This book was so much fun, even if it fell apart a bit at the end. It was something like 550 pages, and I read the whole thing in two evenings. Just couldn’t put it down! Evil Genius is about Cadel Piggott (no wonder he’s evil), an extraordinarily bright yet troubled young man. At the age of 8, he’s taken under the wing by his therapist, whose advice re: committing cyber crimes boils down to “What ever you do-Don’t get caught.” Cadel accelerates through school and starts […]
Joyland by Stephen King
Joyland was good fun, and hits many of my important Stephen King traits: set decades ago, coming of age, likable main character (I was a bit in love with Dev by the end), creepy ass setting (summer job at an old amusement park), good group of friends, fun lingo (carny-from-carny!) and a slightly otherworldy kid (I was so hoping this would rope in Dark Tower somehow, but no luck) with a tough ass mom. I love you, Stephen King, and I don’t care who knows […]
Photographing Fairies by Steve Szilagyi
The only reason I rated this two stars instead of one is that the author had the courtesy to kill off the obnoxious main character in the end. Set in 1920s London, Photographing Fairies opens with photographer Charles Castle, locked in a jail cell on the night before his execution. He starts telling his story, which involves fairies, a murder, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Should have been a winner, but it really fell short due to a crappy writer and, like I said, a main character […]
Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
An absolutely fascinating book about an absolutely fascinating man. Mountains Beyond Mountains, written by intrepid reporter Tracy Kidder, follows the life and good deeds of Dr. Paul Farmer. Farmer, by all accounts incredibly intelligent, ambitious and kind, splits his time between treating the poor in Haiti, treating the TB-ridden in Russia and Peru and educating new students in Boston. In his “free time”, he creates charities and foundations to fund these projects, and spends a good chunk of his life on airplanes. “And I can […]