Tahla

Hilarious typos in this edition aside (And there are some doozies in here, such as misspelled character names, random letters in completely different typeset from the rest of the book, and random placement of punctuation), this will always remain one of my favorite books. Salvatore's stories are just fun to read- certainly not up to the standards of epics like Tolkien or G.R.R.M, but good nonetheless. The writing may not be of the highest quality, but if you're looking for a fast paced, fun dungeon crawl of a tale, then the Drizzt Do'Urden series in the Forgotten Realms is what you'll want!

Very, very good, despite being completely different from the first in the series “Ender's Game”. It took me a while to get into it (I started it once, gave up as it was so very different from what I expected, then started it again) but once I set aside my expectations from the first book, I could hardly put Speaker down.

More philosophy then a fast paced space romp, I'd encourage everyone to read the series and to stick through the strange style changeover betwixt the first and second book. You'll be glad you read it!

Hyperbole and a Half has been one of my favorite blogs for a few years now, and when I heard there was a book coming out, I was unbelievably excited! Allie Brosh's work is simply amazing- Her stories are charming and hilarious, and coupled with the deceptively simple MS Paint drawings, she rarely fails to reduce me to fits of laughter.

So why only four stars instead of five? Frankly, I was disappointed in some of the story choices that made it into the book. Don't get me wrong, the stories in it are hilarious, especially some of my older favorites from her blog that made it into the book, such as “Dogs Don't Understand Basic Concepts Like Moving” and “Dinosaur (The Goose Story)”. Her newer stories detailing her struggles with depression and the emotional ups and downs behind that are heartening, and even amusing in their own way- a wonderful way to express concepts and feelings that are very hard to discuss.

Unfortunately, the newer stories I read in this compilation didn't seem to hold up to those I've read on the website. There were a lot of stories that I was really looking forward to having in a print collection that didn't make it into the book, and I personally believe are a much better representation of true Hyperbole and a Half. I understand the publishers couldn't make a massive, ridiculously huge tome of a book, it would be too costly. I'm sure it was also very, very important to the author to have some of her newer and even more personal stories put into the book as well. There were jsut so, so very many hilarious tales that I'd wanted so badly to have in the book.

Don't get me wrong, the book is fantastic. It's a must buy, especially if you are a fan of the blog already (And if you aren't, do yourself a favor and hit up hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com and give it a read!). And all the tales I wanted to be in the book are accesible for free on her blog, whenever I'm in the mood to read them. I'm very, very glad I purchased the book, as it's a wonderful printing on all glossy paper, crisp and clear. The new stories are great, even if I wish there ahd been a few more older tales mixed in. With luck, she'll produce even more books, and eventually release all her stories in print form!

So yes, I'd definitely recommend this book, if you like a fun and funny tale, coupled with bright, amusing illustrations. Be sure to check out her blog as well, it's totally worth it! Hyperbole and a Half never fails to put a smile on my face, and I'm sure it won't fail to put one on yours.

A stunning start to an epic fantasy series, I enjoyed it from start to finish. The characters and world are detailed and believable with an interesting and mysterious magic system that works well. The book is tolkein-esque in it's depth.

At one point the characters in the party the book follows split up, which initially had me groaning initially, as some of the characters I liked distinctly less then others. However, Jordan managed to make ALL of the characters interesting to me, even those I at first didn't like as much, which was astonishing as I had been dreading the chapters after the characters went their separate ways.

Overall, I was very pleased I finally decided to give the series a chance, and I'll be continuing on to the second book immediately.

Overall, a well written and intriguing fantasy, that kept me turning the pages. The world the author built for the story is fascinating, although the details are a little slim. Events in the past are referred too, but never fully explained, which both adds to the mystery of the story, but is also a little frustrating- the details sound so interesting, a prequel would be fascinating. Looking forward to starting the second book.