Books Babb.no

Rudi reviewed The Martian by Andy Weir (The Martian, #1)

Andy Weir: The Martian (Hardcover, 2014, Crown)

A mission to Mars.

A freak accident.

One man's struggle to survive.

…

Review of 'The Martian' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Pretty much every review of this book mentions MacGyver, Robinson Crusoe, Gravity or Apollo 13, preferably in some sort of combination. You can probably throw in Castaway for good measure. But it makes sense, for Watney has the smarts of MacGyver, in a situation like Crusoe, only in a setting like those space movies. There's something about stories where the character has to use what he has available, and manages to do so in a clever way. It really makes you root for the character, and look forward to what he'll think of next. I don't really know much about all the science and techonlogical stuff in the novel, but it's presented in a way that makes it all really believable, and one can make enough sense out of it to understand the peril of the situation Watney is in. Watney's personality is also a great part of the book, …

Pretty much every review of this book mentions MacGyver, Robinson Crusoe, Gravity or Apollo 13, preferably in some sort of combination. You can probably throw in Castaway for good measure. But it makes sense, for Watney has the smarts of MacGyver, in a situation like Crusoe, only in a setting like those space movies. There's something about stories where the character has to use what he has available, and manages to do so in a clever way. It really makes you root for the character, and look forward to what he'll think of next. I don't really know much about all the science and techonlogical stuff in the novel, but it's presented in a way that makes it all really believable, and one can make enough sense out of it to understand the peril of the situation Watney is in. Watney's personality is also a great part of the book, as it is at times quite unexpected, but very believable.

Rudi reviewed Homo sapienne

Review of 'Homo sapienne' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Korneliussen utdyper i HOMO Sapienne forholdet mellom Sara og Fia, som man første møtte i hennes novelle San Fransisco. Det er vanskelig å ikke lese HOMO sapienne i lys av at den er skrevet av en grønlandsk forfatter. Det er likevel lett å se at Korneliussen ikke har som hensikt å si noe om Grønland, men heller om moderne, unge mennesker som bor i Grønland. Problemene de møter i boka virker realistiske, og boka er flettet sammen slik at man gradvis lærer mer om dem alle, selv om hvert kapittel kun er viet til en av dem. Jeg både håper og tror at dette er starten på en lang og fruktbar forfatterkarriere for Korneliussen.

Rudi reviewed The Metaphysics Of Aristotle by Aristóteles

No cover — Aristóteles: The Metaphysics Of Aristotle (Hardcover, 2007, Kessinger Publishing, LLC)

Conflated. Needs cleanup.

Review of 'The Metaphysics Of Aristotle' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Noen deler av boka er åpenlyse (men neppe da tankene ble formulert for første gang). Andre deler er vanskelige å forstå, og (i følge kommentarene) er jeg ikke alene om å slite med dem. Boka er liten nok til at det er et overkommelig prosjekt med en overflatisk gjennomlesing, og Ledsaak sine kommentarer gjorde det hele mer oversiktelig og forståelig. Mest av alt tenkte jeg på hvor synd det er at mange av verkene Aristoteles viser til er borte. Selv om jeg ikke har lest noen av dem som er bevart. Jaja.

Rudi reviewed The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

Elizabeth Kostova: The Historian (Paperback, 2006, Time Warner Paperbacks)

Review of 'The Historian' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I loved the premise, the combination of the historical and mythological Dracula, explored by the characters through academics and research. Kostova layers the story, telling it in her present, about when she was younger, reading about her father's past, describing his mentor's adventures. Other letters, postcards, etc. are also used like this. It mostly works well, and manages to tell the story of several people at once, without losing focus of the "main" story.

Kostova's way of writng is not for me, though. I have a hard time visualising what I read, and she tends to go on about the looks and feels of places the characters are visiting. I'm not negative towards doing so, but it's not quite for me. Some plot-devices are a bit clumsy though, and she relies a bit too heavy on coincidences.

Rudi reviewed Star Wars by Shawn Fillbach

Shawn Fillbach, Mike W. Barr, Matthew Fillbach, Raymund Lee: Star Wars (2011, Dark Horse Books)

In The Starcrusher Trap, the Separatists unleash a terrifying new weapon on Republic-held systems - …

Review of 'Star Wars' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

This is my first time exploring the Star Wars "expanded universe" (other than some video games), and I enjoyed it way more than I expected! I read it because it was free on kindle for a limited time, and I figured why not?

I was concerned that it would be packed with references to characters and locations in the Star Wars-universe that I had never heard about. And it kinda did, but it turned out to not be a problem. Delving into the lore was optional.

So while the story itself wasn't that good, I did like that it played around with how you perceive and root for various characters. It exploits the biases one has coming from just seeing the movies, and then it fool you all over again.

The art was great! I read the kindle edition, but on a color screen, and some of the panels were …

This is my first time exploring the Star Wars "expanded universe" (other than some video games), and I enjoyed it way more than I expected! I read it because it was free on kindle for a limited time, and I figured why not?

I was concerned that it would be packed with references to characters and locations in the Star Wars-universe that I had never heard about. And it kinda did, but it turned out to not be a problem. Delving into the lore was optional.

So while the story itself wasn't that good, I did like that it played around with how you perceive and root for various characters. It exploits the biases one has coming from just seeing the movies, and then it fool you all over again.

The art was great! I read the kindle edition, but on a color screen, and some of the panels were gorgeous.

Rudi reviewed Inherent Vice by Thomas Pynchon

Thomas Pynchon: Inherent Vice (Paperback, 2010, Penguin (Non-Classics))

Inherent Vice is a novel by American author Thomas Pynchon, originally published in August 2009. …

Review of 'Inherent Vice' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I have never read anything else Pynchon has written, and I have not seen the movie based on this book. Yet.

I found this to be a difficult book, but I am certain that the fault is with me and not the book itself. There are lots of people that come and go in this book, and I have a terrible memory for names. Which one was Bambi again? And Jade? And Petunia? Often I found myself just reading on, hoping that I would remember eventually. But I'm sure if I had made more of an effort then this would not have been a problem.

At times I got confused as to where the story was going, and after finishing the book I was sure I had missed some parts of the plots. But after checking online, it appears I did not. Some parts are just, well, more confusing than …

I have never read anything else Pynchon has written, and I have not seen the movie based on this book. Yet.

I found this to be a difficult book, but I am certain that the fault is with me and not the book itself. There are lots of people that come and go in this book, and I have a terrible memory for names. Which one was Bambi again? And Jade? And Petunia? Often I found myself just reading on, hoping that I would remember eventually. But I'm sure if I had made more of an effort then this would not have been a problem.

At times I got confused as to where the story was going, and after finishing the book I was sure I had missed some parts of the plots. But after checking online, it appears I did not. Some parts are just, well, more confusing than others. I still very much have a sense that much of this book went way over my head. (This might also be a good time to point out that English is my second language)

I did enjoy the book, though! It was not just difficult. Doc is a great character, and the interactions between him and the other characters is a joy throughout the book. The "mystery"-part of it seems like a (good) excuse to challenge and explore the characters. But even though I never really care much about who-dun-it, it's a joy following Doc stumbling on clues and pieces of information.

I read this now, because I wanted to have read the book before I saw the movie. I think that was a wise choice - but I very much look forward to seeing how PTA has translated it to the screen.

Rudi reviewed Trollbyen by Karsten Alnæs

Karsten Alnæs: Trollbyen (Norwegian language, 1992, Aschehoug)

Review of 'Trollbyen' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

I Trollbyen er det mye å like, men ikke nok til at å få meg med på laget.

Kanskje er det min egen feil? Hadde jeg sittet med kart over Oslo, og en ordbok, hadde jeg nok lettere kunne satt meg inn i den sjarmerende, hundre år gamle, versjonen av Kristiania. Men selv da ville jeg neppe hatt full utbytte, for jeg kjenner ikke Oslo godt nok, og ville ikke ha knytta egne minner og assosiasjoner til bydelene og gatene som beskrives.

Rudi reviewed Alf Prøysen forteller by Alf Prøysen

Alf Prøysen: Alf Prøysen forteller (Norwegian language, 1975, Bokklubben)

Review of 'Alf Prøysen forteller' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Trivelig bok. Alf Prøysen har et øye for folk. Og særlig i Trost i taklampa klarte han å harselere med alle på bygda, både de som blir og de som drar til byen. Noen av novellene var også veldig sterke. Eller morsomme. Eller begge deler.