Wednesday, July 27, 2011

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

This is the classic story of the headless horseman.  Or, I thought it was, anyway.  He only shows up on a few pages during the whole thing.  Instead, this book spends way too much time setting up the scenery and the setting that it forgets to get to any plot.  I zoned out countless times while reading the long-winded paragraphs.  I usually only do that for a book that's particularly hard to read.  This wasn't hard to read, just boring.

Save your time, don't bother reading this book.

Click here to view this book on Amazon.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

I've never been a big fan of Alice in Wonderland, or any of its various spin-offs, to be honest.  I can't say that I've seen Disney's, or anyone's version all the way through.  I've only seen bits and pieces of them.  It might be a good idea to keep that in mind when reading my review.

I didn't particularly care for this book.  This may be because it's a kids' book. The writing didn't appeal to me.  The plot was incoherent and went from random thing to random thing.  There really wasn't any drama, or character development, either.  I think a lot of it was just Lewis Carroll trying to prove how clever he is.  I can see how it would appeal to a younger audience, though.

If you're interested in it, by all mean read it.  Otherwise, I'd give it a pass.

As I side note, I am planning on going on the tour at Christ Church in Oxford eventually.  Even though I didn't enjoy the book, I'm quite certain that I would enjoy seeing some of the things that inspired it.

Click here to view this book on Amazon.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

It's been a bit of time since I've read this book.  Honestly, I can't remember much of anything about it.  It was kinda boring and not memorable in the least.

Reading this did make me constantly think of a Bugs Bunny cartoon, though.  It's loads more entertaining than this book, and you should watch it instead of even thinking about the book.



This book is not recommended.

Click here to view this book on Amazon.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

I'm just going to go out and say it.  I like the movie better than the book.  Before you get all stabby on me, let me explain.

Don't get me wrong, the book is okay, for a kids' book, anyway.  But there's just something about Dorothy's adventures wearing the witch's silver slippers that just didn't inspire me.  Yes, in the book, the slippers are actually silver.  That's not why I didn't enjoy it, though.  Even though Dorothy and her friends encountered loads of problems along their quest, there was never one that wasn't solved by the first thing they tried within just a few paragraphs.  There was no tension or anything.  It kinda bored me.  Now, I haven't seen the movie in a very long time, but I seem to remember a bit more drama, and tension in it.

If you're interested in reading this, by all means give it a go, otherwise, I'd recommend giving it a pass.