Hobbit, the (1937) [novel]
Review by g3n0v4h (2009-09-22)
The original fantasy adventure that birthed many conventions copied into contemporary concepts. Setting before the war of the ring in the LOTR it fleshes out as a children's story in that it is simple in nature and none haunting in historical happenings. Intriguingly the ring plays a small role in the story, but that's up to the reader to figure out while reading throughout the adventures.

Battle Royale (1999) [novel]
Review by g3n0v4h (2009-09-21)
A great enthralling read by a contemporary japanese author, his very first book and sci-fi novel as well. Now I'm not planning to present any spoilers in this fictional story though, but to begin it's a satire on the authoritarian government running in Japan with an extreme fascist perspective on it's laboring citizens. Anyways the primary concept is a bunch a junior high school students approximately the age of 15 participate in a dog eat dog elimination until only a single being is left alive. Finally, a GREAT! read and recommend to anybody who can stomach a violent exploitive pulp riff, 8.5/10

Living with the Dead (2008) [novel]
Review by johnafair (2009-09-20)
At first sight this book is similar to the SERRAted edge books from Mercedes Lackey, which were rather 'sweety-sweet' given their topics, but this is more grown up in both content and attitude - although the 'good' guys win, the winning doesn't lead to a certain future, though this could be just the author leaving an opening for future novels in this setting, and I would consider reading these if I saw them.

(This review refers to the 2008 version titled “Living with the Dead”)

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998) [novel]
Review by ladylaw (2009-09-17)
In the second book of the Harry Potter series, we get to know the existing characters better, and some new ones are added as well (eg. Dobby). All in all, of all the Harry Potter books, this is the one I enjoyed the least. It just didn't grab me as the first one did, I find the storyline tends to drag on a bit, or merely this is just because the originality has worn off a bit now.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997) [novel]
Review by ladylaw (2009-09-16)
The first book in the Harry Potter series is a must-read, it introduces the reader to all the characters and locations, and in the meanwhile tells the story of Harry's first year at Hogwarts. It is both funny and exciting, although (compared to the later Harry Potter books) it is more directed at children, and not as 'dark' as the last books in the series.

Hunter's Moon (1989) [novel]
Review by sergio d (2009-09-12)
This is, without a doubt in the world, the best book that I have ever read. It also happens to be the best book that I will ever read. It is, quite simply, the best book ever, in the past, present or future.

Garry Kilworth became my favourite author almost as soon as I began reading this book. Never before in my life had a book made me laugh and cry. Never before had a book made me feel such support for the protagonists that I came to love more than any other characters in anything else in the world. And never before had a book made me feel such intense and stark hatred towards the antagonists. Never before have I felt a greater attachment and interest towards the characters and plot of a book.

There is not a doubt in my heart. I will never experience a book as great as this one.

Ender's Game (1985) [novel]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
There are not many books that truly excite a person, seduce them into a series, captivate their interest, make them crave for more. There is an even smaller number of authors who are able to put this spell upon a person.

Orson Scott Card can.

In Card's novel Ender's Game, a futuristic science fiction novel, a young boy is forced to go to a battle school in outer space. His older brother Peter was too violent to be given this honor, and his older sister Valentine was too soft. They were both close, but no cigar. So the government allowed Mr. and Mrs. Wiggin to have another kid. That's where Ender comes in.

The idea of a two-kid limit is a theme used in many books, including Lois Lowry's The Giver and Margaret Peterson Haddix's Shadow Children series, both of which were published after Ender's Game. Yet this book does not focus on that idea too much, and thus makes it very original.

So Ender is sent to Battle School with the warning that he might never see his parents again until he is an adult. But six-year-old Ender goes with many other boys, to learn how to fight, and more importantly, to win, against the alien buggers, who are coming back for another war, even bigger than the last.

The book does not portray Ender as a superhuman, mindless fighting machine, nor as an over-emotional wimp. It has very realistic characters, an exciting plot, and is filled with action and thought-provoking lines. It has spawned several sequels (the first of which is Speaker for the Dead) and parallel novels (including Ender's Shadow). In my opinion, it is one of the best books ever written. Orson Scott Card has joined the ranks of the authors who can weave the spell of captivation. Keep writing, Mr. Card, and I will keep reading.

http://www.amazon.com/Enders-Game-Orson-Scott-Card/dp/0765342294/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1203115439&sr=1-1

Grade: 9.5

Foundation (1951) [novel]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
Isaac Asimov was one of the foremost science fiction authors until his death in 1992. Among his many achievements is the fact that he has written and edited over 500 different books, and having an asteroid named after him (the 5020 Asimov). But what may be the most amazing is winning the Hugo Award for Best All-Time Series in 1966 for his Foundation Trilogy (Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation).

Foundation, the first book in this series, has five parts, four of which had been previously published in the magazine Astounding Science-Fiction. This novel is about the psychohistorian Hari Seldon and his quest to save the Galaxy from 30,000 years of chaos.

The novel opens with a young mathematician named Gaal Dornick as he is flying to the planet Trantor to meet Seldon. Hari "Raven" Seldon was looked upon by some to be a very intelligent and extraordinary man by most as a trouble-maker. He invented the branch of mathematics known as psychohistory. With psychohistory, one could predict the likely outcome of events in the future. Seldon discovered that the Galactic Empire would indeed fall within the next 300 years, and then would follow 30,000 years of chaos in the galaxy before the Empire rose again. But if Seldon and his followers and their descendants could create a society known as the Foundation, the 30,000 years would be reduced to a mere millenium.

And so follows the chronicle of the Foundation on the planet Terminus, at the very edge of the Galaxy. At first, the Foundation's only goal, as given them by the long-dead Seldon, was to make the Encyclopedia Galactica, a conglomeration of all the information known to mankind. They were governed by a committee whose only care was for the Encyclopedia. But, as with the rest of the Galaxy, many changes were stirring within the Foundation.

Asimov's story of how one man sought to save the Universe 29,000 years of misfortune is a success. Although it is very brief--only 255 pages--it successfully chronicles several years in the life of the Foundation, its struggles and failures, its successes and discoveries, and its role in the eventual deterioration of the Galactic Empire. This is a very good beginning to a highly-spoken-of series.

http://www.amazon.com/Foundation-Novels-Isaac-Asimov/dp/0553293354/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1227312127&sr=8-2

Grade: 8.5

Foundation and Empire (1952) [novel]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
My previous book review was written about Isaac Asimov's book Foundation. This science fiction book has come to be one of the most famous in science fiction history. The first sequel written about this book, titled Foundation and Empire, is the subject of this review.

Foundation and Empire is even better than its predecessor. The novel is split up into two parts: "Part I: The General" and "Part II: The Mule". The whole novel is mostly about the war between the Foundation, the organization established by Hari Seldon; and the Empire.

Part I is about General Bel Riose of the Empire as he plays a key role in the war between the Foundation and the Empire. It is also about Emperor Cleon II (current monarch of the Empire), Ducem Barr (a man from the planet Siwenna), and Lathan Devers (a trader from the Foundation). The Foundation is a small entity compared to the beast of the Empire, but they must hold their ground if they intend for the Seldon Plan to succeed.

Part II takes place about 100 years later, after the Empire is much weaker than it had been, and it relates the rise of the Mule. The Mule is a very powerful man whose goal is to reinstate the Empire, thus becoming the sovereign of the Universe. Under the Mule, the Empire fights the Foundation, and it seems that they have met their most dangerous foe. Not much is known about the Mule at all, and Part II is told from the point of view of Toran and Bayta Darell, a newlywed couple from a trading planet belonging to the Foundation.

Foundation and Empire surpasses Foundation in my opinion. Whereas the first book had five short parts to it, each with their unique characters and scenarios, the second book has only two parts. The characters are much more developed and the story-line is much easier to understand in Foundation and Empire. Isaac Asimov proves here for the second time his prowess at writing.

http://www.amazon.com/Foundation-Empire-Novels-Isaac-Asimov/dp/0553293370/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229053943&sr=8-2

Grade: 9

Second Foundation (1953) [novel]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
Second Foundation very successfully wraps up Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy. In the second book, Foundation and Empire, the Mule searches for the elusive Second Foundation. In Second Foundation, the search for the Second Foundation is the main plot of the book.

The Second Foundation is the organization that was established by Hari Seldon at the same time as the Foundation. Seldon created the Second Foundation as a philosophical and psychohistorical organization to contrast with the First Foundation's affinity to science. It was originally meant to assist the Foundation in its upholding of the Seldon Plan, but had now started spoiling the Empire's plans and also infiltrating the minds of some of the greatest scientists of the Foundation.

The first part of the book, "Search by the Mule", concerns the Mule and his Empire. Two Imperial subjects, General Han Pritcher and Bail Channis, are sent by the Mule to search all over the Galaxy to try to find where the Second Foundation could be hidden.

The second part of the book, "Search by the Foundation", is about a few members of the Foundation. The bigger part of the second part concerns Arcadia Darrell, a young teenage girl. She, her father (the renowned scientist Toran Darrell), and a few of her father's friends make it their mission to figure out as much as they can about this Second Foundation that has been controlling the minds of so many people.

Second Foundation is the excellent finale to the acclaimed Foundation Trilogy. The plethora of characters with varying personalities and knowledge contrast with each other to make the reader guess where this Second Foundation can be hidden. Asimov keeps the reader's eyes bound to the book until the very last page. It is a superb novel with an excellent plot and an excellent writing style. It is a very successful ending to a very successful trilogy.

http://www.amazon.com/Second-Foundation-Novels-Isaac-Asimov/dp/0553293362/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229745970&sr=8-2

Grade: 9

Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) [novel]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
Ray Bradbury has proved himself to be a great author before in The Martian Chronicles. That novel had suspense, mystery, twists, and even a little horror. It was a really good book.

Something Wicked This Way Comes, though, does not live up to that high standard.

Don't get me wrong, it was a good book. But my expectations of Bradbury were a little bit higher after reading The Martian Chronicles. I liked the book, but not as much as I wanted to.

Something Wicked This Way Comes is about two boys: Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway. Jim is impulsive and can't wait to be older. Will is more practical and hesitant. They are inseparable, and the best friends in the world. Enter the carnival.

Cooger and Dark's Pandemonium Shadow Show, as can be guessed from the title, is a very evil and subfusc group of people. They appear normal, but strange things happen at night. Will and Jim have to fight hard to stay friends...and to stay alive.

The novel has quite a bit of horror. Darkness is everywhere at the carnival. It makes for a chilling piece, if not terribly scary.

Maybe the best part of the novel is Bradbury's style. His writing is so unconventional and different from the norm that it is perfect for the book. He makes Jim and Will truly seem like one person. The writing alone is enough for me to recommend this book to someone.

Bradbury scores another home run with this novel. If only it were a grand slam.

http://www.amazon.com/Something-Wicked-This-Way-Comes/dp/0380977273/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210980737&sr=8-2

Grade: 7.5

Martian Chronicles, the (1950) [collection]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
When writing a book that takes place 50 years in the future, there is a large element of danger and a small margin of error. If it is read when the setting takes place and it is too far away from reality, it becomes history (literally and figuratively). If one were to read a book that takes place in modern-day but has too many differences from modern culture, it's a joke. Some authors can make it work. But there are not too many people who could make it near perfect.

Enter Ray Bradbury.

The Martian Chronicles, the second book by one of science fiction's most renowned authors, is one of those that work. True, there are a few instances where a 1950s writer can mess up in foretelling the 2000s. A modern-day rocket cannot fit as many people as it did in the book (at least to my knowledge). And there is one chapter which, if it were to take place today, might cause a small uproar. But there are not too many of these instances, and it's not like Back to the Future Part II, where there are already flying cars and 3-D posters in 2015.

The book takes place from 1999 to 2026, mostly on the planet Mars. People seeking new lives, astronauts, and murderers alike come to Mars looking for adventure. The Martians don't take it all that well, but, as one character near the beginning of the book says, since when has humanity cared about anyone but itself?

The book provides suspense, terror, philosophy, and adventure alike for anyone who reads it. Even though it is 50 years old and takes place today, there are only minor inconsistencies. Bradbury successfully tells a tale using several short stories, each from a different person's perspective, to create a whole novel. Anyone interested in science fiction should add this to their collection because, as Ray Bradbury can prove, time rages not when you're talking books.

http://www.amazon.com/Martian-Chronicles-Grand-Master-Editions/dp/0553278223/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1206463171&sr=8-2

Grade: 8.5

Illustrated Man, the (1951) [collection]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
"It was a warm afternoon in early September when I first met the Illustrated Man." That is the first sentence in Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man. That is not true for myself (it was actually an afternoon in March), but I am definitely glad that I read it.

Bradbury has a very peculiar style that is distinct, but excellent. Though he wrote a few novels (Fahrenheit 451 and Something Wicked This Way Comes being two of the more-well-known), the bulk of Bradbury's writing was made up of short stories. And he was definitely good at writing them.

In The Illustrated Man, Bradbury writes dark stories with chilling lessons and creepy plots. Eighteen stories (plus a prologue and an epilogue) make up this excellent anthology. My three favorites are "Zero Hour", "The Fox and the Forest", and "Marionettes, Inc." (in no particular order).

"The Fox and the Forest" concerns a couple in Mexico, 1935. They are from the future (the year 2155, actually), and used the company Travel in Time, Inc. to get to the past. Their trip was only supposed to last a few days, but they evaded security and escaped so that the husband in the relationship would not get drafted for the war in 2155. But the government figures them out and tries to catch them....

"Marionettes, Inc." is also very good. Braling and Smith are two good friends who just had a good night at the bar, when Braling says that he has to go home. They walk to Braling's home together, and Braling shows Smith how he was able to leave the house, even with his over-protective wife. It is because he has a robot that looks and is just like himself, tailored personally for him by Marionettes, Inc.

"Zero Hour" takes place on a futuristic Earth. All the kids in a certain town are playing a game that they call "Invasion" with each other. Their parents can hardly get them to do anything, they are so busy with the game. Mrs. Morris finds out that in fact it is a game that kids all across America are playing all at the same time. Very interesting.

Bradbury made an excellent collection of stories in The Illustrated Man. They all have the feel of a "Twilight Zone" episode. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone with a passion for reading and a taste for things a little bit quirky.

http://www.amazon.com/Illustrated-Man-Grand-Master-Editions/dp/055327449X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1223680907&sr=8-1

Grade: 8.5

Catcher in the Rye, the (1951) [novel]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
Lasting for many years as a symbol of teenage rebellion in American literature, J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye has been banned in many locations because of its ample amount of profanity, smoking, and drinking, as well as some other mature content. While banning may be a way to keep children's minds pure of these vile actions, it is a shame that such an outstanding book should ever be restricted.

The short novel begins with Holden Caulfield, the protagonist and anti-hero of the novel talking to the reader with a very unique talking style: "If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of c***, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth. In the first place, that stuff bores me, and in the second place, my parents would have about two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them. They're quite touchy about anything like that, especially my father. They're nice and all--I'm not saying that--but they're also touchy as h***. Besides, I'm not going to tell you my g***** autobiography or anything. I'll just tell you about this madman stuff that happened to me around last Christmas just before I got pretty run-down and had to come out here and take it easy."

Caulfield is attending a private school, Pencey Prep, in Pennsylvania. About a week before Christmas break begins, Caulfield is told that his grades are too low (he is failing all his classes except for English), and that he cannot return to Pencey the following term. Besides being slightly worried about what his parents might think of his expulsion, Caulfield is hardly perturbed about it. He figures that instead of spending his last few days at Pencey actually at Pencey, he should leave. And that is what he does.

The novel follows Caulfield's ventures back to New York, while rebelling against society. There is not very much action at all. But what the novel lacks in plot, Salinger makes up for in commentary. The way Caulfield talks to the reader and then goes off on several tangents to speak about his past at Pencey and before is delighting. Caulfield, while being the protagonist of the novel, is a very difficult character to like, with all his complaints, profanity, and talk about alcohol, smoking, and girls. But he has become one of the most well-known characters in literary history, probably because his personality is atrocious but believable. Only a few would not be able to relate with Caulfield at all.

The Catcher in the Rye is an extraordinary work of art. Any reader should read this when they are at a mature age. It is only a shame that Salinger did not write more books (he only wrote four), because, if they had been as excellent and successful as this one, they would be fine novels indeed.

http://www.amazon.com/Catcher-Rye-J-D-Salinger/dp/0316769177/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244495767&sr=8-1

Grade: 9

Empire (2006) [novel]
Review by enderwiggin (2009-09-11)
Orson Scott Card is one of the most superior science fiction authors of our time. In one of his most recent novels, Empire, he disregards aliens and space shuttles to write about presidential assassinations and Al Qaeda actions. At first I was not sure whether Card should write political fiction as opposed to sticking with his science fiction bestsellers. It turns out, Card can write anything and surpass most authors easily.

Empire begins in a Middle Eastern village. A small team of Americans led by a Captain Reuben Malich are gaining trust to the civilians so that they can catch some people that the United States suspect to be Al Qaeda operatives.

The first chapter may be the weakest part in the book. Yet it too is very good. After Malich and the others get back from the Middle East, Malich gets his gold oak leaves, the insignia of Major in the United States Army.

Soon, Captain Bartholomew Coleman gets assigned to Major Malich. They are together when they see and almost prevent the assassination of the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The plot thickens when the readers discover that Malich's Special Operations job three months ago was to figure out a way to kill the President so that the White House could take necessary precautions against this event.

The precautions were not taken, Malich's plan was followed to the tee, and now Malich and Coleman know two things: one, there is a leak in the White House that would give the information to terrorists, and two, Malich is going to get a lot of bad publicity as the soldier that supposedly tried to save the President after figuring out how to kill him just a few months before.

The story goes on from there with new enemies to the government, more of Malich's friends, and plenty of intelligent writing and action. Card creates an excellent story that will soon become a video game by Chair Entertainment, and the film writes of which have been acquired by Warner Bros.

Card shows that he is an excellent novelist of every genre in Empire. It is a very, very good book. No political fiction collection is complete without Empire.

http://www.amazon.com/Empire-Science-Fiction-Orson-Scott/dp/0765355221/ref=pd_bbs_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218846971&sr=8-3

Grade: 9

Candide (1759) [novel]
Review by doghut (2009-09-04)
Candide is a short satire and controversial novel made in 1759 by the great philosopher voltaire about Candide who lives in the Baron Thunder-ten-tronckh castle in Westphalia and has good life living there learning from his tutor Pangloss that every thing happens in the world is for the best. candide unfortunately get kick out castle when he kiss cunegonde the daughter of the baron and with this start candide long journey filled with tragedy. I won't spoil anymore stuff,I recomend that you read this novel since it really good classic novel and it will not take long to read the version I have is only 94 pages anyway should read it

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