The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck, graphic adaptation by Nick Bertozzi

Pearl S. Buck's The Good Earth was published in 1931.  Not only was it a best seller, it won the Pulitzer and Nobel prizes.  Clearly her message about a poor farming family in China whose bad fortunes forced them to move to another part of the country resonated with Americans suffering during the Great Depresson.

Nick Bertozzi has made The Good Earth more accessible with his graphic novel adaptation.  The art is black and white and sketchy looking.  It reminded me of the storyboards I've seen for a movie in progress.  The text seems to be a faithful retelling of the story (although I admit it has been many years since I read The Good Earth).  As you would expect, it has a feeling of abridgement that will leave devoted fans of the novel disappointed.

This isn't a great graphic novel, but it can certainly serve the purpose of introducing the story to people who might not have the patience or inclination to read the original.  It may even inspire readers to pick up or return to Buck's masterpiece.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Camino Island, by John Grisham

John Grisham keeps on being Grisham.  Like some of his other more recent books, Grisham departs from the legal thriller genre to a more low-key crime drama.  In Camino Island, a group of theives pull off a well-executed heist of orginal manuscripts of F. Scott Fitzgerald's novels.  The FBI is on the case, and follows the trail to Camino Island, where an independent book store owner has a side trade in rare books and manuscripts.  Word is that he has possession of the Fitzgerald manuscripts.

Enter Mercer Mann, who grew up visiting her grandmother on Camino Island.  She's an novelist who, despite initial success, hasn't published in a while, and who recently lost her college teaching position.  A private security firm hires her to establish a relationship with the bookseller in hopes of learing about the manuscripts.  So begins her stint as a literary spy.

In true Grisham fashion, the story is simple, with just enough clues left and questions left unanswered to keep you wondering and guessing.  On one level, it's pretty obvious where the story is going.  On the level that counts, though, you know that Grisham won't just leave it at the obvious.

I enjoyed Camino Island, including the insider's talk about the world of writing, of independent bookstores, and the business of publishing.  Grisham's sense of humor, great characters, and perfect pacing move the story along nicely.  I will say this one's a little thinner than some of his more intense books, and it leaves a few loose ends unsatisfactorily flailing, but for the most part it's a perfect read for your next vacation to Camino Island or any other beach.

Will Robots Take Your Job? by Nigel M. de S. Cameron

In Will Robots Take Your Job? A Plea for Consensus, Nigel M. de S. Cameron asks what is a more and more realistic question.  So, will a robot take my job?  Maybe.  It depends.  Ask the bank teller who was displaced by the ATM.  Ask the grocery store checker displaced by self-checkout stations.  Ask any former assembly line worker.  Ask the taxi driver soon to be displaced by self-driving cars.

De Cameron takes a broad view of the impact of mechanical intelligence and robot workers on employment trends.  Reviewing an array of research, he determines that "there is wide agreement that the development of Artificial Intelligence and robotics is set to have an enormous impact on the future of human work--driving up productivity, but in the process narrowing or completely shutting down many traditional jobs."  While some jobs are more at risk than others, "it would be unwise to bet on any particular human function being 'secure'--safe for our species to perform, safe from the rivalry of machines."

The levels of displacement run deeper than might be obvious.  For instance, we hear a lot about driverless cars.  Obviously, taxi drivers, truck drivers, and Uber drivers' jobs would be at risk.  But if, as expected, driverless cars lead to fewer people owning cars, jobs related to the manufacture and repair of cars would diminish.  Driverless cars would be safer, so auto accidents would drop, leaving ERs without a major client base.  The ripples go on and on.

Many observers point out that historically, when new technologies displace workers, new jobs or whole industries arise.  De Cameron is not so sure that there will be enough jobs to replace those taken by AI and robots.  Will Robots Take Your Job? is a readable introduction to this topic.  It asks more questions than it answers, and ends up wishy washy on the questions he asks.  It will definitely get you thinking about whether you need to reexamine your own career choices.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Injection Burn, by Jason Hough

In the first three books of the Dire Earth Cycle, Jason Hough tells the story of the Builders, who put a space elevator on earth and introduced a virus that killed off most of humanity.  Fast forward several centuries, and mankind has bounced back.  Using Builder technology as a spring board, they have developed the ability to quickly travel great distances through space.  Injection Burn, book 4 of the Dire Earth Cycle, starts with the crew of the Wildflower.  They have travelled to the Builders' home world.  To their great surprise they meet up with Skyler Luiken and his crew.  Skyler, a key player in the events in the first 3 books, and his crew left earth in a builder ship.  Due to time dilation, little time has passed for them.  The Wildflower crew, stunned to meet these important historical figures, team up with Skyler's crew to fight the Scipios, a race who has enslaved the Builders.

Now that I have successfully made a very exciting sci-fi story sound pretty dull, I have to say Injection Burn is great fun to read.  Hough writes extended action scenes so full of detail that you can vividly see the whole thing in your mind.  He provides the details, the sights and sounds and actions and reactions.  The future science and mechanics of zero-g and space travel are not taken for granted.  The alien species are imaginatively created and described.

In short, if you like your sci-fi science-y and action-packed, with lots of aliens, interplanetary travel, and inter-species war, while leaving out the romance and philosophical interludes, Hough fits the bill.  Injection Burn continues and fills out the story of the first 3 books.  If you haven't read them, you won't be lost in Injection Burn, but the background certainly adds to the enjoyment of this new book.  And, just as he did with 1, 2, and 3, he is publishing 4 and 5 in rapid succession, so you don't have to wait long to see how the action continues!  Escape Velocity comes out next week!

Mad About Trump, by MAD Magazine

MAD magazine used to be, and sometimes still is, very funny.  In Mad About Trump they gather together a wide array of satirical comics, fake ads, campaign posters, etc., in a collection skewering President Trump.  The result is rather unfunny.

On the one hand, they follow the standard Trump comedy lines: he has funny hair, he has orange skin (Now it's OK to make fun of someone's skin color, as long as his name is Trump.), he has a lot of money and flaunts it, he sends spontaneous tweets.  Trump provides us with lots to make fun of and lots to laugh about, but the MAD folks spend too much time laughing at the obvious.

On the other hand, they take the vitriolic tone of anti-Trump comedians and perpetuate the canard that Trump is nothing but a sexist, misogynist, racist, xenophobic, homophobic, moronic, joke of a political candidate and now office holder.  They are following the path of all those comedians who have given up humor for spiteful ad hominem criticism.  As they have learned, their audiences respond to this.  (Comedian: "I hate Trump."  Audience: "Hahahaha! Such wit!  Such astute political insight!  Such unabashed truth!")

So, yeah, as you can tell, I'm a conservative who voted for Trump.  You might not be able to tell, but I do have a sense of humor.  Some of the anti-Trump humor in Mad About Trump was funny, but mostly MAD's easy shots of left-wing Trump overtook any genuine political satire and the universally funny material they have long been known for.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the complimentary electronic review copy!

The Art of the Classic Sports Car, by Stuart Codling, photography by James Mann

Something about the pictures in The Art of the Classic Sports Car, written by Stuart Codling with photography by James Mann, makes the featured cars seem like so much more than transportation.  They are works of art.  For most of us, a car is a means to get from point A to point B.  But when a special car drives by and catches your eye, the aesthetics and engineering and sheer fun make you forget about practicality.

Focusing primarily on mid-twentieth century sports cars, The Art of the Classic Sports Car covers makers you know and makers you might not (at least that I didn't know).  Some of these might be seen prowling your neighborhood streets--I still see 240Zs from time to time--but most of them will only be seen in a museum or auction house.  A couple of these have sold in recent years for millions.

The text is interesting, giving some history, anecdotes, and technical information about each model.  But the stars of the show are the photos.  The cars are pristine, and the photos bring out their glory.  I love the fact that these cars, for the most part, are not "luxuirious" as we tend to think of cars today, with the bells and whistles that tend to be superfluous.  The luxury is in the clear craftmanship and love of design that is reflected.

If you are a car lover, pick up this book, but before you do be prepared for your heart to race a little.  You might also want your wife to change the passwords on your bank account, too, so you can't give in to the tempation to run out and try to find one of these beauties to buy.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Worn Out by Obedience, by Ron Moore

As pastor of a large multi-campus church, Ron Moore has seen and experienced his share of spiritual burnout.  In Worn Out by Obedience: Recovering from Spiritual Fatigue, Moore offers hope to those of us who are tired and weary.  Much of the book is guided by David's experience in Ziklag.  A self-imposed exile, during this time he was far from God, listening to his own counsel, and stagnating in his own poor decisions.

Sometimes we feel like this: "I feel that God has left me alone.  Therefore, my inclination is to find a place away from God."  Like David, we self counsel (never a good idea).  We "lost a sense of intimacy with God and became indifferent toward spiritual things."  We "surrendered to sin--and settled for a life of disobedience, disconnected from God."  We "no longer fight the tempation" but "embrace the sin."

This state of spiritual being could be due to flagrant rebellion.  But for many Christians, it comes as a result of weariness from service, even in a life of consistent obedience and faithful Christ following.  As Charles Swindoll wrote, "Most (yes, most) Christians . . . have very little dynamic and joy in their lives."  Moore shares many presonal stories from Christians who have faced these feelings.

His diagnosis is spot on, and his remedies are welcome.  The decision is our own to leave Ziklag, and the Holy Spirit offers us power to do so.  David himself provides "five steps of true repentence" that we can follow as a path out of Ziklag.  Even better, Moore writes about staying out of Ziklag in the frst place.

Most important of all, Moore reminds us that even when "the internal disappointment and external performance . . . wear[s] us down," we can remember that "our identity is in Jesus."  Once we are his, we are his forever.  Even knowing and accepting this, I wish Moore would have spent more time on that disappointment Christians experience, that lack of "dynamic and joy."  Why does it seem so elusive?

I would be surprised if you read this book as a Christian and didn't find some resonance with Moore's exposition.  I certainly saw myself in Ziklag and appreciate his pointing the direction out.

 
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!