You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone

Rachel Lynn Solomon
Simon Pulse
Reviewed by Nancy
5 out of 5 stars

Summary

Eighteen-year-old twins Adina and Tovah have little in common besides their ambitious nature. Viola prodigy Adina yearns to become a soloist—and to convince her music teacher he wants her the way she wants him. Overachiever Tovah awaits her acceptance to Johns Hopkins, the first step on her path toward med school and a career as a surgeon.

But one thing could wreck their carefully planned futures: a genetic test for Huntington’s, a rare degenerative disease that slowly steals control of the body and mind. It’s turned their Israeli mother into a near stranger and fractured the sisters’ own bond in ways they’ll never admit. While Tovah finds comfort in their Jewish religion, Adina rebels against its rules.

When the results come in, one twin tests negative for Huntington’s. The other tests positive.

These opposite outcomes push them farther apart as they wrestle with guilt, betrayal, and the unexpected thrill of first love. How can they repair their relationship, and is it even worth saving?

From debut author Rachel Lynn Solomon comes a luminous, heartbreaking tale of life, death, and the fragile bond between sisters.

My Review

After reading the heartbreaking and thought-provoking Inside the O'Briens, I went in search of more fiction that deals with Huntington’s disease.

This is the story of fraternal twin sisters Adina and Tovah, two teenagers who have gradually grown apart.

Can one enjoy a book and at the same time be glad it’s over? Perhaps I’m just too old to read about 18-year-olds with their volatile emotions, their self-centeredness, and their never-ending drama. Add to this boiling cauldron a mother with early symptoms of Huntington’s disease and the upheaval that results when both sisters decide to take the genetic test to determine if they have inherited the gene. One of the twins has it and one doesn’t. This story very thoughtfully explores what it means to live with the possibility of inheriting a rare genetic disease and watching that disease slowly take the life of a parent as well as the survivor guilt experienced by the one who manages to escape this fate.

There are pros and cons to predictive testing. On the positive side is an increased ability to plan for the future and a life without worry or uncertainty about getting this disease. On the negative side, receiving a positive result is likely to be emotionally devastating to the individual. In Adina’s case, she experiences anger, despair, suicidal thoughts, and engages in self-destructive behavior. All of this makes it difficult to like her at times, but the author has done a wonderful job creating well-rounded characters that are easy to empathize with. While the sisters are both extremely competitive and share many of the same problems plaguing teenagers their age, it was good to have both of their perspectives, as their personalities, beliefs, and attitudes are very different. Another good thing is the presence of loving parents. So often, parents are absent or insignificant characters in fiction for young people.

While I was exhausted by the time I reached the story’s conclusion, I can’t deny that this debut was beautifully written, engaging, thoughtful, and convincing. I very much look forward to more of Rachel Lynn Solomon’s novels.

“The fear is never far away. My broken heel reminds me the disease could sneak up on me at any moment. One day I will twitch when I want to be still, rage when I want to be happy, forget when I want to remember. It has happened to my mother, and it will happen to me. We are a doomed family – but we are not done fighting yet.”

Inside the O'Briens

Lisa Genova
Gallery Books
Reviewed by Nancy
4 out of 5 stars

Summary

Joe O’Brien is a forty-four-year-old police officer from the Irish Catholic neighborhood of Charlestown, Massachusetts. A devoted husband, proud father of four children in their twenties, and respected officer, Joe begins experiencing bouts of disorganized thinking, uncharacteristic temper outbursts, and strange, involuntary movements. He initially attributes these episodes to the stress of his job, but as these symptoms worsen, he agrees to see a neurologist and is handed a diagnosis that will change his and his family’s lives forever: Huntington’s Disease.

Huntington’s is a lethal neurodegenerative disease with no treatment and no cure. Each of Joe’s four children has a 50 percent chance of inheriting their father’s disease, and a simple blood test can reveal their genetic fate. While watching her potential future in her father’s escalating symptoms, twenty-one-year-old daughter Katie struggles with the questions this test imposes on her young adult life. Does she want to know? What if she’s gene positive? Can she live with the constant anxiety of not knowing?

As Joe’s symptoms worsen and he’s eventually stripped of his badge and more, Joe struggles to maintain hope and a sense of purpose, while Katie and her siblings must find the courage to either live a life “at risk” or learn their fate.

My Review

Alice Wexler’s brilliant scientific memoir, Mapping Fate, made me want to further explore the horror that is Huntington’s disease, so I decided to check out Lisa Genova’s fictional account of a Boston-area family who is affected.

Joe O’Brien, a Charlestown police officer, finally agrees to see a neurologist when his symptoms begin to affect his job performance. Not only does his diagnosis change his life, it also affects the lives of his wife, Rosie, and their four children, who have a 50% chance of inheriting this incurable and crippling disease.

While this story explores the disease and its devastating impact on Joe, it also, through the perspectives of his children, explores what it means to live a life at risk.

I loved getting to know the O’Brien’s, with all their quirks and flaws. I would have liked some deeper insight into the family’s relationships, particularly between the two sisters, Katie and Megan, and Joe’s relationship with his own sister, who moved across the country. I wanted to know more about what it was like for them growing up with a sick mother and not understanding what was wrong.

It must be difficult to watch a parent deteriorate from a disease knowing that there is a 50% chance a child may or may not get it. Though predictive testing is available for those at risk for Huntington’s, results from testing can have a major impact on every aspect of one’s life and the decision must be thought through carefully.

Lisa Genova does a wonderful job portraying the human, personal side of Huntington’s disease and the difficulties surrounding the decision to be tested. This is not the best fiction I’ve ever read. The prose, while not dazzling, is light, functional and accessible. I cared deeply about the O’Brien’s and appreciate the author’s efforts to raise awareness about this rare neurogenetic disorder while avoiding excessive sentimentality and melodrama.

I very much look forward to her other novels.

A New Celtic Legend

In the Region of the Summer Stars by Stephen R. Lawhead
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

(I received an audiobook version of this courtesy of Macmillan in exchange for an honest review.)

Historical fiction writer Stephen R. Lawhead has been on my radar for a little while now, so when I was offered a copy of his latest, I jumped at the chance to read it!

If you like all things Celtic, In the Region of the Summer Stars is the book for you! Druids, faeries, war chiefs, oh my! I made an extensive study of the Celtics years ago and really enjoy learning about their culture, so this book rolls all over my wheelhouse.

Fast-paced action moves an exciting story that feels like a legend. At a Welsh tribal clan gathering, questions arise over what to do about invading Dane vikings. A hot-blooded young prince of a sort is confused by a lack of concern that an potent enemy upon their doorstep is not being taken more seriously and he goes off to investigate.

Part action, part mystery and a whole heaping helping of history go into In the Region of the Summer Stars. Lawhead has clearly put in tons of research. He layers on the details, occasionally bogging down a scene here and there, but perpetually building depth within his world to a degree reminiscent of Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth. History buffs should enjoy this, while fantasy fans will find the druids and Lawhead's version of faeries earthily intriguing.

The always excellent John Lee was the perfect choice to narrate this. His deep timbre lends gravitas to the story and further strengthens its legendary qualities. The publisher has uploaded a sample from the book on Soundcloud. So, if you're interested in seeing if the narrator works for you or whatever, here's the clip: https://soundcloud.com/macaudio-2/in-...



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The rhythm of crime writing

Mortal Stakes by Robert B. Parker
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Parker was really starting to get into a rhythm with these Spenser stories. You can see the character coming to life. Everything feels more natural and at ease.

The triangle of deceit he created in Mortal Stakes is not diabolically ingenious, but it suits. Spenser is shown sorting out the clues he gathers and going through a methodical process to get to the bottom of it all. I thought perhaps Parker took a shortcut to the main baddies rather too quickly. It was almost like Spenser was drawn to them for no apparent reason other than getting the show on the road.

Extra points for this one due to the inclusion of the Boston Red Sox, my favorite team. Hell, the major reason I started reading these was because they take place in my home city (well, I lived 45 minutes outside of it, but it's still "my city" in a way.) Anytime a writer wants to use Fenway Pahk as a setting is wicked pissah with me!

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The Power Walking Dead

Rise of the Governor by Robert Kirkman
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Realizing there wasn't enough horror in my reading world and being a fan of The Walking Dead tv show, I figured a book based on the backstory of one of the franchise's most notorious characters was a safe bet for some good reading. I was correct!

Rise of the Governor is wall-to-wall anus-puckering tension and heart-thumping action. The author's workman-like prose powers the story forward at an almost non-stop pace (jesus there's a lot of dashes going on here!) from beginning to end.

And what an end! I was legitimately bamboozled by a nice twist the author added. It was necessary to my overall enjoyment. I mean, it would've been a dang good book without it, but with it Rise of the Governor is elevated a notch or two in my overall estimation.

A powerful start to the Governor's saga!

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Superb Steam!

Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fantastic fun! Packed with Wodehousian humor!

Whip-smart author Gail Carriger kicks off a diabolically clever girl's school espionage series in style!

Whereas Austen prodded the society she was associated with, Etiquette & Espionage pokes fun at the Regency, early Victorian and Industrial Age manners and dress in a way that brands it with a slap on the ass!...a loving one though. It's clear that Carriger has an affinity for the period.

Set in a steampunk world, the book is all gussied up in the sort of lavish detail that evokes a magical world. The addition of supernatural creatures and the fantastical school makes one leap to make Harry Potter parallels, but actually the overall tone of this is more like Jonathan Stroud's wonderful Bartimaeus triology.

Clever, funny, and flat out fun!



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An Admirable Western

The Quick and the Dead by Louis L'Amour
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Shakespeare this ain't, but boy howdy The Quick and the Dead is a damn good time!

Yeah, dialogue is often stilted and the character of Con Vallian sometimes comes off as a deus ex machina kind of guardian angel. However, there's still a lot to like here, such as some of the characters' development as the book progresses. A strong female is always a pleasant addition to westerns. The story's pacing is good with a solid amount of action, balanced with timely introspection.

For such a short book, Louis L'Amour manages to pack in plenty of punch. Recommended for western fans!



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Smiley's People

Smiley's People by John le Carré
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Smiley comes out of retirement was his people come under attack in this aptly named conclusion to the Karla trilogy.

This is fantastic stuff! Taut tension, high stakes, personal vendettas...ah, it's all wonderful. The characterizations and conversations are finessed with an admirable subtly. The Cold War settings descriptions put you in the middle of these depressingly drab locations. John le Carré is on fire in Smiley's People!

It's far more cerebral cold war spy novel than say Fleming's stuff. This means more talk, less action. That's going to bore some readers. It almost bored off this reader, but I held in there and, man, the payoff... Tremendous!

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The Razor's Edge

The Razor's Edge by W. Somerset Maugham
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm giving this five stars. I don't know if it's exactly perfect, but I liked a bit better than Maugham's other most famous works which I highly enjoyed, Of Human Bondage and The Painted Veil, so that's saying something!

Looking at it, The Razor's Edge appears to be a sort of family saga. Maugham places himself into the center of the story, the author of some repute who gets invited into society for being the interesting, up-and-coming artist of the day. This gives him the opportunity to peek into the lives of the family members and relay the details to the reader.

The actual central figure is Larry Darrell, a WWI pilot suffering from PTSD. Larry turns away from society life to seek the meaning of his own life. This afford Maugham the opportunity to Herman Hesse-up his book with transcendentalism.

Actually, that was probably the whole point of The Razor's Edge. The family saga is a mere backdrop. However, I liked and appreciated Maugham's couching his religious pondering in a story. You might even call it a parable, for Larry is a very Jesus like figure, a loving and caring man who seems to be able to perform miracles amongst the sinful masses.

This may not be five stars for everyone, but I'll freely recommend it to everyone.

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A Honeymoon Gone Wrong

Deadly Honeymoon by Lawrence Block
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

After being attacked by some underworld thugs, instead of a rolling over and playing the victim, a couple decides to get revenge on their attackers.

This was originally one of Donald Westlake's (aka Richard Stark) ideas, which his friend Lawrence Block asked to use since Westlake didn't think he would ever have the time to get around to it. As Richard Stark, he was busy pumping out volumes in his Parker series. Block took the idea and ran with it. Without realizing it, his course veered somewhat from Westlake's original idea, so by the time he was done, he had completed his own book, one that would not have existed without his personal touch.

The story itself is solid. The execution is decent. Since Block's career spans from the '50s to today, this late '60s book could be called an early work. As such it suffers somewhat. Block's easy, flowing style wouldn't really click into place until the '70s. So Deadly Honeymoon feels a little stiff in places. Generally it's not bad, but for instance, towards the beginning the narrative skips an emotional beat and that threw me off for a while. I needed the closure of a certain reaction from one of the two main characters that I didn't get and didn't set right with me. It took a while for me to get over it and except that it just wasn't going to happen. Eventually though, the thrilling tale that is this book took over and I could enjoy it to its satisfying conclusion.




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Another Cornwell Victory In His Sharpe Saga!

Sharpe's Havoc by Bernard Cornwell
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



It's been a while since I've read one of Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe books. I read most of the series some years back, but there are still one or two left that I haven't gotten around to. The series would make more sense if it were read in chronological order, because Cornwell set these books to run throughout the entirety of the Napoleonic Wars from start to finish.

However, he was also smart enough to make each book a solid stand-alone read. You can pick up any throughout the series and you won't necessarily feel lost. That's not because he loads you down with all the backstory in each book. He doesn't. The fact is, you don't need backstory to enjoy these. They're action/adventure good-time books, like romance novels for those who prefer guns over roses.

And yet, having said that, there is always a romance element. Our hero is forever saving some damsel in distress and then often getting her out of dis dress. I don't know how many ridiculously beautiful, young and ditzy English dames were flouncing about Europe in the middle of that war, but I think Sharpe found them all.

Aside from the well-described action scenes, one of the draws for me has been Cornwell's excellent eye for history. He adds some colorful period details, yes, but I mean adding actual history to his fictional series. It provides the characters and their actions gravitas. Sharpe's Havoc is set in Portugal when Wellington took over and the British were working with the Portuguese to toss the French out of the country. This was the beginning of the turning of the tide in the fight against the little dictator...or the perfectly average-sized dictator, I should say if I'm being historically accurate.

I chalk this one up as another victory for Cornwell. Solid plot, adequately evil baddies, the rough and ready Lt Sharpe's in good form and all is well in the world!

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A Showdown With An Archenemy

Sharpe's Enemy by Bernard Cornwell
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It felt good to get back in the saddle with rifleman Richard Sharpe! Sharpe's Enemy was one of author Bernard Cornwell's original books in the series. Written in the mid-80s it has all the rough and raw qualities I've come to know and love about these books!

Number fifteen balances the personal with the professional. We get plenty of fighting, Sharpe's expertise, and we get a bit of his fumbling family affairs, where he doesn't shine. Sharpe's long-standing feud with his personal nemesis comes to a head in a satisfying way. Victory and tragedy strike our tough hero and Cornwell deftly handles both.

Cornwell is great at weaving history into his fiction. Here is beats it like a blacksmith into the shape he desires. While some of the details are true to real life - there were deserters fitting the description described herein - Cornwell fudged some of the other details in order to place his main character at the center of the action. That's a-okay with me. I'm not reading these books for their historical exactitude. I just appreciate all the effort the author did make in getting the historical details correct. If you like reading fiction set during the Napoleonic Wars, you've come to the right place!

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A Rootin' Tootin' Rough and Ready Shoot 'Em Up Western

Brimstone by Robert B. Parker
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My god, the testosterone just oozes off the pages of these Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch books!

The plot of #3 gets a tad more philosophical as the story dabbles with religion more than the previous two, but that doesn't make this book anymore "deep". It's still about being macho and shooting the bejesus out of a lot of cowboys, ranch hands, and whoever else strays towards the gray side in the white vs black/good guy vs bad guy scheme of things. Get drunk and mouth off? That's a shootin'. Piss off Cole and Hitch? That's a shootin'. Shoot somebody? Oh that's definitely a shootin'!

While this one is perhaps more nuanced than others, I wasn't digging quite as much as the first two. I don't know why. Perhaps the subject matter. Parker had to paint some characters particularly annoying in order for the reader to be okay with them dying. Problem is, I already find that character trait annoying anyhow, so I got an AA dose of annoying. Having said that, Brimstone's perfectly fine and I'll move on to #4. That however will be the last of the Cole/Hitch books for me, because Parker died in media res and other author took over. I'm not interested in that nonsense, so it'll be time for me to mosey...

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A Fine Finish

Blue-Eyed Devil by Robert B. Parker
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A perfectly fine finish to Parker's portion of his Cole & Hitch western series.

This one finds the pair back in Appaloosa working as hired hands for a saloon that doesn't get the protection it needs from the local sheriff. This sheriff has aspirations well beyond this podunk town and there'll be trouble for anyone that gets in his way. Cole and Hitch get in his way.

I really wish Parker hadn't knocked off in the middle of this series or at least was around longer in order to write more. I mean, these aren't the best books ever written, but they're quick, enjoyable reads. This one included.

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Rumpole Keeps on Ticking!

Rumpole Rests His Case by John Mortimer
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Rumpole is getting up there in years (it's seems like in every Rumpole book the poor old blighter is "getting up there in years") and the overall tone of this book makes you think perhaps it's time for him to hang up his wig. But what the hey, how about a few more cases?!

Rumpole Rests His Case treads upon familiar plots and characters, so much so that I was half way through and sure I'd read this one before I realized it was just that I recognized the stories from the tv version, and yes, most of the storylines play out like most all of John Mortimer's enjoyable books about the ethical humanitarian lawyer Horace Rumpole.

The short stories that make up this volume -at least the first half of them- do not seem as cohesive as other Rumpoles I've read. The theme thread does surface by the end though.

What's most interesting about this one, to me at any rate, is that it was written later in Mortimer's writing career, so Rumpole is faced with some new technology, such as "The Internet". It's interesting, because Rumpole is an old dude -an old lovable dude- but old one nonetheless and set in his ways. I find charm in his cantankerous ways, especially his repulsion to most new things. He's a great chap who will go to the wall for a defendant wrongly accused, but he is a grump. I probably like it because it makes me feel a little less curmudgeonly than I am.

Rumpole Rests His Case does not gather together the best of Mortimer's work, imo, but it is a serviceably good read that should bring a bit of joy to fans.

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God Help The Child

God Help the Child by Toni Morrison
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Giving a Toni Morrison book only 3 stars seems ridiculous in light of some of the 4 and 5 star ratings I've doled out. What I'm saying is, Morrison can write the pants off of most writers. Whether you like her stuff/style or not, it must be admitted that the woman can string together one word after another in a very pleasing manner.

Having said that, God Help the Child did not enthrall me as others of hers have. I'm not 100% sure why. There could be a number reasons, here are some of them:

There weren't too many characters in this one that I particularly liked. Most were repulsive in some way shape or form, at least the main characters, of which there are nearly a half dozen. It's not that Morrison did a poor job creating them, it's that she did too good a job and by chance I'm not a fan of who these people are.

Another issue might be that I prefer Morrison's stories when they're set in the past. This one was her most modern setting yet, out of the books of hers that I've read. I love when she sets the scenes of days past. She does it so well and her style meshes with bygone eras like peanut butter and chocolate.

The subject matter here -child molestation- is particularly hard reading. The characters may be fictional, but that doesn't lessen the kick-to-the-gut feeling you get every time the narrative focuses on the subject.

All in all, it's a tough read. Certainly not bad, just tough for the aforementioned reasons.

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Adventure and Politics in the Far East of the Early 19th Century

The Thirteen-Gun Salute by Patrick O'Brian
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Out of all of O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin series up to this point, The Thirtheen-Gun Salute gets further away from the sea battles and life aboard ship to really delve into the interior of a new and exciting frontier (in the eyes of the characters as set in a pre-"Planet Earth" world) and paints a not-always-pretty picture of diplomacy in the Far East as it was some 200 years ago. O'Brian describes Maturin's romp into the countryside in such flowing and absorbing detail that it reads as vividly as watching any of those fancy nature programs David Attenborough makes.

There are no naval battles in this, the thirteenth episode of the saga. I mention it because that is such a big draw for many who read these kinds of books. However, this is Patrick O'Brian we're talking about, so all the rest that makes up this book is well worth the reading, because the reading makes you feel as if you're living it. You get the sense of an early 19th century voyage around the globe. You feel the tension of a diplomatic mission that may sway the war one way or another in this part of the world. You climb the 1000 steps to the ancient Buddhist temple where it shouldn't be on an island in Muslim Malaysia, and there you connect on a personal level with an orangutan. It's all amazingly detailed.

But action? No, this one's not filled with action. That being said, our courageous hero Captain Aubrey is still busy. He has a ship to run while contending with an envoy whose inflating sense of self may threaten everything.

Intelligence agent, naturalist and ship's surgeon Dr. Maturin takes center stage for much of The Thirteen-Gun Salute. It is a part of his character arc that culminates in a satisfactory, if somewhat devious, finish of a storyline that has been going on and on for book after previous book.

This is a gorgeous and subtle piece of fiction that can be enjoyed by fans beyond the action/adventure genre that one would assume it is. If you're new to the series, perhaps don't start with this book, but otherwise, this is highly recommended!

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May We Shed These Human Bodies

Amber Sparks
Curbside Splendor Publishing, Inc.
Reviewed by Nancy
2 out of 5 stars

Summary

May We Shed These Human Bodies peers through vast spaces and skies with the world's most powerful telescope to find humanity: wild and bright and hard as diamonds. A whole sideshow's worth of heartbreaking oddballs and freaks.

Amber Sparks is a Washington DC based author whose work has been widely published. She's one of today's freshest literary fiction voices, drawing on fables and mythologies as inspiration for her fiction that explores the human yearning for understanding and uniquely captures her generation's struggle with today's hyper-techno-crazed world. This is her debut story collection.

My Review

This strange, experimental, imaginative collection is full of brilliant ideas and explores serious issues, but I felt many of the stories were a little too clever, wispy and insubstantial as air. I like the combination of magic realism, fantasy and horror and the variety of stories. There was enough weirdness and bizarre situations to capture my interest, and my enjoyment of stories by Aimee Bender and Kelly Link drew me to this collection. Unfortunately, the character development was lacking and I felt no connection to anyone. I’m sad these stories are already starting to slip away.

Austen is good even when she's bad

The Watsons by Jane Austen
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Two stars seems pretty low, especially for an Austen, but this is an unfinished work after all, and as such it's actually quite good!

The problem is that the unfinished part seems mostly to be the plot. The Watsons meanders along quite aimlessly. A pretty girl goes to a ball. There is an unsuitable but nice young man there who all the ladies adore but who is not marriage material. There's an old man about to die, so his meager fortunate will probably be past on to his bevy of women (There's always an old man with a trunkload of women to look after in Austen's books), and there is a bit of controversy between said women, mostly regarding matrimonial affairs. It's all very ho-hum and in need of a tension injection.

Austen had gotten quite a few words on paper before this was left unfinished. Too many words without any discernible direction. It made me wonder why she would progress in such a manner. Why write all this with no clue what the plot will be? Maybe she hoped it would come along eventually and she good go back and wedge it in there.

Regardless, this is still a pleasure to read for its Austen-esque style. You can see all the set pieces in place and her usual characters are taking shape. I enjoyed just letting the words flow over me as she create her scenes. Beautiful stuff.

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Welsh Myth Reimagined in Fantasy

The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Book of Three is one of those classic fantasy novels you see on "Top ___" lists and the shelves of used bookshops with a fantasy section of any redeeming value. However, it doesn't rank up there with the best of the bunch and you don't hear people raving about it. I needed to find out what was up with this little book and so I did.

It's a fun, mostly-light fantasy adventure about a headstrong boy who wants to live life, not wallow in the wake of a blacksmith or spend his days as an assistant pig keeper. He gets more than his wish in a fast-paced, action-packed journey that pits him and his new friends in a battle with the land's greatest evil.

The Book of Three is indeed fun, as well as interesting for its take on Welsh myth. It is however a little more silly than I care for these days. It treads too much on gags, like a toady's repetitive speech pattern and a bard's truth-detecting instrument that breaks a string whenever he lies. He must break nearly ten strings throughout this book and such a short book is just not long enough to sustain that kind of repetition. One last quibble, the only female figure in the book is annoying. Everything that comes out of her mouth sounds like "I told you so!" and that sucks.

Right now I'm up in the air about continuing on with the Chronicles of Prydain series, but I've wanted to read this book for as long as I can remember and I'm glad I did.

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