Landscapes

The Digital SLR Expert:  Landscapes /Tom Mackie, William Neill, David Noton, Darwin Wiggett, and Tony Worobiec, Cincinnati: David and Charles, 2008 (144 p.)

This is the fourth photography book that I have reviewed as part of the Missouri Book Challenge.  When I read the introduction my initial thought was “Finally, a book by Canon shooters,” since the other three books were by Nikon shooters.  I also thought that this book should be a fairly quick read since it was only 144 pages and about 2/3 of the book was taken up by photographs.

I was somewhat disappointed on both counts.  First, once I had read the introductory materials, there was little reference to photography gear other than in the technical notes accompanying each of the photos.  Second, while the material presented in the book was fairly complete, each set of two-three pages addressed an individual topic or technique and there was little or no segue between these groupings.  As a result, I found it difficult to read more than five or six pages at any one sitting.  This was further complicated by the extremely small font used throughout the book (younger readers may not find this problematic but my eyes just aren’t what they used to be J).

While I found the overall body of the book difficult to follow, there were small hint blocks scattered throughout the text which many will find helpful.  The book itself is divided into five chapters with one chapter written by each of the authors so you do get different perspectives as you move from chapter to chapter but it might have been more useful had the views of two authors been shared in each of the chapters.

Many of the sections include tips on how to use PhotoShop.  The unfortunate thing is that because the book was published in 2008 these techniques are geared toward PhotoShop 3.  The same techniques are possible in PhotoShop CS5, and presumably in 4, it may take some searching to locate the specific tools or techniques referenced.

After struggling through this book, I would probably give it 2½ to 3 stars of 5.  It is definitely not a book for a beginning landscape photographer.

Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy / John le Carré. New York: Alred A. Knopf, 1974 (p. 355)

"Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy by John le Carré is an inaction-packed suspense novel about a high-level mole in British intelligence and one man's mission to uncover the traitor and take him down.

The heart of the novel is more about the men in control of British intelligence during this period. The men who were "trained to empire, trained to rule the waves," but found it "all gone. All taken away." That's the interesting part of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. How did England adapt to its new place in the world? What was the realization like for the English as they saw their power diminish?"

Read the entire review here.

D. C. Dead

D. C. Dead/Stuart Woods, New York:  Putnam Adult, 2011 (304 p.)

I finished this book in mid-January but have held off writing a review because of really mixed feelings about the book.  In my mind this is not one of Stuart Woods’ stronger works but still it does have some good points.

D. C. Dead is identified as part of the Stone Barrington series written by Woods but it could just as easily have fit in one or two of his other series.  While Barrington, a New York attorney, and his best friend, Detective Lieutenant Dino Bacchetti, appear throughout the book their roles at time seem almost minor.  They are simply included but aren’t making a strong contribution to the story line.  With this in mind, hard core Woods fans may find the book somewhat disappointing.  On the other hand, for the casual reader this book is an easy, quick read requiring minimal investment.

As a mystery, I found the book less appealing.  First, the story line seemed highly implausible.  With access to a wide variety of law enforcement and other government agencies it seems unlikely that the President would call in a New York attorney and detective to investigate a murder at the White House.  Second, unlike some of Woods’ other mysteries, I had identified the killer by the time I was about half way through the book.  My only reason for continuing to read was that I had not determined the motive.

A minor problem for me with all of the Stone Barrington series is a personal perception that I developed the first time I was introduced to Detective Bacchetti.  For whatever reason, I immediately identified him with Paul Guilfoyle (Detective Jim Brass on the television series C.S.I).  With this in mind, I often find other scenarios less plausible.

Unlike some other reviewers, I’m not ready to give up on Woods and Stone Barrington – at least not yet.  But I really hope that future volumes will return to the stronger writing seen in both the Stone Barrington series and the Holli Barker series.

The Rope

The Rope /Nevada Barr, New York: Minotaur Books, 2012 (357 p.)

By my count this is the seventeenth book in Barr’s Anna Pigeon series.  For some, this should have been the first book since it introduces the reader to how and why Anna Pigeon came to work for the National Park Service and decided to become a full-time park ranger.

Like most of Barr’s books, The Rope combines mystery with the beauty of our National Parks and those who have travelled to the parks where the stories are based will recognize both the geography and many of the specific locations that Barr includes.  In this book, Anna has abandoned her life in New York City and moved to the Glen Canyon/Lake Powell area where she is serving as a part-time summer worker.  While initially living in a shell of self-imposed seclusion, after her life is threatened Anna is forced to become more open and develop friendships with those who will help find the culprits.

I have enjoyed most of the Barr books that I have read, including this one but I agree with others who have indicated that this book is a bit dark when compared with others in the Anna Pigeon series.  It seems like Barr must be going through a change in her writing style because the other recent work of hers that I’ve read, 13 ½ was extremely dark.  Hopefully Barr will move back to the more traditional story lines if she continues with the Anna Pigeon series.

Even though the book is a bit lengthy and dark, I would still recommend it, particularly to those who have followed Anna Pigeon’s National Park Service work at other parks around the U. S.

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die / Chip and Dan Heath. New York: Random House, 2007 (p. 323)

"How do ideas stick in our minds? What is it about those ideas that makes them so hard to shake? In Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, Chip and Dan Heath answer these questions and more in a way that's entertaining and easy to understand.

In the introduction the Heath brothers lay out the keys to making ideas stick. Ideas need to be simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional, and contain a story. Each chapter that follows focuses on one of those topics."

Read the complete review at my blog.

Reamde by Neal Stephenson

Reamde  / Neal Stephenson.  William Morrow Press, 2011. (1056 p.)

CALL #   PS3569.T445 R43 2011

It’s been close to a decade since I’ve read a Neal Stephenson novel, so when I picked up Reamde I expected something tech-heavy, gritty, and decidedly cerebral. What I found was still recognizable as a Stephenson novel – it’s smart and moves between the virtual and ‘real’ worlds much like Snow Crash—but with characters complex and interesting enough to engage the reader for just over a thousand pages. The fast paced narrative winds together an uber-wealthy video game designer (and former drug mule), teenage Chinese hackers, an M16 operative, a Welsh-born Muslim-convert terrorist, and, among others, an East African refugee adopted by a gun-loving anti-government family in Idaho. Where many writers of stories as long as this one get mired in detail, Stephenson’s newest novel is engaging enough that I lugged it around with me rather than forego the chance to read a few extra pages here and there. The ability to make such a madcap adventure nearly credible is the mark of a master author.



Middlesex / Jeffrey Eugenides. New York: Picador, 2007 (544 p.)

"Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides reminds me of a gilded mirror with intricate details swirled along the frame. The novel is a mixture of family history, coming of age, and gender identity. The mirror metaphor works, because the narrator, Callie/Cal Stephanides, spends so much time exploring who s/he is. That's a difficult enough question for most teenagers and adults, but how does that question change when a person's body seems to mislead them? While the narrator focuses on their identity, the novel suffers at times by diverging into the past and getting lost in details. It's obvious Eugenides loves language, but it comes at a cost in terms of rhythm and pace."

If you'd like to read the complete review, please visit my blog.