A quick and charming read with some real laugh-out-loud moments. Contrary to some other reviewers who found it too abrupt, I thought the ending was piA quick and charming read with some real laugh-out-loud moments. Contrary to some other reviewers who found it too abrupt, I thought the ending was pitch perfect....more
Really funny, really smart, really cutting. Lots of blink-and-you’ll-miss-it subtleties, which I appreciate in a time when so many authors over-explaiReally funny, really smart, really cutting. Lots of blink-and-you’ll-miss-it subtleties, which I appreciate in a time when so many authors over-explain themselves. I feel like everyone talks about Sally Rooney as the voice of a generation, a keen observer of social mannerisms, etc etc, but Reid’s writing has a spark that I personally find missing in Rooney’s work....more
Spunky lead with real (historically accurate!) interests and expertise, awesome kid characters who sounded like kids. Just wish the hero, who had all Spunky lead with real (historically accurate!) interests and expertise, awesome kid characters who sounded like kids. Just wish the hero, who had all the charisma of a wet mop and a very tropey backstory, was worthy of both of them....more
A forever favorite comfort read since middle school. Some things don't quite stand up to reread (Buttercup is such a dummy, and all the Helen bits makA forever favorite comfort read since middle school. Some things don't quite stand up to reread (Buttercup is such a dummy, and all the Helen bits make me cringe), but there's adventure, swordfighting, true love, beautifullest ladies, giants, poison, and friendship. What more could you want?...more
3.5 stars. A much needed comfortable and comforting read after a bad reading slump during hard life events. While I appreciated the Rose Daughter homa3.5 stars. A much needed comfortable and comforting read after a bad reading slump during hard life events. While I appreciated the Rose Daughter homage, I actually liked the book best when Kingfisher's humorous, dry voice and sardonic style showed through most. Would read again....more
The perfect airplane or sick day read -- light, irreverent, and just clever enough. Pratchett's episodic style really works here, though the plot getsThe perfect airplane or sick day read -- light, irreverent, and just clever enough. Pratchett's episodic style really works here, though the plot gets a bit jumbled at times. I loved all the characters, particularly Mort, who embodies the everyday hero perfectly (i.e. he's not at all perfect)....more
I gulped down Texts from Jane Eyre in one go this afternoon and already know that it's going to be my new go-to gift book for People Who Love Books! TI gulped down Texts from Jane Eyre in one go this afternoon and already know that it's going to be my new go-to gift book for People Who Love Books! The jokes are A+++ and really reward you for having read the source material. This is the book I wish I'd had available when I took my quals!...more
First read several years ago, but couldn't remember much about it other than that it involved time travel to the late 19th century and was quite funnyFirst read several years ago, but couldn't remember much about it other than that it involved time travel to the late 19th century and was quite funny. I wanted something light after Doomsday Book and as a kind of last holiday hurrah before resuming teaching and researching duties, and this book totally fit the bill!
A fantastic, lighthearted, pretty-much-perfect book that hit a bunch of my bulletproof favorite narrative tropes. To Say Nothing of the Dog is as jolly, funny, and feel-good as Doomsday Book was serious and dark. One gets the sense that Willis just had a rollicking good time writing this book.TSNotD is much more interested in a tongue-in-cheek depiction of history, unlike Doomsday Book's meticulous realism. There are the stock characters of absentminded academic, frivolous debutante, supercilious butler, and so forth, but they feel like a kind of tribute to the Victorian comedy of manners rather than lazy writing. The mystery/adventure aspect of the plot is well fleshed out and sustains its momentum throughout with a really lovely pay-off at the end (the kind that heightens the pleasure of reading and rereading, rather than making the latter feel pointless). Throw in an abundance of literary allusions (particularly to famous detective fiction), a delightful bulldog, and an irascible cat, and I was in heaven! It was nice to see recurring characters (Mr. Dunworthy, Finch, mention of Badri) from Doomsday Book (though I wondered what happened to poor Kivrin and why she wasn't featured or at least mentioned) and a lot of the worldbuilding for the mid-21st century that was missing in DB gets fleshed out here. (For example, we learn that cats have become extinct in the 2060s).
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