Jumper

by Chris on May 25, 2009

Jumper

By Stephen Gould

This book presents the story of a boy who discovers that he can teleport himself to anywhere in the world. That in itself is a pretty amazing thing to consider. He is faced with a few limitations. For example he can only teleport or “jump” to places that he has been and can clearly remember.

The story that evolves around his new found ability is pretty interesting and actually quite believable because it is surrounding a person with potentially normal problems, with only a few unfortunate but believable ones added to the story.

Overall the story predictably escalates, to some rather less predictable sequences of events. I enjoyed the story because the main character isn’t a superhero that everything goes well for and he acts as I hope I may act in a similar situation.

Besides the primary antagonists in the story who are agents of the NSA he also seeks throughout the story to find a way to reconnect with his abusive father and deal the the death of his mother who is killed by terrorists while trying to build a healthy relationship with his girlfriend all while dealing with being able to teleport to anywhere in the world.

The story is dynamic and a great read.  It is pretty interesting if you like mild science fiction set in believable settings. It is a bit older and written to take place in a pre 9-11 society (though aspects of this story deal with issues of terrorism that are almost insightful to our world today).

There is a movie made on the premise of this book, but the story is almost totally different. It is okay, but at times is weird.

The movie and the book are both 3 out of 5 stars.

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1776

by Chris on May 18, 2009

1776

by David Mccullough

1776 is a wonderful book that looks closely at the events surrounding that fateful year that was so important in the formation of the United States of America. The writer is really a great narrator of events and does an amazing job of considering all applicable accounts and presenting the story from all the participants perspectives.

The book covers primarily the wars and maneuvers of the opposing army’s but also includes important information and involvement that the continental congress had.

One of my favorite parts of the book is that it also considers very closely the primary characters that played a part in the military actions and their personal ideas and characteristics. This helped to paint an even more illuminating picture of the events that occurred during this years time.

This book actually covers about 18 months of time, primarily to give important background information leading up to the main events of 1776 and a few major events that occurred in the first few weeks of 1778.

Overall I liked this book. It really clearly illustrates how many times the war was almost won and lost by both sides.

The book is a great piece of work about the revolution of the United States of America. If you want to learn more about this era, then this is a must read. It gets a 4 out of 5.

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Last Place on Earth

May 18, 2009

Last Place on Earth (National Geographic) (v. 1&2)
Michael Nichols and Mike Fay
This book is a photo book by Nichols, an accomplished National Geographic Photographer, and a journal of writings by Fay that documents a year long journey through the Congo Jungles to document the natural diversity present in an area almost untouched by man.
The book [...]

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Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

May 11, 2009

Benjamin Franklin: An American Life
By Walter Isaacson
This biography by Isaacson is quite impressive. It explores a wondrous American life that all Americans owe something to. Franklin played an extensive part in the formation of our country and how it is today. He was the only person present at the signing and creation of all our [...]

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The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

May 11, 2009

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
This autobiography is one of the best books I have read in a while. It blends a great record of an amazing life into a wonderful self help book. Taking the contents of this book…

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Household Repairs

March 16, 2009

Household Repairs
By Cindy A. Christiansen
A Romantic Comedy
Following up her first novel Legacy of Lies, Household Repairs is a Romantic Comedy that is a great piece of work by the up and coming author Cindy A. Christiansen. Household Repairs follows two characters, Tatum Stewart and Ryan Bulldarren, through a comedic and increasingly romantic chain of events [...]

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Fablehaven

August 6, 2008

Fablehaven By Brandon Mull
This is yet another Magic book. Yes. Well this one is pretty good, compared to others it lives up to expectations. Reading this book had me laughing and interested for most of the book. This is pretty good for a kids book being read by an adult. [...]

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Into the Wild

August 6, 2008

Into the Wild
By Jon Krakauer
This is a tale of a young man and his search for his own self and how it ended in his tragic death.
This book follows Chris as he journeys through America experiencing life and trying to discover what is out there for him. If pieces together the little known path [...]

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The Pearl

August 6, 2008

The Pearl
by John Steinbeck
This is a really short book compared to others. It is also a parable meant to help the reader understand how things could affect their own life if they came into it.
The story follows a fisherman and the changes that come into his simple life as he finds a pearl that [...]

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The Eye of the World

July 31, 2008

The Eye of the World
By Robert Jordan
This book published by Tor Books came out back in 1990, so it is really an older book.  This book however is definitely a classic book in the realm of Fantasy writing.  Not the first of its kind but definitely one of the more famous establishments in the realm.
This [...]

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