Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
May 9, 2019
Jan 24, 2019
Nov 21, 2018
Nov 20, 2018
Mar 5, 2018
Feb 1, 2018
Jun 1, 2017
Dec 1, 2016
Oct 1, 2016
Jan 1, 2016
The improbability of love - Hannah Rothschild
Booklist Reviews
*Starred Review* After writing about her fascinating great-aunt in The Baroness: The Search for Nica, the Rebellious Rothschild (2013), Rothschild delivers her first novel, a capacious and fluently knowledgeable tale that excoriates with mischievously satirical intent the viciously competitive world of high-stakes art collecting. The fact that art, the embodiment of beauty and humankind's highest aspirations, arouses villainy of appalling dimensions is a paradox Rothschild roundly threshes, along with the persistent denigration of women and the moral morass cracked open in war. But these dark matters are wrapped within the captivating story of Annie McDee, a young woman of small means and boundless passion for history and food, trying to mend a blasted heart, cope with her alcoholic mother, and succeed in London as a chef. When she purchases a grimy yet seductive old painting in a junk shop, she innocently sets off an art-world and geopolitical cataclysm. Though the storytelling machinery creaks a bit, Rothschild, the first woman to chair London's National Gallery, is a dazzling omniscient narrator giving voice to an irresistible cast of reprobates and heroes, from a secret Nazi to campy and conniving art-world players, Annie's persistent suitor, and the 300-year-old, long-lost masterpiece itself. An opulently detailed, suspensefully plotted, shrewdly witty novel of decadence, crimes ordinary and genocidal, and improbable love. Copyright 2014 Booklist Reviews.
Check Availability
Oct 1, 2015
Armada - Ernest Cline
Summary: It's just another day of high school for Zack Lightman. He's daydreaming through another boring math class, with just one more month to go until graduation and freedom--if he can make it that long without getting suspended again. Then he glances out his classroom window and spots the flying saucer. At first, Zack thinks he's going crazy. A minute later, he's sure of it. Because the UFO he's staring at is straight out of the videogame he plays every night, a hugely popular online flight simulator called Armada--in which gamers just happen to be protecting the earth from alien invaders. But what Zack's seeing is all too real. And his skills--as well as those of millions of gamers across the world--are going to be needed to save the earth from what's about to befall it. Yet even as he and his new comrades scramble to prepare for the alien onslaught, Zack can't help thinking of all the science-fiction books, TV shows, and movies he grew up reading and watching, and wonder: Doesn't something about this scenario seem a little too... familiar?
Booklist Reviews
*Starred Review* Cline's first novel, the irresistible gamer quest, Ready Player One (2011), became a big best-seller now slated for a movie adaptation directed by Steven Spielberg. In his second geek-coming-of-age tale, Cline presents Zack Lightman, a teen with anger issues obsessed with his late father, who left behind some rocking mixed tapes and notebooks delineating a wild conspiracy theory about the truth embedded in popular science fiction novels, movies, and videogames. When Zack looks out a school window and sees an alien spacecraft just like those he shoots down so decisively while playing the online alien-invaders videogame, Armada (he's ranked sixth best player in the world), he fears he's losing his mind. Readers, however, will feel confident that they're in for another hard-charging adventure that blasts open the barrier between the actual and the virtual. And indeed, Cline once again brings crackling humor and fanboy knowledge to a zesty, crowd-pleasing, countdown-clock, save-the-planet tale featuring an unlikely hero, adrenaline-pumping action, gawky romance, and touching family moments. If the interactions among characters tend to be as predictable as fast food, Cline's sly, mind-twisting premise and energetically depicted and electrifying high-tech battles make for smart, frenetic, and satisfying entertainment. Copyright 2014 Booklist Reviews.
Check Availability
Sep 2, 2015
Hanna (DVD)
Summary: A 16-year-old who was raised by her father to be the perfect assassin is dispatched on a mission across Europe, tracked by a ruthless intelligence agent and her operatives.
Video Librarian Reviews
"Father knows best" takes on new meaning when a wily teenage warrior—played by ethereal-looking Saoirse Ronan—ventures out into the cold, cruel world. Spending her isolated childhood in a cabin located in the forests of northern Finland, Hanna has been trained as an assassin/spy by her rogue-CIA-agent father Erik (Eric Bana). Now 16, Hanna has strength, stamina, and determination, so father and daughter part ways, planning to meet up later in Germany. Both, however, are sought by ruthlessly malevolent CIA operative Marissa (Cate Blanchett), leading to Hanna's capture and interrogation in a bunker beneath the Moroccan desert. "Did she turn out as you'd hoped?" inquires one of Marissa's henchmen. "Better," she replies. Outwitting her abductors, Hanna escapes, joining a British hippie family on vacation while cleverly eluding all pursuers. In the meantime, much is revealed about Hanna's mysterious origin and lineage, culminating in an action-packed chase through a decaying Grimm Brothers–themed amusement park and a violent confrontation with menacing Marissa. Directed by Joe Wright, this is a humorless—albeit often gripping—pursuit thriller, backed by a striking score from the Chemical Brothers. Recommended, overall.
Check Availability
Feb 3, 2015
Stardust - Neil Gaiman
Summary: The story of young Tristran Thorn and his adventures in the land of Faerie. He has fallen in love with beautiful Victoria Forester and in order to win her hand, he must retrieve a fallen star and deliver it to her.
Publishers Weekly Reviews
Tristran Thorn falls in love with the prettiest girl in town and makes her a foolish promise: he says that he'll go find the falling star they both watched streak across the night sky. She says she'll marry him if he finds it, so he sets off, leaving his home of Wall, and heads out into the perilous land of faerie, where not everything is what it appears. Gaiman is known for his fanciful wit, sterling prose and wildly imaginative plots, and Stardust is no exception. Gaiman's silver-tongued narration vividly brings this production to life. Like the bards of old, Gaiman is equally proficient at telling tales as he is at writing them, and his pleasant British accent feels like a perfect match to the material. Gaiman's performance is an extraordinary achievement-if only all authors could read their own work so well. The audiobook also includes a brief, informative and enjoyable interview with Gaiman about the writing of the novel and his work in the audiobook studio. Available as Harper Perennial (Reviews, Nov. 23, 1998). (Sept.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
Check Availability
Dec 1, 2014
Over the Edge of the World - Laurence Bergreen
Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the World - Bergreen, LaurenceSummary: A chronicle of Ferdinand Magellan's sixteenth-century voyage around the world draws on first-person accounts and describes his crew's experiences with mutiny, navigation, death, and Magellan's ruthless leadership.
Booklist Reviews
Ferdinand Magellan's ship was the first to circumnavigate the globe. While the accomplishment is recognized as a historic milestone, less known are the details of that voyage around the world. Magellan spent years trying to win the favor of the king of Portugal, and failing that he swore loyalty to the Spanish crown. After finally receiving Spain's backing for a trip to the Spice Islands, the king imposed numerous stipulations that would affect Magellan's crew and his authority over them. Once his fleet finally embarked, he had to contend with violent storms, mutinous crew members, and hostile natives. Bergreen tells a well-rounded story of Magellan, not just that of the romanticized hero but also that of the explorer's darker side. He also puts the voyage into its historical context, going into detail about what was known of the world at the time (and what was still uncharted), the rivalry between Portugal and Spain, and the church's attempt to divide up the New World between them. Fascinating reading for history buffs, and a great story that rivals any seagoing adventure.
Check Availability
Oct 1, 2014
The Luck Uglies - Paul Durham
The Luck Uglies - Durham, PaulSummary: Eleven-year-old Rye O'Chanter and her two friends delve into the secret lore of their village when mysterious creatures of legend reappear on the night of the Black Moon, leading them to the notorious secret society, the Luck Uglies.
Booklist Reviews
*Starred Review* Debut author Durham kick-starts his fantasy adventure trilogy with this cracker of an introduction. Rye O'Chanter—11 years old, unbelievably brave, and jaw-droppingly reckless—lives with her widowed mother and toddler sister in Village Drowning. The village is under the thumb of the ruthless and self-absorbed Earl Longchance. Years ago the village was terrorized by Bog Noblins, and Longchance claims the credit for driving them away. But legend says that honor goes to the Luck Uglies, a secret (some would even say criminal) society now banished and lost. When a supposedly extinct Bog Noblin turns up in the village, a power struggle ensues between Longchance and a man called Harmless, who holds the secret to the fate of the Luck Uglies. How Rye fits into all this is part of the drama and a lot of the excitement. Durham has created an impressively tactile world peopled with fully realized characters. His writing is strong and balanced, by turns funny and heart-stopping. There are no lulls in the story, which incorporates, in a completely original way, elements that will be familiar to fans of the genre. Antonsson's chapter-opening sketches further light the way. Readers will be sorry to see this bona fide page-turner end, at least until the next volume.
Check Availability
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)