Archive for the ‘Classic’ Category

Classic Corner Review: The Hobbit – J.R.R. Tolkien

Thursday, October 18th, 2012
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Mariner Books; Mti edition (September 18, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0547844972
ISBN-13: 978-0547844978
Order book here:

amazon

Order E-book here:
amazon

Characters:

Bilbo Baggins – A Hobbit.
Gandalf – A Wizard.

Synopsis:

A hobbit is surprised one day by the visit of the Wizard Gandalf. Unbeknownst to the Hobbit, when the wizard leaves, he marks the door with a symbol. This symbol brings not 1, not 5, but 13 Dwarves to Bilbo’s door. Their purpose, travel to the west to a mountain, destroy the dragon Smaug and retrieve the dwarven treasure he has horded. Sounds simple enough, unless you’re a hobbit.

Review

This along with The Lord of the Rings is the grandfather of modern Fantasy. The characters, or at least the character of Bilbo, are well developed. I can’t say the characters of the 13 dwarves are as developed, their main distinguishing feature is either their weight, or the color of their hoods. As for Bilbo and the other supporting characters, they are well designed, and the reader tends to care what happens to them. You can feel Bilbo’s nervousness and cheer him on during his acts of bravery.

The story is broken into two main parts. One adventure is the discovery of the magic ring, what will turn out to be a catalyst for The Lord of the Rings series to follow. The other adventure is to actually infiltrate the dragon’s lair and discover the treaure.

For fans of Fantasy, this novel is required reading. If you haven’t read fantasy novels though, you might not want to start with this one. Tolkien has a tendency for the average reader to be hard to understand, and this sometimes leads people to give up rather than attempt to finish his novels. His style is probably close to Shakespeare in the use of language, and poetic prose. For this reason, it seems to be an acquired taste.

I’d suggest you get a copy of it, and give it a shot. Definitely read this before attempting to read Lord of the Rings which is a quite hefty story. I think the age appropriateness is good for teens and adults. There is some violence and scary situations which wouldn’t be good for most young readers.

Give it a shot, and be sure to drop back by and let us know what you thought. If I recall the first part comes out as a movie in December, so you can familiarize yourself with the events before you see it brought live on the big screen.

About the Author

Born on January 3, 1892, in Bloemfontein, South Africa, J.R.R. Tolkien settled in England as a child, going on to study at Exeter College. While teaching at Oxford University, he published the popular fantasy novels The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The works have had a devoted international fan base and been adapted into award-winning blockbuster films. Tolkien died in 1973 at 81.

You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

1 people like this post.

Review: The Princess Bride – William Goldman

Thursday, October 4th, 2012
Hardcover: 456 pages
Publisher: Perfection Learning (October 1, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0756987903
ISBN-13: 978-0756987909
Order book here:

amazon

Order E-book here:
amazon

Characters:

Buttercup – A princess in love, but marrying another man.
Wesley – The young love of Princess Buttercup.
Inigo Montoya – A Young Spanish man set on avenging the murder of his father.
Fezzik – A Large Brutish Man with a love for rhymes.
Prince Humperdinck – Soon to be King, is determined to marry Buttercup at all costs.

Synopsis:

Young Wesley is a farmhand working for Buttercup’s family. They are in love, but she is determined to have better in life. Wesley goes off to make a name for himself and is killed by the Dread Pirate Roberts. Buttercup, heartbroken, agrees to marry Prince Humperdinck. When time draws near for their wedding however, Buttercup is kidnapped by 3 thieves, who in turn are being followed by a mysterious man in black. What is the agenda of the man in black? Will Buttercup ever find the love she seeks? Will Inigo Montoya achieve his revenge? To find out, read The Princess Bride.

Review

Okay, I realize this is an old book, and pretty much everyone and their cousin has seen The Princess Bride. This year however marks the 25th anniversary of the movie, and I figured what could be better than to offer my readers a review of the book. Everything you love about the movie, down to the quotes people like to repeat, are featured here. The story seems changed slightly. In the printed version, it’s based around the idea of an old fairy tale by S. Morgenstern that the author is writing as an abridged version. Scenes are often interrupted by either Mr. Morgenstern or the author Mr. Goldman. I found this to be a bit distracting at times and to pull me out of the story. I think it would have been much tighter without it.

That being said though, I found it, just like the movie version to be a delightful fantasy with humor, vivid characters, and action and adventure. There is little to not like. I’d definitely rate it PG-13 for mild violence and themes, but for lighthearted adventure you can’t go wrong. If you haven’t read the book, or watched the movie, what are you waiting for. Grab a copy of either one, and stop back by to let us know what you thought of The Princess Bride.

About the Author

William Goldman has been writing books and movies for more than forty years. He has won two Academy Awards (for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and All the President’s Men), and three Lifetime Achievement Awards in screenwriting.

You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

1 people like this post.

The Classic Corner Review: The Devil to Pay – Ellery Queen

Thursday, July 12th, 2012
Paperback: 182 pages
Publisher: The Langtail Press (February 1, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1780020414
ISBN-13: 978-1780020419
Order book here:

amazon

Order E-book here:
amazon

Characters:

Ellery Queen – Screenwriter/Detective
Valerie Jardin – Daughter of Wealthy Financier
Solly Spaeth – Wealthy Financier and the murder victim.
Walter Spaeth – Valeries boyfriend and Solly’s son.
Rhys Jardin – Solly’s partner and Valerie’s father.

Synopsis:

Solly Spaeth has managed through business dealings to put his partner in debt. As a result, Rhys Jardin is selling off all his worldly goods. Solly Spaeth’s son, Walter, hires Ellery Queen to secretly buy all the goods/properties being auctioned off. Then Solly Spaeth is murdered. Everyone becomes a suspect. Who will turn out to the the murder, to find out, you’ll need to read The Devil to Pay.

Review

I found this to be a very intriguing story, however it was the first Ellery Queen novel that I can recall reading, and from what I’ve heard from others, is a departure from the previous novels that had more of a puzzle solving aspect to them. That did seem to be missing somewhat. I was able to peg who done it about halfway through the book, however, I did not figure out how it was done until it was revealed, so there were still pleasant surprises.

For those mystery lovers and puzzle solvers, this would be a great afternoon read. At a small 150 or so pages, it’s a very quick story to read. If you haven’t read Ellery Queen though prior, I think I’d start with something like The Roman Hat Mystery. while I’ve not read it, I’ve heard it’s one of his best. If however, you are just looking for something to sit on the beach and read, or to take you away for a while, then definitely give this novel or any of the others by Ellery Queen a shot. I think you’d find them enjoyable.

About the Author

Ellery Queen was both a famous fictional detective and the pen name of two cousins born in Brooklyn in 1905. Created by Manfred B. Lee and Frederic Dannay as an entry in a mystery-writing contest, Ellery Queen is regarded by many as the definitive American whodunit celebrity.

When their first novel, The Roman Hat Mystery (1929), became an immediate success, the cousins gave up their business careers and took to writing dozens of novels, hundreds of radio scripts and countless short stories about the gentleman detective and writer who shared an apartment on West 87th Street with his father, Inspector Queen of the NYPD.

Dannay was said to have largely produced detailed outlines of the plots, clues and characters while Lee did most of the writing. As the success of Ellery Queen grew, the character’s legacy continued through radio, television and film. In 1941, the cousins founded Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. Edited by Queen for more than forty years, the periodical is still considered one of the most influential crime fiction magazines in American history.

Additionally, Queen edited a number of collections and anthologies, and his critical writings are the major works on the detective short story. Under their collective pseudonym, the cousins were given several Edgar awards by the Mystery Writers of America, including the 1960 Grand Master Award. Their novels are examples of the classic ‘fair play’ whodunit mystery of the Golden Age, where plot is always paramount. Manfred B. Lee, born Manford Lepofsky, died in 1971. Frederic Dannay, born Daniel Nathan, died in 1982.

You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

The Classic Corner Review: The Mysterious Affair At Styles – Agatha Christie

Tuesday, July 3rd, 2012
 
Paperback: 300 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace (April 7, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1453757430
ISBN-13: 978-1453757437
Order book here:

amazon

Order E-book here:
amazon

Characters:

Hercule Poirot – A belgian detective.
Lieutenant Hastings – A friend of Poirot’s, he serves as the narrator.

Synopsis:

Emily Cavendish is found thrashing around in her bed one night. She dies. The initial cause of death is strychnine poisoning. Lieutenant Hastings happens to be a guest of the family at the time. He invites his friend Hercule Poirot, a belgian Detective, to take a look at things. Poirot just happens to be staying nearby.

Review

There are many parallels between the Poirot stories and those of Sherlock Holmes. You have Poirot in the Holmes role, you have Lieutenant Hastings filling in the role of Dr. Watson. Through the story there are many possible suspects, there are red herrings, and the reader is left trying to solve the puzzle before Poirot does.

I love this type of mystery. It’s classic in the whodunit sense, and leaves enough unknowns so that the reader can try to solve the mystery on their own. It seems many mysteries written today lack that puzzle solving aspect, and tend to lean more towards the thriller genre than an authentic mystery.

The language used in this may be a little difficult for some readers, since it is early 20th century British English. There are adults situations, as one would expect from a mystery, so I’d definitely suggest teens or older.

Agatha Christie is the queen of Mystery, and you can’t go wrong by starting here with one of her most famous characters. Pick it up, give it a read, and be sure to drop by and let us know what you thought.

About the Author

Agatha Christie was born in 1890 and created the detective Hercule Poirot in her debut novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1920).

She achieved wide popularity with The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) and produced a total of eighty novels and short-story collections over six decades.

You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

The Classic Corner Review: The Thin Man – Dashiell Hammett

Thursday, August 11th, 2011

 Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Vintage (July 17, 1989)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0679722637
ISBN-13: 978-0679722632
Order book here:

 

amazon

Order E-book here:
 
amazon

Characters:

Nick Charles – A retired detective.
Nora Charles – Nick’s Wife.

Synopsis:

Nick and Nora Charles are visiting New York City when he’s approached by Dorothy Wynant, the daughter of an old friend. She’s wanting to enlist Nick’s aid in finding her Father, Claude Wynant, whose turned up missing. Nick agrees to investigate, and so the mystery begins.

Review:

This book is kind of a mix between the hard boiled detective and the cozy mystery. There is a lot of humor built into the story, especially the conversations between Nick and Nora. The characters of Nick and Nora themselves are classics and most likely gave us characters such as Hart to Hart and Luke and Laura Spencer. The hard boiled aspects come into play in some of the language, etc. used. For the time period this was written in, some of the language seems quite strong.

There are some scenes of violence but nothing too graphic. And some strong language. For that reason, I’d give it a PG or PG-13 rating. As for the story itself you are taken on the journey as Nick questions first this person, and then another on his quest to eventually uncover “The Thin Man”.

I think it’s a shame that more of these books weren’t made. I really like the characters, and while only one book seems to have been written, they gave birth to numerous movies. If you like mysteries, and good character interraction, then pick this up. I think you’ll like it.

About the author:

Dashiell Samuel Hammett was born in St. Mary’s County. He grew up in Philadelphia and Baltimore. Hammett left school at the age of fourteen and held several kinds of jobs thereafter — messenger boy, newsboy, clerk, operator, and stevedore, finally becoming an operative for Pinkerton’s Detective Agency. Sleuthing suited young Hammett, but World War I intervened, interrupting his work and injuring his health.

When Sergeant Hammett was discharged from the last of several hospitals, he resumed detective work. He soon turned to writing, and in the late 1920s Hammett became the unquestioned master of detective-story fiction in America. In The Maltese Falcon (1930) he first introduced his famous private eye, Sam Spade. The Thin Man (1932) offered another immortal sleuth, Nick Charles. Red Harvest (1929), The Dain Curse (1929), and The Glass Key (1931) are among his most successful novels.

You can discuss this book here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.