Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Book Reviews

I was going to start this post by apologizing and making excuses about my blogging absence, but that's cliche, so screw it.

I have been reading and I have been writing. Book reviews follow:

The Year the Swallows Came Early

+ Well written
+ Different setting (small town on the California coast)
+ The MC wants to go to culinary school. I like food. Like Everything on a Waffle, there are recipes in the book.

- Dad's in jail. Mom doesn't want to talk about it. Seen it before.
- The MC spends a good portion of the book moping around.
- Not much happens

The Phantom Tollbooth

+
Wordplay. Words work hard; they deserve to play sometimes.
+ Funny parts, but not laugh-out-loud funny, more smart funny. Smart funny is good, too.
+ Allegorical, and although allegory usually flies right past me without me noticing, it was kind of hard to miss in this one.

- The sketchy flip side of allegory: the story's a little weak.

Castration Celebration

+ Totally raunchy
+ Funny
+ Pokes fun at Twilight
+ Honest

- Not as funny as Wizner's first book, Spanking Shakespeare
- The main characters weren't all that likable.
- Some of the songs fell flat.

Sir Farsalot Hunts the Booger

+ The title
+ Had some funny lines

- Not enough farting

7 comments:

Anita said...

I don't want to run out and buy any of those books...I appreciate you keeping me from doing so.

Do you buy all your books?

Paul Michael Murphy said...

I just bought a decent batch this week because I was tired of waiting on the library copies. Bought the Brixton Brothers (which is awesome), Going Bovine, Sir Fartsalot (for the boys in my classroom) and The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place (haven't started yet).

I would prefer to buy all my books but 1. it costs too much and 2. we don't have the room and 3. the wife probably wouldn't like it.

Rena Jones said...

LOL Anita!

Anita said...

PMM: That's a lot of $ on books. I find I buy a lot more books for my kids than I do for myself. But I guess, now that I think of it, I just spend a lot more $ on them period.

Jonathon Arntson said...

Anita, I'd recommend THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH, it's quirky.

Paul Michael Murphy said...

It is quirky and it's a fast read. I would have liked it better had I been in a different mood.

Anita said...

GENTLEMEN: I'll get right on it.