What If We Were Somewhere Else

author: Wendy J. Fox
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.64
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2021/10/31
date added: 2021/10/31
shelves:
review:
'What If We Were Somewhere Else' by Wendy J. Fox is a book of linked short stories exploring our deep need to want more with our lives if we could only figure out what.

This book follows the lives of a handful of people who work together in an office as they struggle with layoffs, divorces, personal dissatisfaction and other issues. Each character feels individual and unique and the level of detail is almost uncomfortably intimate with the level of frankness. The loneliness and isolation are stark and yet, we face many of the same struggles. We work with people and form bonds, but do we really know them?

There are some interesting surprises along the way as characters show up intertwined in other stories and viewpoints shift. There is even a jump to the not too distant future. The author's writing style here is in top form and the prose kept me turning pages to read more.

I received a review ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review. Thank you very much for allowing me to review this book.


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Nottingham

author: David Hazan
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2021/10/24
date added: 2021/10/24
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Nottingham' by David Hazan with art by Shane Connery Volk is a dark take on the Robin Hood legend.

There is a serial killer in Nottingham killing the rich and robbing them. The killer wears a scary mask full of teeth. The Sheriff of Nottingham is narrowing down suspects, and the path leads to familiar characters we know from folklore.

As a fan of the Robin Hood legend, I enjoyed this bloody take on it, and I think the unique, angular art really helped contribute to it. The art is angular and caricatured and I really liked the character design.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Mad Cave Studios, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.


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The Living Word: Inner Land - A Guide Into the Heart of the Gospel, Volume 5

author: Eberhard Arnold
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2021/10/24
date added: 2021/10/24
shelves: non-fiction
review:
'The Living Word: Inner Land - A Guide into the Heart of theh Gospel, Vol. 5' by Eberhard Arnold is based on writings that were packed in metal boxes and buried to keep them from the Nazis.

First publishd in 1936, this 5 part series has a different focus in every book. This book talks about how the Bible is the living word of God, but not of itself. Anyone can read the Bible, but without the Holy Spirit, it lacks the ability to produce righteousness and other Godly qualities.

I liked what this book had to say. The uninspired reading of the Bible and misquoting it have led to reliogisty and worse. I enjoyed this journey to the Inner Land.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Plough Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.


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Terra Nullius

author: Claire G. Coleman
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2017
rating: 2
read at: 2021/10/22
date added: 2021/10/22
shelves: sword-and-laser
review:
'Terra Nullius' by Claire G. Coleman was the October book club book pick for my book club.

Taking place in Australia, the book is about a young man named Jacky who has escaped a residential school in Australia and is being hunted down to be brought back. This feels like a standard story of indigenous people and the colonizers who only see them as lesser or animals. It is that and a bit more as the scope of the book changes about the 1/3 mark.

I liked the story by the end, but it was hard for me to get in to the story and it felt overly long to make its points. I liked the story and characters though.


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Super Chill: A Year of Living Anxiously

author: Adam Ellis
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2018
rating: 3
read at: 2021/10/22
date added: 2021/10/22
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Super Chill: A Year of Living Anxiously' by Adam Ellis is a book of comics about a man obsessed with crystals and Bed, Bath & Beyond coupons.

The comics here deal with depression, self-esteem and justifying eating bad things. That makes them sound not very funny, but they are. The comics feel somewhat personal in nature and that gives them a level of authenticity.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Andrews McMeel Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.


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The Girl, The Shovel, and the Evil Eye Vol. 1

author: Chouchouhasshi
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.85
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2021/10/22
date added: 2021/10/22
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'The Girl, the Shovel, and the Evil Eye' by Chouchouhasshi with illustrations by Kayatamaru is a manga which depicts the afterlife as a type of roleplaying adventure.

When Tsuguto Sumihara dies in a bus accident, he wakes up in a mine where desperate miners try to find odd gems. He finds an ally in a young sheep-girl with a shovel and learns he is tagless, or has no stats. Before long, he is trying to find gems to survive and fighting monsters to try and level up.

I liked this strange story of dying and waking up as a D&D character. The main characters are fun as is the art.

I received a review copy of this manga from Kodansha Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this manga.


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Teen Titans: Beast Boy Loves Raven

author: Kami Garcia
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2021/10/19
date added: 2021/10/19
shelves: graphic-novels, young-adult
review:
'Teen Titans: Beast Boy Loves Raven' by Kami Garcia with art by Gabriel Picolo is a graphic novel telling a version of how these two characters met.

Raven Roth and Garfield Logan both get called to a strange city to meet a man named Slade Wilson. They both have secrets to hide and when they meet, they don't even know they are in town to meet the same person. What follows is a story of two teens discovering who they are.

This was a pretty great story. Kami Garcia has a good feel for these characters so the story feels right. The art by Gabriel Picolo is just a joy to look at.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from DC Entertainment and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.


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