Eoin Colfer is best known for his bestselling Artemis Fowl series, which inspires fanatical devotion in its fans. Entertainment Weekly raved: "The...
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I admit, I am not a murder mystery reader by habit. This was a desperation read over a vacation weekend. However... this book was terrible. I am horrified to learn that M.C. Beaton is, in fact, a woman, and therefore guilty of writing such demeaning prose about her own gender.
The mystery itself is unremarkable... not bad, not exceedingly clever, and entirely too many convenient events leading to it's resolution. The deplorable plot line surrounding our intrepid Agatha, however, cannot be ignored. She's an awful woman. She's rude, incredibly selfish, obsessed with her looks and her "shapely legs", has horrible judgment, and only manages to "solve" the crime by eventually bumbling about so much she angers all involved enough to force an eruption.
Please don't waste your time on this book when there are so many better out there.
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(3 of 6 readers found this comment helpful)
I wish I could say I loved it, because the plot (God has died, fallen into the sea, and needs to be towed to the Arctic for burial in an iceberg) is awesome, but instead it just gets a strong "Like" instead. Once the crazy liberal plot to hide the proof got cooked up, I kind of lost interest.
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(3 of 5 readers found this comment helpful)
Have to tell you a story ... I told my boss the theme of the book, and how I loved that the main character's name was "Hiro Protaganist", and he laughed and said he's never heard of Neal Stephenson. He poked fun at me for reading no-name "scifi" writers and said I was probably the only person in 20 blocks who even knew who Stephenson was. We were on our way to coffee, and when we walked in I turned to the people ahead of us in line and said "Have you heard of Neal Stephenson?", to which they responded "Of course! He's great! Have you read Snow Crash?". So there.
Also, the book is great. :)
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(9 of 18 readers found this comment helpful)
What I like about Murakami is that although his stories come from left field, he is kind to his characters; he never seems to feel he needs to make them jerks or unlovable just because his story is unusual (DeLillo and Palahnuik come to mind...). I don't even know what to say about the Sheep Boy, but if you liked other Murakami, you'd like this one, as well.
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(4 of 13 readers found this comment helpful)
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Customer Comments
Arboreality has commented on (8) products.
Ishmael by Daniel Quinn
Arboreality, July 29, 2008
To say that this book changed my life is not at all too strong a sentiment. EVERYONE should read this book. Possibly more than once.(6 of 12 readers found this comment helpful)
Agatha Raisin and the Fairies of Fryfam (Agatha Raisin Mysteries) by M C Beaton
Arboreality, August 12, 2007
I admit, I am not a murder mystery reader by habit. This was a desperation read over a vacation weekend. However... this book was terrible. I am horrified to learn that M.C. Beaton is, in fact, a woman, and therefore guilty of writing such demeaning prose about her own gender.The mystery itself is unremarkable... not bad, not exceedingly clever, and entirely too many convenient events leading to it's resolution. The deplorable plot line surrounding our intrepid Agatha, however, cannot be ignored. She's an awful woman. She's rude, incredibly selfish, obsessed with her looks and her "shapely legs", has horrible judgment, and only manages to "solve" the crime by eventually bumbling about so much she angers all involved enough to force an eruption.
Please don't waste your time on this book when there are so many better out there.
(3 of 6 readers found this comment helpful)
Towing Jehovah by James Morrow
Arboreality, July 17, 2007
I wish I could say I loved it, because the plot (God has died, fallen into the sea, and needs to be towed to the Arctic for burial in an iceberg) is awesome, but instead it just gets a strong "Like" instead. Once the crazy liberal plot to hide the proof got cooked up, I kind of lost interest.(3 of 5 readers found this comment helpful)
Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson
Arboreality, July 17, 2007
Have to tell you a story ... I told my boss the theme of the book, and how I loved that the main character's name was "Hiro Protaganist", and he laughed and said he's never heard of Neal Stephenson. He poked fun at me for reading no-name "scifi" writers and said I was probably the only person in 20 blocks who even knew who Stephenson was. We were on our way to coffee, and when we walked in I turned to the people ahead of us in line and said "Have you heard of Neal Stephenson?", to which they responded "Of course! He's great! Have you read Snow Crash?". So there.Also, the book is great. :)
(9 of 18 readers found this comment helpful)
A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami
Arboreality, July 17, 2007
What I like about Murakami is that although his stories come from left field, he is kind to his characters; he never seems to feel he needs to make them jerks or unlovable just because his story is unusual (DeLillo and Palahnuik come to mind...). I don't even know what to say about the Sheep Boy, but if you liked other Murakami, you'd like this one, as well.(4 of 13 readers found this comment helpful)
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