Thor: The Viking God of Thunder

author: Graeme Davis

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.00

book published: 2013

rating: 4

read at: 2013/10/31

date added: 2013/10/31

shelves: non-fiction

review:

This is a really good overview and introduction to all things Thor. From where the original stories and poems can be found to adaptations of the major stories, to how the god of thunder has lasted all these years. It's a quick read, but packed with detail and great illustrations.



The Thor stories that have survived show how he got his hammer. How he is really strong. How he is constantly vexed by his half-brother Loki. And how he likes to fight giants. Actually, Thor loves to fight giants, and he's really good at it. Besides being a heroic figure, there are comic stories where Thor is humiliated or has to dress up like a bride to try to recover his hammer. The name of Thor is featured in place names and used to name powerful things like rockets. The hammer of Thor has survived as a symbol also.



It's all interesting and there is a short bibliography. Thor's current role in comics and movies is included and shows that a lot of the myth elements have made it into the modern era. I'm not sure I'd want to read translations of the poetry about Thor, so this was just my speed.



I was provided this galley for review by Osprey Publishing and Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Thank you for allowing me to review this.





via Wayne's bookshelf: read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/632632756?utm_medium=api&utm_source=rss

Innovation Prowess: Leadership Strategies for Accelerating Growth

author: George S. Day

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.33

book published: 2013

rating: 3

read at: 2013/10/28

date added: 2013/10/28

shelves:

review:

Innovation Prowess is a short read that offers a lot of wisdom. The book is aimed at corporate executives who want to drive innovation within their organizations, not necessarily as a guide



For the sake of corporate strategy, the book is divided into 4 distinct chapters, which set expectations, expand growth opportunities, help to converge on the best opportunities and apply innovation for growth. Chapter 2 offers 14 growth pathways in what they call Full-Spectrum Innovation that was particularly great. It balances innovation between ideas being a customer value proposition and how that fits into corporate profitability. The book also makes a distinct line between what it calls big-i innovation and small-i innovation and asks questions about corporate risk. What is change worth? What gets lost?



There are plenty of illustrations and charts. George S. Day has written a brief, accessible book that corporate executives considering innovation should read.



I received this as a review copy from Wharton Digital Press and Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Thank you for the opportunity to review this book.





via Wayne's bookshelf: read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/583800504?utm_medium=api&utm_source=rss

Sacrifice

author: Sam Humphries

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.00

book published: 2012

rating: 3

read at: 2013/10/28

date added: 2013/10/28

shelves:

review:

Innovation Prowess is a short read that offers a lot of wisdom. The book is aimed at corporate executives who want to drive innovation within their organizations, not necessarily as a guide



For the sake of corporate strategy, the book is divided into 4 distinct chapters, which set expectations, expand growth opportunities, help to converge on the best opportunities and apply innovation for growth. Chapter 2 offers 14 growth pathways in what they call Full-Spectrum Innovation that was particularly great. It balances innovation between ideas being a customer value proposition and how that fits into corporate profitability. The book also makes a distinct line between what it calls big-i innovation and small-i innovation and asks questions about corporate risk. What is change worth? What gets lost?



There are plenty of illustrations and charts. George S. Day has written a brief, accessible book that corporate executives considering innovation should read.



I received this as a review copy from Wharton Digital Press and Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Thank you for the opportunity to review this book.





via Wayne's bookshelf: read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/750990358?utm_medium=api&utm_source=rss

Classic Space: 1999 - To Everything That Was: Selected Remastered Works

author: Andrew E.C. Gaska

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.14

book published: 2013

rating: 4

read at: 2013/10/27

date added: 2013/10/27

shelves: graphic-novels

review:

A huge volume of remastered comics from the late 1970s about the TV series Space 1999. The stories in this collection happen between season 1 and season 2. I confess to not being the biggest fan of the series at the time it was on. I was young and it didn't ever grab me like Battlestar Galactica did. Based on these comics, I think I need to revisit the series as there is a depth there that I seem to have missed.



Remastered does not mean the same thing as reprinted, so that means these appear to have been largely rewritten. Not having as much familiarity with the source comics, this didn't bother me as much as it might some folks. The setup is a moonbase on Earth's moon is stranded in space when the moon breaks away from the earth. They spend their time trying to find a habitable planet that can be their new home. Along the way, they run into strange beings and circumstances that help and hinder their search. The stories are quite dense and wordy and it took me a while to wade through this 300+ page graphic novel. That's certainly not a complaint as I really liked the stories. The story arcs are also set up as separate "episodes" and grouped together behind gorgeous full color art.



While the characters definitely have a late 1970s look about them (and look like the characters from the show), the stories are dense and very much in the space opera vein that I like quite a lot. Characters die and change and this feels different than episodic Sci-fi. Recommended for SF fans who like stories about lost travellers looking for a home.



I received this as a review copy from Archaia Entertainment, LLC and Netgalley in return for an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity to review this title!







via Wayne's bookshelf: read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/656835557?utm_medium=api&utm_source=rss

The Weight of Souls

author: Bryony Pearce

name: Wayne

average rating: 3.84

book published: 2013

rating: 3

read at: 2013/10/23

date added: 2013/10/23

shelves: young-adult

review:

The Weight of Souls brings a bunch of different elements together, and they somehow worked for me. You have an Asian protagonist with an ancient Egyptian curse on her. She is bullied, and manages to alienate her best friend along the way. There's the obligatory missing parent, and the perceived indifferent one that is left behind. And to top it off, she not only sees ghosts, but has to help them out against her will. That's a lot, and in other hands it might have been too much, but it worked really well here.



Taylor Oh is a sympathetic heroine who is pretty roughed up by life. Her mother's side of the family messed with an Egyptian tomb and got stuck with a curse. Taylor can see ghosts. They touch her and pass along a mark. She has to find the murderer of the ghostly one and pass off the mark before The Darkness takes her instead. And then there are all the social issues at school. The popular kids bully her at every opportunity and make her life miserable.



When one of the popular kids ends up a ghost and enlists Taylor to find out who the killer is, she is reluctantly pulled into a strange club they have and forced to do some pretty scary and brave things. She might even find a friend along the way.



It's a stand alone, but does end with some story fragments left dangling at the end. Taylor Oh is a likeable character, and so are some of the other characters in the book. I enjoyed it and would definitely read more by this author.



I received this as an ARC from Angry Robot/Strange Chemistry and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Angry Robot/Strange Chemistry.





via Wayne's bookshelf: read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/638804414?utm_medium=api&utm_source=rss

Wonder Woman, Vol. 3: Iron

author: Brian Azzarello

name: Wayne

average rating: 4.10

book published: 2013

rating: 3

read at: 2013/10/22

date added: 2013/10/22

shelves: graphic-novels

review:

Wonder Woman, Vol. 3: Iron collects 7 issues from the series into a larger story arc. Issue #0 is included here and it's a sort of origin story from Wonder Woman's past when she was about 13, and it is reminiscent of some of the classic original stories.



In the rest of the volume, Dianna has to save a baby that she may be related to, while battling and tentatively trusting other members of her family. This is a new attempt to bring Wonder Woman back into Greek mythology. We learn that Zeus is her father. Along the way, she is helped by Orion, from the New Gods. He is a welcome addition to this book, because while he has his own motives, they are clear and not hidden (like the rest of Dianna's family).



This is a strong Wonder Woman as she should be, but there are kind of a confusing amount of characters for new readers. Granted, this is Volume 3, so readers should take note. I enjoyed it, but confess to liking the initial story in the graphic novel much more than the rest of it.



I received this review copy from D.C. Comics and Netgalley in return for an honest review. Thank you D.C. Comics and Netgalley.





via Wayne's bookshelf: read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/689548239?utm_medium=api&utm_source=rss

After the End: Recent Apocalypses

author: Paula Guran

name: Wayne

average rating: 3.83

book published: 2013

rating: 4

read at: 2013/10/21

date added: 2013/10/21

shelves:

review:

After The End is a collection of 20 short stories about people surviving shortly after a world ending event. There are plagues, bombs, strange medical strains, global warming and much that is unknown or unexplained. These are stories about people hunkering down to wait it out, or travelling to find a haven, or sitting down to watch the world slowly die. All of the world ending scenarios are stories of the possible. I can't recall any story featuring zombies, or other supernatural creatures, which makes this book more thought provoking. We have the means to our destruction, at least the destruction in these stories, already at hand for the most part.



I think dystopian stories have always spoken to me because they deal so much with what makes us human. If all we think we are or own gets stripped away, are we human or animal? There is a little of both in these stories. Whether it's people living in an abandoned amusement park, or travelling in caravans, or alone on a seaside cliff, we see hope and hopelessness. Kindness and savagery in these stories.



There are some amazing writers in this collection and every story is unique and chosen well for this book. My personal favorite is about a group of young survivors who find a library and can't believe the wealth they find on it's shelves.





via Wayne's bookshelf: read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/606226917?utm_medium=api&utm_source=rss