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Powell's Staff:
Five Book Friday: In Memoriam
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Every year, the booksellers at Powell’s submit their Top Fives: their five favorite books that were released in 2023. It’s a list that, when put together, shows just how varied and interesting the book tastes of Powell’s booksellers are. I highly recommend digging into the recommendations — we would never lead you astray — but today...
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Brontez Purnell:
Powell’s Q&A: Brontez Purnell, author of ‘Ten Bridges I’ve Burnt’
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Rachael P.:
Starter Pack: Where to Begin with Ursula K. Le Guin
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Customer Comments
rebelaessedai has commented on (4) products
New Rules: Polite Musings from a Timid Observer
by
Bill Maher
rebelaessedai
, November 09, 2008
There’s not much to say about Bill. You kinda either like him or you don’t. His way of speaking with such bluntness has always captivated me. There were several LOL moments when I read this. And I have to say I enjoyed it more than Colbert’s book. It’s rare that a comedian can make me laugh while reading. 9.5/10
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Last Hawk Skolian Empire 03
by
Catherine Asaro
rebelaessedai
, November 02, 2008
It’s been awhile since I’ve picked up anything by Asaro, and now I’m wondering why that’s the case. I’m still reeling from finishing this book. I read it in less than a day, and I’m not the world’s quickest reader. I like to soak. Well, that was impossible this time. The Last Hawk is another installment in Asaro’s Skolian Empire series. It’s the story of Kelric, one of the three heirs to the Imperialate throne. He crashes on a relatively unknown world- Coba- where the ISC is an unwanted presence. He is taken as captive, but his strange mix of allure and otherness make him irresistible to the forces of government on Coba- women managers who run their estates with various styles and with ever-changing politics. Thrust into the midst of Coba’s wargame, Kelric becomes a catalyst to the inevitable struggle between factions, and is himself torn apart in the process. At first only wanting to return to his own, he finds himself changed by the game, and by his unexpected discovery of love. Can he save Coba from the destruction his presence has brought? Will he desert them for his own homeland? A terrifying struggle to endure, yet through it, Kelric shows why he is a true hero. He might just render you captivated to his charms, too. 10/10.
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City of Pearl: Wess'har Wars 1
by
Karen Traviss
rebelaessedai
, November 01, 2008
City of Pearl has been on my wish list for awhile now. Since I've been finding it difficult to get into books lately, I decided to pick it up and give it a try. I was not disappointed. This year I seem to be reading a lot of alien contact books, and I think Traviss has done the best in that particular sub-genre so far. It's difficult to imagine what other species in the universe might be like, and even harder to make them real to us as readers. I mean, think about it. You have to be able to relate to the characters you're reading about in some way, but with alien contact novels you also have to be able to make them fundamentally different from us, at least enough that it seems they've evolved somewhere other than Earth. Which brings me to Aras, one of the main characters of the novel. Aras is the guardian of Bezer'ej, a world inhabited by underwater creatures who are extremely sensitive to biological changes in their environment. Aras is the destroyer of a colony of isenj, another alien race that polluted the planet, killing the bezeri. Aras is host to a bug that renders him immortal, a dangerous boon to any population of enterprising individuals. And you guessed it... here come the humans to complicate things. Luckily, the first group to show up believe as the wess'har- Aras' race, sans immortality- do. They don't believe in harming the landscape, and they try to use everything to its maximum capacity. One thing I found interesting with this group was that they are a Christian group, very fundamentalist, but in many ways they uphold the teachings of Christ. I seem to rarely find positive views on religion in science fiction. I think perhaps that by getting back to nature, away from technology and corruption, they are able to live peacefully in their small colony. Perhaps their synergy as a group is also related to their fight to survive and the need to work together. But another spaceship lands, this time with Marines and scientists, inevitably on a mission to make a buck. True human form, no? Desperate to avoid the need to wipe out the humans as he did the isenj, Aras has to find a way to protect the planet while keeping the peace, not to mention the land, intact. He also has to keep his secret from the humans. And war is about to strike, alliances made and perhaps lost along with lives. The story unfolds with Aras and the leader of the scientific mission, Shan, developing a believable alien-human relationship, one they may all come to unknowingly rely upon. Aras has a plausible reason for feeling so close to humankind- one that also keeps him away from his own kind as an anomaly. His own journey, though, leads him to heartache the humankind cannot even touch, for all that they are human emotions as well. And Shan has her own hands full trying to maintain scientists whose intellectual curiosity might lead the to the mission's ultimate destruction. City of Pearl is both a philosophical novel full of hope and an exploration of character. It's one of the first times I have discovered that one of the main characters- a strong female lead- is mostly unlikeable and yet oddly sympathetic. Those are always the best characters, the ones who are flawed but who draw you in nonetheless. Although I find it a bit preachy in places- veganism and earth preservation being main themes of the book- it is overall a story about issues near and dear to me: loneliness, empathy, and the strength of the human heart. A strong 9/10.
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Wraeththu Enchantments Of Flesh & Spirit
by
Storm Constantine
rebelaessedai
, October 27, 2008
Storm Constantine proves herself as the best gothic fantasy writer out there with Wraeththu, the story of an evolved human race trying to find their place in the world. Growing pains abound, as society as well as individual characters struggle with what they have become. Amidst it all is the love of two characters that knows no bounds, flawed as it is. I recommend it to anyone who believes in love and its ability to transcend all.
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