jelly
This book is an insult to the way the internet works.
(this is a cheesy title, but not as cheesy as the book itself)
Pro: The art is good
Cons:
- There is a clear lack of diverse representation. Everyone is thin and white. It feels like a book from the early 2000s.
- Who is the lead and the savior? a white man.
- The portrayal of sisters feels clichéd and outdated.
- The publisher's summary of the book doesn't even match the plot of book (never seen that before). Sofia is not propelled into the digital world, we just follow her avatar made out of all her digital data, which is vastly different.
- Speaking of plot, face-palm, it makes no sense that suddenly there is no more space on the internet. Connect another computer to the internet, and voilà, you have more space on the internet. And it makes even less sense that people would be limited to a life-time 30GB of data (we use this amount so quickly).
- Even if I try to imagine a sci-fi scenario where the internet would be limited and the data restricted, the author doesn't grasp what the internet is and the plot falls flat.
- And that's not all! The book is short, but the narration is very confusing. I would have expected it to be a standalone with an actual resolution. Instead, the book ends on a cliffhanger with most of the plot and the characters' background unexplained. That was odd.
- And then there are the masks haters, the malevolent shop owner, and the rescuers with ‘68 vibes, all coming across as gauche, cheesy, and heavy-handed. The overarching message is that “Spending time on the internet is bad, being in nature is good”. I would have appreciated some nuance here.
Overall, I do not recommend this book, particularly if you only read the first volume. It lacks structure and coherence, and the theme failed to capture my interest.
Thank you Netgalley and Europe Comics for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
This story is about adopting new perspectives, living in a fantasy world, and ultimately adapting to a new environment while accepting things as they have become.
Read and reviewed: 2018-12-04
“Quelle explication donnée à la tragédie qui vous endeuille ? Aucun mot pour vous secourir. Il n'est pas le diable. Il est un homme. Juste un homme.” - Roger Merle
Corinne Tanay raconte les faits qui ont suivi le meurtre de sa fille de 9 ans, empoisonnée au cyanure en 1994.
Le livre se présente comme un journal suivant le courant de sa conscience (her stream of consciousness), racontant la chronologie de l'enquête, les méandres et les injustices du système judiciaire français, sa très belle amitié avec l'avocat Roger Merle, et son désir de se reconstruire au-delà de toute haine et de toute revenge.
Malheureusement, le recit est extrêmement décousu et difficile à suivre, passant d'une année à une autre, rebondissant au grès des souvenirs, revenant sur des faits déjà expliqués auparavant. Au milieu du livre, l'auteur change complètement de sujet et traite d'un documentaire qu'elle a realisé sur une autre famille ayant souffert un drame familial. Durant ce passage, l'écriture est dynamique, structurée et les faits sont bien introduits. Puis, le livre reprend, mélangeant anecdotes de temps heureux et nouveaux elements de l'enquête. La dernière partie du livre est une transcription des rencontres entre Corinne Tanay et l'accusé/condamné.
Au final, je pense que le livre aurait bénéficié d'une restructuration pour clarifier la chronologie, éviter les multiples allers et retours narratifs, supprimer les répétitions, et introduire plus clairement les faits et les personnes. La structure et le style d'écriture ont rendu la lecture de ce livre difficile et parfois labyrinthique.
J'ai commencé a regarder mon père avec les yeux d'un fils aimant trop tard. De toute façon, les parents ne répondent jamais aux attentes de leurs enfants. Mon père m'impressionnait pour ce qu'il était. Je l'ai toujours vu travailler, lire, écrire. Sa soif de travail était insatiable. Il s'ennuyait en famille, il s'ennuyait en vacances. Les gens l'ennuyaient en general. Ce qui le rendait heureux, c'était le travail, la lecture, l'écriture”
- Thierry Merle, fils de Roger Merle
Thank you NetGalley and Grasset for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Read and reviewed: 2019-12-14
We follow the letters addressed between two women: Xanthie, a woman in Paris, and her friend (no name) who is traveling to the Island of Fuerteventura. Their letters are part travel guide, part exploration of the nature of love. We sense love, admiration and a deep sense of trust in their letters, and one may wonder what might spark from there...
No Name has been traveling to the island for years, and considers it her secret paradise, the place that makes her feel the most at home. In comparison, Xanthie is solidly rooted in Paris, and enjoys traveling through the eyes of her friend.
Then, the structure of the book takes a radical turn. No Name sends to Xanthie a love letter about her ex-girlfriend, and starts rambling for 30 pages about all the great things she loved about her ex, all that she offered her, how obsessive she was about her, and if only her ex would have let her love her in a certain way... There is no introspection on what No Name did wrong or could have done better, no sense that she is actually writing to Xanthie, no feeling of an actual conversation. And the book ends after this long monologue, with no output or answer from Xanthie.
To me, the pain point of the book is the writing. The sentences are full of ‘science facts' and quotes from classic authors, and they break the flow of the narration. We start with a sensual description and end up with science facts about elephants according to Aristotle. It happens so often throughout the book that it takes from the experience of reading the book.
“Je la regarde chaque soir avant de m'endormir m'extasiant inlassablement sur sa beaute et je pense a elle, qui aime tant cet animal dont la structure sociale matriarcale represente la sagesse et dont l'intelligence et l'esprit depassent ceux de tous les autres animaux selon Aristote.”
In the end, I think that the book would have benefited from a serious cut to remove the ‘extra scientific facts', a clear decision to make it a monologue or an epistolary book, and an extra pair of eyes concerning the grammar and the overall flow of the book.
Thank you NetGalley and l'Editions for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Read and reviewed: 2019-12-03
This is exactly what I am looking for in a art history book. Full-page uncut reproductions, extended pages for large pieces, drafts and drawing to reveal his process, original extracts of his journal/letters/analysis on each page instead of a someone's irrelevant essay, clear legends, high quality print, great format. A wonderful found!
A high-quality monograph of Alessandro Botticelli, which includes 49 colored paintings with individual analysis, 23 full-page details, a 40-page essay by Chiara Basta and Carlo Bo, a 7-page extract of the “Lives” by Vasari, a chronological table, and a geographical table of the paintings.
Pleasant book to read, high-quality print. I wish some larger paintings could have been printed on a single page, instead of being cut in the middle.
His Life and Art
Alessandro Botticelli was born in 1445 in Florence. His father, Mariano Filipepi, was a rich tanner. Vasari explained that his nickname Botticelli comes from his presence at the workshop of a goldsmith known as “Botticello”. It might also come from his brother, goldsmith battigello himself. In Florence, many artists started their apprenticeship this way to learn definition and attention to details.
In the early 1460's, he is sent to learn with Fra Filippo Lippi, one of the most famous painter of his time, who receives important commissions from the Medici family. He is greatly influenced by Madonna and Child with Angels, 1465 by Lippi. Important commission in 1470: Piero del Pollaiuolo is late to deliver the seven paintings for La Sala Tribunale della Mercanzia. Thanks to Antonio Vespucci, Botticelli paints Fortitude, a tournant in his work. He has fully created his language and is now ready to develop a new sense of space and scenic presence.
The period between 1470 and 1481, in Rome, is marked by the prestigious commissions by the Medici family and their network of influence.
Cosimo the Elder created the Academia Neoplatonica, a place where intellectuals could read, study and translate Greek and Latin texts and meet to discuss them. The leader was Marsilio Ficino, specialized in Plato's theology. They discussed the immortality of the soul and its inclination toward God propelled by the strength of Love. Thus, earthly beauty was considered one of the most powerful means for accessing the contemplation of divine beauty, which is God. A link between earthly beauty and divine beauty is communicated via symbols and allegory. Art becomes useful both for stimulating sensations tied to the world of the Beautiful, and for carrying knowledge to a higher level, through the interpretation of symbols. This is how the The Allegory of Spring / The birth of Venus is read.
Botticelli became its official painter, via Lorenzo the Magnificent.
In 1481, Botticello is called to Rome to the service of Pope Sixtus IV, with Ghirlandaio, Perugino and Cosimo Rosselli to the Sistine Chapel.
Giovanni carried out his mercantile and financial activities in London, but we know that in 1483 he returned to Florence to acquire a chapel in the church of Santa Spirito.
The last years of the century in Florence, particularly after the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent in 1492, were scarred by internal political problem caused by discontentment with the Medici management of power, problems with international policies, and the defense of the boundaries menaced by Charles VIII, who invaded Italy two years later. The ideals of government and civil development enter a crisis, with a revival into mystic and prophetic themes. At the end of his life, Botticelli and his prestigious workshop focus on simplified and immediate devotional features. He dies in Florence in 1510.
My favorites:
- Fortitude, 1470
- Stories of Judith (diptych), 1470-1472
- Portrait of Giuliano de' Medici, c. 1478
- Saint Augustine, 1480
- Madonna and Child with Five Angels, 1481
- Annunciation, 1489
- Lamentations over the Dead Christ, with Saints Jerome, Paul and Peter, 1492
- Virgin and Child and Infant Saint John, c. 1490-1495
- Lamentation over the Dead Christ, 1495
Fortitude, 1470:
Stories of Judith (diptych), 1470-1472:
Portrait of Giuliano de' Medici, c. 1478:
Saint Augustine, 1480 (detail):
Madonna and Child with Five Angels, 1481:
Annunciation, 1489:
Lamentations over the Dead Christ, with Saints Jerome, Paul and Peter, 1492:
Virgin and Child and Infant Saint John, c. 1490-1495
Lamentation over the Dead Christ, 1495:
“No place on earth can compete with Sinai.”
A very pleasant book consecrated to Neil Folberg's photographs from the 70's and 80's in Israel, Egypt and Jordan. Very extensive description of his travels, in the form of a journal, accompanies 110 colored photographs. Many are printed on a double panel. The photographs are not equal in terms of quality, but the collection is still worth exploring.
“The challenge of landscape photography is to reduce a limitless expanse to the confines of a two-dimensional rectangle without creating a feeling of confinement within borders. It is necessary to give enough information about the environment so that the imagination can extrapole beyond the edges of the photograph, to envision what might be beyond the next ridge, to create a mood evocative enough to make the viewer want to wander in their mind through that image.”
“The beauty of the desert lies less in its small delights - a wildflower, a pool of water - than in the delight of finding these things in the midst of dryness.”
My favorites:
Egypt
Felucca, Nile at Luxor:
Pyramids, Giza:
Mawhub, Western Desert:
Street scene, village of Qurna:
Village of Qurna:
Farafra, Western Desert:
Crocodile charm, Island of Sehel, near Aswan:
Feluccas, first cataract of the Nile:
Western Desert and Elephantine Island:
Sinai
Canyon of Colors, Sinai:
Olive tree in Wadi Talab:
Pool and rock, Wadi Talah:
Sandstone, Wadi Arada HaKatan:
Hamadat El-Loz:
Great Dune and Clouds, Bikat Baraka:
Sandstorm, Bikat Baraka:
Red Sea coast at Ras Abu-Galum:
Acacia and black dike, Wadi Ara'im:
Jordan
View to the north from Wadi Burdah, in the area of Wadi Rum:
Jebel Ed-Deir and Wadi Musa:
Shobak Castle:
Israel
Poppies and almond blossoms, Judean hills:
Train, Nahal Refaim:
Monastery of St. George, Wadi Kelt:
Ain Kelt:
Village of Carmel:
Road below Har Sodom:
Salt flats, Dead Sea:
Western Wall and Temple Mount:
Mamilla Street:
A very impressive selection of photographs from 1839 to 1939. I would have given it 5 stars, if not for the choice of putting a naked woman next to a phallic object or a glazing man as a mirror photograph twice in the book. Very useful biographical section for each photographer at the end of the book.
Probably James Forten, Unknown, Daguerreotype, ca. 1840
Black and White Hands on a Prayer Book, attrib. to Albert Sands Soutworth and Josiah Johnson Hawes, Daguerreotype button, ca. 1847
Cape Horn, Near Celilo by Carleton Watkins, Albumen print, 1867
Black Canyon, Arizona, Wheeler Survey by Timothy O'Sullivan, Albumen print, 1871
First Aerial Photo of New York, from Balloon, by James H. (Jimmy) Hare, Silver print, 1906
Society Ladies at Annual Horse Show, Newport, R. I. by Underwood and Underwood, Silver print, 1913
Pigeons in Flight by Francis Blake, Platinium print, ca. 1888
Man on Bicycle by Francis Blake, Platinium print, ca. 1888
The Wedding by Gertrude Kasebier, Platinum print, 1899
The Red Man by Gertrude Kasebier, Gum over platinum, 1901-1902
Summertime by Gertrude Kasebier, Platinum on tissue, sepia toned, ca. 1910
Pen Station, New York, by Dr. Drahomir Joseph Ruzicka, Silver print, 1919
Roebling Steel by Maurice Bratter, Palladium print, ca. 1930
Glass Abstraction by Grancel Fitz, Silver print, 1929
The Ice Box by Grancel Fitz, Silver print, ca. 1928
Dust Storm, Cimarron County by Arthur Rothstein, Silver print, 1936
SA is not cute or funny or the way to start a FF relationship. The MC is manipulated by the high school teacher in order to get accepted into college, and then forcefully kissed by another student and blackmailed every day. Nope, nope, nope. The plot is very weak and relies on artificially scary situations to get the two main characters to bond together. It was very shallow, problematic, and not interesting. I wouldn't recommend it.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Chapter 1: the writing is so beautiful I'm already so intrigued why Manderley is no more, and why they are living in a small bedroom hotel instead?!
Chapter 4: omg this book is already so good! I love that we know from the start that later in their lives, they are going be okay, enjoying peace and safety, and having a nice daily routine. Their time at Manderley is going to be so tumultuous, I can sense it so easily!! Also, Du Maurier must have loved botany, her descriptions of nature, woods and flowers are so vivid!
Chapter 6: what a turn of events, they got married. There is something romantic about this sudden proposal and adventure, but also a dark presage in the form of her dreams, of the tangerine, and of Mrs. Van Hopper's words. I know they are now older and happy in a hotel, but still
1. I ADORE her writing. It's so beautiful and detailed and it makes it so easy to walk with them in Manderley and understand where everything is. Also, great character development!
I just finished chapter 13: is it becoming a murder mystery? Ben remembers when Rebecca told him not to tell anyone that she sailed that day. And who is this mysterious visitor/intruder, Mr. Favell, who knows very well Mrs. Danvers and called Mr. Winter ‘Max'. What are they hiding? Why did he came so often. Also, he gives me the creeps . There is something also about the body found 2 months later, which could still apparently be recognized. The scent of the flowers, the heaviness of the atmosphere in the house... Also, we can tell that a breakdown is about to happen in Maxim... So much tension contained.... I wish the main character didn't have to feel so stressed out all the time. She feels so free and liberated when she is on her own in nature. She just wants a simple life, where she doesn't have to entertain people and is not always ‘measured' to such high standards. She is sweet and kind, I hope later when they travel again it's going to really be better.
I finished it! Omg I finished it! What was even this last 10%!
It felt like new crucial things were happening on every single page on the last 3-4 chapters that I had to be so careful to not read what was on the other page. Well, sometimes I would look to give myself some tiny spoilers, and I would get even more intrigued to see how things would unfold. Omg this story! 5 stars, soooo easily. Except for the middle that was a little bit slow, I didn't dislike a single page of this book. I mean, the middle was good too. I understand why it's a classic! I need to go to sleep and rest on it and write more tomorrow. Wow!
Read and reviewed: 2022-05-20
It is hard to find the words to describe this novella. All I know is that it is Maupassant's first published work and it is a masterpiece. This book makes me feel angry at human nature. There's something unique to the 19th century in the deep and accurate description of human psychology. I don't know what else to say. It will disturb you, as it should, but read it.
French audiobook via Audiolube.
I liked it a lot and read it in one sitting. I liked how each chapter was so short, like a mini story. Each character from the neighborhood teaching her something about life, showing her what she wants or more often what she didn't want to become. I liked how the garden became this place of freedom, hidden from the mothers, until it has become the place of no return. It feels like everything is happening outside, or seen through a window, or heard from another floor. It's like the space inside is too small. A bigger space, a bigger house, a bigger garden, a room for herself to think and write, looking at the window and thinking about the space back in the country. The desire to escape, to be free, to ‘be found' to ‘escape' the mango street. So many characters, so many dreams, so little place.
Read and reviewed: 2022-06-04
I love having the chance to read a book about an Indian girl playing soccer, as it is an important and too rarely depicted topic in picture books. I was pleased that the book focuses on expressing your feelings, finding a way to entertain yourself when you are bored, and building positive family relationships.
But then, in the middle of the book, something disappointed me: How come her mom chose not to tell her before that she played soccer when she was younger. I don't really understand why it had to be secret and an information found by mistake by Mina. I wish it could have been a moment of complicity between the mom and the daughter when Mina first showed interest in playing soccer. This plot twist made me feel perplexed.
In the end, the monsoon stops, and mother and daughter are able to play together, but this initial secret stayed in my mind and prevented me from fully enjoying this book.
Special note: I really enjoyed that the book includes Urdu and Hindi words, with their correct pronunciations at the end of the book. I also appreciated the historical context of this book: “In the northern states of Bihar and Jharkhand in India, local organizations are trying to combat the common practice of child marriage by organizing soccer games for girls.”
Thank you NetGalley and Yali Publishing LLC for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Read and reviewed: 2018-11-02
I got this book on sale for $3 at the Library Bookstore. It was on display, and after having loved Of Mice and Men so much, I immediately bought it. It's a big book, over 600 pages long, but I already love it so much. I am at chapter 8 out of 55. I have a feeling this is going to become one of my favorite books. I read it and I already feel like I am going to re-read it.
Update: I finished East of Eden two days ago and I haven't gotten to writing a review yet. First, it is my favorite book ever. I know I didn't like as much pages 500 to 550, but it is still so good. Okay, so I am going to start listening to classical music, and see if it helps. The love and hate between siblings, the ideal of a love dressed over someone's personality, the philosophy of life, the changing landscape of California at the turn of the 20th century, the repeated trauma and patterns from generations to generations, the exploration of psychopathy, the exploration of idealists, the nature of truth and virtue and what we expect from others, and what we expect from ourselves. The trades. Can you explore and escape your name? What is the nature of choices? Can you hear someone beyond their appearances? What is richness? What is friendship, and age? Do thoughts develop with age, or are we all fully thinking from an early age? Is truth always good to tell, and how, with how much softness? How to embrace people's choices? Yes, how to...
13 Pieces for Piano Op. 76: 2. Etude - Jean Sibelius
Read and reviewed: Aug 17, 2021
Chapter 1-2: The story intrigued me from the very first page, as I wanted to know what was the cause of the elbow incident, and who had been part of it. I love how vivid her descriptions of the town are, and how easy it is to visualize each street already. Wow, that teacher has such an inferiority complex and really loves asserting her power over ‘weaker' people than her! Also, I only realized at the end of chapter 3 that the narrator was a girl! So impressive that she learned to read and write mostly on her own!
Final thoughts after finishing the book: I loved it so so much! 5 stars! One of the best reads of the year. I couldn't find anything to change, this book is just excellent. It's interesting how her draft for this book was so different from the final version. (this is the synopsis for the sequel, and a spoiler if you intend to read it blindly): with Scout as an adult coming back to her home town and trying to reconcile with her father who is actually a racist in this version. But to come back to To Kill a Mockingbird, I don't even know what to say! It's always easier for me to write pages and pages for the books I disliked, than for the books I liked. The book had a good moral at the end, that most people are nice, and you need to take the time to get to know them.Somehow, I thought that the character of Dill would be more explored, as he somehow disappeared from the last part of the book, but it still makes sense. It was good to keep the final events enclosed in themselves. Scout, Jem, Atticus and Boo, I am going to remember these characters for a long time. I wonder if there is a slight chance that Jem or Boo killed Bob Ewell...
Mérimée, a well-known architect, travels to Spain in the company of a local guide. He soon befriends Jose Navarro, a famous criminal. In Cordoba, he meets Carmen, a free-spirit woman who tries to trap him, before being stopped by Jose Navarro himself. Mérimée gets himself together and goes back to the road. Months later, back to Cordoba, he visits Jose in jail, soon to be executed. The two men exchange a cigar, and soon begins the confession of a noble man who became bandit, of his life on the road, of his decisive meeting with the strong and mysterious Carmen.
Prosper Mérimée knows how to depict lively and multi-dimensional character who stays with you long after the book has been closed.
Read in French by Juliette via Audiocité.
As an immigrant coming from Europe, my view of the US countryside can be quite romanticized, edging closer to my childhood experience (Europe) than to the American countryside itself. I view it as huge natural spaces where I could grow fruit trees, let my dog run in the backyard, and have enough room to fully stretch out on the patio. But then, I am also gender fluid and in a queer and biracial relationship. So I know that my ideal view of the countryside would be tinted by how people might view me and my wife, as well as my own sense of safety and integrity. So sometimes, I need to read a book like this one to remind me that romanticizing a place keeps the pros of a community but removes the aspects that are less than welcoming.
This is the story of Navied and his wife, who, tired from the daily commute in the Bay Area, decide to buy a plot of land in Idaho and make it their home. They will hire Amish people to build and deliver, by the road, the foundation of their home, lay their own wood floor and ceramic tiles, plant their kitchen garden, and little by little make their new house a home. Some of their neighbors will be friendly, especially cooking Navied elk kebabs, some less so, clearly displaying a note on the front store that people coming from ‘over there' are not welcome ‘here.'
Most of the pages are about Navied's exploration of nature, learning to recognize with his wife the birds and tracks of animals in the snow, getting enough wood to keep them warm through the winter, and deciding (or not) to get a hunting license.
Ultimately, the book will be about deciding what makes a land a home, what traditions and culture we gain from a place, and what kind of life they would want their future family to have.
It was a sobering story, filled with beautiful art and a smooth narrative. I would highly recommend it.
Note: I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
