Mer Barr
The format of the book is very conducive to audio with multiple voice actors. And these actors did a great job of conveying the individual personalities, the sarcasm, the back-n-forth verbal sword play, etc. I laughed alot too.
The subject matter is interesting and it leaves some mystery to keep you interested for more. I'll continue with the series.
I didn't realize until I got to the last few pages, that the book was written while the family's grief was still fresh. Not sure why but I think I might have read it differently had I known at the start.
Since I don't watch cable tv at home, most of what I knew about the Irwins was when I stayed at hotels or with family so this book really filled in alot about why he was so knowledgable about the animals he spoke about on his shows, and also that he was gifted in other ways. The book also shows he knew his life would be short and therefore lived boldly and with passion while he was here.
The author's writing style and organization of thoughts is not my cup of tea.
Each chapter seems to be like an article in newspaper or something similar. Each took me awhile to grasp what message the author might be trying to convey, and I wouldn't say I'd guessed correctly. And most times I wasn't sure what it had to do with either the prior chapters or the book title.
Moving on to books on social justice for women that I may be a better fit for.
I enjoyed getting an introduction to another person's view of the world and the narrator was a good match for the story.
I will say I sometimes did the finger spinning action meaning, ‘Can we move on, please?' but most of the time it was suspenseful and the ending was satisfying, the not officially titled epilogue was a good wrap up of things for me too.
The first day of listening I thought I was not going to enjoy the book because I'd get confused by the names and terms of another culture but one day I discovered that the sequencing of the stories and the author's built-in pauses to build personalities and connections between person and person and item to person, made it easy for me to see in my mind's eye these people and items and their history, when mentioned later.And of course I always enjoy listening to Mr. Gaiman read his own work. Here is another book I'd enjoy, like [b:Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold 35074096 Mythos The Greek Myths Retold (Stephen Fry's Great Mythology, #1) Stephen Fry https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1502518360l/35074096.SY75.jpg 56371760], to have read to me each night.
Wow, this felt like a roller coaster ride! First you're careening thru the horrors of human ignorance and disregard and its impact then your heartbeat comes back to normal as the author shifts into more upbeat topics like activism by individuals or groups, and nature's recovery.
I liked that this book was written fairly recently and brings me fairly up to date. Once again, I'm amazed at the amount of research some authors clearly have to do, and the amount of thought put in to how to organize and present the many many subjects that make up the gulf.
The author does express his personal opinions now and again but doesn't overdo it. And somehow, sadly, I missed the section on manatees or they weren't covered in as much detail as other living creatures were. References yes, but not much detail on origins and possible migration patterns, etc.
This must be ‘read' in audio where you can hear the author read his book. His career as a comedian really shines! And I love that he gives you the modern words that have their root based in the characters or the story he's telling.Did you know Shakespeare drew alot on the Greek myths? Or how the seagull came to be? I didn't!The only drawback is there are so many names and so much genealogy that my eyes glazed many times. Reminded me alot of [b:The Silmarillion 7332 The Silmarillion J.R.R. Tolkien https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1610045590l/7332.SX50.jpg 4733799].
The author does a great job of presenting the life of Gertrude Bell. She draws heavily on letters written by and to Miss Bell and doesn't overly present a personal opinion on the story being presented.
This would be a book I present to someone looking for a role model. Granted she had family money and influence to draw on to get her into an area of the world most Europeans didn't appear to have visited much, and it allowed her to do things she wanted to do [rather than have to do to put bread on the table] but she also stood her ground in environments hostile to women [sadly amongst her own countrymen], took risks, and faced dangerous situations.
Her life also gives insights into the struggles of someone who wanted a partner to share her life and experiences with but the stars never would align to make it happen.
This book seems to share more of the inner struggles of Wade Watts but maybe it appears that way because I was so focused on, and enjoying the memories I had, from the 80s references. There also seems to me more references, and on much broader subjects, than the first so there was alot here that I couldn't match to a memory of my own.
There is the same ‘blow by blow' detail to explanations and during the quests as the first book and about half-way thru I began skimming to get back to the story line [plus the library's due date is looming].
The book presented some interesting food for thought on digital worlds and lives. I was definitely anxious about how some of this might play out in the real world.
Wow! Any male narrator that can immediately shift into a higher vocal range for one of his female characters AND sing pretty darned well at the same time, I'm going to ‘follow'!
As to the story, still very detailed on the technical stuff, alot of characters to track but still funny!
Alot of profanity [if that's something you don't like] and the main character is not religious, and vocal about it [if religious is something you do like].
A good reality check for me. I've been wanting to do a walking vacation in Ireland for a long time and of course I have dreamy ideas of all the greenness, but have to remember the only reason there's green is because there's rain and cloudy skies.
Although the story is not roses and sunshine I appreciated how they shared with honesty, how they adjusted to their new life and made connections with their neighbors and surrounding communities.
Amazing read! The beginning can glaze the eyes with the industry-specific terms and details but it blows me away at how detailed the research can be! I'm glad I hung in there and made the effort to understand some of the references becuase I really got excited around chapter 4 with the information about water management and chapter 5 where the garden is actually described!
I had to bookmark a bunch of the graphics to refer back to and so glad there were quite a few photos and images.
The drawback is from now on, and I've already experienced this, is cringing when I see a reference to the urban legend.
I read this back in the early 80s when I was being introduced to fantasy and had not yet come across science fiction. Rereading it now, I see what I like has changed considerably and won't remain in my collection.
It has some interesting concepts around the creation of reality, and it interestingly is well ahead of its time in exploring sexual identity! However there's something about the ?maturity? of the writing that doesn't compare to the books I love to reread.
