Review: Adrian Owen – Into the Grey Zone

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Into the Grey Zone
Adrian Owen

The world-renowned neuroscientist Adrian Owen reveals his controversial, groundbreaking work with patients whose brains were previously thought vegetative or non-responsive but turn out—in up to 20 percent of cases—to be vibrantly alive, existing in the “Gray Zone.” This book is the modern equivalent of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for His Hat.

I very happily read this book and described it in great detail to my almost-wife. She found it a bit creepy thinking about the fact that some people who are vegetative are actually in there, and can’t communicate! The technology is getting better, and maybe eventually we will be able to identify people who are still present in their helpless bodies.

I was so disappointed in the last chapter of this book. Not because it was bad, but because I wanted to keep reading about the fascinating insights we are gaining into the human brain. The chronological sequencing works perfectly – from the early cases where the radiation burden meant that patients could only be surveyed once, to the modern day tricked out EEG van that can peer into the brains of patients at home.

It is a very specific skill to be a scientist and be able to communicate effectively with non-scientists (I even teach a university subject about this concept!). Adrian has that gift – Into the Grey Zone is accessible to those who have little to no scientific background, and he takes the time to explain important scientific concepts without going into too much overwhelming detail.

This was an excellent non-fiction book that I will be keeping and referring to. I’m going to lend it to a Jewish nursing friend because I know that we will be able to have a robust discussion of what it means to be conscious and when consciousness appears. The ethical implications of this novel are fascinating, and in part reminded me of The Easy Way Out. How many people have been ‘murdered’ when their vegetative bodies were turned off, but they were still ‘at home’ inside their brains?

Allen & Unwin | 27th September 2017 | AU$29.99 | paperback

Review: Michael Gerard Bauer – The Things That Will Not Stand

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The Things That Will Not Stand
Michael Gerard Bauer

Sebastian and Tolly are going to Open Day to find out what they might like to do with their futures. Tolly knows what he wants to do, but Sebastian is more uncertain – he’ll just have fun with what he can. He like Rom-Com movies and hopes that he will meet the girl of his dreams. However, the girl he meets is more like his worst nightmare.

Slow, this novel was very slow. Perhaps that’s because similarly to They Both Die at the End the action is across a single day. I wanted to like this novel but I need more than a day’s worth of character development to keep me satisfied. The ‘action’ was hardly action at all.

Nothing happens – they just wonder around the uni campus and talk sweet nothings at each other. In the case of Frida her inconsistencies frustrated both me and Seb. I hope that most teenage boys’ minds do not operate like Seb’s because he is an idiot! Because of this (or despite of it?) this book is a likely candidate for a year 7 English book.

I think the title of this novel was stupid. The things that will not stand could be huge! But ultimately they don’t play a strong role in the crux of the novel. I thought I was familiar with this novel’s author – he is also the author of The Pain, My Mother, Sir Tiffy, Cyber Boy & Me. It turns out I didn’t like that novel either!

I picked up and put down this book a bunch of times so that when I got to the big reveal at the end I had forgotten why it was surprising or particularly important.  What I did like is that in the end Sebastian’s good nature won over his dopey idiot attitude. 2 stars from me.

Scholastic | 1st October 2018 | AU$18.99 | paperback

Review: Cecily Gayford (Ed) – A Very Murderous Christmas

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Christmas should be a time of joy and family. In these 10 crime short stories written by the best classic crime writers Christmas becomes a time of murder and mayhem instead. Well… as long as you are in the Northern Hemisphere and have a snowy Christmas.

So I’m not usually one for crime novels, and you wouldn’t expect me to enjoy a set of crime short stories. However, I’m in a bit of a reading slump at the moment, and I figured what would it hurt if I read it? As I have always said, short stories are a good way of working out whether you want to read more by a specific author.

The Man with the Sack by Margery Allingham – Nifty! I actually rather liked this one. I’m not sure it was the right short story to start the volume though, not enough oomph.

The Adventure of the Red Widow by Adrian Conan Doyle and John Dickson Carr – I was underwhelmed by this one. I know that Sherlock Holmes is the namesake of crime (along with Agatha Christie), but I didn’t really enjoy the writing style and I would have preferred more clues so I could solve it myself.

Camberwell Crackers by Anthony Horowitz – This was a good one! I find it interesting how so often the ‘bad guy’ briefly exposes themselves with a look, but the detective isn’t sure what to make of it. 

The Flying Stars by GK Chesterton – Eh, average.

A Problem in White by Nicholas Blake – I could have liked this one because it offered me the clues to solve the ‘whodunnit’ by myself. However, I was irritated by the way the different characters were referred to by their types and therefore that I couldn’t always follow who was who.

Loopy by Ruth Rendell – This was an interesting premise, but so loopy 😉 that it didn’t work for me.

Morse’s Greatest Mystery by Colin Dexter – Average. I hardly remember what it was about, and I only just read it!

The Jar of Ginger by Gladys Mitchell – I was keen to read this one from the name. However, it didn’t actually play out the way I expected it to. What kind of ginger was it exactly? Crystalised ginger? I expected powdered ginger.

Rumpole and the Old Familiar Faces by John Mortimer – This actually had a lot in common with one of the other stories (The Man with the Sack) and so didn’t offer much new.

The Problem of Santa’s Lighthouse by Edward Hoch – This one was ok, but I would have liked some more clues so I could solve it for myself.

Overall this set of short stories was rather underwhelming. I’ll still give it 3 stars, but I feel that your reading time could be spent better elsewhere.

Allen & Unwin | 28th November 2018 | AU$19.99 | paperback

Review: Mercedes Lackey – Aerie

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Aerie
Mercedes Lackey

Kiron has assisted with the union of Tia and Alta, yet things are not as simple as they seem. Despite the Great King and Queen uniting the lands, without a common enemy the common people are divided. While on patrol, Kiron spots a lone rider from the border town – unfortunately dead. Have the Magi returned?

Half the time Kiron acts very teenager-y and the rest of the time a bit childish! He spends a lot of time second-guessing himself and being grumpy. I’m not certain how many years have passed since the other novels, but I would guess at least 3-4, since there are a lot of new dragon wings (complete wings of 9). If he’s the chief of the Jousters, he needs to get a wriggle on!

There are a lot of missed connections in this novel, and parts where I felt like a sub-story had started, yet wasn’t completed. For example, the original ‘wing’ has a huge discussion on how to deal with the oldest Jousters, and they decide that a new wing is a great idea. But none of the shuffling is ever realised. We just jumped from this concept straight onto Kiron with a new wing finding the body.

I wanted something comfortable to read that I wouldn’t need to review (since I’m still behind)… So I reread Joust and Alta, then Sanctuary (oops, I haven’t reviewed that one either). My memory of this novel was a bit rusty, I just haven’t read it as many times as the others. And no wonder why! There’s not enough dragon training here for me, and too much politics and self-doubt. I seem to remember this originally being a trilogy, and then turning into a quartet. You don’t need to read this novel to enjoy the others, and I personally found it a let down.

Guest Post: Aaron Piper on ‘Unique vs Original Writing’

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Everybody expresses their thoughts their own way; and that’s good.
Nobody is truly original; and that’s not bad.

You may or may not have noticed it but the title is a play on Disney’s Wreck-It-Ralph’s ‘bad guy code.’ You see, nobody is truly original.
I can hear the volume level in voices across the wires of the internet rising already, yelling out original movies and books at me, but hear me out.

Stephenie Meyer is Anne Rice, wearing a new skin. The Hunger Games is a worse retelling of a Japanese comic and light novel series called Battle Royal (I will go down fighting on this point of view). Percy Jackson and the Olympiads series is a retelling of classical Greek and Roman myths with a new twist. Even J.K. Rowling has acknowledged that Harry Potter is an amalgamation of many stories from before – there are notable similarities between Harry Potter and Susan Cooper’s Dark is Rising plot, a character receiving a scar from an enemy that lets them know where they are from Ursula K. Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea, or a witch school from Jill Murphy’s The Worst Witch.

Even this guest post is not entirely original.

Decades ago, a prolific writer by the name of Mark Twain said: “There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations.” He illustrated don’t can’t be original, but you do have to have your own thoughts and ideas on the way things should (in your humble opinion) have been done.

One of my favorite young adult series is Lloyd Alexander’s Prydain chronicles, which started with The Book of Three (I, again, will fight Harry Potter fans that it is better). One of the characters in the book has what the reader is lead to believe is an omniscient book, called obviously, The Book of Three. At the end of the series, he reveals The Book of Three is not an all-seeing book, instead it could just as easily be called “The Book of ‘If’”.

And in many ways creative writing is much like The Book of If.
What if that character was in another book, what would he do? What if the villain was more intelligent? What if that happened to in another world?

That’s how truly unique ideas start.

Christopher Booker wrote a book called The Seven Basic Plots, (good read if you’re interested in that sort of thing). In it, he describes the basic plots of almost every story:

  1. Overcoming the Monster
  2. Rags to Riches
  3. The Quest
  4. Voyage and Return
  5. Rebirth
  6. Comedy
  7. Tragedy

If Booker is right, and if nothing’s truly original, how do you write a new story? That question is the question that authors, writers, poets and artist have spent their lives trying to answer.

My answer comes from something my 8th grade language arts teacher told me. Mr. Pauff told our class one day: “None of you is original. You are the combination of ideas of every person you’ve ever met, filtered, mixed together, and regurgitated,” Mr. Pauff told us. In that simple explanation, he also explained the perfect way to create something unique.

First, ingest as much as you can, both things you like and things you don’t like. Read with a voracious appetite, watch with equal gusto. Study them, understand why you like or don’t like them. This can be anything, character traits, situations you enjoyed, sentence structure, how the author created flow, the characteristics of the world, whatever, and remember them and discard the unnecessary.

Mix all these together then start by asking “What happens if…?”

And then write, it doesn’t have to be good or bad, just write. If you get stuck, just ask “What if this happens?”

I wrote a YA novel recently (sorry not trying to self-promote, just using this as an example)…

  • I personally found Draco Malfoy the most interesting character from Harry Potter, but instead of writing my own fan fictions (if you don’t know what that is, I kind of suggest you don’t look that up), I decided I would make my version of Draco. (We’ll call him something stupid like Titus Fogg for the sake of this example).
  • I didn’t want Titus to live in Rowling’s light hearted, magic loving world (especially because that is her idea of a magical world). I wanted him in mine.
  • I always liked H.P. Lovecraft, but also found his monsters probably would be more humorous than most people interpreted, so I put Titus in a world where weird and horrible monsters lived.
  • Additionally, I always liked the idea of the magic presented in an ancient (1980s) series called The Belgariad. Magic in it was still affected by the rules of science.

So, I combined all these, an anti-hero spoiled child of a rich family, a world with horrible monsters in present day, and magic that is closer to a science than an art and then I went from there.

It probably is starting to sound like I’m encouraging people to copy other people’s works and there is a simple answer to that, ABSOLUTELY NOT (in fact slap yourself for even considering that).

The way the worlds work may be similar, the characters may be similar, there’s nothing you can do about that, people will always find connections to other things they see. Where you set yourself apart is the way you show your ideas, the methods that convey it, your own thoughts on the world and what exists in it.

It’s not important to try to be original, but it is important to be unique. No matter what you think there is always going to be someone that said it or thought it before, what is important is bringing your own personal way of telling a story, your own soul, to the work. That’s what sets you apart.

About Aaron Piper

Aaron Piper grew up in the cornfields of Ohio, where he discovered books were better conversation partners than most children his age. One day after complaining to a family member too much about a book, they replied, “If you think you could do better why don’t you write one?” The challenge was accepted and many years, a degree in Photojournalism, a Minor in English, and 10 years in the journalism industry later, he published his first novel Titus Fogg. Currently, Aaron lives in Indiana with his wife and daughter (as well as a room full of books).

Blurb: Titus Fogg

Titus Fogg hates magic, and with good reason. Born into a murderous family of cruel and powerful casters in modern Massachusetts, magic has contributed to every bad thing that has happened to him since birth. After finally managing to banish the most likely evil (but definitely dirty-minded) entity called Shade from his body to the sidelines as his shadow, Titus has the chance to have a normal, magic free, high school life. But, when Tess Roe, his classmate, neighbor and model of justice at their school realizes she can see the creatures Titus calls the Wyrd too, Titus must return to the world of the strange to help her. Soon Titus’s dark past comes to light as he must prove that he isn’t responsible for the death of one of Tess’s friends, and the theft of a magical book that could lead to the destruction of Arkham.

Find Titus Fogg on Goodreads and Amazon.

Interview with Alan Semrow

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An Interview with Alan Semrow, author of Ripe and Briefs

Alan Semrow’s fiction, nonfiction, and poetry has been featured in over 30 publications. Apart from writing fiction and nonfiction, he is a professional copywriter, a monthly contributor at Chosen Magazine, and a singer-songwriter. Previously, he was the Fiction Editor for Black Heart Magazine and a Guest Fiction Editor for the Summer Issue of Five Quarterly. Semrow’s debut short story collection, Briefs, was published in 2016. Ripe is his second book. Semrow lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

I’m not going to be reviewing your newest novel, but from your other published novels, is there one that is your own personal favourite?

I’m definitely proudest of Ripe. It extrapolates on all the topics and themes I wanted my second book to.

Everyone has a ‘first novel’, even if many of them are a rough draft relegated to the bottom and back of your desk drawer (or your external harddrive!). Have you been able to reshape yours, or have you abandoned it for good?

When I was in college and after I came out, I got so invested in writing—to the point where it was sort of like an addiction. But I was doing it for the sake of understanding my life as a gay man, what I wanted my life to look like now that I was living a more honest existence. I sorted out some of what I was going through in my writing—this obsessive writing. Ultimately, I probably ended up writing five or six novels in college. But I tossed all of them. There are a few characters I’ve written in the past that I do still think about and wonder if I could continue their story a bit, but right now, that’s probably not going to happen. I’ve moved on from a lot of creative projects—I’ve recycled a lot of paper.

Over the years, what would you say has improved significantly in your writing?

I’m definitely more honest. Ripe is non-fiction, where my first book, Briefs, was short stories. With Briefs, I veiled a lot of my emotions and feelings in these characters who had nothing to do with me. With Ripe, I really wanted to just be open and honest. It was the best way for me to convey the points that I wanted to make—by conveying them from my perspective.

I also think my writing is more concise than it’s ever been.

Some authors are able to pump out a novel a year and still be filled with inspiration. Is this the case for you, or do you like to let an idea percolate for a couple of years in order to get a beautiful novel?

I used to be like that—ideas would just pour out. But that’s not really the case anymore. Now, I sort of just write when I feel obligated to—when I have something I want to say.

I have heard of writers that could only write in one place – then that cafe closed down and they could no longer write! Where do you find yourself writing most often, and on what medium (pen/paper or digital)?

Writing is an inherently lonely process, so I try to write in public—usually, the coffee shop. I also write a lot at home, but I find I’m most productive when writing in public. And I’m always writing on a computer, unless I’m working on a poem or song—those usually work themselves out on paper.

I walk past bookshops and am drawn in by the smell of the books – ebooks simply don’t have the same attraction for me. Does this happen to you, and do you have a favourite bookshop? Or perhaps you are an e-reader fan… where do you source most of your material from?

I’m a big fan of the traditional book—I think I’ve only read one e-book. There’s this great feminist bookstore in Madison that I like to frequent called A Room of One’s Own. It’s really cozy and they always have really cutting-edge works available.

I used to find myself buying books in only one genre (fantasy) before I started writing this blog. What is your favourite genre, and have your tastes changed over time?

They’ve definitely changed over time. In college, I dove really deeply into the LGBT literature canon. Lately, I’ve been reading more memoir. I read a lot of memoir while writing Ripe. In general, my tastes are all over the place. I’m sort of a hipster when it comes to books, movies, and music.

If you manage your own profile, please tell me as much as you are comfortable with in regards to your preferred platform and an estimate of time you spend doing it [and whether you like doing it!].

I’ve used Facebook and Instagram a bit to promote Ripe. I post things that pertain to the book, mostly. It’s not really all that time-consuming for me, but I’m sure the total time I spend on social media really adds up.

Answering interview questions can often take a long time! Tell me, are you ever tempted to recycle your answers from one to the next?

I would never! I want to share these with you. 😊

About Ripe

Funny, sexy, evocative, and brutally honest, Ripe is Alan Semrow’s ode to relationships with men. In this epistolary book, Semrow writes to the men who have impacted his outlook, reminded him of basic life lessons, surprised him in more ways than one, and left him reeling for days. Writing to one-night-flings, men he has never met, and men he’ll never stop running into, Semrow touches on some of the most constant human themes—love, lust, desire, and the yearning for connection. All the while, the book details a man’s journey navigating and blooming by way of the modern gay scene. Readers will find familiarity and hard truths in Semrow’s statements about the intricacy and explosiveness of the intimate moments we share.

Find it on Amazon and GoodReads.

Review: Raymond E. Feist – King of Ashes

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King of Ashes
Raymond E. Feist

The Fire kingdom has been betrayed an decimated. But a Prince may have survived… Hatu, Hava and Donte are being raised in the way of the Hidden assassins, and Hatu has to constantly hide both his affection for Hava and his fire red hair. In the mean time, a blacksmith’s apprentice is getting ready to perform his Masterwork and go out into the world.

The thing for me about this novel was the pacing. It was just so incredibly slow! I figured that the three perspective would end up together eventually, but that ‘eventually’ wasn’t until the end of the novel (trust me, I haven’t spoiled it for you). The multiple perspectives worked against the suspense in this novel. Despite the blurb being very keen to state that there is a price on Hatu’s head, and the Hidden ones ulterior motives, I didn’t feel a sense of danger.

I actually liked the blacksmith the most. He was portrayed as a simpleton for the most part (not worldly etc) but he wasn’t as gullible as he might have seemed. His character didn’t ring true for me – why didn’t he go back to the town if he was so concerned? And in the end, I didn’t see his place in the bigger picture at all.

I was surprisingly disappointed in this novel. Raymond Feist is a huge name in fantasy and so I was really excited to be lucky enough to receive a review copy. Maybe this set up my expectations to be too high. It was easy to be bogged down in the details of life and not see what the novel was trying to set up. The whole novel feels like a set up for the last chapter – maybe the action will occur in book 2?

I’d read the second novel in this series, but I wouldn’t reread this one. There wasn’t enough depth or foreshadowing for me. I found myself constantly comparing it to The Way of Kings by Sanderson and finding it lacking.

HarperVoyager | 5th April 2018 | AU$39.99 | hardback

Review: Veronica Roth – Allegiant

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Allegiant
Veronica Roth

Tris has shattered her Faction-based society, yet still finds herself under the thumb of a despotic ruler. When she is a given a chance to explore the world outside the fence, she takes it and runs, hoping that whatever is out there will calm her rage and allow her to forgive herself her wrongs. Tris has only just begun to realise what is happening when it is almost too late to right those wrongs…

The revelations of Insurgent come back to bite Tris in this novel. It seems like there is only one way to solve things when you are Tris – and that’s by irritating and hating the other people around you as much as possible. Tris is such a frustrating protagonist! Her self-destructive urges often just get everyone else into trouble, but she never learns.

I feel like this novel is in the same era as The Hunger Games. The heroine is spunky and rough, and always determined to ignore love as much as possible. The outside rules don’t mean anything in comparison to their own problems and rules. By trying to do what they think is best, they make a huge mess of things!

For the first time, we see both Tris’ and Tobias’ points of view. This novel left me feeling ambivalent. The first novel was worth rereading, but this one doesn’t hold the same appeal. Tris’ character development seems to have stalled and the great reveal has already happened. I didn’t feel anything much as more of the characters were killed off – and I still felt that if Tris was killed the novel wouldn’t have lost anything…

This is the third and final novel in the Divergent series that started with Divergent and Insurgent. I would strongly suggest that you DO NOT read this novel or the blurb without having first red the first two novels. Otherwise you will have significantly ruined the storyline as it builds. 4 stars from me. If you’ve read the first two, you’d better read this one for your peace of mind.

Review: Karelia Stetz-Waters – Worth the Wait

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Worth the Wait
Karelia Stetz-Waters

Once upon a time Avery Crown and Merritt Lessing were the best of friends – but only friends. Then, neither was willing to admit that they loved the other, but now 15 years later they might have a chance together. But Avery’s career would be ruined by coming out as a lesbian, and will Merritt be willing to wait for her to work things out?

Avery, get your head in the game! Merritt, I love you the mostest but please get over yourself and get started loving Avery properly. Even if it’s just sex, enjoy the time you have, grab it! In line with this, there are sex scenes, and I can’t decide whether they helped with the storyline or hindered. As the author is a lesbian, you’d be able to assume that the sex scenes are not unrealistic and pornographic.

I liked how Avery was guilted into continuing with her career by the threat of her co-star being bankrupted by the show ending. However, Avery, grow a spine and admit that you’ll need to look after your co-star a bit better, and keep your mother in line. How old are you now?

I’m really sorry, but I didn’t enjoy this novel as much as the others by Karelia. I much preferred The Admirer and Something True. It just felt sort of ‘meh’ in comparison. Neither of the women really had jobs or personalities that I connected or empathised with.

I’m giving this 4 stars in the knowledge that this book may be someone else’s cup of tea, particularly people who enjoy ‘reality’ or ‘makeover’ TV shows. Identifying as a lesbian isn’t enough for me to love this novel.

Guest Post: Melissa Chan from Literary Book Gifts​

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Books, Writing, and Books on T-Shirts

What reader doesn’t like displaying their love for books? There’s numerous sellers of book-related products out there, but how do you choose just one? I’ve asked Melissa Chan, the creator of Literary Book Gifts, to give us some insight into her online store that is dedicated to bookish tees and totes.Take it away, Melissa!

I love books. I love literature, reading, and everything that has to do with it. I always make an effort to go out of my way to seek out multiple books by the same author after I’ve found a title I like. Sometimes the author only has one great work, but other times I am rewarded with a goldmine of titles to read, enjoy, and appreciate.

I took my love of reading to put together some gifts for book lovers. It’s a collection of designs that I hope resonate with readers and writers alike. While many shirts and accessories extol reading, libraries, or the written word in general, I made a conscious decision to focus on particular titles and authors for the designs. I’ll talk about a few of the reasons why I chose to do this.

I always like to think of curation as an art in and of itself. The collection as a whole is as important as any single piece in it. Because the designs are so specific, down the exact title or author literally printed onto the shirt, it definitely runs the risk of deterring many people. For example, someone who has not heard of Edgar Allan Poe’s work is not going to want to want a Poe Shirt. And what if they are familiar with Poe but actually don’t like his work? Perhaps they are not a fan of the horror genre at all. No size, color, or styling is going to make a difference in this case. Everyone has different tastes in books, and even though there are various designs from a wide range of titles and authors in the collection, because the designs are so specific it’s not humanly possible to include everyone’s favorite book.

I selected individual titles for a few reasons. I believe it’s important to have specific tastes, and share those tastes with others. Few would deny that they like reading in general. Those that are perhaps too exhausted and busy during the day to open a book still appreciate stories. It even doesn’t mean much to say things like ‘I love fantasy or romance’. Nobody likes every single book within a given genre. Specific titles give people the opportunity to find common ground on the exact title. Wearing shirts is a great way start fun conversations between book lovers or those interested in literature. Telling someone to go and read a book is a lot different than recommending them your favorite title.

For those don’t like wearing specific books, there are still designs for you. They are still all in vintage styling so they remain cohesive with the collection. This ‘The End’ Shirt is a reminder of the last pages of each book. The Typewriter Tote Bag is for writer who wants to remember a time before writing took place on computers.

Thank you so much for reading a bit about the collection and the curation of the designs. I had a lot of fun putting them together and I hope that they can spark a least a bit of conversation between readers.

~ Melissa