis.

It's not what you think - Chris Evans

Although I liked The Big Breakfast (which Mum was addicted to!), and TFI Friday; and thought Chris Evans was great, I never liked him on the radio.

Perhaps as the first radio I was aware of him doing was Radio 1, I thought he was purile and childish, certainly too 'shouty' for Radio 2!  When he first arrived on the drivetime programme I refused to listen.

But I've grown to love his humour and zaniness, and now really miss his evening show (can't even bring myself to listen to Simon Mayo), and rarely get to listen to his morning programme (I'm either not in the car or I'm engrossed in the Today programme on Radio 4).

So, when Liz offered to lend me his autobiography I was mildly interested, but it had to be well written and in a style I could read.

I need not of worried, from the beginning I was enjoying reading about Chris's life and how the roller coaster got started.  In fact reading it I realised how, as a listener to his shows I already felt that I knew him, in a 'mate' kind of way.  But reading the book I realise that's how he really is, he is one of those people who are genuinely open and friendly to all - and I'd say that one of the things that make him such a good broadcaster.

In true DJ style he starts each chapter with a top 10, usually something from his life, but sometimes information he wants to share.

Unlike many autobiographies, this isn't a kiss and tell, in fact Chris is terribly nice about everyone!

Ending as he signs the deal to buy Virgin Radio, means that I'll certainly be reading the next book, which I understand he's currently writing.

Lent to me by Liz

May 2010

The Island of the Colour-blind - Oliver Sacks

Having read and very much enjoyed his famous book 'The man who mistook his wife for a hat', I was pleased when Liz offered to lend me another Oliver Sacks book. 

Although more of a travel book, the writing style was easy and yet again I found myself please to be able to keep up and understand the concepts described.

Island of the Colour-blind is actually a documentation of two island trips made in the early 1990s, something Sacks admits in his preface. 

As you'd expect from a celebrated neurologist, the first trip is a study trip to the islands of Micronesia, and in particular to Pingelap.  The tiny atoll is home to an isolated group of people who suffer from hereditary colour blindness; achromatopsia.  Taking along with him a colleague who also suffers from the strange affliction, Sacks documents the ways the population deal with the lack of colour and inability to see at all in strong sunlight.  He looks at the scientific study that has taken place, and continues to do so.

The second trip is to the American territory of Guam, and again another disease - this time, Lytico-Bogig; but also finding time to take in some of his beloved cycads and ferns.  The Lytico-Bogig disease is another isolated disease, but this time cause is completely unknown, and with many patients there are completely different symptoms.

In comparison to the previous Sacks book that I read, this one was as engaging or as enjoyable.  Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy it but not as much.  It seemed very ephemeral, and lacking in detail or substance; I was left wanting more information about the sufferers of the two diseases, and certainly would have liked more about the cycads (including more pictures).  I ended up on the internet looking for much more detail about much of it.

Perhaps this due to the fact that this is 'from the major television series', and I suspect a bit of an after thought.  Shame, it could have been so much more.

Lent to me by Liz Jones
May 2010