Summary
Book five of the Wheel of Time series opens where the previous book left off. Rand is in Rhuidean, in the Aiel Waste, waiting for the Aiel to gather so he can take them across the Spine of the World (also known as the Dragon Wall) to fight against the Forsaken, who have entrenched themselves there.
Of concern is Couladin, an Aiel chieftain who has proclaimed himself the Dragon Reborn, claiming that Rand is a false Dragon.
When Rand learns that Couladin is moving his army across the Dragon Wall to ravage the West, (the Wetlands), Rand has no choice but to go after him and try to stop him. As he moves his new army after Couladin, though, four non-aligned clans follow him across the Dragon Wall.
Meanwhile, Nynaeve and Elayne are traveling back to Tar Valon, having been victorious over the Black Ajah in Tanchico. When they discover that Siuan Sanche has been removed from her position as Amyrlin Seat and replaced with Elaida, who is determined to apprehend and control Rand, a drastic change of plans is required. Now, if only Nynaeve could remember where the Blue Ajah was hiding out these days.
What I liked
The suspense was riveting. Easily just as good as the previous book in the series, which, if I remember correctly, I gave a relatively high rating.
Well written too, and a well developed story with plenty of surprises. Overall, a very good job.
What I didn't like
As always, the drama. This book is no exception. While the drama is toned down a little, compared to previous books, it's still there and still annoying.
The suspense will keep me reading, though.
Conclusion
A very good book and a great addition to the series. 4/5 jealous girlfriends.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
God's Bits of Wood by Sembene Ousman
Summary
After World War Two, in French West Africa, African natives who had been hired to work on the Dakar-Niger railway formed a union and went on strike, demanding pay equal to their white coworkers, back pay for the years they worked at lower wages, family allowances, and pensions.
The executives of the Dakar-Niger railway rejected all their demands.
This novel is about that months-long strike and the ultimate victory of the African Worker's Union.
On the first day of the strike, thousands of the workers assemble near one of the stations, and women and merchants gather around them, either curious, or hoping to sell them something. The army arrives to dispel the crowd and disorder breaks out, at the end of the day eight strikers have been killed, countless have been injured, hundreds of bystanders, including women and babies have been killed and wounded, and one soldier has been killed.
And then the railroad company cuts off the water supply to the cities along the railroad.
That clash sets the tone for the rest of the book. There's lots of bloodshed, outright murder, and politics.
What I liked
The story made me angry, I sympathized with the strikers. It was moving. Also, the story was well told, written from the perspective of dozens of characters, each with a different role in the strike.
What I didn't like
The book is a translation of the French novel. It's a good translation, well done and easy enough to read.
However, the writing becomes a bit cumbersome. It's hard to keep track of all the characters. There are jokes that are difficult to understand, without knowing the language.
Aside from that, though, the story is compelling and worth reading.
Conclusion
Interested in Africa? Read this book. Sembene Ousman is known as a militant artist, (think Che with a typewriter). This book demonstrates his passion and love for his people and his empathy with their suffering. 4.9/5 babies named Strike.
After World War Two, in French West Africa, African natives who had been hired to work on the Dakar-Niger railway formed a union and went on strike, demanding pay equal to their white coworkers, back pay for the years they worked at lower wages, family allowances, and pensions.
The executives of the Dakar-Niger railway rejected all their demands.
This novel is about that months-long strike and the ultimate victory of the African Worker's Union.
On the first day of the strike, thousands of the workers assemble near one of the stations, and women and merchants gather around them, either curious, or hoping to sell them something. The army arrives to dispel the crowd and disorder breaks out, at the end of the day eight strikers have been killed, countless have been injured, hundreds of bystanders, including women and babies have been killed and wounded, and one soldier has been killed.
And then the railroad company cuts off the water supply to the cities along the railroad.
That clash sets the tone for the rest of the book. There's lots of bloodshed, outright murder, and politics.
What I liked
The story made me angry, I sympathized with the strikers. It was moving. Also, the story was well told, written from the perspective of dozens of characters, each with a different role in the strike.
What I didn't like
The book is a translation of the French novel. It's a good translation, well done and easy enough to read.
However, the writing becomes a bit cumbersome. It's hard to keep track of all the characters. There are jokes that are difficult to understand, without knowing the language.
Aside from that, though, the story is compelling and worth reading.
Conclusion
Interested in Africa? Read this book. Sembene Ousman is known as a militant artist, (think Che with a typewriter). This book demonstrates his passion and love for his people and his empathy with their suffering. 4.9/5 babies named Strike.
Call Me Lumpy
So, some time in June or July, I'm not sure which, while I was working nights at the Superstore in Halifax, Janelle discovered a little lump on my leg.
The lump was about the size of a ping pong ball, soft, and painless. It was on my inner thigh, right next to my balls. I wouldn't have noticed it if Janelle hadn't discovered it. For obvious reasons, she was concerned and told me to go to a doctor. I agreed to go, but kept putting it off.
I hate going to the doctor. I always feel like if they can't write me a prescription, I'm wasting their time. Last time I saw a doctor for something other than stitches it was for some kind of outbreak or allergic reaction on my hand and his reaction was something like this: "Well, I don't know what it is, but I could prescribe something for it and we can see what happens." Yeah, like I'm going to take drugs so you can "see what happens." No thanks.
Anyways, we moved to Thunder Bay and I started going to school. Most of the time I wouldn't think about the lump at all but Janelle kept remembering it and telling me to go the doctor. So I googled it, something like "soft, painless lump on leg" and a whole pile of the results said sarcoma, which got me worried enough to see the doctor, so after a little more procrastinating, I made an appointment with the medical clinic at the University. The receptionist asked what the appointment was for and I told her about the lump. She got all concerned and asked if I would like to make an emergency appointment but I declined. The one she'd originally made was soon enough for my taste.
Anyways, I went to my appointment, sat in a brightly lit little room and a nurse asked me about my medical history, and about the lump. And then the doctor came in and asked me some more questions and then asked me to haul off my pants and put on a paper gown, and she left the room. I got into the gown and sat on the examining table, when I leaned forward, though, the front of the gown tore open. How embarrassing.
So the doctor came back in and prodded my lymph nodes. While she was putting her hands in my arm pits I tried to remember if I had remembered to put on deodorant that morning. Then she poked at my groin but couldn't find the lump, so I had to spread my legs and show it to her and she squeezed it and poked it. After examining it for a minute, she said I could get back into my pants and she left the room.
I got dressed as quickly as I could and prepared to leave, but the doctor came back in and said that, at first, she had been concerned but she now believed the lump to be a benign cyst. However, there was a slight chance of lymphoma so she made me a requisition slip for an ultrasound. And that was that, I thanked her and left.
Of course I put off making the ultrasound appointment, but Janelle kept after me, (I think it's just wonderful how she cares so much about me... and no, that's not sarcastic) and I finally called the ultrasound clinic. They made me an appointment that was much too soon for my liking.
Today, I went to that appointment. I walked over after my Cold War History class. After a short wait in the waiting room, the ultrasound person came in. He was a short, bearded man, with shoulder length hair. He looked a lot like my cousin Vince, except shorter. He couldn't be much older than me. Groan.
In his dark little examining room, he was all friendly. "So, where's this lump?"
I pointed to it and he said, "Ok. Get off your pants and lie down on the table."
He got me to tuck a little towel into my underwear so the jelly didn't get all over it, and then he probed my lump with some kind of scanner for what seemed like a really long time, all the while asking questions like, "How long have you had this lump?" "Does it hurt?" "Is this the first test on it?" Which I answered as monosyllabically as possible.
He seemed about as excited about scanning my groin as I was about getting my groin scanned.
He seemed about as excited about scanning my groin as I was about getting my groin scanned.
Finally he finished, let me wipe the jelly off with the towel that had been tucked into my underwear and I hurried back into my pants, thanked him and said goodbye and practically ran out of the clinic...
Now I'm at home and suffering from post traumatic shock disorder. Just kidding. I'm okay. Okay enough to blog about it, anyway...
Monday, October 4, 2010
The Cold War: A Very Short Introduction
Summary
My professor selected this one as the course textbook for my Cold War history class this term and I absolutely love him for it. It only cost $10 at the university bookstore and had less than two hundred pages. I finished reading it on Saturday.
This book deals with the period of history between 1945 and 1991 known as the Cold War.
What i liked
This book was very short and mostly well written. It gave a good survey of the Cold War so that I could understand the big picture of the war. It didn't go into huge detail about individual events. For example, the Korean War, which was a very important conflict during the Cold War only got about a page and a half of coverage, even though it lasted a few years. I liked how short it was.
I also liked how it described the individual leaders, like Kennedy, Reagan, Kruschev, Stalin, etc. and how they influenced the war. My favourite Cold War leaders are: Roosevelt, Kruschev, Adenaur, Brandt, and Gorbachev.
What i didn't like
It was sometimes difficult to read and required plenty of concentration.
Conclusion
All in all a very good book. Definitely worth reading if you're interested in this period of history.
My professor selected this one as the course textbook for my Cold War history class this term and I absolutely love him for it. It only cost $10 at the university bookstore and had less than two hundred pages. I finished reading it on Saturday.
This book deals with the period of history between 1945 and 1991 known as the Cold War.
What i liked
This book was very short and mostly well written. It gave a good survey of the Cold War so that I could understand the big picture of the war. It didn't go into huge detail about individual events. For example, the Korean War, which was a very important conflict during the Cold War only got about a page and a half of coverage, even though it lasted a few years. I liked how short it was.
I also liked how it described the individual leaders, like Kennedy, Reagan, Kruschev, Stalin, etc. and how they influenced the war. My favourite Cold War leaders are: Roosevelt, Kruschev, Adenaur, Brandt, and Gorbachev.
What i didn't like
It was sometimes difficult to read and required plenty of concentration.
Conclusion
All in all a very good book. Definitely worth reading if you're interested in this period of history.
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